ZX2Fast

At first I thought it was a Celica. It looks that way in the dark from the back. My wife and I just left a movie and the guy was doing a burnout in the parking lot on the snow. So I follow him. Get next to him about 45 in 2nd gear and pace him. I hear him hit it and I follow suit. In the time it takes for my turbo to spool he puts about 1.5 cars on me and stops pulling so hard when I make full boost. I shift to 3rd (started in 2nd gear at 45) and almost stop him from pulling when he gets about 3 cars ahead of me. I notice I'm going 80 in a 45 so I let off. I think I might have been able to reel him in if we raced to about 120 or so but I'm not going to do that in town.

You might be wondering how I got beat by a Saturn. Right as he gunned it (over my loud ass car with the windows up) I hear the supercharger scream. It was a damn Redline. I know he had at least a Magnaflow exhaust and I'm guessing a stage 2 kit since the SC was so damn loud. I guess he seen that he didn't run off and leave me so he never did return to the speed limit. He went about 55 mph the rest of the time so it took me awhile to catch up to him again. I guess he didn't want another go. Trying to figure out how the hell this Escort isn't smoked. I'm sure with a dyno tune I wouldn't have lost at all, but I'm still on the rich ass base tune on my old ass 160,000 mile motor. I got next to him again just before he got on the interstate (maybe I should have followed) and we waved. Cool guy.

Some of you might remember my race against the SS/SC Cobalt. Modded airbox and muffler. I won by a car from 25 to 105mph.

Red2.4SS/SC

cliff notes please

Red06LS

So r u a 2.4 or an S/C??? Not not to be off topic.....

NJHK

What size is your engine?

Also, what are your a/f ratios that you're seeing under wide open throttle?

1gmfanatik

He has a turbo ZX2 Escort, if you look in his sig...Actually, the CAI is what makes our Superchargers scream. He could have had Stg2, CAI, and exhaust, that alone will have him right around 250hp to the wheels. The Redline is Saturns version of the Cobalt SS/SC. Some think they are faster others think differently, all in opinion I think. Same motor, same drive-train, different body style. Congrats on holdin him and also for not blowin your car up yet. lol..I know the older Escorts were bullet proof, my buddy had an old GT that we beat the hell out of..lol

NJHK

I know he has a Turbo Escort...dummy :P

TheFordGuy

Sounds like a good run!

1gmfanatik

Look at the post above yours fart sniffer. lol

ZX2Fast

2.0 DOHC Zetec. The turbo spikes at 10 psi and holds 8-9 psi through the powerband. I'm guessing my A/F is about 11.0:1. It loads up on fuel between shifts and shoots fire out sometimes. It'll foul a set of plugs about every 3 months. In fact, might have been why I didn't do as good as I should have. It has been about 4 months since I put plugs in it. It has been backfiring on decel a lot more lately.

I didn't floor it until he gunned it. Being turbo and all, I had to wait to spool before I make power, he makes it right off the bat. Maybe if I had slipped the clutch a bit, or did a 3 honk, it would have been an even race.

I'm not sure how much louder the CAI alone makes the S/C, but I had to have my window down to hear that SS/SC I raced.

NJHK

Dude, 11.0 is overly rich, especially for a mild turbo setup like yours.

And what do you mean "guessing my a/f"? You down own a wideband?

What RPM are you seeing your full (say...) 9 psi at?

ZX2Fast

No, I don't own a wideband. Ran out of money when the wife went back to school. I can make full boost at 2500 rpm. I'm only getting about 12-16 mpg in town where I was getting 25 before. Getting 16 mpg in town if I don't romp on it at all. It idles crazy with the larger MAF on since it doesn't have much for resolution. The only fix for that (in the base tune anyway) was to richen the idle mix up. But seeing raw fuel come out of the exhaust wasn't any fun so I put the first tune back on it.

IonNinja

how the hell did I get beat by a Saturn...

I love leaving people with that feeling...

hawlyns711

iTrader: (2)

^^ I also like that feeling, a saturn?

USMCFieldMP

iTrader: (1)

You're all about them damn cliff notes! I can't wait to make a kill story with cliff notes... just to get your Praise!

Let me explain Red2.4SS/SC to you Red06LS...

He USED to have a Red 2.4 SS and is from South Carolina (SC). I was confused at first too! But, if I remember correctly... he traded it on or something on an SS/SC.

Cool Escort... should have dropped a Cobra motor in it... then he wouldn't pull so many lengths while you are waiting for your Turbo to Spool! Haha, just messin.

IonNinja

yes sir I do own one, an Ion too but its no redline. people get so disappointed when they hear that

I used to have that Zetec motor in my old Contour, I definitely think you can do better...a little bit slower N/A than the 2.2 but I would expect you to be pushing 200whp on 8psi let alone 11...and with that little car I think you can do better than a car on a non-staged Cobalt.

ZX2Fast

This motor is old. And I'm only running a base tune that is very rich. I know the car will do a lot better after a dyno. should make around 220whp. The problem here is that I'm still using the stock TB and intake manni, so that kinda kills the powerband after 6000 rpm. Guys with my set-up are running very low 14's but they are all tuned.

And for dropping a Cobra motor in my car, don't laugh, because there is a ZX2 with a 351 in it. Stock crate engine running 11.5 in the 1/4. He said he plans to run a shorter gear to get the times down. The whole time I was there he didn't have traction issues.

YellowLT

Redlines have been known to hit LUDACRIS speed, occasionaly they make it to Plaid

shabodah

Hey man. I just saw a Saleen Focus on the road the other day. He seemed to want to race, but there was traffic and my wife was in the car with me, so that wasn't happening. Anywho, If you're untuned, and tuned versions of your setup run low 14's, most untuned Redlines and Cobalt SS/SC's are gonna take you. Heck, you're running real similiar to the stock ones, if anything.

ZX2Fast

I've already edged out a SS/SC, twice. From 25 mph to 105 mph, got him by a car. Seems I'm running a mid 14. One guy with my set-up ran a 14 flat with 7 psi on a much better base tune. But his engine was much younger. I've taken care of this car but the motor did run without oil for a few minites a couple years ago. Damn sending unit broke off (brass adapters suck) and put all the oil out. My wife was driving in rush hour traffic at the time and pulled off the road as soon as she could. When the oil light came on she turned it off. I put 5 quarts in it (took them all to) and fired it up. Knocked for a couple seconds and I've been driving it every since.

I think if we would have started at the same time (he just took off) it would have been an even race. But he just took off and with spool time he got a good jump on me.

If your Focus story was a stab at my racing with my wife in car, she likes it. And there was not another soul on the road with us. I'm not a dumb kid with a fart cannon that races everything that moves. I race only when there is no traffic in front of me (only up to the speed limit) and only break the limit if it is deserted out.

JackD

I have an Ion redline.

They can be real fast from a 40mph roll.

If he beat you like that he must have been stage two or better. Most of the guys run smaller pulleys.

I have a 2.9" pulley, it probably boosts to 16 psi peak. I have not dynoed but from what other cars do with similar mods I should probably be sitting at 240+whp.

They are pretty much the same car as the Cobalt SS but with much better looks.

A stage two cobalt would probably put up a good fight for you.

RaineMan

I hang out with a bunch of guys that have Redlines... they're running about what the SS/SC's are... but talk about sleeper... one of my buddies has a blue one with no wing... no sunroof... looks pretty much like any other Ion on the road... he's running bone stock but is still plenty fast.

I honestly think they look better than the SS/SC does... and they are easier to get under the hood on. They get Recaros standard... but most of 'em don't have boost gauges... which sucks... and I could never get used to having the cluster in the middle of the dash.

shabodah

I wasn't trying to stab at you at all. I thought maybe you'd have some idea how I could contact the guy, I mean, I don't suspect there are too many Saleen Focus's running around, and if you guys stick together anything like us RL folk do, you'd have some idea where I could look. www.focusfanatics.com doesn't like my email address so won't let me setup an account. I'm not trying to say your car is slow, or anything either. But a good driver makes a big difference. Stock SS/SC's and RL's have been driven to 14.2's at the quarter. And most of the RL folk who are still stock would be embarrassed to admit it, lol. Honeslty though, I wish my wife was more into the hobby. She gets real annoyed with my driving, real fast, lol.

bredick

LMAO, Spaceballs!

IonNinja

did you just say low 14's and stock SS/SC in the same sentence? maybe on a downhill track...

the majority of SS/SC owners are going to run a high 14 around 98mph bone stock...if you think you've got a mid 14 sec. car and you've beatin one on more than one occassion that would be why.

There are a limited few who have hit 14.2-14.3 area bone stock but the majority of owners don't cross that line until they go Stage 2...

1gmfanatik

What are you talkin about?? The SS/SC's are more then capable of low 14's bone stock. Mid 14's are what you hear about more often but alot of people pickin up the Cobalts are young and/or new to drivin stick. Not to mention it will all depend on location when it comes to track times.