3rd gen Engine/Drivetrain Engine/Drivetrain Modification Discussions for 1999-2003 Models Only (BJ chassis)
View Poll Results: Which option should I go with?
FM turbo
7
36.84%
Cams and Racing Beat cat-back
7
36.84%
Don't waste any more money on mods
0
0%
Sell the Protege and buy something faster.
5
26.32%
Voters: 19. You may not vote on this poll

Turbo or cams and cat back?

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Old August-20th-2002, 01:57 PM
  #1  
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Turbo or cams and cat back?

I'm having trouble making up my mind between these two options. Please post your opinion. I already know that my opinion counts the most in this decision. I am posting this to find out what other people think.

With a turbo (edit:I want the BEGI kit a.k.a. the FM kit ), I get the obvious advantages of way more power, but the cost is two to three times that of cams installed and the Racing Beat cat-back I'm thinking of getting. Also, the reliability goes down and the chances something will go wrong goes way up. Also there is torque steer to deal with and the certainty that I will never get my money back out of the car. - Not just if I decide to sell, but if I wreck it. Do I really want a super fast economy car or, do I want to sell it and get something that is more powerful from the factory- like an RX-8.

With cams and the cat back, the performance gain will prbably be enough to satisfy me. The engine will most likely last as long as stock. If I decide to sell, I won't feel too bad about the lost cash. However, the power gain per dollar is way lower than with the turbo.

Last edited by OZProtege; August-20th-2002 at 02:32 PM.
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Old August-20th-2002, 02:26 PM
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I would go with the FM turbo kit...

Last edited by Greddy917; August-20th-2002 at 02:32 PM.
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Old August-20th-2002, 05:53 PM
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why not do all three? you're gonna need a new exhaust anyway for the turbo... and cams.. just more power for the beast.
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Old August-20th-2002, 08:03 PM
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Yeah, if I were you I'd eventually go for all three, but I would do the cams and catback first.
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Old August-21st-2002, 07:20 AM
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Cams and turbo?

I remember reading several times on this board that cams are not appropriate for turbo application. If I can use cams with a turbo, then of course I will just get the cams first.

Since it will be over a year until I can sell this car without losing money, I can't sell it yet. Since I have to keep it, more power is neccessary. It looks like cams will be going in on Friday- as I had more or less planned on this before starting the poll.

Thanks for the responses.

Last edited by OZProtege; August-21st-2002 at 09:23 AM.
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Old August-21st-2002, 01:09 PM
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It's not that you can't use cams with a turbo but you have to get the right grind for a turbo application compared to NA. From what I recall, the main thing with cams for turbo is overlap. There are other factors as well but I'm no expert in cams.
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Old August-21st-2002, 03:18 PM
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rx-8

hehe, i voted cams and catback, but me personally, i'd go rx-8 cause not matter what i put in my ride, unless my brother blows it on the line, i'll never catch his '92 5.0 seeing as i have a hp handicap when compared to a mustang.

but for now (until the 8 comes out) i'll add the cams, catback and intake for a little more "umph" in my 5.
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Old August-23rd-2002, 01:07 AM
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I don't like the idea of getting extreme power out of any front-wheel-drive car. VROOOOOM-BUMP. VROOOOOOOOOOOM, VROOOOOOOM-BUMP. VROOOOM-BUMP. VROOOOOOM-BUMP.

I want to get cams for my 2002 2.0L Pro. Anyone have any suggestions, and how much do they cost? Any help would be helpful, and therefore it would help me.
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Old August-23rd-2002, 12:58 PM
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Cams are in

Well, I just picked up my car from the dealer and my cams are in. It is pretty much as I had read about- more power above 3500 and a little less at lower rpm. The annoying power surge at about 2500 is gone too. The power delivery is also smoother through out the whole rev range.

As for price, I paid $550 plus tax. I could have paid less or done it myself, but now it probably won't affect the warranty, as long as I take it back to the same dealer if something goes wrong. Was it worth the money? I guess. I am happy to have more power.
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Old August-24th-2002, 11:30 PM
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got dyno??

why no DYno It???
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Old August-26th-2002, 11:57 AM
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No Dyno

I believe dynos have been done with these mods. Since the feel of my car is more important than the numbers it puts out, I really don't care enough to pay for a dyno. Also, I understand that a dyno doesn't mean much without a before test on the same dyno under similar conditions.

I will drag race it again within the next few weeks to see if the car is faster than before the cams and I will post the results. This is more fun than a dyno and costs less. I've also got a few co-workers who barely beat me last time. Maybe the cams will give me just enough edge to win next time.
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