Project Evo VIII Update 1 – First Modifications

In this update I will be going over the first modifications I made shortly after purchasing the car. If you missed my last post where I introduced the project, make sure to read it first.

The first thing I did after buying the car was begin the search for someone looking to trade taillights. The ones that came with the car weren’t my favorite but I knew some people preferred them. It wasn’t long before I found a guy locally that wanted my taillights. We traded straight across and I ended up with these JDM Evo VII tails.

Project Evo VIII Coil on Plug Conversion

My next modification was a coil on plug setup. It cleans up the engine quite a bit in addition to all of the other benefits of having them. The main reasons I wanted to change to a COP system is for the added reliability of not having plug wires and better accuracy when it comes to controlling timing while tuning. It was also a cheap upgrade and looks way better. There are companies that sell high dollar kits but I just decided to make my own. My friend had an old APR front splitter with broken the mounts so he donated the carbon fiber panel that allowed me to make the plug cover.

Project Evo VIII K&N Intake Filter

When I bought the car it had an Injen intake. Here’s the kicker: it had been on the car before the previous owner owned it which mean that it most likely was never cleaned. You can imagine how filthy it was. My gas mileage is already horrendous because of the lack of tuning and the dirty filter wasn’t helping.

You would think it would be easy to find a replacement filter but all I could find was a full intake kit. Finally, I stumbled upon a K&N replacement filter. You may ask “Chris, why didn’t you just go to Autozone or _____parts store?” Well, it turns out the filter inlet for my intake is about 4.5″ and filters of this size are somewhat hard to find locally.  When I went to order the filter, you know where the tab of “customers that bought this product also purchased blah blah blah” is? I made the mistake of checking it out and they had a special on Hallman Pro Manual Boost Controllers. I couldn’t resist, so after some short consideration, I ordered both the filter and MBC.

Surprisingly, getting the filter on was quite a challenge. I actually had to take a razor and cut out some of the inlet to make it fit on the pipe.

Project Evo VIII Hallman Pro Manual Boost Controller

Next, I had to figure out where I wanted to mount the boost controller. The install was quick and I mounted it right next to the factory boost solenoid (which I thought was only appropriate).

The hardest part was actually dialing it in. I really like the design of the Hallman Pro MBC. It’s pretty much idiot-proof. It’s all encased in one shell and the top twists with + and – symbols. I got everything hooked up and went out to the back roads. It ripped!

With the addition of the MBC, the car now peaked and held at 1.2-1.3 BAR. This is pretty much stock boost but since I was used to lower boost tapering down this was a whole new experience for me. Needless to say, I was VERY pleased with the results. I highly recommend this product to anyone that wants a cheap and effective way to increase power and response. If you’re like me (greedy and hungry for more power) stay away from electronic boost controllers. With all the flashing lights and knowing that you can just up the boost with the push of a button, it’s difficult to have self-control. IMO, get a Hallman Pro MBC, set it and then forget about it.

Up next I’m planning on installing the following modifications and taking a trip to English Racing in Camas, Washington to have it all tuned:

• FIC 1000cc injectors
• DC Sports downpipe
• O2 dump
• 60k service (Water pump, timing belt, balance shaft belt, serp belt, all fluids)
• Dual map tune (E85/Pump) with 2-step and valet
• AEM digital gauges
• Possibly 3-port MBC
• Maybe get my meth kit running for the pump gas tune

I’m shooting for over 400 WHP. I know it’s kind of steep but we’ll see how far we can get. Aaron (the tuner at English Racing) is very confident that we can make some good power and I’m hoping for the best. I’ll be taking plenty of photos and video of the whole trip.

Previous posts about Project Evo VIII:

Introduction to the Project

[Photo sources: K&N, Hallman Boost Controller, Mellon Racing]