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Best mods you've done

24K views 39 replies 13 participants last post by  George @ ViVA  
#1 ·
Ok, what has been the best mod you've done, and afterward you thought to yourself, I should have done this long ago, also list the ones that you thought were a waste, or of limited impact.
I'll start.
Light weight single mass flywheel and Spec 2+ clutch awesome, besides tune, best thing I have done.
HD TCV and Forge CBV, stock pcs. were probably fine, limited impact.
BSR CAI, looks good, sounds good, limited impact so far,put in for K16 upgrade.
Snow Performance Stage III meth injection, not tuned for it, a preventative measure, runs a tad rich under full throttle, that will get sorted out, not a big improvement yet, pending.
Ipd HD endlinks, awesome car has low miles, but these really tightened up the front.
3" DP with race cat, big plus.
3' catback, sounds great and mean, space constraints are tough, constantly dealing with a little rattle in the back, not a whole lot of clearance with my setup, love/hate relationship.
KW variant 2 coilovers, once I got them dialed in, I love them. The stance is great and handling is awesome, compliant and not much harsher than stock.
Mountune inlet plenum, expensive, but totally woke the car up, given the mods I have,big plus.
EST strut bar, meh, no impact.
Ipd rear sway bay, better.
Autotech Stage III tune, now that I have it sorted out, awesome.
Atp FMIC, a little small for my current plans, otherwise a great upgrade over OEM FMIC, this will be replaced soon.
Drilled and slotted rotors, stainless steel lines, Hawks pads, plus.
Elevate 3" turbo intake, limited impact, might be beneficial with K16.
OEM plugs are the best, so far
I'm still sorting this all out,to be continued....CM.
 
#2 ·
By far the best mod I have done is the Autotech tune. Before the tune I felt like just when the car was about to hit its stride it would start to get winded. After the tune, it just seems to keep on pullllllling! The 18" pegs and the Eibach springs went on at the same time and really glued the car to the road, however, until I got my Elevate rear swaybar it just wasn't complete. The swaybar nearly eliminated the body roll in the corners and inspired much needed stability at higher speeds. Next on the list (after my motorcycle build) is a full exhaust and a larger FMIC with a upgraded tune. Eventually I will have to turn my attention to the brakes to halt all the added horses being added to the stable. For right now though, I am very pleased with the performance and handling of my car. Sooner than later I'll get the urge to order up some more smiles...
 
#3 ·
I find the first one particulartly interesting - can you please explain in details what benefits you got from single mass flywheel and Spec 2+ clutch?

P.S. have you purchased single mass flywheel from Don (Kalmar Union)?
 
#4 ·
Elevate Tune

a close second is the Elevate 25mm rear sway bar.
 
#5 ·
I got the SMF from George@VIVA. The revs build way quicker in the first 3 gears, the little "grocery" getter sounds like a sports car. I have not been able to push it yet, I only have 140 miles on the clutch, but the car feels way stronger and connected now. As I said, besides the tune, this is by far the best thing I've done.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Bell FMIC is my preferred mod though it would not have been as nice have I had not done the other upgrades first... I like this one especially not just for the amount of power gain, or the tune would probably be first, but for the fact it gave such a difference to my running engine with something so simple. My Rica tune was a nice upgrade but I've always had mixed feelings between the power gain vs. a well running engine.

The upgrade I'm the most proud about is probably installing the viva 3"dp and EST exhaust pipe. That was quite a job and a great learning experience.

I would agree that EST front brace has not been much noticeable to me though I did this before lowering which could have been different otherwise. So it would be more at the bottom of the list.

Edit: Oh, and forgot that the Kenwood KOS A200 was my first mode.
I was happy with the resulting integration. Though being a FM hardwire based transmitter was never perfect.

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#8 ·
In order of appearance on my car (item/result):
EST mesh grille - purely cosmetic
Elevate Turbo Pipe/EST drop in filter - turbo spool quicker/increased throttle response
EST Exhaust - better sound/improved exhaust flow. priority if tuning
Elevate RSB - far less body roll
IPD TCV/silicone vacuum lines - steadier boost
Forge CBV - awesome "whoosh" sounds
Eibach springs - slightly lower stance/improved handling
Bell FMIC - installed to deal w/ increased heat of impending tune. priority if tuning
Boost & AFR gauges - priority if tuning
6000k hid's - aesthetic only
streetunit trans mount - minimized engine movement/smoother shifts
EST 3" DP w/ highflow cat - meaner sound/increased airflow. priority if tuning
Elevate stage III tune - boosted boostiness. serious torque monster.
Elevate body kit - aesthetic. test fitted really well (had to shave a few tabs on the rear diffuser). painting next week.

Best mod = Tune. but IMO it would have had less effect without having the products installed above that i listed as "priority".
Note: with the increased power/torque my OEM clutch has started to slip. it is not sufficient to handle the increase power.
i am now deciding between getting the R clutch setup or getting the SPEC 2+. either way i will also get the lightweight SMF.
 
#9 ·
Yeah, I want to do the steering wheel as well, more $$ lol.
 
#11 ·
Yes, slave is stock.
I was slightly concerned at first there would be increased vibration with the SMF as I also have the street unit lower mount, the increase was so minimal, it's not worth noting.
The car also feels tighter and more connected.
The only negative effect was increased pedal effort, although that seems to be improving as I put more miles on it, and the shift is a little notchier, although that is also improving
I only have about 150 miles on it, so I can't really push it yet.
 
#14 ·
Beside minimal increase in vibrations have you experienced any transmission gear rattle after you switched to SMF?

Does SPEC 2+ share the same design (construction) with stock clutch? Are they similar in design (construction)?
 
#12 ·
damn you madden and your glowing praises of SPEC! my bank account is gonna be pizzed at you!!!
I'm still debating between the R & SPEC.....please hurry up and drive 350 more miles so i can get the full on review from you. i need to know that bish can launch with no worries and what life is like over 3.5k rmp's with the 2+ & SMF...
 
#17 ·
damn you madden and your glowing praises of SPEC! my bank account is gonna be pizzed at you!!!
I'm still debating between the R & SPEC.....please hurry up and drive 350 more miles so i can get the full on review from you. i need to know that bish can launch with no worries and what life is like over 3.5k rmp's with the 2+ & SMF...
Sorry Craig,
I told you I was going to take this car to the limit, you'll just have to work a little overtime to keep up,lol. The stock clutch was a joke after the tune, and OEM hub is sprung in addition to dual mass also being sprung, while engineered for smoothness and zero vibration this combo was anemic when pushed by a few mods and a tune, it slipped at will.. The funny thing is, there's very little extra noise or vibration with the SMF and the much beefier clutch. Granted my car is not quite as smooth as stock, but it's not that different, with the TRZ mount my car vibrated a lot (before the SMF conversion), I replaced that with the street unit mount(soft) and SMF, WAY less, just to give you a comparison. A harder mount gives WAY more vibration than a SMF conversion.
Ok I racked up another 30 miles, not ready to launch it yet, I'll keep you posted.
 
#15 ·
No discernable transmission rattle, I know the Dualmass is supposed to quiet things down and dampen vibration, but I didn't notice a significant change.
Both use sprung hubs, (mating material is different) although you can order an unsprung hub if you desire for use with a DMF, I just ordered a sprung hub for greater smoothness..
Fingers on both pressure plates look similiar.
I should have taken some pictures.
 
#18 · (Edited)
In that case Spec 2+ and Viva's SMF really was a wise choice! :)

Do you know if torque capacity of Spec clutch is declared in lb/ft or Nm?
http://www.specclutch.com/cars/Volvo/S40_T5/2006/Single

In addition to those 2 I would also like to change the hydraulic slave because I blame it for slow clutch engagement. The RS unit seems like a natural choice but I'm not sure if it can be used with any other clutch kit except the one from RS.

Tom, Kyle, or anyone else who has seen the stock slave - any opinion on this?

http://www.pumaspeed.co.uk/showdetails.jsp?productID=843

http://www.pumaspeed.co.uk/showdetails.jsp?productID=846

Madden, have you noticed any improvement in engagement speed with the Spec clutch? With "engagement speed" I mean how quickly the clutch engages after you release the clutch pedal. In my C70 there is a short but noticeable delay between those 2 events.
 
#16 ·
I agree with Jess, my coilovers MADE my car what it is. Between the stance and the handling it became a real car to me after that.

I would say that with the M66 the lower trans mount was next in line. It made driving the car actually feel as if I had a handle on it for once. Before then the slop in the drivetrain felt way to loose and sloppy when shifting.
 
#20 ·
That flywheel is made by SPEC, which is the same as Don sells. So yes it should fit a fwd
 
#24 ·
I don't see why not. I've had a number of those slaves out and haven't been able to see a physical difference between them. I'd assume the only difference then would be internal which if that's the case would be a nice upgrade.
 
#25 ·
Probably true.

And do you think that AWD single mass flywheel that George VIVA is selling can be fitted to FWD cars?

http://www.vivaperformance.com/single-mass-flywheel-m66-awd-manual-gearbox/

George told me he is not sure because Volvo has different part numbers for AWD and FWD dual mass flywheels but I think they are different in mass or something else but identical in physical dimensions meaning they can are swappable. What do you think?
 
#26 ·
Best mod :
76 mm Down pipe and Full exhaust. Nice power gain. Nice sound. The Middle box and rear box didn't give more power. Think I lost some.
Software made huge difference together with the Exhaust change.
Intake made big difference in the spool up and power. Definite power increase.
Sitec Manifold- gained a couple of Kw, more noticeable on road than on Dyno.
Custom Inter-cooler- Noticeable in Summer - Small power increase.
K16 Turbo upgrade with Bigger Injectors - Big difference. Well worth it.

With the bigger Turbo my Inter-cooler seems to struggle a bit. Heat-soaks quicker. Adding AME progressive Water/Methanol on this week.

For sound it just needed a Sub in the boot.

Here is my Base map from Autotech. This map is for 550 cc Injectors and I have 650 cc Injectors fitted.
Getting another map hopefully in the week. The power is Flywheel corrected at sea level. Temp was about 15 deg C. This was with 95 ULP. We don't have 98 Octane. AFR reading 11.9
My previous best on the same dyno was 213 fkw 496 nm ( Stock Turbo )
Looking at 322 whp / 275 flywheel kw when done.

2008 Volvo S40 Geartronic. This was on the 2nd pull, the guy botched the 1st run and it kicked back a gear. With the weaker Inter Cooler the heat soak was all ready visible.

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#27 ·
Maybe It's Me , but that is one strange looking Dy-No Map - I'd say Dy-No Fans weren't Blowing enough Air , and or Your Over Boosting the Motor .
 
owns 2009 VOLVO V70 3.2S
#28 ·
1.3 Bar peak. I have a calibrated boost gauge fitted. Maybe it's a function of the Torq convertor. The manual with the same setup gives a bigger spread of Torq over the rev range.
The fan these guys uses it not as big as compared to other Dyno's I've been too.
I'll do a pull to 7000 rpm next time. Curious to c what when the Kw taper down. Either way it pulls very strong and the curve is smooth.
 
#29 ·
I checking other - Dyno Maps - V50T5 & C70T5 - The 390-400 is from 2500 to 4500 or about 3000 rpm . HP is always Increasing out to 5400 or so - this just a Tune I'm sure with
Down pipe ect that would run to 5800 rpm or so .

I can see the Torque Converter having an Effect in the Beginning , so lets say You Draw the Line at 480 Nm - It loo to only carry that for 1000-1100 RPM . so more Points Plotted and the Torque
on that Graph should start out say around 240 Nm so the Graph looked better - Plus the Graph for HP should be Scaled out on the Opposite side say 140 HP Up .

I did say Over Boosted - I meant - Over Flowed like the Turbo's Input was backing up on itself , but that could just be the way the Graph is Scaled . ( Drawn )
 
owns 2009 VOLVO V70 3.2S
#31 ·
I can certainly attest to the fact the VIVA SMF does not add any extra vibration or noise, certainly nothing worth mentioning. Clutch is easy to use, not abrupt, pedal effort is more, but has lessened with yet more miles to the point I think it is perfect, still more than OEM, but the OEM always felt weak and too easy. My car is finally really starting to come together now, it's starting to feel like a real sports wagon, all it needs now is the K16, which I am still patiently waiting for. The last couple of mods really made a huge difference, SMF and Mountune inlet plenum, I have not re-dynoed yet, but the car just feels like it has effortless power now and gas mileage has improved. As I have said before, you have to have the right combination of parts that complement each other to get a synergystic effect. It's a work in progress, I'll keep working on it a bit yet, I plan on keeping it a very long time.
 
#32 ·
Hey Madden, lets take your car up to the track and run it! I am super curious how the power of basically a maxed out stock turbo does in the 1320 compared to mine which is pretty mild. I wonder if its 12 worthy, if thats the case I think many would be happy with that kind of power.
 
#34 ·
I like how you guys hijacking every threads now days. Make your own . . . Lol, just teasing . . . :cool:
 
#36 ·
Seems that George definitely hit the spot with this SPEC 2+ sprung clutch and SMF! Excellent upgrade, will purchase as soon as funds allow..

Madden, do you plan to keep the stock slave? How are you satisfied with clutch engagement speed once you release the pedal? Has it improved with SPEC 2+?

I was wandering if someone with access to VIDA can check if S40 and C70 (production year 2008) have the same slave cylinder?
 
#37 ·
I bought a new slave for V50, actually the shop ordered 2, a V50 slave and an S60 slave, so we could compare the 2. The S60 slave looked virtually identical, albeit a couple of mm wider and taller. The mechanic thought the S60 slave "might" work better, in the end we decided to use V50 slave.
Pedal effort is higher, engagement is "harder", not abrupt, still smooth, but stock clutch always felt weak and "soft", that's the best way I can describe it.