A regular customer of ours runs this 924 carrera GT in the MSVR championship. He was due to race on a Saturday so opted for a quick test session the Wednesday before. The car arrived with us on Wednesday afternoon with an odd misfire and an hour later we had found a hole in one of the pistons. Not wanting him to miss out on any racing we set about stripping the engine down. By Friday lunchtime the car was running again and he made it to the race on Saturday.
Posts Tagged ‘porsche’
More Porsche engines
Tuesday, November 29th, 2011944 Nightmare
Thursday, September 8th, 2011Sometimes what seems like a simple job can just keep snowballing. This 944 came in with a fairly small water leak. It turned out to be the water pump so we advised on new pump and cambelts while we were at it. Porsche had used mostly nuts and studs to hold the pump in place so with a bit of gas to heat up the nuts they were soon undone. Unfortunately they’d decided the bottom 2 fixings should be bolts into the block, and there’s no way to loosen them off. 20 years of aluminium reacting with steel meant that despite our best efforts the inevitable happened and the bolts broke in the block. A jig was made to locate the drill and using special bits the old bolts were carefully drilled out. New threads were tapped and the new pump went on. We had been supplied a later S2 pump having been told the earlier one was no longer available. With a few changes it did fit but left an idler pulley sitting incorrectly on the cam belt. This lead to several days mix and matching S1 and S2 pulleys to get everything sitting right. All finished well with the job done and no problems. Not the easiest water pump to change though!
Tardis exhaust
Thursday, July 28th, 2011we always say that just about anything is possible when it comes to building exhausts. that is assuming you’ve got enough space to fit in big enough boxes. The owner of this Porsche wanted to keep it pretty quiet but also had a limit to his budget, so fancy designs or even large silencer boxes were out of the question. the problem is that with the engine hanging right out of the back there isn’t much room to play with. that’s a problem if the exhaust needs to be quiet as less noise means more exhaust boxes. In the end we twisted the pipework around a couple of standard pattern boxes and slipped in a decibel insert to keep the reverberation down. 
Performance Porsche
Tuesday, June 14th, 2011We’ve helped out with quite a few jobs on this Porsche. It has been taking part in the MSVR trackday trophy this year and was in need of a new exhaust. The owner wanted stainless steel and to keep the noise to around 95 db so it remains eligible for even the quietest trackdays. The system was build from 2.25 inch 304 stainless using 2 boxes. The result- 94 db at 3/4 RPM. Exactly what was ordered.
Lower and louder
Monday, November 29th, 2010We had already had this Boxster in to build a stainless steel sports exhaust. The customer then wanted his brake pads upgrading and some lowering spring fitted. True to form for German cars over engineering was evident everywhere. Half the suspension needed to come out to to get to the springs but the results were worth the effort as the slighgtly lower stance really improves the look
Porsche suffers attack of Ebay
Thursday, June 10th, 2010We’ve done a few of these Porsche back box mods now. I’m told the top performance cars use the same boxes but have a bypass pipe which drop the back boxes internal pressure into the tail pipe, so increasing flow whilst still keeping some level of sound control.
The first one we did we modified the customers existing boxes based on some pictures he had and it all looked like a perfectly plausable modification. The next one was a chap who’d purchased what he believed to be the same thing from Ebay in Germany. When we opened the boxes we found the exhaust had been modifiied in a very differnt way. It looked as though someone had welded a piece of old stool leg straight between the inlet and outlet of the exhaust totally bypassing the box. The quality of both the metal and the welding was pretty dubious.
We informed the customer but he wanted them fitting anyway which we duly did. To be honest the exhaust still sounded good when the car was running and the customer was happy which was the main thing. I think it’s lucky he couldn’t see what his exhausts looked like though and he wasn’t concerned with the performance implications. It just goes to show you need to be careful what you buy off ebay and what lurks beneath your car as a good exhaust is more than just the noise it makes.
Practical Performance car
Thursday, June 10th, 2010
I have long been a reader of Practical Performance Car magazine http://ppcmag.co.uk/ and it was my pleasure to be invited to drive along side one of the editors Kev Leaper as he tested the often dangerous waters of motorsport. Motorsport isn’t dangerous becuase of the accident’s but because it is seriously addictive and may harm your bank account. There’s so much more to going racing than driving a car and the preparation and comittment in cost and time often dampens peoples enthusiasm very quickly.
Kev’s Porsche had seen some track day action but needed a lot to get it up to race spec. Racing is the ultimate test of any machinery and the Porsche showed it’s frailties. Fortunately both it and it’s owner showed their potential too, and Kev has bags of enthusiasm for motorsport.
There’s a long road ahead but it’s a joy to be part of it. Buy your copy of PPC Magazine and follow the tales.
Our Project Cars
Monday, November 9th, 20092007- Fiesta- After winning the LMA Eurosaloon champioship in 2006 the Fiesta race car we ran was sold. This was to make way for future projects and after many great races will be sadly missed.
2007/8-Nova- A slightly sorry looking Vauxhall Nova Diesel came to us with a rotten front end. The strut tops had pushed through the inner wings and the bottom arms pulled free of the chassis. The original mounts were reloacted and then all of the rust cut out. The chassis legs themselves were still solid so the engine mounts were reinforced and remained in their original place. A new front cross member was made from 44mm CDS Tube and the front tie bars located with spherical bearings. The front end was semi space framed for rigidity taking bracings around the original chassis legs and back to the bulkhead. The fuelling and boost were tweeked slightly and a front mounted intercooler added to the space frame. Exhaust was made to flow freely then brakes and dampers were adjusted and the car performed admirbly on it’s subsiquent track days at Oulton Park and Donnington.
2008-Cavalier- A Vauxhall Cavalier came to us for some track day preparation on a budget. The cheapest thing to add to any race car is lightness so it went on a significant diet. After shedding more than a few kilo’s the car sat a little high and the customer couldn’t run to a full suspenion kit so some suitabel lowering springs were fitted and a few tricks of the trade applied here and there. Brakes were given some adjustment to dial in the new balance and pads were uprated. The driver was given a bucket seat and harness and the interior finished off with more lightness and lack of anything else.The exhaust was treated to a touch of simplicity to help performace, cost and to keep it within the noise regulations. The owner added the livery and it rewarded him with plenty of smiles at his first run at Mallory Park.
2008-Porsche- Throughout 2008 we worked extensively with a customer in the development of his Porsche 924. By the time the work was done it was 944 with 968 engine, LSD, big brakes, wide arch kit, huge wheels shod in slick tyres, full cage, bucket seats. The list goes on and on. This was a full spec, full fat, out and out race car kept road legal for it’s regular trips to track days all over the country. Driver training was carried out by AA Silencers owner Mark Hammersley and now this is one car/driver combo to watch out for at circuits near you!
2009-Robin-The search for something a little bit different is an endless one in world of cars. It seems just about everything has been done and it gets harder and harder to raise and eyebrow and make people smile. Enter the Reliant Robin, purely comical to some, practical transport to others but not many see them with much performance potential. Fitting a motorbike engine has been done before, almost always in to the rear to reduce the cars natural desire to fall over. The main problem with this is that with all the weight in the back and only one wheel at the front it may not fall over any more but it wouldn’t go round corners either. To do this you need some weight at the front to generate grip but not too much, you need a very well balanced chassis with an element of pitch and body roll control, it will need good traction through the rear wheels and more power than the standard reliant engine can produce to make the whole package a bit more fun. Enter the AA Silencers Honda V4 robin. The prototype was finished in mid 2009 and all systems show promise. There is now a full development plan afoot involving a full body off build to get everything just where it needs to be. Then and only then will it be unleashed on a drift course for some full on power sliding sideways action!
2007- Fiesta- After winning the LMA Eurosaloon champioship in 2006 the Fiesta race car we ran was sold. This was to make way for future projects and after many great races will be sadly missed.
2007/8-Nova- A slightly sorry looking Vauxhall Nova Diesel came to us with a rotten front end. The strut tops had pushed through the inner wings and the bottom arms pulled free of the chassis. The original mounts were reloacted and then all of the rust cut out. The chassis legs themselves were still solid so the engine mounts were reinforced and remained in their original place. A new front cross member was made from 44mm CDS Tube and the front tie bars located with spherical bearings. The front end was semi space framed for rigidity taking bracings around the original chassis legs and back to the bulkhead. The fuelling and boost were tweeked slightly and a front mounted intercooler added to the space frame. Exhaust was made to flow freely then brakes and dampers were adjusted and the car performed admirbly on it’s subsiquent track days at Oulton Park and Donnington.
2008-Cavalier- A Vauxhall Cavalier came to us for some track day preparation on a budget. The cheapest thing to add to any race car is lightness so it went on a significant diet. After shedding more than a few kilo’s the car sat a little high and the customer couldn’t run to a full suspenion kit so some suitabel lowering springs were fitted and a few tricks of the trade applied here and there. Brakes were given some adjustment to dial in the new balance and pads were uprated. The driver was given a bucket seat and harness and the interior finished off with more lightness and lack of anything else.The exhaust was treated to a touch of simplicity to help performace, cost and to keep it within the noise regulations. The owner added the livery and it rewarded him with plenty of smiles at his first run at Mallory Park.
2008-Porsche- Throughout 2008 we worked extensively with a customer in the development of his Porsche 924. By the time the work was done it was 944 with 968 engine, LSD, big brakes, wide arch kit, huge wheels shod in slick tyres, full cage, bucket seats. The list goes on and on. This was a full spec, full fat, out and out race car kept road legal for it’s regular trips to track days all over the country. Driver training was carried out by AA Silencers owner Mark Hammersley and now this is one car/driver combo to watch out for at circuits near you!
2008-Capri- work began in earnest on AA Silencers next race car. What was originally a 1.6 Ford Capri came in for some major work. This started by completely stripping it to a bare shell. All major areas of rust were tended to, all none structural metal was removed and a roll cage fabricated. Fibre glass wings, bonnet and tailgate were fitted and a new lightweight wiring harness was made. A new cross member was fabricated for the front to relocate suspension and steering components plus engine mounts for the new engine. An inlet manifold was fabricated from scratch to take an as yet untried inlet system combination and an ECU was sourced for the ignition. The wiring loom was made for the ECU and all necessary sensors sourced and brackets and adaptors made to fit them as required. The engine was fitted and rigged with a temporary cooling system. A dash was made and wired in to monitor everything and countless other jobs were completed to make all of these parts resemble a car and stand a chance of working. In late 2008 the key was turned and it fired in to life. All of the prototype systems functioned and the car could be driven. Although there was a huge amount of development to be done the ground work was laid for what would be a tremendous
racing car.
2009-Robin-The search for something a little bit different is an endless one in world of cars. It seems just about everything has been done and it gets harder and harder to raise and eyebrow and make people smile. Enter the Reliant Robin, purely comical to some, practical transport to others but not many see them with much performance potential. Fitting a motorbike engine has been done before, almost always in to the rear to reduce the cars natural desire to fall over. The main problem with this is that with all the weight in the back and only one wheel at the front it may not fall over any more but it wouldn’t go round corners either. To do this you need some weight at the front to generate grip but not too much, you need a very well balanced chassis with an element of pitch and body roll control, it will need good traction through the rear wheels and more power than the standard reliant engine can produce to make the whole package a bit more fun. Enter the AA Silencers Honda V4 robin. The prototype was finished in mid 2009 and all systems show promise. There is now a full development plan afoot involving a full body off build to get everything just where it needs to be. Then and only then will it be unleashed on a drift course for some full on power sliding sideways action!
2009-escort- In early 2009 a MK1 escort shell was pushed in for a little TLC. The owner wanted to carry out as much as possible himself but when it came to taking an angle grinder to his precious shell he was happy to pass that responsibilty on. It was fitted with 4 link boxes and a panhard rod to locate the axle and a pair of rear turrets for some coil over dampers. He then took it away to carry on the long process of rebuilding the car.
2009- Capri- Endless development has continued with the Capri. Wheels tyres, brakes, suspension pick up points, axle and drive ratios, gearbox, differential, anew cooling system, a new lubrication system, more weight loss, aerodynamic aids, a new fuel delivery system, a new exhaust, more testing and more set up work and finally it is ready to race! Fingers crossed for the end result but hopes are high.
Blog/News
June 2009- An early 70’s Porsche 911 came in with starting problems. It had an old KKK mechanical fuel injection system on it so no pointplugging the scanner in on this one! Turned out to have a small solenoid that literally dribbled fuel into the inlet manifold as you crank it over. We reconnected a broken wire and away it went. Stone age design and simplicity itself but it works.
Also in was a 60’s Mustang, proper old school american muscle. Just needed waxoyl and a few niggles sorting out. Nothing major but a lovely car and a perfect example at that.
July 2009 – More Lamborghini’s in for track day silencers. Slightly easier this time as we only had to remove approx 8 db in a removeable end can. These were custom fabricated and tested for their effect on the back pressure of these very sensitive engines. All went well and away went more happy and slightly quieter customers.
4X4 month this month too. Had a few in for the usual high ground clearnce systems or just something a bit freer flowing but one was an all out racer. Sledge hammer simplicity and brute force that must’ve been great fun on the rough. Made a custom exhaust system with 3 breakaway joint so that if it gets grounded or snagged it will only pull off part of the system and not damage the rest. Looked good and sounded great.
August 2009- Have worked with some guys in recent months in developing their MG track cars. One is an MGZS multi purpose family car come track day hack which interestingly is a diesel with enough torque to snap your neck thanks to a thoughtful remap and neatly installed intercooler. The other is an all out stripped bare and nicley set up MGZT V6. This has been built on a budget and has come to us to have some of it’s rough endges smoothed. With both cars looking good we headed for Donnington for some driver training. Wet weather made for an exciting day but great fun was had by all for a very small outlay.
September 2009- the big day has arrived, the first race for our capri. It was a 3 hour treck up to Cadwell Park near Skegness and we set up for the compulsary nights camping, BBQ and beer. 6am soon came around and the team were in full force preparing for Qualifying. The reward for their efforts was 3rd in class and no dramas with the car. It was a tremendous result from a new car at its first showing and all eyes were set on the race. Tension was high as everyone felt it was too good to be true, everyone knew there were always teething troubles and we were all waiting for them. A good start kept the car out of trouble and a super smooth pitstop jumped us up in to 2nd place. The car worked perfectly to the flag and the result was better than anyone could’ve imagined. Smiles all round on the long drive home and a thankfully short check list before the next race.