One other term I heard in that same argument between that C6 owner and the service manager, I heard the term "Locked Tune" come up a few times. What does this mean?

A locked tune is just as the name implies, a tune that has been installed and then the PCM is locked from further changes. There are several aftermarket tuners that do this to protect their intellectual property in terms of what parameters they have changed so that their tuning approach is a secret. You can't return your tune to stock without a file from the original tuner when this is done.

This also happened by mistake to a large number of shops that don't lock their tunes, who used early versions of LS2 Edit.

Some tuners will lock the tune, with the knowledge of the car owner, to protect the ECM from being reflashed by an unknowing dealer.

I've heard the tuners that lock the tune, so that other tuners can't get access to their tunes!

Correct. Some lock the tunes to protect intellectual property (so other tuners can't see what they are doing or so the dealership won't change the tune by accident or via a module update) and as said before LS2 edit did autolock quite a few ECM's before they apparently fixed it.

Well here is a curve ball, what if a tuner puts a "locked tune" on a car, then goes out of business and know one can get ahold of this guy?

So know is the Corvette owner stuck with this tune that no one else on the planet can crack into?

How does that work?

Well here is a curve ball, what if a tuner puts a "locked tune" on a car, then goes out of business and know one can get ahold of this guy?

So know is the Corvette owner stuck with this tune that no one else on the planet can crack into?

How does that work?
I am told that the mfg of the tuner software can get in.

If that isn't true, you would have to replace the ECM and retune.

Correct. Some lock the tunes to protect intellectual property (so other tuners can't see what they are doing or so the dealership won't change the tune by accident or via a module update) and as said before LS2 edit did autolock quite a few ECM's before they apparently fixed it.

Happened to me in Houston, I picked up Hp tuners and could not get in, I forget the message that comes up, but I had to go back and get the "fix" fixed and then the tune was unlocked

I am told that the mfg of the tuner software can get in.

If that isn't true, you would have to replace the ECM and retune.

WOW that sounds like a pain in the a$$!

WOW that sounds like a pain in the a$$!

It is. Personally I don't lock tunes. My feeling is that no single person is doing something so different than some one else, that's so radicle and unique as to give them a huge advantage. Tune files basically control two things. . . Spark and Fueling. Everything else is determined by the engine. Give the right amount of Spark and fuel at the right time, and you have a good tune. I really don't care if somebody looks at my files, I'll email them to who ever wants to see one. I have two other very well respected tuners in my area, and I can look at a file and tell you which one of them tuned the vehcile. It's not so much the matter of right or wrong, buy style.

When I started tuning over six years ago, I used my own car and learned on my own. Then friends started asking me to work on their stuff, soon enough, I was tuning for two shops. When I was starting out, it was people like ECTUNE at DTS that posted on the HPTuner's website and such that really advanced the art of tuning.

I am told that the mfg of the tuner software can get in.

If that isn't true, you would have to replace the ECM and retune.

I would be pi$$ed if I had to go through all that because someone locked the thing up!

I would be pi$$ed if I had to go through all that because someone locked the thing up!
Which is why one should make sure that if the tune is locked, he knows how to unlock.

Which is why one should make sure that if the tune is locked, he knows how to unlock.

:iagree: I would just make sure that there isn't a locked tune on your car. If the tuner wants your business the tune remains open source "just incase". Protect yourself and hours of potentially wasted time chasing around a fix!

The GM Tech 2 will NOT write over a locked tune. However there are ways to overwrite even a locked tune with the stock file. :secret:You just can't do it with a Tech2. :secret: