Venom XR Turbo

Was able to spend all of wednesday in a new 6 speed MkII XR8 the other day. spent the whole time on the Great Ocean Road :)
First impressions:
- The Control Blade IRS is AWESOME! alot better than BA 1
it reeli allows u to power out of turns, with minimal body roll (and get it sideways with more 'poise'!)
- Lacking torque feel low in the rev range, very dissapointing, as was with the BA 1 8, and with the new 6 speed, i found myself , on the very tight corners, almost wanting to drop it back to first to keep it in its power band. below 3000rpm, there is nothing:( even my BA1 Turbo pulls better than that at low rpm, and its a 5 slotter!
- Due to this lack of performance in 2nd on tight turns, i question just how good this new diff and gearbox set up was thought out when they decided the ratios.... is it very 'usable'?
- LURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRV that sound!! (like a V8 supercar!)

To sum it up, i love the way it handles now, and i love the way it goes above 3000rpm, but am dissapointed with the lack of go in 2nd at low rpm. Im sure after it is run in, it will improve, but even my turbo was better than this when it had 100kms on the clock.
Ill have to look elsewhere for the potential next 'Venom Mobeel'
CANT WAIT to test the new Turbo! if it has gear ratios like this Mk2 xr8, but the down low go of the series one 6T, it will be something else! ... which makes me more anxious to test a TYPHOON!!!! (and GT, ofcourse)

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AMBROSE & MOFFAT: leaders of my religion

XcelR8

Yes it's a shame about the lack of go below 3000. My Mk 1 XR8 takes like forever to get to 3000 off the line then it scoots up to 6000 in a flash and you're on the limiter before you know it unless you glue your attention to the tacho, not always that easy.

The Edits will make a massive difference here by giving some of the torque back below 3000 that will make these 8's a whole new ball game.

A few other mods help too!

Lucky bloke all day with an 8 on the great ocean road!!!! Wish I'd been there!

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Jase

I can't understand how it is that a 5.4L engine with such a long stroke has got low down torque issues. It's just nuts. I sure as hell hope the Boss edit thing cures these problems or there's no way in hell I'm buying the 8 over the turbo. Pretty sad however to think that this whole torque problem is caused by Ford & their software engineers........

BA GT-HO

Pretty much the same experience I had when testing an XR8. The one I drove was an auto and it seemed to have not much before 3000RPM. This one had about 15,000kms on the clock but still seemed to struggle before 3k. I wish it would have come on a bit earlier as it really feels a bit sluggish before it hits its sweet spot. Still an awesome car, hows the note!? Oh yeah! I could drive for hours in the hills trying to find rockwalls to bounce the noise back at me! Sounds so much better than an LS1 (even an LS1 with an exhaust sounds weird.) But unfortunately the T 'felt' quicker with its turbo rush and awesome kickdown so I went the T.

anakha

At low engine speeds single intake valve heads have higher air velocity and hence the more efficient fuel/air mix which produces more torque. On the flip side twin intake valves means more airflow potential and therefore slower velocity at the same rpm with the associate downside. Of course compare the two setups at higher rpms and the twin intake valve setup with its much higher airflow potential becomes an advantage as it allows more efficient cylinder filling in the shorter time available.

If Ford Oz were to develop a new intake with variable length runners that would bump the low end torque without overly compromising HP at the top end. Note that the inline 6 has been using this design since the EF.

WBT56

postscript to above, I would be blaming the large outright flow capability of the heads/ports, (and thus low gas velocity) not the valve layout, as the LS1 has the same low down problems.

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If you're not driving a manual you're really just steering.

Cobra

LS1 has low down torque with its undersquare engine. Larger bore and shorter stroke. I have driven heaps of BA XR8s/GT's and I cant really say that I noticed them sluggish down low. But by saying that I havn't ever had the opportunity to give them a good drive on some twisty roads, I've only given them a squirt here and there.

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O.F.R #12
1999 AU XR8
14.594 @ 94.40mph
152.2RWKW (APS dyno)
Switchable Shift Kit, K&N panel filter, Lukey straight thru mufflers, momo gear and steer,
DBA slotted rotors/Bendix ultimate pads (front), Pioneer MP3 head unit and BA XR carpet mats.

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