Just got my Car back(GOD BLESS KDR)
 

hello fellows,

I am a long time reader, seldom poster, but I felt that this one deserved a shout out.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this post are not meant in any way to challenge other's opinions or experiences, I just would like to tell it like it is.

-The gentleman at KDR are gods among men. :)

-I have had a great experience with them and my Car.

My car went up there pretty stock-some reliability mods-(AST, Downpipe, hose job) It went up because I was getting a rattling after I replaced the clutch. I figured it was related but wasn't for sure, the noise didn't seem like it was coming from the bell housing. Of course, turned out to be a loose flywheel. I had put it on with one heinous impact gun and it was tight, but it got shook loose after a day or two of engagements. Don't worry-there is a 3/4 inch torque wrench that is the size of a baseball bat in my garage, now i will KNOW how tight it is.

I took it up probably in November or December, it took a while but I wasn't worried, my car sat in a warehouse all winter:) Skip was great to deal with, met me on his day off to put the car in the shop. For those of you who have not seen KD's shop, It is a masterpiece. All cars are kept indoors, not a stones throw from their lifts, in ground dyno, etc. and it is there that you will find a plethora of sweet cars. The shelves around the lifts were filled with every awesome part I ever wanted to put on the RX.

In addition to fixing the rattle, I wanted them to go over the car and find any potential problems, and catch them before they get bad. I was informed that I needed a form of boost control because I was getting some nasty boost spikes, and that got the ball rolling.

I knew i needed some engine management when I start really modding it, so I figured why not throw it on as early as possible, get it out of the way. I decided at that time to throw in a Microtech EMS which is recommended by KD. I had to sacrifice the sequential set up because at this time Microtech is not able to run sequential, but that is a sacrifice i was willing to make, I am a fan Microtech system. And man, am I glad I did that.

I also decided to put in the all too controversial "anti detonation device". That was definitely a good decision as well. It makes sense to me...figured I would give it a try. If you have any doubts about it call KD and talk to them about it-they have put a lot of work into it and will give you a great explanation of how it works, why it works, and how it will effect your car.

So I went to pick up the car this weekend and Dave was at the shop working on Sunday!! He let me in and proceeded to give me the most excellent run down of everything he did to the car, showed me every little thing. Told me what to look for, how it has changed the car, etc. Great guy, very knowledgeable - told me everything I needed to know, and then stuck around to tell me things I didn't. He found some potential problems in one of my turbo coolant hoses, so he threw a replacement on, and also gave me new spark plug wires he had laying around! Dyno sheets were in the front seat, etc. We sat and talked a little bit about some car stuff, but I didn't want to keep the man from his work so I got everything together and rolled out of there.

Started it up and man does it purr. A lot smoother than it did before. Sounds different with the anti det. device, Idle sounds a lot nicer. My car has always been pretty good to me, but it was never like this. I am amazed by the difference. So than I took it out on the road.

Amazing. I was worried about non-sequential, but my fears were instantly gone once I drove it. The bog down low is not nearly as bad as it is made out to be, I have no problem with it, car still picks up real nice. And then you hit 3500- Good lord, it is nasty. Extremely streetable setup-better than stock IMO, and I was a sceptic at first. I have the turbo XS manual boost controller with a switch for high/low-here are the dyno results

-10 PSI- 229.7hp, 209.5tq.
-12.5 PSI- 256.3hp 229.5tq.

-The torque gain is very noticeable, and with a stock exhaust, cat, and air box(besides K&N drop in), I am extremely satisfied. If there is a loss in power because of the anti. det., it must be small to nonexistent because I am making plenty of power, and my car goes very very fast. Don't even really use high boost that much because 10 PSI is so nice, plenty of power. In addition to more power, I am also getting better Gas Mileage.

The day after I got it I took it in for emissions and inspection. Well, I don't know what the guys did but somehow they flooded one of my rotors when they had the car back in the shop testing. I did not think it was flooded because it still ran, but like crap, but that was just one rotor taking the other for a ride. Don't know how you can flood one rotor, or what an emissions test could do to do that. That was my scare for the day. I called skip and left a message. What I did not know is that Skip was out of town on an emergency trip, but sure enough he called me that night at 10:00PM as soon as he stepped in the door! That my friends, is customer service. We talked it over a little, decided to run some more tests and get some more info out of it. Went and did the unflooding procedure the next morning first thing and she started right up. Still starts and runs perfectly every time. Big thanks to Skip for his great customer service. It was a pleasure to deal with him throughout the entire project.

The car went above and beyond my expectations, and KD did with their service as well. I would recommend these guys to anyone and everyone, as they are a quality operation.

Brent Feito
94 FD-Montigo Blue
Mods-
Aluminum AST
3' Downpipe
Microtech ltx-8 (Tuned by KDR)
bosche coils
Turbo XS Manual boost controller
Full Non-Sequential
K&N Drop in Filter
removed fuel pump resistor
KDR Anti Detonation Device

Dave is Da Man.

Ive also had great experiences with KDR. I took my car into KDR earlier this year to have some work done (new hoses, new LIM gasket, and some other odds and ends) and it ran wonderfully afterwords. I probably wont take my car anywhere else for something that I cant do again. Definitely big thumbs up.

Glad to hear of another great experiance!!!!

I have been with KDR for the 2 years and $25k in parts and labor, that I have owned my FD, and man they have always taken care of me (read, motor rebuild for 94 dollars). If you take a look at my post in the NE forum (KDR is rockin again) You can see what im talking about. I know KDR has had some downers since the move to Shoemakerville and the introduction of the controversial anti det device, but man, they are definately back in business. They even have some new help. Keep up the good work KDR. You are definately keeping my business.

Adam

So about a 35 hp gain with engine management and a dp? Sounds about right I guess. Can you monitor air intake temprature with the Microtech? Anything over 10psi is pushing the stock IC VERY hard. Heck, stock boost is pushing it.

Did you ever pass emissions? Interested to know with the anti-det. I know when I take mine in I watch the mechanic the whole time. If it weren't for emissions, KD and myself would be the only ones ever to touch the car.

In IL, for emissions, you can sit in the car with the tech while they dyno it. I watch every little move they make, how much boost they are getting, etc. Not that you can DO much to help or anything, but I suppose I could slap 'em if they were doing something stupid.

Glad it is running so nice though! Also good to hear about good service. Hear a lot when bad things happen...

KDR is a very nice shop, I too have had good experiences with them.

Glad to hear your car is running so well, but like it was said before, I would start to look at some supporting mods before you up the boost anymore. The stock IC is not terribly efficient at anything much over stock boost.

Also, if you ever run into a unique experience with the anti-det, please post it. I'd like to hear how it works out for you down the road.

So i guess this " anti detection device" is still TOP SECRET..

everyone still under contract, not to talk about it??

or is it the spark plug plugger??
any info on this device would be appreciated.

thanks

-Right now the stock intercooler is doing well, it is run on 10 PSI almost all of the time. That issue seems to be an ongoing debate as to how much the stock intercooler can really handle, but no worries, an intercooler is one of the next things on my list.

-I haven't gone back for emissions yet, I am driving it around for a couple of days to make sure that there is not alot of gas still in the exhaust system when I go in. Next time they do it I am watching, these guys are a more professional shop than a gas station so I wasn't too worried, but apparently I should have been. In their defense they were great in helping me out, and lent me tools and some ATF when I went to unflood it. I think it had something to do with what they did during inspection, they never actually got it onto the dyno to run emissions. It went crazy after they put it up on the lift they said, but I can't think of anything they could have done to flood one rotor with an inspection and emissions test. No worries though, everything is OK now, runs just great.

My goal in these mods really isn't more power, but it is a plus:). I really just want my car running smooth, and solid, and that it does. I think that is the most important thing before I start adding power. I have a lot of parts of the car that need to be upgraded before I add significant power, so that is the plan. Intercooler, Radiator, Cat, exhaust, suspension, etc. all need to go on, than it really gets heinous.

-As far as the device, I am extremely happy with it. It is not a secret at all, call up KD and they will be happy to tell you all about it and how it works. I have the "spark plug plugger". I will see how it goes with time, but as it is right now it is one of the best things I have done to my car so far. Caveat Emptor: The most important part of the fuction of this device is not just the device itself, but the tuning that goes along with it. It is not as easy as plugging a spark plug, if you want it to run well, get the guys at KD to tune it. They have put over a year and a half into developing this thing, they know how to make it work.

Brent

Hey Brent, glad to hear your car's doing great!!! I'm heading down to Deals Gap end of this week, so let me know when you want to pick up that exhaust. Figured I'd let you know another "identity" of mine, lol!

~Ashley

You're still a satisfied customer after going through two motors in under a year with the anti detonation device? :confused: