We took the SN65 to Speed Inc (Schaumburg, IL) to tune the beast up after the Whipple install. The install itself went pretty well. We did struggle a bit with the EGR valve plumbing and the correct torque for the manifold bolts, but we did have everything ready for the Tuesday evening session at Speed. The people at Speed really went out of their way to fit the car in to their incredibly busy schedule. Without their help, we never would have been able to complete the project in time for Good Guys Columbus.
Anyway… I digress.
We showed up at Speed at about 6:00 and Larry got us into the shop and onto the dyno in short order. Bob Kurgan showed up at about 6:30 and we were ready to rock.
I was impressed by the way they went about their task. Larry took the drivers seat and Bob positioned himself at shotgun. This way, Bob could monitor the stats as Larry ran the dyno and applied the power. Also, they didn’t just climb in the car and nail the accelerator to the floor. They brought the car up slowly; all the while Bob was locked in on the computer curves watching for any danger signs. I felt very comfortable with them running the show.
When they did get to the point where they made their first real pull, I was confident that everything was going to be AOK. Even though there were a few guys hanging around the shop telling me dyno horror stories. They were just trying to rattle my cage a bit. You know what I mean. Exploding engines. Trashed blowers. Burnt pistons and valves.
The first pull generated about 520 RWHP. Larry and Bob examined the curves and went about the fine tuning process. These guys are very professional in the way they go about their job. When they are going through the process, they do not put up with any interruptions. I started to ask Bob a few questions about what he was doing and he politely told be “Leave me the ((@*# alone, I am working here”. Well, he did not actually say that, but I did get the drift.
After that the evening was pretty much uneventful. Exciting, yes, but uneventful, which is a good thing when dyno tuning any engine. They kept tweaking this and that in an attempt to get a conservative 550 RWHP. Which, by the end of the evening, they did. The last pull of the evening netted us 540 RWHP on a heat soaked blower. I am sure that if we let the whole setup sit overnight we would have bested the 550 point. But our goal was not to see how large a number we could generate on the dyno. Our goal was to have everything dialed in properly. We do not want this setup to go off like some faulty WWII surplus hand grenade. And after Larry and Bob installed a conservative tune, we are sure the car is safe at any speed.
Speaking of speed, the car is a totally different animal. I though it was quick at 400 RWHP. This upgrade (running the 17 PSI pulley) has upped the HP by about 37%. And the torque is just ridiculous. The feeling you get when you peg the accelerator is hard to describe. Your peripheral vision fades away as you concentrate on the road ahead. Everything in your line of sight is magnified as all the objects off to the side merge together and become a blur. The objects directly in front of you start getting closer at an alarming rate of speed. The feeling is kind of like a Star Trek special effect. You know the one. Where the Enterprise goes into warp speed and the stars become a blur as the ship rockets past them…
As you can tell, I am totally thrilled with the way this project has turned out. I need to get the SN65 onto a road course and see what she can really do.
One side note. There seams to be a ghost in the machine. For one reason or another, the computer has the incoming and manifold temp sensors confused. The computer thinks that the incoming air is the manifold and the manifold is the incoming air. We are going to take the car to Ford next week to see if they can shed some light on this little abnormality.
With that said, the push is on for GGC. Be there or be square. Also, look for details and footage of the blower upgrade on an upcoming episode of V8TV.
Anyway… I digress.
We showed up at Speed at about 6:00 and Larry got us into the shop and onto the dyno in short order. Bob Kurgan showed up at about 6:30 and we were ready to rock.
I was impressed by the way they went about their task. Larry took the drivers seat and Bob positioned himself at shotgun. This way, Bob could monitor the stats as Larry ran the dyno and applied the power. Also, they didn’t just climb in the car and nail the accelerator to the floor. They brought the car up slowly; all the while Bob was locked in on the computer curves watching for any danger signs. I felt very comfortable with them running the show.
When they did get to the point where they made their first real pull, I was confident that everything was going to be AOK. Even though there were a few guys hanging around the shop telling me dyno horror stories. They were just trying to rattle my cage a bit. You know what I mean. Exploding engines. Trashed blowers. Burnt pistons and valves.
The first pull generated about 520 RWHP. Larry and Bob examined the curves and went about the fine tuning process. These guys are very professional in the way they go about their job. When they are going through the process, they do not put up with any interruptions. I started to ask Bob a few questions about what he was doing and he politely told be “Leave me the ((@*# alone, I am working here”. Well, he did not actually say that, but I did get the drift.
After that the evening was pretty much uneventful. Exciting, yes, but uneventful, which is a good thing when dyno tuning any engine. They kept tweaking this and that in an attempt to get a conservative 550 RWHP. Which, by the end of the evening, they did. The last pull of the evening netted us 540 RWHP on a heat soaked blower. I am sure that if we let the whole setup sit overnight we would have bested the 550 point. But our goal was not to see how large a number we could generate on the dyno. Our goal was to have everything dialed in properly. We do not want this setup to go off like some faulty WWII surplus hand grenade. And after Larry and Bob installed a conservative tune, we are sure the car is safe at any speed.
Speaking of speed, the car is a totally different animal. I though it was quick at 400 RWHP. This upgrade (running the 17 PSI pulley) has upped the HP by about 37%. And the torque is just ridiculous. The feeling you get when you peg the accelerator is hard to describe. Your peripheral vision fades away as you concentrate on the road ahead. Everything in your line of sight is magnified as all the objects off to the side merge together and become a blur. The objects directly in front of you start getting closer at an alarming rate of speed. The feeling is kind of like a Star Trek special effect. You know the one. Where the Enterprise goes into warp speed and the stars become a blur as the ship rockets past them…
As you can tell, I am totally thrilled with the way this project has turned out. I need to get the SN65 onto a road course and see what she can really do.
One side note. There seams to be a ghost in the machine. For one reason or another, the computer has the incoming and manifold temp sensors confused. The computer thinks that the incoming air is the manifold and the manifold is the incoming air. We are going to take the car to Ford next week to see if they can shed some light on this little abnormality.
With that said, the push is on for GGC. Be there or be square. Also, look for details and footage of the blower upgrade on an upcoming episode of V8TV.