dmhines

421 RWHP from just 6PSI ... is that even possible ??

808muscle

IMO dyno tune is really only needed when your mods are starting to stack up. CAI and longtubes, pulleys etc...bolt ons mail order is fine. But start adding cams and FI then a dyno is a good idea. For me, there is no dyno on the island so mail order is the only way. JDM is one of the best for blown mustangs. My a/f is spot on all the way down the quarter mile. I have complete confidence in their tune.

REDBOSS1

Not sure what he did but I think the pulley is modified somehow to pull the belt harder at least it sounds like the belt is spinning faster even at idle. I have had it on two times one was the 421 and the other was 416 so it's not a BS number to my knowledge (which ain't much) and at this point does not really matter to me the car is being sold maybe his dyno may be a bit generous. The same day there was an SS Camaro that got cams, LT's, and CAI that made 435whp so I really have only that to base that off of. As far as I know his rep in the area is good as the dealer I'm buying the BOSS from has had his Shelby done there.

ShaneM

here is the thing IMHO on email tunes tunes. IF you have a reputable local shop known to be good ay mustang tuning, not some guy that happens to have the sct software and a dyno go dyno tune. Texas is a dead zone for decent tuners and i know 3 people that went with dyno tunes from places in dallas and ended up with all sorts of issues. one guy was getting like 15mpg after a dyno tune driving like a grandma and the car only put down 400whp with lots of mods that get 420 or more on other 5.0's. He went to a mail order lund tune and the car felt faster and economy went back up to 17-18mpg. i would 100% trust a mail order brenspeed, VMP, bama tune over a local shop that has no rep for tuning stangs. the key is to get your mail order tune, and have it put on a dyno to verify AFR right away. My VMP tune was significantly lean right out of the box and Justin had to tweak it on my m90 10. i bet money the guy up the thread putting 210 to the gournd on teh stock pully is lean on that blower unless he has other mods we dont know about. the m90 on roush tune is a 380whp car at best and even just at vmp told me a tune alone is only another 20-25whp.

Locke_03

I am currently running a Bama tune with my car, the only mod I really have performance wise is a CAI and I am very happy with the results.

With that said I am scheduled for a dyno tune tomorrow with Renegade Performance Mustangs Motorsports here in So Cal and here is why. I live in CA and that means CARB regulations and I have heard way too many stories of people not passing emissions with mailed tunes so I’m going just for that reason, Renegade is having a special on dyno tunes right now ($300) and knowing that from this day forward I will have an emission legal tune gives me the peace of mind I need to justify the cost.

Like most people have said here unless you have the mods to justify the price for a dyno tune you’re going to be just fine with the mail tunes, or you’re like me and live in CA then maybe a dyno tune is worth it.

I have read stories of people emailing Bama and Brenspeed and receiving custom tunes that pass emissions and I have heard stories of people simple passing with the regular mail tunes they have received(most of the time this is in Texas though), but for me it’s just not worth the risk of being black listed here in CA.

I have friends on that list and they have to test every year and only at smog only stations just not worth the hassle to me when all I have to do is get a dyno tune and be 100% sure that I will pass smog.
Just my thoughts.

Derf00

As already stated and to summarize what everyone has been stating:

E-mail tune - great for most minor mods as long as it's from a reputable shop that knows mustangs well. You won't get every single horsey or TQ number out of your car as every car is slightly different but you will get most of it without paying for the expense of a dyno.

Dyno - Can be expensive if you mod a lot over time. Best for highly modded cars or when you don't plan on upgrading too much beyond what you have. There will still be some differences between people that run the dyno and what they feel is an appropriate tune for your specific car.

Personal experience -I've been running the AM 91P tune (e-mail tune) for going on 4 months. I had to retard the global timing by 1 degree and retard the 2000-4000 and 4000-8000 range by an additional 2 degrees to get rid of pinging under moderate and heavy acceleration. This is the same tune that has been sent out to hundreds of people without problems I'm sure but because of my location (AZ = Heat), and my specific car it has a minor hiccup. No biggie. Problem solved. If it took more than a couple of degrees I would definitely let AM know and have them fix it for me (A/F could be off , they sent a 91 octane tune with 93 octane parameters, whatever).

onederful100

depends what you have to tune.
if you got your run of the mill CAI, exhaust, gears, pullies, your usual bolt ons, then a email tune will do just fine.
if you have something bigger like a stroker, heads, cams, nitrous, or higher boost, then a dyno tune is what you want.

i have Whipple HO, LT's, gears, DS, and run an email tune from VMP and also have a dyno tune.
both tunes are comparable in power and run great on both of them.
even FI you can run an email tune, just check to make sure the tune is good, if it isn't up to par they can adjust it with some datalogging.
but if you have something that isn't included in the usual over the counter kit, then the dyno tune will just about be a necessity.

Ford_Dude

E-mail tune = must be from a very good shop and it'll do good

dyno tune = needs to be a good shop and can get every last drop of power but only if the guy running it is good

I would only spend the bucks for a dyno tune if your ether 1. as modded as you plan to be or 2. you just installed a FI system and want to be sure your good

depending on tax time money I might get some heads and cams (for the power not the sound) and if I do that then I'll get a dyno tune as there won't be anything left for me unless I get alot of money and get a S/C

Mikes_BLK_GT

I couldn't agree more. These threads make me laugh because people come up and say a email tune is ok but a dyno tune is the only way to go cause they want to know whats going on and because the tuner can dial it in better.

1) Just because they have a dyno doesn't mean they Know how to tune these cars, in which case you end up with a tune thats unsafe or undrivable or both even though it was on the dyno.

2) If you want to know then datalog it, not that hard people, tuners are remote tuning and dialing in tunes this way, or you can put it on the dyno and have the tune checked. Amazon tuning solutions is one place who advertises remote tuning.

3) Sure sometimes it takes a bit of time to dial in an email tune and sometimes it doesn't work out nothing is perfect but lets be honest how many motors have we seen blowup due to an email tune from one of the reputable top tuners in the country?

4) Tuners like JDM and VMP specialize in boosted fords, Roush themselves sends people to VMP when the Roush calibration wont work due to other mods. I would rather have a remote tune from one of them then a dyno tune from just about anyone else because of their experience with these cars and the blower kit I have. An example is right here on this board, I have been part of a thread where someone is considering an SC kit and will get their blower tuned at Brenspeed. If this poster chooses the Roush kit and takes it to brenspeed sure they will tune it but I happen to know Brenspeed has a very low opinion of the Roush kits so how can you be sure they will get everything out of a "safe tune" when they dont even like the product they are tuning? Brenspeed is a good tuner and a god here on MF but I have read things and a part of discussions elsewhere that makes me think different.

5) No disputing a "Good" dyno tune is always going to get you the best results the quickest, but to tell people they should dyno tune a car with a cai is absolutely ridiculous, its a waist of time and money

eolson

I couldn't agree more with the above statements. I had JDM mailed tunes for years and they were fantastic. They got a little rich with the higher psi, but they always ran great, and the start up and surrounding standard daily running aspects were all perfect too. Including my milage, even at 12 lbs of boost, still got 24 mph on freeway going 70 mph on long trips, and got 475rwhp with stock exhaust. Great tunes.

Then I got a larger throated H pipe, which through off the JDM A/F, and I had to go with custom tuning. Freaken Nightmare! Got crappy tunes from 2 very highly recommended shops, and finally had Donny Walsh tune it right. Wasted lots of money with the first two shops. Most shops can not tune the daily running parameters correctly. Cold start tables most tuners can't do right, as well as idle. Erik