rob83ke70

and what exactly is wrong with 1.3 litres?? (this is coming from someone with a 4k making maybe 120 horses) Robert.

not a very nice ending to all this. If you put a taller diff (higher gearing) in the car, it will be really slow to take off and won't accellerate really well, but if you put a shorter diff (lower gearing) in the car it will take off better but will rev higher when driving on the highway. If you work the 3k or 4k then it will want to rev higher than stock, and will LOVE the shorter diff. I'd reccommend a quiet(ish) exhaust should you go down this path. The ke55 we run does 4000rpm approx when on the highway with a 4speed box doing 100-110km/hr... not overly nice, but it takes off plenty fast down low, which is what we want it to do. You need to combine a close on stock larger capacity engine with a taller diff to bring the revs down. I wasn't keen on a 7k myself (can't bring myself to play with a 5k yet) because it seems to "van-like" for the corolla... Maybe a 4af or 2tc with taller gears?? why can't someone go all out and put a 2gr-fe out of an aurion (200kw) into their rwd ke corolla??? now THAT would be a nice highway car :S Robert.

hey I've been talking about this on another forum, and there seems to be mixed opinion as to the merit of heat wrapping exhaust extractors, one train of thought goes that this will contain heat in the exhaust pipe, which promotes greater gas speed and better scavenging, and also this reduces under bonnet temperatures, the other train of thought goes that this will cause the extractors to crack from overheating, and they will also corrode away faster, thus negating the benefits especially on a road-going car. Who here has exhaust wrapping, what are your headers made out of, and how long have you had them set up that way? I was thinking of buying a set of reasonable quality mild steel headers, and heat wrapping them (not for the corolla, for the dyna). Not quite sure about whether its worth going ceramic coated (bang for buck) but I'm thinking wrapping sounds good at this stage. I'm looking at reducing under-seat temperatures as much as possible. Robert.

Can I say I've seen failed NGK spark plugs!!! I have seen the centre electrode come loose in the insulator and drop down the plug to contact the ground electrode. No spark plug gap, no spark = CRV running on 3 cylinders. These were zfr6j-11 plugs. I think they are all pretty similar quality, denso's seem to be nicest though. Robert.

Can I add that I much rather 185/60r14 than my old 215/60r13... I might be giving 195/50r15 a go sooner or later as well. Robert.

I'm fairly sure 215/60r13 fits under a ke30 with the right offset.... JUST.... got to bash guards slightly... I've got a toyota dyna in the yard being rebuild and I've been eyeing off the g142 diff in it, thinking about when the 4agte goes into the ke20, a G series diff *seems* like a bit of overkill, but every ratio known to man in lsd or open centre is available for it and you couldn't kill one!! When the 4agte eventually happens I'm planning on making a GOOD job of it! Robert.

It might be worth making sure my inlet ports in the head are larger than the manifold and the extractors are larger than the exhaust ports. From what I gather (reading on the world wide web of bullshit) you can open up the roof and sides to match them but leave a lip on the floor of the port/header to prevent reversion. I've had a few people tell me port matching is a good thing... but they were talking about race engines, and my 4y is far from that!! Robert.

I'd just like to point out that as far as the rta is concerned, the end result is more important than how you got there. "removable" means something that you do not need tools to remove... if it is bolted in, it is "non-removable"... that is not to say it can't be removed though, if that makes sense. I call BS every time I see a K&N "non disposable" air filter sticker.... I say I can throw that air filter in the bin and dispose of it just as easy as any other filter I've ever come across!! I can't see ANY problems with that plate. Robert.

I'm now rather interested. I'm rebuilding a 2.2lt 4y engine (think larger upright 5k) with a 260 degree camshaft, and may be fitting extractors, and I'm thinking about matching the ports to the manifolds. definitely a good thing to match inlet manifolds to ports? its just the exhaust that we are a little iffy about? Found my nights worth of reading on google now :lolcry: thankyou Felix! Robert.

Keith (altezzaclub) and myself got a little keen and did some slight suspension modifications to the ke55. The leaf pack was removed, the smallest leaf on the bottom was removed, and half a leaf (originally the 2nd leaf from the top in another set of spring packs I had spare) was added upside-down to the top of the pack. Photos attached. Results: 20mm lower ride height, suspension slightly stiffer (with load on it sags to the same height as before) and zero axle tramp. Khanacross on sunday, should be rather interesting. 2.5kg has been taken off the flywheel as well, needless to say the engine spins up rather quickly now! Robert.

I have no problem with bosch plugs. I have no problem with ngk plugs. I work in a workshop that uses both. I'm not 100% sure that I have much of a problem with *most* champion plugs either. I'm NOT IMPRESSED with the original motorcraft plugs fitted to a ford 5.4 sohc v8 found in a BA falcon.... they have a shield/ground electrode type setup that goes around the insulator and also has the ground electrode over the tip, and they are a cone seat. Ford or Motorcraft stuffed up the design and when you go to remove them (service life 150k) you need to follow a VERY SPECIFIC method and if you are VERY LUCKY you won't break a plug leaving the bottom half (below the hex part) stuck firmly in the cylinder head. the ground electrode/shield and/or the insulator/tip assembly sticks in the head, which then requires some butchery, some ingenuity, a 9x1mm tap, a special threaded rod, and the largest slide hammer available to remove them.... I'm not impressed at all. Needless to say the plugs have been superceded and now look quite different, and there are service bulletins in the dealer world, the aftermarket world, and flying around the internet like crazy about this problem. I had to remove three plugs that had broken :lolcry: and motorcraft and autolite are the ONLY manufacturers who make these plugs at the moment. Ford dealer didn't even keep them in stock! I'd use a bosch wr8dc in a kettering corolla ignition system, and a wr8dcx in an electronic system (the gap is different). The bosch plugs have a grooved ground electrode like an ngk bpr5ey (y denotes a groove in the ground electrode). IMHO the champion plugs that are 13/16 hex don't seem to be that crash hot, but the 5/8 hex plugs seem to be pretty nice. I've fitted champion platinums to a few toyota v6's and they seem quite ok. NGK platinums are hideously expensive. On a side note, denso platinums (for an aurion 2gr-fe) are the nicest, best marketed flashest boxed spark plugs I've ever seen and I reckon they were probably worth the money (bought from toyota dealer). I've used bosch, denso/motorcraft, and ngk in the corolla and it always seems quite happy. The denso's were probably the best out of the three but it was pretty close and I don't have any problems with bosch. Robert.

all backpressure is bad full stop. but you need to maintain exhaust gas velocity or else you will lose power. thats how I understand it but EVERYBODY thinks they understand that differently. if you look into wrx exhausts, you will find that they achieve best power with 3" from the turbo to two thirds of the way down the car then they step it down to 2.5" for the last third including the muffler, leave it all straight through, and this is a tried and true wrx performance modification. You need to keep the exhaust gas speed, and as the hot gas cools down (the further it gets from the engine) the pipe diameter needs to decrease to maintain the same amount of gas speed. Feel free to correct me on anything, it is a free country :lolcry: Robert.

wonderful how a simple head gasket job gets more and more expensive the further you look :lolcry: Robert.

old pistons will be ok to re-use, new rings, rod bearings and gaskets obviously. Compression ratio is coming up from 8.8:1 to 9.5:1, ports will be matched to manifolds. camshaft is being reground (tighe 300at) and all clearances/measurements will be checked as I swiped a workshop manual from work for this engine. I have specs for oil pump wear, timing chain stretch, sprocket wear, and heaps of fun stuff now. Water pump is shot, so it will be replaced, and hoses will be at the very least inspected and fittings cleaned to ensure no more leaks. oil pump will be reused if within tolerances, with relief spring shimmed to increase pressure. a larger/better lpg mixer and a larger converter are definitely going on, and a kit will be going through the carburettor. all grime will be cleaned from engine, and I've already spent at least an hour straightening fins on the radiator and cleaning grass seeds and debris from it. I might get carried away and polish the timing cover whilst I'm at it :lolcry: Robert.

will be replacing both rings and bearings as they both show small signs of wear and I don't ever want to do this job again... Robert.

Can I also add that the engine in question is about 100-130k old and nothing appears visibly worn out other than the surface of the bores... The wide wide web of bullshit is not to be trusted however - you read scary things on american forums sometimes. Robert.

http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/cadil...um/t-91248.html Some interesting discussion as to whether to re-use piston rings there. I have an engine that has been "dusted" and has some oil consumption issues. Upon disassembly I have found the cross hatch to be scored and not very nice looking, but the rings and pistons seem ok. Is it possible to hone the cylinders with a bottle-brush type hone, and clean and reuse the rings? I will be probably replacing the cylinder head as well so there is no play in valve guides and there will be new valve stem oil seals so that will take care of oil consumption from that angle. Apparently bearings can not be reused successfully... its all just a thought at this stage, trying to rebuild an engine on a budget (and not have it blow up again either) Robert.

there should be a series (maybe three of them) of bolts on the gearbox somewhere, if you take them out, carefully, there should be a spring and ball bearing under each one... check the springs aren't broken and the ball bearings are there and aren't worn overly much... if that doesn't fix your problem you will need to pull the gearbox out of the car, dismantle, and probably replace the selector hub, three little tabs, and the springs that keep them in place. Good idea while its apart to lap the synchros in with a little bit of valve grinding paste. be sure to mark everything as to how it is all fitted because a lot of the time things look the same front and rear but are slightly different and you won't be able to get gears properly if you put a hub in back to front. make sure each gear fully engages before reassembly. of course this is NOT for the faint of heart... Robert.

basically, they have increased the premium for motorcycles to account for claims on car owner's ctp policies relating to when THEY crash into motorcycles.... third party personal injury insurance covers the THIRD PARTY... so why do they get to increase motorcyclists insurance when the increased claims are from the car drivers insurance... I haven't got anyone to tell me this exactly, let alone put it in writing... QBE went into panic mode and referred me to MAA who then told me that they don't have the "statistics" on which the policies and premiums are based on and I should talk to QBE.... I want this in writing dammit!!! Why should I as a motorcyclist pay for car's stupidity?? Robert.

and I own a car as well, so I've already paid a greenslip, now whilst I am riding the bike, I'm not driving the car so there fore there is one less car on the road..... but somehow I need to pay through the nose for more third party personal injury insurance... Seats don't matter, its just on engine size. my mate on his ct90 got $50 cheaper greenslips than myself on my ct110, go figure, its not like they are any different to ride - his probably went harder than mine because it wasn't worn out. My car is not that dear to insure!! Robert.

Brand new toyotas also are marked as dot 3 only. Robert.

they are obviously dumb. the statistics would show that fatalities increase in the event of multiple vehicle accidents involving motorcycles especially as the capacity of the motorcycle increases.... but who has the fatalities?? who gets the injuries??? OMG we ran over a motorcycle rider, and four of the five people in our big SUV need to make a claim on the greenslip for personal injuries but the motorcyle rider is perfectly ok... yeah right. Robert.

$500 give or take a little bit for a greenslip for my motorcycle.... isn't a greenslip supposed to cover people that you injure in an accident?? so basically I'm more likely to kill someone else if I have an accident with myself on the motorcycle and someone in a car... How does that figure???? doesn't the other guy's greenslip cover me in the event of an accident? Am I paying for everybody else's chance of hurting me? And somehow the price is extortionate only on the larger motorcycles... I find it really hard to believe that my chances of killing another person are increased by riding a 600cc bike over a 250cc bike... my chances of dying either way are pretty high though.... STUPID INSURANCE COMPANIES, they are as bad as fuel companies. Robert.

have a good look before taking it apart, if the play is in the differential gears not the crownwheel and pinion, you can buy new gears to replace them and take the slop out of them... Robert.

ke70 has pretty nice steering from memory as it is. I'd leave a stock ke70 rack in it. Robert