jonrb

:rofl: Yes, a very good point well made. :D

I'd really like to see how you get on with these Kev because I have (completely independently) been seriously considering junking my Gaz setup for these. Depends on what resale value there is in the Gaz setup I have ATM

For reference, the "tube" is part of the wiring for the fog lights. Interestingly, I was talking to the guys at The Phirm and they say that they mount the oil cooler behind the upper grille, in front of the main radiator, because a) there is room, b) there is plenty of airflow, c) less chance of stone damage than where I have mine and d) for maximum airflow on track days it is very easy to just unclip and remove the entire grille. I may have mine relocated. In the meantime, my hack about on the lower grille did work well, although when I used it in anger at Silverstone it was a much colder day than previous track days which would have helped anyway.

This is what I've come up with for now. I used a drill saw to just cut the whole lot out. It's not pretty but it does the job. I hope it doesn't affect the aerodynamics of the car too badly. oil_cooler.jpg[/attachment:baf81] I'm not sure what that tube is. I'll have to find a way of clipping it up out of the way. At some stage in the future I'll buy a replacement lower grille andcarefully cut out the back of the blanked-out portion with a Dremmel to leave it looking like Toad's one.

Vince has been a big proponent of the Koni TA / H&R hit for many years, so if he thinks Koni have something even better then it is probably worth considering.

I think the oil cooler is probably sufficient if only I could get more air onto it. When I tracked the car for the first time with it I was dismayed how ineffective it was. However, taping open the towing eye to make an impromptu air scoop made a massive difference - I still got silly temperatures but it was more slowly. So I figure that if I can get even more air in then it might do the trick. Also, I've only just had it fitted, so changing it for a bigger one already does seem like a bit of a waste. :)

I've had a better look at the bumper now. You can clearly see the oil cooler almost side-on through the slots cut into the fake grille, so finding a way of opening that up more would definitely help. The "slats" of the grille are wedge shaped, so the gaps in the grille are much smaller than they look. The grille runs the whole width of the bumper. If you cut that area out then the cover for the towing eye wouldn't stay on any more as it clips onto lugs either side, the N/S of which is on the part I would want to remove. I don't understand why the earlier design (posted by Toad) has proper functioning grilles and why the later one is all blanked off and fake. :( I've looked on Demon Tweeks and, whilst they have a good range of ducts, they're all too big for the gap. I think realistically I'm looking at buying a Dremmel (finally, an excuse to buy one!) and cut out the slats of the grille to leave an ugly hole, smooth down the edges as best I can and maybe fit some coarse mesh to prevent stone damage to the cooler.

Yes please - it might be useful. I'll drop you a PM.

You can see the actual install on this pic: s_Image025.jpg[/attachment:ec663] So for ultimate cooling I guess it could do with ducting making two air paths - one each side of the cooler.

I'm running Silver Synta oil (as supplied and fitted by Stealth) and topped up with Castrol Magnatec as I was low on oil recently and didn't have any Synta. I plan to change the oil before my next track day, BTW. Not sure what the oil cooler is as Stealth did a supply and fit - I think it's a Mocal. BTW, I'm only seeing these temperatures on track with some very hard driving - not on the road!!!

Mine is a very late VR6 - last of the line, first registered in 1996. However, my grille looks pretty much like what you have posted and ringed in red. Only on mine the grille is all fake and blanked off and Stealth opened up some of the bars of the grille with a Dremmel. If that entire grille could be opened up, or even temporarily removed each time I go on track, then that might do the trick. Does anyone know if it comes off easily on its own?

Hi folks I need to get more airflow onto my oil cooler which is located on the N/S behind the bumper. It is currently fed by slots dremmeled into the fake grille next to the N/S towing eye cover on my VR6. For track days I can get a little more airflow onto it by taping the towing eye cover open, but I still see 140 degC on track which just isn't good enough. Taping the towing eye cover does make a significant difference though as it takes much longer to come up to that temperature, so I know I'm on the right lines here. I'd like to replace the entire fake grille with a duct or scoop, does anyone know if a) the grille comes out easily and b) if any such duct is available? Thanks in advance Jon

It's true, you know. You just can't get enough BJs. ;) Edit: A bit of bush is nice too. And the odd top mount is a nice change. :) (Sorry)

Indeed they do. The H&Rs seem well matched to the Koni TA and are a little softer than the Eibach springs that are often also used. I haven't heard of any other springs being used with Koni TA so can't comment, other than to say that Koni TA / H&R is a very tried & tested combo and suits the Corrado very well for road use. It is of course stiffer and less compliant than the standard suspension, but is a good compromise.

@3corsameal ... It could be so many different things or combination of things. Could be suspension bushes, top mounts, ARB bushes, engine mounts, track end rods, a dodgy damper, tyres (incl. pressures), steering rack, tracking / wheel alignment, etc. For a decent spring & damper setup you can't go far wrong with Koni TA sports dampers and H&R springs. They really are a very good combo which is why so many people have them.

Just a quick update - the 325lb front springs on my Gaz setup are just so much better than the 275lb ones. The car feels far less undersprung now. The difference is most noticeably on track but there are noticeable improvements on road driving too.

My car is midnight blue, but does look black when it's dirty. Which it is a lot. :) The track day isn't until Tuesday.

If the information is only a few weeks old, Kev, then that would explain things as my information is several months old. :)

Thanks Kev. The dealer I spoke to said that they were discontinued - despite still listing them on their website - and so I stopped pursuing that avenue. Hence the rest of this thread. :)

Got the R888s fitted this morning. Here's a photo as requested, but it's not brilliant because a) It was taken with my phone rather than a proper camera b) I haven't cleaned all the RimSeal off yet and c) I haven't painted a set of centre caps black yet, so they're still silver at the moment. But here it is: black_wheels2.jpg[/attachment:7731a]

Castle Combe - a track I've driven about 3 times before but none in the past 8 years so I'm a bit rusty. :)

Thanks! I'm very pleased with them too. And you're right; they do look even more similar to the MO when in black. The tyres are going to be 205/50 ZR15 - ie. totally standard VR6 size. Which is handy. re: taking pics - no problem. Will do so tomorrow some time. I'm planning on letting the tyre fitters fit them to the car and I'll keep them on until after the track day at which point I'll switch back to the road wheels / tyres myself. Just hope we don't get any more of that extreme rain between now and then.

The R888 sizes clinched it for me and last week I decided to run 15's for track days at the very least, so my spare set went off to the refurbishers on Friday and came back today. I booked a set of R888s with http://www.blackcircles.com yesterday and they're being fitted tomorrow, ready for my track day on Tuesday. Here's a pic of the alloys. I think they look rather nice in satin black for that motorsport look. :)

Rear springs are unchanged. I don't know about your Gaz dampers, Kev, but on mine they aren't threaded all the way down so Vince had spacers made up to compensate. The trouble was that they don't clamp the top mount properly. For normal driving gravity holds everything in place, but yumping or taking kerb on track causes the whole coilover unit to drop down a few inches and then slam back up (my top mounts don't sit flush like they should - they stand proud due to the spacers). Vince and I noticed that the standard retaining nut on the top has an integral washer so he found a washer of the same diameter and we put that under the spacer to try to do the same job and that seems to have worked to some extent, although the top mount still stands proud and can therefore drop and return as before and hence has the same problem. Vince thought he had a further idea on Saturday which he was going to discuss with you, Kev, but if he's told you something different today then he's probably mulled it over during the weekend and rejected it.

My top mounts were shagged after only 5 months / 3000 miles (although that does include a track day) when I had the springs changed over on Saturday. Seems the mounts were moving around a lot which is what destroyed them. You'll have this problem too, Kev. Vince is going to talk to you about it as we found a way of reducing the movement with an extra washer. Vince thinks that the top spring seats off any coilover kit may be a more permanent solution. Too soon to say whether the 325lb springs are better than the 275lb ones, but initial impressions are good.