[dbunt88]

Ok guys, this is my first post on this forum. I've had my FA5 for about a year, the beginning of which was spent getting it drivable after the garbage tune that the previous owner left on it with his Greddy turbo kit (awful lag, idle surge like crazy, etc.). I've swapped the turbo out for a Precision 5858BB, currently at 7psi, and have a stable, conservative tune on it. Stock mounts, axles, internals...didn't want to break anything by some occasional spirited driving lol.

I also have a Mugen RR kit (admittedly from eBay) with foglights that is waiting for paint and install.

I have plans for a boost-by-gear tune up to 15-ish psi with rods, pistons, cams, mounts, axles, etc. It's my understanding that the Greddy intercooler isn't efficient enough for quite that much boost without considerable pressure drops, so I've been contemplating intercooler options. Obviously, Full-Race is the best setup, as it would allow me to install my foglights without issue, but $1,050 seems a little steep, especially considering I have no plans for 775whp (500-ish is enough, lol).

I hear good things about Mishimoto intercoolers. I'm looking at the J-line intercooler that measures 29.5" x 7.5" x 3.75". It's efficient up to 500hp. I have a few questions for anyone with more information/experience:

1. Does anybody know if this intercooler will fit in this car without a new bumper brace/inner bumper/whatever it's called? If not, is there one you can recommend that will accommodate 500whp/15-ish psi without terrible pressure drops, or foglight incompatibility?

2. Does anybody know if there is a way to route the pipes from an intercooler with inlet/outlet on opposite sides (like the J-line) in our car without killing the efficiency of the intercooler? For reference, I have access to a shop that is willing to make pipes any which way I want. I'm just concerned about killing the flow from the intercooler.

Anyone with personal experience would be appreciated, and pictures of installs would be an absolute godsend! For reference, I measured the RR bumper and my stock one...both have foglights in roughly the same place, so it should make no difference that I'm installing that...

Thanks in advance. Please forgive me if I've overlooked my answer if it already exists on the forum. Just point me in the right direction and I will apologize for my ignorance and move on. I have spent a few hours looking and found no concrete answers. If I've misspoken on anything, please forgive me. I'm no mechanic. I just drive the thing lol. If there is any additional information I can provide to help you help me, I will provide it without complaint or resistance.

 

[Fa5terYo]

Ok guys, this is my first post on this forum. I've had my FA5 for about a year, the beginning of which was spent getting it drivable after the garbage tune that the previous owner left on it with his Greddy turbo kit (awful lag, idle surge like crazy, etc.). I've swapped the turbo out for a Precision 5858BB, currently at 7psi, and have a stable, conservative tune on it. Stock mounts, axles, internals...didn't want to break anything by some occasional spirited driving lol.

I also have a Mugen RR kit (admittedly from eBay) with foglights that is waiting for paint and install.

I have plans for a boost-by-gear tune up to 15-ish psi with rods, pistons, cams, mounts, axles, etc. It's my understanding that the Greddy intercooler isn't efficient enough for quite that much boost without considerable pressure drops, so I've been contemplating intercooler options. Obviously, Full-Race is the best setup, as it would allow me to install my foglights without issue, but $1,050 seems a little steep, especially considering I have no plans for 775whp (500-ish is enough, lol).

I hear good things about Mishimoto intercoolers. I'm looking at the J-line intercooler that measures 29.5" x 7.5" x 3.75". It's efficient up to 500hp. I have a few questions for anyone with more information/experience:

1. Does anybody know if this intercooler will fit in this car without a new bumper brace/inner bumper/whatever it's called? If not, is there one you can recommend that will accommodate 500whp/15-ish psi without terrible pressure drops, or foglight incompatibility?

2. Does anybody know if there is a way to route the pipes from an intercooler with inlet/outlet on opposite sides (like the J-line) in our car without killing the efficiency of the intercooler? For reference, I have access to a shop that is willing to make pipes any which way I want. I'm just concerned about killing the flow from the intercooler.

Anyone with personal experience would be appreciated, and pictures of installs would be an absolute godsend! For reference, I measured the RR bumper and my stock one...both have foglights in roughly the same place, so it should make no difference that I'm installing that...

Thanks in advance. Please forgive me if I've overlooked my answer if it already exists on the forum. Just point me in the right direction and I will apologize for my ignorance and move on. I have spent a few hours looking and found no concrete answers. If I've misspoken on anything, please forgive me. I'm no mechanic. I just drive the thing lol. If there is any additional information I can provide to help you help me, I will provide it without complaint or resistance.

since I'm bored at work, I'll try and give you a few helpful tips from my limited experiences..

first off, you definitely don't need to upgrade your internals for that setup/turbo --- your best bet would be to upgrade the manifold, because log manifolds are garbage on these cars. there are a few companies that sell the manifold individually, Full Race, PRL, Sheepey(what I have, its great), and a few others.. they're all around $1k iirc

then look into better tuning, i.e VitViper -- he's tuned my supercharged setup and now my turbo setup, and I don't have a single complaint with his work.

injectors and fuel pump do you have? he'll want you to get DW 1k, which I've had no issues with

you mentioned mounts -- I'd say get at least a Hasport rear, if not a full set of Hasports or Innovatives

There's a huge Greddy turbo kit thread on this forum, Mucter went through all the upgrades you can do.. I'd suggest scrolling there as well

I wouldn't worry about the intercooler right now, take care of the manifold, boost control, and tuning.. it'll run much better for sure

 

[dbunt88]

since I'm bored at work, I'll try and give you a few helpful tips from my limited experiences..

first off, you definitely don't need to upgrade your internals for that setup/turbo --- your best bet would be to upgrade the manifold, because log manifolds are garbage on these cars. there are a few companies that sell the manifold individually, Full Race, PRL, Sheepey(what I have, its great), and a few others.. they're all around $1k iirc

then look into better tuning, i.e VitViper -- he's tuned my supercharged setup and now my turbo setup, and I don't have a single complaint with his work.

injectors and fuel pump do you have? he'll want you to get DW 1k, which I've had no issues with

you mentioned mounts -- I'd say get at least a Hasport rear, if not a full set of Hasports or Innovatives

There's a huge Greddy turbo kit thread on this forum, Mucter went through all the upgrades you can do.. I'd suggest scrolling there as well

I wouldn't worry about the intercooler right now, take care of the manifold, boost control, and tuning.. it'll run much better for sure

First, thanks for the reply!

I was looking into internals mostly just for safety. Not a cheap motor to replace, and about to turn 100k miles, not a spring chicken anymore either. I've heard the Z3 likes to bend rods the closer to 500whp you get, and especially if you exceed that. I'd also rather avoid the possibility of detonation. I say the "possibility," because with the open dump pipe, I can't even hear myself think half of the time, let alone nuances in engine noise. As a side note, heard of anyone recirculating the dump pipe, and the impact that has on performance?

Yeah, it's got a brick manifold now. There are actually quite a few shops around here that could make me a tubular turbo manifold. One of them happens to be owned and operated by a long-time family friend. :dance: From what he's saying, he'd be willing to make me one to accommodate whatever wastegate I get (Tial 44mm, I think...comments?), and my T3 4-bolt for a little less than that. I've seen some of his work. It's impressive. The Full-Race one is sexy, though.

Admittedly, the tune on it is REALLY conservative. I told the tuner to do that. Is it a little underwhelming at times...yes. But it's consistent and I haven't burned out my clutch or snapped an axle yet, lol. I was planning on sending it to Matt Shue in Richmond, VA for my final tune.

I've got some Bosch 630cc injectors in it now, with plans on Injector Dynamics 750-1000cc (haven't decided yet). I've got a Wahlbro 255lph fuel pump in the back.

I have a full set of Hasport 62A mounts awaiting install. Had to wait to put them on because when we went to remove them, like half of the nuts & bolts holding them on seized up. Ordered all new ones from local Honda dealer. Should be in any day now, and mounts installed next week.

The reason I'm suddenly so concerned with the intercooler is that with the current one, I'll have to chop up my bumper that I just bought and am about to have painted, and lose the driver side foglight. If I'll eventually need to upgrade it anyway, I might as well look into it now, and get something that may potentially allow me to keep my foglights. Please don't misunderstand, I don't want to buy an intercooler now, it just seems like I should.

Thanks for the direction! I'll look into Mucter's stuff tonight after work. If I can ask, what kind of intercooler do you have, and do you have foglights?

 

[OBX4life]

Everything Kevin said above X100

With most intercoolers from a decent kit (PRL, Sheepy, Full Race, etc) you will not have to modify the bumper at all and for most of them, you can keep your OEM fog lights. My synapse intercooler fits great and I still have functionality of both my fogs. That being said, I believe the RR conversion puts the fogs in a completely different place. Not sure issues you will encounter with that.

The only issue you may run into is if your current charge piping will line up with a new intercooler - just something to consider.

As far as building the engine goes..people have shoved 500hp at the stock k20 and had no issues. Granted boost is boost and things DO happen, I would be much more concerned about the longevity of your transmission as opposed to the longevity of the block. I'm running ~420 on my stock block/trans and things have been fine so far. Most people see gear issues long before any issues with the actual motor.

Also you asked about recircing your wastegate. Mine as well as Kevins are recirculated and I love it. I have a decently loud exhaust on the car so you still know it's coming..but instead of the annoying open dump racket (which I actually hate) all you hear is turbo spool.

You would have to send your current downpipe/turbo/manifold/wastegate or whichever combination you end up with off to a shop to have them fabricate a recirc for you. it's a very exact/finite modification.


In all honestly given your power goals/what you want to see out of the car.. I would just sell what you have as far as the kit is concerned, keep the turbo and supporting mods, then invest in a complete kit from PRL. They look clean, will last forever, and will treat your car right. Not only do log manifolds perform like absolute dog **** on this motor, the back pressure they create is actually really bad for the motor and over time will cause you issues.

 

[Fa5terYo]

First, thanks for the reply!

I was looking into internals mostly just for safety. Not a cheap motor to replace, and about to turn 100k miles, not a spring chicken anymore either. I've heard the Z3 likes to bend rods the closer to 500whp you get, and especially if you exceed that. I'd also rather avoid the possibility of detonation. I say the "possibility," because with the open dump pipe, I can't even hear myself think half of the time, let alone nuances in engine noise. As a side note, heard of anyone recirculating the dump pipe, and the impact that has on performance?

Yeah, it's got a brick manifold now. There are actually quite a few shops around here that could make me a tubular turbo manifold. One of them happens to be owned and operated by a long-time family friend. :dance: From what he's saying, he'd be willing to make me one to accommodate whatever wastegate I get (Tial 44mm, I think...comments?), and my T3 4-bolt for a little less than that. I've seen some of his work. It's impressive. The Full-Race one is sexy, though.

Admittedly, the tune on it is REALLY conservative. I told the tuner to do that. Is it a little underwhelming at times...yes. But it's consistent and I haven't burned out my clutch or snapped an axle yet, lol. I was planning on sending it to Matt Shue in Richmond, VA for my final tune.

I've got some Bosch 630cc injectors in it now, with plans on Injector Dynamics 750-1000cc (haven't decided yet). I've got a Wahlbro 255lph fuel pump in the back.

I have a full set of Hasport 62A mounts awaiting install. Had to wait to put them on because when we went to remove them, like half of the nuts & bolts holding them on seized up. Ordered all new ones from local Honda dealer. Should be in any day now, and mounts installed next week.

The reason I'm suddenly so concerned with the intercooler is that with the current one, I'll have to chop up my bumper that I just bought and am about to have painted, and lose the driver side foglight. If I'll eventually need to upgrade it anyway, I might as well look into it now, and get something that may potentially allow me to keep my foglights. Please don't misunderstand, I don't want to buy an intercooler now, it just seems like I should.

Thanks for the direction! I'll look into Mucter's stuff tonight after work. If I can ask, what kind of intercooler do you have, and do you have foglights?

no prob at all, burns the time I'm here at work lol..

I put my JRSC on at 101k, ran it til 118k with zero issues, beating the hell out of it daily.. pulled it off cuz I got the deal of a lifetime on the turbo kit -- have put 2500 miles on it in the first 5 weeks of it installed, not a single issue **knocks on wood**

my dump tube is recirculated, and I wouldn't have it any other way on a street car -- no power loss over having it open dump, and its not obnoxious every time you step on it.. just lovely spool noises :turbospin:

as for your buddy building you a manifold, I'd say unless he can do it for well under $1k, then it wouldn't be worth the hassle.. wastegate placement is crucial and there's really not much room to work with behind the motor.. best bet would be to buy one from the reputable companies

if your clutch takes a dump, I'd recommend the exedy stg1 and oem resurfaced flywheel -- my clutch feels better than it did stock, but it can hold the turbo power.. no worries on the axles unless you wheel hop like crazy, so don't do that lol

ID injectors are good, you'll prolly want the 1k's just in case..

good to go on the mounts, you'll like those.

for the intercooler -- I have a boost junky's -- its not great quality, nor does it fit that well but it flows enough.. I don't think fogs will fit with my intercooler unless there was some trimming of the fogs.. still not sure they'd fit tho, I have an '08 FA5

Everything Kevin said above X100

With most intercoolers from a decent kit (PRL, Sheepy, Full Race, etc) you will not have to modify the bumper at all and for most of them, you can keep your OEM fog lights. My synapse intercooler fits great and I still have functionality of both my fogs. That being said, I believe the RR conversion puts the fogs in a completely different place. Not sure issues you will encounter with that.

The only issue you may run into is if your current charge piping will line up with a new intercooler - just something to consider.

As far as building the engine goes..people have shoved 500hp at the stock k20 and had no issues. Granted boost is boost and things DO happen, I would be much more concerned about the longevity of your transmission as opposed to the longevity of the block. I'm running ~420 on my stock block/trans and things have been fine so far. Most people see gear issues long before any issues with the actual motor.

Also you asked about recircing your wastegate. Mine as well as Kevins are recirculated and I love it. I have a decently loud exhaust on the car so you still know it's coming..but instead of the annoying open dump racket (which I actually hate) all you hear is turbo spool.

You would have to send your current downpipe/turbo/manifold/wastegate or whichever combination you end up with off to a shop to have them fabricate a recirc for you. it's a very exact/finite modification.


In all honestly given your power goals/what you want to see out of the car.. I would just sell what you have as far as the kit is concerned, keep the turbo and supporting mods, then invest in a complete kit from PRL. They look clean, will last forever, and will treat your car right. Not only do log manifolds perform like absolute dog **** on this motor, the back pressure they create is actually really bad for the motor and over time will cause you issues.

:leghump: :turbospin:

 

[dbunt88]

Thank you all for your responses! I can never understand when people get irritated with responses that are "technically" out of the scope of the original question. More information is ALWAYS better than less. I will reconsider cams, rods, and pistons for a full build. My shop can build me a manifold for $500-600, so I might stick with that, rather than the $1200 Full-Race manifold. The boot on the driver-side axle was jacked up from the time I bought the car. DSS level 2.9 (500whp) axles should be OTW next paycheck. Currently looking at a Competition Clutch Stage 4 sprung with a stock flywheel (I DD this car, so I'd rather have more than 2 modes: hauling ass and idle, lol). People seem to love this clutch, regardless of flywheel pairing.

I got the car with a custom 2.5" exhaust, a false cat, Vibrant resonator, and Vibrant muffler. Does anybody know if a 2.5" will allow for enough flow with a recirculated dump pipe, without a 3" exhaust? I rather like the overall sound of my car, before the open dump kicks in (kind of a cross between a Subaru and a Nissan VQ-series V6). I just don't want the backpressure to kill me, even with the advantages of a tubular manifold.

If push comes to shove, I can buy the Full-Race intercooler, I was just unsure of the gains for such an expensive part.

BTW: you guys are awesome for the help you've given me so far...is there a way for me to give you "kudos" or some such recognition? I was really concerned that I would be "eaten up" for such newb questions, but you guys have been awesome, so far.

 

[OBX4life]

The days of trolls and people picking on noobs on this site have long since passed. It's nothing like NASIOC or something similar. No way to give Kudos on this site really. Just read the info and take it for what it's worth :shrug:

If you really want to spring for aftermarket axles so be it, but we mean it when we say that people are putting 600hp on stock axles. As long as you aren't launching the car at the strip on slicks or radials, there won't be an issue here. OEM axles are fine for your overall goal with the car.

As far as your intercooler choice.. normally 2.5" charge piping (standard on most 8thgen turbo kits) becomes a restricting factor power wise before an intercooler does. Most vertical flow IC's for our cars are rated for at least 600hp..and you'll be lucky to get to that mark with 2.5" pipes connected to it. So really your IC choice isn't as big a deal here. If you can find a decent intercooler for cheap that will fit better and hook up to your current IC piping, go for it. Otherwise it may not be worth the hassle.


You should really upgrade to a 3" exhaust for boost. The k series loves to breathe and the backpressure certainly won't help you out at all if it doesn't hurt you in the long run. For an example a lot of people will run a 3" exhaust even when they're just bolt ons. I personally ran a 2.5 Vibrant exhaust until I boosted the car.. but Vit (my tuner) was pretty adamant about moving to a 3" exhaust before boosting the car. If you're going to put a tubular manifold in..it's going to flow a lot more than any log manifold. So you need an exhaust that can get all that extra CFM out the back of the cart quickly


Also just a last minute note kind of in general. It sounds like your goal for the car is 400-500HP and keep it a fun car for you to daily. If that's the case, it seems like you're looking to spend money in areas that really aren't necessary and "overkill" parts of the build. No need to spring for a CC stage 4 and kill your leg pushing the clutch pedal on a daily basis. I'm on Exedy stage I clutch..holds all my power and feel equivalent to the stock clutch pedal. VitViper ran an 11.4 second pass on slicks with the same clutch. Not saying the Exedy is right for you, but unless you plan to make BIG power with this car, you don't need a stage 4 clutch.

Same thing with the axles.. you would be much better served replacing the bad CV joint and then putting the money you want to spend on axles towards your fund for a spare/replacement transmission. If you are dailying your car at 400+ HP I would be much more concerned about the longevity of the transmission before I worry about axles, heavy duty clutches, cams rods & pistons, etc.

In the end it's your build and you should do what you want. Just food for thought, though.

 

[dbunt88]

The days of trolls and people picking on noobs on this site have long since passed. It's nothing like NASIOC or something similar. No way to give Kudos on this site really. Just read the info and take it for what it's worth :shrug:

If you really want to spring for aftermarket axles so be it, but we mean it when we say that people are putting 600hp on stock axles. As long as you aren't launching the car at the strip on slicks or radials, there won't be an issue here. OEM axles are fine for your overall goal with the car.

As far as your intercooler choice.. normally 2.5" charge piping (standard on most 8thgen turbo kits) becomes a restricting factor power wise before an intercooler does. Most vertical flow IC's for our cars are rated for at least 600hp..and you'll be lucky to get to that mark with 2.5" pipes connected to it. So really your IC choice isn't as big a deal here. If you can find a decent intercooler for cheap that will fit better and hook up to your current IC piping, go for it. Otherwise it may not be worth the hassle.


You should really upgrade to a 3" exhaust for boost. The k series loves to breathe and the backpressure certainly won't help you out at all if it doesn't hurt you in the long run. For an example a lot of people will run a 3" exhaust even when they're just bolt ons. I personally ran a 2.5 Vibrant exhaust until I boosted the car.. but Vit (my tuner) was pretty adamant about moving to a 3" exhaust before boosting the car. If you're going to put a tubular manifold in..it's going to flow a lot more than any log manifold. So you need an exhaust that can get all that extra CFM out the back of the cart quickly


Also just a last minute note kind of in general. It sounds like your goal for the car is 400-500HP and keep it a fun car for you to daily. If that's the case, it seems like you're looking to spend money in areas that really aren't necessary and "overkill" parts of the build. No need to spring for a CC stage 4 and kill your leg pushing the clutch pedal on a daily basis. I'm on Exedy stage I clutch..holds all my power and feel equivalent to the stock clutch pedal. VitViper ran an 11.4 second pass on slicks with the same clutch. Not saying the Exedy is right for you, but unless you plan to make BIG power with this car, you don't need a stage 4 clutch.

Same thing with the axles.. you would be much better served replacing the bad CV joint and then putting the money you want to spend on axles towards your fund for a spare/replacement transmission. If you are dailying your car at 400+ HP I would be much more concerned about the longevity of the transmission before I worry about axles, heavy duty clutches, cams rods & pistons, etc.

In the end it's your build and you should do what you want. Just food for thought, though.

Thanks, again, for more food for thought!

Whichever Greddy kit this guy put on this car, the intercooler ports and pipes are 2 inches!!! Hence, no concern at all or whatsoever to keep the piping that's on here, lol. I had planned to order new ones from whichever intercooler manufacturer I bought or to have new ones made.

I was only going with that CC stage 4 clutch because of the overwhelmingly positive reviews that people give it, both in terms of power handling and the reported "stage 2" amount of pressure required to depress it (the sprung one, of course). I'll look into the Exedy lineup, too, and figure out what I'm going to do.

Sigh...I was really afraid one of you would say that about the 3" exhaust. So be it...added to the never-ending to-do list lol.

Thanks, again guys!

 

[dbunt88]

Can I ask what 3" exhaust you two are using, and your own personal thoughts on them? EVERYTHING I find online is so ridiculously loud, high pitched, and "Honda-like" that they don't really appeal to me (I'm probably asking for trouble saying that, lol). However, most of the videos are of N/A Civics. It's my understanding that boosting our cars tends to quiet the exhaust a little (don't know about the tone).

So far, I'm torn between the XLR8 (which, apparently uses all Vibrant components - the new ones are also 3" all the way through, where the original ones were set up to work with stock manifold/downpipe/cat, and had a 2.5" inlet) or Full-race. They sound roughly similar. Any thoughts? I've seen the comparison videos, just looking for your thoughts.

 

[OBX4life]

I think the Greddy kit actually comes with 2" piping now that I think about it. Don't quote me on this at all - but you will more than likely need custom pipes if you're changing your intercooler. Even if you buy an intercooler and a set of charge pipes from the same company, this piping was made to fit into a very precisely made kit. If you change up any part of the kit (i.e turbo manifold), the piping may not line up correctly. Different kits have the turbo clocked at different angles, and run piping through the bay differently.. so just because you buy say a PRL intercooler and charge piping, that does not mean it will mate up correctly with whatever tubular manifold you are going to have made for you. See what I mean?

Again - don't quote me on that because I don't know 100% but just from my own personal experience of installing a turbo kit, the kits made for our cars are very precise when it comes to the charge piping.

If you hear people saying that the sprung clutch doesn't have a bad pedal feel then go for it. It'll be nice to beat on the car daily and not worry about the clutch being able to hold. I just know a lot of people who have had stage 4 or heavy duty clutches from different MFG's and they all say they hate how bad it gets on a daily basis.

As far as exhausts go..your turbo down pipe should be made to mate up exactly where the exhaust normally ends. My Synapse downpipe had to be extended because it was too short - not a big issue but it was another obstacle we had to over come. So any 3" exhaust you get should mate up fine.

As for exhaust choice, I can just give you my experience. The turbo quiets this car down a LOT. I started with a Thermal R&D 3"..which is essentially a Full Race 3" with a different branding on it. I loved how deep the exhaust was..but it just wasn't loud at all. The Full Race/Thermal is considered "middle of the road" in terms of loudness on N/A cars.

I guess it's going to depend what you want out of the car. If you want something quiet for daily use I would look at the Full Race. When I had the Thermal on my car all you would hear is turbo spool lol..not a whole lot of raw engine noise.

Since my Si isn't my daily and I only drive the car when I want to be seen/heard, I swapped it out for a Skunk2 76mm - which is notorious for being the loudest exhaust made for this car N/A wise. With the turbo I think it's perfect. It's not overly loud, but it has a mean/deep/aggressive tone that I don't think I'll ever get tired of. I only really have one sound clip of the car idling:

As for the XLR8...I'd say will probably be between the Full Race and Skunk2. But leaning more towards the loud side of things. Kevin has the Full Race on his car which is a daily and he says he loves it.

Like I said it really comes down to what you want out of the car for daily use. If you want to keep it quiet, stick with Thermal or Full Race. If you want something louder/noticeable do Skunk2 or XLR8

 

[OBX4life]

Also I lied, I found an older video on my phone when I first put the Skunk2 exhaust on. If you listen with a good set of earbuds/head phones it'll give you a really good idea of how the car sounds.

 

[dbunt88]

I think the Greddy kit actually comes with 2" piping now that I think about it. Don't quote me on this at all - but you will more than likely need custom pipes if you're changing your intercooler. Even if you buy an intercooler and a set of charge pipes from the same company, this piping was made to fit into a very precisely made kit. If you change up any part of the kit (i.e turbo manifold), the piping may not line up correctly. Different kits have the turbo clocked at different angles, and run piping through the bay differently.. so just because you buy say a PRL intercooler and charge piping, that does not mean it will mate up correctly with whatever tubular manifold you are going to have made for you. See what I mean?

Again - don't quote me on that because I don't know 100% but just from my own personal experience of installing a turbo kit, the kits made for our cars are very precise when it comes to the charge piping.

If you hear people saying that the sprung clutch doesn't have a bad pedal feel then go for it. It'll be nice to beat on the car daily and not worry about the clutch being able to hold. I just know a lot of people who have had stage 4 or heavy duty clutches from different MFG's and they all say they hate how bad it gets on a daily basis.

As far as exhausts go..your turbo down pipe should be made to mate up exactly where the exhaust normally ends. My Synapse downpipe had to be extended because it was too short - not a big issue but it was another obstacle we had to over come. So any 3" exhaust you get should mate up fine.

As for exhaust choice, I can just give you my experience. The turbo quiets this car down a LOT. I started with a Thermal R&D 3"..which is essentially a Full Race 3" with a different branding on it. I loved how deep the exhaust was..but it just wasn't loud at all. The Full Race/Thermal is considered "middle of the road" in terms of loudness on N/A cars.

I guess it's going to depend what you want out of the car. If you want something quiet for daily use I would look at the Full Race. When I had the Thermal on my car all you would hear is turbo spool lol..not a whole lot of raw engine noise.

Since my Si isn't my daily and I only drive the car when I want to be seen/heard, I swapped it out for a Skunk2 76mm - which is notorious for being the loudest exhaust made for this car N/A wise. With the turbo I think it's perfect. It's not overly loud, but it has a mean/deep/aggressive tone that I don't think I'll ever get tired of. I only really have one sound clip of the car idling:

movie

As for the XLR8...I'd say will probably be between the Full Race and Skunk2. But leaning more towards the loud side of things. Kevin has the Full Race on his car which is a daily and he says he loves it.

Like I said it really comes down to what you want out of the car for daily use. If you want to keep it quiet, stick with Thermal or Full Race. If you want something louder/noticeable do Skunk2 or XLR8

I'm definitely going to have to have charging pipes made for whatever intercooler I buy. No doubt.

My Civic is my daily, so I'm definitely not going for the loudest thing around. Although, your Skunk2 vid sounded really good. I generally despise their exhaust for the excessive noise, so that definitely surprised me. Well done!!! I'll probably wind up with a Full-Race exhaust if/when I change out. Thanks again for your thoughts! I can't stress how awesome both of you guys have been!

Also, I put my top two motor mounts in and I guess from the reduced give in the bushings compared to stock, or possibly a slight adjustment in the resting position of the motor, my turbo started vibrating against the rear of the engine bay under mild load and under deceleration. :facepalm: The brick manifold made it a tight fit all along, so this was the last straw, I guess.

Time for my new header, downpipe, dumptube, wastegate, and recirculated install. :dance:

Materials and labor for manifold, downpipe, and dumptube, and labor to put in new wastegate: $850 plus $100 if I want it all coated. Full-Race parts: $1890.45 plus nearly $100 shipping and $305 for coating, and I would still have to pay someone to install it (again, no mechanic here...changing oil and brake pads is about all I'm good for). No-brainer for me...

I have a Tial MV-R (44mm) in red on order from Full-Race, as well as a header flange. 1.75 (44.45mm) inch Vibrant turbo-flex on order from Amazon (for the dumptube pipe). All other parts (T3 flange w/ collector, pipes, etc.) are on order through the shop, at no markup to me. (Thank god for networking, lol).

I couldn't get the bottom mount in without pulling the oil drain plug, which sticks out further than usual b/c of the oil return line. I'll either wait until the next time I change my oil to do it, or buy a brand new catch pan, let it drain out, and pour it back in once I'm done.

I know this whole thing has gotten off on a tangent, just figured you guys would get a kick out of my predicament, lol.

 

[dbunt88]

Also I lied, I found an older video on my phone when I first put the Skunk2 exhaust on. If you listen with a good set of earbuds/head phones it'll give you a really good idea of how the car sounds.

movie

Sounds good, man!!! ALL THESE DECISIONS!!!

+1 on the gauge pod! I have one of those, and another cluster made right in front of the shifter! (4 gauges total)

+1 on red door panel inserts! Previous owner did it, but badly. Planning to redo that over the summer, just trying to decide what type of fabric.

 

[OBX4life]

Haha thanks for the compliments. I was a little worried about the Skunk2 exhaust, but I think it's perfect for a project/weekend warrior type of car. It's definitely loud/noticeable, but it's not your crazy ear-killing loud you normally hear from the exhaust. All the Skunk2 exhausts give a really deep/raw tone that most others don't have. So it's nice to have a great sounding exhaust without being overly loud. Full Race is a great choice for your car if it's going to be your daily. I've heard Kevin's car a bit with the turbo/Full Race combo and you definitely hear it coming but it's not overly loud at all. Definitely more quiet than my car!

I love the xlr8 gauge pod and how OEM it looks..I actually get a lot of comments asking if the car came with gauges from the factory. When I did my door inserts I just used Recaro fabric. It's pretty cheap and you can buy it pre-cut on eBay!


I'm glad we could help you out. There's a TON of information on this forum about different kits but not a lot of putting together a custom kits like you're doing. It'll definitely be interesting to see the result.