Engine Tuning - worth it or not ????
Discussion
Had a chat with my local TVR Dealer (I wont mention names) today as looking for a good garage to tune the engine up on my S3 as its probably been a long time since its been looked at.
Now the chap told me that it would be a waste of money (especially putting it on a rolling road) to do this on an S as not only do they have a sealed ECU, but there is no real way of altering the way the engine runs or is tuned, and had NEVER heard of any other S owners having their cars engine tuned.
Whilst it may not be possible to directly alter the settings on the ECU itself, it is possible to detect whether the unit is reacting correctly to the engine and as the ECU controls all aspects like ignition, timing, fuel injection etc then surely it is worth having this checked
Any thoughts on this guys, and has anyone else had their engines tuned?
Now the chap told me that it would be a waste of money (especially putting it on a rolling road) to do this on an S as not only do they have a sealed ECU, but there is no real way of altering the way the engine runs or is tuned, and had NEVER heard of any other S owners having their cars engine tuned.
Whilst it may not be possible to directly alter the settings on the ECU itself, it is possible to detect whether the unit is reacting correctly to the engine and as the ECU controls all aspects like ignition, timing, fuel injection etc then surely it is worth having this checked
Any thoughts on this guys, and has anyone else had their engines tuned?
The ECU will only control fueling on these Ford V6s, as far as I know they rely on mechanical and vacuum advance/retard for ignition timing, which means your car is a prime candidate for some fettling on the rolling road. There's lots of stuff that you can't check in the course of a normal service or on a test drive - yes base ignition timing, idle CO and fuel pressure may be as per the book, but that doesn't say a lot about what actually happens when driving. A rolling road creates a perfect and safe environment to see what happens when puttig a car through its paces, and if your car hasn't seen anything but normal servicing in the past 14 years, it's bound to benefit in some way or another.
Sounds to me like hes either taking the piss or geniunley has no idea.
There are plenty of tuning options, a rolling road remap is what i plan to do. That should not only give you and extra 20bhp or so but really incresae the powerband and torque throughout the rew range.
You can get it cammed, ported, balanced or bored out, just depends how much you want to spend and if you can find a place to do it. 200bhp should be possible but off the top of my head you're going to be looking at £2500 - £3000 to do that, maybe more.
I looked into it a while ago and (as seen on my other thread) decided the best route was to make sure the engine i have is running at 100% and then just get a remap. I dont think the costs are worth the xtra bhp - although some might disagree!
There are plenty of tuning options, a rolling road remap is what i plan to do. That should not only give you and extra 20bhp or so but really incresae the powerband and torque throughout the rew range.
You can get it cammed, ported, balanced or bored out, just depends how much you want to spend and if you can find a place to do it. 200bhp should be possible but off the top of my head you're going to be looking at £2500 - £3000 to do that, maybe more.
I looked into it a while ago and (as seen on my other thread) decided the best route was to make sure the engine i have is running at 100% and then just get a remap. I dont think the costs are worth the xtra bhp - although some might disagree!
Jeez not looking to spend that sort of money or want those sort of mods All I want is to make sure that what I have is giving 100%.
I spoke Ric Wood TVR in Cheshire and he is basically saying that I have been told a load of nonsense regarding this subject, and whilst you can't actually change the way the ECU is set up, you CAN make sure that the engine is performing to it's optimum, and with some minor tweeking get a little more out of it, or if you want lots more BHP then they can modify what you have to a certain degree.
All I want is to make sure that what I have is giving 100%. I spoke Ric Wood TVR in Cheshire and he is basically saying that I have been told a load of nonsense regarding this subject, and whilst you can't actually change the way the ECU is set up, you CAN make sure that the engine is performing to it's optimum, and with some minor tweeking get a little more out of it, or if you want lots more BHP then they can modify what you have to a certain degree.
Austec are definatley the people to talk to. Still costs a fair bit (£500-£600 IIRC) but everyone has said it has really imroved the car.
Just make sure that the engine mechanicals are in good nick - there was a guy on here who i believe blew his up while on the rolling road
(again hence my other thread wanting to make sure the engine is up to a rolling road thrashing followed by years of thrashing - trial by me!)
Just make sure that the engine mechanicals are in good nick - there was a guy on here who i believe blew his up while on the rolling road
(again hence my other thread wanting to make sure the engine is up to a rolling road thrashing followed by years of thrashing - trial by me!)Normally I'd say if an engine blows up in the tightly controlled conditions of a (properly executed) rolling road test, it was always going to expire on the road. Shame they couldn't save this one in time, but there's many more engines being saved by spotting lean fuel mixtures, pinking, insufficient cooling etc. on rolling roads than ones being 'killed' on them.
coolcatmaz said:
Jeez not looking to spend that sort of money or want those sort of mods All I want is to make sure that what I have is giving 100%.
If you're going to go to the effort / expense of a rolling road session I'd thoroughly recommend the often mentioned throttle mod, plus fitting an FSE boost valve first.... All I want is to make sure that what I have is giving 100%.http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...
Both mods are cheap and can be fitted at Guglielmis in Daventry which isn't tooooo far from you, then you'll need a quick visit to Northampton Motorsports rolling road to get it all set up properly. Even if you don't go for any mods Northampton Motorsports can do the kind of checks/maintenance you're after and have a good reputation with the V6 having helped out others here, including Mycroft recently as mentioned in this thread....
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...
Longers
s.
coolcatmaz said:
Thanks for those links Longers. I had heard about this throttle modification and may well be worth me doing this. Will definitely be taking it to Northampton for a session on the rolling road though.
The throttle mod can be done at anytime - before or after rolling road doesn't make a difference. For approx £85 (I think) I'd seriously consider fitting the FSE boost valve before the rolling road though....Longers said:
coolcatmaz said:
Thanks for those links Longers. I had heard about this throttle modification and may well be worth me doing this. Will definitely be taking it to Northampton for a session on the rolling road though.
The throttle mod can be done at anytime - before or after rolling road doesn't make a difference. For approx £85 (I think) I'd seriously consider fitting the FSE boost valve before the rolling road though....Edited by Podie on Wednesday 17th October 13:09
coolcatmaz said:
Whats an FSE Boost Valve then and whats it gonna do?
Google is your friend...http://www.powerboostvalve.co.uk
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