HKS GT600 Kit for R35 GT-R - A Landmark on the Way to the "Speed Region of the Limit"

You might recall that HKS invited us to "the speed region of the limit", which we determined would be somewhere north of 800hp for the Nissan R35 GT-R via the HKS GT800 kit. We have accepted the invitation to this other worldly place and we are well on our way in our test R35. But, along the way to the GT800, we thought that we would stop off at a landmark - the GT600.

I thought about teasing you slowly with every detail of the modifications involved in the GT600 kit, but instead I will just hit you with the dyno sheets. Our standard R35 GT-R made 296 kW (397 hp) ATW in stock trim on our Dyno Dynamics 4WD dynamometer.

We started here...

Followed this map...

...and ended up here.

Fitted with the HKS GT600 kit, our R35 GT-R made 379 kW (508 hp) ATW. Keeping in mind that this power was measured at the wheels and accounting for transmission losses, HKS certainly delivers its promise of 600 hp at the engine. In fact, this is probably a little bit conservative and I would expect this combination to make slightly more than 600 hp at the engine. Nevertheless, the forces between rubber and road are what count. In this regard, we have made an improvement of 28%! Furthermore, the odd flat spot in the power curve has disappeared. For the record, the first (stock) power run was recorded in 4th gear; however,  we needed to record the second (GT600) power run in 3rd gear because the engine was hitting the rev limiter in 4th gear before it reached maximum power.

Where to next? How far can we go?

It will probably take me a few posts to explain everything that is included in the kit as well as compare the HKS parts to the stock Nissan ones. I can tell you this - most of the parts are shiny, but none of them are there just for looks. Stay tuned!

New Dyno Room Almost Finished!

It is almost finished! After more than a year of design and consultation and months of building, our new, purpose-built dyno room is almost complete

We are still working on the finishing touches. You can see from the photos that we still have some materials to install. Nonetheless, the room is already in a functional state. It is so functional in fact that the pressure differential (i.e. suction) generated slams the door shut. There is no handle on the door as yet. We just use a piece of aluminium held in place by the suction of the airflow through the room. And we have not even sealed up the doors properly yet.

Even at this early stage, the reduction in noise volume from the outside is unbelievable. We can work upstairs in relative peace and have phone conversations without trying to fit in words between power runs. Our neighbours are even saying hello to us again. The new dyno room is making a massive difference to our workplace. It was worth the wait and the effort.

The room still employs our trusted Dyno Dynamics 4WD dynamometer. However, it differs from a traditional setup in that it does not need a separate fan installed in front of the car. Such fans, no matter how big, have never come close to matching real world airflow. In our dyno room, air is pulled back from behind the car instead, making the room function like a mini-wind tunnel. The airflow is so good that we believe that this could be used for some simple aerodynamic testing, such as wool tuft testing and intake temperature testing.

The metal duct you see is the exhaust fan, which is about 1.5m in diameter. Insight Motorsports Director Scott Kuhner, in typical Scott style, wanted even bigger. However, he would have needed to get the power from the street upgraded for the whole factory complex! The size of the fan is really put into perspective when you see the size of the “small” fan it replaced, which is actually quite big! Compare it to the car tyre in the photo below.

Why go to all this trouble? Because that is what our customers expect. The increased airflow will allow us to more accurately reproduce road conditions. It will also mean that we will spend less time waiting for cars to cool down between power runs or dealing with overheating problems.

We believe that this is now one of the best dyno facilities in Sydney. It is the perfect environment for Scott Kuhner, one of Sydney’s most reputable tuners, to work his craft. Scott has a great deal of experience tuning race cars. These facilities will no doubt help us to assist more racers in setting up their cars and achieving their goals.

Stay tuned, I will endeavour to get some videos of the dyno room in action up here as soon as possible!