The start of a project - Lotus Exige S1 with a 1.6 Ecoboost
Discussion
Hello folks,
I thought i'd share with you a little project i've got ticking over on the back burner...
It combines two of what I perceive as being the finest bits of engineering in recent times - a Lotus Exige S1 and a Ford Ecoboost 1.6 engine, well, it will do shortly...
Long story cut short, a friend of mine had an unfinished project that he'd bought from a chap as an unfinished project and I decided that it was the perfect base to start my unfinished project with.
So, without further ado - some pictures!
The original owner was preparing the car as a racer to compete in endurance races with a circa 600bhp Audi 20vT engine, so it had already received some rather appropriate upgrades:
As you've probably seen - it already has BMW 18" CSL wheels, a substantially wider kit, a not insignificant carbon wing and a few other motorsport panels.
It also has:
Billet uprights with competition bearing packs and wheelspeed sensors all round:
AP Racing brakes on every corner:
Motec PDM30 and full Raychem DR-25 wiring loom:
AP Racing Air Jacks x3:
AP Racing pedal box:
Ohlins Suspension:
Slicks:
A rather comprehensive trip to Pro-Alloy:
Current plans involve painting it in the Nitrous Blue colour found on the new Focus RS's - a quick bit of photoshopping suggests it could look a little something like this:
Project goals are to fit it with a Ford Fiesta ST 1.6 Ecoboost engine with either a hybrid turbo or a Borg Warner EFR to run around 300/300 through a Life Racing ECU.
Transmission wise i'm looking to run a Wavetrac differential in the standard 6 speed H pattern Fiesta ST gearbox and utilise an ECU controlled H pattern paddleshift conversion until such time as I can stand £15,000 of Sadev sequential.
I know there are bigger power Lotus's out there, but my goal at this time is to create a platform that utilises every single bit of the 300/300 powerplant i'm intending and we'll see where it goes from there.
More updates soon
I thought i'd share with you a little project i've got ticking over on the back burner...
It combines two of what I perceive as being the finest bits of engineering in recent times - a Lotus Exige S1 and a Ford Ecoboost 1.6 engine, well, it will do shortly...
Long story cut short, a friend of mine had an unfinished project that he'd bought from a chap as an unfinished project and I decided that it was the perfect base to start my unfinished project with.
So, without further ado - some pictures!
The original owner was preparing the car as a racer to compete in endurance races with a circa 600bhp Audi 20vT engine, so it had already received some rather appropriate upgrades:
As you've probably seen - it already has BMW 18" CSL wheels, a substantially wider kit, a not insignificant carbon wing and a few other motorsport panels.
It also has:
Billet uprights with competition bearing packs and wheelspeed sensors all round:
AP Racing brakes on every corner:
Motec PDM30 and full Raychem DR-25 wiring loom:
AP Racing Air Jacks x3:
AP Racing pedal box:
Ohlins Suspension:
Slicks:
A rather comprehensive trip to Pro-Alloy:
Current plans involve painting it in the Nitrous Blue colour found on the new Focus RS's - a quick bit of photoshopping suggests it could look a little something like this:
Project goals are to fit it with a Ford Fiesta ST 1.6 Ecoboost engine with either a hybrid turbo or a Borg Warner EFR to run around 300/300 through a Life Racing ECU.
Transmission wise i'm looking to run a Wavetrac differential in the standard 6 speed H pattern Fiesta ST gearbox and utilise an ECU controlled H pattern paddleshift conversion until such time as I can stand £15,000 of Sadev sequential.
I know there are bigger power Lotus's out there, but my goal at this time is to create a platform that utilises every single bit of the 300/300 powerplant i'm intending and we'll see where it goes from there.
More updates soon
Edited by Will P on Friday 11th August 22:12
Wheels are tyres are indeed possibly OTT for 300/300, but they were originally intended to be dealing with 600bhp.
If I ever get to the point where my driving ability allows me to be using 100% of the planned power, then and only then will I go hunting for more.
I've been involved with high investment / high power engine projects plenty of times before and right now the desire to use a standard engine with bolt on upgrades is paramount. If it fails then i'll buy a replacement, drop it in and carry on.
Engine weight wise, the 1.6 Ecoboost dressed with manifold, turbo etc. comes in around 15kg heavier than a 1.8 K-Series.
Initial plans are to build it as a car that I can drive to a track day, drive round and drive home - long term as things develop then it will inevitably descend into being an outright race car, maybe, if I can afford to race it...
If I ever get to the point where my driving ability allows me to be using 100% of the planned power, then and only then will I go hunting for more.
I've been involved with high investment / high power engine projects plenty of times before and right now the desire to use a standard engine with bolt on upgrades is paramount. If it fails then i'll buy a replacement, drop it in and carry on.
Engine weight wise, the 1.6 Ecoboost dressed with manifold, turbo etc. comes in around 15kg heavier than a 1.8 K-Series.
Initial plans are to build it as a car that I can drive to a track day, drive round and drive home - long term as things develop then it will inevitably descend into being an outright race car, maybe, if I can afford to race it...
Edited by Will P on Friday 12th August 10:19
charltjr said:
Very nice, I'm a bit surprised by the wheel choice too but can't deny they look great.
Given it's very light and can make 300+ on stock internals I can see that Ecoboost making it's way into a lot of projects in future.
Looking forward to updates.
BMW e46 M3 CSL only came with 19" wheels, so I guess these are either reps (unlikely given the cash thrown at the project I'd have thought!) so I guess they're CSL style but still genuine BBS wheels.Given it's very light and can make 300+ on stock internals I can see that Ecoboost making it's way into a lot of projects in future.
Looking forward to updates.
Car looks lovely, OP!
Thanks guys.
Timescale wise, the hugely limiting factor is my time... One thing i've learnt over the years though is to stick to your strengths in projects! I'll be taking care of the ECU / electronics / powertrain side of things but sending it out for body prep, paint, fabrication etc.
Timescale wise, the hugely limiting factor is my time... One thing i've learnt over the years though is to stick to your strengths in projects! I'll be taking care of the ECU / electronics / powertrain side of things but sending it out for body prep, paint, fabrication etc.
Evoluzione said:
Good choice of engine, i've long held the belief that the Ecoboost (1 ltr too) would go well in a Lotus; Light, powerful, reliable, modern.
The 1.0 isn't a light engine by any stretch of the imagination. The block is cast iron. The four cylinder Ecoboost engines have alloy blocks.MJK 24 said:
The 1.0 isn't a light engine by any stretch of the imagination. The block is cast iron. The four cylinder Ecoboost engines have alloy blocks.
It's still lighter though, by about 10%: whether that would compensate for the lower power, maybe, maybe not, but the ancillaries needed would weigh less too, I imagine.Well, slow progress due to work commitments but I have added a couple of goodies to the pile:
A rather interesting turbo - one of only 4 of its type ever made! This one features a billet compressor wheel and a couple of other non-standard features, in it's standard form the compressor map suggests it should be good for around 300-320bhp. Hopefully this particular one will be more responsive, more efficient and give a touch more power. I've also grabbed a Turbosmart twin port actuator for it, this will allow me to run true phase / anti-phase boost control and subject to wastegate flow, a huge range of boost control.
Now for the bit that I get overly excited about - the ECU. For me, there was absolutely no contest - a Life Racing GDI4. As standard, this is unparalleled in its ability to control a direct injection engine like the Ford Ecoboost range. As with all Life Racing ECU's, they are hand built to order with a lot of 'build time options' - so on top of its already huge standard spec, it also has fully adaptive knock control, gearbox control (for paddleshift) and traction control....
I've already started the wiring loom redesign to accommodate the GDI4 ECU and i'll be using it to its full capabilities - aside from controlling the engine and gearbox, it will also be controlling functions like alternator charge control, brake light and reverse light output
A rather interesting turbo - one of only 4 of its type ever made! This one features a billet compressor wheel and a couple of other non-standard features, in it's standard form the compressor map suggests it should be good for around 300-320bhp. Hopefully this particular one will be more responsive, more efficient and give a touch more power. I've also grabbed a Turbosmart twin port actuator for it, this will allow me to run true phase / anti-phase boost control and subject to wastegate flow, a huge range of boost control.
Now for the bit that I get overly excited about - the ECU. For me, there was absolutely no contest - a Life Racing GDI4. As standard, this is unparalleled in its ability to control a direct injection engine like the Ford Ecoboost range. As with all Life Racing ECU's, they are hand built to order with a lot of 'build time options' - so on top of its already huge standard spec, it also has fully adaptive knock control, gearbox control (for paddleshift) and traction control....
I've already started the wiring loom redesign to accommodate the GDI4 ECU and i'll be using it to its full capabilities - aside from controlling the engine and gearbox, it will also be controlling functions like alternator charge control, brake light and reverse light output
Edited by Will P on Friday 11th August 22:20
Edited by Will P on Friday 11th August 22:24
Edited by Will P on Friday 11th August 22:25
ks on those wheels, may be overkill but definitely a bit sexy. I'm surprised more people haven't been looking into utilising ecoboost engines. Looks like a really good starting point. Im not sure but those front upper wishbones look like 211 parts (allow you to run the front suspension lower).
Any pics of the inside where the AP master cylinders are? I presume theres a balance bar between the front and rear.
Mines in the same state of undress, just need to find some time work on it!
Any pics of the inside where the AP master cylinders are? I presume theres a balance bar between the front and rear.
Mines in the same state of undress, just need to find some time work on it!
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