need some exhaust advise

[needpower69309]

I recently bought a 2000 protege es and it definetly could use some added HP. I figuered i would start with the basics so i was wondering if anyone has a suggestion on an exhaust system. I would like to gain the most HP but keep the car as quiet as possible. I see that theres not much going on in the 1.8 section but i was wondering if anyone has built one of these motors to handle around 16 psi and if it was worth it. Thanks in advance for any tips.

[njaremka]

16psi aint gonna happen, at least on stock internals. and if you plan on building the motor up for turbo, just get a spare 2.0 liter and build that up.

and, any exhaust that fits the 2.0 liter will fit the 1.8. only difference is when you start looking at headers, then you'll have to go up to the 2.0 liter egr pipe.

[needpower69309]

What would be involed in swaping a 1.8 for 2.0? will all the electronics,tranny,etc work w/o changing anything? thanks for the advise.

[njaremka]

you SHOULD be able to swap short blocks without much trouble, but to get the most benefit you might might want to swap heads, too.

[needpower69309]

dont meen to be rude... but i could have got that advice from my daughter. i was hoping for a more detailed response. thanks anyways

[Jas00x]

There's not alot of info on the 1.8-2.0 swap job. I'm looking into it as well. There's a post from a guy called "flyinhawiian" here:
http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123632592
Its not 100% clear but I think that the swap will work fine with the wiring harness and the ecu from the 1.8. If you get into wanting to swap transmissions, that seems to open up a new can of worms as axles/hubs are different and it sounds like some of the electronics (speed sensor) are different. However, if you are planning to run alot of power (turbo), you will probably want the G-Type transmission as it is beefed up a little more.
From what I gather, the wiring harnesses between the two are different so ECU's can not swap between 1.8L and 2.0L (different plugs). Not sure if that is true or not, or if it couldn't simply be spliced in.

For your exhaust question: I use the corksport exhaust and a AWR header (no cats) and it gets pretty loud- but made a noticable difference in power. On other cars, I've always loved Greddy exhuasts for a good boost of power with more civil sound- they typically have a presiliencer in them. For info on my current 2000 ES build you can look in the autocross forum: http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123659550

[needpower69309]

thanks for the info.good luck and i will definetly watch the progress of your build. it seems as if swaping would be more work then its worth.what are your thoughts about building the 1.8 for boost? as for exhaust, i do alot of highway riding and the car runs at such a high rpm at 80mph that im really concerned about keeping the noise down. i will check into your suggestion and when i do some mods i will share them on your thread. p.s. is there a turbo kit available for our model? thanks again

[Jas00x]

I really havn't looked much at 1.8 Turbo stuff, so I can't say either way. Most of the performance parts for Proteges didn't really start untill the 2.0L motor came out, so there aren't too many things that are specifically designed for the 1.8. It really is the bastard child for mazda performance parts- trust me I know because I have been racing mine since it was new in 2000! Fortunately the head and block are very similar in that intake and exhaust manifolds bolt up the same between the 1.8 and 2.0. So anything that can be bolted on to the 2.0, should theoretically bolt up to the 1.8- but getting those parts to work right might not always be as straight forward. I know there is a Mazdaspeed turbo kit- and there may be a Flyin' Miata turbo kit, but I have no idea if it will work on the 1.8.
Given the age and cost of our cars, if the 1.8 poses too many challenges to your performance goals, it will be cheaper and easier to sell your car and buy a 2001 or newer Protege LX or ES with the 2.0 motor so you can just buy parts that you know will work.