CrisisWolf Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Well after what was predicted to be a nice dry Friday this is what we got. I went for a 60 mile drive along A-Roads from Bristol upto BTEC Racing , Chipping Norton a few weeks later than most of the guys here who attended the Car Health Check Day. Got there in the dry, had the geometry all checked and it all seems near enough balanced without any adjustment. Left Front: 166.5kg Left Rear: 178.5kg Right Front: 159kg Right Rear: 180kg Overall Weight (1/2 tank of fuel) 684 kg. https://www.dropbox.com/s/w6f9dzyos9n41zu/photo%201.JPG https://www.dropbox.com/s/iuxswlkvrkg9bwz/photo%202.JPG https://www.dropbox.com/s/0rmwpc968uxnjr1/photo%203.JPG As for the dyno a pleasant and standard as expected 126 BHP (@ Fly) and 98 BHP (@Wheels) with 123 lb/ft, video here: Excuse the wet weather gear being on - it was pouring down and to aid getting in and out just peeled the top back. Now with these checks ticked off, and told the brake pads look pretty much like new I'm 'ready' for the track day health check. First time I've really driven the Westfield that distance bar the day I picked it up about 8 weeks ago and that was wet, first time, motorway, so a bit on edge, driven a few 10-30 mile round trips and around Bristol. Even in the rain, had a great time - even had a random guy on a bus stop put his thumb up to me on the way through a random village. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yanto Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Fancy somebody having the same name as the village he lived in! Good to see all ok! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.RAD Posted April 26, 2014 Share Posted April 26, 2014 Good news all round :t-up: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjdad76 Posted April 28, 2014 Share Posted April 28, 2014 Glad all ok - see you @ Abingdon in a couple of weeks. I had the checks done there with the Cotswold group a few weeks back - blew a coolant hose on the rolling road!! managed to fix that, and had the wheels balanced to get rid of the awful steering wheel shake at speed. Hopefully getting these bits done has set me up now for the track day - better to have a hose blow on a rolling road than on a circuit I guess!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted April 28, 2014 Author Share Posted April 28, 2014 I missed the group meet there in early April - I was in New York that weekend sadly Sounds like you are all fixed up as well. The only odd thing that was noted that the temperature didn't really go up much, stayed at a pretty static 70 degrees, however on the way home I got stuck in traffic and then it went up to 80-85. Not an issue tho. I already have an override switch to put the fan on if it gets too hot. Can't wait for Abingdon. See you there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 Slight note of confusion. Found out the Ford MVH Range manual which I got in the documentation with the car, it says 1.8 115PS (113BHP) with Fuel Injecting and Cat Exhaust, seeing as I got 126 have I either got a healthy/lucky engine or has something been done to it? @ Abingdon I realised I am in need of some major training improvement but it also got the upgraditus started. I'm going to check the air filter element to check its condition and if its an aftermarket one. Other than that looks pretty much as expected. Any quick/cheap 'ish' improvements - all I keep seeing are TBs are £1k+ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M444TTB Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Are you sure the engine isn't 130PS spec? The only way to tell is the cams I think. Mine made 143bhp fly / 109bhp wheel at BTec after we changed the cams. Before that it was 132bhp at the flywheel I think. I'd assume it has the same exhaust but mine has Weber 40DCOEs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustCallMeMac Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 If it hasn't been done already, then a proper geo / suspension alignment / tuning service, (camber, toe, ride height), possibly with corner weighting, (not essential), should be your first step, as that could transform the balance and handling of the car and give you far more confidence to push on, especially in to and out of the twisty bits! This alone will help you to become smoother and with that, quicker. If you use the car on the road and track, then you can get a set up which gives you the best of both worlds. For me this is the best mod you can make for between £200 and £300 and personally, I therefore wouldn't go chasing any extra power until that's been done and you've experienced the difference in handling. And based on your admission that you need to improve, that's where I would recommend you start. And with regards training, certainly get some tuition at whatever track days you go on and try to do so as early in the day as possible. It's so worth it, you will get so much more out of the day and hopefully you'll avoid picking up, or repeating, one or two bad habits. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 The manual says the 130hp spec is the 2.0 block. Its injection. Will check the serial and block tomorrow to confirm but the 2.0 has a different layout, dipstick is in a different place so ruled that out. Engine was bought new in 1998 from Ford via Westfield (or whatever the arrangement is/was) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 If it hasn't been done already, then a proper geo / suspension alignment / tuning service, (camber, toe, ride height), possibly with corner weighting, (not essential), should be your first step, as that could transform the balance and handling of the car and give you far more confidence to push on, especially in to and out out of the twisty bits! Had this all done as part of the health check. As for weather the values are right I am sure is up for debate but I have all the current camber/toe/corner weight details and they are healthy. Dont know weather they are right for my needs tho as its just a set of numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustCallMeMac Posted May 18, 2014 Share Posted May 18, 2014 Had this all done as part of the health check. As for weather the values are right I am sure is up for debate but I have all the current camber/toe/corner weight details and they are healthy. Dont know weather they are right for my needs tho as its just a set of numbers. Post them on here and I'm sure someone knowledgeable will be able to give you an idea if they look 'correct' or not. Can't hurt and will at least tick a box / reassure you, if things look good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted May 18, 2014 Author Share Posted May 18, 2014 Thats the abridged version as no adjustments were made. Have got the corners somewhere but these are more important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B.RAD Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 Slight note of confusion. Found out the Ford MVH Range manual which I got in the documentation with the car, it says 1.8 115PS (113BHP) with Fuel Injecting and Cat Exhaust, seeing as I got 126 have I either got a healthy/lucky engine or has something been done to it? The only difference between the 115 unit and the 130 is the cams, the standard 130 was from the RS1800 and will have RDA in the engine number. If yours is/was a standard 115 but is now making an estimated 126 at the flywheel, I would suggest that someone has put the RS cams in it. Not a bad thing! As others have suggested, if looking for increased performance then geo and tuition are the priorities. If you're happy the geo is right from the set up above and are on the road with tuition already, then an upgraded set of cams and a change of air filtration would be a good place to start before TB's, unless you've got the cash in which case go for the TB's! Check out Burton Performance for some good tuning advice http://www.burtonpower.com/tuning-guides/tuning-guide-pages/ford-zetec-e-tuning-guide.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisisWolf Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 Manual suggests 130 is 2.0 and 115 is 1.8 tho? Engine says Model MVH418. Engine was bought in Nov 1998 new from Ford. Photos here for comment: I guess there is no easy way to know if the cams are upgraded without stripping and checking? I plan to open the air box and see if I'm running a standard disposable paper or if it has a K&N/Piper cotton panel in there as that's an easy change. I've also seen looking under Focus Mk1 etc (1800 Zetec) tuning ECU remaps for 10-15hp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M444TTB Posted May 19, 2014 Share Posted May 19, 2014 The cooking model 2.0 had the same 130PS as the RS1800's 1.8. Same cams in both engines I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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