This is topic Who is doing tuning for our cobras these days? in forum General Talk at Northern California Ford Owners  .


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Posted by klonoa (Member # 1771) on :
 
Is that Jeff guy still in the business ?
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
I took over tuning for Jeff.
It seems these days we specialize in 03/04 Cobras...they are by far the most comon car we work on. We can take care of whatever you need done. From a simple tune, to building an all-out race setup.
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
 
Posted by 94gt (Member # 3060) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Hmmm... so it's really a scam? [Eek!] [Razz] just kidding! It sounds like it's better to wait for you to tune it rather than a guy that's gonna be booked solid trying to get through a bunch of terminators to tune it.
Have you gotten a chance to tweak a few cobra's whit the new SCT tuner?

[ February 28, 2007, 08:40 PM: Message edited by: 94gt ]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
We've either tuned, or built & tuned the fasted 03/04 Cobra's in Northern California.....so, yeah we know what it takes to make these things sing. Even the older SCT software gets the job done nicely....haven't had anybody interested in the Livewire yet.

We currently have 2 9 second projects in the build stages. & another project that'll hand those their ass.
As far as I know we're the only shop 100% dragstrip oriented. From design/building a motor, portwork, custom cams, custom engines, to full drag suspenssion, solid axle conversions, auto swaps, (of course tuning), to dailing the entire car in at the dragstrip. After all, all that drag race suspenssion is fully adjustable...it's gotta be dialed in correctly for max MPH. Full customer support at the strip. That's how we do things. It's more of a hobby than a buisness. & Draging our cars at the strip is what we love to do in our spare time.
 
Posted by 94gt (Member # 3060) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
We've either tuned, or built & tuned the fasted 03/04 Cobra's in Northern California.....so, yeah we know what it takes to make these things sing. Even the older SCT software gets the job done nicely....haven't had anybody interested in the Livewire yet.

We currently have 2 9 second projects in the build stages. & another project that'll hand those their ass.
As far as I know we're the only shop 100% dragstrip oriented. From design/building a motor, portwork, custom cams, custom engines, to full drag suspenssion, solid axle conversions, auto swaps, (of course tuning), to dailing the entire car in at the dragstrip. After all, all that drag race suspenssion is fully adjustable...it's gotta be dialed in correctly for max MPH. Full customer support at the strip. That's how we do things. It's more of a hobby than a buisness. & Draging our cars at the strip is what we love to do in our spare time.
Man, you should get permission from the owners of those project stangs and take some pics and then make a thread on here about it. It would be killer to see them "in progress" and your notes on them. Just an idea!

I'm currently saving a few pennies to get the livewire, if I get it before I move... you can expect a call from me! [patriot]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 94gt:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
We've either tuned, or built & tuned the fasted 03/04 Cobra's in Northern California.....so, yeah we know what it takes to make these things sing. Even the older SCT software gets the job done nicely....haven't had anybody interested in the Livewire yet.

We currently have 2 9 second projects in the build stages. & another project that'll hand those their ass.
As far as I know we're the only shop 100% dragstrip oriented. From design/building a motor, portwork, custom cams, custom engines, to full drag suspenssion, solid axle conversions, auto swaps, (of course tuning), to dailing the entire car in at the dragstrip. After all, all that drag race suspenssion is fully adjustable...it's gotta be dialed in correctly for max MPH. Full customer support at the strip. That's how we do things. It's more of a hobby than a buisness. & Draging our cars at the strip is what we love to do in our spare time.
Man, you should get permission from the owners of those project stangs and take some pics and then make a thread on here about it. It would be killer to see them "in progress" and your notes on them. Just an idea!

I'm currently saving a few pennies to get the livewire, if I get it before I move... you can expect a call from me! [patriot]
You're right...we should get pics posted up. I've got some & Chuck at the shop has a bunch of high quality pics too. I'm sure we'd get some buisness from it.... We don't really advertise....it's more of a hobby & we simply love the work....
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
 
Posted by 94gt (Member # 3060) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 94gt:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
We've either tuned, or built & tuned the fasted 03/04 Cobra's in Northern California.....so, yeah we know what it takes to make these things sing. Even the older SCT software gets the job done nicely....haven't had anybody interested in the Livewire yet.

We currently have 2 9 second projects in the build stages. & another project that'll hand those their ass.
As far as I know we're the only shop 100% dragstrip oriented. From design/building a motor, portwork, custom cams, custom engines, to full drag suspenssion, solid axle conversions, auto swaps, (of course tuning), to dailing the entire car in at the dragstrip. After all, all that drag race suspenssion is fully adjustable...it's gotta be dialed in correctly for max MPH. Full customer support at the strip. That's how we do things. It's more of a hobby than a buisness. & Draging our cars at the strip is what we love to do in our spare time.
Man, you should get permission from the owners of those project stangs and take some pics and then make a thread on here about it. It would be killer to see them "in progress" and your notes on them. Just an idea!

I'm currently saving a few pennies to get the livewire, if I get it before I move... you can expect a call from me! [patriot]
You're right...we should get pics posted up. I've got some & Chuck at the shop has a bunch of high quality pics too. I'm sure we'd get some buisness from it.... We don't really advertise....it's more of a hobby & we simply love the work....
Look at it like this... it would be a little advertising and a little "hey look at this" to let people know what's going on locally. I think it would be a killer idea. [patriot]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
A bit over a year now tuning these cars. Hell, it's only been in the last ~2 years that folks have really started modding these things heavily & needing custom tunes.
Although I don't see why that matters. They are by far the easiest mustang to tune. They come from the factory with a safe tune & were programmed with the correct tables for a boosted application. No rescaling of the VE tables, timing tables are all setup for boost, etc. The vast majority of the time customers all have similar bolt-ons. Pulley, exhaust, CAI, etc. Then you get some with more aggressive mods like a KB or Whipple with fuel system mods....again, bone-head easy. Rescale the maff like any other tune & set the timing....& they all run the same timing curve(just more or less based on Boost & Octane). Don't need to rescale or turn off functions because they're all setup for boost! Boost comes on so fast with these things there's no need to scale the timing like a Centrifugal motor (Lots of timing till boost comes on, then removing a ton of timing as boost kicks in). Which can be tricky....remove too much timing too fast & the midrange is a dog, remove timing too slow & run the risk of detonating it. Nope, the Terminators are SUPER easy. Sometimes 2 pulls & they're golden. I have ~40-50 tunes on file from all the Cobra's we've done....lots of them with the same mods. As long as the parts are installed correctly other cobra's final tunes can be used as a baseline for the car on the dyno.....minor tweeking & they dial in nice & easy.

Other cars however, are a REAL challange to dial in. I had a customer with a 93 Lighting. 427ci, EFI setup, Cobra lower intake, AFR heads, etc, custom upper with an 871 Blower on top....& 12 (yes, Twelve) injectors. 4 extra injectors in the top of the 871....all running off an EEC-IV computer. No other tuner would touch the setup. Dialed right in when the correct tables were used....correctly.

Or Yellow94GT's 466RWHP N/A combo. SN95 computers are notorious for difficulty dealing with major modifications..... But I don't believe he could get a better tune on this side of the US. I have a LOT of experience with major modded 5.0's....especially high HP N/A & turbo setups.

50% of the cars that come to the shop are not ready for a tune. There's always some sort of issue.....sometimes they don't even show up on the street.....if a customer never romps on it because they need a tune, it's not uncomon to see problems on the dyno. From incorrect spark plugs, to bad sensors, to incorrect wiring of components, to just plain poor workmanship & cheap parts.... & everything else in between.

Unlike other tuners I will not sit on a dyno for hours on end trying to tune around a mechanical or electrical problem. I do my best to identify the problem & send the customer off with as much information on the problem & how to go about fixing it (sometimes I fix the problems right then & there if I can). I won't waste the customers $$$ trying to 'bandaid' the problem. More than once a customer has left dis-satisfied that the car is still having drivability problems.....& inevitably I get a call a couple days or weeks later about how the car drives flawless once they fixed what was wrong. & because I didn't try to tune around the problem, the tune is near perfect....vs others that tune around the problem (or try), the customer fixing the problem (eventually) & having to come back for another tune because the car drives WORSE than it did before they fixed the 'problem'....all because the tuner decided to tune around a mechanical or electrical issue.
I do less retunes than other shops that I know of. You can take this one of 2 ways....Either the tune is great & the customer doesn't need a retune, or the tune is complete crap & instead of calling me & asking me to take care of it, they go off to another shop. Well.....I don't get calls about how crappy my tunes are. Although every shop out there has had customers bounce from one tuner to another. Typically this is because the car has a problem & no tuner can 'tune around it', so they bounce from one to another till somebody figures out exactly what is wrong with the car. I get a LOT of these from other shops....& when the customer is willing to listen & do the things I suggest (sometimes they just aren't willing to admit that the car has a problem other than 'tune') the car gets dailed in & runs correctly...

I'm not going to lie, sometimes I get buckets on the dyno..... completely hacked up cars that 'just need a tune'. LOL These are typically 5.0's....older modded cars that have had WAY too many people wrenching on them. You know, pop the hood & there's a beatup TFS intake with greasy hand prints all over....customer doesn't know what cubes the motor is cause they bought it used....upper intake manifold is grounding out injectors.. You know, buckets. Those can be dangerous to even strap on to the dyno & make a pull. Assuming the combo was put together correctly using quality parts & not slapped together by the lowest bidder can bite you in the ass.
I just read a post on TM's about a turbo blowing up on the dyno & pieces of shrapnal from the turbo (spinning at over 150,000RPM)hitting other customers in the shop. Talk about liability...
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 94gt:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 94gt:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
We've either tuned, or built & tuned the fasted 03/04 Cobra's in Northern California.....so, yeah we know what it takes to make these things sing. Even the older SCT software gets the job done nicely....haven't had anybody interested in the Livewire yet.

We currently have 2 9 second projects in the build stages. & another project that'll hand those their ass.
As far as I know we're the only shop 100% dragstrip oriented. From design/building a motor, portwork, custom cams, custom engines, to full drag suspenssion, solid axle conversions, auto swaps, (of course tuning), to dailing the entire car in at the dragstrip. After all, all that drag race suspenssion is fully adjustable...it's gotta be dialed in correctly for max MPH. Full customer support at the strip. That's how we do things. It's more of a hobby than a buisness. & Draging our cars at the strip is what we love to do in our spare time.
Man, you should get permission from the owners of those project stangs and take some pics and then make a thread on here about it. It would be killer to see them "in progress" and your notes on them. Just an idea!

I'm currently saving a few pennies to get the livewire, if I get it before I move... you can expect a call from me! [patriot]
You're right...we should get pics posted up. I've got some & Chuck at the shop has a bunch of high quality pics too. I'm sure we'd get some buisness from it.... We don't really advertise....it's more of a hobby & we simply love the work....
Look at it like this... it would be a little advertising and a little "hey look at this" to let people know what's going on locally. I think it would be a killer idea. [patriot]
Here are a few pics of some projects:
Keep in mind I really only deal with high-end components.

324ci Stroker with custom Diamond pistons, Oliver billet rods in a World products (SHM) block:
-
-
Don't mind the End-links...I didn't have a block spreader handy....they got the job done. LOL
-

[ March 01, 2007, 12:37 AM: Message edited by: 93PONY ]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
Some 04 Cobra heads I've been working on for one of the 9 second projects:
-
-
-
-
-
-

I've been building these motors professionally for over 3 years. I'm not like most tuners out there. I know these motors like no other. I know exactly what's going on inside these things, how to get power out of them, what they can handles, & why they have problems. I don't know of any other tuner around here that tunes what they build.

[ March 01, 2007, 12:40 AM: Message edited by: 93PONY ]
 
Posted by RixSikCobra (Member # 5058) on :
 
Racers Edge Tuning(RET)...ask for Greg. [worship] [patriot]
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
A bit over a year now tuning these cars. Hell, it's only been in the last ~2 years that folks have really started modding these things heavily & needing custom tunes.
Although I don't see why that matters. They are by far the easiest mustang to tune. They come from the factory with a safe tune & were programmed with the correct tables for a boosted application. No rescaling of the VE tables, timing tables are all setup for boost, etc. The vast majority of the time customers all have similar bolt-ons. Pulley, exhaust, CAI, etc. Then you get some with more aggressive mods like a KB or Whipple with fuel system mods....again, bone-head easy. Rescale the maff like any other tune & set the timing....& they all run the same timing curve(just more or less based on Boost & Octane). Don't need to rescale or turn off functions because they're all setup for boost! Boost comes on so fast with these things there's no need to scale the timing like a Centrifugal motor (Lots of timing till boost comes on, then removing a ton of timing as boost kicks in). Which can be tricky....remove too much timing too fast & the midrange is a dog, remove timing too slow & run the risk of detonating it. Nope, the Terminators are SUPER easy. Sometimes 2 pulls & they're golden. I have ~40-50 tunes on file from all the Cobra's we've done....lots of them with the same mods. As long as the parts are installed correctly other cobra's final tunes can be used as a baseline for the car on the dyno.....minor tweeking & they dial in nice & easy.

Other cars however, are a REAL challange to dial in. I had a customer with a 93 Lighting. 427ci, EFI setup, Cobra lower intake, AFR heads, etc, custom upper with an 871 Blower on top....& 12 (yes, Twelve) injectors. 4 extra injectors in the top of the 871....all running off an EEC-IV computer. No other tuner would touch the setup. Dialed right in when the correct tables were used....correctly.

Or Yellow94GT's 466RWHP N/A combo. SN95 computers are notorious for difficulty dealing with major modifications..... But I don't believe he could get a better tune on this side of the US. I have a LOT of experience with major modded 5.0's....especially high HP N/A & turbo setups.

50% of the cars that come to the shop are not ready for a tune. There's always some sort of issue.....sometimes they don't even show up on the street.....if a customer never romps on it because they need a tune, it's not uncomon to see problems on the dyno. From incorrect spark plugs, to bad sensors, to incorrect wiring of components, to just plain poor workmanship & cheap parts.... & everything else in between.

Unlike other tuners I will not sit on a dyno for hours on end trying to tune around a mechanical or electrical problem. I do my best to identify the problem & send the customer off with as much information on the problem & how to go about fixing it (sometimes I fix the problems right then & there if I can). I won't waste the customers $$$ trying to 'bandaid' the problem. More than once a customer has left dis-satisfied that the car is still having drivability problems.....& inevitably I get a call a couple days or weeks later about how the car drives flawless once they fixed what was wrong. & because I didn't try to tune around the problem, the tune is near perfect....vs others that tune around the problem (or try), the customer fixing the problem (eventually) & having to come back for another tune because the car drives WORSE than it did before they fixed the 'problem'....all because the tuner decided to tune around a mechanical or electrical issue.
I do less retunes than other shops that I know of. You can take this one of 2 ways....Either the tune is great & the customer doesn't need a retune, or the tune is complete crap & instead of calling me & asking me to take care of it, they go off to another shop. Well.....I don't get calls about how crappy my tunes are. Although every shop out there has had customers bounce from one tuner to another. Typically this is because the car has a problem & no tuner can 'tune around it', so they bounce from one to another till somebody figures out exactly what is wrong with the car. I get a LOT of these from other shops....& when the customer is willing to listen & do the things I suggest (sometimes they just aren't willing to admit that the car has a problem other than 'tune') the car gets dailed in & runs correctly...

I'm not going to lie, sometimes I get buckets on the dyno..... completely hacked up cars that 'just need a tune'. LOL These are typically 5.0's....older modded cars that have had WAY too many people wrenching on them. You know, pop the hood & there's a beatup TFS intake with greasy hand prints all over....customer doesn't know what cubes the motor is cause they bought it used....upper intake manifold is grounding out injectors.. You know, buckets. Those can be dangerous to even strap on to the dyno & make a pull. Assuming the combo was put together correctly using quality parts & not slapped together by the lowest bidder can bite you in the ass.
I just read a post on TM's about a turbo blowing up on the dyno & pieces of shrapnal from the turbo (spinning at over 150,000RPM)hitting other customers in the shop. Talk about liability...
Thats some good info,I wish you luck in your business. I definately feel you on the part where you said their are alot of people out their who are hacks and don't know nearly as much as they say and let their ego get in the way from admitting they fucked up. Their are some people out their who claim they have a whole shitload of knowledge but for some reason they seem to hide the fact that they have fucked alot of people over and seem to only brag about their success stories and how great they are. They even go as far to say they can design a product better than a big company who has been doing it for years I.E. Edelbrock, BBK, Steigmeier. The funny part is that eventually the truth will come out and people will realize just how full of shit that person is. Once again good luck in your business. Maybe if I am in the neighborhood I can check your shop out. I am sure we would have a lot to discuss when I see you [Wink] [patriot]
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by RixSikCobra:
Racers Edge Tuning(RET)...ask for Greg. [worship] [patriot]
Did you go yet Rick? You said you were going in the begining of March. Greg is actually my second choice behind Amazon. If so what were the results?
 
Posted by NavidR (Member # 3164) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
Bro time doesn't matter.... If you want a good example, look at my car. It is actually the first 4.6L DOHC car that 93 pony built? and by built I mean EVERYTHING, complete MOTOR, FUEL SYSTEM ECT. My car dyno'd at 540 rwhp (very safe dyno). I have had no problem with it.

Ps. I need a 03/04 tranny if anyone has one????

[ March 01, 2007, 12:46 AM: Message edited by: NavidR ]
 
Posted by hidnn.o.s. (Member # 1219) on :
 
I must admit I've heard nothing but good things about 93 Pony and the shop he works out of.
 
Posted by JohnB (Member # 969) on :
 
Of course a Terminator is easy, at the most...they are what, 4 years old? Wiring harnesses aren't brittle, vaccum leaks aren't abundant, and normally a owner can't do shit to the timing. They've typically gone through maybe two-three owners and had boltons. Sure, there are the "one-offs" with KB's, Whipples, etc...but for the majority, they have basic boltons.
On the other end of the spectrum, you've got the Fox...that at best is 14 years old (93 model). They've had more people through them than a Hooker and have had NUMEROUS boltons in the name of performance; all the while probably doing nothing for the poor car. Timing's been set by "ear" (gawd I wish I had a $1 for every time I've heard that), it's got a massive exhaust leak because of the warped header flange on the crap-tacular 1990s BBK header, and check engine light is on for decoration.

For a owner of either to think a car can be tuned outside the realm of possibility is ignorance. Likewise, it's insanity for a tuner to attempt a tune on a vehicle that exhibits similar traits.

But hey, business is business, right?

I've dealt with more than one tuner in the Bay as well as Sac with cars I've built. I've had great results overall, with minor hiccups showing their hand typically after a car has had the bejezzus beat outta it without a tune. Hell, Jeff tuned my car two years ago...and it STILL doesn't need a retune.

I know it's been discussed here on the board before, and I think it needs to be brought to the forefront again. There needs to be a feedback area established for all facets of work here; Commerical, Sales, Tuning, and For Sale section. If individuals or businesses do not want to be rated on or have ratings established for them, they shouldn't be permitted to post here on CA Fords. For once on the board, we can have a true pulse as to what's going on and how it truly is for consumers and businesses alike.
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by NavidR:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
Bro time doesn't matter.... If you want a good example, look at my car. It is actually the first 4.6L DOHC car that 93 pony built? and by built I mean EVERYTHING, complete MOTOR, FUEL SYSTEM ECT. My car dyno'd at 540 rwhp (very safe dyno). I have had no problem with it.

Ps. I need a 03/04 tranny if anyone has one????
It was just a ?, I was curious of his experience doing it. Would you want someone who has 3 days experience tuning your car? Anyway I was satisfied with the answer i got
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by NavidR:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by 91 5.0 5speed:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/showthread.php?t=361317


Don't know what your time frame is, But this guy from Amazon racing is one of the best in the country. He is suppose to be coming to the Bay area in May. I would hold out for him to get a tune if I was in no hurry.
He tunes at our shop. I'm not one to flame, but when he flys out to tune, he has a shit-load of cars that need to be done in a 2 day time frame (20+ cars). There's hardly any time to work out any bugs whatsoever....when they do arise. Typically if the A/F is close, it's good enough for him. He simply doesn't have the time to spend on individual setups that need attention. We typically get some good buisness after he leaves. (fixing bugs/problem cars & retuning.)
Thats interesting, How long have you been tuning 03-04 Cobras if you do not mind me asking? Have you ever had any cars come back with any type of tuning issues or engine malfunctions after you tuned them?
Bro time doesn't matter.... If you want a good example, look at my car. It is actually the first 4.6L DOHC car that 93 pony built? and by built I mean EVERYTHING, complete MOTOR, FUEL SYSTEM ECT. My car dyno'd at 540 rwhp (very safe dyno). I have had no problem with it.

Ps. I need a 03/04 tranny if anyone has one????
Yep, the very first 4V I ever built....still running strong I see. [Smile]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by JohnB:
Of course a Terminator is easy, at the most...they are what, 4 years old? Wiring harnesses aren't brittle, vaccum leaks aren't abundant, and normally a owner can't do shit to the timing. They've typically gone through maybe two-three owners and had boltons. Sure, there are the "one-offs" with KB's, Whipples, etc...but for the majority, they have basic boltons.
On the other end of the spectrum, you've got the Fox...that at best is 14 years old (93 model). They've had more people through them than a Hooker and have had NUMEROUS boltons in the name of performance; all the while probably doing nothing for the poor car. Timing's been set by "ear" (gawd I wish I had a $1 for every time I've heard that), it's got a massive exhaust leak because of the warped header flange on the crap-tacular 1990s BBK header, and check engine light is on for decoration.

For a owner of either to think a car can be tuned outside the realm of possibility is ignorance. Likewise, it's insanity for a tuner to attempt a tune on a vehicle that exhibits similar traits.
LOL
Had a car on the dyno not too long ago. 5.0 of course, Basic setup, stock shortblock, AFR heads, Edelbrock intake, S-trim with 'unknown' boost (no guage), etc, etc. Went to check/set timing & found NO timing pointer! [Eek!] Timed by ear since they never installed the pointer...& of course it was suppose to get a 'pump gas' tune. LOL I did the best I could (set timing based on 10 degrees base timing), but that one had my blood pressure pretty high while on the dyno.
 
Posted by JohnB (Member # 969) on :
 
It happens all the time Shaun, we've both seen plenty of it. [Wink] That's when you hope you remember the location of the upper right numb on the timing cover where 0* is and go from there!
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by JohnB:
It happens all the time Shaun, we've both seen plenty of it. [Wink] That's when you hope you remember the location of the upper right numb on the timing cover where 0* is and go from there!
It's good to be King isn't it. [Wink]
(knowing WAY too much about these motors).

Half the time I don't trust the timing marks on the balancer anyway. Seen 4-6 degree swings in stock balancers while degreeing a camshaft. Quality aftermarket balancers that have been degreed in I trust....& I don't know of many who actually do this when building a motor.
 
Posted by JohnB (Member # 969) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by JohnB:
It happens all the time Shaun, we've both seen plenty of it. [Wink] That's when you hope you remember the location of the upper right numb on the timing cover where 0* is and go from there!
It's good to be King isn't it. [Wink]
Ehhh, I'm small-time. My stuff runs good that I build, gears make people smile, and I can build a decent stroker that makes good power. It's a hobby, I'm happy. [Big Grin]
 
Posted by 94gt (Member # 3060) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by JohnB:
it's got a massive exhaust leak because of the warped header flange on the crap-tacular 1990s BBK header,
Holy crap! That just made me think of those BBK headers you helped me install on my old 1994 gt... man that seems like forever ago! I was just a young A1c back then! hhaha, I learned a very important lesson that day about header alignment! Prybar FTW! [Eek!]

quote:
Originally posted by JohnB:
I know it's been discussed here on the board before, and I think it needs to be brought to the forefront again. There needs to be a feedback area established for all facets of work here; Commerical, Sales, Tuning, and For Sale section. If individuals or businesses do not want to be rated on or have ratings established for them, they shouldn't be permitted to post here on CA Fords. For once on the board, we can have a true pulse as to what's going on and how it truly is for consumers and businesses alike.
[worship] VERY well put John! It would be badass to have a section like that. And if a vendor doesn't like it... kick rocks. [patriot]

IMO, it would become a very valuable asset, if managed properly... Not allowing people to post things like "my boy's cousin's aunt's son's friend got his stang worked on at this shop and they blew his motor." Remember that last shop owner? [Roll Eyes]

I know there has been a few shops I have either gone to or called and it would be nice to share experiences, rate, and discuss how I (or other people) liked the shop. Something like eBay's feedback system, but moderated to keep all the nonsense out. Something as simple as the non-automotive section...

The subject line could be the shop's title then something like X pos, Y neut and Z neg. Make it mandatory to PM a mod, or a liason, that's trusted, with your rating and message about the place... The mod (or equivalent) could then filter out the nonsense, or kick it back to the person and tell them why it's not post worthy.

Maybe having a system like that would keep down the amount of flakers too. I know we all have dealt with that before!

[ March 01, 2007, 05:16 AM: Message edited by: 94gt ]
 
Posted by 03SVTPower (Member # 518) on :
 
Very pleased with the work AED did to my 03 cobra, customer service was above and beyond!!! [worship] [patriot]
 
Posted by klonoa (Member # 1771) on :
 
Thanks for all the great info guys, I think I know who I will be going with.
 
Posted by klonoa (Member # 1771) on :
 
BTW 93pony, answer your pm! [patriot]
 
Posted by mr mach ef (Member # 4025) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 03SVTPower:
Very pleased with the work AED did to my 03 cobra, customer service was above and beyond!!! [worship] [patriot]
+1 Jeff hooked it up with a great tune and awesome service. and Shaun did my cams and most of my other bolt ons while he was doin my cams at the shop he used to work at, and he did the install very fast and did a great job too.!
 
Posted by jordan_0806 (Member # 5888) on :
 
Yeah...you got admit...Shaun does know what he is doing when it comes to tuning....once I get some free time....going to hit up AED for PMS tune on a certain 95 Cobra (5LVenom) that he knows about....

Shaun...just curious...what are you charging nowadays for tuning....I head Jeff S. does it from time to time but charges a s-load of money.....just wondering since you are doing it now..what you are charging....????
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by jordan_0806:
Yeah...you got admit...Shaun does know what he is doing when it comes to tuning....once I get some free time....going to hit up AED for PMS tune on a certain 95 Cobra (5LVenom) that he knows about....

Shaun...just curious...what are you charging nowadays for tuning....I head Jeff S. does it from time to time but charges a s-load of money.....just wondering since you are doing it now..what you are charging....????
Tuning is $100 an hour + rental of the dyno.

I had a hell of a time getting that damn Cobra to idle with the PMS. WAY too much fuel adjustement needed. I believe the Mass-air is out of calibration. The PMS relies heavily on a properly calibrated mass-air. I'd advise swapping maffs to another one. Also, it's probably going to need 50+lb injectors. I've had to up base fuel pressure to 60psi in order to get the correct A/F with my setup.... That's with 50's & only ~500RWHP.
 
Posted by jordan_0806 (Member # 5888) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by 93PONY:
quote:
Originally posted by jordan_0806:
Yeah...you got admit...Shaun does know what he is doing when it comes to tuning....once I get some free time....going to hit up AED for PMS tune on a certain 95 Cobra (5LVenom) that he knows about....

Shaun...just curious...what are you charging nowadays for tuning....I head Jeff S. does it from time to time but charges a s-load of money.....just wondering since you are doing it now..what you are charging....????
Tuning is $100 an hour + rental of the dyno.

I had a hell of a time getting that damn Cobra to idle with the PMS. WAY too much fuel adjustement needed. I believe the Mass-air is out of calibration. The PMS relies heavily on a properly calibrated mass-air. I'd advise swapping maffs to another one. Also, it's probably going to need 50+lb injectors. I've had to up base fuel pressure to 60psi in order to get the correct A/F with my setup.... That's with 50's & only ~500RWHP.
Yeah..Rob told me that too about the 50 lb injectors..I didn't realize you turned fuel pressure up so much....not sure if I can drop enough dough on them right now...because he also told me about the MAF....However, the last time I drove it...the PMS wasn't pulling timing...for some reason I think my MAP sensor is bad....it reads 0 vacuum all the time....

What would you recommend for a MAF? Do they make a MAFia for these things?

once I'm ready to go down..I'll give you a call...it needs a little more tuning than what I can do by myself with a wideband...


really want it detuned to save the motor a little longer...planning on having either a Dart or new Boss302 for it later on during the summer and saving this motor for an old school project....
 
Posted by FoX GT (Member # 4587) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by RixSikCobra:
Racers Edge Tuning(RET)...ask for Greg. [worship] [patriot]
hey rick,

You get your car tuned there and whenever your ready to race my AED (Advanced Engine Development) built & tuned car let me know so i can show you why you should have went to AED.

Go to Shaun @ AED anything else would be uncivilized.
 
Posted by RixSikCobra (Member # 5058) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by FoX GT:
quote:
Originally posted by RixSikCobra:
Racers Edge Tuning(RET)...ask for Greg. [worship] [patriot]
hey rick,

You get your car tuned there and whenever your ready to race my AED (Advanced Engine Development) built & tuned car let me know so i can show you why you should have went to AED.

Go to Shaun @ AED anything else would be uncivilized.
Greg is a awesome tuner, I have no regrets rest assured...the man does fantastic work [patriot] I know Jeff did good work on my car and from what I undertand, Shaun is pretty good himself. But IT IS UNFORTUNATE that I have to drive all the way to SoCal to get my car tuned now. I'll leave it at that.

It will be cool to see our 700+rwhp Cobras tangle again, soon. [Cool] ...I'll definitely let ya know when I'm ready. [patriot]
 
Posted by 91 5.0 5speed (Member # 1867) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by RixSikCobra:
quote:
Originally posted by FoX GT:
quote:
Originally posted by RixSikCobra:
Racers Edge Tuning(RET)...ask for Greg. [worship] [patriot]
hey rick,

You get your car tuned there and whenever your ready to race my AED (Advanced Engine Development) built & tuned car let me know so i can show you why you should have went to AED.

Go to Shaun @ AED anything else would be uncivilized.
Greg is a awesome tuner, I have no regrets rest assured...the man does fantastic work [patriot] I know Jeff did good work on my car and from what I undertand, Shaun is pretty good himself. But IT IS UNFORTUNATE that I have to drive all the way to SoCal to get my car tuned now. I'll leave it at that.

It will be cool to see our 700+rwhp Cobras tangle again, soon. [Cool] ...I'll definitely let ya know when I'm ready. [patriot]
Clean your pm Box
 
Posted by Juiced-03 (Member # 2245) on :
 
I've never paid Shaun to work on my car, but I've talked to him in person many times and he really knows his Mustangs. He's one of the guys you are glad to have on your side. I'd be pretty sad if he ever decided to quit Fords and turn to Chevy.

Amazon Tuning SUCKS! I had a terrible experience with my tune. Of course this was back when tuning was only about a year old for these cars, but still. They never wanted to make it right. My car was running so rich, and it was just gutless. I've heard others complain about them as well. You can't talk about it on other boards though because they sponsor the sites. So unless it's nothing but praise, you have to keep your mouth shut. It's too bad, because people deserve to hear if their money should be spent elsewhere.

I really wish Shaun used Diablo. That's the only reason I haven't had him tune my car. So I'm stuck with mail order tunes for now lol. I don't really think a ported Eaton combo is anything that needs serious dyno tuning anyway though.

-Bryan

[ March 05, 2007, 06:54 AM: Message edited by: Juiced-03 ]
 
Posted by F8LSN8K (Member # 7080) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Juiced-03:
I don't really think a ported Eaton combo is anything that needs serious dyno tuning anyway though.

-Bryan
well.........
 
Posted by RixSikCobra (Member # 5058) on :
 
Our cars don't take much to tune. Not that I'm an expert by any means, but all I know is that I've watched(and paid attention to)many Mustangs and Cobras get tuned by more than one tuner, and it doesn't take long it seems. Now, turbo setups, stuff like that could take longer, but all in all not very long. If you're not happy with "A" tuner, there are plenty others who are as knowledgable who'd be happy to take care of ya. [patriot]
 
Posted by TRIXSNK (Member # 2844) on :
 
FWIW

I did mine the hard way and it took a lot of track testing and logging and e-mailing of tunes to get my car where it is.

I wouldn't really rec'd for others to follow what i did....but i like to learn through trial and error [Razz]

From speaking with Drew, Frank, and Jeff i can vouch for their 110% comitment. I should add Shaun in there as well but unfortunately i've yet to meet ya in person but i know your stuff inside and out [worship]
 
Posted by Lonewolf (Member # 4968) on :
 
I did the amazon mail order and am very happy...you can look at the dyno for the predator can tune vs the amazon tune....

can tune- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra3.jpg
amazon- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra5.jpg

I did not know any tuner here.. so the mail order was an option...
 
Posted by Jeff S (Member # 371) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lonewolf:
I did the amazon mail order and am very happy...you can look at the dyno for the predator can tune vs the amazon tune....

can tune- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra3.jpg
amazon- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra5.jpg

I did not know any tuner here.. so the mail order was an option...
If you email your Amazon tune dyno graph to Rick he can make some fueling adjustments for you and you will pick up some midrange power/torque as well as have a "safer" tune...your AF ratio is definitely less than ideal. [patriot]

[ March 05, 2007, 11:44 PM: Message edited by: Jeff S ]
 
Posted by 93PONY (Member # 60) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lonewolf:
I did the amazon mail order and am very happy...you can look at the dyno for the predator can tune vs the amazon tune....

can tune- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra3.jpg
amazon- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra5.jpg

I did not know any tuner here.. so the mail order was an option...
The A/F curve on an 03/04 Cobra that makes a TON of boost at 2K RPM should look more like this: (Between 11.8-12.0 across the board)
-

Running too rich & having low timing is dangerous. You burn exhaust valve guides from running like this. Although it won't blow the motor right away, eventually you'll have head/valve failure.
 
Posted by Lonewolf (Member # 4968) on :
 
thanks for your input.. now... where is a dyno in sac area if I upload a new tune? Tks. George
 
Posted by Juiced-03 (Member # 2245) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Lonewolf:
I did the amazon mail order and am very happy...you can look at the dyno for the predator can tune vs the amazon tune....

can tune- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra3.jpg
amazon- www.eskimo.com/~lonewolf/cobra5.jpg

I did not know any tuner here.. so the mail order was an option...
Hopefully you will have better luck than I did getting that air/fuel squared away!

[ March 06, 2007, 08:52 PM: Message edited by: Juiced-03 ]
 




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