ok, So i've decided my 996TT needs some upgrading

I've got my DV's and hoses on order

What should I do next?

I'm planning on.....

Air Intake
Exhaust
Flash
k16/16g's or k24/18g's

Can someone tell me the correct order to carry out these mods?

If I go for the flash first do I have to have a complete new one when I carry out further upgrades at a later date? - Or can the flash be altered/amended for the new modifications?

Would you go for the uprated headers? or just port the stock ones?
And what about these external wategates i've been reading about?

What are the benefits of the k24/18g's over the k16/16g's?
I know there is more maximum power - but what are they like for "normal driving?" which ones are better here - instant response and low down torque

I use my car as my everyday car with occasional track use
what would you advise me to look into?

 

if you flash 1st you will have to do it again after any serious mods. heres how i did it europipe (let the air out) evo air box (PAPER NO OIL FILTER) get the air in, headers scargo lg tubes. then kevin k16s , evo intercoolers than came the flash (get the race file)i used giac but hear kevin has a very good program check it out ... good luck

 

will the car be ok with exhaust, then intake, then turbos but no flash to begin with?

Would i not have an engine which is running too lean?

 

u need a flash to run turbos . do ur exhuast, then get a bmc drop in panel filter . then get your turbos of choice with wastegate actuators and flash from your tuner . then intercoolers.

 

ok i'm thinking this is a good order to follow...

1) exhaust
2) air filter - are the panel ones any good? i'd like to retain a stock look, do they make any kind of noise?
3) flash + turbos + headers

can you get the external waste gates on the k16/16gs or are they strictly for the k24'18gs? what is the theory behind them?

and are the bigger turbos and externals good for my needs or should i use the k16'16gs?

 

Sounds like a good plan, but the flash generally provides the most bang for the buck in my opinion, if you decide not to upgrade the turbos... and even if you do later decide to upgrade the turbos.. except that you end up duplicating cost. Just my opinion of course.

 

I did flash and K16/16gs, left it that way for a thousand miles, then added the exhaust. I'm still running the stock paper filter because I have just not been sold on any of the intake solutions so far.

As for K16/16g vs. K24/18g, if you are sure you don't want more than 600 crank and sure that your priority is low end torque and the least possible lag, than the K16 based turbo is a no brainer.

As for external wastegates, K16 based hybrids and K24 based hybrids both come with internal wastegates. You can run external wastegates on either setup. I'm not convinced of the necessity of external wastegates, but I would definitely upgrade the stock wastegate actuators if upgrading turbos.

 

did you have to make any alterations to your flash when you added the exhaust?

what do you think about changing the headers?

i don't care about the numbers on the dyno
i want the car to be set-up as the quickest to drive - not necessarily the one with the most hp
it's day to day and track racing that i'm interested in - so if i can mak 600hp more usable/accessable than 700hp thats what i'm after

i want the set up that makes the car go, and feel the fastest

i think i will eventually go for the k16/16gs like you went for
you seem to be very impressed by them
do you have any performance figures on the car? 60-130 etc...

i'm also still reading up on the external waste gates to find out if there are any benefits to them - of course i want them because i think they're cool - but i can't justify buying them purely based on that - they need to be functional for me too

 

oh - and just so i'm certain

when i'm looking at the different kits and i see them quoted as 600-700hp
am i right in thinking they're referring to crank power?

and when talking about a stock car with 420hp this is also crank power?

is loss through the drivetrain around 20%?

 

Answers in red below:

 

yes, yes, yes (if you keep it AWD).

 

It can reach up to 25% in power loss on awd cars after several years... From what year is your 996?

 

Here's the order that I think you'll get the most (feel and bang for the buck):

1) ECU flash + DVs + plugs -> this will give you a good jump of power, it will feel like a different car.
2) Coilovers + Swaybars -> this will give you a feel of true sport car handling; then you would think how could Porsche put a crappy suspension on a 130k+ car?
3) Exhaust -> this will give the the exotic sound and turn heads (and a little more hp).
4) Bigger turbos + intake + headers -> now you are going into 650+ hp and air needs to flow faster.
5) Engine internal -> another level for the diehards

If you stay with the same tuner from start, I believe most just charge you for program upgrade (in my case, I don't think my tuner charged me at all except for the GT660 that came as a package).

Good luck.

 

Take a baseline dyno for your car bone stock and then divide by 416. Assuming your car is making factory power, that's the percentage of power that is making it to the wheels from your crank.
My car baselined at 334 to the wheels on an AWD Mustang dyno, meaning 80% of the power is getting to the rear wheels and therefore driveline loss is 20%. Tip cars will have a greater loss.
Best bet is to calculate your own driveline loss by getting a baseline.

 

From everything I've read, I wouldn't waste time or money on headers. Port your stock manifolds for better gain to $$$ ratio.

I'd get with a competent and proven tuner (I prefer UMW) and get a plan together. I'd also look at your exhaust options... I saved a ton of coin going with a light weight, yet well made and great sounding system from SpeedTechnologies! That move alone saved me enough money to pay for the software tune/wastegate spring upgrade/ 5bar FPR.

Mike