Soarer Central: Power / Overdrive

Soarer Central General Soarer Chat Power / Overdrive

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Edward Salem
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SA
JZZ30

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Monday, May 14, 2007 - 10:22 pm, by: Edward Salem (Sydeward)

Just a quick simple newbie question.

Does running a stock TT soarer (or any car for that matter) with power on and o/d off have any negative long term effects on the car? I can understand that constant abuse and hard throttling will increase engine / drivetrain wear and tear, thats understandable, but thats not what im getting at. Im more interested to know if I run the car in power mode everyday am i increasing wear and tear or exposing myself to any extra risk than if I drove the thing on economy mode every day?

The difference as I see it is when tuned for power, the car runs at 2500-3000rpm under normal driving conditions, whereas in economy mode it runs at a lower 1500-2500rpm.

someone that I know reckons that this puts a LOT of extra strain on the transmission and drivetrain, even when driven lightly, I cannot see the sense in this.

Im hoping someone can fill me in.

Peter Nitschke
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Monday, May 14, 2007 - 10:34 pm, by: Peter Nitschke (Pen)

That RPM difference sounds more like comparing OD on/off to me. Power mode mainly makes the gearbox change a little bit later.

Higher revs mean more fuel consumption and a faster wear rate, but that's about it if the driving is the same.

Daniel Clarke
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NSW
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 07:22 am, by: Daniel Clarke (Dieseltrain)

Also affects the Lockup of the TRansmission. The drop in RPM could also be this occuring as with Power on, Lockup owont occur until much later in the rpm if at all .

Braden Murdoch
DieHard
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Cressida 1JZ TT

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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 10:25 am, by: Braden Murdoch (Ribfeast)

So it is better to run your car with PWR off for the entire run at WSID, for quicker lockup and more MPH?

Daniel Czechowski
Goo Roo
Western Australia
Soarer GT-T

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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 12:14 pm, by: Daniel Czechowski (Dan)

Why you would want to run with O/D Off is beyond me?? It's basically 4th gear. Unless you are driving fast on a steep decline or something over a long distance, and don't want to wear the brake pads, and use engine breaking instead... In normal everyday driving you get absolutely no advantage having OD Off, in fact your revs will stay higher all the time when crusing, use more fuel, and wear your car out more as a result In other words it's like having a four-gear manual car, and doing 110 on the freeway in third. Why would you do that now? Hope this explains

Daniel Czechowski
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 12:17 pm, by: Daniel Czechowski (Dan)

Also, OD off is good for drag racing, since you don't want to lose the valuable time for it to shift to fourth just before the finish line.

Luke Nieuwhof
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WA
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 01:21 pm, by: Luke Nieuwhof (Luke_nieuwhof)

I've never had it want to shift to fourth before though Dan.

I used power off the other weekend at the drags and got my best times ever, go figure *shrug*

Daniel Czechowski
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 01:51 pm, by: Daniel Czechowski (Dan)

Oh I assume it would, never tried dragging with OD on hmmm.

Luke Nieuwhof wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 01:21 pm:
I used power off the other weekend at the drags and got my best times ever, go figure

Same here, with power on, same revs on stall etc (on the same day) I was point 1 second slower than with normal power. Weird huh?

Edward Salem
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JZZ30

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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 06:04 pm, by: Edward Salem (Sydeward)

Daniel Czechowski wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 01:51 pm:

Same here, with power on, same revs on stall etc (on the same day) I was point 1 second slower than with normal power. Weird huh?

interesting. I thought it was just me but like you i dont find the power button does anything at all. Ive played with it while idle and driving, and the engine and trans appears to run exactly the same, on or off. ive read somewhere that the power button forces the car to run in a higher rev range, and change the gears later, but from my observations this is controlled through the overdrive switch not the power switch, thus directly affecting power and economy.

Daniel Czechowski wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 12:14 pm:
Why you would want to run with O/D Off is beyond me?? It's basically 4th gear. Unless you are driving fast on a steep decline or something over a long distance, and don't want to wear the brake pads, and use engine breaking instead... In normal everyday driving you get absolutely no advantage having OD Off, in fact your revs will stay higher all the time when crusing, use more fuel, and wear your car out more as a result In other words it's like having a four-gear manual car, and doing 110 on the freeway in third. Why would you do that now? Hope this explains

I had a long talk with a family friend about it and technically he put it down the same way you did no better way to explain it really. later gear changes = higher revs = more wear on the trans = more wear on the engine = more petrol usage. I guess in a way its common sense but I needed someone to explain the technical side of it for me as Im fairly stubborn and wont change my mind over a simple answer lol.

from now on my o/d is on and power off, both for economys sake and for the sake of my engine / trans. can always switch power on / o/d off if need be!!

Daniel Clarke
Goo Roo
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 09:13 pm, by: Daniel Clarke (Dieseltrain)

I have explained before and will again Guys...

Stock turbo soarers with stock cams WONT make power up to 7,000rpm. So basically revving it there is a waste of time. With turbo Cars its the TORQUE that makes them go well.

Auto Soarer:- 1/4 mile run with Power Normal and O/D off...

The Power button ON will rev a bit higher in the gears and also engage the Lockup a little bit later in the rpm ( its actually based off road speed).

The reason why you get better times with the power Normal and O/D off is this... The car is Not over revving and letting the meat of Torque do the work. Once into 3rd gear the gearbox will Lockup at around the 135km/h mark. Which gives the car a little more acceleration as there is virtually no slippage of the convertor and also increase your MPH.

Also the Power button activates the TEMS suspenion in a TT! Power Normal = Tems to Soft which is MUCH better for Launching as it allows more Squat!

Those of you whom tried this and ran faster, Was your 60 footers a little better and your ET lower and Mph higher?

I am speaking from experience also as i have had my car do over 70 1/4 mile runs so far in just under 12 months!

Cihan Aday
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Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 10:15 pm, by: Cihan Aday (Cihan)

ECT also drops power steering assistance.
If your rack is in good condition you'll feel it firm up

Daniel Czechowski
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Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 11:54 am, by: Daniel Czechowski (Dan)

Damn, never noticed the power steering thing...

Blake Gloyn
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Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 12:16 pm, by: Blake Gloyn (Blakenz)

yeah daniel Clarke, my times and speed have improved since i started racing in normal instead of power.

Luke Nieuwhof
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Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 01:27 pm, by: Luke Nieuwhof (Luke_nieuwhof)

Daniel Clarke wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 09:13 pm:
I am speaking from experience also as i have had my car do over 70 1/4 mile runs so far in just under 12 months!

Just 70?

I think I am at about 50-60 for the year, maybe a bit more. I got a tonne of time cards I know that!

I'm not saying power has no effect, it does. It firms up the suspension and steering, definitely feel the difference. It also holds gear for longer and drops down a gear a lot easier. Excellent for circuit work or a motorkhana day but won't help at drags, I should've started listening to Daniel a while ago!

Callum Finch
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Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 01:28 pm, by: Callum Finch (Sigeneat)

Edward Salem wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 06:04 pm:
thought it was just me but like you i dont find the power button does anything at all

Plant your foot harder, mate ;)

Braden Murdoch
DieHard
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Cressida 1JZ TT

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Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 03:35 pm, by: Braden Murdoch (Ribfeast)

Wow good info! I'm keen to do a run with PWR and OD both off next time

Daniel Clarke
Goo Roo
NSW
TT 2.5L 6 cylinder

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Thursday, May 17, 2007 - 07:52 pm, by: Daniel Clarke (Dieseltrain)

Glad i could help guys

Edward Salem
Tinkerer
SA
JZZ30

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Saturday, May 19, 2007 - 02:17 pm, by: Edward Salem (Sydeward)

Daniel Clarke wrote on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 09:13 pm:
I have explained before and will again Guys...

Stock turbo soarers with stock cams WONT make power up to 7,000rpm. So basically revving it there is a waste of time. With turbo Cars its the TORQUE that makes them go well.

Auto Soarer:- 1/4 mile run with Power Normal and O/D off...

The Power button ON will rev a bit higher in the gears and also engage the Lockup a little bit later in the rpm ( its actually based off road speed).

The reason why you get better times with the power Normal and O/D off is this... The car is Not over revving and letting the meat of Torque do the work. Once into 3rd gear the gearbox will Lockup at around the 135km/h mark. Which gives the car a little more acceleration as there is virtually no slippage of the convertor and also increase your MPH.

Also the Power button activates the TEMS suspenion in a TT! Power Normal = Tems to Soft which is MUCH better for Launching as it allows more Squat!

Those of you whom tried this and ran faster, Was your 60 footers a little better and your ET lower and Mph higher?

I am speaking from experience also as i have had my car do over 70 1/4 mile runs so far in just under 12 months!