Pixel67's Daily Driver Build - Journal

[pixel67]

I bought a Nexus 7 a few weeks back and have been toying with the idea of mounting it in my FRS. I didn't want anything permanent as I wanted to retain the factory head unit (for now) and also wanted to be able to remove the tablet whenever I wanted so that i could use it for its intended purpose. I searched all around and couldn't really find anything that fit the bill, soo.... I made one.

Parts used:

1. Mountek ngroove CD Slot holder for iPhone (see previous post)
2. Otterbox defender for nexus 7



I disassembled the Mountek, removed the 4 screws holding the actual mount together, drilled 4 holes into the back of the Otterbox cover, secured it with the same 4 screws, and slid it back into the CD Holder. 15 minute job and so far I am happy with the results! I have yet to give it a full roadtest but so far it looks like it may just do the trick! Here are a few pics:





I'll update the thread once I have some miles behind me as I haven't fully tested tethering my S3 to it yet, etc... I am hoping I still have enough room behind the Otterbox to manipulate head unit but we shall see...

[pixel67]

I installed a new header from @FA20Club.com and am quite pleased with the results!

• Installation
  It bolted right up and the fitment was near perfect. I had a few leak issues at the Vband but it sealed up after a few adjustments. For those of you that haven't deleted your sound tube yet, you will need to do so before installing this. The little plastic resonator that hangs down from the intake hits the header and will melt in seconds. All welds are top notch!
• Sound
  I love the sound this header makes with the Zeta cat back! Definitely steps up the aggressiveness quite a bit under WOT. I still have the stock over pipe and front pipe installed. It is really a nice balance between rumble under the hood vs exhaust note.
• Performance
  Torque dip is gone! I did a few virtual dyno runs and confirmed that for me there nothing but linear, predictable power all the way to redline. Not a dip in sight! AFR leaned out a bit (was 11.4 ish and now 12.2 ish) which resulted in ~ 10% increase in MPG as well. Before the header the best i would see is 34-38 mpg through my usual route of mostly highway/rural highway miles with a few Atlanta traffic jams thrown in. I ran the same route last week and was seeing 37-44 mpg! Keep in mind I have an AT and tend not to use cruise control as it forces unneeded shifts at highway speeds on hills.

A few photos... I still need to get one of it installed.





Overall very happy with the results. Please note that these are untuned numbers as I am still looking at options for Ecutek (flex tune or just standard 93/E85 map switching). I am sure there is more to squeeze out of this as it's an excellent first step toward FI.

[FastLane1000]

I appreciate your review of the FA20Club header. I'm seriously considering it as well. I already have his stage 2 tune and highly recommend it to you. I see you are in GA and have made a trip through the Dragon. I have the ECUTek cable if you want to drive up and use it sometime. I live about an hour from the Dragon in the Knoxville, TN area. I got a question, How do you like the header in the low RPMs like off idle to 3k rpm. any driveability loss? Any sacrifices at all with the header?
Thanks,
Lane

[pixel67]

Originally Posted by FastLane1000

I appreciate your review of the FA20Club header. I'm seriously considering it as well. I already have his stage 2 tune and highly recommend it to you. I see you are in GA and have made a trip through the Dragon. I have the ECUTek cable if you want to drive up and use it sometime. I live about an hour from the Dragon in the Knoxville, TN area. I got a question, How do you like the header in the low RPMs like off idle to 3k rpm. any driveability loss? Any sacrifices at all with the header?
Thanks,
Lane

I just might take you up on the loaner cable! Response at lower rpm is still quite good. I did notice a little hesitation down low when the engine is cold but that goes away once its warmed up. I still have the stock over pipe and front pipe and really don't expect the header to show its full potential until the remaining restrictions are addressed and ecu gets tuned.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[pixel67]

High Pressure Fuel Pump #3 is now in place. It was quiet on the way home but didn't really heat up much. Time will tell! FA20Club 57 Trim turbo kit has been ordered so in a few weeks or so i should have some additional pics to post up. The first "real" mod...

[pixel67]

I updated my nexus 7 mount over the weekend. I have been reluctant to completely swap out the head unit as I really like the flexibility of taking the tablet with me to tinker with when I am not driving. I purchased a nexus dock, energizer inverter, and a powered USB hub and went to work... I was looking at ways to mount it and was happy to see it fits perfectly on the lower lip of the bezel. I put the inverter behind the passenger dash bezel and used Velcro to keep it in place. Also stuck the USB hub to the glove box using Velcro and routed all of the cables. I reused part of my mountek CD mount to put a bit of pressure on the tablet to prevent vibration and it works perfectly, even if it does look a little odd. Now to get tasker see up.... I also order an obd2 USB adapter so I can ditch the Bluetooth dongle.



Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[mfbmike]

So awesome. I go up to Fontana Village for a huge R32 gathering (just got rid of my R32) every year in April to rip up mountain roads with a bunch of other enthusiasts. Hellbender to the dragon from Fontana is amazing. Cherohala, the same. Love the long sweepers on that road. And the dragon, well, it's the Dragon. You really don't get a chance to get any higher than 3rd. lol.


I've never been there in the fall but according to your pictures, it's amazing.

[pixel67]

Long overdue for some updates. I'll start off with the latest mods to my FRS starting with these Grimmspeed Hood Dampers. Well worth the investment for those considering these. Installation was a snap and makes working on the car much easier (don't have to worry about accidentally hitting the prop rod and knocking myself out with the hood).

[pixel67]

FA20Club Turbo Kit Installed!! I can't begin to tell you what a difference this has made in the overall feel of the car. This car needed an extra 100hp at the wheels and this kit delivers exactly that. Mountain Road carving is so much more fun! I am running their Flex Fuel kit along with the turbo and running ethanol adds another 30hp or so to an already strong running car. I have about 7,000 miles on the turbo at this point and no major gripes.

Next steps will be adding a Perrin Overpipe (got a deal of a fellow forum member), FA20Club catted front pipe, and recirculating the dump into the downpipe. While the growl this thing emits at WOT with dump to atmosphere is really an attention grabber, it is a bit much for me.

FA20Club Turbo Kit Details:

• Garrett t3/t4 57 Trim Turbo
• Tial Wastegate
• Tial BOV
• FIC 540cc Injectors
• 7PSI Wastegate Spring (~5PSI effective output due to backpressure from stock cat front pipe and overpipe)

[SkAsphalt]

How well does Torque Pro work for monitoring Boost?

[pixel67]

Originally Posted by SkAsphalt

How well does Torque Pro work for monitoring Boost?

okay at best. i have noticed a lot of variation between pump gas and e85 and will be replacing it with a proper boost/afr gauge in the new year.

[SkAsphalt]

Originally Posted by pixel67

okay at best. i have noticed a lot of variation between pump gas and e85 and will be replacing it with a proper boost/afr gauge in the new year.

Mmm thanks! I was hoping to save myself some money here and just install a cheap android phone in the car. I would be running only pump gas, so maybe it will be more reliable?

[pixel67]

Originally Posted by SkAsphalt

Mmm thanks! I was hoping to save myself some money here and just install a cheap android phone in the car. I would be running only pump gas, so maybe it will be more reliable?

Actually it seems more accurate when corn is on board as it tops out at around 7psi on the weakest wastegate spring which I believe is a 5psi spring. On pump it will jump to 13 or 14 psi without changing anything in the torque profile. Even if I manually change ethanol content in torque, it still doesn't change anything. Of course, this could be user error as well. ☺

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[Nissota]

Originally Posted by pixel67

Well... The need to mod won out and i bought a set of these to replace the J2. Stephen at Zeta gave me a good deal!


I just put them on and all i can say is they are perfect! Awesome build quality, bolts right up without a hassle, hangs perfectly, and sounds great. Much quieter than the J2 but still retains that Subie rumble. Aggressive sound during de-acceleration with a deep, throaty growl when you open it up! No drone whatsoever! the J2 is great if you want your FRS to sound like a race car, but I like the subdued sound of the Zeta much better.

Nice job on the journal... Do you have any videos of the new Zeta exhaust... also which model did you go with? No drone at all?