AlastairA

The Lambda and Target Lambda panels weren't showing anything John (just stayed in Demo mode). The x-axis is the sample number - but given the data was exported to Excel with 1 millisecond time intervals, its effectively time in ms. I did a couple of cycles of firing the engine up (already warm), running fir a couple of minutes and then shutting down. The behaviour of the Oxygen A signal staying flat fir the first minute was consistent each time.

Thanks Chris - very helpful and I remember you saying this on your blog. Do you recommend not using the isolation switch on a regular basis? Does the fact that it runs rich for longer cause any damage anywhere (I suppose the cat won't take kindly to the deposits)?

Thanks Olly & John. I got setup with Easimap and ran the engine from cold. I added the "Lamda" channel to the page setup, but it didn't seem to register anything. The "Oxygen A" channel did seem to be logging so I assume this is the Lambda sensor output. By the time I got this sorted out the engine was already warm, but I did capture the data below. After startup, even though the engine was warm, it seemed to run open-loop for the first minute - and then I assume the oscillation in the Oxygen A signal is it switching to closed-loop. The change in the TPS signal at the right hand end was me blipping the throttle. Is this oscillation correct? The time scale on my graph is very different to yours John, so I assume there might be some aliasing going on in your data.

Ok thanks - and once up to temperature what am I looking for to see if it's running rich?

Hi all, After 800 miles or so, the outlet of my exhaust system is looking very sooty - I'm suspecting it's running rich and therefore I'm thinking there may be an issue with the Lambda sensor (would this be right?). I will have access to an MBE lead in the next couple of days and was trying to research what I would look for on the Easimap interface to check the mixture and the correct operation of the lambda probe. From what I understand, at initial startup when the engine is cold and at low throttle, the ECU runs in closed loop mode using the lambda sensor as feedback to control the fuel/air mixture - but after warm-up and at higher throttle angles it switches to open loop mode and the sensor is ignored. However - how this is displayed on the Easimap interface is not clear to me at the moment. Any help greatly appreciated!

Thanks both - I'll ask CC for the set up sheet and see what comes back.

Apologies in advance for perhaps a stupid question: My car went through the post-build check at CC Gatwick and I was told that it was flat floored (I was asked to let them know my weight). On doing an inspection this afternoon, I noticed that the front chassis member (running side to side under the nose cone) is lower on the driver's side than the passenger side. I would have assumed that, in an unloaded condition, the reverse should be true. What am I missing?

HI John - couple of questions : what is the increase in width of the new pedal outside the standard? Could it be metal printed rather than plastic? Thanks!

PM Sent

i'd be interested if Tim doesn't proceed. Best wishes, Alastair

PM sent.

Thanks Stephen - good to know. Maybe a pointless exercise then! Alastair

I'm planniing a few long trips with hotel stays and obviously there's no guarantee of security. Perhaps I'm being paranoid but I'm guessing thieves are not too selective these days!

Apologies - M12 I think.

Anyone got any recommendations for locking wheel nuts compatible with Apollo Silver Alloy wheels on a 420R? I believe the studs are M14 x 1.5 but don't know the thread length for a covered nut (and don't have access to my car at the moment). Thanks in advance!

Thanks James - sounds like an item to be added to the regular inspection list.

Can I please ask what are the symptoms when these washers wear out? I assume there is metal-to-metal contact between the A-Frame and the DeDion ears which would cause squeaking or grating when the suspension flexes?

Hi James - I used around 6.5 Ltr in my recent 420r build. I found that the expansion bottle need topping up after running the engine a couple of times. Alastair

Best of luck for the test Nick!

Finmac, Here's a picture of the current one supplied with my 420r kit - it is a combined Reversing Light and Number Plate light that seems to be a pretty efficient unit - comes with an econoseal connector that plugs into the loom: Link. Hope that helps.

Just had feedback from my PBC at Caterham Gatwick. The engineer confirmed that a small tweek was required to the TPS to prevent the engine from hunting in a cold start. He also let me know that Easimap was used and that the base map always needs tweeking a bit. Hopefully this just confirms all the excellent knowledge and advice provided on this thread - thanks all.

Wrong thread! Apologies.

Thanks Geoff - very interesting but somewhat disheartening. Have to say that if I had read this thread a year ago, I would certainly not have specified an LSD. Equally if the sales chap had explained that the LSD is more for a race setup car and would require on-going maintenance and periodic replacement, I would certainly have considered it more carefully. Given that my car is new and I plan to use it for touring / blats / occasional track days, I will periodically measure the pre-load and graph it in the hope this might allow some performance prediction over time and be useful to others. I wonder whether it would be worth forwarding the letter to the new CEO and asking for a status update?

Thanks both - past the spec phase now I'm afraid!

As a new owner I'm just getting up to speed with this issue (wish I'd done more research before specifying an LSD on my 420). From what I can gather by skim-reading the 58 pages of this thread, the following are the pertinent points: Some Titan / BMW LSD units have exhibited very early failure - but not all. Clutch plates were originally sintered and then were swapped to carbon in an attempt to reduce noise. Clutch plates were swapped back to sintered when awareness grew of early life failures. Preventative maintenance is critical: Annual pre-load measurement - take action at 20lbft Annual oil change (don't change the oil type so as to avoid cross-contamination) Inspect old oil for colour change / contamination Use a magnetic drain plug and inspect for debris If / when the Titan unit requires replacing a better LSD is available from SPC (Tracsport Sierra diff)Is that a reasonable summary?? Apologies for any misunderstandings on my part! Additionally - Is it a coincidence that page 54 of this thread now returns an "Error" (I assume that was where Mr McDonald's reply was posted)? Thanks - and if anyone can recommend an appropriate magnetic plug I'd really appreciate it.