Help regarding adding HP

[Samms]

First let me start off by saying that I'm brand new regarding all things mechanic like, so any help would be appreciated.

I'll start off by saying that I've done about 2 hours of research on this subject, starting with a cursory google search which lead me to this: What can i do to add horsepower to my scion tc for cheap? - Yahoo! Answers.

My questions are as follows:

Keeping in mind that I want to spend around 400 dollars, what brands of exhaust, header, and cold air intakes should I buy to get the most bang for my buck, and 2) will a body shop such as maaco install these for me? I have a 2009 TC with a manual tranny, and I'm looking to obviously get high quality stuff and a 50 + HP boost or more for 400 dollars would be excellent.

Thanks again for any help. I realize there is a search button but sometimes uniqueness in posting goes a long way.

[scionchicop]

In all honesty, you will not get a +50 hp boost with only $400. Save up some money and be willing to wait on good stuff. You may be able to find some things on ebay, but still not enough to get you where you want to go. Maaco, i highly doubt will install stuff like that and if they do, will charge too much. You're better off looking for a speed shop to do the installs. To get more performance, you have to be willing to pay to play. Good luck.

[jdtc]

You could buy an axle back exhaust for about 400. If you were crafty you could install it yourself in 30 minutes or so. As far as the intake is concerned you could be really crafty and go buy mandrel bent tubing, some rubber couplers, and an air filter and modify your stock intake to be a short ram. Considering you asked if Maaco (a cheap autobody shop) can install it, I'd say you need to save up some more money and drop the idea of 50+ hp boost while naturally aspirated.

[CadenceScion]

My suggestions for intakes: AEM, Injen, TRD, Weapon-R, K&N.
My suggestions for exhaust: Tanabe, Greddy, Magnaflow, TRD, Borla, PTuning.
My suggestions for header's: DC Sports, Strup, AlphaWerks, Weapon-R.

These mods you can install yourself w/ the right tools and save on the labor fees. There are also plenty of DIY's available here on Club-tC, YouTube and searching Google.

[c500129]

for $400 you can either choose a header, an exhaust, or an intake. you cant get all of them for that bit of cash. and even if you were to buy an intake, exhaust header, s-pipe, mid pipe, and exhaust you would still get nothing near 50 extra horse power. you would probably get around 15, all the claims the companies make are false. if you want horse power then save up a couple grand and get a turbo.

[navylife59]

On the cheap (budget) you can have pretty much one avenue to go for the most bang for the buck in order of ease of install;
CAI/SRI - SRI is super easy to install. CAI will be a little more to do but not hard at all.
aftermarket s-pipe - Will require the front of the car to be jacked or put on a lift. Use of a lift will run you about $3-$5 for the hour. Well, that is if you are in the Military and have access to the Auto Hobby Shop.
LW crank pulley - Will require the use of a belt tensioner tool for the serpentine belt and a 1/2" torque wrench both of which can be borrowed for free from Autozone.

[c500129]

the only problem with a LW pulley is that it technically doesn't give you any extra horsepower, it frees up the horse power you already have and lets it be used in other ways. It will also wear down your engine a lot faster. Not a part I would install myself but a lot of people have and are happy with it

[CadenceScion]

I have heard so many mixed reviews about the crank pulley. I have the one from Agency and I am more than happy w/ it and hasn't given me any issues. I will say this much, I do like how the RPM's climb a lot faster.

[navylife59]

True, it does not create power, in itself, but it removes some of the weight from the rotating assembly that allows the engine to a bit more efficient by lessening the load. This shows up as more WHP on the dyno, albeit, not much. The estimation is 10BHP at the flywheel which would be 0.67WHP. The benefit gained is not the reclaimed power but the ability of the rotating assembly to spin faster. That is where the efficiency comes from, the reduction in weight. The less power robbed by engine accessories and drivetrain losses equates to more power making it to the wheels.

Ever run up against an older Honda with a B18 and that car seems to have mega power? You would be surprised to discover that he does not forced induction or shooting the juice. No, the reason why that smaller motor gives you a run for the money is the lighter weight of it's rotating assembly. This allows the motor to have a higher rev limit when the motor is reflashed. He can stay in gear much longer keeping the motor in it's optimum powerband.

As for the longevity of the motor, I have yet to read about one engine (2AZ-FE) that failed prematurely due to a properly built LW crank pulley. I have over 50K miles on my LW crank pulley with no ill-effects. My motor is not shy of the rev limiter and I have been pushing my TRD S/C at 15PSI for nearly 2 years now. The 2AZ-FE is a well-built, sturdy engine with a close tolerance balance rotating assembly. The internal balance shafts handle the Second Order Harmonics. The crank dampener is there to absorb vibrations caused quick changes in RPM. You will notice that the rubber material between the two weights (parts) of the OEM crank pulley is very thin. If rotational vibrations were of a higher magnitude, the dampening would need to be thicker to allow the outer weight of the crank more throw (rotation) to absorb 1st order vibrations better. Older domestic motors had an issue with the dampener material (rubber) being so thick that it would crack and fling off. This left a crank pulley that was severely out-of-balance and quite possibly fail damaging the motor and engine accessories.

I have full confidence in a correctly built and balanced LW crank pulley. The only failures that I have known of in all these years has been cheap OCC (Offshore Chinese Crap) LW crank pulleys breaking apart and the other being user error. User errors were damaging the crank oil seal, damaging/forgetting the woodruff key, or not applying proper torque on the crank pulley bolt with a torque wrench.