Hey CL,

I was just wondering if you guys (and gals) could help me decide what to do to my car to make it "faster". I'm not looking for a HUGE HP gain, i just wanted to get some opinions. My car is completely stock except for one modification, which is the HKS Hi-Power exhaust. i am looking at midpipes as i type this and i want to know... what next.

Thanks in advance!!

Wes

 

There's not much we can do other than intake and PPE's header which claim 18 whp which is
A pretty good # if ur willing to drop some $ for it

 

i was thinking about getting a cold air intake as soon as i moved to LA. (8 months). and i don't know too much about headers. can you fill me in?

 

nothing that you can quite get power out of, you can do an axle back and a cone filtered intake and it will sound great. but not there yet for power.

 

is the HKS exhaust that i have an axle back exhaust? i need to get my car lingo right. and i also need to know what i have on my car!! haha

 

You don't say if you have a 250 or 350.

If you have a 250 the cheapest way to add a lot of power, by far is to trade it in for an IS350.


If you have a 350, well, your options are very limited.

You already have an axle-back, that's 7 rwhp. I wouldn't suggest a midpipe unless you just want noise, it's a couple hundred bucks for 1-2 hp. That money would be better spent, if ultimate hp in your goal, toward the PPE headers (these replace your exhaust manifolds on the engine and add a ton more hp per dollar...the two dynos so far suggest about 18 rwhp).

You can also sell the HKS and get the Joe Z/PTS full exhaust, which runs $1500 but adds around 10 hp instead of the 7 your axle-back does, and sounds beautiful

Note that none of the mods I've mentioned so far are street legal (midpipe, headers, and Joe Z exhaust, all illegal).

You can add a Joe Z intake for about $110, that adds 5 hp and is the best bang/buck part available for the ISx50. (and it's legal in nearly every state (CA it's not but it takes 5 minutes to swap the stock piece back on for inspection).)

And... that's about it.... unless you want to add nitrous (which can offer GREAT bang/buck but you have to do it properly or you'll be replacing very expensive things like, say, your engine...or spend 5-10k adding forced induction (super/turbo charger), and the gains are somewhat limited there.

 

OH! sorry about that. i have a 250. i cant sell the car because its technically not my car, but i can add on whatever i want. im probably just going to get an intake and headers. Lets say i have this on my car:
HKS exhaust
megan/invidia midpipe
megan headers
joe z intake

will my car feel any faster or quicker than it does stock? also when i am driving, i can hear the exhaust from 1-3.5k rpm. after that, i just hear the engine with no exhaust sound. will all the parts listed above make my car sound different? like on 4k rpm, will there still be a drone from the exhaust?

 

If you want to have exhaust sound throughout all RPMs, get an intake, PPE headers with no cats, Invidia midpipes, and your HKS hi-power exhaust.

With HKS hi-power and Invidia, there is a considerable level of exhaust noise. With PPE headers and no cats, your car will have the same exhaust note from 1-3k rpm, but after that, you will get a much more pronounced exhaust note (more high pitched exhaust roar as you approach redline).

If you want some more minor HP gains and better acceleration, try getting the volt stabilizer, ground wires, full synthetic motor oil, synthetic gear oil if you have LSD on your RWD, etc. These mods will all add up here and there, but for each part, it is hard to quantify how much each mod will net you.

Unless there is a piggy-back/tuning system available for the IS, you are pretty much restricted to bolt-ons. HKS in Japan makes a Supercharger GT package that costs over 10g or you can have someone do a custom supercharger/turbo setup for you.

 

where could i get headers for my 250? and how do i go about installing them? have someone at a shop do them?

 

save your money, buy a used 350 when you can. not worth making a 250 any faster IMO. based on my experiences, youll spend more money keeping a modded car continuously modded instead of saving up for a better faster car.

 

thing is, im only 17... i am not really in any position to buy another car!

 

then you're not really in a position to make mods.

with all the mods available, it still won't make any discernible difference when driving.

be happy with what you have.

 

^ +1.

you're 17, and it's not your car. without going into too many assumptions, just leave it as-is.

 

whatever man. i dont know why everyone hates on the kids with the nice cars.. we are just as interested in modding as you are...

what would be faster:

Mazda 3 sport with intake + exhaust... stock has 160 hp

or me with my exhaust and the midpipe?... stock 204 hp

 

Bro, keep the Hi-Power as its the axleback that makes the most power. Get the Invidia midpipe , an Injen or JoeZ Intake, PPE Headers and some light 18in wheels (17-18 lbs each)

Your 250 will run much nicer