With the upcomming beggining of the newyear I relize that I am going to have some money that I have been setting aside for officially starting the modification of my car. My plan for a while has been to initially out in a new exhaust system, but after reading through some boards and browsing on RRM's website that purchasing a Piggyback ECU might also be a lucrative venture. This will be the very first performance mod to my OZ. I am most likley going to have around $500 to spend and wanted to get some feedback about whether I should put the money towards an evo2 exhaust or the Piggyback ECU. (or for that matter suggestions of other initial mods)

 

if you wanna get both and save $$ learn how to tune yourself and get the ECU cable and evo2 exhaust

 

On a stock motor an exhaust is useless.

 

I was going through the same dillema... want to know what i did..? Nothing- hahah... save.. is what EVERYONE has said... theyre not going to make ENOUGH of a diffrence... exhaust... with a stock motor will give you LESS low end power (bigger pipes) but higher high end power... (stock lancers are known for being quick throught 1-3rd gear, so id keep it that way unless you turrrbooo) and the ecu... will be good.. but id go for saving it... Thats my opinion, and what ive understood from posting and reading forums... good luck

 

Suspensions mods are a possibility, have you upgraded the rear sway bar yet?

 

^^

yeah, Dont even mess with power mods on this car unless you are gonna go all out on it and make some actual power. little mods like a piggy/exhaust/intake wont get you much.

To make the car more fun I would sudgest getting suspension mods, tires, brakes.

mabey start with a rear sway with upgraded perches.. then get some coilovers. then mabey some steel braded brake lines and better pads then upgrade tires... and wheels if you want.. thats my sudgestion.

 

Well this seemed to be a short and sweet consensus, and I like it. I run autocross so suspension definately seems like a smart place to begin. I will be checking back here for any other thoughts.

 

the progress rear sway bar definitely makes a difference in handling. i had to drive for a little bit without it on my car and i noticed the rear end sliding around a lot more. definitely get the upgraded perches. the reason the bar was off was because the stock perches had snapped. those things are junk.

you could always just set aside all the money for a set of coilovers. if you're going to autox i'd recommend coilovers. i'm going to get registered for events this march now that i got my TEIN basics.

with a different exhaust you can definitely notice a difference in top end--as in you get back what you lose in the low end. intake anx exhaust are just something you get done if you have the money to blow. you won't get much from both. we all do it though.

the piggyback is awesome. i can feel the car pick up right around three grand and that carries through to about five and a half. you shoule be shifting by then anyway. the biggest downside of the piggyback is having to run higher octane gas. i run 93 in my lancer to make sure it doesn't knock or otherwise not play nice. if i remember correctly RRM just released a re-tuned piggy that works best with 89 octane gas.

 

500$... that'd buy you my piggy and someone else's exhaust.

 

Give it to me.

 

Look, if you wanted to save you wouldn't even be on these message boards. I mean, it's still a OZ lancer. even if you turbo it for $4000+ your only gonna be a little fast then a ralliart anyway. to me, a turbo is a waste of money unless you plan on racing to earn that money back. at least on a lancer anyway. All i have is an intake and an underdriven crank pulley. i feel a difference in the pull and i plan on getting the new piggyback from RRM this week. i would do the exhaust last. and suspension mods like sway and strut bars are always a win win.
peace

 

With a turbo you'll be a lot faster than a ralliart.

 

coming from the guy who bought an es

 

a lancer with a turbo isnt slow at all, you will strut like your king

 

Wow, nice rant, and it was quite ignorant . I suppose the easiest way to gain horsepower wouldnt be from a turbo? Yeah its "just a lancer" but it is possible to get a **** load of power out of these little things, and in my opinion is well worth it. Oh and the turboing it for 4000+?? WTF are you talking about it doesnt cost 4000+, might wanna check your numbers. I am running close to shy of a thousand on my custom turbo project utilizing a used evo 8 turbo, ic, and ic piping. You can dump *** loads of money into mods, and it still wont mean nearly as much if you are NA. You dont need to go badmouthing lancers in a lancer forum because i for one love my lancer, and two you dont need to be taking wind out of peoples sails.