Back on the rollers... (Podie goes back to Austec)
Discussion
Well following my last visit to Austec (see here ) I headed back over to sunny Crawley to see Paul, Mike and the lads to have some more bits and pieces done. 
New Manifolds
I decided in the end to go for the stainless steel manifolds (to match the rest of the system!) and Austec duly sourced the bits from Tim Lamont of ACT. So I was greeted by two nice and shiny manifolds... so the lads set about the dangerous task of removing the old ones...
... the bolts nearest the bulkhead were true to form and took a bit of persuasion.. although the passenger side lower one took quite a lot..
in fact it involved a lot of swearing and wiggling of knackered manifold.
I'll post pics tomorrow, but the old ones were cracked and there were welds on welds... and generally pretty shitty. New ones are
though!
Apart from that lovely shiny look, I was delighted to hear the car fire up. Not at all "tinny" as I had been warned about, but a nice tight sound... goes from a lovely burble at idle to a full blown wail as you get towards the readline..
lovely.
Laser Alignment
Courtesy of the local council (large pothole!) I decided to have the wheels aligned, as the car was pulling to one side.
This was quickly confirmed and that pothole has a lot to answer for! Settings had generally been thrown way off, and after an hour I took the car for a quick blat.
Oh
... that's more like it! The S feels solid, planted and corners like never before... goes round on rails. Well worth every penny of the £100 + VAT.
Backon the Rollers
Guessing this is what the S series boys are most interested in...
As I ended the last report we were doing well... up on torque, and up on power... but crucially the way the power was delivered was SO smooth.
Anyway, with the new manifolds (and no leaks!) Paul's electronic toys were able to give better readings, which enabled him to smooth out the curves... but then we came across a problem. WE NEEDED MORE FUEL!!!
The injectors were just not delivering what we needed... so... out they came!
Injector Cleaning
So for £18 per injector... out they came and into a fancy gizmo on the bench. Something was mentioned about ultrasonic cleaning, and measuring flow... but I was more concerned about my pride and joy's engine in bits!
Still, they were tested and cleaned... and unfortunately the gains to be had were unusally small.
(It's normally around 5-10% and I realised about 1%!!!).
Still, it was all cleaned, went back together and then it was back on the rollers...
Results
Well, there's no doubt that the cleaning of the injectors (and plenum) will have helped and Paul smoothed off the slightly lumpy bits and removed the flatspot I'd found, and the car is going like
of a shovel...!
I got onto the M23 to go home... opened her up in second and WOOOOOHOOOOOO....! Pops and bangs as I changed, into third and we're off again...!
Surprisingly the car is smoother, and even more surprising is that it's so noticeable.
What next?!?
Well, we've reached the limits of the injectors.. just can't get any more fuel out of them... but don't worry! There's a bit more to be had out of this S yet... and with the help of the guys at Austec, we're going to see if we can find it... stay tuned... you won't have to wait too long!
Oh, and a big thanks and
to Paul, Mike and the lads at Austec for putting up with me for the day asking stupid questions, getting in the way and drinking their entire month's supply of tea.
New Manifolds
I decided in the end to go for the stainless steel manifolds (to match the rest of the system!) and Austec duly sourced the bits from Tim Lamont of ACT. So I was greeted by two nice and shiny manifolds... so the lads set about the dangerous task of removing the old ones...
... the bolts nearest the bulkhead were true to form and took a bit of persuasion.. although the passenger side lower one took quite a lot..
in fact it involved a lot of swearing and wiggling of knackered manifold. I'll post pics tomorrow, but the old ones were cracked and there were welds on welds... and generally pretty shitty. New ones are
though! Apart from that lovely shiny look, I was delighted to hear the car fire up. Not at all "tinny" as I had been warned about, but a nice tight sound... goes from a lovely burble at idle to a full blown wail as you get towards the readline..
lovely. Laser Alignment
Courtesy of the local council (large pothole!) I decided to have the wheels aligned, as the car was pulling to one side.
This was quickly confirmed and that pothole has a lot to answer for! Settings had generally been thrown way off, and after an hour I took the car for a quick blat. Oh
... that's more like it! The S feels solid, planted and corners like never before... goes round on rails. Well worth every penny of the £100 + VAT. Backon the Rollers
Guessing this is what the S series boys are most interested in...
As I ended the last report we were doing well... up on torque, and up on power... but crucially the way the power was delivered was SO smooth.
Anyway, with the new manifolds (and no leaks!) Paul's electronic toys were able to give better readings, which enabled him to smooth out the curves... but then we came across a problem. WE NEEDED MORE FUEL!!!
The injectors were just not delivering what we needed... so... out they came!
Injector Cleaning
So for £18 per injector... out they came and into a fancy gizmo on the bench. Something was mentioned about ultrasonic cleaning, and measuring flow... but I was more concerned about my pride and joy's engine in bits!
Still, they were tested and cleaned... and unfortunately the gains to be had were unusally small.
(It's normally around 5-10% and I realised about 1%!!!). Still, it was all cleaned, went back together and then it was back on the rollers...
Results
Well, there's no doubt that the cleaning of the injectors (and plenum) will have helped and Paul smoothed off the slightly lumpy bits and removed the flatspot I'd found, and the car is going like
of a shovel...! I got onto the M23 to go home... opened her up in second and WOOOOOHOOOOOO....! Pops and bangs as I changed, into third and we're off again...!
Surprisingly the car is smoother, and even more surprising is that it's so noticeable.
What next?!?
Well, we've reached the limits of the injectors.. just can't get any more fuel out of them... but don't worry! There's a bit more to be had out of this S yet... and with the help of the guys at Austec, we're going to see if we can find it... stay tuned... you won't have to wait too long!
Oh, and a big thanks and
to Paul, Mike and the lads at Austec for putting up with me for the day asking stupid questions, getting in the way and drinking their entire month's supply of tea. Well these are the manifolds that came off...
..and this is what went on...
..although after a good run, they've now gone that lovely bluey/gold colour... mmm.. shiny!
As for the engine... there are basically two options; 1) bigger injectors
2) increase fuel pressure
The plan is to go with option 2 as it's the cheaper of the two and Paul hopes this should do the trick. The plan is to move them up from 2.5bar to 3bar (well within their limits by the way) and use a powerboost valve to bring up the fuel pressure.
Unless of course I can find some injectors with an increased flow rate (I need about 10%)...!
Harry - this isn't just a case of getting out what we can... we still need to get more fuel INTO the engine, as it's still running a bit too lean...!
>> Edited by Podie on Wednesday 25th February 08:35
..and this is what went on...
..although after a good run, they've now gone that lovely bluey/gold colour... mmm.. shiny!
As for the engine... there are basically two options; 1) bigger injectors
2) increase fuel pressure
The plan is to go with option 2 as it's the cheaper of the two and Paul hopes this should do the trick. The plan is to move them up from 2.5bar to 3bar (well within their limits by the way) and use a powerboost valve to bring up the fuel pressure.
Unless of course I can find some injectors with an increased flow rate (I need about 10%)...!
Harry - this isn't just a case of getting out what we can... we still need to get more fuel INTO the engine, as it's still running a bit too lean...!
>> Edited by Podie on Wednesday 25th February 08:35
to Bridgdav who popped into Austec to say hello..! bridgdav said:
After seeing RichardR's car at Tom Horsburgh's, I was really gutted for him. That may take some time to sort....
But quite funny last night....My mind was racing a bit when I got home, I even found myself talking to my missus about getting the chip upgrade...
Not that she knows anything about what I was mumbling on about....
I'm just wondering that if I pay the £120 or so for the initial R/R session to have the car assessed with minor tweeking...What am I going to get...Am I going to be happy....??
Or
Do I just go for the Full chip treatment, saving me £120 for the initial R/R but costing over £500 for the extra stuff....
The way I see it, is that if you go for the R/R you'll have the car setup as best as it can, AS IT CURRENTLY IS.
OK, I'm biased, but I haven't regretted the chip. I wanted a bit more grunt and got BIG gains.. but it's the driveability and throttle response that are mind blowing.
It's a bit of a spiral... I'm in the position where I KNOW there is more there, but it's going to cost MORE to get to it.. so I have to decide where to draw the line.
Austec offered me a "if you're not 100% happy, we'll take it back" on my chip... and there is no way they're getting it back.
Once we realised that we were being restricted by the amount of fuel that was going in.. we decided not to bother.
I currently have some friends in powertrain looking into it for me, and considering the options available.
Once we (me, powertrain and Austec) have made a decision the car will be booked in. Given their busy schedule I'm hoping to get back to Crawley in 3 to 4 weeks time.
I currently have some friends in powertrain looking into it for me, and considering the options available.
Once we (me, powertrain and Austec) have made a decision the car will be booked in. Given their busy schedule I'm hoping to get back to Crawley in 3 to 4 weeks time.
s2 giles said:
Hi Podie
Knowing what you know now, would you take an FSE power boost valve along for them to fit first before starting ?
I am seriously looking at having the austec piggy back chip, so would you advise the fuel pressure regulator at the same time to get the best ? they are only £70 and may make a difference
Cheers
Giles
You'd be better speaking to Paul at Austec about that to be honest, but I think it depends on the individual car.
My car needs more fuel... yours may not - we all know that each TVR is different. You may find that you get to the optimum level without the need for a powerboost valve, then again you might need one.
Bear in mind that I'm now going into uncharted territory by looking at powerboost valves or changing the injectors... up to you if you want to take it up with Austec...!
(Oh, and the one you need is the horizontal one, so is about £100)
Batty S4C said:
RichardR said:
Those new manifolds look sweet!
I'll take a pic over the weekend of them in situ.. they've gone that lovely bluey-gold colour now...
Podie this is something that i'd like to do pretty soon, do you have many details on gaskets sealants bolts etc that could be useful??
Many Thanks
Matt
Austec provied the bolts and sealants and gunk and stuff.. I provided my own gaskets; theyre the standard Ford/Motorcraft parts.
bridgdav said:
Podie
Were you advised about cleaning your injectors before you went to Austec...?
I think I will probably use some in tank injector cleaner prior to going down....
I've E mailed them by the way...
Yes I was fully aware that the injectors may need cleaning and we spoke about costs prior to me even going to Crawley.
If you go for the ECU re-map, you MAY not need to have them cleaned, simply becuase each car is different, and Paul may be able to get to the optimum level on your particular car... unfortunately for me, I haven't quite got there.... yet!
Don't mail them... give them a
...!RichardR said:
You mention that they had a bit of grief with the manifold studs, but it sounds like they managed to get them all undone without any breakages? Is that the case? If so, did they do anything special, or was it just down to luck?
They all came out without any breakages.
The lower ones nearest the windscreen were the most troublesome; especially the passenger side one, which was apparently "a bit of a close call, we had to wiggle the manifold to help get ti out!"
I gave them all a squirt of WD40 every other day for a week prior to the work just in case... but I think credit has to go to the lads that did the work.. there has to be an element of skill and knowing just how much you can push without the bolt sheering.
I had the "what happens if.." conversation with Paul, and he said he'd just ge tthe heli-coil out...
trefor said:
bridgdav said:
Podie
Were you advised about cleaning your injectors before you went to Austec...?
I think I will probably use some in tank injector cleaner prior to going down....
I've E mailed them by the way...
Yes I was fully aware that the injectors may need cleaning and we spoke about costs prior to me even going to Crawley.
If you go for the ECU re-map, you MAY not need to have them cleaned, simply becuase each car is different, and Paul may be able to get to the optimum level on your particular car... unfortunately for me, I haven't quite got there.... yet!
Don't mail them... give them a
I can't remember the exact price, but Power Engineering charge something like twice the price Austec do per injector for cleaning! 35 pounds springs to mind, but I could be wrong - need to sort my receipts out.
Shush! Austec will put their prices up!
RichardR said:
RichardR said:
Podie said:
I had the "what happens if.." conversation with Paul, and he said he'd just ge tthe heli-coil out...
As well as the cylinder head, presumably?
Think it depends which bolt it is...
So they can access some of them with the head in place then?
AFAIK there may be on of two of the bolsts that MAY requre the head coming off, IF they snapped..
Top news! bridgdav said:
Podie said:
It'll be a looooooooooong two weeks mate..
It sure will be....
Looking forward to comparing graphs...
This will give Austec a good opportunity to assess the results from another car..
I'm Grinning and I've not even had it done yet....
What date are you going..? I might pop along, just to see your face after you've had the test drive when he's finished!
EDIT - YHM
>> Edited by Podie on Friday 27th February 10:37
Gassing Station | S Series | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff