You have questions and we have answers. Well not us, per say, but Eric Hsu. Currently at world-renown Cosworth for performance parts development, Eric brings over 15 years of experience-five years as Chief Engineer for A'PEXi and a founder and current consultant for XS Engineering-to help with your woes. A tuning guru, unlike the guy on the forums who thinks he knows everything, he actually knows what he's talking about. That is, unless your topic of conversation is about combat body kits on Saturns, upon which we must specify all of Eric's opinions are his and his alone. Except on the Saturn body kit, it's the reverse Nike: Just don't do it.
For questions, or problems of your own, email them to questionit@importtuner.com.
Civic, Eclipse, Or A New Life?
The engine in my Civic just blew, and I have a totaled '90 Eclipse GS-T sitting in my driveway; I thought I might ask what would be involved in swapping the Eclipse engine into my Civic? I know that this will be costly considering the fabrication required for it to work, right? What would I be looking to spend my money on and what would need to be made from scratch (mounts and so on). Considering I already have both cars, where are my main expenses going to lie? I thought about just selling my Civic, getting another Eclipse and swapping the motor from the totaled one in, but I just want to have something no one else really has.
-ZAchAtTack420, via Importtuner.com forums
Custom fabrication is usually big money. It's even bigger money if you use a good fabricator. Before taking on any project, the first thing you should always do is to figure out your budget. Some fabricators work faster than others so to get an estimate, you should speak to your potential fabricator. It sounds simple, but it actually takes a lot of time to get the engine and transmission mounted straight. Then you'll have custom axles and hubs to worry about, aside from the custom harnesses and wiring. The reality is that it might just cost you more than your Civic is worth. My advice: Put a stock engine in the Civic and sell both cars. Then go buy a used EVO 8 or STI.
Bumpin' And Steerin'
I have a '93 Toyota MR2 that I'm building up for Super Lap Battles. As part of the suspension setup, I was planning to widen its body by about 8 inches all the way around, until a friend told me that doing so would increase "bumpsteer" which could hurt performance. I figured that wider is better and wasn't aware that it could be bad for a track car in any way. What is bumpsteer, and how can I widen the track of my MR2 without it?
-Giuseppe Sanmendoza, Palo Alto, Calif.
Bumpsteer is the amount of toe change throughout the travel of the suspension stroke. Widening the car's body, and therefore track width, has little to do with actually increasing bumpsteer. Your buddy probably doesn't know exactly what he's talking about. Bumpsteer is more affected by the ride height of the car than anything. To correct bumpsteer you will have to adjust the steering tie rods' mounting location on the upright. Take a look at a stock height MR2 and that will give you a good idea of the angle that the steering tie rod should be at after you've chosen your final ride height. This can be done with a JDM kit or with custom fabrication. Suspension is an infinite science and there are complete books written on the subject. Fixing your bumpsteer curve is not the only thing you'll have to address to get the car to handle well. If you just want to go out there and have fun with the car, then that's OK. What I would do, personally, is sell the MR2. It takes big money to make it competitive for time attack duty.
Ticked Off!
What is the ticking noise every car makes when shut off after a long drive?
-Patrick Michaelson, Pawtucket, R.I.
It's the contraction of the steel and/or stainless steel exhaust components and heat shields. While the engine is in operation, steel and stainless steel expands. When you turn the engine off and these components begin to cool, they contract.