wicked383lt1

For my first mods I want to go with FTRA and a manual cut-out. Would this be a good start? I don't wanna go over $500 bucks or is there something different that will give me more rwhp? Also do I have to tune my car? Thanks!

JonCR96Z

iTrader: (33)

Those are great first mods. A lid also, if you don't have one already. No, you won't have to tune your car.

boostednismo

iTrader: (5)

Yeah a lid will help without costing too much. Also check into the free mods, they will help you gain some.

twitchtwice

iTrader: (12)

500 will get you a lid, ls6 intake, and a manual cutout. all good mods for the money, look into some of the free mods as well

2002SS#1811

I see you are an A4 - A stall is not a bad start either but it may take you past $500.00

02BLKWS6MD

iTrader: (22)

Yeah a lid cutout and LS6 manifold but then you'd have to retune probably if you did the manifold. You can do some of the free mods like said above. My first mod were lid, catback and shifter but your an auto car so you wont need one.

twitchtwice

iTrader: (12)

you wont need a tune from an intake. i had ls6 intake, lts, xpipe, lid and i ran with no tune for a long time with 0 issues. obviously your leaving power on the table but its not going to hurt anything

wicked383lt1

Cool! Let me ask about how much rwhp will I gain just from ftra,lid,and cut-out?

WSsick

iTrader: (13)

the FTRA wont show on a dyno, but itll def pick you some up. id say 7-15ish, maybe 20, really depends on how much you pick up from the cutout, since some get alot and some dont.

although, if it was me, id do lid, cutout, and ls6 intake like someone said. you wont need a tune and you could be seeing 20ish gains if you have a strong car. the ls6 goes for cheap in the for sale section, like $200-300 all the time. that would keep you under you $500. or another route, if you just want sound, you could get a cat back.

Aggie_Ls1

You would put down anywhere from 300-315 untuned. Every car is different so it's hard to say. And no you dont ever need a tune with just boltons...it does help but it still doesn't hurt if you dont get one.

Mods in order: Lid, cutout/catback, lt's/midpipe, ls6 intake if <01, stall. Then i would do stuff like ftra, p&p tb, ud pulley, etc. Then of course heads/cam and tune. (I put longtubes before ls6 intake because of the sound, it's more expensive but more worth it to most)

Have fun!

intense3123

Those were my first mods, good choice. And good job for actually doing some research before diving in instead of doing something stupid like a programmer.
And if you did an LS6 intake, you may need to get tuned to get some codes deleted for the EGR

StuntmanMike

iTrader: (2)

I'd do a lid and free ram air. I have a FTRA, I didn't notice any seat of the pants difference with it. I also didn't gain any mpg either.

There are much better ways to spend that 200 bucks IMO. I'm glad I bought mine used for 1/2 retail.

How long have you had the car and how many miles? You may want to do things like plugs and wires too.

wicked383lt1

So by doing the free ram air mod I would get the same results as if I would have bought the FTRA? My car has 90k. So what do you recommend that is better than the FTRA without having to tune the car?

StuntmanMike

iTrader: (2)

Just do the lid and freee ram air. It's "better" because it will keep about 200 bucks in your pocket.

None of these small mods require any tuning, they just let the engine breathe a little easier.

And I hear a ported throttle body is good for a few HP and improved throttle response. I haven't tried it yet, so I can't speak from experience though. It might be worth looking into though.

In my opinion though, all these small mods are kind of aa waste of money. Some of them cost hundreds of dollars, and then you install them expecting this big change, and then on the test drive....nothing. It drives exactly the same way. IMO you either need to just do a whole bunch of them at once, or just save up some more money and do a big mod.

Supposedly the best bang for the buck on a A4 car is a higher stall torque converter. Of course with that you'll need tuning to recalibrate your shift points for best performance, and you'll also need a tranny cooler. But you spend the money on that, and you'll definitely notice the difference.

That's what I want to do for my next mod. That and gears. I'm running 2.73's right now, I want to go up to 3.42's. I think those two mods will make a huge difference in the way my car feels and performs.

Don't get me wrong, I know all the small mods help in thier own way and add up eventually, but I'm more of an instant gratification sort of guy.

wicked383lt1

Thanks for the input. I will keep that in mind.

street demon2k3

iTrader: (3)

Just picked up a '98 TransAm last weekend that was bone stock except for 3.73's and yesterday I picked up a used lid locally, did the free ram air mod, spacers on the lower air box, P&P TB, EGR mod, and TB bypass. I felt a pretty big difference at part throttle but I can't go WOT because the car isnt tuned for the 3.73's yet and tags the limiter real bad. Next on the list is an ORY and Magnaflow round muffler and get the car tuned.

I have to keep the costs down so the wifey doesn't get on my case about spending money so I spent about 2-3 days researching on cost effective mods. My friends said you'll notice a really big difference with the LS6 intake, only one way to find out though.
Good luck!

-Isaac-

black_phoenix

iTrader: (27)

dont get ftra... its a waste of money

Under 500 go with 3.73 gears, cutout, and a lid...

and you will gain 10-12 rwhp with both cutout and lid

wicked383lt1

well,I talk to my friend and said he would sell me a ls6 intake for $200. Jegs has lids for $100 and cut-outs for like $40. What size of cut-out should I order that will still give me enough backpressure?

JonCR96Z

iTrader: (33)

Wrong. Gears are a waste of money. If you're interested in racing the FTRA is worth it. You could make your own for a lot less, but either way it's worth it.

jimbo98z

iTrader: (3)

Don't bother with the free ram air, it really doesn't do anything in my experience. I did it to my car and the only thing I noticed was it was throwing water up onto the filter (and through it) when I drove in the rain. Put a piece of plastic back in there and epoxied it back into place and it stopped missing when I drove the car in the rain.

In terms of cutout size: get a 3", since that's what your T-pipe is. You won't need to worry about backpressure. From what I understand the ideal amount of backpressure on these cars is basically open long tubes.