Considering going Hybrid need advice

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Plane

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My engine needs work done so perfect time to upgrade! I've been searching on here and I haven't found exactly what I'm after.

My 02 S3 is a daily and always will be, I don't do all that much mileage but I need the car.
So as its a daily I'd like more power but I'm not chasing figures.

BBT and badger 5 dont have stock so I'm going to have to wait. I'll need to get the clutch done so I can get the turbo work then.

I'd like a reliable 300bhp.
I've looked at the baby BBT but I'm reading here about need WMI. Is it needed for this low figure?
Standard injectors good enough?
Is a standard manifold good enough or am I better waiting for badger5's? The original will probaly be cracked and need replacing anyway.
I know that at 300 I don't need rods and to be honest for a daily I'm happy with 300 or a little more. From what I've read 320BHP+ rods are needed???

The engine bay is standard with the exception of a remap and a badger5 TIP.
I know a downpipe will make a difference as will a FMIC but they will have to wait, I've a big enough bill coming. Unless I get lucky and in that case I'll have a hhealthier budget for upgrades!

Any advice welcome. What are people's experiences?
 
yes a bbt hybrid should be enought
but exhaust mani, decat, downpipe 3" will be needed and a fmic
 
The exhaust mani, decat, downpipe yeah I can probably do that alright but the FMIC could have to wait.

What's the outcome if only manifold is done? Too high a temp to tthe point of damage or just not extra power?
 
Thanks for the replies.
What decat and downpipe are people here using?
Using the search I've seen a few from Chinease stuff to more recognisable brands.
 
Badger 5 mani and standard turbo plus downpipe decat and fmic and 3inch tip made 325bhp at rtec recently.... you dont need hybrid for 300 or a little ovet anymore. Rods are at risk at stage 1. Dont forget to cost in mapping. Just do your backup mods before hybrid, fmic is one if not the most important mods when tuning. I put my welly cooler on for total 225 quid.
 
sadly this plan would be fairly pointless with no fmic as previously said.
bill says stage 1 is pushing it with no fmic!!!
do it all properly and do it once.
pointless fitting a cooler after as the map would need tweaking.
whats your budget fella
think you may be better going stage 2 for now then upgrading to hybrid later!
 
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man i need to type faster!!!
people keep beating me to it!!
 
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What's my budget? Well I don't have one really, obviously I don't want spending crazy amounts but I don't have a set one really. The sterling to Euro rate is also killing me at the moment.

The timing has slipped and it looks like the head needs rebuild. So I figured I'd get a few upgrades done at the same time depending on what I need to spend on the basic engine work. Initially I though I was going to be looking at a full rebuild but it looks like the bottom end is fine.
Car has 130k so most likely the manifold and turbo need replacing anyway and my clutch has had a few slips in the last years and it the original so I'm on borrowed time.

I rang badger5 on Thursday to get the price of a BBT and one of his manifolds thinking they would all be a short lead time but I got a bit of a surprise as the BBT turbo's aren#t available until May and the high flow manifold Badger5 doesn't know when he'll have them.
So even when I want to buy I still can't get parts.
I'm thinking of doing the head and leave the clutch until June and when the clutch is being done hopefully Badger5 will have manifolds and BBT will have turbos.

So it looks like a top end build and if that is the case then I'll go intercooler, downpipe, decat or high flow cat, badger5 & BBT if I can get them. Then have it mapped to 300bhp for a while. Then go rods and more BHP. I'm not chasing big BHP, I've two other projects that I play with too.

@badger5: do you have any idea when you think you'll have manifolds? Also can I put a deposit on one for when it does come in?

What are the standard injectors good for?
 
Last edited:
Plane said:
So it looks like a top end build and if that is the case then I'll go intercooler, downpipe, decat or high flow cat, badger5 & BBT if I can get them. Then have it mapped to 300bhp for a while. Then go rods and more BHP. I'm not chasing big BHP, I've two other projects that I play with too.
Click to expand...


so the heads coming off to be sent away for a refurb with a cambelt replacement ect and have it remapped. And then later on you'll have the head taken off for a rod install with new cambelt ect.....and then have it remapped again? Are you doing the work yourself?

Makes sense to get the rod install done at the same time you have the head refurbished, also with the cam belt etc done once, and then if your tight on cash wait until you recoup some funds and then get all your other mods and have it remapped once? Admittedly it'll be longer until you start reaping the reward of the money you've spent though; maybe that's the decider? That's the route I'm taking anyway; hence why I have rods on a standard map

also running standard rods at 300bhp would have me a bit nervous in which case I probably wouldn't be enjoying my 300bhp either; rather i'd be nursing it from A to B
 
What gets me is rods fitted are 1200 quid minimum but you can buy an agu lump for 400 and fit it in a weekend with ya mates.... still want rods myself but defo worth thinking about when alot of people on other forums run hybrid ko4's even bt for years on standard rods...
 
i thought the agu rods being stronger wasnt true?
 
Think he meant why spend £1200 on rods when you can buy another engine for £400 which is 1/3 of the price.
Personally I have fitted rods so I dont ever need to worry about the bottom end letting go and the ball ache of finding anf fitting another engine
 
Agu has 20mm wrist pins so is basically a cheap s3 block.
Another thing is if your built engine goes bang for what ever reason, or if cambelt snaps or turbo blows its guts into the bores or oil pump fails .... whatever, you then have a 1600 quid build to do to get back to where you are... if you are hunting massive power yeah but is it really worth all the cash if your capable with spanners, most knackered engines on here are oil pump failiers. How many stage 2's have actually bent rods or windowed blocks? Is that due to outright power or badly mapped cars with huge boost spikes?
 
There's a reason it's nicknamed 'rod lottery'... if anyone wants to take their chances, that's up to them. I've not been around here long, but I've seen plenty of windowed blocks in the past few months to decide for myself that I'll get rods...
 
Yea I've had a few turbo cars before the s3 and from experience as soon as you start upping the boost you are starting to ask things of the internals they weren't designed to do, I've had two stage 1 cars throw rods, these cars are getting old now, surely for £1200-1500 you would be best sorting the bottom end out, otherwise you will be cringing every time you put your foot down
 
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