Hi,
Still deciding which engine to put into my S1 and as its to be used for endurance / tarmac rallying I am currently opting for the 2.0l Duratec mated to the standard gearbox with Quaife straight cut internals.
Has anyone used the Quaife internals, are they any good?
why not the honda out of interest, the duratec conversion seems to have died tbh. or is it purely for the gearbox?
if its just for the gearbox presumably there will be a BTCC item out there although not sure if it fits?
Which Honda unit + gearbox (car) do you use? What about the drive shafts etc? Is there a LSD readily available?
There is the quaife and honda Japanese model LSD
as for honda conversions check out the engine conversion forum for details. Mine is a sinclaires car http://www.sinclairebodyshop.co.uk/
…the duratec conversion seems to have died tbh…
I believe it’s going to be re-launched, soon
Hi,
Sorry do you mean the Duratec will be relaunched soon?
Hi,
Sorry do you mean the Duratec will be relaunched soon?
Yep, but not by the original peeps
I have been looking at the Audi and Honda conversions, is the Duratec one going to come to market soon ? If so, does anyone have any idea of price and stats ?
Sorry, David, I’ve no specific info at all - just know that a re-launch is imminent.
Ok, nice one. I am totally confused as to which one to go for anyway, all I know is I want 270+ hp … has there been any articles comparing the options available (honda, audi and duratec) ? Also, am I right in thinking the Honda has issues if its pushed over 280+ hp ?
Again, thanks for your reply.
I think all of the engine conversions if specced properly will be fine. Obviously its a lot easier to get big BHP out of a forced induction car, slthough the 2.3 litre duratecs are able to get over 300BHP. I know Scholar do a 2.5 litre engine that sounds really nice, but as with any NA big BHP engine they are big money, expect to pay the best part of �15k for a 300BHP Durex. The audi is easy to get 300+BHP out of, I don’t know anything about Honda’s so i’m not gonna say anything about those, but what I do know is Randy’s car is 310BHP (at least in my opinion ;o) ) and that ran fine all year.
Russ’s Honda rotrex car is well over 400BHP and he didn’t have any engine problems last year.
David
As Sean says, all conversions are “stonking”, & choice is down to personal taste.
You need to get out in all variants, & pick the one YOU like best
Pesky I guess you are talking about Steve Williams duratec conversion??? If so, his car was awesome last year, god knows what power it had, but it was very very fast and super reliable. I know its not a standard engine, but I don’t know any details.
David
As Sean says, all conversions are “stonking”, & choice is down to personal taste.
You need to get out in all variants, & pick the one YOU like best
Ok thanks. I have driven BATs honda elise and I thought it was awesome but wasnt blown away by the straight line performance (how much quicker is it than a K 190, do you have the figures ?). Is the 300 hp version noticably faster (round a track) and worth the extra outlay ?
Sorry for all the questions.
David
Honda n/a won’t be faster than a VHPD in a straightline, but it will be quicker around the track, plus IMO much more pleasurable to drive in all circumstances.
Bung a s/c on, & straightline speed increases somewhat
Can the gearbox stand all of the additional torc and power increases?
Will the Quaife straight cut internals aid the conversion?
David
Honda n/a won’t be faster than a VHPD in a straightline, but it will be quicker around the track, plus IMO much more pleasurable to drive in all circumstances.
Bung a s/c on, & straightline speed increases somewhat
Thanks, I understand now.
Can the gearbox stand all of the additional torc and power increases?
Will the Quaife straight cut internals aid the conversion?
Don’t know, sorry. However, I’m 100% sure that the “converter” will have got the job sussed.
Again, sorry I can’t post the converter’s name - I’m sure all will be revealed when he’s ready to receive enquiries.
For rallying in the S1 the rules limit us to normally aspirated engines as there were no S1 factory S/C models from Lotus.
It will be interesting to see which gearbox the Duratec conversion comes with. Hopefully it will be a PG1 as that gives several options for gear ratios. You could swop final drives between events for a relatively low cost.
Standard Honda’s appear to be very reliable packages. The gearing is quite tall for rallying though as I think they top out at about 160mph. Great for the track but you’d be unlikely to get past 4th gear on a rally. I’m not sure what the availability of aftermarket Honda gear kits is.
One of the most successful stage cars running in the North West at the minute is Stuart Deeleys Lotus Europa with a well sorted 2500cc Duratec. Being longitudinal it benefits from mating to a Hewland box. That engine would be superb in my Elise
Wes
The Honda 6th is really an “overdrive” for comfortable road use. 4th gear (UK spec, not JDM) is good for 120mph though