Starting Problems still

[lotus23uk]

i know you guys all say the 160 sport takes ages to start up but its starting to annoy me.

I have changed the battery to varta blue as suggested and no difference.

Will it make any difference if i change the leads, plus and alternator, even starter motor as a least resort.

Just hate it in the morning sitting trying to start for about 5-8 seconds.

Any ideas in sorting this problem most appreciated.

Craig

[S Works]

I think you might want to check out the thread about the S160 further down the board...
www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=128478&f=15&h=0

Give one of the lads on there a shout, Bruce (340ragtop) knows his stuff - I'm sure if after reading his comments you had further questions, you could drop him an email for some advice.

[tom_burnley]

5-8 Seconds?

Do you keep it outside? - mines kept on the street and it is a little better then that at the moment - although it doesn't catch first time.

I suppose Leads/Plugs might help - not sure about alternator, if theres charge in the battery then that must be working?

Sorry no other help then that

[steff]

340ragtop said:

Here we go again. I posted this recently: I think it's time we finally knocked this issue on the head. I've seen a few things done to 160s and have tried many fixes - we seem to go round in circles and make the 'Lotus fix' out to be some new magic. Firstly lets identify the problems with the 160s. The cams are of moderate lift and a little more duration than normal - BUT the timing is both inconsistent (fixed by the nature of the pulleys) and usually results in too much overlap. The inlet cam is usually too retarded and the exhaust too retarded (by far). Also, the map in both varieties of ECU is shockingly bad (GEMS worse than EFi). The GEMS are in the SVA cars (first 50) and the EFis in the WVTA cars (later ones). The earthing left a lot to be desired as the wiring is a bit rearranged in both scenarios. These problems result in rich running, poor idling, poor starting and a clogged up IACV. Largely due to pulsations being transmitted back into the plenum. So - the plenum is the route of the evil here, though the cam timing and map aren't ideal even on DTHTbs. DTHTBs mean that each cylinder has a separate air and fuel supply - so less pulsations and the car can idle. now the potential solutions: Vernier pulleys allow fine tuning of the cams - should be fitted by someone used to dealing with these engines and basically allow whatever cam timing you desire. They should be timed by the lift at top dead centre method (LATDC). Several settings are available, but basically it usually needs advancement of both cams to achieve a reasonable lift. The shifting can move the useable power - so as the 160 is set to be very peaky (ie so they could achieve the 160ps) with decent timing it can be shifted to the midrange making it actually seem faster with no noticeable loss of top end - bend exiting power is a lot better in the midrange. It is possible to go for mild or slightly wilder timing, basically the lower the LATDC the milder the timing. With the right settings (and personally I like low settings (mild)) it works very, very well on its own. The replacement pulley in the Lotus kit basically attempts to achieve something similar but again it's fixed and onconsistent, so will never be ideally matched to the car and cams. BUT - the map is still an issue - the GEMS is not, I repeat for those who always argue with me - NOT remappable as it comes. It can be made remappable but for large sums of money (equivalent cost to a new ECU). Lotus do offer a remapping of the EFi ECU, which is part of the driveability kit. Again this is a fixed map and is not matched to the specific cam timing and driving characteristics / needs of the owner. This is where a mappable ECU comes in and the best VFM comes from Emerald IMHO. There are plenty of home grown 160 maps out there (I have dozens) and usually one can be found to run the car quite adequately without a mapping session on the RR. But excellent results can be achived with a RR session. So in summary I would recommend verniers, an accurate retime (done PROPERLY), a 160TB and an emerald ECU. That should result in a car that starts, idles and pulls right through the rev range...ask Sho - I did exactly that to his.