I am new to the world of Infiniti and have been learning so much on this board - thank you all for your knowledge and expertise!

I would like to compile a list of power performance mods including model specific details/restrictions (will it work on a Coupe, 6MT Sedan, G35X), avg. price, difficulty to install, est. power gains (not just butt-dynos,) and where/what to recommend (favorite brand/dealer.)

I would also like to know what the basic path is? Coming from the VW/Audi world, everyone starts with a chip plus air filter or CAI (40-60 HP and 80-90 ft-lbs torque right there for under $500!) Then a cat-back. Then move up the exhaust with headers and downpipe, then intercooler, upgrade turbos, and then get sick with engine and trans swaps. There are other mods like suspension/brakes that come naturally with improving driving performance but I want to focus on power gains.

I have searched all over and found a lot of separate info on how to do certain mods like the Z-tube, K&N, CAI, Plenum spacer, Crawford plenum, y-pipe, cats. But this info does not always include estimated power gains, avg price, etc. Also, what to do in what order is important info which seems to be missing or hard to find.

Anyone want to start off? I will update the thread as we get more info and see if it becomes good enough for a sticky?

Finally, if something like this already exists, please point me there. I searched for four hours and while I learned a lot, I want to know more! (addict... )

 

All the info is out there... It would take pages and pages to summarize the details. Keep reading, you'll find everything you're looking for.

 

THAT IS NOT THE POINT!

The point is to have a brief overview of what can be done, in what order, to get the most bang for your buck, and listed in one place for people to start at. Not full how-tos on each mod, but to provide the general info on all of them - what experienced modders would think is obvious but noobs have no idea where to start. Then people can search all day on each mod that they want to know more about.

|RANT|
Why re-invent the wheel every time someone wants to start modding? Why not give them a starting point that is a little more informative than the search button? What is it with this forum, anyway? It is like NOBODY wants to answer a question without making sure that they tell people to search - do you get special points for that? I have searched. I have found info on everything I mentioned above. But nowhere did I find where to start. Nowhere does it specifically list what HP gains should/may/or have been measured for a z-tube or CAI. Nobody talks about where the simple/easy HP gains are from.
|/RANT|

I think assembling this info would be a good exercise. This post is on every VW and Audi board I am on - but it is not here so I thought I could contribute. I wanted to assemble and share this valuable knowledge with the people who don't know (myself included).

I respectfully ask that people who consistently feel the need to tell posters to search please do not contribute to this thread. Others who want to build the information with me please feel free to share your valuable knowledge.

Thank you!

 

Many of us have started with the basic intake mods.
Grounding Kit(any manifacturer), Z tube/ K&N filter, plennum Spacer(Motordyne) or aftermarket plennum (Crawford) if you so chose.
Next on my list is a y-pipe(UT) w. reducer mod.. These keep the car relatively stock but give you a little extra boost in power.

The more advanced go with headers/ exhaust
If you have a 5AT the next level is valve body upgrade and/or high stall TC.
The next level is maybe FI/Turbo (with appropriate internal mods to handle the boost).
With each level you reduce the effectiveness of your wrranty. Not all go in the above order and may not be limited to the above... just a general idea

 

Now THAT's what i'm looking for!

Thank you so much!

 

Couple of questions -

I was thinking of starting with the Z tube/ K&N filter, and plenum spacer. Is a 3/4" spacer typical?

I have NEVER heard of a grounding kit - interesting concept! is it noticible?

I read about the Stillen VB - what is a TC? (can't search on TC)

As for the air filter - I understand that the drop-in is easy, but a CAI would eliminate that, right? What about the pop-charger? Preferred over CAI (because of position/heat shielded)?

 

I have been on this forum for quite a while. Initially there was a big push to measure the HP gains for particular mods; however the individuals that did that sort of thing may have become inactive.

As you can tell from my signature I have done quite a few mods; I decided on them based on the information available at the time from the forum. My first mod was the CAI, theortical gains of 15HP cost $180.
Further mods included; Crawford Plenum Version6 17-20 hp @ $350; Crawford High Flow Cats 15 hp @ $500; Unlimited Tuning Y-Pipe maybe 2hp @ $200

finally the grounding kit (for me) produced a noticeably smoother RPMs at idle.

I am sure my fellow club members will jump in with their own thoughts

 

Skip all the BS and go FI. Best bang for the buck! Ill never do all the small mods again. The car sounds meaner with them but thats about it!

 

True,True..
get a twin turbo kit and be done with it
TC = Torque Converter

 

I almost agree. My Coupe is noticeably faster with my mods, but if I had to do it over again I would have gotten a supercharger. Little mods are fun but you don't get the bang for the buck.

 

I agree regarding the little mods and beleive me I would love to go FI except right now it is not in my budget and also warranty concerns. Other than that if you can afford it and can stomach perhaps voiding certain aspects of your warranty- go for it.

As regards your question about the Spacer, most go with the 3/8 because it fits nicely under the engine cover. The 1/2 gets you a couple of extra ponies throughout the RPM range and if you don't care about the stock look go for it.

You FI people make me jealous

 

Wow dude! Chill!!! My post wasn’t meant to blow you off... your quest is not something easily achieved. All mods are very subjective and there is no one-stop-shop, bada-bing magic solution to get the most HP bang for your buck. It just doesn't exist.

Like most things in life it's what you can afford. If you plan to go FI, don’t bother with other mods yet. As others have said that obviously is the most HP and TQ you will get, but for a price. What is you current budget? If you have a couple of grand, I suggest intake, plenum (or spacer), exhaust, and ECU flash. Later look into headers, high flow cats… depending on what your budget is, you could install cams, torque converter, hell you could build the whole engine and tranny.

Unfortunately there is no formula such as CAI = 10 HP, Exhaust = 15hp, plenum = 10hp therefore 35 hp gain. The sum of your mods will vary. As stated by another poster - most people get CAI, and Exhaust first. If you want to know which brand is better - that will open up a whole other can of worms.

By this time next week, you will see from post here that you will not have a cookie cutter plan as to what to do. There is just WAY too much info about each mod to post in one simple how to list.

That was my original point - sorry it didn’t suit your needs ~ good luck though, there is a lot you can do to these cars and it's fun so enjoy!

 

I couldn't agree more.

 

I have read many posts about modding and the one thing I hear from most people is what you just read above...."I wish I would have just gone FI from the get-go". You can literally spend $7000 in a bunch of little mods and still be far from what you get in the FI world. Yes...the big price and warranty issue sucks. But sometimes...you just gotta say F' it and go for it. I didn't want to start getting a bunch of small mods (did get the z-tube though) and not be satisfied. I did, however, decide to stay "small" in FI land by not going TT...though it was tempting.

Of course I say this one week before my S/C actually goes in. I just hope I got a Wednesday built car and not a Friday built car....

 

Hey - sorry I cam off hostile and thanks for clarifying - I just keep getting replies that simply say "search" and people are missing the point of my comments/suggestions/questions. Thanks for your comments!