Just wondering what things are lost when you install a turbo. I am thinking about going turbo in the future but want to do mods until then and I dont want to spend money on something that will be taken away if I get a turbo. For instance I know that my cold air intake wont be used if I go turbo. Anything else?

 

If you plan on going turbo, your best bet is to say f*** it, dont buy any mods and start saving up for your turbo kit. It will just be a waste of money if you go and buy mods now and then decide to go turbo and have to replace all of your hard earned parts

 

MK3 he's asking so he can make sure that he doesnt do any mods that will be replaced when he turboes.

I am going down the same road man,

-CAI and Header are both gone, but i got a cheap ebay CAI anyway.
-1.8L cam and/or 1.8L ecu (on 2.0L) both are said to cause misfire, so you might not want those.
-there are some internal mods (high comp pistons etc) that would not be good for turbo app, but i doubt you were going to do those

If your looking for a list of great pre-turbo mods i would suggest BBTB/IM, Exhaust (2.5), underdrive pulleys, making friends with a good mechanic(maybe even w. dyno connections), and secure a great job to support your growing addiction, good luck man

 

1.8L cam has less exhaust/intake overlap, and longer intake duration. I'm pretty sure that's better for turbo.

Cold air intake and headers are just about the only things "lost" when you go turbo. BBTM/IM and exhaust as suggested are good, a piggyback will also be good.

 

With a turbo, you would want less duration in most instances... however the difference between a 1.8L cam and 2.0L cam is very, very small and wouldn't make too much of a difference. I wouldn't go wasting my money on a 1.8L cam if I know I'm going turbo however.

Basically you will need an exhaust either way, high-flow cat as well. If your itching to add mods before a turbo, definately get a 2.5inch exhaust setup. TB and IM are decent additions, albiet a bit expensive nowadays. Pulleys wouldn't hurt anything either.

 

Honestly, if I was going turbo (and I am next year) I would make sure the car is set up to handle the extra power and stress.

Better braking, better suspension, improved cooling, stress bars, wider rims with low profile tyres, LSD. Remember, if you increase the performance potential of one part of the car, you are not going to be able to use it properly. What is the sense of building a 400hp engine if you can't get the power to the ground or control the car when it goes into boost?

A car may be the sum of it's parts, but it is better to make sure all the parts add to the whole instead of subtracting.

 

^^ If you are looking for a lot more power than stock (250+), I would definately follow Mad's advice and at least look at spending $600 or so on helping out the suspension/brakes/cooling. If your just going for around 200, then it really isn't that necessary, but is still a great idea.

 

Yes. Agreed. However, you can get by in the meantime by first getting an LSD, to reduce torquesteer...if you're pushing well past 250+. The other modifications are important, but chances are, if you're not an experienced driver, you're bound to smack your car into something when you pound on the gas.

 

stay on topic .. the things that will be replaced in a turbo setup are:
headers
intake

simple bolt-ons you can put on now that will not be lost in a turbo setup are:
intake manifold (airram)
big bore throttle body
pulleys
cat-back exhaust

bolt-ons you can use now that will be HIGHLY recommended or required before turbo are:
cat-back exhaust (2.5 inch mandrel bent laugh.gif)
hi-flow cat
big bore throttle body

 

Ok thanks guys. I was thinking about getting a bbtb soon and probably ordering an exhaust from Tim. I was also thinking about getting the airram intake and just wanted to make sure that all of that can be used with the turbo. Thanks for all the responses