Supercharger for 2.5
 

A representative from Evolution Motorsports just emailed me.

I inquired about my 3.4L swap I'd like to do, and he said they no longer do them.

But, they are releasing a supercharger for the 2.5L engine in the next 30 days that is supposed to give it 3.4L power.

We shall see. Sounds a little too good to be true, but I'm still interested as my 2.5 is such a new engine.

He told me that pricing will be $6-7k installed. Much cheaper than an engine swap.

Should anyone read or see anything on this new SC from them, do post the info in this thread so all of us who own 2.5's can consider it.

Wow, can't wait for some more info... If I can put on a SC on my 2.7 for 7k and get a reliable extra ~100 hp I would be extatic.

There's an ad in Excellence Magazine's February issue for a new supercharger kit that's available for all of the Boxster engines. :dance:

It didn't have pricing so I'll try to remember to post the company's name and site when I get home.

I'd make sure I added a brake upgrade and replace the clutch during the engine work!
:cheers:

Brake upgrade... yup, that would be mandatory.

There's no way the brakes on a '97 2.5 would stop a 300+ HP engine fast enough to be safe.

I would imagine that the big red brembo package sold here and there would be the one to look at. Dang, it's expensive though. Something like $4k plus installation.

They have an alliance with Imagine Auto. From what I understand Stephen (iA) and Todd at EVO are great friends. Doc may want to que in on this more.

Does anyone have any updated information on the www.imagineauto.com supercharger that was discussed some time back? If this is the same set-up it does sound good. $7000 sounds like a reasonable price for the added performance gains. Especially versus an engine swap.

this sounds very interesting indeed, just wondering about converting a tiptronic thought, i was always recommended not to do it on my 2.5 as the tip could not handle the extra power

Sweet, it's FREE!!! :eek: http://imagineauto.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=II&Category_Co de=boxsupercharger

The one in Excellence is from ImaginAuto. It says it's available now and for the 2.5, 2.7, 3.0 & 3.2 engines. The tests on the 2.5 gave a 38% increase in RWHP. Not bad, eh?

I can assure you my friend it is not free :( . I e-mailed this thread to them so they could chime in.

Anyone have any questions please feel free to ask. We designed the supercharger in house and have done all the testing here in KC. The kit that EVO will be selling will be the kit developed here in house so all the numbers, stats and pictures you have seen on our kit will be the same from EVO.

The kit is going to be about 7K not installed. You can figure about a 7 hour install at the most. It is pretty straight forward. The 2.7 kit is not finished as of yet, the 3.2 and 2.5 are about completed for release. The pipes presented some issues and had to be remade to ensure that the install and reliability remained in tact.

Sorry, haven't been on the board in the last day or so, so late reply. Like PorschePhD (Stephen Kaspar, who owns Imagine Auto), Evo motorsports will be installing the kit that we designed in house, so it will be the same deal. I can't remember what all we discussed in the last topic about the SC kit from about a month ago, but like Stephen said, the 2.5 will be 7k plus install. We still need to do a couple of dry runs to determine the exact amount of labor needed, but it will not be as extensive as our 996 kits which run about 17 hours. The 3.2 kit which we are still working on, will be about 8k plus install due to the addition of custom headers, which we are still working out. The front O2 sensor sits in the way of our SC on those cars, so we are in the process of redesigning the header system on that engine. In fact, i believe our guinea pig headers showed up yesterday for us to start cutting and modifying. The 2.5L kit picked up roughly 100 horses to the wheels at about 4psi of boost. This is determined to be a safe level of boost for us to run on the engines, and we have done extensive tuning with the program to ensure proper power, air/fuel ratios, and proper power curve. The supercharger runs at a very minimal rate when compared to what it is capable of, so the system is very under stressed. In our 996 kits, (which evo designed and built, and we sell and install), we also run 4-5psi and those kits have been bulletproof. We have cars with 50-60k miles on the kits with zero issues. This is something we are very familiar with, i have 2 996's in the shop right now that i will install superchargers in this coming week.

Like Stephen said, any questions, let em fly :)

What about CARB approval? See we have a pesky thing in California called a smog inspection every 2 years and if the guy knows what he is doing and looks you flunk the visual inspection. They get out a floor mirror and flashlight.

And our smog is now done on a dyno. Even if the inspector did not look then the emissions may not match the specs and you flunk.

hi Doc
as mentioned previously, will the tiptronic support such an excess power on the 2.5 or other models for that matter and what will the power be on the 3.2, also will someone sell it in Europe at any stage?

thanks

CARB will come at a later date. For now it is not. As easy as the install I would simply pull the unit out. It would not pass visual if you did not and the whine of the SC is to say the least not stock sounding.

The TIP will handle the added power. We have seen no issues with the 986 or the 996 at these levels.

The 3.2L power gain is yet to be seen. As soon as we get JP's car done, and get some miles on it, we will dyno it and see what kind of power gain we get. IIRC we got a 38% gain on the 2.5L, so we are hoping to stay around those kind of gains on the 3.2L. As far as people in europe selling it, that is a possibility, obviously we will have a few certified installers throughout the states other than us, and this will probably extend overseas when we get to that stage.

PorschePhD & PorscheDoc, I live in Texas... would I have problems passing the smog test here? I know CA is far tougher than Texas, but I'd hate to spend this kind of money only to find out I can't easily pass a state inspection each year.

Having a CARB number and actually having clean enough numbers are not one in the same. CARB is a mountain of paperwork, expense and testing to ensure that the state of CA is happy on all levels. Because a product is not CARB certified does not mean that if one was to go to a testing station it wouldn’t pass. From a emissions level standpoint it will pass on the idle and on the rolling (dyno) test. All readiness status checks read ok and the levels are within state passing levels. So in long the answer to your question is you would pass

I live in auburn, alabama and would be very interested in having one of your superchargers on my 2.5L 99model. However I would be very leary of having the work done somewhere less experienced at dealing w/ a porsche. Do you guys have regional install shops?

I can't say that we have anyone in our neck of the woods yet. We actually get a few cars from your area now for upgrade work. I do think that we can walk/instruct most competent shops through the process.

There is one audi performance shop here that is top notch, I would think w/ some guidance they could perform the work. I would hate to be the guinee pig for them though. Of course a nice long road trip would be exciting. Would the newly installed supercharger be able to handle a 1000+ mile trip so soon after being put on? Two more questions: Is the entire ecu pulled and replaced or do u flash the upgraded fuel/air delivery ratio through a cpu linked to ecu? Does this whole procedure require any replacement sparkplugs, O2 sensors, header/exhaust piping, or air intake changes, and would need to be done at the same time or before hand? I'll most likely direct my future questions to your place of business.

On our first prototype car, the customer came to pick up the car ahead of schedule. The pipes we had made him were the only set we had, so with him waiting in the waiting room, we had to pull everything off the car, copy the pipes as best as we could (so we could send them out to be plasticmolded), and put the car back together. We put it back together quickly, which was a pretty fast dry run, at 5:30, i pulled it out of the shop, he hopped in it, and drove NONSTOP from Kansas City to Arizona. So yes...it will make the trip. This isn't something we like to do though, I like to have an extra day to make sure everything checks out etc to ensure no issues, but so far there hasn't been one in all the times we have pulled the kit off and put it back on with the 2 cars that have been prototypes.

The air intake is an evo cold air intake, which is connected to the custom intake pipes for the supercharger, etc. The headers and cats and o2's stay the same on the 2.5L. The spark plugs stay the same as well. When done inhouse, we will flash the ECU through the OBDII port and takes about 20 minutes. Out of house, would require the installer to pull the ecu (takes but a few minutes) and send it to us to flash. Turn around is a day or 2, so if it is pulled at the beginning of the install and sent out, it will be back quickly. With that being said, if there is a good audi shop, they should be able to handle the install without a problem. I personally am not a big fan of working on audi's, so if you can work on them, you can definetly do this job :)

Quite interested in a future supercharger for my 2001 2.7L

Questions:

1) Not serious: can it be driven by a pulley on an electric clutch so that I can switch it on/off at will? Guess what movie is inspiring this question?

2) More seriously: Will there be a noticeable supercharger whine? I love the sound of the Boxster now and would NOT like there to be a noticeable whine.

3) Is there any appreciable change in the exhaust note with the supercharger? Again I love the sound now and wouldn't want it to change much (a teeny bit lower and a teeny bit louder would be fine--the emphasis on TEENY).

1) I'll go with No (And i am horrible at movie trivia, lol )
2) There is a supercharger whine, it is not overly loud like some blowers.
3) Doesn't change the exhaust note enough to notice. The are more likely to hear the air going into the cold air intake more than the exhaust.

Supercharger, $7000. Added whine and noise, no charge. A reported 100 additional horses, priceless!

Is the whine comparable to that of a Volkswagen Corrado? Let me know if you can think of a car with a similar whine. I'd like to find one locally and listen to it.

A friend of mine once had a stock Toyota MR2 with its factory supercharger and I didn't think there was much whine. Then again, I've seen people drive around with the whiney roots-type superchargers in their muscle cars (too whiney).

What this the timeframe for your supercharger kit for the 2.7L?

I would say that it is not nearly as loud as a roots based supercharger that you would find on a muscle car, but not as quiet as a factory integrated supercharger.

We are currently working on getting the 3.2L done, then we will move to the 2.7 once we get a prototype car to work on. We are so backed up at the moment, i would maybe sometime during the summer....

944 Turbo eh? nice please post pics some time. I always wanted one of those in white when I was a kid back in the early 80's. I thought it was much more 'modern' looking than the beetle-esque 911. But Tony Montana's 928 in Scarface was the coolest 80's car. I didn't like the color of Tom Cruise's Porsche in Risky Business, looked like a color your fahter would pick.

Looking forward to the 3.2L. I also asked TPC but I don't believe they have anything done yet, not even the turbo as they suggested. I guess patience is a virtue :)

I don't mind the whining noise really as long as it doesn't disintegrate the engine (fast) and of course, with additional 50-100 horses :D

If it were me, I would not trust the 2.5 motor to hold together with a new supercharger on top.

Just my opinion.

I'll dig up some pics for you, I took it off the road this winter to paint the hood and front end, as the paint was starting to chip in a few places, plus the numberous rock chips in the front end. While i had the cover off, i filled the side markers and made it a euro front bumper. I have everything primed, sanded, and ready to paint, just waiting for the weather to get a little warmer. After the paint is done, then who knows, probably sell it and step up to a early 911 or something. I'll be stepping down in performance, but its kinda of a "been there done that" for me at this point...on to something new. I would love to do an RSR conversion on a early 70's 911. I also love the looks of the 928, but it feels like driving an M1 Tank, lol. Those cars are big.

I'm curious about why it won't be as quiet as a factory integrated supercharger. The one on a Corrado looks bolted on with no special sound insulation around it.

Is the supercharger you plan to use not a normal one? That is, shouldn't it be similar to the Corrado?

I'm asking because it's wishful thinking--that is, I'm REALLY WISHING you'd say it's quiet so I have no excuse not to get one.

Too bad you're so busy. My Boxster has been sitting for 2 months now due to winter. You could have had it for that long and more. :-)

Question- why am I upgrading my brakes if I add a supercharger? They stopped from speed X fine now, I just get to speed X faster (how sweet is that)

Because with a SC you will tend to be going faster more often. A brake upgrade isn't so much to increase braking force but to allow you to "HAVE" brakes for a longer period of time. Think resistance to fade as the main reason to upgrade when you add gobs of HP.

Hi,

My theory is that Speed is Speed and if the Brakes are adequate as is, only adding more Mass changes that equation.

But, it's like changing the Drapes in the Living Room... which make the Carpet look old... which makes the Sofa look Dated... which makes the Paint seem tired....

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Because it is a perfect excuse to slap on a pair of Big Reds :)

In response to the loudness again, the supecharger is a Procharger supercharger, they have arguably the best supercharger out there, and compete directly with Vortec. The supercharger sits about 2 feet from the driver, even with the sound padding between the driver and the blower, you are still going to hear it.

I say bigger brakes are needed and I'll put them in after I do my SC add on... why?

Right now, I can make it from a stoplight near my house to the freeway light, reaching about 60 mph. With the supercharger, I might make it 5-10 mph faster, which means I'll need more braking power to handle the increase in speed over the same distance.

Now I don't do much street racing from light to light (actually, I don't do any at all), but I figure that braking ability should rise with horsepower to keep things safe. There's only one thing more important than going fast... being able to stop faster to speed up again in the future.

Hi,

As already stated, the biggest gain from using bigger brakes is gong to be their Fade Resistance, and this only shows up in Rapid Repeated Use, such as on a Track. If you're not Braking every 5-10sec., adequate time has passed for the Brakes to cool, about 20-30sec. is sufficient time to avoid Fade.

If the current Brakes are adequate, they're just that - sufficient to do the job. Just because you get to 60MPH Faster doesn't mean it has suddenly, myteriously, become more difficult to Brake to a Stop from 60MPH.

If you simply want to add them as Automotive Jewelry, that's perfectly FINE. But, simply adding a Supercharger is no justification for upgrading the Brakes.

If you just want them, then go ahead. But not for the sake of some convoluted logic which says that because you are making more power, your current Brakes are somehow automatically inadequate - you're OFF the power when you apply your Brakes anyway. If your Driving Style or Conditions haven't changed, the OEM Brakes are not at all inadequate...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Jim, you just saved me $3800.00. Thanks!

Ditto on Jim.

Unless you are tracking, I would forget it!

:cheers: