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S and J Automotive |
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Customers CommentsHi Sean & Joanne I'm finally getting back to you about the XB kit that you fitted on my XT recently! First, I very much appreciated that you got me in before the end of the year. I'm sure that you were very busy. I'd been thinking about it for quite some time - perhaps more than 12 months? - but I made the final decision "on the spot". And naturally, I wanted it to happen RIGHT NOW! You basically did just that. Second, I'm very happy with the quality of the work performed. The rolled lip on the exhaust, and the non-chrome finish on the back of the muffler, are just what I wanted. They both look 100% stock. I can't imagine that many people, even experts, would detect the kit by looking at the back of the car. Of course, it means that I don't get any cred for the kit! I see other suby drivers check me out, and conclude: "That doofus aint got nuttin!" At present I just grit my teeth! Third, the performance. When I took it out on the highway for the first time, I was disappointed initially. "Where's the push in the back?" But then I realized that it was at least a second faster to 100kmh, maybe 1.5 seconds. I was misled by the very even power delivery; I interpreted that as a lack of grunt. But once I realized that, I saw that the car is enormously faster, no two ways about it. So I am more than happy with the performance aspects of the XB kit. In conclusion, I'm very happy with every aspect of the work. I may even consider the XC kit at some stage, if that would not adversely affect the daily driver aspect! Cheers and thanks again - Tim (MY07) XT Forester.
As Far as comments go from friends, they think it is done very tastefully and the mods are done very professionally. Thank to Sean and the great team at S&J's, very much appreciated, regards - Chris This is bit very late thank you but I think you guys deserve it and some of people that browse your website should know how dedicated you are towards your customers. This is my S&J experience. My car was not std. car and was modified while I was in Sydney by another great auto shop that went out there way for me. Well as the story goes I was on my way from the Riverland to Adelaide and I broke my std. gear box. I had heard lots great things about S&J so first thing I did was to ring them the next day. I spoke to Sean who advised me that the repair would take 2 weeks due to him being extremely busy and it was hard to get the parts I needed, but I was willing wait. He was really straight up regarding approx costs and was very assuring. So I had the car towed there, and seen that S&J had at least 15 other cars there. I had some very bad news 2 days later that my grandfather passed away. I contacted S&J spoke to Joanne and told her my situation I needed the car in at least 3 days to I can attend my grandfather's funeral in NSW. She said she would speak to Sean and call me back the next day. To my surprise I was called Sean himself, the next morning to tell me they had started fixing my car and had found another problem too, which could of been causing a boost leak which I suspecting for a long time. He quoted me a price and I gave the go ahead. My car was completed the next day, which was days earlier than I asked. I am very grateful to all the team. They had car repaired as quickly as I needed it to attend my grandfather funeral. So to all the people thinking about going to S&J please don't think twice. They are very genuine down to earth people. I have only needed to go there once and I am so grateful for the kindness and great service they gave me. Since that repair I had another problem which Sean diagnosed on the phone and told me how fix the car myself @ home. I would once again like to Thank Sean and Joanne and the rest of the team your service and professionalism let me attend the funeral of my beloved grandfather. I have sold my car and will buying an EVO 8 this year and look forward to having the mods done by your company. - Paul Nijjar (MR JATT) "Dear Sean, This email is just to extend a thank you for the work that you performed on my car. The effort and pride that goes into your work is noticeable and greatly appreciated. I am very happy with the performance of the car and my dealings with S&J Automotive have always been positive. Regards" - David.
"Hi S&J, I have the MY07 WRX with the 3" exhaust that you tuned with EcuTek last week, I can't get over how much difference it made! Even fuel is better by around 40-50KM a tank - I think because you don't have to rev the absolute guts out of the car to achieve what you can with just a second on the gas now after the retune. I want to get a new air filter to see if I can scrape into 170KW lol...Thanks again for all your help :) Cheers" - Damon
"Thanks guys for once again transforming my rex. It's a different car. I never would have thought that Ecutek 3 would make such a huge difference over Ecutek 2. The car pulls like a tractor and scarily quick. Thanks for getting it through before it's booked in date, the attention to detail, time spent listening to what I wanted, over-delivering and explaining things afterwards. As always you and the boys have done a great job." Regards - Matt.
"Sean, Just wanted to let you know that I am very happy with the car. Sounds
just how I wanted it, looks sweet and goes like shit. The missus asked me why I
was so happy last night, still got the smile this morning. Thanks to you and the
lads for another good job. Cheers" - Glen "Hi Sean, Just a quick word of thanks for the job you and the guys did on my car. The short notice I gave you, and the extra effort you put in are certainly appreciated. The wagon is transformed and the difference is just amazing. The new exhaust
has made her sound like a Subaru 4cyl boxer and
The throttle response has been sharpened up, and she comes on boost much
harder now. In sport mode it is now more responsive and has a kick when you
floor it. Sport # is where everything happens that bit earlier and a little bit
harder. On top of this the fuel consumption has gone down, especially during
highway driving. Thanks Sean, I couldn't be happier with the car, it is how
Subaru should have made it in the first place." - David "Hi Sean, Trust you had an enjoyable Easter. After our Easter trip we are very impressed with the Ecutek re-tune. Our trip covered 1600kms at an average of 8.84 l/100km = 32 mpg and that even included some spirited motoring on the "back rex type roads" !!" - Regards Malcolm "Sean, So far so good with the ‘quiet' muffler. Anne went to Murray Bridge and back today and found it very acceptable. Anne also found the ‘EcuTek' performance excellent for cruising and especially for overtaking with no effort at all. Thanks for the good work and swapping the muffler over. Most Appreciated" - Malcolm
I wanted the WRP10's surges on/off throttle responses smoothed and a boost in power in the low to medium rpm range. The Ecutek tune, MRT exhaust and fuel pump combination worked perfectly. The WRP10 has so much more pull from down low now that you would think it had grown another two cylinders. The power is nice and linear, (32kW of additional power) right up to the top end as well. Power is one thing but the other thing I wanted improved was the exhaust
note. Part of the driver feedback loop is exhaust sound, not too much and not
too little, just enough to let you know what's happening without looking at the
tacho. The MRT turbo back with straight thru centre pipe and oval muffler with
that very nice finishing touch of the 4" rolled tip worked a treat. Before I
couldn't hear the exhaust note only the sound of engine belts and fans running,
that's how silent the OE exhaust system was. Now its grown balls with a baritone
rumble that is perfect, I know what the motors doing but the exhaust note is not
intrusive. Thanks mate,"- Ian. " I delivered mine and my sons car both MY99 WRX Imprezas to get a bit of
work done to them, on my sons was, 3 MRT Stainless exhausts, BOV and lowered it
looks great mine was a EcuTek type 3 upgrade 3 MRT Stainless exhaust,VF34 turbo,
500 HP in tank fuel pump, 650cc Injectors, MRT Clutch kit, Hyperflow Top mount
intercooler, silicone inlet pipe, new airflow sensor, front and rear strut
braces, Whiteline Anti-lift kit, Sway bars front and rear 18 wheels, boost gauge
and pod, MY02 STI bonnet scoop, STI spoiler and rebuilt gearbox 1234 gears, dyno
tuned to 204 kw at the wheels at 18.PSI, it sure brought the boy out in me
again, for all this, I hold them in the highest regard. Do not take this lightly
they are an absolutely brilliant family and team. I sincerely wish them the very
best in the years to come. " -Darryl. "I recently had some performance upgrade work carried out on my MY02 Subaru STi by your agent in South Australia "S&J Automotive" and I felt compelled to drop you a note to explain my level of satisfaction with the work performed. I have now owned 3 WRX's since 1997 and as I am a particularly fussy person, have been reluctant up to now to let anyone "tinker" with my cars. Whilst I love my Subaru's I suppose I was a little disappointed with the common complaint of the STi's sluggishness under 4000rpm. As I researched the performance options available on the market, I had several conversations with Sean at S&J. I learnt very quickly that he not had a sensible and friendly approach to the performance upgrades available but was also prepared to spend the time explaining the benefits and particulars of the various options without any pressure to buy. This was particularly important to me as I am inquisitive and like to know all the technical details. It was for these reasons that I finally decided to have Sean fit the Ecutek type 2 ECU upgrade as well as a few other modifications such as springs and anti lift kit. Although I am still getting used to the performance difference, you can not wipe the smile off my face. The Ecutek upgrade improved the general drivability of the car overall as well as very noticeable improvements in torque, particularly down low in the rev range. The car overall feels much more solid in it's power and torque delivery. Well I have now been "bitten by the bug" and am about to have Sean fit a full MRT "Turbo back" Stainless Exhaust system with the Cannon muffler and modified ECU map. In summary, you can rest assured that you are well represented in SA by S&J. it is refreshing to deal with someone who stands out from the crowd of "cowboys" that are out there in the aftermarket performance area. I am quite certain that no-one else will ever modify my car other than S&J." - Mark T Subaru Forester XT 2003 The only difference I have noticed is when you stamp on the pedal the music comes at you much faster as does the scenery going past. It is nothing short of remarkable what has occurred since the EcuTeK tune and Iam so very impressed the xt o4 now spins its wheels as it changes into second (it is an auto by the way). Ecutek do know the way to go and Sean surely knows his stuff. I have basically got a new car. The xt was a very nice machine as standard and I enjoyed the stealth aspect of it. After the tune it has become way more fun to drive as well as a jaw dropper for the Commodore brigade more fun than a hatful of _________ If you know what I mean. I am now looking at new more sticky tyres as I want to improve the beast some more and with this new found power it does warrant them, the XT has some serious BALLS under the hood and when you pour a little ECUTEK ON THEM the Balls get HAIRY . Thanks guys for my new car and it is a cheap and very effective solution S+J Automotive Deserve the accolades they get, again thankyou. The exhaust will be next !!!" -Mark Subaru B4 Twin Turbo Now down to the important stuff , how does it drive? There is quite a bit more power after 4500rpms , I have felt this kind of high end power when the car was having a "good day" before the upgrade but it is always there now. This is the biggest thing I can stress about the upgrade ,the power is consistent. I put my foot down know and know exactly what it is going to do. The VOD has been made much smaller, the dip is the same but is much shorter and therefore hard to change into ,driving through it is now a much happier experience. When driving through the VOD now the car holds boost, all it does is suddenly pull harder (there is little to no dip). Low end power did not seem to be any different at first but it has also improved to some extent. I don't think it has gained much down low but is certainly more responsive and revs a lot easier. The "jerky" midrange is much cleaner than before. I found that my car used to be quite rough in midrange acceleration but is now just a much smoother car to drive. I have also had friends comment on the improved exhaust note (strange but true). In summary I now have a smoother, easier to drive car with the added bonus of more high end excitement, you can't even buy an exhaust for these sorts of dollars and you will never read a review like this on an exhaust upgrade. Thanks S&J." - Luke F
The vehicle has come alive and now makes me smile. The power/responsiveness has increased unbelievably. This has NOT come at the expense of drivability. The car is easier to drive, thanks to the increased torque and I can now cruise effortlessly at 60kph in 5th gear (previously a struggle). The sound is also fantastic. It now actually sounds and performs like a turbocharged sports car, instead of an impotent excuse for one. Coming from a high performance R33 Skyline (turbo version), I was previously unenthused by the Rex. Although handling is great, outright animal performance was lacking. That rush when the turbo starts to spool wasn't there. Thanks to your work, the Rex now gets my pulse racing and has made me look for any excuse to get behind the wheel. Thank you once again. I will thoroughly recommend this upgrade and will not hesitate in recommending your workshop in the future. See you at the next service." - Peter Subaru STi V5 - a very satisfied customer
Thanks HEAPS to Sean, Josh and Joanne from S&J Automotive who did the install for me. They spent heaps of time getting the car just right and were so happy as always to answer all of my questions and make sure I was happy with everything. I'll definitely be recommending to all of my friends to head down to S&J or their local ECUTEK dealer and get one fitted as fast as they can :)" - Roger This was actually sent to MRT about us: "My car is effectively a standard WRX. With only some minor suspension and brake enhancements, along with one of your Automatic Water Spray Systems and the new style Silicon intercooler Y pipe. The Exhaust and Inlet on the car are standard, except for the removal of the intake resonator. I purchased an MRT1 ECUTek upgrade from S&J Automotive here in Adelaide. The improvement in the cars performance has been truly outstanding, and everything that the advertising led me to expect was delivered. For a basically standard car, it has been transformed and is quite amazing now. The service and support I have received from Sean, Joanne and Josh at S&J has been exceptional. They are very friendly, knowledgeable and extremely competent. They have been an absolute pleasure to deal with. I want to offer my personal thanks and congratulations to you, Paul and everyone at MRT, and especially to Sean, Joanne and Josh at S&J for a job well done." - Trevor. "ECUTek MRT1 on a 'standard' MY03 WRX - An awesome result" First, the car is an MY03 WRX with the following basic modifications. 22mm sway bars, Anti Lift Kit, DBA-4000 front disc rotors and DBA-653 rears, GFB Stealth BOV, Full MRT automatic Water Spray system with boot mounted tank. Standard Top Mount IC (plus water spray), standard exhaust, standard inlet except for the removal of the resonator. As you see, a fairly stock Rex. I had for some time been thinking about getting an MRT exhaust, and fully intended to do the ECUTek upgrade at the same time. But doing both together can be a pocket damaging experience, so I decided to do the ECUTek upgrade first, to spread the load. Saturday morning I went to see Sean at S&J Automotive here in Adelaide. Sean setup his Laptop and fuel flow measuring equipment, and off we went to do some 'Before' runs. In standard form the MY03 pulls OK from low down, and has quite linear acceleration but lacks that sort of 'Turbo Rush' that I'm sure we all love. Anyway we did a road dyno run using Delta Dash logging and the MY03 recorded a figure of 160BHP at the wheels. Keep in mind these figures are 'calculated' by Delta Dash and aren't comparable to any 'real' dyno figures, but they are good for back to back comparison and may not be far off the mark. Anyway, Sean then flashed the ECU and reset it, and we went for a drive around to get the ECU to do some learning. The difference was immediately apparent. The car came on boost earlier and MUCH harder. Previously it would peak at about 15PSI and then drop off quickly to around 9.5 to 10PSI. After the upgrade it would come on boost much sooner, peak at about 15PSI but hold around 13.5 to 14PSI right out to 6000 RPM plus. We then did another Delta Dash road dyno run, and the car recorded 192BHP at the wheels. These runs were only half an hour apart, same road, same conditions. Needless to say I was impressed. Anyway, with more driving the car seemed to improve even further. The big test was a 'Driver Training Day' that WRX SA had at Mallala today (Sunday 25th). It was 8 degrees in Adeaide this morning, the car started first go and ran perfectly as it warmed up. The cruise out to Mallala at 110KPH on cruise control was absolutely smooth. You just would not have known anything had been done. But once the fun began on the track, it was very clear that the car was very different. It pulled hard, I mean really hard, from about 2000 RPM. It now exhibits that 'Turbo Rush', and pulled hard and consistently right through to it's red line. It was absolutely awesome, for an effectively standard car with standard exhaust. It just goes to show how conservative Subaru are with their tuning. I had a fabulous day, the car was very quick and behaved itself perfectly (with crossed fingers re the fuel pump). The ECUTek upgrade has been the best investment so far in add ons for my car. Absolutely outstanding result using the factory standard hardware. Just awesome. If you have been thinking about getting an ECUTek upgrade. Then as the Nike man says "Just Do It", you absolutely will not be disappointed, even on a 'standard' car. A big thankyou to Sean, Joanne, and Josh at S&J Automotive. " - Trevor2 |
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Copyright 1999-2010. S&J Automotive
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I
have always liked the twin turbo B4 since they were released, so when it came to
getting a new car I went for one. I did my research on the net, found the pros
and cons, the main con that kept appearing was the 'Valley of Death' and engine
pinging. But found out about the EcuTeK so I wasn't too worried, so I booked it
in with Sean and team. Sean was great to work around my busy lifestyle, and had
me meet at the dyno on a weekend. As soon as I left the shop I noticed the
difference, a lot smoother transition between turbos, and also more power from
both turbos. After driving it for a couple more months, and seeing a lot of
WRX's going past me with the deep rumble of the boxer engine, I knew I needed to
have that sound. So I booked it in for a 2nd time and may have gone a little
over the top, with the full MRT 3" exhaust, MRT in-tank fuel pump, GFB BOV, MRT
TMIC and also a retune of the EcuTeK to suit. Thinking I was happy before is an
understatement, the whole package of the B4 is know complete, the sound is
exactly what I wanted, not too loud but very deep, the sound of the engine when
it is at full revs is amazing. Makes me wish as soon as I bought the car I took
it into S&J's to get the work done. I am very happy the way they got the strut
brace and TMIC to sit very snugly together, looks like it came straight out of
the factory in Japan!!
"Dear
Sean and crew, I am writing to express my gratitude for the modifications you
did on my car. After having driven it for a number of weeks, just like a fine
wine, it just gets better with time. I think this is the way the STI should have
been released in the first place. For any other prospective clients, this is how
I would describe my experience:
"MY07 WRX with MRT XB Kit - I probably should have contacted you earlier, but
I have been having too much fun. The XB upgrade to my WRX has been tremendous.
Not only heaps more power, but a lot more usable, particularly in third and
fourth. On a more juvenile note, it sounds pretty good as well. I'll see you for
my next service." Regards - Rick
"I
own an ‘05 Subaru Liberty GT and wanted a little extra go for my car. After
seeing S & J on MRT's links I decided to visit them personally in regard to
having an Ecutek installed. This was done and the improvement was great but then
the bug bit again and I chose to go for an XC package which consisted of a fuel
pump, cold air intake, larger TMIC, IHI STI turbo, full MRT exhaust and Ecutek
type 3. The job was done in 3 days and the result was a huge 195 kw at the
wheels. The car is still in the same state for now but I must say that after
experiencing the professional service that S & J provided I can confidently say
I won't be going any where else for my next level of upgrades which will include
2.5 litres a Garrett 500hp turbo and hopefully 300 kw at the wheels. Thanks guys
for the great work and I'll be seeing you soon." 
"Hi
Sean, Thanks to you and the mechanics that worked on my car today! You run a
truly professional workshop (not to mention its the cleanest and tidiest in the
southern hemisphere) and my first experience of S&J has been excellent.
Subaru
03 WRX
"I
just thought I'd write to you and let you know my impressions on the ECUTEK.
I've got an STi V5 with an full exhaust and a front mount. I removed a Unichip
and AVC-R and replaced them with an ECUTEK type 3. My initial impression was
WOW. I was a couple of mins down the road from S&J Automotive, who'd done a
fantastic job installing and tuning the ECUTEK, when I first gave it half
throttle in third gear and I literally said WOW out loud. It picked up much
harder and earlier than it used to with the old setup. We verified this later on
the dyno where we saw power coming on about 1000 rpm earlier. When I finally got
to give it full throttle for a few seconds I actually swore. Not only did it
pick up earlier and harder but it felt much stronger up top too. Now I'm no
newbie to WRX's and my STi was putting out almost 180kW ATW before the ECUTEK so
I'm used to a well performing car, but the ECUTEK definitely made the car feel
even better. The performance benefits were great but seem even better when you
consider a few other facts. We're now running about 11:1 AFR vs 12:1 with the
Unichip, so that gives us more safety but less power. We're also running only
16.5 psi vs the old 18.5, so once again more safety but less power. The factory
boost control isn't as good as the AVC-R was and that's about the only negative
of this whole swap for me. If we took both AFR and boost to the old levels we'd
be making even more power still. Also the car feels much smoother with the
ECUTEK. I was having an annoying cold start problem for the past couple of
months but that has now disappeared with the ECUTEK. I'm very surprised at the
results as I didn't think I'd notice much difference in moving from the Unichip
to the ECUTEK. 