$3,000 = 50hp
 

import tuner mag jan 11 has a dyno review of all the breathing mods and it turns out for around $3000 you get an extra 50 horse power.

so.....is it woth it? 50 little hp for $3000 large?

Doesnt sound like a fair deal :(

double that and you have a supercharger numbers(kinda). or triple it and you have a tt kit with guarnteed power

For FI, you still need an exhaust which is about half of that quoted $3000 price....

You've got to pay to play!

The Z only sells around 10,000 units per year. There's not enough volume to keep aftermarket costs low.

There is no need to upgrade exhaust for a supercharger system, infact most companies will quote improvments to power with stock pipes and their supercharger system.

That's true. But when factoring in the cost of FI make sure you include all of the supporting mods... clutch upgrade, gauges, etc.

But I would add some hfc's

First of all, it's not a gauranteed gain of 50 whp, because those numbers are all based on power added to whatever you measured as your starting point, and all of that will vary from dyno to dyno (and also vary by what correction factor is used) -- it's really a gain of x%.

Going with dynojet #'s, I'd say the average Z puts down about 275 whp (AT and MT) and maxes out around 300+ to 305+ whp. That's a gain of about 10% to 12%.

That is a substantial bump in power and torque, but no it isn't going make your car as fast as something like FI will (a typical gain being around 25% to 30% or more in power!).

As to costs, you can always buy stuff used or scour ebay to save money.

I've bumped my car up by about 10% from baseline and have spent under a grand.

Best bang for the buck mods: K&N panel filters (seriously) and either test pipes (cheaper) or high flow cats (more costly).

No, that is 50 hp total gain with hfc, cbe, gen3 intake, and uprev tune. Total combined, not tuner math of 18+30+18+20. They added after each upgrade. The gen3 which is good for 18, onlyh added like 3hp to the numbers after the exhuast for example.
Btw, do you have any hard numbers you can share about the k&n filters?

I don't think you can solely look at the hp gains. Bolt ons change the sound, throttle response, etc. Not to mention the reliability aspect of going FI.

If you are solely looking for the best bang for the buck you should just hook up a nitrous system.

And the tune. Some tuners are more capable/knowledgable than others. Using finite numbers to tell readers that every Z will get those exact results is quite dishonest IMO.

kinda simple thou, if you want real power FI is the way to go unless you want to add a 4.5 liter

You're missing my point... I am talking about total gains for ALL bolt-ons' combined, not ricer math piecemeal gains -- my point is that the meaured gain in real numbers (i.e., 50 whp vs 30 whp) will vary from dyno to dyno, and somewhat from vehicle to vehicle, but the proprotionate overall gains should be similar.

Never mind... :shakes head:

I have numerous dynos posted and I have gathered data from other folks nice enough to share their data (actual dynojet runfiles) tho I don't post it without their permission.

Regarding the K&N's in particular, there are several dynos posted both by me and others.

If you're gonna engine swap why stay in the Nissan family of engines? I say shoehorn the biggest / most powerful engine availible into the Z.

Why even get into a horse power race? The Z is much more than an engine with xx numer of power, it looks and drives beautifully.

Most people aren't even going to drive it at it's limit with the stock power.

7 AT base line 260 to 264.5
with full bolt ons 309 rwhp SAE or 320 actual rwhp.
Add some 4.08 gears and its plenty quick compared to a stock 7 AT.
12.800 14 mile times on street tire's Im now trapping at 112.
+ I just put on a M370 intake manifold
Its alot faster now.
do not forget to put on an oil cooler, and a tranney cooler.

Z

did you get my pm?

Drop in k&n filters=$100 to $120 and give you 4 hp

So don't mod your car...?

CBE+Test pipes/high flow cats+intake = 10% to 12% more power over baseline throughout the rev range.

Figure another 3% to 5% with headers and a few more on top of that with pulleys if you are adventurous.

Whether or not it's worth it to you is entirely subjective -- but keep in mind that this "mere" 10% - 12% is greater than the difference in power output between the VQ35 and VQ37.

Thus, I think, not a trivial gain...

If the % increase seems weak for the cost, why don't you check the 1/4 mile times of folks with various mods and base it on that?

Or... if this is about "seat of the pants", see if someone with such and such mods will take you for a drive and see if that helps you decide.

Or... if you just want really big numbers for bragging rights, save up for FI or, I guess, buy a different car...?

Just stateing facts for people who don't want to seach thru a ton of stuff. Its nice to realize the big picture before going down an expensive road and not getting the best bang for your buck vs just enjoying what you have.

Price-wise, that sucks. Mod-wise, I am impressed with the gains made without ever loosening a valve-cover. Very nice.

Plenty of people drive their cars at their limit with the stock power and even if it's just on an on-ramp or getting around some annoying guy on the freeway who happens to be trying to get around you in another sports car, it's a rush.

I've got about 2 grand into all of that, if not a little less. Only difference is I have test pipes instead of HFCs and I got an extremely good deal on the tune. 311rwhp @ Z1.

Gains at peak don't necessarily tell you about gains under the rest of the curve.

I'd say best bang for the buck is K&N plus test pipes. Best gains for least cash. See my dynos below. You can find evidence of similar proportionate gains (tho' raw values may vary, as I've been saying) for others.

Whether or not those gains are worth it is subjective.

If you want really big power for relatively little cash, only other suggestion I have is nitrous.

Isn't nitrous a car killer?

If you use it constantly.

When you say K&N are you referring to an intake swap or the drop in filters? If the filters did the tone of the car change?

^^ the drop in filters

I agree with JORDO on alot of this. The K&N drop ins will surprise you and the cats are chocking the car the most. CBE really gets you nothing by itself and costs the most. Like what he said for the least amount of headache and time and money go with TP's and drop ins. remember with the headers you have to drop or remove the engine to do (if you can without doing this more power to you). CBE dosent do really anything because the exhaust has already been limited with the stock headers and the cats. The only issue you will really have with the cats is getting a good angle on the bolts because they are VERY tight and you should go buy grade "A" nuts and bolts and washers along with antisieze (only a recomendation).

Also a recomendation, just buy the TP's, headers used if you can. It will not effect anything plus some people need the money and sell VERY cheap.

How much for a engine swap that would get you to around the same hp as a TT on the 3.7?

Hook up a 150 shot, pray you can make one pass, then retire the vehicle. Nitrous is the best bang for your buck over any power adders. But to be honest $12k when it's all said and done will get you a supercharger with supporting mods. $15k-$20k will get you a decent twin turbo kit (dyno, tuning, etc) with supporting mods. $25k+ is all frivolous. At that point just trade in your 370z for a c6z06 and mod that. :tiphat:

I wouldn't even try, there is already no room in the engine bay and with the TT (depending on boost) you can put down 450-500 Whp easy. For the time and headache + money...I would never touch an engine swap with this car just go TT if your wanting to do all that. There is just too much involved with engine swaps and with this car, its not worth it.