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Time for Tuning

5K views 33 replies 15 participants last post by  spikyone 
#1 ·
Hi guys,
Now that we are finally getting back to some level of “normal” it’s time to get rid of the dreaded torque dip.
I’m down in Sussex so would appreciate recommendations on who I should be going to?
Thanks
Andy
 
#2 ·
You're based in Sussex? Then there's only one answer...Abbey Motorsport in Oxted :)

They're pretty well renowned in this community, there's lots of owners here who have had their cars tuned and serviced by Mark and his team (myself included). If your aim is to get rid of the torque dip, then you're looking at probably a new exhaust manifold and a tune, but if you give Abbey a call they should be able to help you out.
 
#3 ·
Just a note: as a lot of people (including myself!) are in the "getting back to normal, time to do something with the car!" phase, Abbey are extremely busy right now. (Likely all the good places are).

So, allow for that with your time frame expectations.

Mark @ Abbey has been very helpful (and very patient!) with me, so I'm very much looking forward to getting over there in the not too distant future.
 
#4 ·
I went down to Abbey last week (had to wait 3 weeks to get a slot) and they might be even busier now, so I agree with cliddell here to factor that in.

I had the Ace CS400 header fitter and a re-map to try and eliminate the torque dip - Here is a print out of the Dyno if it helps set some expectations - Obviously you could you own bits like a aftermarket exhaust or a HFC in the 2nd cat but it gets tricky with emissions and MOT then - I'm running this header with the exhaust as stock currently - Now get a very smooth acceleration through the RPM range and as you can see an addition 19/20HP at the top end.

Cheers
 

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#5 ·
I'm booked in with Abbey for early August - although they are ordering quite a few parts for me, and it'll be in for a week. First time I've dealt with them, and both Mark and Scott have been very helpful and friendly so far. Good communications and they've certainly been putting in the effort.
 
#7 ·
I'm in Sussex too and I made the long drive to Tuning Developments in order to get their NA package fitted a couple of years ago. OK It's a long day (550 ish mile round trip from memory, they're in Warrington, Cheshire) but well worth it, I would certainly give Mike at TD a ring, they are very well respected and experts at getting the most out of the GT86 engine.
 
#12 ·
I’ve heard the ACE CS400 on YouTube and it sound “tinny” and raspy which is a little disappointing when it’s one of the most expensive.....was looking for something a little deeper to be honest.
Only planning to replace the header and a remap as this is my daily drive so don’t want it too loud and “drony” though.
Again advice much appreciated.
Thanks
 
#13 ·
I’ve heard the ACE CS400 on YouTube and it sound “tinny” and raspy which is a little disappointing when it’s one of the most expensive.....was looking for something a little deeper to be honest.

Only planning to replace the header and a remap as this is my daily drive so don’t want it too loud and “drony” though.

Again advice much appreciated.

Thanks
All aftermarket manifolds are tinny and raspy in my experience. The OE one is heavy steel and has a big heat sink / insulation around it which stops the rasp altogether. An aftermarket one is thinner gauge s steel and also has no heat insulation built in , hence the additional noise. Without an exhaust change, just the manifold won't make the car front ever , just raspy on full throttle.

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#14 ·
Hello Andy

I went for a Tomei EL catless manifold as that was the popular choice at the time, back in the day, and regretted the raspiness of the exhaust sound. The remap was great though. Going back to the oem header when changing to FI gave me a lovely (to me) deep rumbly sound.
 
#16 ·
So basically only way round this is to either fit a different exhaust or go FI?

Sounds like an expensive option either way. [emoji22]

Assuming the remap on its own is not really worth going for?
There is no way round it. If you are sensitive and can hear the rasp , then even an aftermarket exhaust can only drown it a bit not lose it.
A remap only with stock intake and exhaust is not much use. So save your money.

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#19 ·
I'm in the same boat . Finally decided to get rid of the torque dip and make the car faster. I'm 90% decided to go for a supercharged instead of turbo . Too bad Cosworth Stage 2 Supercharger Kit is no longer being manufactured :( The alternative is HKS GT2 Supercharger with Fensport or just change the headers and remap ( probably with TA https://www.tuningdevelopments.uk/product_info.php?cPath=502_625_852&products_id=2567 ). Not sure yet how deep should I get into this , that's always been the dilemma for me :)
 
#22 ·
I have the Ace CS400 and a Cobra high flow cat tuned at Abbey. Yes, the CS400 is a bit 'raspier', but it's still pretty civilised for daily driving - it only starts to get raspy when you rev it out with the stock exhaust.

Recently, I also changed to an Invidia Q300 catback which has deepened the tone. It burbles away quite nicely at idle, although given the Q300's reputation for being a very quite catback, it's a tad louder than I'd expect - but extra volume is always a consequence of removing the cat from the manifold. But it doesn't drone at motorway speeds; there is some slight drone at about 2.5K RPM, but that's only come about since installing the Q300. With the CS400 on the stock exhaust, I didn't notice any.

However, performance wise it's fantastic - it's not going to magically turn the car into a powerhouse, but it gets rid of the torque dip and makes the engine much more flexible and pleasurable to drive - none of that flat spot while accelerating, the car now pulls much more linearly (is that a word?) through the range and howls at the top end.

If you do go for it, I'd also suggest removing the sound generator tube. I liked the sound generator with the stock setup, but as someone said above, aftermarket manifolds tend to be thinner with less insulation, so you do get a bit of a tinnier noise, which I felt the sound generator might have amplified a bit in the cabin. Besides, removing or plugging it allows you to hear the truer noise of the engine anyway.
 
#25 ·
That's not right , the up and over pipe is not the overpipe but a part of the manifold 4:1 runners. The overpipe is a different piece. Google for the exhaust diagram to know more and TD have it listed separately.

You could save money (£120 ish) and not go for the overpipe Andy. It does not make a measurable difference. Having said that I do not know of any forum members who have just done manifold. Worth waiting for more responses.

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#26 ·
The TD tuning package comes with the overpipe and it looks like Abbey are doing this as well. You can ofcourse just buy the manifold individually without the overpipe. The ACE or Rogue manifold include the overpipe as it's part of the design.

Deano64, plan ahead. If you wanted to go Turbo in future the TD manifold will be the better option. If you plan to go Supercharged get the ACE / Rogue manifold.
If your staying N/A either option will work.
 
#27 ·
I’m keeping it normally aspirated cos I’m stubborn! 😜
So I’m assuming the TD offering from Abbey is identical to what TD are offering?
They are suggesting EL and I keep hearing people wanting the boxer burble so needs to be UEL but not sure whether this would make it sound rougher when I’m using this for my 65 miles daily drive.
Assume there is no notable performance difference between the two TD setups?
Appreciate the continued feedback guys.
 
#28 ·
I had the TD EL manifold, overpipe and remap done by Abbey just last week. I kept the standard exhaust in place. From what I was advised the UEL gives slightly more lower end torque, and the EL gives more at the top end.

Driveability has been significantly improved, and the removal of the torque dip makes a massive difference to normal driving. The engine also feels much smoother and seems to pull to the red line better.

In terms of noise it's not really any louder than stock under normal driving, but has a much nicer sound when pushed, as others mentioned it does have a more raspy sound, but to my ears sounds good with a nice induction note - not too dissimilar to the 4AEG twin cam.

Also, if you're going to Abbey, have them fit the shiftier springs, bang for buck this makes a huge difference to the gear change feel.
 
#33 ·
This is getting serious, Andy!!

Lots of good advice for you.
 
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