Sunday, May 25, 2014

And so the journey begins

At the time of this writing, I have pretty much done a once over of all current and potential engine suppliers. Actually, there are 5-6 of them that are highly competent and proven but given my objectives and constraints, none of them were perfect for me, except one: SEO Motorsports in Melbourne, Florida. SEO's owner Ed Ghesquiere is well known in the D community and his forte over the years has been building killer VR6-based engines for the Nissan community, primarily for 350Zs. The VR6 can be found on various Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche platforms and as tuners across the globe has found out, it's the ideal base for an high output motor. Reasons why include:
  • It is readily available
  • It is bullet proof. ("It loves boost", like Ed likes to put it) because:
    • it has a cast-iron block
    • it uses seven main bearings as opposed to more commonplace four for V6s
    • although narrow-angle (15 deg), the V6 layout makes it very compact, yet
    • the even firing order makes it smooth as an in-line 6
How stout is this thing? Well, there are a multitude of clips of crazy horsepower cars on youtube. 1000 HP is not unheard of. Here is just one of many examples. Nuts! OK.... a third of that rage will be more than plenty for my objectives.  

Ed, a former Delorean owner himself, has indeed waived his magic VR6 wand over at least one other Delorean as well. Read all about Jeremiah's VR6 conversion right here. First start-up, right here. Now, that project involved keeping the stock auto transmission so the torque was dialled way back. And - very important - Jeremiah has nothing but praise about SEO's expertise, workmanship and professionalism.

The choice is obvious: SEO Motorsports is my engine builder of choice!

So what do I want get done on my car?

Here is the high-level scope that Ed and I have agreed to:
  • Engine:
    • Custom build, VW VR6 based
      • SEO will source a good, lower mileage donor motor, rebuild the head, replace all seals, gaskets, timing chains and rails with new d:o. Replace stock head studs with high strength d:o. Custom, reusable turbo head gasket spacer to get the correct compression ratio
    • Targeted Power and torque:
      • 350 whp/350 wftlb
  • Flywheel/Clutch:
    • Delorean clutch with high performance wear surfaces
    • Custom flywheel, Nissan 350Z based
    • Pressure plate/throw-out bearing, Nissan 350Z
  • Adapter to mount stock bell housing to engine:
    • Custom
  • Transmission:
    • Install upgraded shaft coupler
  • Turbo charger:
    • Garrett based and sized specifically for targeted power/torque
  • Intercooler
  • Fuel injection:
    • Electronic, MegaSqirt III, fully customizable mapping profiles
  • Exhaust system:
    • Combination of ceramic cotaed mils steel tubing and stainless mufflers and CAT
  • Software Tuner Studio Basic for tuning via laptop
  • Other
    • Three dyno runs
    • High strength head studs from ARP
    • Wideband sensor for optimal air/fuel ratio tuning
    • Boost gauge from VDO
    • New skidplate (stainless steel)
I will install on the car before I ship it to SEO:
    • High-efficiency radiator
    • Pedal box for manual transmission
    • Clutch master/slave cylinder with all the lines, reservoir, hardware etc
    • Shifter + mechanism
So, if all goes as planned, the engine bay will go from looking like this:
To something like this:

Pretty straightforward, right?

Thursday, May 1, 2014

It's pretty and all but...

Welcome to my blog!
I have owned my Delorean #1283 since 2005, a 1981 auto, and after ten years of ownership it seems I’ve touched every nut, bolt and washer of this car in order to make it better. All the hard work surely has paid off based on the curiosity and “oohs and “aaahs” that every car show has brought.
#1283 at the Collin County Community College "Back To The Future" 30 year celebration

The car looks good, handles and works well but over the years the get-up-and-go part of it has become a sore point. I don’t know how many times I’ve been beat by SUVs and minivans at the red lights – and the other driver didn’t even realize we were racing! Enough is enough. A car with high performance looks needs a high performance power plant so the research began well over a year ago: Where and how can I get more power? I started a short list of requirements:

Engine swap:
  • A modern engine utilizing today’s technology. Even though the stock V6 PRV motor's claim to fame includes the engine that powered the fastest Le Mans car ever - still, it's gotta go.
  • HP and torque in the 300+ range.
  • Reasonable cost
  • A company that is located in the US and has prior experience.
Convert to manual transmission:
  • Converting to manual transmission will be required for two reasons:
    • The current auto transmission cannot handle the additional torque (I will also need to add the upgraded input shaft) and
    • With that much power and sportiness, the manual transmission just makes more sense
Other things I plan to do myself:
  • Upgrade to ventilated, multi-piston brakes
  • Overhaul the suspension, new bushings etc. The car already has the lowered Eibach setup
My goal is to create a car that has the performance, handling and endurance. So, I hope you join me in the transformation of my all-looks Delorean to an all-business barn stormer!