DIY Detonation Detector
Could you please tell me if the DIY Detonation Detector ["DIY Detonation Detection - Part 2"] you built from a hearing impaired device called the Whisper 2000 is available from you pre-built. If not, can you tell me how I go about getting one? I have just been on the Dick Smith Electronics site and the cat no Y-2000 quoted in the article doesn't go in and I cannot find this Whisper 2000 product anywhere.
All help appreciated.
Matthew Macauley
The system is not available pre-built and the Whisper 2000 is no longer sold by DSE. We have been looking at some alternatives, but don't have anything actually in the pipeline at this stage.
Painting CAI's White
I've seen on the articles you have when making air ducts you usually tend to spray all pipes black. Well I'm a black spray can fan myself and usually do that too. I have a Peugeot 206 and had modified the filterbox pipes all the way down to the floor of the car to get free air. This gave me about over one metre of black tubing. The result was that I run for 10 minutes, stopped the car, opened the hood and realised my pipes were quite hot (more than 45-50C). Black absorbs heat in a very rapid manner...
You know what I did? Paint them white. The difference was not a lot maybe, but it was really out of nowhere and it may have made a 10 degrees C difference. Then I used some insulating material and two very thin wooden plates on the side and the front of the airbox (which is exactly behind the radiator) as heat shields and I'm now running as cool as air.
I can feel the difference in uphills and it's quite substantial for such a mod that didn't even affect the flow. I wish I could send you pics but I haven't photo'ed it or have a scanner but I hope I can do it in the future. Anyway keep in mind that although black look good white is often better :)
Anyway that's all I wanted to point out. Great site you've got there, keep up the good work.
Alexander Sicamiotis
Ute Aero Testing
Just a quick suggestion - I'm thoroughly enjoying the Aero Testing articles, very well written! I also found this last issue (#143) overall the best yet :) Regarding the Aero Testing articles, you have tested the most common car body designs so far, but I am curious however as to how a ute would perform aerodynamically with and without the rear cover? As utes are now being the focus of performance mods more and more. I do not own a ute myself but I think the outcomes of such a test would be very interesting to many readers. Just a thought.
Gert Ceuls
We don't have any testing of utes lined up at this stage, but a ute typically has a wake of disturbed air behind it as large as a wagon - not good! It would be even worse without a rear cover...
Intake Tuning
Firstly - a terrific magazine.
FWIW - Reading your Integra article ["A Shot in the Integra's 'R's"] and the note on intake box changes and power loss. My 'baby' is a Porsche 928 S4. These engines use a variable resonance intake manifold, but rather than rely on changing runner lengths, the Helmholtz Resonator principle is used. At 4000 rpm a butterfly valve is opened to connect two previously separate halves of the intake plenum. The new resonance aids breathing and helps maintain torque to 6200 rpm.
I suspect that the Integra airbox uses the same principle, and in removing the lid you eliminate the Helmholtz effect - as evidenced by the power loss.
John Cumming
Oil Testing
I have come across an engine oil (Power Krunch 27 10W-30, 20W-50) which I am using, which not only provides my ride (Ford Sierra Sapphire Cosworth) with better power (proven on a dyno) but it also lasts a long time. Well it seems so, I use to be using Royal Purple and it was good but after about 6000km to 8500km the engine starts to sound a bit rough. After trying this engine oil it is still nice and smooth even after 10000km. I was wondering if AutoSpeed is interested in giving this engine oil a try (test it to its limit and see if it's really better)?
Januaca Tjandra
We suggest that you have an oil analysis carried out by a testing laboratory to see how well the oil is holding up in your application. Oil samples are easily mailed to distant locations if no such lab exists near to you.
Apparently We Hid the Intercooler!
- Contest: find the intercooler - "Pre-Owned Performance - Nissan Bluebird (Altima) 4WD Turbo"
- I don't think there is one on that car????
- I'm saying there is one. The problem is that they never give you a good front-end view of the car.
- Where's the intercooler? Oh, boy. I bet this is one of those trick questions with a deep, abstract answer. The intercooler is in your heart.
- Where the hell is the turbo compressor outlet on that car???
- They probably removed all the ic piping and intercooler for a good picture.
....and so on!
From http://www.sr20deforum.com
It's in the standard position behind the grille, fellas.
Legality & Insurance
This is a great e-zine. I have a question about some of the cars. Firstly, how legal are half these cars? I rang the RTA once and they said supercharged/turbocharged V8 cars are illegal in Adelaide. Secondly, how do they get half these cars insured? I tried to put a Momo steering wheel on my standard VL Calais and my insurance company had a fit. Finally, maybe you could some of article about the above-mentioned points. Sorry to be a party pooper, but I think these are very salient points.
Eric Mazzeo
We would imagine that in the strict letter of the law, many of the feature cars that AutoSpeed showcases are illegal. For example, the majority of these modified would not have undergone emissions testing. Regarding doing a story on what is legal and what is not - we have had that request many times, however it is not something that we will be carrying out. Why? Firstly, in relation to permissible modifications, the laws differ from Australian state to state. For example, the use of programmable management in cars is deemed by some states to be illegal - while others say that if the management is 'locked' it's OK. But then again, unlocking the management is just a question of pressing a few lap-top buttons! Importantly, the enforcement of those laws also differs - we've heard plenty of stories of identical modifications being passed by some inspections that other inspections fail. This factor alone makes the accurate assessment of what - in reality - can and cannot be done quite impossible. It's our personal preference that car modifications are undertaken to give a competent and safe final package, with attention paid to brakes and suspension as well as increasing power. Regarding insurance - most modified cars can be insured, provided that you're prepared to pay the premium...
DIY Boost Controller
I have a couple of questions about the Audi's DIY boost controller (Part 2) ["The Audi's DIY Boost Control - Part 2" ]:
- Are there any plans to sell the bits in kit form in the AutoSpeed shop?
- Off the top of your head (personal preference aside), what would you recommend for a 4WD turbo rally car? Boost as soon as you can, with as much as you can (as per the regular set-up of the car, anyway)? Because the throttle is so often on/off (rather than throttle steering), I would think that you'd want to get boost on as quickly as the turbo could spool it and the wastegate regulate it.
Any thoughts?
Chris Waltham
We don't have any plans to sell the components to the boost controller through the AutoSpeed shop. Having never driven, owned, raced or rallied a turbo 4WD rally car, we can only guess that good throttle control and quick boosting would be appropriate attributes of a boost control system for such a car. The ability to finely adjust how quickly boost rises would make the cited system good in that application, perhaps. Note, however, that with this system an ambient temperature range of greater than about 45 degrees C will cause peak boost values to vary. A system that mixes a conventional bleed with the adjustable relief valve may give the best of both worlds.
Alfa 166 Test
Ur [Alfa] 166 test ["New Car Test - Alfa 166 Sportronic"] is ###!! (I won't use this word). U just don't understand the car or have u got a problem with Alfas?? The 156 test ain't much better. Is your magazine some kind of fairy tale journal?? It seems as if u got too much space in it and so u got to fill it with that crap. Never mind, guys, if u help to bring down the Australian Alfa sales the European delivery time will shorten!! Thank u. This was the first time I read AutoSpeed and it surely will be the last.
Anonymous
In fact we have carried out some very positive Alfa Romeo tests - "New Car Test - Alfa Romeo 156 TwinSpark" and "New Car Test - Alfa Romeo Spider TwinSpark" are examples. But anyone thinking that the Alfa 166 automatic is a good car is either a one-eyed Alfa fanatic or hasn't driven any of the competition. Given that it's possible in Australia to now buy a used 2000 model year Alfa 166 for nearly 30 per cent off its new price, the market agrees.
Yella Delight
Reading AutoSpeed is always interesting and I'm always interested even more so when a Zed appears. Yella Delight ["Yella Delight"]is an absolute knockout, but as the owner of an L series powered Z, in my case a well warm injected 2.8 280ZX 2 seater, I can only laugh when fuel consumption figures are stated. 8.5 l/100km for a 260kW turbocharged L series!! That is truly remarkable.
The 280ZX Turbo with approximately 134kW had a quoted consumption figure of around 22 mpg (12.8 l/100) hwy. Fair enough, we're not comparing apples with apples - the 280 being about 200kg heavier, but still.
My current engine is a naturally aspirated 2.8, Crow cam, EMS, 2.5-inch exhaust and extractors, coil pack ignition, 65mm throttle body etc etc. Chassis dyno tells me it has 174hp at the wheels. The car weighs about 1250kg. I get on average 17 mpg (16.5 l/100km) around town and about 25 mpg (11.25 l/100km) on a trip. When it was stock, I probably wasn't getting more than 18 or 19 mpg around town. Hopefully in the near future I'll be fitting an R33 RB25DET and 5-speed, plus a few mods and I'll see what mileage I can get out of that.
What's my point? 8.5l/100km from any worked L-series in any configuration I think is impossible........that's my opinion. In that case Nissan should not have bothered with RB series engines and stuck with the L-series!!
I know you go on what the owner tells you, but c'mon you gotta laugh?
Emil Jukic
Hmm, your argument certainly looks pretty strong, so we went back to contributor Greg Brindley's original text - and found that we'd made a mistake. He had originally written '8.5 kilometres per litre', which we inadvertently edited to 8.5 litres/100 km. Of course the conversion should actually have read 11.8 litres/100 km - which makes rather more sense in the light of your experience! We've changed the article to reflect the correct figure.
Praise
Are you reading minds as well as producing the best automotive publication?
My hat is off to you. For months I have thought, "Just get rid of the bloody forums!" and pow, this week finally I see them go. RIP
On a different note, I'd like to remark on the obvious good relationship Julian, Michael, David and any other regular contributors seem to have with each other. The effort and discussion you guys must have really shows in your content and research.
Congratulations and thanks.
Shamus Gilchrist
For Sale?
It was interesting to read the articles this week. I have been a little distracted lately and have not had much of a chance to knuckle down and read them, rather than just skimming through.
I feel compelled to tell you that reading through a feature car article and reading those damned final words that say the car is for sale makes me feel violated. I instantly think the story was purely to drum up interest in the car. In my honest opinion, the story loses credibility, as much so as a car ad that says "one elderly lady owner".
When I read Motor, or other paper magazines, which do feature flashbacks or feature cars, I am not insulted by "Mr. X spent $50,000 doing up with Y-car...make him an offer!"
You are aiming for a more professional feel to the page, so please don't do this. Leave the owner to advertise it. At least if you are going to do it, put a proper price. Imagine this...an advert in the Auto Trader..."Spent $50,000, make me an offer!"
Apart from that, a good read this week, thanks!
Daniel Simms
Feature car owners are doing us a huge favour in allowing us access to their car. We take up their time during the photography, we take up their time during interviews when the photo shoot is being done - and usually again later when we talk by phone to confirm story details. If they ask whether we can run the line that the car is for sale, we are glad to do so. It makes zero difference to how the story is produced - as can be seen by a feature car story a few months ago where Michael Knowling wrote that the engine of the (for sale) feature car needed a rebuild!
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