x DeadTaco x's P5 Build Thread

Welcome back from the real world. Also, thank you for your service.

Looking forward to seeing this come to fruition, the smog rules here in SoCal make doing those modifications a pipe-dream.
 
Welcome back from the real world. Also, thank you for your service.

Looking forward to seeing this come to fruition, the smog rules here in SoCal make doing those modifications a pipe-dream.

Thank you, its nice to be back! And I am only an ROTC cadet so no need for the thanks, as I am not active duty yet. It is appreciated though.

Living in North Dakota has its perks. No emissions testing and police generally do not harp on you for loud exhausts, as kids in their lifted diesel trucks are much easier to ticket..
 
Catless midpipe arrived that I snagged last minute. If going turbo, might as well let it breathe fully. Also have a 2.25" -> 2.75" coupler coming to secure my intake to the turbo. Odd size, hard to find (for me at least). Also dropping off oil pan Wednesday morning to get the return bung fitted/welded. Then Friday will Seafoam the car to clean it out as much as I can.

Saturday is the planned day of attack. Got a big chunk of time reserved before work, so hopefully things go smoothly. If not, I have a backup vehicle, and the shop will let me keep my car there over the weekend.

I can smell the turbo... Both incredibly excited and nervous at the same time. Really dont want to join the zoom-zoom-boom club, or blow up my daily..
 
So dumb question that just popped up (hopefully someone will read/catch this).

Since I have the MSP ECU, what will I do with my O2 sensors? The MSP has 2 AFAIK, whereas mine has 3. Two for the first cat and one after the second one.

Would i just run the one from the manifold, and the one after the second cat?
 
There should only be 2 O2 sensors on either the protege or the MSP. Is one of them an aftermarket wideband?

The second O2 goes after the first cat.
 
I could have sworn I saw an O2 after my secondary cat. Maybe im going crazy..

I know of the two on the header, as I have an aftermarket one so no primary cat. Have the nonfoulers and everything.

But my catless midpipe I got has an O2 bung on it, and so does my stock J pipe. So my guess is i use the O2 on the MSP mani and J pipe, then use the midpipe one for wideband?
 
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Well I did some last minute shopping and got what I believe is everything. Gonna be an early morning and full day tomorrow. I think she is ready for this big step, and hope she handles it well haha.

Going to Seafoam before I leave and have the car do a smoke show on the way to the shop. Super excited and nervous all at the same time. I will try and take pictures!
 
So turbo did not go on. Wont be able to work in it again until Wednesday at the earliest, but that probably wont happen. Car is staying at the shop indefintely...

Issues that arose:
- Header to Midpipe bolts (somehow) got stuck and wont come out
- Intercooler piping I have clearly (now) was from a Protege with zero creature comforts, so almost none of the piping fits. Would have to delete A/C, lines, and relocate battery/coolant resevoir to even THINK about using those pipes.

So for the time being, no turbo and no Protege for me.

Thinking about trading up for a same side intercooler and using that giant space I have over there.

Does eBay piping fit with everything still in place or no?
 
Got the catless midpipe on. All new hardware.

Still leaking decently from the header -> midpipe connection. I think its because the midpipe is 2.5" and the header is 2.25", because the midpipe just engulfs the flange on the header.
 
If you do a wideband it would be best to have it in the J pipe and the secondary O2 in the mid pipe. The MSP has an O2 extension harness to extend the wiring since the O2 is on the midpipe instead of the J pipe like the NA cars.

Can you post a photo of the pipes you have? If they are for an SMIC they should fit fine. The ebay piping sets are universal, you have to cut them to fit so you can make them work no matter what.
 
If you do a wideband it would be best to have it in the J pipe and the secondary O2 in the mid pipe. The MSP has an O2 extension harness to extend the wiring since the O2 is on the midpipe instead of the J pipe like the NA cars.

Can you post a photo of the pipes you have? If they are for an SMIC they should fit fine. The ebay piping sets are universal, you have to cut them to fit so you can make them work no matter what.

Okay, i'll do that for the wideband. Ill see if I can snag an OEM harness extension or just buy one elsewhere (if I can).

These are the pipes and intercooler I have:
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I got them from a guy who had a super modified Protege, so I failed to ask/realize that these pipes aren't designed for a stock Protege. They are for a FMIC so, and im considering an eBay kit and just cutting it like the Corksport kit or the pipes in the ebay piping thread.

To make those pipes fit id need to remove washer fluid, move/delete AC and maybe PS, and relocate my battery. Two of those three I am unwilling to do as this is my daily and it would lose all resale value (if it has any) if I did those..
 
That core is way bigger than you will need, you would have to remove the crash bar to fit it. You can use a universal piping kit for that FMIC or set it up for an SMIC.
 
That core is way bigger than you will need, you would have to remove the crash bar to fit it. You can use a universal piping kit for that FMIC or set it up for an SMIC.

Yeah I got a custom crashbar that he ran with his car, with it all. Mounts to the bar fine and everything. I know the cooler is excessive, but it look nice imo.

Id prefer to steer away from a SMIC setup, as id need the condenser/radiator/and fan. Along with all the piping and cooler itself. Lots of $$$.

Ive considered the ebay kit as thats probably the most cost effective/best solution here. Just a wee bit upset I was so blind however and dumped a fair amount of cash in this setup for it to not work..
 
So update here.

Got an ebay FMIC kit, have figured out a way to run hot and cold side fine. Still have some issues though.

- Had to remove A/C fan to get my initial U bend to fit
- Radiator fan is preventing me from putting anything on the turbo inlet
- Stock fogs hit the elbow pieces on my piping on both sides

So ive decided I need slim fans ($30 ebay special) to keep A/C and radiator fan (important). For the fogs, id like to keep them and not destroy my bumper, so im going to try maybe lowering my cooler a bit to sneak the piping under the fog buckets, and or using a 45 bend on the cold side instead of a 90 to see if that saves room.

Havent given up on this yet. Have had MANY moments where i contemplated staying boostless and selling though..

Honestly am surprised im running into all these issues and other run FMIC on P5's easier than I am having.
 
That's how both of my FMIC kits are, I had to put a slim fan on the passenger side. On one car I was able to make the stock driver side fan fit, and on the other I used two slim fans.

The ebay slim fans work, but are not very good to be honest.

I was able to make my piping fit without modifying the bumper at all, I recommend going through just to the side of the radiator on the passenger side, and up through the hole on the driver side.

You can make it fit, but it does take some work.
 
That's how both of my FMIC kits are, I had to put a slim fan on the passenger side. On one car I was able to make the stock driver side fan fit, and on the other I used two slim fans.

The ebay slim fans work, but are not very good to be honest.

I was able to make my piping fit without modifying the bumper at all, I recommend going through just to the side of the radiator on the passenger side, and up through the hole on the driver side.

You can make it fit, but it does take some work.

So the big issue ive noticed is that the kit I got was from a highly modded Protege. So the core is honestly too big and too long. Saving the fogs would only work if i ran a VERY small 45 off each side which wont work for the pass side. And the core goes lower than the bumper support that attaches underneath the car.

I ordered slim fans (2) ebay specials, a 45 2.5-2.75 reducer (for my 505 intake and MAF). I also found a Turbolife kit for sale, so i think i might pick that up and try snd flip my core/piping to someone who wants it. A lot of Evo guys in my area who im sure would love a big cooler like this..

Or if any Protege owners want to take a crack at it in my stead, can even include the precut crash bar!
 
I had a 1.8L Protege and the coil crapped out every 50k miles due to heat from the manifold. Throws a misfire in cyl 3 everytime.
 
Bumpy bump.

So i got that Turbolife FMIC and will be installing. Autocrossed the ol gal last weekend and am at another event right now.

I think she surprises people with the way she moves through turns for a less-powerful FWD car.

Loads of fun to through around though! But for sure need a bigger rear sway and coils :)
 
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