Do upgraded heads require a tune?
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From: New Smyrna Beach, FL
Car: 1988 GTA
Engine: 305
Transmission: 5 Speed
Do upgraded heads require a tune?
I am about to put trickflows on my 305 and I am wondering if the car will need a tune with these heads?
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,895
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From: Pittsburgh PA
Car: 89 Iroc-z
Engine: 555 BBC Turbo
Transmission: TH400
Axle/Gears: MWC 9” 3.00
Re: Do upgraded heads require a tune?
what heads you going with? the 175 cc heads?
anytime you get more air in and/or out of a motor, you should tune it as even stock motors can use a tune
IF you upgrade heads your car should run ok on stock tune as long as you use stock cam still, and keep compression similar... in this case, aluminum heads vs stock irons, so you can run abit more compression to compensate for the aluminum heat transfering properties
Modern heads have different combustion chamber designs for more efficient burns and more power. Its always best to tune to take advantage of that, but being MAF, you should beable to run those 175cc heads just fine without a tune, just adjust base timing and fuel pressure for now as you see fit
anytime you get more air in and/or out of a motor, you should tune it as even stock motors can use a tune
IF you upgrade heads your car should run ok on stock tune as long as you use stock cam still, and keep compression similar... in this case, aluminum heads vs stock irons, so you can run abit more compression to compensate for the aluminum heat transfering properties
Modern heads have different combustion chamber designs for more efficient burns and more power. Its always best to tune to take advantage of that, but being MAF, you should beable to run those 175cc heads just fine without a tune, just adjust base timing and fuel pressure for now as you see fit
Thread Starter
Member
iTrader: (4)
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 164
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From: New Smyrna Beach, FL
Car: 1988 GTA
Engine: 305
Transmission: 5 Speed
Re: Do upgraded heads require a tune?
What about WOT? Is the MAF used in calculations for PE mode or does it just run off tables in the prom?
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 25,895
Likes: 429
From: Pittsburgh PA
Car: 89 Iroc-z
Engine: 555 BBC Turbo
Transmission: TH400
Axle/Gears: MWC 9” 3.00
Re: Do upgraded heads require a tune?
it uses alittle MAF and PE mode tables. If you max out the MAF at 255 gm/s, then it uses that max value plus the PE mode. PE mode then is the only way to add more fuel
If your not maxing out the MAF then you can adjust fuel in PE mode or by playing with MAF table
My L98 with full bolt ons hit around 200-205 gm/sec just for reference... so if i needed more fuel at peak MAF i'd add a few more gm/s in the MAF table at those values..but thats not generally recommended since we have PE mode WOT fueling tables to play with
At WOT you can still tune by alittle timing and fuel pressure. Keep an eye on the plugs and go from there. I'd highly suggest you start looking into tuning. Its really easy to do with MAF systems. Does seem intimidating at first but trust me, you'll learn quick when working with stock or mild motor combos. Just play with simple things like timing table and PE mode fuel. SHouldnt require much of a change but you'll pick up
simply making max spark advance in my prom come in at 3000 rpms instead of stock 4400+ rpms, i picked up dyno proven 15 wtq peak at 3000-3500 rpms and about 7-10 from there on up. Only gained 4whp but thats because top end fuel was lean still
If your not maxing out the MAF then you can adjust fuel in PE mode or by playing with MAF table
My L98 with full bolt ons hit around 200-205 gm/sec just for reference... so if i needed more fuel at peak MAF i'd add a few more gm/s in the MAF table at those values..but thats not generally recommended since we have PE mode WOT fueling tables to play with
At WOT you can still tune by alittle timing and fuel pressure. Keep an eye on the plugs and go from there. I'd highly suggest you start looking into tuning. Its really easy to do with MAF systems. Does seem intimidating at first but trust me, you'll learn quick when working with stock or mild motor combos. Just play with simple things like timing table and PE mode fuel. SHouldnt require much of a change but you'll pick up
simply making max spark advance in my prom come in at 3000 rpms instead of stock 4400+ rpms, i picked up dyno proven 15 wtq peak at 3000-3500 rpms and about 7-10 from there on up. Only gained 4whp but thats because top end fuel was lean still
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