Roller Rocker Virtual Dyno Testing
Now that I finally swapped in and got the RR working, I could finally do some virtual dyno's to test some different mods. Some tests were done on the same day, others a day or two apart. I noted down the Temperature and Barometer pressure after each run, this keeps the numbers SAE standard and doesn't require back to back runs to be consistent.
Please do keep in mind that these are virtual dynos, they consist of doing a log with your tuning software and then it calculates the power output based on that data and vehicle specifications. These numbers seem to be within the ballpark of real RR power numbers. This is not a dyno of how much the car is making, more of dyno's to compare changes between mods. I used the same stretch of road for all of these, but did other stretches to make sure data was within margin or error.
Intake Test
This test is comparison of stock intake box vs a flow-stack WAI setup.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC 2.0" Header, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, 6700 Redline (fuel cut starts at 6500)
Stock Intake box:
BPi Flow Stack and Flow Stack filter (coned in on the end)
As you can see the BPi Flow Stack made the run leaner, I knew the flowstack makes the mixture leaner thus I figured I would try leaning out stock airbox mixture too. I cut the fuel back by almost 50% to get it into the same AFR ranges as the flow stack. Results where disappointing, I didn't gain or loose any power. But this shows that stock tune is way too rich and you can restore some MPG's by tuning it a bit.
Header Test
This test is comparison of stock RR header (with cat in the primary) vs SSAC 2.0 and 2.5". All I did for the SSAC tests is change out the downipe, header it self stayed the same.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC Header, BPi Flowstack, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, 6700 Redline (fuel cut starts at 6500)
Stock RR header is not meant for reeving high (RR Redline is low), this thing is a flow disaster, even cylinder pairing is less then ideal for performance. What is impressive is the 2" crush bent downpipe on the Stock header, most OEM ones are 1.75 or smaller.
SSAC 2.0" vs 2.5" Downpipe
I gotta say 5whp gain from header swap is disappointing, but low redline is to blame here. Revving the roller rocker out to 7500 RPM would probably show much much greater improvements, you can see how the stock header just refused to flow past 6k rpm! Also what impressed me is how little the 2.5" gained vs 2.0", but once again I believe the low redline is the fault here.
If you plan on keeping the redline at stock level, get the 2.0" SSAC or maybe the 2.25". The 2.0" has a lot more low end torque, which would help you with your daily driven automatics.
Intake Manifold
This test is comparing the stock Roller Rocker Intake manifold to a Low Port Intake Manifold. When switching to a 16 bit ecu, going to a Low Port manifold is almost a must because it allows you to use old school IACV, otherwise you have to get creative to keep the car idling.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC Header, BPi Flowstack, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, VE Valve Springs, 8000rpm Redline (Reved it until it didn't sound good!)
Other Variables: From 259cc Top Feed injectors to 520cc Side feed injectors.
I think Nissan designed the roller rocker manifold horribly on purpose, they saw what a great motor the RR is and how much more power it makes then regular low ports and they had to detune it. At first I thought Roller Rocker manifold was really designed for low end torque, that's why they suck for power getting, but after doing these tests I'm convinced Nissan just wanted to screw us.
Stock Roller Rocker manifold
It is good for having secondary runners being very smooth, it's actually semi polished, which is impressive compared to any other SR20 manifold's I've seen, which all have horrible casting marks.
Low Port manifold on the other hand has a much bigger plenum that can house a bunch of air.
It also has smoother runners that are slightly longer with less bends.
On the same exact tune I made 10 more wheel horsepower! Also as you may have noticed my power went down, this could be because of stiffer VE valve springs, or because of hot December day, Virtual Dyno does have temperature and pressure corrections which I utilized, thus it's hard to say what could have dragged the power down a bit.
I also had a different tune that I've been working on, this one has a lot less fuel and a lot more timing then stock. The max I could get out of it was 120whp on roller rocker manifold. On the lowport, same exact timing (with slight fuel adjustment for bigger injectors), got me 20whp!
The car feels a lot beastlier now, I was actually quite impressed by the felt torque while doing some runs tonight!
Please do keep in mind that these are virtual dynos, they consist of doing a log with your tuning software and then it calculates the power output based on that data and vehicle specifications. These numbers seem to be within the ballpark of real RR power numbers. This is not a dyno of how much the car is making, more of dyno's to compare changes between mods. I used the same stretch of road for all of these, but did other stretches to make sure data was within margin or error.
Intake Test
This test is comparison of stock intake box vs a flow-stack WAI setup.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC 2.0" Header, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, 6700 Redline (fuel cut starts at 6500)
Stock Intake box:
BPi Flow Stack and Flow Stack filter (coned in on the end)
As you can see the BPi Flow Stack made the run leaner, I knew the flowstack makes the mixture leaner thus I figured I would try leaning out stock airbox mixture too. I cut the fuel back by almost 50% to get it into the same AFR ranges as the flow stack. Results where disappointing, I didn't gain or loose any power. But this shows that stock tune is way too rich and you can restore some MPG's by tuning it a bit.
Header Test
This test is comparison of stock RR header (with cat in the primary) vs SSAC 2.0 and 2.5". All I did for the SSAC tests is change out the downipe, header it self stayed the same.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC Header, BPi Flowstack, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, 6700 Redline (fuel cut starts at 6500)
Stock RR header is not meant for reeving high (RR Redline is low), this thing is a flow disaster, even cylinder pairing is less then ideal for performance. What is impressive is the 2" crush bent downpipe on the Stock header, most OEM ones are 1.75 or smaller.
SSAC 2.0" vs 2.5" Downpipe
I gotta say 5whp gain from header swap is disappointing, but low redline is to blame here. Revving the roller rocker out to 7500 RPM would probably show much much greater improvements, you can see how the stock header just refused to flow past 6k rpm! Also what impressed me is how little the 2.5" gained vs 2.0", but once again I believe the low redline is the fault here.
If you plan on keeping the redline at stock level, get the 2.0" SSAC or maybe the 2.25". The 2.0" has a lot more low end torque, which would help you with your daily driven automatics.
Intake Manifold
This test is comparing the stock Roller Rocker Intake manifold to a Low Port Intake Manifold. When switching to a 16 bit ecu, going to a Low Port manifold is almost a must because it allows you to use old school IACV, otherwise you have to get creative to keep the car idling.
Constant Mods: SR20DE RR (110k miles), SSAC Header, BPi Flowstack, 3" Catback, NEMU ECU with B13 Base Tune and JDM RR Fuel/Timing maps, UR WP Pulley, Z32 MAF, Shell 93 Gas, BKR6EGP Plugs, VE Valve Springs, 8000rpm Redline (Reved it until it didn't sound good!)
Other Variables: From 259cc Top Feed injectors to 520cc Side feed injectors.
I think Nissan designed the roller rocker manifold horribly on purpose, they saw what a great motor the RR is and how much more power it makes then regular low ports and they had to detune it. At first I thought Roller Rocker manifold was really designed for low end torque, that's why they suck for power getting, but after doing these tests I'm convinced Nissan just wanted to screw us.
Stock Roller Rocker manifold
It is good for having secondary runners being very smooth, it's actually semi polished, which is impressive compared to any other SR20 manifold's I've seen, which all have horrible casting marks.
Low Port manifold on the other hand has a much bigger plenum that can house a bunch of air.
It also has smoother runners that are slightly longer with less bends.
On the same exact tune I made 10 more wheel horsepower! Also as you may have noticed my power went down, this could be because of stiffer VE valve springs, or because of hot December day, Virtual Dyno does have temperature and pressure corrections which I utilized, thus it's hard to say what could have dragged the power down a bit.
I also had a different tune that I've been working on, this one has a lot less fuel and a lot more timing then stock. The max I could get out of it was 120whp on roller rocker manifold. On the lowport, same exact timing (with slight fuel adjustment for bigger injectors), got me 20whp!
The car feels a lot beastlier now, I was actually quite impressed by the felt torque while doing some runs tonight!
Last edited by Vadim
on 2012-12-16
at 06-15-25.