richbaker78

hi all,

Im new to all this scooby stuff and have a 2002 WRX std turbo engine (im fitting it in a VW camper yes really)

I want to be sure im getting the most out of my engine for as cheap as possible - ie I wont be remapping etc for the time being.

As you can appreciate im in a position to do a number of things quite easily prior to fitting the engine - but i need advice.

1st im going to have to make a custom exhaust - my plan is to purchase a 2nd hand upgraded one and add a few extra bends (no avoiding this) into it to get it to go where I want it - are there any makes I should look out for that people cna recomend?I dont want unbearable drone but something to give out that lovely subaru burble.

2nd - cna I get away with simply removing the cat. to gain power by fitting a decat section? or will this require remaping?

2nd and a bit - wot about exhaust/turbo headers? are the stock ones wuite restrictive or is this just an uneccesary expensive mod for littel gain?

3rd - induction kits - obviously Ive got to junk the standard set up to fit it all im my engine bay (shame!!) so im gona go with induction kit - but looking at the kits they seem to just be pipes with a big airfilter on the end - can i just buy a decent K&N and whack it on the end of my intake? or am I missing something - any recommendations for the best kits/filters etc? bearing in mind I dont need the pipe work usually fitted to a scooby to presumably fit it in the right place.

4th - I have zero air flow in my engine bay and the existing intakes are too small to flow enough air for the intercooler - so Ill be moving this to be slung at an angle down next to the gear box in a nice cool air flow with a great big scoop - I have no choice about this really unless I go the chargecooler route which is too much ££. Will the extra 1-2 foot of intake pipe adversely effect the performance?

5th (sorry to go on!!) dump valves - worth upgrading or not - if so which ones?

6th any other suggestions for releasing a little more power from my WRX engine without massive expenditure?

Thanks -this modern tuning stuff is all new to me - i more used to old air cooled flat 4s!!
oh and one more thing - does anyone have and std WRX engine pics they cna mail me so i can look and think at home without trekking over to the workshop?

Cheers for the help in advance.

BVM

1st im going to have to make a custom exhaust - my plan is to purchase a 2nd hand upgraded one and add a few extra bends (no avoiding this) into it to get it to go where I want it - are there any makes I should look out for that people cna recomend?I dont want unbearable drone but something to give out that lovely subaru burble.

Standard prodrive muffler would give you a nice sound without being too loud.

2nd - cna I get away with simply removing the cat. to gain power by fitting a decat section? or will this require remaping?

up-pipe should be the first thing you replace (or any WRX owner) there is a cat in the up-pipe and they have been known to break apart and kill the turbo on stock low mileage engines.

2nd and a bit - wot about exhaust/turbo headers? are the stock ones wuite restrictive or is this just an uneccesary expensive mod for littel gain?

I wouldnt even worry about the stock exhaust manifolds. The are fine.

3rd - induction kits - obviously Ive got to junk the standard set up to fit it all im my engine bay (shame!!) so im gona go with induction kit - but looking at the kits they seem to just be pipes with a big airfilter on the end - can i just buy a decent K&N and whack it on the end of my intake? or am I missing something - any recommendations for the best kits/filters etc? bearing in mind I dont need the pipe work usually fitted to a scooby to presumably fit it in the right place.

A K&N filter would be fine, just do not oil it! They come pre oiled from the factory and if you apply too much oil it can coat the MAF sensor and kill it. I would try to find a way to mount the original WRX air filter housing. That way you dont chance altering the air flow to the MAF.

4th - I have zero air flow in my engine bay and the existing intakes are too small to flow enough air for the intercooler - so Ill be moving this to be slung at an angle down next to the gear box in a nice cool air flow with a great big scoop - I have no choice about this really unless I go the chargecooler route which is too much ££. Will the extra 1-2 foot of intake pipe adversely effect the performance?

Chargecooling is the only way to go. Find a Legacy chargecooler, pump and heat exchanger. Nice factory look. You can pick them up pretty cheap from subaru breakers.


5th (sorry to go on!!) dump valves - worth upgrading or not - if so which ones?

Do you just want the sound? If so, pick your poison. they are all pretty much the same.

6th any other suggestions for releasing a little more power from my WRX engine without massive expenditure?

ECUTEK remap. After the full decat and possibly altering the airfolw over the MAF sensor, this can save your engine and release some power.



Hope this helps.

Steven