Tune (what exactly does it do?)

[CobraG]

Okay, I ordered a Lund tune but I'm now having second thoughts. I bought my 2014 in May and have had zero issues with it. Now that I started ordering a tune it has turned into I need to change plugs and gap size too. Lund recommended "Please get some NGK TR7 Plugs with .028 Gap done to them."

So that makes me wonder, if the car has mods and is running great, do I really need a tune? What would a tune do?

 

[Norton]

Not sure I understand your question. Assuming the mods listed in your signature are correct, your car should already be tuned.

 

[1Kona_Venom]

Okay, I ordered a Lund tune but I'm now having second thoughts. I bought my 2014 in May and have had zero issues with it. Now that I started ordering a tune it has turned into I need to change plugs and gap size too. Lund recommended "Please get some NGK TR7 Plugs with .028 Gap done to them."

So that makes me wonder, if the car has mods and is running great, do I really need a tune? What would a tune do?

If you are not adding any go fast parts, Ie, smaller pulley, headers, GEARS, etc, why would you need a tune?

A tune verification is a good idea though if that's what your wanting to do.

 

[CobraG]

When I bought the car it had the mods listed in my signature block but it didn't come with a hand held so I don't know what tune/tunes were on it previously.
I thought I read somewhere that it's recommended to get a new tune in this situation to make sure everything is okay.
The car drives great though so I'm not sure I should have ordered the tune. But when he asked me about spark plugs that got me thinking, why did I order this.
As far as I know the tune hasn't been written so I'd like to just cancel my order before they send it. Not sure if that's possible.

 

[Norton]

The mods you have require a tune. Just because "the car drives great" does not mean it's tuned correctly or even safely. In your position, I'd minimize driving and stay out of boost until I consult a trusted tuner who can datalog the car to confirm it's tuned both correctly and safely. If a local one is not available, going with Lund, Venomous, VMP, etc is probably your best bet.

FWIW, NGK TR7-IX (3690) plugs, recommended by my tuner, are what I (and many others) run. With a stock pulley, you shouldn't exceed 15psi of boost, for which I'd gap them to 0.030". (The 0.028" gap recommended is more appropriate for a car boosting up to ~19psi.)

 

[1 Alibi 2]

Do you have a way to contact the previous owner ??
.

 

[CobraG]

Do you have a way to contact the previous owner ??
.

I've been in contact with the first owner. The second owner I haven't been able to track down, but I did FB stock him and asked a friend of his about the car. The friend said the second owner didn't do anything mod wise to the car. If that's true then what's in my signature block is what has been done.
The car runs great, it's very strong.

 

[CobraG]

The mods you have require a tune. Just because "the car drives great" does not mean it's tuned correctly or even safely. In your position, I'd minimize driving and stay out of boost until I consult a trusted tuner who can datalog the car to confirm it's tuned both correctly and safely. If a local one is not available, going with Lund, Venomous, VMP, etc is probably your best bet.

FWIW, NGK TR7-IX (3690) plugs, recommended by my tuner, are what I (and many others) run. With a stock pulley, you shouldn't exceed 15psi of boost, for which I'd gap them to 0.030". (The 0.028" gap recommended is more appropriate for a car boosting up to ~19psi.)

I know the car was tuned from the first owner. I'd go with Lund for a tuner, I've used them before and I still have my nGauge.
I've asked Lund what all is required for a tune so I can take care of anything needed before placing an order for a tune.
As far as I can tell it's still the stock pulley, I'm not sure how to verify that it is though.
Maybe I should wait for the tune until I actually mod the car with a go fast part. This is my dream car so I told myself I'd do everything right with it from day one. I baby it, keep it put up when it's not being driven, paint correction and ceramic coating. I thought a tune was next but if it's not needed I can put that money towards something else.

 

[1Kona_Venom]

What spark plugs does the car currently have?

 

[13COBRA]

This is one of the strangest threads I've seen.

 

[PC03GT]

I know the car was tuned from the first owner. I'd go with Lund for a tuner, I've used them before and I still have my nGauge.
I've asked Lund what all is required for a tune so I can take care of anything needed before placing an order for a tune.
As far as I can tell it's still the stock pulley, I'm not sure how to verify that it is though.
Maybe I should wait for the tune until I actually mod the car with a go fast part. This is my dream car so I told myself I'd do everything right with it from day one. I baby it, keep it put up when it's not being driven, paint correction and ceramic coating. I thought a tune was next but if it's not needed I can put that money towards something else.

A tune should of been the first thing on the list, to make sure the car is running properly. Your ass in the seat isn't going to tell you if it has the proper timing and AFR

 

[fearthesnake]

The mods you have require a tune. Just because "the car drives great" does not mean it's tuned correctly or even safely. In your position, I'd minimize driving and stay out of boost until I consult a trusted tuner who can datalog the car to confirm it's tuned both correctly and safely. If a local one is not available, going with Lund, Venomous, VMP, etc is probably your best bet.

FWIW, NGK TR7-IX (3690) plugs, recommended by my tuner, are what I (and many others) run. With a stock pulley, you shouldn't exceed 15psi of boost, for which I'd gap them to 0.030". (The 0.028" gap recommended is more appropriate for a car boosting up to ~19psi.)

This! The car will actually drive better with a tune by one of these expert-trusted tuners on these cars. You may not realize it in the seat, but it will and ensure that it's running properly (Air/Fuel) mixture.

 

[1Kona_Venom]

This! The car will actually drive better with a tune by one of these expert-trusted tuners on these cars. You may not realize it in the seat, but it will and ensure that it's running properly (Air/Fuel) mixture.

A tune should of been the first thing on the list, to make sure the car is running properly. Your ass in the seat isn't going to tell you if it has the proper timing and AFR

yes

 

[Norton]

Maybe I should wait for the tune until I actually mod the car with a go fast part. This is my dream car so I told myself I'd do everything right with it from day one. I baby it, keep it put up when it's not being driven, paint correction and ceramic coating. I thought a tune was next but if it's not needed I can put that money towards something else.

With all due respect, if you really want to do everything right with your dream car, there's no "maybe" about ensuring it's properly tuned before introducing any more variables (i.e., go fast parts) to the equation.

With a modded car, the tune should be your FIRST, rather than next, step. As others have said, getting AFR, timing, etc right is far more important than paint correction and ceramic coating. (This is coming from a guy with all four vehicles in my garage paint corrected and ceramic coated.)

 

[SVTdreamin04]

All the more reason to explain what a wideband is, why you need one and how to read it.

Buy a wideband O.P.


Sent from my iPhone using svtperformance.com

 

[HPLouis]

Can't he tell the Air/Fuel on the screen? I'm reading this thread and getting kind of confused. I know he can't tell the timing but he can tell the A/F ratio right on the screen and at least see if his A/F is safe.

 

[biminiLX]

Do you know how to datalog? If not I’d learn as Lund requires you to send them some datalogs during tuning. Sounds like the car is still running the tune from the first owner who modded it?
-J

 

[Norton]

Can't he tell the Air/Fuel on the screen? I'm reading this thread and getting kind of confused. I know he can't tell the timing but he can tell the A/F ratio right on the screen and at least see if his A/F is safe.

As I recall, the A/F reported by factory gauges is an estimated value, so not very accurate or trustworthy enough to validate a custom tune with aftermarket components.

 

[HPLouis]

As I recall, the A/F reported by factory gauges is an estimated value, so not very accurate or trustworthy enough to validate a custom tune with aftermarket components.

On my old car, I use an Innovate LC-2 to datalog with my X4 and it was dead on with the stock display.

I remember talking to Jim III at JDM because I wanted to add a wideband to my old GT500 and he said no need, and when he tuned Shelbys, the display was dead on too with his equipment. I know the Boost is inferred through the MAF so when you change the intake, that'll throw off the numbers but I was told that the stock widebands are pretty accurate, and I saw that too with my datalogs.

 

[BlckBox04]

what made you get in contact with Lund in the first place?