VX Ectotec Modifications

[VX21]

Hi guys,

Finished the exterior of my car, TIME FOR THE ENGINE I'm new to all these engine mod's and have been looking around on the mace site and forums and was just wondering what i should do or what would give me the best gains.

1. I was thinking doing the roller rockers, not too sure 1.9.1 or 1.98.1 which is better?
2. Increased throttle body, like the 69mm one
3. proper CAI intake, might even DIY mine to pick up air from the headlights and from under the car not too sure yet just to make it a bit cheaper


I already have a 2 1/2" lukey cat back system installed and will be doing high flow extractors soon.

My car is also on LPG vapor inject system, will this make any difference for the mods i listed?

Any feedback would be appreciated just so i can start working out what i can do

thanks fellas.

[MACE]

Hi VX21

I'm new to all these engine mod's and have been looking around on the mace site and forums and was just wondering what i should do or what would give me the best gains.

It really depends what type of goals you have in mind, are you just after some basic mods or are you chasing some serious power increases?

If you intend to stay n/a and are looking for the best "bang for buck" then I would consider the following mods in order.

1.98 Rockers
Manifold insulator
Cold air intake
Plenum spacer
Larger throttle body.

cheers

Bart

[VX21]

G'day mate, yer I'm looking to really squeez as much as I can out of her. People say it's illegal for p-platers in VIC to modify even a v6 is that right? If so it won't bother me.

I would be doing it bit by bit. I want to try and get as much as I can, so extractors, roller rockers, throttle, CAI. What else is there?
I'll be looking at around a grand? How many kw's would I expect?

Thanks heaps mate appreciate it.

[WogBoyz]

G'day mate, yer I'm looking to really squeez as much as I can out of her. People say it's illegal for p-platers in VIC to modify even a v6 is that right? If so it won't bother me.

I would be doing it bit by bit. I want to try and get as much as I can, so extractors, roller rockers, throttle, CAI. What else is there?
I'll be looking at around a grand? How many kw's would I expect?

Thanks heaps mate appreciate it.

not many kw's and alot of money lol ive done pretty much every bolt on u can and u dont gain much at all dude, id just save ur coin til ur off ur p's and get a v8, wish i started saving earlier

[MACE]

G'day mate, yer I'm looking to really squeez as much as I can out of her. People say it's illegal for p-platers in VIC to modify even a v6 is that right? If so it won't bother me.

I would be doing it bit by bit. I want to try and get as much as I can, so extractors, roller rockers, throttle, CAI. What else is there?
I'll be looking at around a grand? How many kw's would I expect?

Thanks heaps mate appreciate it.

Bang for buck I would go a set of rockers, manifold insulator and cold air intake which would around a grand. They're genuine bolt on mods and are completely reversible. As for power gains expect gains of around 15-20kw at the wheels.

not many kw's and alot of money lol ive done pretty much every bolt on u can and u dont gain much at all dude, id just save ur coin til ur off ur p's and get a v8, wish i started saving earlier

To get some serious gains out of an 8 (or 6) you still have to spend money there is no if's or buts about that. Yes you start off with more, but once you start going beyond your basic bolt on mods it will get expensive. Sticking to just bolt on/reversible mods on any engine generally represents good value for money and more importantly if you decide to change cars down the track. For arguments sake if you deiced to bring your current car back to stock to jump onto another car I'm sure you'd still get good money for the parts you currently have as they're proven to work well. Beyond basic bolt on mods on any car things can start to get expensive.

[VX21]

Yer mate I wish I could save but I still have 3 more years stuck on my green p's and wouldn't mind a bit more grunt until I can get my hand on my old mans VZ senator !!!! don't mind spending a grand or 2 over 3 years trying to get as much as possible out of her. If I did bolt on's for now and down the track might even charge her or really do her up will be doing the extractors CAI and rollers see what else I can afford.

[MACE]

I would hold off on the extractors to be honest, unless you were getting it charged or at the very end of your bolt on route. Definitely go for a cat back exhaust though.

Cheers
Steve

[VX21]

thanks mate, yer i was looking at doing them but i have a lukey 2 1/2 in cat back in at the moment which makes a nice note, just wanted to up it but i think i will just take out the rear muffler to give it that real deep note. Like this guys:
YouTube - ‪Vt commodore exhaust‬‎

in that case i can start doing the bolt on mods next week any order i should go with or?

appreciate the help im a major rookie when it comes to engines.

[MACE]

thanks mate, yer i was looking at doing them but i have a lukey 2 1/2 in cat back in at the moment which makes a nice note, just wanted to up it but i think i will just take out the rear muffler to give it that real deep note. Like this guys:
YouTube - ‪Vt commodore exhaust‬‎

in that case i can start doing the bolt on mods next week any order i should go with or?

appreciate the help im a major rookie when it comes to engines.

If you wanted a deeper note you could take out the rear muffler, however you might be surprised as to how the car will sound with a new pod type cold air intake kit. The ideal order to do things would be the following I would go a set of rockers, manifold insulator and cold air intake then so on. However it’s not overly critical as each of these mods work quite well. If you have any more questions please don’t hesitate to ask.

Cheers
Steve

[WogBoyz]

Yer mate I wish I could save but I still have 3 more years stuck on my green p's and wouldn't mind a bit more grunt until I can get my hand on my old mans VZ senator !!!! don't mind spending a grand or 2 over 3 years trying to get as much as possible out of her. If I did bolt on's for now and down the track might even charge her or really do her up will be doing the extractors CAI and rollers see what else I can afford.

ahhh kk well in that case id deff recommend MACE's cold air intake and the insulators + the 69mm throttle body, then get some good high ratio rockers with extractors, to finally finish it off get delcowizzard to do a tune for ya, is it auto or manual?

[VX21]

yer thats what im looking at

who is delcowizzard?? is he in melbourne?
its an auto unfortunately, i wish it was a manual!

[WogBoyz]

yer thats what im looking at

who is delcowizzard?? is he in melbourne?
its an auto unfortunately, i wish it was a manual!

nah hes in nz man, well seeing as you got auto id take it in to get new fluid and filter change then get a shift kit installed, pretty much the best mod ive done i reakon, chirps in 2nd nicely and goes much harder then a standard slush box, delco can also tune to change a bit harder too

[VX21]

how much am i looking at for a shift kit? really worth it in a auto?

[WogBoyz]

how much am i looking at for a shift kit? really worth it in a auto?

hell yes, i got mine done for $350 including service and oil change on my diff, single best mod ive done, wish i had done it ealier

[MACE]

Another option would be to consider and electronic shift kit like the one below

4L60e Single Stage Shift Kit - $70.00 : Shiftkits Australia, Performance Shift Kits and Vehicle Electronics

I'm a fan of these because they can be switched on or off. For arguments sake it's probably not a good idea for the box to be shifting hard all of the time in the wet though it might seem fun

[VTmadS1]

hey you mentioned that its an auto, I’ve been down the bolt on route, i got the manifold spacers, throttle body, 2.5 Redback exhaust, 1.98 rollers k&n air filter with CAI. i got it dynoed, I’m a bit foggy it was either 123.5 or 133.5 RWKW, either number is not bad for a 10 year old eco with no tune. Anyway all I can recommend is FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON"T GET THE THROTTLE BODY UNLESS YOU ARE GOING TO TUNE IT. it messes with shift points and gave me the shits to no end. As for the rest of it if you’re after a bit of extra power in you six and don't mind spending some money go nuts . I enjoyed adding a new bit to the car every few months and generally being a tool as a p plater, plus I learnt a lot about the machine I was driving, a novel experience for someone like me having never been a car person until then.

[MACE]

Definitely a good figure with by the sounds of things more room for improvement

As for the throttle body there is a good thread on them on the link below based on other peoples feedback/solutions.

noise after installing 69mm throttle body??

Cheers
Steve