CONCEALED WEAPON - 13B Powered E30

[Mockngbrd]

original article: New Zealand Performance Car





CONCEALED WEAPON
Words: Blake Pics: Sean C

So what do you think it might take to change a born and bred piston man to a member of the other faith? Well about 60 seconds of linelock from one Arnie Nguyen in a certain, rather peachy, Series 1 RX7 was all it took for Sanjay Karan to bin any plans of dropping an R32-spec RB26DETT into his E30 3 Series BMW. Months had previously passed with Sanjay's mechanic, the well-known Rick 'Old Man' chipping away at Sanjay about opting for a rotary transplant rather than suffering the trauma of the RB26 swap. Then that one afternoon the sky went black, well actually more a tyre-smoke shade of grey, and Sanjay was overcome with rotary inspiration. It would be fair to say young Sanjay hasn't looked back since, and with a lazy 490-odd hp at his disposal I guess he doesn't really need to!!!

Sanjay is the first to admit that the build-up has been a rather rocky road, having now consumed some 6 years, thanks in a big way to the fact that funding for a $100K+ project seldom appears overnight.
With little time having passed since his decision to go with an engine from Hiroshima, and with the necessary engine mounts having been created, and the engine trial fitted, Sanjay saw this as the ideal opportunity to spruce the 2-door's panels up somewhat. Not one to shy away form rolling his sleeves up, Sanjay enlisted the assistance of an associate who was rather in the know when it came to the art of straightening and smoothing panels.

Over the following 11 months, Sanjay and Steve worked tirelessly, when time allowed, taking the Beemer from a state of shame to a state of grace, along the way deciding to separate the car from the masses with aerodynamic additions from the AC Schnitzer catalogue. A new front bar, subtle side skirts, and rear bumper now adorning the vehicle were supplied by European Auto Spares, who have actually gone on to sponsor Sanjay, supplying all manner of genuine bits he needed throughout the rebuild. Completing the look is the task of an aftermarket boot spoiler. With the pair more than satisfied with their panel-sculpting efforts, outside help was sought from New Image panel and paint in Auckland's Otahuhu for the application of the 2-pak gloss black, which today, after 3 years of life, still retains an immaculate finish, although Sanjay, being the perfectionist he is, sights many problems with the finish and a respray is high on his list of priorities for this very ongoing project.

Sanjay didn't waste any time in getting the car headed straight off to Diffs'R'Us, also in Otahuhu for Lee to give the rear end a once over, so to speak.
What Sanjay left with was a severely rearranged rear-end (of his car, you perverted freaks!!!) with parts that had previously taken up home a VR Commodore now composing the majority of the differential equation complete with limited-slip differential and final drive ratio of 4.11:1. It was very clear at this point Sanjay had embarked on a search for some serious numbers, and the more he came in contact with people in the know, the more he realised the choice of a 13B was going to be a fine motivator for the featherweight euro.
Before he got too carried away with getting her moving though, the suspension needed to checked off the list, so Sanjay made the decision to fit Bilstein shock absorbers, a set of King springs working in unison with the Bilsteins. Sanjay has a feeling these components may live a short life in his car though, the decision to go drag racing having been made and a more specific suspension setup looking ever more likely.

Back to Rick it was, and with Sanjay's initial desire slap the 13B between the wheels in near-standard form well and truly out the window, it was now that Rick really went to work, piece-by-piece sculpting a masterpiece that Sanjay could, at this point, only imagine what the resulting machine would yield.
Rick opted to mildly port a Series 5 13B engine and fit double-sprung 3mm apex seals to ensure security for the levels of boost he had in mind for Sanjay's screamer. Rick then fabricated a custom exhaust manifold, onto which a rather large Garrett T04E turbocharger was suspended. A full 3 inches of exhaust system runs the length of the vehicle allowing the T04 to operate in a most unrestricted manner, the 56mm XTR external wastegate doing quite the opposite however, maintaining a safe 19psi of boost at present. Some of the smoothest plumbed you're likely to spy anywhere lies under this Beemer's bonnet, all chromed to a mirror finish. That plumbing joins forces with a custom front-mount intercooler to keep a supply of air on hand for combustion duties, while a GReddy Type R blow-off valve once again does the opposite. Judging by the size of the 1500cc injectors sitting on the aftermarket throttle body, I'm guessing that very little air goes spare when the throttle even witness part-opening. The 1500's are actually there for higher-rpm operation, with a pair of 550cc units handling the low down operation to keep things smooth.
The engine bay of this vehicle hints at only thing: outrageous grunt, whether you look from the front, where the front-mount is framed by the custom aluminium radiator and kept company by the oil cooler, or whether you peer to another extremity of the engine bay, where such things as a custom oil/air separator and SX fuel pressure regulator reside, or perhaps if you choose to follow one of the carefully crafter mild-steel pieces of plumbing flanked by tough lengths of braided line.
For the last wee while the vehicle has been residing at Auckland's Turbo Vehicle's, a place where one can now find the 'old man' himself, so it came as no surprise that a Motec engine management was chosen to keep the engine in check. It is one of their M800 units in this application, masterfully tuned by Mike Healy to produce some 492.7hp (flywheel) at just 19psi of boost.

Helping Sanjay to keep check on the oodles of dollero's sitting under the hood, a matching Motec digital dash unit has been grafted into a custom allow panel on the dash. The display and computer actually form part of one of the neatest wiring jobs I've certainly ever cast my eyes over, the result of which is on display for all to see in the original glovebox location. The interior actually retains a certain sparse feel to it, not surprising really when you hear Sanjay mention his real intention with the E30 is to nail a 10-second pass at Champion Dragway. To this end, a couple of Recaros occupy prime space up front, coupled to a SWM wheel for easy control, and from which Sanjay stabs at the Tilton pedal assembly.

The boot cavity is also worthy of a mention too, a small petrol station hanging out in the rear, with an aftermarket fuel cell doing its best to drain Sanjay's pockets as frequently as possible, not helped at all by the custom surge tank and large SX fuel pump cleverly hidden under the car.
As nice, and potent, as an RB26-powered E30 may well have been, you can hardly argue with the result of Rick's rotary persuasion of Sanjay, and dare I say, I don't think there are likely to be too many argument's with Sanjay when opens an enormous can of '490hp in a 900kg Euro' whoopass!!!
Tech Spec
E30 BMW 3-Series

Engine: Mazda Series 5 13B, 3mm double-sprung apex seals, mild port, aftermarket throttle bodies, custom plenum, 550cc injectors (2), 1500cc injectors (2), custom exhaust manifold, Garrett T04E turbo, K&N air filter, XTR 56mm external wastegate, GReddy Type R blow-off valve, 3" exhaust w/RPS stainless muffler, custom front-mount intercooler, custom chromed mild steel plumbing, custom aluminium radiator, oil cooler, Samco silicone hoses, custom oil/air separator, custom Nolathane engine mounts, SX fuel pump & pressure regulator, aftermarket fuel cell

Driveline: Mazda S5 RX7 gearbox, Commodore VR limited slip differential, custom differential housing

Suspension: Bilstein shock absorbers, King springs

Wheels: 17"x7" chrome, custom 15" Arrow 3-piece wheels(drag racing)

Body: AC front bumper, skirts, and rear bumper, aftermarket rear spoiler, custom black 2-pak paint

Recaro seats, SWM steering wheel, Tilton pedal box, checker-plate flooring, Motec digital dash display, completely rewired

Power: 492.7hp (flywheel) @ 19psi

[Blitzer]

christ! dats hilarious.... well at least i have sumthin to do with my fd now... hahaha..