new here, but not an owner...

[nealuss]

Just wanted to stop in and say hi! I am not a tC owner myself(don't kill me), but a close friend of mine is desperately searching for one and has asked me to help him out with his mods. I have always liked the tC's and told him that I would do some researching for him. I figured, what better place to start than on the forums! If anyone has any suggestions on basic bolt on performance mods for the tC's and which brands give better fitment/gains please let me know.

Thanks in advance

[StreetBrawler89]

One of the wonderous things about the tC is the abundance of aftermarket support out there for it. The basics that I would tell your friend to start with is this, decide if he/she wants to go turbo because if they do then the list is different. Few people want to turbo or supercharge right of the bat(or they dont have the means to right away), but theres no point wasting your money on this specific list of starter mods if you plan to go FI within probably the first year. I dont give specific brand advice other than DONT GO EBAY STYLE ON ENGINE PARTS! People will post explaining why thier particular pipe is better than everyone elses in every aspect and how its the part God would use if he drove a tC. Particularly vocal are the guys who spent alot on a crappy pipe...Ok so here we go;

1. The most basic mod for straight engine performance gains that makes the car go a little faster, sound much more ferocious to the driver, and slightly improve gas mileage is a Cold Air Intake (CAI for short). Basically they run around 400$-600$ for a reputable pipe with clear install instructions. The following is a well trusted tuning site that sells reputable and safe equipment- http://www.trdsparks.com/displaypart...2&parts_id=402

2. If you have more, and colder, air coming in the engine you need it to exit with equal or more expediency. Exhuast is next on the list than, this one is very much up to personal taste as basically all kits do the same things but sound different doing it. If you find a kit you like, youtube it to be sure you like the sound it gives off, remeber that you will be hearing it everyday as you drive to work, school, etc etc etc. There are two primary kinds of kits, Axle-Back and Cat-Back. Axle-Back Systems are basically a much less constricting pipe from the rear axle of the car back to the muffler, even though they have the shorter pipe between the two they both produce similar sounds. Cat-Back exhausts are basically new piping from the catalytic converter back, the pipe is longer but also less constricting. If the plan is to go FI than a Cat-Back is the better option because it offers more freedom and less exhaust friction. THESE SYSTEMS ARE EVERYWHERE, but here is a site that contains a few that are considered some of the most reputable- http://www.dezod.com/cat-exhaust-systems.cfm

3. Exhaust headers are now needed to carry the exhaust fumes from the engine to your shiny new Cat-Back or Axle-Back system. Basically it does the same thing as the exhaust kits do, but freeing up the flow directly from the block as well. ADDING A HEADER HAS BEEN KNOWN TO CAUSE RASPY SOUNDS TO YOUR EXHAUST. Most people dont like that, and all the people who do drive past my house at 3am...either way the header is a good starting point for freeing more exhaust flow and adding a few horses. This shop carries a selection that is popular amongst people upgrading to a better flowing system- http://www.ptuning.com/html/online-saleswizard_.cfm .

Now the benefits of these mods are argued about over and over and over, most people think that they resonably add around 12-19 Horsepower to the car depending on your specific situation( Where you live, driving altitude, engine milage, gas used etc etc etc). The rest are the extremely vocal group I mentioned earlier who believe that this combination (Known as the H/I/E-Headers/Intake/Exhaust) put the tC in the running with a F-35 on the dragstrip, thier word is to be taken with a grain of salt. Basically it breaks down like this, people have good and bad experiance with every product and only the people that extremely love it, or extremely hate it post about it, everyone else just enjoys thier new part. And as my final note I want to reiterate DONT NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BY EBAY BRAND PARTS! Its better to wait a month to save the money for a good, long lasting part than spend a year paying on your credit card where your "Speeddeomns Cold Air Induction Unrestrictor" caused detonation in your engine. See below for an example;


http://www.px3auto.com/storefrontpro...84&dfid=1-This site looks real, it looks like a good site until you realize that the big white thing they are trying to sell is a bilge pump for ships and that the electronics in it are not designed to handle automotive strain. There are countless examples of the plastic fan in there coming off and breaking then the plastic getting sucked into the engine are ruining it. Just my advice on the subject, feel free to ask questions about anything to do with the cars, thats what we are here for.

[nealuss]

Thanks for the reply, that helps a lot. He eventually wants to go FI, but not anytime soon. He has a Bronco II that he is saving as a project that will have a 302 swapped in sometime in the near future. The tC is going to be a commuter for the most part, but like me, he is a gearhead and can't leave well enough alone. I know he wants to do intake and exhaust and add the factory spoiler, but that may be it for now. What tuning options do you guys recommend for these cars? I am more of a muscle guy, so I have handheld tuners, but are there options other than sending off your pcm for import tuning?

[StreetBrawler89]

My strongest advice to him would be that if he plans to only do the I/H/E route, dont worry about the computers. The tCs are equipped with a "Learning" ECU/M that will account for any moderate changes in intake and exhuast without the need to switchout to a standalone ECM or buy a piggyback system. Mainly for the 2AZ-FEs they only need new brains when you get into the Stage 2 or 3 camshafts and Forced Induction(and sometimes Nitrous) and start pumping through way more way than factory. But if for whatever reason he wants to upgrade the ECM any of the sites I mentioned above have awesome products for tuning.

[navylife59]

Welcome to the Club. We don't judge nor care that you do not own a Scion. We are here to help the Scion Community and any motor enthusiast no matter the make. We have a section just for Other Cars. It speaks volumes that you are out there, helping your bud, get the right information to help fix his/her car up. Feel free to browse around and ask questions. We will do our best to help you out. I would be interested in hearing about the 302 build as I am an old FoMoCo. Hey, it looks almost like a Bronco.

Good job with the info Streets. Glad to see you back on here.

[StreetBrawler89]

What he said.