Is the extra coolant tank advisable if engine upgraded?

[chris watton]

I am currently trying to price up exactly what I want/need to go with a Powers Performance engine upgrade.

I think it may be wise to buy a new radiator and silicon/SS coolant hoses/pipes, and have those changed while the engine's out.

But what about the extra expansion tank that some cars seem to have? Would this be considered a wise upgrade for the higher output of the engine, and if yes, what's involved/how much would that be roughly?

Cheers

[coco79]

Chris, don't know about the expansion tank, but the ACT website do all the hoses etc. if you ask well in advance you can even get a range of bespoke colours

chris watton said:

I am currently trying to price up exactly what I want/need to go with a Powers Performance engine upgrade.

I think it may be wise to buy a new radiator and silicon/SS coolant hoses/pipes, and have those changed while the engine's out.

But what about the extra expansion tank that some cars seem to have? Would this be considered a wise upgrade for the higher output of the engine, and if yes, what's involved/how much would that be roughly?

Cheers

[chris watton]

coco79 said:

Chris, don't know about the expansion tank, but the ACT website do all the hoses etc. if you ask well in advance you can even get a range of bespoke colours

Cheers - I have black silicon hoses, the heater link pipe and engine connection water pipe in my ACT basket.

[coco79]

Sounds like you are getting carried away just like I did

chris watton said:

Cheers - I have black silicon hoses, the heater link pipe and engine connection water pipe in my ACT basket.

[chris watton]

Very difficult not to - especially knowing that the engine will be out - may as well get as much done as possible - especially when it comes to cooling..

[m4tti]

Guess you could re-line your engine bay.. The original bulkhead heat reflective material is a bit old hat now, and generally ropey.

[chris watton]

m4tti said:

Guess you could re-line your engine bay.. The original bulkhead heat reflective material is a bit old hat now, and generally ropey.

That looks nice! Did you do that yourself?

Is that something I could do at Dom's, when the engine's out, I wonder..

[m4tti]

Yeah did that myself.. You could ask Dom I guess or get him to quote you on doing it

That was DEI Floor and tunnel. It has a rigid front so can be cleaned off easily and has a fibre glass barrier backing to reduce heat and sound.

[billynobrakes]

Mine has the extra coolant tank as standard so can,t help you there but if you go for the 4.5 Dom puts bigger fans in anyway, not sure about the 4.3

Its silly not to get the hoses changed to silicone while the engine is out, I did, whish I had the heat shields renewed

Here is another one for just to increase your headache, I should have got the exhaust wrapped as well

I have also had the 330mm grooved brake upgrade as well, its ok going faster but you need to stop faster, far better than the original wooden brakes the bigger ones stop much better and you can feel the brakes and apply differing pressure to the pedal rather than on or off

Bet your glad I replied

Picking mine up Saturday after 6000 miles

[chris watton]

m4tti said:

Yeah did that myself.. You could ask Dom I guess or get him to quote you on doing it

That was DEI Floor and tunnel. It has a rigid front so can be cleaned off easily and has a fibre glass barrier backing to reduce heat and sound.

Cheers

Dom is expensive, so only want to use his hourly rate when I absolutely need to..

billynobrakes said:

Mine has the extra coolant tank as standard so can,t help you there but if you go for the 4.5 Dom puts bigger fans in anyway, not sure about the 4.3

Its silly not to get the hoses changed to silicone while the engine is out, I did, whish I had the heat shields renewed

Here is another one for just to increase your headache, I should have got the exhaust wrapped as well

I have also had the 330mm grooved brake upgrade as well, its ok going faster but you need to stop faster, far better than the original wooden brakes the bigger ones stop much better and you can feel the brakes and apply differing pressure to the pedal rather than on or off

Bet your glad I replied

Picking mine up Saturday after 6000 miles

Well, I have decided to have a £12k loan to cover the engine upgrade before or just after Xmas. I am hoping this will cover the extras required, and I can have on the proviso that I won't be spending much more on the car after this - so I have to make the upgrades count.

I am seriously thinking of buying brand new cats (£600 for the pair) too, as I know that old cats can be a bottleneck (and de-cats are just too damned noisy..), and perhaps having the manifolds ceramic coated.

As for the brakes, I may just get the Tuscan S/Sag discs, I don't know yet, but these are things I can get anytime. I am hoping that once I've had the upgrade to the engine, I won't need to spend so much in one go again...I hope..

[m4tti]

Might aswell change the clutch while the box is off...

[chris watton]

m4tti said:

Might aswell change the clutch while the box is off...

Ah yes - forgot to add that, that's really a given - new clutch, lightweight flywheel and slave cylinder - I may have to buy these before I have the loan though....

[m4tti]

Are your oil hose fitting corroded, might want to change them too

[PetrolHeadPete]

chris watton said:

I am seriously thinking of buying brand new cats (£600 for the pair) too

Have a look on the Tuscan parts Wiki...there are alternative CATs there @ about £300/pair. They are perfect btw.

[chris watton]

PetrolHeadPete said:

chris watton said:

I am seriously thinking of buying brand new cats (£600 for the pair) too

Have a look on the Tuscan parts Wiki...there are alternative CATs there @ about £300/pair. They are perfect btw.

Really! Thanks for the tip!

ETA - Couldn't find the cat from the Tuscan link - but I found this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TVR-TAMORA-3-6-01-07-Exh...

Are they as good as OEM though? I worry when buying stuff from EBay, especially something that could bork the engine if it fails...

Edited by chris watton on Thursday 2nd October 16:49

[Basil Brush]

If it was me I'd remove the cats and tune the sound how you want it with silencing. In fact that's exactly what I did with my Tuscan. The benefits in reduced under bonnet temps and heat soak into the car are worth it alone.

[Sagi Badger]

Rip the whole lot out and heat and sound proof the tunnel. Thermal Velocity are UK based manufacturers and good value. Did mine, well I bullied my mate from school to do it as its really itchy nasty work. Worth it though.

J

[m4tti]

Basil Brush said:

If it was me I'd remove the cats and tune the sound how you want it with silencing. In fact that's exactly what I did with my Tuscan. The benefits in reduced under bonnet temps and heat soak into the car are worth it alone.

Basil when you say tune the sound are you talking in terms of the volume or pitch. I'd love to find someone who knew what they did to achieve this sound....

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=75LyzP_PFjI

It's side exit, but they're must be more going on with the exhaust pulse.

[glow worm]

Get your manifolds,cats and new engine mounts Zircotec'd whilst its out.
Stainless ended/braided oil pipes, get your fuel rail polished and clean up your oil cooler or get a spare (if you find one).

Edited by glow worm on Friday 3rd October 09:07

[chris watton]

Someone did say that ceramic coating the cats wasn't a good idea - is that right?

Have to be careful, have £12k to play with, not £20k - I know I was charged a small fortune just to have the TB gaskets changed, while the TB's were off, so have to be very careful with the labour charges...