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Zx9 tuning
greavesy7 - 20/1/15 at 10:12 PM

What sort of mods are there for a zx9 engine and what sort of gains would you expect

Wadders - 21/1/15 at 08:45 AM

IMHO the only mod worth doing on such an old engine would be fitting a turbo which should give you about 200 bhp.....you can get a big bore kit and get head work done but it would be cheaper and easier to drop a ZX12 in or any of the modern 1000's........instant hp hike.

ZX9 was a great engine in its day, but old hat now, rather than tuning or swapping, losing weight can help it compete with newer engines.

Al.






Originally posted by greavesy7
What sort of mods are there for a zx9 engine and what sort of gains would you expect

dave_424 - 21/1/15 at 11:16 AM

Converted mine to megasuqirt fuel injection, turbo from a volvo. Makes 225bhp at 15psi of boost with no problems, it is in an offroad vehicle though so not driven it much after the turbo compared to a road car.

See both my threads

Here at 7psi boost made 181bhp with a bad turbo manifold and other things http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=184992

Here is at 15psi, better turbo manifold, all boost leaks fixed http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=193224

200mph - 21/1/15 at 04:15 PM

quote:
Originally posted by dave_424
Converted mine to megasuqirt fuel injection, turbo from a volvo. Makes 225bhp at 15psi of boost with no problems, it is in an offroad vehicle though so not driven it much after the turbo compared to a road car.

See both my threads

Here at 7psi boost made 181bhp with a bad turbo manifold and other things http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=184992

Here is at 15psi, better turbo manifold, all boost leaks fixed http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=193224


Do you have an idea of your total spend on the conversion?

Cheers

Mark

dave_424 - 21/1/15 at 07:54 PM

Just megasquirt or full turbo conversion?

If just the megasquirt, then

Megasquirt with loom - £300
Z1000 crank wheel - £10
ZX10 throttle bodies and injectors - £60
Injection fuel pump - £30
Fuel pressure regulator - £60

Thats pretty much it, unless I'm forgetting something


For the turbo its that plus

I Tig welded the exhaust manifold - £80
Turbo - £60
I used an external wastegate - £70

those are the main things, other misc things like hoses, boost pipes, intercooler (free), plenum (rover v8) etc - £100

I'm sure there are some other things that I have overlooked that bumps up the price a bit but those are the main things. I would say it could be easily done for under £800-1000

200mph - 21/1/15 at 08:10 PM

Very interesting, thanks!

dave_424 - 21/1/15 at 08:59 PM

I did get a set of forged pistons for £50 and a cylinder spacer because I wanted a reliable strong engine for 15 psi, but I ran 7 psi on an unopened engine. I expect you could easy run 8-10psi on a stock engine just spacer and get 200bhp. When I removed the stock pistons and they looked great with no destination marks or anything

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 09:03 PM

It's a 2003 engine so I wouldn't say it was that old. What sort of power do you get from standard with a 4 branch and a performance air filter ?

40inches - 21/1/15 at 09:24 PM

quote:
Originally posted by greavesy7
It's a 2003 engine so I wouldn't say it was that old. What sort of power do you get from standard with a 4 branch and a performance air filter ?


I think it unlikely that you would get any power increase from changing from the standard "F" exhaust and air box, there may even be a power loss http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=186736
A rolling road session, done by a tuner who knows bike carbs, would be the most cost effective way to maximise power output.
ZX10R throttle bodies/injectors fit without modification, and give a healthy increase across the rev range, but will need the 10R ECU or a Megasquirt .
I think it would be better to get it set up and use it for a summer first, you may be pleasantly surprised

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 09:41 PM

I've not driven it yet so I'm sure I will I just like researching !

Dave is there a reason why you kept to the standard air box over a pipercross sausage filter ?

40inches - 21/1/15 at 09:46 PM

I asked the question myself here; http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=186736 So, based on the replies, I kept it

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 09:47 PM




Smeak peak

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 09:50 PM

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 09:52 PM

40inches - 21/1/15 at 09:53 PM

Looking good, does it run OK?

greavesy7 - 21/1/15 at 10:00 PM

[IMG]http://i53.photob ucket.com/albums/g52/Greavesy7/Mobile%20Uploads/th_trim.4C0CCDC4-2FE3-49C5-B99F-5B915CD71C3B_zpsuowye5wd.mp4[/IMG]

What do you think