I am looking for a performance tuner/programmer for my 1995 Lincoln Continental. I know there are many performance CHIPS that change the data of the coolant temps or air intake, but I don't want to use something that is tricking the computer... I want to program the computer using a tuner or programmer. Problem is, I can't seem to find any on eBay or on the web, maybe I am using the wrong keywords? If none exist, how much would it cost for me to take it to a mechanic and have him/her tune the car using a dynamometer? Is it the same price? Help would be appreciated.1995 Lincoln Continental Performance Programmer?The reason you can't find a programmer is that the ability to do that on your vehicle started in 1996. Reprogramability is a function that came into being with the passing of OBDII (on board diagnostics 2nd generation). Your's was the last OBDI vehicle. The ECM on your vehicle has 60 pins, an OBDII PCM has 104 pins and a lot more goodies inside too.
Honestly, with smog control laws what they are, if you are driving it on the street, about all these devices can do for you is modify the shift points in the transmission and raise the line pressure to give you neck snapping shifts. None of them can really improve the performance of your vehicle by altering fuel delivery or spark timing, that is all controlled by the Feds. Even the check engine light comes on for a different reason in OBDII than it does in OBDI.
Dyno tuning a stock engine is really a waste of time and money. You car already does that for you a couple times a second.
Here are some things that work that you can do to try to improve the way your Lincoln runs:
1 Buy the highest octane fuel that you can afford and run it all the time
2 Replace the oxygen sensors, when they get old the voltage they output falls out of range and won't set a code or turn the light on either
3 Clean the MAF sensor hot wire, it comes out after removing two tamper proof screws, dust it off with a small brush, gently!
4 Check the air pressure in all four tires, and adjust if low
5 Drive it like you stole it, the computer will adapt to your driving style and be ready when you give the command
Parting shot, when you change the O2 sensors and clean the MAF sensor, be sure to disconnect the negative battery cable to erase the adaptive strategy that the computer uses to run things the way they are now. It will learn from new and the improvements you get will be felt sooner than if you didn't. Good Luck!
