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MG MGF Technical - Power figure

I have just had my car on a rolling road to see how it was running. It managed 120 BHP at the wheels with the following modifications, ITG maxogen, 52mm TB, MS big valve head (29/26mm) and exhaust system.

I'm pleased with the way the car runs, but wondered what would be a sensible next step while retaining good drivability?

Thanks

Alastair
Alastair McLeod

You are probably going to be looking at a mild cam - the Piper 270 would be a good choice. This cam has recently been re-worked to improve idle characteristics (albeit at the expense of top-end power) and provides excellent torque characteristics throughout the rev range.

Fitting kits, including verniers, cost in the region of 500 quid.

Might also be worth investing in a fully programmable Emerald M3D replacement ECU to extract the maximum performance from your car - chat to Dave Walker at the Emerald RR in Brixton.
Rob Bell

Alastair, considering all the modifications that you have made, are you not a little disappointed by the power figure - it is still at the standard level. Its just that I was thinking of upgrading mine to a similar spec as yours - has it made any difference to the driving experience?
Ian

If his car is a MPI, which it likely is, then the figure is a decent improvement IMHO.
I'm not sure what the usual BHP figure of an mpi is at the wheels, but I'd guess 105 ish? So, 120's not bad and should rival a VVC.

Darren.
Darren

Ah, at the wheels figure.
Do you think just the ITG maxogen and 52mm TB would make any difference? I dont want to spend too much on the car since I may get rid of it in a year.
MPI 1.8 (1998)

Ian
Ian

Yes, they're supposed to! I don't know the figures for the Maxogen, those because it provides colder air it'll provide a greater gain than a K&N (8 bhp on an mpi). The throttle body, I'm sure not. I heard someone mention 5bhp on a VVC, though personally I think you're more likely to notice the better throttle response at lower revs than the couple of horsepower at 6000+ rpm. If you're after a cheap upgrade I'd go for a K&N and throttle body. Did I mention I'm selling mine (in about a month) ;).

Darren.


Darren

Rob, the Piper 270 was one I was considering, have you tried them?

Ian, I had a K&N panel filter and cold air pick-up, which I replaced with the ITG maxogen, I was surprised at just how good it was. An improvement at 3000 revs, which gets better from 4000 to 6000 plus, expensive but the best. You can always sell it here or to the Lotus guys if you change your car.
The TB does help, but not by as much, do just the ITG first.

Cheers

Alastair
Alastair McLeod

Darren, sorry to here you are selling your F, at least at this time of year you will get a good price.

Alastair, thanks for the reply, I was considering the ITG, it seems a complicated system. Hope its simple to install!
Ian

Ian,

I'm not selling the F, well not really - I'm p/x'ing it for a TF160. However, I'm going to take my K&N and 52mm throttle body off before it goes back (dealer prefers it that way) so I'm going to sell those seperately. Mind you, I don't think I could do without them for long so I'm going to wait a month before taking them off.

Darren.
Darren

Hi Alistair,

no, I haven't tried this cam yet - but it is the one I'd preferentially go for. I've heard plenty of encouraging reports from other MGF and Elise owners alike - and the MEMS can take the change. Having said that, more power can be had if the ECU is changed at the same time...

If I decide to change sprint class for next year, then this is the route (or at least part of it) that I'd take.

Also very keen to looking into mild porting of the cylinder head with larger intake valves, ala DVA...

It's nice to dream eh? I'd hate to think what the insurance premium would rise to following cylinder head work... :o(
Rob Bell

Hi Rob

In my case the insurance was not a problem through the MGOC, the above mods were listed & they added £70 which was under 20%.
I'm not sure how much they understand, as I had quite a few phone calls back & forward, mainly about the BVH, when they wanted to clarify what I was doing. They phoned back to see if the 52mm TB was a kit, I explained that it was a MGR upgrade worth 5BHP, so there was no charge and they sent out updated paper work FOC.

Alastair McLeod

This thread was discussed between 09/07/2002 and 10/07/2002

MG MGF Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGF Technical BBS is active now.