Discussion
Hi all. Thought it was about time I added some of my car after perving over the others in this section.
Moody shot, taken by a fellow PH'er at an Ace Cafe meet:
One from a while back at Bedford Autodrome:
Once from the Toyota Sprint Series last year:
The Pro Alloy FMIC core I fitted to replace the Charge Cooler:
Dyno print out comparing the stock turbo and Blitz ECU with a PFC and Turbo Technics hybrid turbo:
When a scrote tried to steal the crappy stereo :
And finally a picture of it on its road wheels:
Cheers all!
Moody shot, taken by a fellow PH'er at an Ace Cafe meet:
One from a while back at Bedford Autodrome:
Once from the Toyota Sprint Series last year:
The Pro Alloy FMIC core I fitted to replace the Charge Cooler:
Dyno print out comparing the stock turbo and Blitz ECU with a PFC and Turbo Technics hybrid turbo:
When a scrote tried to steal the crappy stereo :
And finally a picture of it on its road wheels:
Cheers all!
Very nice! Looked at a lot of these before I bought my rally s
g.
However I have a comment to make! Ditch that crapy FMIC and refit the std CC setup. 2 reasons: One; that IC you've fitted is a truly, monumentally poor design. The pressure drop will be shocking and only the first 3rd part of the cores will be doing any cooling, the rest just very badly restricting flow.
The second reason is the standard CC is of a very good design and is far superior the IC you have. The addition of some lagging between the CC and the engine is a proven mod for lowering intake temps. Also the std CC flows pretty well so I believe.
I recommend doing some reading on the methods/principals of charge cooling and all will become clear! It's always best to understand what you're changing and the effects rather than listening to retailers...
Other than that, it looks like a very nice car!
g.However I have a comment to make! Ditch that crapy FMIC and refit the std CC setup. 2 reasons: One; that IC you've fitted is a truly, monumentally poor design. The pressure drop will be shocking and only the first 3rd part of the cores will be doing any cooling, the rest just very badly restricting flow.
The second reason is the standard CC is of a very good design and is far superior the IC you have. The addition of some lagging between the CC and the engine is a proven mod for lowering intake temps. Also the std CC flows pretty well so I believe.
I recommend doing some reading on the methods/principals of charge cooling and all will become clear! It's always best to understand what you're changing and the effects rather than listening to retailers...
Other than that, it looks like a very nice car!
Cheers chaps!
We have had it for 3 years now (35k miles in our hands) and had no mechanical failures. It has been to the 'ring twice, France, many track days, the Toyota Sprint Series and a couple of club based track weekends without any problems.
The only thing that was damaged was the water to air charge cooler radiator on the last trip to the 'ring. A lorry had a blow out that caused its mud gaurd to shatter and puncture it. I blocked it up with chewing gum on the way home
and replaced it with the FMIC when I got back.
Discs and pads are quite expensive (it has 315mm discs all round with 4 pot fronts and 2 pot rears) but quite hard wearing, if you choose the right compound. I use Toyota discs which are about £300 all round. EBC yellows last well and are about £130 all round, Carbotech XP8's are even better at around £260 all round.
HTH
We have had it for 3 years now (35k miles in our hands) and had no mechanical failures. It has been to the 'ring twice, France, many track days, the Toyota Sprint Series and a couple of club based track weekends without any problems.
The only thing that was damaged was the water to air charge cooler radiator on the last trip to the 'ring. A lorry had a blow out that caused its mud gaurd to shatter and puncture it. I blocked it up with chewing gum on the way home
and replaced it with the FMIC when I got back.Discs and pads are quite expensive (it has 315mm discs all round with 4 pot fronts and 2 pot rears) but quite hard wearing, if you choose the right compound. I use Toyota discs which are about £300 all round. EBC yellows last well and are about £130 all round, Carbotech XP8's are even better at around £260 all round.
HTH
The stickers were a requirement of the Sprint Series, but they are off now, new series starts at the end of March which will be great!
Thanks for the comments on the FMIC core, it actually helped me make more than 20bhp over the Charge Cooler running the same boost levels. Once I had fitted the FMIC I made no changes at all to the boost controller yet acheived exactly the same boost level at the inlet manifold at the same RPM's as before so it seems to flow well enough thanks
Also, the CC is very good for road use but really out of its depth on track. Despite lots of lagging and heat management the intake temps would increase after the first session and never recover for the rest of the day. Whereas the FMIC allows constant intake temps albeit with ugly pipe work compared to the stock CC.
Thanks for the comments on the FMIC core, it actually helped me make more than 20bhp over the Charge Cooler running the same boost levels. Once I had fitted the FMIC I made no changes at all to the boost controller yet acheived exactly the same boost level at the inlet manifold at the same RPM's as before so it seems to flow well enough thanks
Also, the CC is very good for road use but really out of its depth on track. Despite lots of lagging and heat management the intake temps would increase after the first session and never recover for the rest of the day. Whereas the FMIC allows constant intake temps albeit with ugly pipe work compared to the stock CC.
GT4 Baz said:
Thanks for the comments on the FMIC core, it actually helped me make more than 20bhp over the Charge Cooler running the same boost levels. Once I had fitted the FMIC I made no changes at all to the boost controller yet acheived exactly the same boost level at the inlet manifold at the same RPM's as before so it seems to flow well enough thanks
That really does shock me! 
But there's no substitue for hard evidence so I stand very much corrected!!! Could it be the capacity of the std CC rad is just too small for the track?
The flow/lack of pressure drop is what suprises more though to be honest. However, some EBC's do feature some form of 'inteligence' so can make adjstments to the solenoid duty cycle to achieve the same boost levels. But seems unlikely!
You've got me very intreaged now though; so what other mods were done between the two dyno sessions?
Rich
TBH it surprised me a bit too mate, but it is an expensive , british made core so it should flow well. The CC is fine for road use but if you up the boost and run it on track you'll see 50 degree+ charge temps all day. The pre rad is quite small but the ecu control of the pump is very clever, only running when you are on boost.
I think the reason for making more power on the FMIC is that the stadard ECU won't retard the ignition timing so much which costs you power and torque.
If you think of a rolling road day, you turn up after a long run, hot engine heat soaks the CC and then you go on a dyno with a fan and the intake temps have soared. Whereas with the FMIC, the core is out of the engine bay and cool as soon as you put some boost through it.
There are ways I am sure of making the CC more efficient but it has added complication (witness the hole in the pre rad on the way back from the 'ring), water pump failures, coolant leaks etc. Plus the FMIC set up is lighter (the car is extensivly stripped and it makes more power, more consistantly.
I think the reason for making more power on the FMIC is that the stadard ECU won't retard the ignition timing so much which costs you power and torque.
If you think of a rolling road day, you turn up after a long run, hot engine heat soaks the CC and then you go on a dyno with a fan and the intake temps have soared. Whereas with the FMIC, the core is out of the engine bay and cool as soon as you put some boost through it.
There are ways I am sure of making the CC more efficient but it has added complication (witness the hole in the pre rad on the way back from the 'ring), water pump failures, coolant leaks etc. Plus the FMIC set up is lighter (the car is extensivly stripped and it makes more power, more consistantly.
GT4 Baz said:
If you think of a rolling road day, you turn up after a long run, hot engine heat soaks the CC and then you go on a dyno with a fan and the intake temps have soared. Whereas with the FMIC, the core is out of the engine bay and cool as soon as you put some boost through it.
....Or a sprint! And i suppose that's where it really has the edge over a CC Almost wished I bought one of these insetad of my Lancia now, but at the time I went with my heart and not my head. One day, I think I might...
So how does it compare on track to other simelar cars? Or is it just GT4's in the series?
Mmmmm, Lancia 
I have had the pleasure in going out on track in a Integrale and back to back comparing it to the GT4 at Bedford Autodrome. Me and the guy that owned the Lancia both loved each others cars (it was like a Sega Rally day!) but you could see where things had moved on in terms of structural rigidity and dash ergnomics. Saying that, if I could have afforded to buy a decent Lancia, I would have!
The Sprint Series is for all Toyota's so there are MR2's, Supras, Aristo's etc on it too.
On track with a few simple changes to the suspension (Whiteline rear ARB, Tein Springs with KYB dampers and some camber plates on the front) its very good and still very useable on the road.
Plus with the prices what they are now, you should be able to pick a nice one up for £3500-4000
I have had the pleasure in going out on track in a Integrale and back to back comparing it to the GT4 at Bedford Autodrome. Me and the guy that owned the Lancia both loved each others cars (it was like a Sega Rally day!) but you could see where things had moved on in terms of structural rigidity and dash ergnomics. Saying that, if I could have afforded to buy a decent Lancia, I would have!
The Sprint Series is for all Toyota's so there are MR2's, Supras, Aristo's etc on it too.
On track with a few simple changes to the suspension (Whiteline rear ARB, Tein Springs with KYB dampers and some camber plates on the front) its very good and still very useable on the road.
Plus with the prices what they are now, you should be able to pick a nice one up for £3500-4000
Don't tempt me!!!!
Im now parting with the 'grale because at the time of pruchase, I did intend on doing pretty much what you are with the GT4. But alas, if I ever want to buy a house this lifetime it's just way too expensive for me in this car. So it's going and I now intend to get sprinting in my mk1 golf.
Should I have purchased a GT4 though, I probably wouldn't not be worrying about the age-related dynamic shortfalls etc.. which cost big bucks to overcome would be well within budget! But at least i've ticked one of 'the' cars off 'the list'.
I will return to turbo-4wd-rally power though! Most likely in one of these too
Im now parting with the 'grale because at the time of pruchase, I did intend on doing pretty much what you are with the GT4. But alas, if I ever want to buy a house this lifetime it's just way too expensive for me in this car. So it's going and I now intend to get sprinting in my mk1 golf.
Should I have purchased a GT4 though, I probably wouldn't not be worrying about the age-related dynamic shortfalls etc.. which cost big bucks to overcome would be well within budget! But at least i've ticked one of 'the' cars off 'the list'.
I will return to turbo-4wd-rally power though! Most likely in one of these too
Agreed, it is a real shame that Toyota have lost their way in recent times when it comes to high performance cars. Back in the mid 90's you had a choice of Supra, MR2 and GT4, all of which are great fun cars to drive and plenty quick.
As a track/weekend warrior car I think its tough to beat. Good chassis, stiff shell, strong brakes, reasonable (for a jap car!) interior, strong engines and robust enough to take the abuse of driving on track. Plus, when it rains (which in the UK is a fairly regular occurance
), you have great security, traction and fun.
I can't see us replacing it for a long time, the Mrs loves driving it too and has given me the thumbs up to do a forged rebuild with a 5SFE crank shaft which should give me 2150cc and the ability to up the boost. Good times.
As a track/weekend warrior car I think its tough to beat. Good chassis, stiff shell, strong brakes, reasonable (for a jap car!) interior, strong engines and robust enough to take the abuse of driving on track. Plus, when it rains (which in the UK is a fairly regular occurance
), you have great security, traction and fun. I can't see us replacing it for a long time, the Mrs loves driving it too and has given me the thumbs up to do a forged rebuild with a 5SFE crank shaft which should give me 2150cc and the ability to up the boost. Good times.
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