DIY Tuning! What are the advantages or cons of HP Tuners or SCT?

[mlabrot]

Looking to start tuning myself. Have researched a lot and nothing outlines the differences between the two other than handheld devices. Is one better than the other or pros cons of each? One better for boost vs NA? Anything is helpful if you’ve used both. I have a background in EVO X tuning with both Cobb and open source. Thanks. Also is it worth the trouble to learn or just get a pro tune.

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[18 Smoke]

I don’t tune myself, but a friend of mine does. He used to use SCT and now uses HP Tuners. He said SCT is outdated and limits access for drivability calibrations. I know PBD won’t tune a FI setup with SCT and I don’t believe Lund will either. I used SCT with my NA setup and was happy. Now it’s FI with PBD Ngauge. There’s got to be a reason the top tuners use HP

 

[Notagain]

HPtuners has a gigantic forum and would seem easier to get help and find material for learning how to tune.

Check out this site too.

http://www.masterenginetuner.com/2015-mustang-ti-vct-p1.html

 

[mlabrot]

I don’t tune myself, but a friend of mine does. He used to use SCT and now uses HP Tuners. He said SCT is outdated and limits access for drivability calibrations. I know PBD won’t tune a FI setup with SCT and I don’t believe Lund will either. I used SCT with my NA setup and was happy. Now it’s FI with PBD Ngauge. There’s got to be a reason the top tuners use HP

That’s what I was curious about. Seems some shops prefer sct and others hp tuners. Just was wondering why and the pros and cons.

 

[v8hgt]

I think it’s the same as most IT things. Depends on what you are used to and which system you have bought into. Each will have their fan boys. Pro and con to each. Coming from a clean slate as you are, I would go HP tuners due to the better forum support and downloadable shared tunes.

 

[mlabrot]

I think it’s the same as most IT things. Depends on what you are used to and which system you have bought into. Each will have their fan boys. Pro and con to each. Coming from a clean slate as you are, I would go HP tuners due to the better forum support and downloadable shared tunes.

Thanks for the advice. That’s what I’m leaning toward as of now.

 

[ENPhoto]

I have been using HPT since.....2010.

I have found that the forums and support from Eric are unmatched.

Unless someone goes with a system like a Motec M150, HPT is top notch.

 

[mJolnir]

I have never worked with SCT, but the main advantage i see it having over HP tuners is that SCT is more remote tuner friendly, after that i find that the process of doing a custom tune is kind of cumbersome having to mod your program on pc then uploading it to the handheld and then to the car.

HP Tuners feels more DIY friendly with a great community to back you up.

i dont have a doubt that both tools can get the job done, i would personally recommend HP tuners as im biased

 

[mlabrot]

I have never worked with SCT, but the main advantage i see it having over HP tuners is that SCT is more remote tuner friendly, after that i find that the process of doing a custom tune is kind of cumbersome having to mod your program on pc then uploading it to the handheld and then to the car.

HP Tuners feels more DIY friendly with a great community to back you up.

i dont have a doubt that both tools can get the job done, i would personally recommend HP tuners as im biased

It seems most people who tune themselves recommend HP tuners. Any books or courses to get started? I’ve seen the tuner school, HP academy online, and LaSota. One better than the others or gets the job done. I’ve done EFI101 before and used to tune my EVO so I’m familiar but never messed with a ford.

 

[Volstang]

The Tuning School is the only one who teaches you how to specifically tune a Coyote or EcoBoost. They have a solid program but it isn’t perfect. They’re improving their documentation and support and the seminar you attend is done by Tony Gonyon and he is fantastic! I have really enjoyed learning from them.

 

[mlabrot]

The Tuning School is the only one who teaches you how to specifically tune a Coyote or EcoBoost. They have a solid program but it isn’t perfect. They’re improving their documentation and support and the seminar you attend is done by Tony Gonyon and he is fantastic! I have really enjoyed learning from them.

I’ve heard about them from a few people. How did you feel about it after the reading material?

 

[Nuked]

A lot of shops won't tune with HPtuners unless you have a NGauge because you can't lock the tune with out it, whereas SCT you can.

Go over on the HPtuners forums and READ READ READ, that is the best advice I can give. I too came from tuning Opensource (Evo/Subaru), and Cobb (subaru/focus st). Coyote is definitely the most challenging, 26 spark/fuel/ maps lots of limits to get around/play nice together etc. The Tri-Core is a very impressive ecu. The general tuning idea is basically the same, just have to familiarize yourself with the Ford Lingo/layout vs what your used to.

 

[Volstang]

I’ve heard about them from a few people. How did you feel about it after the reading material?

The Ford Beginner book for the Coyote engines is pretty good. They’ve added material for 2015+ to improve it but it isn’t perfect. Still not a bad book over all. The EcoBoost material is an online video series and you can watch the videos as many times as you want. They don’t have a book yet but that is supposed to be coming later this year. They really need the book to supplement the videos. They need to provide material for each type of EcoBoost engine or at least call out the differences. Overall it is pretty solid material. The EcoBoost is one of the most difficult to learn and not a great place to start. Another thing to point out is that there are different approaches to tuning and not everyone agrees on which way is best. Be open to everything and find what works for you.

 

[mlabrot]

All of this great information. I appreciate it. I want to tackle the coyote but it is definitely more difficult than than the EVO was.

 

[DarkestHour]

HPtuners.

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