my vortech tuner kit install process thread
03-24-2006, 03:44 PM
#21
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Originally Posted by sentry65
I'm going this route cause I think it'll be able to do well at all types of driving though probably not the BEST at any.
^^^ YESSSS
03-24-2006, 07:32 PM
#22
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If you want big power on the supercharger you may need to ditch the intercooler and replace is with some type of water/meth injection. Removing the intercooler makes a HUGE difference on supercharged cars assuming your doing something to counter detonation such as water/meth injection, race gas or my favorite both 
03-24-2006, 10:31 PM
#24
thanks, I got the oil cap off of ebay a long time ago.
the center caps a lot of times usually aren't allowed at road course track events because when the wheels heat up from the braking they just pop out. I went once with my stock track model wheels and because the centercaps for those wheels are actually plastic, I lost one and the other 3 were deformed from being slightly melted. That was when I found out they're usually not even allowed so I just don't bother to use them anymore - saves weight and better cooling too right?
- hehe yeah right
I had a guy at a shop actually comment about how I must track my car because he noticed I don't have my centercaps on
the center caps a lot of times usually aren't allowed at road course track events because when the wheels heat up from the braking they just pop out. I went once with my stock track model wheels and because the centercaps for those wheels are actually plastic, I lost one and the other 3 were deformed from being slightly melted. That was when I found out they're usually not even allowed so I just don't bother to use them anymore - saves weight and better cooling too right?
- hehe yeah rightI had a guy at a shop actually comment about how I must track my car because he noticed I don't have my centercaps on
Last edited by sentry65; 03-24-2006 at 10:35 PM.
03-27-2006, 12:43 PM
#25
more pics...
Stopped by there today to pick up my old parts I'm selling (tilton street clutch, UR crank pulley, koyo radiator, rogue shifter etc) and to drop off a thermo gasket for the intake manifold.
He didn't spend a lot of time on the car last friday because he was finishing up that elise, but did get a few things done prepping the car and engine. He got the fuel gauge for the fuel system mounted on and also got some of the vortech parts mounted on. He just placed the blower on the engine for now to help get the other parts in place. It'll be removed when the engine actually goes back in then put back on later.
he has high expectations for the car and said it should really perform pretty well. That was about it. It's all up to me getting the motor mounts cause after today that's going to be what holds things up cause he can now dovote all his time to my car again. Hopefully I get them in a day or two so they can finish the car by friday - probably won't happen though knowing how these things go
Stopped by there today to pick up my old parts I'm selling (tilton street clutch, UR crank pulley, koyo radiator, rogue shifter etc) and to drop off a thermo gasket for the intake manifold.
He didn't spend a lot of time on the car last friday because he was finishing up that elise, but did get a few things done prepping the car and engine. He got the fuel gauge for the fuel system mounted on and also got some of the vortech parts mounted on. He just placed the blower on the engine for now to help get the other parts in place. It'll be removed when the engine actually goes back in then put back on later.
he has high expectations for the car and said it should really perform pretty well. That was about it. It's all up to me getting the motor mounts cause after today that's going to be what holds things up cause he can now dovote all his time to my car again. Hopefully I get them in a day or two so they can finish the car by friday - probably won't happen though knowing how these things go
Last edited by sentry65; 03-27-2006 at 02:13 PM.
03-27-2006, 01:12 PM
#27
Sentry
Ive noticed some thing out of place , you might want him to correct . The bolt on the tentioner pulley for the cog belt . The head of the bolt should be on the pulley side and nut be on the bracket side .
Looks great though....good luck !!!!!!
Ive noticed some thing out of place , you might want him to correct . The bolt on the tentioner pulley for the cog belt . The head of the bolt should be on the pulley side and nut be on the bracket side .
Looks great though....good luck !!!!!!
03-27-2006, 01:56 PM
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good catch booger! i turned mine around last month after seeing the thread on here! It would be interesting to know how many of the Vortech S/C have those tension pulley bolts on backwards? Including mine i think that is at least 3 on this board!
Sentry- good thread. i will be following along! Thanks for the updates - always fun to watch these things come together.
Sentry- good thread. i will be following along! Thanks for the updates - always fun to watch these things come together.
03-27-2006, 02:06 PM
#30
called him up and he said he knows what I mean cause I actually printed off a sheet of FAQ vortech install issues and that was one of them - the one from the recent thread showing the right and wrong way etc.
he said the vortech isn't really bolted on the engine yet, just sitting there kinda lightly fastened down on it so he can see how it all goes together better.
thanks though. I have higher res version of the pictures that I could post if someone needs to see a specific detail - just trying to save download time by downsizing them.
another update:
he is totally finished with the fuel return system, fuel pump, and 440 injectors. I forgot to ask him his feedback on installing the return system cause Charles from CJ Motorsports likes getting feedback about it, but I'll report to Charles and in this thread what he says when I ask him
He's getting the intercooler mounted right now and says he'll get the gauges installed today.
Then he needs the headers which he's picking up from being coated tomorrow morning and then he needs the motor mounts before he can go any further.
he said the vortech isn't really bolted on the engine yet, just sitting there kinda lightly fastened down on it so he can see how it all goes together better.
thanks though. I have higher res version of the pictures that I could post if someone needs to see a specific detail - just trying to save download time by downsizing them.
another update:
he is totally finished with the fuel return system, fuel pump, and 440 injectors. I forgot to ask him his feedback on installing the return system cause Charles from CJ Motorsports likes getting feedback about it, but I'll report to Charles and in this thread what he says when I ask him
He's getting the intercooler mounted right now and says he'll get the gauges installed today.
Then he needs the headers which he's picking up from being coated tomorrow morning and then he needs the motor mounts before he can go any further.
Last edited by sentry65; 03-27-2006 at 02:10 PM.
03-27-2006, 08:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Ep3
good luck bro i'm finishing up my procharger now i hope its worth it in the end!! as for the KJR pulley ive heard mostly good things but i remember somebody saying it felt like it took longer to get into boost or something so i put the stock on first to compare for myself ..
ps. i like that oil cap!
ps. i like that oil cap!
Thanks,
ssgtbarclay@yahoo.com
03-28-2006, 05:52 AM
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Originally Posted by booger
Sentry
Ive noticed some thing out of place , you might want him to correct . The bolt on the tentioner pulley for the cog belt . The head of the bolt should be on the pulley side and nut be on the bracket side .
Looks great though....good luck !!!!!!
Ive noticed some thing out of place , you might want him to correct . The bolt on the tentioner pulley for the cog belt . The head of the bolt should be on the pulley side and nut be on the bracket side .
Looks great though....good luck !!!!!!
03-28-2006, 08:42 AM
#35
update:
he's got the gauge sensors installed, but not the gauge pod and gauges quite yet
the intercooler is installed along with some of the piping. He had to mount my nismo power steering cooler in a different location because it's too long for the stock vortech install location. He also got the thermogasket installed (no biggie)
I kinda forget, but there was something with the AC line and something that normally goes right up against it and he didn't think it was the greatest solution. So he rerouted whatever it was and mounted it very much like how APS does it on their TT kit. He said it's no longer in the direct airflow path, but it doesn't need to be as long as it just has some air circulating around it. He said it'll help flow air to the intercooler too doing it this way. He said it's how APS does it and honestly I trust his knowledge and APS more than vortech, especially since it's a fairly custom install with some of the extra crap i already have in my car.
we've decided not to wrap the headers. He got the headers back. They're using the chrome thermo coating so they'll look nice. I think I might have prefered the black coating, but supposivly the chrome one is damn good anyway, it's cheaper, and he had it done locally instead of having to ship it out of state which would have delayed things by a week. He said a lot of turbo installs he's done have used that coating and it's always worked out great. Kinda makes me which I got the polished vortech instead of the satin now, but oh well. I'm not making my car to have a pretty engine bay cause the hood is closed most of the time and didn't think it was worth $250 that I can spend on something meaningful for performance.
so really there's just some minor things here and there, but he's pretty much waiting on the engine mounts at this point which I've been told should arrive on wed. Hopefully they come today though. But he says it'll take him probably 2 days to get the engine in, finish up installing the vortech, get the transmission back on, the GT spec ladder brace, etc so it MIGHT get done by friday, otherwise probably monday
he's got the gauge sensors installed, but not the gauge pod and gauges quite yet
the intercooler is installed along with some of the piping. He had to mount my nismo power steering cooler in a different location because it's too long for the stock vortech install location. He also got the thermogasket installed (no biggie)
I kinda forget, but there was something with the AC line and something that normally goes right up against it and he didn't think it was the greatest solution. So he rerouted whatever it was and mounted it very much like how APS does it on their TT kit. He said it's no longer in the direct airflow path, but it doesn't need to be as long as it just has some air circulating around it. He said it'll help flow air to the intercooler too doing it this way. He said it's how APS does it and honestly I trust his knowledge and APS more than vortech, especially since it's a fairly custom install with some of the extra crap i already have in my car.
we've decided not to wrap the headers. He got the headers back. They're using the chrome thermo coating so they'll look nice. I think I might have prefered the black coating, but supposivly the chrome one is damn good anyway, it's cheaper, and he had it done locally instead of having to ship it out of state which would have delayed things by a week. He said a lot of turbo installs he's done have used that coating and it's always worked out great. Kinda makes me which I got the polished vortech instead of the satin now, but oh well. I'm not making my car to have a pretty engine bay cause the hood is closed most of the time and didn't think it was worth $250 that I can spend on something meaningful for performance.
so really there's just some minor things here and there, but he's pretty much waiting on the engine mounts at this point which I've been told should arrive on wed. Hopefully they come today though. But he says it'll take him probably 2 days to get the engine in, finish up installing the vortech, get the transmission back on, the GT spec ladder brace, etc so it MIGHT get done by friday, otherwise probably monday
Last edited by sentry65; 03-28-2006 at 08:46 AM.
03-28-2006, 08:49 AM
#36
here is a compilation of vortech related things I've compiled from posts here. I give credit to everyone who said these things, but unfortunately didn't keep track of who said what. But people doing vortech installs might find this useful to know or to print off to give to their mechanic. Some of it is just maintenance stuff really:
https://my350z.com/forum/forced-induction/171748-vortech-owners-might-want-to-check-this.html
My intercooler piping was rubbing and vibrating on the drivers fender well and up against the back of the blower .Had to take a piece of rubber hose and wedge in between them . Made a big diff . in the noise level
bolt behind blower causing vibration noise
it's the pipe that dives down into the engine bay behind the blower...it's rattling against the body...I have this problem and JDM V35 had it too...he crawled under there and slipped a piece of rubber or something between the body and the pipe and VOLA, the sound went away
there's a sound you get when the cog belt is too loose or too tight that is amplified when either one of these is the case. There should only be about a 1/4" of play (up and down) on the cog belt. This will minimize the rattle
It's really important to keep the cog belt as loose as possible without any slipping (jumping teeth). This will actually create the least noise although a low idle vibration is unavoidable. The worst thing you can do is overtighten the belt which will destroy the pulley bearings. It's also unnecessary because the idler pulley that pushes the cog belt down creates a very large contact area between the belt and the two cog pulleys--so there will be absolutely no slipping unless the teeth jump. My idler pulley is touching so lightly that I can easily turn it with one finger. That's about 1/2" of play in the cog belt up and down (total 1").
You will want to clean out your oil squirter every 3,000 miles if you want to maintain your warranty on your blower.
You will also want to change spark plugs every year or so if you get a conservative tune (even more so if you keep the factory tune since you'll be running so rich you'll foul the plugs).
You will also want to consider changing the belts every 2 years.
You may want to clean the air intake filter every 5-10K miles (I say that because mine sure is getting FILTHY awfully fast )
You'll want to check to make sure your main belt is plenty tight. You'll have to re-tighten that at least one time after the first 500 or so miles as the belts tend to stretch and you lose boost. If you keep the belt that comes with the kit you'll be tightening it forever.
Randy mentioned oil changes..
My intercooler piping was rubbing and vibrating on the drivers fender well and up against the back of the blower .Had to take a piece of rubber hose and wedge in between them . Made a big diff . in the noise level
bolt behind blower causing vibration noise
it's the pipe that dives down into the engine bay behind the blower...it's rattling against the body...I have this problem and JDM V35 had it too...he crawled under there and slipped a piece of rubber or something between the body and the pipe and VOLA, the sound went away
there's a sound you get when the cog belt is too loose or too tight that is amplified when either one of these is the case. There should only be about a 1/4" of play (up and down) on the cog belt. This will minimize the rattle
It's really important to keep the cog belt as loose as possible without any slipping (jumping teeth). This will actually create the least noise although a low idle vibration is unavoidable. The worst thing you can do is overtighten the belt which will destroy the pulley bearings. It's also unnecessary because the idler pulley that pushes the cog belt down creates a very large contact area between the belt and the two cog pulleys--so there will be absolutely no slipping unless the teeth jump. My idler pulley is touching so lightly that I can easily turn it with one finger. That's about 1/2" of play in the cog belt up and down (total 1").
You will want to clean out your oil squirter every 3,000 miles if you want to maintain your warranty on your blower.
You will also want to change spark plugs every year or so if you get a conservative tune (even more so if you keep the factory tune since you'll be running so rich you'll foul the plugs).
You will also want to consider changing the belts every 2 years.
You may want to clean the air intake filter every 5-10K miles (I say that because mine sure is getting FILTHY awfully fast )
You'll want to check to make sure your main belt is plenty tight. You'll have to re-tighten that at least one time after the first 500 or so miles as the belts tend to stretch and you lose boost. If you keep the belt that comes with the kit you'll be tightening it forever.
Randy mentioned oil changes..
03-28-2006, 04:33 PM
#39
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Originally Posted by sentry65
The 3.3 seems to help with traction and keeps you in boost longer, but doesn't really seem to make the car much faster in the 1/4 mile.
OT - your damn car done yet?
