Order of modifications

hfrog355

After reading a ton of material on this forum (thanks to AK and all who have come before me for creating a great knowledge base), I have finally settled upon a list of performance modifications I want to put on my new baby. Keep in mind, this is my daily driver and I have no intentions of tracking it. Here is the list and brief reasoning of each:

- Intake: COBB Tubing and K&N drop in filters - There’s enough disagreement over the efficiency of the OEM intake v CAI setups to make me feel good about these subtle, inexpensive upgrades. Easier install, easier maintenance, 1/3 the price for great value in responsiveness and modest power gains.

- Exhaust: Berk HFC and Stillen or Berk CBE - The Berk HFC seems to be the favorite around here and I haven’t heard anything to make me not want the item - great bang for the buck and great sound. I have narrowed down the CBE to those two based on: no/little drone, great reputation (minus the Berk delays), good power, great fitting and I’ve listened to every clip I can find around here and think these sound best for what I’m looking for.

- Responsiveness: NST Pulley Kit - Splitting hairs here between NST and Stillen, but ultimately the NST won out due to offering both crank and accessory pulleys for a great overall performance impact and price. And I’m originally from Houston and who said every factor has to be logical?

So, that’s what I’m shooting for. My reasons for posting this novel (aside from it being Friday) are three fold. This is where you all come in:

1. What are your thoughts about order I should do all this stuff in? I’m somewhat price conscious and will probably look to be getting these items over the next 9 months or so. Is there a logical order I should follow here?

2. I’m always open to more opinions about these choices. Is a CAI (G3/AEM/Injen) system worth $600-$800 (I don’t have any place to install these on my own and would be paying for an install) for a guy who just wants a fun personalized car? Is the Stillen pulley really that much better than the NST setup? If you’ve got dissenting opinions, I’d love to hear them. I’m still open to (and reading about) CBE options, so if you’ve got one you love that fits some of those criteria, please bring it up.

3. This is an open invitation for vendors to pm me with prices for these items. I’m unsure about rules governing vendors around here, but I’m in the market to buy the above, so let’s start some dialog.

If you’ve made it this far into my rambling, good for you. It’s good to be here.

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2009 7AT Touring - Black on black
VentureShield; F1 Tint; Stealth Signals; LED backup + trunk lights; Stillen HFC; MR Works Headlights; VHT tails; GTR Start Button