7K 2 drop....where 2 start....

[Tony42086]

First off , ty for reading. So I'm a 2003 protege owner looking 2 beef my baby up. It's my first car i bought from the dealer so its dear 2 me and I'm not interested in a new car (even though i have 100k miles and a big enough down payment 2 do so). I'm a noob 2 performance tuning (wicked green behind the ears as they say). I know i want to do the turbo thing, and maybe a new engine and tranny if that's the recommended move. I know this kinda work isn't recommended for noobs but....neither is pc repair/networking, laying tile, installing counter tops, cabinetry, installing new support beams for your home (big time structural carpentry), plumbing, electrical, hvac, etc, etc, all things I've done and mastered without any form of schooling. If u get the drift, I'm a big time do it yourself kinda a guy, with the smarts to learn anything new. I also have the benefit of having a mechanic for an uncle who has all the tools i need at my disposal. I have $7, 000 to make by car have some more ponys.....what is the best route to go? Please don't scale it down because i'm a noob, I will have help from a pro and all the tools i need. I might even be able to squeeze an extra 3K in my budget but I'd rather use that for some interior work. Any pointers are appreciated.

 

[MikeLikesMazda]

for starters, i would highly recommend beefing up the suspension before doing any type of motor work. these cars were built more for handling rather than speed and most people on the forums will say the same thing. your car will be a blast to drive even with minimal mods if you have better suspension components. for example; struts & springs (or coilovers), rear swaybar, and a front strut tower bar will give you the best bang for your buck in this area.

however if you want to sink all of your money into power, you will first want to build up the motor with forged rods and pistons. the stock ones might as well be made out of balsa wood and do not take boost very well. as far as turbo kits go, you have many options here. you can either try to source out a full mazdaspeed protege kit (i think there is actually one up for sale right now), or you can piece together your own kit to fit your specific goals. you will also want to look at getting some form of EMS. this could be anything from a stock msp ecu to a full standalone ems.

i wont go into full detail about what is involved, as before you do ANYTHING with the motor or even the car in general, you need to do alot of research. nothing is worse than going into battle without any intel, and it will save you alot of time and headaches if you know exactly what you are doing ahead of time.

here is a link to a thread specifically for turbocharging a stock protege. it helped me alot when i was doing my build and it should answer alot of questions you might have as far as parts goes.

Link: http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123727772

like i said before, dont just jump into this. there are plenty of people on the forums that are ready and willing to help answer any question you might have. good luck and happy modding

 

[Tony42086]

Thanks for the pointers. Yeah, no doubt on the research. That's why i came to this site. I hope to be armed with plenty of info before i start. I'll look into that thread as a starting point, thanks again.