Originally Posted by
ostpol76
I own a Caterham Super Seven with an CVH 1.6L RS Turbo Motor:
Pics don't work (for me?)
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
Here some information. The engine is built 91 and has now 86000 km. I drive with the Caterham approx. 12000 km per year on public roads and partake in about 3 mountain races.
1991? Is it a Escort RS Turbo (Bosch KE-Jetronic MFI) or a Fiesta RS Turbo (Ford EFI) unit?
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
1. Honing cylinders to oversize for forged piston.
(Which piston would you prefer? Mahle, Accralite, Wössner, Wiseco or something else)
All of those companies do have a good name. You might consider price and a product that fits your needs before you think about the name.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
2. Fine balance the crankshaft together with the flywheel. Possibly lighter flywheel.
(Is a weight loss on the crankshaft worth it or is it at the expense of longevity? Is the light flywheel form Burton Power recommendable?)
The crank drive weight is always a compromise between daily use, reliability and power. But as you mention you already struggle with power delivery, not lightening these parts might be a good decision considering driveability of the car.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
3. H-con rod from Farndon EN24V.
(These are very expensive. I think a little overdone for 220 hp. Are there good alternatives?)
Waste of money IMO. A firend of mine ran his 1,8 CVH with 300 hp or more with standard conrods.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
4. Cylinder head Stage 3 from Burtonpower.
It's not rocket science. Any decent company in Switzerland doing engines can do all these modifications. Plus you save a lot of money on shipping to the UK and on custom duty.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
5. ARP stud bolt.
Won't hurt.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
6. Head gasket for 8.0:1 compression (or am I wrong with the compression?)
Standard c/r should be fine for what you want to have.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
7. adjustable camshaft sprocket
Always makes sense on the CVH, even on a standard engine because you'll always have tolerances as the pulleys have fixed positions on the camshaft and the crankshaft. Plus a lot of aftermarket camshafts need additional timing.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
Not a KentCam one.
Because of its design, the CVH suffers from camshaft wear. Without the right material, processing and hardening the camshaft won't last long. I've read a lot of horror stories - also here - about CVHs with aftermarket camshafts, especially KentCam ones. Some say Newman sell the best quality and in the CVH they last quite well.
As we're not in the UK there are some other options as well. Schrick is said to be one of the best manufacturers of camshafts. Might need a special quote for a CVH camshaft on their classic range. Dbilas also had a good name in engine parts an camshafts for decades. Might be worth considering.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
9. Roller Rocker Arms (Harland Sharp).
Waste of money.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
A colleague of mine develops and sells control units and is an expert in this field, I will "convert" it completely to electronic fuel injection and ignition.
That's a must. There aren't many companies left that are able to tune the RST engines (no matter if MFI or EFI) and (mostly?) all of them are in the UK.
Originally Posted by
ostpol76
I'm not sure what to do with the turbo yet. But here I have to change something, because the turbo lag bothers me the most. Under 3000 rpm nothing works at all. Cause there is very little space in this area (in the millimeter range) it is very difficult to find something off the rack that fits. That's probably why I have to continue using the "old" one. I have read that Turbo-Berlin, Turbos can revise. They use ball bearings and mill an aluminum compressor wheel to get it up to speed faster.
That'll be done later. First I want a solid "basis" engine.
That's just what you'd expect when having an old turbocharger. Even people with a MK1 Focus and the newer Garret GT charger often change for a modern unit. And it probably a custum made manifold makes much more sense than trying to learn a T3 some new tricks.
