Hello guys just wanted to get your take on this..stock evo x with 5k on it.. should I go cobb ap first or use the money for exhaust?

 

tune will make the biggest difference in terms of power

 

Tune as in Cobb ap?

 

well custom is always better, but the AP will provide some decent gains too

 

definitely a tune first. around 50whp vs maybe 10whp for cat back and double that for a TBE.

 

The APs that I've seen were listed at $700. Not sure why people buy those when you can get a custom open-source dyno tune for $350-400.

If you're on a budget then I'd say drop-in panel air filter, replace the cat with a test pipe, and get a custom tune. You could do all of that for the cost of an AP and make more power to boot.

 

With all of the support from Cobb coming out here latley, Id say get the AP. Nothing wrong at all with a custom tune. But since your milage is so low, you may have a trip to the dealer to take for what ever reason, and the AP makes it simple to change the programs. Plus with the free ATR program from cobb, you can learn to do some custom tweaking.

 

I' honestly am in the same position. I already got a drop in filter and am debating on the cobb ap or exhaust first. If I get exhaust now then wait until I have 1000 for the custom tune and ap from cobb I think that would be the way to go. Unless you just want the power now, I think you could go exhaust then do a custom tune eventually, ultimately leading to a bigger smile on your face once its done. =) Just my thoughts. still can't decide. haha. Good luck.

 

Well, I can tell you for a fact that the new version 2 stage 3 map from Perrin will compete very closley with a custom tune. If you buy your access port from Perrin, you get the choice of any one map for free. I chose the stage 3 because the AP comes with Cobb 1 and 2.

 

Perrin is who I plan to go with. =)

 

Cobb AP= $700 ~40 ish hp

Intake-$250
Testpipe-$150
Opensource tune-$300
all of these=60-80hp

Depends how you want to spend your 700 bucks but I would do the 2nd option

 

hmm, thanks for all the input guys..sounds like a tune would really be in favor.. I do have one problem when it comes to tuning the evo.. I live in south texas right by the border of mexico and no one does tuning here.. the closest I can think of is houston, TX 6 hours drive north of here.

 

i would say do the bolt ons and then every few parts drive and get tuned. just my $.02

 

Mellon does mail in tunes if you need...

 

Road tunes (email) actually cost more since you have to install a wideband o2, buy a Tactrix cable, buy or borrow a laptop computer, and then pay Mellon (or another tuner) for the tune.

If you want to learn about tuning then it's worth the money because you could learn a lot while working with Mellon and you'll own the tools when you're done. If you just want a tune, though, I still say that driving for a dyno tune is a better value.