Car going in shop for 1st time...looking for advice/suggestions.

[1sickgst]

Hey guys! My 2G GS-T A/T will be heading into the shop soon for an 'extreme makeover'. I've been collecting numerouse mods over time as I've found them at great prices, but held off on installing them due to lack of supporting mods. I'm not looking for HUGE power. Somewhere around 300-400hp would be my final goal and still be a daily driver.

So, far all I have done so far is install a recirculating injen intake, 3" turbo back exhaust and some NGK iridium plugs.

What I have now waiting to be installed is:
Fuel System: AEM fuel rail & FPR, Walbro 255lph pump, Apexi S-AFC, RC 550's
Engine: AEM Cam Gears, ARP head studs, cometic gasket
Driveline: (To be installed 1st) Shift kit, end clutch kit, B&M Tranny Cooler
Supporting gauges to monitor everything

I'm looking to do a 1G swap (intake manifold, throttle body and head) for better flow and a EVO III 16G upgrade w/FMIC as well.

So, basically I'm wondering what you all think. Would you recommend anything else or does that sound good all together. I've done alot of research and that's how I've gotten everything I have now. I apologize for the length, but I wanted you all to know all the details. I appreciate your thoughts.

 

[CanadianTSi]

I would suggest 650's over 550's and some normal NGK's over the iridiums.

Also the 1g head swap isn't needed for that power level.

 

[andymoraitis]

Based on personal experience, I think there are a few things that you really don't need and a few that you might want to change:

1. I agree that 650's are a much better choice for the EVO III
2. FMIC is also recommened, but you could do a large sidemount.
3. AEM Fuel Rail: Stock unit is fine
4. 255 pump is overkill: Change it for a 190 and you won't need an AFPR.
5. SAFC: Not recommended as your only fuel control. Get an EPROM ECU with injector compensation, modified timing and A/F maps and you'll do much better. PM me if you want some excellent baseline settings and info.
6. Cometic Gasket: You'll need to make sure the head is machined perfectly flat otherwise it won't seal. Use the stock Mitsu MLS for a trouble free install.
7. Cam Gears: Lots of money for minimal gain. Save the money and get cams instead.
8. 1G Intake/TB/Head Swap: As CanadianTsi mentioned, it's not needed for your setup and desired power level. The 2G parts will flow well.
9. Driveline and Head Studs: A great idea.
10. Iridiums: Once again, I agree. Get some NGK BPR7ES.
11. BOV: I didn't see this on there. A 1G will do great with an upper pipe upgrade.

The end result is that your setup should be simple and effective. Tuning is critical on these cars and I can vouch for the simple elegance of having all of your fuel tuning done in the ECU. With the right settings, it's a potent and easy combination.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Andy

 

[1sickgst]

Ok, so which brand injectors would you think are more reliable? I've heard pros and cons about FIC and I know RC Engineering injectors are great. I've found a cheap set of Delphi injectors so I just want to know which ones will be consistant and last.

Also, are you saying I should run the EPROM ECU with the SAFC or ditch the SAFC all together? Just need a little clarification.

This car won't really see any track action unless given an opportunity to see what it can do. It'll be more or less a show-n-go car. I just want a sweet ride with power on demand.

 

[kanderson111]

You will need an eprom ecu and the safc. The eprom ecu will enable you to tune easier without timing problems. But you will still need to make some adjustments with the safc.

 

[andymoraitis]

Ok, so which brand injectors would you think are more reliable? I've heard pros and cons about FIC and I know RC Engineering injectors are great. I've found a cheap set of Delphi injectors so I just want to know which ones will be consistant and last.

Also, are you saying I should run the EPROM ECU with the SAFC or ditch the SAFC all together? Just need a little clarification.

This car won't really see any track action unless given an opportunity to see what it can do. It'll be more or less a show-n-go car. I just want a sweet ride with power on demand.

Without a doubt, the best injectors are Denso, but they can be somewhat pricey. They always flow more than their rating and if they come standard as OEM units, that should tell you something. Jeff from DSM Chips knows this and would adjust your deadtime and global settings so that they would idle like stock. I can't vouch for the reliability of RC or Delphi since I have FIC's, but I can tell you that my FIC's have worked without hitch and the chip compensation on those was also perfect.

Regarding the AFC route, yes, I meant you should ditch it entirely and go with the EPROM ECU. You can contact Jeff Oberholtzer at DSMChips and if you want, I can give you some very reliable performance settings that will modify the air/fuel and timing maps to give you a great combination that's very streetable. I think you'll come to appreciate the simple elegance of a chip to control the most important performance aspects since you'll never have to tweak anything provided your settings are sound.

Drop me a PM if you'd like and I can help you dial those in. In the meantime, let me know if that helps!

Andy

 

[andymoraitis]

You will need an eprom ecu and the safc. The eprom ecu will enable you to tune easier without timing problems. But you will still need to make some adjustments with the safc.

That's not entirely true. While you can keep the AFC for fine adjustments, if the a/f and timing settings in the chip are more aggressive than the stock settings, an AFC isn't required.

Cheers,

Andy

 

[kanderson111]

That's not entirely true. While you can keep the AFC for fine adjustments, if the a/f and timing settings in the chip are more aggressive than the stock settings, an AFC isn't required.

Cheers,

Andy

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but I still had to make minor adjustments after installling the eprom ecu and keydiver chip. In fact the dsmchips website recommends that you will still need to have an afc to make minor adjustments.

 

[andymoraitis]

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but I still had to make minor adjustments after installling the eprom ecu and keydiver chip. In fact the dsmchips website recommends that you will still need to have an afc to make minor adjustments.

That's all well and good and I would agree that if you kept stock timing and a/f maps you might, but if these are modified you really don't need to. In essence, both of us are correct. If you leave it 9.5:1 and 16 degrees you would need minor correction. If you ran my settings of 11:1 and 23 degrees advance you certainly wouldn't. Over the next couple weeks, I'm actually going to get much more aggressive and run 11.5 or 12:1 with the same timing and see how she does.

No hard feelings!

Andy

 

[kanderson111]

That's all well and good and I would agree that if you kept stock timing and a/f maps you might, but if these are modified you really don't need to. In essence, both of us are correct. If you leave it 9.5:1 and 16 degrees you would need minor correction. If you ran my settings of 11:1 and 23 degrees advance you certainly wouldn't. Over the next couple weeks, I'm actually going to get much more aggressive and run 11.5 or 12:1 with the same timing and see how she does.

No hard feelings!

Andy

No problem. I think the main point is that this guy will have a much better experience if he has an eprom ecu with an appropriate chip. Good luck on your leaner mixtures, I hope to be tuning in my new turbo by fall.

 

[andymoraitis]

No problem. I think the main point is that this guy will have a much better experience if he has an eprom ecu with an appropriate chip. Good luck on your leaner mixtures, I hope to be tuning in my new turbo by fall.

I'm glad we could see eye to eye on this. Thanks for the good wishes and all the best to you when you go after the new setup.

Andy