Hard to disagree. 450whp, as a number, sure sounds nice. 450whp from, say, a 3.0l motor in 3200lbs makes for a fast car on the street. Really fast. 450whp from a 2.0l motor in 3200lbs and it's a different story. No bottom end, minivans and SUVs pop you in traffic. But, hey, you can still tell yourself that you've got 450whp.

 

You will be content. For a year. Then you'll want more.
My opinion, save some money now and completely build the motor. Then have your tuner go real mild. That way when your hungry for more power you can just take it back and turn up the boost.

 

I havent had any issues with that personally. I get around in traffic just fine.

 

What does that mean, exactly?

 

It is never enough and you'll always want more. 400-450whp is great daily driver power and it will be fun for awhile. My perfect set up and most enjoyable was my FP Red making 631 whp on the street. I've driven evo's up to 804 on the street but the FP Red was the most fun from a daily driver stand point.

 

I had 360whp in my E85 Stock Turbo 8, and about 345whp in my 91 pump X. Both cars are extremely fun. I used to own a 450whp E85 50 Trimmed SRT4, and I'd say my stock turbo Evo8, as well as my current X, are much more fun to drive around on the streets. So yes, 400whp in an 8 will be plenty fun, as long as it's the right setup, and not a 42r on 12psi, lol.

 

The simple fact that you've asked the question tells me you don't have enough experience driving modded cars to know for yourself that nobody other than you can answer that question.

So, if you want me to give you your opinion I will. Yes, you will be more than satisfied.

 

i was around 380 to the wheels on my 2.0 and it was a blast but like everyone else said the adrenaline stops and you get bored. now I'm doing a 2.3L build and i don't plan on stopping until i kill a Lambo or Ferrari its all about goals

 

I had more fun driving my hks turbo at 440/400 than my fp black at 602/528

 

will have to agree with everyone else 450 will be fun but you will get used to it and want more and more power

 

You said the car had no bottom end and normal cars buzz around you in traffic. I have had niether of those problems.

 

This is why I drive my beater 93 1.5 liter honda to work. Once I get back in my evo after 3-4 days its feels hella fast at 400hp

 

this is where you will eventually have to compromize.

i'm not willing to deal with any more lag then I have right now so my upgrade options are very limited. I'd like to get 450 AWHP on a mustang but I'm pretty sure I'd require a built 2.3 or 2.4 to get there without additional lag.

 

I actually disagree with this FJF. I spool very nearly as fast as stock and have the same or better transient response and have 450 whp. It drives exactly like a stock Evo, with a ****-ton more power. That's on 93 octane with a stock bottom end. My built motor with E85 will make more power with better spool. You don't need a huge laggy turbo to make decent numbers. Going to a huge turbo is definitely going to be lousy because you spend all your time spooling and then shifting immediately out. I laughed my *** off the first time I saw a 2.0L Evo with an old school 35R on the steet. laglaglaglaglaglaglagLAAAAGPOWAHShift!

 

I think everyone feels the way you do about getting used to a certain power, and whether its going to be a power level you can be satisfied with. I'm at 355 whp on a Mustang for about a month, and now I want more lol I want to eventually get me an FP Green to help me get to the 400 area, but the only thing that worries me is how much stress my engine can take. I still owe my car and its my DD so I definitely wouldn't want it to break on me.