There's not really a point to this thread, but I thought I'd share what I did to my car and what my thoughts are on the latest round of mods/tuning that were done to the car.

I drove up to King Motorsports yesterday morning to have them put the Spoon clutch and flywheel in. The install went well with no issues whatsoever. The result? Wow, the clutch pedal feels soooo soft and smooth. Early and positive engagement of the clutch in the pedal, it feels totally excellent. The flywheel is about 6 pounds lighter than the stock and looks quite different than the stock one, so I don't see how this is a re-worked stock piece. But I could be wrong...

They also adjusted the valves. After 28k hard miles, I thought this was a good thing to go ahead and do. Chad said that about half were out of spec, but not terribly so. I asked if I should notice any performance change with the new settings, and he said no. But it's good to have them back in spec.

I also went ahead and installed the Mugen header. Quite honestly, after seeing the plant in Saitama on our Tokyo visit, I have a very deep appreciation for not just the equipment that comes from Mugen, but the people who are involved in the process of designing and manufacturing the stuff. It's just plain and simple the best stuff that you can put on, if you are into true performance modifications...

Impressions? Holy cow, Scarlet runs like a bat out of hell. Around town driving is FAR improved with the additional torque from the header. In fact, the header makes torque all the way across the powerband and she screams like a madwoman on the highway, as well. Man, it's almost crazy how much different it is...

We also put Redline diff fluid and oil in...everything feels absolutely smooth and feels like new, except that she is all broken in...makes me do this ---->

I also wanted to publically thank King for their excellent work. Everything was done flawlessly and Chad pretty much did the whole thing by himself. Two whackjobs (Jason and Juliann) came up from Chicago and last night then we had a great BBQ at Scott's house...drank a bunch of wine and woke up this morning feeling like a cat pooped in my mouth...brushed my teeth with these toothbrushes that Scott got from Japan (gotta love toothpaste called "Happy White") and off we went back to Chicago this morning.

Well, seeing as how most dealers are ineffective at best, it sure is nice to have King so close. I wish everyone were as fortunate as I am in being so close to them. They are the only ones who lay a hand on Scarlet...

Anyway, anybody else have the Mugen header? What are your impressions? And how about those who have changed the flywheel? What are your impressions of that?

Would love to know...

 

Congrats on your S2K improvements. I also have the Mugen header and dyno testing showed that it does help with midrange torque. Lighter weight exhaust also will help performance. I am very pleased with it. I installed it myself, a task I wouldn't wish on any casual "backyard mechanic" .

 

I have the Mugen header and it is a beautiful piece. I agree that combined with other minor mods (exhaust, TB, etc.) it enhances the drivability of the car. On my car I would not go so far as to claim

 

Chris, initially, during the first test drive after everything was done, I can't say that I noticed much of a difference. But driving back to Chicago, about 1 1/2 hours, I felt it on the highway and driving around town today, I can say that it's a significant improvement. I think the ECU needed a little time to learn new patterns of airflow, etc...and now the car screams. I am extremely pleased with the effects of it. And it really is a beautifully made piece...it's now getting the gold-ish tone to the pipes, man, I love it!

Makes me do this ---->

 

My problem was trying to do everything from above, so clearance under the car is very important to do it correctly with some of it from below. I did unbolt the engine mount. To position the bracket back on the mount, since I had taken it completely off, I had to put a jack between the body and the engine to push it enough to position. Major hassles due to my own "ingenuity"!

I suppose a properly informed backyard mechanic should have no problem.

 

Greg, great report and very interesting.

I have one question. How do you know what it feels like to have a cat poop in your mouth?

 

LOL....I'm only going on what an old friend told me a long time ago!

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Prolene
[B]My problem was trying to do everything from above, so clearance under the car is very important to do it correctly with some of it from below.

 

Greg:

What did you use for the diff?

 

Pepe, I am pretty sure that Chad put Redline MTL (or something like that) in the diff casing. The occasional whine that I would hear from the rear is gone, too.

I'll check with Scott when he gets back to make sure that was what they used. They are on the way to VIR for the races this weekend...