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Mad questions about setting up my r32.


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Hello,

I'm still waiting on a r32 to come in (somewhere in the pacific ocean) - and as many have probably noticed I been asking alotta questions recently.

I've so far decided on these mods almost straight away -

- 3" pipes - dump pipe, hi flow cat, exhaust.

- lightened flywheel with 'organic'(?) clutch/heavy duty clutch

- whiteline the works kit plus pineapples and possibly the options (don't know if the options are too hardcore.. advice please?)

- CAI + airbox

- 1.5 LSD + HICAS lock kit (do i need the lock kit if i have the LSD?)

- FMIC - still deciding if it's necessary .. apperantly it's not necessary for the power that I'm looking for

- engine management of some sort - standalone or piggy back still no idea

The use of my car will be -

- road use (sleeper, no BOV or crazy huge bodykits but focus on handling and enjoying to drive)

- occasional track days - would definately love to go and play on the track with you guys out there

- light drift fun - can't realistically drift on the road and can't realistically afford the tyres but would like to rip it up on a track day if the opportunity arises. I recognise the fact I can't setup for drift and expect the best performance on road where 90-95% of the driving will occur so I would lean towards street setup.

Future upgrades to car (on top of these listed) -

- mild cams?

- bore?

- bigger turbz or hi flow?

Ultimate aim -

- Have a real grand tourer

- Torque .. i used to drive a 351. High range vs torque gimme torque please!!

- Not crazy fuel consumption ... so crazy injectors and hardcore boost etc are out

- Good tune. ie. setup the car to get the most from what you have. I can't just throw money at it to fix the problems cos I don't have the money :D

If anyone still is reading (thank you!) :) ... my questions are -

1. What ECU should I be looking at (to achieve what I have defined)?

My head hurts from reading this forum about this topic.. it seems application (as it should) decides what system people chose. I was initially looking at the apexi pfc because everyone has one (safety in numbers). But the e-manage seems to have a lot going for it.

I have a laptop and don't like the fact that apexi tuners need crazy-proprietry software). What should I be looking at getting?

2. Aftermarket turbz vs hi flow?

I'd like torque. I don't care for figures on dynos (although they are nice). I drive on the road but I would like track car behaviour with road economy sanity thrown in. I'm not sure if that makes sense but could someone suggest something to get power?

Also what would I need to upgrade in the engine for safety of engine/peice of mind?

3. Suspension

I think the whiteline kit, from reading and from looking seems to the best. It seems to be a whole package that does very well (even comparing to what one could shop for seperately) and it seems like it could be tweaked for the future (ie. should I get different wheels or something).

What is everyone's opinion of this? Would it be better to buy the parts seperate? I LOVE handling and I LOVE cars that reward drivers for technical driving.

Thank you for reading if you have made it this far. I really appreciate any constructive input and advice. I have lurked on these forums for a long time before posting - but in the end I think what I have learnt the most is that everything differs on application, and so I'm hoping to learn to make my own decisions so one day I don't have to be spoonfed. :Oops:

Anyways - thanks again for reading this.

;)

PS - I should probably say is 200kw too much to be looking for just to street around ? (I think that's where I'd be aiming.. jsut enough to take off on v8's at track meets and STIs etc but not to kill myself/get arrested) :D

ta!

:headspin:

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1. Get a ROM remap.

2. Probably find a 2nd hand 2530 or 2535, although the high flow is no bad thing.

3. Find yourself a decent set of 2nd hand coil overs and get some aftermarket bushes.

You'll find that these recommendations are more cost effective as opposed to your original plans. But this is just my opinion.

Good luck mate! ;)

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there's no need for an LSD on normal street usage...but that's up to you. You don't need a hicas locking kit if you want drift action, it just makes it a little bit harder to do so.

GTS-t or GT-R? if it's a R then you won't need to worry about a FMIC as the stock one is very good.

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well, a tuned ROM is a good option. they solder a chip onto ur stock computer which allows them to burn a new map onto the chip on ur ecu.

this is really all ull need if ur not planning to constantly play with it. u can even do it so that u have several maps and change between them with a switch even on a tuned ROM. however yes if u have one simple map u want to use u can just use that one.

otherwise when choosing between the other 2 PFC and Greddy, check which has the best local support and a tuner who you trust/other trust, then compare features and see which you think you'll need. PFC just seem good coz theres alot of local support for them.

if u want to do track work and drift you probably should upgrade to an aftermarket LSD. however stock viscous are crap, so u want a mechanical. it is reasonabley easy to get replacement mechanical centres for GTS-T diffs. however, mechanicals are usualy quite noisy and clunky especialy 2nd hand ones, so maybe irritating for daily use. but will be much more reliable on a track/drift/serious situation. will go 2 wheel all the time for a long time!

hi flow turbos seem to be notoriously laggy in general it seems? anyway, hi flows are always a bit of an unknown. turbos such as been mentioned already, 2530, 2535 an 2540 all are good for torque/response and still making pretty good power figures too. those turbos are rated from about 300-340rwhp or so respectively.

cams cant hurt, and will depending on wat specs they are and things, help spool the turbo up even faster which will help torque too. however a bit of lag is sometimes good to avoid too much wheelspin if boost kicks in angrily.

depending how u go, u may need upgraded injectors but u can see that on a dyno. fuel consumption will depend on ur right foot pretty much! even with bigger injectors and turbo and cams, if u dont plant it it wont be boosting and it will be fairly good on fuel. but if u go to a track day or the like expect fuel to go down fairly quick. but to make power u need fuel so its a bit like that!

finally suspension wise id say your probably on the right track goign the whiteline package. this is mroe suited to australian road conditions and also track conditions. coilover suspension from japan is shock and spring unit in one, height adjustable and usually damper and camber adjustable too. however, generally too stiff and higher spring rates than is best for australia.

id say talk to the whiteline guys about your expectations from your car handling wise and see wat tehy say about extra options. probably best to go for the whiteline package and dsee how it is, take it to a track day etc, then see if u feel it is lacking somehow and ask them what to do about it.

as for the HICAS, it gets a big thumbs down across the board in every respect but low speed driving round bends and in carparks! i would say lock this regardless. it just adds unwanted interference when pushing the car hard. LSD or not, HICAS is a hinderance more than a help especially on a track.

oh and finally an FMIC is always a good investment, even if you just get a slightly larger one, or try and front-mount the one you have cheaply using some piping, bit that may be wasted effort.

FMIC will be a good idea for track work on hot days. and in addition, though it doesnt add a great deal of overal power, it definately will add a fairly large amount of mid range torque. so it may be a good investment for you. especially if you are going a bigger turbo like a 2540 or watever, which will benefit from the lower inlet temperatures. r32 intercooler kits arent too hard to get so may be worth the money. maybe moreso than an aftermarket LSD, unless your standard one is playing up (1 wheeling) straight away.

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Thanks Ant thats a very detailed and insightful response!

Exactly the type of stuff I was after - I appreciate it mate it gives me a lot to think about!

Are there any specific advantages to having coilovers with all those settings adjustable in the unit ? ie does it save you money as you don't ahve to get other parts or is it very much application specific ?

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well the coilovers are good since they have height, damper and camber settings in one. however if you are getting the whiteline stuff you will be able to acheive all the adjustability anyway just through the parts that they provide i would say. im not too sure of the specifics of the kits, but you can choose damper adjustable shock absorbers, and then have adjustable camber tops fitted which will allow you to adjust not only camber (like jap units) but also castor aswell as the top mount can be moved around the entire inside area of your strut tower. so these tops will provide more adjustment than a jap coilover.

the only real thing you will lose out on is the height adjustment as you will have normal shocks with spring on a perch on the shock. other than that your whiteline kit will work out overall more adjustable than jap coilovers.

pple tend to get jap coilovers as theyre cheap and can lower the car alot, and are adjustable enough to get reasonable results without having to get other bits. (but if you get the whiteline works kit you will probably already get all the extra adjustable parts anyway).

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yep damper is the depression rating of the shock. so just basically how hard or soft you want it! adjustable front units usualy have a little thing on the top which u turn from like 1-5 from softest to hardest.

rear units usually have a small knob about 3/4 way down the shock absorber shaft, so u just have to reach under the car and turn that one in the same way to set up rear damper.

an yeh, no worries for the info dude =]

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