02
Oct 2015
How it's Made : The Mitsubishi EVO Edition
01
Oct 2015
TREADSTONE PERFORMANCE SUBARU INTERCOOLER
2002 Subaru WRX Specs: Wastegate Spring Pressure (~35psi): ~700WHP High Boost (50+psi): 800+WHP Final Boost Level (~40psi): 750WHP 2002 Subaru WRX Silver Bugeye Sedan Precision 6766 on E85
29
Sep 2015
HONDA CIVIC
TYPE R EP3 VS FK2
As the car skipped over a hump mid corner - front wheels excitedly scrabbling for grip in the process - I confidently mashed my right foot into the floor, feeling the mechanical limited-slip diff put the demands of an angry turbo engine into action. The new Civic Type R’s shift light flashed red, telling me I needed to slide into the next gear using the oh-so sweet six-speed manual gearbox.
Not far behind is my colleague Darren, who’s driving the old EP3 Type R. And this is no accident, because we’ve deliberately got these two cars together on the same bit of road for a very particular purpose. The EP3 isn’t the first Civic Type R - that’s the EK9 - nor is it the 2015 car’s direct predecessor - you need to be looking at the FN2. So why have we put these cars together? It’s simple: with the FN2 being not particularly well received, the EP3 is probably the last celebrated Civic Type R. Plus, as it’s two generations behind the new car, we were curious to see just how much the game has moved on in the 10 years since EP3 production wound up. So to start with, let’s look at what’s changed:
The first thing we noticed when getting these two together was the sheer size difference. The 2015 car is 183mm wider, 250mm longer, and 26mm taller. This is part of the reason it’s also a lot heavier: the EP3 tips the scales at just 1204kg, compared to 1382kg for the FK2. But, it’s worth bearing in mind that a bigger body gives you a hell of a lot more interior space, plus 200 litres more boot room. The EP3 feels cramped in comparison.
“In terms of straight line performance, the 2015 car well and truly trumps the old one, despite the hefty weight disadvantage”
The new car is also - as you’d expect - a lot more sophisticated. Its aero kit - consisting of a front splitter, a front bumper specifically shaped to cut turbulence around the front wheels, a flat underfloor plus a rear diffuser and socking great rear wing - makes the Civic the only car in its class to generate negative lift. In terms of straight line performance, the 2015 car also well and truly trumps the old one, despite the hefty weight disadvantage. It’ll crack 0-62mph in 5.7 seconds, while the EP3 takes almost another second to do the same (6.6 seconds). Top speed is a lot higher, with the new car topping out at 167mph, compared with 146mph for the older version.
The drive
Holy bejesusing bloody hell, the new Civic Type R is quick. Oh sure, I’ve been in faster cars that are even more inappropriate for the road, but there’s something particularly brutal about the way the R puts out its power. Turbocharged engines these days seem to want to hide their forced induction, but not this car: the mid-range is extremely boosty, the whistling of the solitary single-scroll blower (no fancy twin-turbo or twin-scroll setups here) are clearly audible even with the windows up, and the electronically-controlled waste gate never stops chattering away.
Yes, there’s still VTEC, but here it’s all about boosting the low end torque rather than making the last few thousand RPM on the clock more exciting. I can’t help but wonder what the car would be like without that, because as it is, it feels like the engine’s doing precious little before 3000rpm, before the turbo cries havoc and unleashes the boost of war.
Despite all that grunt going through the front tyres, there’s a remarkable absence of extreme torque steer. Sure, there’s the odd tug or two, but it’s really remarkable how the diff and dual axis strut combo copes with the demands of 306bhp and 295lb ft of torque.
YOU CAN READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE HERE
Article source: https://www.carthrottle.com/post/honda-civic-type-r-ep3-vs-fk2-how-much-has-the-game-moved-on/
Photos/Article by: Matt Robinson
22
Sep 2015
These 304 Stainless Steel weld els fittings are used for exhaust manifold fabrication. The best components you can use to create an equal length turbo manifold. Made of 304 stainless steel and carry a lifetime warranty! Made in India, the stainless steel capital of the world, these fittings follow strict ASTM standards, set forth by manufactures all over the globe! Each fitting is stamped with the size, lot #, and "ASTM A 403 WPW 304" These same weld els are used by the top turbo manifold manufactures across the nation, the best components you can use to fabricate exhaust turbo manifolds.
We have them in schedule' 5, 10, 40 and either polished or casted. When it comes to the efficiency of your turbocharging needs, Treadstone heeds the demand for a superior product.
14
Sep 2015
DETROIT -- Tougher fuel economy and emissions standards won't mean the death of Fiat Chrysler's V-8 engine lineup, CEO Sergio Marchionne says.
But in an interview with Automotive News last month, Marchionne conceded that it is getting harder for FCA to stay in compliance with the federal corporate average fuel economy rules. For now, he said, the key for keeping powerful engines in FCA's lineup is the purchase of clean air credits.
"One of the things that we learned to do is how to buy stuff," Marchionne said. "We buy credits. ... The purchase and sale of credits is actually more efficient than capital today."
FCA lags behind every other mass-market automaker in fleet fuel economy and emissions. According to the EPA, FCA was the industry's largest purchaser of emissions credits for the 2013 model year, the most recent year for which figures are available. FCA purchased most of its credits from Tesla Motors.
Under EPA rules, the credits serve as a form of currency. Automakers can offset their carbon footprint with emission credits earned by the sale of other vehicles.
While other automakers have used strategies such as turbocharging smaller displacement engines or direct injection to achieve fuel economy gains, FCA has chosen to increase the horsepower of existing engines.
Recently, speculation on the FCA-centric site Allpar.com has suggested that the company might be forced by fuel economy regulations to abandon its V-8 Hemi engines or even its 707-hp Hellcat V-8 in favor of turbocharged V-6 offerings.
But Marchionne threw water on that idea. Asked whether new regulations will mean the death of V-8s such as the Hellcat, he said: "No. We offset. I mean, every time we do one of those things, we offset."
Still, automakers won't be able to purchase credits from one another forever. That has meant an engineering push inside FCA to find another solution.
"The biggest challenge for me now is to find truly a compact and midsize car solution that is actually [greenhouse gas] positive, by a stretch," the CEO said. "And you know how the rules are, so it's a question of footprint and so on. I need to find a solution, so I've got a bunch of kids who are sitting in the basement tearing apart the front end to find out whether we can find a way out."
The other major powertrain issue hanging over FCA has been ongoing performance problems with its nine-speed automatic transmission. The nine-speed, which debuted in the 2014 Jeep Cherokee, had been the source of troubling consumer complaints even as it rolled out in other vehicles. Earlier this month, FCA said it had produced its one-millionth unit of the nine-speed at its massive transmission complex in Kokomo, Ind.
Marchionne said changes have been made to the nine-speed for the 2016 model year that should quiet its critics.
"We've been working our ass off with [designer ZF Friedrichshafen] on the nine speed," he said. "There were some things that were built in as a technical solution that proved to be, in hindsight, unwise, and so the remedial stuff has been put in place."
You can reach Larry P. Vellequette at lvellequette@crain.com.
11
Sep 2015
TREADSTONE ENGINEERING : SUBARU WRX STI INTERCOOLER KIT
Re-introducing our infamous Subaru WRX STi intercooler kit. This heavyweight is measured at 28" x 4.5" x 10.5" and can handle up to 900 HP and 938 CFM flow rate at 1.5 PSI pressure drop without even coming close to over-stressing your engine. Our kit has been tried true by some of the industries best tuners on both track and strip and is private labeled across the world. We've designed our kit to relieve the threat of heat soaking: making it the last worry on your mind.
BUY YOURS HERE
INSTALLATION FITMENT NOTICE: *For all Subaru STi's 2002-2003 requires some trimming, for all 2004-2007 this intercooler kit will bolt right on.
PRODUCT INSTALLATION GALLERY FOR 2003 STi:
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04
Sep 2015
McCreery Racing 94' Civic 750HP Using our TR1245
McCreery Racing reached out to us the other day with pictures of their drag car featuring out TR1245 intercooler. The car looks so sweet, we decided to share with the rest of you!
- 1994 civic sfwd drag car
- 1.8l golden eagle sleeved block
- Custom je pistons
- Billet crower rods
- Supertech valvetrain
- Skunk2 pro1 cams
- PTE 6766 turbo
- TRE TR1245 intercooler
- G force dog box trans
- Makes 750hp at 25# of boost
03
Sep 2015
Boost Up Instead Of Blowing Up
We think of turbochargers as god-like challengers of physics, capable of miraculously expanding the size on an engine and endowing it with awe-inspiring amounts of power. But as divine and brutish as turbos come off, the truth is a rather precarious wafer-thin layer of oil is all that's keeping a fiercely boosting turbo from going critical mass, sending shrapnel flying and bringing the party to a halt.
The point of contention is the center section; the main shaft and a collection of bearings that keep the wheels purring even at stratospheric 100,000-rpm speeds. Generally turbo-bearing failure can play out in two ways-a quick death by oil starvation or a long, drawn out suffering compliments of an imbalance. Of course, there are more ways a turbo can meet its maker but these are the most prominent.
Oil starvation can be the result of simply burning oil, kinking a turbo oil line, losing oil pressure in some manner, suffering from oil coking or any number of other horror show scenarios. When this happens in a sudden and significant manner the bearing squeals and seizes or the wheel violently slams into the housing, which in many cases can twist the wheel completely off the shaft. Bottom line, it's game over for your turbo.
The end came quickly for these poor turbos. Death by wheel shaft snap and a twin killing featuring death by wheel explosion/housing burst. The culprit is profound neglect as evidenced by the coked oil residue resulting in a single, catastrophic event. Either way something serious has gone down. But it's not always quick. A gradual oil starvation can compromise the turbo's bearing and lead to a wheel imbalance. The wheel assembly can see well over 120,000 rpm, which explains why balance is so critical.
To evaluate a suspect turbo remove the intake set-up before the compressor inlet so you can access the wheel. Spin the wheel by the nut and note any resistance or rubbing; keep your ears open because you should be able to hear a scraping sound. Also check the shaft for endplay and lateral movement at the shaft nut; wiggle it. Bearing clearances can be properly and accurately checked with a dial indicator. The key numbers here are more than .003 to .006 inches (up and down) while endplay should be no more than .001 to .003 inches (in and out).
Compressor wheels can also be damaged by outside forces, read foreign object damage (FOD). Poor filtration (or no filtration) can introduce dust and dirt into the compressor. The objects can sandblast, chip, bend or break off blades causing an imbalance and assuring the turbo's eventual failure.
Charbroiled oil can also bring down the hammer on an unsuspecting center cartridge. Coking is burnt oil residue, a hardened version of the sludge we see falling from the sky in those Castrol GTX commercials. The coked oil blocks the flow of oil through the bearing, which signs the turbo's death certificate.
The residue at the base of this turbine wheel is oil coking. The coked oil residue conducts heat via friction, which takes out the turbo. The bluing on the shaft is a testament to how intense the heat can get prior to failure. It has also suffered foreign object damage and has shaft grooving from bearing failure. What did this turbo do wrong to deserve such abuse?
Using the proper oil; weight/viscosity wise as well as type wise, and change it at proper intervals will combat this evil. First and foremost step up to a quality synthetic; the anti-friction qualities of synthetics are light years beyond conventional, mineral-based offerings. Next, play the numbers game right. Basically the greater the difference between the numbers of multi-viscosity oil the worse the product will be for a turbo application. Stick with factory recommended weights, squeezing 1.3 extra horsepower from your engine with some 0-weight madness is not worth the long-term peril improper lubrication represents.
Let's breakdown oil viscosity ratings with 10W-40. The '10' is the oil's viscosity rating at 0 degrees. The 'W' signifies winter. The '40' rating is the oil's viscosity rating at 212 degrees. Oil engineers must balance these ratings and match the engine's operating parameters and weather conditions the engine will see.
[gallery link="file" columns="5" orderby="rand"]Employing an oil cooler can help eliminate the heat that causes coking and reap benefits for the engine's internals. Also turbo timers allow the turbo to cool properly as coking can be the result of hot shutdown where the wheel assembly spins with no movement of its lubrication, which breaks down the bearing's protective film of oil causing metal-to-metal contact. These maladies, along with poor maintenance habits, poor oil quality and starvation issues and can tag team to produce oil coking or other catastrophic conditions that spell doom to your turbo.
Diligence is key to long turbo life. Using the right oil, changing it often and knowing where the pitfalls live will keep your turbo purring and your adrenal gland pumping for miles to come.
Article by: Evan Griffey (link: http://www.superstreetonline.com/how-to/engine/sstp-1004-turbo-failure-boost/)
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