Loca or National tuner?
09-03-2003 | 08:41 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Cruisin'
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
Loca or National tuner?
Hi All,
I've been giving a lot of thought as to where I plan to get my mods, suspension, ECU, headers, etc done. I've been reading as much as I can about the tuners that frequent this and other sites. I was steered to a local Chicago area guy, Perfect Power in Libertyville, who I just had an extensive converstaion with. He seems very knowledgeable and experienced. I don't have references yet, but I can see arguments for going either way. A national, or international tuner earns his rep the hard way, by servicing a large cross-section of people. If they screw up, the news gets broadcast far and wide, pretty fast. A good local guy is THERE, when you need him.
What do you guys think?
David Shapiro
I've been giving a lot of thought as to where I plan to get my mods, suspension, ECU, headers, etc done. I've been reading as much as I can about the tuners that frequent this and other sites. I was steered to a local Chicago area guy, Perfect Power in Libertyville, who I just had an extensive converstaion with. He seems very knowledgeable and experienced. I don't have references yet, but I can see arguments for going either way. A national, or international tuner earns his rep the hard way, by servicing a large cross-section of people. If they screw up, the news gets broadcast far and wide, pretty fast. A good local guy is THERE, when you need him.
What do you guys think?
David Shapiro
09-03-2003 | 08:59 PM
#2
Racer
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 344
Likes: 0
From: Chicago
The problem is getting to the out-of-state tuners to do the work. If you are asking who you should buy the upgrades from, I would say the best places are outside of IL. Evo, imagineauto, FVD, RUF, etc have far more at stake and have a guaranteed reputation as many people have used them. I would get my mods elsewhere. If you are saying you would want these out-of-state tuners to do the work, that is a whole different story. How would you get your car to the tuners and get it back? Are you ready to kiss your car goodbye for 2-4 weeks? Would I rather Evo installed the mods they sold me? Of coarse, they have done the mods many many times and are seasoned in the entire process. But, how?
-Lou
-Lou
09-03-2003 | 10:59 PM
#3
Intermediate
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 43
Likes: 0
From: MorroBay, Ca.
As far as where to get the parts:
I would order them from the best sources you can find perhaps on the Internet.
As far as installing the parts goes:
You can install the ECU yourself in a few minutes I think right?
Any reputable MufflerShop can install headers and exhaust for you.
As far as Suspension install goes, any reputable suspension shop, alignment shop or even tire shop can install items such as springs, shocks and swaybars.
If you insist on having a "Tuner" do it, it will cost you ALOT more $ (I think)for things that truthfully any reputable mechanic can do.
The key is finding a Trustworthy mechanic/shop.
In my case, I couldn't find a "Tuner" in my area that specialises in my particular car.
So I checked-out several shops in my area. I finally found a shop that does great work, charges reasonable prices, and does it in a timely manner. Unless you are having some exotic/unusual work done, it shouldn't be too difficult to find an acceptable shop in your area to implement your common modz; even if it isn't a Porsche "Tuner"Shop.
Perhaps you could assign a smaller job to a shop that seems to be a possible keeper, see how they do, and if they meet your approval, gradually allow them the privlidge of doing bigger jobs for you. That way, you are not prematurly overcommiting your financial ressources and risking your schweet ryde before knowing if the shop if worthy of your business.
I would order them from the best sources you can find perhaps on the Internet.
As far as installing the parts goes:
You can install the ECU yourself in a few minutes I think right?
Any reputable MufflerShop can install headers and exhaust for you.
As far as Suspension install goes, any reputable suspension shop, alignment shop or even tire shop can install items such as springs, shocks and swaybars.
If you insist on having a "Tuner" do it, it will cost you ALOT more $ (I think)for things that truthfully any reputable mechanic can do.
The key is finding a Trustworthy mechanic/shop.
In my case, I couldn't find a "Tuner" in my area that specialises in my particular car.
So I checked-out several shops in my area. I finally found a shop that does great work, charges reasonable prices, and does it in a timely manner. Unless you are having some exotic/unusual work done, it shouldn't be too difficult to find an acceptable shop in your area to implement your common modz; even if it isn't a Porsche "Tuner"Shop.
Perhaps you could assign a smaller job to a shop that seems to be a possible keeper, see how they do, and if they meet your approval, gradually allow them the privlidge of doing bigger jobs for you. That way, you are not prematurly overcommiting your financial ressources and risking your schweet ryde before knowing if the shop if worthy of your business.
09-03-2003 | 11:05 PM
#4
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 1,225
Likes: 1
From: New Jersey
Originally posted by Minis-are-slow
Perhaps you could assign a smaller job to a shop that seems to be a possible keeper, see how they do, and if they meet your approval, gradually allow them the privlidge of doing bigger jobs for you. That way, you are not prematurly overcommiting your financial ressources and risking your schweet ryde before knowing if the shop if worthy of your business.
Perhaps you could assign a smaller job to a shop that seems to be a possible keeper, see how they do, and if they meet your approval, gradually allow them the privlidge of doing bigger jobs for you. That way, you are not prematurly overcommiting your financial ressources and risking your schweet ryde before knowing if the shop if worthy of your business.
Shipping the car to a reputable tuner is a good option also.
09-04-2003 | 02:57 AM
#6
Racer
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 285
Likes: 0
If it were my car, I'd ship it to the national tuner after first doing due dilligence. I think that the odds of getting a high quality, reliable installation are much greater with the national tuner due to their experience with the application. And you can have the car shipped via enclosed transport with no more risk than driving your car to and from work.
Before sending the car to a tuner, I'd talk to references provided by the tuner. I'd also talk to others on Rennlist and 6Speed to get an independent view.
I'd also consider flying out first to visit the tuner and make sure that the work they do is up to your standards. Also see if you can drive one of their cars while you are there. The investment in your TT and mods is substantial and I don't think that it makes sense to cut corners.
I've had a range of experiences with tuners, from dismal (those shall remain nameless) to awesome (EVO, Jim Wolf Technology) and many in between. Basically, with due dilligence, I think that you can avoid experiences like the following:
1. The first shop to work on my first race car completely botched the setup of every important component - from engine to suspension. It was not until I hired a friend who was also a mechanic to assist me in going through the car myself. Along the way we found various suspension bits installed improperly, one blown stock strut on a corner (combined with three after market struts - where the other after market unit went is still a mystery), cheap nonfactory rotors that kept cracking (sold as "factory" units), a used engine that could barely motivate the car to the mid/back portion of the pack, and many other instances of downright shoddy workmanship. In the end, we went from the back of the pack to a divisional championship. But not until we had gone through the entire car and replaced most everything this shop touched... this from a shop that was highly recommended to me by several racers. (Later I found many other racers who had had similar experiences to mine. Lesson: References aren't necessarily meaningful if they are provided by the tuner. But, a board like this can provide you with more objective, unsolicited references.)
2. The first shop to work on my father's RX7 turbo in the late 80s decided to get experimental on the car. The car performed well briefly, then the engine blew (insufficient fuel). In response to the blown engine, the tuner's comment was "well, one way that I computed the fuel requirements, the stock injectors seemed to be adequate. The other way I computed fuel requirements, it looked like larger injectors would be needed." One engine later, I guess he figured out that computation two was more accruate. Nevertheless, even after a rebuild and larger injectors, the tuner was never able to produce a car that was drivable and the car sits to this day...
3. While I have had no experiences with Hennessey in Houston, check the web if you want to get an extreme view of what can go wrong when you choose the wrong tuner...
There are a number of very reputable 996TT tuners on this board (EVO, Imagine, S Car Go, and a few others). And there are enough of their customers on these boards to provide you with a very good, unbiased recommendation. I don't think that you can go wrong in choosing one of them to work on your car (although I'd still do the due dilligence if it were me).
Before sending the car to a tuner, I'd talk to references provided by the tuner. I'd also talk to others on Rennlist and 6Speed to get an independent view.
I'd also consider flying out first to visit the tuner and make sure that the work they do is up to your standards. Also see if you can drive one of their cars while you are there. The investment in your TT and mods is substantial and I don't think that it makes sense to cut corners.
I've had a range of experiences with tuners, from dismal (those shall remain nameless) to awesome (EVO, Jim Wolf Technology) and many in between. Basically, with due dilligence, I think that you can avoid experiences like the following:
1. The first shop to work on my first race car completely botched the setup of every important component - from engine to suspension. It was not until I hired a friend who was also a mechanic to assist me in going through the car myself. Along the way we found various suspension bits installed improperly, one blown stock strut on a corner (combined with three after market struts - where the other after market unit went is still a mystery), cheap nonfactory rotors that kept cracking (sold as "factory" units), a used engine that could barely motivate the car to the mid/back portion of the pack, and many other instances of downright shoddy workmanship. In the end, we went from the back of the pack to a divisional championship. But not until we had gone through the entire car and replaced most everything this shop touched... this from a shop that was highly recommended to me by several racers. (Later I found many other racers who had had similar experiences to mine. Lesson: References aren't necessarily meaningful if they are provided by the tuner. But, a board like this can provide you with more objective, unsolicited references.)
2. The first shop to work on my father's RX7 turbo in the late 80s decided to get experimental on the car. The car performed well briefly, then the engine blew (insufficient fuel). In response to the blown engine, the tuner's comment was "well, one way that I computed the fuel requirements, the stock injectors seemed to be adequate. The other way I computed fuel requirements, it looked like larger injectors would be needed." One engine later, I guess he figured out that computation two was more accruate. Nevertheless, even after a rebuild and larger injectors, the tuner was never able to produce a car that was drivable and the car sits to this day...
3. While I have had no experiences with Hennessey in Houston, check the web if you want to get an extreme view of what can go wrong when you choose the wrong tuner...
There are a number of very reputable 996TT tuners on this board (EVO, Imagine, S Car Go, and a few others). And there are enough of their customers on these boards to provide you with a very good, unbiased recommendation. I don't think that you can go wrong in choosing one of them to work on your car (although I'd still do the due dilligence if it were me).
