Additional Modifications
 

I'm just starting to add upgrades to make my 2012 mazdaspeed3. I currently have auto tech fuel pump internals, cobb sf intake/airbox, turbo inlet hose, access port v3, and cobb rear motor mount. I'm trying to figure what's next to give me the most bang for my buck. Should I get a down pipe, catback, front mount intercooler, or bpv? Open to any suggestions outside of those as well!

Where would you rate yourself on a scale of zero - ricer?

Down pipe/test pipe will net a little gain. Catback will make noise. A BPV is only for silly noises.
I'd get a test pipe and a tune.

Downpipe and OTS map from Freektune or Stratified.

And some E 85 if you got any of that close by you.

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The best "bang for your buck" mod is a test pipe. Once you do this a full etune will net the most power period. PnP intake mani is nice and on the cheaper side as well and it will let you see how gross the valves are.

Downpipe is a piya to put in and it will lower the pressure holding turbo seals together and you will deal with your o2 sensors if you go catless. Unless you're running lots of boost or buying one in prep for a bt don't get a BPV.

Cat back will net almost no power unless your running big boost. Front mount IC is probably the next reasonable step yet it is the most expensive/involved so it ranks last on the "best bang for your buck" scale.

Racepipe and an e-tune!

The downpipe on the stock turbo isnt much of a restriction. A racepipe (secondary cat delete) opens up the exhaust quite a bit. Matched with a solid tune, you will get significant gains.

Donate and you can find a racepipe in the for sale section for under $100.

wider wheels and sticky tires. rip them corners.

First, you need to sell that shitty little intake and TIP, buy a full 3/3.5 inch and get a BNR s3/s4. Fuck all the other bolt ons.

Honestly, knowing what I know now, that ^^^ is exactly what I would have done. Then worry about the downpipe, exhaust, and FMIC. Fuck top mounts. You can buy all the bolt ons and make 330 on E85, or you can spend 1200 dollars (way less than most people's bolt ons cost) and make 330 on pump gas, with WAY more room to grow.

Front mount, downpipe, and a side note keep an eye on your plugs as power increases. From my reading you want to ensure that you are running the correct stage, it's the little details that count.

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This, this, this.

If I knew everything I know now, I'd probably have a lot less things done to my car... Not really...

This should definitely be the new route for any new speed owners that won't be staying on the stock turbo.

I'm gonna have to disagree with that. The difference between a BNR S3 on a stock downpipe on 93 vs. on E85 with a proper catless 3" exhaust is night and day in terms of both power and response. I would take a maxed K04 over a sandbagged stock downpipe S3 any day of the week. If you actually read around on here, there are plenty of people with S3's or CS turbos that can't crack 300 on 91/93 due to heat constraints, which E85 removes. Good response is part of what makes these cars fun to drive out of the box, and if you just toss a BNR on this car with the stock downpipe, I promise you it will drive like shit. I have seen S3's that don't spool until 3400-3450 RPM's on the stock downpipe. Fuck that. Hell, there are still days where even with my S3 on E85 and catless, I wish I had that K04 response back.

Also, last time I checked, my top mount was working just fine even with my upgraded turbo. I was initially very pro-FMIC when I came here and started having to deal with heatsoak, but then I found out (from my locals with FMIC's) that the gains were virtually non-existent when going to an FMIC since most people use tiny ass cores like the TR6/TR8/Cobb/CP-E that are the same or less volume as an ETS or CP-E top mount, and that the improvement in heatsoak was far less than I thought. Additionally, people who track their cars with FMIC's inevitably run into cooling issues from the decreased airflow to the radiator.

In all seriousness if I were OP I would just get a test pipe, a half decent tune on E85, and just start modding the shit out of the suspension and put some wide ass serious tires on it. You will be able to out accelerate, out brake, and out handle any other speed3 below 50 mph.

This. ETS + meth + GTX2867 for me.

Heat soak of TMICs isnt much of an issue unless you are racing in traffic. While moving, a TMIC will handle BATs fine. That said, some TMICs are better than others.

I agree on the S3 with stock flow mods comment. Unless your stock turbo is failing, going with an intake, racepipe, internals, and a tune will yield the same results with less money spent (dollar per HP).

Either way youre going to need a tune and internals - so dont count those in the calculation. Considering prices of new parts, an S3 is over $1K and without flow mods will result in ~260-280whp. A 3" intake and racepipe costs ~$500, and will also result in 260-280whp on the stock K04.

My FMIC comment was more directed towards flow restrictions than it was heatsoak, and I never recommended a size. lol

And fiddlesticks about your stock DP, slap a $150 ebay catless DP on the car, and you're still in for less money with a faster car. K04 response is awesome, but a BNR s3 isn't as bad as a 3071, and I think 3071 spool is perfectly acceptable. Little lag, but plenty of power. Unless you're like you, who likes that #autocrosslyf #parkinglotracing

My whole point is; if you want bang for your buck, a larger turbo is going to put you there faster, and the BNRs really make this higher power life very affordable. I spent like $12-1300 on my mods when I first cracked 330whp. I see guys on this forum piss away THOUSANDS on name brand and new parts. Cool, you got every part corksport ever made and you make like 280whp... Or... Or.... you can buy 1 part that you can still grow with whenever you have the money to buy all your parts. Man said he wants bang for his buck, I delivered. lol

You have a great point there, and I agree that lots of people on these message boards spend WAY too much money trying to shine shit with regards to the K04 and making power. I just don't want OP going down the same path I did (the quest for horsepower) and then rapidly finding out that having 300+ whp doesn't mean shit when you can't go around sharp turns at more than 30 mph because stock suspension, or are blowing the tires off when you floor it in any gear below 4th because shitty street tires.

Well, stock tires are fucking horrible, but I don't think the suspension is all that bad. Its not a terrific setup, but you can definitely make the turns if you have the tires.

OP, read what these guys have to say, they make some very good points. It is, however, difficult to fully answer without knowing more details. Overall budget, wrenching skills, long term plans, etc.

I am modded almost the same as you, and I currently have a testpipe on the way. In my situation, it made sense. This is my DD. I have to pass emissions. I don't have much extra money since most is going into the house, savings, etc. I am very slow to mod(I've had this car since new and you can see my mods, or lack thereof.) so I don't see a sudden splurge on a whole bunch of things. I am not the best wrencher and pretty much do all this stuff on my own and can't afford to have downtime. I'd love to be able to do more, but that's just not how it is right now. For me, a testpipe was a logical, easy to do, bang for the buck, next step. After that a 93 and e33 tune.

So take a minute to think about where you're at and your goals/plans and go over all the advice these fine folks have given you and see what makes sense for your situation.

Awesome Feedback!
 

Thanks for all the feedback! I'm new to mazdaspeedforum and I'm loving all the additional information. So it seems like upgrading with a test pipe, upgraded suspension, bigger tires, and a e33 tune are pretty common amongst responses. The e33 tune is something I download/upload to my access port correct? Recommendations on brands for the other options? Links would be appreciated. Also in regards to e85 can I just put that into my car? Does it require additional parts or will it run with that?

E85 has to be tuned for. You will have to have the HPFP internals and accessport or versatune before contacting someone to do a tune for you, and before adding e85 to the car. I went through purple drank tuning and they guys there are fantastic and very easy to deal with and will answer all of your questions. Search, search, search and search some more to find all of your answers to all of your questions. Just do a Google search and choose the link that has the Mazdaspeedforum.org with it. There are many suspension threads, tire threads, build threads, how to threads and everything else you need to know right here, just have to look.

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I agree a lot with @MD1032; it depends on your goals and what you want to do with the car. For me, I tried to go the no big bucks and inch my way at it. That's a good way to learn and if you want to tune yourself I would recommend it.

That said, I would go with a Meth kit, then you can get a cheaper improvement with a TMIC, cool BATs, and push the K04 harder than it wants to go. I love the instant throttle response and being able to spin the tires anytime I want up to 4th sometimes

Part of that is I had to build my engine, so I pushed low torque pretty hard, but it's all in how you tune it.... Most of all, have fun with it

Yeah if you build the motor, then you can see what the K04 can really do. :) Not the cheapest/best option for everyone though obviously. I'm planning on going that route eventually myself however.

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