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Hey guys,
I've mentioned here and there about turbocharging Dragon; I'm now finding motivation and cause to give it a try myself. I'm not gonna ask the old questions; don't worry, I'm doing my own research. I'm fortunate to have an uncle who's turbocharged Capris before, so he's my first port of call for advice. I'm making this thread to throw around and collect ideas, and hopefully get some feedback that I'm heading in the right direction.
So, why molest my pride and joy? Well, two reasons. First, and it's a minor point, 178 horses really isn't a lot - the 86 gets 200 horses out of a 4-cylinder, and that's not even turbocharged! So I want to see if I can push the HP above 200 to justify having the extra 2 cylinders. Second, more importantly, a close friend has a mk4 Supra, and it is an animal - 400RWHP with no modifications apart from a boost controller (at 1 bar), and when that second turbo kicks in, it's insane. I found out exactly why people say boost is addictive - I'm already hooked!!
Dragon's engine is in good health so far; it has a few subtle modifications and was dyno'd in 2006 at 150RWHP. The technician commented that the engine was remarkably strong after 20 years. Since then, it's covered less than 10,000 miles, so I'm hoping few of those horses have escaped!
I like the idea that turbocharging is a well-understood and practical approach, that these engines can take it and getting the parts off the mk3 is easier than having anything custom-made. My uncle is going to lend me some books on forced-induction so I can better understand what's involved, but here's my high-level approach so far:
I'm not looking to run high boost; I'm happy to start off with a few PSI and go from there. I basically want to combine the best of the mk2 and mk3 (call it a mk2.5
) - the light body of the mk2 with the boosted power of the mk3.
Oh, and while I'm pouring on the power, I haven't forgotten about stopping afterwards; Dragon's brakes have been overhauled recently and are very sharp now, but they are fully stock. I haven't needed to throw out the anchor yet, so I think the stock brakes are pretty good. I still have the original 14-inch wheels so I would rather keep them stock - is this likely to be my undoing? I'll definitely put performance brake pads on my shopping list if that will be enough.
What I'm going for here is a sleeper - I love subtle modifications that either aren't there unless you look for them, or are completely hidden. If it looks factory-fitted, even better. The tailgate is a blank slate at the moment, and the most I want the exterior to change is '2.8i turbo' on the back. If anyone pulls up at lights thinking 'wow, look at that clapped-out 30-year-old car! I'll have him off the line!' and actually goes through with it, I would be more than happy to show them what Dragon's made of!
And the big reason I'm doing this now? I turn 25 in May, which is the cutoff for cheaper insurance. I have 6 years' accident-free driving under my belt, but believe me, I'm not trying to change that. If anything, I think I've levelled up sufficiently to have a more powerful car :thumbsup:
I've mentioned here and there about turbocharging Dragon; I'm now finding motivation and cause to give it a try myself. I'm not gonna ask the old questions; don't worry, I'm doing my own research. I'm fortunate to have an uncle who's turbocharged Capris before, so he's my first port of call for advice. I'm making this thread to throw around and collect ideas, and hopefully get some feedback that I'm heading in the right direction.
So, why molest my pride and joy? Well, two reasons. First, and it's a minor point, 178 horses really isn't a lot - the 86 gets 200 horses out of a 4-cylinder, and that's not even turbocharged! So I want to see if I can push the HP above 200 to justify having the extra 2 cylinders. Second, more importantly, a close friend has a mk4 Supra, and it is an animal - 400RWHP with no modifications apart from a boost controller (at 1 bar), and when that second turbo kicks in, it's insane. I found out exactly why people say boost is addictive - I'm already hooked!!
Dragon's engine is in good health so far; it has a few subtle modifications and was dyno'd in 2006 at 150RWHP. The technician commented that the engine was remarkably strong after 20 years. Since then, it's covered less than 10,000 miles, so I'm hoping few of those horses have escaped!
I like the idea that turbocharging is a well-understood and practical approach, that these engines can take it and getting the parts off the mk3 is easier than having anything custom-made. My uncle is going to lend me some books on forced-induction so I can better understand what's involved, but here's my high-level approach so far:
- Exhaust manifold, turbo and injectors off a mk3 (of course)
- Complete bypass of the original engine electronics using an Electromotive TEC II for both fuel and ignition
- Fitting knock and exhaust oxygen sensors to keep an eye on combustion
- Dispense with the AFM and fit a MAP sensor to the intake
- Being an '86, Dragon has higher compression (9.2:1?) so I would fit a thicker head gasket to bring the compression down
- Instead of an intercooler, fitting a charge air cooler for a few reasons - no need to hack apart the engine bay to run piping, straighter air path from the intake to the cylinders, keep the battery and easier to revert to stock
- Fitting an oil filter relocation kit and using the output from the filter to feed oil to the turbo, then back to the block
- Dragon already has a mk3 fuel pump fitted as the mk2 pumps (at least in the UK, I haven't seen much about the US ones?) are known to have dead spots where the pump will not start again
- Dash gauges for oil pressure, water temperature and boost
- I may have the opportunity to lay my hands on a whole 5M-GE; in which case I would assemble the whole thing in a workshop and test before fitting to the car, and keep the original engine unmolested
I'm not looking to run high boost; I'm happy to start off with a few PSI and go from there. I basically want to combine the best of the mk2 and mk3 (call it a mk2.5
Oh, and while I'm pouring on the power, I haven't forgotten about stopping afterwards; Dragon's brakes have been overhauled recently and are very sharp now, but they are fully stock. I haven't needed to throw out the anchor yet, so I think the stock brakes are pretty good. I still have the original 14-inch wheels so I would rather keep them stock - is this likely to be my undoing? I'll definitely put performance brake pads on my shopping list if that will be enough.
What I'm going for here is a sleeper - I love subtle modifications that either aren't there unless you look for them, or are completely hidden. If it looks factory-fitted, even better. The tailgate is a blank slate at the moment, and the most I want the exterior to change is '2.8i turbo' on the back. If anyone pulls up at lights thinking 'wow, look at that clapped-out 30-year-old car! I'll have him off the line!' and actually goes through with it, I would be more than happy to show them what Dragon's made of!
And the big reason I'm doing this now? I turn 25 in May, which is the cutoff for cheaper insurance. I have 6 years' accident-free driving under my belt, but believe me, I'm not trying to change that. If anything, I think I've levelled up sufficiently to have a more powerful car :thumbsup: