I've got the 03 ES and am looking at picking up a used 03 evo 8 stock turbo kit including the turbo, housing, manifold, and wastegate. No nuts for the manifold, but i can make do. The bad news is my car is auto so i'd need custom piping. The good news is i can get all this for $350. Should i jump on my guy or save for a pre-pieced kit specifically for the 4g94 and not go the ustom route. I'm more than capable and have money for the necessities from fuel pump, injectors, IC, piping, e-manage, wideband, oil pan, down to the gauges. My question is is it worth the headache of doing it yourself and saving some money and would i be faster with the same tuning than say... going with an RRM kit for my car for 4k? 9 of my uncles are mechanics and love doing this kind of stuff and its such a good deal so i just want to make sure before i jump into a hole. thanks guys
-CJ

 

The RRM kit will probably be safer if you've never tuned a car before.

 

I plan on having it professionally tuned out of velocity trendz in jacksonville, FL

 

I would still go with the RRM kit simply cause its simple, all there and doesn't need tuning all the time. With a custom route you'll have to worry about retuning it when the temperature changes drastically and such.

 

you learn something new everyday

 

Going custom will force you to learn and understand more. Your knowledge would increase and you'd be better off. However, if you don't have the time and/or patience to do it custom, then going for a pre-fabbed kit is what you should do. Going custom is usually a lot cheaper, but you are your own technical support.

 

Don't know why you would need such a big turbo. It's not like you will be pushing 19 psi.

 

^^They're usually cheap, thats basically it.

 

I was thinking on purchased that same turbo you talkin about... but like everyone else says, tuning is a big factor when it comes to turbos.

U beat me to it!..ha ha... Just do it, especially since you're having a professional shop take care of it for you.

 

Go custom, its worth it in the end to know that you built the car the way you wanted it, you tuned the car the way you wanted it, and if you broke the car it was your own fault Tonight my custom turbo project begins it's installation. I'm hoping to have it done by late sunday. Its extremely gratifying to recieve the final piece of the puzzle, or know that all your hard work is going to pay off, plus like everyone said, you will learn a buttload in the process. As for tuning, its not a huge gargantuan process. Yeah your tune will change when the weather changes, but unless you are going for an exact perfect tune, it wont effect your car hugely. With RRM's kit there is no tune anyway. The fuel system is basically just an FMU and a fuel pump (until you go to stage 2). So theres no real physical tuning with the RRM kit anyway. Go custom and enjoy it. My feeling is if you need to buy a prefabricated and tuned kit to go turbo, why dont you just save up and buy a turbo car. The whole point of going turbo on a NA car is 1) to learn about your car and make it go faster, and 2) to be proud of something you accomplished, not a factory or a shop. Anyone can have a shop slap on an aftermarket turbokit.

 

well there you have it...

IF you don't buy it let me know cause i want it!

 

^great advice thanks guys. I'll let you know if it goes through...still waiting to hear back from him.

 

man if u dont know much about enigines dont turbo ive grown up around it and was changing brakes at prob age 12 but then once the turbo project started i learned alot more then i thought there was to know but it does feel great when u go out and beat some cars and tell them you built ur car urself

 

I say go for it !!!

 

You're going to need a new manifold. The stock 03 evo won't fit our Lancers... supposedly it's off by like an inch or something.