Hey all you lucky focus owners. I will be a proud owner of a new 07 st tomorrrow and am pretty excited. So many things I want to do to the car and i dont know where to start. Im looking for more performance and i've only driven it once. So with that being said, I have a question...What is the most noticable powerwise modification I can add on. I want an intake and exhaust forsure, larger throttle body..and after that im lost. Am i missing something? Which would make the most power to the wheels? If there is something else better that I missed let me know. Thanks everyone!
The intake on the Duratecs is the single most-noticeable mod you can do besides F/I or cams. An exhaust is a good idea, as the Duratecs just want to breathe - do that with the intake and you'll likely pick up in excess of 15 WHP. No joke.
TB is over-rated unless you're running big cams, a SCT reflash and everything else that can be done to it... word on the street is that the Duratec TBs are good to ~200WHP, easy.
Personally, I'll be going with the Cosworth CAI and the MBRP 2.25" cat-back exhaust. Other popular CAI choices are FocusSport (nice, but the foam filter makes me want to double-check that the element is shielded by the lower splashguard for the intake snorkel), Marcy Motorsports (well-loved in the Duratec community, but Walter Marcy is going through some bad financial times, product availability is spotty) and the F2 intake (nice, Cosworth knockoff but the enlarged-over-stock MAF housing area makes me wonder about metering and driveability, not many have them).
Good luck with the new 07! You made a wise move in not waiting for the 08s, as we're not sure the ST will even survive the designers' onslaught. :rolleyes:
Sorry oscar, I dont have that much money lying around...i guess I didnt specify that.
15whp!?!?! thats almost to good to be true. But ill take your word for it. Now as for the cossy intake...will i have to worry about water logging my motor in the spring , and snow in the winter freezing up the filter?
As for exhuast it will definately be MBRP. I buy mbrp exhaust silencers for snowmobiles and they are trick! thanks again NOS
One other CAI intake option available to you is the Steeda short ram intake. I went that way because I'm not about to risk my warranty on the engine due to hydrolock for maybe an extra few WHP.
NefCanuck
ahh thanks NekCanuck, that is ecatly what i was looking for. I guess Id rather be safe than sorry.
polaris_racer12,Jan 21 2007, 08:50 PM Wrote:ahh thanks NekCanuck, that is ecatly what i was looking for. I guess Id rather be safe than sorry.
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No problem, just be aware that the Steeda setup will run you about 340 bones with taxes shipping extra. It's well built including a custom machined housing for the MAF sensor and priced accordingly.
NefCanuck
NefCanuck,Jan 21 2007, 08:53 PM Wrote:polaris_racer12,Jan 21 2007, 08:50 PM Wrote:ahh thanks NekCanuck, that is ecatly what i was looking for. I guess Id rather be safe than sorry.
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No problem, just be aware that the Steeda setup will run you about 340 bones with taxes shipping extra. It's well built including a custom machined housing for the MAF sensor and priced accordingly.
NefCanuck
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oh Gosh...that is so expensive for that short ram
i sujust to look for the similiar one of focusfanatics.com in the Buy group...get a used one.....clean it.....or buy a new filter for it
best bang for buck hands down is a turbo. Why waste money on intakes/tbs when you can get real gains from a turbo?
I think 15whp is too good to be true. maybe with a header, intake and exhaust done to the engine but other you'll get that kinda of horsepower.
And to a SCT tune on your car, to gain more power but you'll have to run 91 octane to really take advantage of the tuning.
If your serious about any mods for your car Performance Plus in Saskatoon is your best bet on getting pretty much what ever you want in. They have a dyno in the shop and took care of all the issues I've had with SCT Xcal 2.
If you go with a SCT X-Cal2, deal with Randy down at FocusSport. The guy tunes Foci like the rest of us change our socks and oil - regularly, I hope :P
http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showt...p?t=101159 - the official Duratec N/A dyno thread on Focus Fanatics. I don't see why with a good setup you won't hit 12WHP, easy. 15WHP if you go with the Cosworth.
Also,
http://www.focussport.com/coolflo.htm - check the 2 dyno charts they have there. One has bone stock 2.3L stats and with
just the FS CAI. The second is the same car with their cat-back exhaust and CAI.
I really don't see how you won't make 12WHP, minimum, with a CAI and a proper, true cat-back. The Duratecs are horribly restricted for intake and exhaust from the factory. They really wake up once you free them up.
NOS2Go4Me,Jan 22 2007, 04:12 AM Wrote:If you go with a SCT X-Cal2, deal with Randy down at FocusSport. The guy tunes Foci like the rest of us change our socks and oil - regularly, I hope :P
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when i was having everything worked on my tune, Brian the owner of Performance Plus contacted Focus specific tuners to see what kinda of things could be done. I wouldn't hesitate on sending a Focus for them to work on.
hardk0re,Jan 21 2007, 11:13 PM Wrote:best bang for buck hands down is a turbo. Why waste money on intakes/tbs when you can get real gains from a turbo?
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Listen to this guy. He is wise beyond his years.
Flofocus,Jan 22 2007, 08:06 PM Wrote:hardk0re,Jan 21 2007, 11:13 PM Wrote:best bang for buck hands down is a turbo. Why waste money on intakes/tbs when you can get real gains from a turbo?
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Listen to this guy. He is wise beyond his years.
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I believe if you go FI it voids the warrenty on your car.
Yeah its true forced induction will void warranty..I didnt think there was this much to buying a new car though...Im not 18 so i cannot apply for ford credit, I need my parents to co-sign on a loan. So theres a liability issue here. If I would ever get into an accident, my dad would be liable if the car is under his name. So we called a lawyer to see what could be done. And I guess that dad could gift the car over to me when we register it. Then we're good. So tomorrow or wednesday ill have the car forsure. Im in the middle of writing final exams here so i'll keep letting you guy know how it goes.
Ford can void your warranty for any modification, its up to you to prove them wrong. For instance my car was running fine, I took my car in for an oil cange and told them NOT to rotate the tires. They did and I had some funky wheel vibrations, etc. I took it in and just asked them to fix what they broke. Blamed it on my lowering springs and oversized exhaust....in the end I was told not to come back to the dealership....they tried charging me $60 diagnosis to tell me I had lowering springs and and exhaust that caused my problem that I didn't have before they touched the car....things got out of control quickly from that point...
Whatever you have a problem with, if theres something aftermarket attached to it your warranty is void. Unless you got a dealership thats reasonable....but there isn't may of those!
CAI is the best bang-for-buck for people not able to FI.
Good dealers are out there... it's just important to find the right one if you're an enthusiast / modder.
Everything I've suggested (save the reflash) is warranty-legal. The only grey-area mod is the MBRP, as it eliminates the second cat on the Duratec (the first one is right on the header, the second is further downstream). A proper filter and a properly-installed air intake will NOT void your warranty.
The problem with modding in Canada is that there are no laws (that I am aware of) to protect the rights of a consumer who mods their car properly - unlike the US, which is quite the surprise. So while modding your car technically doesn't void your powertrian so far as you don't go inwards from (and including) the throttle body or inbound from (and including) the exhaust manifold... it IS up to you to prove that what you did has no effect. Which is very, very tough.
With that said, if you install a new intake and exhaust correctly you should be more than fine for the duration of your warranty. If you reflash your ECU, you won't harm the vehicle (provided the flash is provided by an experienced Focus / Duratec tuner) but getting diagnostics done at the dealer may get dicey and you may have to flash back to the stock program before arriving at the dealer.
I guess you have lots of things to consider before you go ahead with this. Personally, I waited until my powertrain was up last time to mod but this time I won't be. My only mods will be an intake, exhaust and likely a reflash via an X-Cal 2.
NOS2Go4Me,Jan 23 2007, 09:39 AM Wrote:Good dealers are out there... it's just important to find the right one if you're an enthusiast / modder.
Everything I've suggested (save the reflash) is warranty-legal.
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No...every mod you said will still void the warranty if it is determined to be the cause of the problem ( you already knew that, just clearifying it for the new guy). CAI sucks up water and craps your engine out. CAI is the cause. Turbo blows a rod through your block. turbo is the cause. Etc...
Thats why its important to find a mod freindly dealer that wont try and blame the mods for every problem.
For the new guy asking questions: Basically what were saying here is, if you install a Cold air intake and you start to hear squeaking noises from your brakes, then obviously the dealer cant blame your intake on it and deny you warranty coverage on your brakes. Some will try though. :P :lol:
bottom line if you want to mod buy used, if you dont buy new.............