GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Other then getting a new exhaust(Magnaflow) and intake(K&N) what can I do to the Vibe that cost less or around $1000 that can increase performance?

well a good combination is a magnaflow cat back exhaust, a full cold air intake (not a short ram) Cosmo and Injen to name two are the more popular for CAI and I might also suggest a unichip. However the unichip itself sort of takes most of your $1000 budget. They run around $800 new.

You could also port and polish the intake manifold, and u could buy a DC sports header. You could also add some grounding wires, though I'm not sure how much those really help. lol

Use Unichip = $500Crower Stage 1 Cams = $450

Getting more air in and more exhaust out is the primary thing to do. So you're talking Intake, intake manifold work, header, and full exhaust. After that you can go supercharger or get a camcon to better get use out of your setup.

"well a good combination is a magnaflow cat back exhaust, a full cold air intake (not a short ram) Cosmo and Injen to name two are the more popular for CAI and I might also suggest a unichip. However the unichip itself sort of takes most of your $1000 budget. They run around $800 new."Ya, what Mavrik said.

Oh and you can get the Unichip brand new from neverenoughauto.com for $520.http://www.neverenoughauto.com...id=43

Quote, originally posted by Petrucci914 » After that you can go supercharger or get a camcon to better get use out of your setup.But going supercharger requires far more than $1000.

That is an awesome signature! Pettruchi914 has a nice set up that doesn't look very expensive. A $1000 is a nice start. Cause you'll need a little more if you really want to be 'happy' with it. Just wait, after you get your intake installed you'll be wanting a lot more!

Hi V,I'm not sure how much the Unichip affects the Base Vibe but when I got mine from Goodvibe last August, it alone made a major difference in performance. The only other engine mods I have would be the K&N Intake though have considered a custom exhaust. I would say the only issue about getting the Chip before an intake or exhaust would be having to send it back to be reprogrammed for those modifications. I still have to say it was the best thing I could have done for performance and am 100% happy with it.Dave

Thanks you all the input, I just believe it's wrong to make a car look nice on the outside but not having anything to back it up is wrong. Lancer, thanks for the complement on the signature, I took pics of my car and have loads of fun with PhotoShop. *FYI PhotoShop Queen*

Hi...I did the two first step to the 1000$ upgrade. A Cosmo Short ram (i live in quebec and winter is lot of snow and low temprature so choose the Short ram over the CAI) and the magnaflow. I like the sound of bot... but must admit i didnt see a world of difference in the performance. But i'm still plagegd by a bad transmission that doesnt pass ok when i shift after lift .Maybe the missing part is a Unichip for a bit more torque and a new transmission/clutch kit... Still the GT is great fun... but the two first upgrade didnt suffice that play even with my friend Altima v6 (For that i would probably need a Turbo but anyway a man has to try is best hehehe).

For me since im ballin on a college budget is this:CAICat back exhaust (magna flow)Ported exhuast headers ($150 w/ shipping, stock ones from boosted2.0 on newcelica.org)Ported Throttle body ($100)Ground wires (like $5 or up to $20)Cams (what bluecrush said)ECU tunerSCAll I have so far is a CAI, but i have the headers and throttle body waiting to get ported when i get enough cash.

Easy.Borla Cat-back $395.24.Zex Wet kit ~$663For a total of $1058.24Actually, I found the Zex kit for $579.95That brings the total down to $975.19

OOPS! DP.

Quote, originally posted by AJ_’04 Vibe »Easy.Borla Cat-back $395.24.Zex Wet kit ~$663For a total of $1058.24Actually, I found the Zex kit for $579.95That brings the total down to $975.19 Borla's "cat-back" is actually an axel-back, and adds little-to-no performance whatsoever. If going for an exhaust, to which the OP clearly says "Other then getting a new exhaust(Magnaflow) and intake(K&N)...", then either Magnaflow cat-back or custom 2.5"-2.75" piping+JP midpipe+MFlow/HKS/Flowmaster, etc muffler would be the way to go for performance.I honestly don't know why people spend $350-$400 on the Borla exhaust...for the sound? I dunno, Magnaflow sounds very low, very nice - nothing "ricer" about it (not that Borla sounds ricer..)If trying to decide between Intake OR exhaust, almost everyone would recommend intake first. The stock airbox is the biggest airflow restriction on these (any any other) cars.Nitrous? I don't know if that's the first mod a new modder would want to deal with. Warranty issues aside, it's definitely not street legal. Just my opinion!

hey man where have you been havent see you wround here lately. but anyway BT topic best mods for new moders would be the CAI and an A/M exhaust like Psyhco mentioned before.

What's up Nascar Just been busy at work. My assistant's been out all week with ... personal issues. I was out last Thurs. and Fri camping in the Grand Canyon, so I'm still trying to catch up.Anyway, I'm definitely around, perhaps not posting as much

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »Borla's "cat-back" is actually an axel-back, and adds little-to-no performance whatsoever. If going for an exhaust, to which the OP clearly says "Other then getting a new exhaust(Magnaflow) and intake(K&N)...", then either Magnaflow cat-back or custom 2.5"-2.75" piping+JP midpipe+MFlow/HKS/Flowmaster, etc muffler would be the way to go for performance.I honestly don't know why people spend $350-$400 on the Borla exhaust...for the sound? I dunno, Magnaflow sounds very low, very nice - nothing "ricer" about it (not that Borla sounds ricer..)If trying to decide between Intake OR exhaust, almost everyone would recommend intake first. The stock airbox is the biggest airflow restriction on these (any any other) cars.Nitrous? I don't know if that's the first mod a new modder would want to deal with. Warranty issues aside, it's definitely not street legal. Just my opinion! This is why I'm extremely thankful to have a site like this. If it weren't for this great info. getting passed around, I probably would have botched up every decision on my Vibe. When it comes to modding performance that is. lolJust greatful to have this kind of knowledge whenever I need it.

Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »Borla's "cat-back" is actually an axel-back, and adds little-to-no performance whatsoever. I'd have to disagree with you on this one. Definatly noticable mid and top-end power increase. And the Borla sounds pretty much the same as magnaflow. Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »then either Magnaflow cat-back or custom 2.5"-2.75" piping+JP midpipe+MFlow/HKS/Flowmaster, etc muffler would be the way to go for performance.If your not going FI, then you shouldn't get too large of an exhaust. NA engines (especially 4 bangers like ours) need some back pressure for torque. You'll be loosing performance if you start going any larger than 2.5".Quote, originally posted by Psychobroker »Nitrous? I don't know if that's the first mod a new modder would want to deal with. Warranty issues aside, it's definitely not street legal. Just my opinion! I totally agree with you here! Nitrous is not for beginners. And I wouldn't recomend it for a brand new car. Maybe after 30k miles on it. I think Cali is the only state where it's actually illegal to have it (go ahead and correct me if I'm wrong ). Here in WI a lot of people have it. But cops don't ever do vehicle inspections under the hood. Just window tint, lights, exhaust noise, and speaker noise.

I'm sorry, but unless you do something about the stock midpipe, that Borla isn't giving you more than 2 or 3 HP. If it did, Borla would put out a dyno sheet.

I'm sorry, but unless you do something about the stock midpipe, that Borla isn't giving you more than 2 or 3 HP. If it did, Borla would put out a dyno sheet.As for the piping, I believe Redliner9k @ mo.com went with custom 2.75 and yielded higher gains..quite higher than Magnaflow, actually.

Psychobroker,I was under the impression that the exhaust and CAI was still in the $1,000 budget.Quite frankly, I'd spend the money for a muffler that is flow rated. AFAIK, the only company to do that is Walker (Dynomax). Then I'd have pipes custom mandrel bent to fit my car.I don't believe Magnaflows are flow rated.FWIW, I don't even know how these places are coming up with Borla kits for our cars. You won't find it at Borla's website. Maybe they have access to other parts, or perhaps they found an alternative kit that just so happens to work.And pardon me for pointing out the obvious, but I don't recall where "street legal" was a requirement. Nitrous is perfectly safe, especially the kit I showed. It works off voltage from the TPS. You can't go wrong unless you don't follow operating and installation instructions.Too many people gave nitrous a bad rep by using it incorrectly. It's perfectly safe when used within the power level the engine is designed to handle. That's true of turbos and supercharges as well, hence why the GM supercharger is limited at a certain PSI.That's also why I showed the wet kit. Much safer IMO. But that's all that is.... my opinion. I wouldn't trust a dry kit at all. Way too easy to run lean and burn/melt something inside the engine.Lancer,Backpressure is not what you want to keep. Velocity is. Backpressure is always bad, period. It restricts flow. But with virtually any size pipe there's a certain RPM on said engine where it will cause a restriction.There's a fine balance between what's too big and what's too small. Port velocity through the exhaust should be highest at peak HP for maximum results. That takes a lot more money (read dyno time) to investigate than any mass marketing exhaust company wants to invest.If the pipe is too big, obviously you'll lose velocity. Too small and you'll have a restriction (read backpressure). Then there are other contributing factors such as pipe length which effect pules waves, scavenging where pipes (header or exhaust) and/or manifold ports meet, and even where to exit the pipe under the car can contribute.Mufflers should not pose a restriction if choosen correctly. David Vizard came up with a formula to find out how much flow is needed for "X" amount of HP. The only company (to my knowledge) to agree with his findings and actually flow rate their mufflers is Dynomax. When Mr. Vizard tried to get other companies to use the same flow ratings, they politely refused.Obviously, sound levels are also going to affect which muffler you choose. If that wasn't a concern, we'd all be running straight pipes, or at least I would. VforVibe,I still say nitrous is a viable option. If you're not comfortable using it, that's fine. Just don't rule it out because of horror stories you've seen or heard. For every 1 bad story you've heard there are 10 good ones you didn't hear.And since CAI and exhaust aren't in the $1,000 budget, spend the extra money and get a remote bottle valve and strengthen up the drivetrain and/or engine.You asked for options and I gave them, yet others feel the need to badger my suggestions. Do what you're comfortable with based on the information you receive.

Very well said! Thank you for correcting me. The 'back pressure' debate is always a hot one. Example: Why do civics have such tiny exhaust pipes but a lot of torque for their small engines? I'm guessing what you said is more true for larger hp & displacement engines.I also want to add that if you use larger pipes, the exhaust will cool off more before it leaves the exhaust system. Cooler (denser) air is harder to push out then hot air. And I heard somewhere a long time ago that the best flowing muffler, is no muffler at all. Ok, I'm done. We can continue this on a new topic. Sorry VforVibe for hijacking!

Quote, originally posted by Lancer »Ok, I'm done. We can continue this on a new topic. Sorry VforVibe for hijacking!Not a problem, I now know more then I did before... ...if that makes any sense at all.

Quote, originally posted by Lancer »I totally agree with you here! Nitrous is not for beginners. And I wouldn't recomend it for a brand new car. Maybe after 30k miles on it. I think Cali is the only state where it's actually illegal to have it (go ahead and correct me if I'm wrong ). Here in WI a lot of people have it. But cops don't ever do vehicle inspections under the hood. Just window tint, lights, exhaust noise, and speaker noise. I don't think it's "illegal" to have it (it comes stock from Ford in their SVT Focus). It's usually what you're doing when you USE it - that breaks a law or three. Remember, NOS is just a extra oxygen for your engine... typically dumped in with more fuel so you don't melt your pistons or blow the heads through your hood, but that's your own choice.A supercharger or turbo does the same thing, only different ways... and in my opinion much more managed than a NOS system.On Topic - go with CAI and choose your branch from there... exhaust - maybe. Blue says the chip is the way to go. You could just axe the resonnator and have the shop put in a performance muffler - leaving the rest of the pipe alone.

Quote, originally posted by AJ_’04 Vibe »You asked for options and I gave them, yet others feel the need to badger my suggestions. Do what you're comfortable with based on the information you receive.Not sure if you think I was badgering you or not, but I honestly thought nitrous was not street legal. I dunno, but jumping to nitrous out of the box isn't a typical first-time modder's mod. Just my opinion .

I don't know if you were or not either. I guess since you don't know if you were, you weren't. So now we both know. Really though, he didn't even say anything had to be "street legal". Nitrous may be illegal in certain states, bu it's only illegal if you get caught.

i think its illegal in some states to have a full bottle...but having it empty is ok on the street.....

hello...vforvibe...if no one else has mentioned this, i would like to put my $0.02 cents in. i went to a pro muffler shop and the performance guy was asking me why i wanted an exhaust. i told him the main reason was to save gas, then gain more hp. surprisingly, after looking at my muffler, the dude said you will hardly notice any difference in gas savings or performance, unless i went all out and got a complete exhaust makeover, plus more power to take advantage of the exhaust system. he also mentioned that the exhaust was finely tuned from the factory to give the best performance/gas savings ratio. but, if i still wanted a muffler, he wasn't going to question me further. now, i don't know if this is true because i decided not to get an exhaust system. however, i thought that was a very nice gesture from a store/shop. also, a few cheap suggestions. if you have a base vibe, use bosch platinum +4 spark plugs. they will add hp without a noticeable loss in mpg. they will also give you a smoother engine operation/acceleration response under $25. use full synthetic engine/transmission oil because this will add some hp. full synthetic oil is rated to last 15k minimum. Use a performance oil filter like mobil 1 or k&n. the pass through ratio is excellent without hampering filtration. these oil filters are rated to last twice that of standard oil filters. so, you can change the oil filter twice before draining your synthetic oil. don't forget to top off after a filter change, about 1/2 quart. if you want to see a difference for yourself, try using an oil filter like Fram, then change it to mobil 1 or k&n. also, use chevron gas, this gas is equipped with techron: the best fuel additive that i know of so far. not only will chevron gas save you more mpg, it pushes out more performance from your engine. don't just try it once and say it doesn't work, you will have to fill up several tank fulls consecutively to notice a difference. this will depend on how clean the engine is internally. if you have a lot of deposits in your engine, the longer it will take for techron to take effect. if you don't think techron is making a difference, then try a different brand after a few tank fulls of chevron. not all gas, filters, oil, and plugs are the same. i should know, i have had 7 vehicles in my lifetime, used numerous oil brands, gas brands, filter brands, and wasted alot of money before i found the best ones. besides, if they were all the same, then we wouldn't have a choice. hope some of my suggestions will help you in fine tuning your vibe.

Quote, originally posted by dkim1 » i thought that was a very nice gesture from a store/shop.Sounds to me like he looked under your car and said to himself "Screw that. This car is going to be a PITA."The guy talked you out of spending money in his shop. There's only one reason he'd do that; In his eyes the time and aggravation wasn't worth the money.