Hey everyone,
Brand new to this forum a so glad to be here.
I have moderate mechanical experience and knowledge about my mustang because I can always learn something new. I would consider myself intermediate. So I currently have a 2007 GT with various appearance mods but I’m looking to add some decent power. I currently have an AFE magnum force cold air intake in regards to performance mods. I plan on adding the following:

Ford Performance 62mm throttle body
Ford Racing intake manifold
Ford hot rod camshafts (stock valve springs/ lifters)
BBK long tube headers
BBK X pipe
Currently running custom muffler delete
Maybe* some exhaust cutouts for ****s and gigs down the line
***A tune***
I for sure will get all of these parts however my main question is the tune. Should I A)Install all of the parts and tune as Each part is installed, or B) Install all of the parts and tune them all at the end? My next question would be, what is the best tuner I should get along with all of those parts? Again I am completely looking for reccomendations and realize that I do not know everything so pros and everyone please hook me up with solid advice!

Thanks guys

 

Personally, I would just wait until you have all the parts you plan on getting, as your car is going to require custom dyno tuning for the Ford Racing intake, hod rod camshafts and LT headers anyhow. So just might as well have everything tuned together rather than go through several dyno tuning sessions which is going to cost you more $$$ in the long run. Therefore, if you have a reputable custom tuning shop in your particular area? I'd recommend going with them, otherwise, I'd recommend www.teamjdm.com followed by www.lundracing.com www.vmpperformance.com or www.steeda.com

Meanwhile, best of luck and welcome to TMS.

 

As soon as you install any part that requires a tune, you must also install the tune for that part, or the car will not run right. You have several parts in your list that require tunes. So if you will be installing those one at a time, you will also need to tune for them one at a time.

The best remote tuner that I know for these cars is "Lito" (real name Manuel Pazo) who can be reached by e-mail at support@tudyno.com . . . he fine-tunes using data logs; meaning he will supply a rough tune based on your specifications, then he will have you data-log it to make adjustments. If I was in your situation I would contact him first, and ask him what is the best tuner device for your needs.

 

Providing of course, the OP has an 02 bung welded in his 2007's mid-pipe for connecting a wide band 02 sensor to a laptop? Otherwise, remote tuning won't be an option

 

wide band is nice, maybe needed for the last few % of "optimum" performance, but not really needed to get close . . . my understanding is that you datalog the same signals that the computer is using to control everything, which includes the O2 sensors, which I think is practically the same thing as a "wideband"; I am not sure how much "better" a wideband is, but suspect it is not much . . . might be important for a supercharger tune or other major modifications, but Lito has done loads of tunes without it and I have never heard a single complaint, only good feedback . . . . I asked him if it was important for my car, and he said no, we can get you very close without it

I guess a local dyno tune is still probably the "best" but that is very dependent on the skill of the tuner, and the quality of his equipment. My local dyno tuner is more Chevy-focused versus Ford, and his wideband wasn't even working right . . . remote tuning, using datalog and someone like Lito who specializes in these cars and has tune probably hundreds of them, is a close second and maybe better in some cases.

anyway, for my car and my money, I have used Lito before and would use him again without a moment's hesitation

 

So how exactly is data logging done on a older 2005-10 S197 3v? What gets connected to what, a cable from the vehicle's ECU to a laptop? As I honestly don't have a clue

 

To datalog, you use a cable from OBD-II port to tuner device to laptop with the data-logging software on the laptop; the cables and the software come with the tuner . . . so you do need a laptop, any normal Windows or Mac should work; and the tune writer (Lito for example) provides a configuration file that tells the software which sensors to log. There are a lot of sensors that can be logged, and there are a critical few that are needed -- I don't know all the details, but things like spark advance, knock sensor, A/F mix commanded, A/F signal from O2 sensor (not sure of technicalities on that), etc. . . . I'm pretty sure that all of the S197's have this capability, it's part of the OBD-II port.

 

I have the SCT X-4 tuning device. However, I don't have a laptop, just my desktop PC. Therefore, this was the reason for having my JDM custom mail order tunes checked on a local dyno to make certain that parameters like spark advance, air/fuel ratio mix and knock sensors are configured properly. So it appears I'll definitely need to purchase a laptop in order to data-log. My only other concern, is that my car is supercharged and not sure if it can be data-logged safely on a base tune file which Lito provides and then makes whatever necessary adjustments/revisions for getting everything dialed-in. That being said, I'm very familiar with Lito, as he's very popular on S197 forums and is also highly recommended as the 3v tuning guru

 

I know Lito has done a lot of tuning work with the Department of Boost supercharged cars, not sure about the Saleen but I think the principles are the same . . . and for a supercharged car, I think he does recommend installing a wideband, apparently it is "better" in some way but I'm not exactly sure what way

 

More than likely, the principles between the Saleen and DOB supercharged cars are pretty much the same. Also, If Lito does in fact recommend installing a wideband for supercharged applications? then I suppose it's for a very good reason. At any rate, I'll need to do some research as to what is all required for installing a wideband and how much it will cost for the required parts and installation. IIRC, installing an 02 bung sensor is part of the installation requirement for the wideband, but I don't know that for certain