Finally getting my CTSC installed... and almost complete

In 2011 I bought a Comptech Autorotor supercharger for my 1998 NSX.
First, I wanted to do the install myself with the help of a friend, but I was too busy to do anything with it and it was more or less spread around my living room for a long time. For me, this project was a bit daunting and in the end I decided to have my mechanic Nic from Honda van der Poel in the old town of Hulst in the south of the Netherlands do the work.
Although Nic told me honestly he had never tackled a supercharger install before, I had every faith in him. He is probably one of the very few people I will trust with my NSX because, first, he has a lot of experience as a mechanic in general but also because he knows the NSX very well.
Also, he is that kind of guy for whom good is not just good enough, he always strives for perfection.

So, last December I brought my NSX in with all the stuff involved plus the Comptech instructions and some NSX-prime stuff added as well.
Whenever he had a question during the install, I would look the answer up or ask some friend (GoldNSX) or Chris from CT Engineering.
Everyone has been very helpful so far and finally, my NSX is getting close to being ready.
A couple of times I visited the shop. Yesterday, I heard the car running for the first time . First time it started, no lights came on and the engine seems to be running fine.

Some pictures:


All the CTSC Parts on the workbench in the shop.
I decided to have the ATI damper installed at the same time, as well have the SOS Oil Pan baffle installed in my oil pan.



The engine with the OEM intake removed. That very same intake manifold is now with another NSX friend who happens to be an expert in 3D CNC machining and who plans to make a reverse-engineering drawing for his own NSX in his shop



First install of the CTSC on the car. My mechanic wasn't very happy with the install and removed the complete set after this picture was taken to do it again.



The CTSC finally on the car as of yesterday. The engine starts and runs perfectly I also had a fuel pressure meter installed.



The interior is still a bit of a mess right now because we are not completely done there.

I have ordered a Zeitronix ZT2 unit to be able to monitor at least the AFR from within the car, just to be sure.

All in all, I am very excited right now. Hope to have the car ready in about two weeks and can hardly wait to see how it will feel when driving

Nice, I am in the same boat, my CTSC (old school twin screw type) is just laying around as I am to busy (lazy) to start tackling the install and have been contemplating the idea of just letting a shop handle the job.

Nice to see it installed, Maarten, you'll like it.

Did you install the voltage booster (red unit)? I've taken it out and installed a Walbro but will chang for a Toyota Supra pump this year. No over-voltage needed for the fuel-pump -> safer.

Thanks for the compliment.
Just two-three weeks more I think and then I can fell this CTSC think in my own car

For now, the install is done as supplied by Comptech, so with the voltage booster. Perhaps I will change to the Walbro or another pump in the future, but I will do this as needed.

I installed my own CTSC a couple of years ago without any issues.
It's a good idea to get an independent A/F meter just to make sure everything runs fine.
I believe however that you cannot replace the OEM fuel pump with it's voltage booster for just another pump without installing a programmable engine management system:frown:
As far as I remember the voltage increases to inject more fuel as the revs go up.
This was the easiest way to make do without a programmable engine management system:smile:

Today, I had an appointment with Nic, my mechanic, to bring him the Zeitronix ZT2 wideband controller that I want to have installed to monitor the AFR together as well as a Smartshift that I have had for a long time but never installed.

He invited me to go for a drive in the NSX with the Autorotor installed.

I can only say: WOW !!!
The NSX feels absolutely fantastic!! The Autorotor rattles a bit at idel (is that normal??) but that disappears as soon as you rev the car up a bit.
It really jumps forward as soon as you floor the pedal.
I did not take the car above 7000 rpm yet, even though the first tests earlier this week displayed no problems whatsoever.

Now I am back at home and still cannot get the grin of my face
I still want some things done, the Zeitronix is one, the SOS oil pan baffle is another, the Smartshift is the last. Hopefully, that will be all done by the end of this week so I can pick up the car again.
Install is SUPER-clean. Nic manufactured his own nuts to mount the SOS brace and some other parts, the fuel pressure controller is nicely out of sight as are all the electric lines etc. It looks OEM to someone who doesn't know the NSX.

All in All, so far, I am REALLY HAPPY :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin:

goldNSX said:

Nice to see it installed, Maarten, you'll like it.

Did you install the voltage booster (red unit)? I've taken it out and installed a Walbro but will chang for a Toyota Supra pump this year. No over-voltage needed for the fuel-pump -> safer.

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Can you clarify, is the voltage booster not used with the Walbro or the Supra pump?

CB72 said:

I believe however that you cannot replace the OEM fuel pump with it's voltage booster for just another pump without installing a programmable engine management system:frown:

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You CAN install a fuel pump with higher fuel delivery and throw the voltage doubler out of the car. The FPR regulates the higher fuel demands over it's set pressure under boost. So there's no separate EMS needed for a LOW BOOST setup. Going HIGH boost it is said to be needed.

I installed a high flow fuel pump on low boost WITH the Boost-A-Pump. Requires a minor retune of the RRFPR.

RYU said:

I installed a high flow fuel pump on low boost WITH the Boost-A-Pump. Requires a minor retune of the RRFPR.

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This is overkill. Your return fuel hose will burst due to the high amount of fuel being transferred to the tank even under boost j/k. A Walbro 255 or higher will deliver enough fuel for a LOW boost CTSC if the electric wires are thicker (SoS kit). Just watch the AFR. Throwing out the voltage boost reduces complexity and failure rate of the whole system, esp. under long-time boost drives like the German Autobahn which is near to MvM.

goldNSX said:

This is overkill. Your return fuel hose will burst due to the high amount of fuel being transferred to the tank even under boost j/k. A Walbro 255 or higher will deliver enough fuel for a LOW boost CTSC if the electric wires are thicker (SoS kit). Just watch the AFR. Throwing out the voltage boost reduces complexity and failure rate of the whole system, esp. under long-time boost drives like the German Autobahn which is near to MvM.

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Yes, i'm well aware my world is about to end. I'm so stupid! What was I thinking...

RYU said:

Yes, i'm well aware my world is about to end. I'm so stupid! What was I thinking...

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I didn't say that.

goldNSX said:

I didn't say that.

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I'm just messing around Goldie. I've outgrown all that Comptech stuff with the track hours i've been seeing lately. Over-driving any fuel pump long term is not a great idea.

You guys are now getting me worried after all

So far the NSX is running fine with no issues at all. Since I do plan to drive (pretty) fast in the future, should I change the fuel pump after all?
Does the 1998 NSX have a stronger fuel pump with a higher flow rate than the original '91 NSX? AFAIK, the injectors already have a (slightly) higher capacity after all.

MvM said:

You guys are now getting me worried after all

So far the NSX is running fine with no issues at all. Since I do plan to drive (pretty) fast in the future, should I change the fuel pump after all?
Does the 1998 NSX have a stronger fuel pump with a higher flow rate than the original '91 NSX? AFAIK, the injectors already have a (slightly) higher capacity after all.

Click to expand...

Overdriving any fuel-pump is not a good thing to have on extended German Autobahn runs where you are permantly on boost above 130 mph. Your OEM fuel pump should be exactly the same as 91-96 and worst of it is 15 years old. That's the age they show their weakness. I can only repeat myself to first measure AFR before you step on it even on short periods.
It has been discussed here for years to install a Walbro 255 (noisy in my case) or a Toyota Supra Denso fuel pump (also, in my case, it's quiet, Japan quality but expensive). With these pumps you throw the voltage doubler out as they give you plenty of fuel with an upgraded power supply.

Do your homework first, even if it's running with absolutely no issue because all engines ran perfectly fine until they 'unexpectedly' failed. The expected bill would wash the grin off the face by the crocodile tears who follow. But that's just my approach of total quality control.

Best

Installation was done by Nic Weemaes from Honda vd Poel in Hulst, Netherlands. He might very well be the best NSX mechanic in our country at this moment and he is one of the most enthousiastic and passionate people who I have ever met in the car branche. Very skilled and very much a perfectionist.
The install of the CTSC has been done superclean. Many of the bolts used were replace by one he made himself because Nic thought the original ones to be 'too plain'. All lines have been wrapped in braided sheaths and if you look at the engine bay everything looks completely OEM.



Apart from the CTSC, I also had installed the SOS Oil pan baffle, the ATI damper, a Zeitronix ZT2 wideband controller to monitor AFR (for starters) and the Smartshift I have had around but never installed before.

First impressions:
Car runs like OEM But especially in 2dn and 3rd gear, acceleration feels fantastic.
Yet, at the same time, at normal, steady speeds the feeling is nothing out of the ordinary. The sound of the SC is very muted at normal speeds, only when start pushing the car there is that whine of the supercharger.
The wideband controller, after a few adjustments, shows a perfect AFR at normal spead but drops down to 11.5-12.0 at WOT immediately.
After not having driven the car for almost three months, it feels terrific to be in the NSX again. And yet, in a kind of scary way, the ease with which you get to triple-digit speeds is amazing. The car feels absolutely stable and it all seems almost too easy.

So far, I am a very happy man. And even if it started snowing a little again, I am going out for a drive again to see if I can log some more AFR-data to my laptop.

Sounds like i am going to need a pasenger ride Maarten . Good to see you like it!

Nice Maarten. Glad to hear it all went well

I love to hear happy endings. Sounds like you're enjoying the car.

Did anyone else notice the new CT triangle bars are different? (read: better!)

Yes, I noticed. It is an improved design. Just noticed that after Nate told me they are redone.

TURBO2GO said:

Yes, I noticed. It is an improved design. Just noticed that after Nate told me they are redone.

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They are crazy expensive though.

NetViper said:

They are crazy expensive though.

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Not through my group buy....

TURBO2GO said:

Not through my group buy....

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Still waiting on that price ....

Just a quick update.

After picking up my NSX with newly installed CTSC I run into the problem that my engine would suddenly shut up.
The problem was first traced back to the fuel-pump being shut down by the fuel-pump relay, which was then traced back to an acting up main relay.
So, we ordered a new relay, installed it and the problem was gone
Picked up the car yesterday, drove around for another 150 miles all the while trying to KEEP THAT RIDICULOUS SMILE OF MY FACE :biggrin: :biggrin: to not to annoy the other traffic too much

Car is running fine and the Zeitronix is showing no strange AFR anomalies.
Am planning to get an aftermarket fuel pump anyway, but for the time the current setup is ok.

I have always enjoyed driving the NSX but the CTSC simply adds another dimension. Stepping on the gas out of a corner, simply overtaking another car in 2nd or 3rd gear, it all seems so ridiculously EASY now...
And the slightly scary thing of it is the apparent ease with which this is all happening. Because the acceleration is so linear, you have (especially as a driver) no real feel of it.

Simply put, I LOVE IT

Hi Maarten,

we have spoken a little before at one of the Nurburgring meets. The time when you were with your girlfriend at the resturaunt, 2010 maybe? I think it was the year you or someone had a clutch slave cylinder issue on the way there? I have a Midnight Purple UK targa...I think at the time RSEVO6 still had the supercharger you later bought from him? I may be wrong?

Anyway,my question is this....with our Euro unleaded being 95RON (in the UK as minimum and upto about 98 or 99 ) are you still running the standard comptech fueling unit? and is it working ok? I know US fuel is lower octane rated so our rating should safeguard against pinking or detontation but as I think the unit effectively works to over fuel, I am a little concerned with borewash because extra fuel is just dumped into the motor. I'm no expert on this....are you noticing any sooty black deposits on your bumper etc or any darker than normal exhaust gasses?? How is the fuel consumption now?

Thanks,

Gary

MvM said:

Just a quick update.

After picking up my NSX with newly installed CTSC I run into the problem that my engine would suddenly shut up.
The problem was first traced back to the fuel-pump being shut down by the fuel-pump relay, which was then traced back to an acting up main relay.
So, we ordered a new relay, installed it and the problem was gone
Picked up the car yesterday, drove around for another 150 miles all the while trying to KEEP THAT RIDICULOUS SMILE OF MY FACE :biggrin: :biggrin: to not to annoy the other traffic too much

Car is running fine and the Zeitronix is showing no strange AFR anomalies.
Am planning to get an aftermarket fuel pump anyway, but for the time the current setup is ok.

I have always enjoyed driving the NSX but the CTSC simply adds another dimension. Stepping on the gas out of a corner, simply overtaking another car in 2nd or 3rd gear, it all seems so ridiculously EASY now...
And the slightly scary thing of it is the apparent ease with which this is all happening. Because the acceleration is so linear, you have (especially as a driver) no real feel of it.

Simply put, I LOVE IT

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