My Vauxhall Monaro VXR (RIP)
Discussion
I bought my red 05-reg Monaro VXR (6-litre version) from Vauxhall in 2006. It was an ex-demonstrator with 3K on the clock. I was happy to pay £29K for it, as it looked great (even the wife was impressed).
Over the next couple of years, I spent quite a few quid modifying it. This is mandatory for Monaro owners, as the base car is such a willing blank-canvas. Monkfish Performance kindly fitted poly bushes, Pedders adjustable coil-overs, AP racing brakes, a quick ratio steering rack and a rip-shifter (the standard one is a bit stodgy). All these smartened up the driving experience no end. All that was left was to deal with the obviously inadequate engine (400hp).
It might sound daft, but even the most powerful Ro feels 'slow' compared with many hot hatches. Long gearing and a slow gearshift don't help. At legal speeds, it's often the case that you can't leave that turbo FWD that's up your a*se. Over 100mph (on private roads) the story is different, but for most owners more real world power is a must.
Monkfish sourced a bolt-on twin turbo kit from Australia (GEN-TTR). They fitted this, along with a new exhaust, injectors and 100-cell cats. It was work in progress for some time, as the kit wasn't as fit-and-forget as you'd hope. The dyno chart below shows what was achieved:
The installation looked stock, which was nice:
The car was much more lively now, pretty much all I wanted. It could break traction in gear at 100mph in the wet without much provocation. Not particularly useful, but an indication of how much torque it had.
Sadly, at a run round RAF Marham a couple of years ago, I lost a piston due to detonation. Stock pistons are good for around 550hp. I was experimenting with the boost at the time and guess I took things a bit too far. Amazingly, even with a stuffed piston, it managed to outrun everything on the back straight.
The car languished on the driveway for several months, while I considered my options. Then one day on Eurodragster I spotted just the thing to replace my old engine...
Over the next couple of years, I spent quite a few quid modifying it. This is mandatory for Monaro owners, as the base car is such a willing blank-canvas. Monkfish Performance kindly fitted poly bushes, Pedders adjustable coil-overs, AP racing brakes, a quick ratio steering rack and a rip-shifter (the standard one is a bit stodgy). All these smartened up the driving experience no end. All that was left was to deal with the obviously inadequate engine (400hp).
It might sound daft, but even the most powerful Ro feels 'slow' compared with many hot hatches. Long gearing and a slow gearshift don't help. At legal speeds, it's often the case that you can't leave that turbo FWD that's up your a*se. Over 100mph (on private roads) the story is different, but for most owners more real world power is a must.
Monkfish sourced a bolt-on twin turbo kit from Australia (GEN-TTR). They fitted this, along with a new exhaust, injectors and 100-cell cats. It was work in progress for some time, as the kit wasn't as fit-and-forget as you'd hope. The dyno chart below shows what was achieved:
The installation looked stock, which was nice:
The car was much more lively now, pretty much all I wanted. It could break traction in gear at 100mph in the wet without much provocation. Not particularly useful, but an indication of how much torque it had.
Sadly, at a run round RAF Marham a couple of years ago, I lost a piston due to detonation. Stock pistons are good for around 550hp. I was experimenting with the boost at the time and guess I took things a bit too far. Amazingly, even with a stuffed piston, it managed to outrun everything on the back straight.
The car languished on the driveway for several months, while I considered my options. Then one day on Eurodragster I spotted just the thing to replace my old engine...
The trouble with a current generation SBC is that it's very cheap to replace. A crate LS3 can be had for around £5K, pushes 400hp and comes with a warranty. Fixing a broken LS2 isn't a cheap option, as you have a lot of garage labour to pay for. I didn't really want to spend big money, but equally felt the need to get something in return for the outlay. I was on the verge of paying for a simple rebuid with a forged rotating assembly when an LSX427 turned up on Eurodragster.
For those who don't know, the LSX block is iron and has extra head bolts. GM built them for tuners and rate them at 2500hp. To prove the point they put one together and ran it to 2000hp with just 6.6-litres. This engine was a very similar specification and wasn't much more than a crate LS3. I bought a pair of BW turbos (around 60mm), and Tial wastegates and handed the lot over to John Sleath in Doncaster, asking him to build me a fast car.
My vision was of a stock looking Monaro, with an autobox, turbo lag and looooads of boost. John spent a few months building my new set-up:
Once the installation was fully assembled, John moved it to the engine dyno for tuning. I was hoping for over 800hp. We maxed out the 96lb injectors at 17.5psi. The new dyno sheet was f**king amazing:
Shake down testing was a pain, as the car ran incredibly hot to begin with. The radiator blew after a couple of hundred miles, so the car went back for a new cam and custom rad. Airlocks in the waterpump also caused problems, as did the odd oil leak.
The biggest problem was the power. I ran it at 12psi (around 1000hp) and found it was a nightmare to drive. Anything more than no throttle would spool the turbos and try to kill you. Driving it was not fun, by any stretch of the imagination. What I needed was more traction...
For those who don't know, the LSX block is iron and has extra head bolts. GM built them for tuners and rate them at 2500hp. To prove the point they put one together and ran it to 2000hp with just 6.6-litres. This engine was a very similar specification and wasn't much more than a crate LS3. I bought a pair of BW turbos (around 60mm), and Tial wastegates and handed the lot over to John Sleath in Doncaster, asking him to build me a fast car.
My vision was of a stock looking Monaro, with an autobox, turbo lag and looooads of boost. John spent a few months building my new set-up:
Once the installation was fully assembled, John moved it to the engine dyno for tuning. I was hoping for over 800hp. We maxed out the 96lb injectors at 17.5psi. The new dyno sheet was f**king amazing:
Shake down testing was a pain, as the car ran incredibly hot to begin with. The radiator blew after a couple of hundred miles, so the car went back for a new cam and custom rad. Airlocks in the waterpump also caused problems, as did the odd oil leak.
The biggest problem was the power. I ran it at 12psi (around 1000hp) and found it was a nightmare to drive. Anything more than no throttle would spool the turbos and try to kill you. Driving it was not fun, by any stretch of the imagination. What I needed was more traction...
Pirelli says that "Power is nothing without control". Monaros can only accommodate 245 section tyres under the rear arches, and they struggle to provide traction with a stock set up. The only way I was going to have 'control' was to seriously increase the footprint of the rear tyres. Monkfish Performance have developed a mini-tub that opens the arches up (inwards), which can accommodate 285 rubber. This has been used with forum Ros pushing 900hp. I figured I needed more than that if I was to run 1200hp.
The choices were either pay for a specially modified IRS from the States or ask John to fit a live axle (drag style rear). I went with the drag style rear, as John has a few customers running similar set-ups with no issues:
I decided to include a half-cage and a five point harness, as John reckoned the car would be proper fast. I've driven what I'd considered to be fast cars before, so wasn't sure what the difference would be. I went with his advice, even though it meant losing access to the rear seats.
I think the end result was subtle to say the least:
The choices were either pay for a specially modified IRS from the States or ask John to fit a live axle (drag style rear). I went with the drag style rear, as John has a few customers running similar set-ups with no issues:
I decided to include a half-cage and a five point harness, as John reckoned the car would be proper fast. I've driven what I'd considered to be fast cars before, so wasn't sure what the difference would be. I went with his advice, even though it meant losing access to the rear seats.
I think the end result was subtle to say the least:
For those interested in engines revving on dynos, John posted this video of some early tuning stages:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ow0em6OUAsY
Just over 4-minutes in is the readout from the engine dyno. Horsepower is shown near the top in the middle. Watch the numbers increase as the turbos spool...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ow0em6OUAsY
Just over 4-minutes in is the readout from the engine dyno. Horsepower is shown near the top in the middle. Watch the numbers increase as the turbos spool...
Performance Vauxhall Show 2012 - 42-seconds (or so) of fun
For those who haven't been, PVS is well worth a visit. It runs every year at Santa Pod and this year's turn-out was great. The weather forecast was rain (remember when it rained all the time?), so I was on the verge of cancelling. Luckily the rain stayed away, guaranteeing some epic racing. Total Vauxhall produced an excellent video of the show (see if you can spot the Ro):
http://www.performancevauxhallshow.co.uk/2012/06/1...
John trailered the Ro to the show and we made plans to fully test the new set-up during the RWYB time. I was plenty apprehensive, as I'd never drag raced before. As I set off for the first run of the day and odd thing happened; the marshalls mistook the Ro for one of the show cars (three proper dragsters, including RV3). I was instructed to follow Red Victor down the service lane that runs past the grand stand. This was the first and last time RV3 failed to lose me:
Having jumped the RWYB queue and posed for photograhs, John suggested we try to blag a place in the show (thereby avoiding paying the strip fee). It sounded like a good idea at the time, but when I was sat waiting my turn to race in front of a full house, in an untested car and having never raced before, I had second thoughts. So I failed to stage properly and had the marshall usher me forward (doh). Then I missed the lights go green and clocked a 2.4-second response time (double doh).
I planted the loud pedal with some vigour and the car launched. The turbos spooled. Holy s**t was what went through my mind, as my eyeballs sat back in their sockets. I backed off with the shock, before flooring it for a second time. 10.7 at 140mph isn't fast by drag racing standards. It's only about as fast as a Veyron or a Hayabusa. It felt fast to me. Not bad for a Vauxhall with a second hand engine.
The next run was against Roy Walker's Ventora. A proper dragster, running slicks and a BBC. Roy's pulled high-8s with that set-up. I'm sure most people felt I'd get stuffed...okay I did get stuffed. The big difference all happened in the first 60-feet. Roy's massive slicks gave him a 0.5-second lead. After that, the gap didn't ready change that much.
The next race was during the RWYB. I was up against a rather nice Astra VXR. The strip was very slippery by then and I had to back off big time to avoid crossing the track. I still managed an 11.2:
The last race of the day was against Roy again. The strip has been specially prepared for RV3, so was very sticky again. Roy sped away at the start and then just sat there (several car lengths ahead). I'm guessing he could have shaved a few tenths of the time. I pulled a personal best (being an old hand) and went home very happy.
John took the car back to Doncaster to fit an AMS1000 progressive boost controller. The plan was to return for the Mopar Nationals and run a 9-second pass, which would be great for a street legal Ro.
Sadly, all good things come to an end. Some sooner than others. The film "Gone in Sixty Seconds" says it all, which is a shame 'cause I'd just used up 42 of them...
For those who haven't been, PVS is well worth a visit. It runs every year at Santa Pod and this year's turn-out was great. The weather forecast was rain (remember when it rained all the time?), so I was on the verge of cancelling. Luckily the rain stayed away, guaranteeing some epic racing. Total Vauxhall produced an excellent video of the show (see if you can spot the Ro):
http://www.performancevauxhallshow.co.uk/2012/06/1...
John trailered the Ro to the show and we made plans to fully test the new set-up during the RWYB time. I was plenty apprehensive, as I'd never drag raced before. As I set off for the first run of the day and odd thing happened; the marshalls mistook the Ro for one of the show cars (three proper dragsters, including RV3). I was instructed to follow Red Victor down the service lane that runs past the grand stand. This was the first and last time RV3 failed to lose me:
Having jumped the RWYB queue and posed for photograhs, John suggested we try to blag a place in the show (thereby avoiding paying the strip fee). It sounded like a good idea at the time, but when I was sat waiting my turn to race in front of a full house, in an untested car and having never raced before, I had second thoughts. So I failed to stage properly and had the marshall usher me forward (doh). Then I missed the lights go green and clocked a 2.4-second response time (double doh).
I planted the loud pedal with some vigour and the car launched. The turbos spooled. Holy s**t was what went through my mind, as my eyeballs sat back in their sockets. I backed off with the shock, before flooring it for a second time. 10.7 at 140mph isn't fast by drag racing standards. It's only about as fast as a Veyron or a Hayabusa. It felt fast to me. Not bad for a Vauxhall with a second hand engine.
The next run was against Roy Walker's Ventora. A proper dragster, running slicks and a BBC. Roy's pulled high-8s with that set-up. I'm sure most people felt I'd get stuffed...okay I did get stuffed. The big difference all happened in the first 60-feet. Roy's massive slicks gave him a 0.5-second lead. After that, the gap didn't ready change that much.
The next race was during the RWYB. I was up against a rather nice Astra VXR. The strip was very slippery by then and I had to back off big time to avoid crossing the track. I still managed an 11.2:
The last race of the day was against Roy again. The strip has been specially prepared for RV3, so was very sticky again. Roy sped away at the start and then just sat there (several car lengths ahead). I'm guessing he could have shaved a few tenths of the time. I pulled a personal best (being an old hand) and went home very happy.
John took the car back to Doncaster to fit an AMS1000 progressive boost controller. The plan was to return for the Mopar Nationals and run a 9-second pass, which would be great for a street legal Ro.
Sadly, all good things come to an end. Some sooner than others. The film "Gone in Sixty Seconds" says it all, which is a shame 'cause I'd just used up 42 of them...
Mopar Nationals 2012
Another annual event at Santa Pod worth attending. A whole weekend of Americana on display and racing down the strip. The cars are either pristine examples of American muscle or pumped up Pro-Street cars running in the 9s and 10s. It's worth remembering that the early 70s street legal muscle car which just blasted down the strip in 9-seconds would paste an Enzo, 911 turbo, GTR or even Veyron in a straight race. Truely humbling.
The Ro was now sporting an AMS1000 boost controller (with anti-lag set-up), 10/90 front coilovers and a fire suppression system. I'd splashed out and bought a neck-brace, along with some fire retardant clothing. The AMS1000 promised to improve the 60-foot time (around 1.8-seconds) and keep the Ro at the limit of traction for much further down the strip. I was confident that we'd be in the 9s by the end of the day. After the day was over, I planned to take the car home and start using it to scare the residents of Watford.
The day started well, with me pulling a 10.6-second pass in the first race. The AMS1000 was playing up, so there was no antilag or boost controller. What was impressive was that the wastegate springs had been changed to 7spi, so the time was achieved with just 700hp (last outting was on 12psi springs). After a little fiddling we found the controller had a lose connection and fixed it.
I sat on the line watching the lights with my heart in my mouth. The controller was running properly, so I'd brought the revs up to spool the turbos. The lights changed and I side-stepped the brake pedal. Again, there was a slight delay, as the power kicked-in. The car next to me pulled forward. No problem, just wait for the turbos to start delivering. I cleared the tree and was pushed back into the seat. That's when my 60-seconds ran out....
The car suddenly turned left. With no warning I was facing the concrete wall. I lifted and applied armfuls of opposite lock. The car snatched back and was pretty much straight. I thought I'd made it, until I realised that I still had plenty of lateral speed. I hit the wall much harder than expected. Despite being strapped in, I still managed to break the centre console with my ribs and the area around my left kidney. I was still struggling for breath when the marshals arrived.
The force of the impact pushed the front end over, broke the steering, broke the front and rear nearside wheel, pushed the A and B posts in (kinking the roof), stuffed the door and rear quarter, broke the rear light, snapped the boot catch and ripped the terminals of the battery (WTF?). Toast describes the result. The engine, gearbox, turbos, etc were undamaged, as luck would have it. I still have very tender ribs and a wife that tells me I've spent a lot for 60-seconds of fun.
What next?
Well, I've acquired an immaculate blue Monaro shell into which the gearbox, ladder bars and rear axle will go. It will also wear a full VXR bodykit (it's a CV8). All I need is an engine. The plan is to run something a little less manic.
As for the engine, well I've picked up a dark green Audi 80 coupe that has a pair of 88mm turbos bolted into it (along with a whole bunch of other parts). The 96lb injectors are out, to be replaced with 160lb injectors (maybe even a pair of these per cylinder). At which point I'll have the same build spec as that 2000hp engine that Chevrolet put together all those years ago...
Another annual event at Santa Pod worth attending. A whole weekend of Americana on display and racing down the strip. The cars are either pristine examples of American muscle or pumped up Pro-Street cars running in the 9s and 10s. It's worth remembering that the early 70s street legal muscle car which just blasted down the strip in 9-seconds would paste an Enzo, 911 turbo, GTR or even Veyron in a straight race. Truely humbling.
The Ro was now sporting an AMS1000 boost controller (with anti-lag set-up), 10/90 front coilovers and a fire suppression system. I'd splashed out and bought a neck-brace, along with some fire retardant clothing. The AMS1000 promised to improve the 60-foot time (around 1.8-seconds) and keep the Ro at the limit of traction for much further down the strip. I was confident that we'd be in the 9s by the end of the day. After the day was over, I planned to take the car home and start using it to scare the residents of Watford.
The day started well, with me pulling a 10.6-second pass in the first race. The AMS1000 was playing up, so there was no antilag or boost controller. What was impressive was that the wastegate springs had been changed to 7spi, so the time was achieved with just 700hp (last outting was on 12psi springs). After a little fiddling we found the controller had a lose connection and fixed it.
I sat on the line watching the lights with my heart in my mouth. The controller was running properly, so I'd brought the revs up to spool the turbos. The lights changed and I side-stepped the brake pedal. Again, there was a slight delay, as the power kicked-in. The car next to me pulled forward. No problem, just wait for the turbos to start delivering. I cleared the tree and was pushed back into the seat. That's when my 60-seconds ran out....
The car suddenly turned left. With no warning I was facing the concrete wall. I lifted and applied armfuls of opposite lock. The car snatched back and was pretty much straight. I thought I'd made it, until I realised that I still had plenty of lateral speed. I hit the wall much harder than expected. Despite being strapped in, I still managed to break the centre console with my ribs and the area around my left kidney. I was still struggling for breath when the marshals arrived.
The force of the impact pushed the front end over, broke the steering, broke the front and rear nearside wheel, pushed the A and B posts in (kinking the roof), stuffed the door and rear quarter, broke the rear light, snapped the boot catch and ripped the terminals of the battery (WTF?). Toast describes the result. The engine, gearbox, turbos, etc were undamaged, as luck would have it. I still have very tender ribs and a wife that tells me I've spent a lot for 60-seconds of fun.
What next?
Well, I've acquired an immaculate blue Monaro shell into which the gearbox, ladder bars and rear axle will go. It will also wear a full VXR bodykit (it's a CV8). All I need is an engine. The plan is to run something a little less manic.
As for the engine, well I've picked up a dark green Audi 80 coupe that has a pair of 88mm turbos bolted into it (along with a whole bunch of other parts). The 96lb injectors are out, to be replaced with 160lb injectors (maybe even a pair of these per cylinder). At which point I'll have the same build spec as that 2000hp engine that Chevrolet put together all those years ago...
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