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      07-14-2011, 11:08 AM   #1
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VT2-500 install/build/impressions thread

Thread summary:

Initially I had issues because a silicone coupler supplied with the kit was a bit short. ESS confirmed that others haven't had this issue, but Beedub and Iphoneengineer both did. Ordered a better coupler, and the issue was solved.

Then it took me 2 weeks to figure out that the people who installed the headers, reversed my primary and secondary o2 sensors. This was causing limp mode issues at full throttle. It also ruined one of my sensors, which had to be replaced.

100 miles after the sensors were installed properly, the car dynoed at a relatively weak 370rwhp (stage 1 kit territory). http://www.zpost.com/forums/showthre...=558729&page=6 It was hot outside, and I drove an hour to the shop, so that may have contributed to some of the issues. The shop's mechanical boost gauge showed 8psi at redline, but the power line isn't very smooth.

Right now I ordered a set of new spark plugs, OEM, hoping to fix the power issue, as running with bad o2 sensors for about 800 miles probably messed them up. Also, the car has been going into limp mode sometimes at full throttle in second gear, and throwing a throttle position code. I verified that the throttle bodies are not obstructed, and reset the throttle adaptation. Will have to drive it through a few cycles to see if that fixed it. If not, its likely a $100 tps sensor that has a minor voltage spike like 20% of the time.

The car feels very strong, even at 370rwhp. People ordering stage 1 and getting this power should be pretty happy, but I paid for more, and its only a matter of time before we hit the 420rwhp mark and up

8/17/11: With new spark plugs and a new throttle position sensor, the car pulls much harder and is probably hitting at least 420rwhp. Boost gauge was installed, and I'm getting to 9psi at 8000rpm
9/15/11: Dynoed at 380rwhp a week ago, which is low, but gained about 30hp by flattening out a dip at low rpms that was showing on the first dyno. Boost gauge has been tricking everyone, including the dyno operator, who insisted that I'm hitting 8psi. This was because at redline, it always spikes 2psi. Car spent all week with a really good tech, who found a leak at the 45* intake elbow because my clamp was on too tight, verified with a 10psi pressurized smoke tester. Water/meth was cleanly installed, but he ordered a machine shop to make a bung for it so that its a leak-proof install. So everything is hooked up but the nozzle. The water/meth tank was mounted on the firewall for better weight distribution. Pics to follow next week.

Did a few pulls to redline and most of the time the car hit 8psi (finally showing 10psi on over-rev, not 8 as before). The temps are in the 60s, and not the 80s as before the boost leak fix, but the car feels stronger, and even with traction on, the back end is struggling much more to stay straight. The LSD is working double overtime. Car also sounds a little louder. I also found a backup tuner for the meth, at an expensive rate, but if it'll need tuning I'll do it, because I doubt ESS would tune it for the meth. An extra 02 bung will be installed in about 2 weeks, to get a/f ratios on the dyno next time.


vbox numbers with 1 foot rollout:

0-60 in 4.2 seconds
50-70 in 2.0 seconds
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      07-14-2011, 11:38 AM   #2
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Don't eat heavy metals ??

Gravity is a bitch ??
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      07-14-2011, 11:57 AM   #3
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heh



We're about 50% into it, if you consider the meth install is not done yet. Blower is already mounted on the bracket too, PS reservoir relocated
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      07-14-2011, 11:58 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dark Schnitzer View Post
Don't eat heavy metals ??

Gravity is a bitch ??
its a good angle to find dropped nuts/bolts
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      07-14-2011, 12:28 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
its a good angle to find dropped nuts/bolts
Lol.....I've been in that very position many times.....not quite as erect though....your a better man,lol.
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      07-14-2011, 12:29 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
might as well post this gem too

Speaking of dropped nuts.......mine hurt just looking at your Superman style,lol
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      07-14-2011, 12:32 PM   #7
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Thanksfully that tire is flat, and has some treat left!
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      07-14-2011, 03:23 PM   #8
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wahooooo its happening!!!! when the first start planned for????

make sure the belt tension is goos otherwise you'lll slip that small pulley all day long ;-)
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      07-14-2011, 03:32 PM   #9
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We should do the first start as early as tomorrow evening, belt was on really tight, when we realized the instructions don't call to replace the crank pulley anywhere, even though it has to be done, so that backtracks us. After a week's wait my new rear wheel came in, to replace my damaged one, and when it was time to mount the old tire on it, they determined that it was damaged from me rolling around on it half-flat. Pissed off, I ordered a new $200 tire, HOPING for UPS to deliver on Saturday, if not I'll have to wait until Monday to actually drive it
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      07-14-2011, 04:19 PM   #10
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tom whats your impression of the hardware????? how do you feel about the quality??

i felt the parts were equal to or above oem quality
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      07-14-2011, 09:49 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
We should do the first start as early as tomorrow evening, belt was on really tight, when we realized the instructions don't call to replace the crank pulley anywhere, even though it has to be done, so that backtracks us. After a week's wait my new rear wheel came in, to replace my damaged one, and when it was time to mount the old tire on it, they determined that it was damaged from me rolling around on it half-flat. Pissed off, I ordered a new $200 tire, HOPING for UPS to deliver on Saturday, if not I'll have to wait until Monday to actually drive it
The perils of planking
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      07-15-2011, 05:09 AM   #12
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lol the "planking" looks painful, super stiff upper strength :-) lol

omg...... cant wait till you ride this thing hard with those hankooks!!!!! your going to crap yourself :-)
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      07-15-2011, 09:11 AM   #13
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hey, at least one side will have a fresh rear tire, hahahahah.
Quality is really good, what else is there to say?
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      07-15-2011, 12:24 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
Lets start with some install pictures, over at RMM Motorsports


haha planking funny...
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      07-15-2011, 12:34 PM   #15
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if a bit outdated
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      07-16-2011, 12:36 PM   #16
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any updates please??
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      07-17-2011, 01:16 AM   #17
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ITS ALIIIIIVEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


After a little dumb moment on my part, it started up just fine and idled nicely for 15 minutes. On second-4th startup the idle was hunting like a vacuum leak, but I checked all the connections and found nothing. Then it started up fine again, just left me with a CEL. No biggie. I have a video of it starting the first time =)

Over-all I'd rate the install a 16 hour job, and a big pain in the ass. One of the intercooler pipes is a bit short, and the silicone elbow connecting it to the airbox is too small. Basically its barely hanging in there, after 3 hours of cursing and sweating. I'm gonna request a longer silicone coupler. Other things weren't very clear either, but this one was the most annoying

We'll do water/meth after getting on a dyno first.

The good news is that 265mm Hankook V12s are decent at containing the power, much to my surprise. I'm sure a 275mm Advan AD08 or a Bridgestone RE-11 will provide adequate traction further down the road(no pun intended). The differential works HARD to keep it hooked in the first 2 gears. When you get on the throttle, the back of the car is just FIGHTING around, yet the chassis/diff/tires do a good job containing it.

The difference is very noticeable in 1st gear, even under light throttle. The car feels SO much more alive. Since its night time, I kept the traction on for the dicking around parts. I took off in 1st gear, and even though the traction control was on, the blower gave it a big middle finger and spun through the tires. I was magic. You can't just mess around with this car at night, it demands your full attention, and it accelerates faster than your mind expects it to.

It does NOT have the raw punch of a Dodge Viper, but it makes me just as excited to drive it, and the acceleration is almost as fun. I only took it past 7000rpm once, and the ecu is still adapting.

I'm running euro headers, and the car is surprisingly quiet. In fact, its quieter than headers+afe intake. I could probably remove the other cats and still be OK. I'm running the stock mufflers for various reasons. It makes a light growl, and whistles all over the place all the time. I personally LOVE the fucking whistling sounds, its like a tea kettle, or my friends upgraded 911 turbo's turboes. I can barely hear the pressure release valve. The blower has little chatter on idle, not as scary as others have described it. It was not overfilled with oil from the factory, although getting to that dipstick is a bitch.

Overall so far I'm very very happy, and glad I skipped stage 1 and went straight to stage 2. Most importantly, I'm excited to drive my car again and again
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      07-17-2011, 01:25 AM   #18
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My friend has a V-box, so after the break in period, I'll get some good 60-130 numbers up!
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      07-17-2011, 02:02 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
We'll do water/meth after getting on a dyno first.

The good news is that 265mm Hankook V12s are decent at containing the power, much to my surprise. I'm sure a 275mm Advan AD08 or a Bridgestone RE-11 will provide adequate traction further down the road(no pun intended). The differential works HARD to keep it hooked in the first 2 gears. When you get on the throttle, the back of the car is just FIGHTING around, yet the chassis/diff/tires do a good job containing it.
Funny how similar our experiences are turning out to be with essentially-simultaneous installs...I would also like to do water/meth, but as it voids the ESS warranty, I will force myself to wait until I am certain the kit is in perfect order. Then, the benefits of water/meth are simply too great to ignore, and I'll be done with engine mods!

My 265 Super Sports have also been decent at holding the power, at least in 2nd, up to 7k. However, I can relate to the feeling--the rear of the car feels like its getting squirrely at WOT, feeling as though it has broken loose, yet you know it hasn't. I've never felt such a thing before...and I'm sure you're right, it's a diligently-operating M Differential and all the other component interplay that is forced to react as power is diverted side to side, searching for equilibrium.

About the whistling...could you describe more of the character of what you're hearing? I adore the whistle of the actual S/C unit, which changes and evolves as engine speed changes, but what drives me nuts is the transient, louder noise that is only present at certain RPM/throttle combinations and will disappear if either of those variables is changed a bit. If only the actual compressor wheel were louder, and the BPV whistle were quieter, I couldn't be happier with the noises!
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      07-17-2011, 03:10 AM   #20
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tom, wait till this things is fully adapted and you can really do a proper 1st-3rd gear all redline runs, t/c off!! youve seen nothing yet ;-)

what boost are you seeing?? are you on the proper crank pulley now??
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      07-17-2011, 11:55 AM   #21
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I installed the proper crank pulley before starting the car. No boost gauge hooked up yet

My whistling is heard most at idle and at partial throttle, IIRC, not when pressure is being released. When I let off the gas, the valve makes a fairly quiet whoosh sound. I think, Iphone, your valve may not be sitting properly or something is wrong somewhere
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      07-17-2011, 11:58 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Roffle Waffle View Post
I installed the proper crank pulley before starting the car. No boost gauge hooked up yet

My whistling is heard most at idle and at partial throttle, IIRC, not when pressure is being released. When I let off the gas, the valve makes a fairly quiet whoosh sound. I think, Iphone, your valve may not be sitting properly or something is wrong somewhere
exactly the same as mine, can be heard on idle, part throttle i can hear it but its no-where near annoying or embarresing on my car, its a super cool sound, proper mecanical whizzes and whirs...

so tom your install is complete, your just adapting this thing at present, have you had chance to proper;y t/c off 1st-3rd all out yet???
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