I was left standing at the lights today. By a Mondeo. To make matters worse it was a diesel. I love my 1993 9000CS 2 litre. I've had it for just over a year now..... but is there something wrong with it? Or do I need a 2.3l? A turbo? An Aero? Or can my own car be "tuned" for better perfomance?
The breakthrough for diesels has been new high pressure injectors. Just reading an article about a Vauxhall Vectra 1.9 Diesel with 212 bhp, 0-60 in 6.5. Surely, Saab will use that engine sooner or later. However, I'm still old fashioned and have some reservations. Diesels aren't entirely clean, you sometimes see dark clouds coming out of the exhaust. Then the high pressure injectors must be very expensive if something goes wrong.
In any case it can't do the clutch hydraulics any good the rest the foot on the clutch at the lights. Most people do that so they can take off at the change. I wait in neutral. Only when the lights change do I de-clutch and change into first, usually the last to get across. But what do I care, my hydraulics will last longer.
I have a 900S and a 900T. There is a big difference in power and even though a turbo is supposed to deliver its power at higher rpms, it is still faster. With the turbo I have to accelerate slowly until I am in
2nd gear, otherwise I just spin the tires. And my hydraulics are just fine, thank you.
Me too. I also picture the throwout bearing wearing needlessly as you sit with your foot on the clutch. The only time I make an exception is when conditions are such that a fast pull away may be needed for safety.
Even using this method, I can still be first across if I care just by opening up the throttle. Sure, they beat me for ten feet, then the boost kicks in and they fall back. The only problem I've found is keeping the front end on the ground under boost in first and second. If there is anything at all slick on the surface, I can break a tire free easily. I only push it when there's a reason too - and it's not my ego... I left that behind years ago.
Either you can get irritated by this or think 'Hey, I'll probably see that guy again at the next light' (and you probably will). Most important. Did you rev all they way up to 6800rpm before shifting? If you didn't you didn't make use of all the power available to you. Unfortunately chiptuning for N/A engines is pretty useless. You'll gain 5 to
6 hp max, which you probably won't even notice, so that isn't an option. Same things have happened to me. My previous 9-3 was a 2.0 N/A with 133 hp. My current car is a 125 hp 9-3 TiD. It is so much quicker in every day driving, simply because of the extra torque. (280Nm@1500rpm instead of
175Nm@4300rpm)
That the one with the dual turbo set up right? (not twin turbo, because it has a small turbo for low revs and a large turbo for 'high' revs) The only thing I'm worried about is how long this engine will last. It uses over 2 bars of boost (hence the 2 turbo setup to prevent turbo lag).
Depend on how you define clean. Because diesels run more efficiently they produce less CO2, far less CO and almost no unburnt HC's, so they are arguably cleaner then petrol cars. The biggest problem, the smoke cloud, is about to be extinct. The new Euro4 standard pretty much makes a particle filter mandatory for bigger engines, while the Euro5 standard is already being prepared.
Engine component life depends greatly on the way it is used. I see more and more examples around of people that seem to think you do not need to let the engine get to operating temperature before they start using the power, which is a very good way to increase engine wear.
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.