Finally...Time For Some Upgrades!!!

Ok guys, I finally got a decent job, which has given me a moderate amount of play money. SO naturally, I would like to spend it on my car, or more specifically, on some mods that I should've gotten long ago and just haven't had the money for. I was hoping you guys could lend some advice as to which upgrades are worth the money and which arent.

So here's what I have:

Custom Exhaust
Short Ram Intake

Here's what I've been looking into:

Gutting Precats (need to get the 02 simulators)
Test Pipe
Downpipe OR Headers (Which is better/most cost efficient?)
Underdrive Pulley
Ground Wire Kit (and/or other wiring kits that may help?)
New Spark Plugs (I've had my car for 13K+ miles and haven't changed them yet, dunno when they were last changed)

So which of these mods are actually worth the money? I would like to try to spend no more than $550...I don't mind buying used parts as far as the downpipe/headers or the test pipe go...I figure they're just pipes, so they can't get damaged without the damage being obvious. The wiring kit(s), the pulley, the spark plugs, and the o2 simulators (or whichever of those I end up getting) I would like to have new.

Thanks for your help guys.

well the given would be the spark plugs...wouldn't wanna do something and leave it to chance that motor gets messed up due to shitty spark. other than that, i've always been told gutting precats would give the most power for labor

headers are alot of work, a down pipe is a good idea as well as gutting ur precats and getting a test pipe. dont get the ud pulley just get the lightweight one the ud can be and is kinda risky for the motor when there really is no hp difference between the ud and the light weight one, Gutting your precats make a great differnce, when i did mine my boost was set at 14.5 and i went for a test run after gutting them and it spooled 2 extra lbs of boost and they start to spool so much sooner than stock, and when i did my test pipe i went for a test run on my low boost setting which is 6psi wastegate and i pulled out 8-9 psi with the test pipe no addjustments to my boost controller,

headers are alot of work, a down pipe is a good idea as well as gutting ur precats and getting a test pipe. dont get the ud pulley just get the lightweight one the ud can be and is kinda risky for the motor when there really is no hp difference between the ud and the light weight one, Gutting your precats make a great differnce, when i did mine my boost was set at 14.5 and i went for a test run after gutting them and it spooled 2 extra lbs of boost and they start to spool so much sooner than stock, and when i did my test pipe i went for a test run on my low boost setting which is 6psi wastegate and i pulled out 8-9 psi with the test pipe no addjustments to my boost controller,


If I am not mistaken he has a 97 SL. And I completely disagree with you on the Under Drive pulley. Unorthodox under drive all the way.. and just so you now if you get something like this HERE (http://www.3sx.com/store/comersus_viewItemBundle.asp?idProduct=916) then you you still have same "Danger" as the under drive pulley.. It is the rubber compound that neutralizes the vibrations..

Jason

Alright, let me get this straight. So far, I have:

YES for spark plugs (What kind? any suggestions?)
YES for test pipe
YES on gutting the precats
YES on the downpipe

MAYBE for the ud pulley (I read that there would be some arguments here)
MAYBE for the lightweight flywheel (Im thinkin its too expensive for my purposes)

What about the ground wire kit?

Also, is there anything that I can like take apart and clean out to try and increase efficieny?

Im not looking just for hp addons, Im going the whole 9 yards trying to get my car in top running condition

...I know some of you are about to ask, and YES, my 60k has been done recently

Sea Foam!! FTW

now that I think about it, do I have to get a "3000gt" test pipe, or are they all a universal length? cuz if so I think i could find like a "honda civic" test pipe for about half the cost...

brakes, even if u add a lil wouldn't u like to be able to stop just as well as stock or better?

can't really say a specific brand of spark plugs or brakes, go with what offers the best performance for cost. i will say brakes can get very expensive very quickly. as for plugs to be narrowed down, go with stock replacement, they should be able to provide good spark, i dont think it's untill u do fuel upgrades that u need to worry bout plug type(could be wrong). maybe go with a duel spark.

could do a lil suspension work.

now that I think about it, do I have to get a "3000gt" test pipe, or are they all a universal length? cuz if so I think i could find like a "honda civic" test pipe for about half the cost...
They are not universal length. Get a test pipe from Maximal Performance.

Is there somewhere I can get a good cali. spec. downpipe other than 3sx?

And still no one has commented on the ground wire kit. Does that pretty much mean just skip it?

Just a question...it says that you have a test pipe in your sig:confused:

Im not sure about the ground wire kit, but I know the downpipe has been giving people pretty good gains

3sx is the only place. Spend the money on it and get a good downpipe.

As for the ground wires, go for it. I havent put mine on yet but I plan on it asap.

1) Yeah, thats cuz when i wrote my sig I was planning on going and getting one later that day, but something came up (cant remember what) and I never ended up getting around to it. Been too lazy to change my sig :P

2) What's the difference between the stock dp and the 3sx dp?

3) Technically, when I get the test pipe, can I take it off and put the cat back on just as easily? I dont see why not...?

I wish this dam hurricane wasnt comin straight for me. Now I wont be able to get/install these parts for a good long while (well like 3-4 days MAYBE, but thats a long time to sit and think about how much you wanna do mods )

Anyone else have suggestions on which sparks to use?

3sx downpipe flows much better than stock. It is well worth it.

Yes the point of a test pipe is so you can put your cat back if need be

I've been reading up on 3si, and a few people are complaining of raspiness/really bad smell that accompanies a setup of custom exhaust, testpipe, downpipe, and gutted precats. My car already sounds pretty badass, i dont wanna ruin it with raspiness. And I don't want my car to smell like sh*t. With all tihs in mind, is the power gain I would realize worth it?

Im thinkin about skippin on gutting the precats for now, cuz that would be the only irreversable mod. That way if I don't like the end result, I could always strap the stock DP/ stock cat back on to even things out.

If I wanted to, could I go outside right now and unbolt the cat for a few minutes and run my car just like that? or is that a bad idea?

I have gutted precats, and a test pipe and have no bad smell. I have no clue what those people are talking about. The only time my car smelled bad was when I was burning oil like crazy.

As for the raspiness as long as you have a resonator you will be fine.

As for unbolting the cat, chances are it isnt going to be that simple. Most people have to cut the bolts off.

well, taking out your exhaust filtration is gonna make it smell like unfiltered exhaust fumes ie:gas, im not sure on the rasp noise as i have a TT, but mine is not raspy its loud as hell tho ill tell u that. and as far as hp gain im sure ull be able to tell the diff. but who cares what ur exhaust smells like, i mean after all dont u want the ppl ur spanking to eat ur exhaust fumes any way?:lol2: i dont really mind the smell i kinda like it, just dont have ur car on in a closed garage:banghead:

1. The smell of no cats smells like a boat or motorcycle. I like it personally.

2. Ground wire kit adds a little throttle response. 3/10 mod.

3. Unbolted cat- open downpipe is super loud. Don't do it.

4. Rasp comes from no resonator. Resonator eats high frequency exhaust pitches that will give you a fart can effect if you don't have one. My Maximal Performance has a glass pack as the resonator.

4. Gut your precats, even though it's irreversible, you won't get rasp or a bad smell, or with a test pipe for that matter.

5. Get your test pipe from Enhanced Street Performance, they are cheaper.

6. Custom exhaust is too much. Get IPS, or Maximal Performance.

7. Stock downpipe forces the rear exhaust straight down, and looks like this: F 3SX curves a second pipe from the rear to merge into the main cat. 13 WHP. 8/10 mod

8. Flywheel is about $400.

9. UD pulley is a great mod, and will not fuck your junk up like other cars. Works well with lightweight flywheel. Both give no HP, but make your engine run

through RPMs faster.

10. Headers cost 2X downpipe, are louder, automatically remove precats, and require engine pulling/ hood removal.

11. Spark plugs are good for 60K miles. 13K is fine, trust me.

12. Buy an EBAY intake.

13. Our test pipes are 18 inches long, by 2.5 inches N/A and good ones use swivel flanges.

14. Do NOT BUY EBAY DOWNPIPE!!!

15. You won't find many used downpipes.

16. Buy some EBAY rotors, and ceramic pads.

I already have the custom exaust, cost me around 250 for parts and labor, sounds badass.

I don't have a resonator, however I do have 2 mufflers. will I have to get a resonator as well to take care of rasp/overlap, or will the two mufflers take care of it?

Already have an ebay intake

I dont know when the last time the spark plugs were changed was. it's 13k miles plus however long the last owner went without changing them

Too late, alrady bougt the maximal performance test pipe

Where can I find a good guide to installin spark plugs (if I decide I need them) and more importantly where is a good guide to installing a Downpipe?

and is 3sx the downpipe I should buy, or is there another cheaper brand that's still reliable?

Also, where can I learn more about this "seafoam" stuff? Ive read some pretty good things about it in the past, may wanna look into it.

Cats are not resonators, so your car will sound the same, just deeper - throatier, and louder. Look at the N/A Borla, they use like 3 chambers, and no actual " resonator" like stock exhaust, unless you mean 2 mufflers, 1 on each side of your car as a dual exhaust. Then you'll probably sound like a ricer, unless your absolutely sure you have no resonator after the cat.

The downpipe is 7 bolts. Going off memory on sizes but 2: 17 MM bolt on the front manifold, 2: 17 MM bolts on rear O2 housing, 2: 15 MM bolts to the cat, and a 12 MM bolt hanger. Go to my "Guide to understanding precats" thread I posted in your other thread and look at the 3SI hyperlink I posted in the first post and you'll see better.

3SX makes the only N/A DP, besides EBAY who weld the rear to feed towards the front.

Use Bosch Platinum plugs, with a 39 or 40 gap I think.

Stealth316.com has spark plug replacement guide

Seafoam is at any auto store.

11. Spark plugs are good for 60K miles. 13K is fine, trust me.

Not always true. It depends on the plugs. I use coppers and they are only good for 10k miles

16. Buy some EBAY rotors, and ceramic pads.
do NOT buy ebay rotors. They are complete junk and have a bad habit of the rotor hat breaking off. NOT SAFE.

Cats are not resonators, so your car will sound the same, just deeper - throatier, and louder. Look at the N/A Borla, they use like 3 chambers, and no actual " resonator" like stock exhaust, unless you mean 2 mufflers, 1 on each side of your car as a dual exhaust. Then you'll probably sound like a ricer, unless your absolutely sure you have no resonator after the cat.

The cat acts as a resonator. With no cat and no other resonator a DOHC WILL sound like shit.

One muffler, two mufflers, six mufflers it doesnt matter. A muffler is not a resonator.

Buy the 3sx dowpipe. Quit talking about cheaper. Cheaper is NOT better and there is no other option.

I guess what I said didn't come out clear. TT's don't necessarily need resonators, because the turbos will kill the frequency of valve overlap (aka fart can). An N/A with nothing to kill the noise will sound like shit, like I said before. The only difference is if you have your mufflers set up like the N/A Borla, I don't see how it could sound bad like Stealthee said.

A guy who sells rotors on EBAY is legit, and I plan on buying them myself. I forgot his name, but whatever. I most certainly do not buy products before I learn about them first.

Coppers slipped my mind. You may be due if you feel hesitation.

Ask leet on 3si about ebay rotors. They are JUNK.

An na NEEDS a resonator. Just because there are two mufflers doesnt mean shit. The NA Borla has resonators.

Alright, I ordered the 3sx downpipe. Ill just have to see how things turn out and how it all sounds. HOWEVER, the NA doesn't "NEED" resonators. heres (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbUS2nLcIqs) a link to a vid of my car with one pipe splitting into two immeiately after the cat, with two mufflers on the end (no resonators at all). It doesn't sound like shit at all IMO (this was immediately after having the exhaust installed. The raspiness at high RPMS and the popping as the RPMs fall is gone now). So will replacing the cat with a test pipe make it sound like that, just deeper like crackheadbob said?

Also, how will the addition of a downpipe effect the sound? still just slightly throatier? I assume that's the case because the only difference, or so I'm told, between the stock DP and the 3sx DP is that air can move slightly more efficiently through it. That being the case, I'm not changing actual "restriction" on the exhaust, Im just helping it move faster. Correct?

Downpipe will make it slightler throatier yes.

It is more effecient and less restrictive both.

And YES replacing the cat with a test pipe will make it sound like ass. The cat is acting as a resonator at the moment.

If it does end up sounding bad, could I just buy a resonator and weld it in somewhere between the test pipe and the split pipe?

yes you can just weld one in if you don't like the sound. Thats what I'm doing on my redline, but for now I just put the stock resonator on my 2.5" cat-back. On my car the unresonated exhaust sounded good until I got a header and downpipe. With my big header and 3" downpipe it made the exhaust WAY louder and I had to put a resonator on because I courny stand it. Sounds very good now. I'm thinking the same may apply to you, but there is only one way to find out.

Your car sounds somewhat stock to me, but I'm used to hearing my car all the time. I see your exhaust now, and suggest you get a glass pack welded in there if you plan on using the test pipe. I don't know if the precats will be enough to keep it sounding good.

this keeps going over the same thing.. over and over and over..