Some of the basics:
1. Install a wideband O2 sensor (and optionally a gauge).
2. Get a laptop or tablet that runs Windows (Not Windows CE, as the Compact Edition is not supported by HP Tuners.)
3. Buy HP Tuners with 2 credits for your Goblin.
Wideband basics:
A wideband oxygen sensor in the exhaust is the way I tune an engine. You can do some tuning with the narrowband oxygen sensor that came with the LSJ engine, but it isn't the best way to tune.
So buy and install a wideband O2 sensor. I bought a:
-
AEM 30-0300 X-Series Wideband UEGO AFR Sensor Controller Gauge $162 (in 2019, now $185)
but there is probably newer ones out there. One feature you want is to be able to log the wideband to HP Tuner log files. So serial output or Canbus connectivity is important. My 2006 LSJ doesn't have the wideband connected to the AC Pressure sensor (which is on Canbus), so I went with a serial connection.
To get the serial connection to my log file, I bought:
- F-ber Connector DB9
RS232 Female Serial 9 Pin Port DB9 $8 (the AEM wideband serial data wires go to this)
- TRENDnet USB to Serial Converter, Connect a RS-232 Serial Device to a USB 2.0 Port, TU-S9 $13
- A
Tripp Lite USB to Serial Converter is more reliable than that TRENDnet converter, to get the wideband serial data to my laptop's USB port.
The wideband O2 sensor goes in the exhaust pipe. The factory narrowband O2 sensor in the exhaust manifold/header stays, but the next O2 sensor is the post-catalytic converter O2 sensor, which we will remove, and put in our wideband sensor. It goes in the exhaust pipe bung:
To make my O2 sensor last longer, and not overheat, I also
bought this Kinugawa Thermo-Isolating O2 Bungs (Screw In). $32, but I could have welded an new bung further away from the exhaust ports, where the black circle is in the picture.
The AEM kit came with wires from the O2 sensor, that run up to the dash gauge. Mount the AEM gauge, wire it, according to the directions in the kit. Add the RS232 connector wiring too.
After you get a wideband running you can see if your engine is running rich or lean in real time, while driving. Great for debugging and seeing if your engine is running right.