Newb starting from stock

First off I've recently been checking out other forums till I stumbled on this one by accident and you guys sure know what the hell is going on with the 240's and 180's. Alright so I have a 93 240sx SE coupe and I wanna hear from other 93 240sx coupe owners: what gave the best hp gain in your cars and where do I start first from intake, headers, ecu, exhaust, turbo, etc.???????


P.S. I read the newbie FAQ and post 7 and 77 gave good starting points.

Why does he have one and not me? Life is bullshit.

Add a turbo, that's the best horsepower gains, or swap in an SR or RB or CA to be JDM Tyte, I dunno man, go find out, damn....

turbo, intake, bigger fuel injectors, exhaust and downpipe, for suspension if you can afford coilovers then get that, but lowering springs are good too. Sway bar, and LSD if you plan on drifting.

If you have enough cash & the resources a KA-Turbo is a great way to go...

What are you wanting?

Car Feel
-Tension Rods
-Rear Subframe Spacers
-Poly Bushings or Heim Joints

Handling
-wide sticky tires
-Springs / Shocks to control the added weight transfer
-Lower Center of Gravity

Horse Power
-The KA is a heap until its turbo
-The SR is too mad JDM overpriced
-The RB will get you the superstreet 13yr old boys.
-The 1JZ is where its at



NOW GO SPEND YOUR MONEY IN A MANNER OF MY LIKING!

if you want horsepower, then you're almost going to have to put a turbo kit on. thats the best bang for your buck anyway. if you want a complete turbo kit check out www.boostdesigns.com, that will give you a good feel of what you need to install to make the turbo work.

yea for hp's turbo is a must for this car. Well some way of forced induction. Or you could just put on a 150 shot of nitrous, blow up your engine, or your car. Possibly kill yourself in the act. But get video of it and your super cool. Cuz ka's are only like 500 bux so you could race people for like 600 bux...hit the nitro beat them collect money. Buy another ka for 500 pocket the other 100. Do this 10,000 times and you will have 1million dollars!!!!1111!!!1!!!!!!!111 no way thats an idea. But you have to have 10,000 ka engines laying around. Then with 1 million dollars you could buy any kind of 240, 180, silvia out there and make them all super jdm tyte and make fast n furious 3 with all your own cars. Release that and make another 200 million. DAMN the ideas are flowing tonight.

hmm i guess it would help out to know what ur planning on doing i mean drift, drag, or do u just want a lil more power to ur daily driver?

hahah keep goin chuki, you're on a roll

sweet... same year as mine. except i have a FB. how many miles? if you have a good amount i would think twice about adding forced induction at this stage. Unless of course you're planning on rebuilding the block.

We have pretty old cars... not saying it doesn't run well... but it has it's wear and tears. First, see what's worn out or needs replacing. I went through my car from suspension, brakes to interior lighting, and shift boot. You should at least make sure you're car is in good running condition and then start adding mods that give you larger hp gains. But, obviously don't buy new 4-lug rotors if you're planning on doing a 5-lug conversion, just b/c it's warped or something... but yea...you get the point. I'm just saying this b/c you don't want to spend $3k on a turbo kit and then crash your car on the first run because your rotors/pads were worn-out and your suspension were shot.

have fun tho... 240's score mad high in the Fun Factor category. lolz.

Good advice Shift!

I would recommend a turbo, but you're gonna want to check out the car really good first. Fix the basic stuff before you invest a lot of money into it.

I would recommend a turbo, but you're gonna want to check out the car really good first. Fix the basic stuff before you invest a lot of money into it.

Right now the HP gain would be for a daily driver but later on (when I have more money) for drag. I dont think I would be able to afford drift between the tires and the inevitable crash. The car has 132,000+ miles, runs fine, and its only had 1 owner, my older bro, and I know he didnt abuse it (unlike me).

By the way: I'm such a newb, how do you post without quoting the last reply.

Better question: with a 2g initial spending limit, can I get a good turbo with the 2g's?

yep, sure can, im expecting to run just a basic turbo system for i think i estimated it at like $1600. this is just everything needed to actually make the car run with a turbo on it.

mine had 132543 on it when i got my 240...thats almost a baby compared to some peoples on this forum...

No kidding Tim?
Hmmmm...Now thats starting to sound real appealing!

well, if you think about it, all you need is
1. turbo exhaust manifold & Dp $550
2. turbo (boostdesigns sells one for) $375
3. 38mm wastegate $160
4. walbro 255lph fuel pump $100
5. greddy type s rec. or aptmos bov $187
5. oil lines $100
6. air cleaner with maf sensor adapter $45
7. jdm tYte pvc piping $50?
8. fmu $120
-----> $1687 not bad eh?

of course this is the bare minimal, and you would be running an open dp, hahaha, also no intercooler, so not that much boost. i dont think im forgetting anything.

dude turbos or sr20det or sr20 is the way i go

uhhh i'm hoping that was a typo ^ but anyways..
tim, i'd throw in 370cc injectors.. you might be lucky on ebay and get them for $100

Ok I have another question: Even if I were to add the boost and mods wouldnt I have to remove the top speed limiter? and if I did a ECU upgrade would the top speed limiter be removed or would I somehow still have to remove it? Because otherwise at around 115 mph, I guess, the top speed limiter kicks in. So it would kinda defeat the purpose to mod up the car now if I dont get that removed 1st, dont u think? let me hear u think.

let me hear you think?? with that kind of comment i'd suggest you keep society safe and leave your rev limiter on.. not only that but to keep my damn insurance rates down.. there's no need for you to ever go more than 115mph

That's true, but if your desperate, there's this little trick, take a big ass wrench and smash the speedo, then rip the gauges open to find all the wires behind them, then you grab a hand full of wires and yank them out, just rip'em out, all of them, so your dash is covered in ripped out wires, one of those was for the speedo which means you have no more speed limiter.

hahaha no seriously don't take the limiter out.. it'll only encourage you to kill yourself at 116mph..

I can see it now, he's going 120mph, the stock tires are rated for 100mph, they rip themselves to shred, we never hear from him again...

You'd be surprised how sometimes when your traveling on the freeway at a leisurely, lets say, rate of 75 mph some stupid ass 1990 civic hatchback roll up on you when he sees the exhaust and you just gotta go to show him up. I dont know where you live D Bo but in Cali u find buckets going down the freeway at 80. I already have 3 points on my record for speeding, I cant always drive 115. Just when I have to.

and no logik I have plenty of room to work with. I have V rated tires. I can technically go to 148, but Im not crazy. Plus my car wont allow it.

ummm i think you could still have a better top speed than a 90 civic hb.. and i've driven the whole I95.. i know what it can be like in us highways.. its the same in canada.. i drive about 90mph (about 150kmph) on a regular trip to toronto and back.. which isn't much faster than some other cars.. everybody in north america drives pretty much the same on highways.. there's the speed-limiters, the 10-over drivers, the faster than the group drivers and then the 3 or 4 out of every 50 cars that goes just a little bit faster than every car out there..

When I went up to Kingston a few weeks ago, I was going 140 (85mph) in my Topaz, I didn't dare go any higher cause I was on snow tires (on dry pavement) and the brakes suck, the suspension sucks, the car sucks...so.....lol

i wouldn't advise anybody to remove the 5th gear rev limiter (which is in reality your speed limiter) unless you were a drag racer with a REEEEEALLY fast car

sell the 240... i hate seeing S13's smashed up b/c someone doesn't know how to respect the car. Forget freeway racing... take that civic to the tracks and kill it in quarter-mile. This is where you want the turbo... you could still have a limiter and beat plenty of so-called rival cars out there.

step back and look at it... don't let some random idiot driving a civic possibly decide when you're gonna have your last race of your life.

well yeah you have to understand what your vehicle can do and what it shouldnt be doing like snow tires on dry pavement with bad brakes and suspension problems. I guess I'm not any better riding on 7 year old lowered springs. Time for a pro kit or sportline.

anyone here in the so. cal area? anyone here know where the nearest track is to so. cal? just curious.

hey logik, why do you have the s15 in your pic if that aint your ride? why not throw your topaz on there? I know I'm new so I might of missed alot of whats up with the request for the pic but I dont know I guess just wondering.

thats not an s15 thats an s14 some come with black top sr20dets and some are red tops

damn what the hell was I thinking. my bad ur right.

Tim,
What kinda safe boost are you going to be pushing for? 6 psi?

i wont be driving it too much, until i get an intercooler but i'd say 5 psi, with a t3/to4e 50 trim .63 ar. does anyone know if BD, has a wastegate spring for 5 psi? i guess i could always email them.

Damn you guys! I was all excited about plans to put the turbo in and then I took your advice about doing the basic stuff 1st and well here it goes:

Eibach Sportline $240
KYB AGX Shocks $425
Brembo Rotors $310
EBC Greenstuff $150
Russell Brake Lines $100
ACT Clutch Kit $415
---------------------------
TOTAL $1640

All that before I even touch the replacements to anything wrong with the engine and for sure now any upgrade mods. Anything else you guys think that I ABSOLUTELY need before the power upgrade. Oh and by the way, if a ECU upgrade is performed, that only increases HP and torque right?? So that damn top speed limiter is still there, is what your telling me!!!????!!!

This isn't NFS Underground, it's not like you go to the corner store and they give you a new ECU that gives you 40 extra hp and 30 extra ft-lbs of torque, you can go to JWT and they can tune a new ECU to work with bigger injectors, a better MAFS and they can take the speed limiter out and raise the rev limiter.

Coo. Cuz I was thinking about being cheap and buying a "budget" ECU from Jet Chips for $315 or just taking a drive down to San Diego and having JWT do it right for 6 bills. But it seems like that idea is going to have to wait even longer now.

After you get bigger injectors and a new MAFS, you can go see JWT about reprogramming your ECU, until then, there's no point, and stay away from JET, they do your ECU, not some cheapo rip off from JCWhitney.

What about the new AEM EMS fir the 240SX is it as good as it says it is? Also you guys talk about "the last ride of your life"? I foyure not stupid...weaving in and out of traffic...and the other guy doesnt run into you. Whats so dangerous about an open highway?

Well yeah, of course. Too much traffic I "pussy" out cuz possibility of one of those cars in all that traffic to be a cop is too high for me to risk plus I might die. But other than that, coming back from Santa Barbara late at night or San Diego or Vegas, better believe it.

The AEM EMS is good, but for the 240 you need to get a universal one, that means it has to be tuned from blank pages, and the JWT isn't a stand-alone like the EMS or PowerFC, it's just a re-tuned stock ECU.

Tim: Good luck/skill with it, let me know how it goes...5 psi should be pretty safe...How many miles you have on your engine?

well techinically you could scratch the brake equipment off your list. I know 240's have weak brakes but you really dont have too unless your going to be going to a road coarse due to hard braking and over heating the rotors/pads. Because lets face it 100mph is 100mph no matter if you have 500hp or 150 hp. Your stock brakes will still "stop" you just the same. But those upgrades you mentioned will give you better response and dissapate heat more with the rotors. But since you should race when the roads are pretty much empty i dont see why you would have to brake hard. So you could save that money and go on to your turbo set-up. Then when you get to a comfortable hp, proceed in some brake upgrades. Maybe a z32 front brake kit and add some brembo rotors for the rear with the stock calipers. That should be plenty to stop you in a drag race scenario. Now if you want to go on too auto-x or some road style racing i would suggest a full brake upgrade (calipers,pads,lines,rotors etc etc etc etc) due to the hard braking and you'll be braking more often. Baer and stoptech make some good 4-lug kits if you dont plan on doing a 5-lug conversion. Hope this helps you plan your budget somewhat, good luck man.

...Also you guys talk about "the last ride of your life"? I foyure not stupid...weaving in and out of traffic...and the other guy doesnt run into you. Whats so dangerous about an open highway?

Not sure what "foyure" meant and i couldn't make it out from your sentence but yea... jus replying to what you stated...

well obviously, i'd figured that highway racing can't be all that bad as well... who's that stupid?... but with statistics like these... it's only obvious people here can't handle highway racing... lolz.

quoted from various online newspaper agencies...

--------------------------------------


In 2001, the number of fatal crashes as a result of street racing increased 87% according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

In San Diego, the number of street racing cases prosecuted increased 97% from 1999-2001.

In Florida, injuries related to street racing went up 222% from 1999-2001.

-The NHTSA reports motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death for people 16 -- 20.

-The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says 5,749 teens died in the United States from motor vehicle crash injuries in 1999.

-In 2001, the national costs of speeding-related crashes were estimated to be $40.4 billion - that is equivalent to $76,865 per minute or $1,281 per second.

Plus, this is just 2001 stats... right now they are even worse... hence, more than majority of the population in U.S. CANNOT handle street racing... keep it on the tracks.

i think he meant to say "if your" but had an extra space with a typo and added an extra "e". These are not good wheel of fortune skills...lol.

haha... oh i see it. thanks... btw, do you watch wheel of fortune? i think its damn stupid...

i have 118k on my car & engine.

ok cool, good luck/skill with the project

In San Diego, the number of street racing cases prosecuted increased 97% from 1999-2001.

In Florida, injuries related to street racing went up 222% from 1999-2001.

-The NHTSA reports motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death for people 16 -- 20.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Damn Shift you started to scare me with the stats till I realized I dont live in Florida or San DIego( I live 2 hrs. from San Diego in LA), and Im not in the 16-20 age group, Im 21. WHHHEEEWWW!!!! I'll be alright!!!

Yeah and Chuki thanx for the advice. My current pads and rotors are fine right now anyway and since it wont be for a street x or comp. racing your right I'll be fine, for now. I still have at least a G to spend on necessary parts( springs/shocks, clutch, etc.) not including replacement parts for anything thats just old

no i dont watch it....i used to way back in the day, when my parents still had control of the tv. But now that im older i make them watch tv in there room lol.

damn street racers. they cause all sorts of problems. w/ there racing from light to light and there recklessness.

Well what about the Drifters!! They're all over the road!! And damn is it nice!!!!!!!!!!

AEM EMS has been released for the S13 and the S14. It is the best way to go for engine management right now. Then you have Tec3, linkplus, ecu tunes, SDSEFI, power FC and so on. You don't need to even look at these if you're on a 2k budget because they will all take at least half of your budget and the EMS is beyond your budget if you get some options.

Brakes? Get some brembo oe replacements and a set of hawk or axxis pads. That along with some good brake fluid should work out pretty well for the occasional roll-on.

I am going to advise you to order the Boostdesigns kit and a FMU. Best bang for the buck and very reliable. It comes with a 1 year warranty and PJ is a really cool guy.

I'm sure BD can get a 5psi spring.

The stock MAFS will support about 250whp or 9psi. After that, its whoevers call. Could work, could not.

I have 135,500miles on my car, so mileage is not an issue.

Compression test your car before you do anything.

Go on some KA-T specific forums and start reading. www.boostdesigns.com and www.phatka-t.com are probably the best sources for KA-T parts right now.

Street racing is as safe as you make it. More times than not, street racers get in wrecks from thier own stupidity. Keep it safe.

if anyone didnt notice i was being sarcastic. but yea alot of street racers are very stupid and wreckless. and yea drifters are dangerous but i know a lot of people that get spotters ahead fo them on the road so they know if people are coming. so its as safe as u make it

Are you talking about the Brembo sport rotors? Cuz as u probably know Brembo doesnt make pads for the 240.

Let me make this alot easier on everyone trying to help me. My goal is to get around the 250-300 HP range. So would the Stage 1 kit & the FMU be a good starting point? And as alot of you are telling me to get the car checked 1st in case theres anything wrong with it I got a tune up about 400 miles ago plus the inspection where they let u know if anything was wrong and they told me everything was ok. Do I have to perform any other test, or get any other inspections before moving on? But as far as compression test havent ever done that.

I'm doing it cuz thats what I want BUT also to shut up my friend who has a stock 03 G35 coupe with a A/T, trying to bust a sleeper on him. Out of my league? Maybe. But I have to try. That's why cosmetics (S13 conversion, kit, aftermarket spoiler, rims, etc.) are last on my list of mods.

Hey fanatic just read you post about the stock internals holding way more HP than I need or should be allowed to have. My brother was kind of a wuss with the car before me, but luckily for me its running great now. So I'm pretty sure that I shouldnt have any problems with the engine crapping out on me when I do the turbo kit mod.