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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 11:55 AM
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Default ***Engine Mods***

Need a little help. I'm kinda new to fixing up cars. I have been a car fan for a long time but never really got serious about any mods for my car. I got my sc400 last year and have had it stock since I got is, with some maintenance. Just recently upgraded front upper and lower control arm bushing to Daizen eurathaine. getting ready to upgrade the rear bushings and sway bars (Daizen as well). I just wanted to upgrade my engine to gain more whp, with a tranny swap and possibly a turbo in the future. Where should I start besides an intake and headers? Need some help planning this build. Can't wait to hear some good advice form you guys.
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 12:27 PM
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get a full exhaust setup on the v8.. that will sound nice
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 12:53 PM
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Originally Posted by jadu
get a full exhaust setup on the v8.. that will sound nice
besides exhaust, what about internals, fuel injectors, fuel pump, engine management. what's the best place to start?
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 12:57 PM
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should I set up the suspension before I get to the engine? Looking at the Megan coil overs.
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 01:06 PM
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Originally Posted by chef05b
should I set up the suspension before I get to the engine? Looking at the Megan coil overs.
i would start with the ride quality of your car first bud
wish i would have done that before i started cranking more hp out of the car
replace the bushings thorught the car, get some coilovers, then i nice set of wheels then worry bout getting more power out of your car. dont do what most noobs do and try to buy a turbo kit to just slap on there
take the time to educate yourself more and think about what " you actually want out of your car beforemaking decisions
just my thoughts but glw the ride bro
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 01:55 PM
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Yea I'd say do the suspension/wheels 1st cause they are gonna make the car drive so much better & have the look you want. It takes alot of money to make a 400 fast or faster. There are no bolt on motor mods for these cars, like bigger mass air flow meter's or throttle bodies. So its eather spend big bucks doing a full exhaust system, or buying a intake for the car. Your biggest gain will be from the exhaust, IF you do headers. There is no need for a engine management system unless you are supercharging or turboing. What year 400 do you have.
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Old Jun 12, 2011 | 02:03 PM
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Originally Posted by chef05b
Need a little help. I'm kinda new to fixing up cars. I have been a car fan for a long time but never really got serious about any mods for my car. I got my sc400 last year and have had it stock since I got is, with some maintenance. Just recently upgraded front upper and lower control arm bushing to Daizen eurathaine. getting ready to upgrade the rear bushings and sway bars (Daizen as well). I just wanted to upgrade my engine to gain more whp, with a tranny swap and possibly a turbo in the future. Where should I start besides an intake and headers? Need some help planning this build. Can't wait to hear some good advice form you guys.
Hey man! Just wanna know how long ago did you upgrade to Daizen bushings and where did you order them? 'Cause I need to change my SC400's steering rack bushings asap and I'm afraid of ordering the Daizen stuff from TM Engineering 'cause alota people are saying they never received their stuff after paying for them, and there's even this one place I contacted saying that Daizen is already out of business.
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Old Jun 13, 2011 | 02:23 AM
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Originally Posted by sc300bigtx
i would start with the ride quality of your car first bud
wish i would have done that before i started cranking more hp out of the car
replace the bushings thorught the car, get some coilovers, then i nice set of wheels then worry bout getting more power out of your car. dont do what most noobs do and try to buy a turbo kit to just slap on there
take the time to educate yourself more and think about what " you actually want out of your car beforemaking decisions
just my thoughts but glw the ride bro
Thanks for the info. I do eventually want to do a tranny swap and do a turbo but not sure what i need to do to prep my engine to handle the boost and what not. I will read up more about it, and finish with ride quality.
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Old Jun 13, 2011 | 02:35 AM
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Originally Posted by spdrcr771
Yea I'd say do the suspension/wheels 1st cause they are gonna make the car drive so much better & have the look you want. It takes alot of money to make a 400 fast or faster. There are no bolt on motor mods for these cars, like bigger mass air flow meter's or throttle bodies. So its eather spend big bucks doing a full exhaust system, or buying a intake for the car. Your biggest gain will be from the exhaust, IF you do headers. There is no need for a engine management system unless you are supercharging or turboing. What year 400 do you have.
Thanks for the advice. I plan on getting a set of Megan EZ coilovers cause a lot of people have said it's pretty close to stock feel but with the adjustablity of coil overs, i don't really plan on taking it to the track anyway. I've also heard it's the best deal without going with a full race set up. My SC is a '92. Also looking for a JDM look, plan on getting the JDM motorized side mirrors, and all soarer badges. I already have the soarer steering wheel . I also plan on doing a Supra TT break upgrade. Do you know if it bolts in directly or are there some modifications that I need to do to get them to fit?
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Old Jun 13, 2011 | 04:11 AM
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Supra TT brakes will bolt on. will have to change the dust covers though.

dont do headers if you want to turbo it later down the track.
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Old Jun 13, 2011 | 07:14 AM
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Originally Posted by czar07
Supra TT brakes will bolt on. will have to change the dust covers though.

dont do headers if you want to turbo it later down the track.
like mentioned hereheaders is a waste of money if ur gunna go turbo... but not only that i also think intakeand exhaust are too...... u need to decide if ur going to go turbo before u decide the diameter of the exhaust ur going to get. if u get a big exhaust anticipating a turbo in the future IMO will sound like crap till u go boost. besides that exhaust doesnt add much hp maybe 4hp... the only reason i mentioned no intake is because wen u go turbo u may not even need the small piece of intake u wasted ur money on in the first place. not trying to be rude brother just dont want to see u waste ur money on false hopes...condider if ur going to go turbo or supercharger or even nitrous first then decide wat u need to do to get there... work on getting ur car the perfect ride before u worry about hp also mentioned above... good luck brotha
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Old Jun 13, 2011 | 07:52 AM
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Originally Posted by chef05b
Need a little help. I'm kinda new to fixing up cars. I have been a car fan for a long time but never really got serious about any mods for my car. I got my sc400 last year and have had it stock since I got is, with some maintenance. Just recently upgraded front upper and lower control arm bushing to Daizen eurathaine. getting ready to upgrade the rear bushings and sway bars (Daizen as well). I just wanted to upgrade my engine to gain more whp, with a tranny swap and possibly a turbo in the future. Where should I start besides an intake and headers? Need some help planning this build. Can't wait to hear some good advice form you guys.
It's hard to suggest what you need to do to the internals without a HP goal/boost levels. If you are going to boost (supercharger or turbo) 5-8lbs, the internals should be able to keep up just upgrade the injectors just to have it run at around 75% flow rate and maybe supra TT or walbro 255 fuel pump. If you are sure you want to do little steps here and there maybe the turbo system isn't your best choice. You can always supercharge the car and do things in steps. You will be able to do headers, exhaust, and then supercharge without having to remove your previous mods. Having a LSD in the rear will be a good upgrade regardless of turbo/supercharge and from what I have read you will free up some WHP going to a w58/r154 trans. IF you are going to go with a manual swap get the R154 and open it up, verify it's in good shape, and upgrade to some MC internals in it before you install it. Search a little and read a lot, you will get a lot of good information on how to modify. It will not only give you a good list of what you need but it will also save you money on the long run.
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Old Jun 14, 2011 | 06:27 AM
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Originally Posted by czar07
Supra TT brakes will bolt on. will have to change the dust covers though.

dont do headers if you want to turbo it later down the track.

Thanks for the info. I'll look into a set. I just wanted a modest upgrade with out going with a full on big break kit, especially since i'm not planning on tracking the car ( at least no right now since it's my DD.)
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Old Jun 14, 2011 | 06:34 AM
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Originally Posted by cmh
like mentioned hereheaders is a waste of money if ur gunna go turbo... but not only that i also think intakeand exhaust are too...... u need to decide if ur going to go turbo before u decide the diameter of the exhaust ur going to get. if u get a big exhaust anticipating a turbo in the future IMO will sound like crap till u go boost. besides that exhaust doesnt add much hp maybe 4hp... the only reason i mentioned no intake is because wen u go turbo u may not even need the small piece of intake u wasted ur money on in the first place. not trying to be rude brother just dont want to see u waste ur money on false hopes...condider if ur going to go turbo or supercharger or even nitrous first then decide wat u need to do to get there... work on getting ur car the perfect ride before u worry about hp also mentioned above... good luck brotha
I do have my sights set on a manual swap and later on getting a turbo. For now, I'm working on the suspension. ordered a set of Tein outter tie rod ends (since they need to be replaced) and looking into a set of Tein coil overs with a set of XXR 006 in 18" front and back in gold. was hard to find but I found them. 18" x 8.5" (f) and 18" x 9.5" (r). can't wait. i'll have some pics once i get them on. That reminds me to take some before pics too.
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Old Jun 14, 2011 | 06:38 AM
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Originally Posted by TLDriver
It's hard to suggest what you need to do to the internals without a HP goal/boost levels. If you are going to boost (supercharger or turbo) 5-8lbs, the internals should be able to keep up just upgrade the injectors just to have it run at around 75% flow rate and maybe supra TT or walbro 255 fuel pump. If you are sure you want to do little steps here and there maybe the turbo system isn't your best choice. You can always supercharge the car and do things in steps. You will be able to do headers, exhaust, and then supercharge without having to remove your previous mods. Having a LSD in the rear will be a good upgrade regardless of turbo/supercharge and from what I have read you will free up some WHP going to a w58/r154 trans. IF you are going to go with a manual swap get the R154 and open it up, verify it's in good shape, and upgrade to some MC internals in it before you install it. Search a little and read a lot, you will get a lot of good information on how to modify. It will not only give you a good list of what you need but it will also save you money on the long run.
I remember seeing a post about a trans swap and diff swap from a Supra TT. the guy got the whole rear subframe. Is that really necessary, or just upgrade the diff? Thanks for the advice.
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