Lola - Ke55 4a-gze

[ancullen]

Okay, I've decided to list Lola in the Projects section. This topic will cover any stuff I do to improve her and also what I plan to do. For those of you unaware, below are her current specs.

 

1981 KE55 4-door

AE101 4A-GZE

T50 transmission

Borg-Warner KE55 diff (currently broken, soon to be welded)

 

I have at this stage removed the back seat, carpets, and heater. Remember, this car is for circuit racing only. I could have got her registered (she's been registered when owned by the first owner), but it'd be too much hassle and I want to make her the best race car I can afford to, and that will probably make her unroadworthy.

 

Now, here's what I'm currently planning to do. Firstly, I need to weld the diff and put in a new radiator as she overheats easily. I'm also going to cut a hole in the bonnet and attach a Nissan Patrol bonnet scoop over the intercooler. This will be happening within the next two months (I'm a slow worker).

 

Once she's running sweetly with the above modifications, I intend to start working on her handling and braking ability. I'm doing all of this on a fairly tight budget, so I'll try to do it in steps where possible, and when that's not possible, I'll have to save the money and do the mods in one hit. For my first improvement I'm thinking of going with Corona front struts & brakes with Corolla springs. This modification should be fairly cheap, and will allow me to upgrade to the Peugeot discs with Hilux calipers at a later date. In the interim, the Corona brakes should provide a small improvement. I can also throw in some Sigma/Scorpion lower control arms at any point with this modification, so that will provide extra camber and hopefully better handling.

 

The next modification after the Corona struts would be to lower the rear end. This will be achieved through the usual method of lowering blocks and also removing/inverting a spring. At some point I will also change the rear shocks to stiffer items, possibly from a Commodore. I will also be looking into thicker front and rear swaybars too, but as my car is the model that came standard with rear swaybar, there isn't quite so much of a rush to do this. However I don't want to have my other suspension mods for too long without the thicker swaybars.

 

An issue that I foresee with modifying my rear suspension is that it may not be compatible with a future diff upgrade. I intend to convert to an LSD at some point, and if I stick to the T-series diff conversion, I shouldn't have any issues. However, I have read about the F-series diff. This diff was available in the 2.4L Corona Avante (RT132) as an LSD with discs brakes. This would seem to me to be a great upgrades. However, it was also an IRS (independent rear suspension) assembly, meaning that I'd either have to weld my suspension carriers onto the Corona axle assembly (not overly difficult), or convert my rear end to IRS (difficult, but possibly too tempting to resist). However such a conversion will not be happening for quite some time, so I think I can safely lower my rear suspension without worrying too much.

 

Once my handling and braking package has been improved with the afore-mentioned mods, I think some engine improvements will be in order. This is where things get expensive. :cool: Let me say now that if I had built this car I would have built it differently. A. I would have used a coupe shell. B. I probably would have used an 86kW 16-valve or a silvertop 20-valve. However, as I have ended up with a 4A-GZE, I am going to take advantage of my situation. On the bright side, I have the best block for starting to modify a 4A-GE based motor, so I'm quite happy about that.

 

What I would like to do with the motor is get either a bigport 16-valve or a 20-valve head for it. I'd like to get the best cams I can for it (probably something like 304-degree intake, 288-degree exhaust) and the beefed-up valvetrain to go with it, get some forged pistons, and have compression of about 11.0:1 combined with about 10psi of boost (these are approximate figures, I'd have to investigate what the engine could take). The engine would be revved to a maximum rpm of about 9,000 and at a guess with no evidence or theory to back it up, I'd say I should be able to get over 200hp, possibly as high as 250 (if I was lucky).

 

In reality, my best (read: cheapest) option would be to get a Nevo overdrive pulley. This would give me about 16psi of boost, so I should crack 220hp. This would do me until I have $10,000 to blow on improving the engine. I'd probably pick up a bigport 16-valve head & cams to go with this to give me better flow and be done with it.

 

All comments and suggestions are welcomed.

Edited December 2, 2007 by ancullen

[Tiger]

Subscribing to this one

Always wanted to keep tabs on Lola... now I can :y:

 

Have fun with the project :cool:

 

and remember... PICS, my boy! :D

Edited December 16, 2005 by Tiger

[ancullen]

Well, here are some pics as requested. Below is a brand new aluminium VN-VS Commodore radiator that looks like becoming the next radiator for Lola. It's currently leading cantidate anyway.

 

 

And here are some pics I've posted previously, but am showing again so you can all see my starting point.

 

 

Lola minus intercooler piping when we were trying to fix some fuel leaks.

 

 

Picture taken on the same day. I had taken the timing covers off for the hell of it, but they usually stay on.

 

 

Lola when I first took her racing. Had major issues (clutch & fuelling) straight after that shot.

[Jason]

what prices have you seen those radators for?

[ancullen]

They were about $270 when I posted the above picture, but I just double checked on eBay and they're suddenly $139!!! BUY! BUY! BUY!

 

Here's the link by the way: http://cgi.ebay.com.au/COMMODORE-VN-VP-VR-...2QQcmdZViewItem

[Hokey]

A good diff upgrade if you are still looking for one is a hilux diff or a MX13 (mark2) corona diff. they have F series centres but are live axle so this means you could use standard MA61 LSD's :y:

Love the car :hammer: looks just like my old KE30 with undercoat in the spots where we fixed the rust ;)

Edited December 23, 2005 by Hokey

[ancullen]

Okay, for Christmas I have been given $150. That will be spent on the Commodore radiator. However, due to me getting public holiday rates for a couple of shifts at work, I am going to make about $300 extra, all of which can be spent on the car. This is causing a slight dilemma, that is, what exactly do I spend it on?

 

Here are what I consider to be my options:

1. Buy a set of low KE55 springs (can be used later with Corona strut conversion).

2. Buy a clapped out RT132 Corona (parts car)

3. Buy a new intercooler

 

Option 1 is probably the most feasible as it will provide a slight improvement straight away and is quite affordable. The only issue is that I was talking to a suspension guy who I know and trust (and who makes custom springs for a living :S ), and he says that I should really get more wheel time and find out what I want to change with the car and do it step by step, one thing at a time. I think this makes sense, and I also like the idea of getting him to custom make some springs to suit the Corona struts etc.

 

Option 2 has issues in that I'm already storing my car at someone else's house, and don't really want to push my luck with taking up space. I wouldn't keep the Corona long, I'd just rip out the rear axle and front struts, brakes etc, then take the rest to a wreckers. The other issue is that I'd have to spend a fair bit of time trying to track down an RT132 up here, let alone one with all the parts in the right condition.

 

Option 3 is not really being considered, I just wanted more than two options. Yes, my current intercooler is pretty fingered, but I really want to improve the braking (most importantly) and handling, before I start thinking about engine improvements. If the intercooler were not working at all I might think differently, but it's okay for now, and I'd rather save for a brand new water-to-air intercooler from PWR or somewhere.

 

I think that for now, unless someone makes a wicked suggestion, I'll hold onto the money and let it build up while I think about my options. I really want to upgrade my brakes, even if it were just to the Corona front brakes for now, but I don't want to jump in and spend money only to find that I've ruined a later option. Please feel free to comment and provide suggestions.

 

Hokey - I think I read somewhere about the F-series being used in the MX13. But they're rare as hen's teeth from what I can gather. They're also drum brakes, which defeats half the purpose of using the axle as I like the idea of the Corona disc conversion for the rear.

[ancullen]

Just a quick post, not because I've actually made any real progress, but because I've found a site with an excellent step-by-step guide to converting a KE35 (and therefore KE30 & KE55) to Corona front struts. Plus it's got some info about different shocks and springs. The address is: http://www.garagedori.com/tech/index.php. Go to the TECH section for this info.

[ancullen]

Yeah Nick, I read about the early Supras too, and I'm certain that what I read said it was IRS. Hokey's correct that some Hilux's used F-series diff as well, but I don't really think it's possible to just use the Hilux diff with leaf spring mounts and whack the discs on instead of the drums. Pity, as this would be a kick arse conversion.

[Hokey]

May have info correct here sorry. i think that hilux diffs may be G series but it doesn't really matter because you can buy diff locks or LSD's for hiluxes anywhere. you would most likely find something on toymods on how to convert to discs on a hilux diff because so many people use them.

[ancullen]

I'm pretty certain that some Hiluxs came with F-series (older model Hilux), and some later ones came with G-series.

 

EDIT: Just went searching on ToyMods for the article referred to by Nick, and found out that the Corona Avante actually came with a T-series diff (LSD) with disc rear end. So this makes it about the same as an AE86 rear end. The article can be found at this address: http://forums.toymods.org.au/index.php?t=m..._14339msg_14339. If this turns out to be correct, then I'd recommend everyone start buying up Corona Avante rear ends cheap then selling them as AE86 rear ends for $1000+. Of course, I'm not sure of the width of this setup, and I'm still pretty certain the Avante had an IRS rear end, whereas the AE86 doesn't.

Edited January 10, 2006 by ancullen

[ancullen]

I'll have to look it up sometime, but if it turns out the Avante used a T-series, then I'll definitely go with that as it'd be lighter than the F and especially the G-series, and should be strong enough for the 4A-GZE.

 

I've done some minor work on Lola. I was around at my in-laws place (where I store the car) to clean the diff out ready for a mate to come around and weld it for me (a welder by trade). After I'd cleaned the diff out, I had nothing better to do than wait around, so I decided to remove the front bumper. Now some of you may say that this will make the car look crap, but I don't mind the look, plus it means less weight at the very end of the car, less weight overall, and more airflow to the engine and to the new radiator when I get it. So it's all good.

 

After doing this, I was going to remove the rear bumper, but didn't as I realised it had bolts of some kind holding it in place that will need angle-grinding off. So instead I stripped some more weight from the interior by taking out the glovebox, some vent piping, and various other lightweight stuff. This won't remove much weight, but it will make it much easier to work under the dash should I ever have to.

 

Here's a couple of pics of Lola minus front bumper. She will be painted up one day.

 

 

 

Incidentally, if anyone wants a KE55 front bumper with no dents, only some minor surface corrosion on the top, I'd be happy to sell.

Edited January 15, 2006 by ancullen

[Rolla__Boy]

I take my rear bumpers off from underneath...there is masses of room, and it takes about 10 minutes

[ancullen]

I could see my mounting brackets from underneath the car. I think I can remove the bumper itself quite easily, but there seems to be another bit of metal coming out at 90 degrees to the bodywork that is attached some other way. I can't really explain it and haven't got any pics. I'll work it out next time I'm working on the car and remove the bumper.

 

Got to save up for this damn radiator. I was going to buy it with Christmas money but we suddenly got a whole lot of bills and the credit card had to be paid off, so I've got to save up again. Hope to order it in 2-3 weeks.

[Rolla__Boy]

AHHHH it's you're car....Late model KE55

 

I know exactly what piece of metal you are talking about...I removed it from my KE55 when I made it look like a KE30...

 

From memory it is held in like the tail lights, like with little 8mm nuts in the boot, or they could be under the car too...Shit...it's been about 3 1/2 years since I pulled mine off, I can remember doing it, I just can't remember exact details.