mharvey Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 (edited) Part 23 - POWER...not BHP...the other kind Following the last round of updates, I have a few more. In all honesty, these aren't quite up to date still but I'm getting there. Upon returning from the ring a few things changed including moving house so the supra went on the backburner (again) for a little while. This left me with a lot of time to compile lists of stuff I wanted to fix and following the problems at the ring, I decided that sorting some wiring was my upmost priority and whilst I was at it I may as well upgrade a few things at the same time. I purchased a lightweight battery, opting for Odyssey PC925. The main reason for this was wanting to move it to the boot (for future plans which will become apparent soon) which meant it had to be drycell. I purchased a lovely little billet aluminium cage, imported it from the states. It's also extremely light and looks pretty. I've left it as it is for now but contemplating powder-coating it? They go together quite nicely Obviously installing the battery in the boot meant a significant amount of re-wiring. I purchased suitable cable to take power back to the front of the car, earth it in the boot, supply the fuel pump via a 12v mod etc I wanted to do this as neatly as possible, there were a few shortcuts made on the build previously and I'm conscious to not make the same mistakes and try and up the quality as best as I can. I therefore purchased the correct crimp tools etc for all the wiring and made sure I either braided or used heatshrink where needed. I'm sure there's much better out there but considering I've always avoided electrics, I'm fairly happy with the outcome. Positive cable all crimped up etc Ground for the boot all crimped up, braided and heatshrink, happy with this one On this note I also picked up a C-Tek charger so that I could charge the battery if needed, being drycell this seemed the best option. I'll probably leave it plugged in when I soon get a garage again. Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 (edited) Part 24 - Do it again but better As per my last post, I'm not a fan of electrics and not very good with them but I've tied my best to tidy a few bits up and considering these were done by a 'tuner' who made many claims of greatness...I don't think I did too bad at all. Open to any advice if there's anything people look at and think 'that's not right' or 'that could be better'. The first thing I did was buy another Walbro 450lph pump. There was nothing wrong with the old one but as mentioned previously there were some bodges to the wiring that caused significant problems whilst at the ring. I decided I wanted to do away with soldered connections or anything of the sort and instead located the correct plug for inside the hanger and then crimped this directly on to the pigtail provided with pump. Next up was the supply to the pump, this previously ran from the battery at the front of the car and with it now in the rear I had to change things anyway. Despite that, having a bladed fuse plugged directly in to two spade connectors and taped so it didn't fall out...well that didn't cut it. Especially considering I spent a considerable amount of money for a '12v mod' prior to mapping. I picked up a fuse holder that I could grimp on to a new wire and tried to do it properly. Another part I think I made significantly better was the relay for this 12v mod. There wasn't anything particularly 'wrong' with this, it worked. But again, spade terminals just loosely pushed on to the relay was just asking for trouble in my opinion. With much searching I found a sealed relay where I could crimp each connection. With that all done I also added an inline fuse after my (boot based) battery, prior to the cable running up front, and then I decided to mount it all on a sheet of Carbon Fibre with some rivnuts. Yep...it's under the boot floor. Nope...it won't be seen...So what, I just wanted to haha. To compliment my new wiring and new pump I managed to get hold of a lovely set of braided lines (AN8 feed and AN6 return) to futureproof for future plans. Hodge supplied these. The lines necessitated a new fuel pump cover as they sit significantly higher. I got a lovely piece from TB developments. I've fitted it as-is for now, but will probably powdercoat this eventually too. I decided to fit some bonnet lifters with brackets bought from a group-buy on here. Struts were from SGS I think. These look the part but also means I don't have to carry my bonnet stay in the boot as it didn't fit with my APR Carbon fibre panel anyway. With these upgrades done, and a lot more planned which would involve the car coming off the road, it would be rude not to take her out. So a trip to Caffeine&Machine took place. (This was some time ago now and obviously pre-lockdown haha) Oh and I did treat her to a new inlet although you'll see from the next round of updates that I chose not to use it and went a different route...pretty to look at though haha Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommyd16 Posted May 10, 2020 Share Posted May 10, 2020 Nice write up. Funny how only last month they put this car up on Instagram claiming they built it and it made 590bhp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamzahkhan Posted May 10, 2020 Share Posted May 10, 2020 Thoroughly enjoyable read, please keep more coming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 Nice write up. Funny how only last month they put this car up on Instagram claiming they built it and it made 590bhp Cheers mate. I blocked them so haven't seen that. Funny that they mention the same 'Nurburgring trip' I have (for different reason). Also the car made circa 450bhp as I remember....take from that what you will. 590bhp on that old spec would have been quite something haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 (edited) Thoroughly enjoyable read, please keep more coming. Thanks mate, I'll try and bring it right up to date over the next week or two. Thanks for taking the time to read. Edited June 17, 2020 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 (edited) Part 25 - Time to level up Most of the last posts are well over a year old now and in the past year or so I have worked my ass off paying off debts, working up to 90hrs a week and now that I'm on top of things, well I decided it's time to treat myself. This of course, meant treating the Supra. I've made a few decisions of late which ultimately should take my car to another level and really move this NA-T thing on. So with a forged engine, fresh R154 gearbox and a few other supporting mods it was time for some upgrades. The first involved contacting Lee@SRD Tuning. I want stuff done properly now and it seems he's the guy to go to. Having spoken about my goals (thanks Lee), i was decided that my AEM v2 was no longer suitable and Lee recommeneded I go for a Link G4+ instead. He's supplied the ecu along with a few other bits linke a cover, map sensors etc. Before it goes to him though I decided to change some of the spec to try and get a bit more out of it...I got SERIOUSLY carried away It started with some TT cam covers They were, as you can see, dog rough. I sent them to a guy called MRX customs who I have to say, was fantastic. I got loads of photo's as they progressed but ultimately he blasted them, fitted AN10 fittings and then tapped them for the baffles to be bolted in. Oh and powder coated them to look awesome Obviously grabbed new gaskets and a few bits and bobs too No I hear you crying out, but Matt, you can't possibly fit those under your inlet manifold. So I purchased a new one, it was one of the SSI type pieces. It wasn't a bad piece of kit and seemed fairly well made but there were a few stories about problematic throttle bodies and poor fitment to the head so I decided to sell it on and go a different route. This is where it all went wrong/right. I contacted a guy called Dan at FSM (first state motorsport) and...well, the pictures will tell the rest. My haul from Dan consisted of this lot There was obviously the new inlet manifold which came with an RMR (Ross Machine Racing) throttle body and a Radium Engineering fuel rail Then I took advantage of his full dizzy delete kit which means I can run 6 x 'smart' coils with no need for ignitors or the sort Obviously this also means that the whole distributor goes, it's not even used as a pcikup. Instead, the kit comes with these fancy PHR cam gears and a hall sensor which picks it up instead. I could hardly fit that lot and run my old XS Power T61 turbo as well as it had served me so I went for a Borg Warner S366 SXE. This has the newer billet wheel etc and in T4 0.91 version it should suit my future plans well The stock NA power steering resevoir won't fit so Dan also supplied a polished resevoir and the relevant pipe and fitting Finally I grabbed an FPR, an Aeromotive one which again should suit future plans We're still not quite up to date but we're almost there, now it's fitting time....wish me luck Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidewaysdan Posted May 10, 2020 Share Posted May 10, 2020 Fantastic read.. looking very nice with some great parts. What you doing with all you old parts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Style Posted May 11, 2020 Share Posted May 11, 2020 Epic update That FS Motorsport package looks tasty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 15, 2020 Author Share Posted May 15, 2020 Fantastic read.. looking very nice with some great parts. What you doing with all you old parts Thanks mate Majority of it is sold I'm afraid mate. After anything specific? Epic update That FS Motorsport package looks tasty! Appreciate the kind words. Couple updates at once but I'm trying to catch up. Had a lot of issues to fix too Oh it's nice stuff, very pleased with the package...may have some more bits for the next update soon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 19, 2020 Author Share Posted May 19, 2020 (edited) Not an update - Just some reflection So the other day I received an email from a fellow forum member who helped me hugely in my search for a suitable car way back in 2014. He forwarded on an email from the seller which contained a load of photo's that I haven't seen since. It was quite motivating to see to see how far it had come since then. It was also somewhat depressing to think that this was before sinking a huge amount of money in to the car and...it just worked haha This was the car when I turned up. Part of the deal struck meant that the wheels you see on it here were removed and the ones featured on pg1 were fitted (I paid less for the car and I much preferred the other option) With this little trip down memory lane I was keen to see what more I could uncover. I looked through old paperwork yesterday and managed to locate the first UK owner after import. I knew he was from Northern Ireland and took a chance and looked on old facebook. I found a few people with matching names but when one had pictures of a Mitsubishi Evo based race car it was a safe bet this was the guy. (Turns out he races them competitively, cool guy. Anyway, I dropped him a message and to my surprise he made contact almost immediately We had a lengthy phone chat and he was really keen to share his tale of ownership and loved hearing about its current state. I'm properly chuffed as it's a period of the car's life I knew nothing about and being only 6 years old when he imported it, found it rather fascinating. Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 20, 2020 Author Share Posted May 20, 2020 (edited) Part 26 - Take it back apart again The next thing is to take it all apart again, below is the last photo of it all working in its current state. Hopefully not only will it work considerably better but it should look a bit better too. Can't wait to get rid of this, the distributor is just as cumbersome as it looks and is definitely a limiting factor. So with new coils going in I may as well drop some new plugs in for the sake of a few quid. I went with BKR8EIX's as the iridium ones seemed to serve me well previously. With the old inlet removed I was able to fit the new Denso coils along with their mounting plate Following this I test fitted the inlet to see what needed moving, changing etc. It was apparent that at the least the PS res needed moving as expected and I'd need to do a lot of work on the wiring loom. (Old turbo etc still fitted) The GE inlet had a coolant feed which would be surplus to requirements with the new inlet and throttle. This meant I could delete this from the water neck on the inlet side and the heater tube on the exhaust side. I stupidly considered (albeit briefly) sticking a bolt in the end with some sealant haha. Luckily I saw sense and got them both welded up, not the prettiest job but functional and will be well hidden I'm trying to make sure that I improve anything that comes up during this strip down. As a result, when taking the IACV and TPS off of my original inlet I noticed that the screw heads were somewhat rounded. I replaced these with some much better bolts acquired from pro-bolt. They look nicer and I shouldn't have to worry about rounding them Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh42 Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 Do you have a link to the parts (and crimp tools) used for the relay and wiring? Looks a nice tidy install. Good job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supra_aero Posted May 23, 2020 Share Posted May 23, 2020 I'm very impressed.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shane Posted May 24, 2020 Share Posted May 24, 2020 Really good write up and well done for sticking with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 24, 2020 Author Share Posted May 24, 2020 Do you have a link to the parts (and crimp tools) used for the relay and wiring? Looks a nice tidy install. Good job! I'm afraid I can't find the crimps or the relay in my mail. They were from other sellers. I struggled finding a relay that wasn't already crimped and with pigtails. The rest of the wiring, circuit breakers etc came from http://www.12voltplanet.co.uk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted May 24, 2020 Author Share Posted May 24, 2020 I'm very impressed.. Thanks mate, I'm making it up as I go along but it's getting there Really good write up and well done for sticking with it. Thanks Shane, god knows its tested my patience and I've gone to throw the towel in so so many times. I think there are some fails that aren't even recorded like the new R154 shitting itself and being replaced again but it seems to be on the right track now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted June 11, 2020 Author Share Posted June 11, 2020 (edited) Part 27 - Does it all fit it So with the big purchase of parts it was then time to start fitting them...or at least trying to... The first thing was to fit the inlet...this meant altering the wiring harness so it could run underneath. I took very few pictures of this stage because it SERIOUSLY wound me up and stressed me out haha. I stripped it all down, tried to find any movement room I could and then redressed it. I used proper loom tape to wrap the loom and then on top of that fitted some flexible plastic conduit. It serves a purpose but in all honesty I'm keen to strip it out fo the car at a later date and look at playing with it some more. There are a few places where it's tighter than I'd like etc. (Don’t worry, the cable ties are only temporary to hold the loom whilst I wrapped it) Following this I was able to fit the inlet manifold. I bolted it to the lower runners first and had the missus tighten the bolts as my arm wouldn't fit in the inlet. I then bolted up the new Radium fuel rail. The next step was to fit the new power steering reservoir. Sadly it didn't fit, it would do with most intakes but unfortunately the inlet I have pushed it over so much that the bolt holes do not line up. Need another option. New turbo time It's noticeably bigger and bigger is definitely better in this case. The old XS turbo served me well but you can instantly see the quality difference. Very happy with this! Looks absolutely spot on fitted, unfortunately however all was not well... The new turbo, specifically the compressor housing, is rather large and fouls on the XS manifold It means I'm going to have to think of another solution for this too, not really what I need. There's been a lot of recent expense but I need to do it all right this time. Mocked it all up anyway with a new intake pipe I cut to size, I think it looks awesome compared to the original GE inlet set up. Very happy with it visually. Just a few bits to do now to get it all to work. Time for some more shopping to work out the issues above I think...by the time I'm writing this I may well have been on a bit of a spree Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted June 15, 2020 Author Share Posted June 15, 2020 (edited) Part 28 - Will it ever end Not sure there are many people that read this on the forum anymore, however it serves to remind me that progress is being made...of sorts I thought all of the 'big purchases' were done with but here we are again. I considered 'making it work' after the last update but, as I've mentioned a few times now, I'm keen to get it done right and where possible future-proof. I fitted some new water/radiator hoses from whifbitz, there was nothing wrong with my old ones other than them being bright bloody red which I hated. I have intended to change them out several times but something else always took priority. In addition I made a lovely little purchase from FSM (First State Motorsport) who sorted me out with a few PHR branded goodies. This included new bolts for my fancy cams which I'll photograph when all installed. A nice little billet mount With my new boost solenoid fitted I considered many options regarding the PS issue in the last update; Trying to weld on different brackets to re-position it. Trying to mount it elsewhere. Even hitting it with a hammer to create some clearance haha. In the end though I knew I had to do it once properly which meant ordering the PHR one. It is significantly slimmer, comes with some lovely fittings and in the anodised black looks very smart I think. So are we finally done with the big updates? The big expenditure? I WISH! I went through the same thought process with the exhaust manifold...get it adapted in some way or even hit that with a hammer (notice a theme here haha) The thing with the manifold is that it's still the XS Power one and has therefore been a weak point for a long time. That being said it has been faultless for me but I reckon it was at its limit. I did a lot of my own research on manifolds considering various brands, various budgets and various specifications (wastegates etc) In the end I was fairly certain I wanted a Walton Motorsport one but to be sure I spoke to SRD, without hesitation Lee told me that he supplied Walton's himself. That settled it and I ordered one through Lee. I picked it up as Walton are relatively local to me (circa 20mins away) and could not wait to get it home and unwrap it. It was like Christmas. The thing is a work of art, it almost seems a shame to fit it. The whole thing is beautiful Final update for now is a much smaller one but nice nonetheless. I couldn't fit the manifold with the same crusty old bolts, it just wouldn't do it justice. I managed to get hold of some lovely Titanium nuts and bolts. They look the part, should continue to look the part and are also unbelievably light. It almost feels wrong for them to be so light. Should look much nicer than the old rusty ones and as you can see, they're considerably shorter which should help with the install itself Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chasz86 Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 I read the full thread just yesterday, so still getting hits. I looked at the Walton to absolutely gorgeous. Budget just couldn't stretch to it this year, I felt get Na-t first then uprate... Or rebuild the block I pull out. Walton have anti-lag setups to i wondered whether this could be added at a later stage if one wanted. Glad your ever closer to the dream, its been an arduous journey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike2JZ Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 Good progress, nice choice on manifold. Been using walton on various builds, including my own, very nice quality for the money and no major issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted June 16, 2020 Author Share Posted June 16, 2020 (edited) I read the full thread just yesterday, so still getting hits. I looked at the Walton to absolutely gorgeous. Budget just couldn't stretch to it this year, I felt get Na-t first then uprate... Or rebuild the block I pull out. Walton have anti-lag setups to i wondered whether this could be added at a later stage if one wanted. Glad your ever closer to the dream, its been an arduous journey. /QUOTE] Thanks mate. It has been a long journey. Some light at the end of the tunnel though. I notice you’re embarking on your own NA-T conversion. Good luck and if I can be of any help just drop me a pm. Good progress, nice choice on manifold. Been using walton on various builds, including my own, very nice quality for the money and no major issues. Cheers mate. It looks lovely, really happy with it. Edited June 17, 2020 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antony lacey Posted June 16, 2020 Share Posted June 16, 2020 Brilliant read!! Keep up the good work and keep the updates coming Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted June 17, 2020 Author Share Posted June 17, 2020 (edited) Part 29 - Running out of titles and wondering why I bothered with them to start with Getting the few bits from the last update fitted has actually been really nice Seeing it all come together has helped me with motivation and has made me feel a little better about all the overtime I've done just disappearing I managed to get the manifold fitted up with some brand new OEM Toyota gaskets. I obviously fitted the new titanium hardware. I thought the old ones would be a nightmare to get out judging by their rusted appearance but with a bit of WD40 left in overnight they were a breeze. New stuff in and all torqued up. I also grabbed some Titanium hardware for the turbo side of the manifold too, seemed a shame to do one and not the other. Got the BW S366sxe all bolted up, haven't torqued it all yet as downpipe and IC pipework still need fabricating. I then mounted the vacuum distribution block under my inlet. It does the job and is completely hidden under the inlet. Tidies things up nicely. You can see some of the wiring harness here, looks relatively tidy I think and again, it's hidden under the inlet. I have purchased a load of new sensors to compliment my new ecu and to safeguard. I didn't bother with too much when this build was 'budget' but now that things have got significantly out hand it seems wise to try and protect my investment. One of these sensors was a quality oil pressure sensor. I was advised that mounting these directly to the engine can cause some inaccuracies and it's best practice to remote mount it. I found a lovely little kit from Haltech that was circa £20 so I decided it couldn't hurt. It really does look like an engine now I also treated myself (theme here) to a new fan shroud. My old one was in pieces and had poor attempts at plastic welding. I'll have to be careful with this one, it wasn't cheap but it's worth it. The final update for now ties in with the desire to fit a few more sensors. I want the ECU to safeguard and I want to be able to look at them if I really have to. That being said I didn't like the two gauges I had previously. I thought they were a bit chavvy. As a result I purchased a BTI gauge. I think it's much more subtle than the bright coloured gauges I used before and as it displays just about anything I can use just one gauge, refitting the fan for further 'oem style'. I had to trim the panel to fit as I went for the larger of the two gauges. I was a bit apprehensive at this idea until I remembered I'd already trimmed the stereo area for my tablet install. I'm really, really chuffed with this. Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mharvey Posted July 8, 2020 Author Share Posted July 8, 2020 (edited) Part 30 - The road to SRD and hopefully an end in sight So as I've mentioned previously, I've had a lot of discussions with Lee at SRD and have planned to take the car to him for some time. Unfortunately things dragged on but we're finally there. I had a few bits powder coated prior to it making the trip and got them returned just in time. It wasn't essential that I got them done before going but I found a new, local powder coater and wanted to try him out anyway. I have to say I'm very happy with the quality of the finish. I got back an expansion tank that I had altered the bracket on, it sticks out further than others but means it clears the new LED bulbs nicely. You can also just about see the radiator brackets which were done at the same time. I got the new intake pipe I made up, it's a 4in intake if I remember correctly and I cut it to size prior to powder coating. The K&N filter was cleaned with their official oil and re-dyed. I have a master cylinder brace, some of the original powder coating had chipped and caused some surface rust, in addition it was blue and didn't fit with the bay at all. I therefore had this done and whilst I was there also had them do the shock rings With this all in place I did also order a few sensors such as IAT from LINK. I also ordered a new throttle cable from Toyota. I went with the GT4 offering which is significantly longer than the stock Supra one as can be seen. Finally it was time to get her transported. I wanted to go with the car so that I could have a face to face with Lee, make sure we both understood what had been done/needed doing and also just put a face to the name. I therefore decided to hire a transporter. Queue a serious panic and lack of sleep the night before as I dreaded being unable to get the car on. Luckily with the help of a friend and a combination of utilising sloped driveways and parking the cab on curbs to lessen the ramp angles, I managed to get the car on and what a relief it was. I then made my way on the circa 2hr trip to Lee/SRD and of course stopped for lunch and a quick snap on the way down. So that's it. The car is with Lee. It's been there for a little over a week at the time of writing. Lee has made a lot of progress and...despite finding a few extra issues, has taken it all in his stride. There have been plenty of updates and I'll surely get round to posting those very soon. Edited June 2, 2021 by mharvey (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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