Kracka's GheyrodX - bigger, fatter, gheyer! by Kracka

On June 5, 2010 I picked up a brand new 2010 Wicked White Evo X GSR SSS! My local dealership, Don Herring Mitsubishi - Irving, had to do a dealer trade to get this exact car for me so it originally is from Oklahoma City. It has 35% window tint, the dealer interior and exterior "protection" stuff, and the optional wheel locks. All those things were dealer-installed prior to the dealer trade so I got it all for no cost. I also negotiated the Sport Interior Package into my deal (aluminum shift knob and e-brake handle that say "EVOLUTION" on them). The SSS package includes the 700-watt Rockford Fosgate system with a 10" sub in the trunk and Bluetooth integration, HID headlights, the larger rear wing, and the FASTKEY sytem (just keep the fob in your pocket).

First round of mods:

-Ultimate Racing dual-exit catback (with midpipe mini-muffler option)

-Perrin turbo inlet hose

-AFE Stage 2 intake system

-Tactrix 2.0 cable

-a whole pile of bushings and other misc. stuff

-DB MBC

-put zipties on the FPR line

-disabled the daytime running lights

-installed the "blue" fuel pump relay

Update from 6/12/10:

I backed the car up onto ramps yesterday after work so I could install the Beatrush rear diff bushings and Torque Solutions driveshaft bushings...one problem, the rear diff is leaking fluid  Rather than touch anything I decided it would be smart to just bring it in for inspection before anything else which I did today. Luckily they have the seal in stock and said it should only take a few hours. Remaining optimistic, at least the break-in fluid will be drained and I'll get fresh stuff! I'm bringing the car back Tuesday morning for them to replace the seal and redo the alignment (both under warranty).

I think I'll go outside now though and install my WORKS shifter bushings and Perrin turbo inlet tube 

Today I got the Perrin turbo inlet tube, AMS shifter gate pivot bushing, and half the WORKS shifter cable bushings installed. I pulled a newb and dropped the other shifter bushing into the engine bay abyss and haven't been able to find it yet  It definitely shifts nicer already so I'm excited to get the other shifter bushing installed; I emailed WORKS to see if they have a spare they could send me. Can't say I felt a big different from the inlet pipe, but it does seem a bit louder. I was going to install the Perrin drop-in air filter too but the foam is ultra thick unlike their open element filters; it was almost 2" thick which seems crazy to me! I will just retain my stock paper filter until I install the AFE intake (going to do that right before I get tuned since it can throw AFR's off a little bit).

6/13/10:

I was out riding my bike today and I found the bushing laying in the middle of the road on the other side of my neighborhood!

6/16/10:

I got the car back this morning and it turned out one of the S-AYC lines going into the rear diff was leaking rather than an actual differential axle seal so they just had to snug it down a bit and clean things up under there. They also realigned the car; the toe was a bit off which is pretty typical of the factory alignment.

6/18/10:

Got a care package from Scheides today!

-DB MBC powdercoated by Primo

-hood damper brackets powdercoated by Primo

-set of MitsuStyle stickers

-AFE dryflow drop-in air filter

6/19/10:

It's been a very productive morning for me! I got quite a few things installed, including:

-Mynes hood dampers

-remaining WORKS shifter bushing

-AFE drop-in air filter

-Beatrush rear differential bushings

-Whiteline rear swaybar

Stock 23mm vs. Whiteline 27mm:

6/20/10:

This morning I got my shifter and base bushings installed to go along with the WORKS under-hood shifter bushings that I installed last week. All I can say is: "Wow, what an improvement!" One of my biggest gripes against the stock X was the very rubbery and sloppy feeling shifter. The complete WORKS shifter package along with the AMS shifter gate pivot bushing did a great job taking up all that slack and making for a nice feeling shifter. I opted for the urethane shifter bushings over the solid metal ones like I've used in all previous cars mainly just to try something new but also to keep interior noises to a minimum. The shifter feels very precise and in the end I am glad I went for the urethane bushings over the metal ones. I made sure to lubricate everything very well with a heavy-duty lithium grease so hopefully I'll never have to touch them again (aluminum shifter bushings seem to need annual relubrication in my experience). 

Install notes:

The console assembly on the X came apart even easier than the 8/9 consoles I had previous experience with. The instructions WORKS provided were decent, but I ended up following the step-by-step install guide from TWM's website since it was nearly perfect and included detailed color photos. The shifter base bushings were a bit of a bear to install since they were obviously manufactured for a snug fit...almost too snug and took quite a bit of effort to get them in. I ended up installing the front two upside down which made things easier; I see no side-effects from doing this, fitment was still perfect and everything is night and tight (I would recommend this method to anyone else installing these). I will also note that the metal sleeves from the stock rubber bushings are reused so be sure to not lose them. 

Driving impressions:

The shifter feels great, nice and tight but without the chunky noise of solid metal bushings! The WORKS shifter angles the know slight rearward (similar to stock, but more aggressively) and towards the driver to center the knob in the shift boot area (similar to TWM's shifter). If I had one complaint it would be that is possible angles the knob a tiny bit too far rearward, but I have fairly long arms so it would probably be perfect for a person of more stubby stature  WORKS claims a 25% reduction in throw and about .5" shift knob lowering which I think feels about perfect. Throw effort is slightly increased due to the reduced leverage but nothing to concern myself with and not enough to ever cause an issue.

Now I just need to drain out the factory-fill fluid and replace it with the Redline cocktail for the X 5-speed tranny (2-MTL 1-MT90) for what I hope will complete my "ultimate Evo X GSR shifter" setup.

WORKS shifter in neutral:

so stock looking:

AFE drop-in with Perrin inlet pipe (BOV tube trimmed 3/4"):

6/23/10:

As long as I'm installing the UR catback this weekend...

Ichiba testpipe with dual o2 bungs and included gaskets and new hardware, not bad for $80 shipped!

6/28/10 (RE: UR catback):

It sounds great at WOT and if very quiet at idle/cruise, but under light throttle acceleration it has a resonance that bugs me. Janelle really likes it, but I think I'm going to order the Magnaflow and sell this one.

6/28/10:

I want to make sure I'm 100% happy with every single mod I do and not regret anything even the tiniest bit.

I changed out the stock tranny fluid yesterday and replaced it with Redline (2 MTL, 1 MT90) and if feels so much better it's insane! Mitsu really dropped the ball with their ****ty GL-3 factory-fill tranny fluid in the X.

7/3/10:

Got a new shift knob courtesy of WORKS today, it's their Grab knob:

It's a bit lower and heavier than the optional aluminum Mitsu knob I had, plus it uses a stiffer threaded plastic core so it feels great. This knob is definitely a keeper.

7/10/10:

I had a pretty busy night last night! I got home from work and immediately backed the car up onto ramps. First thing I did was drop the ****ty Ultimate Racing catback. Then, I removed the soft rubber stock driveshaft bushings and replaced them with the solid aluminum Torque Solutions driveshaft bushings. They're nearly identical to the Beatrush versions, but half the price and anodized black instead of gold. Fitment was perfect too. After that I installed my new Magnaflow catback that I got on Thursday and took to AWD Tuning to have the 2.5" neck-down at the cut removed and replaced with a full 3". Fitment is good with the exhaust tips perfectly centered, but the piping is lightly rubbing in two locations when taking a hard corner. Hopefully I'll be able to adjust that out with the slip-fit flanges. Then after all that was done it was time to get serious and really start ripping the car apart and install the new Eibach Prokit lowering springs that just arrived yesterday! 

Overall, a very productive night and another great round of mods that I'm happy with; now it's time to head to Cobb Tuning for a custom alignment. The new exhaust is definitely way quieter than the UR, plus is doesn't have any nasty resonance! WOT sound is definitely not as throaty and mean though, but that's fine since it'll be so much nicer for daily driving. Weight between the two systems is actually about equal; the Magnaflow muffler was much smaller/lighter than I expected.

I'll get some pictures up later this weekend.

7/10/10:

Now that I have ~150 miles on the springs I can definitely say they ride nicer than stock, then really firm up in the corners to make for a great street setup! I still have my Whiteline rear swaybar set to the softest setting.

Lowered GheyrodX behind the Cobb Time Attack WRX:

7/11/10:

Just got out from under the car. It was actually rubbing on the passenger side rear differential brace. I think I've adjusted it enough to not rub anymore, but if not I can simple grind the brace down a bit and that should work. I'm thinking my 3" section that replaced my 2.5" neck-down isn't perfectly straight which is what's causing the slight imperfection. I still am really loving this exhaust though! It's such a smooth and quieter tone. I think the SpecialtyX catback is still my favorite, but I'm not baller enough for that (and some of those have rubbing issues too unfortunately) and it hangs a bit low for a daily driver IMO.

*edit*

The exhaust rattle is 99% fixed. I think another small adjustment and it'll be perfect.

7/23/10:

Quite the busy day today! First of all, huge thanks to Scheides and Spaz for giving me a hand with the mod installs this morning, and second thanks to Shane @ DB for sending me home with yet another great tune! 

This morning we installed the AFE Stage 2 Dryflow intake kit, DB MBC, Nisei 1-piece UICP, and removed the clutch restrictor pill. Then it was off to DB to get a tune from Shane. Yes, Shane is the main reason Janelle and I drove the X up from TX rather than just flying. I'll post up some charts later, but it made 274 whp at 26 psi peak tapering to 18. This is a bit lower than I was hoping for, but still only 4whp below Scheides who does have a FMIC and the WGA arm tightened over my car. Out on the streets the car feels absolutely fantastic and I couldn't be happier with how it feels. Shane also made me a 91-octane alternate map for use when driving between Minneapolis and Dallas since most the country stations don't have good gas. The alt maps are ultra slick, I just hold down the cruise control button for 3 seconds to flip between the primary and alt maps.

As for the mods I chose, I couldn't be happier. The AFE intake fit perfectly as did the Nisei UICP which seriously looks more stockish than the stock UICP did since it's a single mandrel bent aluminum pipe coated in matte black. The DB MBC was coated by Primo in gloss black and also looks good in the engine bay. Although most guys with the X opt for electronic ECU-controlled boost, I chose to go the simple yet effective route. I've had nothing but great lucking using MBC's for the past 10 years so I figured there is no reason to not go with one; especially since I tried all the ECU methods on my IX and ended up going back to a MBC and being much happier. The stock clutch feels much more direct and responsive with that stupid pill removed too. It actually engages when I want it to and doesn't slip the clutch at all during a hard shift. Hopefully this will help my stock clutch live a long and healthy life.

I'll also add that the X is a fantastic roadtrip car, especially with the cruise control and satellite radio. So far I have ~1,700 miles since last Friday and by the time we get home on Sunday I expect to be nearing the 3k mile mark for the trip.

According to the dash computer, 24 MPG driving from Dallas to Minneapolis with the cruise set at 85 MPH and 26 MPG driving from Grand Rapids to Minneapolis with the cruise set at 65 MPH. I expect the open filter and tune should help me get a bit better mileage so I'll update once we're back home. As a comparison, my IX got 27-28 MPG doing 80-85 and touched 30 once keeping it under 65.

7/26/10:

2,752 miles later and GheyrodX is finally back in Texas! Only one broken part too which I suppose is good for a Mitsu... My rear swaybar started making a lot of clunking noises as we pulled into our alley last night and a quick peek under there and it looks like I either broke a rear end-link or the nut just came loose and the bar came off the end-link stud. I'll get under the car tonight after work and figure out what the actual problem is. 

I honestly couldn't be happier with the car though! It ran so perfectly the entire trip, even in the stop n go construction traffic in Oklahoma with 102F temps...not a single hiccup from the intake (or tune) with the A/C on. Hot weather + A/C fan + intakes are a big problem for the X's, but AFE obviously did their homework and properly designed the heatshield and filter placement. 

We left Minneapolis at 3:43 am Sunday morning and rolled into our garage at 6:05 pm Sunday evening for a total of 1,005 miles in 14 hours and 23 minutes which included 3 or 4 gas stops, some rest area stops, and stopping for breakfast and lunch.

I again have to give a big thanks to Scheides and Spaz for assisting with the parts installs before my tune and of course to Shane for tuning this thing so perfectly it can make it across the country with temps ranging from 60F to 102F on everything from BP 93 to ****ty Cum & Go 91 without even a hesitation. After such a long trip my IX would always just feel sluggish and tired, but the X took it all in stride and felt 100% the entire time.

Newb fail!!! The nut holding the bar on the end-link stud backed itself off and the link was able to pull out of the bar. Luckily I had a spare nut/washer in my toolbox and all is well now. While I was under there, I moved the links to the middle adjustment setting.

7/30/10:

The guy who bought my IX came over last night and I was able to snap a few pictures of the two cars. Yes, he is still rocking the MitsuStyle stickers 

7/31/10:

Someone on EvoXForums did this and I got a pretty good laugh from it:

8/21/10:

In the name of science, and my anal obsession with having the best possible setup, I removed my WORKS shifter and installed a TWM just to get a feel for the differences. I'll sell the one I then decide isn't my favorite. 

Initial impressions are the TWM has shorter throw, the knob sits lower, and it centers the knob in the shift boot area. It is not as comfortable for relaxed driving (keeping my elbow on the arm rest) though; the WORKS put the knob in the perfect location as far as that's concerned. I haven't done any actual driving yet (just pulled out and back into my garage) so I will know more later today after I give it a good drive.

Comparison of stock vs. TWM vs. WORKS. You'll notice that TWM's knob height is the lowest, but WORKS has the longest lever below the fulcrum ball. The stock angles the knob slightly rearward, TWM brings it to the left, and WORKS does both rearward and left.

TWM in neutral:

WORKS in neutral:

stock in neutral:

8/27/10:

Well, the WORKS shifter is going back in tomorrow. Just the same dislikes as before. The transmission feels to notchy and I feel myself actually leaning forward to get into 5th. The WORKS just seems to be a better fit for me and feels much smoother. I definitely will not call the TWM bad, just not right for me. I'm actually going to be installing it in a local's car tomorrow morning.

8/28/10:

Awesome.

In better news, I did get the WORKS shifter reinstalled this morning and I also completely removed my rear o2 sensor since I had it disabled anyway.

8/30/10:

I already heard back from Whiteline and they're getting a replacement shipped today from their US distributor! It's nice having a product that you know will be backed up if it fails.

9/12/10:

New Whiteline bushings installed along with the new Whiteline saddles. This bushing/mount setup is a bit wider than the original set so it should be a bit heavier duty while providing more bar stability.

9/23/10:

Biggest Evo X intercooler core on the market as far as I'm aware:

MAP prototype FMIC

20"x14"x3.5" = 980 ci

There are much bigger cores available for the VIII and IX, but the X has less space, but does utilize a much more effective endtank in/outlet design.

9/26/10:

Rmondoh semi-debadged my trunk today, removed the "MITSUBISHI" and "Lancer" badges leaving the Mitsu logo and "Evolution."

I think I also finally figured out my exhaust rattle during hard left turns...looks to have been rubbing against an AYC line so I bent it out of the way slightly. We'll see once I get a chance to take a few hard corners.

10/4/10:

Better semi-debadged pic from Rmondoh yesterday.

Strapped down @ Cobb, put down 313whp/300wtq.

Dyno charts! I'm happy with my low-end spool and top-end above 7k RPM, but my midrange is ultra weak so I need to figure out why.

10/25/10 (RE: MAP FMIC):

I still haven't installed it yet, but I did weigh it this weekend. It came in at 20.4 lbs. which is really light considering the size of this core. For comparison, the Perrin (cast end-tanks but a little smaller core) comes in at 22 lbs. The ETS 3.5" is 21 lbs. (sheet metal end-tanks and a fairly small core by comparison) and the AMS is 20 lbs. (cast end-tanks, medium size core).

My pre-install impressions of this thing are great! Nicely designed cast end-tanks, good quality core, and lightweight. Assuming this things fits well without trimming I plan to urge MAP to get this thing into full production.

10/29/10:

More new stuff to install...

I got it uncoated so I can try a coating place in Arlington, TX. Nothing against MAP's coating, I just wanted to try out a local shop since people have been saying great things about it.

10/31/10:

GheyrodX will be going though some changes over these next two weeks: 

intercooler

o2/downpipe

3-port (Cobb won't tune with a MBC)

Cobb tuned

11/1/10 (RE: moving from ECUFlash to AP protune):

Tuner choice...it is what it is I guess. My car just isn't happy right now and whatever it is, all the cars that Cobb tunes churn out great results. I've talked to the guys up at Cobb quite a few times now and I do trust the work their tuner (Calvin) does. 

Nothing against Shane at all; he did wonderful work on my IX and Janelle's WRX and if he wasn't 1,000 miles away I'd be going back to him with my revised setup. I just have no interest in driving up in winter/potential winter conditions on worn stock Advans. I will be sad to lose my ECUFlash/Tephra though!

11/6/10:

MAP FMIC finally installed!

Fitment of this thing was perfect. Since it was made for a 2008 and I have a 2010 (different intercooler brackets) I had to drill a single hole and use a self-tapping screw to secure it to the chassis which was ultra easy. It's mounted rock solid, is even, and almost exactly centered.

Thanks to Tom and Armando for stopping over to lend a hand 

11/9/10:

11/13/10:

Lets see, where to start...today was a pretty damn epic day. I honestly don't think I've been this excited about car stuff in a LONG time.

Quick back story:

Ever since I got GheyrodX tuned back in July I haven't been real happy with it. It drove really well, perfectly smooth, etc., but it was really down on power (especially torque) compared to where it "should" be. What really made that apparent and when I realized I needed to do something is at the NTEC dyno-day last month; my car was getting owned by even basic stock intake/stock catback X's. AFR's were spot on, it took a little timing but not much, and I was just sick of dicking with it. 

Last weekend we got the MAP FMIC installed, but today was the big day. First I started it off by installing a Grimspeed 3-port BCS then limped it to Cobb Tuning staying out of boost the best I could. 

Today's plan:

1. Completely retune the car with an Accessport

2. Install MAP o2 eliminator downpipe

3. Retune again for hard back-to-back data on the downpipe

1. Prior tune (stock FMIC w/MBC) vs. Cobb tune (MAP FMIC w/3-port):

2. Downpipe install (please note the care they took, covered everything possible to prevent scratching or damage):

3. Stock o2 housing & downpipe vs. MAP o2 eliminator downpipe:

SOLID GAINS!!! To those who say they're worthless on stock turbo/pump gas setups...eat it 

Final runs dyno video:

[youtube]gHcADsKHoyo&hd=1[/youtube]

Drive home impressions: WOW! The car is a whole new beast now, can't believe I've left this much on the table since July! The car runs awesome smooth, but it really kicks you in the pants now when the turbo gets going. It's reminding me more of the original Gheyrod  

1. That's my theory at least. Cobb seems to agree. Calvin did a great job with the boost control via the Grimspeed though. My favorite part is at peak torque though, nearly identical boost and AFR, but +59 wtq!!! That is such an incredible gain it's insane!

3. Agreed. It is rubbing on the chassis at idle; very stupid placement that I will be talking with MAP about. There is no reason not to locate it with stock orientation at 12 o'clock. Other than that though, what an awesome piece! Perfect fitment and clearance everywhere else. Solid gains across the entire curve, torque and horsepower! I was quite surprised at how much tweaking the tune needed to compensate for the o2/downpipe.

4. I too am curious about this. My guess is we could talk Chris @ Cobb (Plano locations manager) into doing this test on your car. Their downpipe and a few quick tweaks to your tune and we'd have solid answers vs. stock and vs. my o2 elim dp. I'm all for any type of hard dyno data possible and would be very interested to see the results; might as well be on your car 

weight comparison:

stock o2 housing & downpipe: 14.8 lbs.

MAP o2 elim dp: 8.2 lbs.

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:

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)

majority of plenum ported

majority of runner ported

2/16/11:

Sad sight:

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:

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

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.

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!

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.

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:

I made 342/360 last November when I got tuned, the only thing that changed was Magnaflow ---> Cobb catback:

Stock vs. ported:

Some self-porting (gasket-match) to the turbine housing:

Installed:

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.

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):

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.

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 

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.

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

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.

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.

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...

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:

Now it's off to get coated tomorrow!

10/3/11:

Added ceramic coating to the above ported turbine housing:

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?!?!

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

10/14/11:

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

10/19/11:

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.

11/8/11:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XJEwcgCJHo&hd=1

Hit 30k miles in early January, not bad for only 19 months of ownership