TS modding?

[rossi]

g'day guys
the SRi's are getting to a point where they're just about in my price bracket now, BUT only if i dont go to uni, we'll see by the end of year.

Story goes, i have a 1.8 TS astra city, and want to start modding it, ie air filters, exhaust system, extractors. basic stuff, no expensive blowers hehe
Just wanted to get some advice as to what i can do with out blowing my wallet and my car up in the too distant future! but still getting some decent power. obviously power = money but im hoping there are a couple cheap mods to be done for relatively decent rewards

i figured, id go the extractors and exahaust system first to get her breathing a bit better and then maybe down the track, cam, and better running bits and pieces. . . . advice?

[JasonGilholme]

Life is hard when it comes to "cheaply" modifying these cars. Mainly cause theres very minimal amounts of "off the shelf" products available.

Alot of the gear will need to eb custom and they'll have to know what they're doing, especially for exhausts (emission system is a donkey aparently).

Send a PM to auzvectra. he knows a far whack about it all.

I may even go as far as recommending him ... lol (just jokin matt :P)

[rossi]

sick as
i had heard rumours that astra's are hard to mod for the fact that they're imported and that there really isnt a market base for parts etc
cheers for recommendation

[JasonGilholme]

I didn't recommend him man :p lol

[xplosv57]

Honestly, if i was you, id save the bit more and buy a standard SRi instead of doing up a 1.8!!

Exhausts are pretty expensive, extractors have to be custom made and cost an arm and a a leg for not that much gain, itll still be less power than an SRi 2.2!!

Camshafts again, nothing in Aus, and very expensive to get O/S so if ur budget can do it, then save your cash and go for the SRi!!!

[Greggy]

Honestly, if i was you, id save the bit more and buy a standard SRi instead of doing up a 1.8!!

Exhausts are pretty expensive, extractors have to be custom made and cost an arm and a a leg for not that much gain, itll still be less power than an SRi 2.2!!

Camshafts again, nothing in Aus, and very expensive to get O/S so if ur budget can do it, then save your cash and go for the SRi!!!

I was told the same sort of thing when I got my vectra - dont worry about modding it, simply save your cash and get something thats got the power to start with... Will save you loads in the mid to long term.

[JasonGilholme]

some people have no faith. lol

My cars only a 1.6 and it already beats 1.8 turbo gsr lancers....

its not the size that counts.

[JR]

there is no point modding a 1.8L astra engine. the amount of money u gotta spend before seeing any difference in performance is alot.
i've got a 1.8 myself - the only thing i've done is to derestrict the airbox, so it breathes better.

instead of power, i went for handling. strut braces, sway bars, suspension...etc etc etc. atleast this way u definately notice the difference, n have a bit of fun with a 1.8 :D

if u want power, like the others said - save up n get an SRi or SRi T. if u got the dosh.....go the VXR ;)

[JasonGilholme]

pfffft. no faith in the smaller engines.

I agree tho, spend the money in the handling department and you'll find that you'll be able to carry more speed through the corners and keep up with the turbo boys.

Thats what i do anyway :p

[InsaneAsylum]

need a custom made exhaust, no big deal from an exhaust shop. get mild steel if you want to save initial costs.

build your own cold air induction out of pipe or ducting from bunnings/clark rubber/purple pig etc.

derestrict the airbox as described in several other threads on this forum

don't put any extra weight in your car like heavy sub boxes

good shock/lowered spring combo, uprated swaybars (only do the rear one if your pressed for cash)

lightweight alloy wheels... not supersize chrome "fiddycentsmahomie" rims

[InsaneAsylum]

pfffft. no faith in the smaller engines.

I agree tho, spend the money in the handling department and you'll find that you'll be able to carry more speed through the corners and keep up with the turbo boys.

Thats what i do anyway :p

this is all i have to say to you.....

http://www.cplracing.co.uk/htmlarea/uploaded/k_series%20itbs.jpg

[miss beckie]

some people have no faith. lol

My cars only a 1.6 and it already beats 1.8 turbo gsr lancers....

its not the size that counts.

exactly! It's not the size it's how you drive it ;)

[lowey22]

definitely agree with the handling option, makes a huge difference and makes it so much nicer to drive. I have done a few things performance wise to my 1.8, 2" exhaust, enclosed pod filter, powerchip, umm that's it really. It makes a bit of difference, but nothing huge. the handling mods i have done are lowering and rear sway bar and that, coupled with the little bit of extra power, makes it fast and fun through the corners :D

that's the extent to what im doing to the car, anything else worthwhile power wise would cost too much.

[JasonGilholme]

this is all i have to say to you.....

http://www.cplracing.co.uk/htmlarea/uploaded/k_series%20itbs.jpg

Pfft man. not worth the time and hassle. I admit tho they sound great. Got a mate that races at QR who's got a set on his b18.

He spent about 9 grand (including tuning, he fitted them himself) and he only gained 10 - 15 kw's at the wheels. He doesn't even have aftermarket cams yet?!?! Bad decision on his part IMO.

This would be one of the last things id do to gain power. after that or go for a dry sump setup. :D:D

[JR]

this is all i have to say to you.....

http://www.cplracing.co.uk/htmlarea/uploaded/k_series%20itbs.jpg

hey Insane - wats dat? definataly ain't a Quad-pack Cupholder thingy!! lol
looks like something between the engine n exhaust manifold?

nothing against the 1.8s!! i luv my 1.8 :) its just that i'd rather not push the engine beyond its "comfort zone" by modding it.
i like it just the way it is.

[JasonGilholme]

Individual throttle bodies.

It gives each cylinder its own throttle body and directs the air flow direcly into the chamber.

unfortunatley under bonnet temps are a killer when using these unless you fab up a box to put around them as well as some sort of filter.

These ones happen to have a carbon fibre bell housing on each cylinder which adds to the sexy ness.

[JohnBu]

some people have no faith. lol

My cars only a 1.6 and it already beats 1.8 turbo gsr lancers....

its not the size that counts.

not to bag your crx out, but you sure the GSR lancer was trying?

they are do low 7s /15s stock.. put an exhaust on them and they'll do low 6s / 14s.

dont think the crx cracked 8s.

anyway rossi, invest the money you save, wait a while and buy an SRi, faster, cheaper, less insurance hassles. if your investments do well, you may be even able to afford an astra turbo, which is again a step above the SRi

[JasonGilholme]

CRX stock will do 8.2 to 100.

Mine does it alot closer to 7.

He had a passenger and big wheels. Thats his fault. lol

[InsaneAsylum]

his cams are holding him back.....

and yeah... they sound sweet

[JasonGilholme]

Yeah the cams will definately give that intake more potential.

[auzvectra]

ok rossi, ignore all the negative reply's :).
if you want to mod it then mod it.
the Z18XE isnt that slow anyway (is urs Z18XE or X18xe?), it has 92kw which is only 16kw down on the sri anyway of 108kw.
with just a tune, we have been told, but in no way is it 100% acrate that the Z18XE gets a 15hp (just over 11kw) gain at the fly, so that make the differece betwen the 1.8L and the 2.2L a lot less ;).
and is a lot cheaper then upgrading to the sri.
also there are things to do, to get more power, we'd love to help :D, we are trying to get a product base up, we so far have the G sri-t cooler kit, and are not far from the new turbo manifol, back box replacement, and dump0 pipe :).
where do you live?

[rossi]

the opposite end to the gold coast haha perth WA.
yeh i love the astra 1.8, for their size they got alot of boot over just about evey other 1.8 i've driven and even some 2L's. part of the reason i thought they'd have some power lurking is that they are quite restricted for euro emission stuff so thought there would be some things that could be done to free this up.
as far as putting some mods on, yeh not looking into mega bucks, if i went to far with mods then i'd be up at the point where i could trade it in and grab a SRiT instead for the same price.
but i would definatly like to hear what options you guys have

[Clint]

yes you have a 1.6L jason but these cars have something u dont, weight your car probably weighs 2 thirds of what mine does!

that and a honda engine :p

2 big advantages

[JasonGilholme]

my car weighed between 1100 and 1200 stock. :(

It just depends on how far you're willing to go.

So far all i've got is a hot air intake and weight reduction and its workin out for me. No reason why you can't apply that to any car and get similiar results.

[Clint]

i think mine is 1245 stock or 1345 cant remember which one. probably the 1345. you didnt comment about the honda engine... one advantage u cant deny there :p

[JasonGilholme]

no comment! lol

Nah the 1.8 astra engine will have ALOT more torque then my motor will EVER have. Lots of torque + light car = fast car!

[xplosv57]

Yes the loud screaming when it hits a certain rev range............

[xplosv57]

Nah me being the owner of a 1.8, i dont see much performance, was expecting alot more when i first bought it!!! Also it isnt that light, so id much rather a B16A than the astra 1.8 with more torque (which you cant feel)!!

[rossi]

have to disagree with you on that one mate, my astra 1.8 has heaps of pull (for a 1.8) havent found a car in the same class that would really compare

[xplosv57]

Yeah i guess its all to their own, ive driven late 80s corolla 4 cyls that go quicker than my car and i really don't see big performance being gained out of the astra with exhaust/extractors considering the money involved!!

Oh well, im still driving my lil 1.8 Astra, so i should stop whinging hahaha!!!!

[auzvectra]

just keep in mind there are 2 1.8L's
1 is the X18XE old style 87Kw
1 is the Z18XE new style 92Kw
guess which is better :D.
the 92Kw motor with little mods, will scare a stock Sri-t most days, trust m ei know of 1 that does go well (ROB ;)), this particular car keeps with the 3.2L veccy, which is right on the tail of a stock Sri-T.
and then u always have fast motor's n slow 1's.

[auzvectra]

oh yeah,. and as i said to rossi, the 1.8L motor is capable of 185kw :p.
nat aspirated!!!

[xplosv57]

Quick question, how much would it cost to make a 92kW 1.8 scare a stock SRi-T??? And what exactly has to be done?? What kinda power putput??

And what gets done to get a 1.8 N/A to 185kW, and again, whats this out my pocket??

[rossi]

i'd llove a NA 185kw astra but id have to ask with xplosv how much. . .i think my wallet would burst into flames the second i walked into the shop, haha

[auzvectra]

hehe, there is a lil involved, mostly internal stuff ;).
as for cost, u probably dont wanna know, but a motor that fine tuned would sound like music, damn it would sound great :).
as for scareing a Sri-T, it wouldnt take all that much, i'n not talking sitting with, or beating, i'm just talking scaring, remember even though the turbo is very small on the Sri-T, it is still turbo, so a well tuned n/a motor will get a head start no matter what.
and it isnt a 1.8L by the time you get to 185kw either :p

[xplosv57]

hehe, there is a lil involved, mostly internal stuff ;).
as for cost, u probably dont wanna know,

as for scareing a Sri-T, it wouldnt take all that much,

Well i want to know whats involved, and i do wanna know how much, kind of the reason i asked LOL!!

[JR]

185kW.......phwoarhhh......i'd love that under my bonnet!!
first, lemme just go find myself a rich a55 girlfriend.....while i play lotto!!!

is that much amount of power good for the 1.8L engine? as in how efficient will it run? i'm presuming numerous changes to the drivetrain, chasis, exhaust etc etc etc need to b done.

would b nice though........

[auzvectra]

at aquick guess i'd say around 4-5K on the motor alone, then tuneing drivetrain ect...
it involves stroke (big time) boreing (quite a bit), strengthening internals (pistons ect), decent cams, and working the head.
they are not that bad of a motor, just too new, n no1 mods like they used to in the old day, every1 wants bolt on power :(.
i had my old 1.8L pulsar (similar motor) runing nearly as quick as my sri-t was stock!!!
and there wasnt much done to it either, mostly bolt on's, but done by a fluke the right way :D.

[auzvectra]

oh and my prices are what i'd do it for for myself, so no labour included :p

[xplosv57]

at aquick guess i'd say around 4-5K on the motor alone, then tuneing drivetrain ect...
it involves stroke (big time) boreing (quite a bit), strengthening internals (pistons ect), decent cams, and working the head.
they are not that bad of a motor, just too new, n no1 mods like they used to in the old day, every1 wants bolt on power :(.


Is that to scare a SRi-T or to get it to 185kW???

[auzvectra]

that would be to get to the 185kw mark, i cant really remember the specs for it, has been a long time since i was looking at this side of things ;).
but i do have a dyno sheet somewhere on my pc and back ups of it for 185kw.
not my car!

[Noir]

have to disagree with you on that one mate, my astra 1.8 has heaps of pull (for a 1.8) havent found a car in the same class that would really compare

You should take mine for a drive...

Matt you need to read my ecu file! I will end up selling her before you get to Perth.

[maloo97]

I had 185kw stock in my vs maloo untill dad got it upgraded to 255kw :D

[auzvectra]

u planin on selling it noir?

[Noir]

u planin on selling it noir?

The car breaks my heart..I dont know how much longer I will have her for.

Searching for a replacement.

[auzvectra]

ok, whats wrong with it?