1988 thunder bird turbo coupe tuning help?

[turbobird777]

hey guys,

about a month ago i picked up an 88 turbo coupe automatic car and after having the transmission built up I'm really looking forward to getting my car to around 300-350 horsepower and considering I'm new to these i need help understanding tuning my stock ecu. i looked into the FAQ page and id like to utilize the f3 chip and jaybird tuning options. do i have to buy these and have my car dynoed and have a custom tune burned on them? do they come with a base tune? do i have to make my own tune? i wanted to use the t3/t4 t04e turbo with a 3 inch down pipe and eventually front mount intercooler but the turbo is first on the list. do i even need a tune for the turbo? anyways if anyone can give a newbie like me some tips id sure be grateful!

[Stinger]

The chip doesn't come with a base tube or anything like that. The stock tune is your ” base ”. You'll have a hard time finding a dyno shop that knows how to tune the f3 so you'll most likely be on your own. Remember you'll also need a wideband o2 meter to be able to tune you're engine safely.

I'd highly suggest you max out the stock turbo first because most of the stock parts max out around the same power. This means upgrading the turbo first won't gain you much at all since the other stock components will still be maxed out at about the same point as the stock turbo would have been. You don't necessarily ” need ”a tune until you max out the injectors and upgrade them.

[turbobird777]

so what would be a realistic horsepower goal without a tune and a stock ihi? what would i need to upgrade to handle all the extra power of a new turbo and a tuned ecu? by the way i really appreciate the help!

[Stinger]

Our FAQ page lists what stock parts max out at what hp so for specific info, I'd suggest looking there.

The IHI maxes out around 260-280whp which is slightly below the injector limit and the limit of the other stock electronics. You should be able to max out the IHI with no tuning other than maybe adjusting fuel pressure.