Devin's 06 LS - Round 2

HI all - Ended up ordering a set of Stance's DEW98 Coilovers last week, and got them installed this week. Install process was not too bad (thanks to my friends for helping me out with this!). And overall the I am very satisfied with the coils and the car.

With the weight reduction on my LS, guessing where to set them at first was a challenge, and the car was very very low at first, after spinning them up the car is sitting nicely. In short - the product quality is great, I have worked with several coilovers from other vendors for various makes. From the packaging, to the product - these were a great buy. The ride is fantastic and I have fallen in love with the LS driving experience even more! Going to see if they settle at all for the next few days, and then I will get an alignment.

Dampers set at level 7 right now (on the stiff side middle), and my fend-to-ground (FTG) is set to 25.75" up front and 26.5" in the rear. Even without an alignment the car feels sharp, quick, taught, and agile.

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During install -
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Cell phone post-install shots!
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Fun fact - the Stance set weighs 18lbs LESS than the stock setup, and are smaller in overall O.D. allowing for a reduction in weight and more aggressive wheel fitments.

Looking to have a better photoshoot soon.
 
I love my Stances too, Devin. Yours are set appx 1 inch lower than mine all round. Yeah my LS grin is growing. I want to drive it more but I'm fighting an overheat problem. I'm close to the answer cause I've replaced everything else.
 
Visited the track today, previous best was 14.3 @ 97mph, 2.2 60ft. (Intake, Torrie Tune, muffler delete, 1/4 tank of fuel)

Today make my new best, and I cracked 13 seconds!!

13.95 @ 99mph, 2.1 60ft. (Intake, X-Pipe & Resonators, Dyno Tune, OZ's, weight reduction ~ 300lbs or so, 1/3 tank of fuel)

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Most of my increase was probably due to the weight loss, I wish I could have tested each change I made to the car (mostly the tune), but I am thrilled to have hit 13's before getting my diff build on the car. This gives me a new baseline and some good data to work with. The car is definitely getting faster and a lot more aggressive. A high 13 sec car is nothing ground breaking, but comparing it now to how it was stock is really a pretty crazy change in character.

Couple notes:
1 - My dyno tune did not retain Torrie's trans settings. As a result my shifts are not firm/optimized. The motor is smooth and strong, and it really gets off the line much better on this tune though. But I miss chirping second and slamming 3 & 4. I maxed out the user accessible shift firmness on the SCT X4, still kind of a weak shift.
2 - 14.3 was a cool fall night, today it was 85* and I was in staging lanes constantly. I think the car has a bit more in her honestly, it felt a little sluggish compared to the night before.
3 - Experienced a strange flat spot in each pass today. Shortly after getting into 4th gear the motor hesitates right around 96-97mph. Go figure, right before I trap! Not sure if its a trans thing, tune thing, or a problem. No Cel's or other symptoms.

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Very nice ride, bravo.

Can you link me to those Coilovers please? And was it a direct fit?

Thanks
 
Thank you 112 - here is the manufacture website: Home - STANCE SUSPENSION

I cannot find another pair for sale on ebay right now, but they drop shipped from Stance directly, So contact Stance if you are interested in a set for yourself.

Yes, it was a bolt in affair. It was a very easy install, I spent more time dialing in the height post-install than I did removing/installing the parts.
 
Sure looks like it. Available on backorder ...
 
Happy Halloween everyone! Car goes into storage this week for a majority of winter - gonna miss it!

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DeviLSh said:
Happy Halloween everyone! Car goes into storage this week for a majority of winter - gonna miss it!

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She's a beauty. Too bad for winter! Here where I live it just means rain (finally). I'm just beginning to enjoy my rebuilt V6 LS with Stance and several other new parts underneath. Complaint - mpg only 18.8 Used to be 20+. Oh well. Runs and rides and corners great so there's that. :)
 
jgscott said:
I have Not done it myself. But, with the Tune, Intake and exhaust you have. Getting a junk yard Throttle Body and sending to a shop it to have it bored out and enlarged might be good for 2/10ths to 3/10 a sec itself.

My next suggestion would be looking into some more less restrictive Hi-Flow Cats, that have good flow bench numbers to back them up.

I also have been looking at the Jag 4.0 exhaust manifold headers, they look a little bigger. Not sure if they fit tho. Finding out is on my bucket list.

Also lots of people take the passenger seat and rear seat out for the track. They are heavy in the LS.
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Did the 4.0 exhaust manifold headers fit?
 
Hey guys - been a while! Got the LS out of storage about two weeks ago, but haven't driven her much as the weather has been very crummy/rainy. Man does it feel good to be back behind the wheel of the LS though. I always seem to underestimate how fun & enjoyable this car is.

At home with her younger sister

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Continuing my quest to make the car lighter and more racecar esque, I did a small weekend project. Custom rear door panels, and rear regulator/wiring deletes. Cost was pretty low, about $50 using some 1/8" thick ABS panels, panel fasteners, aluminum angle brackets, and misc hardware. This is my first time working with this plastic and making a door card, but I am very happy with the result. I may make them out of a different material down the road. Let me know what you think!

Removed stock stuff (also took this opportunity to removed the sound deadening panels from the interior surface of each rear door)

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Made a template out of posterboard after determining the shape I wanted, and transferred it to the plastic sheet.
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Repeat for other side, mirrored, just trace same template on next sheet. Here you can see the driver door still has the sound panel on it.
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Drill holes to align with stock panel clips, and I drilled a 2.5" hole to place a window grommet for accessing the door cable.
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Installed and fastened.
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Rears were simple, I want to do something similar for the fronts, but if I want to keep front power windows, that will be a challenge. Also, the DDM is bulky and complex to delete/relocate. I wish there was a less sophisticated version of the LS I could mimic or swap parts from (as in one with no power mirrors, windows, etc.) I will have to get creative. Good news is I dont need the creature comforts, rear window controls, mirror controls, etc. Will have to brainstorm.

Car is getting lighter on its feet and feels great. Hopefully getting back to the track soon to have some fun.

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Forgot to mention - I have started a PartOut thread as I am running out of space at the house for all these parts. If anything I have deleted, or have extras of is of interest - please visit that thread/message me as I am willing to sell most of the stuff I won't be installing. All of my stuff is in pretty good shape!
 
HI All (joeger, Cammerfe, race-car builders, anyone who is still on here) - Would love some help with my build. If anyone out there who can contribute is reading this, please chime in before I move these inquiries to a new thread/forum.

As some of you may know, I am on a quest to remove as much as possible from my LS to get quicker 1/4mi ET's using the 3.9 and it's stock ECU/PCM. I have removed about 480lbs so far from the car, and am starting to map out some plans to get rid of more... A lot more.

However, my electrical engineering knowledge and experience with this car's electrical system is limited. I have spent most of today reviewing wiring diagrams, component location, and mapping out a plan. A lot of LVC users come on here and try to formulate how to keep the comforts of the car (ABS, Heat & A/C, tcs, etc.) when they swap in a foreign motor, as the ECU is integrated to the Chassis harness and its SCP network, so keep full function is out the window. I have the opposite problem, so my first question is....

If keeping the stock ECU/PCM in my build, what are it's minimum requirements to function?

Assume the following:
1) I already have SCT X4, which is capable of some code/component removal via a tuner (already done this for EGR)
2) Assume Emission exempt status. IL allows exemption from testing/inspection if the car is registered as restricted use. (off-road)
3) I do not want to invest in stand-alone EMS, I don't even think there are kits that support this motor if I wanted to.
4) The car needs only essentials for occasional road use to/from shows/track. IE - Lights, Charging, ECU, Cluster, Ignition, fans, etc.
5) I would rather not spent the money using a painless chassis kit for the car. (budget)

At a high level, I'd like to get input on removing the following from the car:
1) SRS/Airbags & associated sensors - If removed this system, will the car operate/move/run?
2) ABS, traction control, advance track. (convert to manual brake bias and hardline setup) Assuming I need to keep wheel speed sensors for speedometer.
3) Anti-Theft System - do I need to override specific sensors or checks to allow starting/running?
4) Power Steering (convert to manual rack). Any ABS or ECU interference with these signals?
5) DDM, FEM, REM - any of these completely removable?

If I cannot determine what removing these things will cause, I am simply going to just pull them off and troubleshoot, but understanding what needs what, and how I can possibly overcome those rules, would be a great start.

In a previous build (02 Jetta) I was able to remove these items and simply bridged the CANBUS wires whenever a component was removed. Basically closing the loop by joining inputs/to outputs, and omitting the rest of the wiring for any component. This may have been a more simplified system than whats in the LS, but perhaps I can take a similar, simplified approach.

In case the scope of this request is not yet fully realized, I have already removed heat, audio, power windows, sunroof, A/C, Wipers & Washers, all carpeting and trim, unused brackets/hardware, seats, etc.

As a thank you - I promise to share all findings here and in the HP Ls section for anyone else who wants these things gone/unused for whatever reason.

Thanks!

 
1. Yes - No problems
2. No - The ABS module is what reads the wheel speed sensors. Without it, the PCM won't have vehicle speed data. This will throw it into one of the ETC failsafe modes and you will lose performance. You can remove the AdvanceTrac yaw sensor. Not much weight there, but that will disable AdvanceTrac (not sure about traction control).
3. No - You can't eliminate PATS and use the stock PCM. The stock PCM must communicate with the PATS module that it is married to. The PATS module must communicate with at least one key that it is married to.
4. Yes - No problems
5. DDM - yes, FEM - maybe, REM - no (It switches power for the car and drives the fuel pump, including pressure regulation.)

If you haven't already, you can remove all of the parking brake hardware, including the well hidden module at the back driver's side of the trunk.
 
Thanks Joe -

1) Good to know, Assuming the cluster will show an error light/chime still. I could pull the bulb haha and cut power to the cluster's speaker.

2) Bummer - This was going to free up a lot of room for me in the engine bay. Is Vehicle speed the only critical data point here for the ECU? ( I know Nav, and park assist needs a signal too but those are now gone) Maybe there is a workaround?
-Create a micro controller/bridge to be the middle man between the WSS' and the ecu, acting the like the ABS does.
-Or, bypass the electronics, run manual lines and keep the ABS controller plugged in under the dash? My guess is this would still cause the car to freak out.

3) This is not a huge deal as there isn't a lot of weight involved, and if keeping the stock key/ignition/ecu it makes sense. Would be nice to remove to simplify though.

4) Awesome - getting a spare rack soon to look into converting/looping

5) Thank god! The driver's door has so much going on and I keep hitting the DDM with my knee when i get in/out

EPBM: Glad you brought this up as I need to remove those for my new 8.8" diff setup regardless. So I tried driving the car without the motor unplugged, and got a message and annoying chime saying to check ebrake, if I undo the module instead, will this allow me to remove the switch and motor without errors?
 
1) The speaker is in the cluster, so you would have to remove or destroy it. There should be no light if you remove the RCM, and there may be no warning chime either.
2) You may be okay removing the hydraulic hardware and leaving the electronic module. I think you could separate the two first to see what happens.

EPBM) I don't know, but I think that the warnings may go away if you remove the electronic module in the trunk.

I hope that you are or will be selling off the good stuff that you remove.
 
Ok - i will look into the ABS further. There are 4 sensors total on the booster/master That might need to be addressed as well and I am looking into what each does/serves a purpose for. (in addition to the one on the brake pedal iteslf)
1 - Fluid (easy)
2 - Brake Pedal Position 1
3 - Brake pedal position 2
4 - MC pressure

I am selling off any/all parts I take off. I have a thread in the FS section as we speak, trying to get pics of everything that I can. If you need/want anything let me know. I have 9 27gal totes full of stuff that I have taken off. I can send pics of anything you may need. All proceeds go towards the LS build.
 
DeviLSh said:
Diagnosing engine noises -

In this week of whats wrong with the LS - I try to locate some noises in the engine bay that have been noticeable the past few weeks.

Noise 1: (Throughout video, audible around 0:05 sec and at end during small revs)
- A groan/howl from the front engine area.
- Makes noise regardless of hot/cold, Park/Drive, steering, etc. It is only RPM dependent
- Has been on and off the last few days, recently more consistent in occurrence
- Alternator going out?
- Slight plastic/electric smell is noticeable when standing over the engine bay to listen. Not sure if related.

Noise 2: (0:15-0:18 sec in video)
- High pitched whine
- Similar to a whistle
- Also changed by RPM, most audible at idle and less than 1,000rpm
- Suspect: Vac Leak? IM gasket? FPR and EGR lines are all new, so I do not suspect those. Noises seem to be around top of motor near manifold. Hard to pinpoint.




Let me know if anyone has had these noises, or has some advice on how to further diagnose. Can I pull belt and safely start car without the accessories to see if I can rule out the Alternator/rotating parts?

Gonna poke around a bit more with the stethoscope.
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I finally just got around to reading this thread ...truly a great read in every aspect possible...thanks for such great documentation ...I know it's a few years old but I too have the whistle and a CEL with P0455 Large EVAP leak ...sounds like its coming from intake manifold somewhere...just like you I had replaced the EGR vacuum hoses/lines when i replaced the EGR all are only a month old... so I have to rule them out I would think...Did you ever figure out what this whistle noise was/is? Thanks
 
lincoln_zero said:
You'd be surprised just how much air dynamics play a role in a Q/M. I think lowering your LS was a major factor in shaving off 0.4 seconds. Less wind drag ;)
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I actually never even thought of this, so thanks for bringing it up. I am completely lost when it comes to anything related to aerodynamics, way over my head but it would be a fun thing to learn more about, especially if it can get me some quicker times/handling improvement.
 
Hey Dev, is this mostly for straight-line acceleration type stuff or more corner-carving?
 
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