Bolt Ons Reliability and Practicality

[BicBoyXx]

Hey guys. First time on the forum and looking for some insight from long term owners or knowledgeable mechanics. I own a 2012 Mazdaspeed 3, 125,000 miles, owned since new and maintained very strictly, so the car runs very smoothly. Original turbo and engine components. The only modification I have is a COBB SRI with the TIP and OTS Access Port tune, however, I am very curious about bolting the car a little more as a DAILY DRIVER. My question is: how practical is this in terms of passenger commute and comfort, and how badly will this affect reliability of the vehicle? (I am looking for 300, 000 miles because I dont plan on selling it ). In terms of bolt ons, I am looking at HPFP internals, a downpipe, BPV, and perhaps a larger intake on a stock turbo. My main concerns are cabin noise (drone or even vibrations!!) and reliability (will this cause more things to break or decrease engine lifespan?). I am very young and inexperienced (18 years old) and I do not have a lot of money. Please give me as much insight as possible, tell me all of your experiences and everything I need to hear
(P.S. I drive very conservatively 90% because of the time and hardly get on it because I really do love my car)

 

[Raider]

Ots maps are bad. Get a professional tune.

 

[lasangelos]

same boat, kid except I got a decade on ya lol
You’re gonna use your hands A LOT
You’re also gonna have to read up on some other builds & if you donate to become a metal member, you’ll have access to shop manuals & everything even tuning help.

Just make sure you take the time to know what you’re talking about & these guys will be able to help.

Most of your questions have been answered just do a little reading !
We can’t do the work for you
Especially if you has no monies

Welcome !

 

[wistfullyod]

If you are concerned about reliability and this car is your only car and daily then the best advice I can give you is to refrain from diving too deep into further modifications. Don't get me wrong stuff like upgraded HPFP internals are necessary for more power but you will just be adding more variables to your situation. Don't try to fix something that isn't broken. That being said if you decide to run bolt ons - GET A REAL TUNE. I know several guys that went full bolt ons and blew their shit up cause they kept beating their cars on crappy OTS maps.

 

[Awafrican]

Tldr: get a rule tune asap and hpfp along with keeping up with regular maintenance to be reliable (even a freektune ots+ tune would be okay as you get a custom revisions)

My Pu has 118k on hpfp, DP, intake and tune. Keep up with regular maintenance and you'll be fine.

Now the Cobb ots maps for the speeds are hot garage at best! So tune asap
even a freektune ots+ tune would be okay as you get a custom revisions of you don't have an access port buying it directly from freektune it'll come with an ots+ tune on it for you included!
Also the gen2 speeds are really sensitive to fueling so get those hpfp in there ASAP because people have blown their engines from just putting on air intakes.
So a RMM will help with driving

As for cabin noise a catted DP won't add too much more noise, a catless one will but tolerance is all subjective I never found it unreasonable especially On a stock car back.
As for the RMM it'll add some vibrations initially but once the mount breaks in its nothing really. Same thing with passenger mount IMO it's the transmission motor mount upgrading that is what really in creases vibrations.

 

[JohnnyTightlips]

For ultimate reliability , keep it stock :-( If you are worried about vibes , stay stock mounts except for RMM, get the CS stg2 or the CPE stg2. They will both add performance without screwing up the cabin noise too much. You could refresh your PMM and TMM at some point with new bushings but if they are sill in good shape leave them. Reliability comes down to the car and you. I have driven my car daily for a year without issues or break down and it is built to the moon. THREAD HERE

Bolt ons with and OTS+ tune from freek will not affect reliability but it might be too noisy for you as it seems your are sensitive to that. Your best bang for buck is HPFP , AP, Intake and Downpipe. If your ko4 dies go s3 which will also keep it simple.