Tuning the S197

I thought this may be a good topic.
Seems that Tuners are the big deal for todays cars.
But information about what it is to do is very sparse.
Sure there are many "Tunes" out there but what are they really modifying?
What is safe?
What are the effects, as well as the Gains or Detriments?
What are we trying to achieve?
And most of all.
What NOT to do!!

Now this is all new to me and this topic is intended to both educate me as well as you.
So lets hear from the experience out there and let us all in on the big secrets of the Tuner World.

Originally Posted by ixtlan

I thought this may be a good topic.
Seems that Tuners are the big deal for todays cars.
But information about what it is to do is very sparse.
Sure there are many "Tunes" out there but what are they really modifying?
What is safe?
What are the effects, as well as the Gains or Detriments?
What are we trying to achieve?
And most of all.
What NOT to do!!

Now this is all new to me and this topic is intended to both educate me as well as you.
So lets hear from the experience out there and let us all in on the big secrets of the Tuner World.

i am not a tuner (still getting my feet wet!) but i use one of the best imo via SCT software for all of my customers vehicles and my own. there are many individuals that call call themselves "tuners" but they are really far from. regardless of software, a good tuner does much more than load a value, generic or canned tune/file. there is also much more to it than just tweaking the a/f and timing. with today's technology both oem and aftermarket we have the ability to make big power without sacrificing driveability. we also are afforded the opportunity to improve upon or should i say...pick up where the manufacturer left off to perfect or tweak the vehicles to "our" standards. the various types of software out there today give complete control of the vheicles computer. with that said only through a great deal of experience, trial & error can one really determine what is "safe" or "un-safe" as every vehicle is different and has it's own purpose. the 05+ mustang is a great example of the benefits a good tune. for anyone that has had some considerable seat time in a bone stock get...just adding a good tune alone makes a world of difference. electronic throttle control, torque management are just small examples of oem standards that hold the vehicle back and take away from the driveability and performance. tunning is a very interesting sector of the performance industry, i hope to jump in head first in the near future!!!

I don't know much about tuners other than what I hear.Last week when I was looking over the project cars section of this website I went into the project 2006 F150 bracket racing the F150 section & picked up a little info about the Accel Tuner.

I haven't used any tuners on my '07 simply because I haven't changed anything yet.I've thought about the cold air kit and maybe gears at some point but I am really waiting for the warranty to run out.

I had even considered the Roush blower,but at $9500.00 that probably won't happen.When I do start to make some changes I will have to have a tuner and hopefully by then I will know more about them and which one to get.