After 2 years locked away in storage… The EvolutionM Project Evo is out and ready to play once again. Stay tuned for the article…

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*** This review will be great for anyone running an AEM EMS and a stock turbo in their EVO.

In this edition of our Project Evo part install review, we look at two products:

AEM Serial Gauge
DC Sport Turbo Manifold

We’ve got two items to add to your list so brush the dust off that credit card and get ready to burn it up again!

What Are The Benefits?
This is an important question. There have been countless times where consumers are trapped into thinking a certain part will give them the magic result they’ve been looking for. Later to find out (after that hard earned dollar was spent) that the product failed to produce that magic result. So for this part review, let’s focus on the facts and see if both of these products will serve their purposes and not disappoint us later. Since this is a review for two separate parts, we’ll highlight the benefits of each part separately:

AEM Serial Gauge – In our opinion this product has been a missing piece to the EMS puzzle. If you’re like most of the self-taught EMS tuners out there, taking your laptop out to tune is part of the job requirements. Running data logs and making changes based on the data collected is common practice. This set up was great when you’re out specifically tuning. Now what happens when the tuning sessions are over? All that’s left is basic maintenance and monitoring. At this point the hard part is over and it’s time to enjoy the car. This is where the laptop can get in the way, especially if you start taking passengers with you. In comes the AEM Serial Gauge to the rescue.

The AEM Serial Gauge can be your eyes without having to run the laptop. Imagine having a gauge that reads your knock readings? How about monitoring your IAT readings? It can be done with this gauge. There are a few things that we really liked about this gauge that should be pointed out:

1. The ability to daisy chain more gauges to read different parameters (you can read up to 19 different parameters simultaneously)
2. Easy installation
3. User programmable
4. We can read parameters that other gauges can’t read.

Rather then list every specific detail about the product. You can find the details here: click here

DC Sports Turbo Manifold – Our first impression with the manifold wasn’t the best. We were a little skeptical about its ability to produce any significant gains (over stock) to make it a worthwhile mod. On the other hand, the build quality on the manifold is pretty nice and who can resist not seeing a manifold like this under the hood of their Evo. The stock manifold isn’t the prettiest, but it works very well (especially when ported.). So what are the benefits of running this manifold over stock? We were looking to get better throttle response, as well as, better mid to high range power. This should benefit anyone who attends HPDE’s, Autox’s, Drag strip events or any other motorsport event. The throttle response and the higher mid to high range power should help improve overall times.

More info can be found here: click here

Installation
Manifold: The manifold install was pretty straight forward. Make sure you have a long padded (using rags) crowbar, a new manifold gasket, and a new turbo gasket. The following are the steps needed to install the manifold (remember to disconnect the battery cables from the battery. It’s not necessary but it doesn’t hurt to be safe):

1. Remove stock heat shield from stock manifold.
2. Remove the 4 (12mm) nuts and 2 (14mm) nuts connecting the manifold to the block
3. The next step is to remove the 2 bolts and 2 nuts connecting the manifold to the turbo.
4. This step is pretty tricky and you must be careful when doing this step. A crowbar padded with towels will be needed. You may need a friend to help you out. Slide the padded crowbar in between the block and the turbo in order to wedge it. Be careful that there aren’t any hard lines in your way. Also don’t use a lot of muscle when pulling back.
5. Have one person pull back on the crowbar in order to pull the manifold off the block.
6. Once the manifold has cleared the block studs, lift the manifold up off of the turbo. Now release the pressure on the turbo, returning it back to its original location.
7. Next you should remove both the manifold gasket and turbo gasket with new replacements.
8. With the same crowbar, pull the turbo back again and position the base of the new manifold onto the turbo.
9. Line up the manifold in order for it to slip onto the block studs and slowly release the turbo back to its original location.
10. At this point the manifold should be aligned and ready to bolt on. Make sure to put the nuts on areas of the manifold that have close clearances before you completely bolt everything on. You need some room to move the manifold around slightly in order to get everything on.
11. Last step is to bolt everything in. Make sure everything is tight to insure there aren’t any leaks.

Remember, you will get the best results if you have the car retuned for this mod. Contact your original tuner for more information.

Serial Gauge: This gauge will probably be the easiest gauge you will ever install. The steps are very simple and should be easy to follow (the gauge comes with a set of instructions as well):

1. Remove battery cables off of the battery. * This step must be done before anything else.
2. Find a location for the gauge. We used a gauge pod that fits on the steering wheel column.
3. Make sure to locate the 8 pin single row located behind the gauge.
4. Next connect the 8 pin cable to the back of the gauge.
5. The next step requires a switched 12v source to tap into and an area for a ground. We used the same power source that our turbo timer was using.
6. Tap the red wire to the 12v source and ground the other wire.
7. Next plug the flying lead to the harness connected to the gauge.
8. Run the wire behind the dash in order to hide it from sight.
9. Connect the DB9 portion on the flying lead to the serial output on the EMS.
10. Make sure all connections are secure. Then disconnect the DB9 connection from the EMS.
11. Connect battery cables back onto the battery
12. Turn the key to the “On” position and make sure the gauge turns on.
13. Open AEM Pro and connect to the EMS. Wait for the EMS to finish downloading.
14. Click on “VIEW” and select the telemetry wizard from the wizards drop down menu. In the telemetry wizard, left click on “AEM Serial Datastream Gauge: and click OK.
15. Close AEM Pro, connect the serial gauge to the EMS, and cycle power to the EMS. The EMS is now configured to output data to the gauge.

Overall Impressions

Street: AEM Serial Gauge: Driving around with this gauge is not dramatically different than driving around with a normal gauge. As a test run we decided to setup the gauge to read knock. The gauge’s max limit was set low to test out the warning function as well. Overall everything works pretty nicely and depending on where you position the gauge, the led’s and digital read out are easy to read compared to a traditional gauge. If there’s a problem, it will definitely catch your eye. (** Special item to note, in the pictures you will notice that we installed the gauge on the steering column).

Street: DC Sports Turbo Manifold: We couldn’t really tell if there were any significant changes until we opened up the throttle. As we laid down the throttle you could feel the slight power difference as you start climbing through the rpms. The turbo seemed to spool up faster and throttle response also seemed to improve. Not wanting to drive recklessly on the street we decided to back off and take it to the track. Driving normally you can’t really tell a difference between the stock manifold and this one. The one thing we did notice was the audible differences between the two manifolds; the DC sports manifold was noticeably louder.

Track (road circuit): AEM Serial Gauge: During the Evo Tuner Shoot Out we were able to get a few laps in to see if the gauge was easy to read while on track. We ran the same test as we did on the street and used the gauge to read knock. We also set the max limits lower to make sure the warning led’s would catch our eye. Each lap we went through, no matter how intense the driving situations were, the gauge was easy to see. In some cases we didn’t need to see the actual numbers, just the red warning lights. Overall it’s a good setup that can be used in track and street conditions. (** Special item to note, in the pictures you will notice that we installed the gauge on the steering column).

Track (road circuit): DC Sport Turbo Manifold: This is where the product showed it’s true potential. We effectively got what we wanted, more mid to high range power, faster throttle response, and an extra benefit: FASTER SPOOL UP. The engine note sounded wonderful with the new manifold. The car felt very alive and ready to take any corner with everything it had. At some corners, we were caught off guard with the power coming in a little too hard. Overall the project car turned into a different animal on the track. It felt like the horsepower was there all along, but it needed a way to come out. Unfortunately we couldn’t provide time improvements because we ran the car with the stock manifold at a different track. We will be taking the car to the original testing ground in order to get actual time improvements. Based on our calculations; however, the car should be able to pick up another second with the current setup.

Conclusion
With any part review, we try to provide you with as much info as we can. In our opinion both parts worked very well for our application. Both parts performed very well on the track and street. One thing we do need to emphasize is you should have the care retuned after the manifold is installed. You will not feel a noticeable difference if you don’t retune.

As a consumer you should use this review as a starting point to figure out if these products are right for your application. If you are looking for the same results we were, then look no further.

Special Thanks:

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It’s been a while since our last install. We decided to change the pace a little and install something different for the project evo. Spring is around the corner and HPDE (high performance driving events) sessions were getting closer and closer. With this mind, we decided to look into a new Harness Bar for the project evo.

Each person has a different use for a harness bar. We decided to use ours as a camera mount so we can record our track sessions. There are a fair amount of harness bar manufactures to choose from. We were more interested in getting the one that had the best bang for the buck. It came down to Sparco’s and GSC’s harness bar. In the end we felt that GSC had the better product for less and decided to go with theirs.

The packaged arrived within a couple days after I placed the order. It was very well packaged and everything was pretty well organized. The paint job on the bar was nicely done as well as the supporting bars.

Install
Installation was pretty simple. Overall it took us about an hour to get everything installed and adjusted correctly. We decided to use Loctite for the new bolts going in. It may not be necessary but I like the feeling of having something a little extra, especially for something like a seatbelt.

Conclusion
After the install we were happy to see how the bar looked inside the car. We test fitted our camera mount and ran a test recording around town. The end result, the bar worked extremely well for our purpose. The picture was steady and we couldn’t be happier with the result. The harness bar was not only easy to install but it could be easily removed when we have extra passengers in the back. For an everyday driver, you couldn’t ask for anything better for a harness bar.

Gallery:

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Engine Torque Damper

With the current power levels on the Project Evo, something had to be done about the drive train lash we were experiencing. The Evo suffers from a good amount of engine movement due to the soft stock motor mounts. Some issues that results from the motor movement are increased stress on exhaust mounts (and motor mounts), problems shifting, and excessive wheel hop.

Upgrading the motor mounts was the only solution I could think of, until I was introduced to the Stiffy from Ingalls Engineering. The Stiffy seemed like the best solution if you didn’t want to go through the hassle of installing upgraded motor mounts or inserts. Plus it had the ability to adjust the stiffness level, which is a great feature especially if you drive your Evo daily.

The product arrived at my door within a weeks time. Included in the package was the following:

- Stiffy Engine Torque Damper
- Engine Mounting Bracket
- Chassis Mounting Bracket
- Hardware Kit (includes: two 12mm engine mount nuts, two 12mm washers, two bolts, two nylon locking washers, and two washers.)

Installation was simple and took about 30 minutes to complete. Once I finished the install I was out on the road testing it out.

Impressions

After the install I made sure to set the damper to the softest setting before heading out.

Softest/Lowest Setting

Initially I couldn’t feel a difference in the car’s behavior, until I started playing with the throttle. I tried to reproduce the drive train lash I experienced before to see if there was any improvement. I did notice a slight improvement. My shifting was also a little smother than before. Cabin vibrations were very mild, but keep in mind the project Evo has a lumpy idle due to the 272 cams so I’m pretty used to the car being shaky.

Medium/Middle Setting

This setting was a definite improvement from the last setting. Shifting improved and the lash experienced during the last run had reduced. This time around I was able to feel vibrations within the cabin. Again I’m not ultra sensitive to cabin noise or vibrations so this was tolerable for me on a daily basis.

Stiffest/Highest Setting

Finally I decided to go all the way and set the damper to the stiffest setting and head out for the final test run of the day. On this run I could definitely tell that the product was making a difference. Shifting was really smooth this time around. I tried to reproduce the lash again but this time it had greatly reduced from the first setting. Cabin vibrations were definitely noticeable and may be a pain to deal with on daily basis.

At the end of the day I have to say this is a good mod that was easy to install and easy to use. It’s a great alternative to motor mounts, especially if you drive your Evo on a daily basis. A little Dynamat around the strut tower could also help absorb any vibrations experienced, if any. I would also keep the Stiffy set anywhere between the softest to the medium setting for everyday use. I would recommend only using the highest setting on track days.

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