My Saxo VTS TURBO Project

[lcheater]

Here are a couple of pics of my VTS which i picked up on Tuesday evening.

Some of you may have read my other threads, but I bought this for a turbo project. The guy I bought it off put it through an MOT and it failed on emissions because it has no CAT fitted (obvious it was going to fail really but I think he was being hopeful). That was the only reason it failed the MOT, but other bits he mentioned to me were that the clutch slips with hard acceleration and one engine mount needs replacing. Other than that, its immaculate inside, and the outside is free of dents although there are a few tiny chips in places. Its done 117k miles and no service history apart from a couple of receipts, although I have got every MOT for it, so can verify mileage. Im not bothered by mileage or service history as it will be going straight in my garage for a complete engine rebuild and turbo conversion. I will post pics as and when I change / find things so I expect this will become a very long thread as time goes by!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/20082008106.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/20082008107.jpg

[MaRiO89]

Looks quite tidy..:D

[lcheater]

Oh, any guesses on how much i paid for it? Cant remember if i mentioned it in my other thread but what do people think i should have paid?

[frankie]

nice posi blue :cool:

you paid a grand total of £500....

[fossie]

You probs got it for a stupid price....
Gonna say £650

[Liam-westcoast]

tidy car

[lcheater]

I paid £600 - and it came with a spare alternator and starter motor. It also has a spare inlet manifold with injectors, but im not sure why i have got that! Need to check it out as im not sure if it is off a VTS or not.

Yeah i like this colour, one of the best i think.

[Recovery]

best colour imo, looking good fella

[chris205]

sounds cheap enough, good luck with the project

[fossie]

Damn i was closest with my guess.....do i win anything

[lcheater]

Damn i was closest with my guess.....do i win anything

:clapping:How about some rep?;)

[Berg]

looks tidy ;)

turbo would be awesome

[Hopcraft]

sounds a good project.

[3cott]

Nice moter mate. How much bhp you goung for?

[OLLYVTS]

Looks like a bargin you got there,

Good luck with the project,keep it updated.

[lcheater]

Nice moter mate. How much bhp you goung for?
Well, i have had a flick through this forum and 200bhp seems pretty achievable for a VTS turbo, but i am going to make sure the engine is bullet proof by uprating everything as it is rebuilt, then i should be able to mess around with boost / turbos to find the right setup.

[Saxy1]

looks tidy mate, plans sound good. :y:

[lcheater]

After taking all afternoon and evening clearing the garage out, i have got the car in the garage. As you can see, it was a VERY tight squeeze getting it in, but there is more than enough room round the front.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26082008142.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26082008143.jpg

[Mint-VTR]

looks very tidy! keep posted

[lcheater]

Right, well i thought i would take a few pics under the bonnet before i started so that i can see a "before and after":
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008144.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008145.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008146.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008147.jpg

I have now taken the head off:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008149.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008148.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/27082008150.jpg

[lcheater]

Not required

[Mint-VTR]

would love to see pics of the turbo conversion

[markmaddox]

plans sound gd!!

[lcheater]

would love to see pics of the turbo conversion

I will be posting pics at every step along the way, so as time goes by (how long depends on cash flow), this thread will become VERY large.

[dt_]

That's a nice back box... what make is it? The tailpipe recently dropped off mine and i'm looking for a replacement, quite fancy one of those

[lcheater]

That's a nice back box... what make is it? The tailpipe recently dropped off mine and i'm looking for a replacement, quite fancy one of those

Yeah i like the look of it too, not too over the top, but a still a nice size. I have had a look underneath and i cant see anything written on it, but now i have the manifold off i should be able to just unhook it from the rubbers. I will see if i can and will let you know / post pics

[Bowey]

Apparently those recesses are supposed to be there to allow for the valves because the valves get very close to the pistons. Can anyone confirm this?



lol, yes most pistons have seats in for the valve clearance

[Dax24]

be nice to see the progress on this :D

[lcheater]

be nice to see the progress on this :D

Thanks for the interest. There hasn’t really been much progress since I took the last pictures because I have been working as much as I can to fund it all! However, the gearbox is now out (sold to someone on here) and the bottom end is almost ready to be lifted out (just need to disconnect the intermediate driveshaft joint ‘thing’ – don’t know its technical name but it’s like a joining block to change the angle of the shaft so it lines up into the box). Once I have disconnected this from the bottom end, I will be able to lift it out.

I will post more pics over the weekend hopefully.

[acemastr]

whats all that crap on the pistons may i ask? should we all be checking for that on pistons? decreased perforrmance?

[lcheater]

whats all that crap on the pistons may i ask? should we all be checking for that on pistons? decreased perforrmance?

All stuff on the pistons is carbon build up i think. It was all over the exhaust valves too but not as thick and bulky. I spose thats what a 117k mile engine looks like.

Anyway, I have just finished taking the block out and stripping it down. See pics below.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/13092008205.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/13092008206.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/13092008207.jpg
This pic is a close up and shows the bores looking marked, but they are perfectly smooth, i just hadnt run the cloth through them to get all the dirt out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/13092008208.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/13092008209.jpg

[Shellz]

Bargin! :D

Good luck with it all.

[lcheater]

Bargin! :D

Good luck with it all.

Thanks, will need it i think! lol

[Predator_R32]

good progress mate

keep going :y:

[lcheater]

good progress mate

keep going :y:

Cheers mate, cant wait to start putting it all back together again, but i need to spend money before that can happen! Overtime Overtime Overtime :geek:lol

[kornlover30]

Fair play to ya, wish i had the time and cash flow to do this! Will be keeping an eye on this 1!!

[lcheater]

Small update, took the front end off tonight

Before:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/15092008210.jpg

After:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/15092008211.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/15092008212.jpg

[lcheater]

Right, well I haven’t made any progress since the last pics (above). However I have been scouring round the net for parts! I have sourced the following bits:

Accralite Low Comp (9.0:1) Forged Pistons
OMP Lower brace
Group N Engine Mounts (all 3)
Koni adjustable rear shocks

I obviously still need almost all of the engine parts and some of you maybe wondering why I am buying shocks and braces etc at this early stage. Well, firstly I am under no time pressure to get this completed so the order I buy things is not important and secondly, when these sort of bits come up with a low price tag, its worth buying them (if they are worth having of course!). Something like the rear shocks, I would have left standard ones on to be honest as its something I can upgrade later down the line and is not really required for a turbo conversion, but when they are so cheap and its something I will want to upgrade later down the line, I might as well buy them!

My next job is to give the engine bay a good clean, prep and mask both sides ready for a coat of paint. Depending on how good I manage to do the sides, I might give the front (slam panel etc) a coat too.

[olee]

Looks like a good little build mate, were abouts in soton are you from ?

[lcheater]

Looks like a good little build mate, were abouts in soton are you from ?

Southampton is about as detailed as i want to go unless i know the person i am talking to pretty well. If you wanna get to know more about me and the project, add me to msn luke_cheater@hotmail.com

[dannygti]

is there any reason your going to use accralite pistons over wiseco/wossner etc. they are about £300 more than the others?

good luck with the project.

[lcheater]

is there any reason your going to use accralite pistons over wiseco/wossner etc. they are about £300 more than the others?

good luck with the project.

The reason i am using Accralite pistons is predominately because someone on here bought a set on a group buy but then never got round to using them so he sold them on to me for alot less than their retail price! I had done a fair bit of research before i stumbled across Accralite and as soon as i looked at their website i noticed that they are ALOT better in terms of quality than wossner/wiseco etc. See below if you havent already

http://www.accralite.com/accralite/

Accralite quoted me £530.16 including VAT for a set of 4 low comp pistons and Wossner equivalent pistons are £549.99 on ebay (see link below)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Saxo-1-6-16V-TU5J4-Turbo-Forged-Piston-set_W0QQitemZ180148937935QQihZ008QQcategoryZ72205Q QrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp163 8Q2em118Q2el1247

So Accralite are in fact cheaper than wossner, but imo, after alot of research are better.

[muhuha]

Bit random nice project and all but this blue vts engine was on ebay?

[lcheater]

Bit random nice project and all but this blue vts engine was on ebay?

What's a bit random?

You think the engine in the pics that is in my car was on ebay? I bought the car as it was in the pics at the beginning of this thread, and i dont know about the history. Would be interested to know more if you have any details?

[muhuha]

nah mate not the same engine, thought u might be selling it or something. What kinda bhp do you intend to get?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Saxo-VTS-Engine-Box-Loom-and-ECU-Been-REBUILT_W0QQitemZ170262782905QQcmdZViewItem?hash=i tem170262782905&_trkparms=72%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C24 0%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

[Lauraaaa]

looks well nice :) x

[dannygti]

wow cant beileve the accralites are that cheap. i realise they are much much better quality than some of the others. we used accralite in some of the older race cars my work used to run and never had one failure.
the only reason i asked is i thought they would be much more expensive and the wiesco/wossner i have never heard them fail.

who did yu speak to from accralite? have you still got the deatail?

wha power are you planning buddy?

[lcheater]

wow cant beileve the accralites are that cheap. i realise they are much much better quality than some of the others. we used accralite in some of the older race cars my work used to run and never had one failure.
the only reason i asked is i thought they would be much more expensive and the wiesco/wossner i have never heard them fail.

who did yu speak to from accralite? have you still got the deatail?

wha power are you planning buddy?

I emailed them asking them to give me a price for the pistons because i wanted to know how much cheaper i was getting them for. I have the email still. It says: (note, i also asked if they sell conrods, hence the last bit)

"Dear Sir,

Thank you for your enquiry.

The 1297XC79 would be £112.80ea + VAT for a set of 4 pistons. This price is inclusive of rings, pins and clips.

These are available ex-stock.

I should note that this particular piston has an 18mm gudgeon pin rather than the standard 19.5mm gudgeon pin.

Unfortunately, we do not sell con-rods. We only specialise in forged pistons, we also sell singular ring sets, gudgeon pins and circlips. We have always used a company called Arrow Precision for our con-rods and they actually manufacture a con-rod for this particular piston for another customer of ours. Their contact details are as followed:

Arrow Precision Engineering Ltd
12 Barleyfield
Hinckley Fields Industrial Estate
Hinckley Leicestershire
LE10 1YE
United Kingdom

Email: enquiries@arrowprecision.com

Telephone Number: 01455 234200

Please do not hesitate to contact us should you require any further information.

Kind Regards,"

Well, im not 'aiming' for any particular power, im just going to do the conversion and see what power it gives me. I wouldnt like to try and guess a bhp figure and then be miles out. However, i would hope to achieve at least 230-250 initially, and then perhaps aim for a bit more later down the line. Its the first time i have done anything like this so its going to be a 'take it as it comes' sort of project for me.

[lcheater]

looks well nice :) x

Thanks, well you may see it around as you are fairly localish;)

[lcheater]

nah mate not the same engine, thought u might be selling it or something. What kinda bhp do you intend to get?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Saxo-VTS-Engine-Box-Loom-and-ECU-Been-REBUILT_W0QQitemZ170262782905QQcmdZViewItem?hash=i tem170262782905&_trkparms=72%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C24 0%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Ah right OK, nah i am selling bits i dont need off it, but im not selling the engine no.

See my post 2 posts up regarding bhp.

[dannygti]

thanks for the info buddy, also you have the right mindset for your project. lol @ arrow rods in your email. have you seen how expensive they are? they are used in f1 engines and similar.

[dannygti]

also just though, if you have the accralites have you got the 18mm gudgeon pin?? as if you have you may have problems finding rods to fit??

[lcheater]

also just though, if you have the accralites have you got the 18mm gudgeon pin?? as if you have you may have problems finding rods to fit??

Yeah i have the gudgeon pins and managed to find some 18mm rods, so that shouldnt be a problem. The rods i found with 18mm pins are questionable as i dont know the make, but i havent bothered looking for any more now i know i can get hold of them.

Yeah the arrow rods are just a bit expensive - would be amazing though! Think i will stick to wossner rods or whatever i come across in the mean time.

[Dboyvts]

The wossner rods are very good quality for the money.
Is it 200@ wheels your going for? or will you be going for much more than that?

[lcheater]

The wossner rods are very good quality for the money.
Is it 200@ wheels your going for? or will you be going for much more than that?

I hope to have around 230-250 @ the wheels, but as i say, i dont want to really stick to a figure that i dont know if i will be able to achieve (although as long as the bottom end is strong enough, i dont see why 250ish cant be achieved!)

[Dboyvts]

Well oe rods and low comp pistons will take 250 @ wheels but if your going for forged rods you shuld def have no prob at all.

250 will make a quick car.

[dannygti]

what are you doing with your gearbox?

[lcheater]

Well oe rods and low comp pistons will take 250 @ wheels but if your going for forged rods you shuld def have no prob at all.

250 will make a quick car.

Yeah im going to be using forged rods, dont trust standard stuff!

[Dboyvts]

what are you doing with your gearbox?

Prob same as me replacing them alot ;)

[holman]

Its the first time i have done anything like this so its going to be a 'take it as it comes' sort of project for me.
woa got in deep! deep to the balls!
great thread! keep it up! ;)

[lcheater]

Prob same as me replacing them alot ;)

To start with im going to use a Quaife Diff and a VTR box, but i expect i will eat through a few VTR boxes before i upgrade to something stronger! lol

[lcheater]

woa got in deep! deep to the balls!
great thread! keep it up! ;)

Yeah well, if u dont get stuck in, you would sit there all day dithering around wondering what to do! lol. Just hope i am going to be OK when it comes to putting it back together again! lol

[Dboyvts]

I would stick with the vts box will pull through the gears very fast indeed. my mate had a vtr box on his s/c vts and it still pulled well but not as fast or hard as it did with vts box. It did do 160mph which was nuts

[lcheater]

I would stick with the vts box will pull through the gears very fast indeed. my mate had a vtr box on his s/c vts and it still pulled well but not as fast or hard as it did with vts box. It did do 160mph which was nuts

Well, i have been advised to go with the VTR box as it has longer ratios so the boost will pull it through the gears better, or else i would be changing gear every second and probably wheel spinning still in 4th gear! Just going on advice, but im sure the VTR box i get wont last long so i can always try something else. Alot of s/c and t/c vtr's / vt's seem to go for the be4 boxes though, so i may end up with one of them

[dannygti]

agree with dboyvts, if you spend your life on the motorway/autobahn tehn fair enough but lets be honest, 144mph is quick enough for anyone on road/track and plus it will accelerate much harder.

neil ill be using s2 rallye on mine :panic:

[Yogi]

Nice little project you've got going here dude :y: Should be a sweet ride when you've got it ll finished :)

[Dboyvts]

Danny way to short mate for the power when i get vids up of mine you will see how fast mine munches the gears on a standard vts box

[lcheater]

Danny way to short mate for the power when i get vids up of mine you will see how fast mine munches the gears on a standard vts box

Would love to see some vids, have seen loads of vids of 'saxo turbos' on youtube but they dont say what power they are running. Would love to see one with proven figures!

[lcheater]

Nice little project you've got going here dude :y: Should be a sweet ride when you've got it ll finished :)

Cheers, cant wait to get it all done, but i dont want to cut corners, so its going to take time and lots of money! lol

[Dboyvts]

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=U7JQFtHPF1w
That was a friends old vts running vtr box running 220@ wheels

Look at speedo as he changes in to 5th its already off the clock, this is the same saxo thats in this vid
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=bVwBBc9C8XU

[dannygti]

Danny way to short mate for the power when i get vids up of mine you will see how fast mine munches the gears on a standard vts box

i knw mate, with a 7800 rpm limit it will allow me to do around th same as a vts box on std rpm limit. it means my power will be higher up the rpm range hopefully making it more drivable?.

lcheater, im sure you will be suprised of how quick these things can go lol.:P

[lcheater]

i knw mate, with a 7800 rpm limit it will allow me to do around th same as a vts box on std rpm limit. it means my power will be higher up the rpm range hopefully making it more drivable?.

lcheater, im sure you will be suprised of how quick these things can go lol.:P

Well the VTR box has longer ratios meaning the turbo can put down more power after the intial lag, before it changes gear. Or else you will have lag and then by the time the power from the turbo kicks in you will need to change gear. Im going to give it a go anyway.

I have seen that second vid before, but didnt think much of it cos i didnt know what power it was running.

[dannygti]

Well the VTR box has longer ratios meaning the turbo can put down more power after the intial lag, before it changes gear. Or else you will have lag and then by the time the power from the turbo kicks in you will need to change gear. Im going to give it a go anyway.

I have seen that second vid before, but didnt think much of it cos i didnt know what power it was running.

it will have the same lag in any gear, if using a shorter box use the next higher gear and it will accelerate quicker. vtr box hasnt got "sports cluster" either so the rev drop afte gear can be very bad meaning it will fall off boost easier. vtr box is only more efficient after 144mph.

[lcheater]

it will have the same lag in any gear, if using a shorter box use the next higher gear and it will accelerate quicker. vtr box hasnt got "sports cluster" either so the rev drop afte gear can be very bad meaning it will fall off boost easier. vtr box is only more efficient after 144mph.

Well, i spose its down to personal preference really. See how it goes.

[chrissteele]

good luck m8.

[lcheater]

Just bought this. Its the perfect size for the cutout i am making in my bumper.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/intercooler.jpg

[rowza]

nice mate i rekon it will look sexy :y:

[lcheater]

Pistons arrived about 30 mins ago:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008254.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008255.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008250.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008247.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008248.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/25092008246.jpg

[Dboyvts]

Pistons look very good mate shame they wont stay that shiny for long..

How much is the ic rated to?? Dose not seam the biggest by far.

[lcheater]

ic is rated to 45psi, its not very deep (65mm) but it is large enough for me, for now anyway. I could go bigger but then you might as well do away with the front bumper if you go any bigger lol. I have seen a few people with bigger intercoolers but when they get much bigger, parts of them have to be hidden behind the bumper etc so the air flow doesnt really get to the whole surface area. I would prefer to have a slightly smaller one but make sure all the surface area gets good air flow.

[Dboyvts]

I know what you mean a lot of mine is covered but not for long :)

[landanimal]

nice i like watching people turbo thier cars lol where do you buy turbo parts from? for a 1.1? i know you can cause some people have.

[lcheater]

nice i like watching people turbo thier cars lol where do you buy turbo parts from? for a 1.1? i know you can cause some people have.

Dont know mate, the only bits you would have to buy specific to the 1.1 would be the exhaust manifold and the pistons and rods, but i dont know if you can buy low comp pistons and rods for a 1.1. Maybe worth asking in the Engine and Performance section of the forum.

Personally, i think anyone doing a turbo project should start off with a 1.6 lump and work up from there. Afterall, by just sticking a VTS lump in (120bhp), i would imagine you would double the bhp output (is a 1.1 around 60bhp? dunno, but cant be far off that?)

[lcheater]

Small update, cleared the inner wings to see the extent of the surface rust. Cleaned it up a bit but still needs a good clean and then prepping ready for a lick of paint:y:

As you can see in the pics, the side the battery is on is the worst affected and i think battery acid must have leaked out in the past.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26092008259.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26092008256.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26092008257.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/26092008258.jpg

Oh and my rear shocks arrived today

[landanimal]

uh yea its 60bhp cheers ill ask around but not looking to do it for a while yet.

[turbomook]

Nice project!

[lcheater]

Cheers,

OMP Lower strut brace arrived yesterday. Still waiting on the compbrake and then that will be everything i am expecting until next pay day!

[lcheater]

Intercooler and Compbrake Quickshift arrived yesterday:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008263.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008264.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008267.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008265.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008266.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008269.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/29092008268.jpg

[The_Notorious_C_A_T]

good progress bud!

Nice pistons by the way :D

[turbomook]

Some nice looking parts there!

[Dboyvts]

That i/c looks nice but i would of went with a bit of a bigger one if your planning on running over 200@ wheels.

[lcheater]

That i/c looks nice but i would of went with a bit of a bigger one if your planning on running over 200@ wheels.

Possibly, but i dont really wanna go much larger for cosmetic reasons, so if i ever upgrade, i would only really consider going thicker / deeper

[Slammed_Posi_Vtr]

Good project mate! Any ideas on a rough completion date? or just when its finished?

[lcheater]

Good project mate! Any ideas on a rough completion date? or just when its finished?

Completion date solely depends on funds and funds depend on the amount of overtime i can get. A week ago it looked like overtime for me had come to an end, but as with most things in companies, things can change over night! It turns out, i am working overtime tomorrow and Sunday, which is good for this project but not so good for my tiredness levels lol :wacko:

I will be buying conrods towards the end of the month and then i will be able to get the block and crank machined and get the pistons and rods balanced ready for it to go back together.:y:

[lcheater]

Right, thought i would give everyone a quick update. Still havent progressed any further with the car itself as i have been working like mad to fund all the bits! However, I have got the following extra bits since i last updated this thread:

Special Edition Anthracite OMP Upper Strut Brace http://www.strutbracer.co.uk/page1.php?sitepage=4&partid=20&modelid=773&manuf=61

19 Row Oil cooler kit including filter relocation plate

Braided hoses for front and rear brakes (fronts are compatible with Wilwood 4 pots - i am keeping a close eye on the group buy for these)

Baffled sump

Conrods may need to wait until next month if i decide to go for these Wilwoods in the group buy.

[EssexHoney]

I would love to turbo my car but havent got the money or the patience!!

Will be watching this thread to see what the outcome is in the end :)

Looks good so far!

[lcheater]

Pics Oil cooler kit...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/12102008278.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/12102008279.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/12102008280.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/12102008281.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/12102008282.jpg

[dannygti]

wow do you think you could do this for £500?? hehe..

nice one fella, getting some nice bits together now.
my only concern is i think your going to find it hard to find rods to match pistons. (i think PEC might do them though?)

[Mike_08]

wow do you think you could do this for £500?? hehe..

lmao you bitch :homme: got a pont tho, good work mate looking good

[lcheater]

wow do you think you could do this for £500?? hehe..

nice one fella, getting some nice bits together now.
my only concern is i think your going to find it hard to find rods to match pistons. (i think PEC might do them though?)

:D i wish it was as simple as a 5 min job to bolt a turbo and pipework together and pay someone £500 INCLUDING PARTS!!!! hahahahaha.

Rods - well i know Arrow Engineering make rods with 18mm gudgeon pins, but they are very expensive. PEC make them too (ebay) but i dont know much about PEC so am being weary.

[Mr_suv]

l0ooks like a lovely job mate! mine has almost identical rusty patches getting it booked in for welding after crimbo though think my brother can do it for my bday present lol.
where did you get your oil cooler from and how much was it also where you thinking of mounting it?xx

[dannygti]

as far as i know PEC are very well known in the vauxall world, they arent the cheap chinese rods people think they are.there is a very good thread on ssc about it.

[lcheater]

Not sure where to mount it yet, will work that out as the engine goes back in as its hard to plan stuff without seeing where the turbo pipework etc sits. I bought it off saxmad88 for £165.

Mine doesnt need welding, its just surface rust, so im going to attend to it before it gets worse lol

[lcheater]

as far as i know PEC are very well known in the vauxall world, they arent the cheap chinese rods people think they are.there is a very good thread on ssc about it.

Do you have a link to the thread on ssc mate?

[dannygti]

http://www.saxosportsclub.com/ForumsPro/viewtopic/t=26932/highlight=forged+conrods.html

thats about the best one to read.

[lcheater]

http://www.saxosportsclub.com/ForumsPro/viewtopic/t=26932/highlight=forged+conrods.html

thats about the best one to read.

WOW, what a thread! I have just posted a reply on there as it hasn't been updated since February and the argument appears unfinished!

[dannygti]

yh it kind of died off, everyone was getting very frustraited.
john from gmc should be able to help you out.

[lcheater]

yh it kind of died off, everyone was getting very frustraited.
john from gmc should be able to help you out.

Yeah but then i would be getting a biased opinion wouldn't I, as the argument is between him and PEC.

[dannygti]

well he is the man with the answer. pec just sell stuff, he build/tunes cars.
or contact sandy on there, he is another very very good engine builder and could possibly help you out.

[lcheater]

OK cheers mate. I think i will end up sticking to wossner - there must be a reason why PEC rods are cheap... However, i dont know if wossner do 18mm small ends??? Will speak to John i think

[lcheater]

Right, decided I wanted to change the colour of my car slightly but wanted to keep it looking standard at the same time. So i am swapping my Posi VT* kit for the grey one which comes on the two tone VTR's. My sister has done a quick photoshop of it but it was hard to get the colour right - i think its possibly a bit to yellowy / goldy if you know what i mean? What do you think:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/Newlukecar.jpg

[olee]

Looks smart that....

[Steve]

colour code that black strips if your going to do it.

[degsy]

looks sweet mate !!
been a while hows progress with the car ??

[lcheater]

looks sweet mate !!
been a while hows progress with the car ??

Well. money has dried up a bit which is why there hasn't been any update although i have got my braided brake hoses to fit the wilwoods (when i buy them!). Oh i have bought an air compressor and some air tools (including a spray gun), so i can have a go at spraying the inside of the engine bay, plus the compressor is useful for loads of stuff:y:

Still on the look out for 18mm small end conrods, and at the moment the cheapest place i can get wossner ones is £565 but im still not sure if wossner do 18mm variants.

[degsy]

you need any advice on the painting of bits let me no mate ..im a sprayer have been for the last ten years .
car is gonna be sweet when done !

[lcheater]

you need any advice on the painting of bits let me no mate ..im a sprayer have been for the last ten years .
car is gonna be sweet when done !

OK will do, cheers mate

[degsy]

im thinking about turboing my vts still , been following your thread seeing how your getting on , my mates doin his and had nothing but probs at the min so its kinda putting me off ..im still just doin research ..but i got my r5 gtt for the weekends ill never get rid of it .. hope it goes well for you ..ill be keeping a i on progress

[Andy_K]

I think the car looks quite good in the blue/grey two tone. Think you should do the door strips in the grey as well, and possibly the wheels in the same colour also imo

[Shellz]

Looks quite cool. :)

[lcheater]

I think the car looks quite good in the blue/grey two tone. Think you should do the door strips in the grey as well, and possibly the wheels in the same colour also imo

Yeah, i got my sister to do the wheels in a darker grey / almost black but it didnt look right the way she did it cos the wheels didnt have a shine to them and when she added a shine, the tyres didnt look right lol

As for the door strips / bumper strips - i dont really want to have to spray them because i was hoping to just use the standard panels and bolt them straight on.

[Andy_K]

Think it would still look good with black rub strips imo.
The wheels I can kind of see them in my head in grey, and it looks fine lol

[lcheater]

No more progress physically, been busy with other stuff (women!!!!:wall::wall:), but you will be glad to know i finally came to my senses this week and decided enough was enough and got shot! - too many problems!

Anyway, back to the car... i have now got a complete VT kit in the grey colour (the colour on the two tone special edition VTR's). Got to get some new clips from the dealer during the week and then i can clean up all the panels and get them all on out of the way - i will post some pics once its on - Cant wait to see it myself!

I have just won an oil catch tank on ebay, pics below:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/n602100904_256864_3817.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/cdee_1.jpg

Seriously need to rake some funds in to get the conrods, then i can start getting the bottom end worked on and built, but i cant see that being until after Christmas has come and well and truly gone!

[Dazza1]

Looking good mate keep up the hard work:y:.

[saxo_bigbass]

goood work! car looks good. not to keen on the grey colour codeing. gloss black would be better or just just the bump strips painted!

[Tom5190]

spot on this project like, looks like you've really thought bout it.

[Danborambo]

Id go for the 2 tone mate, cars looking tidy :y:

[Andy_K]

Nice catch tank. I was after that one myself lol

[lcheater]

Nice catch tank. I was after that one myself lol

You were bidding for it on ebay? Does anyone know what these retail for in shops as i am trying to work out if i paid too much for it.

[Proffitt]

Good progress mate.

Keep it up :y:

[lcheater]

I have cut out the hole for the intercooler now, see pic below:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/08112008078.jpg

[dannygti]

cool mate that looks awesome.. keep it up.

[lcheater]

I am pleased with how well it fills the gap, but i have been trying to work out the best location for the oil cooler rad. Because its a 19 row rad its not ideal to use one of the fog light cut outs, and making the fog light cut out larger wouldnt look right i dont think. So, i decided that the only place to put it is behind the intercooler, although im not 100% convinced it will get enough air flow, but the fact it is a 19 row cooler means it has a larger surface area and more oil volume than a smaller one, which probably counters the fact it wont have the best air flow going it. Anyone have any opinions on this?

[dannygti]

id try the oil cooler where you said then if you do have problems mount it just to the side or on top of the intercooler.

[lcheater]

id try the oil cooler where you said then if you do have problems mount it just to the side or on top of the intercooler.

How can i get it on top of the intercooler - not enough room is there? Or do you mean in front of the intercooler?

[dannygti]

as close to the top as you can, bolted to the slam panel?
in front would be compramising the i/cooler. i dont think you will have a problem with oil temps regardless of where you put the cooler if your not running lots of boost.

[lcheater]

as close to the top as you can, bolted to the slam panel?
in front would be compramising the i/cooler. i dont think you will have a problem with oil temps regardless of where you put the cooler if your not running lots of boost.

Yeah i dont want to compromise the i/c in any way at all - hence the massive cut out lol. I will consider mounting it onto the slam panel but i think i will probably end up putting it behind the i/c tbh but as you say, i can always re-locate it if oil temps do become an issue.

[Matt]

Are those already uprated pistons??

[lcheater]

Are those already uprated pistons??

Which ones, the dirty ones in the first few pages? As far as i know, they are standard, what makes you think they are uprated?

[Matt]

Sorry i only looked at the first page. Because normaly standard pistons have the inital 'std' on the top of the piston and yours has numbers. I might be wrong tho..

[lcheater]

Sorry i only looked at the first page. Because normaly standard pistons have the inital 'std' on the top of the piston and yours has numbers. I might be wrong tho..

Havent got a clue with that one mate, perhaps someone else may be able to shed some light on that?

[Andy_K]

You were bidding for it on ebay? Does anyone know what these retail for in shops as i am trying to work out if i paid too much for it.

Yeah I was bidding in it as well. Think catch tank retail at £100+ for a decent one.

With the oil cooler, why not make brackets and mount it in front of the intercooler. Won't make much difference to the intercooler and will draw plenty of cold air. Thats where my mates is mounted. Mine is on the slam panel behind the grille.

[lcheater]

Yeah I was bidding in it as well. Think catch tank retail at £100+ for a decent one.

With the oil cooler, why not make brackets and mount it in front of the intercooler. Won't make much difference to the intercooler and will draw plenty of cold air. Thats where my mates is mounted. Mine is on the slam panel behind the grille.

Sounds like i got a bargain then, its in mint condition even though the item description said it has a light scratch, i cant see any!

[Dave_Chandler]

how you getting on with the conversion then?

[lcheater]

how you getting on with the conversion then?

I havent got any further at all! The turbo blew on my BMW a few weeks back and the warranty company wouldnt pay out so i had to shell out £670 to get it fixed (and that was using a cheap second hand turbo!). Genuine BMW turbo was £975 + VAT:fcuk:

So, after that unexpected bill, i have had to leave the saxo for a while. Hopefully the new year will bring in a fresh supply of cash and I can progress a bit more!

[JamesR]

nyc progress there mate, cant wait to see it fineshed, should be good. what sort of power are you aiming for?

[lcheater]

nyc progress there mate, cant wait to see it fineshed, should be good. what sort of power are you aiming for?

Dont really know tbh, but i reckon 300-330 from what i have seen of the other specs similar mine

[degsy]

alright mate been a while now ..any progress ??????????

[lcheater]

Nah no progress, funds are a bit dry at the moment lol.

[Ben]

With pictures and regular updates eh ;)

Hope all is well and get some progress up :y:

[Sparco_Tom]

looks good buddy keep up the good work

[lcheater]

Right, long time no update!!! Things have started moving again now and i have managed to source a head which has already been ported and polished and has had the valve seats "3 faced" - which im not sure what it means and i cant visually see a difference lol. It came off a n/a car which was dyno'd at 152bhp, so is pretty good spec.

I also picked up a turbo prepared bottom end tonight. Its had all the work done to it already and is fully assembled ready to go.

Oh and i got a VTR gearbox now too, so i can start building the engine up and start making progress. I still need lots of bits, including the turbo and associated pipework, so still a fair way to go but its still progress :-)

I will post pics up of the bottom end and head when i get time, as im off on holiday tomorrow.

[sam-6]

tuurbbooo :P
get some more pics up mate :)

[Mark1]

Looks good :D

[lcheater]

tuurbbooo :P
get some more pics up mate :)

Yeah i will get pics of the block and head once i get back from holiday :-)

[The_Notorious_C_A_T]

get it sorted soon mate!

Got an intercooler lying about if you're wanting, would do it cheap for a repeat customer as well!

[Andy_K]

Good to see that this hasn't been abandoned :y:

[ashwilson]

more picturessss

what bhp you hoping for

[Itz_Jamez]

looking gurddd

[lcheater]

Right, i have had chance to get out and spend some time on the new bits i bought before i went on holiday, so here are some pics:

Bottom End and Throttle Body (had the TB for a while):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190543.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190545.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190544.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190549.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190550.jpg

My standard head:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190552.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190553.jpg

Ported and polished head:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190555.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/lcheater/P7190562.jpg

[Mathias]

glad this is progressing again now mate, wanting to see this finished!

[lcheater]

glad this is progressing again now mate, wanting ro see this finished!

Me too! hoping to get the head skimmed this week or next (just to be sure) and i might get it pressure tested too.

Need headgasket (need to find out from Wossner which headgasket i need to make it 8.5:1 compression) and then i need a clutch of some description and lightened and balanced flywheel, then i should be able to get an engine together which actually resembles a engine lol

[Mathias]

Adamhighfield is selling a helix aluminium flywheel mate, weigh 3kg, great quality, unused for £200, they are £300 from tweeks new, i have one and its great!

he also has an omp clutch but not sure if this will take the power your planning though

hope this helps

[lcheater]

Adamhighfield is selling a helix aluminium flywheel mate, weigh 3kg, great quality, unused for £200, they are £300 from tweeks new, i have one and its great!

he also has an omp clutch but not sure if this will take the power your planning though

hope this helps

Wicked cheers for the info I will pm him.

[Mathias]

no problem matey, here is the link:

http://www.saxperience.com/forum/showthread.php?t=243669

[lcheater]

Sent the head off to be pressure tested and skimmed today. Will be back tomorrow.

Im having to get the bores on the block re-honed as they are all scored (piston slap) and i dont know why. They guy i bought the fully built block from said it had only done 30 miles before it was taken out, so im not sure why its got score marks down it already, but instead of risking it, im getting it all re-honed and built professionally (which i was trying to avoid having to do since it was supposedly built, ready to use!!!).

[lcheater]

Head came back from being tested and skimmed today. Apparently it was 'twisted' and had to have an excessive amount skimmed off it. But, its all straight now and it tested OK so its good to go.

[sliderz]

great thread any up dates

[DeanoQ]

how much is it to put a turbo on it like m8