Hey Guys,

Im looking at doing a MAJOR ungrade to the engine of my 380, either Turbo or Supercharged.

Just like to get some peoples opinions on the matter.

Hey Guys,

Im looking at doing a MAJOR ungrade to the engine of my 380, either Turbo or Supercharged.

Just like to get some peoples opinions on the matter.

I just voted turbo as I'm getting mucked around a bit with the supercharger & not getting the boost I should. This is my first experience with a supercharger & have always used turbos in the past.

id think turbo, probably a bit more expensive but has better FWD driveability. You get the power later in the power band which is good because the biggest issue with the FWD is getting off the line. However when you hit boost the torque steer could be interesting ;)

id think turbo, probably a bit more expensive but has better FWD driveability. You get the power later in the power band which is good because the biggest issue with the FWD is getting off the line. However when you hit boost the torque steer could be interesting ;)

I don't understand this theory. Turbo lag would be worse for a FWD car because when the torque from the turbo actually hits, you're going to veer off the road into the nearest tree. A superchargers torque is more gradual and easier to modulate.

I'm not going to vote in this poll, because I think neither. Either way you go, you will have problems. Whether it be melting pistons with a supercharger, or melting pistons with a turbo. I just forsee a lot of pain going FI on a Magna, or a 380.

Edit: If you must - I would supercharge. The linear power delivery would suit the type of car the 380 is. BUT, it needs to be done properly with a built motor (pistons and rods) and a fully intercooled supercharger kit. You're probably looking at $15k at least...

if you read what i wrote i said that when you hit boost it could get interesting, but we arent talking 1bar of boost here (i wouldnt have thought anyway). I saw how much mohitscar struggled to get the power down, especially when it was a bit greasy, thats why i thik that turbo would be better, but agreed with the 'oh ****' factor of hitting boost

if you read what i wrote i said that when you hit boost it could get interesting, but we arent talking 1bar of boost here (i wouldnt have thought anyway). I saw how much mohitscar struggled to get the power down, especially when it was a bit greasy, thats why i thik that turbo would be better, but agreed with the 'oh ****' factor of hitting boost
Yeh i would say turbo for the reason Trav mentioned above. Also coz it's different and not been done before on a 380 as far as i know :)

id think turbo, probably a bit more expensive but has better FWD driveability. You get the power later in the power band which is good because the biggest issue with the FWD is getting off the line. However when you hit boost the torque steer could be interesting ;)

Yeah for the turbo its gonna cost approx 4k more than just going supercharger....

:cry:I feel stink saying this but maybe you should sell the 380 and buy a xr6 turbo or something simular, would save alot of pissing around. The sad truth is mitsubishi didnt design the 380 to be fast.

I am with specialk on this and say neither. I would think it would be cheaper to go the full extent with N/A mods first....Foozrcool obtained very good results without even going for cams/head work.

If you want to super/turbo charge your car so it is unique, fair enough. But if you are doing it because you want a fast car, save yourself what I suspect would be a lot of stress attempting FI and just go and buy XR6 turbo.

Or a ralliart lancer

Well there's a host of other options other than XR6Ts, but FWD, even more cubes than the Magnas, and forced induction just spells bucketloads of wheelspin and torque steer. Go atmo or sell up.

i agree with niether also, just go with NA mods, its all the 380 justifies, 200-210kw in a front wheel drive is plenty of grunt....

You could build a bullet-proof, quick n/a 3.8 a lot cheaper.

i agree with niether also, just go with NA mods, its all the 380 justifies, 200-210kw in a front wheel drive is plenty of grunt....

Well mine would have been around the 215KW & yep was fun to drive but needed a tad more for me anyway. With Alan & Dave giving lots of input on the 6G75 I think a bit of headwork, mild cam & bigger injectors (& maybe a 380 version of the Streetfighter) with the mods I already had would give some healthy figures. I may have went that path if the threads had eventuated back late last year but then the internals of a 380 engine was a no go zone.

I'm sure I will sort the supercharger out & it will go quite nicely & I guess since I'm the first to dabble with a supercharged 380, it will be easier for any future peeps wanting to go that route as I have found all the problems & ways around it.

Well mine would have been around the 215KW & yep was fun to drive but needed a tad more for me anyway. With Alan & Dave giving lots of input on the 6G75 I think a bit of headwork, mild cam & bigger injectors (& maybe a 380 version of the Streetfighter) with the mods I already had would give some healthy figures. I may have went that path if the threads had eventuated back late last year but then the internals of a 380 engine was a no go zone.

I'm sure I will sort the supercharger out & it will go quite nicely & I guess since I'm the first to dabble with a supercharged 380, it will be easier for any future peeps wanting to go that route as I have found all the problems & ways around it.

Yes i agree with what you say,there's already people benefiting from your exhaust findings.
It's great having members that are willing to take a risk and try something new and i'm sure you'll get 'on top of it'.

I say turbo, so much cooler :) To all the people saying don't waste your time, buy an XR6T... I say you're all a bunch of tools. Nothing is as satisfying as building a fast car. Buying one is what you do in a midlife crisis. Have you seen the kind of dicks that drive XR6Ts?

I dont know mate, I wouldnt mind owning a 240kw rear wheel drive falcon. If that makes me a tool at least id be a fast one.

I say turbo, so much cooler :) To all the people saying don't waste your time, buy an XR6T... I say you're all a bunch of tools. Nothing is as satisfying as building a fast car. Buying one is what you do in a midlife crisis. Have you seen the kind of dicks that drive XR6Ts?


Indeed!!!

I love my mid life crisis, its the best crisis I ever had :happy:

If you're going to be happy with a moderate amount of power increase go for it. But if you want a lot more i wouldn't turbo/supercharge the car. That's the dilemma i had. I was happy with the power i had with the supercharger for a while but got hungry for more. Instead of spending thousands more building the engine up for more power i started with another car that already has a lot of power to begin with and can get a lot more out of it with minimal mods. Good luck with your decision!

Hey Guys,

Im looking at doing a MAJOR ungrade to the engine of my 380, either Turbo or Supercharged.

Just like to get some peoples opinions on the matter.

Is it manual or auto?

How big is the budget, not just for the build but for sorting/tuning and ongoing maintenance?

How much power will satisfy? Once you have experienced the thrill, how long before that won't be enough?

Can you afford quality tyres and quality dampers?

The 3.8 is a good base for NA modification and should make good power fairly easily. Like the AWD Magna the 380 lacks low down grunt. Graham has proven from his flow tests that the heads flow very well, and closing down the ports in both head and lower manifold picked up flow. This would help low rpm and mid-range grunt too.

The cams aren't too bad either but being retarded 6 deg kills torque. They need to be advanced. Graham will check if thats possible without valve to piston contact soon. He overseas now getting cams done so when he gets back he will check his cams for clearance and the stock Ralliart/380 lobe too on a 3.5 and 3.8.

My worry with a blower or turbo would be the stock pistons. The 3.8 ring pack is very tight, the sort of thing we do in race engines, so the top ring is going to get a lot of heat too. Graham hasn't stripped the bottom end yet so we haven't carefully examined a piston but I suspect my opinion won't change when I get to see one. Even with forged slugs I'd be thinking about oil squirters spraying under the crown to cool things.

Cheers,
Alan

Are you building this to be a show car mate? I only ask as you have 22" inch rims, which obviously are gonna hold back the car if your looking for a quick street car, where as its for show i can see the reason behind them. Also if you do this, i would love to own your local tyre shop, as i imagine you will be spending a fortune there replacing 22" tyres lol

I say turbo, so much cooler :) To all the people saying don't waste your time, buy an XR6T... I say you're all a bunch of tools. Nothing is as satisfying as building a fast car. Buying one is what you do in a midlife crisis. Have you seen the kind of dicks that drive XR6Ts?

Woo Woo Woo, now my cousin (im not wog) owns a BF XR6T in electric blue with the 6spd ZF and it is truelly a beautiful car! Truelly is... I've driven C63 AMG's (no bs), a few BMW's and done laps in a Caterham 7. And i tell you, the XR6 is a wonderful car to be in. It just feels complete. Sure it can go fast, it can leave a commo driver with his jaw dropped, but that's not all that cars about! It's a national landmark, the last and greatest Aussie engine! And the car is just at home on the road, it's a car that loves to be driven and thanks you for it every time u slid behind the wheel, love it and it will love you back.

The XR6T is about a complete and fullfilling drive, not about the Quater mile and wank factor and giving the big one up to speed limits. It's about the full experience! It's not a challenge to drive, it's a privilage and a rewarding experience!

Woo Woo Woo, now my cousin (im not wog) owns a BF XR6T in electric blue with the 6spd ZF and it is truelly a beautiful car! Truelly is... I've driven C63 AMG's (no bs), a few BMW's and done laps in a Caterham 7. And i tell you, the XR6 is a wonderful car to be in. It just feels complete. Sure it can go fast, it can leave a commo driver with his jaw dropped, but that's not all that cars about! It's a national landmark, the last and greatest Aussie engine! And the car is just at home on the road, it's a car that loves to be driven and thanks you for it every time u slid behind the wheel, love it and it will love you back.

The XR6T is about a complete and fullfilling drive, not about the Quater mile and wank factor and giving the big one up to speed limits. It's about the full experience! It's not a challenge to drive, it's a privilage and a rewarding experience!

thats not as hard as it sounds lol

thats not as hard as it sounds lol

Yeah aint that true.... Doing that in my G6ET is nice but when i do it in my magna there knuckles drop even further to the ground so they can pick up there bottom lip. LOL

Yeah aint that true.... Doing that in my G6ET is nice but when i do it in my magna there knuckles drop even further to the ground so they can pick up there bottom lip. LOL

thats the thing i miss about having a magna, commys wont even try now when they hear my car. SOFT****S!

Are you building this to be a show car mate? I only ask as you have 22" inch rims, which obviously are gonna hold back the car if your looking for a quick street car, where as its for show i can see the reason behind them. Also if you do this, i would love to own your local tyre shop, as i imagine you will be spending a fortune there replacing 22" tyres lol

Im doing it for no other reason as I want to do it and I want something different. Iv got a 10k budget at the moment. Not really gonna use the car as a "show car", although the 22"s beg to differ. There are two places that im looking. One for the turbo says that he will do all custom turbo manifold, ecu overhaul, piping (including intercooler) and changing the electronic fly-by-wire to cable. Im off to see the guys tomorrow for the supercharger and what they will do. Either way I know I will be shredding the tyres somewhat, but isnt that just part and parcel of any kind of major upgrade?

Woo Woo Woo, now my cousin (im not wog) owns a BF XR6T in electric blue with the 6spd ZF and it is truelly a beautiful car! Truelly is... I've driven C63 AMG's (no bs), a few BMW's and done laps in a Caterham 7. And i tell you, the XR6 is a wonderful car to be in. It just feels complete. Sure it can go fast, it can leave a commo driver with his jaw dropped, but that's not all that cars about! It's a national landmark, the last and greatest Aussie engine! And the car is just at home on the road, it's a car that loves to be driven and thanks you for it every time u slid behind the wheel, love it and it will love you back.

The XR6T is about a complete and fullfilling drive, not about the Quater mile and wank factor and giving the big one up to speed limits. It's about the full experience! It's not a challenge to drive, it's a privilage and a rewarding experience!

It would appear if you have a view that differs from Life's, you are a tool....comments like that indicate you dont have to drive an XR6T to be a dick!!!

I too have driven a BF (Typhoon) and they are quite simply an awesome vehicle, the torque it produces is mind boggling. And just for the record, my mate who owns it is not a dick.

Back on topic, as I mentioned in my first post, if McHenry is doing this to be unique (which he is), good luck to him for taking up such a challenge. I will look forward to hearing about your progress.

Im doing it for no other reason as I want to do it and I want something different. Iv got a 10k budget at the moment. Not really gonna use the car as a "show car", although the 22"s beg to differ. There are two places that im looking. One for the turbo says that he will do all custom turbo manifold, ecu overhaul, piping (including intercooler) and changing the electronic fly-by-wire to cable. Im off to see the guys tomorrow for the supercharger and what they will do. Either way I know I will be shredding the tyres somewhat, but isnt that just part and parcel of any kind of major upgrade?

on that budget id go for a supercharger

on that budget id go for a supercharger

Yeah i agree.

Maybe a bullet SC setup like OMD801's magna has.

Yeah i agree.

Maybe a bullet SC setup like OMD801's magna has.

if ya can get that for $10k jump on it!

Yeah i agree.

Maybe a bullet SC setup like OMD801's magna has.

Yeah im actually off to see these guys RIGHT now!! They seem REALLY keen to do it.

Yeah im actually off to see these guys RIGHT now!! They seem REALLY keen to do it.

Yeah, just tell them to tune it safer than QMD//801's. His piston crown broke off remember.

Yeah, just tell them to tune it safer than QMD//801's. His piston crown broke off remember.

Yeah but also remember that the 380 has knock sensors so its better able to pull timing advance when the fuel is "suspect" etc (TJ onwards magnas can also pull timing via the air temp sensor in the MAF but it isnt useful if they are "blowing" thru the MAF sensor like the bullet set up does on the magna. The only magna to use this was the ralliarts so i was told by Steve Knight when he set this up on my magna last week now that i have a TJ ECU in the car).

I reckon a nice "low" blow (6-7psi) SC setup on a 380 would be really nice.

Also remember the Raptor kits suffer piston problems when boosted over 7psi on a 3.5L, so its not just a isolated issue with the "bullet" setup.

Yeah but also remember that the 380 has knock sensors so its better able to pull timing advance when the fuel is "suspect" etc (TJ onwards magnas can also pull timing via the air temp sensor in the MAF but it isnt useful if they are "blowing" thru the MAF sensor like the bullet set up does on the magna. The only magna to use this was the ralliarts so i was told by Steve Knight when he set this up on my magna last week now that i have a TJ ECU in the car).

I reckon a nice "low" blow (6-7psi) SC setup on a 380 would be really nice.

Also remember the Raptor kits suffer piston problems when boosted over 7psi on a 3.5L, so its not just a isolated issue with the "bullet" setup.

Good advice as always Jason. Interesting about pulling timing too, cheers for that info.

When I get my 380 in a couple years I reckon I'll be looking at a supercharger system, providing reliability issues are sorted.