I'm thinking of switching to SM class next year for auto-x and one of the upgrades I was looking at is replacing the cams. For those who've installed them, what effect did you see on spool up with the change in duration?

 

Depends on how aggressive you go. The BIG cams do hurt spool up but the smaller ones I've seen either no effect or actually help spool. Obviously the bigger the turbo the larger the cam you want to run.

 

They say that with a stock turbo there are no gains to be had with aftermarket cams.

 

cool, thanks for the info.

 

Wow that's crazy, definitely got gains on the 4G63... nothing on the 4B11t eh?

 

Yea I definitely saw gains on my 4G63 - 350 hp and 315 tq.

 

Yea, word on the street is that cams aren't necessary until your turbo is upgraded.

 

Do a search, there are significant gains with cams. 15-20 hp. Torque is better though and much broader torque curve. You are limited as to how much peak power you gain since the turbo is maxed out but you do net some significant gains with camshafts.

 

Cams are less needed on the X than the previous Evo's due to the dual MIVEC cams. You can advance the intake cam to get more flow. Honestly, I don't think cams are as needed as most people make it out to be. Most cams hurt spool or don't change it at all. You will not gain spool.

 

Clipse is 100% correct. The X has dual MIVEC which is so that it is capable of helping you improve power delivery without the need for aftermarket cams. But as it is with everything else, they have their limit. Once you start going bigger than FP Red, ie. black, The garretts etc, that's when aftermarket cams really help you out.