April 2010


Friday 30th April 2010
Re-wired the Lambda sensor again this evening, following some duff information on a forum. I've now wired it so Red = +12V, Blue and White = 0V, Brown (Ana2) = ECU Lambda input, and Black goes to a switch and an LED that allows the wire to be earthed for calibration purposes. I've also calibrated the LC-1 according to the instructions from Innovate.

The Pro-Lite fuel hose and 180° fitting have arrived today from Earls, and I've embarked now on getting the fuel rail plumbed in. I need to relocate the pressure regulator, and I'll make a bracket over the weekend. Speaking of the weekend, its the National Kit Car show at Stoneleigh on Sunday/Monday, so I intend to go so I can find some odds and sods I need to finish off the throttle linkage and a few other bits.

One remaining challenge is to plumb in the Fiesta ST hydraulic clutch. I need to find an alloy adaptor that fits in the slave input, that I can then connect to a braided hose. I've rang Burtons, and they had nothing off-the-shelf. Can anyone help?
Thursday 29th April 2010
The throttle position sensor is now wired in, and calibrated in the ECU for open and shut throttle positions. The Lambda sensor also seems to be working, the ECU can see the analogue 2 signal from the LC-1 controller, I just need to calibrate the device.
Wednesday 28th April 2010
The throttle position sensor arrived from Active Electronics today, and it fits the throttle spindle perfectly, I need to wire it in. I've fitted the NGK spark plugs tonight.
Tuesday 27th April 2010
Wired in the Lambda sensor tonight, waiting for an opportunity to test and calibrate it.
Monday 26th April 2010
The drive-shaft/axle-bar arrived today from Commercial Propshaft Services, and it looks fantastic. I'll try to get it fitted over the next few nights. It has a Fiesta ST tri-lobe joint fitted on one end, and the other end has 22 splines for use in the Fiesta CV joint.

I've fitted the LC1 Lambda sensor this evening. I used my 25.4mm hole punch to make a hole large enough for the sensor to pass through the floor, and the hole is sealed with the rubber grommet that came originally with the Stack instruments. It just needs to be wired in, and the guides suggest combining all the earths from the Innovate ECU, to a common ground, which is what I'll do. I already have a +12V and 0V loom ready for the LC1.
Sunday 25th April 2010
Fitted the gear selector mechanisnm to the floor of the car. I've made an aluminium plate for it to sit on, which itself seals any gaps left over from the previous under-floor mechanical gear linkage. I've used M8 S/S socket head bolts and nyloc nuts to hold it in position. I've also retapped the water outlet housing on the engine, to take the Bosch water temperature sensor. It has an M12x1.5 thread, and I've sealed it in with blue Hylomar. The temperature sensor now gives the right reading for the ECU, so the old sensor has been consigned to the dustbin.
Friday 23rd April 2010
Gear selector cables are now fitted, as is the selector inside the car, so I can now get all five forward gears and reverse. I routed the cables through the original bulkhead connector hole, from when I had the wiring loom in for the Zetec. Made sense to reuse the hole instead of making yet another one in the bulkhead.

Commercial Propshaft Services called, and the axle bar is finished. I should receive it on Monday. They've made two on the off chance that the other side is the same length, so if needs be, I can buy the other one so both sides are then using the ST trilobes.
Thursday 22nd April 2010
I've had to order a different throttle position sensor, from Active Sensors, as the RP5130 that I bought last year isn't actually suitable for use with the Titans. I should have bought the RP5110, as that has a spring clip incorporated in to the input shaft, that mates it with the slot in the end of the throttle spindle. Thats another £103 I've got to fork out, so I'll stick the RP5130 on Ebay.

DTA are supplying me with one Bosch water temperature sender, as they only have one in stock at present. The Lucas sender I retained rom the Zetec doesn't give suitable readings, and the Ford water temperature sender I'm using for oil temperature, also needs replacing with a Bosch unit, as the Ford sensors impedance again doesn't match the requirements of the S80.

I've bought a couple of the Tiff Nedell BMW M3 experiences at Thruxton Circuit, and am thinking of going on July 8th (my birthday) with my wife, for some high speed sideways fun in the M3. I cant wait.
Wednesday 21st April 2010
Rotated the end plate on the throttle body, as prescribed by ****, and the TPS now sits in the right orientation. But I cant find the alignment clip for the TPS, so I've asked Titan if they can provide a couple.

I tried fitting the gearbox selector cables, so I can work out where to drill the holes to pass them through the bulkhead, and I cant fathom out how they fit on the gearbox. Anyone have a Haynes diagram or Ford diagram showing hey they clip on to the gearbox?
Tuesday 20th April 2010
The Active Sensors throttle position sensor is now wired in and calibrated correctly. I need to find the spring clip that locates the TPS input shaft in the end of the slotted throttle spindle, as the TPS input shaft is smaller than the slot, and there's defintely hysteresis when the throttle is opened and closed. Speaking with **** at ****, I also need to remove the end plate from the Titan TB to allow the TPS to be rotated in to position. What I mean by that is the TPS has to be rotated away from its working position in order for it to be bolted to the end of the Throttle Body, and as its a 130° sensor, thats bad news. So the workaround is to rotate the black end plate of the Titan by 60° which should bring the TPS back in to its operating range.
Monday 19th April 2010
CPS has confirmed that the new driveshaft is undergoing the hardening process this week, so I will most likely get it back early next week.

I'll focus on connecting the Innovate lambda sensor tonight, and I'll put the Varley battery back on trickle charge, as it's had a fair amount of punishment in the past few weeks from me spinning the engine over for oil pressure and running the ECU up etc.
Thursday 15th April 2010
I've connected the sensor connector to the ECU and powered it up, and everything appears to check out OK. I need to find the calibration tables for the two temperature sensors (oil and water) as one reads -10 and the other reads 35, but thats quite easy to rectify in the ECU map. The TPS reads a constant voltage, so I just need to swap a couple of wires over in the connector, which is a 10 minute job for tomorrow evening. All the traction and launch buttons work, as does the traction aggressiveness switch. And the crank and cam signals also look fine so not much left to do now before she runs for the first time.

There is a petition, to allow Motorsport to use closed roads in the UK, without having to go through Parliament to apply for a closure, which invariably wastes everyones time and money. I've signed it. I hope you can too.
Wednesday 14th April 2010
I've finished the wiring this evening! All the sensor wires are now inserted in to the ECU Sensor connector, so its just a case of locking the pins in place, and pushing the connector in to the back of the S80 tomorrow evening, and I'll run through the diagnostics tests on the Laptop. Thats a huge relief. Its taken forever to finish but that's the perfectionist in me I'm afraid.

I just need to screw in the lambda sensor, and connect the Innovate black box to the ECU, which shouldn't take long to do, and the engine should be able to run for the first time. With that in mind, I've bought some more Pro-Lite 350 hose, and a 180° dash 6 fitting, so I can get the Titan fuel rail plumbed in. I'm shying away from the stainless overbraided hose where I can, because its a right royal PITA to work with, whereas the Pro-Lite with its Nylon outer is far nicer.

So just the fuel lines, the water hoses, the lambda sensor, and a throttle cable to connect, and we should have liftoff.
Tuesday 13th April 2010
I've been cracking on with the final bit of the ECU wiring, and I've just a few wires left to solder together, and the ECU will have all the sensors it requires to make the engine run. Another hours work should see it finished. I've created tails to connect all the earths and 5V supplies together from the shielded cables, and I'm carefully heatshrinking and marking everything up to aid with any future diagnostics.
Thursday 8th April 2010
We have oil pressure! I've wired in the Stack sender unit, and its showing 40PSI when I crank the engine over on the starter. And the 1bar low oil pressure warning switch also works, as the red LEDs on the dashboard come on when the pressure is below 1bar. The oil pressure takes quite a while to drop once the engine stops spinning so this is a sign that engine internals are in great condition. The oil temperature sender is also wired in, and tonights job is to start connecting the sensor cables to the sensor connector on the ECU, so I can see if they're all working properly.

It is Fiesta in the Park at Wicksteed Park on May 16th, so I'm up against it to get it all finished by then, but I'll try my best for sure.
Monday 5th April 2010
Tonight I hooked up the laptop to the ECU for the first time, and ran the diagnostics test. And I'm pleased to report that we have sparks from the plugs, and injectors that make loud clicking sounds, as do the relays for the fuel pump and the radiator fan, and the shift LEDs work too.

Friday 2nd April 2010
I have power to the ECU for the first time this evening. I dont have the cable to hand so I couldn't plug the laptop in, but the ECU does turn the radiator cooling fan on, and as it doesn't have a temp sensor feeding it yet, I can only assume it thinks the engine is hot.

I'll be able to have a look tomorrow evening when I next venture outside.

Thats one connector down, one to go.

I did find that the crimps couldn't be inserted in to the DTA AMP connector unless the cable strain relief on the end of the crimp was perfectly round, so a few of the crimps needed nursing in to shape. But they're all in, so I should have sparks and injectors working tomorrow night too.

Wahoo! Almost there.
Thursday 1st April 2010
I've fitted the Ford / Cosworth COP cam cover, as supplied by Coordsport. Looks much better, and the COPs are now all held in place by M6 bolts, so they shouldn't come loose.