Email tunes have had a bad reputation in the past, due to some tuners providing them "as is" without customizing them for your particular vehicle. In reality, customized email tunes, as we provide them, are of the same caliber as "dyno tunes". In fact, many times they are much more complete than a dyno tune. This is because some dyno tuners are often rushed and concentrate solely on the hp numbers, without investing the time required to optimize the drivability of the tune.
At Trick Tuners we want your high performance car to run like as smooth as it did when it was stock, but with the added power when you mash the gas. We concentrate on issues such as start up, part throttle transitions, idle quality, and general smooth operation, as well as WOT (wide open throttle) tuning.
Would an email tune work well for me?
Email tunes are not for everyone. They take much longer than dyno tunes due to the delay between, receiving a tune, sending me the data, and me sending you a new tune. I try and send out tunes right away during the week, but sometimes I may be too busy. I always try and make sure all the tunes are sent out buy Saturday morning. If you want your tune done in a day, please find a local dyno tuner.
Email tunes require the customer to be moderately computer savvy. You should have previous experience loading software, trouble shooting software issues, configuring drivers, and general windows operations. If not, you will be better off with a dyno tune.
Email tunes rely on the customers car having no mechanical issues. Normally we can spot the issues after reviewing the data and point you in the right direction. If you have mechanical issues we will help you solve them, but you should be mechanically inclined with a decent set of tools and general knowledge of engine operation and components. Operations such as swapping the fuel injectors or COPs may be necessary for trouble shooting certain issues. Typically mechanical issues are rare on stock to mildly modified cars (see below), and are more common on cars with power adders. If your car is already acting "funny" and you are not mechanically inclined then take it to your local speed shop.
If you are the kind of person who installed you own supercharger, has had the car on jack stands a few times, have a decent set of tools, consider yourself computer savvy, and want a tune with great drivability then email tunes will work great for you.
Email Dyno Tunes
We can also provide "email dyno tunes" if you have a local dyno, but not a quality tuner, we can dial your car in on the street with normal driving. Once the calibration is close I can send you multiple tunes and instructions on the dyno tuning process. This is the best option because we can achieve peak hp and you get a dyno print out. If you do not have access to a dyno, don't worry, or email tunes are typically within about 5% of peak power. Also that 5% is a margin of safety to account for bad gas, etc. If you are tuned for "peak" power you are right on the edge and must keep a careful watch on your motors vital signs.
Mildly Modified
Stock to mildly modified consists of the following. No blowers, turbos, or nitrous. Head work and cams may fall into this section, but high compression with heads and cams will be "heavily modified". These cars generally do not require wideband data or much datalogging, and can be customized to account for variations in cold air intakes and MAFs with some minor datalogging. All that is needed is an SCT Flash tuner for datalogging and flashing the tune to the ECU (car's computer), and a windows computer (W2K and XP work best, but Vista and 7 usually work fine) with internet and email. It helps to have a version of MS Excel too. If you do not have a laptop you may be able to use the on device datalogging. This method is much more complicated and recommended for advanced computer users only! If you have any error messages please contact SCT directly. See here for info on using the on device logging.
Heavily Modified
We stress that wideband air fuel data is required for tuning all vehicles with major modifications (boost, nitrous, etc) and we will not tune high performance combos without wideband data. Beware of any tuners that will attempt to email tune your high performance combo without wideband data. Its just not safe! It would seem that the same exact car, with the same exact mods, would take the same exact tune, but that it not always the case due to production tolerances, maf orientation, etc.
The Tuning Process
Email tunes are done exactly the same way as dyno tunes, except all the testing is done by the customer while datalogging and keeping an eye on the AF gauge. Typically the first tuning session will be done in the driveway in neutral. Depending on how the data looks, this process may be repeated, or a final tune may be emailed out. When the data looks good, some datalogging of WOT runs at the local race track will be necessary. The WOT part of tuning involves a 3rd gear pull from 2000rpms to near redline. The data files are then emailed to Trick Tuners and we customize the tune to match your data. We use timing values from previous experience to get you within about 5% of max power in order to maintain reliability and longevity of your motor. If you want a 'bleeding edge' tune for MAX power, we can provide those as well, as long as you understand the risk of detonation.
Email tunes for high performance combos are usually accomplished in 2-7 datalogging sessions, but occasionally more will be necessary to dial in any specific issues. Usually after the first datalogging session your car will be safe to drive around on while staying out of heavy throttle applications until the tune is finished. Safety is our number one goal!
Gears
Intake
Plenum
Throttle body (restrictions apply on 05 and newer cars. Please contact us before purchasing)
Headers including long tubes
Torque converters
exhaust systems
Cold air intakes (only one change is included for free, additional CAI changes are $40 ea)
Engine Swaps
Maf changes, or intake system re-routing. One change is allowed for free if there are drivability issues with the current system, including switching to blow thru. Blow thru is typically a better option for centri blowers, but you must use a slot style maf, and consult us with the equipment you plan on using. If you do not follow our recommendation, and buy some ebay crap, there will be an additional $100 fee. This is not to make you purchase from me (but we can beat most prices), but to save you from buying parts that will not improve your issue. Your best bet is to consult us on your build plans and we can advise you potential untune-able issues before you start buying parts.
Information on email tunes and free retunes for life!
Threaded Mode