AutoSpeed - Response

Workshop Lighting

Workshop Part 6 about illumination was interesting. I have worked on a number of lighting projects and found illumination part of the issue when not getting it right. I had a reception area with a floor area about 50m2 with 24 lights and the admin officer had eye strain. I designed an office lighting system with as low lux as 120 and nobody suffered any eye strain or complained. What I achieved is a deviation of light across the work area of a maximum of 7 lux. As you increase illumination you create other issues like shadowing and with high illumination the ability for the eye to change when going through various intensities moving from one area to another while working can be counter productive. Light temperature does play a big part in illumination, achieving an even spread of light with little variance across the work area regardless of intensity is more of a winner than brightness.

Craig

Australia

New Car Tests

I noticed you guys have not done a new car review for a very long time, Why?

I look forward to your critical unbiased analysis but noticed the new car reviews have been slowing down more these days. There is no shortage of choices out there and as a consumer i look forward to your reviews of these vehicles.

Please advise when we should see more new car reviews coming back?

Keep up the great work, this is a brilliant web site, i spend endless hours analysing and reviewing cars etc and have found your site the best overall by far. cheers.

Tony Pascoe

Australia

There is ‘certainly a shortage of choices’ when the car companies will not make cars available to us! (That’s usually – but not always - because of a previous negative review.) That said, we have some new car tests in the pipeline.

Praise

Well done. an excellent informative site. keep up the good work. Especially the write up on camless technology. Camless Engines

Don D'Abrera

Australia

Steam Power

Great work on the site. Long time reader. With regards to steam power, I think the rotary makes an interesting candidate here. It's a small, smooth powerplant that has the interesting attribute that it works well with fuels that deliver high initial energy in the combustion, like hydrogen and low RON fuels. The high initial torque pulse of the steam motor at low settings would suit the rotaries ability to use it.

Graeme Scott

Australia

Moving the Battery

your article Relocating the Battery

id like to bring a few things up that scare the shit out of me (i am an auto electrician). and a few additional pointers to help with the instructions if i may..

1. cable tieing the power cable to the lines under the car. the cable should be attached to the body separately from them pipes and at 20cm intervals. all to often i see twits cable tieing the power cable to the fuel line..real bright when you think what will hapen if something is driven over and said item smacks under the car and crushes cable to the pipe work. yeh its a maybe happen, but would rather not be responsible for informing people to "cable tie said cable to the pipework". there are proper cable holding devices ie P clips. that will hold cable properly and be insulated from the body for extra safety. if i do run cable under the car id segest saying to conduit for added mechanical protection too..

2. the battery box. what you fail to mention is that if the boot space can vent to the cabin space, you by law have to use a sealed battery box that vents to OUTSIDE the car (look up either JAZ battery box or Morosso baattery box. these have a sealed lid so the container cant breath into the car boot or cabin space. then a pipe is provided by the kit to be attached to the box and is located to run from the box to through the boot floor to vent outside of the car to allow the battery to breath. as when batterys vent fumes ie corrosive. its not good for the boot space or your lungs.. the only thing extra i do is goto an electrical wholesalers and get 25mm cable glands that are threaded one side with a nut and have a rubber colapsing gromet onto the cable to seal properly as i find the rubber gromets supplied in the sealed battery box kit to be not quite sufficent.

3. a battery in the boot install has to be engineered, to make sure the battery box can hold the battery in an accident.

4. using a gromet on a large cable to pass through a panel isnt a good idea as the weight and "physical memory" a large cable can have can destroy a rubber gromet and start perferating the cable insulation over time. i use a batery through panel. for the sake of $35 for peice of mine and safety id rather use one. google part number ACX0034 it should come up somewhere to show you what it looks like

5. circuit breakers should be rated to the cable amperage to protect the cable and let the device pull the amps it needs without burning the contacts out on the circuit breaker which does happen over time. so measuring the amperage the starter pulls on starting the engine should be checked before puting any cable down to make sure it is suited to the job. especially with 12 volts where voltage drop is a big issue.

i have posted a universal kit i build which is a proven set up to work for most cars, that i have used for over a decade now. its posted here if you would like a read -

http://www.ausrotary.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=31504&start=40&st=0&sk=t&sd=a

circuit breakers are added to the starter cable at the battery. its an amendment ill be adding soon since i saw your circuit breaker addition as usually on factory cars these arent fused at all. Not even on factory cars like bmw's and skylines. but think it is a good idea for protection

Simon

Australia

More on Moving the Battery

I have just read your sarticle om relocating a battery and unless I'm blind I could not find anywhere in the article where it said that the battery box in the boot should be if marine grade quality under ADRules this is what is required so that if battery acid should spill from the battery it won't eat it's way through the inferior plastic of a cheap ($20) box then the boot itself. I have it on good authority that if a car is pulled by the police and they decide to look in the boot as part of a road inspection they will unroadworthy the car if it doesn't have a marine grade box, these are marked as such.

Dingo Sharp

Australia

Praise

Hi guys ,love your tech articles on the pintara,ive got a 90 trx 2.4 and have learnt and put in to practicle use of your articles on them, eg 2.5' vr commodore cat 2.5' exhaust 2.5' redback tri flow muffler and what a difference it has made to the performanced and sound,you are an aussie buy the look of your cars you do stuff to,my next thing to do is your air box mod to the pintara ,glad i found your site , keep up the good work you put on it . i shall visit it frequently to see what you get up to ,past and present tips and advice on what to do to our pride and joy. all the best.

Alan Dawson

Australia

Nissan VG30DETT

There's a few inaccuracies in this article, about the VG30DETT: 2004 Engine Epic - Nissan Engines

1.) It has steel turbochargers turbines, not ceramic ones.

2.) The single turbo version only came on the Z31 300ZX, not the Z32.

3.) The last JDM 300ZX also had the VG30DETT, there was never a VQ30DET in a stock 300ZX.

That is all ;)

Vaughan

Australia

Silver Thermal Paste

Im writing regarding article at Peltier Intercooler Water Spray

Author mentioned using car body as heatsink, but lacked thermal connectivity with it. What about using silver thermal paste thats used in computers (between CPU and heatsink/fan)? Just a suggestion, but this is a nice topic!