[SirLazarues]

Hey guy's,
I've been checking out alot of the threads on here, and man do u guys know your stuff :thumbup:... anyway i was wondering if there was any Cheap afordable way to add HP to my '89 cam? It's got a 3sfe I4... any help and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[atobe]

cheap and more HP doesn't go hand in hand.

 

[CrawlingEye]

If I had a gen2 I would pull a 3sgte/3sge swap, which would give you considerably more hp, however a new engine isn't quite 'affordable.'

 

[Talisman]

Hey guy's,
I've been checking out alot of the threads on here, and man do u guys know your stuff :thumbup:... anyway i was wondering if there was any Cheap afordable way to add HP to my '89 cam? It's got a 3sfe I4... any help and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

What do you consider cheap?

 

[SirLazarues]

cheap as in under a grand if possible, eventually im gonna do the 3sgte turbo swap, but for now i just want to get my Scarlet Cam running just a bit faster... any suggestions other than the swap?

 

[CamNub]

Search man.

I don't even think you know what is involved in a 3sgte swap. I'll bet You think its just put the motor in and connect some piping and your set. Its nothing close.

Your best bet is CAI (cold air intake)

 

[SirLazarues]

LOL... i know whats involved in swapping, thats exactly y i'm wating on it, i dont have enough cash to even get started... thanx for the advice, even so CAI is costly isn't it... i have one more question, what about changing the Air Temp sensor, for a mod chip that tells the ECU the air coming in is Colder?

 

[atobe]

under a grand eh... exhaust ( you can reuse after the swap) flywheel if you'r stick. i bet that temp sensor does nothing.

 

[CamNub]

LOL... i know whats involved in swapping, thats exactly y i'm wating on it, i dont have enough cash to even get started... thanx for the advice, even so CAI is costly isn't it... i have one more question, what about changing the Air Temp sensor, for a mod chip that tells the ECU the air coming in is Colder?

Oh. I wasn't completly sure. And i still am not. Cause if you knew that, you should kno what you need to get to get more performance.

A cai is about 150 new brand name or 40+ Do it yourself.

Mod chips do not work. Look at camry FAQ. www.toyotanation.com and click the FAQ one and ultimate camry FAQ. Or check the one in this forum.

And just think about it. Telling your ecu that the air is colder doesn't do anything. A cai cools the air which makes the air molecules get closer to each other therefore you get more air thru. Which ignites and gives you some more power. If you tricked it, what would it do?

 

[Luckynumber5]

it makes you car run really rich, and i dont even think you can add one if you have an air flow meter cause its built in, dont remember if your car uses the meter or not though

 

[Talisman]

If you are going to do the swap anyway, I would just save your money cuz everything you buy, you will just have to get rid of later. That is called knowingly wasting money. Come up with a plan of what you want to do and stick to it. That way you waste money, you have a goal, and you only have to do things once.

If you have to spend money, I would do it on suspension, wheels, tires, and brakes. This will make the car infinitely more fun to drive, it will look better, and you will need it for the upcoming swap.

If you must go faster, buy Nitrous. Maybe you can ven find a used kit for cheap on EBAY. I wouldn't spend the money on it but it will make your car quick for not much cash.

 

[CrawlingEye]

A cai is about 150 new brand name or 40+ Do it yourself.

CAI's are more like $150 if you use a decent filter. Mine was about $160 total, not including shipping, largely because I used a K&N X-Stream flow filter. I think you're confusing CAI with RAM-intakes, which run like $40 on ebay or $150 for the weapon-r.

 

[white90dx]

If you are willing to risk your motor and you know what you are doing, you can probably turbo your car for under $1k...

Shoot, I bought a whole car that was turbo for $1200.

-Charlie

 

[CamNub]

CAI's are more like $150 if you use a decent filter. Mine was about $160 total, not including shipping, largely because I used a K&N X-Stream flow filter. I think you're confusing CAI with RAM-intakes, which run like $40 on ebay or $150 for the weapon-r. [/B]

Really? I've always heard/thought that they ran for like 150. I guess around 200-250 is a better estimate?



And how did you get your car turboed for under 1 k? Did you get an fuel management mods or are you using stock internals?

 

[Toysrme]

It can be done to nearly any engine if you've got a reserve of skills and time...

Let's face it you can get rebuilt turbo's for 200, spare manifold to weld up, use mechanical controls, find a used intercooler off something cheap like a volvo... Use flexi-pipe everywher possible.

The more you have on hand, the less it costs!

 

[userlain]

5 3sfe mods for hp:
1. CAI
2. cat-back exhaust + straight flow muffler(possible removal of can converter?)
3. MSD ignition system
4. NGK Platinum plugs and wires
5. performance 3sfe exhaust headers

there are a ton more, however these do add up to be a bit, but less that equipping/swapping a turbo. the gains are less also, but the car is infinitly more reliable w/o turbo.

my $.02

 

[SirLazarues]

your actually pretty much the first person to really help me out, see i used to be more of a chevy man... thats where i have all my background... and then i bought a gen2 Cam and i was impressed by the way the engine, being so old, still handled better than some of my friends newer Hondas...thus i became the black sheep in a circle of honda freaks...lol... so i started researching more on Toyo's and find them to be infintely more fun to mess with than my now sold Camaro...thanks again

 

[CamNub]

5 3sfe mods for hp:
1. CAI
2. cat-back exhaust + straight flow muffler(possible removal of can converter?)
3. MSD ignition system
4. NGK Platinum plugs and wires
5. performance 3sfe exhaust headers

Plugs Don't give you more hp. Its a myth about how performance plugs spark at high temps so you get a bigger spark and more power. Its the same concept as the octance myth. Not sure about the wires though.

Cat-back doesn't give you much extra power either i dont think. And besides, you won't push that much to even need a cat back exaust. Its more cosmetic.

 

[CrawlingEye]

Plugs Don't give you more hp. Its a myth about how performance plugs spark at high temps so you get a bigger spark and more power. Its the same concept as the octance myth. Not sure about the wires though.

right but wrong, good plugs don't loose you hp, and good plugs will fire well under high-revs, which is largely the point of ignition upgrades.

Cat-back doesn't give you much extra power either i dont think. And besides, you won't push that much to even need a cat back exaust. Its more cosmetic.

not quite, exhaust helps your engine breath better, you're not going to gain 20whp from it, nor will you from doing anything shy of internal work or fi.

exhaust work will let you rev quicker, which in turn means more power quicker.

 

[CamNub]

right but wrong, good plugs don't loose you hp, and good plugs will fire well under high-revs, which is largely the point of ignition upgrades.

I was talking to Smoking tires about this once. Isn't the diff between performance and generic that the performances have less of a chance of failing and having carbon build up?