Welcome to the first edition of Tune My Ride!
MVS Forum member Rich (rmmagow) asks Lucky "What to do for an all-around improvement -- power/handling -- on my 98 V70?"
What do you have?
98 V70 AWD LPT 180,000. Just about stage-0, only minor vacuum related issues to fix.
How much do you have to spend?
$750 to $1000. I'll do my own wrenching.
Where do you want to go with it?
Faster turbo response with more boost available at the upper end, say the 60 to 80 mph range sort of like how the R responds. Better handling, flatter cornering. The car currently does not have the AWD connected, but I'd like to put it back. I also don't want to kill the motor or tranny.
Lucky's Answer
LPT motors are great when it comes to the low end grunt it takes to get AWD cars moving, but the wastegate setting is critical to get that early boost development that makes these cars so nice off the line. If you haven't set your wastegate yet I can't stress how much that will affect driveability. I'd start with a base setting of 3.6psi and see how the boost develops. This will bring the turbo response in a bit quicker. Even with the AWD disconnected this base setting is going to be really important since you have less load against the engine as your drive shaft and rear end/axles are not contributing to engine loading which has a direct impact on boost production.
As for upper end power, that's going to be a bit harder to make any real gains on since the smaller turbo that comes stock on that engine is going to top out flow as early as 4500Rpm. Downpipe and catback exhaust can certainly help to maintain upper RPM power but at the end of the day a larger turbo is going to be a considerable contributor to better upper RPM power and performance. Consider upgrading to a 15G or 16T since they are bolt on turbos and quite cost effective. As you can already guess getting a proper tune will help you get the most out of any upgrade that changes flow in the engine so consider that if it's in the upgrade budget.
Better handling as it relates to flatter cornering is going to be most impacted with a set of sway bars. Springs can help but with AWD, lowering springs can be harder to find and may not be what you want anyway... Sway bars are a hard upgrade to beat as they provide an amazing increase to the nimbleness and handing of the car with nearly zero side effects or negative trade offs.
Hope this is helpful in getting you to your power and performance goals, if I've missed anything post up below and I'll be sure to reply shortly!
Robert Lucky Arnold
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