Upgrade to 182. Yet another question about Performance

[i G o o d e r z]

Evening all,I've been on the forum just over a year now and haven't really posted much. I've got an '03 mk2 ph2 1.2 16v in hologram grey, so nothing special. Subtle things like RS Grille, black badges, Heko's, K-TEC panel filter and brighter bulbs are about the extent of modification it has received from me.It's almost upgrade time for me and I'm thinking of jumping to the 182 (Possibly cup). Got about £3k as a budget, would have been £5k if my bike sold (Would have gotten an EP3 CTR) but had no such luck, so looks like i'm set on the 182.My question is, as far as modifications on the 182 go, is there any likelihood of increasing it much without forced induction? I HAVE used the search function and from what I've gathered, the engine in the RS's are tuned to a high standard already so it's not easy to squeeze anymore power out of it. Free flowing Exhaust systems and induction kits are about the only thing, but even then it's a minimal power gain if any right?Apologies for asking a question which has been covered a lot of times.P.S. I know jumping from 75bhp (claimed) to 182bhp (claimed) is a big power increase already, it's just i'm used to riding motorbikes which beat most things on the road, so it'd be nice knowing i've got a car that is quick on the road too Thanks,Tom

 

[McGherkin]

You've nailed it pretty much. The engine's already fairly well tuned so it's harder to get power out of it. Plus the parts to do it aren't as popular as they are on for example civics, fiestas etc.

Everything that gives you big gains (cams, RS2 etc) tends to end up costing a grand or more.

 

[dann2707]

This is probably a wtf inducing post but personally I don't think the 182 needs any power upgrades. It just feels like the right balance standard if that makes sense?

I'd probably change my mind if I got took out in a turbo though haha

 

[i G o o d e r z]

Thanks for the quick replies!

Yeah i hadn't thought of engine internals, like you say McGherkin they would be costly!

I've never driven one so i can't disagree with you dann! I could drive one and it'd be spot on like you say, all i'm going off is stats on paper and peoples word. Plus i've seen quite a few RS's in my day but they never seem to be going for it! A shame really

 

[Mr Plums]

This is probably a wtf inducing post but personally I don't think the 182 needs any power upgrades. It just feels like the right balance standard if that makes sense?

I'd probably change my mind if I got took out in a turbo though haha

Ill take you out in mine when i get it back mate

 

[Dannyeff]

It's not about power for me it's about the quality of the drive. If u can get a trophy. U will get one in your price rane bulge but will need work. If you get a mint clio it's tempting to get it though

 

[i G o o d e r z]

It's not about power for me it's about the quality of the drive. If u can get a trophy. U will get one in your price rane bulge but will need work. If you get a mint clio it's tempting to get it though

Very true, from searching the internet for hot hatches and just general car alike, the 172/182 always pop up as a very good handling, light car. I love chucking my little 1.2 into roundabouts, so can imagine a properly set up 182 would be a right treat to drive. The power is just bragging rights really 'my car has 200bhp' blah blah blah, mates got a cooper s, just want to be able to keep up with him!

 

[neil 182]

R s tuner map on and all basic mods that u mentioned. Plus suspension refresh a d good tyres. Job done and enjoy. Strip out weight seats etc if u want to gain more without having to spend thousands on engine.

 

[Nobafett]

All good advice so far, and don't be too annoyed, the 182 is a superior drive to the CTR. Owned both and the electrically assisted steering in the Civic is tragic. As sweet as the engine and gearbox are, the lack of feedback is shameful. The 182 is far far better in this regard.

 

[Sideways182]

I would say an RS tuner or a remap from one of the respected people on here would be worthwhile. Not for a serious power gain, but it improves drive-ability so much.

Getting major power is expensive. If getting cambelt changed then you could pop in a set of cams - but I wouldn't fit a set of cams if the belts weren't due. I just put a set of 197 cams in when mine were done, but 438's are respected if you don't mind paying near to £500 for cams then they'd be good for a little extra power. Factor in the remap costs too and it'll cost about £1500 or thereabouts.

Personally, it's as far as i'd go. If your contemplating ITB's or a turbo then in all honesty you'd be better of buying something that's quicker out of the box.

 

[Dannyeff]

how many bhp does the rs tuner actually make or is it just a better power delivery

 

[Dannyeff]

R s tuner map on and all basic mods that u mentioned. Plus suspension refresh a d good tyres. Job done and enjoy. Strip out weight seats etc if u want to gain more without having to spend thousands on engine.

how much does the rs tuner make a difference in terms of bhp?

 

[Chip-mk1]

how many bhp does the rs tuner actually make or is it just a better power delivery

I bet its about 10-15 bhp at 4.5K or so, its quite a noticeable increase, but it doesnt change the peak figure to any great extent.

Thats the problem when people just quote the BHP that a car makes at one point in the rev range (ie the highest one) they forget you are only at it for a couple of hundred RPM, and gains elsewhere often help more!

 

[robhoops]

If you have about a £3k budget, you could always look at getting a meganne rs, the ones with 225hp, as they have turbo, they can be tuned easier than a na car, but as said, the 182 are very good cars with a decent amount of power plus ypu have all your gadgets, climate control, cruise control etc

 

[Chip-mk1]

225 meganes are cracking bargains if you can find a decently maintained one.

 

[Martin_172]

Imo as a fast road car an rs tuner map is a must have and the only upgrade i bother with power wise now, my trophy runs a paper filter, a cat and a standard exhaust, along with an rs tuner map. Its quiet and nice to drive and pulls just as hard as any rs ive had!

Infact its bog standard other than the rs tuner map and a decent set of discs, pads and fluid and to be honest down any twisty road it will stay with anything! My mates all work off shore and have m3's, a few imprezas, evos, rs4's and an r35! And they all find it comical blasting down a road with the trophy filling their rear view mirror or how hard they have to push to stay with that cheeky little v6 spoiler flicking up in the air!!

 

[i G o o d e r z]

Nice, thanks for all the replies! Sounds like if i get a 182, the RS tuner map will be a definite purchase! I get the meganes are more powerful, but i just couldn't live with the appearance! Unfortunately I really don't like them no matter what angle i look at them from, and i can't buy a car purely on power

 

[Willo40]

I cant wait to get an RS tuner for my 182, i was going to get one this month, but just had to tax it and put tyres on it, so it will be next month now......:dapprove:

Willo

 

[dann2707]

Can't recommend the RS tuner map enough. Just had mine done and it's just improved everything.

 

[robhoops]

Can't recommend the RS tuner map enough. Just had mine done and it's just improved everything.

Thinking of the rs tuner, but I like the 5k kick you get

 

[Sideways182]

Thinking of the rs tuner, but I like the 5k kick you get

It used to piss me off no end. Really peaky power delivery. Mapped, mine is much smoother. Have power right through the rev range.

 

[Chip-mk1]

Thinking of the rs tuner, but I like the 5k kick you get

The 5K kick, is nothing more than a flatspot below 5K, you can easily replicate it in any car by just going half throttle till you get to 5k then going full throttle.

I have no idea why anyone would think a car being piss slow upto 5K is a good thing but on here people do seem to!

 

[cat171]

The 5K kick, is nothing more than a flatspot below 5K, you can easily replicate it in any car by just going half throttle till you get to 5k then going full throttle.

I have no idea why anyone would think a car being piss slow upto 5K is a good thing but on here people do seem to!

I f*cking love you sometimes Chip!!

 

[Willo40]

Ok, now I am p!ssing my pants, about 5 seconds after I seen chris's add for his RS tuner that I had to have one now, ordered and on it way, I have say the more I drive mine, the more it feels sluggish low down, so I am really looking forward to getting mine sorted now.....

I know this might sound stupid, but I take it once its done, I need to use super unleaded all the time, as I normally use std unleaded?

Cheers
Les!

 

[Sideways182]

Ok, now I am p!ssing my pants, about 5 seconds after I seen chris's add for his RS tuner that I had to have one now, ordered and on it way, I have say the more I drive mine, the more it feels sluggish low down, so I am really looking forward to getting mine sorted now.....

I know this might sound stupid, but I take it once its done, I need to use super unleaded all the time, as I normally use std unleaded?

Cheers
Les!

Pretty much, yes. Normal stuff once in a while won't do any harm though.

 

[Chip-mk1]

Should be using std unleaded even on the original map, renault specify super from the factory anyway.

 

[Willo40]

Thanks chaps, lesson learnt......

Willo

 

[robhoops]

The 5K kick, is nothing more than a flatspot below 5K, you can easily replicate it in any car by just going half throttle till you get to 5k then going full throttle.

I have no idea why anyone would think a car being piss slow upto 5K is a good thing but on here people do seem to!

Im terribly sorry, I mean a 182 only being my second car and my first car being a 1 litre car, the 182 doesnt seem to be "piss slow up to 5k" to me... yeah you can replicate it, but I like pushing the throttle all the way waiting for 5k and then having that kick you get.. I am very sorry if you dont understand why people like me like that kick I was simply wondering whether to get an rs tuner, so thank you for your input

 

[McGherkin]

Chip-mk1 At what point does it start running lean below 5k? I have 4k in my head but I'm not sure.

The first 3k is where I'd like a bit more power everyday.

 

[Chip-mk1]

@Chip-mk1 At what point does it start running lean below 5k? I have 4k in my head but I'm not sure.

The first 3k is where I'd like a bit more power everyday.

Essentially all the way from idle mate, although when you first open the throttle there is some accel enrichment applied, so depending on where you put your foot down varies the point at which it first properly settles will vary. I always mention there being a big hole from 4-5K as thats where you notice the difference when its correct, but technically its the whole way up.

 

[Chip-mk1]

I like pushing the throttle all the way waiting for 5k and then having that kick you get.. I am very sorry if you dont understand why people like me like that kick I was simply wondering whether to get an rs tuner, so thank you for your input

If you like your car being down on power lower down like you say you do, then for you no its probably not a good thing to get one.
As yours is a 182 with an electronic throttle, if you wanted you could technically probably get a remap to make it even flatter under 5K by not going to full throttle if you wanted to increase the feeling of the 5K kick by making it even worse still under 5K.

 

[robhoops]

If you like your car being down on power lower down like you say you do, then for you no its probably not a good thing to get one.
As yours is a 182 with an electronic throttle, if you wanted you could technically probably get a remap to make it even flatter under 5K by not going to full throttle if you wanted to increase the feeling of the 5K kick by making it even worse still under 5K.

Well thats what I was wondering, although I like having the kick at about 5k, do I want to have an rs tuner to give me a bit more power lower down. As said, I dont think its sluggish as im comparing it to my 1 litre, but by reading other comments, it sounds like you have a better driveabilty with an rs tuner, thanks for the advice

 

[Chip-mk1]

Compared to a 1.0 its certainly not sluggish, but compared (as makes more sense to me) to other 2.0 engines and specifically to an RS Tuner'ed F4R, it is slow down there.

 

[McGherkin]

Essentially all the way from idle mate, although when you first open the throttle there is some accel enrichment applied, so depending on where you put your foot down varies the point at which it first properly settles will vary. I always mention there being a big hole from 4-5K as thats where you notice the difference when its correct, but technically its the whole way up.

I see. So you don't really feel much of a change lower down then?

 

[unofficialPete]

For me upgrading the 182 is about changing the weaker bits on the car, not overly bothered about performance. There isn't much to be had without spending big.
I'd concentrate on things like changing the exhaust as the original rusts off, not for power gains.

Although all this RS tuner chat has me interested!

 

[Chip-mk1]

I see. So you don't really feel much of a change lower down then?

There is still a change, but personally if I am at 2K rpm and want to acceleate I change down a gear anyway, I am rarely at full throttle at that point anyway.
But at 4.5K I dont want to have to change down a gear to accelerate, especially as then I will have to change back again a second or so later when I run out of revs!

 

[Willo40]

Well my tuner arrived this morning, so I just need to apply for a licence and map, and I will hopefully be sorted, I am looking forward to see what the difference feels like...

Willo

 

[Sideways182]

If you like your car being down on power lower down like you say you do, then for you no its probably not a good thing to get one.
As yours is a 182 with an electronic throttle, if you wanted you could technically probably get a remap to make it even flatter under 5K by not going to full throttle if you wanted to increase the feeling of the 5K kick by making it even worse still under 5K.

Lol at this - like a turbo-lag map

 

[robhoops]

Compared to a 1.0 its certainly not sluggish, but compared (as makes more sense to me) to other 2.0 engines and specifically to an RS Tuner'ed F4R, it is slow down there.

Thank you I sill consider having an rs tunerthen thanks again for the advice

 

[celicaturbolly]

Chip makes a good point ( again ), the 5k kick is nice if you are used to that sort of thing, I had a ep3 type-r about a year or so ago and it makes me reminisce of that. Thinking about mapping it soonish with a rstuner, is there any downsides to the map? I'm sure it's been posted before but this seems like a good discussion atm