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It was off ogihooker's build thread. I THINK it was SFR that did the tube front......he had an incredible build going but not sure it was ever completed.
I tried calling SFR a couple years ago but never had my multiple calls returned.
Past few weeks have been great. I have made some modifications to really tie this car together and have had a few encounters with people who just want to take a picture with the car! Not much left to do but wash it and enjoy it for the summer boys. Woohoo.
These mods, combined with a VERY thorough alignment aimed at maximizing straight line grip and tire life have caused this car to completely surpass my expectations. This is the fastest, most brutal, yet controllable and enjoyable car I have ever been in. Simply amazing.
The drag radials were by far my favorite modification. Best $ spent in a long time. It brought the car back to reality. It is controllable now. I went from spinning 3-4 gear to hooking first without (much) driver input/pedaling needed. Since I am able to hook first I am anticipating some very low numbers at the strip in a few weeks.
On the other hand, I will have to change my tires as frequently as I have to change my oil!! Gotta pay to play. Will probably switch to NT555R's to get some better treadwear next time.
Feels good to no longer be afraid to race someone from a dig. Bring it on!!
So! Engine issue was a coil pack, replaced all 6, touched up tune (thanks to Vince @ RT tuning for making an exception to remotely touch my tune up for being a returning customer!!) and I ended up finding a bunch of little things too...
Everything added up to the tune of about 2+ grand in the end... A turbo on its way out (my fault from housing contacting power steering hard line under some conditions due to clocking angle), a tial wastegate that had a valve that was separating from the stem, and I finally got around to answering my dual pass oil cooler question that I posted about sometime last year.
Yes, the mishimoto dual pass oil cooler is doo doo, the diversion plate had a solid 1/16" gap that the oil could bypass the cooler through... What a joke!
Drag strip + diff brace + upgraded 370z axles + perfect temperature day and burnout +4500 RPM antilag launch= BLOWN DIFFERENTIAL
I ran a 12.5, with a broken diff, noticed it was making a bunch of noise after I let off, and drove her home 70 miles ha. Replaced it with one with 12k miles on it and she's back.
I'm going to a NASA (National Auto Sport Acssociation) event at Limerock Park in CT on the 13th. Since my drag radials are very bubbly I decided to go for some Bridgestone Potenza RE71R's, arguably some of the best track tires out there in their class. I haven't been excited to do something like this in while! That almost counterbalances the pain of spending over $700 for two tires.... Almost.
Aaaand check out some random media over the past few weeks:
Separated valve stem....Failed factory press fit.
Too bad I had to ditch the greddy branded Tial FG-38
Kinugawa (thanks James (Bealljk), it has been perfect)
In case you were wondering where the 2 grand went
Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. 3 days straight to replace the turbo and install my new Derale cooler with adjustable thermostatically controlled fan with override, AEM oil temp gage, all with waterproof connectors and techflex braided wire loom.
Differential Replacement
Why not?
Interior Shot At Night
Oh and why not have some low boost turbo noises too
I was (literally) on the edge of the couch watching that mishi video ... I'm, still, not a fan of that company! I dont understand why people get so horny over their stuff!
Keep us posted on the kinugawa turbos ... I have about 3k miles on mine and they push just like you'd expect. what did you end up paying for each blower? And you just replaced the CHRA (center section)? How was the fitment into the greddy housings??
I like that oil cooler for sure but are you relying on the fan to be operating 100% of the time? and/or how does that fan turn on & off?? off a physical switch or thermostat? and are those temp probes on the in & out of the oil cooler?
I was (literally) on the edge of the couch watching that mishi video ... I'm, still, not a fan of that company! I dont understand why people get so horny over their stuff!
Keep us posted on the kinugawa turbos ... I have about 3k miles on mine and they push just like you'd expect. what did you end up paying for each blower? And you just replaced the CHRA (center section)? How was the fitment into the greddy housings??
I like that oil cooler for sure but are you relying on the fan to be operating 100% of the time? and/or how does that fan turn on & off?? off a physical switch or thermostat? and are those temp probes on the in & out of the oil cooler?
Nope I am done with mishimoto too after that, no way.
The blowers (full CHRA) were only $500, I actually only replaced one because I literally couldn't get to the passenger side one without pulling the engine, and I really tried... I am resting assured, knowing that the failure was caused by my installation negligence. I am going to send more logs to Vince at RT tuning to ensure my map is still safe, but so far everything looks just fine. Fitment was perfect, no complaints at all.
So the oil cooler...
The fan is controlled via a thermostatic control unit (made by..... um.. mishi...) which has an override switch when I want them on. My intentions were to let the cooler run in thermostatic mode while driving, and override to force the fan on when I park the car (in combination with a turbo timer) to cool the oil down before shutdown.
That plan did not come to 100% fruition... When I park the car the oil temps rise rapidly as the oil pulls the heat from the engine components, so it is hard to actually figure out if the cooler fan is helping to slow this down or not. Rising oil temps in that case really aren't a bad thing... It means it is pulling the heat from the exhaust manifolds, which is what I wanted to accomplish. I just don't get that satisfying feeling of watching the temps drop as soon as I turn the fan on.
The thermostatic control unit is set to 180F and it rarely comes on while driving. It usually only comes on at a stoplight.
180F seems a bit cold to me from what I have read, but ehh, it didn't get past 180 on a pretty hot day with the fans set to 220 degrees so... Should be OK.
The probes are at both the inlet and the outlet of the cooler. The thermostatic control unit probe is on the inlet, and my oil temp gage is reading the outlet oil temperature. Typical range is 140-175 post cooler, but on a really hot day the fan will kick on once I come to a stop meaning it surpassed the 180 mark coming from the engine.
I'm really urked that I have to mount it in front of the IC. I really tried to find anywhere else for it but failed...
that's right...I remember you saying getting the other out was beyond the scope.
mine were $5 a piece too ...
solely my opinion but the fan does more harm than good ... your passive air while travelling above 30mph will transfer the most heat. I think that's what youre seeing (ie the fan not coming on while moving). Furthermore, if something goes out (power/fuse/motor) on the fan you are not optimally transferring heat...if it was me, I'd take the fan off.
I'd agree that 180 is low for oil - my roundabout number is oil lubricates best at 210* but I'm sure there are some variances in that.
I'd do my best to relocate it, are your fittings still sitting below the baseline of the car. That would scare me...just my 2pennies!
Regardless, great progress - awesome that you can bounce your maps back to Vince and keep up the good work!
that's right...I remember you saying getting the other out was beyond the scope.
mine were $5 a piece too ...
solely my opinion but the fan does more harm than good ... your passive air while travelling above 30mph will transfer the most heat. I think that's what youre seeing (ie the fan not coming on while moving). Furthermore, if something goes out (power/fuse/motor) on the fan you are not optimally transferring heat...if it was me, I'd take the fan off.
I'd agree that 180 is low for oil - my roundabout number is oil lubricates best at 210* but I'm sure there are some variances in that.
I'd do my best to relocate it, are your fittings still sitting below the baseline of the car. That would scare me...just my 2pennies!
Regardless, great progress - awesome that you can bounce your maps back to Vince and keep up the good work!
Well, I really have zero oil overheating issues, it actually cools down too much going down big hills in vacuum and takes too long to heat up in my opinion. Once I get it up to temp it stays right where I want it until a large downhill so I think I am OK for now. Just want to verify intake air temps aren't higher than usual, they shouldn't be, it feels to be ambient by the time it gets to the other end of the IC and that is without passive airflow to aid.
The fittings are much higher than the baseline, I bought some AN 90's to ensure that was the case!
Will update in the meantime as I am prepping for the event at limerock on the 14th.... Actually here is one now:
Looking at datalogs from this weekend, fuel trims were way off, in the mid 80 range... Which is a first? I am usually looking at 97-103% max. Car runs fine. I think it may have been from high high temps and very high humidity? Not sure yet...
They were OK after changing the turbo so it's not that. I think it is either a more efficient spark across the board from brand new ignition components, or just the extreme weather this weekend. I am not pleased!
Doesn't seem to be a leak, typically a leak will push me over 100% in vacuum, so this is an interesting one.
Edit: turned out to be a failing coilpack, vibrations under heavy load would cause an open circuit condition followed by the poor engine running conditions I experienced.
Sold the car 5 months ago, body had 245k on it, engine had about 50k on it. Got a good amount of cash back so I can live with the decision. Buyer has been driving it every day. Probably put at least 10k on it so far. He's been happy with it and plans to put a built motor in it. Looking back, this thing is extremely expensive to own, but man.
yeah, my $$ spent per mile makes me think I missed a few decimal places
What's next?
Do you see the car around town at all?
I kept it simple with this car vs my g35 for that reason. Just wanted to DRIVE.
The guy is actually about 2 hours away, though he said I can come drive it any time... So that's pretty cool. But he's scheduled to move pretty far away soon, at least I know it's in good hands. He's done nothing but make tasteful improvements thus far.
What's next? Man, something cheap, a DRZ400 or something. Need to get a house or into an investment property of some sort. If it had to be a car... something with 8 cylinders probably... But that's way down the road
I can't imagine buying a built block then having a major issue like you just experienced. It would be very annoying and expensive... These cars are supposedly the poor man's Porsche, but I somehow spent about as much as a GTR over the years (no regrets)
I can't imagine buying a built block then having a major issue like you just experienced. It would be very annoying and expensive... These cars are supposedly the poor man's Porsche, but I somehow spent about as much as a GTR over the years (no regrets)
poor man's Porsche is still relative!
from a financial standpoint I'm pretty deep into the car (no one would argue that) but it's been a little money spent per month over the past 14 years and (aside from mens rec-league hockey) it's what I do … everyone spends their money how they like. I fully fund my roth ira along with a mandatory funded 457 plan at my work and I have no debt so I don't feel that I'm being financially irresponsible. I don't own a property but I'm un-easy about buying in Denver as the market is very hot.
The good thing with my engine is that the only thing lost was bearings and a crank - everything was salvageable!
It's been 6-8 months since I sold it, the new owner is still very happy.
Here she is in her new home down in FL. I told him I'd buy it back from him one day. He drove it most days to work, only problem was a radiator fan failure. Should have kept it for a while longer... Who would have though it would keep on chugging at 475whp? Much respect for Vince @RT Tuning
04-09-2018, 05:00 AM
Not much left to do but wash it and enjoy it for the summer boys. Woohoo. 
