For the love of a tractor engine: The life and times of the 18R-G

[hosking1991]

Pretty sure there was a efi turbo setup for an 18RC on here for sale not that long ago. You could see if they would sell just the efi if you can find it.. Sorry i cant remember who was selling it...

Cheers, Craig...

the chuckster
http://www.toymods.net/forums/showth...ight=turbo+18r
edit beat me witzl

[o_man_ra23]

Actually what I wanted the EFI for was to use the CT26 from my RA23's 3SGTE to boost the 18R-C in my RA28

Cheers, Owen

[timbosaurus]

Just to confirm, all 270 heads were EFI from the factory, and yes, 18R did have an EFI version. There is a pic of it in the parts list and it looks sooo hot from a retro jap point of view. Massively long runners twisting back over the top of the engine to a plenum on the drivers side IIRC.

I've never seen one for sale, in the flesh, or even in a recent picture, so good luck finding one. I for one would fight ya for it

[o_man_ra23]

Fight is on... we do it at midday, in Cairns on boxing day... you wont even make 2 steps (My fighting skills arent that great, but I can withstand the heat )

In seriousness, I wont be able to get the cash quick enough to buy the Chuckster's setup (unless he still has it in like 6 months), but thats pretty much what I am looking for. I would probably modify it to suit the twin entry CT26 though, rather than use the T3

[timbosaurus]

Fight is on... we do it at midday, in Cairns on boxing day... you wont even make 2 steps (My fighting skills arent that great, but I can withstand the heat )

In seriousness, I wont be able to get the cash quick enough to buy the Chuckster's setup (unless he still has it in like 6 months), but thats pretty much what I am looking for. I would probably modify it to suit the twin entry CT26 though, rather than use the T3

I know this is life and times of the 18RG... so I'm risking going off topic. The last time I promise

But, O'man, I'm guessing this thing aint gunna be the ducks nuts on power, economy, or reliability. You just wanna boost ur RC cheaply and don't wanna use a blow through carby.

Have you though about using the stock inlet manifold, taking off the carby, and replacing it with an alloy plate fitted with a single, big, dirty injector drill into the side? Kinda like the old GM TBI cars. Bolt a throttle body (22RE or something common) on top of that, then you can decide whether you want to run a pipe direct from the turbo for the ultimate in lagless, or hook up an intercooker inline. You and I are both electronics engineers and know how fun building a little single injector driver and using a 3D map of TPS VS Load would be

Food for though anyways

Timbo

[o_man_ra23]

Not a chance timbo, already had the EA CFI idea thrown at me and back out the window. They were a problematic and shit design. I want to use the CT26 because they are a better turbo (twin entry is anyways), I also want to convert the motor to 2.2L, an intercooker is a must up here etc etc. Megasquirt would probably be the ECU for this, or adaptronic.

The overall cost isnt the issue, its the availability of funds, so I am looking for a game plan at the moment, and will put funds aside for when I am ready to do it, though I dont want to spend a mint on a setup which will be difficult to on-sell when I go for my next planned motor so I would like to keep costs down a bit.

And as for being OT... well there are quite a few concepts for this which are the same as 18R-G setups, so conceptually it is relevant to the 18R-G discussion as much of the theory can be applied to both, and so the 18R-G community can benefit from my planned uber 18R-C

EDIT: I have an XF TB already, and may used that with a pipe running up to it, and put injectors into the stock RC manifold... dunno yet.

[RAd28]

Owen - can you get a pic of that XF TB up? preferably showing the TPS side... we have a Ford TB at home, that's suppose to be off an original XF turbo, but can't be 100% sure...

dana planted an idea in my head the other day... 18R-GZ... now i can't shake it

anyone know of trubro kits for weber carbies?

[o_man_ra23]

Gerrard, I didnt know the XFs ever had a factory turbo model?? Ill do my best to get a photo of the TB up though, its one of 3 that I nabbed when the Fraud wrecker I used to work at closed down I may even have a second one with no TPS still too. I guess if the TB is vertical it doesnt matter, so it may be a case of put it on where the carby sits now. Will have to talk to a mate who is a boily about that one The XF TBs were 70mm items.

[matttai]

Hi Guys!
I just bought a AE86 with a 18GREU swap installed and engineered.
Is there someone in Sydney i can take it to to have a look at the engine and give it a checkup?

[Gunna]

Hey mate,

Was that the one for sale on drivingclub? Weird mix of engine and car hows it go?

Cheers, Craig...

[matttai]

I do not know how quick it is in relation to other cars as other cars i have been in are all alot more modern / faster / quiter lol. Does seem fast enough to me though.

(btw if this is not the right place mod/admin send me a pm and delete my post and i will create a new topic somewhere...)

[bnicho]

Factory 18R-E induction system, as fitted to an RT114 Corona SR



I'd love to get hold of one!

[timbosaurus]

Hi Guys!
I just bought a AE86 with a 18GREU swap installed and engineered.
Is there someone in Sydney i can take it to to have a look at the engine and give it a checkup?

18RGEU is EFI from the factory Mate. Is it still EFI? If so, does it still have the original computer or does it have an aftermarket system?

If not, it will probably have a set of 40mm mikuni solex's (originally on early 18RGs) or aftermarket 44's or webers.

Unless you have someone who knows a lot about these engines look at it (most of which will be on these forums ), the person wil probably only be able to do a compression check, check the points if it's got 'em, liston for leaks or rattles, and look in the coolant for bubbles. If your lucky they might check valve clearances. Unless you dish out a lot of cash, they will not check other things like valve/seat condition, timing chain/gear/guides, cylinder wear etc which is what you need to look at in an engine of this age.

In my experience only the nicest of mechanics will take the time to investigate the condition of carbies/EFI system of an old engine that has been installed as a conversion, especially if you don't know much of the history. It's simply too many things to go wrong for most mechanics to bother about unless you pay them outrageous $$$.

My advice is to read this thread from top to bottom to understand the RG (there is a lot to know, but very handy!) and do all the checks about yourself. (all you need are a few spanners, a compression gauge, feeler gauge, and a few new gaskets if you REALLY wanna get carried away!) All this, including an 18RG workshop manual (green cover, look on Ebay), would cost less than having someone look over it, you'll learn more, and have a much better understanding of the actual condition (As opposed to a "yeah, looks OK for a 25 year old engine").

When you do all the checks, if your unsure of what something SHOULD look/feel/move/bend like, just take a photo and ask on here whether the part is still usable. Lot of knowledgable guys (like Witzl, JustenGT8 and many others) who are very nice and if they can will offer advice.

[o_man_ra23]

Spoontah with a real motor... nice. Unusual for an older motor to be installed in a newer car, and I am pretty sure it wont pass an emissions test unless a lot of EFI work is done, but cool none the less... just dont tell the EPA

As for your issues, push the throttle closed by hand and see if that lowers the idle. If it does, you need an extra return spring/new cable etc. If not, then look for manifold leaks... spray some soapy water around any manifold joins etc, and see if bubbles start frothing up from anywhere.

Check the condition of the spark plugs, they should be a blackish colour, with no buildup. Check the leads, do they look ratty. Check the dizzy cap, rotor button, points, condensor, replace any if necessary, set the point gap, then set the timing (about 12 degrees static advance), and check to make sure the vacuum advance is working and getting suction (suck on the hose with the dizzy cap removed... does anything move??... then run the motor and see if the end of the hose that goes to the dizzy has suction from the carbies)

You will also need to learn how to balance carbies (if its carby)... the best way I found is to get 2 vacuum guages from old commonwhores and set them up as manometers. You will need to do some sort of calibration (try them both off one carby and see if they get the same vacuum... move the needle if they dont) I should have kept my makeshift manometer... but alas space prevented it.

If its EFI, maybe an aftermarket computer, get the injectors cleaned, clean the throttle body and AFM to make sure nothing there is sticking.

If an amature has been playing with the head gasket (you dont re-seal them, you replace them), then they may have stuffed it. Do a compression test, look for water in the oil and oil in the water.

Good luck mate, let us all know what you find out.

[matttai]

hi thanks for all the help (and the detailed instructions).
Will try and take a look at this stuff this weekend.

It is still EFI using the stock computer.

The car has no fuel regulator so i have to flick a switch to get the fuel going.
Is this also something i can look into completing myself?