A Moment Of Silence...

This morning on Facebook I learned that one of the biggest fans of the R33 GT-R, Alexander Gorodji, had suddenly recently passed away.

Many of us, myself included, never had a chance to meet him in person, but his legacy will live on in this:

If you haven't read it yet, highly recommended. One of the few books/articles out there that doesn't denigrate the R33, or in fact any of the cars - it's written properly, meaning that it shows how awesome each of the GT-Rs were for their particular era.  Written by a true fan of all the cars, I think.

Sean Morris also has more information about Mr. Gorodji here.

Rest In Peace, fellow R33 Otaku.

Breaking News! NISMO Omori Factory to Develop a BCNR33 Demo Car

Ladies and Gentlemen, Friends and All R33 GT-R fans,

Something close to the unbelievable has happened... maybe all of our efforts and patience has paid off!?

So my friend Paul Miller told me that the latest GT-R Magazine (Vol 121, March 2015) was now on sale, with a BCNR33 on the cover.  Following what appears to be the general trend (or perhaps they are responsible for it?)  the magazine's recent focus up until now was the R32 and R34, and then when the R35 was released, a few successive issues on the R35, so naturally I haven't been a big reader lately. (Although, I will admit the magazine started in 1994 and thus covered the 32 and 33 in depth back then.)  Plus, all the products they feature for the cars all have the GT-R tax so that annoys me as well.

Needless to say, I was surprised that GT-R Magazine featured the R33 GT-R so prominently...and the title... "The Truth about the BCNR33: 20 Year Anniversary Special Project."

This issue features several stories on the development of the R33 GT-R, for example the goals of the engineering and design teams. I plan to scan in (and maybe translate or at least summarize) those pages later, but many of the photos are the same as can be found in the "I Love R33 GT-R" Mook from which I also sourced my research on how the R33 GT-R improved upon the R32 GT-R.

There are also some interviews from notable figures such as Niikura-san at Mine's, Mukai-san at HKS Kansai on what they think of the R33 GT-R, an editorial from racing driver (and test driver for the 400R) Takayuki Kinoshita, and reflections by R33/R34 chief product engineer Kozo Watanabe.  Also a spot light on current Nismo driver, Tsugio Matsuda who owns a red R33 GT-R, silver 400R, and just recently bought a white 260RS.

Anyway - what got me excited was the following article, and the topic of this post.  This news is too good to keep in Japanese only, so here is the article, found on page 38-41  (my rough translation of the article follows- also sorry for the iPhone photos, did not have time to properly scan):

Nismo Omori Factory 

BCNR33 20th Anniversary Project

Aiming for a 21st Century GT Car

Building the Supreme 33

Nismo Omori Factory has, in celebrating 20 years from the birth of the BCNR33 Skyline GT-R, begun work on a new project.  With the concept of a "Grand Touring Car," they will make a demo car from the ground up.  

This will be the first time ever Omori Factory tries this on a BCNR33.  

Also, it is rumored that it is possible a new 2.8L spec RB engine will be created. 

What kind of machine will this be? A magnificent project is now, beginning.

Article:

A new plan to celebrate its 20th anniversary; emphasis on "grand touring"

Nismo Omori Factory - the "head temple" of Nismo's direct sales pro-shops.  Omori Factory has now embarked on a new project for the BCNR33 Skyline GT-R, which has seen 20 years from its release.

Readers of this magazine should remember the BNR32 Skyline GT-R project we followed all last year. The theme of that project was, "by refreshing [Japan speak for rebuilding] the BNR32 demo car,  to return the knowledge gained in some form to owners."  

Specifically, the plan for the machine was "a grand touring car for adults" and so the demo car's track focused spec, was changed along with its rebuilding. Also, with Nissan Motor Company's complete support, they were able to conduct "chassis torsion rigidity tests" on the almost completely stripped down chassis.  By conducting a test that is normally done when the car is new, they were able to check the body rigidity.

What resulted from the above test was the "carbon aluminum honeycomb kit menu." By installing this they were successful in greatly improving the body rigidity, and racing driver Seiji Ara who test drove the car was shocked at the result.

Also, as a grand touring car emphasis was placed on quietness, which lead to the development of the "floor sound dampening kit menu." So this project can be said to have resulted in a "21st century BNR32" giving rise to a new direction for Nismo Omori Factory's second generation GT-R menus [Japan speak for a series of optional parts].

So, in the BCNR33's case, in what particular direction will this project take? Nismo Omori Factory's Mr. Yusuke Mori, who will be the key man for this project, says the following:

"We are not at the stage yet where we can talk about what we do in particular, but with respect to this BCNR33 as well, we will be completely rebuilding it, and checking on the supply of OEM parts.  Also with regards to the machine itself, we would like to aim for "adult grand touring car" like we did with the BNR32."

The BCNR33 has, amongst the second generation GT-Rs, superlative grand touring abilities. So this advantage will be improved upon. What kind of spec will a reborn "Heisei-era" grand tourismo be? We eagerly look forward to this.

On the other hand, the "coach" for this project, Nismo Omori Factory's Mr. Masao Sasaki, says this:

"When I transferred from the racing world to the business world, the BCNR33 was the most exciting. I was allowed to participate in parts development and testing as well as the 400R. There were so many new discoveries.  I still remember thinking "the huge difference between a racing car and a production car" for example on the weight of the drive shaft."

For this project, Omori Factory purchased a BCNR33 as the base (see details below). The enthusiasm for this was more than the usual.  Also this time, in addition to the rebuild they will be investing in a new engine. While still at the planning stage, at present time it is anticipated to have a capacity of 2.8L.

"As a grand touring car, we should at least have an engine with increased capacity, one that can go on long drives at high speed with ease.  We would like to aim for that kind of spec" says Morita.

When one thinks of a 2.8L BCNR33, we always envision the 400R, though?

"While the capacity would be the same as the 400R, this will have a different flavor from that machine. In any case, we would love to promote a new item to BCNR33 owners."

page 40:
Purchased a 33 as the base for the demo car. Begin development on a new engine!

To inaugurate this project, Nismo Omori Factory purchased a BCNR33.  This is the first BCNR33 demo car for Omori Factory since they opened in 1997.

The car chosen as a base for the demo car is a 1996 (chuki, Series 2) V-spec.  Color is the rare dark grey pearl (and the car's odometer shows 91,000 kms).   This is not a stock car, as it has an aftermarket engine oil cooler, coilover suspension and mufflers, etc.  On the day of the photoshoot, our first impression was "other than the body color, at first glance an ordinary BCNR33." Sasaki-san describes the story behind its purchase.

"We elaborately checked the condition of the under chassis, confirming there was no rust. It wasn't excessively tuned, and didn't look worn out; these criteria were also deciding factors."

The day of the photoshoot the engine had already been removed, and looking into the engine bay, we did not see any rust or evidence of a large accident.  As a foundation, this specimen is fantastic.

Sasaki-san, as the coach for the previous similar project, supported Morita-san who decided on the specifications and the actual construction.  Morita-san is actually a mechanic who knows how to "drive" having owned an ECR33 Skyline and then an M35 Stagea.  We can expect great things from his future activities.

So, what kind of schedule will be followed? Also, like in the BNR32's case, will a new menu (of parts) be created? Morita-san says:

"This time, we will work on the engine too, and so the work is anticipated to take longer than last time. While checking the availability of OEM parts, we are thinking about how to mix items we have already developed, with items that will have to be newly developed. We imagine a schedule where we are not rushed, and can take breaks and look back."

According to Morita-san, expected completion date would be fall of next year [this was at the time of the photo shoot so I think this means 2015? I will find out from Nismo...lol].  Of course, during this time not all work will be focused on the BCNR33, new items for the BNR32 and BNR34 will continue to be developed in parallel.  The (Nismo Omori Factory demo) BNR32 that we covered up until the last issue, still has to get its suspension sorted out.

The work that has been scheduled in the near future, will be a complete dismantling of the body, with a complete repaint.  The body color will be changed to the same as that on the BNR32 demo car, that is, the R35 OEM color of "dark metal grey." With this, all of Omori Factory's demo cars will be the same body color.  Lastly, Sasaki-san says:

"The BCNR33 has superior high speed capabilities, and is superior in space utility to the BNR32 and BNR34. It is a GT-R with extremely magnificent potential.  As Nismo Omori Factory, we are aiming to create a package that can be properly called a Grand Touring Car. In any case we will not likely have another large scale project like this for a while.  Please look forward to the result."

Finally - the BCNR33 Skyline GT-R 20th anniversary project has begun. Will the new engine's name be the "RB-X GT3" in homage to the 400R? Will the exterior be kept standard, or will it be outfitted with Nismo aero parts? Will there be new parts developed, like the "Carbon Aluminum Honeycomb Kit Menu"?  As GT-R Magazine we are all consumed with interest.  We plan on reporting, in parallel, the body rebuild along with the new engine development. Don't miss it!

Page 41:
The Theme of this Project is "Grand Touring Car"

The Chosen Base Car is a Series 2

First photo caption: The new demo car is a 1996, chu-ki (Series 2) V-Spec. Mr. Yusuke Morita, in charge of the project, said "before beginning work we test drove it and the condition was not bad."

Under the three photos: The interior, other than the HVAC controls having been moved, is mostly stock.  Amazingly, it has the optional knee pads. The odometer shows 91,000 kms, this appears to be actual. The above right photo shows the seat removed, but the floor is also very clean. Below the trunk, there was no rust apparent. The engine bay showed aftermarket air cleaners and an engine oil cooler that fits behind the center grill.

Bottom right two: The Key Men of this Project
(left) Nismo Omori Factory: Mr. Masao Sasaki.  Following the previous project, Sasaki-san again assumes the role of "coach" this time.  He will be the advisor for determining this project's concepts and the development of new products. He has special memories with regards to the BCNR33.

(right) Nismo Omori Factory: Mr. Yusuke Morita.  He is a Nismo Technical Master.  For this project, he will be in charge of deciding the specifications and doing the actual work. He has experience in heavy maintenance, including chassis rebuilding, on dozens of BCNR33s.

Bottom left, thin red frame:  Seat Covers for the BCNR33, expected sale date in mid February.
In addition to the seat covers now available for the BNR32, plans are to offer this for the BCNR33 as well. These will be designed to match the interior of the BCNR33.  Details in the next issue.

First Post for 2015: Sound Clip of the Blitz E-ESC

First, Happy New Year Everyone! 2015 will be a good year for mods, I have lots planned so whether I have the time to do stuff will be the main problem! 

Second, I had gotten some requests for a video/sound clip of the Blitz E-ESC electronic exhaust valve in action.  Unfortunately it may be a bit hard to tell the difference due to the limited sound recording capabilities of my iPhone, but I think you can somewhat tell the difference. Incidentally, it seems MUCH more quiet from INSIDE the car, but that's probably because one gets used to the drone of the Tomei exhaust at engine speeds above 1200 (so basically all the time) and then all of a sudden when the car is at a light and the revs drop to 1000... silence (ok so it's relative but heck the wife was surprised...)

You will see from the video that what Ninomiya-san (who installed the E-ESC) told me is correct - basically there is no difference in sound from about 20% open all the way to 100%. There is a drastic difference however once the valve closes to 15% or less... here in the video you can hear, when the valve is open at only 5%, the engine sounds that remain at idle, and additionally you can also see that the exhaust smoke (it was really cold outside when I shot the video) diminishes as well.

Enjoy!

Silent Running... or Am I Going to Damage The Engine?

By now, everyone knows that the Tomei Powered EXPREME titanium exhaust which I fitted to my car (after having served as the jig during the design of the EXPREME exhaust) is loud. In fact, for use in Japan, the exhaust is labelled as for off-road use only.  Clearly it does not have the JASMA sticker which would indicate it passes certain criteria to be considered "street legal."

In any case, the loudness does me no favors - if I want to leave my house early, or come home late, it wakes up the neighbors.  Of course I use the Tomei supplied bung, but it still doesn't really quiet it to the level of a regular road car.  And of course, the bung defeats the purpose of a race exhaust, as it means I run around with a half blocked exhaust.

Of course I'd run the car without the bung, and the response is noticeably improved.  It makes the connection between right foot and engine, extremely direct.

So basically, I got tired of the compromise known as the "exhaust bung"

This lead me to some research. I quickly learned that A'PEXi had produced a manual, wire operated "Exhaust Control Valve":

However, not only is there no cool factor, but the prospect of having to drill a hole somewhere, plus the need to always think about whether the valve was fully open or closed, was too much for me. I needed something automatic.

And then I saw an article in GT-R magazine for a product that appeared to be designed for the R35 - the Blitz E-ESC.

Basically, this is a fully programmable, motorized exhaust valve - it combines a motorized version of the A'PEXi valve:

From: http://www.blitz.co.jp/products/exsystem/eesc/e_esc.html

 With a computer brain and a controller:

Normally I might do the install myself, but I figured the scraped knuckles, and time away from family was not worth it.

So off to Be Ambitious, where Ninomiya-san did his usual great job.  I also consulted him for some other work, which will likely end up done and thus posted to this blog.

The view tonight as I picked up the car

There was also something else very weird he was working on....

Ninomiya-san, however, warned me that he thought that this device had the potential to damage the engine, due to back pressure caused by the valve in its closed position.  Further he explained, basically there was no difference in exhaust sound, from about 20% to 100%.  Which meant that any value to this device, would be from 0% to 15%.

However, at 0% the valve is closed, and the only avenue for the exhaust to escape is a small hole:

He felt that running around with the valve in this position, would cause premature wear on the engine, with the increased back pressure. There would be no advance warning either.

So he set up the device so that it would fully open at 1200 rpm. Granted, my idle is about 900-1000 rpm, so this device is closed at 0% only when I am idling, at a stop light. As soon as I step on the gas, the valve opens up to 100%.

I don't have a sound clip yet, but from driving the car home tonight, yes the car is ridiculously quiet at red lights. In fact so quiet if I didn't hear the engine noise I would wonder if the car was on.  I played with the unit a bit, and while 0% is extremely quiet, at 15%, even 20%, the car is quieter than before with the bung inserted. So if 0% puts a stress on the engine, maybe 15-20% is the way to go?

The irony, of course, is that in parking the car, I have to step on the accelerator to get the car to back into my garage.  This raises the RPMs to above 1200, which results in the full roar of the exhaust.  My wife confirmed that, from inside the house, she did not notice any difference as compared to before.

In any case - my plan for the moment is to set the device to open fully at 1200 RPMs (or should it be a higher number?), but also to set the minimum value at 15% or 20%.  What do you guys think - will this result in premature wear to my engine?  Or is this relatively harmless? Maybe there is a way I can program it so it only goes to 10% or less when I need it to....

Let me know your thoughts, please!

Back from Mine's... Fixed and Improved!

So yesterday morning I went down and retrieved my car from Mine's.

The culprit for the smoke that required the visit to Mine's this time around, was this particular hose at the back-side of the engine:

You can see some rust in the crack - from not having a sufficient amount of coolant in the system, apparently

Photo courtesy of Richard (fellow R33 GTR owner from the UK),
whose car suffered the same problem, at about the same time!

I was told this is one of two hoses used to cool the OEM oil-water heat exchanger, located in back above the starter motor, and below the fuel rail and assorted wiring. Nakayama-san replaced both for good measure.

I scoured the web but just could not find a photo that showed clearly where these hoses attach (it really is a huge mess), so instead:

In this excerpt from the repair manual, you can see how those two hoses connect to the oil cooler. however if someone has a better photo and verification, I would be most grateful!

To replace these hoses, they chose to remove the transmission to access the back of the engine.  They then flushed the coolant system, and checked for leaks. So now there shouldn't be any more problems going forward... at least not with these hoses.

Thus, the engine did not have to be removed, which means I was not tempted to open the wallet and install those optional goodies I was hinting at.  Perhaps next time!

Although, from my research on this, I am now not sure why this piece is still there.  That is, on a road only car, this oil cooler mechanism is obviously enough to keep the oil temperatures in check; but you need an external one if you run your car on a track, however once you install that optional external oil cooler, not sure why this needs to remain. In fact wouldn't it work backwards and heat up the coolant?  Someone said that this could be to warm up the oil as the coolant warms up faster, but that doesn't really make sense as oil should be designed to lubricate at even colder temps. So I wonder if this should be removed in the future (one less thing to go wrong), or kept as a back up just in case?  And, I wonder if these 4 hoses (shown in the diagram) are available in silicon?

In any case, Nakayama-san inspected the engine and confirmed that the engine suffered no problems from the incident. So that is a relief.

As for the catalytic converter, they weren't kidding when they told me it was "dead." Check this out!

Looks like the honeycomb has degraded quite badly

Other side... when I held this up to the light, could barely see ANY light coming through!

So I suspect that this degraded and clogged up catalytic converter was doing me no favors.  I asked why OEM catalytic converters last for the life of the car, while this one only lasted for about 8 years. The answer is, of course, the more free flow nature of these aftermarket ones, plus the additional power of the tuned up engine.

In any case, I've now got the HKS catalyzer installed, and the first thing I noticed wasn't just that everything smelled nicer (or more precisely, no smell at all...) but that the engine seemed more eager and responsive.

If I recall correctly, this is how the engine was back when I had it installed - very revvy, like a motorcycle engine, and extremely responsive (the engine was put in about one year after the Apexi catalyzer was installed so presumably it was still working well then).  Boost comes on much quicker and the turbos make that funny whooshing sound much more clearly and frequently now.

And this is still with the bung installed on the Tomei exhaust...I'm now tempted to run the car without the bung and with a de-cat, just to unleash its full potential!

In any case, this incident has been a wake up call, so I think I will be having more work done on the car very soon. Stay tuned!

Update #2 from Mine's...

So got an update from Mine's earlier today. Turns out, the problem was not one burst hose but two! Not sure exactly which hoses (they were behind the engine), but likely due to normal wear and tear? Or is something else to blame? I'll find out when I pick up the car hopefully later this week.

I had also mentioned when I dropped the car off, to Nakayama-san, that my car's exhaust stunk.  In fact it was overpoweringly bad. Mine's is reporting that this is because the catalytic converter (Apex'i Super Catalyzer) is dead.  I suspected this, in fact, and was thinking about getting another one to replace it.

from Apex'i website - http://www.apexi.co.jp/products/exhaust/cata.html

The Apex'i replaced the OEM one that was on the car when I bought it. This was a couple of years even before I had the Mine's engine put it, circa early 2006.

At the time, in my research I found that the Apex'i was the best catalytic converter because it had the lowest cell per square inch (cpsi) of only 130 cpsi - most other catalytic converters were in the 200 range (OEM is 400) and therefore more constrictive.

However, I always believed that catalytic converters pretty much lasted the entire life of the car, although now I suspect that is only true if your car is not highly tuned.

But a relief the smell wasn't necessarily caused by the engine. I've asked Mine's to go ahead and install a new catalytic converter - they've recommended an R33 GT-R specific one by HKS, which happens to be the one I was looking at anyway. Hopefully they will have photos of the old one for me to see how badly it had degraded.

The HKS one has 150 psi so a slight increase, however their website claims that their catalyzers have "high purification performance" - so something to look forward to, if true.  And if for some reason the HKS fails or dies in the future, at least its replacement cost is not as much as the Apex'i.

From: http://car.indac.jp/product_shousai.asp?hin=10123126012

In any case, as Mine's has the car for a few more days,  I've decided to ask them to do a full check of the car, in order to see if there are any other parts that could be suspect.  I'll post what (if anything) they find.  Hopefully this whole incident was just a wake up call for me to pay more attention to my car!

Stay tuned...

Flash Back Post - Aluminum Pedals

Since I haven't heard anything from Mine's since my last post, I've been trying to clean up parts of this blog.  For example, I updated my Spec List page and realized that I had made some mods, and even took photos, but had forgotten to post when I did those mods!

So, time to post and get those photos up. First up - aluminum pedals.  This I did back in April, 2010!

From a distance, the OEM pedals sure look boring and ugly:

But look closely... the "R" on the clutch and brake pedals

To be honest, I was hesitant to do this mod.

First, note how Nissan has actually inscribed the "R" on the pedals themselves. GT-R specific? Probably! But old and getting worn...

Second, aluminum isn't going to be very useful if the soles of my shoes are wet from rain.  Then, I realized that since I almost never drive in the rain, this should not be an issue.

Out of excuses, I went ahead and ordered a set from Nissan. Note in the photo below there are three "bush" - but if I recall correctly, only two were actually needed (I can't recall where I got the part number list.  Unfortunately, I also don't remember which one bush I didn't use, but as they are cheap parts, I would go ahead and order all 3 if you are going to do this mod, unless you have access to a proper parts list).

These began appearing on the later model BNR34s

No instructions were included, but this can't be that hard. The foot rest was a simple bolt off and bolt on affair.

Next up was the gas pedal. Note the difficult part here was, getting that clip undone that holds the top part of the pedal. A small standard screwdriver is handy here.

holding the pedal upside down (narrow end on top)

The aluminum pedal - I can't recall exactly, but I seem to remember that you had to be careful to force the bottom piece (onto which the metal pedal arm hooks into) in. The top piece is self explanatory.

I don't know what that piece on the right is?? I think it wasn't needed.

Turned out that the brake and clutch pedal were the most difficult to get on. I ended up using a hair dryer to soften up the rubber, and then quickly stretch the rubber part on the back side of the pedal around the metal pedal arm portions.

Here is the aluminum pedal installed, from the back.

And finally, the end result:

Looks good! Yes, I lost the "R" factor, as these same pedals are now found throughout various Nissan vehicles. Still, I can't complain as they look good and I GUESS the small rubber sections on the left and right of the brake and clutch pedals act as anti-slip mechanisms for wet shoes.

Also, yes I have seen Nismo branded aluminum pedals, but was never sure if they were fake or not. So I stayed away from those, even though I'm pretty sure Nismo did at one time have such parts available.

In any case, this was one more small thing I did to help "modernize" the car - heck if Nissan installed these on the later model BNR34s, then of course they would have put these on the R33 GT-R had these parts been available back then, right?