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HPTuners programming for dummies

219K views 17 replies 16 participants last post by  BdubB 
#1 ·
Here is some info help you guys get started tuning with HPTuners. Credit to ozorowski, Keith from HPT, and WS6snake-eater from HPtuners bulletin board for compiling this basic info.

DISABLE ALL TORQUE MANAGEMENT

Your a hardcore racer now why do you need a computer to tell you how much power you can have.

1: Open your editor, go to Edit>Transmission>Torque Management.
2: Set Abuse Mode Enable False
3: Set Abuse Mode RPM, Abuse Mode TPS and Abuse Mode Speed to 0
4: click over on Abuse Mode Torque Reduction vs RPM. I am referring to An A4 camaro SS here so dunno about anyone else. Set all values in Normal to 0.
5: You should now have NO TORQUE MANAGEMENT.



160 or 180* FAN CONTROL SETTINGS
Go to Edit>System>General

Set stage 1 fan to turn on at 185*
Off at 180*

Stage 2 fan on at 195*
off at 185*


IDLE TUNING--Really only need to do this if you have installed a cam. Special thanks goes out to WS7 on Ls1tuning.com

Idle Limiters -->
Go to Edit --> Engine --> IDLE --> IDLE RPM --> Target Idle speed VS ECT
Idle Speed: 950--Start at 950 to get car to idle, then lower 25 rpm at a time until you get idle you like that will keep car running. General rule of thumb, keep anything with AC 50rpm higher than your AC OFF.

Go to Edit --> Engine --> IDLE -->IDLE AIRFLOW --> IAC Park Position Airflow vs. IAT: Raise all points from -40C and up to 21

Go to Edit --> Engine --> IDLE --> IDLE AIRFLOW -->Idle Airflow vs. ECT: Idle Air In Gear: All points 68C and up to 8.6 (Mine are at 9.6). This menu RIGHT HERE is the key to idle.

Go to Edit --> Engine --> Airflow--> General --> Primary VE vs. RPM vs. MAP --> Multiply column 400 rpm by .60. Multiply column 800 by .80. Multiply column 1200 by .90.

Go to Edit --> Engine --> Spark Advance --> Low Octane: Add 2 deg to all points 400 to 1000 RPM, .08 to .32 g/sec. Copy this table to High Octane Table.

Take the car for a drive and check your idle. If the car goes on cruise control reduce the Idle Air in Gear Table .2 (further if necessary). If the idle holds at 2000 RPM for extended periods of time reduce the P/N Airflow Decay table for all points above 10 MPH by 5% (multiply by 95) until this stops. Be vary careful on this table.

If problems idleing, after you do all these idles steps, Go back to Idle Airflow Vs ECT, add 1 point to WHOLE ROW, whether idle in gear, or idle in p/n, and add 1 point at a time to WHOLE ROW, re-upload tune to car, and repeat until car idles. I don't know how much is too much, but I just kept adding 1 to the row, and car idles NICELY now. Now fine tune your VE




LTFT (VE) TUNING

First off, unplug your Maf sensor. As of right now, I don't plan on plugging it back in. Don't see any reason to.

Special thanks goes out to WS6snake-eater for most of this part...

1: Unplug MAF (Replace with strait bellows if you do not have intentions of ever using a MAF again ie. always speed density.)
2: Disable the SES lights for MAF codes P0101, P0102, P0103 (No check engine light.) Do not completely disable the codes or the PCM will not fall into SD mode. Only turn off the SES light, DO NOT DISABLE THE CODES THEMSELVES!
3: Start up your scanner. Start up your histogram. Now, click File then connect. Go to tools then VCM Controls. Click on Fuel & Spark. Reset Fuel Trims.
4: Drive around at a MINIMUM of 15 minutes. Try not to floor it but if you do it seems to be ok.
Stop logging, save data, do not turn off engine until you save your data or you will lose your log. Now, look at your ltft's. Open up your editor and go to Edit>Engine>Airflow and look under MAIN VE click on Primary VE vs RPM vs MAP. Click on that.
5: Let's say at .800, .28 which is equivalent to 800 RPM's you have 4 which is equal to +4. For ALL YOUR TRIMS you want between 0 and -4, so what I do is do whatever it takes to get to zero. Easy rule of thumb here if you want number smaller, add you want number bigger subtract. So, we want to bring that DOWN to 0 so ADD 4 to .800, .28. Let's say 2.0, .20 is -10, SUBTRACT 10 from 2.0, .20 to bring it UP to 0. This will not work out exactly but will get your PRETTY CLOSE. Do this for all values until everything is between 0 and -4.
6: Repeat steps 3-5 until ALL values are between 0 and -4. Try and do this all in same day for best results.
7: Once all values are between 0 and -4, look at your 3d graph. Pretty choppy huh? Click on polynomial smoothing ONE TIME. This will take a lot of choppiness out. Now rescan, and do step 5.
8: Copy High Octane table to the Low Octane Table (computer reverts to low octane table when MAF is unplugged, this assure optimal timing)







PE TUNING-ONLY after your ltft's are all BELOW 0.
This should be easy so read on...

1: Open up your scanner, do not worry about resetting your fuel trims. In fact, you want your fuel trims to be learned at this point. You hopefully have driven 100+ miles since configuring your ltft's.
2: Open histogram, and do a nice 0-70 or preferable 0-100mph run. Look at your Knock Retard FIRST. If you have Knock retard skip to next section then come back here. If no Knock, continue.
3: Again if NO KNOCK, look at your air/fuel tab at 100 mark. I do not know what measurement the 100 is, but that is what I use for my reference. It is best to dyno at least once to see what mv your 02 sensors like. Mine seem to like 890mv. Anyways, look at where your mv's are vs. what your car likes.
4: Let's say at 100, 3200rpm, your are at 950mv. We want to bring that down to 890mv. I do not yet know exact equation, but go to your editor then Engine>Fuel>Power Enrich Look at PE Enrichment category and click on V8 Mult vs. RPM. Make sure plus is bubbled in and selected is bubbled in. Now, in this case we want to bring it down, so SUBTRACT .01 NOTICE THE DECIMAL VERY IMPORTANT. If you are Lean -BELOW 890mv then ADD .01 at a time. I know this is a small increment but you do not want to blow up your motor.
5: After making your changes, go back to step 2 until you are in range you want to be in.
6: Pat yourself on back you have a halfway decent tune now.







ELIMINATING KNOCK RETARD:

1: Look at your most recent Histogram log from your scanner. Look for ANY KR. So let's say at 4000x .20 rpm we have 4 degrees. We want this to be 0, so we have to SUBTRACT 4 from this cell. As far as I know you can't have anything less than zero here.
2: Go to edit>Engine>Spark Advance. Click on Main Spark vs. Airflow vs. RPM Open Throttle, High Octane. Now go to .20 4000 rpm AND/OR whatever other tables have KR and SUBTRACT whatever degree of Knock Retard you have. You can subtract by simply clicking on plus selection and in that little box type -4 or whatever number you have to subtract by and click commit.
3: Run a new scan and you should now have NO knock Retard. If you do, repeat from step 1.





A4 TRANSMISSION SETTINGS:

1: Well, you should have already disabled torque management.
2: Start at Edit>Engine>A4 Shift Speed. Look under WOT Shift Enable %TPS: Set it at whatever you like. I set down to 90% because when I floor it I want power quick. Your talkin ga few milliseconds to go from 90 to stock 95% right, LOL.
3: Disable %TPS Set this to about 10 lower from your Enable.
4: Look at WOT Shift RPM vs. Shift. For my STOCK camaro I set to 6000 rpm, cuz if you look at my dyno, it is dropping after 6000rpm so I figured just have it change at 6k. After 6krpm it will take a few hundred more anyways to shift.
5: WOT Shift Speed vs. Shift--In an A4 here is a formula I pulled off ls1tech.com make sure to thank 99ssleeper over there. He posted this:
MPH =
(RPM x Loaded Radius of the real wheel) divided by
(Tranny Gear Ratio x Final Gear Ratio x 168.06

If you have stock wheels and tires, the Loaded Radius is approximately 13.125"...otherwise just measure from the ground to the center of the wheel.

A4 Trans Ratios are
1st..3.06
2nd..1.62
3rd..1.0
4th.. .8

Fianl Gear ratios are 2.73s or the optional 3.23s (RPO GU5 I think...??).
6: Shift Speed vs. %TPS vs. Shift. LEAVE AT STOCK


7: MOVE TO SHIFT PROPERTIES TAB
8: Look at Desired Shift Time. Click on Normal FORGET about performance if you are driving a camaro. There is no performance in a camaro, LOL. I basically guessed here, and could use some input here. For the first half of
the torque band, I set shift time to .500 so you get nice soft, smooth shifts. Starting about midway, I decreased to .250 and for last 1/4 I changed to .100. I heard you do not want to go below .100 or else you will run into some kind of gear crossing? Please feel free to fill in here.
9: Shift Pressure-Ok this is kind of weird and don't understand it, but what I PERSONALLY did was again take half of chart and to the left. Take this and set to a LOW # like 10. I have a shift kit in my car, and setting first half gives me nice smooth shifts. You would never know I had a shift kit or torque converter in my car. I then took middle and started beefing up shifts in increments of 10 then increments of 15. By far right of table I have shift pressure up to 90. Now, when you drive my car at 0-1/4 throttle it is SMOOTH. 1/2 throttle, you can feel a nice crisp shift. WOT it chirps tires from 1-2 and 2-3 shifts. NICE and hard.
10: Upshift/Downshift pressure I don't understand. If you do, teach me and I'll update.
11: If you have a shift kit, leave max line pressure at 90. If not you can prob. up to 100.
12: Below, courteousy of Blue_Falcon

If you don't want your torque converter to lockup in x gear, just go under TCC apply in x gear and change all of the values to 256.
13: Transmission tuning DONE.
 
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#2 ·
TURNING OFF REAR O2 SENSORS:
Thank you Keith, HP TUNERS


You'll want to go through the DTC list and find all sensors of both bank 1 and bank 1 that are labeled as Sensor 2.. Sensor 2 indicated the rear sensor (on V8 applications).

You will want to leave the DTC On/Off flag as it is, but will want to set the error mode to "No Error Reported".


CHANGE TUNE FROM AUTO TO MANUAL OR VICE VERSA:

1) Get tune from Bin file repository or somewhere. Copy out of someone with same year car as you if you like.
2) Upload file just as though you would any other file.
3) Enjoy you now have a M6/A4 program.
 
#3 ·
nice wrietup. u might want to add how to tune out EGR and AIR also. i have a list of the codes to disable somewhere, but ill have to find it
 
#9 ·
Great stuff

This is great guys, glad I found this forum. I'm not so worried about that first start-up now.

If anyone could help about any problems i may find in putting ls1 in a old truck or Malibu maybe not sure yet any info would be awesome,, I will continue to look around the forum as well

Again , Thanks
 
#11 ·
Probably the wrong thread for that question.
 
#16 ·
looks like HPTuners is the software I should get...
 
#17 ·
Going to try and tune the PCM myself for the first time and saw this Thread :"HP tuner for dummies, saw the dummie first and said this is gotta be for me! I read the other articles as well but stopped because my eyes were getting glazed over. So about 13 yrs ago i had the LT1(94 caprice,donor car) transplanted into the el camino.I had the PCM flashed on the LT1 to remove the VATS, smog, 02's, EGR and i think some others(kinda forgot what else), just to get the new transplant running(never had the elky on the road),then the elky sat in the garage until 2017. Now, ready for the final touches before putting plates back on to drive it (complete off frame resto done from front to rear), i wanted the PCM to be tuned to the best it can. i do have the LT1 OBD1 hooked up to the CEL, it does work and it does stay lit. Not sure what the code is because i dont have an OBD1 scanner and it seems the "scanner" is built into the software in the HP tuner. For the latest and greatest info i hit youtube, here on LS1/LT1.com and a few others and saw JJ's old post "Free PC scan utility for the 94 and 95 LT1"(on el caminocentral). i also found these (below) for reference. i would like to try and do this myself. Theres a lot of info and i'm trying to condense it down to where i can understand where i need to start.what is everyone recomendations? Thanks in advance for all the help. I'm also going to post below not sure if it will be seen here, due to the last posting back in 2013, so aplogies for double posting.

(1984 el camino, i usually hang out over on elcaminocentral.com)The LT1 improvements are 30 over pistons,long tube headers,new boshe injectors,mild/street competions cam and yes, new(refurbished) AC/Delco Optispark. I have had it up and down the street a few times but not over 20 mph, it seems to run fine and i think i have noticed it does run lean( while idleing in the garage) .



http://www.moates.net/aldu1-and-cabl....html?cPath=64
Software links:
http://www.tunercat.com/winflash_desc...
TunerPro and TunerPro RT - Professional Automobile Tuning Software
 
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