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Another Dave's Gold Kit Story

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by Llenroc, Jul 3, 2012.

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  1. Llenroc

    Llenroc F1 Veteran
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    Jun 9, 2004
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    Vern
    #1 Llenroc, Jul 3, 2012
    I should start this thread with a little background on the car that was subjected to this wiring surgery. I have owned a '97 factory built 355CH(2.7 Motronic) for 10 years and it has ran flawlessly for that time. It came out of a racing career with 6500 miles and had its engine redone at that time. Since I bought the car it has been used as a street hot rod, different springs, raised off the ground a little, street tires and removed the front part of the rollcage, other than that its a challenge car. The headers have had the heat shields removed and they have been ceramic coated there are no cats and the mufflers that are there are a track muffler to quiet things down a little, just a little.
    That being said, please no comments on what I should or shouldn't be using this car for :) this part was for info only the Gold Kit is the important part.

    Anyway on to Dave Helm's wonderful gold kit. As I said my engine ran great before I installed the kit which took me about 10 hours to do when I did my engine out/belt service. I would probably recommend doing this job during an engine out time but, Dave says he does them all the time with the engine in, I would say he must get less agitated than I do and maybe he can see better that I can :). Things that I found that were different: My exhaust temps were higher by about 150 degrees on each header tube. I had done readings over the years with the same laser temp reader. Probably not the most precise way to measure but it did give a base line to work with(always measured at the same spot and same rpm on each tube). The flat spot that seems to crop up on some 355s was completely gone. Mine was always minor and I could tune it away by adjusting the throttle bodies but it would come back over time I had originally thought mine was related to the challenge exhaust(no bypass valve etc.)
    Most importantly is that overall the engine ran/feels.....It is hard to find a word to describe it but it run/feels different, maybe the word is more complete? I don't know but there is a difference. Remember my engine ran flawlessly in my opinion, very strong easy revving, always starts fine, good compression(checked every year) and never had a check engine light etc. etc. I love this engine one of Ferraris best and now it is better.
    Anyway for you guys that have good running 355s I guess I would recommend this wiring surgery. My only caveat would be is that it is not done without frustration and I don't know how you do it Dave with the engine in the car, hahaha.
     
  2. spider348

    spider348 Formula 3

    Nov 3, 2003
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    #2 spider348, Jul 4, 2012
    Llenroc, well stated! My experience exactly. My 355 ran flawlessly as well prior to the kit, or so I thought! After installation I to could not accurately describe how much better the car ran. I did mine with the engine out as well. Dave must have a strong back, the eyes of a hawk and the patience of Job!
    Great Product!
     
  3. FerrariDublin

    FerrariDublin F1 Rookie

    Jun 14, 2009
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    #3 FerrariDublin, Jul 9, 2012
    Great feedback. My 360 always strikes me as a bit sluggish. It makes good power, pulls clean to the last etc but I do find myself wondering if there isn't a little something missing.

    Sounds like you found your something anyway. Well done.
     
  4. ar4me

    ar4me F1 Rookie
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    #4 ar4me, Jul 9, 2012
    Someone should put their car on dyno before and after with this connector bit being the only difference, so that this "feeling" can be quantified. If you can feel it that clearly, it must be measurable.
    Jes
     
  5. FerrariDublin

    FerrariDublin F1 Rookie

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    #5 FerrariDublin, Jul 9, 2012
    Is is all about top end, wide-open throttle though? Maybe it's more to do with feathering the throttle mid corner, reaction to throttle input to match revs on a down shift? These things are far more subtle than would likely be revealed on a rolling road.
     
  6. ar4me

    ar4me F1 Rookie
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    #6 ar4me, Jul 9, 2012
    That is true. I was thinking that the flat spot that the OP refers as present on his and some 355s should show up on a dyno and the improvement objectively quantifiable. Anyway, just thinking out loud.
    Jes
     
  7. davehelms

    davehelms F1 Rookie

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    #7 davehelms, Jul 10, 2012
    No, its through out the entire operating range. My very first install, before we included the Motronic ECU's connectors, the owner jumped in, started his 2.7 355, let it idle some 10 seconds and then shut it off asking what we had done. From start up, through idle and mid range, if there is an area where I see the least amounts of improvement, it is at top end but we have now identified and are testing another improvement to deal with that range.

    When I chose my initial Beta Testers, I tried to find those that had NO problems. A Monkey can make a bad car run better, it takes something with merit to make a well running can run better. One day I will put one on the Dyno and collect numbers, I expect to see a marked improvement in torque and vastly better emissions numbers.... we already know it eliminates CEL's near completely.
     
  8. Arturin

    Arturin Karting

    Aug 16, 2009
    201
    Spain
    #8 Arturin, Jul 10, 2012
    Some may think that a bunch of connectors wont make a difference. All I can say is that after I installed the kit even my mother noticed the difference, and we´re talking about a woman who can´t tell the difference between a ferrari and any other lowered red coupe (well, now she obviously does)
    My brother who came to visit also asked me what had I done to the car to sound and feel so smooth.
     
  9. JSBMD

    JSBMD Formula Junior

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    #9 JSBMD, Jul 10, 2012
    You guys are making me drool in anticipation. My car (98 355F1) is currently in for a major, and I'm having the gold kit installed while the engine is out. I'm having the O2 sensors changed, and the injectors cleaned as well, so my experience won't be just the changes from the kit alone, but looking forward to seeing the results nonetheless. My car has been running great as well, so not fixing a broken car. Still expect to see a difference though.

    Thanks again Dave!
     
  10. FerrariDublin

    FerrariDublin F1 Rookie

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    #10 FerrariDublin, Jul 10, 2012
    There's a chap called Terry on a UK based F-Chat-Alternative site who has been working away on a "355 Engine Out Service" including installation of the DH kit. I won't post a link as it might offend the rules here but for those interested I'm sure you'll find the thread without much difficulty. He's posted a very valuable and detailed account of his installation. Unfortunately he's not finished yet, so no results to report but I'm watching that space with anticipation.

    Dave, have you anything similar developed for the 360 at this point?
     

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