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Our R&D department have been focused on our R8 project for almost 1 year which includes a running RS4 that preceded our R8 installation. Currently we are in process of completing our first R8 chassis test car and production components are being operated on in our CNC production line at our facility in Southern California.
Our approach the supercharger development is quite unique when it comes to design and production style. With a higher bar set for this project, our engineers chose to use the latest supercharger from Eaton Corporation: Twin Vortices Series TVS1900. It is a 6th generation 4 lobe roots supercharger that supercedes the older 3 lobe MP90 and MP112. With the ability to rev higher and harder, the TVS1900 unit can be operated at lower speeds than the older unit and create more boost due to its displacement and higher efficiency.
To put this unit into place, VF-Engineers chose to "billet" the entire intake manifold. The supercharger is positioned ontop of the 2 piece manifold and blows into a supersize heat exchanger core and down into our venturi'd runner inlets. We do not use water or chemical injection into the engine. This direct blow down design eliminates the need for the air to travel around tight bends with "cradle style" designs.
CNC Machined inlet lower tray.
CNC Machined inlet runners.
We will slowly document more information as our marketing dept releases it and can try to answer some questions if they fall in the scope of what we have answers for. We do not have a release date to publish as all information is informal at this moment. Our first production batch is already allocated and we hope to encourage many of our clients to post on this awesome community forum.
Recent photoshoot in Irvine, CA.
VF-Engineering has been exclusively creating FI systems since 1996 as a primary objective. Since VF relocated to Southern California from London, UK in 2000, GIAC (Irvine, CA) have been exclusively writing our software for re-calibration of the ECU or ECUs in the case of the R8. GIAC's credentials speak for themselves (in VW, Audi, BMW, Porsche, Bentley OEM dealerships and aftermarkets).
One of the most interesting features of GIAC software, is their development of software "switching". Using a small handheld unit that the user can plug into the OBD2, the software can be switched on the fly through different modes such as "Race gas" higher timing program for when you fill up with high octane, or "Valet mode" to reduce power for obvious reasons or "Kill mode" to lock the ECU. The GIAC software is electronically "flashed" into the ECUs through the OBD2 port with the optional modes. Our R8 supercharger system will included the fully loaded GIAC features.
Additional features of the system are a high capacity cooling system. With the use of a GT3 Porsche front center radiator we reduce the potential to limit cooling of existing radiators and use OEM parts for applications they were designed. A high flow Bosch water pump to circulate the charge cooling system water is key to the heat transfer process (that is removing heat from the air induction charge). With all our charge cooling systems for example in our Porsche 997S supercharger, we create large custom plastic molded multiple gallon water tank. The ratio of the sizes of the heat exchangers to water capacity and pump flow rate is an underlying factor that our engineers are too aware of when it comes to keeping the induction charge cooled in arduous conditions.
In the image below, one can see the rather large TVS1900 supercharger mounted atop our 2 piece billet manifold (shown in pics on page1).
A key design objective our engineers undertook was to retain an original (OEM) style appearance and to make the integration of the parts as simplistic as possible, thus giving a premium optical effect and easily reversed non intrusive product.
The supercharger draws air in through the stock air filters (soon to be upgraded to larger items) and stock intake tracts to the throttle bodies (TB's). The TB's are mounted to the voluminous CNC billeted supercharger inlet.
The supercharger unit is driven off the stock crank pulley via a custom belt setup and OEM spring tensioner. It blows directly down into a thick air/water bar and plate heat exchanger. The heat exchanger is fed with a constant 3psi flow of coolant which absorbs heat energy out of the air charge as it passes through (air and water do not come into contact). The cooled air charge travels in a straight path out of the heat exchanger and is directed into the CNC ported intake runners.
The OEM engine bay plastic trims, air box cover and certain other accessories have not be re-installed in this photo as the car is undergoing final testing.
-Nik Saran
VF-Engineering R&D
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Check out the very short video link at the bottom of this post. In the following pics you can see better shots of what the TVS1900 looks like mounted on the V8. After initial tests we had to mount a larger pulley as the boost was above our target!
Watching the CNC machines carve out the manifolds from huge pieces of billet is certainly fun, but not as much fun as hearing the TVS being driven off the crank pulley and hearing the fierce exhaust growl.
Close up, line of sight.
Plastic cover between throttle bodies can be refitted. Left off here, to show detail.
The R8 is on the tarmac and currently going through its paces on the 6 lane freeways of Southern California. We are planning several videos with lots of pics coming.
Here we are at Mitchell's in Olde Town Orange for a sip of their local cool 100 octane at the pump.
All badged up! Ready to meet the R8-10
See it in person at Cars and Coffee in Irvine tomorrow 7am !
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