hey i just thought about this. how much of an advantage does a manual have over an automatic? and if you wanted to switch from one to the other (auto to stick) is it costly? i would think stick > auto but im not too sure.

 

Turbos like little backpressure which is why the test pipe helps on a turbo. A manual is generally faster than an auto with similar mods because a manual transmission does not eat up as much of the power from the engine as an auto does.

 

No prob.

My goal is suspension and better engine. I'm not trying to make my car into a speed demon or a drag racer but trying to keep it clean and fun to drive for commutes. Someday I'll have an Evo, but till then I'll work on my Lancer. Personally for the speed aspect of it I've done an Intake (RRM SRI), a Catback (Magnaflow), and a short shifter and I've been very happy so far. I plan on getting RRM Headers and RRM piggy back by next summer and working on suspension parts until then. It's taking me awhile but every bolt on is a step toward my goal. Oh yeah, and once you start to mod your car it's very hard to stop. I plan to get a rear sway bar in the next few weeks... I can't wait.

Fox

 

The autos only have four gears and the gear shifts are controled by the ECU. The stick is a five speed and you control the shifting. As far as speed goes, Manual is always better. To drop a new tranny in your car you're looking at a huge chunck of change and allot of work. I'd just work with what you got... in the long run though you're car, unless turboed and with allot of work, will never beat a compreble manual car... but allot depends on the driver as well.

Fox

PS- There is a recent thread concerning a transmission swap... it's expensive.

 

If you're new to modding a lancer, it'll be fun, but like it was said before, you can't stop once you start, I never really even bothered doing it until I got a Muffler for x-mas and than intake off E-bay and swapped the filter. Then I figured if I have a muffler to get the piping to go with it. Then I got the short shift. Look out it's an addiction that's more expensive than crack. (I really don't know how bad a crack addiction is, but I'm sure it's expensive.) If you got 5K Saved up, there is lots you can do for lots less than that. First I would say on an ES is to start w/ the intake, or ECU which ever way you want to go have fun with it, there are quite a few things that don't give you much HP or TQ by themselves but once everything comes to gether it all amplifies each bolt you have in some way or another. If you plan on staying away from a turbo (I am but only for the money reasons) there are quite a few other things you can put on a lancer. I personally would go Intake, cam shaft, exhaust, and some sort of Suspension upgrade. But some of these items may be difficult to find unless you really start looking for them.

Check out Road Race motor sports. They will have a lot of stuff that you would like to look at
http://www.roadracemotorsports.com -- You'll almost fall in love with that site and they, I'm sure, are more than happy to help you with any of it.

 

with 5k. i would go I/E/H IM TB, High flow cat, Fuel rail, and emanage, then New tires, strut bar, sway bars, that would be less than half of 5k

Get good tires, they will be one of the best mods u get with some nice rims too

 

well when i said i was sticking with speed, i didnt mean need for speed style just probably going to do a little more than just the basic set up. keeping the car fresh and in shape is a goal of mine as well. dont want it turning out like my last car. geo metro lol . about the switching transmissions part, i know im never going to get that done lol unless of course i get hooked up with a discount or something (0% chance) btw good luck on your future setup

and metzen, i dont really plan on using a turbo kit for this car for lots of reasons. not that the car sux or anything but one of those reasons of course is money. i could pay it off but id rather not spend that much money on just one thing.

and again thanks for the good posts guys

 

that is a little more than basic.

I/E/H is basic so if anything, get those. then upgrade the ecu.
I really recommend the tires and rims. nothing like taking a corner faster than u should and your car did great because of the tires.

Plus the lancer looks soooooooo pimp with rims. OMG u have to take off those granny hubs. whole new car! ...oh yeah also look into getting a spoiler. will help the looks too, w/o going to overboard.

 

yea for real! adding a spoiler makes the car look 10x better imo. thats probably one of the first things im going to do when it comes to the design part.

 

I was new to upgrading parts on lancers about a year ago and the forum has helped a lot. Keep reading about different mods on the forum. I have the piggyback for my ECU and throttle body from Road Race Motorsports (very high quality and made specifically for the lancer). I have been really happy with the outcome of those mods. But my car is still not exactly "fast". The car si fun to drive, but if you're really looking for speed, go turbo. I am looking into one right now. RRM's turbo is too expensive, so look at other places too for parts. Good luck with your car.

 

im looking into buying my first part. not really a big step up but its just for starts. i was planning on purchasing the ground wire kit.

but i have a question about installing parts. example: if i get an exhaust system but my car has no other mods added to it, would it still be ok to use? would it shortn the life of it? or would it have no effect on it? this goes for any other part too. i know what im saying might sound a little weird lol but just try to stay with me. i get **** when it comes to stuff like this. i dont wanna buy a piece thats 'dependant' on something that i dont have (yet).

 

nonono, hehe

The only way u shorten your engine's life really Besides not changing the oil, and maintaking the car. Is adding a turbo, but the ammount is unknown.

If you put a catback on ur car by itself it wont hurt a thing. Infact before I had to sell my car all that was on it was the catback ( I didnt have the stock to put back on) and it ran great. Was an auto too.

But its not dependant on anything and will give u much beter sound, and a couple more horses.

But most people I know go intake first, then catback then header. But like I said a k&n highflow filter + heatshield attactched to stock elbow. and theres ur intake + catback.

good luck.

 

Take a look at my registry. I think I've done pretty much every n/a performance mod short of intake manifold and throttle body (grounding kit is still sitting in it's box waiting for install). I chose the parts that I did because I felt they would provide the most gains both during my car's n/a lifetime and it's turbo lifetime.

Homework was done reading what Bushur Racing gathered when they dyno'd the Lancer forever ago (run a search and you'll find a link to the full article), RRM's upgrade path, and lots of time spent talking to the gurus (both titled and non-titled) on this website.

If you have questions, just run searches and you'll find more than enough discussions to base your own decisions on. Best of luck to you, and make use of these forums! It's easily the second best investment (first being driving school) anyone can make in their car.

 

i agree withi him. i have 17" superleggras on mine with bridgestone potenzas...some of the best tires out there for our purposes.....and no other mods.....i can scream aorund turns...and aeven if i happen to get sideways (always fun, mostly on purpose) i stick it back on the ground pretty quick. handeling is prolly the most underrated part of a modified car, because when u think fast you think 1/4 mile. its the twisties where ur gnna have ur best bet on whoppin someone....and It IS The driver. the car only does so much

 

my thoughts exactly. the 1/4 mile tells you only so much about a car. i think a good suspension and low unsprung weight (rims, etc.) will go a LONG way to cornering perfection which is what you should be at least thinking about since the lancer isn't the quickest thing with 4 wheels

and if you decide to get a spoiler and want an actual "wing" get the evo8 style. looks sweet and adds 20+ hp. almost as much as yellow paint j/k but the evo 8 wing is a good choice

just my 2 cents.