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Im wondering if its worth investing in a flex fuel capable ECU if it gets more competitive to run E85 as a daily fuel rather than premium.

Sweet. At the moment e85 seems to be a very niche performance fuel rather than an economical alternative. Though why aren't fleets using the stuff where possible? Many new cars are flex fuel, plus you'd think government would or should have an environmental obligation if its a government run fleet.

You're a brave one for owning that.

I don't think the concern is your mechanical skills, it is the legal ramifications.

I didn't really proof read my question...just to clarify, I meant are your struts 1200nm per strut?

Also, be nice to the environment.

Is that figure per strut?

Im in the process of doing a full turbo back exhaust. If you're only looking to protect nearby non-metal surfaces, or painted metal, then it looks like only a few select heat shields are needed to keep those surfaces protected from radiation. Hoping to re-use and/or modify the original heat shields (off the front pipe, not the stock dump) for the new bell mouth dump/front pipe. I have some scraps of aluminium ventilation ducting which are made of curved and corrugated, decently thick aluminium. Should make an interesting heat shield material.

Plus my power goals are modest, my main interest in the exhaust is to help the turbo spool. Any exhaust will be in conjunction with a bell mouth dump and high flowing cat.

Thanks, I have also been interested in the Fujitsubo Legalis, but I can't find it for sale (online at least) and assumed that its no longer made for a C34

Any experiences with this exhaust? Is it quiet, or is there any droning? The only info I am finding is marketing blurbs which imply that is it good for general usage and highway driving, as the name would imply. I will have to check whether its a 3' exhaust though, I think it may be 2.75' The only hard comparison numbers I am finding are 91dB for a 350z and 93dB here: http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/topic/319936-the-ultimate-exhaust-sound-level-thread/

Which ones did you buy in the end? I have been interested in a HKS hi power silent. Its only a few hundred more than a mild steel custom exhaust. However, judging from hundreds of opinions, the HKS "silent" exhaust ranges from "can't hear it" to "sets off car alarms at idle". For that reason I haven't been willing to risk the coin on it.

Just been doing some further research on everything. I will update when I have installed a stiffer wastegate spring. Firstly, Stao, I have been reading the adaptronic site. Which ECU were you thinking would work with the auto stagea? Secondly, in terms of dump and front pipes, the opinion I am getting from SAU is that bellmouth dump pipes with a bend in the section just before the cat converter is the most likely to fit, as the ones with straight pipes touch the body, and split dumps interfere with nearby piping. Something like this should fit? http://justjap.com/index.php/jjr-mild-steel-3-bellmouth-front-dump-pipe-nissan-skyline-r32-r33.html I would prefer it in stainless, however it looks like it is a straight pipe to the cat: http://justjap.com/index.php/jjr-stainless-3-bellmouth-front-dump-pipe-nissan.html I will have to check with just jap whether it is a straight item.

I will certainly keep it in mind. It has been a long term plan. However, I will take small steps at a time. Now that I have seen a photo of the kinugawa wastegate actuator installed, I believe it is worth a shot first. Between the 0.8 bar it comes with, and an additional 0.5 bar spring, I will see if those make a difference. If the high-flow wastegate flap has more exhaust pressure forcing it open compared to a stock turbo, hopefully the 0.8 bar spring will make a tad less boost than that.

It would certainly seem like it. Even with a ball and spring valve MBC, the onset of boost is very gradual and reminds me of just plumbing the intercooler pipe straight into the wastegate. My wastegate is the 0.3 bar standard one. I have had my eyes on these for a while: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Kinugawa-Adjustable-Turbo-Wastegate-Actuator-Nissan-Skyline-RB25DET-R33-/291179923073?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item43cbad0681 Though judging by the shape of the bracket on it, I dont think it will attach without creating a new bracket. ie the Kinugawa looks like it sits flat on the front of the turbo, whereas in my picture above the stock has a right angle bracket...

I had the chance to take off the heat shield and its definitely a 21U housing. However, I cannot see how I can alter the wastegate at the flap side or the actuator side to add more preload. The position seems to be fixed. From memory, you also enlarged the wastegate hole, and the flap is larger? If that is so, could the additional surface area simply be overpowering the tension on the wastegate actuator? Photo is attached:

I don't believe so, however that is going to be a guess as the turbo is behind heat shields now. At the time I only ordered the regular R33 turbo/exhaust housing.

Im mainly trying to recover the lower rpm response and power.

Modest power goals. I can't imagine I would go past 12-14 psi

I purchased the standard profile R33 high flow from hypergear. Also I am out of my depth with the ECU side of things, apparently.

So a brief run down of where I am at on my S1 stagea: I replaced my worn turbo with a hypergear high flow unit last year, which added lag naturally, but more than I expected. I then added an MV shift kit, as a precautionary mod. Plus the trans works so much faster. However now I am looking towards some kind of tuneable ECU, which will probably have to be standalone since its an S1 auto. Before I look at that, I feel I should upgrade the stock exhaust. I would like something quiet though. In fact I wouldn't rule out anything as too quiet, I am just interested in maximising the performance of the turbo. What would be the best solution? Even second hand? Plus is it worth getting these ebay dump pipes? Such as this? http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/TOG-NISSAN-R32-R33-SKYLINE-RB20-RB25DET-GTST-R34-GTT-TURBO-EXHAUST-DUMP-PIPE-/181239134171?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2a32b1b7db Even though stainless steel is nice, mild steel would work for me. Im not concerned about looks either.

There is a "stage 1" valve body upgrade which I understand is aimed at towing purposes. Stage 2 is performance oriented with fast shifts. It may also be useful for towing as when I installed mine, MV autos explained that it increased the flow of the cooling systems, which would be aided by a larger cooler.

Everyone's gotta start somewhere.

I have always had the impression that Steve Sutcliffe gets paid to say certain things otherwise he doesn't get to drive super expensive cars. The way he constantly gushes on about cars he is reviewing seems fake to me.

The old MX6 was a great car with its turbo truck motor. It was almost like a diesel with its low end torque.