951lee

Hi all,

I've just joined Rennlist and i've recently bought a 1990 stock 944t SE with M030 option & LSD. The engine, transmission & suspension have been declared sound now that a 12k service has just been carried out and a small fortune spent on new replacement parts.

Now it's time to upgrade! I would really appreciate your advice and guidance here. I want to upgrade in stages due to budget. I have a an initial budget of approx $2k, and then about the same again in approx 4-6 months. The car is intended for fast road and occassional track use. Not looking to go too mad, but i don't really know where to start. What would you guys consider to be sensible and worthwhile engine upgrades?

Thanks........

lee

hosrom_951

First of all congrats on the car and welcome to the board.

As for upgrades, the basics are the following:

Chips (~$300)
Wastegate (Tial 38mm from MySwiss $315)
Exhaust (Lindsey Full 3" $550)

That would put it ~$1000 depending on the vendors. Add another ~$200 for installation (unless you do it yourself).

Again, these are the basics and prices WILL vary between vendors. Or you can go straigh for a MAF/MAP setup (~$1,000-1700 depending on vendor) but would recommend a widband a/f ratio gauge ($~270-$500)

Start with the basics, if you can get the same amount within 4~6 months, then start looking for MAP/MAF and Turbocharger upgrades (they work well together).

You would need an aftermarket boost gauge to get accurate readings (factory ones aren't so good) and maybe even a boost controller (both costs ~$100 or so together).

Just make sure that your car is good to start with (check/replace the vacuum lines, boots, clean out the pipes etc.)

Here is a link showing a list of various vendors :

http://www.weissach.net/Suppliers_92...ecialists.html

951lee

Big thanks for the advice and link......very useful.

Will i need to upgrade the intercooler to cope with modest power upgrades or can i stick with the stock one?

ta

David Floyd

Hey Lee, Welcome to the list.

951lee

Thanks for the welcome.....what a fantastic site. You guys really know your stuff.

Jeremy Himsel

Welcome aboard.

Start with a good set of chips, wastegate, boost controller, test pipe, and since you'll be on the track a good brake flush and a decent set of pads. You should have enough cash left over for an entry fee.

Check out the products at WWW. vitesseracing.com It's a no bling, all business site with awesome products that perform as advertised.

DDP

Nah your stock intercooler good for lots of power. Do exhaust, intake, chips, BOV, wastegate, brakes. Worry about the stock intercooler once you upgrade the turbo. Welcome!

hosrom_951

9fitty1: I remeber someone here posted that the stock intercooler could support 400whp, true?

Jeremy: Which pads do you use/suggest for the street? I currently use Mintex Orange pads, no squeel and a bit of dust. I heard good things about Metal Masters.

Jeremy Himsel

I use Hawk HP Plus. It's a better pad for street-track combo's in my opinion. I've tried Metal Masters, Hawk HPS, Hawk HP +, Pagid Orange, and stock Jurid's as well. All of these pads (except the orange's and HP +) scared the **** out of me above 150 and under heavy track use. There was too much of a compromise of initial bite and cold characteristics with the Orange's (plus they squealed like a pig on the street). The HP + gave me everything I was looking for and have yet to fade on me at the track. Before I tried them I was considering a big red upgrade but they really livened up the brakes. They can be a bit dusty and made some noise for the first 1,000 miles but if you wash your car frequently the dust isn't an issue. Now that I've added 2" of rubber to each corner and another 2" in diameter, I can support having bigger brakes.

hosrom_951

Thanks Jeremy, at $199 for the Pagid Orange and i don't track the car i think i would pass on that one.

I just ordered the 5/33 Bias Valve and SS Brake line all round. The front pads are still 'fat' and would survive another couple of thousand miles.

Above 150? oh i see on the track , so i wouldn't go for such expensive-high quality pads since the car is mostly street.

Jeremy Himsel

Hosrom,

The Hawk HP+ are only 80 for the set. If you're never going to stop hard from triple digits then a stock pad will be fine. Then again, it's over 100 that things get hairy and you'll probably need to stop hard. I always noticed that a stock equivalent pad was pretty hard to beat until you hit the track or 125 mph threshold.

I believe Danno tried the Performance Friction CM pads and said they work really well on our cars. I've used them in other applications and they were respectable.

hosrom_951

Jeremy: I tried Paragon and Zim's for the Hawk HP+ pads, but don't carry them, if you don't mind where did you get them from?

Also, this may sound stupid, but replacing all 4 with Hawk or just the fronts would be fine (i assume all 4) since our roads here are mostly flat and i do hit 100+ daily (as long as the road is clear )

GOBOGIE

You will absolutely be blown away at the amount of knowledge you'll find on this board! Welcome and btw where are you from and for god sakes "post pictures of your baby for us to drool over".

CG

theedge

Chips, K&N, boost controller of some form, gauges (since youre planning on upgrading further), exhaust, and make sure you have good tires, but that you might as well leave for next summer.

PCinDC

Welcome, that sounds like a very nice car, post some pics for us! I'll give another recommendation for Vitesse Racing products, although the Turbo/MAF kits are a bit out of your range right now. They wouldn't be if you saved for 4-6 months and dove in with $4k or thereabouts.
That aside, a good first mod IMO is always a free flowing exhaust (especially on a turbocharged car), however there is a 'lister here who makes over 400 RWHP with the stock exhaust (2.8l, highly tuned), so opinions will vary.

HTH