Guys I'm new here, just bought a 96 Z28 and I need your opinion on which editer/diagnostic to buy. This car will be going under the knife here shortly so I'm going to need a way of remapping the fuel and spark curves. I've worked with Haltech, Motronic and other systems so I'm not totally lost. What do you guys recommend? Also, are there websites which cover tuning in some depth?

Gooday!

 

You can d/l a demo of lt1edit and tunercat to try out. LT1edit has a windows feel to it and Tunercat is more of a dos box feel.

 

Thank you sir!
If you don't mind me asking... which of the two do you prefer and why?

Also, I'm not real familiar with OBDII. What kind of power levels are you guys pushing with the stock computer? I'm only looking to push maybe 500 hp at the flywheel with a 150 hp shot of juice. Will I need to resort to a stand alone system to do this?

I'll be doing some reading up in the meantime so as to better acquaint myself.

Thanks again!
Mike McEwan

 

Well, since you have OBD2, you can't use Tunercat for tuning unless you convert to OBD1. Tunercat hasn't put out a definition file for OBD2 yet, but they are currently working on them. When they will have it out is anyone's guess.

So pretty much your only option is LT1 edit. Really, both programs do the same thing, they just look different. My complaint about LT1 Edit is how expensive it is for what you get. Tunercat is only $100 for the program which lets you edit any number of vehicles you want, whereas LT1 Edit is between $150 and $600 to only let you edit one vehicle. I'd email tunercat and see if he has any estimates on when the OBD2 LT1 definition file will be out. Otherwise, you pretty much have to spend $500-$600 for LT1 Edit for OBD2.

 

Thanks for the info man!
I'll check into Tunercat and see what they have up their sleeves. Hopefully they have something... $500-600 = .
Is it worthwhile converting to OBD1? I mean... would it cost more than the difference here... some $400?
I still have some reading to do, but this is a winter project so there's really no hurry.

Thanks again,
Mike

 

I don't really know too much about converting to OBD1 from OBD2, so you'd after to ask someone else about what it entails and how much it costs. Just at a guess, it's probably about $200-$300 for everything you need. But OBD1 is much easier to work with, so it is probably worthwhile if you plan on doing most of your own tuning. That, and their is much less problems with emissions that OBD2 so strictly monitors and adjusts.

I also forgot to include the price of the cable, which is about $100 pre-made. If you can build your own, it's only around like $50.

 

converting is simple and cheap. i bought an OBD1 for $50 off ebay and then youll need a knock sensor for the 94-95 LT1 which you can get at any parts dealer for around $30 i think. next youd need an interfacing cable. www.akmcables.com for around $90. now all you need is the tuner. i recommend tunercat for the same reasons above. but if you have never tuned a car before then an easier solution might be having mail order tuning. www.pcmforless.com bryan is the guys name and hell do a good job..hassle free.

the only downside to all this is that you will lose many of the OBD2 benefits like being able to detect misfires..big help if you ask me. also OBD2 probably has 3 times as many codes to help diagnose problems. if i ever find an OBD2 tuner for under $200...ill be making the switch back.

 

Thanks for the advice Brad, that gives me a lot to think on. The mail order programming thing sounds nice but I'm too much of a control freak for that I think.

Thanks again!
Mike

 

Get the LT-1 Edit-the GUI is a bit notchy, but once you get used to it, it will do the job fine. If you can wait til middle of next year, then wait for TC.

 

Good replies from everyone. I converted my 97 to obdi, I bought a ready to go pcm from Bryan at pcmforless with a base tune installed and have used LT1edit to fine tune things.
When Tunercat comes out with obdii, I'll go back to my other pcm, it's the only way for me to get thru emision testing. If you havn't invested in any software yet, I would go with tunercat, way more bang for the buck.

 

There's alot to said for simplicity, and Tunercat does that well. If GM had not gotten more complex with their communications process, we'd all be using TC obd2 right now.