New to Tuning

[jb0322]

Hi all my name is james and i just purchased the pro tuning package to start tuning for myself. I just wanted to know where everyone starts off learning to tune i have been reading many threads learning all the language and what does what. I just wanted to ask where i should start off with tuning my truck. i know a good bit of information but by no means do i know tuning. The truck as it sits now is a 5.3 with cam/stall/gears. i know i have to learn the tool first before i jump into it but wanted to know where to start off such as tuning the VE table or where is a good spot to start messing with paramaters. thanks for the help really looking forward to learning how to tune and i know many people on here can help out.

[NCRoy]

James, you're not alone. I'm new to this field and trying to understand what's been done to my high performance autos over the years that I was previously baffled by. Best of luck,
Roy

[DrLoch]

It will involve a lot of reading... To start, read the stickies. Do you have a wideband yet?

[jb0322]

No I don't have a wide band planned on tuning it with what I have now until I go boosted

[charcoal03silvy]

There's nothing wrong with tuning a stock/bolt on truck (even cam/stall) without a wideband, just using the o2's and trims. Do a google search for the BBA tuning guide. Its a pretty basic write-up on gen3 VE and MAF tuning.

[MMGT1]

If you have headers on that truck I would seriously advise against using the narrow to tune anything to do with fuel. You should start by reading this:
http://www.hptuners.com/forum/showth...9805#post69805
But, there are a lot of things you can do in the meantime! You have a bunch of reading and sleepless nights ahead just figuring out tuning of the transmission. My advise would be to start there. Hit the transmission stickies, get to know how the tables work together, how your shifts are governed by shift time, speed and pressures. Look for posts by "Bluecat" using the sites search function to get you going there. He's put together some beautiful tuning aids for transmission tuning. Having your truck stalled and geared, this is where you are going to feel the biggest difference in your ride anyway!
Back to my comment about you tuning with a wideband, those links there will give you detailed info about how a narrow works compared to wideband and why WOT tuning is not recommended at all with one. In your case, a cammed engine, that is going to filter down to you tuning the normal cruising range as well. A cam will cause a lot of airflow over a narrow band sensor, badly skewing the results its going to give you and make it a useless tool to tune with. I myself say that if a vehicle is stock then yes, tune the non-pe ranges of the tables. There are many that will disagree with me even on that point. Narrow bands are very accurate at stoich and can do a good job of tuning non-pe but there is a flaw that needs to be brought up here.
A narrow band gets its range from oscillating above and below stoich by a variable percentage. If the % that it swings is equal in both directions the PCM will say that the engine is being fueled to a stoich value. So, as you can see, it will get you close, but by no means accurate enough to say the engine is "tuned". Since what you have there is going to require a wideband to tune the WOT anyway, just get that transmission going and shifting the way you like, hit ballangermotorsports.com and get yourself a NTK-AFX Wideband. There are many personal preferences as to which wideband to use, but I have had mine for years now and think it is the cats ass! Very easy to use, is predefined for you already in the EIO section of your scanner, and is a very accurate unit for the enthusiast tuner. Bang for the buck, I don't think you can beat it.
Something I would like to add about the forum here... I have now spoken to so many people that have the HP Program that come in here and are completely overwhelmed by the amount of information and the knowledge of some of the professional tuners that frequent this site. Their "lingo" can be enough to make you want to put your face through the screen of your computer at times as they can get pretty technical using terms and functions that require an engineering degree to follow, shit you not. I want you to not be shy, post when yo have questions, and don't take anything said to the negative side too seriously. I have said a few times it can be quite intimidating to come in here and ask questions about tuning along the way. Don't fall into that trap. Don't be someone that buys this thing then allows it to sit and collect dust for the next two years because it was just too much to get into. The info is her for any of you guys. Sometimes that info can be hard to find as there is so bloody much if it. Post up, ask the stupid questions, there are a lot of really great people here that will be more than willing to help you get on your way to a great experience with the HP Program, even if it is just a link to a thread, or giving you shit for forgetting to read the stickies...lol Those stickies are there for a reason though, do your best to read through them and when you have questions about the information, post up your question/s! All the guys here ask is, when you do, make sure you attach a copy of the tune on the truck, a real list of the mods done, and a log of that tune "in action". Don't just say the truck has a cam and stalled, let them know, "I have a LS2 MAF or Im SD with a TSP 228/236 cam with Trick Flow p/p heads, PAC Beehive valve springs good for 650 lift, 411 gears, 1/3/4" long tube headers.. etc..." Don't hold back knowledge, the more they know, the more they are willing to help. That's the best advise I think I can give for a beginner getting into this bud.... Good luck and happy tuning!!

[s57_s2k]

get a wideband and read read read . there are many tuning books , manuals , DVDs. and also you have this forum which contain a lot of information .

[charcoal03silvy]

MMGT is right, you cannot rely on the narrowbands for WOT tuning. However, I wouldn't hesitate to make changes to the VE and MAF based on narrowband readings in non PE areas. I have done this multiple times while having a wideband on the vehicle as well, just to see how well the stock narrowbands were doing. Narrowbands said I was within +-4% with MAF enabled and wideband showed around +-5%. While not "perfect" its "good enough" especially if you're learning and will be trying different things. Wish I still had those old experiment logs and files.

A wideband is definitely the way to go and is the proper way of doing it. For learning purposes, the narrowbands are fine. Don't make any crazy adjustments, just start small and see what the adjustments do. Again, this is all part throttle and idle situation, not PE.

[jb0322]

Thanks guys I appreciate it I'm really interested in learning this program I'm currently in mechanical engineering for school and this gives me something to do that I'm interested in. I currenly have a 5.3 with a 224/230, . 609/610 lift on a 111. Also have a 3600 stall with 4.11 gears. Just wanted to ask if I should log the truck and post a file on here to see wat people suggest to fool with first. I definitely want to dial in the VE table and MAF tables first and then go into the transmission because there's a lot of little things that's bother me with the truck that I jus want to be able to fix finally myself

[MMGT1]

Bookmark this page and read, read, read this is your starting point.... as you go through these, ask away on where you need help!

http://www.hptuners.com/forum/showth...o-and-how-to-s