S18 RSG

Stock car graph:
 
After manifold, exhaust, air filter and map:

Cheers Ade.
Yes, you assume correctly. It is the IS165TOY. I bought them from Amazon for around £150 I believe. Don't get me wrong, sound quality isn't amazing. It's a big step up on the stock system, which was awful as we all know, but it would still benefit from a small subwoofer and amp, but if you don't want to add any weight, this is a good solution.
On the weight front however, you're still gonna add a couple of kilos just by doing this, as the stock speakers weigh literally nothing, whereas the Focals have a fairly hefty magnet attached.
As for the log downloads, I've not tried that via USB, but I'm 99% sure you can download them to SD card, so I see no reason why USB wouldn't work.

Red is the best colour  I like the look of that android head unit and the focal integration speakers. I assume thats the plug and play IS 165TOY model?
I'm quite tempted by this combo as I don't want to add anymore weight if I can avoid it, but the android for running torque would be awesome and better SQ wouldn't go a miss. I presume the USB is not just for music files? I'd want to be able to download log files stored by torque. 

A bold choice on the wheels but you've pulled it off. The boy done good.

Fucking love the Valentis.

Nice update dude!

Well, it's been 6 weeks since my last update, so I figured now is a decent time for another.
Since the last update, I'm happy to report that 4 out of 7 of the plans I had for the car have been completed, along with a few others which I didn't plan for, so, let's start from the inside.
I got around to fitting the Focal integration speakers. Made for a nice upgrade to the cardboard speakers our cars come with, and took no more than 20 minutes to fit both speakers. Tweeters took a little longer, mostly because there were no instructions, but loads of parts. Turns out, I didn't use any of the parts, and just retrofitted the new tweeters into the existing holders.
To compliment the new speakers, I decided to bring forward the planned head unit, and ordered an Android unit from America, which has been tried and tested on the FT86 forum. Was a little over £250 all in, and required some extras such as an antenna adaptor, USB adaptor and modified brackets, but it's in now. Sound wise, was another big jump up from the stock stereo, with much more adjustability from the EQ. It allows me to use a multitude of media options, CD, DVD, USB, SD card, Bluetooth or Wifi, and best of all, fits into the 200x100 slot without the need for an adaptor.
Some pics:


Also pushed another thing forward, and organised a stage 1 remap with Mark over at Abbey Motorsport. I posted my experience at Abbey in the trader section, but the shortened version is the car went from 162 to nearly 180whp, with a similar increase in torque. Car feels much more "alive", especially at motorway speeds, and the torque dip is much less noticeable (but still there for sure). Good way to spend the money. Here's an up to date pic on the dyno:

Also got around to fitting the Valenti rear lights, which I fell in love with instantly. Haven't really taken a decent pic of them yet, but here are two I stumbled across on my phone:


Finally, I spent a weekend a few weeks ago spraying some of the interior plastics (the silver bits anyway) in red plastidip. Still got the door handles, air con surround and steering wheel detail to do, but overall really happy with the results. A few people saw it at the meet in February, so can probably vouch for the finish. No pics though unfortunately, will get around to that soon.
Plans for the car haven't really changed, however thanks to Mark's sales techniques, I'm now more sure about forced induction, so will be looking to go down that route sometime this year.
As for right now, plans are as follows:
Fit remainder of HT Autos lip kit (I have the sides and rear spats on my bedroom floor)
Catted manifold and updated remap to try and eliminate torque dip some more
TRD spoiler
Change brake pads, discs, lines and fluids
A few other small jobs (plastidip remainder of interior, retrim steering wheel, debadge boot, possibly spray Toyota badges black).
And that's basically everything for this update. Thanks for reading

Well, it's been 6 weeks since my last update, so I figured now is a decent time for another.
Since the last update, I'm happy to report that 4 out of 7 of the plans I had for the car have been completed, along with a few others which I didn't plan for, so, let's start from the inside.
I got around to fitting the Focal integration speakers. Made for a nice upgrade to the cardboard speakers our cars come with, and took no more than 20 minutes to fit both speakers. Tweeters took a little longer, mostly because there were no instructions, but loads of parts. Turns out, I didn't use any of the parts, and just retrofitted the new tweeters into the existing holders.
To compliment the new speakers, I decided to bring forward the planned head unit, and ordered an Android unit from America, which has been tried and tested on the FT86 forum. Was a little over £250 all in, and required some extras such as an antenna adaptor, USB adaptor and modified brackets, but it's in now. Sound wise, was another big jump up from the stock stereo, with much more adjustability from the EQ. It allows me to use a multitude of media options, CD, DVD, USB, SD card, Bluetooth or Wifi, and best of all, fits into the 200x100 slot without the need for an adaptor.
Some pics:


Also pushed another thing forward, and organised a stage 1 remap with Mark over at Abbey Motorsport. I posted my experience at Abbey in the trader section, but the shortened version is the car went from 162 to nearly 180whp, with a similar increase in torque. Car feels much more "alive", especially at motorway speeds, and the torque dip is much less noticeable (but still there for sure). Good way to spend the money. Here's an up to date pic on the dyno:

Also got around to fitting the Valenti rear lights, which I fell in love with instantly. Haven't really taken a decent pic of them yet, but here are two I stumbled across on my phone:


Finally, I spent a weekend a few weeks ago spraying some of the interior plastics (the silver bits anyway) in red plastidip. Still got the door handles, air con surround and steering wheel detail to do, but overall really happy with the results. A few people saw it at the meet in February, so can probably vouch for the finish. No pics though unfortunately, will get around to that soon.
Plans for the car haven't really changed, however thanks to Mark's sales techniques, I'm now more sure about forced induction, so will be looking to go down that route sometime this year.
As for right now, plans are as follows:
Fit remainder of HT Autos lip kit (I have the sides and rear spats on my bedroom floor)
Catted manifold and updated remap to try and eliminate torque dip some more
TRD spoiler
Change brake pads, discs, lines and fluids
A few other small jobs (plastidip remainder of interior, retrim steering wheel, debadge boot, possibly spray Toyota badges black).
And that's basically everything for this update. Thanks for reading

Well, it's been 6 weeks since my last update, so I figured now is a decent time for another.
Since the last update, I'm happy to report that 4 out of 7 of the plans I had for the car have been completed, along with a few others which I didn't plan for, so, let's start from the inside.
I got around to fitting the Focal integration speakers. Made for a nice upgrade to the cardboard speakers our cars come with, and took no more than 20 minutes to fit both speakers. Tweeters took a little longer, mostly because there were no instructions, but loads of parts. Turns out, I didn't use any of the parts, and just retrofitted the new tweeters into the existing holders.
To compliment the new speakers, I decided to bring forward the planned head unit, and ordered an Android unit from America, which has been tried and tested on the FT86 forum. Was a little over £250 all in, and required some extras such as an antenna adaptor, USB adaptor and modified brackets, but it's in now. Sound wise, was another big jump up from the stock stereo, with much more adjustability from the EQ. It allows me to use a multitude of media options, CD, DVD, USB, SD card, Bluetooth or Wifi, and best of all, fits into the 200x100 slot without the need for an adaptor.
Some pics:


Also pushed another thing forward, and organised a stage 1 remap with Mark over at Abbey Motorsport. I posted my experience at Abbey in the trader section, but the shortened version is the car went from 162 to nearly 180whp, with a similar increase in torque. Car feels much more "alive", especially at motorway speeds, and the torque dip is much less noticeable (but still there for sure). Good way to spend the money. Here's an up to date pic on the dyno:

Also got around to fitting the Valenti rear lights, which I fell in love with instantly. Haven't really taken a decent pic of them yet, but here are two I stumbled across on my phone:


Finally, I spent a weekend a few weeks ago spraying some of the interior plastics (the silver bits anyway) in red plastidip. Still got the door handles, air con surround and steering wheel detail to do, but overall really happy with the results. A few people saw it at the meet in February, so can probably vouch for the finish. No pics though unfortunately, will get around to that soon.
Plans for the car haven't really changed, however thanks to Mark's sales techniques, I'm now more sure about forced induction, so will be looking to go down that route sometime this year.
As for right now, plans are as follows:
Fit remainder of HT Autos lip kit (I have the sides and rear spats on my bedroom floor)
Catted manifold and updated remap to try and eliminate torque dip some more
TRD spoiler
Change brake pads, discs, lines and fluids
A few other small jobs (plastidip remainder of interior, retrim steering wheel, debadge boot, possibly spray Toyota badges black).
And that's basically everything for this update. Thanks for reading

Unfortunately my mole grips are getting retrimmed at the same time

Unfortunately my mole grips are getting retrimmed at the same time

Unfortunately my mole grips are getting retrimmed at the same time

Just wanted to put together a quick post to say a thank you to the guys at Abbey, specifically @Mark@Abbey M/S for their hospitality and work this weekend, made the 6+ hour round trip and 5am start worth it.
I went there for a stage 1 remap, arrived at 8:30am and after setting up shop, Mark got me straight on the dyno. We spent close to 3 hours on the dyno, fettling with the map until Mark was happy with everything. We started the day at 162whp, and 142lb/ft, and ended the day with nearly 180whp and 154lb/ft, which Mark rated at around 220hp at the flywheel, not bad considering my car only has a catback exhaust (with secondary decat) and a filter.
To drive, the car feels so much more complete. Driving on the motorway is much easier thanks to the increase in torque, and slightly narrower torque dip, and the extra bit of top end power just turns the dial up slightly when pressing on. For anyone who's considering a remap, but not convinced, don't go into it expecting the car to be transformed, like with a turbo'd car. Power-wise, the car isn't hugely different to stock. The car's power band is exactly the same, there's just a fraction more throughout the rev range. The biggest difference which you will absolutely notice, is how much more refined the car feels. Startup is a lot smoother, those little imperfections in the drivetrain under certain circumstances seem to be ironed out, and as mentioned above, that extra bit of torque is a welcome addition, as it makes the car much easier to drive from lower RPM. Despite the numbers not being hugely improved, the graph itself is more impressive. There is more power and more torque everywhere, not just at peak, and that's what matters more than anything. Another advantage is I saw around a 10% improvement in MPG on the drive home, and if anything, I drove a little faster and less efficiently on the way home, due to testing the map.
One interesting thing Mark mentioned, is how surprised he was at the difference the intake in my car made. I installed a silicon intake pipe in place of the stock pipe, and Mark said it made a noticable difference to the smoothness of some of the graphs (hopefully he can expand on this when he reads this thread). Might be worth noting for future reference.
So, TL;DR on the remap, it's worth it.
Aside from that, I also took the opportunity to head out in the Harrop supercharged car that Mark has. I am yet to experience any other forced induction options on the GT86, but I struggle to believe any of the other options transform the car as much as the Harrop kit. Fitted to an otherwise stock car, the kit makes more power and torque than a Sprintex kit with a manifold, full exhaust and intake (Mark showed me a few dyno graphs while we were tuning mine) so I imagine the car would be even better with all those extras. 
Mark demonstrated how crazy the kit is, not by driving everywhere at 100mph, but by driving through a town at 30mph in 4th/5th gear and putting his foot down. If any of you have the chance to head down to Abbey and get out in the car for 10 minutes, this is what will force your hand into buying this kit. No lag, no drama, just easy, smooth power from 1500rpm, building up to a rather scary crescendo at around 5000rpm where it really takes off (thanks to the stock car's power curve).
Likelihood is, I will end up going in for this kit in May/June providing all goes well.
Anyway, that's enough waffling. Again, big thanks to Mark, and was nice to meet the few guys that showed up throughout the day in their 86's. Only downside from the day was forgetting to ask for some Abbey stickers
 

Just wanted to put together a quick post to say a thank you to the guys at Abbey, specifically @Mark@Abbey M/S for their hospitality and work this weekend, made the 6+ hour round trip and 5am start worth it.
I went there for a stage 1 remap, arrived at 8:30am and after setting up shop, Mark got me straight on the dyno. We spent close to 3 hours on the dyno, fettling with the map until Mark was happy with everything. We started the day at 162whp, and 142lb/ft, and ended the day with nearly 180whp and 154lb/ft, which Mark rated at around 220hp at the flywheel, not bad considering my car only has a catback exhaust (with secondary decat) and a filter.
To drive, the car feels so much more complete. Driving on the motorway is much easier thanks to the increase in torque, and slightly narrower torque dip, and the extra bit of top end power just turns the dial up slightly when pressing on. For anyone who's considering a remap, but not convinced, don't go into it expecting the car to be transformed, like with a turbo'd car. Power-wise, the car isn't hugely different to stock. The car's power band is exactly the same, there's just a fraction more throughout the rev range. The biggest difference which you will absolutely notice, is how much more refined the car feels. Startup is a lot smoother, those little imperfections in the drivetrain under certain circumstances seem to be ironed out, and as mentioned above, that extra bit of torque is a welcome addition, as it makes the car much easier to drive from lower RPM. Despite the numbers not being hugely improved, the graph itself is more impressive. There is more power and more torque everywhere, not just at peak, and that's what matters more than anything. Another advantage is I saw around a 10% improvement in MPG on the drive home, and if anything, I drove a little faster and less efficiently on the way home, due to testing the map.
One interesting thing Mark mentioned, is how surprised he was at the difference the intake in my car made. I installed a silicon intake pipe in place of the stock pipe, and Mark said it made a noticable difference to the smoothness of some of the graphs (hopefully he can expand on this when he reads this thread). Might be worth noting for future reference.
So, TL;DR on the remap, it's worth it.
Aside from that, I also took the opportunity to head out in the Harrop supercharged car that Mark has. I am yet to experience any other forced induction options on the GT86, but I struggle to believe any of the other options transform the car as much as the Harrop kit. Fitted to an otherwise stock car, the kit makes more power and torque than a Sprintex kit with a manifold, full exhaust and intake (Mark showed me a few dyno graphs while we were tuning mine) so I imagine the car would be even better with all those extras. 
Mark demonstrated how crazy the kit is, not by driving everywhere at 100mph, but by driving through a town at 30mph in 4th/5th gear and putting his foot down. If any of you have the chance to head down to Abbey and get out in the car for 10 minutes, this is what will force your hand into buying this kit. No lag, no drama, just easy, smooth power from 1500rpm, building up to a rather scary crescendo at around 5000rpm where it really takes off (thanks to the stock car's power curve).
Likelihood is, I will end up going in for this kit in May/June providing all goes well.
Anyway, that's enough waffling. Again, big thanks to Mark, and was nice to meet the few guys that showed up throughout the day in their 86's. Only downside from the day was forgetting to ask for some Abbey stickers
 

The normal, everyday map has the standard throttle map, so nothing changed in that aspect, but I know what you mean by a bit "on/off", and thanks to how much smoother the drive is now, it's certainly improved.
There is, however, a map available by switching through the cruse control stalk which has had the throttle map adjusted. It's very progressive, and would be great in the wet/snow, which is what it's designed for, but I used it on the motorway on the drive home, and it feels great on long journeys too.

Mark actually overlaid Teg's Sprintex graph. His has similar mods to yours, except it has a decat manifold too. Graphs were very similar, but the Harrop was so much smoother. The Sprintex curve seemed to have very small dips in power and torque in similar places to the stock car, the Harrop car had literally zero dips at any RPM, mighty impressive.
The Abbey car is actually quite hilarious. It's really quiet thanks to the stock exhaust, and when Mark started it, it sounded no different to stock at all. No whine from the supercharger at all either, just a bucket load of power. Super sleeper.

Mark actually overlaid Teg's Sprintex graph. His has similar mods to yours, except it has a decat manifold too. Graphs were very similar, but the Harrop was so much smoother. The Sprintex curve seemed to have very small dips in power and torque in similar places to the stock car, the Harrop car had literally zero dips at any RPM, mighty impressive.
The Abbey car is actually quite hilarious. It's really quiet thanks to the stock exhaust, and when Mark started it, it sounded no different to stock at all. No whine from the supercharger at all either, just a bucket load of power. Super sleeper.

Mark actually overlaid Teg's Sprintex graph. His has similar mods to yours, except it has a decat manifold too. Graphs were very similar, but the Harrop was so much smoother. The Sprintex curve seemed to have very small dips in power and torque in similar places to the stock car, the Harrop car had literally zero dips at any RPM, mighty impressive.
The Abbey car is actually quite hilarious. It's really quiet thanks to the stock exhaust, and when Mark started it, it sounded no different to stock at all. No whine from the supercharger at all either, just a bucket load of power. Super sleeper.

The normal, everyday map has the standard throttle map, so nothing changed in that aspect, but I know what you mean by a bit "on/off", and thanks to how much smoother the drive is now, it's certainly improved.
There is, however, a map available by switching through the cruse control stalk which has had the throttle map adjusted. It's very progressive, and would be great in the wet/snow, which is what it's designed for, but I used it on the motorway on the drive home, and it feels great on long journeys too.

Just wanted to put together a quick post to say a thank you to the guys at Abbey, specifically @Mark@Abbey M/S for their hospitality and work this weekend, made the 6+ hour round trip and 5am start worth it.
I went there for a stage 1 remap, arrived at 8:30am and after setting up shop, Mark got me straight on the dyno. We spent close to 3 hours on the dyno, fettling with the map until Mark was happy with everything. We started the day at 162whp, and 142lb/ft, and ended the day with nearly 180whp and 154lb/ft, which Mark rated at around 220hp at the flywheel, not bad considering my car only has a catback exhaust (with secondary decat) and a filter.
To drive, the car feels so much more complete. Driving on the motorway is much easier thanks to the increase in torque, and slightly narrower torque dip, and the extra bit of top end power just turns the dial up slightly when pressing on. For anyone who's considering a remap, but not convinced, don't go into it expecting the car to be transformed, like with a turbo'd car. Power-wise, the car isn't hugely different to stock. The car's power band is exactly the same, there's just a fraction more throughout the rev range. The biggest difference which you will absolutely notice, is how much more refined the car feels. Startup is a lot smoother, those little imperfections in the drivetrain under certain circumstances seem to be ironed out, and as mentioned above, that extra bit of torque is a welcome addition, as it makes the car much easier to drive from lower RPM. Despite the numbers not being hugely improved, the graph itself is more impressive. There is more power and more torque everywhere, not just at peak, and that's what matters more than anything. Another advantage is I saw around a 10% improvement in MPG on the drive home, and if anything, I drove a little faster and less efficiently on the way home, due to testing the map.
One interesting thing Mark mentioned, is how surprised he was at the difference the intake in my car made. I installed a silicon intake pipe in place of the stock pipe, and Mark said it made a noticable difference to the smoothness of some of the graphs (hopefully he can expand on this when he reads this thread). Might be worth noting for future reference.
So, TL;DR on the remap, it's worth it.
Aside from that, I also took the opportunity to head out in the Harrop supercharged car that Mark has. I am yet to experience any other forced induction options on the GT86, but I struggle to believe any of the other options transform the car as much as the Harrop kit. Fitted to an otherwise stock car, the kit makes more power and torque than a Sprintex kit with a manifold, full exhaust and intake (Mark showed me a few dyno graphs while we were tuning mine) so I imagine the car would be even better with all those extras. 
Mark demonstrated how crazy the kit is, not by driving everywhere at 100mph, but by driving through a town at 30mph in 4th/5th gear and putting his foot down. If any of you have the chance to head down to Abbey and get out in the car for 10 minutes, this is what will force your hand into buying this kit. No lag, no drama, just easy, smooth power from 1500rpm, building up to a rather scary crescendo at around 5000rpm where it really takes off (thanks to the stock car's power curve).
Likelihood is, I will end up going in for this kit in May/June providing all goes well.
Anyway, that's enough waffling. Again, big thanks to Mark, and was nice to meet the few guys that showed up throughout the day in their 86's. Only downside from the day was forgetting to ask for some Abbey stickers
 

My initial thought was actually Corvette Z06, but yeah, similar to both:
 

Lauren is right in the difference it can make, more feel than outright lap time. All be it 1.65 secs difference most of that was tyre heat I think and some wheel weight, and of course overall vehicle weight will play a part too. Ultimately it comes down to comprimise between style you like and weight of wheel, especially if it's a daily rather than track biased car.

Dad? Why are you using the name Andrew Smith?

Rimstyle is a terrible site to use to find out if wheels fit or not.
The site says my wheels don't fit too. I think they look at centre bore size too (and forget that things called spigot rings exist).
Best to just research wheels on other sites, even if you eventually use Rimstyle to buy them.

I actually thought the debate was useful, so can't see why we'd remove posts. 
I have the Tein Streetflex setup which is the one they did before the A and Z were out. Mine are like the Z's but are rebuildable and I do have some custom valving increasing my rear rate. I find mine good, but yes, hit a pothole and you will know about it. Obviously when it runs out of travel you'll get a fairly big hit through the chassis. Is it worse than stock in this scenario? Well yes, it is. Although the general ride is more controlled and overall better. 
Sure, if you spend a fortune and I did look into it, then you will gain. Stuff like the monotube Ohlins and AST etc is appealing. My main reason with sticking with a twin tube design that necessitates a narrow diameter piston and less oil capacity was simply based on longetivity reasons. I'm not saying a monotube setup won't last, but it seems that a twin tube certainly does if that makes sense. 
Unless you've got £4-8K to spend on something really specialised like Reiger etc which top rally cars use, you aren't going to get the cake and eat it scenario, but you may find yourself coughing that cake up when they need a rebuild every 10K miles. So all in all it has to be some compromise and particularly so when it comes to a daily car. Add in a ton of mileage as I have done and I needed something that would improve the car overall but be reliable. I was a little worried about the EDFC with all those stepper motors, but over 50K+ miles on them, they have been totally faultless, so I'm very pleased with their reliability.