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Turbo Upgrade

21K views 19 replies 5 participants last post by  sunilbhaiya72 
#1 ·
Hey everyone, I have upgraded the 07 WRX quite a bit in the past couple years, although it's been a slow process since 2008. I am wondering what turbo (yeah...I know) you guys recommend for my application in order to get around 365whp, which is my current goal. I want the car to be reliable, as I don't plan on doing internals for awhile. Please feel free to view my profile to review modifications done up until now. I just updated it. It has been killing me the past few years staying with the stock turbo. I wanted to make sure things were done in the right order and all my bases were covered (supporting mods). Now, they are. Also, what splitter are people using when running the Spearco TMIC? I haven't seen anything really conclusive after searching around. Grimmspeed maybe? Has anyone heard of it working with the Spearco? This stock one is not taking advantage of the surface area, see pics. Any advice is appreciated.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
what fuel will you be using? which fuel you use can vary your power goals by over 100+ hp.

use an OEM STI splitter. is it way bigger than the WRX one and it works fine with any upgraded TMIC and its probably your least expensive option. if you feel you need to upgrade it, get the grimmspeed one.
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the reply. I currently have tunes on both 93 and E-85. I was looking at the stock splitter on an 07 STI. It just seems too small to me. I have never seen the Grimmspeed unit in person. Have you read anywhere that it fits with the Spearco? This TMIC is THICK. Im not sure if the GS unit is that thick. If it is thinner, my concern would be that it would sit too deep and slam into my IC when I shut the hood. Thoughts?
 
#5 ·
Ruso,
I actually was skimming over that last night. Great info. I'm wondering if 365whp is maybe too lofty of a goal for stock internals. It makes me nervous. Also, I'm wondering if the given full boost rpm range is using a top mount or front mount. I'm thinking front, so I should be able to achieve full boost a bit faster.....Any idea as to what percentage faster a turbo spools with a top mount? I'm thinking an 18G or possible a subtly tuned 20G so there is room for more after internals are done. Looking into this a bit more, I am realizing that I have a lot more research to do and that I know dick about turbo upgrades. The car has 38K on it and I want to get quite a bit more out of it before it goes, at which point I will do internals.
 
#6 ·
I cannot answer the FMIC vs TMIC question. There's a lot of opinions on here/other forums as to which one is better. FMIC will have a better cooling efficiency which is never a bad thing but it looks like you already have a pretty beefy TMIC. Personally I decided to build a Water to Air intercooler so my experience is the cooling efficiency of a FMIC with the short intake path of a TMIC. ;)

As far as internals go. I blew my 08 motor below 300whp. My ringlands went, and as my ringlands failed, my rods stretched and broke punching holes in the block (check out my build thread if you're curious). I thought it was a tuning issue and have gone over my tune many times since and cannot find anything wrong with it. Thought it was oil starvation but that seems like a long shot too.

Anyway, that's my experience. Others push 400whp and claim their car is still running.

I put in a built motor and could not be happier (now that everything is back together that is). I will be going to 18g or similar next summer.
 
#8 ·


grimmspeed is great. this dude went 9.9 on his grimmspeed TMIC. its on my list for my turbo upgrade if i dont go air/water. i know a guy with the same EFR7163 using your Spearco TMIC and hes up to 447whp on his stock internal EJ207 on E85. it holds up well.

do you plan on going rotated or staying stock location? personally i would give you a different answer for each setup.
 
#9 ·
What is your plan for the car, daily driver, weekend toy? I see you're running the td04 still and any turbo larger isn't going to spool quite the same. An 18G should spool about the same as a VF39/43 depending on the tune and EBCS (I didn't see one in your mod list), a 20G might spool a bit later, then you have the DOM1.5XTR good for your 360ish+ goals (20g power with 18g spool). Don't forget EWG can recover about 150-300rpm of spool when tuned for properly, and you have AVCS which helps too.

On my stroker ej205 (2.0l -> 2.17l) I was told a 1.5DOM would put me around 350whp on a conservative tune (18-20PSI) and full boost would come on around 4k RPMs which should mean on a 2.5l you should make at least that. I also noticed you're pushing that TD04 hard at 21PSI, now I get E85 means more boost/timing but that's working the little turbo ragged over time and I wouldn't beat on it (they're set at 14.5PSI from Subaru for reliability and 18+ has been known to wear them out early with extended usage at those higher levels of boost).

In the end when you choose your turbo, you need to keep in mind the usage/goals of the setup. A DD might not be as fun to you if you have to wait until 4k+ RPMs to hit full boost (6 speeds run out of gear faster with more power), say vs a weekend toy where you can stay in the upper RPMs and utilize that powerband. Also something many people forget/don't realize is when you have a daily, making peak TQ above 4k RPMs is not going to have that push you in the seat unless you run through every gear (and we all know how short the 6MT 1st gear is).

And never forget to ASK YOUR TUNER!
 
#10 ·
I apologize. Haven't had much free time. 2yo twins will do it. Not trying to ignore these informative posts.
Titter, That video is sick. I want to stay with stock turbo location. I rarely drive this car. Nice, sunny days when I have the time. About 39K now and I bought it new in 07.
Robotuner, Funny you say that. I over-boosted about 3 wks ago on 93oct doing a 3rd gear pull. Not even super aggressive. Car was tuned in the summer and I drove it on a cool night (45-50ish). Tuner sent me an adjusted map. Of course, then it snowed again and now there is salt everywhere.
I'm running the grimmspeed 3-port bcs. Dont know why I didn't put it in mods list.
That's exactly what I was after in my original question. I want to be at peak well below 4k. I was thinking I could shave a couple hundred off the rpm range given for turbos in the list with the big TMIC..
First gear....yeah. Might as well call it a granny gear.
Do you use the LC on the AP? I have not done it. Curious about it though.
 
#12 ·
I want to stay with stock turbo location. I rarely drive this car. Nice, sunny days when I have the time. About 39K now and I bought it new in 07. I'm running the grimmspeed 3-port bcs. I want to be at peak well below 4k. I was thinking I could shave a couple hundred off the rpm range given for turbos in the list with the big TMIC. Do you use the LC on the AP? I have not done it. Curious about it though.
so you are single scroll, stock motor, and want to stay stock location turbo... well there only 1 opition in my books if you want spool before 4k.

Killer B Spoolinator with a Gen2 GTX2867R. will get you to 350whp on pump gas no problems on a 2.5 with full spool @3500(ish) RPM. it is by far the best option if you are single scroll and stock location. might not be the cheapest option, but it would be one hell of a fire breathing street monster. there are other setups to get you to there, but this is what i would pick.

Make sure you get a good reputable tuner. you could have the best build in the world but if your tuner sucks he either wont be able to tap the power or he'll blow it up.
For a stock engine I wouldn't run more than 20PSI hard all the time, your pistons will hate you. Now if you had forged internals/semi built engine you could do much much more as you probably know lol.

The spoolinator kit paired with that turbo could make some serious playtime power, but it wouldn't shine as much until you build that botto end. Check the RPMs/Boost response in and you'll see why.

Other turbo options would be the Blouch 20G/DOM1.5-2.5XTR and a couple others but I'd check these out first. They will all put you around the power you want before the RPM you want, especially with properly tuned EWG/AVCS. For more though you will need to drop some pistons in at the least, and while you're there new race bearings would be a great idea. If you have the cash and time, I would highly recommend upgrading your valve springs and get the engine balanced for 7500-8k RPMs while it's out...you'll thank yourself later for doing this with higher boost levels over time (just make sure if you do this, you include the clutch flywheel you want to use for the balancing process).
 
#11 ·
so you are single scroll, stock motor, and want to stay stock location turbo... well there only 1 opition in my books if you want spool before 4k.

Killer B Spoolinator with a Gen2 GTX2867R. will get you to 350whp on pump gas no problems on a 2.5 with full spool @3500(ish) RPM. it is by far the best option if you are single scroll and stock location. might not be the cheapest option, but it would be one hell of a fire breathing street monster. there are other setups to get you to there, but this is what i would pick.

make sure you get a good reputable tuner. you could have the best build in the world but if your tuner sucks he either wont be able to tap the power or he'll blow it up.
 
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#13 ·
he wont need a built bottom end for a 2867. its only a 48lbs/min turbo and the 1.5XTR is a 47lbs/min turbo if you want to compare. so unless he drives like a maniac and lugs his motor, he'll be fine.
 
#15 ·
here the Nasioc thread about the spoolinator if you want to read more about it

keep in mind the thread started back in 2014 so some of the information in the earlier posts might not be applicable. also keep in mind its Nasioc and there is alot of arguments over nothing lol.
 
#18 ·
Lol. Yeah I found it, but thanks man. It sounds awesome from what Ive read, but guys have blown shit up quick with that setup too (talked to my tuner). I don't know what to do now. I have all supporting mods but stock internals...Im thinking of turning the turbo fund into a building motor fund...IDK...Im not sure how much that would set me back either.
 
#19 ·
An engine build will depend on what you want from it? Just going forged is going to run you about $600-1k if you do it yourself (and buy the couple hand tools). But honestly here's what you should do if you decide to crack open the block for a minimum build and should run you about 2.5k or more: forged pistons, rods, ACL bearings, STi oil pump, STi oil pan/pickup tube/dipstick, and block machining.

You can always do more, but that really depends on what you're building the car for. A street monster (not highway) should be able to scoot around below 4k RPMs, when compared to a highway/track car you'll always be in the RPM range for power (above 4k RPMs). I'd stay away from bigger cams (above a 264) as they shift the powerband above 4k RPMs, vs a 252 cam which would have more umph in the mid range and the upper RPMs just not as much as say a 272 cam. If you go the cam route you should also look into bigger valves and head porting, smaller cams will be more happy with stock valves or a +.5mm, +1mm is going to gain more in the upper RPMs but not as much down low due to flowing too much at lower RPMs. As a rule of thumb, head work will cost you similar to a built bottom end, and isn't really worth it until you build that bottom end anyways because you'll bend/break something before you make the power the heads can flow.

STi rods are usually good for 400hp, I would stay away from Kings bearings as I had a "built" bottom end spin one of their rod bearings, STi oil pump to fight against starvation, STi oil pan/pickup/dipstick also helps keep the oil at the pump pickup (there's a thread about how the wrx pan is known for causing starvation in hard turns, and if you swap pans you'll need the dipstick/tube for that year STi pan or you will not have accurate readings), STi crank as they started making them Nitrate coated and they have more oil flow to fight against starvation at higher RPMs unlike the 205 cranks, KillerB oil pickup for similar reasons but yours has low mileage, they also make an oil baffle/windage tray which helps keep the oil from sloshing up on the crank in hard turns/etc, block machining is a given as over time you create a carbon buildup on the walls and they wear down as well, a quality machine shop should be very knowledgeable with EJs and have a "torque plate" which is required when boring/honing the cylinder wall to keep accuracy due to the nature of the EJ and block flex with that kind of force during cutting. Said shop should also be good with deck clearancing if you use different pistons that require decking.
 
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