Turbo upgrade discussion

[DeadFly]

i’m thinking about doing a turbo upgrade and wanted to know what everyone is running, what kind of driving you do mostly, and how your setup is working out for you.

i’ve been doing a lot of reading and am leaning towards either the whoosh hybrid or the TT S280, i do a ton of freeway and city driving for work but i am very tame in those environments as the last thing i need is another ticket. I mostly get frisky in large swooping turns and in the tight twisties on windy mountain roads, from what i hear the whoosh will better suit me in sharp corners with a fast spool but the s280 would likely be more fun in wider turns.

i would also like to hear about your downpipe, cold/hot side, intercooler, and injector selections!

currently have a mountune radiator as the only mod planned in the immediate future so i have plenty of time to ponder, but tax season is about to go crazy so we’ll see if i have any money left after my other projects get their fix!

Also, i’m not new to the forum but forgot my old login info so i made a new account.

 

[arethirtytwo]

I’m new here as well. Curious to hear others chime in on this.

currently stock turbo with intercooler, downpipe, cat back, intake, stratified tuned and car runs strong. Yet there is always a more want, so again curious what others inputs are on their setups. From my research, the S280 sound like the way to go if you are looking to change the character of the power band, the hybrids will basically have similar power band characteristics yet on steroids.

 

[dhminer]

Hybrid will be basically the same powerband as stock but way more of it. There is more top end too with some of the larger hybrids like x47 or whoosh. If it were my daily, I’d go for a whoosh hybrid all day and minimal supporting mods.

 

[Mega ST]

Def read through some of the threads on here comparing the S280 and Whoosh Hybrid and the threads about each turbo itself. I'm going with a Whoosh Hybrid personally after much thinking and research for what I want.

 

[DeadFly]

I’

Hybrid will be basically the same powerband as stock but way more of it. There is more top end too with some of the larger hybrids like x47 or whoosh. If it were my daily, I’d go for a whoosh hybrid all day and minimal supporting mods.

I’ve read that the whoosh gets kinda sketchy as you approach 300 whp, and that some users wouldnt trust the housing on the x47 with over that. Realistically i’d likely be happy with closer to 300 but anything over and i’d start to be questioning longevity of internals; i got my FiST in late June with 46k and have already clocked another 30k miles for reference

theres also a lot of hearsay about pumaspeed fixing issues lurking around an older model of the x47, if anyone is currently running a setup with this i’d like to hear back, i’d likely go whoosh and take the power L but the price on the x47 is really hard to argue with

 

[TyphoonFiST]

What are your end goals? What is your budget? Remember its too much torque down low that kills input shafts and engines in these cars* If i was you i would go S280. See how you like it. If you want more power add Aux fuel single or 4 port Aux or Bigger injectors and HPFP or hell even a combo of them. Remember that these engines can't clean the intake valves with fuel due to being Direct injection* So Aux fuel in single or 4 port will alleviate the build up significantly over time Vs just OEM Direct Injection. In the end It comes down to how much you are willing to spend and maintain. Its your build do as you wish..A lot of us have been where your sitting so feel free to ask questions even though some is opinion and others is from Experience. Good luck and god speed!

But* If price isn't any option go Garrett Peron ...Infamous DHM kits or Worfab Xona rotor sidewinder Kit. Check those all Out and understand the quality of those kits is so choice and Well thought out. No Mickey Mouse Bullshit either.

 

[dhminer]

I’


I’ve read that the whoosh gets kinda sketchy as you approach 300 whp, and that some users wouldnt trust the housing on the x47 with over that. Realistically i’d likely be happy with closer to 300 but anything over and i’d start to be questioning longevity of internals; i got my FiST in late June with 46k and have already clocked another 30k miles for reference

theres also a lot of hearsay about pumaspeed fixing issues lurking around an older model of the x47, if anyone is currently running a setup with this i’d like to hear back, i’d likely go whoosh and take the power L but the price on the x47 is really hard to argue with

It really depends what your power goal is. You won’t get to 300whp on the stock fuel system, so if you’re not planning on upgrading it, there’s no reason to avoid the hybrid. S280 and all the rest give you a lot more headroom. I’m an S280 hater after reading a couple of failure reports, but lots of folks here run them without issue. It’s the best of both worlds - quick spool and pulls to the top of the rev range. It’s technically a hybrid as well, albeit a much larger one with a bespoke compressor housing.

 

[Mega ST]

What are your end goals? What is your budget? Remember its too much torque down low that kills input shafts and engines in these cars* If i was you i would go S280. See how you like it. If you want more power add Aux fuel single or 4 port Aux or Bigger injectors and HPFP or hell even a combo of them. Remember that these engines can't clean the intake valves with fuel due to being Direct injection* So Aux fuel in single or 4 port will alleviate the build up significantly over time Vs just OEM Direct Injection. In the end It comes down to how much you are willing to spend and maintain. Its your build do as you wish..A lot of us have been where your sitting so feel free to ask questions even though some is opinion and others is from Experience. Good luck and god speed!

But* If price isn't any option go Garrett Peron ...Infamous DHM kits or Worfab Xona rotor sidewinder Kit. Check those all Out and understand the quality of those kits is so choice and Well thought out. No Mickey Mouse Bullshit either.

How much torque and how low? In my old age I've grown to like the low end torque of the quicker responding turbos and don't mind some loss of steam up top. I'm shifting before 6K anyway with my current stock turbo and driving style which is mostly short bursts and highway cruising. Having driven my friends stage 1 STI, though the power was linear and pulled harder after 4krpm, I seriously missed the low end grunt of the FiST. It feels more lively. He (STI guy) prefers my power band also. I'm going with the Whoosh for my current wants.

 

[DeadFly]

What are your end goals? What is your budget? Remember its too much torque down low that kills input shafts and engines in these cars*

my end goal is a car that i can put a ton of miles on in one year with limited* (i dont say minimal because i know there will be some with extra hp) issues, that still gets at or close to 30 mpg, and is a lot more fun on twisty roads with short straightaways. As far as budget, my tax return averages around 7k each year, and this will be happening with next years return so i will have plently of time to compile a wishlist.

i should note that in the distant future, i will be swapping out the oem block for a mountune race block, so while the smaller hybrid turbo’s may be plenty for now and for a while before then, once that is done this build will go crazy but this would be years down the road. It may be smarter to do the s280 now so there will be some overlap in potential, but it also may be easier on the wallet to just go with a smaller hybrid now and sell it when i want to go bigger.

in short, all options are considered, and i mostly want a reliable daily that can also put stock WRXs’ tails between their legs i’d be extra happy to be able to sh*t on STI’s, but i also know it’d be getting risky with how much this car gets driven

 

[DeadFly]

Also, let us all know what you’re running! I dont want this thread to be just about me, but so other newbies like me can see what everyone runs, and how they like it so they can start their own wishlist as well!

 

[Dpro]

How much torque and how low? In my old age I've grown to like the low end torque of the quicker responding turbos and don't mind some loss of steam up top. I'm shifting before 6K anyway with my current stock turbo and driving style which is mostly short bursts and highway cruising. Having driven my friends stage 1 STI, though the power was linear and pulled harder after 4krpm, I seriously missed the low end grunt of the FiST. It feels more lively. He (STI guy) prefers my power band also. I'm going with the Whoosh for my current wants.

I have driven a Whoosh hybrid and the TQ down low is stupid silly. IMO it makes for great fun and good times for a minute then it would just get old. It will hook up a bit quicker off the line than my S280 but I will take it after that with my S280. I have no regrets on my S280 and have driven the stock car with a tune back to back to my S280 . At low end the S280 feels exactly like a stock FiST with a tune though once you get above 2800-3k it just pulls like a freight train clear up to redline in fact if you don’t shift you will bounce off the rev limiter it pulls so hard. If you tune for E30 you get the exact same low end donkey kick the Hybrids deliver as well. Ask me how I know🤣.

In other words the only thing the S280 on stock fueling does not have is the low end donkey kick hybrids have. Otherwise it’s the perfect Jeckel Hyde Turbo for street use as you can drive the car like a stock FiST at lower rpms and then surprise people all day long with just a tap of the gas. Oh and yes it embarrass cars much faster than a FiST. It really ruined driving stock FiST’s for me, they just feel abysmal when you give them gas in comparison. Oh and ya for me at least it’s addictive.

 

[DeadFly]

It really depends what your power goal is. You won’t get to 300whp on the stock fuel system, so if you’re not planning on upgrading it,

i’m looking at making 310whp MAX for now, at least until the car can be retired from daily service a couple years down the road. I would be planning on doing injectors at minimum for this build, i’ve read the stock hpfp can handle up to that number before any serious suffering starts to happen. Other supporting mods would be intercooler, downpipe, st200, 6 point brace, BOV, and tune, and my car already has a wickedflow cat back that came with it when bought used

 

[Dpro]

i’m looking at making 310whp MAX for now, at least until the car can be retired from daily service a couple years down the road. I would be planning on doing injectors at minimum for this build, i’ve read the stock hpfp can handle up to that number before any serious suffering starts to happen. Other supporting mods would be intercooler, downpipe, st200, 6 point brace, BOV, and tune, and my car already has a wickedflow cat back that came with it when bought used

Sounds like you want a S280 based on what you wrote above. You can tap almost 300whp on a S280 E30 tune base map and 340wtq. on stock fuel. If you want to tune you need to add injectors which you are already talking about. At that point you will hit around 330whp.

 

[dhminer]

If you’re going all out on a mountune block then you gotta go for a Peron or WOR externally gated kit. I have Peron’s G25 kit but I’d go to WOR for a Xona if I were in your shoes. Will is awesome and will be a massive help getting the kit to be exactly what you want. You also might hit up Ron to see if he has a g25 kit lying around still. They were never fast moving items but it’s a great turbo for this engine.

 

[DeadFly]

If you’re going all out on a mountune block then you gotta go for a Peron or WOR externally gated kit

i’d be going with a mountune block a few years in the future, but not any time really soon. I put around 600 miles a week on the car as it is still my daily as of now, i figure i’ll drive it till this block goes and then upgrade

now with that being said, this is definitely useful information for future future reference!

 

[DeadFly]

Sounds like you want a S280 based on what you wrote above. You can tap almost 300whp on a S280 E30 tune base map and 340wtq. on stock fuel. If you want to tune you need to add injectors which you are already talking about. At that point you will hit around 330whp.

What would you estimate i’d be making to the wheels if i were to go with the s280, injectors, v1 intercooler, 3” downpipe, and a 91 tune? I’d go e30 but with how busy it gets with work, and considering i use it for an on the road, remote work job, it makes more sense to be able to just stop at any gas station

 

[dhminer]

What would you estimate i’d be making to the wheels if i were to go with the s280, injectors, v1 intercooler, 3” downpipe, and a 91 tune? I’d go e30 but with how busy it gets with work, and considering i use it for an on the road, remote work job, it makes more sense to be able to just stop at any gas station

275-285whp and the same torque

 

[DeadFly]

275-285whp and the same torque

still, a great improvement over stock. Would an x47 make the same numbers with same supporting mods/tune?

 

[Williamson]

What would you estimate i’d be making to the wheels if i were to go with the s280, injectors, v1 intercooler, 3” downpipe, and a 91 tune? I’d go e30 but with how busy it gets with work, and considering i use it for an on the road, remote work job, it makes more sense to be able to just stop at any gas station

Injectors with no HPFP and on 91-93 is generally regarded not to be a power gain or very minimal per most tuners I see. It doesn't sound like a bad idea to get it done (As the injectors are working less of their max capacity) but it's something to keep in mind. That said it sounds like you're a lot less cash strapped than I am, and they're really not all that expensive to add. I'm currently S280 on 92, CPe intercooler, 3" catted downpipe, etc and it is stupid fun. Tons of usable power down low so long as you're not sitting under 2k and as mentioned the revs pick up and just go. I was stuck in near stop and go traffic earlier today and sitting in second gear it will pin you to your seat if you give it the beans, no problems there. Definitely spoiled me on a stock FiST, having initially had some buyer's (Tuner's?) remorse about it, I can't see any reason to go back. If it were to be a full time race car maybe I'd consider a 2860 like some others have done and think very highly of, but for a daily making your boost at 4k is just too high imo.

The only things I'd consider to budget in is an LSD (Your pick but the most common are MFactory and Wavetrac, I have a Wavetrac waiting to be installed personally) and a Clarke transmission at some point. It doesn't sound like the Clarke upgrades are a dire need, but S280 power also seems to put a decent bit of wear on the stock transmissions per what I've seen here and elsewhere. I'm sure someone can correct me or better address that

EDIT: I should add that on this setup tuned with Dizzy, Vdyno clocks me at ~255 whp at 6242 rpm. I'm hoping to pick those numbers up closer to the 275-285 (Really as close to 300 as I can get) mark since I'm still using both the stock intake AND the stock filter. It's still plenty of power in this car though.

 

[Dpro]

[

Injectors with no HPFP and on 91-93 is generally regarded not to be a power gain or very minimal per most tuners I see. It doesn't sound like a bad idea to get it done (As the injectors are working less of their max capacity) but it's something to keep in mind. That said it sounds like you're a lot less cash strapped than I am, and they're really not all that expensive to add. I'm currently S280 on 92, CPe intercooler, 3" catted downpipe, etc and it is stupid fun. Tons of usable power down low so long as you're not sitting under 2k and as mentioned the revs pick up and just go. I was stuck in near stop and go traffic earlier today and sitting in second gear it will pin you to your seat if you give it the beans, no problems there. Definitely spoiled me on a stock FiST, having initially had some buyer's (Tuner's?) remorse about it, I can't see any reason to go back. If it were to be a full time race car maybe I'd consider a 2860 like some others have done and think very highly of, but for a daily making your boost at 4k is just too high imo.

The only things I'd consider to budget in is an LSD (Your pick but the most common are MFactory and Wavetrac, I have a Wavetrac waiting to be installed personally) and a Clarke transmission at some point. It doesn't sound like the Clarke upgrades are a dire need, but S280 power also seems to put a decent bit of wear on the stock transmissions per what I've seen here and elsewhere. I'm sure someone can correct me or better address that

EDIT: I should add that on this setup tuned with Dizzy, Vdyno clocks me at ~255 whp at 6242 rpm. I'm hoping to pick those numbers up closer to the 275-285 (Really as close to 300 as I can get) mark since I'm still using both the stock intake AND the stock filter. It's still plenty of power in this car though.

Ah no my my tuner has dyno proven 30-40whp gain on just injectors on a S280 setup with E30. You can run a E30 base map on stock fueling but you can’t tune it . I have run a E30 base map and pulled 340wtq and a hair under. 300whp on stock fueling.
While Dizzy is a good tuner I think Adam @Tune+ has the S280 dialed. Oh and Westly Lovelace the guy who bought Ron’s S280 powered car and has national drag records is also using Tune+.