I thought an S2 cam (with springs) can give close to 30hp and better pull from 3K RPM, no? Isn't there also an engine sound improvement? Yes, the boy racer in me is asking

If I save $5K by not getting a turbo kit, I have that money to throw towards something. Cams, springs and flexfuel tune seemed like a good option, but I'm open to other suggestions.

 

I forgot you already have the 18k.

If it was my car, I would go E85 and tune before the cams. You will see a huge gain in just that alone. 80whp or more. If you still want more, cams.

Here is an 18k I did years ago. 91, E57 and E79. You can see the gains. Ignore the spool. I was tuning on the street and not going WOT very early.

 

No doubt those power gains are awesome, which is why I'm eager to see if I can get the flexfuel tune. However, I'm looking at a 3 hour drive one way, and a flexfuel tune is around $900 I think, so I was thinking ahead and figured do the cams, springs and maybe head bolts and THEN pay the $900 for the tune. I know myself pretty well and will likely want more power later, so I'll be out another $900 for the second tune.

 

Yup makes sense, if the money isn't a big deal, then doing it all at once, then a tune makes good sense.

I wouldn't bother with head studs. Lifting a head on the 4B11 is almost impossible compared to the 4G63.

Use a new *OEM* headgasket if you are taking the head off, but if the installer knows what they are doing, you don't have to for cams.

 

Oh, that's good to know. I was trying not to name drop, but the tuner is Forged Performance so I assume they will know how to do the job right. I think I'm liking this plan, just need to see what they think about it. I really appreciate your help men, earlier in this thread as well as now!

 

No problem, glad to help!

I'm just going off your signature, but these are the things I would suggest you do to properly set your car up for success in this next move:

- Upgraded injectors. I highly recommend ID1300 injectors. Great injectors that work super well on both pump and E85. I've used a ton of injectors in my life and the 1300's have been my favorite so far. I would still be running them if I didn't max them out and have to move to ID1700's.
- Ethanol sensor hooked up to ECU for proper signal to have true flex fuel
- Tephra XMod V3 for true flex fuel
- If you haven't upgraded your fuel pump, you will need to. Aeromotive and ASNU both make a nice 340LPH drop in pump. You can do a Walbro 450 but you would want to upgrade wiring and do some other things to properly use it.

 

That's solid advice, thank you. I didn't even think that I'd be maxing out my injectors, but that's a good point. I already read up on the Tephra XMod, but I thought the car already had an ethanol sensor? As for the fuel pump, I'll have to read up on that as well now. I see MAP offers a Walbro 450 with a hardwire kit, what other modifications did you have in mind?

 

Well, it's happening... I pulled the trigger on all the upgrades. Clutch, flywheel, Evo 9 CMC, fuel pump, fuel lines, fuel pressure regulator, fuel rail, injectors, flex fuel sensor, catch can, and some other smaller things. I'm going to install everything except for the injectors to make sure the car still runs as it does now. Once I verify all that went well, I'll work with English on a tune, so then the injectors and hopefully S1 cams will go in.

I think I'm also going to upgrade to an aluminum valve cover, I didn't even realize I had a plastic one till I installed the catch can. What a joke.