I hope you know the FQ400 was kind of a failed project. It received horrible reviews and the FQ360 is considered a much better car. If your goal is to beat a high performance car like the murcielago around the track just upgrade with the basic bolt ons and some camshafts. For handling go with robi-spec suspension and new rotors and pads and you should be good to go.

 

I understand that the drivability of the FQ400 sucked. I also know that the FQ360 was a better car.

Let me state this for the last time (hopefuly)

My goal, is to modify this car, to have 400 to the wheels (not brake) and to have similar handling as the fq400 (since I don't have ayc, which I can live without) and be able to stop like the fq400, with 6 piston front brakes, and 4 piston rears.

So I got some parts in, the scale out, my tools ready..... here are some pics! I will be dyno'ing the car probably this Friday, (if i wake up early enough)

This is the carbing 6 point underbody brace. Gets rid of some SERIOUS lean. weighs only 10lbs (on the dot) and is well placed weight i might add. The only problem is, my turboXS downpipe kisses it in 2 spots. (very snug) I'll be getting small amounts of heat wrap to place between the brace and the downpipe (pinch in between) to get rid of the rattle I get when getting out of 1st gear.






This is the oil filter block adapter for my oil temp/pressure gauges. Saved a ****-load of time, and went in rather easily. USE TEFLON TAPE!! Yes, i made the mistake, and the car leaked a little :-(






Random pics of my dash ... Note that the Water Temp gauge on the right, is not working at the moment. I ran the sensor to the upper radiator hose, and zip tied it until i get in the adapter that goes in line with your upper radiator hose with the 1/8pt pre threaded hole for the sensor. (i'll have to cut the radiator hose for that, I have the samco viper red's coming in soon, so that will all be a breeze).








New Intercooler (OBX, the cheapest, nicest alternative I could find that wouldnt set me back over 500 bucks. Awesome look, and quality. <.2psi pressure loss on a >30psi test. Works for me :-) ) and that black thing next to it, is the front bumper re-enforcement bar that weighs 15lbs, I removed it because the Cusco front Chassis stiffener takes its place at only 5lbs. (canceling out the 10lb Carbing 6pt bar) HOWEVER, the stock IC of the evo weighs 10lbs, and the OBX weighs a whopping 24lbs... so How do I get rid of the extra 14lbs? easy... light weight battery, and that does over 14lbs, matter of fact, next on my list is the DC titanium front upper strut bar... check out the pics:

















If you noticed, the side blots are not bolted into the chassis from the IC to the car. Reason for this, is that the Cusco bar, doesnt allow the IC to be as High up (placed) as it should be. The only thing holding this IC on is the top bolt. I'll be getting industrial strength zip ties, or tap into the chassis where the side mounts are currently lined up in order to re-enfoce the IC. The IC also rests on the power steering pump cooling lines by the lower part. The lower part of the IC sits 2" lower than the stock IC. I will DEFINITELY not be lowering my car as much as I wish I would've.


Here are some pics of my line-up job (cause putting the bumper back on with the Cusco, and this IC was HELL











I ended up buying the braille auto 6lb race battery, which worked great for 1 day... next morning, dead.



Sucked, because this thing was less than half the weight of the oddesey pc680 that I had that I killed cause of a permanent 12v gauge I connected by mistake overnight. I think the oddesey weighed about 15lbs.

I'll probably be getting the braille auto 11.5lb-er because it has more cranks and cca than the oddesey, and supposedly is made for car enthusiasts that use their car every day, and have plans of future audio systems in their vehicles.




So my next big post will be:
Rear JDM bumper
Samco hose kit with water temp adapter installed.
DC Titanium front upper strut tower brace (shave off 5lbs or so)
DC Titanium rear upper strut tower brace (need to start stiffening up the rear)
Trunk bar (don't know which I will be going with yet, suggestions?)
A dyno run, some tuning, a dyno run, some pictures of that, and then I'll be taking a break for a while, because the next step is drivetrain (clutch, flywheel, built transfer case) etc...


Currently, I'm still in the market for a better BC, the perrin I have isn't cutting it. I need to hold 22lbs throughout my RPMS, the hallman I don't think does it, but it comes close for a MBC, any suggestions?

Also, are cams going to give me any power? I hear mixed info about evo9's and cams cause of the mivec.


Any feedback is highly appreciated!

 

nice! i love the way the blue Cusco bar shows through the grill! =)

keep up the good work and keep us posted!

good luck!

 

So I'm looking into another turbo...
I want to maintain the stock look, and get a pretty/shiney header for it that isn't too massive. (short runners like stock)

I'm looking at the evo green (which doesnt have a posted rated HP)
and the evo9 replacement titanium/aluminide (rated 450HP)

honestly, the 450 bothers me, because I may eventually hit 450 exactly, and I'd be running the turbo at its limit at that point... anyone know what the evo green is capable of ? and if the titanium one wouldnt have problems running 450 all day?

Here are the links:

titanium/aluminide evo9 turbo (spools fast, and is lighter, but 450 limit)
http://www.lancershop.com/customer/p...&cat=17&page=1

evo9 evo green
http://www.lancershop.com/customer/p...&cat=17&page=1

What header would you guys recommend with short runners that is a direct bolt up that looks decent and has good flow?

Let me know which way to go guys!
Also, after strapping that in, I hear that I'd have to upgrade my oil cooler, and radiator... I'm thinkin of getting a Greddy bolt-on upgraded oil cooler, and a mild radiator upgrade with a changed thermostat. Any suggestions?

 

JDM rear bumper shots










Stock strut bar weight (lbs)


DC titanium strut bar weight (front)


DC titanium strut bar weight (rear)


Front DC installed



Rear DC installed




While i was at it (in the trunk) I removed some things and weight them out (yes, im nuts, im aware of this LOL)

heres the stock jack and tools

here is the cardboard under the trunk carpet

why not remove another ~10lbs?

I was looking into removing the rear wiper as well, but looks like i'll need a flat wrench to get it off. The underside is simple. The motor and all look like another ~10-15lbs as well.

Today my Braille 15lb battery should be coming in. another 20lbs off the front end there. Anyone want to buy the 6lb race batter? It's charged and ready to go... 100 shipped. Only thing... you can't use it as a dialy driver. It dies on me in 1 day. But GREAT for quarter miling.

Let me know what you think guys.

-M

 

your car is coming along nicely and parts are great. One thing i would do is run your wire from your TomTom(navi) behind the dash wire looks like crap with all that good stuff in there.

STevo

 

Thanks man! Yes, I have wasted quite the brain cells figuring out what kind of custom mount/location for that darn GPS. Not the easiest thing in the world considering where they put the plug (bottom, vs side)

I'm DYING to relocate my gas gauge to where that empty circle on the dash says 'lancer' so that I can actually see my gauge when I'm driving (boost is in the way)

I just ordered a hallman pro RX mbc. Supposedly the best a hundred bucks can buy for a high quality MBC. hopefuly it will rid of some of my boost tapering. (it will replace the red perrin one) anyone want to buy it? good for 20psi and under.

Also, I have a HKS SSQV BOV with adapter and recirc fitting that will go right into your evo if anyone wants it. I like the drivability of my stock MR bov.


I'm dying to get a bolt-up turbo manifold... any suggestions? That stock BS cover is killing me.
I may just get it with the new turbo, but don't know which to go with for 400-450 awhp daily driven. I want direct bolt up... and it looks like that isnt going to be easy :-\

thanks for the support guys! next post will be this weekend... DYNO GRAPH! (I've gotten my 4th gear pull knocks down to "1" ... yes, thats right. "1". would be nice to get 0, but oh well. those 750cc injectors are helping :-) ).

-MR

 

lol

 

My Hallman Pro RX came in today... put the hard spring in. Has the ceramic ball... doesn't hold boost better than my perrin.. I have come to find that the turbo just isn't capable of it. Oh well.

Some pics of where I mounted it (shortest vacuum line route I could muster)



Braille auto 15lb battery came in... wish me luck tomorrow morning (hope it starts) it should. I put it on it's side to lower center of gravity... fit pretty nice... and turned the terminals on the side facing up.



I think i forgot to post these... the samco hoses (viper red) with the adapter for the water temp sensor.. the hoses are sweet. The lower had to get cut. was too long, I think the evo8 has a longer lower radiator hose. Oh well... fit perfectly after i cut the upper portion of the lower about 2-3 inches. It doesn't touch anything from top to bottom.






Miscellaneous shot... :-)


next friday... im off to the dyno. wish me luck. shooting for ~350... then getting another turbo.

-MR

 

wow... nice project man ive got a fq360 ecu map and an invidia exhaust and running low 12 just on that

 

great car .... but if I may get rid of that fram oil filter!!!! They have been known to blow out on turbo cars not to mention its a crappy filter....spend a few dollars more and get a good filter(factory,mobil 1,K&N) they are all much better. Once again awesome car

 

Thanx dude... fq360 map? where do you get that kinda stuff? I'd love to try one out. hit me up on PM's.


LOL, you are the second or third person to tell me that... you know what... next oil change... I'm going K&N. :-) consider it done!

-MR

 

So I figured I'd go over my thread and respond to some people that I haven't gotten a chance to... (some may have been old posts, my apologies!)





1st mbc = Perrin with ceramic ball/hard spring
2nd = hallman (the plain one with the lock nut... broke at 30psi spike) ?
3rd = hallman rx pro with ceramic ball and hard spring. upgradable to rx evolution, which means in-cabin adjustment while keeping short vacuum lines. (works great... but my turbo actuator wont hold boost)

stock evo 9 turbo, 23.5lbs psi spike with slow taper to 19/18.5psi by redline.

Just ordered a Greddy profec II spec B. Hoping to hold ~22.5psi all the way through.




Tell me about it! Turns out that I gotta call Invidia, and TurboXS to make me a custom donut to rid of the exhaust leak.



Thank you! I found this out as well.. makes sense of course, hence the BHP. So my guess is if it's pushing 400bhp... that would be roughly 385ish awhp (give or take)




Good to know about our engine. Definitely took some questions off my chest for the future when my thirst for power grows. So you're saying I should change my lower IC pipe to a bigger one? As it is now, the lower Injen pipe matches perfectly from the turbo, to the intercooler sizes. Should have I gotten an IC with bigger in/out-lets? I'd like to stay away from alcohol (I want it to be as consistant, and daily drivable as possible without worrying about running out of two fuels! LOL) as for the hallman... it's good, but not with this stock turbo's actuator. I spend ~300 on a greddy profec II spec B, or however you call it, in hopes to hold psi across the rpm band.




That blue cusco bar gets quite the looks ive noticed... it's either that, or the massive intercooler, but I doubt your average joe knows how to tell an aftermarket IC




Once again, thanks for the support guys! I may put a test pipe in just for the dyno run this friday... (if it comes in on time)

I'll be posting numbers soon!

 

I agree with numerous people in that you should model your build after the 360. Clarkson, a weaver and all the other great euro journos prefer it over the 400. Not to mention the 360 makes more torque and 2200 rpms sooner than the 400.

 

to that. I agree... after reading and watching more on the fq400... it is definitely not a car that I'd enjoy from day to day.

The FQ360 is (hands down) the way to go. at this point... My goals are to overshoot the fq360's power, and upgrade my suspension and brake system to fq400 specs (not exact... just its performance)

I'm not sure if the fq360 has 6 piston front brakes and 4 piston rear brakes, but that is definitely on my list of "to-do's" $5,000~ later.

Suspension is still a tos up. Many different opinions on street/track use. Lately I've just taken time into getting chassis stiffeners until I can figure out what camber/caster plates and shocks/springs to buy. Tien monoflex's were my first taste.... then it went to Billstein with the lifetime warranty... and now, I don't know.

Brakes... I really like the brembo big brake kit (6 piston front/4rear) that fit into the factory 17" wheels.

As for power... I'm pretty much at the fq360 levels now. my last dyno was 330hp 340 tq. That's not far at all... and that's to the wheels, not bhp.

So when it comes to drivability... fq360.
when it comes to power... fq400
when it comes to handling.... fq400 and then some.