F878 SRX - a few changes

[Haz]

i've owned the car a while now and kept up with the general maintenance it needs but after a few old hoses starting to split and the thermostat sticking causing temps to rise which has been sorted but now noticed it leaking from the front, i'm guessin the waterpump. also the rad is looking rather shabby. i've been down on boost from the usual 16psi to about 9psi, i've replaced the flexi pipe a while ago and is fine, submerged the ic's and they're fine. no leaks on the turbo or manifolds either. poss the actuator but yet to check as just been parked up since the leak as been usin the works van anyway, sooo, i've decided that as its ma daily driver i'm tryin to withhold from painting it so as i've a few jobs to do i'm thinking of going all out. i've read as much as i can on here from the last year or 2 so i'm hoping there's a few of you still trying to improve performance etc. i have had a look at tony's quadra and had a chat a while ago, and looked/read what i can thru google etc and here's what i'm thinkin. . .

it looks nearly original under the bonnet, not mint, so trying to not go ott with painting etc, just clean, it weeps oil so a full gasket set is on the cards, and looking for the thickest head gasket availiable, any suggestions? also what should the height of the head be? any preference on cambelt kits?
since it'll be in bits, unless its worn i dont plan to change much, but want to up the oil pressure on the pump. are the group buy of springs still happening? are there any other bits worth changing?

a few other bits i want to change while its apart, the cam, are there any specs listed, i presume it'll be a regrind but how far can it been taken to?
also what the usual way for th chips? is it a case of soldering in a cradle with eproms?

once thats out the way i'm hoping to find some bargains for testng with.

just the intercooler tho,

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FORD-SIERRA-E...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item33676cff82

as i think this rad would work better,

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SEAT-LEON-1-4...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item518e918c32

all being well i plan to do a few more bits to save doin things twice but could do with some ideas, i'm lookin into some lag to prolong the gearbox and up the revs so a different brand, but specs look ok,

http://www.xspoweruk.com/t3-t4-t04e-turbo-anti-surge.aspx

not looked into exhausts properly as dont think i'll b runnin loads of boost so should be fine for now, just the elbow change.

i guess bosch 803 injectors because they seem easy enough to get.

is there any similar cars about? its a shame you can't see car/engine pics and speclists on profiles. . or have i missed summit lol

sorry for such a long post but thought i may ask the job lot as hopin to get crackin in the next couple of weeks

 

[danb]

Standard headgasket is fine mate.

Get the cam over to Pipercam for a 276 duration regrind.

Then as you said a set of 803's, t34 a remap or standalone management, 3" down pipe, front mount and your be on for a nice strong engine.

You may have to look at clutches also.

 

[administrator]

Have a look in the register , you can see / read about others cars in there .

As for underbonnet stuff - we had a space issue a while back but we have unlimited space now .

---------- Post added at 09:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:47 PM ----------

Try the gallery ( listed at the top )

And to add to Dan suggestion , you need a cossie back end on that t34 , with cossie downpipe.

After adding in the larger IC , Injectors , Turbo , Downpipe , Filter and exhaust speak to Jo about getting a custom chip. Henk seems a bit of a whizz. Failing that adaptronic. Messrs Rabson et Sibley will look after you from that. I guess Chris over at RTOC can also lend his weight ...

 

[Haz]

i'm happy to use the std headgasket but is there a thicker brand availiable? do you know the spec of the 276? sounds like i'm ainin in the right direction then, cheers

 

[danb]

i'm happy to use the std headgasket but is there a thicker brand availiable? do you know the spec of the 276? sounds like i'm ainin in the right direction then, cheers

dont know of any other hg other than standard as that is what we all use...
the cam is the best for a fast road setup. Jo has tested more cams than I have had hot dinners, and those include the europa cup cam. He recommends the piper 276 to everyone that wants more power.

 

[Haz]

ok. hopefully he may have the specs too. do you know wat revs they generally get taken too on that cam?

 

[-Jo-]

there is a thicker headgasket avaible, but i cant see the reason why you should fit that ? You change the cr-ratio and dont think that a thicker hg means that it will be stronger. Thats real BS. If you got a proper map, the std hg handles +3 bar boost. Tested it and the only thing that gone wrong was the clutch. She didnt like that.

The J7R is a f****** strong engine and in the right setup, bullitproof. You can change turbo's-ic's-injectors-nos-whatever, as long the fuel/ignition (map overall) is incorrect, you kill everything. Seen it soooo many times.

 

[Haz]

andy, didn'y see you post til now, i've tried the gallery and doesn't seem to have lot of engine shots. shall try the register tho. not sure bout the cossie ex housin as i think thats only a .48 so i think th .63 is more suited to what i want to do? i'm interested in the ecu mods, more information please. regards aftermarket ecu's, it would be the adaprtronic as had one on my 5 and i a backup option, i'm workin on this with input from scoff/chris from rtoc too, been a good mate for years, but as trying to keep this low budget as the 11 will be my main spends hence looking into mdifying the original ecu. if sibley can shed some light as to where he's at that would be great.
jo, thats the plan, i prefer more boost than perkier cruising so every little helps. do you happen to know the brand or a supplier? scoff will be doin most of the mappin side so confident with that, and he's happy to use adaptronic or the original. whats the normal way you modify them, harware wise and what can you offer? thanks

 

[danb]

Andyquadra is probably the most experienced with the Adaptronic and 21's..
Andy was running his grey phase 1 on adaptronic, standard engine - but had had a rebuild. 16psi and it went very very well so I'm told.

standard ecu wise, you need to have (as you said already) the socket soldered in ready for the "blank" chip..

Dave can get top and bottom end sets from Payen if you want standard.

cossie exhaust housing seems to be less restrictive than the standard 21 one, that said you need to have the manifold lip shaved off. The standard elbow is also a restriction. I think Chairman managed to shave a considerable time off his quater mile by simply changing to a cossie .48.

What sort of engine pictures are you after?

 

[administrator]

Haz ,

There are only a few images of engines lurking around. Ill create a thread !

Regarding the cossie housing , you are of course correct the trim is only small but its only part of the story. The standard 21t downpipe is really really restrictive. With the cossie back end on you can run a cosworth downpipe as well which is far less restrictive.

 

[dansam]

the standard 21T elbow aint great!! must be like hitting a brick wall for the exhaust gases.

 

[-Jo-]

Nothing wrong with the .48 housing and T34 combination. 256 at the wheels at 1.4 bar and stupic quick spool up, even with cup cam.

 

[Haz]

ah so there is a few on adaptronic then, be interesting to know why they didn't just use the piggyback way if the chips can be programmed? i'd be interested in the gasket sets if i have no joy with the thicker ones. ??? well bar my own and tony's ive not really looked at any properly, just ineterested in air filter set-ups, ic's and pipe runs, rad swaps and hose runs, basically anything not std lol, saw the odd europa pics on google but nothing close to see the detail and little mods.
cheers andy, didn't want to spam the forun lol, a pic as some part strip std bays would be good too, think mine has std turbo and elbow but has the rest in stainless 2.5" with just one box, and an awful 5" tailpipe!

---------- Post added at 09:18 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:13 PM ----------

i want it a bit laggy jo, to prolong the gearbox and clutch and have the power higher up, although i'm sure they'll need doing in the end. on that setup wat sort of revs did it start makin boost and when on full boost, and what did it rev up to before the power tailed off ?

 

[-Jo-]

http://21toc.com/album.php?albumid=10

---------- Post added at 10:23 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:21 PM ----------

mine was running on a GT3071R with 63 housing, 3" downpipe.

 

[danb]

look through here for some part stripped..

http://s278.photobucket.com/albums/kk107/danb21t/quadra/

 

[administrator]

ah so there is a few on adaptronic then, be interesting to know why they didn't just use the piggyback way if the chips can be programmed? i

Henk from fastchips who does the chips is in Netherlands. Its a bit of a ballache to go see him overtime you add a mod. I am not saying that he isnt good ( he is ! - evidence points that way ) its just inconvenient.

saw the odd europa pics on google but nothing close to see the detail and little mods.

There isnt that much info out in the public domain. Few on here have details but its a moot point really. Parts are eyewateringly expensive and rare over here. Jo had an engine that was rock solid and 300whp and sold it to go in a europa cup for north of €3000. Damn fine engine. Damn fine engine builder.

cheers andy, didn't want to spam the forun lol,

Not the RTOC over here mate. Spam away. We need the traffic to look busy..

i want it a bit laggy jo, to prolong the gearbox and clutch

Jo will correct me here if I am wrong , but unless you are running some bonkers boost a paddle clutch will handle relatively high power fine and jo ran a standard box with no biggies.

. on that setup wat sort of revs did it start makin boost and when on full boost, and what did it rev up to before the power tailed off ?

I cant verify revs but from the outside when I saw it on a rolling road it came on boost and was loud , when on full boost it was really loud and when power tailed off it was really , really loud.

 

[Haz]

Henk from fastchips who does the chips is in Netherlands. Its a bit of a ballache to go see him overtime you add a mod. I am not saying that he isnt good ( he is ! - evidence points that way ) its just inconvenient.

is it not as simple as soldering in a socket on ecu, download software fill in values of maps, burn onto chip, test car on rollers with meters attached . . then repeat to fine tune?

There isnt that much info out in the public domain. Few on here have details but its a moot point really. Parts are eyewateringly expensive and rare over here. Jo had an engine that was rock solid and 300whp and sold it to go in a europa cup for north of €3000. Damn fine engine. Damn fine engine builder.

hoping jo will give a few answers, i dont expect the lot handed on a plate, just basics in the rite direction with the research. i'm not after the europa parts, but if the specs can be found too it shows how they've done it bac then, just my be useful as it doesn't seem to be anywhere?

Not the RTOC over here mate. Spam away. We need the traffic to look busy..

lol, hopefully it may be interesting to others too, few nice projects on the go from what i've seen, just seems a bit quiet on the tuning side.

Jo will correct me here if I am wrong , but unless you are running some bonkers boost a paddle clutch will handle relatively high power fine and jo ran a standard box with no biggies.

it depends on what cam i choose in the end, wanting a good kick but not low down the rev range. the 5 only started making 5psi of boost at 3300 rpm, eventually up to 23psi by 4800 and cam wanted to pull it up to about 6400, constant pull. looking for something similar

I cant verify revs but from the outside when I saw it on a rolling road it came on boost and was loud , when on full boost it was really loud and when power tailed off it was really , really loud.

lol, best way of measuring revs/hp etc :rofl:

 

[-Jo-]

nice quote, but loud ? Whats louds ?

I'll get you're point about clutch and GB. I used the 276? pipercam and had to remove that because off the mahoosive ammount off torque. The AP 4 paddle with upgrade cover or cup cover couldnt handlle that. Whe talk about 480 Nm, measured at the wheels. One off the best cams ive tested on the 21, and one off the cheapest 2. As for full boost, with the piper and GT3071R, @3750/3800 rpm. The box can handle the ammount off power (HP) and 450 Nm, and then whe talk about abuse like trackdays or 1/4 mile. There is much more to gain IF you go for a twinplate clutch (wich ive have on the shelf) and upgrade gearbox. Dont worry about crank and rods, they can have over 300 atw and 500+ Nm. Pistons and liners need to be changed, obviously.

I'm not going to argue in wich way you have to tune the engine. Seen many, many, some good-some bad set ups. Thats up to the owner and who i'm i to discus whats good and whats not. All i can say, and realy mean that, is that renault engineers aint stupid. The shape, development, performance on the J7R is realy massive. The std manifolds are good for more then 300 bhp. Not many manufacturers can almost double there power on std materials.

 

[administrator]

is it not as simple as soldering in a socket on ecu, download software fill in values of maps, burn onto chip, test car on rollers with meters attached . . then repeat to fine tune?

In theory. Snag is AFAIK noone has a decent basemap - the adaptronic has one .. but not the piggyback. I cant imagine a tuner would let you have one ...

hoping jo will give a few answers, i dont expect the lot handed on a plate, just basics in the rite direction with the research. i'm not after the europa parts, but if the specs can be found too it shows how they've done it bac then, just my be useful as it doesn't seem to be anywhere?

Jo will be along in the morning. He is usually most helpful. Might give Jo a better clue about what you need if you let him know what power figures you are chasing and delivery style you are after. For all I know you might be after 250bhp and want it all top end.

lol, hopefully it may be interesting to others too, few nice projects on the go from what i've seen, just seems a bit quiet on the tuning side.

It generally is over this side of the pond. Bigger turbo , injectors , FMIC and a dabble in adaptronic. Dave Sibley has been threatening us with a big build engine for ages. Rabson was getting there then B had her wicked way. Craig grew up . Amrit got ratarsed. Lee went all cosworth on us and erm , I sold up. Johnboy has a very good setup and some impressive figures to back it up.

it depends on what cam i choose in the end, wanting a good kick but not low down the rev range. the 5 only started making 5psi of boost at 3300 rpm, eventually up to 23psi by 4800 and cam wanted to pull it up to about 6400, constant pull. looking for something similar

The man from Belgium will answer soon ...

lol, best way of measuring revs/hp etc :rofl:

If you want technical versions of things you have found the correct poster.

---------- Post added at 119 PM ---------- Previous post was at 113 PM ----------

nice quote, but loud ? Whats louds ?

sonore ou fort ...

I'm not going to argue in wich way you have to tune the engine.

You blatantly are. You always do. Mind you - I guess you are one of the few that have. ou have built a really good engine and sold it to a racing team. That is so Charlie Sheen it actually hurts.

 

[-Jo-]

reliability had priority and thats achieved. Even the new owners where impressed because they knocked the red needle on the boostgauge to 2.2 bar at the circuit of Zandvoort.

There are more guy's on here with the right brains to build a good engine. Dave, Andy, mr roadbandid, Richard, Craig and many more (sorry if i let somebody down, that count as "many more")

Mr Bond, i know what that mean but i meant it not in that way. Loud is relative I had more noise (resonation) from the sub/mounts.