Interesting that high horsepower numbers didnt equal for best performance during this particular test.. However I would caution to say that if any or all the cars were on slicks or pure Z rated tires that the results would be different all together again.. But good post and good write up..

 

One of the problems that the article states is that traction was a problem. It would be interesting to see what numbers they get if they had slicks. However, this also means that as a street driven car, you won't be much faster than stock.

 

I never expected such stellar performance from Stillen.

 

Everyone has to realize that these cars have no common factors other than the engine. there is no uniformity to this test. All of the tuners were free to use their own parts which affects their numbers and performance. The different suspensions affect the performance. I just have a hard time believing that Greddy's 411 hp and 372 tq would get beat by Vortech. I am willingto bet that at 411 hp the Greddy kit was doing 8 psi and the Vortech as well, but to get beat.....that's got to be driver error.

 

Thanks for posting that great article. The results were very interesting when looking at power output and track results. I have to say, thought, that the Stillen car looked fugly with that big-nosed hood.

 

The higher torque on a twin turbo setup vs the supercharger is the key. Torque is what gives you the throw you back in the seat feeling, which is what you want. So even if a supercharger and TT are getting the same hp, the TT is goign to feel a lot faster while driving it because of the much higher torque. Consider that before picking between kits.

 

The article also pointed out that no matter how much HP the car has....it is usless unless it can get hooked up to utilize it!

The linear torque curve of the SC's acts like built in traction control to get the car moving.

I'm still happy with my wimpy Vortech....

 

Greddy perfeomed worse in the acceleration tests most likely due ot the 19 inch wheels (all other used 18s) and less adequate rubber. 19 inchers do not help performance (they hurt it). They help appearance only, and the Nittos don't grip as well as Toyo RAs. No doubt the Greddy would have topped the accel tests if the extra power was delivered to the pavment more effectively. The Greddy should have had the 305R3518s out back.

 

seems like the wheels make a big difference - the greddy had 19" wheels and it did better in handling. the vortech had 18" wheels and did better in quarter mile from a dead stop. From a rolling start the greddy wouldn't have a problem hooking and would kill the vortech, even with the 19" wheels. My question, doesn't one of the FI setups offer a warranty on the engine? that's what i'd go with. Also, how can some people on this board claim 12's w/o going FI where, here we see professional drivers with completely tuned, light Z's can't hit 12s.

 

wow... you'd get the stillen based on a warranty that may not replace anything?
this is what you get:
a stage 2 supercharger, with no tunability, you cannot put on other mods to help, because the supercharger cannot be tuned to react to those mods (that would normally help other f/i solutions), that will cost no less than $5k, then you have to purchase a hood (which you may or may not like).
so you're looking at $6k for parts, that put out minimal gains, lack of tunability, and (imo) an ugly hood.
and then when something goes wrong with the engine, you must prove that the supercharger caused the problem. funny. try getting into a battle over which component failed. stillen could easily say, it was due to faulty installation, or the engine was faulty, and then nissan could turn around and say, it's the supercharger's fault, your installer could point the finger at either one. a warranty is only as good as the name behind it.

 

thanx for the reply, that's good info. I did not realize that is the way stillen interprets it's warranty. From what I understood it warrants the entire engine, not just the supercharger. any anecdotal evidence?