Note: This car is and will continue to be my daily driver. My goal is 200whp while still retaining all the creature comforts and reliability of a daily driver.

As for nitrous I'm not a fan of refilling but a big fan of being able to hide it from sight. On the other hand, not having to refill a turbo and having the easy power they add is a big plus. I just don't know what route to take or what will be most reliable. I would actually prefer the cheapest route, but that may not be most ideal.

One other thing to take into consideration; I will be using an eBay turbo kit unless I find a complete bolt-on kit at a good price. So when factoring total cost into the equation, price the turbo kit at $800 and the tune at $500 (will be using a very reputable shop). Also consider what would need to be built for the nitrous for 200whp. It would probably take at least a 125 shot to get me there.

Thanks for the help/suggestions in advance guys! And yes, regardless of the route I go I will have a compression test performed.

 

Nitrous is cheaper and its a little easier to keep ac and ps but you have to refill the bottle like you said. I've had both on a single cam and I liked having the turbo over spray because it never ran out.

 

Oh and I would replace the clutch just to be safe.

 

Nitrous may be cheaper for the core components out the door, but what about the accessories like a WOT switch and bottle warmer with gauges? Also, I'm not sure running a 125 shot otherwise bone stock is a good idea. So how much cheaper is nitrous really gonna be?

 

Are the Ebay kits for the D16Y8 any good? I have a DSM as well and all I hear is they are crap this and crap that

 

It's like anything knock-off. Probably best to use the real stuff but will do if done right. Honestly though, I've talked to people who've had good and bad ordeals happen with the eBay kits. The weak link, funny enough, is the turbo itself. But with a good tune and install I've heard they work pretty well. Plenty of people use them with no problem, others not so much.

FWIW, the shop that will tune my setup regardless of which route I take is experienced in tuning the eBay turbo kits.

 

Buy a used wet kit

 

this, but change the solenoids for new ones.