SOHC V6 Supercharger

The purpose of this thread is to discuss the design and possible development and installation of a supercharger for my 2000 Sport SOHC V6 engine. I have no first hand experience with forced induction systems and want to learn from forum members that have them on their vehicles. While I don't plan to implement a turbocharger system, there are many problems common to all types of forced induction systems.

The easiest and least expensive solution would be to modify a Ranger SOHC V6 Banshee kit and purchase a used Thunderbird supercoupe positive displacement blower. However, the kit makes no provisions for an aftercooler which I think is beneficial even with only 5 psi of boost.

The Explorer Express supercharger kit includes a quality looking manifold but one is very difficult to obtain.

Once again, there are no provisions for an aftercooler.

I suspect the best solution for me would be a centrifugal supercharger with a water aftercooler. With my oil coolers and remote filters I have very little room in front of the radiator for an intercooler. I am interested in a boost in the range of 5 to 8 psi - enough for a significant performance increase but not so much to adversely impact reliability and require beefing up of engine internals or the transmission/torque converter.

Procharger sells a kit for the 2005 - 2010 Mustang V6.

But the Mustang configuration is opposit to the Explorer - intake on left and battery on right. Also, there is a lot more room between the engine front and the radiator rear on the Mustang than on the Explorer.


Vortech also makes a kit for the Mustang but there are the same problems.

The logical location for a centrifugal supercharger is the same side as the air filter box and intake manifold inlet port. Unfortunately, that is where the alternator is located. I'm investigating the possibility of replacing the belt driven power steering pump with an electric motor driven pump and then relocating the alternator to the old power steering pump location.

 

[Dono]

Yup, missed it. Oops. Fantastic news. The A/F ratio was reading correct after all.
Minor issue after all the work you have done. Now, back to the show!

Ps,where's the pic? We owned a parrot for a while, but gave it to relatives. They sure need lots of attention. Ours loved to hang out on my back and shoulders while I worked around the house. That, and it loved to sleep on the couch with me. Great experience.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Sidney

Sidney is a white fronted Amazon and will be 28 years old in October. We have had him for 27 years. My daughter is afraid he will outlive us and she'll have to care for him. I'll post a photo when I take him to the vet in the Sport.

 

[2000StreetRod]

A new level of driving pleasure

I went for my first drive today running on all 6 cylinders and I am extremely pleased with the new level of driving pleasure. It was difficult not to mash the accelerator and experience the thrill of rapid acceleration. I had a couple instances of weakness and hit WOT for a few seconds just to see if open loop works. I'm convinced that as long as I can drive safely I'll always want three vehicles. A modest, but in good condition, family vehicle (currently our 2006 Highlander), a daily driver that can be a backup for the family vehicle (currently our 1996 Volvo 850 Turbo wagon hopefully soon to be replaced by a 2000 Explorer 4 door), and a performance oriented just plain fun to drive vehicle (my 2000 supercharged Sport).

I've learned that it's a lot easier and more fun to increase performance than to increase fuel economy. With the future 4 door Explorer I'll focus on improving fuel economy. It's been a lot of work to install the M90 kit and a lot of tuning remains but in my opinion it's worth the cost and effort! Today was a great 68th birthday present.

 

[4pointslow]

Day

Happy Birthday!!!!

 

[CDW6212R]

I went for my first drive today running on all 6 cylinders and I am extremely pleased with the new level of driving pleasure. It was difficult not to mash the accelerator and experience the thrill of rapid acceleration. I had a couple instances of weakness and hit WOT for a few seconds just to see if open loop works. I'm convinced that as long as I can drive safely I'll always want three vehicles. A modest, but in good condition, family vehicle (currently our 2006 Highlander), a daily driver that can be a backup for the family vehicle (currently our 1996 Volvo 850 Turbo wagon hopefully soon to be replaced by a 2000 Explorer 4 door), and a performance oriented just plain fun to drive vehicle (my 2000 supercharged Sport).

I've learned that it's a lot easier and more fun to increase performance than to increase fuel economy. With the future 4 door Explorer I'll focus on improving fuel economy. It's been a lot of work to install the M90 kit and a lot of tuning remains but in my opinion it's worth the cost and effort! Today was a great 68th birthday present.

Excellent, Happy Birthday Dale. Have a blast with the new truck ..., and then you can start on the brakes.

 

[Dono]

Happy Birthday!
Your right, its a great birthday present to be driving a long term accomplishment.
This install was no small task. Its done perfectly, and will be solid.

 

[rpcaster]

Happy birthday!

 

[2000StreetRod]

+55 rwtq & +57 rwhp

I did some dyno pulls today to datalog AFRs. I thought y'all might be interested in the initial results with about 6 psi of boost. The rwtq increased from my baseline of 207 to 262 (+55) with the max occurring at the same engine speed of 3500 rpm. The rwhp increased from my baseline of 170 at 4800 rpm to 227 at 5300 rpm (+57). The max IAT I logged was 174 degrees starting with an IAT of 132 degrees. I'll post some graphs on Dyno Testing & Downshift . Future AFR and spark optimization should provide additional increases. However, I am extremely pleased with the current performance improvements. The M90 installation provided more rwtq/rwhp per $100 than my exhaust or intake improvements.

 

[jd4242]

Woo 174* iat everything else looks good.wonder how much timing was being removed to prevent detonation, or fuel being added, or both..

 

[Dono]

I think those iat's are that high because of being stationary. I don't think they would be that high at wot driving down the street. At least I hope not.

 

[jd4242]

I think those iat's are that high because of being stationary. I don't think they would be that high at wot driving down the street. At least I hope not.

I would hope they had a fan in front of it on the dyno.does seem very high tho, even the low of 132* is even high for a start spot...

 

[2000StreetRod]

more data

There was a fan in front of the vehicle but I'm pulling air from the engine compartment. I'm using a cone filter at the base of the stock air filter enclosure. I haven't made a custom enclosure yet for my Amsoil dropin air filter. Here are some plots of IAT, STFT and Spark vs TP.

I guess I should think about replacing my ATF cooler heat exchanger with something larger. Using the engine coolant in the overflow reservoir is also less than ideal.

 

[Dono]

Maybe it would be easier to add another cooler, rather than replace?

 

[4pointslow]

Stft

Nice increase in torque and Horse power.
Your STFT looks great at wot(showing commanded a/f), wish mine would go where it was supposed to be and stay there. lol.

 

[4pointslow]

O2 monitor

Now that you have some good tunes to work with would you mind datalogging OBD test state and the two front O2 sensor voltages at a steady 30-40 mph cruise. I am wondering if the 60 lbs Seimens Deka injectors are going to prevent the rapid response test from completing on your truck like they did to mine. That would prove to me that those injectors may not be the best selection for our 4.0 sohc's.
I am wondering if going to 52 lb or something close and then raising fuel pressure to compensate for smaller injectors would allow the rapid response test to run and pass. I know 30 lb injectors work for the rapid response test but they are too small for wide open throttle. I would rather not have to change my injectors back and forth every two years. I would also like to know what the pcm can handle as far as an increase in injector size.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Inadequate airflow

I think those iat's are that high because of being stationary. I don't think they would be that high at wot driving down the street. At least I hope not.

After reviewing past datalogs and some deliberation I agree with you. I know that when the vehicle is stationary the engine compartment temperature rapidly climbs to about 150 degrees but when I'm driving more than 25 mph it drops to just a few degrees above ambient. I suspect the temperature of the coolant in the reservoir was about 140 degrees and the intercooler "warmed" the intake air to 130 degrees. During the pulls the IAT climbed at a steady rate indicating that the cooling capacity of the heat exchanger was insufficient. During WOT 3rd speed pulls on the local boulevards the IAT climbed at a lower rate and to a lower maximum. I believe that was due to increased airflow thru the heat exchanger.

Building a custom air filter enclosure to avoid pulling engine compartment air will lower the IAT on the highway but probably not on the dyno. Increasing the size and effectiveness of the heat exchanger will decrease highway and dyno IATs. However, I think the most important change for dyno testing is to place a powerful blower in front of the heat exchanger. Then the results will better approximate driving conditions. I had 7 gale force blowers in my house for 5 days about two weeks ago to dry out our hardware floors. The dishwasher water control valve stuck open after we ran the dishwasher and went to bed. The next morning our kitchen and breakfast area was flooded. The floors are damaged beyond repair and will have to be replaced.

 

[2000StreetRod]

heat exchanger selection?

I figured that while we're living in the master bedroom while our water damaged floors are being dried and replaced it would be a good time to investigate an upgrade to my intercooler "heat exchanger" which is actually just a stock external ATF cooler. There are three types of oil to air coolers: tube-and-fin, plate-and-fin, and stacked-plate. Here's a link to an article that does a good job of explaining each type:
Frequently Asked Questions About Transmission Coolers. It also describes the advantages of each type and the best location. My current heat exchanger is in the best location (in front of the radiator and A/C condenser) and it looks like either a plate-and-fin or stacked-plate cooler.

I have room for a taller cooler (especially if the ports were on the side instead of top) and also a thicker cooler. However, I suspect that a front mounted electric suction fan would be more effective than a thicker cooler.
I could replace the existing cooler with a radiator style cooler that has a tank at the top. The current volume of the intercooler system is the volume of the coolant reservoir, intercooler, heat exchanger, pump, and interconnecting hoses. A radiator type heat exchanger would probably increase the total volume by about 50%. However, I suspect increasing heat exchanger area will be more effective than increasing coolant volume.
With my engine oil cooler and remote filters upgrading the existing heat exchanger in its present location is about my only option.

 

[CDW6212R]

You do have some things going on there Dale. You might fit another cooler down below if it''' fit behind the bumper opening, without moving anything else.

I have a Super Duty ATF cooler that I plan to fit, after some cutting of the center bracketry. I'm going to keep my filters to the side behind the frame snout/mounts, and try to keep room available for a heat exchanger down low behind the bumper. That's precious space down there.

 

[4pointslow]

radiator

I saw this on ebay.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2007-2012-F...Parts_Accessories&hash=item2a407b3850&vxp=mtr

 

[2000StreetRod]

A/C condenser?

Or I could convert my A/C condenser - just kidding. I think I'm going to try adding a fan to see what effect it has.