There is that nasty inverse relationship between these two, the limits of which are all individual preference. Some want no flat bed experiences so keep their car completely stock while others want all out performance and do not care if their car is flat bedded half the time and in the shop the other half.

I am one of those in between: want some added performance but stay completely away from flat beds. To accomplish this my approach has been to confine mod's to just mild "externals (turbo upgrades excluded)" e.g., cold air intake, exhaust, reflash; obviously there are more that can be done.

So the question here is if one maximizes/optimizes these "externals" (FMIC, O2housing, associated reflash, etc.) but leaves all internals OEM:
(1) what would the list for these externals look like and
(2) what would be the expected maximum whp with the OEM 16g turbo?

My thoughts are such a vehicle would have a significant increase in whp but yet be completely reliable. I, and perhaps others as well, would appreciate some feedback to these hypothetical yet practical questions.

Later, Ken
AMS intake and Cat Back
Iveytune (322 all around)
Robispec K&W

 

I haven't modded yet...but am as soon as the z-chip is released

I believe ~400 WHP is attainable on the stock turbo with simple bolt on's such as i/c piping, intake, exhaust, flash or x-chip and MAYBE a pump upgrade.

Correct me if I'm wrong fellas.

edit: Of course you *would* need a clutch upgrade to. If you feel comfortable pulling the clutch before dealer service, you'll be ok...I'm good with it.

 

You'll need more then that to get 400whp! Thats for 400 flywheel hp. I do not think anyone has hit 400whp yet on stock turbo, but I think its possible soon with cams and manifolds coming out.
As far as reliability I do not think anyone really knows yet. But Mitsu is making a FQ400 so it would be safe to say 400hp (flywheel) is Def. a reliable #

 

So with the externals above we are talking ~380whp? But this requires cams. Did not want to get into the engine; just externals.

Later, Ken

 

I know I'll get flamed for this, but TTP's Z-chip is claimed to increase WHP by 107hp..that would put you at ~350 on a stock car, now add the i/c pipes, exhaust, intake and filter and yeah..I think 380-400 WHP is very close even without cams

 

We'll just have to wait and see what happens with that Z chip and mods! as for now I am pretty sure no one has hit 400whp on stock turbo (yet)

I know RRE did some test with bolt ons, cosworth cams, and ecutek and it was in the upper 300's (close to 400whp)

 

If you're going for 'bigger' power, in the 400hp range, I'd say a bigger turbo makes for a MORE reliable engine package.

The stock turbo is completely strained at those power levels. Not only that, but it has a relatively small turbine housing causing a lot of backpressure in the exhaust manifold. By going to a bigger turbo, it'll be more efficient in that power range and also have a bigger turbine housing, both reducing the strain on the engine.

One main killer of engines is revs. Engine life goes down exponentionally with engine revs going up.

 

So you are saying getting more power out of engine using larger turbo (and probably fuel pump and injectors) is more stressful than OEM turbo running flat out? If true then this raises question, how far should a turbo be spinning relative to its maximum?

Later, Ken

 

No he is saying the opposite, a larger turbo allows the motor to work LESS to make the same power as a smaller turbo. This is because the boost levels can stay down and rpms in check.

I will look for a slighly larger turbo in the 450WHP range that spools like stock

 

Yes, misspoke but a larger turbo is generating more power than the smaller OEM turbo. Isn't this more stressful? And getting a larger turbo is going to have more lag than the smaller 16G. So arn't you having more engine stress and more lag with larger turbo than smaller OEM?

Later, Ken