what is a crypton tuner?

[DeltamdX]

I have been told that i need to get my car to someone with a crypton tuner, could some say what it is and how much it could cost for this service.

[montsett]

many years ago, about the mid sixties i think, someone came up with the idea of selling crypton tune franchises.
the idea was to buy a fully fitted out van, with diagnostic equipment, hence the crypton tune bit, and visit your customers house or place of business to tune up your car to it's full potential.
although it's supposed to be fool proof, in fact it's only as good as the bloke or blokess who uses it and how concientious he's being on the day.
on the whole though a good idea for most people.

[fireman2203]

kind of dated now though, unless you cars a few years old. Most modern cars are plugged in to dedicated computer at the dealership.

[montsett]

yes, dated. but ok if you've got contact breakers etc. a good mechanic spending time with an older car can do as good or better by experience and test driving for optimum smoothness under light load and performance. otherwise a bit old hat.

[Hybrid]

Originally posted by montsett
yes, dated. but ok if you've got contact breakers etc. a good mechanic spending time with an older car can do as good or better by experience and test driving for optimum smoothness under light load and performance. otherwise a bit old hat.

You hit the nail RIGHT on the head there m8. Crypton is a company that supply diagnostic, tuning and analysing equipment to the motor trade. A Crypton tuner, or any other tuner for that matter is onoly as good as the person operating it, like any other machine. Crypton saw a niche in a market and exploited it. They were at the onset of the supposed marraige of motor engineering and electronic technology, they realised that we, car owners would welcome a machine that eliminated human error and give us computer\electronic precision, but............IMHO it was and still is bullshit. Why? because it was trying to marry a precise technology with a VERY un-precise technology. Motor manufacturers neither had the potential to build engines to such precise tolerance nor the interest, so............settings and ranges that might suit one engine, won't suit another engine built by the same production line, therefore its impossible to dictate ANY settings to ANY mass produced engine. There were WAY too many possibilities to cover. I'm not saying it wasn't a useful tool, it was, I used one for many years, but without a good background in mechanics it was a box with dials and guages that looked good to the customer, and thats the only reason it had ANY success at all. I've repaired countless cars that "must be running ok, cos its just been on a crypton tuner" and I got seriously bored explaining why the car is running so bad after being set up on such a rig. The reason is simple, wear and tear mixed with the rediculous "acceptable tolerance" of engine parts by the motor manufacturers. There is NO way a car can run on the settings given by the manufacturers of these tuners, because they don't account for those things and believe me those things matter! The manuals tell you the settings for a new engine, not one thats saw say 50k, and even on a new engine the wide tolerance makes it all impossible to apply a set of rules to. Modern electronics and modern technology mated with the manufacturers realisation that buyers have more choice and don't just go out and buy the reliable old Ford their fathers loved, has given them the competition they needed to better their engineering or be left behind, that, along with advances in engineering has all but eliminated the tolerance problem, which means one engine is as perfect a match with the next as possible, but its all too late for Mr Crypton, cos electronics have muscled in on the field he tried hard to exploit. We should marvel at the advantages that electronics have brought to motor engineering, but, we don't, cos most of us don't really understand it and find it hard to accept that the DIY mechanic these days must be armed with an array of gatgetry to diagnose even the simplest of problems, quickly. I've seen many mentions of "Fault code readers" on this forum, and I often get the impression that car owners think they are such great tools, they are not! they are simple tools made complicated by manufacturers to try and keep them out of our reach. We SHOULD be marveling at the "brain", the "ECU" the part that actually does the work, finds the faults and stores them as it runs your engine. Do you really think in this day and age there isn't the technology to have a display on your instrument cluster that tells you in plain english which part is faulty? They can, they could have done years ago, but they will never do that cos they see it as cutting their own throats. Car manufacturers rely heavily on US thinking its all voodoo, black magic that needs a highly qualified engineer to work out, otherwise they will lose millions. Can you tell I walked away from the motor trade because it is without doubt the biggest rip off I have ever seen? I've never met so many rogues and downright thiefs with no concience in my life, in any field! But...........not to condemn the trade completely, there are many good mechanics that do a good job, I just hope your lucky enough to be able to find one. Crypton = One more con for Mr motorist, but..to be fair, they only gave us what we were looking for and didn't understand.