The Future Of 1000hp Time Attack Builds?

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Want a lightweight race car? Start with something lightweight! Seems like a no-brainer right!?
The Lotus design philosophy of simplicity, aerodynamic efficiency, and lightweight construction makes for the perfect platform to add 1000hp and aggressive aerodynamic upgrades for time attack. That's according to a 'silly conversation' that part-time racer & full-time legend Matt Plowman once had and has produced a car from that is very impressive on and off track.
This K-swapped Lotus Exige, a project that has been in development for over a decade, was in part created by Scura Motorsport, AMB Aero, Wilson Engineering and a well-worn MoTeC parts catalogue including M150 ECU, C218 dash and 2 PDM16s. It boasts 1,000 horsepower at 28 PSI when required, and we took a closer look at it while competing in the Plazmaman Pro-Am Class at the Yokohama World Time Attack Challenge in Sydney, Australia.
The Lotus Exige, known for its lightness and superb handling, has been transformed with a Honda K20 engine stroked to 2.2 litres and equipped with a Garrett G35 turbo, Wiseco rods, Carillo pistons and headwork by Performance Wholesale, making it a formidable force on the track.
There isn't much stock left on the car overall, and that includes the suspension setup with Nitron Racing Systems 3-way dampers and Wilson Engineering custom uprights, which allow the use of 5-stud wheels and easier alignment changes via shims.
The Exige is constructed mainly from carbon fiber and has a unique black translucent layer on the clear coat. An impressive aerodynamic setup by AMB Aero Design includes an Infinity splitter, rear diffuser, and massive rear wing, along with a range of electronic sensors to dial it all in and keep the car from bottoming out on the straights or 'going straight on' in the corners.
The car is still nowhere near the limits when it comes to the current rules and regulations, with plans to put a pro driver in the car once it terrifies Matt enough, we guess!
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TIME STAMPS:
0:00 - Exige, Not Elise Sorry!
0:16 - Why A Lotus?
0:45 - Lightweight Philosophy
1:07 - Lotus Power Progression 90hp to 400hp
1:49 - K20 Swap Considerations
2:19 - Engine Build Overview
3:08 - Why K20 Not K24?
3:33 - 1000hp Power Aims & Reality
3:55 - Bare Chassis Build
4:40 - Aerodynamic Limitations
5:15 - Aero Design & Manufacturing
5:58 - Testing The Design
6:32 - Someone Had An Off!
6:35 - Ride Height Vs Downforce
7:31 - What Are Suspension 'Packers'
8:02 - Bump Stop Tuning
8:15 - MoTeC Electronics Package
8:40 - Holinger Tranmission
9:07 - Paddle Shift, Why?
9:50 - Suspension Modifications
10:18 - Custom Billet Upright
10:51 - Brake Temperature Data
11:20 - Driver Vs Car Goals
11:40 - Thanks Matt!
11:50 - In-Car, Hammer Down
13:35 - BUILD.TUNE.DRIVE
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TAGS:
#highperformanceacademy #lotus #mattplowman #buildtunedrive #learndriveoptimise #motorsport #learntotune #enginebuilding101 #datanerd #gofasterwithdata #wtac #motec #k20 #kswap #wiseco #008

[@hpa101]

Building a fast car? Get $400 OFF the VIP package with every current and FUTURE course included: hpcdmy.co/vipy8 50% OFF your CAD course. Enrol and start designing your own time attack build: hpcdmy.co/offery8 TIME STAMPS: 0:00 - Exige, Not Elise Sorry! 0:16 - Why A Lotus? 0:45 - Lightweight Philosophy 1:07 - Lotus Power Progression 90hp to 400hp 1:49 - K20 Swap Considerations 2:19 - Engine Build Overview 3:08 - Why K20 Not K24? 3:33 - 1000hp Power Aims & Reality 3:55 - Bare Chassis Build 4:40 - Aerodynamic Limitations 5:15 - Aero Design & Manufacturing 5:58 - Testing The Design 6:32 - Someone Had An Off! 6:35 - Ride Height Vs Downforce 7:31 - What Are Suspension 'Packers' 8:02 - Bump Stop Tuning 8:15 - MoTeC Electronics Package 8:40 - Holinger Tranmission 9:07 - Paddle Shift, Why? 9:50 - Suspension Modifications 10:18 - Custom Billet Upright 10:51 - Brake Temperature Data 11:20 - Driver Vs Car Goals 11:40 - Thanks Matt! 11:50 - In-Car, Hammer Down 13:35 - BUILD.TUNE.DRIVE

[@zacharymorris9917]

Back in the day, I had the pleasure of being on a team that built one with a LT5 ZR1 motor. Made 725 whp through tiny restrictors. Ported stock heads.

[@krusher74]

1000hp in 688kg. = 1453hp per tonne. putting that in perpective the Aston Martin Valkyrie has a puny 841 BHP/Tonne!!!

[@kantina4765]

a comparison i find even more interesing: that is more hp per tonne than a formula 1 car.

[@TrikitrikiMan]

@@kantina4765 More bhp/tonne than current f1 Cars but about the same as f1 2004 cars

[@Earlysport]

He doesn’t have 1000hp. Not with 2 bar boost on 2L.

[@matswallsten1628]

Such a knowledgeable driver, shows that he’s involved in the build and is passionate about the evolution of the car. Great interview as always 👊

[@hayden401]

He's no really all that knowledgeable, if you're listening and know about cars tbh. He has money, tenacity and he's definitely involved in the build. Good on him. It looks like he can steer, too! What a great project.

[@newagetemplar6100]

Quality interview as usual guys thanks , no drama , no hype just interesting facts , lovely build too 👍😃

[@ametti000]

That's a beast of a lotus.

[@TheTorkerman]

Nice to have someone doing interviews that actually has some technical knowledge 👍🏼👍🏼

[@thomasravn5044]

The original Rover k series was not in Elises after 2001. The power output varied from 118 - 190 bhp

[@slfrules1]

Holy wow! I'd be wrong end front out the first corner! Wild!

[@-MacCat-]

Excellent, world class content as always. Thanks HPA.

[@exemch4826]

Andrew brilliant aero is so insane

[@amonnanjaku]

I could say much... But I won't. 😈

[@dizcolombian]

Awesome interview. I didn’t recognize what an upright is. By the conversation I’m assuming it’s what I call the suspension knuckle; the assembly that connects the suspension arms at the hub and houses the wheel bearing.

[@antonylimbouris1992]

The information in these interviews is amazing. That tin car footage at the end holy smokes this car grips like working lips baby !

[@markcozzie]

Love his quick and simple a answers

[@compt3ck]

PECKERS!?! Ohhhh packers... I was confused for a second haha. That's a clean car with some really nice fabrication.

[@BeamRider100]

Fantastic build, well done. Makes me want to work harder so I can buy more cool tech for my toy. I didn't know Hollinger make a 6 speed for FWD and transverse mid engine cars, normally I think of race trimmed Skylines and V8s for them. I had to look it up, looks beautiful, like a giant motorbike gearbox internally, but compact even with the stout selector cam.

[@gothicpagan.666]

Guy's the original Rover K series in none VVT was 115 bhp then came 130 then 160. The VHPD race unit was 190 ish. If it's possible to make a pretty little car look unfortunate 🙄😆 If I had my time again that Honda unit would be my first choice as well, second to none A reliable 300 brake in a sub 600kg car is more than enough for the likes of me. What that one is like I'm not sure I'd want to find out🙂

[@kermitahnenerbe3722]

2zz-ge are lighter than k20. Toda stroker, sleeves and turbo you have reliable 400hp, enough to poop yourself

[@m.b.82]

A wheel dyno would probably read 90

[@gothicpagan.666]

@@kermitahnenerbe3722 I ride a push bike these days, now a diesel van seems fast

[@stevelee5724]

I remember when they came out. 90 hp ! Cheers from New Zealand

[@kermitahnenerbe3722]

@@stevelee5724Idk but maybe you have crap fuel.

[@joeldavis3152]

Beautiful car, amazing attention to detail 👌

[@andrewsmith4429]

"You don't want to come to an event like this and end up having a failure as a result of a gearbox problem." Shots fired, lol. Such a bummer for Mike Burroughs and StanceWorks last year.

[@km6832]

A lot of money and hype went into that car for nothing to happen

[@andrewsmith4429]

@@km6832It'll come back around. It seems like he wants to continue racing. It was just an unfortunate turn of events - shortcomings with the K24 vs K20, trouble with the Quaife gearbox, and a lack of development time. The lack of development time is what really bit him because he would have figured out the first two before blowing a bunch of money shipping his car around the world only to have it break down. He's new to racing though - teething issues are to be expected.

[@bigbothoee8617]

Hahahahah was thinking same thing oooooo beef joke 😂

[@sjoroverpirat]

What happened? I'm out of the loop

[@andrewsmith4429]

@@sjoroverpirat Mike Burroughs on his StanceWorks channel built a really nice Ferrari 308 powered by a Honda K24 mated to a Quaife dogbox. He barely had time to test the car before shipping it to Australia for World Time Attack. Wound up blowing up the Quaife during practice. IIRC he wound up getting another trans from someone at the event, but then wound up running into other issues. Really worth watching the StanceWorks channel, he puts together some of the most well-produced videos.

[@tednicholas4719]

What a build! Cant imagine my ribs coming out of that thing unscathed

[@foxxrider250r]

Great interview as always!! But theres no way 1000whp with 28 psi unless this thing is ungodly high compression or something

[@TheGreenGrower618]

Did you not see the dome on those pistons? Looks like super high compression for a boosted application. I didn't see an intercooler either so he must be running methanol.

[@foxxrider250r]

@@TheGreenGrower618 no I didn't, sorry. Must have missed that. That and the methanol would explain it

[@NikoKyunKyun]

3:38 we're comfortably there if we need to be something tells me this car only touched 1000 hp in the dyno

[@assaultlick2169]

Hustling into the first corner. Wish I could see a full data overlay. He's got so many sensors!

[@mrd.808]

Nice. I'm more of an Exige (fat boy chassis) V6, LF1, Series 3 😂. Awesome YT coverage, Andre. Stay safe, stay blessed, y'all ❤

[@fraserwright9482]

Starting with a light car from the start, the Robin Chute Wolf TSC-FS had the same ethos

[@danielb1109]

incredible quality as always

[@stevelee5724]

What a fvcken beast ! Far too techo for this ol' lad.....😅 Cheers from New Zealand

[@amonnanjaku]

@ Andrew Brilliant. Don't ever forget.... Salt and Pepper. ❤️

[@a1oh]

Amazing build! I was hoping to know what kind of fuel they were running to make that power

[@AJTalks]

This is cool! Wonder why he didn't use a Pilbeam carbon monocoque for the Elise as a chassis base.

[@BRMCaptChaos]

Any ideas on lengthening that wheelbase? Alluded to in the interview but the car looks unstable front to rear, and sensitive to aero effort.

[@dogmoo]

28psi @1000hp? That has to be a record. !?!?

[@dogmoo]

@@BeamRider100 have you seen one make 1000 under 30?

[@heem6619]

works out about 350hp NA. must be some spicy fuel or he's measuring from a low pressure area

[@dogmoo]

@@heem6619 you can’t really do it on a linear scales it’s an asymptote. I would really love to see a 1000hp down on sun 30 psi of boost. That’s really insane

[@veejay120793]

K series flow so good they need less psi to make power.I seen a stock k24 with 10 psi almost making 500whp.

[@Shadowboost]

@@heem6619 K series NA have gone well over 400 hp

[@explodingrabbit51]

The moment I saw that incar I was reminded of some period incar of a 962 at Riverdale.

[@Mellowbaton]

Casual lotus megacar

[@zslemp]

Sick

[@hyper8545]

Lotus is goog

[@m4rvinmartian]

*The future of Time Attack Builds? Start with a million dollars in the bank!* Cmon bro.

[@Desert_Spec]

As long as their are still classes for more street oriented cars, let the big dogs fight

[@stevenross-watt8640]

Looks like ot hits a brick wall at 150mph/160mph. I presume the crazy downforce package hits a serious amount of aero drag up at those speeds.

[@legoferrari14]

Hill Climb and Time Attack cars are built for maximum cornering ability rather than outright straight-line speed, so they generally go all-in on downforce and eat the hit to their top speed that comes from all the consequential drag.

[@hugo-pg5tv]

​@@legoferrari14that is why the make huge amount of power

[@wololo10]

1:31 lap?

[@hpa101]

Yup! A solid effort. Will be great to see what a pro driver can do in the car in the future if Matt decides to make that happen, as he touched in in this interview - Taz.

[@luigialicea13]

I am wondering how high he needs to rev his engine because a stock k24 will rev to 8.7k with a basic type s oil pump and a head package?😅😅😅

[@driftmonkey3646]

Piston speed.

[@Jons_broken_toe]

😍😍😍

[@ZacBernasconi]

1000hp and 9000rpm puts them very close to the 850nm limit on the gearbox... So much for never being near that... Or 1000hp.

[@bigbothoee8617]

We don't know where his peak power is coming in it may be progressive as rpm increases boost increases

[@ZacBernasconi]

@@bigbothoee8617 I'm assuming it's at 9000rpm unlikely to be above that and based on that assumption they are at 790nm of torque pretty close to the 850limit on the trans.

[@bigbothoee8617]

I was thinking along the lines of peak torque low down but now thinking about it doesn't matter, the limit of box won't change Would It matter if it's low down or high up ?

[@ZacBernasconi]

@@bigbothoee8617 torque is torque, we don't know what torque he's making but we can assume his 1000hp figure is high up in the rev range so we can calculate the torque required at 9000rpm to make 1000hp. If he made 1000hp sooner then it would only increase the torque going through the gearbox further running into its rated limit. So either he's not making 1000hp or he isn't miles from touching his boxes max torque spec as he implied.

[@ronaldmcboggled9855]

K swap the world… lol

[@phillyphil1513]

this is the T/A version of Robin Shute's, Pikes Peak K20 Wolf... 🤙

[@Shadowboost]

K24 with K20 head revs enough. 9500-10,000 rpm should be enough

[@bigbothoee8617]

Was thinking the same thing but mabe he would defo be in the 850nm limit of gearbox

[@tturi2]

just buy a LMDh car and run that

[@Desert_Spec]

Isn't a production car chassis

[@ryancuda45]

love it

[@markcozzie]

Simply put, can't explain in a 5min KZbin vlog, it's very technical bt nice try

[@kermitahnenerbe3722]

1.8 rover engine, 90hp ? hahaha BS.. maybe with a washed up engine. And it's a K series, not A series... the 2ZZ was 220hp with a supercharger, "190h" atmo. Idk what he's smoking but seems way too strong for him, elise never had 3GR...

[@GTSW1FT]

It was the a later exige that got the Toyota v6 correct?

[@kermitahnenerbe3722]

@@GTSW1FT yep mate, the exige is bigger

[@krazy2094]

Same power to weight as a stock Honda civic

[@marineforces3214]

if I would be u I build a rocket & maybe fly to the moon , (it got more than 1000 horses !

[@jimbo26582]

Puts out as much power as an F1 car and weighs slightly less. 😳