As things get more and more complicated in the automotive industry, a lot of people have been 'scared off' doing things themselves. Every now and then, though, you stumble across someone like John Warnes. Someone who performs amazing jobs in their back yard.
An electrical technician by trade, it's fair to say John has a head start over most of us when it comes to running electrical gear in his car. This ability has enabled him to - amongst other things - wire in and tune a Haltech programmable injection system in his Holden VL Berlina turbo.
But - hang on - why is a programmable injection system needed?
Well, after running the stock RB30ET single cam engine with a stainless 3-inch exhaust and up to 12 psi boost, it got to the stage where a freshen-up was on the immediate cards. I guess that's fair enough when you consider the 325,000 kilometres that it'd chalked up!
Rather than go for a rebuild, John thought it'd be a lot more rewarding to transplant in the RB25DET out of a R33 Skyline half-cut. How true. John tracked down a good donor, and he and a mate ripped out the VL's stockie engine (selling it for a tidy sum). Unlike many conversions, John didn't just throw the engine into the bay as-is. First up, some water pump, alternator and sump damage was seen to, the engine was lightly pulled down for a quick inspection and then re-assembled using homemade gaskets (coz where do you get factory ones?). After that came a fire-up on the garage floor, with the 5-speed gearbox still attached. After a little bit of farting around with crank angle sensor hassles, the Haltech E6K computer had the thing running to John's satisfaction.
With a clean bill of health, the RB25 was then slipped into the Commodore engine bay. Interestingly, John decided to keep the standard RB30ET Jatco 4-speed auto, but - from Day 1 - it had trouble holding the new engine's torque. A Stage 3 rebuild was performed, but - again - that Jatco didn't want to know about it. It was time to cut the losses and convert to the Nissan 5-speed that came with the half-cut. This was fitted along with a 5-puck clutch, a 1-tonne pressure plate and a custom 2-piece tailshaft. The differential was also upgraded to a factory VL-T limited slip unit.
No slips and no worries.
Work on the engine had been on going since its installation. In addition to the aforementioned 3-inch exhaust and Haltech (which has allowed a free-flowing MAP-sensed air intake), the RB25 also now sports a large Rampage front-mount air-to-air intercooler, heat-lagged intercooler pipes, a custom blow-off valve, an AVO boost controller giving 15 psi and a large pod air filter (complete with a heat shield). An M&W ignition has also been installed.
John tells us he keeps boost pressure fairly limited due to the factory ceramic turbine wheel - this, however, may soon be replaced by a T04 that's "sitting and waiting to go". Not surprisingly, John reckons the RB25 motor is a gem. It's a lot more refined and revvy than the standard RB30 turbo - and, of course, it's pretty quick too. At the track, John's pulled a 13.6 ET - but with the potential to run quicker.
Not bad for a daily driver.
The mechanical makeover has been completed with some light brake and suspension work. The standard VL turbo brakes copped an overhaul, DBA slotted and drilled front discs and a set of asbestos pads all round.
When John purchased the car, it'd been lowered w-a-y too far. The ride height is now back up to a more practical level (though still lower than standard) thanks to Pedders front springs and Lovells rear springs. Pedders shocks are fitted at each corner and the majority of bushes have been replaced. John says it's a good set-up for an everyday-er.
And now we get to that electronic wizardry.
John has equipped his VL with his own custom MP3 player system, which is based on a home computer system. In the boot there's a full Pentium 133 CPU motherboard (containing a sound card, Windows 98, Winamp and, of course, a whole heap of MP3s) and a separate DC-to-DC voltage supply.
This clever ensemble is conducted up front via an infra-red remote control, a keyboard in the centre console and a 16 x 2 character LCD display housed in the front of the console. It's full-on. Oh, and a conventional Alpine 6-stack CD/tuner is also fitted up front.
Choosing from around 1400 songs (all sucked-up from purchased CD originals, of course!), music is played through a serious speaker and amp system. In the front there're Pioneer 4-inch mids, 6-inch Cerwin Vega splits and - heading toward the rear - you'll find 8-inch Pioneer 3-ways. As you can see, the boot is plump with twin 12-inch Sound Stream subs in a bandpass enclose, venting through ports into the cabin. The entire system is thoroughly sound deadened. Amplification is performed by 500W 5-channel Jaycar job, which John says is a top thing.
Let's stay in the boot a bit longer. John's fully trimmed it for maximum visual appeal and has an assortment of lights and LEDs that give it an out-of-this-world look. For practical purposes, there's a false floor and compartments for the spare, jack, tools and more. Note that an Odyssey battery also lives in the boot, alongside an isolator switch and Jaycar voltmeter. This battery is relied on to run the stereo system when the engine is switched off (and, of course, when there's no charge). In an emergency, it's also got enough grunt to start the engine.
By now you get the picture of the amount of effort that's gone into this car.
Refreshingly, though, this is not your average 'hey, look at me' mobile. The body is completely stock, with just a HDT bootlid extension, window tint, darkened taillights and 15-inch Cheviot 5-spokes wearing 215/60 Yokohamas. That slightly aged blue/green paint job came when he car was bought, and is also non-factory.
The only obvious give-aways to its modified status are the 3-inch pipe sticking out the back and the offset front number plate - a dead give-away of a VL-T equipped with a front-mount intercooler.
It's a car that you wouldn't look twice at if it drove past, but crowds gather whenever the bonnet or boot is popped.
Despite the huge investment of effort, John reckons he's now ready to say goodbye to his long-serving VL. If you're interested purchasing something that's guaranteed wow you're mates - and you've got about $13k lying around - it could be yours. Send an email to michael@autospeed.com and we'll pass on your details if you're seriously interested. John also has a website devoted to the car - www.vlturbo.org - which he keeps pretty well up to date. Check it out for every little nitty-gritty detail.
|