Newbie with a bunch of questions

apollyon2k said:

Hey guys, I'm a newbie to the forum, and got a couple of questions about performance parts for a 2004 Terminator. I was wondering which handheld tuner (diablo or sct) produces or creates the best horsepower? Anyone running the SLP loudmouth exhaust? How is the 4" JLT intake? Who has the best pulley kits (pulley, installer, etc...)? Thanks for any info.

Click to expand...

All of your questions have been asked and answered within these forums at one point or another. Since you're a n00b, and admitted to being such I'll go easy on ya!

On the subject of handheld tuners... Neither the Diablo nor the SCT have good "Out-of-the-Box" pre-programmed tunes. If you plan on adding a smaller pulley to your Terminator don't rely on a handheld tuner's built-in/pre-programmed factory tune! GET A CUSTOM TUNE! What DiabloSport & SCT give you by default is very safe, but very limited and can be improved on tremendously. What they both do well is provide a platform to transfer a custom tune into your ECM. 6 Months ago I would have said the DiabloSport Predator was the way to go. Now I'm recommending the SCT unit because their custom tuning software is more capable than DiabloSport's. For more info on either of these tuners try here: http://www.diablosporttuning.com/forums/ James deals in BOTH the DiabloSport Predator and the SCT XCal2. James is a highly respected Terminator tuner with thousands of hours experience with these cars!

There are some members who run the SLP exhaust, but don't bother posting any questions like, "Which exhaust sounds better, the SLP or the Magnaflow"? You'll get a million opinions and none will be the same. Exhaust sound is subjective and what sounds good to me may sound like crap to you. Just know that all cat-back exhausts make great power gains on the Terminators. What makes them different from each other is their build quality, installation ease, & total cost.

The JLT CAI's are quality systems that can even be painted to match the color of your Terminator. You pretty much can't go wrong with any of the straight-thru designs available. Steeda, K&N FIPK , JLT, just stay away from the ones which come with a larger MAF housing (e.g. MAC Straight Shot). Those create more tuning hassles than they are worth.

As for pulley kits... I would recommend Billetflow. The consistently turn out quality pulleys, idlers, and installation/removal tools.

I guess that sums it up for now. If you have any more questions don't hesitate to drop by and ask! Just try using the search feature first because your question has probably been answered a half-dozen times already!

U.M.