605bhp Per Ton 200SX Powered Kitcar
Discussion
swampy442 said:
Just caught up with this thread, what a ride! As said CA18s have a rep for being a bit fragile but good to see you're working out the problems and sticking with it
Their fragility is typically due to a poor sump design, poor maintenance and poor oil return flow from the head.I've got a custom baffled sump, additional oil return pipes and have a good maintenance regime so it should now be no less reliable than any other engine.
I also don't spend much of my time going sideways which also seems to kill them, ha.
Remember how I said the car was complete, well apparently the car didn't agree.
I had some awesome drives over the last month or so. The car is really really motoring
https://www.instagram.com/p/B6xYxo4HqHq/?utm_sourc...(instagram video)
Unfortunately when I returned from my last drive there was blue smoke coming out of the exhaust
I did a compression test, the results were all OK so it was fairly obvious the turbo oil seals had gone.
I set about taking the turbo off.
Once off, it was fairly clear the seals had gone. There was also significant movement in the shaft itself.
I took the turbo to Venom Turbos in Leeds. This company specialises in rebuilding ball-bearing turbos. The damage to the turbo was fairly severe and would have resulted in a bill of almost a grand.
I therefore chose to buy the most appropriate replacement 'off the shelf', for a bit more money. The Garrett GTX2867r GenII. This turbo has the potential to do 450bhp if I really push it!
New turbo arrived -
...and fitted.
I did a video on my YouTube channel of fitting removing the old turbo and replacing it with a new one.
That's where I am currently. I need to get some road miles on the car before heading back over to Leeds for mapping.
If I can get to 435bhp that would take the car to 700bhp/ton which is more than a Koenigsegg CCX
I had some awesome drives over the last month or so. The car is really really motoring
https://www.instagram.com/p/B6xYxo4HqHq/?utm_sourc...(instagram video)
Unfortunately when I returned from my last drive there was blue smoke coming out of the exhaust
I did a compression test, the results were all OK so it was fairly obvious the turbo oil seals had gone.
I set about taking the turbo off.
Once off, it was fairly clear the seals had gone. There was also significant movement in the shaft itself.
I took the turbo to Venom Turbos in Leeds. This company specialises in rebuilding ball-bearing turbos. The damage to the turbo was fairly severe and would have resulted in a bill of almost a grand.
I therefore chose to buy the most appropriate replacement 'off the shelf', for a bit more money. The Garrett GTX2867r GenII. This turbo has the potential to do 450bhp if I really push it!
New turbo arrived -
...and fitted.
I did a video on my YouTube channel of fitting removing the old turbo and replacing it with a new one.
That's where I am currently. I need to get some road miles on the car before heading back over to Leeds for mapping.
If I can get to 435bhp that would take the car to 700bhp/ton which is more than a Koenigsegg CCX
Edited by dave2007bc on Thursday 7th May 10:56
Astacus said:
Have you taken it back to show the guy who originally built it?
He met me at a trackday last year and we WhatsApp regularly. I think it's the first time I've kept in touch with someone I've bought a car from. He's surprisingly happy with the journey the car has been on.He's since bought a 2nd hand kit from someone else and refined it to suit him.
Thanks for the long reply BigTomm.
The reason for the choice of ca18 was simply cost. At the time a CA was £4-500 whereas an SR was around a grand (and also slightly heavier).
Currently, SRs are at least £1400+ where as CAs are £7-800.
Both engines come with their own problems and I don't doubt for a second with the way I drive, an SR would have had issues with rocker arms breaking.
Whichever engine I had originally chosen I'd have ended up forging it I imagine.
If I had to make the same decision now I'd be putting in a k20 Honda engine for sure. It's a no brainer.
The reason for the choice of ca18 was simply cost. At the time a CA was £4-500 whereas an SR was around a grand (and also slightly heavier).
Currently, SRs are at least £1400+ where as CAs are £7-800.
Both engines come with their own problems and I don't doubt for a second with the way I drive, an SR would have had issues with rocker arms breaking.
Whichever engine I had originally chosen I'd have ended up forging it I imagine.
If I had to make the same decision now I'd be putting in a k20 Honda engine for sure. It's a no brainer.
Minor change. My old air filter was minging so I swopped it out for a colour-coded one.
It's the little things
I then did a few miles in the car with the new turbo and things seemed to be going well. I booked in at my regular mapper, RS Tuning in Leeds to get everything setup correctly.
I suffered hugely with wheelspin which meant that we couldn't really turn the boost up. I had to swap my tyres over mid-mapping and even with this done, we could still only turn the boost up to 1.6 bar unfortunately as it started spinning again.
At 1.6 bar, this was the result:
A huge huge increase in torque and a decent increase in bhp throughout the rev range. You can see the the 'peak' power seems to end earlier than before - this is due to wheelslip meaning the actual bhp is probably somewhere above 385. At the recorded 376bhp figure I now have 605bhp/ton.
For comparison at 1.2 bar on the new turbo, it made just 10bhp more but still had a good increase in torque throughout.
I've done another youtube video which you can find on my "Locost Turbo" YouTube channel.
Sorry for the clickbait thumbnail that I'm sure most of you will hate but I do now have a higher bhp/ton than a Veyron so it's not a total lie
The mapper told me to come back with some slicks on the rear in order to get traction and, if I want, turn the boost up some more. I've not driven the car since it was mapped and if I'm honest I highly doubt I will need anymore power.
I do have a couple of things I want to do though. I'm finally going to replace the rear drums on the car. I've acquired some Mk7 Ford Fiesta ST rear discs and caliper so will be getting these fitted at some point. I also want to install a clutch-switch so that I can setup flat-shifting on the MaxxECU.
Other than that I just want to, finally, enjoy the car.
It's the little things
I then did a few miles in the car with the new turbo and things seemed to be going well. I booked in at my regular mapper, RS Tuning in Leeds to get everything setup correctly.
I suffered hugely with wheelspin which meant that we couldn't really turn the boost up. I had to swap my tyres over mid-mapping and even with this done, we could still only turn the boost up to 1.6 bar unfortunately as it started spinning again.
At 1.6 bar, this was the result:
A huge huge increase in torque and a decent increase in bhp throughout the rev range. You can see the the 'peak' power seems to end earlier than before - this is due to wheelslip meaning the actual bhp is probably somewhere above 385. At the recorded 376bhp figure I now have 605bhp/ton.
For comparison at 1.2 bar on the new turbo, it made just 10bhp more but still had a good increase in torque throughout.
I've done another youtube video which you can find on my "Locost Turbo" YouTube channel.
Sorry for the clickbait thumbnail that I'm sure most of you will hate but I do now have a higher bhp/ton than a Veyron so it's not a total lie
The mapper told me to come back with some slicks on the rear in order to get traction and, if I want, turn the boost up some more. I've not driven the car since it was mapped and if I'm honest I highly doubt I will need anymore power.
I do have a couple of things I want to do though. I'm finally going to replace the rear drums on the car. I've acquired some Mk7 Ford Fiesta ST rear discs and caliper so will be getting these fitted at some point. I also want to install a clutch-switch so that I can setup flat-shifting on the MaxxECU.
Other than that I just want to, finally, enjoy the car.
Edited by dave2007bc on Thursday 13th February 10:50
Edited by dave2007bc on Thursday 7th May 10:57
Despite the biblical rainfall I have managed to get out in the car a couple of times. It's going to take some getting used to!
I've probably done 100-150miles or so and only 5 of those were in high-boost. It's absolutely terrifying and spins the wheels when it comes on boost in 4th, not ideal!
The car is booked in with Clark Customs in Barnsley to get my rear disc setup completed and then the microswitch installed for the flat-shifting. I also need to make some tweaks to the accel-enrich on my map to improve throttle response on gear-changes. Other than that, dare I say it... the project is complete?!
I've probably done 100-150miles or so and only 5 of those were in high-boost. It's absolutely terrifying and spins the wheels when it comes on boost in 4th, not ideal!
The car is booked in with Clark Customs in Barnsley to get my rear disc setup completed and then the microswitch installed for the flat-shifting. I also need to make some tweaks to the accel-enrich on my map to improve throttle response on gear-changes. Other than that, dare I say it... the project is complete?!
NotNormal said:
Cheers, having gone through the issues of making a high power se7en work I feel some of your pain so interested to see how others tackle some of the probs.
Your 5 deg above ambient I expect will be cruising speed. Specifically I should have asked when "on-boost" as I would think it'll be quite high (especially in the summer months) looking at your setup coupled with the increase in pressure.
I did some logging the last time I went out. Inlet temps were around 13 deg (outside temp 5 deg). After multiple 'pulls' [on a private road] from 1st-4th, inlet temps were around 27 degrees but dropped off very quickly off-boost. Coolant temps are great, <80 degrees. If the inlet temps become an issue in Summer then I'll consider fitting meth or water injection to keep things safe. My ECU does have some decent safety measures built in once the IAT rises however so I'm not a risk of breaking anything, just being a bit down on power.Your 5 deg above ambient I expect will be cruising speed. Specifically I should have asked when "on-boost" as I would think it'll be quite high (especially in the summer months) looking at your setup coupled with the increase in pressure.
NotNormal said:
Good stuff, roll on some warmer weather to help out in the traction department 
You gong to Stoneleigh show per chance? (weather dependent obviously)
Sadly not. I try and be committed to being a good Dad on a weekend so free-time is limited. I'd rather spend a free day driving around the Derbyshire and Yorkshire Dales than wandering round a field looking at other cars tbh.You gong to Stoneleigh show per chance? (weather dependent obviously)
I'm hoping to go to a lot of local shows this year (then I can bring the wife and child ;-) ) but nothing far a field.
Well I'm sure this Covid-19 is because of my car. Everytime I get it working something gets in my way and stops me from driving the damn thing
I'd always wanted proper rear brakes, the capri-drum brakes (whilst they worked) weren't ideal and I was always mocked by people for having drums on the back.
The common choice is to replace the drums with Sierra Cosworth calipers. Aside from being old and expensive they're also heavy. I had my own idea.
I got some Fiesta Mk6 st discs, calipers and pads for less than £60. A trip to my fabricator, Clark Customs, in Barnsley saw them fitted within a few hours. (pre-lockdown btw)
I did a short vlog of the fitting process and also a few videos of my first drive in the car on high-boost.
As the car is now quarantined with the rest of the UK I'm going to get it up on axle stands and have a bit of a fettle with the chassis and remove some of the surface rust that's amounted over the last 7 years.
I've also got some aero-catches to fit as my bonnet keeps popping up at over 100mph which is never a good thing!
I'd always wanted proper rear brakes, the capri-drum brakes (whilst they worked) weren't ideal and I was always mocked by people for having drums on the back.
The common choice is to replace the drums with Sierra Cosworth calipers. Aside from being old and expensive they're also heavy. I had my own idea.
I got some Fiesta Mk6 st discs, calipers and pads for less than £60. A trip to my fabricator, Clark Customs, in Barnsley saw them fitted within a few hours. (pre-lockdown btw)
I did a short vlog of the fitting process and also a few videos of my first drive in the car on high-boost.
As the car is now quarantined with the rest of the UK I'm going to get it up on axle stands and have a bit of a fettle with the chassis and remove some of the surface rust that's amounted over the last 7 years.
I've also got some aero-catches to fit as my bonnet keeps popping up at over 100mph which is never a good thing!
Edited by dave2007bc on Thursday 7th May 10:58
InitialDave said:
Ah, I remember when FWD Escort front brakes were the bargain option for rear disc conversions on RWD Escorts, the disc bell height meaning everything lined up neatly with a simple flat plate adaptor, assume this is similar?
yep, that option still works but the calipers are both heavy and expensive (and don't have a handbrake).The original drum plate that houses the cylinders and drum mechanism acts as a small (3mm) plate that goes between the axle itself half-shaft. We cut that off using a plasma cutter and then made a new bracket to bolt to the back of the hub that holds the caliper.
It was fairly simple tbh and a lot cheaper and lighter than the sierra version.
As there is very little of me driving the car anytime soon I started on all the little jobs that you can never be bothered to do normally.
The first was to go over the chassis and clean off and repaint where any surface rust was showing through (no pics).
The front brake kit has a number of areas that are never covered by the pads and, as such, had a lot of surface rust. I cleaned it all off and painted up with hammerite.
I was going to re-paint the rear calipers from red to something lairy and then do the front ones to match. I decided against making work for myself so opted for painting the fronts red to match the rears.
Whilst doing that, I also replaced the seals on the Wilwood calipers. Wilwood calipers don't have dust seals on the pistons so it's always worth doing periodically.
..and all painted and on the car
Not a 100% perfect job on the painting but cost me less than a tenner instead of the £150+ that local specialists want to charge.
Next up, fitting some aero-catches to stop my bonnet flying up at high speeds.
https://www.instagram.com/locost_turbo
YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo5IQ4lTmiEAVhrNU...
The first was to go over the chassis and clean off and repaint where any surface rust was showing through (no pics).
The front brake kit has a number of areas that are never covered by the pads and, as such, had a lot of surface rust. I cleaned it all off and painted up with hammerite.
I was going to re-paint the rear calipers from red to something lairy and then do the front ones to match. I decided against making work for myself so opted for painting the fronts red to match the rears.
Whilst doing that, I also replaced the seals on the Wilwood calipers. Wilwood calipers don't have dust seals on the pistons so it's always worth doing periodically.
..and all painted and on the car
Not a 100% perfect job on the painting but cost me less than a tenner instead of the £150+ that local specialists want to charge.
Next up, fitting some aero-catches to stop my bonnet flying up at high speeds.
https://www.instagram.com/locost_turbo
YouTube Channel - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo5IQ4lTmiEAVhrNU...
I'm a sucker for carbon and couldn't pass up this bargain. Sadly/strangely it weighs half a kilogram more than the GRP one it replaced but looks so much better.
The quality is not amazing by any means but it matches the rest of the cabin now.
Assuming I'm not living off bread and water at the end of COVID I might treat myself to a B4 Tillet for the drivers seat.
The quality is not amazing by any means but it matches the rest of the cabin now.
Assuming I'm not living off bread and water at the end of COVID I might treat myself to a B4 Tillet for the drivers seat.
BEN99W said:
Awesome car and thread. I used to have a Westfield which I made lots of changes to, so can relate albeit I found 180bhp ample on the road! Reading this really makes me miss it, even though i replaced it with a turbocharged mx5.
Anyway, i noticed you've hammerited your front discs. Hammerite will suffice on calipers on normal cars, but it melts at temperatures much lower than your front discs will see. Then it will be lubricating your brakes.
I've seen this happen and have just had to redo the paint on the brakes on my mx5 to stop this happening to me. Even some specific caliper paints aren't very heat proof and I've yet to find any paint that could safely be applied to front discs. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I'd hate to see you bend it.
Interesting is that. I've hammerited loads of discs/calipers over the years and never had an issue with it running or melting.Anyway, i noticed you've hammerited your front discs. Hammerite will suffice on calipers on normal cars, but it melts at temperatures much lower than your front discs will see. Then it will be lubricating your brakes.
I've seen this happen and have just had to redo the paint on the brakes on my mx5 to stop this happening to me. Even some specific caliper paints aren't very heat proof and I've yet to find any paint that could safely be applied to front discs. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I'd hate to see you bend it.
It'll be on the road again well before a track day so I'll get some heat into the front brakes and have a look and see what's what before I do anything.
Another update due to not being able to drive it!
On the last drive the bonnet kept popping up over 100mph, presumably due to the large bonnet scoop that is catching air at those speeds.
I bought and fitted some aerocatches to make sure that can never happen again
I'm just going to have them at the front and it's very unlikely the back will get enough air pull to lift (I hope!)
Next up, fitting a clutch switch on my pedal box to enable flat-shifting
On the last drive the bonnet kept popping up over 100mph, presumably due to the large bonnet scoop that is catching air at those speeds.
I bought and fitted some aerocatches to make sure that can never happen again
I'm just going to have them at the front and it's very unlikely the back will get enough air pull to lift (I hope!)
Next up, fitting a clutch switch on my pedal box to enable flat-shifting
andburg said:
Good read, fair play for keeping going with this.
Amazingly I'm in and around your area every day and i dont recall ever seeing this, probably because its mostly broken down though
Last engine breakages aside; becoming a Dad 5 years ago put a serious dent in seat-time. The car only gets used occasionally on a weekend and if its dry. Rest assured it will be out a lot once the lock down is gone.Amazingly I'm in and around your area every day and i dont recall ever seeing this, probably because its mostly broken down though
As noted above, the front and rear wings were sold; more of a garage clearout than anything.
BUT, whilst browsing eBay as you do, I saw an auction for a big rear wing for sale. It was fitted to a space-frame hillclimb car and was originally used in Formula 2 racing in the 80s.
Anyway... I'm sure you can tell where this is going!
General consensus seems to be about 50/50 good and bad. I know it might make the front end lift because of the size, but I'm not planning on any track days soon and, despite just selling the old front splitter, I've been offered another as a gift.
I only fitted it to pass the time so unsure whether or not it will stay. It gave me something to do during lock down anyway...
BUT, whilst browsing eBay as you do, I saw an auction for a big rear wing for sale. It was fitted to a space-frame hillclimb car and was originally used in Formula 2 racing in the 80s.
Anyway... I'm sure you can tell where this is going!
General consensus seems to be about 50/50 good and bad. I know it might make the front end lift because of the size, but I'm not planning on any track days soon and, despite just selling the old front splitter, I've been offered another as a gift.
I only fitted it to pass the time so unsure whether or not it will stay. It gave me something to do during lock down anyway...
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