Jourdan-

I really appreciate your kind words and am glad you find the information useful and inspirational!

As soon as I free up a bit of time, I'd like to give the first page a more glossary/link type look. So that people can shortcut to any section of this project and get the information or review they need.

The BC's have been outstanding and without any flaw! In fact, they will soon be readjusted by Darin of West End Alignment to give this car the menacing stance it really deserves

I'm absolutely ecstatic and cannot wait to bring this car back to life. It's seriously been the hard work and efforts of many great people all coming together. And this vehicle is the outcome of these efforts.

Thank you again!

 

Lots of progress made on the motor today... Most everything aside from the intake manifold is on the block. The header is on as well! I forgot to snap pics of the motor, but I'll take some tomorrow when I go by the shop. Dave does some seriously awesome work. He takes his time and does things carefully as to not mess up or make mistakes. The quality of his work is top notch and he remains focused on what he's working on. I feel extremely fortunate to have this guy putting the motor together.

The Aeromotive rail bracket appears to sit a bit too high allowing approximately 1/8th inch of a gap rather than allowing the rail to seat properly over the fuel injector. We are likely going to have to modify the bracket slightly by drilling new holes for proper fitment.

The body foiling is practically complete! Down Shift Graphics is just working on a few additional accessories like the handles, splash guards and window trim to get this all finished up. The exterior is looking like a perfect canvas for some mirror gold sponsor vinyl, which is coming soon

Stay tuned.

 

 

Worked on the car a bit tonight.

Finished up some of the vinyling on the front bumper, went ahead and did the front plate delete as well. Re-installed the foglights, drilled out some little holes for zip-typing the mesh I made onto the lower grille.

Before the grille and foglamps:


Drilled little holes:


Ready for the grille:


Yay!:


Front Bumper Detail:


We're so close to completion, I cannot wait.

 

Update 05/31/2010

Rolled her outside to snap a few pics in the sun... We are scheduled for start up before the weekend

Matte Black in the sun:


3/4 front angle:


3/4 rear angle:


McLovin said it best, "It's in! Oh my God, it's in!":


Centerpiece:


Nice offsets, but suspension will be slightly lowered and re-tuned:

 

That's awesome. Great progress on the car!

 

Just got back from Church Automotive Testing...

Everything is looking great! AFRs stable, no knock, no drama. This engine revs so fast and smooth. Shawn tuned right off the wastegate spring at 15 psi and made a very potent 335whp and 338wtq. Should be sufficient for the next 700 miles...

Shawn also did some serious deleting of CEL codes... All the Tumbler Generator Valve (TGV) codes are gone... All the Secondary Air Injection System (Air Pump) codes are gone... Idle was raised to 950 rpm to provide a smoother idle and avoid dying out when coming to a stop due to the low inertia of the crank pulley, clutch and flywheel.

I cannot express the amount of difference this clutch pack and pulley have made. Those who constantly caution to stay away from doing both mods are clearly not doing it right. I'm running the Carbonetics clutch pack that weighs 19 lbs WITH the flywheel vs the stock 38 lb kit as well as a lightened crank pulley. The horrible, chattery no-no's right??? Wrong.

With Shawns tuning and adjustment of the idle, it's easy enough to modulate the engagement of the clutch to avoid any serious chattering. I've only been driving on this setup for 300 miles and am already smooth at it. At a stop, the engine can free rev from idle to 6500rpm in LESS than a second! Yes, it revs quick! Yes, it revs smooth!!!!

The wheel and tire package have contributed as well to a very serious gearing advantage that makes off-boost driving so light, and on boost driving that much quicker. On the butt dyno, this current set up feels more urgent but as quick as my 373whp tune while being short almost 50whp! I am in LOVE with the reduced rotational mass.

I'm still at break in for another 700 miles, so I will definitely post vids, pics and a more detailed run down of everything... So stay tuned.

 

620 miles on the new motor. 380 miles left until we switch to Motul lubricants and get our final tune done.

I have so much to report, but would prefer to do it all as one comprehensive review. Carbonetics had the opportunity to drive the car around today and was thoroughly impressed with how 'light and responsive' the car felt. Keep in mind, this is our modest 15 psi tune.

The car rips from idle to red in no time. I'll take an in car video displaying the tachometer soon for everyone. But check out this video below.



The video displays our custom CBE. We did quite a bit of trial and error until we finally were able to put together a cat-back system with a mellow, non-disruptive note that still allows for optimal flow without drone or annoying resonance. Specs are: 3-inch piping with traditional bends, 24" center resonator, an angle mounted straight-through muffler, and an aggressive angled dump tip. At 44 seconds into the video, I stab the throttle from idle to redline, then again immediately right afterwards! I'm amazed with how quick this thing revs up!

A few pictures until we get the sponsor graphics on.

 

3 hours on the dyno... Trouble shooting and trying to find out why she didn't want to make power after 5000 RPM. Only difference between break in tune and now is the added muffler. Could a muffler really kill this much top end?



THIN RED - Break In Tune. 15 psi, nice ramp of power to 6000 rpm.

THICK RED - Current Tune - 22 psi, power tapers at 5000 rpm.

THIN GREEN - Current Tune - 26 psi, power drops after 5000 rpm.

BLUE - Speculated potential of power if it didn't drop off.

 

Am I reading that right? Just over 350 @ 22 psi and 401 @ 26psi?!?! Dude....

 

Yeah, you're reading it correctly, but the power isn't supposed to level out/drop off at 5000 rpm. It should continue to build to about 5900-6000... which on 26 psi will generate ~425whp...

We will cut the catback pre-muffler and retest to see if that's the issue. Otherwise, back to scratching our heads.

 

holy crap!

 

All i can say is WOW!

 

Thanks for the props folks!

We're starting manufacturing on Carbon Fiber, straked rear diffusers for 08+ Sedans... PM me if you want in on the exclusive Group Buy.