Cool Car Tuning

Scion xB Turbo Kit by GReddy

CarDude — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 05:41:03 +0000

The Scion xB is a hugely sucessful micro van. Toyota hit a home run with the entire Scion line-up and you can see teenagers and adults alike with pimped out Scion vehicles. The xB is arguably the most popular and there are tons of tuning parts available. With a base price of $15k and used examples right in the range of most, there can still be funds left over fir some tuning parts. GReddy has turbo kits for pretty much every Japanese vehicle. And the Greddy Scion xB Turbo Kit will boost horsepower by a fair amount.
The 2004 – 2006 model year Scion xB came with a puny 1.5 liter engine that only produced 108 horsepower. But with the addition of the GReddy kit, power gains can by almost as much as 50% more resulting in about 150 HP. The Greddy Scion xB turbo kit comes with everything you need including a JDM turbocharger, cool intake called the Airlnx, exhaust manifold (which is cast iron for duability), the piping from the turbo to the throttle, a down pipe, and all the hardware. There is no need for an Intercooloer as this kit is only boosting a few pounds. This also keps the cost down below $3k. Oh and all tuning is taken care of by the GReddy E-Manage ECU which retails for $1k by itself.

The Scion xB Turbo Kit from GReddy is a great value for those who need a bit more horsepower out of their xB.

Source:GReddy Images:Fast Scions

Mitsubishi Evolution VIII Methanol Injection Kit

CarDude — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 03:30:36 +0000

Methanol Injection is also know as water-methanol injection and is a mostly unknown power adder. The Snow Performance Kit for the Mitsubishi Evolution can give a big boost in power. The quick description of a methanol kit is that the water or methanol helps absorb heat in the cylinder. Less heat means less chance of detonation. And if you have less chance of detonation you can really boost the hell out of the engine. And with a bigger turbo and the Snow Performance Stage 2 Methanol Kit, the Evolution can see peak horsepower to the wheels at 430 with torque checking in at 340 lb-ft. That’s some big time performance for about $420.

The kit includes

-pump
-reservoir
-methanol control
-different size spray nozzles depending on boost
-instructions and hardware

See the kit at Snow Performance

Dinan Stage 2 for the BMW 335i

CarDude — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 21:08:53 +0000

I absolutely love turbo 6-cylinders cars. All of my favorite modern day muscle cars have these configurations. The old Skyline, new GTR, Supra, 300zx, Buick Grand National, and 3000GT were all bad ass car capable of huge horsepower figures. Now more recently Ford have gone the turbo V-6 route with the ecoboost engine. And who would have thought that BMW would release a twin-turbo 6 cylinder engine? This is the first time in my life I have ever seriously looked at getting into a BMW. Dinan is a long time tuning outfit of all things BMW. And the Dinan Chip for the BMW 335i adds some serious power. How does the addition of 80 HP and 120 lb-ft. of torque. All from a few simple products namely a Stage 2 ECU reflash .

The Stage 2 Dinan Performance upgrade does cost a pretty penny at $2200 but the return on this investment is spectacular. The boost is bumped from 8.8 to 13.0 PSI. The fuel and timing are changed. The top speed governor is removed and finally the water pump speed is upped all with a reflash.

With the Dinan BMWv335i Tuning Chip and the addition of the Dinan intake and free flowing exhaust the power figures check in at 384 HP and 421 lb-ft of torque. Quite a nice gain for so little. Makes me really want this Dinan chip reflash!

Nissan 370z Supercharger from Stillen – 515 HP

CarDude — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 06:13:31 +0000

Stillen has long been the master at tuning the Z-car from Nissan. From the 300zx, to the 350z, to the next generation 37z; Stillen is the master of modifying Nissans. The latest supercharger kit for the 370z and Infiniti G37 is no joke. Spout off these numbers to anyone and they will literally cream their jeans: 515 HP! Yes for less than $6k bucks you can have a fire breathing monster in the form of a modified Nissan 370z thanks to a Stillen supercharger.

Now the one caviat is that thes 515 horsepower figure is flywheel horsepower. But look at it this way, a stock Nissan 370z makes about 330 HP. So just by slapping on the Stillen 370z Supercharger you can get a 180 HP bump. Now the WHP figure is 438 with torque checking in at 343 lb/ft. But still I cannot think of more bang for the buck. Just imagine the powersliding you could have for a small fee. This is all accomplished on just uner 8 lbs. of boost using 91 octane gasoline.

The kit comes with an air to water intercooler but from the pictures its impossible to notice. Thats because the intercooler is located inside the intake manifold. Say what? See, this is how crazy Stillen is. Or should I say resilient. The supercharger itself is the old stand-by Vortec unit but taken to the next level. The V3 has updated internals which help to lubricate the supercharger transmission resulting in a longer lasting lifespan. This supercharger is populat on the 4.6L Mustang engine. Fuel is handled by larger injectors and fuel pump. And the ECU wull need a Stillen reflash.

Source: Stillen

Greddy Mazda RX-8 Turbo Kit

CarDude — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:54:50 +0000

When Mazda released the all newly redesigned RX-8 back in 2003, enthusiasts were lining up to own the successor to the beloved RX-7. Well it did not take long for owners to realize that the advertised 247 horsepower seemed much less. And dyno results told the tale; the car was indeed down on power. A few speculations were tossed out including revised ECU control to meet Federal emissions standards. But the fact remained the car could only muster 185 WHP on a Dyno at the most. Well luckily companies out there like Greddy have a wonderful turbo kit waiting that will add almost a 30% increase in power.

This kit comes with all the hardware necessary and the install process is a complete bolt-on affair. The heart of the turbo kit is the super reliable Mitsubishi T618Z turbocharger. Behind the bumper there is a massive front mount intercooler. The kit also includes a cast-iron exhaust manifold which will last much longer than any stainless steel part. And a downpipe adapter is also included in the kit. You get a great looking Airinx intake and aluminum intercooler piping to finish off the look of your Mazda RX-8 Turbo.

The Greddy Mazda RX-8 turbo kit retails for a cool $4700 which is a bargain since the kit include the Greddy E-Manage engine tuning software along with the intercooler kit.

Horsepower jumps 30% from 202 HP to 260 HP and torque is up from 125 lb-ft to 176 lb-ft.

HKS Evolution X GT3240 Turbo and Intercooler Kit

CarDude — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:36:56 +0000

HKS has always made the best parts for the top of the line JDM cars roaming the street. And the GT3240 full turbo kit is no exception. This is a direct bolt-on replacement turbo that replaces the old Mitsubishi turbo with a high power ball bearing unit capable of 580 horse power.

The HKS GT3240 turbo kit features the GT3240 turbo that has a A/R of 0.73. Also included in the kit is a GT2 50mm wastegate, front pipe, outlet pipe, and all the parts, lines, hardware and gaskets needed to change out the turbo.

The stock manifold is used as is the stock heat shield. This kit is intended to be used with the HKS Intercooler and Racing Suction Kit. The MSRP on the GT3240 turbo kit is $5195, but the street price is closer to the $4500 mark.

The HKS Intercooler and hardpipe kit for the Evo X is a nice large replacement over the stock unit that measures 525mmX304mmX103mm and comes with all necessary brackets, hardware and fittings. Price for the intercooler kit is $1695 but you are going to want to opt for the kit that includes the full hard piping which will put the total cost for the intercooler kit at $2395.

Finally to complete the turbo bolt on replacement, the purchase of the HKS Racing Suction kit will be required. This piece cost a pretty penny at $500 but the cost is well worth it. These feature lightweight aluminum suction pipes and the patented super funnel technology.

These 3 parts are sure to net you a huge increase in horsepower and torque for a reasonable amount of money. If you are ready to take your Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution to the next level then HKS should be your first stop.
Source: http://www.hksusa.com/info/?id=3526

HKS Hyundai Genesis Carbon Fiber Engine Parts

CarDude — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:05:34 +0000

Nothing in this world is better than carbon fiber. Ever had a friend open the hood of their car just to be greeted by a plethora of carbon fiber engine accessories. Well HKS has recently released a full line-up of carbon fiber engine dress up accessories for the new Hyundai Genesis coupe turbo and V-6 models.

Beginning with the Turbo model, the radiator inlet duct has an MSRP Price of $675.

The Carbon Fiber Engine Cover for the turbo costs $495.

The Air Box Overlay for the Turbo model is $275.

So for $1445 you can be the first on the block to have a full JDM carbon fiber engine dress up kit for your Hyundai Genesis Coupe turbo.

Source:http://www.byhks.com/products/Default.asp?id=3778

Awesome GM LNF Turbo Upgrade for the Pontiac Solstice

CarDude — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 19:34:22 +0000

The 2007-2009 model year Pontiac Solstice is powered by a 2.0 liter inline 4-cylinder engine that produces 260 Horsepower and 260 lb-ft. of torque. This was the highest output per liter engine ever created by General Motors. This Ecotec engine also had a sweet dual-scroll turbocharger hanging off of it. The LNF Turbo Upgrade kit will add 30 HP and 80 ft-lb. of torque to your Solstice for only $650!

The LNF upgrade kit is available from Pontiac Dealers. The $650 buys you a new MAP sensor and a new Electronic Control Module. That’s all it takes to open up the possibilities of the Solstice LNF power plant. And this kit will not void the factory warranty and it is smog legal in all 50 states.

But wait there’s more. Besides a 200 RPM redline increase to 6500 RPM; the kit also features the “No Lift Shift” found on the new Cobalt SS that allows you to shift the transmission without lifting your foot off the accelerator which keeps the RPMs up and the turbo on full boost.

This kit can be ordered at: http://www.gmpartshouse.com/products/19212670-lnf-turbo-upgrade-kit.html

TRD Supercharger Kit for the Scion TC

CarDude — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:57:55 +0000

The Scion TC has filled a huge gap in the Import Tuning Market left open for a few years by Honda when they had no new Civic Si for sale. Well the aftermarket has exploded with every kind of part you could hope for the Toyota Scion TC. And Toyota Racing Development (TRD) was one of the leading innovators and developers of Scion TC tuning parts.

TRD is Toyota’s official tuning arm and they have had great success with Supercharger applications. The huge displacement engine of the Scion TC measures in at 2.4 liters. The displacement helps the Scion pump out a nice torque figure at 169 lb-ft. This makes the Toyota Scion TC an ideal engine for a supercharger. The stock Scion puts down 140HP to the wheels. With the TRD Supercharger installed the car will 60 horsepower more. But there are places in the power band where the TRD kit makes almost 70HP more over stock.

The TRD Supercharger Kit for the Toyota Scion costs around $3200 and is Smog Legal in all 50 States and even passes the CARB certification. The center of this kit is a Vortech Supercharger and your warranty is not voided by this kit. Scion also makes a ton of other cool parts like exhaust kits and headers to extract more Horse Power out of the TC. The TRD kit comes with all the necessary parts including the supercharger, injectors, pulleys, and more.

APS Super Sprint for the Subaru Impreza STi

CarDude — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:14:16 +0000

Air Power systems or APS is an Australian performance company that specializes in tuning forced induction or turbo cars. They have been in the game for many years but hit major pay dirt with their extensive line of upgrades for the Subaru Impreza WRX and STi vehicles.

The APS 370 Horsepower Super Sprint High Output System combines 5 simple parts to extract over 70 more horsepower out of the USDM 2.5L STi. These parts are comprised of a turbo back exhaust, a front mount intercooler, a high flow intake, a blow-off valve, and finally an engine management system that has been preprogrammed to work in conjunction with these 4 parts.

This system is a total bolt on affair and for under $4000 you can net at least 70 horsepower for your Subaru Impreza STi.