Stage 1
Take your car to as much as 300hp - and click off low 13's to high 12's in the 1/4 mile!




1) Air Filter Assembly

1G - K&N Air Filter
2G - K&N Filtercharger Kit
<1G Tip!> - Cut the top of the factory airbox off leaving the front and rear mounting holes intact
<1G Tip!> - Remove the air silencer (the paper filter located behind the MAS)
<1G Tip!> - Remove the smaller of the two honeycombs in the MAS - Do NOT remove the larger one. This modification will allow 2-3 psi more boost before hitting fuel cut
<2G Tip!> - Do NOT remove ANY of the honeycombs - the car will not run smoothly without them

2) Cat-back Exhaust System

AWD with 12 or 13 sec goal:
2.5" Pressbent Aluminized piping with Stainless Muffler and 4" Polished Tip - 1G or 2G (AWD Only)
All Turbo FWD or AWD with sub-12 sec goal:
3" Mandrel Bent Stainless piping and Muffler with 4" Polished Tip - All Turbo FWD and AWD Models

3) Boost or Boost/Vacuum Gauge

The factory Boost Gauge does not actually measure Boost - it merely estimates the what it "thinks" the current boost is based upon calculations involving air temperature and MAS data. Installing a "real" boost gauge is especially important once boost pressures exceed the values the stock gauge records.
Try the SPI, Autometer, and VDO Boost and Boost/Vacuum gauges, as well as 1G, 2G, and 3000GT Gauge Pods to house them

4) Compressor Bypass Valve (Blow Off Valve) for 95+ Models

The 2G stock BOV is made of plastic and will not hold even moderate boost levels without leaking
We recommend replacing the stock 2G valve with a stock 1G BOV

5) Boost Control
We recommend the use of a Manual Boost Controller. It is reasonably priced, works great, and spools up as fast as the best electronic controllers.
If you want to run an electronic Boost Controller, the HKS, Apex'i and Greddy units are good too

6) Fuel Pump

Once you have performed modifications 1-5 above, you'll be able to increase the boost to >16psi if you upgrade the factory fuel pump to one with higher flow. there are 2 diffent in-tank fuel pumps - one for stock turbo and 16g cars, another for 20g+ cars. Both fuel pumps are better than the in-line HKS fuel pumps because they are easier to install, flow more, and are quieter than an external pump.

7) Test Pipe

This modification eliminates your catalytic converter and is designed for offroad use ONLY. Expect the exhaust tone to increase slightly, and for the power to come on more strongly when the turbo spools up
High flow catalytic converters for street use will work too

8) Downpipe

Replacing the stock downpipe will greatly improve the performance of your car at high RPMs. Some of our customer cars have ran as fast as mid-11's on our least expensive 2.5" aluminized, pressbent downpipes. We also build and sell 2.5" and 3" stainless, mandrel-bent downpipes. A 3" downpipe without sufficient port work (see below), and external wastegate can cause boost creep.

9) Port Work

Using a die grinder and carbide bit, port your O2 housing, exhaust manifold housing, and turbine housing. This will make your turbo spool up faster, relieve unwanted backpressure, and increase your top-end power.
Port work has the added benefit of improving engine reliablity since less backpressure causes less strain on your engine, resulting in longer engine life.

10) Ported 2G Exhaust Manifold

If you have a 1G, you may want to replace the 1G exhaust manifold with a higher-flowing, ported 2G manifold. We sell the 95+ exhaust manifolds in ported or unported styles at competitive prices!

11) High-Performance Clutch

The stock clutch will allow much of the new power at the crank to slip past the flywheel and your car won't "feel" as fast as it really is. A new clutch will also improve your 60' times at the track since it transfers more power to the ground.
We prefer the ACT 2100 or 2600 lb clutches. An added benefit it that the clutch discs are replaceable without replacing the pressure plate.
The ACT 2100 will hold enough power to propel you car into the high 11's.
The ACT 2600 will hold as much power as a DSM can produce! There is a significant increase in pedal pressure over stock with this clutch.

12) 16G upgrade for 1G Automatics and 2Gs

The 16g upgrade (described in Stage 2), is required for 1G Autos or 2Gs to reach the peak Stage 1 performance level