V-ram question...3.6 transplant is done!

[Mike Feinstein]

I guess it's old news here but another 3.6 transplant is done. I brought it home today in rush hour traffic....what a drag! Went for a spirited drive tonite and...oh, man!!! I can't believe the torque this thing has. From less than 3000 rpm's, just a breath on the pedal and your pressed into the seat. I can say that it gets beyond 100 frighteningly quick. I goosed it a bit around a turn and the tail swung out way easier than I expected. I have new respect and will have to re-train my right foot. My 87 Turbo gave a bit of warning before the thrust hit (spool up)...this motor is just "there" all the time....amazing, and a very different experience to say the least. My 964 was strong but did not have the intensity that this setup has.

Here's my question. The low end torque, as mentioned, is astounding. When I floor it and hold it to redline, I don't feel any surge or hear anything that sounds like a change in the induction....just steady strong acceleration (nothing wrong with that I guess). I'd have to say that the high rpm performance is more "linear" than I expected...of course it could be that I've been torque deprived for too long (and too used to the peaky power of a 3.2). When the car is started, the V-ram actuating rods both move and when the car is turned off, they move again and you can hear the vacuum canister discharge. This would lead me to believe it's working. Mind you, I am running a cat only so the car is insanely loud (I need that mystery muffler BAD...I may end up fabbing something if it doesn't become reality soon).

Is there an easy way to verify that V-ram is doing it's thing? BTW, I'm running a Cyntex chip with a lightweight fw and Sachs power clutch.

[Moses]

The movement of your actuating rods is the first good sign. That means you are probably operating with a V-ram "native" DME.

Get on a long, straight freeway (uncrowded). At about 4,000 RPM, push your foot to the floor. If your motor is like mine, you will hear and feel something magical at about 5,400 RPM.

When I first confirmed that mt V-ram was not working I had a non V-ram DME and was told my Cyntex chip was programmed to actuate the Vram. I put the car on the dyno and the actuating rods did not budge. I got an appropriate DME and now my V-ram howls!

(You may not hear your Vram with that exhaust!)

Are you holding out for the Embs 993 exhaust? It looks nice.

[Mike Feinstein]

Yes, I'd like to get a "mystery" muffler....like NOW. Hopefully it won't be long. Hey Todd...once you give it the green light, I want the very next unit! It's entirely possible that I can't hear the induction change over the exhaust...it is r-e-a-l-l-y loud...and I'm not a loud muffler kind of guy.

I'm pretty sure it's the appropriate DME (came from Dr. Timmins with the engine). Honestly, I've not driven the car enough to even be concerned about it yet, just wondering if the actuator movement is confirmation of proper function. I e-mailed Steve as well.

[Moses]

Mike,
Yes, the actuator rods are supposed to move when you turn the key. Sounds like you're in great shape.

(Look for my PM)

[Embs]

Mike,

It sounds like the Vram is working just fine. To be sure all is well, check all of your vacuum lines and those around the tank making sure everything is hooked up and tight. To quote (I think) Bill V, "the power of the 993 is very linear".

It sneaks up on you and before you know it, it's time to shift.
As soon as I get the mystery muffler on and make an MPEG, I'll post it.

[Mike Feinstein]

Todd,

Are you implying that the eagle has landed?

Sent you an e-mail.

[Embs]

Mike I would assume your running a G50 in an 89, what speed are you at when you must shift into second?

[Mike Feinstein]

The 1-2 shift at redline happens so fricking fast that I've not bothered to check the speedo. I'll do it tomorrow and report back.

One other thing I noticed is that when I take it to redline and depress the clutch, the rpms keep going up for a second before they fall. If I shift fast at 6500 rpm's the needle will pop up to 7 just as I stomp on the clutch. I'm thinking that this is a characteristic of the lightweight flywheel. Any ideas?

[Mike Feinstein]

Here's a pic I took a few minutes ago:

[surflvr911sc]

Beautiful! It looks like it was made to be in there.

[Embs]

Originally posted by Mike Feinstein
One other thing I noticed is that when I take it to redline and depress the clutch, the rpms keep going up for a second before they fall. If I shift fast at 6500 rpm's the needle will pop up to 7 just as I stomp on the clutch. I'm thinking that this is a characteristic of the lightweight flywheel. Any ideas?

Partially true, the lightweight flywheel is part of it. I found the other part of it was the throttle cable set-up that I originally had. I switched to the Patrick motorsports cable and solved the issue.

Also, have someone sit in the car and depress your accelator pedal to the floor, while your at the engine bay, see how much more you can manually open the throttle. With my original cable I could only acheive about 60% wide open throttle. The patrick cable also solved this problem.

[Mike Feinstein]

OK....I had heard of issues with the Timmins cable and asked him about it. He's since come up with a modification to the bellcrank (lengthened the cable arm by about an inch) which is supposed to enable full throttle. I know that the mechanic double checked to ensure that I was getting WOT and seemed satisfied with the setup. I will have my wife depress the pedal and I'll check for myself also.

[Lewis Ledyard]

Mike:

Welcome to the club.

Lew

[Embs]

Originally posted by Mike Feinstein
I will have my wife depress the pedal and I'll check for myself also.

It certainly won't hurt anyting to check it. Plus, check out this quote from ischmitz from the thread linked below:

""If your throttle linkage setup is out of alignment or the return spring is too weak to pull the throttle lever all the way back to idle the mircoswitch never engages. There is not enough air for then engine because the idle stabilizer is not used and you will see your sympthoms. Fluctuation and hunting idle are the result."

From this thread:
Surging idle, loss of compression.

[Mike Feinstein]

Thanks Lew...glad to finally be a card-carrying member. Thanks also for the encouragement along the way!

Car idles fine. No hunting at all. I got a response from Steve Timmins on the throttle issue. He says there's no such thing as acceleration momentum, so it's not due to the lwf. He thinks the cable is binding and needs to be adjusted. He says you can also add a small spring between the lower arm of the bellcrank and one of the ring and pinion studs.

The car is going back in for the oil cooler install tomorrow (out on weekend leave), so I'll ask them to tweak the cable.

[Bill Verburg]

Looks great Mike! I agree w/ Steve there is no reason that revs should rise during shifts. The cause of the issue may be related to the fact that that the tach is not 100% accurate in reading/interpreting the 993DME signals. Nice to see another Frankenstein take to the streets.