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Guest StevenSheen
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We recently replaced the head on a members car, the head had been skimmed, all valves re-cut and new stem seals.

 

Total cost including all engineering, parts and labour was £1207.06 including vat.

 

The company we use for our head work has also recently quoted me £900 for reworking my head with 2mm oversize valves, 3 angle valve job, milne springs and retainers, all port work and polishing.

 

So even £1.5 would be well over the top.

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£4k Mike......... that garage saw you coming! Who was it?

 

2nd hand cylinder head (more expensive than some valves and machine work but probably best route overall) - £400

Top end complete gasket set - £100

Head Bolts - £60

Plugs - £10 - £60

Timing Belt Kit inc. tensioner - £100

Thermostat - £10

OEM spec radiator - £150

Fan & Coupler - £50

Service Parts - £100 inc 4-Life red coolant and decent oil / filter

 

So rounding up that's about £1k in parts to do it this way.... labour is time to take one head off and bolt on another then full service. A full days work say 8hrs tops at your average rate of about £50 / hr comes to £400.

 

Total £1,400

 

Cheers,

 

Brian.

 

:shock:

 

Were those parts direct from Toyota, as I think that's where the drop is coming from. From reading my invoice...

 

Gasket set - £200

Head bolt set - £189

Timing Belt, idler and Tensioner - £155

Viscous couplar, fan shroud and fan - £380

Radiator - £280

 

Labour was about double what you costed there, but all the valve seats had to be lapped in.

 

Anyway - don't want to hijack Stevie's thread :hijack: How's things going at your end?

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Guest StevenSheen

RIGHT WELL UPDATE TIME!!!!

 

Ok under the kind advice of Mike my supra driving neighbour I took the car to a Jap performance car specialist called Torque Developments just round the corner to me in Thurrock.

 

I took with me the spec sheet that Nic and the previous owner had supplied from there adverts.

 

Firstly they went through checklist style to find out what really was there....this is what they found.

 

HKS F-Con pro ECU, is there and functioning

 

HKS filter, is not there but there is a big filter.

 

HKS 1.6mm head gasket with HKS head nut and stud conversion cannot be confirmed but they believe it is probably there.

 

HKS plugs evidence to suggest Iridium plugs which HKS produce so likely there.

 

HKS strut brace non existant apparently they dont even make one!

 

HKS de-cat downpipe, HKS stainless steel exhaust system, cannot confirm it to be HKS but it is a completley Stainless Steel system.

 

Big front mount intercooler,this is present and is an HKS unit valued at £950.00

 

BLITZ 850cc injectors with uprated bosch fuel pump, Actually has standard injectors and no way of proving it has an uprated fuel pump but is possible.

 

Uprated hybrid turbos with larger steel internals,no way of telling but claims this is quite common so would not disbelieve it.They are standard units but likely have the steel as opposed to ceramic internals.

 

BLITZ boost control and turbo timer are present.

 

fully adjustble coilovers, adjustable front upper suspension arms, these are present and they are HKS ones.

 

18" lightweight AVS alloys, greddy guages in car, present.

 

Top Secret front bumper this is actually a Boomex wide mouth...being repaced with invader one anyways.

 

Veilside skirts and rear wing, carbon kevlar spoiler blade,not sure if there genuine but there present and done nicely.

 

Grooved front discs and uprated pads these are present...Huge grooved discs actually.

 

Expensive CD player, decent sony unit...not sure on the speaker situation perhaps the previous owner can enlighten me?

 

Very nice condition...by the time Im finnished it will be!!!!

 

Nice news is that they confirmed it has indeed had an engine rebuild in 1995 and there are clear signs of this. Although they claim previous owners guesstamate of 500bhp is a bit wide of the mark...and I should expect more like 380BHP out of her in present state. They did say she has one of the sweetest engines they had heard in some time...so I started smiling a bit from that point on ;)

 

They quoted 8-9 hours labour to fit a head gasket at £94.00 an hour (yes there expensive, but good) and the actual part if HKS 16mm would cost £290...so I was quite thankfull that after all there compression tests it came back as in perfect order!!! They removed the water pump to check the water did not back up out of the radiator cap and the level remained solid so thats one huge job I dont have to worry about...:D

 

I then asked about the engine remapping...they are an official HKS agent so they are able to remap the F-Con units but would have to do a live remap due to mine being an auto. They have quoted what sounds like a reasonable amount £450.00 for a full remap..approx 3-3 1/2 hours labour.

 

HOWEVER

 

They do not feel the engine map was responsible for the previous engines signs of piston detonation....they claim that I may not even need it done and suggest I just drive it for a 100 miles and see how she is...they dont seem to think it would be essential...I also asked about the brakes and they said although quite worn leave them till summer and then replace them..I asked about Nicks supposed service of the car last week and they replied the Oil looks and smells like it should and all your belts are pristine so come back in a few months...I like this garages honesty even if they charge £94.00 an hour labour! ;)

 

I have decided to have the ECU remapped anyways just for my piece of mind...at £430 quid it has to be worth it...and will at least make sure its all in tip top condition.

 

I finally gave it a little boot today and it did indeed fly along...only slight concern was a slightly metallic sound when the turbos were on full swing...a tingling kinda sound light and tinny sounding....bit strange...also on one of my Greddy turbo temp gauges both were on around 100 something but one bumpt to 110 everynow and then and the red light lit up....had only give it a little blast...any ideas?

 

Overall I had a much better day today, and found a good honest if expensive local garage to care for my new baby ;)

 

Hopefully things are on the up, thank you for all your help and advice, hopefully I may be able to repay the favour some time ;)

 

Steve

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Guest gaaables

glad to hear it mate, i can confirm it doeshave a hks 1.6mm head gasket, and a nut and stud conversion.

 

ive never quoted 500bhp it was the previous owner to me.

 

nick from gt cars must have been trying it on with me saying that it has popped its head gasket so he could try and get out of paying out to fix my car

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Guest gaaables

and i had the oils etc changed 100 miles before i sold the car with proper good oil, so i very much doubt its been changed, but then didnt need to be

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Guest StevenSheen

most likely.,...either way he has lied with regards the cars spec, I appreciate that your advert was quite honest, although a couple bits are not there...Nick glamorised it a bit lol! ;)

 

Still not sure what to make of the remapping thing but better safe then sorry I guess.

 

Overall im happy with the car and will get it looking stunning in no time..the metallic sound when on full turbo swing is my only concern as I dont know what sounds are normal....

 

Thanks for your input gaaables, whats the situation on the stereo...seems you were in the middle of doing something with it?

 

Steve

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Guest StevenSheen

Nick has sent me a further email...he does seem to be complying at the moment and in light of my recent discoveries I am starting to feel less resentment toward him...even if it was not entirely as advertised, he said

 

I will hook you up with a guy who can check the map, i assure you there is nothing wrong with the engine though. If it is bubbling, it could be the rad that's blocked and could do with changing? (about £250) but if worst comes to worst its still under warranty from the people who built the engine for Russell - the previous owner..

 

Ill make sure your ok with this Steve your a nice guy and i promise to help, umm the next part was removed as it was not complimentary of you guys...:rolleyes:

 

 

Kind Regards

 

 

 

Nicholas Sutton (Director)

 

 

Well lets see what happens....

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Ill have a pound with ya that Nick will give you nothing.

First thing i thought when i read the spec is that it would not have 850's in it.

If i was you mate id not go with the extra expense of mapping the f-con if your only on 440's and bpu spec.. id just use stock ecu for now and keep the f-con for if you ever go single.

Good luck with it all anyhow:)

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Guest gaaables
most likely.,...either way he has lied with regards the cars spec, I appreciate that your advert was quite honest, although a couple bits are not there...Nick glamorised it a bit lol! ;)

 

Still not sure what to make of the remapping thing but better safe then sorry I guess.

 

Overall im happy with the car and will get it looking stunning in no time..the metallic sound when on full turbo swing is my only concern as I dont know what sounds are normal....

 

Thanks for your input gaaables, whats the situation on the stereo...seems you were in the middle of doing something with it?

 

Steve

 

never heard the sound from the turbos nor did i ever have a problem with them.

 

and the sterio in the car i never touched, the headunit is pretty good as were the speakers so i never touched it.....

 

 

hope you enjoy the car mate, used to really shift :D

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Guest StevenSheen

sounds like good advice Jamie, I have already paid TDI a £50.00 quid deposit to map the fcon so will just ask them to switch to stock ECU instead of remapping.

 

You guys dont think there is any point in having the upgraded ECU then....

 

I guess to be honest the cars pretty stock performance wise other then exhaust intercooler and springs, and head gasket and studs..

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sounds like good advice Jamie, I have already paid TDI a £50.00 quid deposit to map the fcon so will just ask them to switch to stock ECU instead of remapping.

 

You guys dont think there is any point in having the upgraded ECU then....

 

I guess to be honest the cars pretty stock performance wise other then exhaust intercooler and springs, and head gasket and studs..

 

I just sent you a PM but your PM box is full ;)

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if you're planning on doing alot more engine wise then keeping the FCON would be a good idea.

 

If you're happy with the power as it is take it out, and try and make some of your money back by selling it. It's complete over kill for your current spec.

 

Ps. Welcome to the club :)

 

 

It will cost more to take the Fcon out and return the car to stock then what he will be able to get for the Fcon in a private sale.

 

 

I would like to know why you are thinking of getting the remap ?

 

What is the problem with the car ?

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It will cost more to take the Fcon out and return the car to stock then what he will be able to get for the Fcon in a private sale.

 

 

I would like to know why you are thinking of getting the remap ?

 

What is the problem with the car ?

 

I think I read yesterday he has several issues including a head gasket problem and detonation on the top of the pistons, his map is not set for standard injectors, he was told it had 800cc or somethink !!, I have offered him to come over to mine and have a chat as I went through all this and may be able to help him out, not sure TDI for a re map is the right thing to do as he will end up with a huge bill

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It will cost more to take the Fcon out and return the car to stock then what he will be able to get for the Fcon in a private sale.

 

 

I would like to know why you are thinking of getting the remap ?

 

What is the problem with the car ?

The car has already killed one engine with serious dett on the map he has.

Cost wise depends on who he uses, i saw greg remove a f-con last week and replace with stock ecu in no time at all.

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The first thing I would look at before you do the remap, is a boroscope exam just to double check the det on the pistons. If there isn't any damage, I'd consider getting it mapped to the usual 1.2bar and no higher. If the injectors are standard then the fcon won't do much, but I have seen fcons on twins before and it ran 412bhp (Surrey Rolling Road), but not reliably..

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umm the next part was removed as it was not complimentary of you guys!

 

Well I wonder why that was.!! Seems strange that a guy was not complimentary about a bunch of Supra owners who know what they are doing and like to help each other out!!

 

I don't know this guy as he darn sarth but all these people can't be wrong!! It's probably the forum telling lies as we all have £££££'s to gain from feeding people bullshit!!

 

H.

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I think I read yesterday he has several issues including a head gasket problem and detonation on the top of the pistons, his map is not set for standard injectors, he was told it had 800cc or somethink !!, I have offered him to come over to mine and have a chat as I went through all this and may be able to help him out, not sure TDI for a re map is the right thing to do as he will end up with a huge bill

 

The car has already killed one engine with serious dett on the map he has.

Cost wise depends on who he uses, i saw greg remove a f-con last week and replace with stock ecu in no time at all.

 

That is what I was getting to, I am a seasoned TDI veteran having spent well over £20k in the last five years using them. Yes they are good and will look after the car but I assume that he is trying to save some money. I trust you guys have already told him where he should be going ;)

 

 

I would but I do not want to burn any bridges. :D

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