^^^

 

I'm mobile so I can't post a link but there are quite a few dynos out there with proven gains just slapping the spacer on. Small but they are gains

 

Sounds like i got some searching to do!

 

plen spacer and either high flow cats or test pipes. my hfc's did not thow a code, and if test pipes do, you can get simulators to take the code away. you will feel a difference with those two mods for sure and a tune is not necessary. keep the stock airbox. i am doing a full on na build and i will be keeping my stock box and even a paper filter.

 

sounds good to me. keep me posted. i've decided not to go fi, so na is where i'm at.

 

what brand hf's? i looked some test pipes and hfc, ebay mostly.. they are some cheap test pipes for under 100. seems just like straight pipes to me??

 

Don't bother with those they're made from chitty material and will likely blow out before you know it.

 

yea, test pipes are cheaper and are basically just straight pipe. they will probably rasp some, but they should give better gains and are cheaper. i am going with test pipes.

 

Sounds like this has been beat to death but, here's my 2 cents anyways.

I did the these mod in this order with no tune:

-K&N drop in filter: Dynoed 4-5whp over baseline dyno (done the same day), gain in mileage
-Borla TD exhaust: barely noticeable power gains (no dyno), but better gas mileage
-JWT pop charger and Kinetix V+ plenum: Good gains per the butt dyno, loss in mileage, amazing sound change....loved it!
-Berk HFC: A bit more top end power, nothing worthy of noting anywhere else.
-LS2 with a huge cam in the works: I'm guessing my mileage will go down

Point being, all my mods showed some response without a tune. I beat the holy hell out of my car on the street, 100+ auto-x's and at least 20hrs of HPDE. This car has seen ungodly amounts of WOT time. I've never had a single issue other than normal maintenance and the engine has 85k miles. The VQ is legit!

 

I recommend test pipes because they are simple: no material inside to fall apart. Quality pipes (Helix for example) will run you about $160.

 

Another plus to test pipes, is reduced weight and they don't build up a ton of heat like HFC do.

 

things look beastly!

 

I've been hearing lots about the kn drop ins.. some likey some not so much.(they talk about oil clogging this and that maf)).. you really saw a 4-5 hp gain?

 

got MD spacer in yesterday. installed well (except for a hiccup with vatozone torque wrench being a piece of sheeeeeeet.) car at idle seems fine and when i drove i didn't really notice much of anything which i expected except for a lil umph around the 3-4k range. after driving for a little while. i turned off the car while i went inside a gas station and when i turned it back on, the car immediately died. i needed to feed gas at start to achieve an idle (which isn't rough,, at least that i can feel or hear) i checked the hoses, and the bolts seem tight. im waiting till the morning to try a TB reset.. hopefully it works

 

According to the dyno. I did 3 pulls with the OEM filter, replaced with the K&N and did 3 more pulls. It averaged a little over 4 WHP. I then got an increase of 2 MPG at highways speeds.

Yeah if you over oil the filter you can mess with the hot wire on the MAF. i've never personally had and issue and I clean mine once a year in the spring. But I also clean the MAF after a few miles of cleaning the filter. A can of MAF cleaner is cheap and it takes a whopping 3 mins to do.

 

I don't remember the exact torque rating for the manifold bolts but it was something very small in the IN-LB range. It may be worth pulling them all and checking to make sure you didn't stress something. Especially if you had a faulty torque wrench. Then when you heat cycled it, it may have finally broke and caused a vacuum leak. Just a thought. GL!

 

make sure you didnt get the oil filler tube skirt caught under the plenum when you put it on. ive done that a couple times and didnt realize till later. if you dont know what im talking about, its the little rubber thing that goes around the neck where you fill with oil. also, check to make sure all vac hoses were hooked back up. good luck.

to get the most out of it, you should reset the ecu and you will notice more of a difference

 

Did you search the Engine section for my write-up like I had posted previously?

 

I'm sold

 

yes i did look up the posting. most likely going to do the TB reset. seems like what it should be....

I also TRIPLE checked before i completely tightened all the bolts that that little oil gasket thing wasn't under there and it was stuck in there the first time with the shiiiiiitttty torque wrench...

wish me luck. here goes nothing