So basically I got my 2003 Lancer OZ in September with ~50,000 miles (I didn't really realize till now that that's alot for a car only a few years old but it runs great so oh well..) and I got my first parts coming in the mail from RRM.

On its way:
RRM Light Aluminum Crank Pulley
AEM Cold Air Intake
TEIN Basic Dampner Kit
RRM Rally Spec Strut Bar
RRM Rear Anti Sway Bar (OZ Edition)

Near Future:
MAGNA FLOW Stainless Catback Exhaust
Road Race STAGE 2- 2600lbs. Clutch and Pressure Plate
RRM Header
RRM Flywheel
Highflow Cat
RRM Piggy Back ECU

So like I said I'm a newb. I REALLY REALLY want to work on my car myself but the most I've ever done on a car myself was oil changes, battery replacments and TWO alternators on my old 1995 Corolla. Other than that I've installed a few sound systems and headunits. So the only thing I could probably do here myself is the CAI. So my first question is to ask if anyone knows of any good install shops in the central or southern Connecticut. Or if there is anyone in the area that would get a kick outta teaching someone like me a thing or two and helping me work on my car that would be sick too . (I should probably ask that in the regional forums but there's more here)

Also If anyone has any advice regarding those mods or something small I may have forgotten about please I'm open for any advice. I am planning on going for the RRM stage 2 intercooled turbo kit eventually but I know that that comes with A LOT of work attached and I definately want to wait till I'm ready for that.

What kind of things should I plan on if going turbo? Will I need to do pistons and rods in order to prepare for that? Does anyone know if the RRM Fuel kit that comes with that turbo takes care of fuel management or will I need something else? I need to do alot of reasearch on turbos, boost, fuel management and timing. Unless I find someone that I can do the work with I will probably have end up having the turbo done professionally at a local shop that specializes in custom turbo kits and turbo tuning.

I can't think of anything else....maybe throttle body?

Again, I realize I sound like I haven't a clue what I'm talking about and some people would ask why someone like me would get a lancer and do all that work when I should just buy an Evo. This is because 1.) I love cars and I want to learn all this stuff. 2.) I can't afford an Evo. 3.) I MUCH prefer to do it all myself rather than drive an evo off the lot and that's that.

I'm looking for any advice I can get.


Random off topic questions....has anyone ever had a problem with their washer fluid sprayers on the lancer? I've had that come up in the last couple weeks. And is my temp control inside the car supposed to be insanely hard to turn?

 

hmmm.. why get the Stage 2 clutch.. its heavy duty for turbo lancers.. read the description. I dont kno bro ur spending around 3k or even more...

Why not jus get the turbo kit offered by RRM? I see u want perfomance, u went wit every N/A mod possible. The suspension modifications seem well...

 

i figured i go with the heavy duty clutch so that when the turbo comes along i dont need to upgrade it. is that a mistake?

 

jus get the turbo kit and the clutch and the simple suspension modification.. the key thing is finding a shop that will do that for u. Though ur gonna be spending alot of money. Im thinkin around 7 g's.... dont want to say this... but jus get an Evo if ur spendin that much

 

Yeah if i were you, id upgrade the suspension first. Itll make the car a lot more fun to drive. You hit the nail on the head with the stuff you bought as far as suspension upgrades. A turbo kit is a much better investment in the long run, yeah its expensive but just save up and when you finally do get the money to buy it, youll be MUCH happier. Just remember that installing a turbo isnt as easy as installing a cai.

 

You might want to try Pruven Performance which is in southern CT somewhere. They are really popular with the Evo guys so I think they might be your best bet for complicated installs.

I would strongly suggest you replace at least 1 of your motor mounts. This is easy, cheap, and produces a very noticable difference in traction.

 

Lets put it this way.. I spent lots of money on:
-Injen SRI
-RRM Header
-Test Pipe
-Magnaflow Catback

And I didn't see a huge performance gain.. so now I'm getting a turbo kit put on Wednesday. I already ordered the WORKS Stage 2 clutch and WORKS Lightened flywheel beforehand and they're already installed in my car. I love the clutch and flywheel and they're going to serve me well for the turbo. It grips like no other, and the flywheel is amazing.

 

Yea, i dropped $1600 on the stuff i already ordered. I know the rest is gonna cost alot too but I would really rather get that done and then save for a while for the turbo rather than turboing and then trying to take care of stuff like a better clutch and whatever else would really help with a turbo.

Thanks alot for the info on the engine mounts, ill look into that.

 

you can always sell your used parts on here and gain a bit $$$ back when u go turbo.

 

like i said im a newb...what kinda parts would i have to sell after going turbo? is there something im planning that the turbo kit would replace?

 

u think ~50,000 is alot? try ~95,000 miles on a 2002...bought in 2002

 

there is obviously some reason why he didn't get an EVO in the first place...what that reason is, i don't care. welcome to the boards. first off, you are going to need to decide which route you would like to take:

A.) N/A (naturally aspirated...ie. non-turbo)
B.) FI (forced induction...ie.turbo)

once you make that decission it will help you figure out whether or not the mods list you have there will be worth it for YOU or not. there are a lot of different options out there, it's all a matter of what your intentions are. regardless, good luck with your new lancer and i hope some of us here on EvoM will be of some help any questions feel free to PM me.

btw, don't be discouraged just becuase you don't own an evo.

 

Just a little heads up, the RRM turbokit comes with a piggyback ecu so you wouldn't need one now. Save the $400 on the ecu and put it torwards the turbokit. I don't know about the stage 1 kit but with the stage 2 you do need the header..

 

haha thanks alot, actually i prefer to not have an evo. I love them, i have a friend with a black 05 evo...took me for a ride .... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I really wanna work on the car myself and i cant do that if i'm paying $580 a month like him. I would rather make the car fast myself than buy it that way. I love my OZ and i want to go Turbo....any ideas on some early mods i should do to lead up to that?

One more thing, I also have questions about tires and rims.....made a post here https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...d.php?t=175316 please take a look if you can lend any advice in that area

Edit: thanks FlLancer, didnt know that. good lookin out . I'd really love to get a list of everything the stage 2 kit comes with so I can see if there is anything i can do ahead of time....like headers

 

stage 0/stage 1 don't come with a piggy. only stage 2

Best advice: don't listen to anyone. Research and figure out what you wanna do.