Mark's GT-R Build

With Allan's help, I have ordered all of the accessory drive components ready to install on the motor. Thanks Allan for the info.

I also have all of the fuel delivery components. I am thinking of making heat shields, dividing the engine bay into "hot" and "cooler" areas, with aluminum panels vertically positioned on the frame rails top and bottom adjacent to the motor, covered in heat barrier. They would be lateral to the headers. I plan to go on the Hot Rod Power Tour with this car, and the fuel overheating is a common problem for FI cars that do not keep the return fuel cool. The heat shields should keep the engine area lateral to the shields rather cool, with air flow coming from under the car. I can also mount stuff on the cool side of these shields since my firewall has limited space due to the air intakes being so large.
 
The brake calipers are removed and packaged up getting ready to go off to the power coater. I am looking to have them coated in red with Brembo labels added, then clear coated.
 

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I used a 6 inch rag wheel in place of the grinding wheel on my bench grinder, then used "rouge", which looks like a piece of chalk, but is a polishing compound. All of this is available at Lowes. The polishing compound comes in different "grits". I used the medium on the parts I photographed. I may get to the fine. It takes a little time, but looks great. It is not hard. The surface comes out rather quickly.
 
With Allan's help, I have ordered all of the accessory drive components ready to install on the motor. Thanks Allan for the info.

I also have all of the fuel delivery components. I am thinking of making heat shields, dividing the engine bay into "hot" and "cooler" areas, with aluminum panels vertically positioned on the frame rails top and bottom adjacent to the motor, covered in heat barrier. They would be lateral to the headers. I plan to go on the Hot Rod Power Tour with this car, and the fuel overheating is a common problem for FI cars that do not keep the return fuel cool. The heat shields should keep the engine area lateral to the shields rather cool, with air flow coming from under the car. I can also mount stuff on the cool side of these shields since my firewall has limited space due to the air intakes being so large.

Wrapping the fuel lines in protective heat sleeve is a simple way of doing it also. You can also run something like this on the return back to the tank- Flex A Lite Fluid Cooler Fuel Tube Fin Copper Aluminum Natural 3 1 2"x12"x3 4" | eBay

I also am running a dual pump. Each pump is good for 600hp. The second one will turn on only when past 2-5psi. This way, you can have a smaller pump that won't be heating or circulating the fuel nearly as much as a large single pump would do.
 

Terry Oxandale

Skinny Man
I also have all of the fuel delivery components. I am thinking of making heat shields, dividing the engine bay into "hot" and "cooler" areas, with aluminum panels vertically positioned on the frame rails top and bottom adjacent to the motor, covered in heat barrier. They would be lateral to the headers. I plan to go on the Hot Rod Power Tour with this car, and the fuel overheating is a common problem for FI cars that do not keep the return fuel cool. The heat shields should keep the engine area lateral to the shields rather cool, with air flow coming from under the car. I can also mount stuff on the cool side of these shields since my firewall has limited space due to the air intakes being so large.

This has been a huge issue with my project. Even during mild summer weather in the 80's, fuel boiling in the surge tank was common (with the attendant loss of HP fuel pressure). I installed vertical/lateral shields with the reflective layers around the coolers, surge tank, and fuel lines, which helped a lot with the radiated heat from the headers. I installed insulation sleeves on the fuel lines running round the engine compartment, which helped very little. I later installed a 5x5 Setrab cooler directly against the side scoop to cool the fuel before going to the fuel rail, which helped, and then for the higher speed opportunities, I installed a shallow scoop under the car to direct outside air to around the side tanks to keep these fuel tanks cooler. Design flaws of having the water pump adjacent to the HP fuel pump required venting this enclosure as well. Before all of this, after running 30+ minutes, the fuel tank temperatures would reach about 160 degrees (remember, it was all being recirculated, so after enough circuits, even the cooler main tanks started warming up). All of this being done, I finally can drive the car on the street, in anything but 100 degree weather without losing fuel pressure.
 
Hi Terry:
Your experience sounds familiar, in talking to some of the guys I see having problems along the Power Tour. Thanks for sharing this. I had planned on the underside scoop you mentioned, since I am using the side scoops for engine intake air. The Ferrari 458 has under car scoops for cooling, so I thought it might be a good idea, and you just confirmed it. Obviously they will need to be shallow, due to ride clearance issues.

I finally get back in the shop tomorrow, and will get all of the suspension removed, polished, packed and off to the anodizer.
 
As Dean has already mentioned, the Graziano transaxle has soundproofing materials added that are visible from the back of the car. I do not prefer the look, so I went thru the task of removing this stuff. It is grunt work, but I found a heat gun and a wooden paint stirrer used as a chisel worked the best at getting most of it off. Acetone and a course rag finished it off.
 
Here are some photos
 

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Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
That looks great! Ditto the whole drivetrain. 'MOST impressive...

I don't remember on which thread this was originally mentioned, but, evidently one cannot order a Graziano from the factory without the darned soundproofing. I do not understand why. It would cost the factory exactly ZERO to delete it. In fact, deleting it would put a few dollars into the factory's pocket.

Go 'figger'...
 
About the sound proofing on the back of the transaxle: I agree about the "look". What I wrestle with is why is it there. The surface is at the back end of the OEM vehicles, not near the cabin and there is a great deal of "noise" there. Do you think we would remark about the gear whine as the Lambo or Audi went by if that material was not there? Why is it there? If no purpose, why the cost?
 
Interesting question. I was hiking in Greece a few weeks ago with an acoustic engineer that just retired from Ford. We talked about that very question, because I wondered if it was OK to remove this stuff. Apparently manufacturers set parameters for the sound of a car, some being desirable, some being tolerable and others being undesirable. He did extensive work at Ford to reduce transmission noise, because it is considered undesirable. In fact, he said the material that is on the Graziano is likely layered in it's application and rather expensive to do. He felt there was no benefit to the material other than reducing undesirable noise, so the desirable can be more noticed. That being the case, I thought it should go. Thanks for you questioning this. Makes me feel better because I questioned it.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
I know how 'off-the-wall' this is going to sound...but, perhaps the coating provides a way to cancel/reduce/dampen unwanted mechanical harmonics in addition to deadening sound (in much the same way "Fluidampr" harmonic balancers do). That may be why 'deleting it' isn't on the options list? (Sound is by definition 'vibration' by itself.) But, one would think if that were the case, all tranny manufacturers would be applying the stuff...unless Graziano's units have some problem 'unique' to them in that department.

'Seems to me I read something somewhere 'back when' about exterior coatings designed to cut down on machinery vibration...but, I'll be blessed if I can remember where/when.

'Too deep for me regardless...
 
I really doubt that there is any problem. I have wondered if it was thermal insulation. The exhaust system is a big box just behind the T/A.
 

Larry L.

Lifetime Supporter
...I will let you know if I start to trash parts in the transaxle prematurely.

I wouldn't lose any sleep over the possibility of that happening, Mark. Odds are your "acoustic engineer" hiking companion is 100% right about it only being a sound deadener. (As I mentioned, it's likely ALL tranny manufacturers would be applying the stuff [as well as the makers of any other products that could benefit] if it effectively cancelled or even reduced mechanical harmonics.)

There IS a simple way to find out though - call Graziano and ask! :laugh:

'Can't beat info received straight from the horse's mouth...so to speak. :D
 

Fran Hall RCR

GT40s Sponsor
Audi = Luxury German sportscar
Lambo = Brash Italian Supercar

The NVH coating is for the above reasons only...nothing is going to fail period.

Ford GT owners complained about the Ricardo transaxle chatter also....Ford just said "oh well" ...
 
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