Fearless Recommendations

1. Advance timing to the factory maximum - 18 degrees BTDC. Before you go racing, experiment with more advance to determine how far you can go before detonation. My car runs well at 21 BTDC which is worth about 0.1 sec in the quarter mile. I do not run this on the street however.
2. Get a high flow air filter - K&N seems to work very well and is very economical. You can buy a K&N system from someone, or just get the largest filter you can fit and have a metal shop fabricate a bracket and connector pipe. If you don't want to replace the whole intake tube, you shouldn't have to spend more than $100 (probably a lot less!).
3. Open up the exhaust - whether it's with a Trust BL or a custom system, this is a must. I am very happy with my 2.5", mid pipe resonator, Dynomax Super Turbo system - it sounds good, looks good, and works well. At a reputable shop, you should be able to obtain a nice system for under $200 depending upon options. I spent $250 for mine which included the piping, muffler, fabrication, installation, and a very nice 4" tip - oh yes, I also got lots of dyno time to go with it (normally a $65 option). While a Trust BL may look a little better, even sound a little better, I'm on a budget and can use the extra $250 elsewhere.
4. Get some headers - if you're going to open up the exhaust, you might as well get rid of as much restriction as possible. You will also save some weight - about 12-14 lbs by my measurement. These will also help maximize the exhaust. Cost - less than $350
5. Get a throttle body and port match the intake manifold. This follows the same "open everything up" principle. Cost - $150 + $50 for the port matching.
6. Get everything else, although I might recommend experimenting with an adjustable fuel pressure regulator first if you have access to a dyno. With proper tuning, timing and pressure adjustments will do most of what a computer does - at least at full throttle.

Copyright 2002, Temple of VTEC