To boost or not to boost...
 

I picked up a 2018 BRZ with the performance package a few months ago.

I am wanting more power, but to stay safe on the car since it is so new.

I want to boost, but I hear a lot of negative opinions from people on this page.


Ideally; I would like to get her up to 250-275whp to make her more fun to drive as my daily.


What are your opinions?
What setup would you recommend?

making sure I'm getting a good seat for this one

How did you arrive at 250-275whp?

Edlebrock Supercharger + Delicious Tune + JR Dual Radiator Oil Cooler = Done.

Talking to various shops and people. Most have told me to stay under 300whp and avoid problems and/or beefing up internals... Im still trying to learn about the car.

I live in Florida, and many 86's are boosted here simply because everything is flat and straight. The only thing they can do on the street is go fast in a straight line because that's the only thing FL offers (outside of tracking, autoX, etc.).

If you have fun mountain roads where you live or at least something remotely interesting the car has enough power NA.

That said, do whatever you want.

Boost it stay around 250 on E85 along with an oil cooler and you’ll be fine



You’ll also end up possibly getting greedy turning up the boost and boom then the real fun starts

Just one perspective - people initially always worry about catastrophic failure. Add a turbo or supercharger and kaboom. In reality, while that is a risk, much more common headaches occur. Boost leaks, bad tunes, snapped pulleys, failed supercharger units, failed BOV's etc. etc. "Small" headaches. If you're not prepared to deal with that, then don't add boost of any kind. Or if you do, make sure a very competent installer and tuner do the work on your car to minimize potential headaches.

There is E85 in Eugene which is like 45 minutes away from Corvallis, so that isn’t an option unless I’m mistaken. Being that is the case, a basic kit like JRSC or Edelbrock, and if smog isn’t an issue, or a decent small turbo kit would all work. If you did E85 then you would need injectors and a pump too.

i would never suggest boosting stock engine. i boosted my brz and ran fuel flex + e85 on 9psi and i blew it in a week at 5K rpm. i was probably above 300whp but either way there is no reliability.
on the other side of things, now that im 20K into a full build i drive all day long with a smile.
so....
risk/reward

To boost. Just don't get to greedy with it. I prefer the TVS-based kits due to the OEM applications of the blower.

I have been driving with JRSC (CARB tune) close to two years, ~20K miles, all year snow, rain, or shine. It is very reliable, efficient, and fun. I installed it and I do the maintenance and fixing of my car. There is additional maintenance and quirks to take care but it is worth it. I chose JRSC since it had the best track record when I was deciding, very simple kit, least intrusive FI modification, no drilling/cutting, minimal rerouting. It just clicks in the engine bay. Low rpm torque is low that helps with engine reliability and high rpm power is up there with all other options at stock level; linear and smooth power delivery. Plus, my MPG with normal driving is the same if not improved vs stock engine. So I can recommend it. This engine is designed to rev up. If you respect its capabilities and design, it will deliver. Keep the torque/boost low especially at low rpm, improve cooling, make sure the tune is conservative. Tune is *very* important and the tune for the most power is not the best one.

The only real way to get "decent" horsepower out of these vehicles is to boost. If you want to take that chance on a new car, understand the potential risks and the benefits associated with your chosen method of boost.

I don't think this has been mentioned, but also be aware that with any FI modification you throw your warranty out the window. A big consideration.


That being said, I love my JRSC boosted FR-S. Another reason I went with JR is that it looks like it belongs, like the car could have came from the factory with it. My advice would be to have professionals with experience with the kit install it, and do not run an off the shelf tune, find an actual master tuner and get a safe tune.


I did have my C30 unit fail (bearing failure) about a year in, and was replaced by JR/Rotrex under warranty. The car was down for about 5 weeks waiting for the new unit. That was 13 months ago.