10 replies to this topic

[mini_mentalist_chris]

Just been having a casual flick through Vizards book. I just wondered whether anyone was using the advanced products torque ram system still? They showed a really good air flow. My dad used to run one on his mini a few years back. I don't think the company are still going, as nothing seems to come up on the net.

Just wondered how many were still knocking about?

Chris

[mab01uk]

Just been having a casual flick through Vizards book. I just wondered whether anyone was using the advanced products torque ram system still? They showed a really good air flow. My dad used to run one on his mini a few years back. I don't think the company are still going, as nothing seems to come up on the net.

Just wondered how many were still knocking about?

Chris

Hi Chris, I used to help Dave Vizard in the early 1980's with his magazine/newsletter "Mini Tech News." The Torque Ram system by Advanced Products worked well on engines with a radical cam as his tests showed but was quite expensive at the time and the SU carb needed careful setting up to suit. I don't think it sold in great numbers, so was eventually discontinued. Surprising someone hasn't tried to re-launch it. I seem to remember Advanced Products was the UK importer of K & N filters which Dave also helped to make a popular Mini tuning mod.

[fastcarl]

That is the worst name dropping reply iv'e ever heard ,lol

carl

[Retro_10s]

Interesting information there mab01uk,...

I've also wondered about the Torque Ram system........

[mab01uk]

That is the worst name dropping reply iv'e ever heard ,lol

carl

Sorry it wasn't mean't to sound like that...............but Dave Vizard used to spend about half the year in UK and half in the USA working on his engine tuning back then, and was always willing to come to Mini club and motorsport events whenever possible, both in the UK and US. I remember he also came along with UK Mini enthusiasts to the IMM in Luxembourg in 1983 to report for his Mini Tech News. I last met up with him in the UK at Mini 40 Silverstone but only a few older Mini enthusiasts recognised him walking around the show at Silverstone. He wrote some new tuning articles for Mini Magazine a couple of times last year I think.

[huw_jenks]

Well K&N have started doing this thing called the Apollo, which looks vaguely similar to a modernised torque ram. Costs about £140 mind...
http://www.knfilters...rsal/apollo.htm

Edited by huw_jenks, 26 July 2009 - 09:35 PM.

[risograph]

Well K&N have started doing this thing called the Apollo, which looks vaguely similar to a modernised torque ram. Costs about £140 mind...
http://www.knfilters...rsal/apollo.htm

In the absence of the Torque Ram from the market I decided to make my own, which I have been using with some success for a couple of years now. There are issues with setting it up though, and I can see why it was discontinued. It sucks in so much air that acceleration can stutter a little from idle to 2000 rpm. It just sends up the piston in the carb too fast at first. The second 'problem' (or advantage) is that it super cools the air, which means if it's used in the winter the carb may ice up and will, in any case, die at the lights after a good run down the motorway! The solution is simply to use half the length instead, which solves both problems.

But I'm putting cart before the horse. I made my torque ram by having an inch of aluminium tubing welded to a K&N stub stack to form an interface with HIF44 carb. (You could probably use a short ram pipe and slice the end off.) I then attached a 180 degree 51mm silicon hose, fastened with a jubilee clip; I cut it first to reduce the angle. On to the other end goes a short straight section of hose to take a K&N filter up next to the rocker cover. I'm using (or will be by next week) an RC-1200 filter, which is slim at 3.5" wide and 4" long. I have been using the original cone filter, either behind the rocker cover (in the winter) or beside the ignition coil (summer), but this design of filter is pointless in this scenario. I attach a picture of the current setup.

The advantage of the system is that it increases horsepower and torque (if a richer needle is used) and brings the torque down the rpm range. I'm using a 266 camshaft - not radical and I don't use this torque ram to make the bottom end more drivable. For me, the main advantage is in greatly reducing the induction roar, which gets on my nerves and is, frankly, a little embarrassing coming from a Mini when performance cars are silent by comparison.

Attached Files

•  IMG_0001.JPG   2.11MB   103 downloads
•  IMG_0003.JPG   2.08MB   75 downloads

[jaydee]

I've done something similar on the mx5, but on mini i think its easier to fit a standard drilled box an run a pipe from air intake to the front grille. It wont ice on winter and have a good airflow imho.

[maph2]

aren't they now called CAI's - cold air intakes? as seen in many copy of "Lax Shower" magazine

[mab01uk]

David Vizard's original report on the 'K&N /AP Torque Ram Induction' for the A-Series now scanned and posted here:
http://www.theminifo...on-in-mtn-1982/

Edited by mab01uk, 07 June 2015 - 10:59 PM.

[Fatbloke]

Greetings 

 

I have a k&N torque ram on my 95 bhp 1340 A Series, I came across a box of bits at K&N in Warrington in the late 90's, I sold off the short tube and kept the longer tube plenum and barrel K&N -  the aluminium billet mounting allowing the plenum to clamp on the carb had its edge machined to improve the flow to just look like a machined stub stack

 

You need to put in an airbox to allow the plenum to fit properly and either fabricate your own OR a battery box on its side will fit, trim it back and fold over the metal and you can pot rivet it in, the benefit is it won't leak petrol into the car, you WILL need to move electrics around etc. 

 

The car went to my local (then) tuners who know how MInis tick and we started what we thought was going to be a session getting the needle and idle right HOWEVER we soon realized that the setup was flowing so much that the carb piston was hitting  the top of the dashpot cover well before full throttle was reached 

 

The solution was a bit of retrograde engineering, we took the dashpot cover off of  a big HS carb, swapped it for the dashpot cover of the HIF6 and for good measure fitted 2 springs, not sure which ones (colour wise) as it was trial and error to get thing sorted. 

 

The car pulled like a train! and growls as it does....... it didn't do too many miles as set up and I am now faced with the job of getting it up and running having swapped the carb body as after all that time the old fuel turned to GUM! 

 

Getting it started is a bit of a pain as I'm not convinced the choke is man enough for  the job 

 

DIY Lambda Sensor

================

 

I have . fortunately, not changed anything else so I can use my "in flight " lambda/AFR sensor ( a JAW 1.03 DIY lambda gauge) to see if the old jet mounted in the  new body needs lifting or not, I'm within about 0.1mm, if I wanted to be very geeky I could add a maximum piston travel light and a TPS to cross reference), it also needs an extra throttle spring methinks

 

I am building a far smaller version at the moment called an SLC Free C with a 3D printed case, this uses the cheaper wide band VW type lambda sensor

 

NEXT Steps: Nitrous!

================

 

Once I am up and running again the next project is a 30bhp progressive nitrous oxide kit (£15 extra on my insurance, compensation for my grey whiskers) I would like some sort of mapped ignition using manifold vacuum but keeping the carb but the lumenition seems to be working pretty good based on how high the AA man jumped when he decided to ignore my advice and check it was working by holding a spark plug and getting me to turn over the engine

 

NEXT Steps: Ardiuno Digital Dash

==========================

 

 

I also have plans to create a cheap copy of the STACK multi function gauges that show loads of different inputs and flash warnings, this is based around an arduino and sensors for oil pressure oil temp water temp volts amps (-500-0-500 using a 500A shunt resistor) and fuel pressure & fuel level 

 

READING!

========

 

 

I need to revisit TBASE for when Vizard says on the Torque Ram and for nitrous

Attached Files

•  k&N 29640020_2eb026209c_o.jpg   85.47K   22 downloads
•  nos 34972994423_89376f5741_z.jpg   79.72K   5 downloads
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•  like-a-good-neighbor-stay-over-there.png   26.35K   3 downloads
•  tcrttcadultlandingpagebanner1.png   368.42K   3 downloads
•  SLC_Free_1000x392_1024x1024.jpg   34.41K   2 downloads
•  30058951195_67812294d1_o.png   464.79K   1 downloads

Edited by Fatbloke, 16 July 2017 - 09:24 AM.