2G Do I have all the parts necessary to upgrade my car?

[T'd Up Steve]

Hello guys, I am in the process of building up my 99 GSX.

I have a couple of questions that hopefully you guys can help me with since I am not a very mechanically inclined DSMer.

In the last few months I have following the upgrade path for the 2g. What I have done in terms of upgrades to my GSX is:

-Injen intake
-1g BOV
-Glowshift 7 series boost gauge, afr gauge, and oil pressure gauge.
- HKS Hi-Power catback exhaust
- Boost control solenoid delete.

My plan is to have a fun street car that is a blast to drive around in the city. I want to be able to spool up quickly and feel the pull. So far, based on my research, I think the EVO III 16g seems to be a good fit for me. I am planning to get the FP racing manifold, a downpipe, and then straight pipe my car to avoid spending 800 bucks on a Hi-flow cat. I know I need a boost controller as well which I will get. I plan on tuning my car in the future to make the most out of my setup. My goal is to get to 300-350 horsepower. Just wanted to see if I am on the right track to get to this goal. I also don't know what tuning software or ECU. Please let me know if I need any more parts or any suggestions on my build.

 

[TJCTalon]

In my opinion, tuning should be one of the first things you should consider. ECMlink, or with your car being a 99, ECUflash is an option.

There are tuners out there that can remote tune your car for you. After upgrading turbos and all the other supporting mods, its important to tune for the differences.

 

[T'd Up Steve]

In my opinion, tuning should be one of the first things you should consider. ECMlink, or with your car being a 99, ECUflash is an option.

There are tuners out there that can remote tune your car for you. After upgrading turbos and all the other supporting mods, its important to tune for the differences.

Should I go with ECMlink or ECU Flash?

Also as far as what I have and what I need to get, could I get 300-350 out of my setup?

 

[curt-s]

If you want ~300-350, don't go for the FP manifold. An evo3 or 2g manifold will do just fine and give you a quicker spool, since that's what you said you're looking for. FP manifold is a great piece, but is meant for more than your power target. The Evo3 will do you for a good while.

ECU-wise, it's up to you. ECMlink is more user friendly than ECUflash & EvoScan but comes at a cost of ECU modification (and $). ECMlink will be more expensive even after adding up all the extras you'd need for ECUflash and EvoScan.
More people have link, but lots of the right people have ECUflash too, so you'll always get an answer around here.

You'll also need injectors. 750s will get you to 300-350bhp on 91/93 but if you're going e85 you'll need bigger to be under 80% duty cycle.

 

[T'd Up Steve]

If you want ~300-350, don't go for the FP manifold. An evo3 or 2g manifold will do just fine and give you a quicker spool, since that's what you said you're looking for. FP manifold is a great piece, but is meant for more than your power target. The Evo3 will do you for a good while.

ECU-wise, it's up to you. ECMlink is more user friendly than ECUflash & EvoScan but comes at a cost of ECU modification (and $). ECMlink will be more expensive even after adding up all the extras you'd need for ECUflash and EvoScan.
More people have link, but lots of the right people have ECUflash too, so you'll always get an answer around here.

You'll also need injectors. 750s will get you to 300-350bhp on 91/93 but if you're going e85 you'll need bigger to be under 80% duty cycle.

I appreciate your response sir! So you’re saying that an FP Manifold will slow my spool. I’ll take a look at injectors. Do I need to change my 02 housing or I should be fine?

 

[curt-s]

You have a couple options with o2 housings. If you go cast OEM evo3, your outlet will be at a different angle and most off the shelf downpipes don't play well with that. You'd have to get the flange cut and rewelded. There are some that are ok with it.. but most are not.
You can use a heat shield with it, though.

I can't recall if 2g cast OEM o2 have the same diameter turbine outlet. *edit* No, it's a smaller diameter. You could port it but you'll be necking down which will add a bit of restriction of flow across the turbine. Now, this might not be horrible and may actually be a neat way of preventing boost creep in upper RPM.. but your other cast option is dealing with the E3 O2 flange angle.

Tubular o2 gives you a more universally accepted flange angle but you lose the ability to use a heatshield without some creative thinking and fabrication.

If you go tubuluar, it needs to be a good tubular housing.. something reputable. I've been though a couple (one Megan and one generic Made In China) and they have had warped flanges. Never cracked a weld but it's a possibility on any of the cheap ones.

 

[TJCTalon]

Should I go with ECMlink or ECU Flash?

Also as far as what I have and what I need to get, could I get 300-350 out of my setup?

Well you should find out if you have a black box ecu first. If you do, I'd probably go ecuflash. Save you some money for sure.

 

[bo0st2]

You need ECMLink for sure

 

[jdxnc]

Maintenance and tuning first, there's a lot left on the table in the stock tune. Make sure to get a good wideband, not glowshift. I've seen their boost gauges be 5 psi off, so clearly quality is not superb.

Also keep the boost solenoid as it can be used for electronic boost control through Ecmlink.

 

[curt-s]

Works very well. I used with a 0.023 welding tip as hinted by the ecmlink page for setting up BCS. No issues there.