Alright, I recently joined the evo world, and I'm loving it. I bought an 04 with these mods:

Stroked to 2.3L
Wisco pistons
Eagle rods
Walbro 255lb fuel pump
Knife edged crank
Buddy club cams 264/272
Fidanza cam gears
AEM intake
Turbo Smart electronic boost controler
Forge BOV
SS brake lines
SS clutch line
Brass shifter bushing
Short throw shifter
aftermarket clutch (I THINK its ACT)
SAFC II tuned by Mac in Parker CO
380 awhp


Those are what i'm told. but i've also found things like exhuast (looks like an hks to me), strut brace, and couple small things. So what should I check to see if it's aftermarket? plugs, injectors, dp/up? anything else? Hell, I don't even know who makes the wheels..

also where should I go next? I just painted the lights but I want 400's. I think a dyno tune, s-afc2 delete, and a wideband would be nice. what else?

apologies if this seems elementary to most of you, but i'm new here..try not to give me to hard a time

 

Does it still have the stock turbo? I bet the response with the stock turbo and a 2.3 is insane. If you wanna go 400 just get a 20G and you should be at it and you'll still have stock like spool. Id just make sure you keep and eye and ear open on the trans and tcase incase it was ragged on. Also a full dyno tune or even a flash from Mellon here on the forums (probably just as good as a dyno tune as long as you do good logs and have the wideband and it'll be cheaper). Also meth would be a good addition.

 

Sounds like you got a good template to work on. Personally I'd upgrade the cams to full 272's from GSC or Cosworth. Then I'd bump the turbo up to a 50 trim or GT30. That'll put you well over 400 on pump gas without sacrificing much spool.

Definitely dumpt the SAFC-II. I see you are in CO Springs. I live in Cheyenne WY and we have our very own regional tuner who's price can't be beat and performs just as well if not better than most of the major ECU tuners on here. His name is Justin and his screen name is JustDSM. I've helped him with a few installs and have watched him tune many Evo's (to include my own) and he does great work.

Also since you are in the Rocky Mountain area check out www.RMEvo.com for the local happenings.

 

yeah the turbo is stock. that plus the forge bov = insane response. AWD drifts are commonplace. lol. the trans and tcase sound good to me so far. no chatter or anything. the clutch needs to be adjusted, high rpm lock out is a *****..I think he told me the t-case was rebuilt, maybe the tranny, i'm not sure. but what does interest/worry me; is the rough idle. It jumps around sometimes, and doesn't sound pleasant (depending on the day). we'll see if a retune can fix that. I have no idea what a "good" log consists of, let alone a log itself. Like I said; I don't know much, but i'm learning as much as I can. I've been searching and researching for the past 3 hours straight. I think I'm going to just go with a dyno tune. But what does that consist of? A dyno tune + a reflash? a handheld tuner? and a wideband? I don't really plan on auto crossing much, mainly a daily driver. would methanol be beneficial still?

alot of novice questions, I know...find it in your heart to bear with me

 

I've been told to replace the cams, but I don't know...It just seems extremley redundant to replace something thats already been modified, unless it's really hurting performance. you have to understand, my wallet isn't exactly thick. what about a top mount manifold?

 

Top mount manifold? I'm not sure what you mean by that.

Anywho, the cams aren't hurting your performance but eventually they will limit it. Dyno tune only means that someone reflashes your ECU while on a dyno. Fortunately that isn't a requirement with ECU flash. Like I said, Justin is a great tuner and if you like we (CO and WY evo owners) have a dyno tune date coming up next Saturday. Cost is $270 which includes the tune by Justin and the dyno time. Location is in Boulder, CO.

 

Since you already have a 2.3, then the engine is breathing good. I would make sure the intake manifold and exhaust manifold are doing the same. Do you know if the car still has both stock intake and exhaust manifolds? If so, I would either have the stock exhaust manifold ported or buy a nice tubular manifold. There is a write-up on here about how nicely designed the DC sports manifold is. Check out jscspeed.com for that part.

As for the intake manifold, I would probably go with an AMS. The are very reputable and I'm sure make great power. Along with the intake manifold, I would also pick up the BBK throttle body from AMS. Those things will be a little expensive, but they will help out a lot.

Lastly, I didn't notice anything about an aftermarket intercooler. That too will make a HUGE difference. There are a lot of good brands out there, but if you want to save a little cash and still get a nice unit, go with an ETS 3" intercooler. Fits just like stock. extremeturbosystems.com

Hope that helps out.

Brandon

 

I disagree on replacing the intake manifold. It doesn't become a hindrance to flow till well over 500hp. And forgive me for saying but DC sports is good for making Honda parts and that's about it, IMHO.

If you plan to upgrade your turbo, then I would suggest going with a full kit from Buschur, AMS, ETS etc. But as you stated, money isn't abundant (don't know many people who can say it is).

At your stage of mods an aftermarket intercooler would certainly help but it won't be "huge".

 

I will definitely look into that. So its a dyno day kinda thing? In boulder, next saturday, right?

and by top mount manifold, i meant the type of intake manifold, mounted right by the valve covers, where the turbo/heatsheild is.

 

Yes it's a dyno day and here's the link to the sign-up list http://www.evotuners.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2355

Ok you still have me confused. The intake manifold is on the back side of the motor and the turbo/heatshield is on the front. Are you talking about replacing the exhaust manifold?

 

yeah there we go, exhaust. I got em confused.

I had a tire blow out today, and tommorrow I find out how much thats going to cost. probably a **** load since its awd and the other 3 are already worn. if a miracle happens and its cheap, ill sign up.

 

Seems like you started with a pretty good platform(already built motor)

 

How well did you know the person who sold you the car? Did you get any history on where the 2.3 motor build was done? Did you get invoices for the 2.3 motor build? Before I started working off a platform, I'd make sure I knew for sure exactly what I had and how well it was done. There are several Evo owners in the Springs that could help you take a quick look and make sure you know where you're starting from...

 

I gotcha...I recommend staying with the stock manifold until you decide to upgrade the turbo. It's not a big hindrance to flow and replacing it now won't net you much gain.

If you need a good set of tires that won't break the bank I suggest the BF Goodridge G-Force Sports or Federal SS595. They have great wet and dry traction and you can usually get all 4 for around $425.

 

for the tires - looks like you might as well replace all 4 at once...

First, check out the Evo For Sale Classified - Tire and Wheel section of this forum for good deals...

Next, check the Evo Regional listings on this forum - they will occasionally have a "local" classified section - lots of guys upgrading to larger aftermarket rims will want to sell their last set of tires quickly...

Lastly, a great bang-for-the-buck set of tires are the Falken Azenis RT615's. Search on this forum for more comments...

Good luck with the new car!