pixel8r

Cant get over those wheels!! they look HOT!! reminds me of an old saying: "the wheel maketh the chariot" - lol

Emanage might be worth looking into later then - wasn't aware of anyone running this successfully in an auto yet... Also I'm not sure an actuator is what I want to do - IMO this is just doing the same thing as having a good boost controller set to 1bar... and at the moment I dont have the supporting mods to run any higher than about 12psi (need better fuel pump, injectors?, fuel lines, brakes, SITC - just too expensive right now...). Dont really wanna make that jump until I can afford it which is several years away...(need to save for a home loan )

front bias awd - pfft... i dont care if it handles/performs better... its gotta be rear-bias and made by nissan...and with a turbo....and a RB engine is a plus...and ATTESA is awesome... i could go on

Haven't heard of a single person getting good results from the emanage on an auto stagea. The ones that have been done here in SA have had all sorts of problems including coilpacks packing up. SAFC's are used by a LOT of people on here and all with great results. Not sure how you can say they are inaccurate when you can run dyno after dyno showing a clear and clean AFR graph. They are set in 500rpm increments and will do a smooth blend between each point. Thats as much accuracy as you need - any more points would not be noticeable in real life anyway. All they do is modify the AFM signal - so no big task, and they handle that very well. They have limits to how much they can adjust because it will affect ignition timing - but coupled with a SITC they can be tuned VERY well. It may not be as clever as a full computer but IMHO a full replacement computer will never be as good/nice overall as the stock ECU. It may give more performance and efficiency but as far as all the features programmed into a standard factory ecu, it wont do all the same things. Apparently factory ecu's are a LOT more complex than the aftermarket ones. Take that how you will - I'm more talking about keeping the car as nice to drive for a daily driver as possible. My car is purring at the moment - runs like a dream. Was just after a hopefully cheap improvement to turbo spool-up time. IMO the Apexi SITC is probably the best way for me to do that. Many people have managed 200+awkw using the SAFC & SITC combo. I'm not that interested in pushing my max power up, more just to optimize lag as much as possible without replacing my turbo...(i'm not at all unhappy with the turbo).

RB25Neo (s2 stagea) auto (tiptronic) SAFC: SAFC (blue screen, but with buttons) GearBox: AT Turbo: GT30 using R34 turbo exhaust housing. Exhauset: 3" Turbo back Air Filter: Apexi panel air filter Injectors: Factory Intercooler: Factory (same as R34 SMIC) Fuel Reg: No Fuel Pump: Factory Boost Controller: JRD (off ebay - same type as turbotech) manual boost controller - set to 12psi. BOV: Factory 157.9 awkw (if I remove the front tailshaft to make it rwd, it would be 177.9rwkw) @9psi (boost fades to 9psi at top end). This was on a ~35 deg day so I like to say ~160awkw to make it a round number....for what its worth

So can I gather from the responses that the stock air intake does not pose any restriction? I was of the understanding (or hoping) that maybe a bigger snorkel or improved intake piping (ie. in front of the airbox) or heat shielding may make a noticeable improvement...

I should also add that my GT30 is mated to the stock exhaust housing (same as R34 - i have a s2 stagea which has the same engine, turbo, and auto gearbox as the r34). This apparently gives it better response. Here's a pic of my latest dyno graph - 160awkw (or if I remove the front tailshaft to make it rwd, that would be 180rwkw). My mods are listed in my sig. Hope this helps. Also note the boost level at max kw - its only running about 9psi at that point, so thats a good figure for such low boost. Give it 14-15psi of boost and it will really sing. I'd love to boost mine higher but I'd need too many things to get there (intercooler, fuel pump, maybe fuel pressure regulators?, and maybe better fuel lines & brakes, not really worth it). I'd be happy just to have 12psi right to the redline...

yeah its auto. a SITC is on the shopping list however... not using a bleed valve, its a JRD manaul boost controller off ebay - same concept as the turbotech mbc. It restricts pressure to the wastegate, rather than bleeding it off, so therefore building boost quicker and more reliable than a bleed valve. search for $22 boost controller in this forum...was near the top a few days ago... I really think the SITC is required for the tuning side of things. The SAFC has improved the mid-range a bit but I think lag-gains are mainly achieved with the SITC... Would the stock snorkel be sucking in hot air? I'd be happy to rig up a CAI if there was going to be a noticeable improvement in intake air temps...

I got 10.7L/100km on the highway with a stock stagea (250kg heavier than said r33 s2). Now its modified & tuned and has gotten as good as 9L/100km on the highway, although it generally averages about 10/100km. City driving it averages 11.5-13L/100km. Still, as far as stock specs go, take the fuel economy and 1/4 mile times as a very rough estimate. Especially australian built/delivered cars - the fuel economy figures are usually a tad optimistic.

As mentioned in my sig, I do have a SAFC, which was tuned by boostworx here in SA. Please expand on what you mean by good cold air intake...is this as simple as re-routing the intake piping from the front of the airbox?

Hi guys, This one isn't about what turbo to buy, as turbo lag affects pretty much all turbos, to various degrees. I'm actually after some fairly general info on things that can be done (hopefully inexpensive!!) to reduce turbo lag or increase low-end power/response. Some things I have thought of so far are: * 3" exhaust with good flowing dump pipe - I already have a custom 3" turbo-back exhaust, and it made a HUGE improvement to turbo-lag and response. Q: Would wrapping it in heat-wrap stuff help at all? particularly the dump pipe off the turbo? Also the stock turbo heat shield had to be removed to fit the exhaust - should I be looking at creating a heat shield to replace it? * Cold Air Intake - This is the main one I want to investigate. I'm guessing if I can either open up the air intake a bit or make sure the only air entering the intake is cold air, then this should have a positive affect on overall response. Wondering if any heat shielding or heat wrap could be used on intake piping to improve things here as well? I've heard of people using pvc or flexible aluminium piping running into the airbox, or even multiple cold air intakes into the airbox? This would be fairly cheap to do I imagine...but does it bring results? Other things to reduce lag are: *Apexi SITC (super ignition timing computer/converter) - these are hard to find, but can be very effective in reducing lag (i dont have one yet...) * EBC - apparently a good boost controller can also build boost quicker and hold it better etc. I do have a turbotech-style manual boost controller which works well for boost build-up. Thats about all I can think of, other than actually replacing the turbo etc. - let me know if you can think of any relatively inexpensive ways of improving the low end for turbo RB cars. For the record I have a GT30/hybrid (standard R34 exhaust housing I think) fitted by ATS (Adelaide Turbo Services). Boost is first noticeable at ~2500rpm and full boost is around 4000rpm, although it comes on hard around 3000-3500rpm.

If you're after minimal turbo lag I'd suggest something SMALLER than even a GT30. I have a GT30 on my stagea (with 3" exhaust, and 12psi boost for now) and it is a touch laggy. In a lighter car (skyline) the lag would be less noticeable but I would still suggest a GCG highflow (GT28) would give similar power for the same or less money for what you need. The GT30 will give more potential as far as top end kw but ask yourself how far you want to go? There are other things you can do to minimize lag, but these options (ie. cold air intake, Apexi SITC and others) would apply with any turbo - therefore the smaller turbo would still give less lag. A good EBC may improve spool-up times as well. On the other hand, a slightly more laggy turbo like the GT30 will likely give you better fuel economy for city driving whilst still giving you very nice mid-range and top end performance. However you'll also find that to get the best from a GT30, you'll probably want to run it at 15-16psi, whereas a smaller turbo like a GT28 will be more efficient and more responsive at say 10-15psi. I'm no expert btw, just hope I can give some pointers because I have a GT30 and whilst I generally like its performance and response, others have had better results from a GCG highflow. To give an idea, with my GT30, boost starts to build up at 2500rpm and hits full boost (currently 12psi) around 4000rpm. It comes on strong around 3000-3500rpm and will hold boost right through to the redline without any worries. People who have a GCG highflow often report that it has similar lag to the stock turbo, if only slightly more.

Nissan's have always been very conservative in stock form. Even the GT-R's, although relatively fast and responsive, are still far from running at their peak performance. Just a thought, how would stagea's compare to the above list when modified to reach their full potential on stock internals (eg. you can get at least 50% more power out of them without severely impacting long-term reliability and driveability). The mechanical weaknesses I hear so often regarding subaru's would put me off for life! plus i've never been a fan of suv's - maybe that will change one day...but for now i'm happy with the stagea.

Just thought I'd add my 2c with regards to the low ODO readings... As others may have said, try to ignore the kms and go by the overall condition of the car, particularly wear and tear in the interior, and also the usual stuff under the bonnet - oil leaks etc. & check under the car around the front etc. Another thing to note is that even if by some chance it HAS only done 30,000kms, it would therefore mean its been sitting doing nothing for a long time. Its possible the car may have been owned for only 3 years (most japanese cars are sold every 3 years due to registration costs apparently? something like that) and then ended up in a car yard for the rest of its life. So either its done more km's than it claims to have done, OR its been sitting around for about 4+ years. Either way its not going to be like new. Still, they are a very reliable car so as long as you check it out first and if importing it then go for at least auction grade 4, then you'll likely be fine. Good luck with it, and post some pics when you make your purchase

You need to press the button in the centre console (near where the handbrake would normally go) that has a picture of a steering wheel on it. This button is used to turn the steering wheel buttons on/off. A little pic of a steering wheel will light up on your dash. Also you need to be in tiptronic mode for it to work. It will not let you change gears manually (either with the gear lever or the steering wheel buttons) unless you are in tiptronic mode. The gear you are in will then also show on the dash. Hope this works for you

probably wasn't me then. Haven't been down hindley st for a long while... Normally when I'm heading through town I go via currie/grenfell..

Not sure if this counts, but in a lightly modded (maybe even stock?) stagea with the same/similar awd setup to the R33 GTR, it is quite easy to get the rears to lose traction around a corner, however the front wheels will pull it back into line very quickly. In my experience it hasn't stepped out very far, but then I wasn't trying to drift either. And IMO what I have described above is not exactly drifting, or at least not in a big way. The back will step out if you hit boost as you go round the corner but ATTESA will usually do all in its power to correct it. The R34 AWD system has some improvements over the R33 one, so I really cant comment on the original question exactly. I would be surprised if an R33 or R34 GTR could actually HOLD a drift for any length of time.

I tried Shell V power and wasn't that happy with it. Maybe I needed to retune the car for it? dunno... Seemed to run richer, fuel economy was no different, couldn't tell if power was any better/worse, and it seemed to run a bit louder/not as smooth. Switched back to bp ultimate 98 and car seemed to run a bit smoother/nicer. I have been wondering if every car is different, or if it depends on what fuel was in the car when it was tuned? or something like that. In any case, there wasn't a lot of difference, I just find I'm more comfortable with bp - plus even with the 4c/L discount I often wasn't paying any less than with bp (noticed in my area shell was often at least 2-4c/L more expensive than bp on average anyway - incidently I HATE the fuel discount systems for this reason).

Sounds good. Keep us posted. An Adelaide Stagea cruise is DEFINITELY long overdue!! Will need to organise one sometime - Let us know when your car arrives in Adelaide To my knowledge there hasn't been a Stagea-only cruise in Adelaide thus far... In any case you are more than welcome on any SAU cruises/meets etc. - these are usually organised in the SA section. For a stagea-only cruise/meet/photoshoot etc. - i'm guessing it would probably be better to organise it here in the Stagea section Stageaharts - enjoy the new Stagea!!! and its great to see another stag in SA. Just out of interest, do you live North or South?

between the motors? no (well at least on paper). I'm not aware of any difference between the two (although there likely are some minor differences), maybe someone else might have some info? Obviously the difference between the cars is that the stagea is ~250kg heavier and awd.

hmmm, what year? redbook has them at 92kw which seems much more likely. for the record, 2L s13 silvia na is about 105kw and most cars in this class (including older celicas) are under 115kw More recent celicas have 140kw which is a bit nicer but the gripe I have with almost all n/a cars is that it takes you all year to actually reach the redline. No better way to feed your engine than a turbo IMO. n/a is like running along with your mouth open lol

The Stagea S1's were detuned a little, only 173kw in stock form. Not sure what actual difference there is however (the s2 was not detuned and has the same specs as the r34 rb25det neo).

This is not about kw or max power, its more about average power, response and mainly suspension setup, as others have said. vvti, vtec whatever are all well and good for the cars they are in but most of the smaller cars mentioned are ONLY any good because they dont weigh much. Show me a vtec engine with decent torque - they have very good kw but not a lot of torque. They are great in a very lightweight car but put one in a 1650kg wagon and see how fast it isn't (oops, offtopic, the stagea is not exactly going to win any hills driving competitions either lol!). I guess what i'm saying is its not about the engine so much in this case. Its more about how good your car handles and performs as an overall package. Is it the lighter, FWD, slower car, or the much quicker yet heavier, RWD car? it could go either way if you can see what I'm saying. On the other hand, turbo's aren't all that great for hills driving unless they are responsive, and have very minimal or no lag (so a big turbo giving a nice big max kw figure isn't that helpful if its laggy)....and then there's the element as mentioned before about the driver's willingness to risk their life pushing their car to the limit. As a side note: Nissan's VCT (or whatever its called now) may not be exactly on par with toyota/honda, but they still put out a lot of power compared to others in their class. Latest Nissan 350Z = 230kw & 360N-m. RB25DE neo - 145kw (cant remember what torque it had, not huge but ok for 2.5L n/a engine!!), VQ25DE = ~160kw!! Still not sure if this thread is about *theoretically* what car is quicker through the hills or in reality who is more likely to push their car harder through the hills (and take risks). Cant really answer that one...but if it was me I'd be letting the celica go right ahead (i like my car / safety too much ) What if we took the physical hills (ie. the danger aspect) out of the equation and put it on a track with same corners/slopes etc. - would that change anything? I think it would.

There are just too many factors in this argument... For a start the roads in the hills are all 1 lane each way and depending on whereabouts it is, there are very few places to overtake. It also depends on the skills of either driver, as others have mentioned. When I drive through the hills I'm always over-cautious so I dont push the limits on corners etc. BUT if we assume the drivers have equal ability and the cars are as described, then the skyline would walk all over it.

Would this method build boost at the same speed as a stock setup though? Not sure if its only at high boost but apparently the wastegate will sort of creep open with a stock setup, whereas with the turbotech controller or an IEBC the wastegate is kept closed (ie. it sees no pressure) right up until the desired boost is reached... This is one reason I opted for the manual boost controller, its cheap, AND it (apparently) builds boost a bit quicker. (actually, I'd love a SITC to reduce lag even further).