My Mod Spreadsheet

[MazdaTom]

It probably only makes sense to me since I put it together but these are some of things I've been considering. It's scary when I total up some of the numbers.

And the sad thing is that I'll still be left with a slow car when it's all said and done.........

[arctic_blue83]

Wow, that's a nice list you've compiled there Tom, the car's going to be an atuoX monster by the time you're done!! Quick question, instead of going with performance cams, and building the motor for NA, have you considered just adapting an MSP turbo setup to your car? I figure you would have a much better bang for buck factor going FI.


Your list is MUCH bigger than mine, the STI is a pretty track ready car out of the box, so these are the only real mods I plan on doing:

-Cobb Accessport. Most likely a V1, as I can find them all day long over on Nasioc or IWSTI for about $300 or so used.

-SPT Cat-back exhaust. Can find used on Nasioc for around $350 or so, will only add maybe 5whp, sadly enough, I mostly just want it for the noise. I'm actually keeping the stock cats in place on this car, so no downpipe/full turboback, just cat-back.

-Protune. I would tune it myself, but in order to tune an AP, Cobb requires you to buy either a Street Tuner license from them, or have it tuned by a licensed professional, which will charge me about $300 to dyno tune the car with Accessport. Total, with the cat-back & Protune, I'm looking to put down about an extra 25-30whp over a stock STI, which is plenty fast for me.

-JDM STI Pink Springs. They help two-fold, first my spring rates would go up from 224/195 lbs/in to 257/217 lbs/in, so a small increase in spring rate take take down on body roll, and will only drop the car *maybe* 0.75". In stock form, the STI's suspension is undersprung/overdampened, set up purposely for rally, the springs I would like are perfectly matched to the characteristics of the stock struts/shocks, which not only will increase overall grip on pavement, but will take down on "STI bobblehead", giving a slightly better ride quality than stock. I can probably pick a set up for around $300 or so.

-Wider, stickier tires. No hurry. I still have plenty of tread left on the stock RE070's (been sitting in the garage all winter lol), but when it's time to replace them, instead of continuing to run stock 225/45/17's, I'll probably step it up to 235/40/17's, as I still have plenty of room left on the stock 8" wide wheels & in the fender wells.

-Ferodo brake pads. Again, no hurry, the stock pads are fine for now, but when it comes time to replace them, I'll probably go with the more aggressive Ferodos, but that's about it for braking, as the stock Brembo's are more than adequate for me.

-Sway bars. Haven't decided which, or what diameter exactly, probably another set of Cusco's like I had on my WRX, as they were outstanding quality, fit and finish. On a street car, I prefer to take body roll down via sway bars rather than uber-high spring rates that would kill ride quality in my daily driver lol. Nothing too extreme though, probably just a 22mm bar up front, and a 24mm adjustable bar in the rear.


^^^That's about it. Not going all out, just a few basic mods, and I might not even do the sways, depending on how I feel after the springs. We'll see.

What kind of time frame were you thinking of doing all of this in? I know you love the car, but with the amount of cash you'll be dropping, have you ever just considered buying a faster car to begin with? Like maybe a MSP?

[MazdaTom]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (arctic_blue83 @ Mar 6 2008, 12:16 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30407]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

Quick question, instead of going with performance cams, and building the motor for NA, have you considered just adapting an MSP turbo setup to your car? I figure you would have a much better bang for buck factor going FI.[/b]

Thought about it. Briefly. But let's face it- a turbo on a car that wasn't really meant for one spells trouble. Even the MSP doesn't do well with its stock turbo set up. There are a few members of the "zoom zoom boom" club at factory boost levels. And since this is my daily driver, I don't need a car that spend alot of time up on jackstands. Sticking with NA is safer in terms of reliability- especially on a Protege.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (arctic_blue83 @ Mar 6 2008, 12:16 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30407]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

What kind of time frame were you thinking of doing all of this in?[/b]

This is a long term project. I'm in no hurry. The odometer is showing a little less than 60,000 miles right now and I have no intention of getting rid of it before it rolls over 150,000 miles.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (arctic_blue83 @ Mar 6 2008, 12:16 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30407]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

I know you love the car, but with the amount of cash you'll be dropping, have you ever just considered buying a faster car to begin with? Like maybe a MSP?[/b]

There's one thing better than having a fast car, and that's having a car that's paid off. The light at the end of that tunnel is bright and only getting brigther.

[arctic_blue83]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MazdaTom @ Mar 6 2008, 01:02 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30420]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

Thought about it. Briefly. But let's face it- a turbo on a car that wasn't really meant for one spells trouble. Even the MSP doesn't do well with its stock turbo set up. There are a few members of the "zoom zoom boom" club at factory boost levels. And since this is my daily driver, I don't need a car that spend alot of time up on jackstands. Sticking with NA is safer in terms of reliability- especially on a Protege.[/b]

I hear ya, although I've always felt tuning was FAR more crucial in the longevity of a motor. Unfortunately, sometimes a stock tune on a factory turbo car ends up being more aggressive than intended, or doesn't adapt as well in certain situations. There are quite a few 2007 STI's with blown motors in bone stock form, just due to the fact that Subaru tried to save on gas mileage by having more of an open loop/closed loop delay.... I've seen some run as lean as 14.7:1 all the way up to 4000rpms at the onset of peak torque. If you're going to tune the car anyway, I don't see why a very conservative tune (5-7psi with rich AFR's) would decrease reliability. I do understand where you're coming from though... NA is probably a safer setup, just not as potent.


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MazdaTom @ Mar 6 2008, 01:02 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30420]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

This is a long term project. I'm in no hurry. The odometer is showing a little less than 60,000 miles right now and I have no intention of getting rid of it before it rolls over 150,000 miles.[/b]

I hear ya, you have plenty of time


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MazdaTom @ Mar 6 2008, 01:02 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30420]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

There's one thing better than having a fast car, and that's having a car that's paid off. The light at the end of that tunnel is bright and only getting brigther.[/b]

This is the point where I am extremely envious of you lol. Car you actually own>fast car you're paying the bank for.

[MazdaTom]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (arctic_blue83 @ Mar 6 2008, 01:24 PM) [url=index.php?act=findpost&pid=30423]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/url]</div>

If you're going to tune the car anyway, I don't see why a very conservative tune (5-7psi with rich AFR's) would decrease reliability.[/b]

Yeah, but who actually stays at 5-7 psi? Once you get a taste of the boost, you just want to keep turning it up.

Plus my car has an auto. Protege autos are rumored to be weak and don't adapt well to massive amounts of increased power. There are some things you can do to strengthen them, but again: daily driver- can't afford the downtime. A valve body upgrade is about all I'm willing to undertake.

I'm keeping all my parts so that I can return the car to stock and recoupe some of the cost of the parts. Hopefully, when the time comes, there is still a good market for all my parts and I can sell them easily. If not, well then cars are never really meant to be an investment anyway.

My next project car on the radar- a track whoring Miata, will start its life with me NA but get some sort of FI at some point. That car will stay in the garage most of the time so reliability isn't too great of a concern with it. But that's way off in the future.