- When it comes to competing at World Time Attack, obviously the open and pro
class cars are the ones that get a lot of the press.
However the budgets involved with competing at that level are insane.
At the lower levels there is the club sprint class, and while you're still not
gonna be competitive on a shoestring budget, these are the cars that most
of us can relate to a little bit more.
We're here with Benjamin Perry from Benchmark Solutions,
with a team ERS or Evolution Racing Spares, Mitsubishi Evo 6 RS.
We're gonna find out a little bit more about what goes into making this car
competitive.
So Ben for a start let's talk about the engine package in this car,
can you tell us what it is?
I see there is a MIVEC badge or MIVEC sticker on the head, obviously that's not
normal with an Evo 6.
- No so the engine's a 2.2 variable cam MIVEC engine from an Evo 9.
It's put together by Mitsi Motorsport for ERS.
It still retains the MIVEC which we like, it's slightly over capacity in 2.2 litres.
And yeah Kelford cams, fairly mild compression.
- Let's just come back to that MIVEC for those who aren't aware,
maybe haven't been spending time in Mitsubishi tuning circles,
that is essentaially continuously cam control where the ECU can advance
or retard the intake cam and the aim with this really is to improve the
torque curve, you get the turbo spooling earlier and just a wider
more usable torque curve than a stock fixed cam?
- Yeah that's correct so we use it with full advance low down to try
and create as much efficiency as possible, get the car driving out
of the corners as best as possible, and then to maintain that efficiency
as the RPM goes up, with quite a small turbo on this engine, we're retarding it
quite early to keep everything happy.
And we try and use it as best as we can to maximise the power band
or torque band.
- Now a problem you've just alluded to as well, that continuously variable
cam control, because you are moving the cam, it does limit essentially
what size cam profile can be fitted, otherwise you're starting to run into
a potential for valve to valve or valve to piston contact.
So in a race application, is that compromise on the cam profile you can run,
does that actually hold you back or cost you?
- It does, it depends on the overall car setup.
So this car's running a H pattern dog box from Albins.
That is a little bit different because obviously we're not always in that
power band which would optimise the cam.
If we were running a sequential which we'd have to go to open class.
That would, because we're always in that five to nine power band,
it would remove the need for the variable cam much more than what it is at the
moment, but at the moment it makes a big difference.
- So to sum all of that up really if you are only gonna be operating across
a relatively narrow power band like you would with a sequential,
really the advantages of the continuously variable cam control are offset by the
ability to run a larger cam profile but fix it.
Let's get into that turbo, you've said that it is a relatively small turbocharger,
what is it?
- It's a BorgWarner EFR 7670.
It's a 105 T4 twin scroll rear housing, externally gated.
Yeah so for a street car we would normally use those on a two litre engine
and step it up to the 83, but time constraints and little to no testing
on this car meant that this package was already put together.
And ERS already had the turbo kit from FabTech with it all ready to go
on their street car so we used that this time, see how we go, get some data,
and go from there.
- It is important to also mention to those watching that this car is actually
still street legal.
So with that 7670, which as you've said, that's a pretty well sized turbo
for a two litre, on a 2.2, that's actually gonna be an insane package
for a street car?
- Yeah it's very very aggressive, it's almost too aggressive for street,
which is sometimes fun but sometimes not conducive to quick lap times.
- Now when you're talking about aggressive there, you're talking about the
way the turbo comes on boost, being it's a small turbo, well relatively small turbo
for a 2.2 litre?
- Yeah that's right so even on the gate spring, setting up boost by gear,
and ramp profiles it hits very hard.
Yesterday in the damp conditions and cold track, it was quite fun trying
to keep it together, judging by the driver data but yeah it's good on the street,
on the track a little bit different.
- Now you've already mentioned that gearbox there before,
in the club sprint class as you've said, you're restricted to an h pattern box.
So there are some limitations around that, and you mentioned you've got
an Albins five speed h pattern in there, now even saying that you've got the
h pattern box it is still possible to use gear cut ignition control
for the upshift, really essential to, or a big advantage I should say,
in improving acceleration.
Driver can stay flat on the throttle, no need to use the clutch.
Is that something you're implementing?
- We have wired everything for the gear cut, the car was finished on Monday
with no testing so we decided to not add too many features at the same time,
to try and overwhelm the driver.
It's his first time with the data acquisition and the dash package and all that stuff
so it will be implemented very soon, but not just yet.
- OK so Mixed Motorsport really have been the team for the engine package,
you've come into it for the wiring and the electronics and the tuning.
So let's get stuck into that electronics package, can you tell us for a start,
what ECU you're running.
- It runs an M150 GPR setup from Motec with a custom package implementing
a few extra features with diff control and a few things like that.
- Let's just jump into that, so for those who aren't aware with the Motec M1
system, it gives the ability to either run an off the shelf package or if you're
that way inclined you are write your own firmware to bring in basically
any functions you can dream up.
So you've just mentioned that active diff control.
So let us know how that works, I know you're not running it right now,
but tell us how you intend to use that in the future.
- Yeah so we're running an Evo 10 AYC ACD pump mounted in the boot.
It's wired through power to the PDM and actuator through the ECU.
And then we're monitoring obviously your pressure and your actuator
control in the rear.
It has centre diff pressure from the actual active centre diff into the ECU and then
we're running four wheel speed sensors with the G sensor out of the M150
and then it's all programmed, the ECU can make its decisions that way.
- So essentially what you're going to be able to do then is program
the torque split front to rear through that as the car goes around the track
dependent on all of the conditions to optimise the handling balance
to the car as well as getting that power to the ground?
- Exactly so very similar to your OEM style with the active centre diff and things
like that but it obviously adds an extra element because everything's tunable
this time.
But yeah torque splits and power, power to front and rear and stuff like that.
- Alright so we've gone over the ECU there, let's talk about the rest of the electronics
package, what are you using for a dash and logger?
- So it runs a C125 Motec dash logger.
It runs a, all the sensors itself were wired into the ECU.
We run a Racegate TC8 for thermocouple lamps.
We run a PDM15 with a key pad and controller.
- So let's just jump back to the TC4 so thermocouple amplifier so what
that essentially means, so you're running individual EGTs, exhaust gas temperature
per runner and we'll just delve into that a little bit, how are you using that on the car?
- Yeah so we use the thermocouples to see where we're at tune wise,
in regards to optimising ignition timing, so we run some individual cylinder
ignition timing changes based on knock and volume, basically noise in the cylinders.
And then we tune that on ignition timing advances where required
to basically optimise the tune for the weather conditions, and for the power
levels and making sure everything stays happy to do multiple laps,
rather than just on kill for one.
- And that seems to be the way a lot of these cars are tuned,
the drivers really can only go full speed for one flying lap and then everything
needs to cool down.
Alright let's come back to that C125 dash, so are you using this as a central
logging hub or is this just as a driver display.
Because you've just said all of your sensors are wired into the M150.
So with that package you've really got the ability to run either the logging
in the ECU or the dash, how are you choosing to do it?
- Yeah so we run the logging through the dash.
It depends on which application but this car, we already had a logger dash for,
so everything goes into, any of the subsystems, they're all connected
over CAN and then that data is sent through to the dash,
from engine, wheel speed, turbo speed, everything you can think of,
and then it's all analysed through i2, by pulling it out of the one location,
makes it easier to manage, you're not pulling data out of four or five
different things at the same time.
- Actually I just wanna delve into one aspect you just mentioned there,
you mentioned turbo speed.
And this is really a key with those BorgWarner EFR turbos.
BorgWarner have made our life really easy because traditionally it was
incredibly difficult to mount a speed sensor to the turbo,
a lot of custom machining, with the EFR it's as simple as drilling a hole through
the compressor cover and fitting the sensor that comes off the shelf.
So why is that speed sensor so critical to pushing an EFR turbo to the limit,
and then how are you implementing that in the M1 ECU to protect the turbo?
- So what we found is that the EFRs are really efficient up to the speed limit
and over the speed limit which can be a bit dangerous because it gives you
the tendency to just wanna push push push until it stops making power,
similar to your Garretts and your Precisions.
But what we have found is that they're insanely reliable when you use a speed
sensor correctly and stick to the guidelines that BorgWarner give you.
When you delve outside those it can be insanely unreliable if you're way
over the limit so we're kind of riding the speed limit based on manifold
pressure and that's obviously fed into the ECU.
We've got some speed sensor warnings that come up through the ECU
and the dash.
I'm not implementing engine speed limits just because, we don't wanna lose if we're
on a green lap, any issues there.
But on a street car we would put a speed limit in if you had a major
boost leak or something to do with that.
But we already had a boost leak on the dyno on Sunday night,
and I knew straight away because we were at gate pressure and seeing our
turbo speed maxed.
So I guess for finding issues, it's incredibly easy to find boost control issues
in my experience.
And a lot of people don't like them and they find the unreliable but I think they're
untouchable with transient and things like that and using the speed sensor
correctly, that enables us to maximise its potential.
- Now in terms of power and boost pressure, we haven't discussed that yet,
so let us know what you're running and how much it's making.
- Yeah so the driver has a four position boost trim pot.
And that allows him to select between about 17 to 18 gate spring psi.
Second setting's about 24, 23 to 24, third's about 26, 27, and then 32,
is the max shaft speed.
So power wise it's about the 265 kilowatt mark on gate spring, about 310, 315
on the second setting, about 340 and then 380.
- Those numbers, also those come off your Mainline rolling road dyno,
which we also own one of those dynos, great dyno.
We also know notoriously low reading dyno so that's actually a pretty damn
impressive result for that turbo on a Mainline roller.
- Yeah so we normally see, this turbo package on the previous car,
on FabTech's car it made, we tuned that about a year ago and it made just over
400 kilowatts with a very similar setup.
This track we're a little, because of the final drive ratio's quite short on the
gearbox, we're having to use RPM to enable us to keep power down
the main straight.
Because of that, we've pulled boost back a little bit and then pulled the engine
tune back a little bit, being a track car, not a street car.
So it's probably got about 15 to 20 kilowatts on the table.
And because we're spinning it up around, just over 9000 at the highest point,
versus 7500 to 8000, power level's a little bit lower but because we're on the
track, that 20 kilowatts, you're not gonna see and it means everything's
in one piece for the next session which is the most reliable.
- Now in terms of that highest power setting, 380 kilowatts at the wheels,
obviously that's gonna be a handful for the driver to get to the track,
particularly in the lower gears.
So are you using any strategies through the ECU to help manage that?
- Yeah so we've got, yesterday in the wet weather we were using quite
aggressive throttle aim strategies, trying to pull some throttle blade
movement out of it in the first 50% to 70% of the throttle pedal movement,
just so we could get a nice even drive out of the corner.
And then today with a dry track and a bit more temp in the tyres,
we're basically running about the setting, about 22, 23 pound In first gear.
We're not using first, second, and only just a bit of third.
So we're running about 25 pound out of third and then it steps up to about
28 in fourth and then ramping towards, from about 6000 upwards we're all in.
- So basically just managing that torque delivery to try and optimise the amount
of traction available and not exceed that.
- Correct.
- Alright look it's been great to get a little insight into this car Ben,
and we look forward to seeing how it goes for the rest of today,
thank for giving us that insight.
- No dramas, thank you very much.
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