Dipping a toe in the rabbit hole...
 

I have a ‘17 with 20K miles on it now. I’ve done the simple mods (intakes, exhaust, oil cooler and tune) but looking for a little more ooomph.

I’m leaning towards the Stillen SC. Not looking to set records, but for $10,000 with an upgraded clutch (all installed by Z1) I’m kinda on the fence. Mucho money for minor gains...

I’m leaning towards the SC only cause it’s my DD and reliability is more important to me than a Screamer I’m going to have to baby along in between beating on it.

My wife drives it occasionally so I have to keep that in mind too.

So basically, I know The Stillen doesn’t give me much “bang for the buck”, but I’m intrigued with the supposedly “reliability”.

What say youse guys?

A toe now, a foot later, then an arm & leg, ya see where this is going going gone :rofl2: good luck my friend, enjoy :tup:

If you really want to go with the SC route, Topgunz is a more reliable "stillen" based kit

http://www.the370z.com/forced-induct...rger-kits.html

Look at a different kit. The stock Stillen kit is not very good for reliability. Topgun has one, SOHO has one, etc.

If you are interested in the kit you can check out the website.

www.topgunspeedworks.com

Highly recommend topgunz kit. Way better option unless you are in california and need it to be carb leagal

Looks like you’re the winner! I’ll be in touch.

What can I realistically expect (WHP/TORQUE) with stock injectors and a stock fuel pump?

problems

LOL! Thanks! Looks like you like your sarcasm as much as I do.

Ask a stupid question....

That sums it up pretty well :rofl2:

I have had TopgunZ's system for over two years on my Daily Driver, NO issues with the kit or my car . Its a great kit for stock like driving with MUCH more power and power curve goes along with RPM just like stock but much increased.

Did you upgrade the injectors and fuel pump?

Upgrading the injectors and fuel pump is a MUST for a boosted Z. Better add a fuel return system. Go check CJ motorsports!

Yes I upgraded the Fuel pump and injectors its a necessity. If you want to go E85 you will need the 1050 Injectors, I use the 1000's and have had no issues at all. But TopgunZ has a great price for the 1050's so no reason to go smaller there.
You will of course need a tune after the install.

No need for return fuel system
 

As far as a return fuel system not needed, unless you want to go for max power with E85.
I have no need for that on my daily, but I do have the return fuel system since I bought it all used as a package deal. Thanks again Aaron. :-)

Or just contact soho and go with a ysi blower and stop wasting your money

If I remember correctly, the GTR of its first MY has already included a RFS, and it's only 480-hp output in engine on pumping gas... (today, any boosted Z can easily go over this number) I usually tell my friends that RFS has merits you barely see, often overlooked. It allows your boosted Z runs more reliably and "consistently" under WOT no matter what fuel your using. For FF, it's definitely a MUST in order to keep the pressure on the fuel rails truly regulated, thereby making each of the injectors outputs equally regardless of their position difference and increased fuel volume. From my experiences, the injector duty drops by almost 20 percentage after the RFS was added (gas). This significaly alleviates the loading of the fuel system. As a result, I see no reason that anyone choosing to go forced induction should not include a RFS for our car IMO. You may save some money for now but you may spend more in the future. Especially you can save lots of labor fee if you have it installed along with your charger kit. Installing all of them at the same time is much cheaper than installing them separately. :)

Considering the a2a kit can make over 500whp without even trying, a RFS is a no brainer.

OP - I was in a very similar situation - a 'minimal' boosted build... i.e. what is the most bang/buck that will also remain relatively reliable for a street-only car.

I ended up going with:
Turbo kit
Small pump upgrade (255lph but if I did it all over again I would do 340lph)
small injector upgrade (600cc but id I did it all over again I'd go bigger!)
Clutch/Flywheel (would only do the clutch if I did it again, flywheel too chatty on the street for me)
Ecutek tune from a KNOWN GOOD TUNER (this is the most important part of any build)

This netted me 520whp and has been reliable for 20k miles. If you do decide to go SC instead, keep in mind the level of 'safe power' (if you can call it that) at the wheels will go down since the SC itself will siphon off several ponies on its own.

Also - unless in Cali, don't buy the Stillen SC - It appears to be designed for CARB certification and definitely not for reliability or power. Topz kit is what the Stillen kit should have been.

If your looking for the best bang for buck kit ... the boosted performance kit is the way to go... 8500 bucks will get you 500+ easy with plenty of room to grow .. easy install easy Maintinance.... I had 2 nismos at the same time .. one supercharged and one turbo charged ...even tho the supercharged Z was a big improvement ...it still felt lacking compared to the turbo Z ... two different animals all together

Thanks for your input. I’ve already decided to go with Aaron’s Topgunz’ SC setup. I’ve read too many scare stories with Stillen’s stock set-up. I realize that most of the problems have been caused due to Stillens canned tune, but I’m not willing to take the chance with my wife behind the wheel. Just not worth it to me.

What I’m weighing out now is if I want to go e85 or stay with pump 93. I have no clue right now which is better for me.

I’m also on the fence with Z1. They did a great job with the simple mods they did for me, but I’m not sure I trust them 100%. Mostly because their labor “estimates” tend to be lowballed compared to actual invoice once done. I don’t feel I was overcharged, per se, but they certainly didn’t come anywhere near what they quoted me over the phone.

Maybe now if i’m a repeat “customer” I’ll get a break?

Anyway, this isn’t a knock on Z1. They did it perfectly, in the time frame they stated, they just charged a “little” ($800) more than our handshake agreement. :)

I gave this a lot of thought too... I’m not a big fan of turbo’s due to lag and the way a turbo is “on or off”. Not to mention overboost and blown motors.

Self install is out of the question. I’m done with that stuff. I’m old and tired and just want to drive ‘em, not wrench ‘em.

I feel the same way about boats. The best boat is your friends boat. :)

I stuck with 93 as the additional flow for E85 is going to add a fuel return to the build, so there is a step up in complexity for it. You will be rewarded with a lot more power though. Good choice in the Topz kit!

Are you handy? If so, maybe just have a go at the install yourself? Seems like a lot of people successfully self-install that kit. You'll save a nice chunk as well.

Stupid question... how the hell does corn oil get you more power than fossil fuel?

As far as being handy, I went to a vocational high school and had four years of auto mechanics. We weren’t called “technicians” back in the 70’s! :)

I worked for a Ford dealership from 1980 to 1983 and HATED every day of my life.

So, while handy, I refuse to change my own oil. :rofl2:

I DO know a couple of guys that like to wrench that I can probably pay off in beer though...

Higher octane, burns cooler. You can add a lot more timing without worrying about knock. Flex fuel ftw.

I had no idea flex fuel had more octane! I’ve never used it and always ***-summed it was 85 octane. Which leads me to stupid question #2...

Any problems with varnish? Do you need to add a stabilizer to the fuel?

I’m sorry for the stupid questions, I really don’t anything about it other than it’s cheap as s*** down here.

I believe e85 is 108 octane. Most pump e85 has a lower ethanol content though. My tuner (Seb) recommends running a tank of (in my case, 91) every once in a while to clean out the system. No additives otherwise.

And Seb is the man for that!
Specialty Z is the place. I did a remote tune and WOW!

Besides what others said about e85 and it being higher octane meaning more timing and/or compression, e85 isn’t actually as power dense as t-rex blood. But you also don’t need as much air for a complete mixture so you can also compensate with the amount of boost you dial. E85 is somewhat of an easy way to get more power. You will lose mpg though and depending on the price of gas vs e85, you will probably pay more and fill up more often.


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With the newer turbo kits...SOHO motor sports ...royalty performance new twin kit.. boosted performance kit ...lag is almost non-existent ... isn’t really a on and off feel ......lol it’s always on

That is not true. I have had both on my car. When a turbo doesn't hit till 3200 rpms there is definitely an on or off feel..100%. When I would shift there was definitely lag in my response with my turbo.

With a Supercharger there is literally zero difference in 2500rpm to 3500rpm as far as a "surge" on power. It's perfectly linear all the way to redline. It just keeps building boost gradually instead of it hitting all at once like turbos.

Turbo - max boost at 3200rpm
Centri SC - max boost at 7500rpm

Explain how a turbo isn't on or off?

108??!! That’s incredible. I had no idea, seriously!

This is like finding out about masturbation for the first time again.... :leghump:

But, legally, most stations can run as low as e72 which is going to be lower octane. Fortunately for me, there's a Propel station close to me that has close to e85 according to my ethanol gauge. There's closer station to me that can go as low as e59 according to what they have printed on their pump. I don't use that station.My car made 167whp more on e85 than it did on 91 octane.

Now, about your masturbation issue......:rofl2:

Supercharger example:

I find this incredible. Why am I not running corn oil now?

Well, good news is I’m not blind, I only need glasses, but shaving my palms every other day is a PITA...

Yes. You don't see this mentioned much, if at all. Ill add that it's probably the TQ that needs to stay in check. Especially low end TQ. This is what makes the centrifugal SC nice. TQ only increases as revs increase, and even at ~600 WHP, are typically only making in the range of 425 WTQ at redline. But to your point, 425 from a SC is not as safe as 425 from a turbo as the engine is working harder to get you that amount of TQ in the SC engine.

I went with Topgunz, he's the most active and responsive of all the kit makers.

As a side note, I just sent off my Motordyne headers to Swaintech for their Whitelightning ceramic coating.

I really suggest you get that narly, fungus nailed big toe out the rabbit hole. Sometimes it is just no fun at all.

I’ve been following your build. :eek:

Remember that running corn (ethanol), you will burn approximately 30% more fuel...resulting in suck mpg...but the ethanol also keeps cylinder temperatures lower than gasoline does. :ugh2:
Hit Jon up @Z1...he’s in your neck of the woods :tup:
You can install their 400hp upgrade & then add JW2 exhaust cams & then upgrade fuel system for e85....could end up with some pretty good whp numbers & still be N/A :eek: