next mod for an 06....

[02nighthawksi]

As for the taillights...those were the first to go on my car. Don't get me wrong, the look nice...just not on my car. Certain colors (white, silver) look really good with those 06 tails. Since i have black, i chose to trade for some 05s. To each his own...

ya i hear on that...i hated the tails on blue but liked them on the silver one i swapped with

[YBNormal07]

Also, according to several people in various tech departments, a lot of the Boost creep issue is caused by the dimensions of the Downpipe itself. There are only a few downpipes out of the many that will avoid the whole boost creep/spike problem.

Cobb Bellmouth being one of them.

I'm not sure where this information is coming from. Here are the basics:
You get in the throttle, the wastegate closes down, eliminating the bypass into the exhaust (via the DP) and thus, increasing boost. If you continue with the throttle down, the wastegate starts to open, disharging into the dp and thus lowering boost. If you think of the wastegate as an adjustable throttling bypass valve it works perfect. When it is open, less boost. When it is closed, more boost. The size and configuration of the DP helps to determine the flow and mix, but ultimately has very little to do with boost control. It essentially acts as a controllable backpressure regualator for the exhaust flow powering the turbine.

Also, the DP has nothing to do with boost creep. It has everything to do with freeing up your exhaust flow, which in turn allows more air intake and thus fuel intake, and thus faster boost response if tuned for it. It also supports lower EGT temps.

As I said earlier, there are only 3 methods that can control this. A DP is not one of them to the best of my knowledge, unless you are including a HF cat in it.

[YBNormal07]

If I were to have the wastegate ported, will i still be able to use the regular stage 2 map effectively without harming anything? I know a protune would be much more effective but I am concerned with the initial cost (protune will come later).

Or another option:
Purchase the HKS downpipe (non bellmouth and catless). Would this greatly reduce my risk of boost creep? Is the extra insurance worth the lesser ability to flow, in other words?

Yes, as long as it is professionaly done. It is very east to port it and actually loose the seating surface of the valve, so caution is due.

My preferred option is to use a DP with a high flow cat. The power loss is not even noticeable (we are talking something that can barely be measured on a dyno) and it provides sufficient backpressure to ensure proper boost control by the stock wastegate.

From what I've been able to see in the 06 WRXs, the risk is still there, it's all a matter of your driving style whether you experience it or not. It appears that some do and some don't. Just an FYI...this was pretty much the same for STi cars. Some get it, some don't. I believe it's all a matter of how hard you drive it and for how long you are into the throttle. To date, Cobb is the only EMS I am aware of that has tried to address it via tuning the WG duty cycle.

[YBNormal07]

very nicely put. that helps a ton

You are most welcome. For anyone with a 2.5 platform, I highly recommend checking out the STi forum. Same stuff you are talking about is already there, and most are stickied.

[06WhiteWRX]

Yes, as long as it is professionaly done. It is very east to port it and actually loose the seating surface of the valve, so caution is due.

My preferred option is to use a DP with a high flow cat. The power loss is not even noticeable (we are talking something that can barely be measured on a dyno) and it provides sufficient backpressure to ensure proper boost control by the stock wastegate.

From what I've been able to see in the 06 WRXs, the risk is still there, it's all a matter of your driving style whether you experience it or not. It appears that some do and some don't. Just an FYI...this was pretty much the same for STi cars. Some get it, some don't. I believe it's all a matter of how hard you drive it and for how long you are into the throttle. To date, Cobb is the only EMS I am aware of that has tried to address it via tuning the WG duty cycle.

^^
this guy knows his stuff

[YBNormal07]

^^
this guy knows his stuff

maybe...but I can also fake it pretty good

[06WhiteWRX]

maybe...but I can also fake it pretty good

good characteristic for like a used car salesman....u could def fool me.

i duno if tahts a good thing

[YBNormal07]

hehe...don't sweat it..believe me...I'm very familiar with this platform. Been there and done that so to speak.

[dragonwrx1]

FYI, the way cobb accomodates to prevent boost creep and thus subsequent fuel cut is by lowering the waste gate duty cycle. What this does is brings the boost on in a more gentle curve, thus preventing boost spike/creep which is what ultimately causes fuel cut.

However, even this type of tuning can't prevent boost creep from occurring during an extended high power run such as you might experience on a track day. Under these conditions, boost creep will most likely occur with a car using a catless TBE. It is an inherent design flaw of the wastegate in that it simply can't pass enough flow when wide ope to reduce boost at those levels. The 06 WRX appears to be less susceptible to this than the STi, and this is mainly due to the smaller turbo and lower peak boost targets.

If you do have a catless TBE, and are running the Cobb Stage 2 map, and you still experience boost creep, the only way to eliminate it is to increase your exhaust backpressure (a high flow cat, smaller exhaust, etc) increase the porting of your wastegate, or go totally insane and use an external wastegate (with the inherent ultra-sweet external wastegate sound of course!!). Alternatively you can prottune it and lower your target boost, change WG duty cyles, etc, but then your just leaving HP on the table.

Just some info from previous experience on the 2.5 platform.

WOW great INFO i be sure to use this when the time comes !!!! thank you!!!