The CXR Turbo kit thread (Old pics on pg 3,4,5 & 7) Redux pics on pg 16!
04-03-2010, 12:48 PM
#341
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LOL! I miss that Nissan truck. Once when some tool was tailgating me, I came to a quick stop as we caught up to stopped traffic and the tool went right under my rear bumper. The bottom of my ball hitch ripped a hole in his hood! I didn't bother to get his insurance info. 
BTW, never use silicone hose for your turbo drain line. The crap I bought from ATP turbo was way too soft and tore through on both ends near the clamps. I should have used -10AN braided but since I put a barbed fitting in the oil pan I'm stuck with what I have. I replaced the silicone hose with Gates oil hose that has a much tougher outer casing.
I fixed my exhaust leaks the other day and added Nord-Lock washers to all of my turbo, wastegate and downpipe bolted connections. This is the first time I've used Nord-Locks but they look like a very effective lock washer. The split lock washers I used originally lost their temper from the heat and were useless.
BTW, never use silicone hose for your turbo drain line. The crap I bought from ATP turbo was way too soft and tore through on both ends near the clamps. I should have used -10AN braided but since I put a barbed fitting in the oil pan I'm stuck with what I have. I replaced the silicone hose with Gates oil hose that has a much tougher outer casing.
I fixed my exhaust leaks the other day and added Nord-Lock washers to all of my turbo, wastegate and downpipe bolted connections. This is the first time I've used Nord-Locks but they look like a very effective lock washer. The split lock washers I used originally lost their temper from the heat and were useless.
09-03-2010, 06:05 AM
#342
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Latest update: New 3" intake/MAFS pipe
As anyone who's been following my long and troublesome boost adventure already knows, I've long speculated that the 2.75" OD (66mm ID) CXR intake piping has been a problem for the ECU due to the oem intake being 71mm ID. Basically, placing the MAF sensor in a smaller ID tube results in it sending a higher voltage signal to the ECU which interprets it as greater MAF and load.
Well, I finally got around to testing my theory and designed a new 3" OD (72mm ID) intake. I had it fabbed by Greg (Mandrel Bending Solutions in Pasadena, MD) who in addition to doing top-notch custom exhaust work is also a top-notch fabricator and welder (thanks Greg).
In short, the new intake has made some very significant improvements. I had some serious 1-2 shifting issues, presumably caused by incorrect ECU load calculations, that appear to be gone now. The new intake has also smoothed out closed loop driveability and brought my fuel trims much closer to zero without any transient modifications. I just offset the 440cc injectors vs oem and now LTFT varies by only 5% vs 10%+ before.
Anyway, on to the pics...
Please bear in mind that this was a one-off piece fabbed with off-the-shelf pieces. Basically a prototype. A prettier production piece could be made without welding cut pipes together but there will never be a production piece because there are only like 3 potential buyers in the world today...
Well, I finally got around to testing my theory and designed a new 3" OD (72mm ID) intake. I had it fabbed by Greg (Mandrel Bending Solutions in Pasadena, MD) who in addition to doing top-notch custom exhaust work is also a top-notch fabricator and welder (thanks Greg).
In short, the new intake has made some very significant improvements. I had some serious 1-2 shifting issues, presumably caused by incorrect ECU load calculations, that appear to be gone now. The new intake has also smoothed out closed loop driveability and brought my fuel trims much closer to zero without any transient modifications. I just offset the 440cc injectors vs oem and now LTFT varies by only 5% vs 10%+ before.
Anyway, on to the pics...
Please bear in mind that this was a one-off piece fabbed with off-the-shelf pieces. Basically a prototype. A prettier production piece could be made without welding cut pipes together but there will never be a production piece because there are only like 3 potential buyers in the world today...
09-05-2010, 01:09 AM
#346
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Thanks, I'm a lot happier with this new intake. I'm especially happy about how great the car runs without any management. I removed the X1 until APR or Dezod figures out why the X1 rev-limiter doesn't work on my car.
09-06-2010, 06:55 PM
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09-06-2010, 07:27 PM
#348
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Yes and it runs great! The rev-limiter works, it shifts normally and doesn't exhibit any of the annoying issues it had with the FIC and X1. AFR in OL is between 11-12:1 and the only problem is making too much boost in CL. I plan to add either the Split Second Enricher or the URD AFR Calibrator to address that. I spoke with SS today and was told that the Enricher can easily modify the AFR sensor signal enough to get 12:1 in CL as soon as boost is present. We'll see...
10-21-2010, 03:55 AM
#349
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Update:
It's now been almost 7 weeks since I ditched aftermarket engine management in favor of the Toyota ECU and I couldn't be happier with the results. The car starts and idles like stock and is a joy to drive. There are no annoying hiccups and not a single CEL in 7 weeks! Even the dyno couldn't trigger a CEL.
The only problem I can see with this setup is the hp and torque limitations presented by the stock ECU but for a DD AT car, it's near perfection. I can easily live with ~220 whp/wtq vs 125whp/wtq stock with the same 25 MPG average and grin ear to ear everyday while doing so. I love this car!
It's now been almost 7 weeks since I ditched aftermarket engine management in favor of the Toyota ECU and I couldn't be happier with the results. The car starts and idles like stock and is a joy to drive. There are no annoying hiccups and not a single CEL in 7 weeks! Even the dyno couldn't trigger a CEL.
The only problem I can see with this setup is the hp and torque limitations presented by the stock ECU but for a DD AT car, it's near perfection. I can easily live with ~220 whp/wtq vs 125whp/wtq stock with the same 25 MPG average and grin ear to ear everyday while doing so. I love this car!
11-12-2010, 08:19 AM
#350
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18 month update:
My initial boost plan is fully vindicated! A long time ago I made a bad decision to use a FIC to compensate for a poorly designed CXR intake/MAS pipe. This sent me down a long, expensive and FAILURE ridden path of aftermarket engine management systems. Had I fabbed a new intake pipe then instead of buying the FIC I could have completed this project a lot earlier for thousands less.
Anyway, the bottom line is that 440cc injectors, SS Enricher and the stock ECU work a lot better than the $3000 worth of aftermarket EMS I tested did. All I had to do was keep the MAS readings accurate with a 3" AL tube intake. IMHO the stock-airbox Descendant tuner kit would work as perfectly as my setup does if fitted with 440cc injectors and a 3-wire connection SS Enricher.
Of course if Mazda Speed 3-like 260BHP isn't enough for you, you'll need larger injectors, a piggyhack, a lot of tuning and the willingness to live with the usual piggyhack hiccups. Good luck gettng that extra hp/tq to the pavement with a fwd econobox...
My initial boost plan is fully vindicated! A long time ago I made a bad decision to use a FIC to compensate for a poorly designed CXR intake/MAS pipe. This sent me down a long, expensive and FAILURE ridden path of aftermarket engine management systems. Had I fabbed a new intake pipe then instead of buying the FIC I could have completed this project a lot earlier for thousands less.
Anyway, the bottom line is that 440cc injectors, SS Enricher and the stock ECU work a lot better than the $3000 worth of aftermarket EMS I tested did. All I had to do was keep the MAS readings accurate with a 3" AL tube intake. IMHO the stock-airbox Descendant tuner kit would work as perfectly as my setup does if fitted with 440cc injectors and a 3-wire connection SS Enricher.
Of course if Mazda Speed 3-like 260BHP isn't enough for you, you'll need larger injectors, a piggyhack, a lot of tuning and the willingness to live with the usual piggyhack hiccups. Good luck gettng that extra hp/tq to the pavement with a fwd econobox...
11-14-2010, 06:27 PM
#353
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18 month update:
My initial boost plan is fully vindicated! A long time ago I made a bad decision to use a FIC to compensate for a poorly designed CXR intake/MAS pipe. This sent me down a long, expensive and FAILURE ridden path of aftermarket engine management systems. Had I fabbed a new intake pipe then instead of buying the FIC I could have completed this project a lot earlier for thousands less.
Anyway, the bottom line is that 440cc injectors, SS Enricher and the stock ECU work a lot better than the $3000 worth of aftermarket EMS I tested did. All I had to do was keep the MAS readings accurate with a 3" AL tube intake. IMHO the stock-airbox Descendant tuner kit would work as perfectly as my setup does if fitted with 440cc injectors and a 3-wire connection SS Enricher.
Of course if Mazda Speed 3-like 260BHP isn't enough for you, you'll need larger injectors, a piggyhack, a lot of tuning and the willingness to live with the usual piggyhack hiccups. Good luck gettng that extra hp/tq to the pavement with a fwd econobox...
My initial boost plan is fully vindicated! A long time ago I made a bad decision to use a FIC to compensate for a poorly designed CXR intake/MAS pipe. This sent me down a long, expensive and FAILURE ridden path of aftermarket engine management systems. Had I fabbed a new intake pipe then instead of buying the FIC I could have completed this project a lot earlier for thousands less.
Anyway, the bottom line is that 440cc injectors, SS Enricher and the stock ECU work a lot better than the $3000 worth of aftermarket EMS I tested did. All I had to do was keep the MAS readings accurate with a 3" AL tube intake. IMHO the stock-airbox Descendant tuner kit would work as perfectly as my setup does if fitted with 440cc injectors and a 3-wire connection SS Enricher.
Of course if Mazda Speed 3-like 260BHP isn't enough for you, you'll need larger injectors, a piggyhack, a lot of tuning and the willingness to live with the usual piggyhack hiccups. Good luck gettng that extra hp/tq to the pavement with a fwd econobox...
I wonder, do you get any codes that are pending? Do you think you can pass emissions?
11-14-2010, 07:02 PM
#354
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No codes, active or pending in 2 months now since I removed the X1, I passed emissions a few months back and could pass again today. The only thing I had to do was re-install a CEL eliminator on the 2nd O2 sensor after removing the X1. The key to making this work was a well-designed 3" intake/MAS pipe that matches the oem airflow and MAS signal slope.
Last edited by ScionFred; 11-15-2010 at 04:38 AM. Reason: Minor re-word for clarity
11-15-2010, 12:28 AM
#355
Congrats on finally having the satisfaction & peace of mind that I know was your original desire when you started this project.
11-15-2010, 06:40 AM
#359
Not gonna happen. 
Life is too short, quit your job. 
