How do you make a standard S faster.........
Discussion
thinking i was going to get lots of technical answers, I should have known betterWhy are you asking - something to do with my earlier email perhaps? 
An upgrade usually overlooked is the ability of the driver. A well maintained / sorted standard S is quick & nimble enough in the twisties & a driver training course is apparently the best way to get the most out of it (on my list of things to do in 2012!) All joking aside, Han's V6 S3 is pretty standard and you've witnessed first hand how much faster his appears to be than my S2 and Dave's V8S...
If you want substantially more powaaaaah without spending megabucks then starting with a V8S or Griff/Chim is the route to take
An upgrade usually overlooked is the ability of the driver. A well maintained / sorted standard S is quick & nimble enough in the twisties & a driver training course is apparently the best way to get the most out of it (on my list of things to do in 2012!) All joking aside, Han's V6 S3 is pretty standard and you've witnessed first hand how much faster his appears to be than my S2 and Dave's V8S...
If you want substantially more powaaaaah without spending megabucks then starting with a V8S or Griff/Chim is the route to take
So joking aside I don't think there are any quick or cheap ways. These are old technology engines and need old school tuning, no five minute/50 bhp tune up on a laptop.
There is all the usual stuff, cam, head work etc. but unless you have a cat engine I believe induction is limited (strangled) by the afm's.
Sounds boring but first thing I'd do is get it in a RR and see if it is doing somewhere near the 170 or so it should be doing?
HvdWeerden said:
Obviously paint job done by a yard broom but it does look sad and unlovedLongers makes a good point above. I struggled to keep up with the S2’s & S3’s on the Italian Job last year*. In practical terms, I think the V6 may be just as quick as the V8S in normal driving conditions and, in competent hands, even quicker. Is anyone interested in putting this to the test? Thanks to a couple of other owners I have in gear acceleration times for three V8S’s. If some of you V6 boys want to let me have your figures I’ll compile a comparison. Obviously it won’t be that scientific because we’ll all be doing the runs in different conditions carrying different weights but it could be a bit fun before winter sets in proper. If you’re interested in taking part, send me your in gear acceleration times as follows:-
40mph to 60mph in 3rd 4th & 5th
50mph to 70mph in 3rd 4th & 5th
If you want a template, PM me.
40mph to 60mph in 3rd 4th & 5th
50mph to 70mph in 3rd 4th & 5th
If you want a template, PM me.
- Of course it could just be down to my complete lack of talent and bottle!
In normal use I wouldn't expect the full potential of either car to be used. Small differences in how hard the driver was willing to push, and small changes in line and braking points and so on would probably make more difference than an extra 50 bhp or so. But when you see them compared on a race track with decent drivers, the difference is very very obvious. And I'd agree with Longers, that if you want to make the car go faster the first thing to upgrade is the driver.
GreenV8S said:
In normal use I wouldn't expect the full potential of either car to be used. Small differences in how hard the driver was willing to push, and small changes in line and braking points and so on would probably make more difference than an extra 50 bhp or so. But when you see them compared on a race track with decent drivers, the difference is very very obvious. And I'd agree with Longers, that if you want to make the car go faster the first thing to upgrade is the driver.
But I'm a superb driver in the mould of our Lewis, so it looks like the answer is to get a V8s or a Griff? I've made mine a lot faster by
Getting the chassis welded up
Shocks that work (currently nitrons but there's nothing wrong with the standard konis if they're actually working)
New bushes
New drop links (rose jointed ones, new rubber ones would probably be nearly as good)
Sticky tyres
Driving it properly
Winter projects for making it faster are
New brake pads (currently it has ebc red on the front, they are good once they've warmed up but utterly useless for the sort of things I do with the car)
Roll bar
Baffled sump
Camera
Datalogger
By far the biggest improvements have come from me getting better at driving it. The camera and datalogger will help me see what I'm doing wrong and hopefully make me even faster.
Getting the chassis welded up
Shocks that work (currently nitrons but there's nothing wrong with the standard konis if they're actually working)
New bushes
New drop links (rose jointed ones, new rubber ones would probably be nearly as good)
Sticky tyres
Driving it properly
Winter projects for making it faster are
New brake pads (currently it has ebc red on the front, they are good once they've warmed up but utterly useless for the sort of things I do with the car)
Roll bar
Baffled sump
Camera
Datalogger
By far the biggest improvements have come from me getting better at driving it. The camera and datalogger will help me see what I'm doing wrong and hopefully make me even faster.
For competition and track days I use toyo R888s 225/45/17 I think, on a set of revolution millennium wheels, 17x8J, ET30 on the back, ET27 on the front (same wheels as the back but with a 3mm shim between them and the hub)
Apparently the MSA are banning list 1B tyres from autotesting for next year so I may have to find some different tyres.
On the road I am still using the falkens that were on the car when I bought it on the standard 8 spoke OZ wheels. They are getting quite old now and need replacing so I will have to find out what is available in the right size.
Apparently the MSA are banning list 1B tyres from autotesting for next year so I may have to find some different tyres.
On the road I am still using the falkens that were on the car when I bought it on the standard 8 spoke OZ wheels. They are getting quite old now and need replacing so I will have to find out what is available in the right size.
zombeh said:
On the road I am still using the falkens that were on the car when I bought it on the standard 8 spoke OZ wheels. They are getting quite old now and need replacing so I will have to find out what is available in the right size.
This is why I asked as I think the only decent road tyres in the right size are the usual suspects, Continental, Bridgestone, Dunlop etc and whilst good tyres I dont think any of them are especially sticky Gassing Station | S Series | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff