"Maxi Micra" project....by EBBdude.

[EBBdude]

Now the Maxi Micra has got a integrated rev counter in the instrument cluster and it was easy peasy to do.

Absolutely a bolt on and straight forward thing to do !

First you just remove the cover over the cluster of dials

2 screws is all that i needed to get it off

3 more screws and the cluster itself is loose from the dash

Now all that is neede to do is to unclip the speedo cable and the 3 cable connections

The speedo that Frank got for me is in mph and my old is km/h so i just switch the speedo itself back til km/h into the new housing and that is done by removing these 4 screws

Everything is back on and of course it had to be tested for function

The rev counter and the speedo show quite correct numbers as well being tested with different stuff afterwards.

Again a big THANKS to Frank that got this little avid Micra fan a real threat for Christmas

Jihaaa , now I can watch the needle go past by the scale again , again and again,,,every day.

But now I have to get myself to finish the presentation of the engine stuff as Santa Claus is soon to arrive …

 

[alexzaki]

Yeeeeey :laugh: (Y)

 

[EBBdude]

@alexzaki

just as you said it would be , bolt on fun

 

[alexzaki]

Just a quick question, why is the needle half black half white? You sprayed it or its just the light interference

Here:

See ya,
Alex

 

[Glen]

hes hiding his mileage

 

[1275]

Just a quick question, why is the needle half black half white? You sprayed it or its just the light interference

Here:

See ya,
Alex

The answer is in a photo higher up

Edit: Glen beat me

 

[EBBdude]

Actually no , i am not hiding it,,,,,i have lost it
Just kidding,,,,i feel that it is best to leave the mileage out of the public view and if you ask me why,,,,,well thats just me

 

[alexzaki]

:grinning:

 

[MrMigs08]

Ahh awesome EBB, just plain awesome, tell ya though man, still itching to see the new power figures! Stop having so much fun already

 

[Scott]

So have you fitted the cylinder head? or did you just have a spare one to work with?

 

[EBBdude]

@Alexzaki
Jihaaa !

@Mr migs
i am going to wrap up the engine stuff quite soon and present the results and i hope they will be good reading )

@sjackson
You just have to wait and see,,,,all will be revealed:blues:

 

[baguete]

1.0 gearbox eh... :laugh:

 

[EBBdude]

@Baguete

No , everything is 1,3.
Engine and gearbox

The engine will easily rev 8500 in 1,2,3 gear whenever i want it too.....

 

[EBBdude]

Puh , now it is not more than a couple of updates on the Evo assembly build and then the Dynapack Santa Claus will bring gifts in form of results

But first some more stuff of the Evo cylinderhead build :

I have reached the spot where to adjust the valves and their heights underneath the lifters / cams.
Using my log of collected datas of height before i started and then it is just a question of some plus & minus to find the desired height ot get my valve clearances.

Here i rough cut the lenght in the lathe

Looks about like this after that

Fint my little diy ” jig ” to hold the head while i work with it

Drop in my lifter and cams and sett he caps to hold it

Find my gauge blades

All that is left now is to measure

And grind accordingly what i need to remove of the top of the valve stem.

Then in the end i will get my valve clearances.

But how will I then go about adjusting my valve clearances later on you may wonder ?

Easy peasy…remember these ?

I have sett he height of the valves in a sort of ” medium “ mode so that I can just turn/grind the heights ( in limited thicknesses ) of the lifter to make it a shimless bucket type ( like Toyota etc ) to the needed height to get new valve clearances neede in the future of servicing the engine.

When needed I drop the right height lifter into the lifter bores where it will give me the right clearance.

I can also Tig-weld in a blob underneath the lifte and then accordingly grind the desired height in that way. It is all about creativity and thinking outside the box !

One of the last things i check is sufficient clearance for valve spring at full lift.

Doing that by using a blade-gauge at desired thickness ( 1 mm ) and stick it under the camlobe at full lift. If there is no bind at full lift + 1mm then all is good to go…

My valves are now adjusted to specs , I have higher pressure at the springs , my lifter are light shimless and all I have to do now is to surface grind the cylinder rhead and some other small bits and bobs.

Here is the Evo head in my surface grinder

Work in progress

The last wash before assembly

So NOW i am ready to put all this mess together……and wait for Santa

 

[Liio]

Whooop, glad you are at the stage now of assembling it all, will look forward to watching the next few steps to see it all come together

:grinning:

 

[alexzaki]

Sorry for off topic, i just had to do it

[video=youtube;HWv72L4wgCc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWv72L4wgCc[/video]

:laugh:

 

[MrMigs08]

Haha, now line some micras up, and perform the song with different RPM levels and you have a proper video

 

[pollyp]

like what james may did afew yrs back^

 

[baguete]

@Baguete

No , everything is 1,3.
Engine and gearbox

The engine will easily rev 8500 in 1,2,3 gear whenever i want it too.....

You should be able to hit more speed at 8.000rpm...

 

[EBBdude]

@Lio
it coming it coming...wery soon

We should arrange a concert of Micra sounds.
Frank will be front singer and Baguete is the composer

@Baguete
i do have a different true " realtime " speed , the picture is with winter tires

EDIT :
@baguete
here is a example :
if you have a tire dimension : 155 / 70-13 and speedo shows 100 km/t and changes to a 175/70-13 tire then the speedo will show 5.1 % lower speed so you speedo then will show 94.9 km / h.

So if am am running a 175/70-13 at 8200 rpms and speedo shows 108 km/h then the actual speed is 108 x 5.1% = 113,5 km/h

Same if you are running a 0-100 km/t test:

155/70-13 = 100 km/h showing on speedo then same 0-100 test with 175/70-13" is actual speed 100 x 5.1 % = 105.1 km/h even if the speedo shows 100

If you want to compare 0-100 km/h numbers then they will always have to be done giving up info on what tire dimension one uses....

 

[superls]

great work there, your work should inspire us all, it has me, ive now secured my new winter project, and its all thanks to you lol.

 

[EBBdude]

@Superls
Good that you have a project to work on,,,,,,its best to have just one

 

[EBBdude]

Jiha , now the ” Evo ” cylinderhead is soon finished.

Ready to be assembled

Measuring the old oil-gallery plugs

Turning a piece of aluminum

To desired diameter

2 small plugs ready to be put into head

Some Locktite and smack in they go

Stuck in there.

Some new valve-seals

Using my pneumatic tool for assembly

Locks go in

Voila , their in.

In goes my modified lifters

Cylinderhead ready to go back into the car again

Last update before Dynapack session will be son….

 

[Stani1029]

Oh yes, cannot wait!

 

[Guy]

This is mega exciting (Y).

 

[EBBdude]

Thanks for looking all

It could be that i will have the time to show some numbers before Christmas,,,but i am not sure if that will happen yet ,,,you just have to keep looking

 

[alexzaki]

Good work Erik, wish everything will be as you'r expecting and more (Y)

 

[EBBdude]

@alexzaki

it is

 

[baguete]

Nice work, when will it be installed on the car?

 

[EBBdude]

@baguete
It has been running for in this state, i think it is for 5 weeks now



Now it is going to be wrapped up and some results are waiting :

My DIY modified pistons go in.

( nope , no new piston rings or bearings,,,will explain why later )

New head gasket and torque + degrees on head bolts

My DIY modified camshafts og in and set at my desired degrees

Controlling sufficient clearance between valves / pistons at different lifts

New Super 4 sparkies with “ Maxi “ end gap

I am , for the moment keeping the modified OEM ex-manifold ( tell you why later ) have only adjusted the size of the ports a bit

Have adjusted the gasket to match the ports with a die grinder.

Found some 1,6 Almera injectors that I will force to work with oem Ecu and an elaborate fuel pressure adjustments system together with some minor twisting of details.

Then the time has come to shut the lid on this

Almost ready for restart after process

Exept from my loudspeaker trumpet it is almost impossible to see the difference between stock and modified engine stuff.

Here is aso a litte video of the "Evo " cylinderhead build:

[video=youtube;35JiQ5iBT64]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35JiQ5iBT64[/video]

Result from the complete process will follow soon....

 

[pollyp]

now this is gonna be epic(Y)

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Hi EBB
Just been pointed towards your blog and must add my praise to all your hard work and success so far.
Quick question for you, will the 'edges' on the cam buckets (the hole in middle and the remains of the shim retaining lip) have any negative effects on the camshaft lobes? Are you going to increase the amount of oil delivered to overcome this?
We use the cga3 engine in our rally car, this engine has shimless buckets as standard and we run a rev limit on that of 7800 or there-abouts. It has standard valves and springs. When it was being set up the dyno operator advised not to go too far above 8200 because he heard noises that he interpreted as valve float. Seeing as the power is sloping down at that point it isn't an issue for us, but it'll be interesting to see what yours does at big rpm.
Big thumbs up (Y) so far.

 

[will930]

nice one well lets get it reved up or at kleast hope it runs lol

 

[EBBdude]

@polly P
Not epic , just your regular diy maniac

@chickenwahooo
Thamks for comment and looking at the project

in fear of answering to shallow regarding yor question ; No
It has not been or are at the MAxi Micra an issue , regarding your question of the lifters.

When it comes top power beyond 7200 rpm it is quite obtainable to produces strong power curves further up than that but you need very strong camshaft numbers on it , alomost like a 7-eleven = 24 /7 opening degrees

The MAxi Micra project is solely based on STOCK OEM parts
( exept the valves , but could have use some Almera as weel if i wanted to and then it would be a stock Nissan part ) to get the results that i am looking for.

There is no luxury parts like 312 dgr / 12 mm lift cams , valves with " globe " profile , forged pistons with pockets and low friction superthin springs , separate throttle bodies , tuned lenght ex-manifold etc etc.

Just plain STD parts with some personal creativity as a driving force to acheive some better results than it came from the factory.

I do rev the Maxi to 8600 rpms and there is no valvetrain " noise " at all as i have heard.
But keep in mind that reving that high doesnt give any power benefits.
It only gives you a way of hitting the power band at a different spot at gearchanges and if that is what one prefer then all is well

EDIT ; BY the way , just saw your dyno-vid ; What ccm3 is yor engine with the throttle bodies , Tomei cams , emerald , mex-mani etc ?

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Hi EBB

Sorry, took a while to figure out how to post a picture again!

On the video the car had the 'old' cg13 engine, which had standard internals and was 1275cc, the graph from that is below.



The 'new' engine is a cga3 which is 1348cc and also standard (pistons/valves/crank/etc) but with the same Tomei cams, ITBs exhaust etc. On the dyno it gave very little extra power, I think it ended up at about 97bhp at the wheels (about 125/130 flywheel bhp) but it had loads more torque, 10ft/lb more in places, with a much flatter torque curve.

 

[EBBdude]

@chickenwahoo

Thank you for info

So what i see is a car with : a 1348 ccm3 engine with Tomei cams , separate throttle bodies on special inlet manifold , tuned lenght ex-manifold , exhaust system , Emerald Ecu producing in the end about 94 hp.
Good job

 

[frank]

some more compression would help the lb/ft eh EBB ?
(they,re 75 lb/ft stock iirc )

 

[EBBdude]

@Frank
Well , to be honest , i have never seen a stock 1,3 or for that matter 1.0 EVER shown numbers on a Dynapack or rolling road , as presented from Nissan regarding torque.
They are never ever near the proclaimed bit over 100 Nm.

Usually a 1,3 will pump out somewhat in the 86-89 Nm a tops no matter how little mileage they have run. Some 1,3 will even drop dead at the 80 Nm mark.
Most 1.0 end up having somewhere in between 69-75 Nm in stock form.

I have also rearly ever seen any micra , at least with truthful documentation , over 115 Nm at the flywheel at 1,3 liter volume and NA.

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Hi again Frank, long time no speak, you good?
We did consider more compression, but in the end it is a budget rally car (if there is such a thing) and forged piston weren't justifiable (didn't think about filling the standard pistons or head bowls! :blush.
We always do pretty well, Abi (with the Micra kit car) usually beats us, but not by much so much now. If we could afford to put new tyres on for every event, that would make the biggest difference. We try and get as much use out of the slicks as possible, which isn't the best way to set fast times. It's such a buzz catching and overtaking cars in classes above us that we shouldn't really be competative with, let alone overtaking.
As you said EBB, Micras are very under-rated.(Y)

 

[Vitus992]

Amazing blog Ebb, keep it coming.

 

[MrMigs08]

Hmm curious EBB, i know you work with other cars, but how many cars often follow the documentation? Surely its just a means to advertise big numbers for most companies right?

Also, odd question i know, but what will valve float/bounce actually sound like?

Cheers,

Migs

 

[chickenwaahoo]

So is torque, when measured at the wheels, subject to transmission loss same as bhp?
If so, our 85tf/lb (115N/m) looks pretty good, no?

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Also, odd question i know, but what will valve float/bounce actually sound like?

The guy that did our set up (as on the dyno print and can recommend them if your down that way) listens to the engine with a pair of ear defenders adapted to effectively become something like a doctors stethoscope. This, he says, is the best way he has found to detect knock/detonition. The sound he thought was valve float he likened to a small ball bearing bouncing around in the top of the engine at high engine speed.

 

[frank]

So is torque, when measured at the wheels, subject to transmission loss same as bhp?
If so, our 85tf/lb (115N/m) looks pretty good, no?

the stock CGA is listed at 88lb/ft eh chickenwaahoo, and i think many people are very disappointed when they fit cams but dont raise the C/R to suit, (the 2mm headskim made a big difference to the grunt on my CGA) :grinning:

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Yeah but no but yeah but no, our 85 to 90ft-lbs is at the wheels?

 

[frank]

Yeah but no but yeah but no, our 85 to 90ft-lbs is at the wheels?

sounds healthy eh (Y) but 9.5 C/R is pretty low for a competition engine eh (and you dynamic C/R may have dropped to about 8:1 with those tomei,s in ?)

 

[chickenwaahoo]

You're not wrong mate, but if I could change anything it would be to do a job on the cam chain wheels like yours or Eriks, I think there would be more gains made on this engine by retarding the inlet cam than raising the cr. But that would mean another half day on the rollers to get it perfect, it all adds up.
Our Tomei cams are really only a fast road cam, so upping the cr wouldn't make that much difference.

 

[EBBdude]

@vitus992
Thanks for looking

@mr Mig
when it comes to Hp and Nm numbers from factories the main problem is not the numbers but the share volume of different measuring devices ( read ; Dynos ) that approach the values out there.

The factories is supposed to be accurate but accurate compared to what ?
How many of us , enthusiasts , know what is the reference measuring device ( dyno ) that the factories use themselves and knowing the share volume of different makes and production lines out there one surely can see the problem

I have run quite a few cars in Dynapacks , Rolling roads ( 2 and 4 wd types ) engine dynos etc and you would be amazed to see how many times one can realy sit down and wonder how some of these numbers came about.

Have had at least 25 brand new cars on the Dynapack and compared numbers and to say the least ; somewhere along the route from the factory floor to the user things will change or simply doesnt exsist. But on the other hand , sometimes there will be even higher numbers than the factory proclaims

But i think that the best medicine is to just accept that this is how it is and will be for as long as there are so many differnt devices or "references ".

In my opinion you can measure the same car at 5 different places and get 5 different numbers and thats ok as long as you make up your mind of as which poison you want to use as your reference.

Using the same device ( dyno ) as you go along with your own project is what i think is the most important , not if your power numbers get skyhigh , but what the exact gains are along your path of development.

In that way you get a TRUE realtime story of your work from start to finish

By the way , valve bounce can actually be heard in different ways , depending on valvetrain design...


But now i have to concentrate to wether i should present some more details before my results , as numbers keep rising here at the MAxi Micra ,,,,,grumble ,grumble.. :grinning:

 

[chickenwaahoo]

Hi Erik

The power graph above is for the 1275cc engine, I don't have the 1348cc print-out but power was up by about 4bhp and torque up by about 10 to 15ft-lbs all measured at the wheels. :grinning:

Have the con-rods remained stock on the maxi engine? No different nuts and bolts?

 

[EBBdude]

Here is some results :


The ” Evolution ” parts are finished and the Maxi Micra has gone through lots of more Dynapack action.

But let us forst see what I have achieved so far in this project :

Started out with the MAxi pumping out these stock numbers :

51, 1 Hp @ 5370 rpm ( @ hubs )
79,4 Nm @ 2850 rpm ( @flywheel ))

Then i made a spacer , some modification to a stock ex-manifold and some grinding in the throttle body.
That gave me these results :

60,9 Hp @ 5737 rpm ( @ hubs )
98.1 Nm @ 3559 rpm ( @ flywheel )

Result :
+9,8 hp from original
+18,7 Nm from original

Percentage increase in Hp = 19 %

Then i made som adjustable camsgears ans fiddling with some ignition timing
68,7 Hp @ 6400 rpm ( @ hubs )
99,6 Nm@ 3465 rpm (@ flywheel )

Result:
+ 17,7 Hp from original
+ 20.2 Nm from original

Percentage increas Hp = 34 %

All this without bying / installing a single high performance part from the shelf.

SO NOW THE LAST RESULTS :

My cams , pistons , inlet ,cylinderhead , all DIY modified + the old ex-manifold is to be tested to find out if they contributed with some more positive results.

These are the parts that I have modified / worked with :

Here is the results , for now , in Hp and you can see the original power graph as well

and for Nm with a original for compare.

( if anyones wonder why the pulsation in Nm graph,,,,well thats what you get using a stock engine management and that’s fine for me as I am going to install a modified version of the old ECU soon and fix things up a bit in that matter. )

So then i have ( for the time being ) :

87,54 Hp @ 6700 rpm ( @ hubs ]
94,8 Nm @ 4000 rpm ( @ flywheel )

RESULT :
+36,4 Hp from original
+15,4 Nm from original

Percentage increase in Hp = 71 %

71 % percent in power output using ONLY OEM Nissan parts !!!!

( could add that i managed to squezee out 90,2 Hp @ hubs going to the far wild end of the camgear position hunting down more power in upper region but not to usable for a daily driven car so i setteled for 87,4 in the end as a compromize that i could live with )

The Maxi Micra has now rolled on the street for soon to come 6 weeks , covered more than 1500 km as shown with the “ Evo “ setup.

It works perfect in city driving , rides fine on longer trips ( 500 km t/rt )and is willing to rev 8500 rpm+ anytime of the day.

Nothing has broken down , no wear on camshafts , its start just as fine in minus 10 dgr C as when warm and almost to good to be true has even now quite good mileage.

Needs 98 octane fuel though but that is available straight from the pumps here so no problemas.

Here is a clip showing the new potensial on a 0-100 km / h ( actual 0-102,7 km /h )

[video=youtube;W5ISii2f3kQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5ISii2f3kQ[/video]
Maxi Micraen has now cut in half the time it used as a stock car on this test.

But the Maxi Micra doesn’t stop here , there is more to come and the numbers on the graph is lalready reaching new peaks.

More in a bit