[SSLandon]

Starting the process of ordering bolt ons and getting Long Tubes installed in a week, Have been looking around for a bit and cant seem to find LT/LS Tuning shops. Mostly seeing a ton of Subaru based shops. Spoke With PRI (Portland Race Industries) And was told they can do it but my gut is saying find a shop who is primarily LS/LT Engine tuning. Also PRI quoted about $950 to unlock ecu and to dyno tune with e85 tune. Thought it was reasonable but still want to find someone i can trust and have a history of LS/LT Based engine tuning. Im based in Portland area and just moved here 4 months back so still trying to find the connections. Thanks for the help. Please remove if not allowed.

[SSLandon]

Portland Speed Industries* PSI*

[mbnwa]

I'm up in Longview just north of PDX, I use Brett@PRAY he does a great job on remote tunes. You would need an HPTuners device but given the cost that PSI wants to bill you on the job I think you could find something in the ball park.

Standard disclaimer: Any changes to your ECM could and will most likely void your warranty at least on the powertrain.

[SSLandon]

Thanks For the quick reply, I did breifly speak with PRAY Several weeks ago and must say he is awesome especially answering any of my questions. He did tell me about his remote tune service. But I'm still curious on how it works after i get the hp tuners Standard, will I need to have access to a shop for him to access. And what would the pros and cons be of getting a remote tune vs a dyno tune.

Originally Posted by mbnwa

I'm up in Longview just north of PDX, I use Brett@PRAY he does a great job on remote tunes. You would need an HPTuners device but given the cost that PSI wants to bill you on the job I think you could find something in the ball park.

Standard disclaimer: Any changes to your ECM could and will most likely void your warranty at least on the powertrain.

[mbnwa]

You would not need access to a shop, basically you would connect your laptop and HPTuners device to your car, using the VCM Editor software that comes with the HPTuners device you would read your ECM and E-Mail it to Brett with a list of mods that you are doing. At that point he would email you back a tune file to load and ask you to do some logging using the VCM Scanner software, he would review and revise the tune accordingly.

I might be speaking out of turn as that's been my experience with him, you might want to reach back out to him to verify how it would work in your case. He worked a package for me as I got my E85 kit, TSP Headers, Ported IM / TB and CAI from him at the same time.

As far as Dyno Tunes, IMO outside of the paper that certifies the HP / TQ I think you could get a better tune suited for all driving styles with the remote tune he offers not just tuned for WOT runs that *most* dyno shops tune for.

As far as cons the only real one I can see is that depending on the mod list and complexity it may not get done in a single session like a dyno, however I personally do not see that as a con as it gives me additional opportunities to enjoy the car going up to Mount St Hellens and the backroads around the area.

*most* == In my experience the dyno tuners I have dealt with only tuned the truck in that case for WOT and wanted to charge extra to go over the entire power band at different throttle positions.

Originally Posted by SSLandon

Thanks For the quick reply, I did breifly speak with PRAY Several weeks ago and must say he is awesome especially answering any of my questions. He did tell me about his remote tune service. But I'm still curious on how it works after i get the hp tuners Standard, will I need to have access to a shop for him to access. And what would the pros and cons be of getting a remote tune vs a dyno tune.

[SSLandon]

Originally Posted by mbnwa

You would not need access to a shop, basically you would connect your laptop and HPTuners device to your car, using the VCM Editor software that comes with the HPTuners device you would read your ECM and E-Mail it to Brett with a list of mods that you are doing. At that point he would email you back a tune file to load and ask you to do some logging using the VCM Scanner software, he would review and revise the tune accordingly.

I might be speaking out of turn as that's been my experience with him, you might want to reach back out to him to verify how it would work in your case. He worked a package for me as I got my E85 kit, TSP Headers, Ported IM / TB and CAI from him at the same time.

As far as Dyno Tunes, IMO outside of the paper that certifies the HP / TQ I think you could get a better tune suited for all driving styles with the remote tune he offers not just tuned for WOT runs that *most* dyno shops tune for.

As far as cons the only real one I can see is that depending on the mod list and complexity it may not get done in a single session like a dyno, however I personally do not see that as a con as it gives me additional opportunities to enjoy the car going up to Mount St Hellens and the backroads around the area.

*most* == In my experience the dyno tuners I have dealt with only tuned the truck in that case for WOT and wanted to charge extra to go over the entire power band at different throttle positions.

Those are the exact mods thats going to take place for me. Except I am still debating on e85 (Flex Fuel) as there is only one station near me and its not much cheaper then 92 gas. Question for the laptop capabilities. Do you know if it would work on any laptop, what is the connection though USB? I ask because I have a 2015 MacBook Pro and not sure if VCM Works though Mac.

Also not sure if this even makes sense, but is there any difference when it comes to voiding warranty doing a remote tune vs dyno tune. I assume its the same across the board as your unlocking the ECM.

For your TSP Headers did you have any issues with wires touching or wire harness. I Ordered 1 7/8" TSP with Off road connection pipes for NPP and is having a tech install it though my job for discount reasons. I also purchased boot Heat wire covers since hes going to be in there already. Hes pretty intelligent but would like to point anything out to him ahead of time to help out. Thanks for your help.

[mbnwa]

For the laptop issue, I also have a MacBook Pro mine has an extra step because it's USB-C only so I need to use a USBC to USB adapter however you would need to use Bootcamp, Parallels or VMWare Fusion to boot into Windows to do the flashing, I have an external USBC SSD that I keep all my programming VM's on so I do not use up the internal SSD for auto related VM's.

As far as the warranty, anytime anyone touches and flashes your ECM outside of GM it will void the warranty regardless if it's a remote tuner or a dyno, however depending on the repair and how friendly your GM shop is and if GM requires them to send ECM logs to GM for review will dictate if your repair is completed under warranty or not generally speaking.

As far as the headers, first I have a convertible so things might be different for me, however with that stated the removal and install was pretty straight forward with the exception on the steering shaft rubbing. I did replace the bolts in the steering shaft with button head bolts (listed below) and that removed that issue. However the welded nut was rubbing on the header so we had to grind that down a little and hit it with some black high temp paint in addition it seems like the steering shaft is rubbing on the header during breaking and turning so I have to A) dimple the header in that spot or B) shift the engine over a hair to make some room, I will be reviewing those options tomorrow when I can get it on the rack.

In terms of heat and wires, the harness on the passenger side is a little close so I picked up some header wrap and wrapped the harness just to be on the safe side and put some heat shield tape on a break line on the passenger side as well, was it required most likely not however I tend to over engineer things.

Button Bolts I used for the steering shaft
M8-1.25x30
M8-1.25x25

I also picked up these to use on the MSD wires that replaced the factory wires just to add a little extra safety against heat DEI 010542 Titanium Protect-A-Boots Spark Plug Boot Protector Sleeves

Originally Posted by SSLandon

Those are the exact mods thats going to take place for me. Except I am still debating on e85 (Flex Fuel) as there is only one station near me and its not much cheaper then 92 gas. Question for the laptop capabilities. Do you know if it would work on any laptop, what is the connection though USB? I ask because I have a 2015 MacBook Pro and not sure if VCM Works though Mac.

Also not sure if this even makes sense, but is there any difference when it comes to voiding warranty doing a remote tune vs dyno tune. I assume its the same across the board as your unlocking the ECM.

For your TSP Headers did you have any issues with wires touching or wire harness. I Ordered 1 7/8" TSP with Off road connection pipes for NPP and is having a tech install it though my job for discount reasons. I also purchased boot Heat wire covers since hes going to be in there already. Hes pretty intelligent but would like to point anything out to him ahead of time to help out. Thanks for your help.

[SSLandon]

Originally Posted by mbnwa

For the laptop issue, I also have a MacBook Pro mine has an extra step because it's USB-C only so I need to use a USBC to USB adapter however you would need to use Bootcamp, Parallels or VMWare Fusion to boot into Windows to do the flashing, I have an external USBC SSD that I keep all my programming VM's on so I do not use up the internal SSD for auto related VM's.

As far as the warranty, anytime anyone touches and flashes your ECM outside of GM it will void the warranty regardless if it's a remote tuner or a dyno, however depending on the repair and how friendly your GM shop is and if GM requires them to send ECM logs to GM for review will dictate if your repair is completed under warranty or not generally speaking.

As far as the headers, first I have a convertible so things might be different for me, however with that stated the removal and install was pretty straight forward with the exception on the steering shaft rubbing. I did replace the bolts in the steering shaft with button head bolts (listed below) and that removed that issue. However the welded nut was rubbing on the header so we had to grind that down a little and hit it with some black high temp paint in addition it seems like the steering shaft is rubbing on the header during breaking and turning so I have to A) dimple the header in that spot or B) shift the engine over a hair to make some room, I will be reviewing those options tomorrow when I can get it on the rack.

In terms of heat and wires, the harness on the passenger side is a little close so I picked up some header wrap and wrapped the harness just to be on the safe side and put some heat shield tape on a break line on the passenger side as well, was it required most likely not however I tend to over engineer things.

Button Bolts I used for the steering shaft
M8-1.25x30
M8-1.25x25

I also picked up these to use on the MSD wires that replaced the factory wires just to add a little extra safety against heat DEI 010542 Titanium Protect-A-Boots Spark Plug Boot Protector Sleeves

I think in the case I end up doing the remote tune I would just purchase a cheap little laptop from walmart for $250 to make things simpler. Also its funny you sent me that link as i bought those same exact ones about 1 week ago for my wires as i thought it was better then nothing. I probably wont have everything on the car for about another month or so within that time I will be on a lookout for an HP Tuner for sale. Thanks for the Insight and Help

[mbnwa]

No worries good luck with the build

[andes101]

Originally Posted by mbnwa

No worries good luck with the build

so for the remote tune he tunes you on 93? and then when you get to a dyno e85?

[mbnwa]

Originally Posted by andes101

so for the remote tune he tunes you on 93? and then when you get to a dyno e85?

In my case it's 92 as I don't have 93 here, from what I understand, We have not done the E85 part yet as I was running ethanol free gas so I have to run that tank down and put normal pump fuel in so we can ensure the sensor is installed correctly. (currently reading 0.0% as it should for non-ethanal fuel)

However I would reach out to Brett on exactly how he deals with the e85 tuning part, however my understanding is he will do the entire tune for pump gas as well as E85 without needing a dyno.

[chrest]

Tom Wong in Vancouver Wa did my tuning.

[SSLandon]

Originally Posted by chrest

Tom Wong in Vancouver Wa did my tuning.

Thanks for sending that to me, I just looked him up yesterday thinking about giving him a call sometime this week. Question if you don’t mind me asking , do you remember how much he charged for just a base tune. I wasn’t originally going to get a tune for my Texas speed headers until I ordered the rest of the parts (intake/throttle body) but I’m able to get the headers installed though my job for a ridiculously low price and I won’t be there long so I wanted to take advantage of what was offered. There going on tomorrow morning and I guess it’s bad to get on it without a tune over time, recently read that this car is no good having long tubes with no tune.

[mbnwa]

Unless you got the rear o2 extensions I think you need a tune to shut off the read o2 sensors, I know we ended up plugging the rear O2 ports because the headers did not have extensions. I am not sure if running the headers with out a tune will set the CEL.