Originally Posted by
cjbyron
I wouldn't go to someone that wants the car to start up first. To me that just means they do not know what they are doing. A GOOD tuner will scrap whatever you have in there and go from the very beginning to make sure everything is setup correctly. Trying to go in and tweak up someone else's map, or one that has had a bunch of "hey try this" done to it is a big waste of time. All it takes is one mismatched setting or improper change.
Sorry to hear you don't have someone good at AEM in your area. There are many AEM certified tuners that will travel to you. Maybe not in your state but elsewhere. I can give you some names/numbers. There is also at least one guy on here that will (but I won't speak for him). They won't do it for a 6 pack and must be paid but they are reasonable IMO when they ask. Keyword is a tuner that is qualified. There are many that taught themselves and can muddle though things but that does not make them qualified. I'm sure you realize this but will mention it anyway - you can damage your engine with the AEM setup wrong.
I understand you wanting to learn the software but learning from the very beginning this way you are risking your engine. A qualifed tuner usually has over two+ years of training. It is not a simple system that someone can learn in a week or month or whatever. Best to have it professionally setup and then learn in small steps on your own. That's all I meant.
You have to check with a timing lightto begin the install. OK, you didn't have one. Go get one. Taking shortcuts or doing things half-ass won't work. Once you make a mistake then start changing things on top of that mistake just compounds those errors thoughout your map. Many tables and settings rely on others.
You can get a car to start and even idle. Doesn't mean it is setup right.
Just trying to help steer you away from possibly ruining your engine.
