Sirius 4G63T

The Death of Boost Creep (Part 1)

2010-03-19T16:23:00.004+08:00

After I installed the 3-inch turbo-back exhaust (TBE) system to my car, something went wrong with the car's performance.

Every time I floor the throttle, I felt disappointed, angry, feel like biting someone in the neck... it felt like the car wanted to go faster but something holding it back... something nasty... something that needs to be eliminated as soon as possible before it is making the condition worse. Maybe it is the work of the Green Goblin, maybe due to Godzilla or maybe it is Barney??? I love you... you love me... we are a family... la la la...

Luckily, Mr. Google is here to help, just a quick search and I found the real enemy, it is Mr. Boost Creep. Yes, this is the common enemy for forced induction cars with upgraded exhaust system. It seems that 3-inch TBE will allow exhaust gases to exit easily thus enabling the snail (a.k.a. turbo) to work more efficient. Internal wastegate that come with the turbo can't release enough exhaust gases to avoid turbo from spinning to thousand pieces. This is boost creep, very bad for the turbo and the engine. Lots of turbo engine died due to this.

It seems that, when I put the pedal to the metal, the boost went straight up to the targeted boost as set up in the HKS EVC 6, but it creeps up, it does not stick to the boost level that it should be. Although I already set the EVC to drop boost back to stock level (0.7 bar), it doesn't seems to work although the boost creep rate seems to slow down. This was why I felt the car is slowing down and hesitate to accelerate. Luckily though, my engine still in good shape after over-boosted several times. As I mentioned in my earlier post, with stock internal, Evo II engine can only withstand up to 1.2 bar of boost (assuming proper fueling and tuning).

I don't want my engine to spin to death, that is why, I need to fight it properly. Just like Batman VS Joker, Spiderman VS Green Goblin and Jeremy Clarkson VS US cars.

Here comes the Hero, Mr. Tial from Shiawassee, Michigan. Equipped with a 38-mm mouth, 1-bar pressurized air-gun and dressed in red, it is the perfect-but-loud fighter.

Mr. Tial

I fetched Mr. Tial at Kakimotor, Sunway. Straight away I hired him after introduced by Mr. William, cost me nearly RM800. Professional boost creep mercenary.

Mr. Tial and his equipment

Mr. Tial with its killing aura

Enough with the introduction of Mr. Tial. Now, I will bring Mr. Tial to meet Doc Ali and Doc Mat Diah at Prodrag, Sunway. They will help to infuse Mr. Tial with my car. He will be taking over the role of handling Mr. Boost Creep from Mr. Internal Wastegate.

To be continued, just make sure your pop corn is full.

Performance parts on my ride

2010-02-08T01:39:00.002+08:00

Recently, one of my friend told me that I do not reveal much on performance parts installed on my car, so here it goes... just several of it. I'll reveal more in my future posts.

HKS Intercooler to cool down hot air coming from the stock TD05-16g

Greddy Oil Catch Tank to ease out the crankcase pressure and to trap oil coming from the PCV

Stepper motor for the HKS EVC 6 - the best EBC you can buy!

Custom intercooler piping with SAMCO silicon hoses (nicely done by Mat Diah, Prodrag) and Greddy Type-RS BOV (VTA)

As always, buy ORIGINAL parts, it is WORTH it.

Tial MV-S wastegate (38 mm)

2010-02-01T23:29:00.003+08:00

Coming soon...

2010 New Year Celebration at KLCC

2010-01-18T04:21:00.007+08:00

I brought my wife and 22 months baby boy to the 2010 New Year Celebration at Suria KLCC, solely because of the fireworks show. Besides that, Suria KLCC is very2 near to my house. I just want to share below pictures although it is quite late (already near the end of January 2010). BTW, I went there with my wife's car, Proton Satria Neo 1.3 as I was expecting heavy traffic (actually it is not that bad). It will be a PITA to drive my car with it heavy clutch on a jammed road.

Below are several pictures taken using my Nokia E66, bad quality, so sorry.

Petronas Twin-Tower (left) and Maxis Tower (right)

Suria KLCC Shopping Center

Petronas Twin-Tower

Full moon

Colourful night

Battle Update 2

2010-01-18T03:23:00.010+08:00

Two days ago, around 8.20 PM, I was on my way to a restaurant in Banday Sunway for a dinner. The distance to the restaurant from my house (in Kuala Lumpur) is approximately 25 kilometres. It would took me between 35 to 45 minutes to reach the restaurant if I take the Federal Highway as the road frequently jammed with traffic, so I decided to use the New Pantai Expressway (NPE). By using NPE, I can arrived in just 15 to 20 minutes but I will need to pay RM 3.60 for toll but it worth every penny as I would spent less in petrol by avoiding crawling traffic on the Federal Highway.

After the 1st toll plaza from Kuala Lumpur, appeared from nowhere, a car tailgated me very close and it had a very menacing look from my rear view mirror. I can't really guess the car's model as the headlights was very bright and might be able to replace a flash grenade if required. I gave my car a bit of boost and moved to the slow lane and instantly recognized it, a black Mitsubishi Lancer GT 2.0.

Suddenly, the driver of that Lancer GT decided that he wanted to tailgate me one more time. I don't want to do stupid things on road but to let him tailgate this close, was annoying and dangerous. In 5th gear, I give it a good press on the gas pedal, combined with cold night air, the turbo boost came in a hurry and I left that car for a good distance before I slowed down as I was about to reach 160 km/h from around 90 km/h.

As I was slowing down further, try to reach my destination using a sensible and safe cruising speed, that Lancer GT reached at the back and started to tailgate again. I know that my car is not that fast, but against a Lancer GT that only packed around 150 hp at crank, the driver of the Lancer GT should know better not to mess with a Proton Perdana.

Although in a stock form, Proton Perdana V6 packed near the same horsepower at crank and well-known for its powerful V6 engine (6A12NA), especially those that already switched to a manual gearbox. It will be a very close match.

Unfortunately for this particular Lancer GT's driver, my car is powered by the 4G63T. Just to make sure he will not tailgate me again, I changed the boost setting to 1.0 bar and pedal-to-the-metal. Just several seconds later, I will need to get a telescope to be able to see the Lancer GT in my rear view mirror. Now, I can cruise safely and calmly to the restaurant, to get my dinner, 'Nasi Goreng Daging Merah' and 'Sirap Bandung'.

As a note, my HKS EVC 6 recorded 1.2 bar of peak boost although it supposed to be 1.0 bar. This is due to my car having 'boost creep' issue after I installed the 3" turbo-back exhaust (TBE). External wastegate? *Grin*.

GSR, VR4, Evo 1-3 Gearboxes Code

2010-01-03T16:52:00.006+08:00

Here it is:

W5M33-2-NGRE Lancer GSR RS (1992, 1800cc)
W5M33-2-NNZT Eclipse AWD 5spd mfg 3/94
W5M33-2-NPXV 91-94 Eclipse AWD 5spd mfg 6/90-2/94
W5M33-2-NPZT 95-96 Eclipse AWD 5spd mfg 3/94-6/96
W5M33-2-NQBE Libero/Lancer GSR, Non-LSD version of NRWE
W5M33-2-NQBK 1991-92 to 4/92 VR4/ZR4 Galant
W5M33-2-NQBM 1992 Galant to 5/92
W5M33-2-NRBE 92-95 Lancer GSR, lightweight synchro's 2nd & 3rd
W5M33-2-NRWE 92-95 Lancer GSR, stronger box, dbl synchro's 2nd
W5M33-2-NRXD 1990 Cyborg

W5M33-2-WPVF Galant VR4 E84A
W5M33-2-WQFK Galant VR4 EVO
W5M33-2-WQNK Galant VR4 EVO, close ratio box ?

W5M33-2-WQGE Evo1 GSR non LSD
W5M33-2-WQWE Evo1 GSR (and RS?) with front LSD
W5M33-2-WQYE Evo1 RS non LSD
W5M33-2-WQFE Evo1 RS with front LSD

W5M33-2-WPGE Evo2 GSR non LSD
W5M33-2-WPWE Evo2 GSR with front LSD <---- Mine
W5M33-2-WPYE Evo2 RS non LSD
W5M33-2-WPFE Evo2 RS with front LSD

W5M33-2-UPGE Evo3 GSR non LSD
W5M33-2-UPWE Evo3 GSR with front LSD
W5M33-2-UPYE Evo3 RS non LSD
W5M33-2-UPFE Evo3 RS with front LSD

Congratulations if yours came with the LSD!

Battle Update 1

2009-12-31T12:18:00.005+08:00

Yummy, so delicious.

Yesterday, exciting (but not a good example) things happened to me when I am on my way to and back from office on two of Malaysia' highways. Two fast cars followed my ride very close at the back and I think you know what that really mean.

Battle 1a
Level of Difficulty: Easy

On my way to office, a white Golf GTi, gave me the first battle of the day. If I am not mistaken, the stock car is equipped with 240 bhp of fire(horse)power. I am not so sure which version of GTi it is but the car managed to follow my ride quite close until I reached speed around 140 km/h. After that, it is a different story, I slowly left him at the back until we reach a toll plaza and took different route. My car was boosting at 0.7 bar which is the stock boost.

Battle 1b
Level of Difficulty: Hard

On the same day, on my way back from office after long hours at work, a Nissan Skyline GT-T (in dark blue color) is taunting me. This time, I am a bit worry because the traffic seemed quite heavy and the Skyline GT-T looks like it is packing serious horsepower under the hood. I quickly turn my HKS EVC 6 boost controller knob from Mode A to Mode B, switching it from 0.7 bar (estimated around 260 bhp) to 1.0 bar (estimated around 300 bhp) but the Nissan seems easily able to follow my silver ride at a very close distance. Getting near to the next toll plaza, the Nissan was slowly gaining on me but it can't accelerate any further as both of us need to brake for the toll plaza. He went to the cash counter's queue and I went to the Smart tag queue. Nevertheless, I am confident that he/she can overtake me if the road is a bit longer.

BTW, let us welcome Year 2010 and good-bye Year 2009.

May the car be faster and better.

Cheers!

TD05-16G turbo (Evo 2)

2009-12-24T02:23:00.006+08:00

I had my turbo (TD05-16G a.k.a. Big 16G) serviced at Karamjit Motorsports on 29th June 2009. Below pictures were taken after the service was done, sorry, no 'before' pictures.

Click on the picture to view the bigger version.

Picture 1

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

It seems that my turbo is in excellent condition, no shaft play and only a little bit of oil inside it.

Yeah, I know, it is such a little snail, but it is enough to scare the hell out of me at certain cold nights with 1 bar of boost.

Cheers.

Mr. Battery and Mr. Alternator

2009-12-24T01:41:00.013+08:00

This happened last Monday (just four days ago).

It is near 9 AM and I am in a Rush Mode to be in the office for an important meeting. Hmmn, weird, I couldn't open the driver's door although I already disarmed the car's central locking. I just proceed to unlock it manually and managed to open driver's door. I tried to start the car and nothing happen. No wonder. It must be the car's battery. I tried to get the voltage reading from my Apexi Pen Turbo Timer but the display just flicker, nothing meaningful.

This actually surprised me as I bought the battery just six months ago. It is a NS60 maintenance-free Yokohama battery (Made in Malaysia) that still has six months to go before its warranty is over. Nevertheless, for me, it died prematurely, before its time, just like Michael Jackson and Brittany Murphy. So sad.

I tried to support locally-made product.

I send a text message to my boss and told him that I will be very late, he said okay, luckily he is very sporting. Ten minutes later, the battery is with me, in my wife's Proton Satria Neo, heading to the place where I bought it so I can just get it replace under warranty. Unfortunately, they need two or three days to have it analyze before they can arrange for a replacement. Honestly, I just feel like I want to stuff that battery in one of their worker's throat. Furious, I told them to take their time analyzing it, forever if required as I do not feel going to that shop again or to collect the replacement battery. Not only that, I would not even buy another locally-made Yokohama batteries ever again. Never.

AC Delco. One of the leading manufacturer for car batteries. This is the first battery that popped to my mind when I am thinking of buying a new battery for my ride, but, where can I find this highly-recommended battery for car lovers? Most of the shops nearby my house just sell either GP Atlas (Korean-made) or Yokohama. It is not that I heard bad things about GP Atlas, but in my heart, I just want to have an AC Delco, at least it make me feels better after a bad day.

I bought a maintenance-free NS60 AC Delco.

I searched at Google, contact AC Delco distributor's (very helpful and friendly) and they told me that there is a shop quite near to my location that sells AC Delco batteries. Fast forward, I went to that shop, bought it at a very good price (just RM30 more than Yokohoma's) and return home.

Just like a child with a newly bought toy, I opened the box and stunned with the battery's exterior. You can actually feels it is a very quality product, produced with enough love and care. It took me around 10 minutes to install the new battery, just to make sure it is properly seated and wired to the right positive/negative side. The car explodes to life at the first crank. Great!

On the next day, I did some research whether the problem might be related to a weak alternator. The Yokohama's battery that I bought is a Calcium-Calcium type. Several articles in the internet indicate that car batteries using Calcium-Calcium required certain level of voltage delivery from the alternator to get it properly charged. If that's the case, my AC Delco may also died prematurely if the real problem is with the car's alternator. Voltage reading from my Apexi Pen Turbo Timer shows 12.8v-13.0v reading when I am driving the car at 3,000 RPM in fifth gear. It is quite low from what I do understand as a good alternator should deliver around 13.8 volts.

No problem, my Glenmarie's office is quite near to a Bosch Service Center. I went there so I can get the altternator serviced. It is not that I don't want to replace the alternator but it would cost near 700% more than just have it serviced. Nonetheless, they told me that they will just do a voltage check first before doing anything to it, as the reading from the Apexi Pen Turbo Timer might not be that accurate. It is indeed not accurate, below is the reading done by the Bosch personnel using a very complicated looking device just to measure my battery voltage.
Ignition On, Air-conditioner Off, Headlights Off= 13.8 volts
Ignition On, Air-conditioner On, Headlights On= 13.8 volts

They told me that my car's alternator is working fine and I don't need to service or replace it. Another good news for me. I thanked them for their honesty and professionalism and they don't even charge me a single cent for this.

My points are, AC Delco and Bosch are both foreign-based company, US and Germany respectively, but they managed to show their quality control although in a branch that located thousands kilometers away from the HQ.

Why can't Malaysian-owned company be the same as they are actually operating locally?

What is the actual problem?

I wonder...

Evo I/II/III Engine and Drivetrain

2009-12-19T20:05:00.040+08:00

Cooking a turbo, best served hot

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution I was introduced in October 1992.

Engine Specs:
    * Engine - 4G63T -in-line 4-cylinder, 16-valve DOHC.
    * Bore/Stroke 85.0/88.0mm
    * Compression 8.5:1
    * Displacement 1,997cc
    * Standard Power - 250 Bhp
    * Standard Torque - 228 ft/lb

Drivetrain Specs:
    * Type - Full-time 4WD with Centre Viscous Coupling Unit
    * Gearbox - 5 Speed Manual - with or without Front LSD
    * Gear Ratios -
      1st 2.571
      2nd 1.600
      3rd 1.160
      4th 0.862
      5th 0.617
      Reverse 3.166
      Final Ratio 5.433
    * Clutch Type - Single Dry-Plate with Diaphragm Spring

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution II was introduced in January 1994.
(My engine is this one!)
Engine Specs:
    * Engine - 4G63T -in-line 4-cylinder, 16-valve DOHC.
    * Bore/Stroke 85.0/88.0mm
    * Compression 8.5:1
    * Displacement 1,997cc
    * Standard Power - 260 Bhp
    * Standard Torque - 228 ft/lb

Drivetrain Specs:
    * Type - Full-time 4WD with Centre Viscous Coupling Unit
    * Gearbox - 5 Speed Manual - with or without Front LSD
    * Gear Ratios -
      1st 2.570
      2nd 1.684
      3rd 1.160
      4th 0.862
      5th 0.617
      Reverse 3.166
      Final Ratio 5.433
    * Clutch Type - Single Dry-Plate with Diaphragm Spring

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution III was introduced in January 1995.
Engine Specs:
    * Engine - 4G63T -in-line 4-cylinder, 16-valve DOHC.
    * Bore/Stroke 85.0/88.0mm
    * Compression 8.8:1
    * Displacement 1,997cc
    * Standard Power - 270 Bhp
    * Standard Torque - 228 ft/lb

Drivetrain Specs:
    * Type - Full-time 4WD with Centre Viscous Coupling Unit
    * Gearbox - 5 Speed Manual - with or without Front LSD
    * Gear Ratios -
      1st 2.570
      2nd 1.684
      3rd 1.160
      4th 0.862
      5th 0.617
      Reverse 3.166
      Final Ratio 5.358
    * Clutch Type - Single Dry-Plate with Diaphragm Spring

(Source: www.evo123.net)

NOTES

1. Evo I and II has a lower engine compression than Evo III (8.5:1 vs 8.8:1)

2. Internal actuator spring rate for Evo I/II/III is 72 Kpa or 0.7 bar (14.7 PSI)- Stock boost

3. Safe maximum boost for Evo I and II with stock internal is 1.2 bar and for Evo III is 1.0 bar (due to higher engine compression). Just make sure you have necessary supporting parts to increase the boost (e.g. Wideband tuning, Walbro high-pressure 255lph fuel pump).

4. Evo I/II/III is using Viscous Limited Slip Differential (VLSD) for the front

5. Evo I/II/III stock bottom end's is good up to 350 whp before it starts breaking up. Get it forged if you want to go more than 350 whp safely although some people managed to run 500 whp on stock internals, very2 risky though.

Currently, I am running at 0.7 bar on low boost setting and 1.0 bar for high boost setting although sometimes it creep up to 1.65 bar due to my 3" turbo-back exhaust piping (especially during cold night).

Turbo boost is now engaged!

Scramble boost set to increase another 0.2 bar for 11 seconds in case I need an extra push for extraordinary occasion, *grin*.

Performance Items for SALE!

2009-12-19T19:47:00.004+08:00

I have several original performance items to let go at a very good price...

HKS Super Drager (Inlet 3", Outlet 5")- Picture 1

HKS Super Drager (Inlet 3", Outlet 5")- Picture 2

Blitz Nur Spec (Inlet 3", Outlet 4")

HKS Super Power Flow

If you are interested, just leave your email address by posting a comment.

Cheers.

Raydiance Autospa

2009-12-19T19:18:00.011+08:00

Lately, it has been raining all the time, a very WET month indeed... so for you that can't stand to watch your car using MUD as a BLANKET and DUST as a POWDER, bring your car to Raydiance Autospa at Sunway Mentari, Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Raydiance Autospa

They are using quality products (Meguiars) and their staffs are well-trained. They even have their towels labeled properly to make sure specific towel only for different section of your car. They charged RM12 for basic exterior/interior car wash.

Taking a break, relaxing those muscles. Battle scars are getting VERY visible now...

Hard Rock Cafe style?

Ohh, before I forgot to mention, you should join their membership, it would cost you cheaper for basic car wash and get SMS for promotions and latest news. It will just cost you RM10, cheap right?

Ford Mustang Shelby Cobra!

2009-09-01T13:32:00.014+08:00

Astonishing!

Just this morning, around 10.15 AM, I am on my way to KLAS (KL Airport Service) to do some work at one of my company's remote office. It is raining heavily and I am driving my beloved Perdana Evo II slowly and carefully, off-boost, maintaining speed between 80-100kmh.

Suddenly, I can see a very wide car, with a menacing front view coming very fast from behind, on the most right lane. Luckily, I am in the middle lane, not a road-hog type mind you. I can't believe my eyes seeing this, a Ford Mustang Shelby Cobra??? Is it KITT 3000 (Knight Rider)???

Here some pictures but forgive me for the blurry images as I am driving with one hand, partially boosting to 0.3-0.4bar (it is already very dangerous at this low boost as the road is very slippery), chasing away this handsome devil accelerating brutally as if its tires are studded (it must be KITT 3000).

I started boosting to chase this rarely seen ride in Malaysia.

Traction, traction... I need traction... we need to chase this monster.

Carefully boosted up to 0.4 bar until a white Proton Satria is holding it back, lucky me.

I tried to stop my wipers, to get a better picture, but this is the result, hehe...

I am at the back, just for a while, can't keep up, doesn't have the traction, *sigh* and it was pretty dangerous to be so near.

Whoever is driving it, I am jealous of you!

That is an insane ride!

Engine and Gearbox Oil Change

2009-05-31T03:13:00.018+08:00

I am a bit particular about my car engine and gearbox internal parts. I can't say the same for my car's cosmetic (interior or exterior), because that is the easy part, you got a scratch at your bumper or a dent on the body, it is visible and you know what is the implication and how to cure it. Unfortunately, for internal mechanical parts, you don't really know the exact history, current condition and any indication of incoming problem. That is why, when it comes to engine and gearbox oil change, I'll have a *headache* in getting the right product. If you buy the wrong one, it might actually accelerate your gearbox internals wear-and-tear or maybe causing the engine's hydraulic lifters to trap air (which can be caused by engine oil that is too viscous) and reduce your car performance and starts making those loud annoying tick-tick sound especially when the engine is cold.

As you should already know, my Evo II GSR engine is from a halfcut, that is most likely well exposed to harsh weather and maybe suitable enough for micro-organism to breed in it as it was kept in the warehouse for god-only-know how long. Now, you can imagine the condition of the engine and gearbox oil, we can safely assumed that the oil is very dirty and badly oxidized.

[1st oil change]
As a start, for my 1st oil change on the 4G63T engine, most probably the final step in the engine's transplant process before cranking it to a new life (with its new lucky owner of course, hehe...), I supplied the mechanic with 4-litre of Castrol GTX 20W-50 (mineral) and 3-litre of Pennzoil SAE 80W-90 Multi Purpose Gear Oil (Limited Slip Differential) (GL-5). This is to make sure the engine starts with a fresh oil and doesn't choke itself.

If you do noticed, these are cheap oils and not really suitable for a high performing turbocharged engine. No worry, I just want to use it for 300-400km and replace it with a better oil. This is to make sure I can clean out any debris or water before it overloaded the load-carrying capability of the oil and causing any damage to the internals. I can actually use engine flushing oil for this purpose, but I heard bad things from people doing it, maybe it dislodged too many debris at one shot and causing blockage. This is a risk I am not willing to take, especially when I have a safer option.

[2nd oil change]
As planned, I sent the car to Karamjit Motorsports for an oil change after driving it for around 350km. This time, I opted for Castrol Magnatec 10W-40 (semi-synthetic) and Castrol LSX 90 (compatible with LSD). It will be for another 2000km before the next oil change is due.

[3rd oil change]
Fast forward, after the car accumulated another 2000km, another engine and gearbox oil change was done using Castrol Edge Sport 10W-60 (fully-synthetic) and Castrol LSX 90. I am quite confident that at this time, most of metal debris or water that trapped inside the engine or gearbox are already flushed out. This round, it will be for 5000km before the next oil change.

Unfortunately, I found out that the Castrol Edge Sport 10W-60 is too thick for my engine. Actually, this engine oil is for competition use where super-extreme temperature is expected. Although the 4G63T engine does produce lots of heat, I don't think it will ever reach the temperature needed for the engine oil to properly flow. This is not a cheap engine oil, this one cause RM145 damage to my wallet, so maybe I will just continue to use it for now and hope for the best. In an article from an oil expert, using engine oil that is too thick and not suitable for your engine, can cause your ride's lifters (a.k.a. tappets) to trap air due to lack of oil flow and low oil pressure. That is why you need to use the right engine oil for your car. Temporarily, I'll do an extended warm-up for my car, to make sure it reached the optimum oil pressure and temperature before starts driving it.

[4th oil change]
After 2 months of hard driving, the car accumulated another 5000km, quite fast right? Maybe due to my work nature that is hopping around attending meetings and project sites. So, just several days ago, I sent the car for another service. It seems that most of early Evo owners are using either 10W-30 or 10W-40 engine oil and Redline/Motul gearbox oil, so I bought Castrol Edge 5W-40 and Redline 75W-90 for the oil change.

Although the cost is a bit high, I really don't want to skimp on it, oil to cars is what blood to human. If you are wondering what is the cost of my recent oil change (excluding labour charge):

a. 1 x Castrol Edge 5W-40 (4L)= RM145

b. 2 x Redline 75W-90= RM90

c. 1 x Mitsubishi Oil Filter for 4G6x= RM18

TOTAL= RM253.00

After several days of driving my car using these expensive-but-quality products, I can really vouch for its effectiveness. My car's engine feels smoother and quieter as I suspect that the engine can rev easier due to thinner oil running on it. This is not a placebo effect as I can really feel the car is revving faster and I'm being push much harder to the seat when boosting.

My gearbox also seems to produce less whine at high speed and less noise. Although it is normal for LSD gearbox to generate a bit of chatter, as it means that the gearbox is working properly, I get less noise when using Redline compared to Castrol LSX 90. If you want to buy one, make sure you buy the correct oil. Redline has a non-slip (NS) 75W-90 oil for gearbox without LSD as to allow the synchromesh to reach equal speed faster, in other words, you get better acceleration.

Part 2: Mitsubishi Evolution X

2009-05-26T01:17:00.021+08:00

Let me continue my post on the latest Evo X.

At the price of around RM328,000.00, you can get one of this in Malaysia with proper support from Mitsubishi Malaysia, no need for grey imports which usually lack in support. Although this car is known for its reliability, warranty and support provided by Mitsubishi should make life easier in case something happen to the AYC, S-AWC, Sport ABS or any other gadgetry on this car.

Interior, the car dashboard seems to be a bit plasticky but it shouldn't be a problem as the fit & finish is far from inferior.

The steering wheel has a nice grip to it with several control buttons on it so you can just concentrate on the road. This is important when you are traveling at warp speed with this very capable car.

Nice steering wheel

Another thing that surprised me is that this car is equipped with a 12-speakers Rockford Fosgate audio system. This is super-nice although it must have added some weight to the car (who cares when you have lots of horsepower at bay). I didn't have the chance to test it out, but I am confident that it will be able to produce spectacular noise with this setup.

Tweeters are mounted at the right place which should enhance your listening experience

Check out below for more pictures:

Twin-clutch SST gearbox - The gearbox even do 'throttle blip' for you

Even the carpet is nice - Maybe I should buy a set for my Proton Perdana, can it properly fit?

Nice BBS wheel with a mean-looking Brembo 4-pot caliper

Mitsubishi Malaysia, if you are aware of this blog, really hoping that you can also lend me this car for one whole week (not less and not more), together with fuel vouchers and new tires. I will try to do an honest review, although not as good as an automotive journalist, but it should be good enough for car fanatics such as me.

Keep on dreaming...

Exhaust Design for Turbo Cars

2009-05-24T11:09:00.022+08:00

I had decided to post this due to the importance of this knowledge. Most drivers still believe that 'backpressure' is good for their cars. Please take note, NA or turbo, you do not need backpressure, end of story.

If you can't make a decision whether to go with a 3-inch or 2.5-inch Turboback exhaust (TBE) or Catback exhaust (CBE) for your turbo ride, have a look at below excerpt.

I did mine with a 3-inch TBE based on this excerpt and very2 happy with the decision. Turbo spool is faster than ever before and I can really feel the car reaching maximum RPM quicker.

Apexi boost meter - Get faster turbo spool with 3-inch TBE or CBE

(CAUTION: Don't ever try to increase your boost from standard without proper fueling as that is a recipe for disaster. Just get one of those Walbro or Bosch fuel pump with higher flow rate and you are doing a big favor for your engine. It is also advisable to upgrade your fuel pump before doing TBE or CBE as you might encounter 'boost creep' and 'boost spike' after your exhaust piping upgrade.)

The following excerpts are from Jay Kavanaugh, a turbosystems engineer at Garrett, responding to a thread on http://www.impreza.net regarding exhaust design and exhaust theory:

Howdy,

This thread was brought to my attention by a friend of mine in hopes of shedding some light on the issue of exhaust size selection for turbocharged vehicles. Most of the facts have been covered already. FWIW I'm an turbocharger development engineer for Garrett Engine Boosting Systems.

N/A cars: As most of you know, the design of turbo exhaust systems runs counter to exhaust design for n/a vehicles. N/A cars utilize exhaust velocity (not backpressure) in the collector to aid in scavenging other cylinders during the blowdown process. It just so happens that to get the appropriate velocity, you have to squeeze down the diameter of the discharge of the collector (aka the exhaust), which also induces backpressure. The backpressure is an undesirable byproduct of the desire to have a certain degree of exhaust velocity. Go too big, and you lose velocity and its associated beneficial scavenging effect. Too small and the backpressure skyrockets, more than offsetting any gain made by scavenging. There is a happy medium here.

For turbo cars, you throw all that out the window. You want the exhaust velocity to be high upstream of the turbine (i.e. in the header). You'll notice that primaries of turbo headers are smaller diameter than those of an n/a car of two-thirds the horsepower. The idea is to get the exhaust velocity up quickly, to get the turbo spooling as early as possible. Here, getting the boost up early is a much more effective way to torque than playing with tuned primary lengths and scavenging. The scavenging effects are small compared to what you'd get if you just got boost sooner instead. You have a turbo; you want boost. Just don't go so small on the header's primary diameter that you choke off the high end.

Downstream of the turbine (aka the turboback exhaust), you want the least backpressure possible. No ifs, ands, or buts. Stick a Hoover on the tailpipe if you can. The general rule of "larger is better" (to the point of diminishing returns) of turboback exhausts is valid. Here, the idea is to minimize the pressure downstream of the turbine in order to make the most effective use of the pressure that is being generated upstream of the turbine. Remember, a turbine operates via a pressure ratio. For a given turbine inlet pressure, you will get the highest pressure ratio across the turbine when you have the lowest possible discharge pressure. This means the turbine is able to do the most amount of work possible (i.e. drive the compressor and make boost) with the available inlet pressure.

Again, less pressure downstream of the turbine is goodness. This approach minimizes the time-to-boost (maximizes boost response) and will improve engine VE throughout the rev range.

As for 2.5" vs. 3.0", the "best" turboback exhaust depends on the amount of flow, or horsepower. At 250 hp, 2.5" is fine. Going to 3" at this power level won't get you much, if anything, other than a louder exhaust note. 300 hp and you're definitely suboptimal with 2.5". For 400-450 hp, even 3" is on the small side.

Part 1: Mitsubishi Evolution X

2009-05-24T01:09:00.011+08:00

Okay, for this post, I am not going to write about my car, but another car, which I can only dream of having one at the moment.

Mitsubishi Evolution X & me

Considered as a very fortunate day for me, I encountered this Mitsubishi Evolution X at Karamjit Motorsport workshop. I sent my car for a 5000 km service when this beauty in red arrived silently, without any lumpy exhaust sound or violently shaking the ground with it 280 horsepower (officially stated by Mitsubishi but I think the real figure is around 340 hp) in the engine bay. Quite silent for a car with this level of armory. It can be considered as an assasin in semi-disguise.

Karamjit Motorsports (satisfaction guaranteed and the price is very reasonable - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED by me)

I was very excited to found out that this legendary car arrived with a legendary driver, Karamjit Singh (FIA WRC Champion 2002 - Production Car). Either the car or the driver is very formidable on its own, so, when you mix it up, I don't even want to think about it. If you are driving the latest Nissan Skyline GTR and you meet them on a straight, YES, you may have a chance. BUT, a big BUT, if you meet them on corners, trust me on this, 'don't even try', even if you are driving a Ferrari/Lamborghini/Koenigsegg/McLarenF1/F1 cars... I'm not joking... this is serious... please don't even think of it. You may ask, how do I know this? I'll let you know on my future post.

Karamjit explained that the car was given to him for a day by Mitsubishi Malaysia for him to test and review. Lucky guy and also lucky me as I have the chance to take a closer look at this car with my own sweet time.

I believe that Mitsubishi has done a very good job with this car's design. It looks clean, handsome, sporty, elegant and the same time brutal. I don't really know how they manage to do this, but they have done it, in spade.

Front view (please make way for it when you see it in your car's rear view mirror)

Rear view (dual exhaust outlets-should be nicer if it is spread further apart, at the edge of each side)

What do you think of the look? Nice right.

To be honest, I don't really care about the look of this car. Mitsubishi can put on 3/4/5 or whatever number of exhaust outlets they wanted to but the thing is, I am really concern about the powerplant. The new all-aluminium 4B11T engine that actually replace the legendary iron-cast 4G63T engine. Can it deliver the same thrill and reliability? Hopefully so, because they are replacing an engine that can withstand more than 1000 horsepower and proven itself after near 20 years of serving.

This new engine, not only turbocharged but also features MIVEC that should helps a lot at higher RPM range. I think it will work like this:
Low RPMs- Mountains of torque delivered by the turbo (TD05H-152G6-12T in action)
Higher RPMs- Mountains of torque delivered by the cam timing change (MIVEC in action)
Results: Huge torque on-standby at any RPM

Nonetheless, I will be following 4B11T development closely to see if it can justify replacing 4G63T. For now, I will be enjoying my 4G63T, although without MIVEC, it is fast enough to give me a scare especially when the road is damp or wet.

I will try to post the 2nd part by tomorrow, for now, I need to get some sleep, feel really sleepy and dizzy, ZZzzz...

The Beginning...

2009-05-23T01:44:00.018+08:00

The beginning of an adventure of me and my ride... a Proton Perdana (2004) powered by the legendary turbocharged engine- a 4G63T from the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution II GSR (1994).

Proton Perdana V6 (Originally powered by a 6A12NA)

The original engine in my car is a 6A12NA (Naturally Aspirated) with a 4-speed automatic gearbox (that is prone to failure). As expected, it tooks only 2 years for it to fail after I bought the car (brand spanking new) from Proton Edar. Straight away, I replaced the gearbox with a 5-speed manual gearbox (Code: 222-VVVF) from a Mitsubishi Eterna halfcut to make sure I don't get a 2nd headache. Torque increased can be felt as there was no more 'torque converter' in action.

Lots of Proton Perdanas (mostly powered by 6A12NA, 6A12TT, 4G63 & 4G63T engine)

In my younger days, frequently I imagined of owning a Nissan Skyline R34 GTR (Godzilla). Until today, I don't think I can really afford it. Maybe I can buy the car and pay the monthly installment without any problem, but the maintenance will cause me *huge headache*. Better if I save up first and buy the latest GTR in future.

In the meantime, to fulfill my hunger for monstrous torque and breakneck acceleration, I decided to drop in this legendary engine to my car.

4G63T (from the Mitsubishi Evolution II GSR)
Horsepower: 260 BHP at 6000 RPM
Torque: 309 Nm
0-100kmh: 5.0 seconds
Top speed: Limited to 180 km/h (but I remove the speed cut and able to reach 240 km/h before I backed down on the throttle, *gulp*)

After two months of driving my car with this new powerplant, I can say that, I had made the right move of choosing it over 6A12TT (from Mitsubishi Eterna Twin Turbo). At the same time, my engine comes with a LSD gearbox (WPWE) which helps to propel the car to a blurry speed in just several eyeblinks.

YES, it is that fast, sometimes a bit scary but that is part of the thrill in owning a 4G63T. The beginning of an EVOlution.