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Not a lot more done this afternoon, but I did get the oil/air separator tank out and apart; have to say, I feel quite pleased that the design of the tank has worked, insomuch that in the bottom of the tank was decent amount of oil - only as much to cover the base before then breaching the height of the drain union, welded into the bottom, as you can see below:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...B499C68D5F.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...6D7BB3971D.jpg The filter element has also worked, preventing any oily residue that wasn't condensed via the separation plates, from entering the top half of the tank; it's absolutely bone dry. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...503C1DEFA3.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ED8564F55A.jpg All now cleaned, and a few more components removed from the engine bay (RH I/C mounting bracket) has eased access so I can continue the clean-up. Chris and I have been corresponding about various things, and it does look as though the amount of oil that is being extracted via this tank is perhaps higher than expected for a 965. My instinct says that it's *perhaps* due to the main oil tank being filled a little high, maybe reducing the volume available in the tank for air returning from the engine to condense (Chris may tell me I'm talking utter rubbish here!). Long-term I am going to look to simplify the breathing system; initially I'll look to remove the -3AN drain hose from the tank to the chimney assembly, block off both ports and then monitor how much oil is being condensed. Assuming it reduces, then it should be safe to remove said tank. In other news, a load of new parts have arrived from Porsche Tonbridge:
Am just about to order a 1080x720p borescope, one with a semi-rigid 80cm long neck, a 45º mirror and ability to wi-fi connect to an iPhone/iPad. There's plenty available with 2m/5m/10m fly leads and tiny 5.5mm heads, but for what I have in mind, the semi-rigid neck is going to be far more useful. The smaller heads tend to be far lower resolution as well, albeit for £6-7, they're probably worth a speculative punt. If you remember, we did a borescope check whilst on DTW's engine dyno, but paranoia has me wanting to regularly remove the lower plugs to have a look/see, and be able to capture the images for filing and future comparison, should that ever be necessary. I'm sure it'll be useful for the sort of thing I've been investigating today, viewing inaccessible stuff at the back of the engine bay. |
Quote:
Could you make me please the photo of a simple drawing of your beam of ignition with 4 amplifiers Bosch and your 12 reels Denso? Thank you, I hope that you have a lot of pleasure at the wheel of your great racing car. :) |
What is going on in here? Spencer you OK?
:) |
^ x2. Incredible build, hope everything is OK.
|
Thanks for the prod guys, yeah I'm still here, just a little focused on some house related projects plus going through our financial year end (extremely busy, lots of travelling to get deals over the line)....and it's winter and I'm being a wimp!
So, Ive not touched the car since early December. In fact I have to stop and think where I got up to; iirc, the oil hose leak was resolved, what I really want to do before refitting the IC is rework the cold exit pipe into the throttle body. That needs stripping of plated finish, cutting, fabricating and rewelding, the either anodising or powder coating. The lower valve cover on LH side is off, ready to perform gap adjustments but I got no further and now have an oil slick on the floor! Clutch line needs re-bleeding and once the good weather is here I ought to then get it outside, door open, head first under the dash and wire in the trick boost gauge. Confession time, the funds I'd set aside for redoing the suspension have been blown.... I kind of fell back down the slope of collecting watches. Again. Sober for a year but the wagon has not only thrown me off, it's left town as well! I'd got fed up with spending daft sums of money on the car on innocuous crap like original bolts and fixings. So now I'm spending daft sums of money buying unobtainium vintage watch parts, lol! Joking aside, yeah, I'm probably going to book a weeks vacation once we're through our qtr end in a few weeks time, and get back onto it....watch this space. |
Hi Spencer,
Quietly but certainly! :) |
Evening guys, time for a long-overdue update.....actually, more accurately, a long-overdue session in the workshop.
I took a few days vacation over the Easter week; the house projects have reached a state where I can shift my focus onto trying to get the car usable over the fast approaching spring and summer. A good few items on the agenda for last week, first of which was to complete the valve gap checking and setting. I'd got as far as removing the tinware, COP's and some of the hoses that were getting in the way, so time to get the setting tool out and get-to-it. This tool really is a nice device, well made, and by double-checking with traditional feeler gauges, it's accurate and consistent. It's also easy to get it into places, making each adjustment really quite fast once you get the hang of the holding position with one hand and using the ring spanner with the other. I decided to bin the silicon gasket set I'd bought; the lower valve cover on 1-2-3 had been over tightened and cut the lower edge. The trouble with them is, is that you can't get a really nice feeling of tightness, they just compress too much; I didn't trust the light torque setting of the M8 valve cover nuts, so did what felt right by feel (using The Force), but clearly this was too much after 3 or 4 removals/refits. So, back to good old fibre gaskets, and they've clamped down nicely. (Keep It Simple Stupid) A job I've been to do for a while now, is to re-work the cold IC pipe (the IC exit pipe that runs to the throttle body). I got it slightly wrong when we fabricated it, perhaps some movement with the heat of welding, who knows, but it was negating the quick-release design of the IC, turning a 2min job into an hours wrestling/swearing match. The part needed dipping into the chemical solution to remove the black anodising - my plating shop duly obliged while I waited, then time to start planning where to surgically insert the hacksaw. I have to say, I'm really pleased I took the plunge with this job - got it right pretty-much first time, didn't need Lewis to do in-situ welding and it looks a lot neater than it ever did (well, it will once it's powder coated). http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...t/IMG_8321.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...t/IMG_8322.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...G_8329%202.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...G_8336%202.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...G_8334%202.jpg I also took the opportunity to smooth out the two welds of the centre section, which is where the BOV is mounted....a lot cleaner looking. Next job was to check the plugs and COP's; I had a nagging doubt that a repeat of one of the ignition issues from when we were on the dyno (...almost a year ago. Can't believe I'm typing that). One ignition issue was down to an unseated pin in the harness, which was temporarily corrected at the time, and rectified properly soon afterwards. The other issue was what appeared to be a blown Bosch 3-channel amplifier, as we had a whole bank of dead lower plugs on 4-5-6. We still don't know what we did to fix it - possibly a slightly unseated connection onto that amplifier - and at the time we didn't care as the clock was ticking big-time. Some testing via the diagnostics functions on the MBE Easimap software confirmed that all 12 sparks were present and correct. Thankfully. I've also bought one of these, as a way to quickly test COP operation; nothing fancy that shows a trace on a 'scope, but sometimes just a go/no-go is more than fine. I've not used it yet, but it should start flashing lights and beeping when it's layed on top of each COP. Will report back when I try it..... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ect/VS5270.png Another welding job next....making a custom exhaust stud nut spanner. It suddenly struck me, whilst upside down under the car, that I have a few tools that were once my Grandads. They never get used, but as it happens, the PERFECT cranked ring spanner was sitting in my tool box all the time. Perfect length and crank offset, but it was a Whitworth size! A spare 1/4" drive 13mm socket, and a 1/4" > 3/8" adapter, plus a £5 note and a 12mile drive.... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...t/IMG_8344.jpg It's spot-on. It allows be to get a wobble extension bar on there, and another half to 3/4 of a turn on each nut without fear of rounding it off. Pat-on-back-time. And a cuppa. |
Now, onto the main event. Sorry, a bit wordy and no pics yet, but this is the "find why oil was being sprayed around the top half of the engine" bit.
I thought I'd correctly diagnosed this before Christmas when I first started stripping the induction system off. If you remember, I found a loose -4AN drain hose fitting from the oil:air separator tank to the crankcase chimney. It returned to where a temperature sensor was once fitted (iirc, it was used for the CIS management), where I installed an M14x1.5 > -4AN adapter. Loose connection. Easy. Sorted, right? ....No.... I got the car back together again last Wednesday, ready for first fire-up on Thursday morning. Started perfectly, sat there idling nicely, albeit with some burning oil smoke from near the air filter. I assumed it was simply burning off oil residue from the previous effort last year....no matter how well you try and dissolve and clean it, oil gets everywhere as we know. A few minutes later after a short 1mile run down the road, the cabin fills with smoke. Uh oh. Time to get the torch out and have a proper inspection. More bloody oil, lots of it, just like last time but worse. Cue a sense-of-humour-failure. Ok, I admit, I lost the will at this point and went onto other more interesting finishing jobs, one of which being to fix the parking brake warning light. God knows how, but the electrical contact spring at the back of the handbrake lever had snapped at some point in its life, thankfully, just the spring is available from Porsche, and only a few cents. A few minutes spent removing a couple of trim sections on the centre console, then the handbrake lever itself, and it was time to drill out the 2 rivets holding on the remains of the contact spring. All back together, and one of those "I must get around to that" jobs is now removed from my To Do list. Excellent. The weekend was now here, and there's nothing for it but to bite the bullet and concede to maybe having to remove the whole intake manifold system....maybe....but this really was a last resort, as there are so many brackets now bolted onto it, pipes clipped onto it, looms cable-tied onto it....argghh!! But...I get a lucky break when I shine the torch onto the crankcase chimney housing again and notice that the short silicone hose that interfaces the engine to the stainless steel return hose (to the oil tank) was slightly crooked. A very light push caused it to pop off completely!! Bingo! So, that was the symptom....a popped-off hose....but why did it pop off? It hadn't shown any sign of moving on the dyno, it hasn't been touched since then. Hmmm. Clearly, oil residue had helped it, once it started to move...but.... My best guess is thus:
Turns out that the lower one - the one that let go - had gone slightly oval. This had allowed oil to escape (or at least, oily vented air), which had started the release of the hose, perhaps not helped by slightly increased pressures?....All hypothetical, but that's what my money's on. So, to test the theory, I re-installed one of the old temperature sensors that came off the engine (very glad I kept them handy...) back into the chimney housing. The M14 bung that I installed into the 4-5-6 timing chain cover (again, replacing a redundant temp sensor) was replaced by the M14 > -4AN adapter. A longer -4AN hose was made, with the same two 90deg fittings, and the OAS tank drain connected here. Now, I am aware through conversations with Chris, that breathing can happen through the timing chain housing as well, but my logic says its got to be less than crankcase, and it's certainly worth a punt. Apart from it being a swine to install the -4AN adapter (!!) into the chain cover, even with the AC pump removed, it's an easy thing to test. Long story short, a good 25-30 miles now complete and no sign of any oil! Thank the Lord!! In fact, not only 30miles, but with the very clement weather recently, I've been able to deploy all the horses to good effect. In all 3 boost settings. Holy crap. I won't pretend it's quite the same sensation, but it did remind me of those in-car videos of the Grp B Quattros and how bloody quick they went through each gear...it's a constant shifting of gears, it just eats through 2nd/3rd/4th, and I ran out of mettle in 5th (but it was still pulling hard when I thought better of a spell in jail). The other sensation is the view of the sky. Each time under WOT. Great opportunity to check the cloud formations - it really does squat down massively. I took Ian (the mate in the early photos/videos) out for a blast - he got out, legs trembling apparently. Said I "had no idea how it felt on his side of the car". Muh-ha-hah. Oh go on then, gratuitous picture after some runs out... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...t/IMG_8346.jpg |
The new rear windscreen wiper arm arrived today from OPC Tonbridge. Todays top tip....don't break your original one. They are fragile (mine must've been hanging on by a thread), but it's a £140/$200 part to replace. Anyway, it's on now and looking prestine black.
There's still a few jobs left to do.... I've decided to opt for a half-way-house option with the suspension, insomuch that I already have new Bilstein HD dampers with new front top mounts. I was going to transfer my current springs across to the new dampers. They're "red", so assumption is that they're perhaps H&R Reds, but they're also marked Gemballa. In the spirit of the project, i.e.., why spend nothing when you can spend lots, I'm expecting delivery of a new set of H&R Reds in the next few days. I'll install these and perform a before-and-after geometry setup, have some fun this summer, then get to work over the winter with a full suspension teardown and setup. It's not perfect, doing it this way, but it'll be better than the current geo "setup" and means I can drive it. Onto other things....I also look to have a current drain on the electrical side, drawing 348mA in steady state (i.e., after ECU has shut down, the doors are shut, no courtesty lights, etc). My diagnosis so far has been to pull each fuse, back and front, along with every relay, to see if any difference is observed. The only difference I can see is a drop of 10mA on the clock/diagnostics circuit. The ECU should only draw 25mA after it shuts down (1800sec delay after ignition-off, to allow mapping to continue, downloading of map to PC, etc). If I unplug each of the MIL spec connectors (in the engine bay) on the engine loom, I can see either a 20 or 30mA drop, depending on which plug. Next job is to get under the car and unplug/measure the hard-wired +VE feed from the starter motor, which supplies the whole engine loom. Time to install the new boost gauge - just waiting for a few SuperSeal connectors to arrive, so I can take feeds for the +Ve and Gnd to the Stack part of the gauge. Finally, the headlight rims need to go back on (much as I quite like the 60's/70's works look of the black rims). I can't get the cosmetic body coloured trims on, as the black powder coating on the adjustment rims is marginally too thick. Needs taking off and reapplying I guess. Bit of a pain. Will keep you posted.... |
Smiling as I read this, Spencer! I am relived your oiling issue is resolved, and that you got to take a long-overdue 30 mile drive with some heavy boost.
She'll be more fun still with fresh shocks. ENJOY! |
Time for an end-of-week update....
Well, the moving of the oil drain line from the "triangle of death" to the 4-5-6 chain cover, ultimately didn't prove to be 100% successful. For sure, the crankcase breather hose has remained in place and the surrounding area is now bone dry - all good stuff. I also checked the underside of the engine, and where I once had oil dripping (from what I thought was) #5 barrel > crankcase, is now also dry as a bone - so clearly this was migrating oil from the top side, working its way down under the shroud and through the barrels. That's a relief. However....when I reached under the RHS rocker panel to fit a jacking puck, I noticed that the underside was wet with oil. Simple enough to check, just jack the car, remove wheel remove the inner arch to expose the oil tank, as a starter-for-ten. Sure enough, oil coming from the top ventilation 1" diameter hose (oil tank breather), and had run down the tank and under the rocker panel/shark-fin. All hoses still tight (after I previously removed, cleaned, and checked that they were indeed connected to the correct ports). My best guess is that by re-routing the drain hose, all I've done is move the problem somewhere else, and still back-pressurising the breathing circuit. Chris was gracious enough to not say "told you so" when we spoke the other evening. Now, time for a rookie confession. In my diagnosis routine after this discovery, I looked for the 1-way check valve to ensure it was installed the correct way around. It was, no probs there. However, the hose that should have gone from the valves outlet to the inlet manifold, was laying at the back of the engine, disconnected. To be fair, it's buried under a tonne of other fuel lines, the 3" intake tract, wiring loom and other breathing hoses...impossible to see unless you use torches and mirrors, and simply one that I forgot to connect when installing the engine. No evidence of a jubilee clip ever having been tightened onto it. Dammit. It *should* have been connected to a "T" with the breather from the fuel tanks carbon canister (LH inner wing) and the intake manifold. Carbon canister and manfold were hooked up but with an open 3rd port....bleeding untold amounts of boost. The 1-way valve also needed to be re-located. It was on the RHS of the engine bay, mounted a couple of inches after the 8mm hose enters the bay from the tank. Now that it's controlling gas flow from the intake to both the oil tank and the charcoal canister, it sits next to the intake manifold, downstream of both breathers, off of the "T". So, the good news is that it should feel a helluva lot quicker once rectified. Plan C - remove the OAS tank drain from chain cover, refit the M14x1.5 bung, and do "something" with the drain hose temporarily. Thankfully, the evening I decided to do all this, everything went my way - one of the best evenings work in the garage for a long time, I barely even swore...bloody miracle. Oops. The hose is now zip tied into a polythene bag so that I can monitor how much oil is being separated from that breather - answer is, about a teaspoon after a 10mile run. The longterm plan is to now make a 3rd new hose, forget plumbing it into any part of the engine and route it to the oil drip tank under the turbo. From there, it will get scavenged by the auxiliary pump and returned back to the tank. the choice I now need to make, is whether to remove and rework the tank (black anodised, would need stripping, welding, re-coating...and whether the ingrained oil will make welding difficult is unknown; maybe). The other option is to tap into one of the -8AN hoses on the drip tank. If I can break into one with a 3-way "T" (two -8 connections plus a -4), then that would be FAR less hassle. Whether such a part exists, I don't know - time to call Think Auto, otherwise I'll probably make one. Anyway, a couple of runs out now with everything connected (ahem), and my perception of fast has just had a reset....it felt bloody quick last weekend, as described previously...but it's perhaps not stretching things too far to say that in low boost setting, it's quicker than the high boost setting last weekend. Well, that's what plugging an 8mm hole does, I guess! I had the briefest of flirts with the "new" high boost setting, but not enough to write about at the moment apart from it felt borderline terrifying. I've also been doing some quick mental arithmetic on the fuel usage (there's a story there...) By my reckoning, with the on-boost activity and stationary warming-up that I've done while checking then engine, I've got through £35 of Super Unleaded (and it was about the most expensive Super in the area @ £1.40/litre) in about 35-40 miles. I'll leave that with you.... I've now brimmed the tank and am going to be putting on the miles to prove reliability, so that's bound to give a more real-world number. Something beginning with a "2" would be considered a result, lol. |
Looking through an old 2012 Think Automotive catalogue, I think we have a plan for the connecting of the drain hose into the turbo drip tank.
A -8 one of these.... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...1007AE72AE.jpg Plus a -4 one of these.... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...956e82349a.jpg Plus a new length of -4 hose, re-use the 90º fitting and some of that orange fireproof sleeving (for all the hoses near the turbo, they're looking a little cooked). Some welding from Pete or Lewis, and maybe get it anodised, and it'll be job done. May need to shorten the hose which is to accommodate this adapter, but that'll be simple enough. |
Time for a check-in....
Some more local journeys over the last few days, and it all looks good. No sign of any oil leaks, which of course I'm relieved about. The breathing conundrum also looks to be understood, if not yet finally implemented. The zip tied bag on the end of the drain hose looks to be collecting only the smallest amount of incremental oil; most of what's in there seemed to come from the first 10mile test run, so whether it was just clearing some residue, quite possibly. The items from Think Automotive arrived yesterday. Great news, Tino who was the "go to guy" there is now back! He left for about 6mths, real loss I have to say, but was chuffed to hear him at the end of the phone on Tuesday! Parts that have arrived: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...AC5FDDB7_1.jpg I also had a thought about where to plumb this -8AN "T"...first thought was at the very bottom of the -8AN breather hose, which vents from the turbo drip tank to the air inlet tract. It could also go at the end of the short run between the turbo outlet and the tank inlet. Both of those may mean reworking some of the tinware above the turbo, to cater for this additional hose, and possibly some shortening of existing -8 hoses. Alternatively, the auxialiary scavenge pump pulls the drip tank oil via a -8 line, and if you remember, it is filtered via a Mocal inline filter assy, before the turbo oil gets to the pump (therefore, oil returned to the main tank is filtered, and the pump is protected from any catastrophic turbo failure). I could return the OAS drain line into this -8 scavenge pump line, before the filter, so it would be pulled from the OAS tank (to a small extent) by the pump? Neater, and I could probably find an existing bunged hole in the LH tinware to feed the hose through? I'll post pictures at some point - I may get this done before the weekend, if not, then a fresh poly bag will be zip tied! |
Another job I've looked at is the wiring in of the new boost gauge. On Tuesday night I got all the power wires spliced and re-bound using original cloth loom tape, as well as the new harness in place for the gauge itself. All ready to go, except I've now noticed that the indexing of the needle to the indices is wrong...like, way out. I applied power to the unit, it then does a self-check/calibrartion with a full sweep, but doesn't now return to one of the indices.
I have to say, this unit is almost too functional for it's own good; in some ways wish I'd just stuck with a basic mid-range mechanical unit to build into the clock/warning light housing. But hey-ho, I'll contact the guy who made it and see what he suggests. There's also a fair amount of dust ingress on the inside of the glass that needs sorting. He won't thank me, it was a pain the first time round to install that glass without cracking. For the time being I've refitted the stock clock...which I kind of really like. Dammit. |
The plan for the next few days is significant. There's a great outfit based on the Silverstone race circuit called Fearnsport, they used to look after the GT3 I had before the 964. The plan is for me and my Brother to venture up there on Saturday morning, for 2 reasons:
Firstly I need an valuation assessment done to complete the paperwork for my insurance (this evening I need to sit down and do some clerical work and scare myself stupid by adding up the total spend...I quite like my blissfully ignorant approach so far, but it's time to take it a little more seriously and make sure the investment is protected) Secondly, and I may have mentioned this previously, there's a fairly coarse rumbling sensation upwards of 3k - this may well be absolutely business-as-usual for aircooled engines. My driving experience of them extends to only 6mths, in only my car, before pulling the engine...not a great amount. Of course, Chris and I have conversed about it, but it's nigh-on impossible to diagnose when you're 5,000 miles away, and nor would I expect that of anyone. I did start to trawl the forums for similar symptoms, but it's akin to trying to diagnose a health complaint online - somewhere between useless and terrifying! Matt @ Fearnsport has kindly invited me to go up there for a bit of "homework marking", have a passenger ride and quite possibly drive it himself to hear and feel it first hand. He's a great guy, and along with TK Chris, one of the very few people in the UK who I would trust to give me an honest appraisal rather than suck-air-through-teeth and see it as a change to fleece me with a bad news story. Last time I was up there, he was rebuilding a 959 engine, so he certainly knows his stuff. They don't do the uber deep re-engineering hot-rod projects that Chris and Mike undertake at TurboKraft, they're more into restoration and looking after customer GT and RS trackday toys (and Carrera GT's...). There's always some nice exotica up there to drool over - last time I was up there the 959 was mid rebuild and up on the lift - not a view many folk have seen a 959 from, I'm sure! So, we'll see what that brings. It'll be the longest journey that I'll have done in the car since owning it; nervous? Hell yeah. Lots of tools, oil, cable ties and gaffer tape will be packed, along with a warm coat and a Thermos flask of strong coffee, haha. The tablet PC is also now rigged up, with double-suction cup windscreen mount (although it doesn't sit in the windscreen - it rests nicely on the folded down glovebox door) so Ollie can keep an eye out on the EasiMap dashboard for anything abnormal. Hope the weathers good, and I'll report back once that part is done. |
Tonights job is for me to rig up said tablet, connect it to either my Wi-Fi network or tether to my cellphone (4G) so that we can use TeamViewer to do some live mapping. Steve @ SBD and I spoke at length last night about some tweaking that is needed (now that the bloody hose is connected) to get it driving nicer at slow speeds.
To assist with this, Lucy plonked herself in the passenger seat and used my phone to record the tablet with EasiMap running, whilst I drove around town, simulating the kangarooing symptom that is now evident. Despite what some think, I'm no "maximum attack" speed freak - sometimes it is nice to just cruise around at slow speeds! Plus, our town has a strictly enforced 20mph speed limit, which at the moment is very tricky without slipping the clutch of riding the brakes. We also got a few data logs logged - all the hard data is useful but as Steve says, sometimes to see it first hand on a video and hear in the background exactly what's happening, is equally useful. It appears that now the intake hole is plugged, the reduction in air into the plenum is akin to a lesser throttle opening, and igntion advance is being used by the ECU to "prop-up" the slow speed running. Hopefully, tonights session should a) make sure there's nothing disasterous going on, and b) dial things in a little closer, ready for the long-haul* trip on Saturday, making it nicer to drive. * Long-haul by UK standards, a mere jaunt down to the local stores in US parlence. |
Well....wow!
The perfect evening....a timely conclusion to the day-job, the sun had been out all day, nice dry roads...perfect for a drive around. The technology proved to work absolutely faultlessly. First order of the evening was to address the cold starts, seeing exactly what it's doing and understand why its stalling for the first 2 attempts, then only just catching itself on the 3rd pull. Of course, only one shot at a cold start, so a good 20-30mins were spent fine tuning some things, and making some quite radical changes to others. Logic says that we've done should now work. Don't forget, that because of the disconnected breather hose to the inlet, some parts of the map needed to be re-worked completely. Until the point where we fired up the engine, we were pretty confident that this is now nailed. The caveat being, that Steve has made some huge changes to the low speed maps which may well now affect how the cold start performs tomorrow. In any case, idling is now a lot cleaner, somehow a lot smoother feeling. Lots of experimentation, some things which are counter-intuitive and almost going against what the Lambda is trying to trim, by writing new compensation maps. As anyone who's done serious amounts of mapping will testify, change one thing and many other characterisitics can also change, things like throttling-off and how quickly the revs drop, how it transitions from one map to another, how the TPS map interacts with the pressure based map, and so on. So, time for me to drive around with handsfree headphones in ears (Phone 1, iPhone 5S), the tablet in place but not being used (we found it to be a little hamstrung with its Intel mobile CPU, doing live mapping, Team Viewer and a tethered cell connection...just a tad too slow to make remote mapping comfortable), Phone 2 (iPhone 6+) doing the data connection, and my Mac on the passenger seat with the seatbelt on! Quick photo of just the tablet in place - the mount does a really good job so long as its supported underneath. Too bouncy otherwise. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...A62AB18E_5.jpg Steve was able to observe everything that was happening, with me correlating that with what I was doing (or about to do), and what sensation I observed from the seat. A few regular stops in lay-bys for Steve to then make adjustments to maps, then another drive around. From an IT persective, some interesting observations; even 1-2 bars of 3G signal is enough - just - to maintain the remote desktop session. 3 or more bars of 3G signal and it's fine, a nice constant connection back to the SBD Motorsport HQ in Surrey. Very little of my route had any 4G signal, so can't comment on that - it could be that just a single bar of 4G signal iwould deliver the same connection experience as 3 bars of 3G. Secondly, my monthly data allowance with EE is 2GB. After about an hour of a live RDP session, I had visions of me blowing the limit and receiving a rediculous mobile bill. But no. I didn't check my month-to-date data use before we started, but after we had completed the work, my current period usage is only 460MB...so, Team Viewer 11 looks to be fantastically efficient; RDP isn't my field of expertise so I can only assume that it's really good at sending only change data across the wire. Whether there's any compression going on, I don't know. Really nice software, so simple to set up and works flawlessly. This evenings session was about 3hrs of work....how does it now feel? Like a completely different car. Literally, night-and-day different. 1) No longer does it feel like you're having to think really hard about junction pull-aways, for fear of stalling. 2) The throttle sensitivity is far nicer, far more linear. 3) I can now comfortably cruise through town at, say 15mph without it kangarooing in 1st, or having to constantly check the speed in 2nd by riding the brakes or slipping the clutch. Steve made many more changes than the 3 points above, of course, mainly on drivability, but they essentially distill down to the above areas. I'm now a lot more confident about taking the car on the long run on Saturday. If the cold start still works tomorrow, then we're almost there. I know Steve wants to have a look at WOT boost control, and make sure that the duty cycles for the control valve are optimised. The only thing we can't *quite* dial out is when driving in 1st, light throttle and gradually accelerating, it gets to 3,000 then stutters before taking off in a less linear way than elsewhere. This may need to have Steve present in the car, but at the moment our best guess is that this *could* be a characterisitc of the 964 N/A cams with valve overlap. In reality, however, this style of driving isn't going to be normal - I'll either be using more throttle for a quick getaway, or if I am gently cruising, I'd have changed up to 2nd by then and used the torque. Overall, a great evening, and thanks to Steve and Craig @ SBD. This was only run past them as an idea yesterday afternoon, so I'm very appreciative that we've got this far within 24hrs and in time for the weekend. I just want to go out and drive it now!! |
Also, a quick lunchtime jaunt over to my favourite plating shop, Butterworths Regia in Ramsgate, where Jon kindly dipped the -8AN fittings while I waited, to remove the red & blue anodising....I don't "do" red and blue... ;)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...C070916556.jpg |
Long post warning - Debriefing write-up from first long trip....
Sitting here typing this with a massive grin....a 100% successful trip up to Silverstone today, and I don't think I can quite convey the level of satisfaction and relief. It's perhaps the first time I've allowed myself to feel very pleased with the project, in fact, I think it's a higher-high than when we first fired up the engine - I guess because todays achievement is well-and-truly outside of being a "fluke". In total, 340 miles now under the belt. It all started this morning at 6.00, with what was an utter failure for a discrete exit from my garage and road. I did have the forethought to apologise to my next door neighbour last night. Conditions were nice; pretty bright and dry roads...this was about to change and if you're currently watching the TV coverage or the Radio Le Mans broadcast of the European Le Mans Series, you'll have heard this already... All the gadgets were installed, tablet PC being closely monitored by my Brother, more tools packed than I thought possible and a Thermos flask of hot coffee. Just in case, you understand. The first top-up of fuel for the day, and an unremarkable run through Kent and up to the M25 and Dartford Crossing....lightly trafficked roads on the worlds largest car park...fingers still crossed....and a great run up the M1. We're not daring to say anything about this, for fear of tempting fate. Weather as we approach the junction for Silverstone is taking a turn for the worse...much worse... As we appraoch the circuit (Fearnsport are based within the grounds of the track) it's starting to absolutely throw it down, and of course, I'm continuing to be very careful with the right foot. As we pull up to Fearnsport and I pop out to say hello to Matt, it's sleeting. By the time we get the car into the workshop it's snowing, and temps approaching -1ºC. Proper, settling snow!! It's mid April for Gods sake. We didn't have a flake over the winter (well, not down South). Anyway, the car's now up on the ramps and Matt is going over everything with his torch and mirror...prodding and poking as though he were performing a PPI. Then out comes the paint thickness gauge, and it does occur to me to ask him to keep his findings to himself, in case there's stuff I don't want to hear...blissful ignorance, etc. As it happens, it's all perfect. Consensus from Matt was extremely positive, not only was he very praising of the car itself and it's condition but also very complimentary about my work and attention to detail. Of course, Chris has been very kind with his feedback as well over the years and to get another professional Porsche guy saying the same thing, well, I was blown away (tried not to show it though). A couple of things I need to address: 1) The nut I've used on the +Ve connection of the starter motor needs swapping for a flange nut, so that it engages further onto the thread. 2) The headers are leaking, and are now showing more evidence of this on the fins, now that decent mileage has been put onto the engine. When I described the ally "rings" that I was supplied with in the Victor Reinz kit, he looked puzzled and said that the official Porsche ones aren't round in profile (as if they were an aluminium o-ring) but instead have a flat flange on one side (faces the inside of the head) and a compressable surface on the header side. I'll order a set from my OPC and then bite the bullet to remove the headers. Worth it, I think, as it does slightly ruin the sound when idling. 3) Somehow, I've missed installing the 2 x M8 bolts through the lower case flange, one at the back, one at the front. 4) I've used M8 nylocs on the case flange studs - they should really be a locknut (can't remember the name he used). Not a huge issue, but nylocs are apparently "frowned upon" by some. Of course, I can't get to the top side ones under the shroud but I'll get a set and install the top ones as/when I can get to them. I noticed on the run up the motorway, with lots of cool air, that the oil temp gauge on the dashboard is sitting (in my mind) very low, on the first index from the bottom. Gauge definitely works, the needle rises up to the 3/4 mark when idling for a long period before the oil cooler fan(s) kick in. Again, normal; after all, this was very light loading whilst trundling up at something like motorway speeds (just) ;) there was certainly no boost involved, and I guess the RS ducts in the front dam are working well, with the flexi hosing directing air into the oil cooler assembly. Oil pressures all looked fine as well, but perhaps a tad too much oil in the tank. Noted for next time. The vibration I had been feeling, in Matts opinion, is not an engine issue (we'd have known about it by now, probably by sweeping up the parts from the engine dyno floor...). He actually remarked how happy the engine sounded, which was reassuring. I held the revs at exactly the point it feels coarse, 3600, whilst he put his hand on top of the cooling fan and then on top of the intercooler. Engine smooth, but vibration can be felt through the IC (not that it is the IC, it was just a place that it could be felt in the same area). So, best guess at the moment is that it's harmonics which are making themselves felt through the I/C. So, the plan of action, if I can't live with it, is to try putting the stock engine mounts back in and re-test. If this is the problem, then I'll invest in a new set of 993TT mounts. He did say it's not the single mass flywheel; the dual mass setup would dampen the transmission vibrations under driving conditions (and of course give more inertia for smoother shifting) but because we can feel this while stationary, that removes the F/W from the equation. ************************************************** ************************************************** *************************** I have to say, if anyone in the UK is looking to take their P&J to an independant outfit, I can do no better than to recommend Fearnsport. I've known Matt since 2008, when they performed various PPI's for me when hunting down a GT3 (and saved me from buying one that had a hidden history, such is their thoroughness). Over the years both my Brother and I have dealt with various Porsche indy's, mainly driven by locality, and generally feel let down, ripped off or underwhelmed. These guys are different, and it's clear that I'm not alone in my thinking, as they're entrusted with some AMAZING metal to maintain and look after. I won't detail what that is on a public forum, but my God, it was truly jaw dropping. Was great to see Matt again and catching up - it's been a few years of course, while I've been hunkered down working on this project. They can be found here Fearnsport - Home Of The Uber Porsche ************************************************** ************************************************** *************************** The return journey home was equally event free and enjoyable - in fact, it seemed to fly past as I began to feel a lot more relaxed and dialled-in to the car, picking up its characteristic sounds and quirks. You've got to love these air cooled engines, so much personality. I think I may look to install a stronger BOV spring, it does vent boost ever so easily upon the slightest lift. It's not an offensive noise per-se, but can sound a little boy-racer. Loving a brief howling-like noise upon acceleration [1980's Mode=on] a bit of an Airwolf sound to it, for those that remember that series! Two more fuel top-ups, one in Silverstone, the other once I got home, so that I can see how many miles I can get for each graduation on the gauge. I know it's missing the point entirely, but I'm going to go and make a cuppa and work out the mpg....it should be a lot better than the other day. Back soon... |
Haha....er.....das ist nicht so gut
Average mpg (imperial gallons) for both legs of the journey worked out to be exactly 18.5mpg. That's about 15.4mpg (US Gallons). The journey up, 168 miles, 17.89mpg(uk) but was predominantly dry and therefore comfortably swift for the motorway stretches The return journey, slightly different route and 161.6 miles, 19.17mpg(uk). Very wet run from Silverstone until the M25 so lower speeds for about half the journey. Each journey used half of the indicated capacity of the fuel tank.....I wonder how linear it isn't? Gulp. Le Mans in June and the plan to take the car on our summer holiday in the South of France, is going to be expensive. |
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