More Power.....
 

I have a 2004 WRX which I bought standard a few months ago and was looking to get more power out of it.

I have already put a straight through exhaust system on so what next?
A bigger turbo then a map?

Some have said to put a cone air filter on but some have said not to....?

I have had a lot of people say a lot of different things and would appreciate more opinions.

Thank you
N

We had someone ask this the other day, what kind of power you after?

If you get panel filter, full system i'd go sports cat not decat, and larger intercooler even front mounted for STI and remap should see you 260-300bhp seen loads of different figures achieved with those mods

I did my WRX last year.

Fuel Pump
De-Cat
K&N Filter
PF7 Plugs
Re-Map

I've now got 279bhp, Its transformed the car...

Completely pointless bud you need a panel filter, cone filter will not improve power at all, may even reduce power in the hight of summer when the engine is sucking all that hot air from under your bonnet

Watch video below better explained

I'm looking at around 270 / 300.

Yes I heard that about the cone filters...

Thanks for your help

I've been told I need a TD04 Hybrid or VF35 and pink injectors to see 300 on top if what I've already done listed above.

Mines TD05 or VF34.

are injectors a must have if you upgrade the turbo?

I'm pretty sure a TD04 is the standard turbo on a Blob WRX. It sounds like you're car has been modified before you got it.

I would be tempted to get it to a mapper and get them to check whats already been done and what bhp you've got now. You may already have bigger injectors, etc...

No sorry I meant to upgrade i need a TD05 or a VF34
Mine has a TD04 currently as it is standard.

It was 100% completely standard when i bought it, I triple checked as I spent a long time looking for a blank canvas.

Ahh, sorry my mistake :)

With a bigger turbo you are increasing the amount of air so you'll need more fuel. Bigger injectors and fuel pump is a must to get the best out of the turbo.

I'm replacing the suspension now before I go any further with power...

Yes. Gives you more headroom when upping boost and they'll protect you if you get overboost on a cold day. Lots of WRX/STI owners experience it at some stage. Vac pipes splitting, EBC or actuator issues etc.

If you plan on sustained hard driving then it's probably worth getting a turbo blanket and wrapping the up-pipe/downpipe whilst fitting. A lot of WRX's that fail have failed on #3 cylinder as it's the closest cylinder to the heat of the exhaust/turbo.

Ahh okay this is making more sense to me now.

So what would you suggest before my first map ... a panel filter and a bigger top mount?

I've been told the WRX top mount is good for 300.

I'd go filter, fuel pump and plugs.

Agreed, although STI intercooler would help

As much as you can afford!

TD05, VF34/35, SC36 turbo
STI pinks
Walbro fuel pump
STI top mount
Panel filter
NKG PFR7
Snorkelectomy
Wrapped Decat up-pipe
Sports cat/de-cat downpipe
De-cat centre section
Backbox
Silicone turbo inlet hose
Silicone intercooler hose
Turbo blanket

Fuel pressure regulator, oil Cooler, 3 port boost controller, FMIC, Syvecs ECU or even a SC42 if you have money to burn! I think you might just get away with 400/340 on a WRX with good heat management.

Great!
So it is best to do it all in one go?
I was under the impression you do it in stages

Thanks for the advice

get as many mods together as possible then its one mapping session.
If you keep adding bits you will then need the map tweak each time.

Top post!

I notice you don't recommend a Hybrid TD04, any reason why not?

Also, what the hell is a Snorkelectomy? :)

I'd disagree ,advising someone to run 400 bhp through a wrx internals is going to lead to a big bill.

Ahh yes I don't agree with that bit just the mod list. On my own WRX I would go above 330/330 without engine work.

Not sure the gearbox would last long on 400 :)

Youre probably right there but not in all cases, i would say it depends on the owner and how its mapped, everything has a life span and i think if treat right, a 400hp wrx engine could live a considerable lifespan.

Probably wouldnt be much fun though, especially when the glassbox shatters every 50ft

Don't listen to fat-thomas, he's full of ****.

Torque kills the box so 400/330 or 330/330 poses the same moderate threat. Torque also kills the weak rods so my guessing is that the rings and pistons will be ok anywhere under 400bhp if you can keep temps low.

Low boost, oil cooler, richer fuel map, thicker oil and bigger intercooler all helps. Exhaust/turbo wrapping and not driving hard for sustained periods will help too.

As for the TD04 Hybrid I've seen a lot of dyno figures to suggest it's not worth it for power gains alone and some tuners have reported mapping issues from the incredibly fast spool. Obviously get it if you want to hover around 300bhp, it's perhaps the best turbo for those levels.

I bought a standard 2004 blob.

I installed a Pipercross airfilter, Walbro fuel pump and a WR Sport back box (second hand from eBay).

Duncan remapped it in December and it made 272bhp. He thought it would make 290 by removing the cat in the down pipe (I think he said)

For me the best effect of the remap is the smoothness of the delivery of power.

oh yea, I'm getting about 50-60 less miles to a tank.

I've put my 400bhp WRX theory to a lot of the top tuners on the planet (Inc Mike Adkins) and so far none have got back to me.

All this info helps as i've been thinking about going down this path aswell. Standard bhp is poor by todays standards. Id be happy with 280-300.

Let them get on with it, this forum is full of bad advice lately.

Sorry for taking over this thread Norman but this is really interesting. Thanks for all the responses guys:thumb:

TD05, VF34/35, SC36 turbo
STI pinks
Walbro fuel pump FITTED
STI top mount (should you get undertray and scoop as well?)
Panel filter FITTED
NKG PFR7 FITTED
Snorkelectomy ???
Wrapped Decat up-pipe FITTED
Sports cat/de-cat downpipe FITTED
De-cat centre section FITTED (with resonator)
Backbox FITTED (Prodrive one)
Silicone turbo inlet hose
Silicone intercooler hose FITTED
Turbo blanket

Currently running 279/301 on a Ecutek map
I'm pretty happy with the car for road use only thing I don't like is how the power drops off high in the rev range.

What should I go for in the above to cure this and see 300/300?

Thanks for the Andy Forrest link as well I've seen this before it's very informative.

OK for a change I'll ask for a serious answers,firstly by trying to run low torque all you are doing is trying to make up for the weak wrx components, namely the bottom end and gearbox.
So how exactly do you map for high bhp and low torque as they go hand in hand upwards on tuned engines.
Say what you want but advising someone to run 400 bhp through wrx components which are commonly known to only be able to handle 350 bhp is very poor advice and furthermore unfounded as you haven't done it.
the red highlighted part tells you all you need to know about the post ;)

I know ,I know ☺