[anandpadhye]

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Depends on car to car, in the TSI it goes a bit higher than the redline to 7000rpm. But it some cars the engine does get cut at the redline.

OK, so in TSi, 6500 is like a visual warning and 7000 is hard cut-off?

[prithwi-81]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

OK, so in TSi, 6500 is like a visual warning and 7000 is hard cut-off?

ECU Defined Redline is 6800rpm. Tach shows it at 6500rpm, but u can go a bit beyond that to 6800. The car can rev to 7500-7600 freely in certain cases, (which is the engineered limit), but that only happens if u accidentally downshift. Under normal acceleration the limit is set at 6800.

What this means for us enthusiasts, is that the 6800 limit is due to the powerband of the small turbo. If we do go for a bigger turbo, theoretically we should be able to push the rpm upto 7500 to exploit the powerband that is available there.

[prithwi-81]

Finalized the next mod- B14s to be installed before the track day on 10th March.
Power to be kept stock at this session. Will report the timing difference. I expect to maintain more speeds on corner entry, leading to atleast 0.5 to 1 sec difference in the exits.

Final Setup for Time Trial #2

-Stock Everything
-Milltek Sport Cat Back, non resonated.
-Bilstein B14 Suspension (set to 50mm/highest setting)

Best lap time in 1st session was 2.53, with the suspension mod, I'm hoping to atleast cut it down by 6-7 seconds. Keep your fingers crossed.

[prithwi-81]

B14s are on the car. Got the last set from Autopsyche before the price went up.

Reaction - holy heck this set is bonkers!!! The car has ZERO sqat and dive. Even with stock tires the tcs light didnt come on in a first gear pull thanks to zero squat. Like wow. Before it used to flash constantly on 1st and 2nd. On braking there is no dive so it stops a lot better.

Right now its set to the highest, which still looks far far better than stock. Ride is stiff but much better than my STI and evo. Over breakers/rough roads it unsettles a bit, but that should reduce as the springs set in. Cornering is FLAT. No roll, no understeer but there is only so much you can push on delhi roads. The stock sway bars are retained and the b14s totally negate the need for uprated arbs.

Did I mention zeo dive/squat/roll... after drivng the sti and the evo I never thought that any other car could match that level of poise n control. Lets see how the RS + B14s fare on the track meet on the 10th. I expect the understeer of the fwd to be pretty apparent now that we got rid of the roll, dive squat of the stock suspension that used to mask it. Expecting this setup to help shave a large chunk of secs from the lap time.

[prithwi-81]

There have been some questions on my mod path so here is the complete answer-

The objective here is to get chart out the best bang for the buck mod path for people who are serious about tracking their turbo cars without total loss of normal drivability.

Phase 1 or Stage 1 as its called in India
Turbos react best to lower back pressure on the exhaust, so my choice
Stage 1- Non Resonated or Cat Back Exhaust with a good panel filter (optional)
This will give u a smoother rev, plus unleash a bit more power across the band. It also keeps your warranty intact and wont get you dirty looks from the Service folks. Upside is also that now the engine is breathing better, you end up getting slightly better fuel mileage too.

Question - Why not go straight for a downpipe as it yeilds the best result?
Answer - Downpipe is the best power mod for a turbo car, and it will open up your powerband significantly. That is also its downfall. A stock map on your ecu can correct/adjust to 5-10% power difference. A downpipe will spool your turbo earlier into a rpm range where the stock tune uses the MAF and cannot adjust to a closed loop. This is bad as the A/F can run lean and lead to shuddering, loss of power, in the absolute worst case blown engine. The catback also creates a similar scenario, but to a lot less extent which the ECU can counter safely and modify the parameters to make full use of the new found breathing room.

[prithwi-81]

Phase 2 or Stage 2 as its called in India
There are two ways to go here, first power up with a tune + downpipe and void your warranty, OR upgrade your suspension and/or wheels/tires and get some great handling with your warranty intact.

So my preference for Stage 2 - Suspension Upgrade.

Why? - because the stock suspension of most cars we drive are shit, in order to compensate for the roads. Better handling puts as big a smile on your face as more power. Also a good suspension improves stock braking, acceleration on FWD cars which most of us own, as it kills squat and dive, allowing the car to shed speed more effectively, as well as pick up speed. Added bonus, WARRANTY intact.

What/How? - Start with a simple Spring and Damper upgrade. Tien, KYB, Bilstein, H&R all make basic spring/damper combo that will totally transform the feel of the car without affecting daily use. IF possible dont use lowering springs with the stock shocks. They are not designed for them and are not going to hold out for long with the lowering and also wont give you the driving dynamics you want. DONT go for Anti roll bars just yet. They affect handling hugely, but also compromise the indepence of your suspension, which is not a good thing for our crappy roads. If your really into handling like me, have some extra cash and want to go the extra mile, get a set of height adjustable coilovers. It will give your the same advantage of anti roll bars without the compromise of anti roll bars.

Why Not Power? Our traffic doesnt allow too rapid movement so power is a secondary need. Existing power band in most turbo cars both diesel and petrol is sufficient enough. Also power mods beyond catback will most certainly void warranty and thats something most of us dont want. Improve handling before power, and you will enjoy the power even more when you add it.

Why Not add Rims/Tyre to Suspension Mod? Well it all boils down to cost. A suspension upgrade may be a little bit more expensive, but the performance you get per $ spent is far greater. The current cost of good rims and tires doesnt do well to justify the high cost for such little improvements. No point getting cheap chinese stuff which weigh more than the original. The basic idea is to improve the contact patch and sturdiness of the wheel(Upsize/Increase tire width), which should not come at the cost of added weight to the rotating mass. If it does then its of no use.

[robimahanta]

Nice upgrades dude! However hard you might try to justify yourself, the upgrade itch has hit you and I am sure you will be running a bigger turbo with stage 2 and remap along with better tyres and rims (obviously not chinese). I have been through all this..haha

[prithwi-81]

Nopes.. no use with Big Turbo on small 1.8L FWD Car. Also, this is a DI Motor, so that is a complication in the long run. For the cost involved, especially in India, I'm better off getting a new car.

I've done uprated turbos on my STI and my Evo. Its ridiculous how much hidden cost is involved, and also how much of a compromise on reliability this is.

[prithwi-81]

Did a mini photo shoot with Krazydriver84 today.

New Ride Height (with B14s set at highest setting)




Stock Ride Height (Arush has better pics.. will post when i get them.)

[prithwi-81]

Did a better picture of the ride height comparison.

[prithwi-81]

Additional Pic after some photo editing.

[prithwi-81]

Some more pics with the B14s on.

















And the latest addition.... Momo Next, 17x7.5

[azeemhafiz]

Nice!

How did the track day on 10th go? What were the differences like with the B14s. Whats the spec of tires? Too many questions, but just very curious

[prithwi-81]

Originally Posted by azeemhafiz

Nice!

How did the track day on 10th go? What were the differences like with the B14s. Whats the spec of tires? Too many questions, but just very curious

Track day was fabulous... 9 secs off laptime with B14s to 2.45... I think that says it all. Brakes were smoking by the end of it. It makes so much of a difference, its hard to explain. 2nd fastest behind the cayman, with bad tires n brakes. Can take off another 3-4 with wider tirs n new pads.

New tires are ps3s. 225/45/R17. Rims are momo next.

[prithwi-81]

B14s are incredible... drove a friends jetta with the B6+H&Rs and my car on B14s back to back. The difference is huge!

B6+H&R are more of a sporty comfort setup, mind you they are a HUGE improvement from stock suspension of any normal car, but are tuned for more of a sport cruising setup. Oddly they stiffen up the rear a bit more than the front which makes the car a little oversteer friendly. You can feel it when taking sharp corners or pushing the car on a curve. This is a nice feeling but may leave a few of us baffled especially since most of our cars are FWD. Also high speed emergency maneuvering may be a lil more scary/rewarding depending on how u perceive it. Maybe this will go as the springs settle down and soften a bit.

B14s on the other had, are absolutely neutral. Ride is stiff and will get a bit softer if you lower the car giving the springs and shocks a bit of room to play. Handling is beautiful. A comparison is a particular 90 degree corner that i could take at about 80kmph in the stock car while shitting in my pants, can now be taken at about 120-130kmph without breaking a sweat. The neutral handling gives you GOBS of confidence and you can dial in a little understeer/oversteer depending on your preference by adjusting the rake of the car thru the height adjustments. Want understeer, lower the car evenly, with zero rake. Want oversteer, increase height of rear, while keeping front low. I've been playing with the settings a bit, and it really gives you the flexibility of adjusting this without getting into the hassle of sway bars. The B14s also add a nice amount of -ve camber which progressively increases as you lower the car, which also gives u the flexibilty of oversteer/understeer adjustments. This is extremely effective way of improving cornering grip without getting into adjustable camber plates which are insanely difficult to adjust and get right. The B6 + H&Rs maintain stock geometry adding maybe just a little.

NVH in the cars are up a little with both setups, marginally, but with my exhaust its not too much of a bother.

Both these setups significantly improve handling, reduce squat (which improves acceleration) and reduce dive which improves braking. The B6s+H&R are for the most of us who dont tinker too much with the setups and are happy with a handling compromise tending towards comfort. The B14s give u all this the flexibility to tune the handling of the car to your liking (to a certain extent), while improving the overall dynamics of the car.

One thing to take note is that depending on what orientation car you drive (FWD, AWD, RWD), a sports suspension raises the handling limits of the car significantly while giving you access to this limit safely, and also bring out the true nature of the car handling at the limits as well (FWD/AWD-Understeer, RWD-Oversteer), which is generally well hidden by the stock suspension setup, by making the limits of the car unapproachable/scary and keeping you within a range where the handling remains neutral.

Car Height Setup/Stance - From Front


Car Height Setup/Stance - From Rear


B14 - Front


Race day Stance