My recent phone conversion with Tim Holland GM/LOTUS Engineer for the LT5....

[Roadster]

This all came about with my installation of the Haibeck chip in the 94, on this thread.....http://www.zr1.net/forum/showthread.php?t=22728
when member grahambehan wrote this in reference to the PROM found in my Z.

"Tim Holland worked on the LT5 program for Lotus, the car must have been in the "captured test fleet" at some point for it to have this chip in it.

Graham."

So this got me to thinking, mmmmmm, could there be a story behind this???
I did some research and located Tim Holland. After some phone tag, he returned my call last evening and for the next 32 minutes, we had a great conversation.
I made notes as I went along and tried to absorb everything that we discussed.

...Yes my ZR-1 was part of the "captured test fleet" because of the PROM that was still in the ECM. That PROM was supposed to be removed before sale to the public was his response as he chuckled.
...Yes, he probably drove my Z and others on a daily basis, used as driver's to test out the entire vehicle. And any parts that were suspect were replaced and then tested again.
...No, I did not ask him for how long and how many miles they went before testing was complete. I was too busy asking and discussing everything else I could think of.
...Yes, the PROM is the correct one for my vehicle, simply because of the
"BKKR" code on the cover. The 94 and 95 PROM's were the same and this PROM has all of the available updates at that time.

Here is a pic of the Blue PROM cover that was on my 94.
http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p138/SSROADSTER/94%20ZR-1/IMG_4505.jpg (http://s127.photobucket.com/user/SSROADSTER/media/94%20ZR-1/IMG_4505.jpg.html)



There is a lot more to share, but I have to get to sleep and get ready fot my night drive.
I would like to thank Tim Holland for his time, it was a great conversation and this just adds a bit more history with the purchase of my Z.......

[GOLDCYLON]

cool story :-D

[PhillipsLT5]

The primary purpose of tracing the provenance of an object or entity is normally to provide contextual and circumstantial evidence for its original production or discovery, by establishing, as far as practicable, its later history, especially the sequences of its formal ownership, custody, and places of storage. The practice has a particular value in helping authenticate objects. Comparative techniques, expert opinions, and the results of scientific tests may also be used to these ends, but establishing provenance is essentially a matter of documentation
You got it, nice

[gbrtng]

I'm pretty sure Tim came to the April 1995 gathering along with Graham. Where is Tim living now? And is he still with Lotus?

[Roadster]

cool story :-D

thanks, I think it is also.......

The primary purpose of tracing the provenance of an object or entity is normally to provide contextual and circumstantial evidence for its original production or discovery, by establishing, as far as practicable, its later history, especially the sequences of its formal ownership, custody, and places of storage. The practice has a particular value in helping authenticate objects. Comparative techniques, expert opinions, and the results of scientific tests may also be used to these ends, but establishing provenance is essentially a matter of documentation
You got it, nice

couldn't have said it better myself....only kidding....great explanation...thanks

I'm pretty sure Tim came to the April 1995 gathering along with Graham. Where is Tim living now? And is he still with Lotus?

yes, he is still with Lotus, I am assuming he is in MI.

[Roadster]

more info from the call......the following may have already been discussed over the years, and known by many, but I thought it would be interesting to mentioned what we talked about now, some 20 years later.

...The LT5 was on the dyno for at least 400 hours, GM's dyno testing was very aggressive at the time.
...The LT5 ran hotter than usual at the time. (I imagine he was comparing the LT5 to the other engines of that time period)
...When I asked him about the PROM chips available from the aftermarket, such as Marc's and others, especially with the fans coming on at lower speeds, he said that the oil needs to be @ 88 degrees centigrade,
(which is 190.4 degrees F) in order for the oil to boil out the condensation in the engine. He said you don't want to run these engines at like 150 F, as it would do more harm than good. Even with the fan temps from the aftermarket PROM chips, I think we are ok, JMO.
And he also mentioned if doing a lot of short trips, to make sure you get up to operating temp. There is also a thermostat in the oil line.
...a twin roller chain was added for the cams, as they seemed to have a problem with the earlier single roller chain. (hope I understood him correctly on this one).
....make sure you are warmed up at operating temp before doing any WOT's.

again, this may be common knowledge for some if not all, but still a neat conversation.......
still a few more items to cover, will do in my next post.........thanks for checking this out.....

[Roadster]

the remaining part of our conversation......

...engine is more fuel efficient on all 16 injectors open rather than just 8 injectors.
...talking about the "tube" going from the rear of the trans to the axle,(I imagine the "tube" he was referring to is the driveshaft. Mentioned that when accelerating that you should be smooth with power delivery, and not jerk the engine in gear, such as accelerating in 1st gear, letting off, than accelerating again in same gear (jerking). This puts undo stress on the bolts that connect the joint at the back of the trans, which can come loose from that motion (think I understood him on that) which can sag when applying torque and therefore result in the gear lever (shifter) moving upwards when accelerating. This is a machined part and needs to be exact. Apparently this was discovered during testing, thus resulting in using a smooth delivery rather than a jerking power delivery.
...secondary injectors opening is based on fast you are going and not a specific RPM.
...clutch reservoir contains the "black cup" as I refer to as.....which purpose is to prevent air and moisture from entering the system. That "black cup" should be collapsible to underneath the cap, mine isn't. But not to run without one.
...also spoke about changing out the anti-freeze fluid in the engine. I mentioned about the Dex-Cool may create complication on the gaskets, he said he was not aware of that, but also mentioned that he has been out of the "circle" for a number of years. When I said about filling the system and not getting any air pockets, he said that there are bleeder pipes on top of the plenum (he thought between #2 & 3 and #4 & 5 cylinders). The fill cap was placed on the highest point of the engine for a purpose. He also mentioned that when filling the system, that it will purge itself.

My thought is.....Of course alot more has been learned about the LT5 since the production years and different ways to maintain and prevent any possible complications that may arise.

That was about the content of our conversation from all of the above posts, interesting to say the least, especially for me, as I am still in the learning process of the LT5 and the ZR-1 overall.
Glad I could share with you.......thanks for looking...

[Kevin]

...secondary injectors opening is based on fast you are going and not a specific RPM.

first i've ever heard of this

[We Gone]

...secondary injectors opening is based on fast you are going and not a specific RPM.

first i've ever heard of this

I always through they opened by combination of throttle percent and RPMs

[Roadster]

...secondary injectors opening is based on fast you are going and not a specific RPM.

first i've ever heard of this

I always through they opened by combination of throttle percent and RPMs


ok some clarification on the subject......I had mentioned to Tim that it was recommended to bring the r's up to 7k in first and second gear to make sure that the secondaries would open and that the engine was running good. From what I remember and took notes on, he mentioned that the opening of the secondaries were based on the speed of the vehicle and not a specific RPM to where they open. The following is my thoughts....Obviously when you hit a certain RPM in an aggressive start, the vehicle is traveling at a certain rate of speed. I would imagine that traveling at a highway speed and a certain rpm range that is less than an aggressive acceleratioin and rpm range from a start would still open the secondaries as speed increases.
Again, I have nowhere near the knowledge that this forum has, and just thinking logically out loud. I intend to contact Tim in the near future, and will make sure to ask him to explain this once again. I was trying to get in as much as I could during our conversation and doing "shorthand"...lol
Wish I had the conversation taped........

[We Gone]

Found these charts in a 1996 ZR-1 Reg mag written by Marc H. in regards to secondary opening.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/839/tmtj.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/841/zcp8.jpg

[ghlkal]

Very cool. I sure it was a great experience to get some first-hand knowledge.


And he also mentioned if doing a lot of short trips, to make sure you get up to operating temp. There is also a thermostat in the oil line.

I didn't know there's a thermostat in the oil line ...

[Dynomite]

Very cool. I sure it was a great experience to get some first-hand knowledge.
I didn't know there's a thermostat in the oil line ...

Concur....very interesting discussion by Roadster :thumbsup:

Engine Lubrication System Functional Discussion (http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c4-zr-1-discussion/3005470-tech-info-lt5-modifications-rebuild-tricks-500-hp.html#post1580467622)

This may be what is discussed in regard to oil thermostat?

Oil Temperature Control Valve Assembly.....................Oil Temperature Valve Thermostat opens at 203 deg F
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll142/dynomite007/Dynomite4/d147385b-9191-47a3-b4ec-4e8ed63af346.jpghttp://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll142/dynomite007/Dynomite4/388c637f-42f2-4a36-baf8-25663de0faec.jpg

Oil Temperature Shuttle Valve Open (HOT)............................Oil Termperature Shuttle Valve Closed (COLD)
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll142/dynomite007/Dynomite4/2035fbe7-3641-40cf-9d7d-5666717daa03.jpghttp://i287.photobucket.com/albums/ll142/dynomite007/Dynomite4/77f048f7-61d8-4f94-a7a8-ddde9d0edc78.jpg

[Roadster]

Found these charts in a 1996 ZR-1 Reg mag written by Marc H. in regards to secondary opening.

http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/839/tmtj.jpg
http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/841/zcp8.jpg

Steve, thanks for the research, will be reading this and looking at the charts a few times over so it will sink in.....:)

Very cool. I sure it was a great experience to get some first-hand knowledge.

I didn't know there's a thermostat in the oil line ...

Yes it was to say the least, I feel very fortunate to have had a one-on-one with Tim, just trying to absorb everything he said....

I also had no idea about the oil line thermostat, I'm still trying to learn about the engine.....:)
When we were talking about the engine temp and how that the oil needs to be a certain temp to boil out the condensation is when Tim mentioned the oil line thermostat.


Concur....very interesting discussion by Roadster :thumbsup:

Thank you Cliff, and also thanks for posting the info on the oil line thermo..
:cheers:

[Racinfan83]

If you talk with him again - you should see if he would be willing to join the forum here! Think of the info we could get....:handshak:

[Pete]

The oil T-stat opens 190-195* so if your oil temps never got this hot you might still have factory oil in your oil cooler.
I took the cooler off my Z and my oil temps stay around 180*
Secondaries will open at any RPM at WOT.


Pete

[Roadster]

If you talk with him again - you should see if he would be willing to join the forum here! Think of the info we could get....:handshak:

I plan to speak with him sometime in the future, I will ask him about the forum. I can say that it seems like he has a busy schedule being in the position he is with Lotus. I know it took me a few times of trying to contact him, before we had our conversation.
That would be wild if he did join the forum, but on the other hand, I don't know if he will have any spare time to participate......We can try......