N.A way

[howc]

hi guys,

After some dilemma between turbo and NA, i've decided to stay away from turbo as i have a shallow pocket

now i need some advice on increasing power for NA.

Currently i have installed:

a pod filter with stock intake box. ($120)
CAI. ($30)
new iridium plug. ($96)
EBC green stuff + RDA slotted brake rotors + bendix general rear pads ( $410)

Plans for future :

(1) 3-1 race design extractor with flexi pipe. (RPW) $486
(2) 65mm TB + manifold upgrade (RPW) $545
(3) high flow cat $?
(4) E-manage or unichip $250~$300 + install & tune $?
(5) bushes replace $?
(6)sway bar. ~$350?

I ranked them in order. what you guys reckon?

how much would a high flow cat cost? any specific brand or specification i shld look out for?

Any more things i shld add into my list?

Cheers

[I8A4RE]

$200 bucks for a good cat


Brakes swaybar and bushes dont increase power, so are not needed

Fuel pressure reg. Ben has one for sale that would be perfect to go with the emanage.

Also i persume your gonna do the rest of your exhaust as well?

You forgot to add Nos to your list

[Tippin]

im also looking to buy a cat now after finding i have aftermarket extractors

would this one be sufficient enough?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/2-25-60mm-High-F ... 1|240:1318

what others are there?

[koolio1234]

im also looking to buy a cat now after finding i have aftermarket extractors

would this one be sufficient enough?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/2-25-60mm-High-F ... 1|240:1318

what others are there?

I'd be wary of buying a hi flo cat off ebay, unless its a brand name one and even then it could be a fake copy.

[Tippin]

yeh good point,

thats why i want to know what else is there

[mr-charisma]

Here is how you should order them

1.) Air Intake (easiest & cheapest - which you already have )
2.) Exhaust - 2.5 Mandrel bent flowing system
3.) High Flow Metal CAT
4.) Extractors / Headers
5.) Unichip / Emanage or other aftermarket chip
6.) Larger Throttle Body (Increases high end power, slight reduction in low end)
7.) Port & Polish .. optional .. but good mod according to some members who have done it..
8.) Spark plugs leads .. Upgrade to Magnecor leads.
9.) Replace 02 sensor if you're getting bad mileage or running rich.

By this point you should have or get some handling upgrades .. next placed in order of bang 4 buck.
10.) Strut Braces .. ebay - $80 odd, or Whiteline / Cusco about $150 each ($300 for front / rear)
11.) Uprated swaybars
12.) Suspension upgrades .. lowered springs / new struts & bushes.. (can skip this if your suspension is fine.. but if you want to lower your car, just get all done at once..
13.) Can't think of much else.. too tired.

I have for sale;

2.5" Mandrel Bent exhaust (Fujitsubo)
High flow Metal Cat
65mm B0r3d out throttle body
Unichip Type A
02 sensor (might fit this to car before selling though)
Original FTO Pedals (Metal ones) Automatic


More to list later.. PM for prices - I'll be making a post at a later point in the For Sale thread w/ pics

*edit* - removed - EL Glow Dials , Aluminium footrest. (NO LONGER FOR SALE)

[mr-charisma]

I have to tell you though .. FTO's are an expensive car to get lots of power out of staying NA .. you will get a fairly decent performance increase with the mods listed, but for big power you'll need to go forced induction & possible engine conversion.. some members on here have shown this to be possible on quite a small budget & Simon believes it's possible to turbo for around $5000 after he has been through the conversion.

That said .. you can go for NOS for a quite cheap & hefty power boost when you need it.. $2000-$3000 for a full set up (if memory serves me correctly) full info on the site if you search. Disadvantages also listed if you look

[howc]

@ I8A4RE

yea brakes and bushes dont add to the speed power but they add to stopping power and control power

Getting quite a lot of feedback about fuel pressure reg.. i thot it's needed when you go into Force induction and not for NA.

NOS. hmmm will be useful when running away from moving red-blue lights

@mr-charisma

It's quite costly to do up the whole exhaust from what i know.. and it's just to make the system flows much smoother rather than extracting more exhaust gas out of it. so maybe i should just get a high flow cat first then get extractor, how does that sound?

yea i know and i think almost all car will be hard to get more power when staying NA. Yea i read thru simon's turbo conversion, he does spent lesser as compared to other members but he have tools to assist him in doing most of the piping works so that actually save a lot of cash. The car wont be available when doing conversion as well and im driving a gpx so it makes everything worst i guess. i dont mind getting my hands dirty but i simply dont have the tools to do all the DIY. TOO much complication, time, effort and cash in turbo-ing.

NOS is just not for me i guess, temporary power boost wont satisfy me.

thanks for the input guys.

[mr-charisma]

I have a suggestion for you... & normally I wouldn't recommend it - because I really don't like tyre kickers.. but, find an FTO that has already got the mods you're planning - exhaust, extractors, intake, cat etc.. & go take it for a test drive.

I recommend doing this at a car dealership if you can find an FTO with the mods you want, rather than doing it with a private owner.. because who really cares if you waste a used car salesmans time right?

Either that, or see if there is a club member who doesn't mind letting you drive their car .. shouldn't be a problem if they have insurance etc etc .. but as expected, some people might be wiggy about letting you drive their car

This would by far be the easiest & cheapest way to decide if staying NA is enough of a power increase for you..

[howc]

sounds like a good plan actually lol!!

However... there isnt much fto members in perth so chances for me to feel the power is actually quite slim..

[zuihoujueding]

Hi, im going down NA route too. But i just finished CAI, cant feel any improvements. Do i need to reset the ECU?

[vipfto]

Hi, im going down NA route too. But i just finished CAI, cant feel any improvements. Do i need to reset the ECU?

you need air induction/pod or good filter/ less restrictive intake and exhaust

[howc]

hmmm, my butt dyno shows a figure of significant improvements after installing CAI and pod filter

Did you route your CAI to the front bumper? changed to after market filter? a proper heat insulation box?

Now i have a question!!!

i just changed my front brake rotors and pads and went for a short spin. I accelerated to 50 and start braking bit by bit until i hit 20 and continue for like 10 more times. There was once i accelerated to 70 and did a hard braking till 20. After that i went home and park the car. SMOKE start coming out of the brake!! is that normal ??

[zuihoujueding]

Butt Dyno!
So yeah, want to remove all the stock ductings but it seems like the front bumper have to be removed.
My previous ride had CAI installed as well and the noticable growling can be heard, but not with my setup now. Its been completely covered by my exhaust note.
As for your question, i shall leave it to the experts here.

[bushido]

After that i went home and park the car. SMOKE start coming out of the brake!! is that normal ??

Yes

[howc]

hmmm, did not remove the front bumper when i install my CAI.

My CAI installation is alittle dodgy i guess, i just stick the outlet into a tight spot and used 1 cable tie to secure it lol! it's still holding good for the last 2 weeks

anyway, i drove the car during the night and butt dyno was saying the response and acceleration was better! However, drove it on a hot afternoon and it was really sluggish! Guess it was sucking all the hot air in the engine bay.

next thing i did was insulating the air delivery metal pipe with sunvisor. Felt alittle better during hot days. And my girlfriend suggested i used back the stock filter box and surprisingly it fit in with the pod filter. Works really good now! dont feel that sluggish anymore during hot days!

finally, installed a CAI and route it to the front bumper and spray a coat of heat insulating paint on the air delivery pipe. Butt dyno says the overall performance improved by 10~15%.

so my point is.. get a air box and put your filter in it. heat insulate your air delivery pipes. route your CAI to front bumper to get the most air and your butt dyno will show u good result.

[I8A4RE]

If your not feeling some improvement then i ask you what type of pod are you using. Cheap pods (like off ebay) can actually be more restrictive than factory.

[zuihoujueding]

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/407/dsc02137.jpg
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/5602/dsc02138s.jpg
http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/2774/dsc02142.jpg
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/9333/dsc02144o.jpg

What i've got is a Simota carbon airintake kit. Its a 3" opening all the way (including aluminium elbow pipes and silicon hoses) to 2.75" reduction to the throttle. Since it already have a ram pipe, the stock ducting is not needed. But i guess the bumper have to be removed to remove them?
The ram pipe is temporary secured at the bottom of the bumper until i manage to remove the stock ducting.
I havent reset the ECU yet. Do i need to?

[howc]

looks ok to me.

Was the filter there before you bought the car? if so i think you dont have a standard to compare with. OR you just have a really thick butt skin.

no, you dont have to reset the ECU but you can if you want to.

[zuihoujueding]

My ride was bone stock and the CAI was only installed 3 days ago.