Powehouse Amuse or Ultimate Racing Turbo

[Batmobile9]

What's up all,
I love the Amuse S2000 and I have an opportunity to do one of two things.
I want speed so I know I need forced induction, but the Amuse S2K is sick. The Turbo is from Ultimate Racing and yields 100 whp and alot of torque, and the kit says, with a decent driver, legit 12's in the quarter.
I have seen vids of the Amuse S2K and as far as I know it is stock, but has a ECU, header, exhaust, coilovers, and cf aero parts. Both setups are tight. Which is the better investment? Let me know what you think.

[Koots]

The turbo upgrade sounds like the better option from a performance standpoint. Its pretty much the only way to get large amounts of horsepower besides doing a stroker motor or crate engine, but both of those options are quite expensive and are going to require more labor.

The determining factor here is what you want to do with the car, do you want a fast drag race or straight line speed vehicle or would you be happier with a predictable road race car with less power. The turbo kit is going to make the already wicked power band even that much more extreme while the NA upgrade path would probably keep a good power band thats a bit lower. (kinda depends what turbo you go with though)

What specific turbo comes with this kit? That should be taken into consideration. Is it BB, what are the specs?

The turbo kit will also make the car less reliable and will require tuning(tuning takes practice/experience) and more attention in general. I guess it kinda comes down to how much power you want, if you want lots of power and a sweet street sleeper and don't mind a little extra maintenance then get the turbo. If you don't mind a little less power and like the idea of a more road race oriented car then go with all NA upgrades (add cams to your list of NA upgrades).

As long as you don't mind the extra maintenance that comes along with boost just go turbo. That way you won't be wishing you had more power when your all out of bolt on NA mods.

Any body else got some insight?

[Batmobile9]

Sup Koots,
The turbo is a custom Garret T04E/T3 managed by a piggy back GReddy ECU. Giant 600 cc injectors and a TiAL 38 mill wastegate help out too.
As for what I want in my car, I definitely want some reliability, but I want some speed. I like Auto-cross more than drag, and I guess the NA sounds pretty good. Those cams sound pretty sick, and I do love Toda power.
I have seen movies of the customer cars on Ultimate-Racing.com and they are fast.
I have also seen the Best Motoring movie where the Amuse S2k catches a Euro Accord R (heavily modded) and nearly catches the heavily modded Civic.
Anybody else, maybe check out the vids, or just speak up.

[Halo]

well, for autox, i can attest that more hp high in the rev range will not make you faster. my lap times since getting the comptech sc (~100whp extra). i dont know what your autox experiences have been, but the course near me, most S2K's never get to VTEC in 2nd gear. Mini coopers on average have the best times there.

[Batmobile9]

Hey halo,
I sort of knew that in regards to the SC. Thanks for the help with the SC tho, my dad likes those over turbos, but I was trying to explain to him that the SC is pully-powered, so it follows the cars natural powerband. The particular turbo I'm looking at applies power much sooner on the dyno, and peaks sooner. I don't have much autocross experience, but yea, weight is an obvious issue also (the minis), hence the cf portion of the amuse setup, and CE28N rims (16lbs each). What else have you done to your car, any other helpful tips for speed? Thanks again.

[Halo]

As I've posted before, weight is the single most important variable you can manage. Tire choice would be second. I went from S02s to Yokohama's for a while and couldn't wait to wear them out. They do ride much more smoothly... great street tire I guess because of softer sidwall. But, if you're going to autoX, I think you can't beat the S02's. So sticky.

I haven't bought into the various chassis rigidity bits people add. (Strut bars, lower subframe bars, etc). While the anodized aluminum/Ti/CF does look cool I guess, it is again WEIGHT.

[Batmobile9]

Sup Halo,
Yea, thanks for the tips. So you really like the S-02's the best? I was looking at some S-03 Poles, T1-S, and Michelin Pilot Sports. I want a superior tire in wet and rain.
Also, I know what you mean about weight. But I was taliking about cf hood, trunk, seats, and leighter than stock rims. Just direct replacement for factory pieces.
Thanks again, and keep the tips coming.

[Halo]

Of the tires I've tried on my car (S02, S03, Yokohama), the S02's were the stickiest. None of the tires worked well in the rain, IMO, but I usually don't take the S out in the rain. Also, to clarify, the OEM S02's are sightly wider than just plane ol' S02's. Tirerack sells the correct S02 for the S2000. Contact jim@tirerack.com for more info on that. My dealer tried to tell me that (1) all S02's are the same and (2) they are discontinued and replaced by the S03.