this weekend im planning on installing my MR o2 housing, since i broke off a bolt in my factory one, but i have a few questions first.

-How long should i expect this to take
-Is it necessary and or better to remove the radiator to do this install?
-Any important do's or dont's that i should know about?
-A turboxs dp is going on with this install, but i was reading on z-1 performance that this perticular dp doesn't fit with aftermarket o2 housing? source: ( http://www.z1auto.com/prodmore.asp?m...ust&prodid=823 )


This is my first time doing this, and while i think i am somewhat mechinacally inclined, i am a bit intimidated. I have the install write-up, but still looking for anything that will help or make this easier! Thanks in advance

 

If its your first time, its going to take about 3-4 hours. . I would recommend removing the radiator (unless you want to work in a tight space) Or put a piece of cardboard over it so it doesn't get damaged. And pick up so PB blaster from autozone to spary on all the manifold bolts and everything and let them soak for a few hours (trust me, it will help ALOT!!) Good luck! If you have any questions let me know and i'll be happy to help

 

kinda off topic but is a upgraded o2 worth it like the ebay or megan

 

Its definatly worth it

 

It took me 3-4 hours. I pulled the radiator and the hotside of the turbo (to include the manifold). There are two bolts that are a pain in the *** to take out when the o2 housing is in place.

When bolting everything on, I thought it a good idea to use anti-sieze on the threads

 

Pull the radiator or it will get f-ed up. Good luck, i never want to do another 02 housing install as long as i live.

 

are the gains worth the pain in the *** install?

 

i left the radiator in and pulled off the manifold and hotside of the turbo. give yourself 4 hrs to do this if you are slow

 

i think im gonna try and leave the radiator, but looking at the how-to i think that he left the turbo on the car. ive never taken any of these parts off before, and this may be a dumb questions, but if i remove all the boost piping, manifold and dp, whats hold the turbo in place other than the oil lines??

and does anyone know if that megan o2 housing is compatible with the turboxs dp, i would think that it is?

 

This is not a PITA install. It takes a little time but is fairly easy. As mentioned above you can put card board or plywood in front of the radiator to prevent fin damage. Definately do this on a cold engine and ensure nuts and bolts have been soaked with penetrating oil.

When pulling the exhaust manifold use a vise grip to remove the two studs. Go to a hardware store and get two new studs. This will greatly reduce the time it takes and well as the amount of cursing that goes on.

I pulled the heat shield, O2 housing, and hotside out all togther and I put it in that way as well.

As for whether its worth it or not..... that depends on how much boost you plan on running and if you care about boost creep or not. If you are running 22 psi you may not see much of a return and you may encounter some boost creep issues. You may have to adjust the preload on the wastegate actuator.

In all honesty this mod has rave reviews but they aren't backed up by dyno results by anyone other than BR. And during his tuning he saw a 13whp gain but during the test his boost went up 1psi and he couldn't lower it. 1psi is good for 10whp. If he would have done an apples to apples test instead of apples to oranges test the gains would have been much lower than reported (more like 3whp). Personally I don't think its worth it unless you like to have bragging rights about all the little don't do crap mods you have.

 

Do yourself a favor and spray the absolute **** out of every bolt you need to remove at least 2 nights before the install and the night before. It makes them come loose without a struggle. It honestly took me about all day to change out my O2 housing, 10.5 hotside, and ported exhaust manifold. Mine went smoothly, I just take my time. Replace the gaskets if you can (you don't have to), but it's safer. And torque everything to spec. No need to get worried about it. I got a little weary about mine too. It's not hard, it's just a lot of work. Hardest part is showing the bolts who's the boss. That's why you're going to spray them 2 night before!

 

I just did this upgrade this last weekend. I bought a used Tomei Expreme setup from another member on this board.

When I did it, I didn't remove the Manifold so it took me about 4-6 hrs. I did remove the radiator so at the moment my coolant is nothing but just straight water. The turbo outlet has 3 bolts and 2 nuts holding it to the Turbo. The hardest one is the nut all the way in the back next to the block. That nut alone took me about an hour because I had to go to the store to buy some tools.

I don't think I can really do it by myself if I didn't had my brothers help. But in the end. I thought it paid off well. I can feel that boost builds up quicker. Major difference was in the mid-end. Definently worth doing if you're going to stay with stock turbo.

 

It is an absolute PITA!! I took the manifold and the turbo off.

 

yeah my housing is going to be in on thursday, and the downpipe spring bolts will be here tomorrow. what, if anyone knows, are the specifics of the new studs that i should buy, so i can look for them now. and whats this special tool that you used? and right now im looking at the thread that has the torque specs but someone might need explain to me what bolts are labled as what in this thread, and thanks for everyones help on this

 

Are you going to remove the manifold? If you are then you there's no special tools. I didn't so I had to buy a low profile 14mm swivel socket for the nut all the way in the back. Got it at Sears.

I'm not sure what you mean by studs.