📓 Journals Adding Lightness

[Eagle7]

Interesting read about your oil additive. It’s not really a thing here in Australia (do we have different quality oils to you, like our fuels?). What does an additive “add” compared to a good synthetic?

Also, I haven’t gone through all your posts, but did you end up installing the sound deadening material? How did it go, if you did? That added weight would surely counter any reductions from new screws, exhaust, etc.

If you read through the information on Archoil's website (www.archoil.com) you'll see what their product does. Unless there's some kind of import restriction, I don't see why you couldn't buy it there, as well as Redline's oils. I know you can get both on Amazon.

I haven't done anything with sound deadening yet because we've had a ridiculous spell of heat for the last 5 weeks. It's going to take some time and effort to figure out where and how to dampen noise sources. Now that the 5 week heat spell of 100+ every day has broken, we're starting to see temps in the low 90's in the day, and low 60's at night so the garage is reasonably cool in the morning now. I should be able to spend some time working on this and make some progress.

Next week when I go to change out the muffler with the Aerie titanium one, I'll have the car up on the Quickjack, and I'll start going through with a rubber mallet and doing tap tests all over the underside of the car to see what's making noise and what isn't. I already know the under pan panel in the front is, so I'll remove and dampen that one for sure.

I've downloaded a decibel meter app for my iPhone, so I'm going to see what the sound level is inside the car first. That way I can have some kind of numbers to show what the results are as I go through this. If I find resonant panels, I'll see if I can record those too, so I can do a before/after.

 

[Eagle7]

Just to say it, I appreciate all of the work and info you have provided on this post. I have the Redline gear oil and am looking forward to any pictures you may provide to assist my local Indie in changing that fluid. I'm also very interested in what you (or others) may do for noise reduction in the cabin as that will be a "winter" project for me. The cabin noise doesn't drive me nuts, but I know it could be a quieter environment which would benefit the experience.

Thanks for the thorough information you provide.

You're welcome!

From what the tech told me, the drain plug on the bottom-side of the trans has a hose connected to it like an Evora (you'll need a crush washer for the drain plug), and the fill plug is in fact up on the top of the trans, not on the side. He said there's a black hose that also connects to the fill plug on top. I've looked at the top, and here's a picture of the hose that goes down to the fill plug. This is looking down on the left side of the engine. With the under pan off, you might be able to reach it from underneath. I'll check when I have the pan off.

 

[Tomwa]

Did you actually read my entire post? It wasn't just an oil type. I put a friction modifier in the oil. I did this whole thing in one day. Drove to the dealer in the morning, waited until the work was finished, then drove home. Same day, same weather. Archoil 9100 is a friction modifier. You use 1.2 ounces per quart of oil. I put it in the Redline gear oil which I replaced the factory gear oil with. Archoil 9100 is what Jay Leno uses in his billion dollar collection of exotic and rare cars.

I don't know Jay Leno, or the mechanics that work his shop. But I doubt they use this marvels mystery oil in every vehicle. The needs for his tank car, for his steam cars, for any number of his Ferarri's and Porsches are quite different.

The website indicates this is an oil additive meant for diesel vehicles.... which Leno also has a number of.

Shell Rotella T used to be pretty highly recommended in a number of groups I know. Its for Tractor Trailers, primarily diesels. As an oil it has a high level of Zinc in it to protect bearings. Doesn't mean it should be used in everything, and likely the advice of oil experts would say not to.

 

[TomAce]

My solution so far has been to drive with airpods on transparency mode. Still able to hear all important traffic noise, but the airpods cut a few decibels which makes it comfortable.

That‘s the usual way to drive a Lotus.

 

[Tomwa]

Interesting read about your oil additive. It’s not really a thing here in Australia (do we have different quality oils to you, like our fuels?). What does an additive “add” compared to a good synthetic?

Also, I haven’t gone through all your posts, but did you end up installing the sound deadening material? How did it go, if you did? That added weight would surely counter any reductions from new screws, exhaust, etc.

https://oil-club.de/wcf/index.php?attachment/22403-sds-ar9100-nlen-pdf/

Found the Safety Data sheet which includes the chemical composition of the AR9100 Oil Additive. *shrug*

 

[Eagle7]

Here's something I found that's interesting, as it's a comment from a competitor to Archoil (the competitor is Hotshot). Here's a snapshot of the start of it:

Here's the full text:

"Seeing as Archoil is one of our biggest competitors, maybe I can shed some light on the product. Let me start by saying, it is a good product. When it comes to stiction, they skinned the cat in a different way than we did. I am pretty sure they are using a blend of several different ester oils which act as a "hyper-lube" along with a nano-borate that aids in lubrication. Due to the polarity of the esters, I guess that could have "some" cleaning properties (sort of like the esters in our Friction Reducer and Transmission Stiction Eliminator), how much they actually clean is up for debate. So the main thing that happens when you use their product is you are making all the metal surfaces slicker than they would normally be, which is why you get almost instant results. I cannot comment either way on the longevity of the effect. What we did with the Stiction Eliminator was put a very strong petroleum distillate detergent that will completely clean off all the metal surfaces. It also contains moly, so after it has been cleaned off, you get the benefit of the moly on the metal. In short though, while the Stiction Eliminator helps some with lubrication, it is mainly cleaning; and where Archoil does some cleaning, it is mainly lubricating."

The main thing I appreciated (besides the professional respect for a competitor's product) was his comment at the end, where he says Archoil's main feature is lubricating. By their own analysis Archoil's product is "...making all the metal surfaces slicker than they would normally be".

There are a LOT of testimonies and videos talking about the various Archoil products that people use and have used, and their results. There's an overwhelming number of testimonies about better engine starting, smoother running engines and transmissions, and a lot of comments about getting better gas mileage. It's used in all kinds of applications, including diesel, and they have specific products just for diesel.

Here's a good video with Jay Leno talking to the national sales manager for Archoil, where he talks about the product, what's in it, what it does, and also what their other various products are used for (the main product in Archoil 9100 isn't zinc, it's boron):



If you check on YouTube, there are other Jay Leno videos with regards to Archoil, one of which his mechanic talks about using Archoil 9100 in his Formula Atlantic car's Cosworth engine, as well as the transmission.

I don't work for Archoil, and they don't sponsor me; this is just part of the research I did into it before deciding to try it out in my own car. I post these things in my project journal for other's to read in case they were ever wondering about some of this stuff, or if nothing else, just for entertainment.

 

[ADC]

Here's something I found that's interesting, as it's a comment from a competitor to Archoil (the competitor is Hotshot). Here's a snapshot of the start of it:

View attachment 49723

Here's the full text:

"Seeing as Archoil is one of our biggest competitors, maybe I can shed some light on the product. Let me start by saying, it is a good product. When it comes to stiction, they skinned the cat in a different way than we did. I am pretty sure they are using a blend of several different ester oils which act as a "hyper-lube" along with a nano-borate that aids in lubrication. Due to the polarity of the esters, I guess that could have "some" cleaning properties (sort of like the esters in our Friction Reducer and Transmission Stiction Eliminator), how much they actually clean is up for debate. So the main thing that happens when you use their product is you are making all the metal surfaces slicker than they would normally be, which is why you get almost instant results. I cannot comment either way on the longevity of the effect. What we did with the Stiction Eliminator was put a very strong petroleum distillate detergent that will completely clean off all the metal surfaces. It also contains moly, so after it has been cleaned off, you get the benefit of the moly on the metal. In short though, while the Stiction Eliminator helps some with lubrication, it is mainly cleaning; and where Archoil does some cleaning, it is mainly lubricating."

The main thing I appreciated (besides the professional respect for a competitor's product) was his comment at the end, where he says Archoil's main feature is lubricating. By their own analysis Archoil's product is "...making all the metal surfaces slicker than they would normally be".

There are a LOT of testimonies and videos talking about the various Archoil products that people use and have used, and their results. There's an overwhelming number of testimonies about better engine starting, smoother running engines and transmissions, and a lot of comments about getting better gas mileage. It's used in all kinds of applications, including diesel, and they have specific products just for diesel.

Here's a good video with Jay Leno talking to the national sales manager for Archoil, where he talks about the product, what's in it, what it does, and also what their other various products are used for (the main product in Archoil 9100 isn't zinc, it's boron):



If you check on YouTube, there are other Jay Leno videos with regards to Archoil, one of which his mechanic talks about using Archoil 9100 in his Formula Atlantic car's Cosworth engine, as well as the transmission.

I don't work for Archoil, and they don't sponsor me; this is just part of the research I did into it before deciding to try it out in my own car. I post these things in my project journal for other's to read in case they were ever wondering about some of this stuff, or if nothing else, just for entertainment.

For what it's worth*, I've used both Archoil's friction modifier and fuel treatment (on a turbo-diesel engine) in the past, and in both cases, it made a measurable enough of a difference that I've placed them firmly in the "not snake oil" category in my mind. Particularly noticeable was the engine oil treatment, which eliminated a lot of clatter, and improved rev pickup / throttle response (on an engine with 80K miles under its belt). The only thing giving me pause about just chucking a dose in the Emira is whether Lotus would give grief over it in a warranty situation :/

I'm impressed that such additives in the transmission would make this kind of gain, given the drivetrain losses are already pretty low.


* the worth of the words of some guy on an internet forum... uhuh, yeah.

 

[Dan C]

The real solution is probably 200 lbs of additional sound damping material or a different car -- it's definitely a loud cabin.

If 100lb of sound dampening made it better, I would take that for sure, and work a little harder on my diet.

 

[CarrHarris]

Eagle 7 is gracing us with his knowledge, you may agree or disagree with his position, however, let's appreciate that he is contributing giving us all things to think about.

 

[benjh1028]

Eagle 7 is gracing us with his knowledge, you may agree or disagree with his position, however, let's appreciate that he is contributing giving us all things to think about.

Absolutely agree that we should be appreciative of all that contribute - and noting that Eagle7 has spent considerable money in doing so - but remember opinions and knowledge are two different things and if done in a constructive way there is value in questioning results (except KitKat who we can all agree is always wrong).

 

[crestima]

These last few post exchanges reminded me of this sign in my office....

 

[CarrHarris]

Absolutely agree that we should be appreciative of all that contribute - and noting that Eagle7 has spent considerable money in doing so - but remember opinions and knowledge are two different things and if done in a constructive way there is value in questioning results (except KitKat who we can all agree is always wrong).

Agree, respectful being the key word.

 

[Eagle7]

Okay, got the dyno run today. The only difference compared to the last dyno, is the Archoil 9100 in the engine and trans. There was no power gain, in fact a slight drop of 4 hp, but the operator said that's within the margin of error of the dyno, and today the humidity was 53% versus last run which was 42%, and that would have an effect on the results.

So now I'm going to fill the tank, zero the trip odometer and see what the around-town gas mileage is. I noticed today when starting the car, that it is quieter. There's virtually no engine or trans noise, other than the gear growl when you first start out, but that too seems a bit less. The tone of the exhaust comes through nicer now. The overall impression is everything feels and sounds smoother. The car feels slightly more responsive when I accelerate. It's not dramatic, but the way the car feels and sounds now just feels a little more polished overall.

Next is swapping out the factory muffler for the Aerie titanium one. A graphics shop is printing up the graphics I want for the car, and I'm supposed to pick that up Wednesday. When I get the car up on the Quickjack to change out the muffler, I'll put the graphics on it at that time. I'm going to drive the car around for a few days after I switch the muffler, to give the ECU time to adapt before I go back for one more dyno run.

 

[niterida7]

Yesterday I drove to the Lotus dealer in Salt Lake City, to get the HVAC software update, water shield recall, and have them change the transaxle oil with the Redline gear oil and Archoil 9100 I brought to them. They had to call the tech support line to find out where and how to drain and refill the transaxle, because apparently that isn't in the service manual. Lotus hasn't included it yet! He explained it to me, and I know what he referred to, so next week when I do the muffler swap with the Aerie titanium muffler, I'll take photos and show where the drain plug and refill hole is on the manual trans.

Now for the Archoil.

I had already put it in the engine oil when I had replaced it, but not the transaxle yet. I filled up the car and left at 3:00 a.m. yesterday morning (it's a 5+ hour drive) to get there when the service department opened. On the way down, even though the speed limit for most of the way was 80, I set the cruise at 75. This is the first time I've taken the car on a long drive like this, and the roar of the Goodyears at 80 is fatiguing. This is something I've got to address, either with sound dampening, or a different brand of tires (probably Michelin). At any rate, I had set the Trip B to 0 before starting, and after I did the first fill-up on the trip, I calculated that I got 23.8 mpg. The readout on the dash display was typically around 22.6 so the dash display is slightly pessimistic.

On the trip back home, I gassed up at a station near the dealership so I left with a full tank. After having been up for 12 hours already, I wanted to get home so I went ahead and set the cruise at 80, once I got past Salt Lake City. (By the way, the drivers in Salt Lake drive like maniacs). This is with the Archoil 9100 now in the transaxle too.

I was hoping it would reduce the farm tractor gear growl when starting at low rpms, but it made no difference at all for that although I can tell the trans is quieter now. The Archoil should have had an effect if the growl is from the trans itself, so what I'm starting to wonder now is if that noise is coming from the clutch pressure plate springs. They may be loose enough that they rattle around until the rpm reaches high enough that centrifugal force holds them outward so they don't clatter anymore. That of course would be a difficult and expensive thing to fix, so I'm just going to have to live with it until the time comes to have to replace the clutch.

As far as the Archoil 9100, it had a surprising effect on the gas mileage (this is just in the transaxle too). On the way back home, measuring the same way (actual miles driven divided by the number of gallons the car took at the first refuel stop), I got 25.8 mpg! So before the Archoil in the trans, doing 75 most of the way I got 23.8 mpg, and after the Archoil, doing 80, I got 25.8 mpg. 2 mpg better! If I had done 75, it would have been even better. Now it's going to be interesting to see what the results are around town.

Monday I have an appointment for another dyno run, so I'll have a chart that shows what effect the Archoil has on power and torque (if any). I can say that there's been a definite reduction in the mechanical noise from the engine and trans, and now a definite increase in gas mileage. I wish I had been able to do a before and after with doing both the engine and trans at the same time, but it's surprising that just the trans alone would make that much difference in the gas mileage.

Was there at salt lake lotus thursday so missed you by a day it looks like getting the new intake you have and also the valve controller. thanks for all the advice and data you bring it really helps everyone out. Looking forward to the new exhaust and would love to see the difference in weight and sound of Aerie vs. others. Wondering if you're also looking at the ECU from JUBU or other companies doing power increases to increase power while also reducing all this weight? Or is the warranty thing holding you up?

 

[Eagle7]

Was there at salt lake lotus thursday so missed you by a day it looks like getting the new intake you have and also the valve controller. thanks for all the advice and data you bring it really helps everyone out. Looking forward to the new exhaust and would love to see the difference in weight and sound of Aerie vs. others. Wondering if you're also looking at the ECU from JUBU or other companies doing power increases to increase power while also reducing all this weight? Or is the warranty thing holding you up?

I'm not planning on an ECU upgrade, or doing anything to the actual engine itself. With each of the things I've done, the car is gradually getting more and more responsive. After I switch out the exhaust for the Aerie titanium one, I'll have removed about 70 lbs of weight in total from the car, which is quite a bit. I don't know how much power the titanium exhaust is going to add, but I'll do one more dyno run after I've driven with the new exhaust on for a few days to give the ECU time to adjust.

I was able to record on my iphone the dyno run I did yesterday, so I'll have an audio file of the factory exhaust to compare with the titanium exhaust dyno when I get that one done.

Next possible upgrade would be ceramic wheel bearings, and I've been doing some research into that, but it's not so easy to get info on for some reason. The only thing I've been able to determine so far is they would be expensive.

 

[Speedy Emira]

Okay, got the dyno run today. The only difference compared to the last dyno, is the Archoil 9100 in the engine and trans. There was no power gain, in fact a slight drop of 4 hp, but the operator said that's within the margin of error of the dyno, and today the humidity was 53% versus last run which was 42%, and that would have an effect

Over the years I’ve done countless dyno runs and agree with the varying results due lo humidity. The other big factor is temperature which directly relates to the oxygen levels. I’ve personally removed a cat and was unable to make any gains at all on a hot Summers day which was very disappointing. I later gained 12hp more on a colder day which shows th difference it can make.You never know with the exact same conditions you may have been 4hp up.. Pity you couldn’t have done a run and then the oil to test in the same conditions.
I’ve built a few engines over the years and although I’m no scientist it is widely accepted that a build with more precise tolerances is a better build and that directly links to how they sounds. If it sounds rough it’s not going to last as long. Based on you saying it sounds quieter I’d say that is great and should add protection and a longer life.
I am taking a guess that this will be most beneficial for the gearbox which is probably subjected to a harder life than it would have in a different application due to the constant high revs .
Great work as always Eagle 7.
If no one tries different things life and the forum would be boring.

 

[Eagle7]

Got the Aerie titanium muffler installed today. The factory muffler was not cooperating to come out, so thanks to some help from Aerie and a suggestion from @Time2Fly I was finally able to get the stupid thing out. The big shock was when I went to put the Aerie unit in. I lifted it up, and it slid right in to where it was supposed to be. It literally took seconds to slide it into place, compared to the hours I had spent fighting with the factory unit.

The cable and connector for the valve was cable tied down, and didn't reach the valve controller after I put it on the Aerie. I had to clip the cable ties (there were 2) so I could move the cable over, and put a new cable tie in the farthest clip to secure it again. That was the only adjustment I had to make. Everything else fit just like it was supposed to.

The car is still up on the Quickjack, so I haven't even started it up yet. I'll do that tomorrow and go for a test drive if it doesn't rain (forecast is 52% rain). Whether it rains or not, I'm going to at least put the custom graphics pieces on the car that I had an auto graphics shop print for me. If all goes well, I'll have some pictures to post tomorrow!

I weighed the factory muffler, and it's heavy. 30 lbs 2.6 oz.

The Aerie titanium muffler by comparison is only 11 lbs 14.6 oz, so you save 18 lbs 4 oz. with the Aerie unit. This brings my total weight savings to an estimated 72 lbs of weight removed from the car.

For those that have removed or are interested in removing the 3rd cat, it weighs 6 lbs 3.2 oz by itself.

I'm planning on spending most of next week driving around and giving the ECU time to adjust to the new muffler. After that, probably the week after, I'll go back to the dyno shop for one last run to see what difference the Aerie unit has made.

 

[Time2Fly]

Glad it worked.. I did the Y as well for an additional bunch of weight removed.

 

[NorCalEmira]

Got the Aerie titanium muffler installed today. The factory muffler was not cooperating to come out, so thanks to some help from Aerie and a suggestion from @Time2Fly I was finally able to get the stupid thing out. The big shock was when I went to put the Aerie unit in. I lifted it up, and it slid right in to where it was supposed to be. It literally took seconds to slide it into place, compared to the hours I had spent fighting with the factory unit.

The cable and connector for the valve was cable tied down, and didn't reach the valve controller after I put it on the Aerie. I had to clip the cable ties (there were 2) so I could move the cable over, and put a new cable tie in the farthest clip to secure it again. That was the only adjustment I had to make. Everything else fit just like it was supposed to.

The car is still up on the Quickjack, so I haven't even started it up yet. I'll do that tomorrow and go for a test drive if it doesn't rain (forecast is 52% rain). Whether it rains or not, I'm going to at least put the custom graphics pieces on the car that I had an auto graphics shop print for me. If all goes well, I'll have some pictures to post tomorrow!

I weighed the factory muffler, and it's heavy. 30 lbs 2.6 oz.

View attachment 50387


The Aerie titanium muffler by comparison is only 11 lbs 14.6 oz, so you save 18 lbs 4 oz. with the Aerie unit. This brings my total weight savings to an estimated 72 lbs of weight removed from the car.

View attachment 50388

For those that have removed or are interested in removing the 3rd cat, it weighs 6 lbs 3.2 oz by itself.

View attachment 50389

I'm planning on spending most of next week driving around and giving the ECU time to adjust to the new muffler. After that, probably the week after, I'll go back to the dyno shop for one last run to see what difference the Aerie unit has made.

Thanks for being so diligent about sharing your journey of weight savings and dyno results along the way! I'm debating between the GRP and Aerie titanium cat back exhaust systems and looking forward to reading about your upcoming dyno results.

A few questions: 1) Does the Aerie v2 exhaust include a titanium third cat delete? 2) Is it compatible with the Millek exhaust valve controller? 3) Does it reuse the OEM exhaust tips?

It looks like the Aerie system is a little lighter than the GRP system, was there anything else that swayed your decision to go with them?

 

[Time2Fly]

@NorCalEmira It does come with the cat delete.