Evo 8/9 FMIC & IC Piping

Since we are restricted to the stock turbo in SP and still want to make as much power as possible upgrading the FMIC (front mount intercooler) made sense. When we really push the stock turbo with higher boost its efficiency is reduced and starts blowing hotter air. This will make the engine more prone to knock, pulling timing and reducing power, no bueno.

Now this upgrade isn't without negatives. The FMIC is all the way out front, basically one of the worst places to add weight. They also have increased volume over stock, potentially creating lag and hurting spool as it takes longer to fill that volume. I'd like to keep spool as low as possible to pull the car out of lower speed corners, this is something the 8 motor is not good at.

With all of this in mind I started looking at FMIC's on the market to find one that was:
1) lighter than the rest
2) about 3.5" width
3) not a huge volume/size increase over stock
4) Fits in the OEM location without cutting/modifying anything.

Weights
OEM = 9.5 lbs
AMS = 20.0 lbs
Buschur = 23.5 lbs
CBRD = 30.0 lbs
ETS = ?? (Never got an answer on weight)
JM Fab = ??

As you can see the minimum increase in weight is the AMS FMIC at a 10.5 lb gain. Ok, thats not too bad. It can be offset by losing the IC sprayer tank (-5.0 lbs & my car is an '03) and swapping to a slim rad fan (-6.5 lbs).

Widths
OEM = <3.5"
AMS =" 3.5"
Buschur =" 3.5"
CBRD =" 3.8"
ETS =" 3.5"
JM fab =" 3.8"

Nothing crazy here in terms of width.

On to volume. I started looking at this but when you think about it comparing overall core volume just makes no sense. The only real volume that matters is the internal pressurized volume. Since most of the IC's listed above use different cores there is no apples to apples comparison, even if they are all bar & plate style. Another thing to look at is how much frontal area there is, as I am willing to bet more area is better in terms of cooling. Not going to break out the heat transfer book for this one though.

In terms of fitment these are all on the list because they are advertised as needing no modifications or slight mods (bending/trimming) to fit. Bumper beam removal is an absolute no-no so alot of the 4" cores were out the window there.

All that said I really like the cast end tanks and engineering that went into the AMS piece. It looks to be the best compromise for my intended usage (autox). Buschur & ETS would be next on the list when you take weight & price into consideration. Let's check out some pics of the AMS FMIC vs OEM.


Sweeeet!


AMS vs OEM


Apparently thicker is better.


OEM fin & tube core


AMS Bar & Plate core


Test Fit


Touching the A/C fan wiring. Probably space out the IC with a couple washers.


Plenty of clearance to the bumper beam.


:)
Me: Check it out Richie (my brother-in-law), looks pretty sweet.
Richie: That's your first front mount huh?
Me: Yeah.
Richie: It looks the same.
Me: No way dude, it looks sweet.

He was right. Fugger. :P

Ok, on to the IC piping. My requirements here were that it needs to fit whatever FMIC was chosen and be aluminum. Also wanted the UICP to be a "short route" type to minimize the volume and bends. This volume reduction also helps offset the gain in the FMIC. Not too many choices out there, so AMS was a pretty easy decision here(outside of the price).

Their piping looks well designed with support tabs welded on to both the LICP and UICP. Once it arrived the quality was evident. Great polish, nice welds, very pleased here. Also managed to lose 1.5lbs from the UICP!

Weights
OEM LICP = 2.5 lbs
AMS LICP = 2.5 lbs
OEM UICP = 5.5 lbs
AMS UICP = 4.0 lbs (-1.5 lbs bonus!)

Here's a bunch of comparison pics between the OEM and AMS stuff.


OEM LICP vs AMS LICP


AMS


OEM UICP vs AMS UICP. Huge difference here.


AMS

Wanted to thank MAPerformance for the hookup on these parts. Great guys to deal with. Thanks Chris & Adam! www.maperformance.com

J

Evo 8.5 - Donor Parts

As it always seems I start projects figuring that I'll need this cute little list of parts. In the end the list always grows. This one is no different, although the basic swap is fairly simple.

Here is the list of parts (as I presently know it) needed to swap a 2006 Evo IX motor into a 2003 Evo VIII.

- Evo IX longblock

- Evo IX ECU

- Evo IX complete engine wiring harness

- 2nd Relay on firewall (next to ABS module)

- Evo IX 5spd trans harness

- Evo IX rear (secondary) O2 sensor

- Evo IX Lower Radiator Hose or Cut Evo VIII Hose

You'll also need engine oil, trans fluid, TC fluid, coolant, etc.

Here's a few notes on some of these parts:

Evo IX longblock, my donor is throttle body to turbo outlet, I did this for two reasons. 1st was to make it easier, 2nd was to comply with SCCA SP UD/BD rules (although I only needed the longblock and turbo, not the manifolds)

Evo IX ECU is obviously programmed and wired for the addition of MIVEC. It also has 3 plugs in comparison to the evo VIII ecu that has 4 plugs.

Evo IX engine wiring harness, this is necessary because of the addition of the MIVEC wiring and the aforementioned 3 plug vs 4 plug. The addition of MIVEC adds an extra plug for the intake cam CAS, OCV solenoid & extra firewall relay. There are also 6 more plugs for the ACD wiring, but thats of no consequence here as the VIII has all mechanical diffs. One other note, the donor for this build was in a front end collision. As such the ACD plugs were destroyed and there may be other damage in one portion of the harness. I'll be cutting back the loom and inspecting those parts of the harness to try and avoid any issues.

2nd relay on the firewall, pretty sure this is for the MIVEC, but not really sure. Edit: Adam has confirmed this is for the MIVEC.

EVO IX 5spd trans harness, this is a small harness for the reverse switch and speedo sensor. Mitsu saw fit to change the plug where it connects to the main engine harness. This one was a surprise for me. Luckily I found a used one for $40, dealer pricing is $90+. Edit: You can also cut the plug off your 8 harness and rewire. Personally I prefer the reliability of the OEM harness, so I try and keep it stock where possible.

EVO IX rear O2 sensor, this one was also a surprise. If I can't find a used harness I'll probably use a weatherpack connector. If the sensor ever needs to be replaced I won't be paying for an OEM one anyway. Edit: Like the trans harness this can be re-wired, but it would be nicer to have the OEM harness plugs.

Thats all I've got for now. If anything else comes up it'll get added to this post.

J

timelapse

Evo 8.5 - Intro

Earlier this year I started doing a little research about the evo IX swap into the evo VIII. I know they make a good bit more power (not to mention more area under the curve on a dyno plot) then the VIII when setup for SP. I also thought about getting out of the evo and maybe building an STR S2k as a change of pace. When it came down to it there was talk about getting rid of our 3rd car, so having a 4 dr "family" sedan made more sense. Plus the evo is the funnest car I have ever owned, that was the whole reason I bought one.

So the VIII motor was about due for the timing belt service and I would have had to fork out $$ for that and the IX swap wasn't too outrageous, so I pulled trigger. This was May.

Then we put the house on the market. Had it under contract pretty quick and thats when the fun began. We now have a great new home, kids are in school and we are settling in. That's my cue to start in on the winter project.

Gonna back date a little here to October. Hadn't washed the car in over a year. Powerwashed after the Stafford Rallyx, but not really washed. Well it cleaned up real nice, better than I thought.

Prepped the OR for surgery. Not the biggest or cleanest, but totally adequate.

Patient is on the operating table!

So the car was finally in the garage. It had been sitting out for months, dead battery (Thanks Grant!) and hadn't really been driven since the Stafford RallyX anyway since the tranny makes funny noises (Grrr grumble grumble). Was pretty excited about this moment though as the real work would soon begin.

More coming soon. Gonna have some detailed stuff too for the evo guys.

J

etown roadcourse

steguis convinced me to take the trip down to etown.. not having to drive both ways sealed the deal! codriving someone else's car is perfect for the lazy folks out there like me.



dan

9.26 warminster

i'm still trying to recover from pedalling a fast 50 miles in the hills on the hudson with joon yesterday.

at 4:30am today, alarm clock goes off for the long haul to pa.



dan

on board 2 wheels

autox saturday (sorry no video this time), supermoto sunday.. what can beat that?

here's my race video.. 12 in the field.. qualified 5th and finished 3rd.



didn't realize the cam was pointed down but still an exciting race.. artie from njminigp was on my back wheel the rest of the way after i passed him.

dan

9.4.10 @ meadowlands

perry and i had some fun in the s2k yesterday.. also gary was generous enough to let me take a couple of runs in the gtr.. sweet!

nnjr @ meadow from dan cheung on Vimeo.

dan

sweet pass

motons!

^took this pic today first thing in the morning. eibach pro-kit springs which lower the car approximately 1" all around damped by OTS koni yellows. i have the custom hollow gendron front bar(nearly 35mm!) which helped with roll stiffness but the springs were just too soft (i believe in the 250-300 lb/in range). even so, the car was so well balanced at the last msne autox and it was such a pleasure to drive. despite a fun car, i was still left looking for more. it was just too slow transitionally to be competitive.

here's the solution..


...a set of moton clubsports i was able to find at a great price off the s2ki forums. it didn't hurt that they belonged to 'stinkytofu', a fast west coast driver that has set some time attack records and worked closely with evasive motorsports on the development of his setup. i think a fast track setup will be a good baseline to a good handling autox car (except for the alignment).

i recently had a j's racing 'camber joint' installed to be able to get within the front camber range i want.. in the neighborhood of 2.7-3 degrees negative.



it's an offset lower balljoint replacement that has an added benefit of widening the front track a hair.

i didn't snap too many shots since i was busy turning the wrenches but i did take a couple.



i'm going to give stinky's out of the box setup a try and see how i like it. ride heights are very low.. bottomed out on a speedbump low! 1000 lb/in springs all around.. it's actually pretty damn comfortable on the street despite the high springrates. the best part is the car just plain feels amazing.

i was too tired to measure the toe and camber changes but i'm also giving myself a couple of days to determine if the ride height is too low.

more to come..

-dan

rally!

anyone notice how well deegan drove at the xgames? tight lines, super clean. besides getting lost i think he was pretty damn impressive

here's the super rally finals video, not much of deegan but cool race to watch



dan

back in the game

i've been out of the autox scene for a while but the bug has bitten again! supermoto is WAY more fun but turning a steering wheel at speed is still something i can't live without.

in the past few years, our local tri-state autox sites have been deteriorating to less than stellar condition (which was an advantage for us with awd cars!). however, the newly paved meadowlands lot finally brings us a national level worthy site within a stone's throw from nyc.

i've only attended 2 events all year with a 'fun' decently balanced but no-grip setup. i enjoy driving but i always have the desire to win. s2000 platform + killer local site + itch to race is good enough incentive for me to put some effort into the car to see what i can accomplish. i won't go all out with a build to the limits but i want to maximize what i'm working with. my focus will be on suspension/chassis setup.

stock class requires transporting race tires and burning through hoosier crack with a less than ideal setup. now with the relatively new class for 2 seaters.. STR.. fun mods, building a car that works, and no tire changing? no brainer!

first order of business.. wheels and tires. hankook rs3's, the new hot street tire and 17x9 949 racing 6ulr's ideal for STR.



the pic above was taken with the car on stock springs (on koni yellows). we'll address that in a little bit.

stay tuned

dan

modena for sale!

posting for joey:

This is my 2000 red/tan 360 Modena for sale. It has 14,600 miles and is in mint condition. Includes:

- Scuderia shields
- Spare tire
- Challenge grill
- Capristo Stage 3 exhaust
- 3M clear bra
- All 3 keys, books, and tools.

I bought this car from Ferrari of New England in 2007, it had 10k miles then. It was a certified car at that time. It has been serviced at that dealership since I've had it. It is currently due for the 3 year service. The last belts were done in 2006, and I was going to do it in the fall of 2009, but I thought I would wait til spring. I live in New England and the car hasn't really been driven much since last fall.

I am selling the car because I just don't have much time to drive it. I also have the stock exhaust and the stock rear non-challenge grill.

Anyways, this is a no stories car. It's beautiful and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I am open to offers.


$82,000 OBO

you can contact me at:
manansal@gmail.com

etown season opener

sanjaya posted some vids from his gopro..

s2k in drift trim. bald crap rear tires, re01r's up front. jedi training for sanjaya to unlearn his awd 'skills'. sick frontend bite and a car that wants to snap spin = a blast!

it was an absolute handful but we applied some unconventional tire warming techniques. smokey 180's + vtec launches upped the grip level.. a tiny bit, i think. ultimately, patience and smooth inputs did the trick.

waiting on some str specific 17x9's to arrive + real tires.. then it's game on!


dan

NNJR SCCA 03/27/2010 - Char's Run #2 from Charith Perera on Vimeo.

^this is what happens when you think you're driving awd and rev it to 9k in first, then floor it on the upshift.

NNJR SCCA 03/27/2010 - Dan's Money Run from Charith Perera on Vimeo.

NNJR SCCA 03/27/2010 - Char's run #7 from Charith Perera on Vimeo.

^perry caught on camera again

skills

footwork

sweet

happy halloween!

nothing's better than reconnecting with a car that has a lot of sentimental value.. i had the pleasure of driving my old civic in its full b16 glory! rad was ultra kind to let me drive it all day while he was tire warming for steguis.

chris shenefield set him up with some suspension magic, the quaife works wonders, and how sweet it was to turn the wheel again.

bmwclub at nassau from dan cheung on Vimeo.

not bad for hankook rs2's and a less than ideal alignment. very neutral balance and confidence inspiring. more negative camber up front and some star specs would really be the ticket! thanks a million rad! and congrats on the class championship steg!

a little sidenote- not to give chrome dome dixon an even bigger head but he really has the turn-in technique mastered. i've never felt anyone drive the way he does and there's a reason he earned a 'free' yellow corvette. you can't see it in the video so much as feel it when you're riding shotgun. he has this uncanny timing of dabbing the brake, loading up the front, and turning in.. all perfectly timed. it is an amazing feeling and he nails it nearly every time. it really is inspiring.

-dan

devens

jay's evo is better than ever! more power, better handling. here's a pic of gj and i enjoying a run at the bmw school at devens.

-dan

Fuel Strategy, Strata & Pb

This year I have been trying to make a bit more HP without spending too much $$. One thing I tried was some different race fuel. I did a little research about E85 and thought that would be cool. Too bad it's not available around here, at all. I even got in touch with the local Rockett brand dealer about their new E85 race gas. He's not carrying it, no demand. Then I heard about some super new VP stuff called Q16. Apparently it's a little tough to tune. We (Adam Fuhs) and I eventually settled on C16.

I get the tank nice and low in the evo and add a 5 gallon drum of the C16. Did some driving to mix the fuel.

First set of logs results in very similar AFR's to pump gas. Second set of logs is a bit richer and the car stinks a bit more. By the 3rd logging session this car reeks. To the point I'm almost dizzy. The AFR's are also very rich. Pretty sure we're into the C16 now.

At this point we're a little confused. A little searching shows the specific gravity of gasoline is slightly higher than the C16. As it turns out the gasoline and C16 stratify. They form layers and don't create a homogeneous mixture. Gasoline on the bottom and C16 on top. Hence the leaner AFR's shifting to super rich AFR's. Called up VP and they confirmed the theory. Unleaded and leaded gas don't really "mix".

Off I go to drain the evo's tank so I can move onto something else. What am I using the leftover for??

I hate to say it but the lawn didn't get cut any faster.

One thing I finally learned was how much fuel my car has when it hits the "E" light. Without the luxury of a tow vehicle and trailer I bring race gas with me and mix with the leftover in the tank. This means I calculate how much fuel I need to get to the event site and make sure I'm at "E" or below. Thing is I never knew how much gas was actually in the tank. I estimated about 3 gallons. So I drained the tank fully. Then slowly refilled with pump until the light turned off. 2.3 gallons. At the 1/4 tank mark the evo has 4 gallons left. Sweet, now the octane numbers for the mixed gas will be more accurate.

Now you might wonder how to figure out what your octane is once you mix the gas. It's pretty simple as the octane is based on proportion of one fuel to the other.

Your variables:

A = Pump Gas Octane

B = Volume of Pump Gas (gallons)

C = Race Fuel Octane

D = Volume of Race Fuel (gallons)

The math:

(A x B + C x D)/(B + D) = New Octane of Mix

Example:

A = 93 Octane

B = 2 gallons

C = 104 Octane

D = 5 gallons

(93 x 2 + 104 x 5)/(2 + 5) = 101 Octane

So that was my fuel saga. I'm back to regular old 104 unleaded. Oh well.

-J

7-11-09 NNJR SCCA (or the benchmark version 2)

Photo: Courtesy of Steve Wasp

So I was excited to run this event. Not only was there no pressure but it was held on the old NNJR lot. This is the place where it really all started for Kevin, Dan and I in the Civics. Can't forget Ed Morfe in his A4. We would battle constantly. There was no consistency. One guy would win one week and get crushed the next. That was probably 6 or 7 years ago at this point.

Well after I get through tech Mr. Uber Car Whore (PA :P) asks me if I want a co-drive. Typically I say no. This time it was Pat Salerno. That's a tough one to turn down.

Anyone who read my DOTM on the Autox4u site may remember that he and Junior are 2 drivers I looked up to (and still do). Pat has also been one of my raw/PAX benchmarks at National events for several years now. He's in a very fast, well setup car and has been for a while. That's the best kind of benchmark.

So we proceed to swap runs and just have a good time. We both noted the lack of grip. The lot was very dirty in spots and the car is way too stiff for that site. Pat never did get down to my time, but was very close. Did I mention I don't think there was a clean run in this car all day? It was very cool watching Pat drive. He's alot like Corey R., but more aggressive and amped up. I could tell he was a LFB guy the moment he started driving. Very precise and controlled. A bit of contrast to my style of tossing the car.

Here's our fast videos from morning runs and a couple side view shots of my afternoon runs. Also corded the front tires in the afternoon. 34 runs sucks. Thankfully I've got another set coming from Hoosier and some input to help them last longer. I <3>