Tuned In

**We're spending a couple of weeks away from the microphone over the Christmas and New Year period. This means that although we won’t be publishing any new guest appearances until mid-January, we’re going to be bringing back some of our favourite older episodes that deserve another listen.**

This week's High Performance Academy 'Tuned In' episode is all about big boost, big launches, and even bigger power figures as we sit down for an in-depth chat with T1 Race Development's Tony Palo.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Self-taught and always learning by doing, T1 Race Development's Tony Palo is a long-time industry veteran that has spent years pushing the limits of just what's possible in the import drag racing scene. Over the last decade, Tony has narrowed his focus on the venerable Nissan R35 platform, and now runs some of the fastest GTRs in the world.  

In this episode, Tony talks to Andre about getting his start in the tuning world and his initial dealings with "fast" Hondas during a time when going quicker largely meant a process of trial and error. These days, things are a lot more precise, and the pair discuss the many advances that the industry has seen over the last decade that have allowed tuners like Tony to push the boundaries of just what's possible.

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When it comes to R35s, Tony really knows his stuff — something that's immediately obvious as this episode progresses. Massive turbos, billet VR blocks, pushing way past 2500hp, and the lessons that have been learnt along the way are all discussed in detail. 

This week's instalment of Tuned In is all about life on the bleeding edge, and it's a wild ride.

Dry sump, sequential dog engagement gearbox, solid aero, and this Nissan 180SX could be mistaken for a larger budget build but all things considered it's surprisingly modest!

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Usually seen supporting the likes of Under Suzukis Scorch Racing team, this World Time Attack Andrew Handmer of SX Developments was invited to take his own Nissan 180SX to the track instead which saw him net a top 5 finish in the Pro-Am Class.

Originally destined to be a more tame build based off an old daily driver, things quickly escalated to the aero equipped 480hp (360 kW) at around 26 psi  1.8 bar) build here. The 180SX is powered by a Nissan SR20 with Wiseco pistons, Eagle rods, upgraded cams and valve-train with a Kinugawa TD06 SL220G billet wheel fitted turbo delivering the boost. A dry sump setup has been pieced together with some consideration going into the pump rather than just sending it with the first budget option that came along.

The transmission is a NASCAR Jerico Performance Products unit that has been converted to sequential shift with a relatively stock driveline putting power to the ground.

Electronics wise a Haltech Elite 2500 is paired with a MoTeC ADL3 logger/dash and a solid CAN configuration options for both the Haltech and MoTeC units allow Andrew to simplify his wiring and controls where possible including some sensors to help him with his own driving development like steering angle, brake pressure, damper potentiometers (shock pots) and accelerometers.

The car has been built with a budget in mind that is more relatable to many than of the builds we see on the track (not that there is anything wrong with that either!) and while we're sure there have also been many, many hours poured into this, a $20,000 odd dollar build for a car like this is a solid effort and a testament to Andrews hardwork and skills, including bargain hunting 🤘

FUTURE PLANS: Andrew's hoping to come back again with a pneumatic shifter to help avoid some of those miss shifts, a fix for the boost spike issue which isn't normally an issue at his local track but had a bit more impact here at Sydney. From there with a bit more practice on the circuit and based off the cars data and how that has worked for his local track, he thinks there is a 1:29.00 in the car and it's just up to him to extract it all going well!

Want to learn how to tune EFI? Start here instantly, and for free: https://hpcdmy.co/tuneb

**We're spending a couple of weeks away from the microphone over the Christmas and New Year period. This means that although we won’t be publishing any new guest appearances until mid-January, we’re going to be bringing back some of our favourite older episodes that deserve another listen.**

This week's episode of the HPA Tuned In podcast is a fascinating one as we dig into the finer details of building and driving one of the fastest hill climb cars on earth with Robin Shute of the Sendy Club.

Recorded just a few days after Robin's recent third consecutive overall win at the 100th running of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, this ace driver and automotive engineer is coming off a brutal week full of engine fires, sleep deprivation, and appalling weather conditions — and he has a whole lot to say about the experience.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Sure, someone wins Pikes Peak every year, but the difference with Robin and The Sendy Club team is that they aren't backed by a big manufacturer opening up the chequebook in search of glory — it's a bunch of (admittedly very smart and talented) enthusiasts who've come together to dominate at the world's greatest hill climb event.

As an automotive engineer and top-level driver, Robin is an absolute goldmine of information when it comes to not just driving exceptionally fast cars, but the finer, nerdier details of building them too. A lot of time is spent in this podcast pouring through the details of the Sendy Club's incredible Honda K-powered Wolf hill climb car. Turbo sizing, altitude considerations, aerodynamics, braking performance, and everything in between gets covered here.

There's also a great discussion had around the art of driving itself — both in terms of how to be fast, proper preparation, and carving out a successful career in motorsport.

This episode is absolutely jammed with useful and inspirational information that'll have you itching to get back into the workshop and on the tools.

Watch SuperfastMatt's excellent coverage of this year's Sendy Club campaign:
https://youtu.be/quzcLY6UflE

Follow Robin and the Sendy Club here:
IG: @robin.shute, @thesendyclub
YT: The Sendy Club

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Pulling out an RB26 and replacing it with a 4G63 is not something you see to often, or possibly ever, when it comes to the R32 GTR Skyline chassis, but that is exactly what has been done to this time attack weapon. Let's see what makes it tick.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Dom from Tony Rigoli Performance (TRP) runs us through some of the reasons why Chris Alexanders CJA Motorsport Nissan R32 GTR Skyline is better off with a 4 cylinder Mitsubishi 4g63 producing 1030hp to the hubs via a Borg Warner EFR 9280 is better than the equivalent 6 cylinder RB26.

The 4g63 retains the MIVEC setup in this application which along with a custom cam helps the car have great boost response from as low as 4,500rpm with engine management and traction control strategies being managed by an EMtron KV16 and a MoTeC Dash/Logger handing the rest including extra data logging along with a MoTeC PDM.

Like many cars we see now the factory strut towers are retained as per World Time Attack Challenge (WTAC) rules along with the firewall which is one reason why the team have chosen to go with a 4 cylinder engine which gives them great packaging advantages especially when coupled with a transaxle in the rear of the car.

'Fire ring' cylinder sealing is used to keep cylinder pressures where they should be, and how that works along with a copper gasket is explained by Dom along with why a 2.2L 4g63 build using a TRP stroker kit was chosen over a 2.4L option.

Not bad for a build that took a few weeks eh! We're sure there is plenty to dial in and look forward to seeing this build progress up the time sheets in the coming time attack events after a few battles with the aero at this event.

Want to learn more about motorsport wiring? Claim your spot for the next FREE lesson: https://hpcdmy.co/wireb

**We're spending a couple of weeks away from the microphone over the Christmas and New Year period. This means that although we won’t be publishing any new guest appearances until mid-January, we’re going to be bringing back some of our favourite older episodes that deserve another listen.**

3000HP+ 4 cylinder drag cars, EKanoo's World Record breaking 5-second door slammer, LMP3-turned-Pikes Peak  hill climbers, 460mph++ land speeders, the list goes on and on, and this is only a portion of what Shane Tecklenburg, aka Shane T of TunedByShaneT is and has been involved with throughout his career.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Let's dive into some of this along with how his career really got rolling leading to his involvement in projects like this and so much more leading Shane to be one of the most passionate and pointed people we know in the industry.

Also discussed are some of the specific challenges of tuning a car to race at Pikes Peak international hill climb which see's competitors finishing at over 14,000ft. That's high enough for aircraft to require the use of oxygen in the cabin.

Want to learn how to EFI tune? Start with some free lessons right here: hpcdmy.co/efilesson

NOTE: Some scientists claim swearing can be a sign of intelligence, and if they used Shane as a subject we'd say they're right, so be warned Shane has a 'diverse' vocabulary that may be unsuitable if you're still convinced that your children will never hear such words or use swear words themselves 😅

Failure on race day due to wiring gremlins is not an uncommon issue at some levels, but with the time and money that goes into running a professional level vehicle at events all over the globe it is inexcusable.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Luckily there are people like Chris Paton of 12 Volt Performance out there to build motorsport specific looms that allow for the extra heat, fluids and wear that a dedicated motorsport car will see much more of compared to your average car or even performance streetcar. At the latest World Time Attack Challenge we were lucky enough to have a chat with Chris about what goes into looms like that of the Tilton Interiors/Racing EVO V2 Time Attack car and how you can progress from general automotive wiring into motorsport specific applications.

Also discussed are some of the main point of differences between a general automotive loom and a motorsport specific variant including a quick break down on the advantages of Tefzel wiring compared to TXL which you will find in almost all street cars along with how in the past it has been difficult to find solid resources beyond pictures to help learn and build such a skillset.

Also touched on is the cost of the materials and tooling required for professional-level looms, but for the end result it is certainly worth it. Concentric twisting is also discussed along with the detail that goes into planning your braid in order to benefit from the strain relief and flexibility of such a technique but not at the cost of added weight from poor planning and excess filler wires.

What are filler wires you ask? Chris also explains this along with how before a single wire is cut everything the car will run not just now but also in the future plans is mapped out in the car and measured to ensure there are no mistakes and no need for extra additions to the loom in the future which are difficult at best and add a higher chance of failure.

With 20 to 40 hours going into an engine loom/harness it is certainly worth the time and effort to plan ahead and use the best materials for the application first time around in this game. The 1200HP, 42PSI, 2.2L 4G63 powered Tilton EVO V2 also had a successful weekend at WTAC with a 1st place in Pro-Am and 3rd in Pro which is a credit to Chris and the rest of the large team behind builds like this, which went from bare chassis to the track in only 3 months.

Want to learn more about motorsport wiring? Claim your spot for the next FREE lesson: https://hpcdmy.co/wireb

What do you do when the current crop of standalone ECUs just aren’t providing the features you need? In the case of this week's guest, you simply build your own.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

On this episode of Tuned In, we catch up with Syvecs Ltd's Technical Director Ryan Griffiths, who’s currently based in Dubai, to get into the finer details of ECU development, tuning, motorsport traction control, and much more.

The conversation kicks off with Syvecs' origin story, in which Ryan and his colleagues got together to create a brand new ECU after becoming frustrated with the limitations of what was on offer in those early days — most commonly APEX’i Power FCs and early AEMs. These tuning frustrations became the genesis of one of the most capable plug & play standalone ECU options out there, pushing Ryan and his friends to create something far better in every way.

That evolution has continued over the last couple of decades, and it’s allowed Ryan to push the limits of what’s possible, even as plug & play ECUs become harder and harder to produce due to the increasing complexity and security involved in modern high-performance vehicles from the likes of McLaren, Chevrolet, Porsche, and more.

Syvecs is also a very popular option with R35 GT-R and V10 Huracan/R8 enthusiasts, and after listening to Ryan explain his process and the inner workings of these ECUs, you’ll begin to understand why.

This episode is a fascinating deep dive into ECU development and features some great in-depth discussions on knock control, traction control, the differences between road-going ECUs like Syvecs and motorsport-dedicated ECUs like Life Racing, and plenty more.

Follow Syvecs here:
IG: @syvecs_ltd
FB: @Syvecs Ltd
WWW: syvecs.com

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Even when budget is not a limiting factor, why might a team choose to use a factory block over an aftermarket billet one in a Time Attack build?

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

With a 2.2L stroker 4G63 MIVEC build featuring a custom billet crank, rod and pistons, Benjamin Perry of Benchmark Solutions explains why a billet block was not a consideration for this build along with covering some of the upgrades the Global Aircraft Services Mitsubishi Evo 9 has seen in order to remain competitive in the ever-popular Open Class as the World Time Attack Challenge.

Controlled by an EMtron KV8 and MoTeC PDM15 the electronics package has seen some upgrades before this event including the addition of more sensors to enable more data and refinement in the setup of the car for driver Nathan Morcom, a major suspension overhaul and a turbocharger upgrade to the BorgWarner 9280.

Transmission wise this Evo 9 is running a bolt-on Hollinger MFE9 with their paddle-shift kit which is controlled by the EMtron KV8 ECU and a MoTeC Mitsubishi Diff Controller (MDC) for the central differential torque split which is calculated by speed, pressure, G-forces and driver inputs.

Want to learn how to tune EFI? Start here instantly, and for free: https://hpcdmy.co/tuneb

The injector is one of the most critical components when it comes to tuning your engine and getting the most performance, reliability, and consistency out of it. Despite this, there are a lot of misunderstandings and half-truths out there when it comes to the subject, so we’re grateful to have Injector Dynamics’ Paul Yaw on for this episode of the HPA Tuned in Podcast to help clear things up.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Paul and his company have done a lot to increase that knowledge and understanding over the last decade as his products have lifted the whole industry and become the standard in the high-performance tuner and motorsport world.

There’s a lot more to injectors than you might think, so in this episode, we take a very deep look into the subject, covering how they actually function at a detailed level, what makes a good injector good, duty cycles, how to figure out what size you need for your application, and much more.

Injector characterisation and what that means for tuning is also covered, as is Paul and Injector Dynamics' journey from a small upstart trying to improve what was a very murky part of the industry at the time to the dominating market leader it is today.

Relevant articles as discussed in this episode can be found here and here. 

Follow Injector Dynamics here:
IG: @injector_dynamics
FB: @Injector Dynamics
WWW: injectordynamics.com

Want to learn how to tune EFI? Start here instantly, and for free: https://hpcdmy.co/tuneb

Numbers like ‘1000HP’ and ‘100 PSI of boost’ catch our attention the most when it comes to motorsport builds as we can easily understand what they mean, but brake setups while being equally if not more important take a backstage role by comparison. For most, admittedly, it is much harder to get excited about figures or terms like ‘380mm’ and ‘staggered-piston design’, at least it is until you understand what it all means...

In this interview with Phil Stubbs of Alcon Brakes we’re going to take a look at why stock brakes on a production-turned-race car are terrible on track and what aspects you need to consider when looking to bin your OEM discs and calipers for something more effective.

Slots and gloves plus caliper and disc size in relation to braking performance are discussed along with airflow requirements, where sliding calipers braided brake lines sit when it comes to brake feel, plus on the other end of the spectrum what carbon-carbon brakes are vs carbon ceramic and what their weaknesses are compared to cast iron.

Interested in learning how to do your own wheel alignment for the track or street? Start with a free alignment & suspension 101 lesson now: hpcdmy.co/alignmentf