MODIFICATION PCM4*
Recalibrate Speedometer
Remove speed limiter
Remove skip shift
Remove torque reduction
Increase shift firmness
Raise rev limiter
Raise shift points
Adjust cooling-fan activation points
Deactivate EGR
Deactivate air pump
Install SLP Custom Spark Advance
Tune fuel mapping


I just got a quote from SLP for having my car put on their dyno and custom programmed, as many pulls as needed and as much time as needed to get the car properly tuned. I know I am currently running rich thanks to the black marks on my garage floor. The price they gave me was $650. Is that a decent price?

Just to dyno the car w/ 2 pulls is $125. Thanks for the help, I am going to the Toms River facility on the 12th to have SFC's and drive shaft loop installed, thinking of maybe adding this to the list!

 

if they are gona keep teh car on teh dyno as long as it takes to get teh WOT, idle, and cruising all perfected, then i woudl say you found yourself a great deal.

later
tim

 

Yeah the guy at SLP, Nick, told me basically they would block off the whole day for my car, put it on the dyno for as many runs as they needed to tune the car perfectly. Someone had told me that it was way high but I trust SLP and plus for just the 2 pulls without any tuning its only $125, places by me charge about double for the same thing. I think its a pretty reasonable price for the SLP tuning.

I am going to call him back tomorrow to see if they will tune it at WOT, cruising and idle, thanks for the info, I woulda never thought of that! Good thing I come here for advice!!

 

Heres my thoughts on it. All the ones I marked with a red * can be done with a HPP+. Skip shift, is a $15 item you seem to already have. The "SLP Custom Spark Advance" has kinda got me wondering. Are they talking about actually changing the timing maps or just tossing in one of their IAT resistors for more timing? If its the IAT... you can make it yourself for $.06 at Radio Shack. And feel for your self that it does nothing. Torque management, EGR and AIR are all stuff you do need LS1 edit for, but honestly I dont see anything in your sig that really requires you to get rid of them.

To answer your question, that is actually pretty steep for tuning. My big question is that if you make changes down the road, will they be willing to make minor changes free of charge? Suppose your shift points are not right, will they adjust em later for you? You cant set shift points on a dyno.... you dont shift gears on the dyno. If not then your much better off with just going with a HPP type programmer. You can pick them up used off the boards for almost half of their original cost and then you have the ability to make adjustments yourself. You can get custome tuning locally for less than $650... Thats almost funny they want that much for so few changes. IMHO... its not worth it if you havent gone into the motor. Stock tuning is pretty damn good. GM has already pushed teh limits of tuning in stock trim, unless you have gone into the motor, you wont see much from changing fuel/timing maps. I would just hate to see you spend $650 for 10 hp and its something a $150 HPP can do.... For $650 for can buy LS1 edit yourself. And have money to spare to rent a dyno after you read and learn how to tune yourself. Just my .02

 

It is a good deal.

Sure, you can save money and accomplish your goals in different ways as has been pointed out above, but at $650.00 for a day and the convenience of one stop shopping, that is a good deal.

Consider this as a "day rate" for labor at $81.25. The equipment use and shop use is free. They have their database of information from which to work on your car which is worth something. They will warranty their work which is worth something. They have a good reputation which is worth something.

Whether or not this is a wise investment considering your level of modification can be debated. Whether or not it is worth it to you to buy software, load it on a laptop, and do the modifications yourself can be debated.

But for a full day at SLP with their labor and their equipment it is a good rate. Maybe I should call and see what they will do for me...

 

Bob, have you spoke with Mike at Rapid Motorsports? He's got LS1 Edit and can put your car on the dyno for tuning. He just did a set of weld-in SLP subframes and a driveshaft loop for me also. It might be worth it to give him a call, at least for price comparison.

Steve

 

I dont want to discourage you, because SLP is a very reputable company. But FWIW, I do know other companies out there who can and will dyno tune for less. Average in this area seems to be $500-550 for a dyno tune. I have also watched others spend alot of money on tuning, and later change gears or something else. They then went back to the place they went for the original tunning and had to pay another $100 or so for a minor change. Make 2-3 minor changes in the next 2 years like that and your looking at spending almost a grand going that route. I always like to look at the options. As tnt said weather you need it or not is debateable. But we will assume you do. For the money I personally would not go that route... Not because its SLP but because I feel you can get a lot more for the dollar doing it yourself. And in the end you also learn. I have learned more in the last year about LT1's and LS1's than you can imagine. The amount of information out there on tuning is huge.

$650 if you figure it that way doesnt sound like alot, but what are you actually getting? 90% of those "modifications" can be done in less than 15 min without the dyno. If they are good with tunning, they can modify the fuel and timing tables to almost right on in about an hour or 2 tops. JMO....

 

Ideally, this kind of work should be priced by the hour. Of course, for this to be fair the tuner can't "pad" the bill. The shop where I do some casual work charges by the hour. $125 for the first hour (includes setup time) and $100/h thereafter. A job like yours wouldn't take all day, but $625 doesn't seem too bad.

Rich Krause

 

Try contacting Mikey at http://www.rapidmotorsports.com