Mod questions for a N/A BF

[Dan_]

Hey guys,

 

Been looking into some low cost mods for my N/A BF that will improve economy and maybe even give it a few extra KW's. 

 

I'll be honest with you all, I don't know a whole lot of stuff about cars but am actively trying to learn so excuse my ignorance.

 

First question I had was that the previous owner of my car had a Redback exhaust installed, I believe it is a full catback exhaust as the pipe is replaced all the way up to the catalytic converter. Am I correct with this deduction?  

 

Next question was; after much research it seems like the general consensus is that the best mods for a N/A are ones that improve airflow. Lots of talk about either chopping the front of the airbox out, getting a XR6T or XR8 snorkel, or even replacing the whole thing with a F6 airbox. Other people have also been suggesting a less restrictive air filter (K&N) too. 

 

These mods seem pretty cheap but I've been having troubles finding real data on how much they improve economy and/or performance. 

 

Another more expensive mod I've heard of is that people are putting Pacemaker 4490 or 4495 headers on the car; are these even worth the price for a N/A engine? I feel like it's not really worth it and is something more for a turbo car... does anyone know effective this is... and would it require a re-tune of the car?

 

So in the end... what do you guys recommend? If I grab a snorkel, F6 airbox (or just cut a hole in mine) and put a K&N filter in there... what kind of economy would I be getting (currently at 10.5L/100KMs) and would I get a noticeable power improvement? Would it be worth putting some headers on considering the car also has a Redback exhaust?

 

...is it even worth doing these minor mods?

 

Cheers!

[SIMBAD]

If I were you I’d just install a high flow catalytic converter. 100cpi is commonly used but I see Aeroflow have a 50cpi one now.

Then I’d make a cold air intake box and use a K&n pod filter. Look at the turboside intakes and how they are made (But installed in stock location) or even Bluepower racing developments to give you an idea on how they look. (To see if you could potentially make one yourself)

then lastly a powerbond under Drive kit.

 

thise are the most common things to do on the naturally aspirated v8s with the exception of full straight through exhaust and extractors but just doing the cat will improve the exhaust flow way more then extractors and exhaust would.

 

then lastly when you are in the position to do so is to have the car tuned to tie in all the mods together I get maximum effect 

[Dan_]

Thanks man, appreciate that.

 

Got a question with the underdrive kit, does it affect stuff like the aircon, alternator or power steering if it's turning them at a slower rate? It looks like a good upgrade but this cars my daily driver so if I was in a pinch I'd rather have the aircon, fully effective power steering, and fully charged battery than a few extra kw's.

Edited 23/10/19 03:06 AM by Dan_

[k31th]

it's just not worth doing power mods on a N/A falcon, that's the facts. If you want it to sound a little better then just a middle muffler or a mid+rear muffler change is enough.

 

if you want power out of a barra, sell up and buy a turbo variant.

 

if you're desperate to throw money into something that essentially won't even gain you an appreciable difference in power, then as said, under-drive + headers + cat + freed up air box (just cut the hole in the front - easy) + tune.

[camo86T]

Unless you're getting it tuned to suit, chasing any sort of measurable economy improvement with minor mods is a fool's errand imho

Yes, better airflow may well assist slightly in that department but not something you would expect to be noticeable.

Also, any additional power is just begging to be used.....with obvious results in economy.

 

Holesaw through the bottom of the airbox is the best value cheap/free mod in a T, assume it would 's the same in an N/A

 

10 hours ago, Dan_ said:

These mods seem pretty cheap but I've been having troubles finding real data on how much they improve economy and/or performance. 

What sort of 'real' data are you looking for? X.XXkw for a flat panel filter on a 2005 BF N/A XR6 with a catback exhaust...?

 

Edit

beat me keef

Edited 23/10/19 03:37 AM by camo86T

[Dan_]

@camo86T, I was thinking along the lines of realistic improvements (and proof) anyone has got from the mods I was looking at (not just people talking out of their bum), just was interested in some before and after numbers.

 

Either way, cheers guys, was starting to come to the general conclusion that it's not worth it so good to get that confirmed. Will just save my $$$ for a turbo BF later down the track when I can afford one.

 

Off topic question though- how much more maintenance does a turbo require to a standard? I hear you have to service the turbo every X amount of KMs, but I've never owned a turbo car so not sure what this servicing would include.

[k31th]

just change the oil a bit more often and remove the turbo supply oil line filter.

[camo86T]

@Dan_ fair enough

I wasn't trying to be a smart arse.

It's more the fact that no one is going to give enough of a sh*t either way about ~5kw here or there from minor mods on their taxi motor to do before/after dyno runs for proof and then make a spreadsheet about it.

 

2 hours ago, Dan_ said:

Will just save my $$$ for a turbo BF later down the track when I can afford one.

^good plan

[Dan_]

Didn't take ya to be a smart arse. 😎

 

...and yeah fair enough. That said, I was more interested in economy numbers than kws- definitely not thinking I own some kind of street beast or that I could turn my N/A into a turbo killer; but all good now anyway.

 

Cheers guys appreciate it 👍

 

2 hours ago, k31th said:

just change the oil a bit more often and remove the turbo supply oil line filter.

Sounds good, I was under the impression they'd take a whole lot more servicing to keep going & would be a great deal more unreliable.

[SIMBAD]

5 hours ago, Dan_ said:

Thanks man, appreciate that.

 

Got a question with the underdrive kit, does it affect stuff like the aircon, alternator or power steering if it's turning them at a slower rate? It looks like a good upgrade but this cars my daily driver so if I was in a pinch I'd rather have the aircon, fully effective power steering, and fully charged battery than a few extra kw's.

From my experience none of what you mentioned will be affected, with the exception of the power steering. When driving and taking corners the car feels slightly stiffer. In fact it actually

feels like you have more feel of the road and your driver input feels truer if that makes any sense. The less load it takes to spin the ancillaries make the motor feel a little more snappy and would no doubt help somewhat with fuel economy. 
I also found that the water feed rate though the radiator is slowed down which gave a little better heat transfer.