[Guest]

Hi - anyone know the cost of a Ralliart Stage 1 conversion please (for a '6)? And what does it do to your warranty?

As far as I know it's; brakes, exhaust, air filter, suspension. Is that the list?

 

[Guest]

As far as I know the conversion is:

Ralliart ECU running approx 1.3 Bar
HKS Filter
HKS Exhaust
ARB Bolts for the Big Ends
Lowered Springs

Not aware of any brake mods

For official UK cars it used to cost approx £3k fitted by Ralliart and did not compromise the CCC 3yr warranty.

Brian

 

[Guest]

Doesn't come with the Sports ECU.

Rest is true - Eibach Springs!

JF

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the info.

Is it usual for a '6 to have any kind of mods (such as the Ralliart Stage 1)? I'll be visiting some places shortly (feb) and would prefer to buy something which has already had work carried out.

 

[Guest]

Hi Stage 1,

HKS Filter £160
HKS Exhaust £500 approx
Bolts £250 fitted
Eibech Springs £150 £1160 Ralliart want how much?

Speak to Evoboy or Yellow Five they can help you out to purchase parts and assist with fit for a lot less money.

 

[Guest]

Yeh, but I don't mind paying for Ralliart to do it, esp if it keeps the warranty.

 

[Guest]

Dave

Make sure you know exactly what you are getting when a car is advertised as having a Stage 1. Ralliart claim there is no such thing as a standard Stage 1, it's more a shopping list of upgrades to choose from. I saw a few cars with 'Stage 1' conversions, one only has some engine mods and the suspension was standard. The dealer insisted it was a full Stage 1, but couldn't find any paperwork to back it up....

IMO the Stage 1 is a waste of money, there are plenty of Rolling Road figures that support this and the performance power/torque is nowhere near what Ralliart claim. If buying it new you could get 2 or 3 times the performance gains by going elsewhere for the same money. Only go for it if you are getting a good deal on the car compared to a standard one. Secondhand it shouldn't add that much, but when I was looking dealers were charging a premium for Stage 1 cars.

Hope this helps.

Dave

 

[Guest]

I only paid 120quidd for the fitment of the ARP conrod bolts. But that was in Switzerland!

Mike

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the replies. Paperwork is everything eh?

What's the point of uprating the conrod bolts? Does it just make the engine stronger? Shouldn't the standard bolts be up to the job?

What's the best approach to biggest bang for your bucks with these cars? I imagine a chip and exhaust manifold should be first on my list, but what gives the best performance increase for your cash?

 

[Guest]

Dave,you cant Chip an Evo and an exhaust manifold would be the last thing on your list,it only makes a difference if you are going for extensive mods say 380bhp and above.If you are concerned about your warranty your car will have to stay at stage 1 max, so you wont be seeing much more than 300-310bhp.

 

[Guest]

I thought you could chip all cars ... you know, change the timing, up the boost pressure ...?

So, again, what's the best way to go in terms of first things to do and bang-for-bucks ? And why change the conrod bolts? Also, what's the standard air filter and amp; exhaust like? They surely are the first things to be binned?

Thanks to people like Jerry Flint and Jackal (and this site!!!) for providing buying information etc, but what about the best tuning stuff to go for?

 

[Guest]

Dave,

Depends what you mean by chip . The standard ECU is not programmable. Power Engineering do a replacement EPROM that allows remapping, but they are the only ones who remap the standard ECU. Other options are a replacement ECU (Motec, GEMS, Link) - only really recommended for engines with lots of modifications or competition cars. A piggy back ECU is another option, such as the Apexi stuff and HKS FCON. An external boost controller is needed (Blitz, HKS, Apexi) to control boost. Ralliart also do an uprated ECU (Sports ECU). Which is the best? Depends on what you intend doing. Everyone has a different opinion.

The conrod bolts are an alleged weak point in the engine when running boost pressure over 1.3 bar. This again has mixed opinion, bet I would say better to be safe than sorry. It is relatively low cost to do. The standard air filter is not that bad at all, but the exhaust is awful. An aftermarket exhaust will give you 30bhp on average. An induction kit will give you a little bit more. Recommend changing downpipe and de-cat too if you want lots of power. Be careful though - this freeing up of induction and exhaust will result in higher boost, and possibly fuel cuts - suggest you go with an ECU mod at the same time (PE/Ralliart Sports/Apexi)

Also alot of this depends on how you feel about warranties too!

The Stage 1 is not good value IMHO

 

[Guest]

Do what I did Dave...

Magnex downpipe/de-cat/back box fitted for £500
(warrenty still intact - sorted it with my dealer)

Power Engineering SUL re-map for £1000
(warrenty still intact - undectable mod)

334BHP / 305 LBFT of Torque

Just need to get those big end bolts sorted now to be on the safe side.

 

[Guest]

The other thing to do is put on a decent induction kit. However, if the warranty is important to you, check this is OK first. You could also use a Ralliart Sports ECU which is less car specific, but you might even be able to pick up second hand.

 

[Guest]

Stage 1 invalidates the warranty. CCC have changed their minds about it despite the fact that there has never been a warranty claim with a Stage 1. The only thing you can change and keep your warranty is exhaust and induction kit. Thats it.