HTE tune review

[cornerbalanced]

The reality is that for the vast number of S54 owners a canned tune is perfectly fine because most are not that critical of operation and just assume "that's how it is." But I would wager most people on THIS forum are a little more in tuned with wanting everything "perfect." The fact is that every engine is different, every combination has its own factors and a canned tune can't be "perfect" on every engine combination.

With that said most end users are not well educated on the process and in this case that is likely a breakdown in communication between all parties involved but I'll put the majority of the weight on it to your shop that was happy to take your money without making sure you were well informed and then washed their hands of the issues.

I used to sell/middle man tunes to clients without much thought and I lost a lot of time sorting out details on drivability (not just with HTE, but other tuners too). But as more and more people chase perfection I now suggest a couple options. Loading a tune or at least connecting a laptop and having someone like HTE load it for you (remotely) is so simple now that anyone can do it with a little handholding which Hassan has been more than happy to do for my clients. So I tell clients buy the tune, have him remote in and you drive it and report back. You then can relay your OWN findings straight to him and he can adjust as necessary. Once you are happy with how it drives on the street then go to the dyno if you are so inclined and have him tweak from there. I offer to do this for clients too, but when you consider how much times is spent loading the file or just physically driving the car most clients don't want to pay me for something they can do themselves. BUT some do and that's fine as well.

I've had many tunes from HTE on my personal car and clients and he 100% goes out of his way to make it as best as he can. Do I think he's the greatest tuner? IDK, as I don't have a benchmark for everyone, but saying that the hype is not warrantied is a gross understatement in my mind. Do I think he provides one of the best values in service and communication? Absolutely.

YMMV but communication and openness are likely going to get the best results whether its with HTE or someone else. I would suggest you contact him and deal straight with the source and cut out your shop.

My standards are way too high, I had to take a step back and reevaluate. My day job is working for a company that restores $1+++million dollar vehicles and that zero tolerance for flaws/imperfections has really bled into how I personally interact with my own cars. Unfortunately.

I revised my initial post, it was too harsh on Hassan. Ultimately he’s a great guy, great tuner, and has some flaws like anyone else out there on the market.

[jpiazzam3]

Are you sure it’s the tune. It sounds more like you may have a vacuum leak

[digger]

We are now in 2025 and there seems to be some credible PNP aftermarket ECU around these days, there is something in having the tuner be able to drive the car and make live changes on the dyno or while driving on the street with suitable placed WB sensor(s) to capture aspects that cant be accessed on the dyno and to work on general refinement. the WOT stuff is the easiest, some of the driveability stuff is done by feel not by AFR or timing numbers. There is a bigger initial outlay and investment but it is worth it.

[BMWfanz]

It's quiet a hard work to tune MSS54 without correct logger. It is not tunable online, you have to stop the car, reflash, and go again againd and again, so Hassan's work has reasonable price and he is always following his clients. Maybe he has not a lot of free time and you need 3-4 times to contact him but it is the best tuner of OEM ECUs for s54.