Max Headroom

My BF5 GT has had rattly tappets since I got the car six months ago. The tappet rattle would come and go at random regardless of engine temp. I did an engine flush before the last oil & filter change, but it made little difference. Last weekend I did another flush before dumping the engine oil & filter, and this time I added Proma MBL as per the instructions on the bottle. As they say in India, "Voila!" No more rattle . . . it's a different car now. For someone like me with an inherent skepticism of additives, this stuff is a revelation.

Yep, my 2.2 GX BF7 had 381,000km when it was written off six months ago. The heads had never been off, and it showed every sign of getting to 500,000km without difficulty. I grieved when that car was totalled . . . .

We live less than ten minutes from Hampton Downs ;D I went to Hampton Downs last Saturday (7-11-09) for a motorcycle rider training day, organised by the Hamilton Motorcycle Club. I took my bike and had a blast. It was amazing to get onto the circuit that we've watched emerge from a bare paddock over the last four years. It was potentially an expensive day out though - it's left me with a firmish plan to build a trackday bike . . . . .

We've owned a Lancaster 3 litre for almost three years, and it's been very reliable. My wife drives it most of the time and she really likes it. Done 300,000kms. There was one glitch. It developed a radiator leak a year ago, and my wife accidently overheated it. I got a local Subaru specialist to pull the engine out, and I took it home & pulled the heads off. Had the valves & seats recut & the head face surfaced. Fitted new valve stem seals & new cam chains and re-assembled it. The local Subaru specialist re-installed it and it's been running fine since. The engine is a work of art internally. There was no wear visible on any of the cams, cam buckets or cam bearing cavities, hone marks still clearly visible in the bores, and everything looked capable of covering 500,000km effortlessly. Just don't cook one . . . .

I'm always nervous when I see instructions/directions which include phrases such as "you can't miss it" and "you can't go wrong" . . . . . ;D

There's a loophole, as far as I'm aware. If you've owned the LHD vehicle for more than three months overseas, and can prove that you've actually driven it overseas within that three month period, you can apply for an exemption even if the car was almost new when you purchased it. Naturally, YMMV etc

You can't ignore torque at all, because that's the only thing that a dyno measures. You've already identified a major difference for yourself when you state that the 250T was achieving peak power at 6000rpm. Both cars have completely different torque curves and different gearing. How those two characteristics play out in the real world are significant. To confirm that, try changing the final drive ratio in your Falcon by fitting different tyres. Just by fitting high profile tyres you can change the feel or responsiveness of a car without changing the cars' weight or engine output. The combination of gearbox ratios, final drive ratios and the rolling diameter of the drive wheels have a huge influence in determining whether a car will feel "peppy" or flat. For a bigger contrast, take a drive in a diesel truck with 100kw at the rear wheels . . . .

15/20

Q, you are right, but I think what everybody is overlooking is that neither engine dynos nor chassis dynos can actually measure horsepower. A dyno can only measure torque, and thereby plot the torque value at a specific rpm. From there, a mathematical calculation (as already given earlier) is then used to establish the horsepower figures by using the torque and rpms. Therefore, horsepower is only measurable indirectly, and is the result of BOTH torque AND revs. Don't underestimate the importance of torque. Without it, a car wouldn't be able to even pull away cleanly from a set of traffic lights. The goal most current engine designers hold dear is a flat torque curve from just above idle right through to redline in a road car. The result is a vehicle which is both flexible and powerful. Any vehicle with a steep torque curve, or with the peak torque high up the rev range, is going to be unpleasant in traffic! Big port heads, big turbos, wild cams and free flow extractors all tend to push the peak torque higher up the rev range which is great on the racetrack, but not so great in typical road conditions. For many years now, Euro car manufacturers have been focussing on torque to aid "tractability" or "drivability". One example of a flat torque curve in a performance car I've had a lot of personal experience with is the non-turbo BMW M3 six cylinder engine. Initially as a 3 litre, these engines produced almost 220kw at 7000rpm, yet peak torque was produced at only 3600rpm. These cars could easily be driven around town all day without effort, because the spread of torque made the engine very "flexible". Yet stomp on the loud pedal, and the other side of its personality made its presence known! My old BF7 wagon had a n/a 2.2l engine, and peak torque came in at a very high 4800rpm. It had a noticeable surge of power that started at 4000rpm, but there wasn't a lot of grunt below 4k. It needed revs to go anywhere. Ironically my (bog-standard) BF5 single turbo wagon produces its peak torque at only 3600rpm, and it's much more pleasant in traffic than the BF7 was. Torque is good. Lots of torque spread over a big rev range is VERY good! my $0.02

I see a lot of simularities between BMW and Subaru even though they compete in different market segments. Both have maintained a philosophy (and a distinct point of difference) in their respective markets. BMW have remained committed to inline engines at the front and RWD, while Subaru have remained committed to horizontally opposed engines and 4WD. I've had several of both brands over the years, and currently own an E36 M3 3 litre as well as the BF5 GT and my wife's BH Lancaster 3 litre. The M3 has been very reliable, and is a pleasure to drive. I've just discovered I must be an angry old man, because I also have a '74 BMW 3.0S (an E3 model) tucked away in the shed awaiting a 3.5l conversion . . . . :>)

I'm glad you posted that chart. I previously got 28mpg out of my BF7 2.2l n/a wagon quite consistently, and I'm currently getting 23mpg out of my (new to me) BF5 GT 2l single turbo. I felt that the GT should be capable of better economy considering it's typical use is 80/20 open road/city. Maybe it's not so bad after all! It's getting a thorough service at the moment, so perhaps things will improve further when I get it back.

My old BF Legacy 2.2 got up to 381,000km before it was involved in an accident only a matter of weeks ago (and now up for auction at Turners in Auckland). I'm reasonably certain that it had never had pre-filled oil filters either, yet it went about its business quietly. I had been looking forward to seeing it hit 500,000km without having the heads off . . . . *sigh*

Ya can always trust a nubee to resurect a dead thread . . . . : BF5 GT S2 facelift by the way, and my son has a BC7 facelift Crowesport. 8) A Taupo meet sounds like fun!