Resources for learning to tune?
 

I recently bought two of Gregg Banish's books on tuning, and wanted to know how the tuners on this forum started out? I can do anything mechanical (I'm the shop foreman and Master Certified at a Mercedes-Benz dealer (and Have been Master Certified with Mitsubishi and BMW in the past), but really want to learn to tune. Are there schools that offer training for high performance tuning, or did you guys just learn as you went a long? I really enjoy modifying these cars, but don't like the fact that I have to rely on others to tune what I build...and can't stand the fact that my hands are tied when/if there is an issue with the tune in my own car!

Study the books, read hptuners forums and most importantly go slow with small changes at a time. You can ask questions on the forum and there are many guides and tutorials to read there.

^Very good advice^
I found it very helpful to use the compare feature of HP Tuners to compare say a stock tune to a tune for LT headers or a cam then find out what the changes did by searching HP Tuners or EFI forums. You are definitely on the right track with Gregg Banish's books. The biggest hurdle in learning to tune is the time it takes. If you decide to go the training route, I would highly recommend Gregg's live classes. Here is a link to Calibrated Success, his website.

I started because the 850 hp Z06 I used to have was not tuned well at all and I lost trust in the "pro tuner." I taught myself everything using HPT forums and some G Banish books, etc on a stroked, nitrous, big cam Vette. lol. No small changes for me. It took 8 months until I had it perfect and understood every little thing. I never stop messing with it right until I sold it. Now I have tuned about 190 cars and trucks but it is just for fun/on the side sort of thing.

I learned on my own LNF turbo Cobalt with the help of a great mentor on the HPT forums. (Terminator2) Take your time, read a lot, ask questions and you'll get it. I moved on from the 4 banger turbo to tune my own LS1 & now the LS3. Also have done ~20 tunes for others and helped hundreds. It's great to know how & what you are doing.

I paid a shop to tune a car and all they did was rape the PE table. lol.

My car is currently tuned with efi live, would it be better to buy their software? Can I read and modify my current tune with hptuners now that it has been tuned with efi live? Which software is easier to learn on? Also how can I tell if my current tune was done properly, I keep hearing about the PE tables being changed and other shortcuts some tuners use. I also heard of an issue with the LPE dual pump setup I currently have on order that affects the fuel gauge reading properly that can not be fixed with hp, only efi live. Sorry for all of the questions, I am just trying to gather as much info as possible before making a choice on software. Thanks!

There is an issue with the fuel gauge not reading properly after installing the LPE dual pump. I think HP can correct it though. ADM posted some info on this a while back.

Gd luck!!:D

Thats why I was asking about hp tuners...his post said it was only fixable with efi live. I don't have my fuel pump yet, so I may not even have the problem, but wanted to make sure I have the software to fix it if I do!

Just found out efi live has a tuning class called efi university that is local to me next weekend. Anyone know anything about this ?

I like the Tuning School classes and books because they are HP Tuners specific if that's the platform your learning. I think they explain the tuning process better. I go up there and help out every once in a while. What I like about them its a step by step walk you through the tuning process.