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Old 03-03-2002, 11:40 PM   #1
knightsnke
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Lightbulb pulleys?

What is better to get for the WRX underdrive pulleys, or lightweight pulleys? and whats the difference? thanks all
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Old 03-04-2002, 09:31 AM   #2
kastle
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moving from AFI to FFI
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Old 03-04-2002, 09:35 AM   #3
Narcisse91
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An underdrive pulley sends less power to the accessories, which means more for the wheels. A lightweight pulley takes weight off the crank. I've got the Vishnu pulley, which is a lot lighter (lighter than the breaker bar I used to get the crank bolt off), and underdriven by something like 30%, IIRC.
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Old 03-04-2002, 09:42 AM   #4
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i have the unorthodox racing pullie and really love it. the choice is up to u there are a few to choose from.
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Old 03-04-2002, 09:58 AM   #5
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Also seems like the jury is still on out on pulleys.

They will not increase your horsepower, but will help recover some mechanical loss of the HP you already have.

Underdrive - you get gain from running your electrical items with less juice (spin slower) and loss of rotational weight which should help with throttle response.

Others say they feel nothing, others think it's the best thing since sliced bread.

If anything I would only use lightened pulleys, because you WILL notice the effects of smaller pulleys on your electrical system at idle.

Supposedly this boxer engine is immune to balance problems that are corrected with factory pulleys on other engines.

I'd personally give it another year or so to really know the aftermath of various cranks on this engine before going after this efficiency mod.
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Old 03-04-2002, 10:18 AM   #6
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So is it worth getting lightweight pulleys or power gains too small to care? o thanks for telling me your moving my thread feel free to answer my question.
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Old 03-04-2002, 10:21 AM   #7
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It's worth it...

I have 2 WRX's

One stock... One modified, that I drive frequently... there are some noticeable difference... But remember... mods are a culmination of the whole.

Meaning... Pulleys may seem weak.... But so is an air filter...

Add them up... and now you have more then just the one, or both...

Jorge (RiftsWRX)
www.ProjectWRX.com
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:46 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally posted by Narcisse91
I've got the Vishnu pulley, which is a lot lighter (lighter than the breaker bar I used to get the crank bolt off), and underdriven by something like 30%, IIRC.
The Vishnu pullies are actually underdriven by 15%.

As for what to go for, underdriven, lighter, or lighter/underdriven.. I had a conversation over the phone with Shiv in which he stated that he believed that most of the power came from underdriving... but that there is a benefit to lightening the pulley as well.

I for one.. am holding off on installing my pulley. I'm waiting until my stereo is finished to assess whether my electrical system is capable of supporting it at just stock levels (it sucks up ALOT of juice).

Also, when I asked Shiv about the whole harmonic dampening debate, all he said to me was that he didn't believe there was an issue. I can't help but worry about it though since Subaru did design the car with a harmonic dampener.. something that sells in the aftermarket for hundreds of dollars. Why would they add to the cost of the car if it wasn't neccessary?
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:54 AM   #9
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Default Vishnu

I just recieved my crank pulley from Vishnu but I'm also holding off the install. It wont hurt to wait a bit and I've been assured by Shiv that he'll take the pulley back if I decide that it's too risky to install.
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Old 03-04-2002, 12:06 PM   #10
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I just installed some GFB pulley's in my WRX this weekend. This is definitely a good mod to do. I gained power down low where the WRX needs it most and the car seems to rev quicker in that range as well. Definitely a must have mod for any WRX. For $185 you can't beat it.
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Old 03-04-2002, 01:51 PM   #11
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Default underdrive drawbacks?

are you guys with underdrive pulleys noticing decreased performance from the accessories? like poor charging, power steering problems, or decreased A/C performance. Just a concern I have before jumping into this mod. I know my AC already sucked last summer, might be bad to take revs away from the compressor, possibly further decrease cooling capacity...?

Jim
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Old 03-04-2002, 02:04 PM   #12
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I've got GFB pullies that include a smaller alternator pulley to make up for the underdriven crank one. My voltage levels are no different from stock. And the driveablity of the car when under 2k RPM is greatly improved. When going slow, and I had to downshift to accelerate or the car would shudder leting you know your in too high of a gear. Now with the pullies, this shudder is a lot less, and I can accelerate smoother and faster.

Whether this mod added power or not, it did help driveability, and that is all that matters to me.
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Old 03-04-2002, 04:41 PM   #13
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At idle, your lights will dim, but once you start going, they'll pick up. If you have a high powered stereo, or a lot of aux. lighting (which you shouldn't be using on the road anyway), it's affects will be even bigger.

I notice it a lot in day to day driving. For lack of a better description, the car is just quicker. The transition from stopped with the clutch in to boost and clutch out (I start spooling my turbo before I let the clutch out) is a definitely faster. I actually didn't notice at first, when I went for a test drive after install, but the first time I went to make an aggressive move (a left turn onto a busy road), it caught me by surprise.
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Old 03-04-2002, 07:34 PM   #14
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Where can you get strictly lightweight (not underdriven) pulleys?

I've looked around, and have only found underdriven ones. Since the consensus seems to be that most of the gains are from the lighter weight, I thought this would be the way to go.

Padre
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Old 03-04-2002, 08:32 PM   #15
lenyx
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Quote:
Originally posted by PadreWRX
Where can you get strictly lightweight (not underdriven) pulleys?

I've looked around, and have only found underdriven ones. Since the consensus seems to be that most of the gains are from the lighter weight, I thought this would be the way to go.

Padre
You would think so.. but I've been told the opposite. *shrug*
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Old 03-04-2002, 08:38 PM   #16
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... and, remember, some of us have experienced "problems" with the UR pulley, in the form of "losing" the top 500-600 RPM ... problem "goes away" when you put the stock setup back in place ...

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Old 03-04-2002, 09:41 PM   #17
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Quote:
PadreWRX Where can you get strictly lightweight (not underdriven) pulleys?
You can get them from Subysports in Colorado

here
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:11 PM   #18
knightsnke
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at vividracing.com what should i get then just a crankcase pulley or the aem pulley set? thanks
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:22 PM   #19
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Ya what are the thought on the AEM set ?
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:28 PM   #20
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the price is good for aem but what are the pulleys u get? crankcase, alternator other i got no clue what is for?
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:37 PM   #21
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i'm an owner of a Vishnu pulley and have absolutely no qualms about recommending it 100%. It's one of the best mods you can do, aside from the uppipe and tires.

the engine is definitely not rougher (possibly smoother if anything).

the feel is improved, especially between shifts. the gains are dyno proven.

drawbacks? I don't count any. Granted, at idle, with foglights, main headlights, and my stereo, the lights do dim but the SECOND you touch the throttle they are right back up. I never have any trouble with weak power steering or cold start....

it just works. i dunno. maybe i got the "special" one.
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Old 03-04-2002, 11:40 PM   #22
knightsnke
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some people who say that the increase in power from an underdrive comes mainly from the reduced wieght, not diameter. The reduced weight alone might give better throttle response. So in other words the Aem pulleys being the same size but lighter is good to get?
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Old 03-05-2002, 12:10 AM   #23
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Quote:
Originally posted by nhluhr
i'm an owner of a Vishnu pulley and have absolutely no qualms about recommending it 100%. It's one of the best mods you can do, aside from the uppipe and tires.

the engine is definitely not rougher (possibly smoother if anything).

it just works. i dunno. maybe i got the "special" one.
Nobody's really debating that it doesn't give more power. We all know it does. There are just some that are concerned with the fact that these aftermarket pullies (and I mean ALL.. not just Vishnu) are not dampened. The kind of harmonic vibrations we're talking about aren't going to be detectable to you.. so the engine wouldn't appear rougher. At least.. not now.

I'm almost positive I'm being overly paranoid about this whole thing. Harmonic vibrations or not.. I bet it would take years to do anything to my engine since the frequencies involved probably occur at some RPM I wouldn't spend a lot of time at. I think it's just important for people to see the whole picture before putting something on their car. If I didn't have voltage concerns that I want to address now before making them worse I'd probably throw mine on in an instant.
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