diy tuning help

[5.openthrottle]

Hi all,
I’ve been trying to read around the forums for answers to my questions, but I can’t seem to find any. a close friend of mine has been tuning his own car recently (bmw 335i) and i have been curious about doing the same. the biggest problem though is that none of the apps and programs he is using are compatible with the mustang, and are bmw specific. i know that it is recommended to pay for a professional tune, but i am really interested in learning how to tune the car myself. it’s a 2018 mustang gt premium, i know that handheld tuning devices are a thing, but i don’t know if that is actually the best option. ideally said device would be able to also connect to a laptop (doesn’t have to be mac) and if it’s possible, my same friend has an app on his phone called xhp which also connects to the car and allows him to flash different tunes. i know that the mustang computer has the thing where it can only store 1 tune at a time, but regardless, i’m really curious to do this, and also to learn more about tuning the car, and cars in general

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[K4fxd]

There are 2 DIY tuning solutions for the Mustang HP tuners and PCMtec.

Pick one and ask some questions.

The HP tuners forum is full of tuning information but lots of dead end threads

Read anything and everything posted by Mark Murfy (SP?) and engineermike.

 

[5.openthrottle]

sorry, i hadn’t realized i could even get pcmtec, when i checked the website it said australia, also when i say any help i do mean redirection to other threads, if there is reading that i can do im happy to, so thank you, i’ll do a bunch more reading, im not against doing my own research, i guess i just hit a road block that i more than likely put there myself

 

[K4fxd]

Search for those names on HP tuners forum you will learn a lot or shake your head at how complicated Ford made this system.

If you do choose pcmtec the information from HP's forum transfers over.

they have a black friday sale right now multi tune for one vin with all needed credits for 600, normally 1k plus credits.

Look in the PCMtec thread for the sale.

 

[Rolls]

We have also re-introduced our introductory offer at $99 USD for the non Custom OS product.

 

[Juggernaut]

Like kfxd said, hptuners or pcmtec.
I prefer pcmtec (reminds me of efilive) but someone new might have issues since they dont have definitions for the tables. Would be nice if this forum had a tuning section for the self tuners.

Whatever you decide I definitely recommend datalogging a stock car and see what it going on.

 

[mejohn50]

I’d suggest starting off with PCMTEC, reading your car, and data logging it in stock form.

Get comfortable with the program, the data log parameters available to you, and the data you get from those logs. Data log it as much as possible, in many different driving scenarios. See what the different data logging parameters show you is happening with the car.

These cars are incredibly complex to tune. Not only is the cam control logic (HDFX/mapped points) complicated, there are hundreds (thousands?) of other parameters that you have to make sense of.

If you want to tune your own car, you will not have a fully tuned and done car in the first week. I’ve been working on mine for over two years with the help of an extremely knowledgeable individual, and I’m just now getting to a point where it’s feeling closer to “done”, but I know it’s nowhere near as “done” as it can be, so I keep working on it.

Tuning these cars is a learning process and it’s very rewarding if you stick with it and figure it out. If you want a tuned car by next week, just pay someone. If you want to know what’s really going on in the calibration, then buy a laptop, an OBDX Pro FT, and PCMTEC ProTuner and start data logging. Read everything you can on the various forums, and be prepared for a long road ahead.

If you want to be able to flash multiple tunes from your phone, find a tuner that uses the HP Tuners TDN app, get the flashing interface they recommend, and buy tunes from them.

If you want to be able to swap tunes on the fly, pay for the PCMTEC ProTuner with custom OS and learn to tune or find a tuner already using the PCMTEC custom OS and pay them for tunes.

 

[junits15]

I'm learning how to tune my car currently, and the advice I would give is to take your time. I started from zero, I hadn't ever tuned anything I didn't have the first clue about what I was even trying to accomplish. I just knew I wanted to make more power.

There is a lot going on, Mitch is 100% right it is very complex, but don't let that make you think you can't make sense of it. It is totally understandable given enough time. Pick one item at a time and learn as much as you can about it, eventually once you start to understand enough areas of the tune they will start to click together. Spending time reading datalogs is helpful. Get your logging setup the way you like it, get comfortable watching the engine operate through a log.

I vote for PCMtech I think they have a much better product with far better scalability and features. HPT is easier to approach as a new tuner, but PCMtech offers far better long term utility.

I think you're making a great choice, I don't regret getting into this at all. Just the peace of mind of from knowing what changes are in place is worth it all day for me.

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