Q: i have a 1996 acura integra ls manual tranny and i have put a cold air intake, muffler, and headers. I want to keep rebuilding my engine with little by little with no turbo... what can i add for some more hp under $500... i thought about intake manifold but heard it barely helps for how much it costs
A: Replace the rest of the exhaust piping, a muffler and headers aren't all their is too it and if anything in between the two isn't flowing as freely you aren't getting all the power you could be getting out of the muffler. After that I'd just do tune up work. After you know everything is in good condition (timing belt replaced, plugs in good condition, fuel filter clean, water pump in good condition, etc) and not likely to give you reliability issues if you want get a turbo kit, and not one of the cheap ebay ones but one that it's manufacturer really supports like STS, HKS, etc. do. Keep in mind that if you don't make sure everything in your car is running rock solid before you turbo it and have it tuned (they both must be done at the same time) you are going to end up with more problems and your nice big turbo isn't going to spin cause you'll have f'ed up your valves, pistons, etc. especially in the case of the timing belt.