New numbers! Upgraded turbo and tune.

Joined
13 April 2005
Messages
5,482
Location
Vegas/SoCal
It was inevitable but I eventually got the need to hit the go fast crack pipe yet again. Even though my car was dialed in nicely, it just didn’t have the power I was craving. Back to Factor X for some more work. Out with the smaller turbo, in with the larger GT35/40 turbo. The result: 552 whp, 573 ft-lbs torque. For some reason the torque on this car has always been very high and now it’s gotten crazy. But as you can see from the dyno charts it comes at a cost on the top end, where the HP really levels off (understatement). However, it’s not that noticeable and results in a very streetable configuration. Sorry for the crappy quality of the dyno, scanner is down and I had to take a picture with my phone.

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Also for your viewing pleasure, pictures from the Las Vegas Rally in the Valley!

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Great peak numbers though I'm surprised at such a significant drop off in power on the high end of the rpm range.

What turbo did you have previously?
 
I can't remember. It was definitely a smaller turbo, maybe a GT30R? However, I was told it had a very unique impeller. It spooled up really early (around 3,200 rpm) but you could tell it was just simply maxed out.

Any theories on the rapid dropoff? My guess is that just my piping somewhere is just too small and I'm just getting choked at higher RPMs.
 
So do I need to drive your new setup now?

I'll be in Vegas Saturday night (testing on Sunday). Give me a ring.

Haha, yeah I think you should. It should feel a lot more like what you are used to with the RA1's and bigger power. Not quite like the Cricket-mobile but definitely Seamless-style. :biggrin:
 
Did you get them girls from Steveny????:biggrin:

Chicks in UGG boots are hotter than chicks in flip-flops!!!!!:smile:

Nice numbers.
 
Did you get them girls from Steveny????:biggrin:

Chicks in UGG boots are hotter than chicks in flip-flops!!!!!:smile:

Nice numbers.

Dude, that girl was smokin' in real life. I think she was the hottest girl of the day by far. The pictures don't really do the girls justice. It was like 40 degrees that day and those poor girls were freezing their ass off.
 
Is your car just a tire shredder with that torque? Are you able to put it to the pavement? Very impressive numbers and probably close to the point of limited returns on a street car. My experience has shown that power over 550 has little effect on the 0-100 mph range that most street cars live in. I would love to hear any tips for improving traction in this power range. Congrats again!
 
Nitto 555R drag radials will hook great off the line.I have only had a few runs.At 11lbs. I ran 11.6@120 mph with a 1.72 60ft.At 14lbs. I ran a 11.3@127 mph with only a 1.77 60 ft.

I did this without dropping the tire pressure (32psi) and a minimal burnout.I pretty much just drove up an ran my car.

Im sure if I dropped tire pressure to 22psi and did a more aggressive burnout my 1/4 mile times would improve.
 
Vegas - Why was the motor only spun to ~6400rpm?

Looks to me like there is either a flow issue somewhere, or you're out of turbo - again. The other possibility is that the boost levels were tailored to peak at 4700rpm and then taper down from there, which would explain your relatively HUGE torque numbers and the dropping/leveling HP numbers.

On the traction issue, I've noticed that if the roads and ambient air temps are anywhere below 70degrees F, I literally have no traction below 4th gear at my low-boost levels of 550-600whp. The past few days it's been at or above 70 degrees and the car is hooking quite well! Too bad we are due for snow in two days, I'm going to miss the nice weather!
 
Thanks all for the compliments and replies!! For those of you following the saga of this cars build, it certainly has come a long way from the near stock condition I bought it. Just some additional information I forgot to add. The numbers were done at 16 psi of boost and the car is now close to 150,000 miles on the odom (although the engine was sleeved, built etc about 10,000 miles ago).

wow crazy TQ, how the hell are you getting that much TQ? that just doesnt make sense ?

The running theory on the crazy torque numbers is that my piping is too small and too restrictive (just as Tinker said). Back when I started the build my target number was around 400-450 whp. But as you all know the pull of the "go-fast" crack pipe was too strong to resist and I had to upsize the turbo for more power. We ended up putting in a bigger turbo but we kept the piping the same which was streamlined for the smaller turbo. For example, I had put in the smaller diameter comptech headers instead of the larger diameter DC Sports headers. The smaller piping, streamline for the smaller turbo, is allowing me to really build up the power at low RPMs for the high torque, but it's also really choking off the power on the high end. I think it also partially explains the very unique exhaust sound the car gives. Although physically similar to the other Factor X turbo NSX's it sounds unique to them. If we were to free up some of the restrictions I think I would see much higher HP numbers, so in reality I think without the restrictions the HP would be closer to 650 whp with the same torque 573 ft-lbs, which seems like a more reasonable ratio. However, having said that, even still the torque numbers seem abnormally high. The weird thing is this car ALWAYS had high torque numbers, on several different dynos and in several different stages of the build. Back when I was only pushing 400 whp, I was still at 405 ft-lbs of torque. When I was at 450 whp I had like 440 ft-lbs. Even the some of other Factor X turbo cars that are doing in excess of 650 whp don't seem to have these kind of torque numbers. I have no idea or rationale why the torque is so high. :confused: Anybody have any ideas or explaination? I hope maybe some of the other builders out there have some theories?

Vegas - Why was the motor only spun to ~6400rpm?

I think there were a couple of runs run out all the way to 8K, but it was more of the same: The torque stayed flat and the HP dropped off drastically. The run just had the best numbers of the day.

Is your car just a tire shredder with that torque? Are you able to put it to the pavement? Very impressive numbers and probably close to the point of limited returns on a street car. My experience has shown that power over 550 has little effect on the 0-100 mph range that most street cars live in. I would love to hear any tips for improving traction in this power range. Congrats again!

With my older Bridgestone S03's (275 wide) the tires were pretty much useless. It felt like they were just constantly spinning in the first 3 gears. Since this isn't my daily driver and I'm blessed to live in a city where the average annual rainfall is probably less than an inch, I switched to the wider but smaller diameter all black Volks (10.5" wide, 18" wheels) and Toyo RA1s (305 wide). WOW, what a difference. Once the tires are warmed up they stick like glue and I don't have that much problem putting most of the power to the ground. One little oddity is that in first gear, I can't get up to full boost (only 9 psi) because the turbo is so big and the gearing is so small. However, this is great because it doesn't overwhelm the tires and keeps me from just spinning the tires. No more getting blown away by crappy civics from a dig. :biggrin:

I agree that I think for a street driven car, I'm near the max of performance returns. Also I'm worried about the limits of the tranny and other components, which historically with the other Factor X cars have shown premature failure at power levels slightly higher than mine. I think from a performance standpoint I'm close to done. Next up: WIDEBODY :biggrin:
 
All you guys with traction problems below 4th gear: You need better tires.


R-Compound Toyo RA-1s have worked very well for FX.

Lol yeah, I'm buying and using the Factor X leftovers. If fact I've probably got your warm up set on right now! :biggrin: You flat spotted the fronts! :biggrin::tongue::biggrin::tongue:
 
Lol yeah, I'm buying and using the Factor X leftovers. If fact I've probably got your warm up set on right now! :biggrin: You flat spotted the fronts! :biggrin::tongue::biggrin::tongue:
Mike drove on those tires drag racing and 0-100-0, could have been him too ;) lol


Did you buy Ken's black CE28s?
 
I was refering to daily driver street tires. I have 275 falken 615's that don't hook up.
 
I was refering to daily driver street tires. I have 275 falken 615's that don't hook up.
Dosn't suprise me, 615's aren't the greatest tires out there...

RA-1s are streetable daily driven tires. Factor X ran them on their street car for years. I've had them on a daily driven miata for a year before I sold the car, and I know someone who runs them on his DD Mercedes E63 AMG.

RA-1/R888, NT-01, Michelin Pilot Sport Cups (used on a lot of high HP daily driven Vipers, Porsche Turbos, etc...) are all used on many high HP street car applications.

Don't put a cheap tire on a high-HP exotic-killer...
 
Kinda curious as to why it only showed up to 6,400rpms also, I'm sure he made pulls to 8k. It maybe the same practice as showing a run starting at 5,500rpms? Whatever the case, piping diameters, collectors, routing, and compressor selection played a part in his curve. It was originally designed for 400/400.

Tire wise, we run RA-1s, 888s, and AO48s on the street and they hook up quite nicely. Perhaps take a look at the suspension and how you guys are setting them up? I agree 100% with Billy in that with that kind of HP and the money it takes to get there why skimp on tires.
 
from my past experiences, I've found that smaller piping increases velocity on turbos, BUT, having them too small will do exactly what's shown on your dyno sheet. What size piping do you have on the cold side?
 
from my past experiences, I've found that smaller piping increases velocity on turbos, BUT, having them too small will do exactly what's shown on your dyno sheet. What size piping do you have on the cold side?


I'm not sure, I'll have to ask Factor X. But I think I've got exactly what you are describing.
 
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