A client brought his supercharged Lotus Elise to us for mapping after having had unsuccessful attempts at having “generic” tuning files downloaded to his ECU by another firm.

The client reported poor performance, poor drivability and a generally unpleasant road manners. The problem with generic tuning files is that they are done remotely (the tuner buys them from someone else – often in a different country) and are therefore more often than not sub-optimal if not potentially harmful to the engine.

Our first dyno run produced the grey power and torque curves shown above, and the AFR trace showed a dangerously lean condition.

We installed a PiP ECU which is a great piece of kit being a true “plug and play” solution offering complete control over all dynamic engine parameters, and also features an adjustable traction control facility.

Following installation and careful mapping we were able to produce the red power and black torque curves shown above. Drivability and road manners were also dramatically improved.

The PiP ECU can be reviewed and purchased here.

A full installation blog on another car can be seen here.

The complete Rear Toe Link Brace solution – developed by SSC. Pros: Eliminates the compliance in your rear geometry set up. Cons: Fitment also requires a full alignment (Available through Torque Developments International).

A must for anyone putting their car on the track with R-Spec tyres. Suits Models: Toyota powered S2 Lotus Elise & Exige.

More details: The SSC rear toe-link kit has been designed to give the highest level of performance of any toe link kit on the market. It completely eliminates all weak points of the Lotus and other after- market systems by replacing all of the ball joints with the highest grade chrome moly spherical rod ends on both the inboard and outboard ends. Each side is linked by a seamless tubular steel cross brace which stiffens the whole assembly and puts the inboard end in double shear. The outboard end features a high tensile steel taper designed to fit directly into the upright eliminating any bending and play that can be found in the standard ball joints. The aluminium linkage arms have both RH and LH threads for easy adjustment of the rod ends and have been designed as a sacrificial part so that in the event of an accident only one component needs replacing and avoiding damage to the sub frame. The arms are knurled to aid fine adjustment. All turnings are CNC turned from high tensile steel and all components are zinc plated.

This set up increases stability and minimises rear toe movement when you need it most. Despite adding a stiffening cross brace the SSC kit at 2.3kg weighs less than the standard Lotus braces which weigh in at 2.4kg.

The SSC adjustable toe link kit can be reviewed and purchased by following this link.

Developed by Simply Sports Cars in Australia, the Harrop TVS 1320 supercharger is based on Eaton’s new Twin Vortices Series ( TVS ™ ) featuring twin intermeshing four-lobe rotors, twisted in a helix angle of 160° to achieve high thermal efficiency. The kit includes the SSC precision cast SC outlet manifold especially developed this Exige upgrade application. The SSC / Harrop supercharger includes a special drive snout and pulley and is assembled by Harrop Engineering for SSC.

The upgrade kit provides a significant power and torque increase over the standard set-up. All components / hardware required to upgrade your car to this system are included in the kit.

To review and purchase the SSC supercharger upgrade kit, please follow this link.

Simply Sports Cars in collaboration with Holinger Engineering has produced an improved drive shaft system to cope with the rigours of racing making them ideal for high torque 2ZZ engine applications.

The main features are the use of dual bearings in the carrier and the use of a tripode* joint instead of a CV inboard joint. Shafts are made from high grade aerospace materials.

* Tripode or Tripod joints are used at the inboard end of car driveshafts. A three-pointed yoke is attached to the shaft, with barrel-shaped roller bearings on the ends. These fit into a cup with three matching grooves that attaches to the differential. The joint allows an axial ‘plunge’ movement of the shaft so that engine rocking and other effects do not preload the bearings

Being the exclusive European distributor for SSC, we are pleased to make these uprated driveshafts available to you which can be reviewed and purchased here

We’re big fans of Toyota’s awesome little 2ZZ-GE here at TDi-plc, as it’s found in some of our favourite cars, including the Lotus ELise / Exige, the Celica and the MR2. It’s also an increasingly popular choice for tuning and, as always with engine tuning, to get top results you need top quality parts - Cosworth parts!

The latest Cosworth release for the Toyota 2ZZ-GE engine are forged pistons. Designed and manufactured 100% in house at Cosworth Engineering, the forged pistons use an optimised dome shape to maximise the compression ratio in combination with a design that features the most efficient use of materials.

With a wide variety of requirements in mind from turbo conversions to motorsport, the Cosworth forged Toyota 2ZZ-GE pistons are available in three compression ratio choices: 10.0:1, 12.0:1 and 14.0:1.

As well as being considerably stronger than the standard Toyota pistons, the Cosworth 2ZZ-GE forged pistons are up to 18% lighter, which helps to reduce the reciprocating mass of the engine.

A green Xylan Teflon based coating is used on the skirts of the 2ZZ-GE pistons to reduce friction. This coating also ensures that the Cosworth forged pistons are directly compatible with the Toyota engine’s metal matrix composite (MMC) liners.

 The Cosworth pistons for the 2ZZ-GE come supplied with bore compatible gas nitrided piston rings, gudgeon pins and circlips. Priced at £695.00 excluding VAT, they’re available now from Torque Developments Plc. Find out more at this link: -  http://www.tdi-plc.com/catalog/engine-hardware-technology-c-107_290_1339_1340_1344.html

Recognising its unique expertise, facilities and ‘can-do’ attitude, Torque Developments has been retained by the three key Lotus race series as official performance validator, a role it has enjoyed since 2008.

The role, which requires Torque Developments to accurately and independently measure a race car’s power output both on site and at the circuit using its advanced Rototest hub dyno, covers the Lotus Cup UK, Cup Europe and Lotus On Track Elise Trophy championships. All three Lotus series feature classes divided into strict power limits and Torque Development’s role it to police these classes and ensure equality of performance within a reasonable tolerance level.

Every Lotus entrant must present that season’s current power curve from Torque Developments as part of the pre race scrutineering process, meaning that the entire pack of all three championships will have to undergo pre-season dyno testing at the company’s Thurrock base before the first round.

The portable nature of the company’s Rototest dyno also enables Torque Developments to conduct post qualifying dyno ‘spot checks’ unannounced at the circuits throughout the 2012 season – if the peak horsepower result is higher than the prevailing class limit then the drivers are relegated to the back of the grid or the car is barred from competing until a legal power test result is achieved.

Commenting on the announcement, Paul Golding, the series’ organiser said “We’re absolutely delighted that TDI (Torque Developments International) will be continuing their valued support of all three LOTRDC run race series in 2012.   Having been at the heart of policing all three Lotus series in 2011: the all new Lotus Cup UK Championship, the hugely successful Lotus Cup Europe and the Elise Trophy, it’s important that we have continuity in the way regulations and especially power are policed.

Over the last four years TDI have gained a reputation amongst the Lotus Motorsport fraternity for their knowledge, accuracy and professionalism to a point where they are recognised as the experts at not just producing a level playing field for drivers who want to compete but at mapping cars for performance and reliability something that is becoming more important with the longer races Lotus Cup UK in particular is providing.   We look forward to working alongside TDI for Lotus Cup UK and the Elise Trophy in 2012. While Lotus Motorsport are also looking forward to again working with TDI for Lotus Cup Europe as series that is owned by Group Lotus, policed by Lotus Motorsport and run on their behalf by LoTRDC.”

Torque Developments wishes competitors, organisers and officials from the Lotus community a successful early start to the 2012 racing season.