The idea for this project came to me a few years ago while playing an import street racing video game (Tokyo Extreme Racer Zero if it matters). It occurred to me that are lots of automotive aftermarket power enhancing products available for cars but the selection is limited for sport bikes. The only turbo kits I found were for big bore bikes that can accelerate hard enough to snap your neck off the showroom floor. I wanted to make power and the only way I could do that was to turbocharge...HMT style.
The story starts off with an IHI RHB52 VJ10 I got in trade for a T3 (Way too big for a bike). With some modification to turbine inlet, powder coating on the compressor housing, and directional clocking, it was ready to be installed.
I fabricated the header using some light weight, thin walled, Mandel bent 1 1/2" piping. It was necessary to keep the turbo on the center line of the engine as not to upset the balance of the bike, however I couldn't get the wastegate to clear the oil filter so I just removed it. Boost is now a rider controlled affair.
For the plumbing, 1/2" ss braided line was used for the drain back to a 90 degree fitting located at the oil pick-up. The feed line is a ss braided line routed from the oil pressure switch port to the turbo. The oil sending unit was relocated to the side of the engine case to an oil pressure test plug.
The downpipe travels down and under the oil pan between the frame and the sump. An O2 sensor is installed just after the outlet flange for the air/fuel ratio-meter.
Fuel is controlled by an EFI pump and boost compensating fuel pressure regulator set at 2 1/2 lbs. above manifold absolute. The carburettors are re-jetted with a Dynojet stage 7 jet kit and the air filter was replaced with a K+N filter. The kit comes with four main jet sizes for tune-ability.
I chose not to intercool because of space limitations so the hair-dryer pumps it's love directly into the airbox via the through-frame ram air port on the left side. Since the ram-air ducting is removed, maybe later on I can place a small charge-air cooler in the upper fairing where the ram-air ducts used to be.
I snapped the speedo cable doing a wheelie on the SR 520 bridge a couple years ago and never got around to replacing it. I just got used to riding without a speedometer, so when it came time to find a place for the boost gauge the choice was obvious. The boost gauge sits nicely in the gauge pod, besides, would you really want to know how fast you are going on a turbocharged sportbike?
I have had some very successful boost runs up to 12 lbs. Unfortunately, on one run the charge pipe popped off and knocked the radiator forward while the front wheel was off the ground in third. As the front-end came down, the radiator got caught in the wheel completely destroying the tire at about 90 M.P.H. Don't worry, the bike's okay. As for me, I managed to make it to side of the road without donating any skin to the pavement. The bike got new shoes and the project will continue. Twelve pounds in enough to soak the shorts for sure!
Specs:
Engine - DOHC, 16V, liquid cooled, 11.8 static compression, 599cc
Turbo -IHI RHB52 VJ10 (from a '96 Subaru Legacy) with a modified turbine housing and a powder coated compressor housing.
Fuel System - Carbureted, EFI pump and rising rate regulator, Dynojet stage 7 jet kit, 91 octane pump gas mixed with NOS octane booster (6 RON points) Autometer air/fuell ratio meter
Power output - Stock - 103 H.P, Turbocharged - Unknown
Boost control - Non-wastegated (Shift at Redline or 12lbs,which ever comes first) Bosch BOV
Rider - Fully out of his fucking mind!
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Topic: In lieu of what has happened, I'm posting this here. (Read 2865 times)