12/5/10:

I'm picking up catback #3 for the car today...

Cobb catback installed! Fits much better; a lot more clearance plus less bends and non-baffled/chambered muffler.

12/11/10:

Hankook Ventus V12 evo K110 tires mounted/balanced @ PTP in Fort Worth today! Goodbye howl-monster OEM Advans :) I got 10,500 miles out of the stock tires, hoping to get 20k out of these.

12/12/10:

In my quest to make this car less of a pile of **** with it's 1980's Honda interior quality equivalent I went to JoAnn Fabrics today and got a sheet of adhesive felt for $2. I cut various size pieces and placed it at all six glovebox door connection points and at four connection points for the plastic panel that sits under the glovebox. I removed the air cylinder from the glovebox door last week and am hoping this felt will take care of the remaining dash rattles from that area.

12/13/10:

Cobb exhaust + Hankook tires + dash rattles fixes have REALLY quieted the car down during highway cruising! Even above 4k RPM the loudest thing I hear now is wind noise.

2/12/11:

Porting pr0n:

https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5175...c78f80f0_b.jpg

Yup, that's a pretty big gaper.

2/14/11:

Fun ported bits from Mil.Spec!

brand new 64mm ported throttle body (stock is 58mm)
http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...0214011450.jpg

majority of plenum ported
http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...0214011508.jpg

majority of runner ported
http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...214011508a.jpg


http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1508.JPG

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1510.JPG

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1514.JPG

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1515.JPG

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1516.JPG

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1517.JPG

2/16/11:

Sad sight:
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._6353289_n.jpg

The car is currently on the lift getting inspected.

Transfer case started howling and puked it's fluid all over the road last night.

Eby (Don's service manager) confirmed the transfer case was overfilled with fluid and documented the fill and drain were untouched with factory paint seal intact. He also said this is the 2nd they've seen like this this week.

I just off the phone with them again and they're saying they filled the fluid to the proper level, cleaned everything up, and it appears all seals are intact and the fluid was coming out of the top case breather tube. After test-driving the car they're saying everything is functioning OK and not making any whining or howling noises. A case has been opened with Mitsubishi with everything documented in case a problem arises in the future, but for now they're saying the car is ready to go. I'll of course listen for any noise very carefully and if I don't feel it's 100% I'll be leaving it at the dealership.

2/17/11:

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...0217012053.jpg

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...0217012050.jpg

Just a small detail I've been wanting since I bought the car since my IX had it too.

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1469.JPG

2/21/11:

My coated PPI Extreme ported exhaust manifold from SPC in Arlington, TX is done! Should be going on this Saturday...I plan to get the initial pre-manifold baseline dyno done on Friday.

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMGP1526.JPG

2/25/11:

Well, back to the dealership the car goes tomorrow morning. On the dyno tonight the transfer case started screaming something awful.

3/1/11:

They got approval and a new transfer case has been ordered!

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._2638269_n.jpg

3/4/11:

WOOOOOOOOO! Actual cost to Mitsu after parts, fluid, labor, rental car, etc. > $4,000! So happy to have it back after nearly a full week. The dealer also got a brand new transmission approved and shipped to them "just in case" so that was pretty damn cool too! I kept the stock tranny since it's perfect, but I think that was awesome of the dealership to go above and beyond like that.

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._6206668_n.jpg

3/5/11:

It got fresh rear differential fluids today :)
Diaqueen 90W LSD & Diamond ATF SP III

Also noted that after 4k miles these Hankooks are wearing very evenly even with my -2* camber up front.

3/12/11:

New exhaust manifold is installed! I'm just waiting for the dyno to open up to get it back on to see what the gains are (should be around 4pm).

Baseline from yesterday:
http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb1=000000255

I made 342/360 last November when I got tuned, the only thing that changed was Magnaflow ---> Cobb catback:
http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb2=204000000

Stock vs. ported:
https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5180...2b6dded4_b.jpg

https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5212...a392da21_b.jpg

https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5172...57f884dc_b.jpg

https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5099...a75bda9b_b.jpg

Some self-porting (gasket-match) to the turbine housing:
https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5133...1ed37e8e_b.jpg

Installed:
https://farm6.static.flickr.com/5058...1778164b_b.jpg

Dyno results are in...unfortunately they are less than impressive :( Charts coming soon.

I picked up 3whp but lost 3 wtq (peak). Above 6,800 RPM power is noticeably increased, but that's about it. Boost stayed the same, but AFR's did go a bit richer so more power will be had once it's leaned out a bit again. It also lost a bit of spool which seems odd, but Calvin (tuner) thinks he can get that back with MIVEC tuning.

Next up is the intake manifold and throttle body, might do these tomorrow and see if I can get it for a retune sometime this week or next weekend.

http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb2=204000000

November tune vs. ported manifold run (for some reason the dyno database won't show my AFR from the pre-manifold baseline, but at the time we compared it vs. the November tune and it was nearly identical):

http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb2=204000000

3/18/11:

Ported IM/TB install tonight and retune tomorrow!

3/19/11:

Insanely impressive for a stock head! Already very smooth and wide open, barely even a need for any porting, if anything I'd say it only "needs" a tiny bit of smoothing/cleanup.

http://www.mitsustyle.com/photopost/...ium/photo4.JPG

We got the Mil.Spec IM/TB set along with MAP phenolic gasket installed tonight. Took us about 5 hours start to finish which included a pizza/Throwback Dew break and time to R&R the stock undertray. The manifold itself wasn't really a problem nor were the support brackets...it was all the damn wiring harness clips and the TB coolant line clamps which were at a very precarious angle. The coolant lines to the TB could easily be bypassed with a 180* bent hose to loop to/from the thermostat housing. We decided to skip this for now since we didn't have a hose like that, didn't want to kink a factory line, and were excited to just get the car back together! I had no idea just how much material Aby @ Mil.Spec actually removed from the IM runners until I had it side-by-side with the stocker! I reset the ECU and overall the car seems to be idling just fine; a tad high right after startup but the ECU quickly corrects and brings it down (this may just be because I reset the ECU, I'll find out tomorrow once I actually drive it a bit).

My tune is scheduled for noon tomorrow so later on in the afternoon I'll be reporting back with some final numbers :D

After the car got a chance to learn the new TB it idles just as smooth and perfectly as stock! So far I'm very impressed with these Mil.Spec products.

Sadly though, no results for today :( A Mazdaspeed3 came in from Louisianna for a 10am appointment and it was all sorts of booty. As of 3pm they're still working on it and trying to get it to run right. Gatorade bottle caps used to plug stuff, none of the clamps were tightened down, something wrong with the wastegate, etc. Since Andrew and Emily will be here soon I decided to just head home and reschedule for Tuesday afternoon.

3/23/11:

I'm out of fuel pump! This isn't supposed to happen on a pump gas stock turbo X, I must really be flowing some air ;) My tuner says the car definitely has more in it so once the new pump is installed the tune will be further tweaked.

Prior tune = 342whp/360wtq
Baseline = 345whp/359wtq
+ PPI extreme ported exhaust manifold
+ Mil.Spec ported IM
+ Mil.Spec ported TB
+ MAP phenolic IM gasket
New tune = 360whp/378wtq

That's +18whp/+18wtq from my previous tune plus gains, including quicker spool, throughout the entire powerband! Damn impressive for stock turbo/pump gas on a Mustang Dyno especially considering the car has more in it yet. For comparison sake, my IX (w/cams, etc.) put down 360whp/369wtq on this dyno.

I am beyond excited to get a new fuel pump in the car and get back for more tuning!

3/24/11:

****ty cell phone pic of my chart, but it will have to do until Cobb gets their online database updated.

http://www.mitsustyle.com/photopost/...tune_chart.JPG

full size image here: http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...tune_chart.JPG

I know it's tough to read, but you can get the general idea of the gains, slightly quicker spool, and relatively close boost curve. The curves will be further smoothed once the new fuel pump is in, but there was no point finalizing the tune last night when it's all just going to need adjusting.

3/31/11:

Fuel pump did the trick! IDC's around 89% with nice steady AFR's

Numbers pretty much remained unchanged with the fuel pump...the setup was pretty maxed at that point I guess! I am fine with the fuel pump being just a little extra safety margin though since it was right on the edge and inconsistent as the fuel temps increased before.

3/18/11:

I'm finally done being lazy so I'll post my dyno results from before and after:

+PPI extreme ported exhaust manifold
+Mil.Spec ported intake manifold
+Mil.Spec ported throttle body

http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb2=204000000

Slightly less boost for the "after" too :)

8/19/11:

New Depo 3" LICP, it should go well with my MAP FMIC w/3" outlet and ported throttle body. Stock fitment and retains two of the three factory mounts.

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0227.jpg

I originally tried getting a 2.75" LICP from two different shops and that turned into a huge failure, I'm glad another shop was actually able to come through for me.

8/19/11:

New Depo 3" LICP, it should go well with my MAP FMIC w/3" outlet and ported throttle body. Stock fitment and retains two of the three factory mounts.

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0227.jpg

I originally tried getting a 2.75" LICP from two different shops and that turned into a huge failure, I'm glad another shop was actually able to come through for me.

8/21/11:

-FP HTA Green with ported turbine housing and 19psi WGA
-Cobb turbo inlet hose for 3" anti-surge covers
-Cobb XLE BPV

9/17/11:

Just getting ready for the next round of mods...

http://www.mitsustyle.com/photopost/...m/IMAG0251.jpg

A lot of locals have been having spark plug failures with one taking out a piston in the process. It seems like they're all happening in the 30-35k miles window, I just hit 25k miles today so I figure now's a safe time to replace them, especially with the new turbo going on soon. To the non-X guys who notice the price of the plugs, we don't have a whole lot of choices yet (three to be exact). Factory (~$60/set), NGK Laser Iridium (same plugs, different box, a few bucks cheaper), or HKS Racing (~$100/set).

I also changed my transfer case fluid and rear differential fluids (yes, two separate fluids for the rear differential) again today. The old fluids only had 11k miles on them and were done about 6 months ago, but I figured no harm in frequent changes, especially considering how nasty it looked already :)

FP should have my Green done in a few days so then I'll be bringing that in for ceramic coating, installing my DW800 injectors, and putting on the 3" Depo LICP.

9/23/11:

Ported goodness:

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0261.jpg

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0260.jpg

Now it's off to get coated tomorrow!

10/3/11:

Added ceramic coating to the above ported turbine housing:

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0273.jpg

Oh yeah, and today I also got that Depo 3" LICP installed. I am actually very impressed with it, perfect fitment even with the stock airbox bracket (my AFE intake heatshield mounts to it)! This is one of only two LICP's with confirmed fitment with the stock airbox bracket in place, and the only one larger than 2.5". PPI's 2.75" may have also fit, but it's not confirmed and they said they've never tested the fitment with anything but their own brand intake.

10/7/11:

Change in plans, the Green has been sold... :)

10/14/11:

Selling my DW800's and getting ID1000 fuel injectors instead.

What is this that just arrived?!?!

http://www.mitsustyle.com/photopost/...m/IMAG0280.jpg

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0282.jpg

http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/data/641/IMAG0283.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6057/...a528dd02_b.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6042/...bf62a129_b.jpg

The porting on this thing is awesome, I especially like the compressor outlet.

https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6106...0ab2862a_z.jpg

https://farm7.static.flickr.com/6060...0bea26c3_z.jpg

10/14/11:

http://www.mitsustyle.com/photopost/...m/IMAG0284.jpg

Energy polyurethane bushings for my 23mm stock front anti-sway bar.

10/19/11:

http://accessecu.com/dyno/graph.php?...rgb1=000000255

https://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b...6/graphphp.jpg

I just got back from a late lunch and picking up the car...

Interesting drive indeed! Down low you, besides for the change in noise, you'd swear you're driving a stock turbo car. It is just as responsive and spools almost identically, but once you get on it and it climbs into the upper RPM's it's like, "WHOA! WTF? Why isn't the power falling off?!?!" and it just keeps pulling!

I only have about 10-15 miles on it so far, but initial impression is that this is possibly the ultimate daily-driver street car turbo. Even at highway cruising speed in 5th gear when you lightly roll into the gas the turbo responds and pulls just like the stock turbo for zipping around another car.