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Evora GT Tune???

54K views 175 replies 40 participants last post by  PofC  
#1 ·
Hey Guys,

Just curious if there are any tunes out there yet for the Evora GT? From googling it, there's no much of anything that comes up. I'm sure it's been discussed. Thanks in advance!
 
#7 ·
Yeah Lotus moved to lock up the ECU some more with the 400+ cars. There is another thread about Jubu which is another contender. BOE in the US has been rumored to have something for awhile but nothing has been publicly announced that I can see.
 
#8 ·
Good too know, so not many are really is asking for a tune then? That's a good sign I suppose. It must have plenty of power. I was just thinking down the road if I wanted more it would be nice to know there's options. I also am considering the GT4. A company called Deman motorsports will turn the 4L into a 4.5L and will get a bump to like 540 HP... All for only 29k ;)
 
#12 ·
FYI Jubu said :
We can offer the following tuning stages:
  • 550 hp with full built engine and a bigger supercharger and our plug and play ECU kit.
BRO. Thats ALREADY TOO MUCH. I feel even stock with 400 HP is fine enough with the 0-60 times of 3.9 seconds.
But with 550 HP and probably 400-430 lbs of torque, you can probably go into the clean 3 second to 0-60 mark.
That is...if the tires don't continuously spin
 
#15 ·
I believe monkey wrench racing has engine upgrades for the 2gr-fe, I believe I saw 4.0+L on their website

tuning wise yea the options are slim, When I am finally at the point where I need a ECU tune, I hope BOE will allow me to bring my car to them to do the tuning and install headers in house,

maybe I have to much faith in the Toyota power plant, I am not to worried about voiding the warranty on the engine in my GT. It’s just the fact I am throwing all my money into paying for the car and can’t afford the ecu tune and other go fast stuff on the car now. Once it’s paid off (with some luck well before the manufacturer warranty is expired), I will add a ecu tune and some other items.

what I am worried most about is what can the trans and clutch take. Seems like a lot of unknowns in that department & I can only imagine what a trans upgrade would cost, let alone just a better clutch!

I haven’t pushed my car at all yet (still doing break in procedure) so i can’t really comment on how much power it still needs! Hopefully this summer I will do a few track days which should give me a good idea of how the car performs. Only cars I have owned and driven in the track were Saab’s, thus there will be a bit of a learning curve!
 
#17 ·
I called monkeywrenchracing and the guy said they have this ECU you can just tune yourself. With exhaust and headers and a tune you will get 450hp+. Has no one on here tuned their GT themselves?
 
#18 ·
If you research deeper you'll see why. The Lotus platform is high strung already and only a handful of places are capable of unlocking the Lotus ECU. The standalones are fine if out of warranty and you are and expert in your field and willing to gamble your ride. I would get your car enjoy it some and then start with the mods.
 
owns 2006 Lotus Elise
#23 ·
Maybe so they can sell you their 25K euro DCT
 
owns 2006 Lotus Elise
#25 ·
Anything over 450HP on the stock tranny and you are asking for tranny termination unless it is also modifed...heavily.

It is now apparent that I essentially wore out a tranny on an S1 car with maybe 360HP and oonly recently ~400. Synchros were worn, forks were almost done. Splined 4rth/5th gear (that was an early sport ratio gearbox weakness). $7500 later all rebuilt, upgraded, new 400 clutch and flywheel....just sayin

JUBU is lying if they don't admit this. MWR is 100% aware of it!! This is out there as this tranny has been in service for MANY years in MANY applications
 
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#26 · (Edited)
The Evora uses an Aisin/Toyota transmission that was converted for the application to permit transverse mounting to fit the available space. The choices for this tranny were limited because of the mounting necessity and available space so we got a somewhat "agricultural" tranny simply because it fit the application, literally. They did pretty damn well with it under the circumstances. They do modify it a bit to tighten the ratios and importantly, to get it to mate sideways in the car. This transmission was not used by Toyota in their 6 cylinder applications so a fair amount of fiddling was necessary. The motor can be pushed what with the forged crank and Toyota build quality, but the transmission limits the whole package to (this from memory, could be a bit higher but it won't be by much) 450nM or so. It will almost surely handle more for some period of time but that's the limit of liability that Lotus will accept since they have to warrant them. We don't have those constraints but then again, in the event we break it with a tune, we have to fix it. BTW, I believe the Esprit had a similar limitation due to its Renault gearbox.

My 400 has the basic Komotec tune and puts just over 390HP and 320 ft.lb. down at the rear wheels. That works out to about 460HP at the crank which puts it in C7 territory (but with less torque) and makes enough of a difference that you can feel it. The last GT I drove wasn't as strong as my car but it wasn't all that far behind. My car feels fine and balanced and without any oddness from the tune, just like a GT but a skosh stronger. I won't be taking it any further than this as it satisfies me and either delights or terrorizes my passengers thoroughly depending on their comfort level at speed....with me at the wheel. That works for me too.

I think it's the wrong platform to chase big numbers with but with mid 400HP you've got something plenty fast but still fun to drive with undiminished fuel economy (if that matters) and no bad behaviors.

I waited until I was out of warranty to tune it. However........it is a blast to see others do things I don't have the courage to attempt and I'm all for a 550HP Evora. The guy who builds it though needs to know its limitations.
 
#27 ·
Asian trans
The Evora uses an Asian transmission that was converted for the application to permit transverse mounting. The choices for this tranny were limited because of the mounting necessity so we got a light truck tranny. They did pretty well with but under the circumstances. The motor can be pushed what with the forged crank and Toyota build quality, but the transmission limits the whole package to (this from memory, could be a bit higher but it won't be by much) 450-475Nm or so. It will almost surely handle more for some period of time but that's the limit of liability that Lotus will accept since they have to warrant them. We don't have those constraints but then again, in the event we break it with a tune, we have to fix it. BTW, I believe the Esprit had a similar problem due to its Renault gearbox.

My 400 has the basic Komotec tune and puts just over 390HP and 320 ft.lb. down at the rear wheels. That works out to about 460HP at the crank which puts it in C7 territory (but with less torque) and makes enough of a difference that you can feel it. The last GT I drove wasn't as strong as my car but it wasn't all that far behind. The car feels fine and balanced. Me personally? I won't be taking it any further than that and it satisfies me and either delights or terrorizes my passengers thoroughly depending on. their need for speed.

I do think it's the wrong platform to chase big numbers with but with mid 400HP you've got something plenty fast but still fun to drive with undiminished fuel economy (if that matters) and no bad behaviors.

I waited until I was out of warranty to tune it.
So what would need to be replaced in the transmission to make it handle more power?? Or is it even possible??
 
#28 · (Edited)
Talk to MWR. Great guys. Very responsive. They have lots of beefed up parts and a MUCH better 3-6 set of ratios. Of all the things Lotus did well, they did a lousy job with the tranny ratios and gave us early folks a weak 4/5 gear zone including the massive dead spot when doing a redline upshift from 4rth to 5th. I can't wait to see the difference on the back straights at the Glen in July. Previously it was either bounce off the limiter in 4rth or try a short shift to 5th for no additional gain. All at ~140mph.
Frankly I wonder if they'll be able to build a tranny capable of RELIABLY handling 550HP. Not sure what IPS limits are for better or worse
 
#31 ·
God knows I did this very thing with the suspension on my 2004 STi! Different parts but same concept.
Evora is an amazing rain car due to its balance. Corvette (front engine gens) was an amazing dry track car but HORRIBLE in the rain in all but a handful of professionals hands). Too much power reduces the ability to control it. A 550HP Evora could have been an outright winner in ALMS.
 
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#32 ·
MWR Wrote me back, Matt said,

How much power and what kind of usage? Besides the early model defects we’ve found the standard transmission is pretty durable.

and I said: 470-500HP. What’s your thoughts on the stock transmission parts at that? Thanks!

Matt -
Have any of them broken one? What did they break?

We’ve made much more than that on stock transmissions. That is a relatively small data set though so I’d love to hear about any issues that others have had.
 
#34 ·
Im not sure about JUBU but I know that the Komotech tune will get me out 35 more Hp taking it to about 450 ish. The clutch in the GT is a heavier clutch that will handle more push. That is from 2 lotus techs. So eventually I will get the komotech tune and leave it alone. Even now the car is pretty quick and will break traction in 1st or 2nd with newer Cup 2 tires. I don't want a mustang gt500 that puts me in the ditch because it has too much HP for a novice driver like me to handle. yes I can admit I am not an experienced track style driver. I cant see taking any warranty chances with my new GT. I miss the torque more than anything. So i hope the tune gets me the torgue that I want more than anything.
 
#36 ·
Only a stronger clutch was mentioned, not a stronger transmission.

That said, how well documented is the Aisin 6spd reliability limit? The breaking points are often circulated, but I’ve never actually seen a first hand account or write up on some build where the transmission blowing up was a result.
 
#38 ·
FYI Matt from MWR says "Our evora has been well over 500hp with a turbo and is there now with a supercharger. No issues so far, though to be fair it is not used in endurance racing."

So not sure why anyone would think that the GT can't handle more power on the stock tranny. There's 0 evidence of any blowing up from everything i've gathered and heard from MWR or anyone else. Just a lot of rumors it sounds like..
 
#39 ·
There is a difference between a car driven 1000 miles (did they tell you how many miles?) and 50000 miles or more. Look up EA60? in google and see threads about use in other vehicles as it has a ~20year history. Also the adaptation required for our application should be kept in mind. The concern we all have for YOU is its not easy to drop it out as in a front engine car. It is a MAJOR EFFORT TO PULL THE CLAM, PULL THE MOTOR, ETC EVERYTIME YOU HAVE ISSUES. $$$$ in labor.
So if you are comfortable writing lots of 5-10K notes, have at it. Is it for racing outright or bragging rights on HPDE day? That glory lasts 5 minutes when you leave.
 
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#42 ·
There is a difference between a car driven 1000 miles (did they tell you how many miles?) and 50000 miles or more. Look up EA60? in google and see threads about use in other vehicles as it has a ~20year history. Also the adaptation required for our application should be kept in mind. The concern we all have for YOU is its not easy to drop it out as in a front engine car. It is a MAJOR EFFORT TO PULL THE CLAM, PULL THE MOTOR, ETC EVERYTIME YOU HAVE ISSUES. $$$$ in labor.
So if you are comfortable writing lots of 5-10K notes, have at it. Is it for racing outright or bragging rights on HPDE day? That glory lasts 5 minutes when you leave.
Just for everyday use, I think it would be just PERFECT with 470-500 HP and some more torque.