JamesP1991

Well with the slightly less aggressive 4.44 I think the cruising rpm at 70mph only goes up 500rpm to around 3500 which Is something that wouldn't bother me in the slightest. The car isn't a daily driver anyway so it's not like my ears would be bleeding after a couple of days! But that modification is far down the round yet anyway, was just an idea that they planted in my head whilst on the phone To be honest Knightryder, the only reason they interested me was because it looked like the gains to be had in the mid range outweighed the losses you experience at the top end, but it's something I am going to talk with Adrian about and get his guidance on when I go and pay Fensport a visit.. After all they certainly know a lot more than me haha!

Plan will be to just put the stock front pipe with second cat back in for it to be MOT'd. With the two post lift it is an easy 5 minute job and to be honest for a once a year chore I really don't mind having to do it. But that is a good 18 months away anyway!

Wow that's incredible! So I'm guessing he was in 4th and you thought it was a second gear pull?? Just watched the video now Mark, first thing I was impressed with was how crisp your setup sounded! No rasp or drone at all! Sounds great! Any reason why you went resonated in particular?

Think I just left a comment on the FB post on the Fensport page regarding your car mate! Wanted to see if you were coming to Japfest as I was intrigued to see if your Tomei UEL sounded any different to the Borla one I have fitted! Just speaking to the guys today I was getting excited about the prospect of how the car will change Can imagine the mid range is just so much sweeter now!

Cheers buddy! Working my way progress wise with her slowly but surely How do you find the N1? I personally love it! People moan about the drone but to be honest I must be immune to it as I never feel it's too deafening! You will love the car with the decat pipe though, really brings the N1 to life, very deep and not tinny in the slightest! Yes I am driving down on the Friday before Japfest so will be there in the evening mate Car will be mapped and have the power blocks installed by then too! Will take you out for a spin round the block that night in her if you want? So you can hear how the Borla changes the exhaust tone! It really helps a lot with mid range torque and it makes the car literally scream above 5.5k!

Cheers for the advice Lauren! Given I haven't ventured out on to the track yet with her these tyres are going to last a hell of a long time! In the wet I find the stock primacys can be a bit unpredictable though, how is your experience? In the dry I feel it right through my bum long before the car does anything. But In bad weather once, I was going round a roundabout near my house in 3rd gear at low speed, gently breathed on the throttle and the back end came swing round without warning! Good job I was on my toes!

The 4.44 final drive ratio from M Factory that is also on the Fensport site tops out around 152mph. Would go with that if I do anything as that is probably the best compromise in terms of fuel economy yet improved acceleration.

I think even after I end up crunching the numbers RE my bank account I will probably end up doing it any way! I am too much of a pushover when it comes to my car! They were even tempting me with the short final drive ratio after I mentioned to them that I hated how long 6th gear was! Did some digging and apparently the theoretical top speed at 7400rpm in 6th on the stock ratios is 168mph! Makes you wonder why they made it so long?! My guess is fuel economy but 168mph is just over kill in my opinion!

Well if I do decide to get them next month I will do a proper review once I have gone for a proper drive. Most of what I have read about them has come from the FT86 club forum over the pond. Here is a link to the thread which is quite insightful: http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=62007 Independent review of them is here too: http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/ID/3443/TESTED-Crawford-Performance-FR-SBRZ-Power-Blocks-Intake-Manifold-Spacers.aspx To me they seem more than a gimmick if slightly overpriced.

Had a look on their website this morning and they are £358 including VAT http://www.fensport.co.uk/Parts/Model_108/Category_1/4959 When I rang them up to book my car in they said they had them in stock.

Good news! Got off the phone with the guys at Fensport just now and my car is booked in for the 29th April to get a full remap sorted and I will also install some Crawford Power Blocks! Very excited as that will complete the engine mods I have in mind for the car and then I can focus on the brakes and uprated shocks later on in the year

I did for the time being Lauren, my long term goals were to save up and buy a nice set of 225 section Conti Sport tyres to bolt on. This would coincide with the Primacy's finally giving up, but the tyre compound is so hard I expect they will last longer than I will on this planet haha! Saying that though, the car is really progressive on the limit at the moment, even with a bit of stretch on the tyre. Out of tight corners you can shift the weight accordingly with your right foot and decide how much fun you want to have!

Been away for a little while as I am currently waiting for the right amount of pennies for an Ecutek remap. Knowing I have my service and tax to pay for in May as well as Japfest to attend, I thought I would take March out to save some money and then book it in for April. At which point I will also probably get a few cosmetic bits. But one thing I did forget to post about in this build thread which I have put on last ready for a remap is the Borla UEL manifold. Now I know a lot of people were having problems with them when they first come out. The quality was fairly ropey at best. However Borla redesigned the header and brought a second version out, a much better quality design and still at a respectable price point. Now I always wanted to go UEL as I love a good boxer burble, and with options in the UK limited I turned to Chris at Tarmac Sportz again. The reason was that, if Supersprint or Cosworth thought I was going to pay £1200 or £1500 respectively for just an exhaust manifold alone I was going to walk away instantly. Chris, after telling the me the redesigned second version Borla unit was a lot better, and was a reasonable £600 I thought I would bite the bullet and go for it whilst I was purchasing my wheels. Now the Borla header is very popular with members on FT86club and there is ample amounts of video footage to hear how it sounds. So I thought why not and went for it. This would mean my exhaust would be completely catless, relatively light (Borla header being only 4.5kgs) and produce a fairly god like sound. It arrived together with my wheels and I was super excited to get it bolted on. I promptly contacted my friend Stuart, who not only fabricated my entire custom exhaust, but also had a two post lift that I could borrow to get it fitted! I fired her up shortly after fitting and I instantly fell in love! Whenever I drive her (which is not that often unfortunately) I literally have the biggest smile on my face wherever I go. Not only that though, but some other guys on the road have stopped me at lights or at a petrol station and told me how great she sounds, I even gave one guy a drive round the block because he wanted to hear what she sounded like at full chat. A deep burble below 3.5k which then changes to a scream all the way up to the redline, I just cannot wait to get the car mapped now in April and unleash all that lovely exhaust flow properly!

Car looks very aggressive! Is that a carbon rear wing and front splitter I see too? Might have to take a look at them myself!

I would certainly be interested in that Spec K! I had to unfortunately put the map off for March due to a few unwanted expenses and the fact I have my tax and service due in May (double whammy) so will look to book her in for the start of April and use this month to save a few pennies. I think a fairly brisk drive through the Essex countryside would certainly allow me to get acquainted with her new character! I am more of a steak and Ale kind of guy, not been one to enjoy a pint of black! Let me know and I will be happy to enquire within the social section to see who else would like to join us?

I am looking forward to it! She screams now the exhaust is fully fettled with, so it will be good to add a bit of extra poke to it too

Thank you buddy She will be going to Fensport next to get a map and exploit the potential of the new manifold!

The words "stage 4" excite me very much! Look forward to seeing it all come together eventually for you Nige!

I have one fitted to the stock airbox with Blitz panel filter inside. I have not plugged the hole for the noise generator and kept it attached. Basically it is just the intake pipework which either connects to the aftermarket Blitz intake or airbox if you keep it stock. To be honest as Rob said, you are better off buying that with just a drop in panel filter like the HKS one and you will end up getting similar gains that to a traditional aftermarket full intake.

The point about the power delivery is something I try (in vain) to always explain to my friends and others interested in the car. People that say the car stock does not have enough power simply drive it like a normal car, and in which case it will not, because this was not designed to be driven in a normal way. You get literally NOTHING below 5k, and in that regard the boxer FA20 with it's Variable valve timing and twin injection system literally acts like a VTEC motor with it's second performance cam. Above 5k you get the urge in one big dollop and suddenly the car starts to make sense. Peak power comes at 7k, peak torque comes in at 6600, the engine was designed to be revved out to get the most out of it, and for many this is something they fail to grasp when driving it quickly. The car comes alive in this sweet spot in the rev range, and you will FOREVER have a smile on your face because of it. I never tire of coming out of second gear corners with it hovering around 5k and feeling it boot you onto the next straight. Yes it is a little breathless above 120mph, but tuning and FI can take care of that

After much deliberating I will probably be ringing up Fensport tomorrow to enquire about booking my car in for an Ecutek remap. At the moment I don't have any plans to go FI, and probably won't either as I love N/A cars too much. As some members know, mine is currently fully decatted, with a complete exhaust system (catback, front pipe and overpipe), UEL header and I have also replaced the panel filter and intake pipework, has anyone else had a similar setup and then taken their car in to be mapped? I didn't know if anyone had any first hand experience with how the engine responds to a map with a quite heavily breathed on N/A setup, what kind of figures did you get in terms of improvement and how much of a change did it make to the feel of the car? I just wanted some ball park figures to work from really. Any answers would be much appreciated

I'll try and refrain from using the word in future! I do tend to keep her pinned above 5k when I can as that is obviously the sweet spot.. But sometimes on tight corners you just wish you had that little bit lower down to pull you out! Funny you should say you've gone custom with your exhaust, as I did too with my frontpipe and overpipe! Same quality but much cheaper as prices for GT86 parts are yet to fully come down! Oh by the way, I sent you a message RE Japfest and sharing a room, let me know what you think Jamie as I need to sort a room out ASAP too!

I apologise for my Americanisms! I have been reading the FT86 club website too much and it appears to have rubbed off on me! To be honest power wise I am not too fussed as I don't plan to go FI any way, the only thing I want rid off is the torque dip! Far too many times have I pulled out of a second gear corner only for the engine to go flat at 4k and I just sit still! £514 is great value to be honest especially as you get all the features with that and the license... Looks like she will be hopefully booked in for March then ready for the Japfest trip in May!

Great little article that Mark, cheers for the link! I don't know if I'll be able to hit close to that 40hp target at the bottom, but a 28-30hp gain is something that would satisfy me! The only problem with FI is that it is close to £3000-£4000 as an investment and I just don't have that kind of money laying around!

I would be happy with that to be honest.. Then all I need to focus on after that is brakes