What a difference a new camshaft makes
Discussion
As part of my body off chassis rebuild and new outrigger work late last year Dan Taylor noticed my car was a little sluggish on the road test afterwards. When the car was back with him for its annual service in March he had a look at the camshaft with the sump off the car and noticed at least 2, possibly 3 lobes were badly worn. I had to replace the camshaft and also decided to take the opportunity to have a little more work done to improve the breathing at the same time. After talking to Dan and Dom Trickett I went with Dom’s 885 camshaft and also took advice on breathing mods that led to a 72mm plenum being fitted and some ACT goodies being ordered for a few weeks down the line.
I picked up the car from Dan yesterday and the difference is chalk and cheese. My car always felt fast compared to most things on the road but now it is 100% solid engine wise the performance is startling. I guess my car has had a worn camshaft since I bought it a few years ago but now that has been fixed and the breathing improved the car runs so much smoother and the push in all the gears, particularly the mid-range, is now more noticeable. Driving home in a variety of traffic conditions the car required significantly fewer gear changes and was pulling from very low revs in 3rd and 4th when I asked it to with none of the shunting I was used to. It has immediately become a nicer car to drive and the shunting I used to have to cope with has nearly all gone. The only place where a bit of shunting still occurs is pulling away and I can fix that with a bit more right foot
As a footnote (excuse the pun) Dan showed me the old camshaft and it was badly worn on 3 lobes and had 3 others that were out of shape so the engine was clearly running poorly.
The car will get the 1000 miles on it recommended by Dan before an oil change is scheduled and at that point an ACT smooth bore breathing system and K&N filter will be installed along with super flare trumpets and a thermal plate. These additions will dial out the little shunting I experience at low revs and be a good match to the new camshaft and larger plenum just fitted. This will keep me amused for the rest of this year with the final piece of the puzzle being added next March/April time when the car will be taken to Dom and his team to fit an MBE ignition system.
I also took the opportunity to upgrade my brakes in lieu of the engine power being upped and was lucky enough to find an ex Chimaera owner who had a fully refurbished set of 887/888 brakes for sale, cheers Christian
These still need a bit of bedding in but the pedal feel is already better and the stopping power of the new 273mm discs and pads very strong.
Overall the car has been transformed by the new camshaft and will only get better with planned ACT goodies and the MBE system being added next year.
I did a power run on a local RR as a baseline reference before the work above was done, will do another when the ACT goodies are installed and a final once next year as part of the MBE system installation. Once I have these I will post them all up so you can see what my money has bought me............or not
My wallet hates me but the grin factor is worth every penny
I picked up the car from Dan yesterday and the difference is chalk and cheese. My car always felt fast compared to most things on the road but now it is 100% solid engine wise the performance is startling. I guess my car has had a worn camshaft since I bought it a few years ago but now that has been fixed and the breathing improved the car runs so much smoother and the push in all the gears, particularly the mid-range, is now more noticeable. Driving home in a variety of traffic conditions the car required significantly fewer gear changes and was pulling from very low revs in 3rd and 4th when I asked it to with none of the shunting I was used to. It has immediately become a nicer car to drive and the shunting I used to have to cope with has nearly all gone. The only place where a bit of shunting still occurs is pulling away and I can fix that with a bit more right foot
As a footnote (excuse the pun) Dan showed me the old camshaft and it was badly worn on 3 lobes and had 3 others that were out of shape so the engine was clearly running poorly.
The car will get the 1000 miles on it recommended by Dan before an oil change is scheduled and at that point an ACT smooth bore breathing system and K&N filter will be installed along with super flare trumpets and a thermal plate. These additions will dial out the little shunting I experience at low revs and be a good match to the new camshaft and larger plenum just fitted. This will keep me amused for the rest of this year with the final piece of the puzzle being added next March/April time when the car will be taken to Dom and his team to fit an MBE ignition system.
I also took the opportunity to upgrade my brakes in lieu of the engine power being upped and was lucky enough to find an ex Chimaera owner who had a fully refurbished set of 887/888 brakes for sale, cheers Christian
These still need a bit of bedding in but the pedal feel is already better and the stopping power of the new 273mm discs and pads very strong. Overall the car has been transformed by the new camshaft and will only get better with planned ACT goodies and the MBE system being added next year.
I did a power run on a local RR as a baseline reference before the work above was done, will do another when the ACT goodies are installed and a final once next year as part of the MBE system installation. Once I have these I will post them all up so you can see what my money has bought me............or not
My wallet hates me but the grin factor is worth every penny
All that paint that had flaked off the old chassis must have made it faster before the new chassis 
As you know I am very pleased with my 885 and glad you are happy with yours too. Sounds like a nice selection of sensible modifications to release a bit more power and most importantly drivability.
Brake upgrade another sensible modification and the 887/888 brakes are very nice OEM quality upgrade, if you can find a pair! They have the advantage of looking completely standard to the untrained eye while delivering much improved braking which will be great for your track work.
Having been in your car I can vouch for how well it performs and drives, it is a really nice sorted example which now performs better than it came out of the factory. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the MBE.
As you know I am very pleased with my 885 and glad you are happy with yours too. Sounds like a nice selection of sensible modifications to release a bit more power and most importantly drivability. Brake upgrade another sensible modification and the 887/888 brakes are very nice OEM quality upgrade, if you can find a pair! They have the advantage of looking completely standard to the untrained eye while delivering much improved braking which will be great for your track work.
Having been in your car I can vouch for how well it performs and drives, it is a really nice sorted example which now performs better than it came out of the factory. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the MBE.
Matthew Poxon said:
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the MBE.
Never knew you made it onto the honours list for services to tasteful upgrades to the Chimaera?Is that why I have missed out? Troll cage, mahoosive brakes, non-standard wheels.....I could go on.....(and frequently do, I hear you say)
QBee said:
Matthew Poxon said:
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the MBE.
Never knew you made it onto the honours list for services to tasteful upgrades to the Chimaera?Is that why I have missed out? Troll cage, mahoosive brakes, non-standard wheels.....I could go on.....(and frequently do, I hear you say)
Recently I've been thinking about the 885 cam and realise my joy is a combination and the cam plays its part, Dom knows about lobe lift and duration ( obviously) he also has dealt with shunting and the CUX for many a year,
The 885 I think offers good power yet has an eye on the engines breathing low down so in itself helps with shunting.
It's just one of those allrounder cams that has been thought out well.
My 885 has been in there nearly 4 years now and I'm still happy with it
Bit of a thread resurrection
The car ran faultlessly on Sunday at Lotus and the better power range and braking ability was rather eye opening, especially when I got confident enough to press the pedal hard at the approach to the bottom chicane, the drop from c130mph to 30 was rather abrupt
I'm going to call Dan in a week or so and have the oil changed after the camshaft replacement and have him add ACT super flare trumpets and the ACT breathing system for me that will kill off the minimal low end shunt I still get and smooth the power delivery out to where it can be. I'll take the car back for a RR session when this is done and see what the uplift is and then start saving for the MBE system that I'd like to have completed in April/May next year just in time for the TVR season
Since I have owned the car (over 6 years now) I have received a lot of excellent advice and guidance from TVR owners on here and that has steered me to certain upgrades and certain specialists who I now trust 100% with my car and the fruits of this was revealed on Sunday. So a big thank you from me to you all
The car ran faultlessly on Sunday at Lotus and the better power range and braking ability was rather eye opening, especially when I got confident enough to press the pedal hard at the approach to the bottom chicane, the drop from c130mph to 30 was rather abrupt
I'm going to call Dan in a week or so and have the oil changed after the camshaft replacement and have him add ACT super flare trumpets and the ACT breathing system for me that will kill off the minimal low end shunt I still get and smooth the power delivery out to where it can be. I'll take the car back for a RR session when this is done and see what the uplift is and then start saving for the MBE system that I'd like to have completed in April/May next year just in time for the TVR season
Since I have owned the car (over 6 years now) I have received a lot of excellent advice and guidance from TVR owners on here and that has steered me to certain upgrades and certain specialists who I now trust 100% with my car and the fruits of this was revealed on Sunday. So a big thank you from me to you all
carsy said:
I`m not sure superflare trumpets and an act air intake will get rid of your shunting. Its fuel and spark alterations that are needed for that.
Sounds like another happy customer with Powers 885 cam though.
To be honest it is very minimal and I probably wouldn't have noticed if Dan hadn't pointed it out. I'm going with the ACT bits and pieces as part of the bigger picture which is to get to the MBE install and add the improved fuelling and spark Sounds like another happy customer with Powers 885 cam though.
The 885 cam is excellent and I'm glad I listened to users opinions on here before choosing it
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