Tech Tuesdays are back for 2020! We are excited to see the growth of everyone who has participated in our hands-on courses, purchased our printed materials, and watched and commented on our past videos.
We know that completing the job is only one facet of what tuners want. Knowing what to look for in a good tuner, or knowing what is important to become one, can seem like a mystery. What better way to start off this year than to list some tough truths about being a good tuner? The Tuning School President, Bob Morreale, gives his top 6 truths stemming from his years in the automotive industry, and his own personal experiences.
What does it take to be a good tuner? Whether as a customer, or as a tuner, here are some traits to consider. A good tuner:
1. Has a positive attitude
If you were a customer that showed up to a tuner who doesn’t look happy to tune your car in particular... run! Consider the time of day, or how the tuner is responding to you. Is the tuner agitated, or enthusiastic? Remember, the best attitude leads to the best possible outcome.
2. Knows the software
This means that the tuner knows the dyno software, the tuning software, the editor, the scanner, and everything that is needed for a job well done. It’s best not to be distracted from the primary mission at hand, so knowing this stuff thoroughly can avoid fumbling over the technology producing a sluggish and poor result.
3. Knows the platform
Customers want to go to a tuner that knows the platform inside and out. In the case that a vehicle may not be behaving the way the customer expects it to, it’s important to know the specific characteristics of that particular type of vehicle you are tuning. One nugget of knowledge to hold on to: don’t try and tune everything! It’s virtually impossible to be an expert on every kind of vehicle out there. Your best bet is to specialize.
4. Knows to look for trends
If you know your platform, then you can look at your data and notice trends in the scan. Those trends will tell you where you need to go next in order to achieve the best results possible for that particular vehicle.
5. Realizes that they don’t know everything
What customer wants is a tuner that has confidence in the vehicle they are tuning. However, the Achilles heel to avoid is being so arrogant that issues are overlooked because of a false belief to know everything. A real expert knows that they won’t truly know everything there is to know out there. The expert knows to be as open as a beginner to learn something new.
6. Always gets educated
Whether the tuner is doing formal training or researching and gathering information on their own, they should always be improving. If you ask any good tuner across the country whether the tune they wrote for a particular vehicle 5 years ago is as good as the one they can do today, their answer should be “no.” The next time you get your car tuned, ask the tuner what is something new that they have learned. Or if you are the one tuning, find something you don’t understand and explore. Make sure you’re exploring on your own vehicle first, though.
It takes these six traits and many more to be what we would consider a good tuner. Be enthusiastic, know your stuff, specialize, and always get educated. And most importantly, always do your best!