Projects Archives - Page 8 of 56

Choosing wheels and tires is such an important decision that greatly affects the potential of a car. We improve the performance and visual presence of our FD Mazda RX-7 with…

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Project Tundra, Changing the Rest of the Lights with Headlight Revolution

Mike Kojima

Since we had such great results upgrading the front lights on our Tundra with modern LED lights we decided to also upgrade the rear lights on our truck with LED…

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Project GD STI, Getting Ready For the Engine Swap

Mike Kojima

In our previous articles, we covered the build-up of our EJ257 engine collaboration with IAG Performance. Now we have been collecting a bunch of parts to make our installation go…

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Project Viper: Part 16 – Forgeline VX1-6 Wheels and Michelin Super Sport Tires

Billy Johnson

Fresh performance tires are crucial for keeping Vipers safe and predictable. We upgrade our Viper with Forgeline’s Monoblock VX1-6 wheels wrapped in new Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires. As we…

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WATCH: Want to Run E85 in Your GT-R? WATCH THIS FIRST!!

Jeff Naeyaert

Flex-fuel is like crack for your turbocharged car but if your stock fuel system isn’t set up for it you could be in for big problems! In this video,…

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Project NSX: Part 13 – Track Testing Yokohama A052 Tires and Swift Springs

Billy Johnson

When it comes to performance on track, tires are one of the most important factors of a car. We install what is arguably the fastest 200-treadwear “Street” tire on the…

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Project DBA R35 GT-R, Building the VR38DETT Engine for Mad Power with MAD Sweden!

Mike Kojima

So after maxing out the VR38DETT engine with simple bolt-ons and having to limit the torque to spare the stock rods and connecting rods, we are going to embark on…

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Project FD RX-7 Restomod: Part 1 – Introduction

Billy Johnson

The 3rd generation (FD) Mazda RX-7 is one of the best driver’s cars to ever come out of Japan. Unfortunately, its turbocharged rotary engine has a bad reputation for being…

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The Best of 2021, #2: Project 987.2 Cayman S, Aero Install With Verus Engineering

Mike Kojima

In our last edition of Project 987.2 Porsche Cayman S, we discussed the components from Verus Engineering that we would be using to get an honest 1000 lbs of downforce at…

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The Best of 2021, #3: Resurrecting Project FR-S: Wisefab Track Suspension

Mike Kojima

Our Project FR-S was already a really good handling car with the stuff we had done to it with parts from KW Suspension, Whiteline and Cusco but we wanted to…

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The Best of 2021, #5: Project DBA R35 Nissan GT-R, The Ultimate R35 Brake System, Nismo/Brembo Carbon Ceramic

Mike Kojima

The R35 GT-R is a marvelous machine capable of amazing performance. However, it is a heavy beast weighing in at anywhere from 3820 to 3900 lbs depending on year and…

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Project Viper: Part 15 – Fixing the Factory Brake Bias

Billy Johnson

Non-ABS equipped Gen-2 Vipers have terrible brake bias. We install new rear calipers with larger pistons to improve the brake bias and stopping performance of our Viper. We also upgrade…

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Project Tundra, Game Changing Lights With Turner LED’s

Mike Kojima

Our Tundra was badly in need of help in the lighting department. Being 11 years old, the factory lights were definitely old technology and low-end being run-of-the-mill halogen instead of…

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Project Budget 400WHP S197 Mustang Track Car: Part 9 – Apex Wheels and Nitto Tires

Billy Johnson

Choosing wheels and tires are some of the most important decisions you can make for a car. For this project’s theme of using the best bang-for-your-buck components possible, there really…

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Project Tundra, Off Road Protection from RCI Offroad

Mike Kojima

One of the most annoying things about the Tundra is that you have to remove the factory skid plate every time you change the oil to access the oil filter.…

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Project GD STI, IAG’s new high capacity EJ Oil Pump!

Mike Kojima

IAG has just dropped their Stage 1 and Stage 2 oil pumps for all EJ engines. We will be using their Stage 2 pump on our own Project GD STI.…

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Project IS-F gets an Amazing Facelift with Wicked Auto Detailing

Mike Kojima

Even though we take pretty good care of Project IS-F, it is a daily driver and 10 years of daily driving had taken a toll on its looks. The Lexas…

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WATCH: How to Solve Your Subaru Fueling Problems. The Right Way!

Jeff Naeyaert

In this video Mike explains the shortcomings of the stock Subaru fuel system and how to fix it the right way. This fuel system is capable of supporting up…

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Feal Suspension 442, The Best Sentra B Chassis Shocks!: Tested on the K24 powered NX2000

Frank Ewald

There are so many options for suspensions systems that it is challenging to make a decision. Unless however, you have a Nissan B13 and then the choices are reduced…

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WATCH: Buying Custom Offroad Seats: How PRP Seats are Made, Install & Review!

Jeff Naeyaert

Our project LJ Wrangler’s seats were well worn and tired after 15 years of other people doing who knows what in them! In this video we take a tour…

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Project Budget 400WHP S197 Mustang Track Car: Part 8 – Aero with Steeda and Ford

Billy Johnson

For the S197 Mustang platform, proven aero does not have to be expensive. We install a wind tunnel-tested Steeda wing and a BOSS 302 splitter to improve the downforce of…

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Tech
Subaru

Low Buck WRX Brake Upgrade

Mike Kojima

If you own a GD WRX (2002-2007), your car is probably getting up there in miles and if you need to go through your brakes, there is a nice low…

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Project Viper: Part 14 – Maintenance: Swaybar Bushings, Ball Joints and Boots

Billy Johnson

Time takes its toll on rubber. We replace the old and hardened swaybar bushings, ball joints, and boots on our low-mileage 1997 Viper. As we mentioned in Part 12, it’s…

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Tune your OEM Active Suspension with DSC Sport’s Suspension Controller

Mike Kojima

Many of today’s higher-end sports cars and sports sedans have active damper control. The factories engineers use this active control to tune the suspension in the same way that we…

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WATCH: Fix Subaru Oiling Issues for Good!

Jeff Naeyaert

In this video Mike talks about yet another shortcoming of the Subaru EJ engine and probably the best way to fix it! If you liked the video, please subscribe…

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Solving Subaru EJ Oiling Issues for Good with IAG Performance!

Mike Kojima

Subaru EJ engines are known to have oiling problems caused by the oil pan and pick up. We personally know quite a few people who have lost engines on the…

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The Impossible Evo X: Part 2 – How to use a BOV to control compressor surge

Daniel O'Donnell

On partial throttle, lower revs, my Evo X has turbocharger compressor surge. This is a phenomenon that occurs when the turbocharger compressor wheel is creating more air mass than the…

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Project C8 Corvette, Getting Track Safe with Peitz Performance and Simpson Safety

Mike Kojima

Since we have upgraded our C8’s wheels, tires, brakes, and suspension, the car is starting to turn some seriously fast lap times (1:52’s at Buttonwillow CW 13). We found that…

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WATCH: The Best Clutch Money Can Buy? XClutch Twin Disc

Jeff Naeyaert

We recently noticed a new clutch brand to us that’s been gaining popularity in the time attack crowd. In this video Mike takes a look at the XClutch twin…

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Project SC300 Road Racer: Part 34 – Cameras are rolling, copy that.

Erik Jacobs

Life has gotten complicated, and, unfortunately, that has meant that Project SC300 has been sitting around for nearly a year. I reached a point, though, where I couldn’t take it…

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Project GD Subaru STI, High Power Fuel System Upgrades!

Mike Kojima

When last tuning our STI with Cobb’s flex-fuel system, we had maxed out our Mass Air Flow Meter, fuel pump and had our injectors going at the maximum duty cycle…

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Taking 50 lbs off the R35 GT-R with Verkline!

Mike Kojima

Probably the main disadvantage of the R35 GT-R is its weight. For a sportscar, it is exceedingly heavy at nearly 4000 lbs. Our particular model weighs 3840 lbs but some…