My New R Spec Typhoon

[Erko]

Hi mate, actually did first change at 2500klms, Oil and Filter with Castrol GTX3 Mineral Oil 15-40. Will change again at 7500klms and then every 7500klms thereafter.......will go to Nulon synthetic at 15000klms.

Had the car out for a skid pan day last weekend, and had a great time. I have a number of tweaks in mind including light weight race wheels in 18' that are wider and lower offset than the 19's (18x8.5 +30) The sidewalls on the 35 profile 19's are damn soft even with 40+psi and bloody expensive to replace too!. Car rolls too much too......will be going with the Tein "track" coilovers with 672/437 spring rates (stock 450/250) which will move off throttle balance a little rear wards (towards neutral), improve turn in and reduce roll. Will also be playing with alignment and getting some super pro lower control arm bushings fitted.

Once the chassis is sorted then I will look for some more power

Regarding the temperature gauge it hovers from 1/3 - 1/2 but never over so no dramas.

Edited 09/01/08 01:16 AM by Rob E

[bigmat]

Please let us know how you get on, what the car ends up handling like. Will the 18's fit over the front brakes okay?

[R-SPEC]

G'Day! Top stuff on the car.

I'm actually in the process of buying the exact same car from the exact same dealership.

I'm interested in what you paid for it. If it's any cheaper than what they're offering me, I could use yours as ammo.

Feel free to PM me if you deem it necessary.

Thanks!

[Erko]

Please let us know how you get on, what the car ends up handling like. Will the 18's fit over the front brakes okay?

Will do mate. Sure, no problem with 18's you are just very limited to the the type of wheel. Most of the "fashion" wheels....ie. Chinese made chromies and other no name junk wont fit, but no skin off my nose I wouldnt go near that stuff with a barge pole. Will likely go with something like from Enkei, OZ or Rays.

[R-SPEC]

I can vouch for Rays. These wheels on my Accord Euro are Prodrive, which are made by Rays in Japan.

They weigh about 7 kg each and I have never, and most likely will never see another pair on another car (hopefully).

Definately a fantastic investment!

Edited 11/01/08 01:51 PM by theblueyjr

[F6Rdodg'nroos]

Hi mate, actually did first change at 2500klms, Oil and Filter with Castrol GTX3 Mineral Oil 15-40. Will change again at 7500klms and then every 7500klms thereafter.......will go to Nulon synthetic at 15000klms.

Had the car out for a skid pan day last weekend, and had a great time. I have a number of tweaks in mind including light weight race wheels in 18' that are wider and lower offset than the 19's (18x8.5 +30) The sidewalls on the 35 profile 19's are damn soft even with 40+psi and bloody expensive to replace too!. Car rolls too much too......will be going with the Tein "track" coilovers with 672/437 spring rates (stock 450/250) which will move off throttle balance a little rear wards (towards neutral), improve turn in and reduce roll. Will also be playing with alignment and getting some super pro lower control arm bushings fitted.

Once the chassis is sorted then I will look for some more power

Regarding the temperature gauge it hovers from 1/3 - 1/2 but never over so no dramas.

Thanks Rob,

I used Castrol GTX 15/40 when I did the first change at 2200 and Just had my second oil flush and change + filter at the dealer today at 3500km, they use CastrolFMX 15W40. It's really starting to open up now, I've been pushing it hard up some mountain dives and the powers comin on stronger every day.

I'm keen to see how you go with these susp upgrades. I'm pretty happ with mine stock on most of the roads I drive on except some of the rougher back roads.

I just drove from the MNC to Armidale and back, did about 700km of some pretty hard driving on twisty roads with long winding hill climbs and descents, which vary from good surface to pretty dodgy. Most of the good to medium quality roads it handled perfectly, stayed pretty flat and full grip, but got a bit skitty when going hard into corners on slightly rougher roads - almost felt like it was a fraction firm when the surface was bumpy. the R-Specs tracpak susp seems pretty good allround, but I would maybe like it a little more flat and stable at speed on the twisty lumpy roads.

If the set up your going after is more for track, will this still be good on country roads?

I'm driving on these roads 60% of the time and the rest on the highways, would you think a set-up like what your doing would work on my car where I'm driving?

Cheers

Paul

[Erko]

Gday Paul,

Agree the R Spec dampers are pretty good for what they are. I found them pretty good on country roads however in my opinion the stock spring rates (bear in mind these springs are same as xr6) are a little soft and could do with uprating to get some better control, both roll resistance and transition / stability. I favour higher spring rates matched with properly valved dampers (shocks) rather than larger sway bars when tuning suspension. The problem with larger sway bars is that the independence of the suspension (side to side) is lost, sure on smooth roads roll is reduced and you feel you can corner faster however they can be diabolical in the wet, are compromised on rough roads and under very high loads (fast / tight turns) can lead to picking up the inside wheel.

The challenge is not the higher spring rates its in the dampers. Most off good off the shelf dampers (Koni / Bilstein) are designed as OEM replacements, ie. to work with stocl springs and also slightly stiffer springs (say +20% to +30%). When these or OEM dampers are used with uprated springs, or Koni/Bilstein used with springs above the limits they are valved for this will lead to a rough ride, and bounce in the suspension. People will say that the springs are too hard, when in reaility the truth is the springs are too hard for the dampers on the vehicle. Basically, these dampers dont have the damping force to control the oscillations of the uprated spring. Now bear in mind that the Bilsteins can be revalved to suit uprated springs, and the Konis can be adjusted somewhat to work with uprated springs (but they are somewhat limited).

However, The best solution I have found is an a coilover unit that runs higher spring rates + matched dampers, that are valved only to work with those higher spring rates. With the right set up it is possible to get excellent ride and handling even using spring rates that might be near double the OEM rates (perhaps not with a BA-BF chassis but I have experienced this with other cars). I have had bloody good experience with Tein, so I will head down this path again......fingers crossed the result is just as positive.

Tein builds 2 different units for the BA / BF.......a "street" model and a "street / track" model. In your case Paul I reckon the "street" model might be the go, these units are getting rave reviews on the BA-BF for giving better than stock ride + much improved handling. To give you an idea of the different spring rates from stock - street - track in the Teins see below.

OEM Ford XR6/XR6T/Typhoon

Front 8.05kg/mm

Rear 4.47kg/mm

Tein "Street" Coilovers

Front 10kg/mm

Rear 6.5kg/mm

Tein "Street/Track" Coilovers

Front 12kg/mm

Rear 7.8kg/mm

Another advantage of the Teins is the optional EDFC unit (electronic damping force controller) which can be mounted in cabin so you can adjust damping force from inside the car.

I will put up a detailed post once I get these units fitted., and I will also be doing research with regards to alignment settings and will post up on that too.

Sorry for the boring post.

Cheers

Rob

Edited 11/01/08 10:50 PM by Rob E

[F6Rdodg'nroos]

Rob, thanks for all this info - not at all boring, must admit I'm a bit of a novice on the chassis side , so I am learing alot here.

I understand what youve explained about spring rate - and yes I can see what you mean now about the roll resistance limits of the springs. I did notice a bit more roll at medium speeds, less at higher speed into corners - a coil over sounds like a good marriage bw the sping and shock - It's all good food for thought.

Yep, the street option may be best, I'll keep testing it on these roads and see what else I can glean from its current set up and what may suit best - Thanks again for the detail.

Good idea for new post on this topic for the phoon - look forward to it.

I'll also let you know how it goes stock as I mow down some k's in my mountainside testing grounds! :auto:

Cheers

Paul

[Erko]

Gday Lads,

Bit of an update.

The bank account has copped a hammering the last 2 weeks and the Phoon is turning Japanese.......

I have bought some new wheels for the Phoon, Work Emotion CR KAI in 18x8.5 +30 all around. These wheels save something like 10kgs per wheel over the stock phoon wheels. Also bought the TEIN SS Performance coilovers today. Hunting up the Super Pro lower control arm bushings and some tyres for the new wheels.....may go with the Falkin RT615 Semis. The car will get a fairly aggresive alignment and will be corner weighted.

Then I will look for a little power!

Will post photos when available.

[sommi]

I am not a fan of white cars but I am extremely jealous and.......

where did you buy your wife? if I can invest in a woman like that....