Taing it to the next level- 3.6 engine build

[Jake Raby]

I finished Rick's Boxster yesterday. Since he is only 75 miles away I took advantage of him being able to put the first 500 intermediate miles on the engine, following my 100 mile break in that I did yesterday. Once he racks up these miles, we will carry out the dyno sessions, and begin the ECU tune phase of the project.

This one is a pure animal. I'll let him describe to you in his own words how the engine transformed the car, and thats before any tuning, or optimization work has been carried out.

Here's some pics I took during my 100 mile run yesterday to break the engine in. The first pic is what we call "The Summit Photo". This signifies that we have reached the end of a project. This photo is what the owners of all my engines look forward to from the day that we begin the first stages of my process.

Very pleased with this one, as a Stage 3 Track Performer Plus.

[Gilles]

Congratulations Rick,

Now you have a true One of a Kind car, reading Jake's description on an earlier post about having huge amounts of instant torque available, I can't help but comment that you may want to consider a nice LSD to compliment that engine (to help you to put the power to the ground..)

On my car the first big mod I made was adding a set of KWV's3 coilovers that I love but the real major change on the car was the addition of a OS Giken multi plate limited slip differential, it truly changes the behavior during heavy acceleration and braking, you will not be disappointed..

I am sure that everyone is waiting to hear your comments of the new engine...

[Porsche9]

Nice photos! She's a real sleeper. Very tasteful exterior upgrades that gives little indication of what lurks below.

[10/10ths]

.........crap!!!!


Dang you, Jake, I'm gonna start saving up now.

I can't thank you enough for the IMS and other preventative work you performed on my Boxster.

I'm gonna enjoy her for a few years before I have you build an engine for me.

At least, I think I will wait........

[rfuerst911sc]

Hey guys yesterday was an interesting day. I was not expecting Jake to call me to say the car could be picked up but I'm sure glad he did. I arrived at his place about 7:00 and it was 28 degrees out. We went over some cursory things and then it was time for the test drive. Jake drove first so he could go over how I should drive her and stuff like that. We were on a two lane typical mountain road with switchbacks, great curves, elevation changes so a good workout. First off the sound that this engine/header/muffler combo sends out is nothing short of amazing ! It literally sounds like a V12 Lambo or Ferrari........some low growl some high pitch whine with some raspy thrown in it is very hard to describe. But I can tell you I like it. It sounds like no other Porsche I have ever heard. OK so we reach a point in the road test where it's my turn. We swap seats and my heart is pounding and my hand a little shakey as I grab the shifter. The first thing I noticed as I launched for the first time is the INCREDIBLE throttle response I have never driven a car with crisp throttle response like this. It reminded me of my youth driving Yamaha twin cylinder 2 stroke street bikes.......instant throttle response. The next thing I notice is the torque/power she pulls like a freight train and revs freely. At no point did I ever floor the throttle but at 60-70 percent throttle she'd quickly rev to 7000 and gave no indication of letting up. I also soon realized that I was getting wheelspin in the first three gears, some of that attributed to cold tire temps, old Conti tires and the immense power of the engine. In one turn I hit the throttle a little too hard and she slowly stepped out but snapped right back in line with steering/throttle input. My nickname for her is " the beast " . Now keep in mind very little tuning has gone into this, as a matter of fact we're running a borrowed ECU from a 3.4 so it is far from being optimized but the ECU is learning/adapting very quickly. At one point in time while I was driving I got on it a little bit in gears 1 - 4 and Jake and I both burst out laughing this thing is a hoot ! I need to find a stretch of road and do a video/audio clip of this bad girl howling you guys won't believe the exhaust note. Yet at idle she's a mild mannered sleeper..........perfect ! So to say that I am happy or blown away or 1000% satisfied is an understatement . I can only imagine how much better it will be once we tune her up. And oh yeah what will happen when we swap the cams ? I'm not sure how much more I can take We ended up back at his facility and as we shook hands I said to Jake " so what do we do next year ? " . It seems like I'm doing some kind of deal every year with him. We started talking 3.8 intake manifold and a few more tricks up Jakes sleeve and I said OK that's enough for now. Let me enjoy " the beast " as she is and get to know her before we go to the next level. Besides I already have in waiting a H&R coil over setup waiting to be installed I want to lower her by an inch or so. I have the new wheels/tires to put on and I have some worn suspension arms that need to be replaced. Oh yeah I also need a new battery what's the best 950 -1000 CCA battery for the beast ? The 13:1 compression ratio is making my current battery wave the white flag

[Jake Raby]

Yep. Thats exactly how it went.

The engine sounds every bit as good as the Flat 12 in my Testarossa... This combo never sounds like an M96, or even a Porsche.

[Porsche9]

Sounds like it is an exceedingly fun car to drive. An experience that tingles the senses? I'm very curious as to how it sounds based on the descriptions. Definitely not what I'd expected.

[Gilles]

Originally Posted by Jake Raby

Yep. Thats exactly how it went.

The engine sounds every bit as good as the Flat 12 in my Testarossa... This combo never sounds like an M96, or even a Porsche.

Jake,

If you use a 3.2 crank combined with 3.8 pistons, do you end with an over square 3.6 liter engine, that likes to rev and have a nice flat torque curve..? Thanks!

Regards,
Gilles

[Jake Raby]

Originally Posted by Gilles

Jake,

If you use a 3.2 crank combined with 3.8 pistons, do you end with an over square 3.6 liter engine, that likes to rev and have a nice flat torque curve..? Thanks!

Regards,
Gilles

You could, and I do a lot... But thats become boring after doing it for a decade.. That combo is NOTHING like the beast that Rick has. Everything has been altered right down to the rod lengths, which were never used in any M96 engine from the factory.

I'm building one like this now with Titanium rods, my R51 heads, and 14:1 CR as well as my solid lifters, and tensioners. This one will easily spin 9,000 RPM and live.

[Van914]

i'm so jealous!

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by Jake Raby

You could, and I do a lot... But thats become boring after doing it for a decade.. That combo is NOTHING like the beast that Rick has. Everything has been altered right down to the rod lengths, which were never used in any M96 engine from the factory.

I'm building one like this now with Titanium rods, my R51 heads, and 14:1 CR as well as my solid lifters, and tensioners. This one will easily spin 9,000 RPM and live.

Jeez i am already yesterdays news i am an upgrade behind

[Thumper]

Been watching this thread closely. It all sounds fantastic!

[ltusler]

Don't worry about being behind a rev or two on Jake's list, you can't keep up, and you are already at the sharp end of a very pointy stick in a small group of people willing to step up and see the light, then watch most other cars disappear in the rear view mirror.

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by ltusler

Don't worry about being behind a rev or two on Jake's list, you can't keep up, and you are already at the sharp end of a very pointy stick in a small group of people willing to step up and see the light, then watch most other cars disappear in the rear view mirror.

I'm not worried that's why I ended with the smiley face. Jake is like the computer industry constantly changing and evolving. I see by your signature line you have some Raby magic in your car.

[goldsc_78258]

Like most people I'm curious on numbers (dyno) that is
Some threads are worthless with out pictures, well this thread is worthless with out numbers 😊😊😊

[Jake Raby]

The time will come when we have numbers from the dyno. The dyno will not show the major attributes of this engine. I have 3 dynos in house and the first thing you learn the hard way is the dyno is not the be all, end all judge of performance.

The guys that think that it is, are the easiest ones to beat. They beat themselves.

[10/10ths]

....What you want is an AGM battery.

Absorbed Glass Mat.

More power, can deep cycle, and does not require an exotic charger.

I installed this one in my Boxster:

NSB-AGM94R (L4) Battery****| NorthStar Battery

So far, I love it.

[goldsc_78258]

Yep, it is like saying money can't buy happiness but it sure helps

I understand a dyno is used to tune the engine on a controlled environment , and that it won't show some of the engine attributes like acceleration, driveability etc... But it sure helps

Btw no need for aggressiveness I have no idea what asking for dyno numbers has anything to do with anybody getting beat or beating themselves.
Tell me if dynos don't tell all why would you own 3

[rfuerst911sc]

Originally Posted by 10/10ths

....What you want is an AGM battery.

Absorbed Glass Mat.

More power, can deep cycle, and does not require an exotic charger.

I installed this one in my Boxster:

NSB-AGM94R (L4) Battery****| NorthStar Battery

So far, I love it.

Did this battery fit the battery tray without modifications ? Did you purchase online or locally ? Thanks for the link .

[Jake Raby]

Originally Posted by goldsc_78258

Yep, it is like saying money can't buy happiness but it sure helps

I understand a dyno is used to tune the engine on a controlled environment , and that it won't show some of the engine attributes like acceleration, driveability etc... But it sure helps

Btw no need for aggressiveness I have no idea what asking for dyno numbers has anything to do with anybody getting beat or beating themselves.
Tell me if dynos don't tell all why would you own 3

The dyno has its place. The issue is most people have no idea how to read, or comprehend a dyno plot. When I hand a graph to someone and I watch their eyes go straight to peak power output, I shake my head and generally become disgusted immediately.

When my wife was Land Speed Racing her 996 the dyno kept her away from 3 records on two different occasions. I made changes to the car that I knew made it faster from the way it drove, and responded. The car LOST 6 HP at peak with these settings, but she smashed all those records in one weekend after that was done. They all still stand today.

I make more average power as an overall goal. Its really easy to make peak numbers, but increasing power at every RPM point is not a simple task.

Retaining drivability, longevity, reliability, and fuel economy while making more power is the big challenge. Rick will find that his MPG has increased by at least 3-4 MPG as long as he can keep his foot out of it, I have had some of these increase more than that.