Hi,

My car has 12400 miles on it. I installed the APS TT kit by a certified APS fitment centre. Yesterday my car started smoking like a chimney. White smoke out of right side exhaust and water. I took it immediately to the closest mechanic. We then did a leak down test with a chemical tester fitted to radiator and it said that my head gasket is stuffed.

How the hell is this possible? I hardly even drove my Z and I am running it at low boost.

I have to probably now go for forged internals since I will be opening my engine. All I want is reliability and do not want to exceed 500hp.

How is this conversion:
Arias 9:1 Extreme Duty Pistons, Eagle Forged Rods, ARP Main Studs, ARP L19 Head Studs, HKS Stopper Head Gasket.

What else will I have to do to the engine, or is it as simple as opening engine and fitting those parts?

You can check out all my other mods and pics on the following link

https://my350z.com/forum/new-owners/274462-my-twin-turbo-veilside-350z.html

 

My car did exactly the same thing ,stock engine with the APS twin turbo kit, blown head gasket runing 7 lb , obviously if you need to replace the head gasket , this is the right time to get forged internals.
I´m runing 14 lb of boost without a problem , with the wiseco 8.8:1 and eagle rods, with the arp hardware ( standard arp head studs and cometic head gasket ) I would go with the arp heavy duty head studs , and the hks head gasket ( a year ago we didn´t have this setup ).

 

Open deck motor + boost = anything can happen. On top of that it says you have nitrous installed?

Your build looks decent, maybe add in a set of cams - JWT or GTM. I would also look into the Fcon Vpro EMS, koyo radiator, and upgrading the fuel system. Definitely upgrade to Forge actuators during the build. Looks like you have the clutch situation more than taken care of with the triple disc carbon.

I would shoot for 3 boost settings via the HKS EVC VI EBC. spring pressure - around 9-10 psi, low boost - around 12-13 (this should be good for around 500), and high boost at around 15-17 psi

 

Stock internals is definately not suitable for APS TT. My car is practically new and already my head gasket is blown... ANyhow, that's what you get for believing all the marketing bull on their website.
What horse power you running and why would you go for hks head gasket instead? I can get the cometic head gasket. How long have you been running with this conversion and what is the max power you can get?

Would the Arias 9:1 also be a better option?

 

Thanks buddy,
The NOS I have installed is the N-tercooler kit that sprays NOS through the intercooler. Only used it twice though?

Won't the APS Fuel system be sufficient?

 

if i were you i would go ahead and get a full return fuel system. also go with the hks fcon if you can. that is probably the best money you can spend for your FI 350z/g35

like others have said get the bigger head studs and the hks gasket...

 

The HKS head gasket and the arp heavy duty head studs, is the best option if you are thinking in 500+ rwhp , some guys is making 600+rwhp with this hardware without problems.
I´m runing 14lb for 6 months , but like Zivman say ,anything could happen in a open deck.........
I didn´t go to the dyno ,runing 14 lb , my last dyno sesion was runing 10 lb 453rwhp , now I think have around 520-540rwhp.

 

sounds like an install issue to me. 7psi on stock ain't nothing, when it's installed and tuned right.

 

You will max out those injectors at around 450 with the 9:1 compression ratio. at that time you will at least need to upgrade injectors to get to 500. You could probably get away with running 500 with the larger injectors and the out of box APS fuel system, but I would look to upgrade. I run the APS extreme fuel system, while others run CJM. I think either will work fine for you. Keep in mind, once you go to larger injectors the unichip will not be sufficient. You could go with the utec, but IMHO, the Fcon Vpro is worth the extra money.



Install issue?? This is an internal issue - nothing to do with the kit. True, it could be an improper tune and he could have had small detonation eating away at his HG, but highly unlikely. This is an open deck motor that was not designed for FI. We don't see this that often, but don't think this is that unexpected and I would not say it was install related unless he cracked open the motor for cams or some other reason

 

+1. My APS TT was self-installed and I've been running 10psi on the out-of-box tune for the last 6k miles. No problems whatsoever. I think all the problems ppl had with the kit were from crappy installs. My car never smoked, never had idling/stalling problems, nothing.

 

What could the installer have done wrong to cause this issue.

These are the problems I had since the kit was installed.
1. 2 of the turbo bolts came loose which resulted in a leak. This was fixed 150 miles ago and I was driving with this problem for 300 miles.
2. The oil return on the right side turbo was not sloped correctly which resulted in the car smoking. The car was smoking since the turbo was installed
3. the intercooler pipe came loose which resulted in a whistling sound
I only drove with this problem for about 30 miles
4. The car was loosing oil.. but I topped it up regularly. This happened since I installed the kit but it got progressively worst.

Could any of the above cause the problem?

 

None of those would cause this. It's the headgaskets that are the issue. Really the only way the install could cause this is if the car was making too much boost to lift the heads, or the tune was off and he was knocking and eating away at the gaskets. In this case, I would think the stock head gaskets weren't sealed well enough to even handle the out of box boost levels

 

It sounds like you had some issues with your install. With that being said I've had my aps tt on a stock block with 9-10 psi for 26k with no motor problems.If you car was smoking from the begining you most probably had to much oil in it, plus they didn't install the returns properly.

 

What is the best compression ratio to go for 9:1, 8.8:1, 8.5.1?
I do not want to go for cam. I also do not want to upgrade fuel system and unichip right now. I really want my car to be practical and reliable. I also want to be comfortable that I can drive the **** out of my car without having to mess up my motor.

What would you choose and why:
Wiseco pistons, Eagle rods - 8.8:1
Arias, Eagle Rods - 8.5:1
Arias Extreme, Eagle rods - 9:1
Canetic or HKS head gasket

Do I also need darten sleeves?

These are the only parts I can source from local suppliers. The Arias Extreme I will have to import. What is the max power i can go with these internals without compromising the engine and is there anything I can add to improve reliability.

Sorry for all the questions... I am not that knowledgable when it comes to engine mods.

 

If he was having all those problem from the beginning then it is safe to assume that the install wasn't dont right and chances are the tune wasn't done right either

 

If you don't upgrade your fuel and EMS, you will be limited to about 450 whp. you won't get to 500. I would go with 8.8:1 or 9.0:1 compression ratio. Honestly, you won't feel any difference from stock, or even between 8.5 or 9.0 so any choice will be fine. If I were doing a build now, I would choose the Arias Extreme, though either the wiseco or standard arias are still good pistons.

Definitely get the HKS head gaskets, as I am not a fan of cometic at all. I think it is the consensus that the HKS gaskets are the best choice hands down.

You don't need sleeves. We have yet to see anyone compromise the cyliner walls, so I wouldn't even consider them given the added costs, machining, etc involved.

I didn't put cams in my car during my build and am regretting it now. And I am actually going to be installing a set now. I would strongly urge you to reconsider this and get a set of cams installed while your motor is apart.

Also, make sure you put in a set of forge actuators while the motor is out. Even if you don't plan to push the boost that high, the forge actuators are vastly superior to garrett ones - at least IMHO.

 

thanks for the valuable input... I think I will go for cam and actuator.. which cam would u recommend. What is the key benefits if I go for these 2 items?

 

Hey Noer,

sorry to hear about the engine.

My car was also done by Craig and it is running pig reach at the mament.

Peak hold values recorded on the zeitronix is

AFR : 10.4
Boost: 7.2psi

at the coast cannot drive under full load as the boost is going up to 11psi.

now craig says I have to put a EBC to drop the boost everytime i drive down to the coast.

 

It sounds like craig doesn't know how to tune the unichip. Time for a new tuner.

 

Thank god. I have finally me someone in SA with same conversion done by the same tuner. Buddy, can you give me your contact details.. so we can chat.