My Projects thread

[Nick J]

Sorry for bumping your thread Nick but with the snow being here I need a Nick J build thread fix

So what's in the pipeline Nick over the coming months

It's ok fella... I have acquired a few new project parts but haven't done much with them as yet so not really worthy of an update at the moment. But some parts will be fitted before our favourite summer show so it won't be too long before another update hopefully!

I agree with Southie, Been too long since the last update!!

Lol.... As above cheers!

Lol I know loads but that would be telling ;-)

You and me both....

Sssssssssshhhhhhhh both of you! Lol

Nick.

[Nick J]

Hi guys,

Apologies Its been a while! However Ive just come back from holiday so thought It was about time I got an update in. Other things have taken priority for a bit namely house decoration (decorating sucks!) . But I had been saving my spare cash for sometime in order to purchase some more parts with a good engine being a priority. Id been looking around for a while but as always its a minefield with old engines as most have been abused and or poorly treated/maintained. Many are out of the car so you cant see or hear them run either which isnt ideal! Then I got some info that a well spec'd nova turbo was possibly being broken so thought Id go take a look. Myself and the missus spent the weekend up at Andy Bishops in order for me to drop by and have a chat with Mark Beeson regarding his decision to split his nova seen below................





This was an ideal situation as the car was still complete I got to see/hear the engine run before it was removed and I also got to nosy round a few other parts that interested me too! History wise the engine came refreshed from Steve Milton in 2002 and as many know Steve knows his way round these engines. Its since been refreshed approx 2008 and only seen around 6k since according to Mark. The turbo had also been replaced with a hybrid unit from Turbo Techinics which was a bonus. For many years It only ran Genuine eds phase 2 so has never run huge amounts of boost either. A genuine eds 3.5 kit and Msd ignition replaced this a while back but again at least Its genuine and safe kit to run with the engine spec as it is. Still as always you take your chance with any motor and I know Mark likes to drive them hard but at least Its always been maintained and he certainly hasnt been shy spending on parts or custom work to achieve what he wanted with the car. Believe me their was a huge amounts of ££££ in receipts!!

So we discussed the above and what other parts Id like and came to a deal. A few weeks later once them parts had been removed myself and the mrs brother headed up to stoke in the in laws van with a pallet/ratchet straps to collect. A few parts were also left with Andy as Its only a small van. In the passing weeks I collected these along with some more parts Id since thought about and decided Id have also! In hindsight I think It would have been more beneficial to buy the car remove what I wanted and split the rest !

Engine home and filled with a few litres of tws I had sat around......









Genuine Eds phase 3.5 ecu with 3 bar map sensor/powerwheel and Msd ignition setup......





Huge amounts in receipts......





Engine spec....

- Re-built C20let by SBS.
- New bearings throughout
- Machined pistons
- Arp rod bolts
- Uprated Head gasket
- Bill Blydenstein Gas Flowed Coscast head
- Xe inlet cam with vernier pulleys.
- Hybrid turbo with cosworth -31 actuator
- Weber adjustable fuel reg
- Genuine Eds phase 3.5 ecu with 3 bar map sensor and powerwheel for adjustable boost
- Uprated high flow injectors
- Msd ingnition setup
- Bosch big power fuel pump with secondary swirl pump/pot also to prevent starvation under hard cornering/use etc.


Im sure it will be enough to keep me happy once installed as approx power is circa 300 according to Mark. Not that Im one to be bothered by figures but the above shot the car round the nurburgring in under 9 minutes so Im sure It will be fun!
Once home It was degreased/cleaned and filled with Tws motorsport (M3 oil) in an attempt to keep it healthy until the time Its ready to go into the nova. For anyone interested here's a video of the car using the engine at the nurburgring....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWWF2We3DvU

Big thanks to Ian,Rob,Rick,Andy & Emily and Mark for their help with the above.

More to follow..........

Nick.

[Benn]

As i said at the time, bloody good buy.

[Nick J]

A good idea when running a big block motor in a nova is to have good brakes....... Mark had wilwood midilites with custom brackets and machined bells using 310mm rotors. He had them machined down so they would fit under speedline allesios which was his wheel of choice without using any spacers. I thought these would be a good buy so snapped them up as well as the fuel pump/swirl setup. Another concern I had when looking at pics of my car was I kept thinking it looks a little plain although It is the look I wanted I felt it needed some spicing up from an exterior point of view so another part that came from Mark was the bonnet with the rare courtenay carbon fibre vents........





The discs that came with the brake setup were almost new so I gave the edges and a small area round the centre a wirebrush off and got them primed/painted......






The calipers and hoses were cleaned/degreased and they were then ready for fitting......





Lastly another set of parts Mark had which caught my eye were the hockley hub setup. The carriers were machined by Harry Hockley to suit bigger bearings and then use stock 16v drive flanges which make them a lot stronger and less likely to cause problems later. Apparantly Mark and Andy have had conversion flanges crack/snap/shear in the past under hard use which is why they opted for similar setups nowadays. Both cars have tried and tested these and even when being used hard they have lasted so I thought them a good buy. I then sold the conversion flanges I had which didnt far off pay for these which was handy.......





On another note I had this extremely well made rose jointed/shortened linkage to suit the F28 made up. Cheers to Grant for this as its top quality.....





I also needed a pot type flywheel to suit the F28 as Mark ran a flat type for the F20. I won this on ebay for £5! Later on I blasted it at work making sure the area for the clutch was well masked up. Came out very clean though.........





Again much more to follow I just need time to write it up!

Nick.

[MARTIN KELSON]

Some excellent buys there Nick
Such a shame he broke it but iam glad bits will live on. Radiator in mine actually

Look forward to more updates Nick.

[Southie]

A cracking build deserves a cracking engine, looking forward to the progress Nick

[gte-87]

Wow very nice looking very smart

[masseyk]

Top quality a usual Nick, I see another great read starting to develop!!!

Keith

[Adam]

Nice purchases Nick !

[Acerliam]

Looking very smart, great buy mate

Carnt wait until you get it fitted