prerequisites for stage 1

[ivanwakeup]

I've been reading a lot about tuning lately and i think its safe to say its got me worried.

I really want to be tuning my 00 aero up pretty soon here, shooting for something around 275-280 bhp and 320 ft lbs torque in the mid gears if possible.

I wanted to know what everyone thinks i should do before jumping into something like this. What things should i make sure of on the car? As far as im told, my internals can hold 300 just fine, thats not necessarily what im worried about.

I know the car is in great condition, the guy who owned it before me really put a lot of time and care into the car, and I know i'll be making sure to do the same.

I just dont want to tune it up, take it on the highway, plant it in 2-3 gear, and blow the motor because i forgot something or one bad component leaves me broken down.

so are there any BIG checks or things you want to take car of before doing something like this?

[SaabNineThree]

check the oil pan for sludge thats all i would say.

[Breau]

You'll be fine, but keep in mind when tuning to keep a close eye on engine temps like egts exc. because you can melt pistons and other stuff if you drive for a long time with the temperatures being to high. I had a tune done on my car and we found that the egt were to high I believe so we had to detune a few things to make it safer.

[Chris 9-5]

Although on an Aero the hardware is nearer it its maximum potential you still have a way to go to max out, the tune you mention isnt a huge increase so I'm sure a well maintained car will be fine.

The first thing that I would change hardware wise would be the I/C - heatsoak is a performance killer

[ivanwakeup]

Alright thanks for the very much for the input everyone.

Originally Posted by Chris 9-5

Although on an Aero the hardware is nearer it its maximum potential you still have a way to go to max out, the tune you mention isnt a huge increase so I'm sure a well maintained car will be fine.

The first thing that I would change hardware wise would be the I/C - heatsoak is a performance killer

chris- as far as the intercooler goes do you have any reccommendations? I've looked at godspeed front mounts and they seem to have a lot in the 250-300 USD price range.

if i can get a front mount setup for something around there i might just get the FMIC before i even tune.

[Breau]

Yea any front mount will be good even a small one. The other one that goes in the stock location is too expensive I think, about $700 expensive.

[ivanwakeup]

Originally Posted by Breau

Yea any front mount will be good even a small one. The other one that goes in the stock location is too expensive I think, about $700 expensive.

yeah i saw the drop in on genuinesaab.com. Any idea why that one is so much more expensive? Wont the front mount provide everything the drop in will for less than half the price?

[mike saunders]

A stage 1 mod is a pointless waste of money. All it does is whet your appetite for more power. Ask me how I know

Go Stage 2 or 3 right off the bat. Even if you make the hardware mods without the programming changes, you're helping the car's efficiency by reducing backpressure and by improving charge-air cooling.

And, yes, your internals can hold 300 just fine...if you're talking about the crank and the rods. The pistons themselves? Not so much. Being able to reach a certain power level is a completely different attribute than being able to reliably perform at that level. The junkyards littered with the carcasses of stock B235R engines tend to support that argument.

In fairness, you can probably reach your goals on stock internals. But I wouldn't go above Stage 3 on a stock T7 engine.

[Rennsport1]

Always run super premium top tier fuel, top notch synthetic oil, and a fresh SAAB filter, with oil and filter changes about every 5K-7.5K miles and you should be fine.

[ivanwakeup]

Originally Posted by mike saunders

A stage 1 mod is a pointless waste of money. All it does is whet your appetite for more power. Ask me how I know

Go Stage 2 or 3 right off the bat. Even if you make the hardware mods without the programming changes, you're helping the car's efficiency by reducing backpressure and by improving charge-air cooling.

And, yes, your internals can hold 300 just fine...if you're talking about the crank and the rods. The pistons themselves? Not so much. Being able to reach a certain power level is a completely different attribute than being able to reliably perform at that level. The junkyards littered with the carcasses of stock B235R engines tend to support that argument.

In fairness, you can probably reach your goals on stock internals. But I wouldn't go above Stage 3 on a stock T7 engine.

Ok thanks man. provided i keep temperatures within a tolerable range and keep a generally rich mixture, would i have to worry about the pistons failing somewhere around 300hp? With my situation, reliability is the bigger necessity than performance, but id love both. So if theres a general safe limit for the pistons, you can bet thats probably what il tune to.

i guess i'd consider getting a set of forged pistons, but again, this isnt gonna be a huge project car for me, just a beast for the road if ya know what i mean.

[mike saunders]

Originally Posted by Rennsport1

Always run super premium top tier fuel, top notch synthetic oil, and a fresh SAAB filter, with oil and filter changes about every 5K-7.5K miles and you should be fine.

That's absolutely sound advice, especially for the newer models, but -- alas -- the original poster has a pre-2004 B235R engine. At the very least, he'll need to drop the pan to check the oil pickup screen for sludge, update the PCV system (if that hasn't been done already) and probably replace his MAF sensor.

Those engines require a bit more than the basic maintenance.

A modded T5 or T7 is going to want to have the spark plugs replaced every 20-30K miles at a minimum; T7, especially, is sensitive to misfires. I know some folks with highly modded T7 engines who replace them every other oil change. Having a DI cassette in good working order is pretty key, too.

[stipud]

Agreed. On an Aero my first mod would be the intercooler as well. Buying from ETS direct is $30 cheaper than GS right now.
http://www.extremeturbosystems.com/S...duct_info.html

I have this one and let me assure you, it's a masterpiece. Fits like a glove in the stock location and the performance boost was a total shock with my stage 3 LPT. FMIC is an option if you have a lot of free time. The only catch with FMIC is that the A/C radiator mounts to the stock intercooler, so you need to fabricate up some brackets to replace it. Some people just leave the stock IC in place but unhooked, but I would not recommend that, since it forces you to run your piping further around, and is unnecessary weight and blocks air to the radiator.

After intercooler I would do a full exhaust from Genuinesaab (GS DP + Simons CB) or CustumTubesInc.com stainless (stainless lasts forever, so its worth the extra up front investment IMO). Then go stage 3, right off the bat. That's about as good as you can get with your Aero without digging into the engine some more.

There are other worthwhile upgrades like Bilstein HD shocks (with your stock springs) and better brake pads. Both upgrades are well suited to handling the additional power of a stage 3. In fact, I did them first on my car.

[ivanwakeup]

Originally Posted by stipud

Agreed. On an Aero my first mod would be the intercooler as well. Buying from ETS direct is another $30 cheaper than GS right now, though it used to be cheaper.

http://www.extremeturbosystems.com/S...duct_info.html

I have this one and let me assure you it's a masterpiece. Fits like a glove in the stock location and the performance boost was a total shock to me with my stage 3.

After intercooler I would do a full exhaust from Genuinesaab (GS DP + Simons CB) or CustumTubesInc.com stainless. Then stage 3, right off the bat. That's about as good as you can get with your Aero without digging into the engine some more.

There are other worthwhile upgrades like Bilstein HD shocks (with your stock springs) and better brake pads. Both upgrades are well suited to handling the additional power of a stage 3.

jeez the 500 dollar price tag is one thing that keeps me away. I just like the thought of a front mount setup for about 250-300 when everything is said and done.

I'm sure the ets has a superior core and manufacturing, but for my application the godspeed should def get the job done.

i like the idea of hardware, and then stage 2-3 at once. if it really isnt dangerous to have 300 hp on the stock pistons compared to 270-280.

[SaabNineThree]

http://www.saabcentral.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=173021

check out my thread i think its a good idea to get this he said 320 for a 1-2-3 stage tunes its explaines the difference between them im going to go to stage 3 right away i have the stock exhaust with resinator cut out but i rather rget the stage 3 and then just later work on the exhaust. Im also with you 600 for an intercooler im not willing to spend...