| 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart - CBRD BB-X Lite Bolt-on Turbo - Proving Grounds
Test Mule
’08 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart
Engine
2.0-liter 4B11 turbocharged 4-cylinder
Relevant Mods
Road Race Engineering 3-inch FMIC and 2.5-inch I/C piping; Tomioka headers and Widemouth downpipe; ceramic high-flow cat; HKS cat-back; DeatschWerks 800cc injectors; Blaqops 255-lph fuel pump kit; RRE engine oil cooler and SST trans cooler kit (2 coolers); stock airbox/Cosworth panel filter
Description
Lancer Ralliarts were blessed with the same fantastic 4B11 engine that comes in the Lancer Evolution, but while the EVO carries a bigger, more powerful turbocharger, the Ralliart receives a smaller version that pumps out considerably less horsepower. Thanks to the 4B11, the Ralliart has a solid foundation that begs for a turbo upgrade to rival the EVO’s horsepower numbers. Ralliart owners have been scooping up used EVO X turbos and installing them on their cars, but what if you want to be able to outperform a stock EVO X in the horsepower department?
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Aside from the blue compressor wheel, the BB-X Lite turbo doesn’t look different than a stock EVO X turbo, but it packs a much bigger punch.
Simple, get yourself a CBRD BB-X Lite. Using the shell of a MHI Evolution X turbo, CBRD hones and extrudes the centersection to fit a larger compressor and exhaust wheel. With a proprietary billet compressor wheel, finished in a very enticing blue hue, the BB-X Lite is capable of flowing 50 lbs/min versus 33 lbs/min from the stock Ralliart turbo. With that much increased airflow, an upgraded wastegate actuator ensures the boost stays smooth and consistent. The BB-X Lite is the smaller sibling to the BB-X turbo and promises to deliver near-stock spool-up capability with much greater power delivery.
Key Features
Bolts up just like a stock turbo with water and oil lines in OEM locations — 100 percent stock-appearing
Uses proprietary billet compressor wheel for immediate response and fast spool-up.
Includes a high-pressure actuator to allow more boost to be held through the rpm range
Carries much more power through the top range of the rpm band compared to stock
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That right there is what makes all that power: a proprietary billet-cut compressor wheel designed by CBRD.
Results
Having a healthy dose of intake and exhaust modifications, our Ralliart mule was the perfect candidate for a turbo upgrade. We can’t say installation is necessarily easy, but that’s not because the BB-X Lite is any more difficult to install than any other options — it’s the actual placement of the turbo in the Ralliart that makes it tough to get to. With the right set of tools and some patience, you can have the turbo swap done in less than a day. You’ll need to either use an aftermarket intake or an EVO X OEM unit and source some other small tidbits to make the turbo work with the Ralliart’s engine setup since Mitsubishi decided to change intake plumbing between Ralliart and Evolution.
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Here’s a great look at the stock Ralliart turbo (left to right), stock EVO X turbo and BB-X Lite turbo. The Ralliart’s snail looks tiny in comparison to the other two big boys.
Road Race Engineering took care of tuning the engine for optimal performance, since by now we all (should) know that you can’t install a turbo upgrade and not have your motor tuned. With the BB-X Lite in place and dialed in, the dyna pack hubs registered a hefty 379 whp and 332 ft-lbs of torque (the stock Ralliart turbo made 271 whp and 287 ft-lbs tq). That’s a staggering 108-whp and 45–ft-lbs tq gain. The interesting thing to note is that both turbos were pushing 25 psi of boost. While the stock Ralliart turbo would start to loose boost pressure at 4800 rpm and taper off to 14 psi at redline, the BB-X Lite carried 25 psi all the way through the rpm curve. That’s the beauty of a properly matched compressor and turbine: consistent boost.
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For fun, here is a dyno graph of a completely stock Ralliart versus the BB-X Lite–equipped car. With an extra 166 whp and 101 ft-lbs tq on tap, it’s easy to see why the BB-X Lite car is a complete riot to drive.
What about lag, though? The BB-X Lite gives up a bit of response compared to the tiny stocker, about 700 rpm or so (3000 rpm versus 3700 rpm). On the street, this is hardly a problem, thanks to the quick-shift SST transmission. Boost comes on fast, and when it hits, hold on because all of sudden there’s a rush of power that continues through a very long and flat powerband.
There’s a night-and-day difference between the BB-X Lite and the stock turbo. The demons within the Ralliart have been awakened, and it’s now a seriously fast 4-door sedan that will easily dust stock turbo’d EVO Xs all day long.
With BB-X Lite turbo
Gains Made
+ 108 whp
+ 45.4 ft-lbs tq
Before 270.9 whp & 286.7 ft-lbs tq
After 378.9 whp & 332.1 ft-lbs tq
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2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart - CBRD BB-X Lite Bolt-on Turbo - Proving Grounds
Sourcebox
CBRD Speed Factory
BB-X Lite
cbrdspeedfactory.com
717-751-2345
Road Race Engineering
Tuning & Installation
roadraceengineering.com
562-777-1522