Mod list/FAQ for newbies anywhere?

[BlueQuestTSi]

First off, I'm not new to Turbo cars, just new to the 951. My 951 is replacing my 88 Conquest TSi that has been upgraded(3" exhaust, hard pipes, EBC, gauges, etc...)

So, I'm trying to get the 951 performance up to par with, and eventually surpass that of the TSi(no lag what-so-ever).

I'll state that I'm also no kid, 35, I just need my performance

So.... That being stated, where is a good site to check, FAQ pages to read up and study, etc... ?

I'm thinking that first things first would be a gauge pad with boost and A/F gauges to start monitoring things. Also looking at the DME hacks done by Soxnail, as you could never have too much warning on the way things are running.

But where to go next? I'm thinking exhaust and intake, then chips?


Point me the right way

[yellow951]

I found this on LindseyRacing.com...it's a good starting point...hope this helps...Royce~

15 Top Upgrades for Porsche 951
This list includes most of the available performance upgrades and their order of importance. It concentrates on the less expensive items first.

Before doing any upgrades, we highly recommend some basic maintenance first such as replacing the timing belt, boost pop off valve, and check the intake system for vacuum leaks. Inspect your belts and hoses for possible problems.

1.) Conical Air filter: cost $155.00
The first thing to consider is a good conical air filter. This is one part that you need to decide just how far you intend to take your mods, some other performance upgrades come with a conical filter, such as a MAF. If one of these is in your immediate future, save a few bucks and apply it to your MAF.

2.) Lindsey Boost Enhancer: cost $89.95
This product is bar none the best bang for the buck available for the 944 Turbo. It makes a significant improvement in the turbo lag present in all 944 Turbo’s. Again, this product needs to be considered in an overall look at what your intentions are for the future. The turbo lag is caused by design characteristics in your factory wastegate. Replacing the wastegate eliminates the need for the boost enhancer, see part 4 of this list for more explanation.

3.) Chip Upgrade: chipsets range in cost from $299 to $349.
Chipsets do several things to improve performance, they make changes to the fuel curve, increase the engines timing and raises the engines rev limit. Depending on other upgrades, they can increase the boost level as well.

4.) Wastegate with manual boost controller: cost $399 + $65
This is probably the best money you could spend in improving the overall performance of your car. It does two very important things, it greatly improves the turbo lag and helps to control the boost drop off that occurs with sustained high boost conditions. If this upgrade is within your budget, the Boost Enhancer will not be necessary. Look for a direct bolt-in unit, requiring no exhaust modifications. With this configuration, you will have the ability to adjust the boost level from as low as 8 pounds to as high as 23 pounds.

5.) Adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator: cost $159.95
If you follow this sequence of upgrades, once you have the ability to turn up the boost on your motor, you need to know what the fuel mixture at all times. An adjustable fuel regulator in conjunction with our Air fuel monitor will help you maintain the correct fuel mixture.

6.) Instrumentation:
There are several items that are included in this category. This is one area that many people tend to ignore. Without proper gauges, there is no way to accurately access the changes you are making and to know whether you might be doing damage to the engine.
6a.) Boost Gauge: Cost $50.00.
The factory boost gauge does not have small enough graduations to give you a good feel of the boost pressure, especially above 15 pounds.
6b.) Air Fuel/Injector Cycling Monitor: Cost $99.95.
This product is more of a safety issue, as you make performance upgrades to your car, the need for instrumentation to monitor the engines settings becomes very critical.
6c.) Fuel Pressure Gauge kit: Cost $59.95.
This gauge combined with an air fuel ratio gauge will allow you to properly tune your fuel and help you to know when it is time to move up to larger injectors.
6d.) Wide Band O2 (oxygen sensor) Cost $450.
This is the Eugo 1000, one of the best and best values in high speed tuning. This unit has a digital readout that is easy to read and when combined with our Mafterburner digital fuel controller, you can read the A/F ratio live in the tuning software.

7.) Intercooler Upgrade: cost $375 to $575
This upgrade reduces restrictions in you engines air intake system and allows the turbo to spool up much more quickly as well as lowering the air temperature of the charge air. We recommend our Stage I upgrade for 2.5-liter streetcars with a stock or one up Turbo.
The Stage II is for cars with 2.8 liter or more displacement with big turbo’s. If you buy a Stage I you can trade it in on a Stage II.

8.) Exhaust system. Cost $469 to over $1500
This is a critical part of your performance upgrade, there are a large variety of exhaust systems for both the 944 NA as well as the 944 Turbo. Even with a 3” exhaust system, with a large enough turbo and a free flowing enough intake system, you can still have dangerously high backpressures. We saw backpressures as much as double the boost pressures and more.

9.) Mass Air Flow: Cost $1199
There are a variety of Mass Air Flow units available. These units cost in a $699 price range and can be tailored to the size of the engine and the intended HP output. The key to a successful MAF upgrade is the use of a piggyback computer to allow the driver to fine-tune the fuel curve (A/F ratio) of your particular components and local atmospheric conditions. Data logging that includes Wideband O2 output is critical to tuning properly.

10.) Turbocharger upgrade: From $899 to $1175
There are a variety of turbocharger upgrades. From rebuilding the stock uint up to turbos big enough to hold 23 psi of boost. The important thing in picking a turbo is sizing it for the peak boost you want to maintain to readline. The bigger the turbo the more boost you can maintain, but also the later in the rpm band the turbo will start making power.

11.) Fuel Injectors: cost $400
There are several standard injector sizes, 42# 48# 55# 72# 83# and 93#. The stock injectors are 36#. The two larger inejctors are typicall used in engines with engine managements systems with sequenial rather than batch fireing. When to do this upgrade will depend on what combination of parts and the desired boost level being run. Don't get fooled into going with too big of an injector with the notion of being able to upgrade into it later down the road, that rarely works. An Air Fuel Monitor will help you in deciding when this becomes necessary.

12.) 3” down Pipe: $399
The 3” down pipe is not necessary on all turbo upgrades, there comes a point in the sizing of the turbine wheel and hot housing where there are benefits from this upgrade.

13.) Cylinder Head, O-ring and Port and Polish: cost $499 to $2300 +
Cylinder heads are offered in various stages. A Level I head gives you a complete rebuild including new guides and seals. The head is solvent and sonic cleaned, inspected for dimension, flatness and ceramic port damage and measure valve springs. The deck surface is milled for flatness and the finishing touch, a precision cut 5 angle valve job. This option typically costs $499 plus valve springs if necessary to replace.

A Level II head included everything described in the Level one but includes porting the intake port, which takes the intake port flow from 185 CFM at the Level I to the 235 CFM. There are other options such as O-ringing the deck surface for added cylinder sealing for higher boost applications. Another very successful upgrade is our Hi-velocity exhaust which increases the speed of the exhaust leaving the head from under 400 feet per second to the 550 fps range, that is a 40% gain! The higher velocity exhaust helps the turbo spool faster and improves cylinder filling.

A Level III head takes it one step further and increases the size of the intake valve. This brings the flow numbers of the head up to the 250 CFM range.
You can also get new factory valve springs with Titanium retainers to fit them.

14.) Solid Lifters: Cost $917
This is a recent product released by Lindsey Racing and is an exclusive product to Lindsey Racing. These light weight, strong and durable lifters replace the heavy factory hydraulic lifters. They machine inspection ports in the cam box to make it possible to measure the valve lash without removing the cam box. They also adjust the height of the valve tip on the cylinder head, measure and calculate the exact lash cap necessary to run your particular camshaft. The kit includes 8 solid lifters, 8 lash caps, 8 inspection port plugs and plug seals, and all measurements and machining. All of this for $917. This must be done in conjunction with the cylinder head off the car to allow for tipping the valve length.

15.) Camshaft: Cost $450
There are several companies offereing camshaft upgrades. Look for one which gives good power throughout the RPM range with a nice aggressive idle. The cam is not a real benefit unless you have done a good head upgrade.

Lindsey Racubg is working with Web CAm to offer special Solid lifter cam upgrades to work in conjunction with their solid lifter package. They have cams for both 2.5 and 3.0 Liter applications, and offer a cam for more midrange torque, one for a good over power band, and one with a power band that comes on after 3500 rpm, but will pull to well over 7500 rpm.

14.) Intake Manifold: Cost $1300
Lindsey Racing offers a totally new intake manifold. This unit is cast aluminum with 4 matching intake runners, a plenum just large enough to supply equal airflow to all cylinders but not so large as to cause any lag. This manifold flows more than 25% more air than the stock manifold and flows equal to all cylinders. The factory manifold has a huge variation between cylinders although this does not become a big concern unless you have installed a high flow ported head. This manifold is not for everyone, it is intended for high horsepower application and is capable of supporting flow to over 8000 rpm.

15.) Stage V Intercooler: Cost $1199
This intercooler flows more air and cools better than the stock unit by far. It produces an additional 20 degree drop in inlet air temperatures as well as a drop in flow restriction. This translates to quicker spool up and more top end horsepower.

[myskyon]

personaly i would just skip the first 2 as i see it being a waste of money. and also there is no talk of the 3bar Fuel pressure regulator that is manditory with chips and any sort of incresing boost. though you could get the adjustable one but that does cost a lot more money. and i would not say the order that list is in is a good one. it all depends really on what you are expecting with mods. are you looking to get a little extra power out of your car or are you looking to really get it moving down the road faster than a bace corvett? my first mods to my car were as follows : LR (lindsey racing) stage 2 maf with mafter burrner, LR chips, 3 bar fuel pressure regulator, boost gauge, airfuel ratio gauge, electronic boost controller (second hand) and then the LR 3"downpipe back thermalcoated with magnaflow muffler. and let me tell you what at 16psi of boost it is fast. infact it is faster than a turbo s running 18psi of boost. when i go to 18 it gets a bit faster. but then i worry about the head gastkit.

[BlueQuestTSi]

Originally Posted by myskyon

personaly i would just skip the first 2 as i see it being a waste of money. and also there is no talk of the 3bar Fuel pressure regulator that is manditory

Line 5 was for an Adjustable FPR. I'd think that any good turbo/supercharger RRFPR should work, as I don't see the necessity for a 3 bar unit. Even with a spike I don't think I could ever get anywhere near ~43.5psi.

Otherwise, your list and Yellow's list are a great start. It's just amazing how much different the ECU is on this. I was able to increase boost to 16psi, free up the intake and exhaust, and never even touch the ECU on the Conquest. Essentially it received close to 75rwhp on the stock electronics, fueling, etc, and still rich under boost.

My main important goal is in eliminating as much boost lag as possible. My other car saw ~4psi of boost at 1500rpms during a proper launch. At ~3500krpms it was at it's max setting of 16psi. It was virtually lag free, and if I can get the 951 anywhere near that lack of lag, I'll be pretty happy. I'll use my Greddy ProfecB out of the Conquest, so that should help remove some lag.

If I were to throw down a HP number, I'd say I'd love to see 300rwhp... But realistically, 250 would likely make me happy.

[myskyon]

well i am able to make full boost in 3rd gear starting from 2k rpms at 2800 then 4th gear is at 2400 rpms then 5th gear is about 2000 rpms and that is just about 17 psi. as far as first gear is concerned i dont know exactly when or even if it hits max boost because i have to shift so fast and second gear i am not shure on i do know that if i give it gas i will hear the turbo start to scream very soon never tried to see where it hit boost as the car is pretty dang fast through that gear, so i cant watch it. i will put up a video on my web site showing a little about the boosting i am talking about. i think it was all done in 5th gear. also i am running the evo motor sports bypass valve witch is the same one LR sells. and do not be suprized to see just under 300whp with the mods that i have at 18psi. but that would have to be on a dynojet a mustang will be a lot lower.

also the 3 bar unit is only like 35$ that is why many of us get it vs the adjustable one. that and its a direct swap.

[nize]

faq, know all the basics first;
http://www.connact.com/~kgross/FAQ/944faq.html

some interesting reading and references;
http://members.rennlist.com/951_racerx/

the definitive resource for how-to stuff;
http://www.clarks-garage.com/

the largest worldwide porsche community, well worth the low membership fee. don't post noobie questions without searching the forums first, or you'll probably get flamed.
http://forums.rennlist.com/

[BlueQuestTSi]

Originally Posted by nize

the largest worldwide porsche community, well worth the low membership fee. don't post noobie questions without searching the forums first, or you'll probably get flamed.
http://forums.rennlist.com/

I used to use that site, my actual last post there was on 05-07-2005 after joining in July of 2005. I could only find myself helping people 405 posts, before I started deleting my own posts to try to get it down to a number that the membership nazis could appreciate. I could only get my post count down to 364 before I was totally sick of that site, thus I wasn't able to delete enough useful info to get to under 100 posts, which seems a safe number for non-payers.

I didn't believe in paying to use that site, as I've never had a mechanic pay me to fix my car. I've kept any and all actual 'help me' questions to this particular forum, as the level of help always seemed better here anyways. In all that time I was a member there, I only started 6 threads, and 2 of which actually asked questions, yet I got dragged into a 'pay to play' fiasco, and decided to wash my hands of Rennlist.

I merely use the search feature, and read threads, as I still feel they don't deserve my contributions.




End Rant....... But thanks for the other info, it'll prove vastly helpful!

[BlueQuestTSi]

Originally Posted by myskyon

also i am running the evo motor sports bypass valve witch is the same one LR sells. and do not be suprized to see just under 300whp with the mods that i have at 18psi. but that would have to be on a dynojet a mustang will be a lot lower.

also the 3 bar unit is only like 35$ that is why many of us get it vs the adjustable one. that and its a direct swap.

Are we seeing some leakage from the factory Valve that is prompting the switch to the EVO unit? I saw that Imagine Auto also sells that EVO unit, and since I've had dealings with Karl in the past, I'd probably just go to him for that(might have to stick with the KCWS crew).


The price on that 3 bar unit sounds good, I can understand why you use that now. You can spend some serious cash on some of the RRFPR's out there. I know the common FMU used on the StarQuest worlds cost us around $160ish.

I'll have to check out your site, I assume it's in your profile, heading there now.

Thanks!

[nize]

the real benefit of rennlist is the power of the group buy.

also, they do have some good resources for when you want to research stuff. and the ability to sell parts, cars, and such makes it useful as well.

another area where rennlist shines is if you want to check on a car with an unknown past owner history, or history of a parts seller, etc. there was more than one occasion where i felt i was saved from a scam, thanks to rennlist members.

lately it seems 951's are being picked up by teen ricers, due to the ridiculously low market value created by abused cars that are dragging down the overall value. sadly, recent/new members on rennlist reflect this as well.

[myskyon]

Originally Posted by BlueQuestTSi

Are we seeing some leakage from the factory Valve that is prompting the switch to the EVO unit? I saw that Imagine Auto also sells that EVO unit, and since I've had dealings with Karl in the past, I'd probably just go to him for that(might have to stick with the KCWS crew).


The price on that 3 bar unit sounds good, I can understand why you use that now. You can spend some serious cash on some of the RRFPR's out there. I know the common FMU used on the StarQuest worlds cost us around $160ish.

I'll have to check out your site, I assume it's in your profile, heading there now.

Thanks!

the factory bypass valve has a rubber diaphram that will go bad just about as soon as you hit boost. then you get leakage. the evo valve is all metal so no possable way to go bad except if you let it sit in salt water or somthing else that is just crazy. that and if you have a MAF setup the evo valve sounds a lot better and if you are good you can get it to cherp.