Discussion
Anyone driven one? I'm interested in how this kit compares to the factory supercharger upgrade (I know the katana kit claims more power) and that you can get a chargecooler fitted which is a nice option to have. I love my Sportsracer but the Exige obsession just won't leave me alone. I'm thinking the katana kit might be the best of both worlds?
Although mine's not a Katana I believe the performance to be on a par (if not a little bit better 
). And it's certainly more pewerful than the Exige S I've driven, which in turn has more oomph than the Elise SC. Surely the cost to 'mod' is a no brainer against the cost for you to 'upgrade' to an Elise SC?
). And it's certainly more pewerful than the Exige S I've driven, which in turn has more oomph than the Elise SC. Surely the cost to 'mod' is a no brainer against the cost for you to 'upgrade' to an Elise SC?The Supercharger is the same as the Lotus one. Eaton something something.
It is more powerfull than the "S" or the higher spec Exiges (240R etc)
It is supplied by Sinclaires who can also do you a real time Tune on the ECU which will get the best out of any other mods you may have done to the car like induction or Zaust. http://www.sinclairebodyshop.co.uk/
Reliable and usable 300 BHP is easily achievable with the adition of a charge cooler and other bits. There is a wing mounted Chargecooler available which fits neatly into the Elise. More power is available but the gearbox will break !!
I can't recomend it enough. If you check on SELOC you will find pages and pages on this subject. Many people have just bought the Katana kit and left it at that and are very satisfied.
Ex77
It is more powerfull than the "S" or the higher spec Exiges (240R etc)
It is supplied by Sinclaires who can also do you a real time Tune on the ECU which will get the best out of any other mods you may have done to the car like induction or Zaust. http://www.sinclairebodyshop.co.uk/
Reliable and usable 300 BHP is easily achievable with the adition of a charge cooler and other bits. There is a wing mounted Chargecooler available which fits neatly into the Elise. More power is available but the gearbox will break !!
I can't recomend it enough. If you check on SELOC you will find pages and pages on this subject. Many people have just bought the Katana kit and left it at that and are very satisfied.
Ex77
Yep, look on SELOC. I've had mine about 2 months. About the same price as the Lotus one but much more power. Well proven with more than 200 kits sold, by far the leading s/c. There may be one or two with more power but the Ronin (Katana) has the best compromise between power and reliability.
stock kit is about 45bhp above standard. So maybe 235bhp assuming 190 as standard?
http://www.sinclairebodyshop.co.uk/downloads/power...
not sure about 300bhp being easy and reliable.I thought consesus is maybe 270bhp is the limit before the gearbox blew.
Receently read a couple of weeks ago on seloc that someone with an exige S running 300 blew his gearbox. There was even a video of it blowing up.
http://www.sinclairebodyshop.co.uk/downloads/power...
not sure about 300bhp being easy and reliable.I thought consesus is maybe 270bhp is the limit before the gearbox blew.
Receently read a couple of weeks ago on seloc that someone with an exige S running 300 blew his gearbox. There was even a video of it blowing up.
My one month write up:
So it's been a month since I've had the Katana kit installed and all seems to be hunky dory. Sinclaire Motorsport fitted the kit for £4,799 all in and it was installed in a day as they promised. The car was independently dyno'd at TDi the day before (175whp > 196bhp, 122lb > 137lb) and the day after (226whp > 253bhp, 144lb > 161lb) it was converted with as identical conditions as I could have got (same fuel - Optimax, same dyno guy, ...). The engine had done bang on 50,000 miles at the time of conversion and had the following mods: K&N Carbon Induction Kit, Larini Sports Cat, 2Bular 8x24" GT3 exhaust.
Sector 111 Claim 53whp and 24lb gain. I got 51whp and 22lb gain so overall I got what I paid for regardless of the peak bhp and torque figures. This is with the stock Katana map, since then I've had a custom map done to take advantage of the mods and this produced a better torque curve with 3 to 4lb more torque across the rev range and a smoother (literally linear) bhp line. The car also feels/pulls alot better than the stock Katana map. Thanks Dan!
Daily driving is now a piece of cake as I knew it would be. I no longer have to drop down to 2nd for things and just keep it in 3rd for pootling around. It's fairly civilised as well at low rev's so it's not like you get a crazy supercharger whine unless you stamp on the accelerator. The power delivery is related to the throttle position which is also cool, it has a variable 2nd cam change so if you stamp it reacts straight away and if you gently press it just pulls smoothly.
The power delivery is as smooth as my old RX-8, its *that* good. At first you naturally think the car is slow and then you realise it pulls hard all the way to the rev limiter without any blip or power loss. Around 4k rpm you start to hear the supercharger whine, by the time you get to 7k rpm its really loud and very very addictive. It's pulls a lot harder in 1st, 2nd and 3rd and will [Censored] up to three figures. You feel it pull from 2k rpm unlike the NA map which is around 4.5k rpm and then at 6,250k rpm. I reckon I'm comfortably hitting 0-60 in 5 seconds without giving the clutch much abuse, 0-100 feels a lot faster by the time you change from 2nd to 3rd. 3rd gear really feels like 2nd. Motorway driving is dead easy as well, stick it in 6th and your done even if you need to overtake or get to fast speeds. Without commenting irresponsibly the car is faster than a EVO FQ300 in a straight line after the driver put his foot down and a cloud of brown smoke came out of his exhaust.
Sinclaire Motorsport were as usual very good. There were a few small niggles but Wayne and Andy dealt with them as good and professionally as they could have which is exactly what you want when your spending £5k. They also detailed my car for which was nice They is plenty more in the pipeline with charge coolers/intercoolers and Dan at Sinclaires is also the best person to map your car.
My 11,000 miles/1 year writeup:
Yep, it's been 11,000 miles (61k miles total) since it was fitted last September by Sinclaires and the good news is that everything has been hunky dory. More importantly, its survived four long track days and in the process helped me pass cars that would normally have been a pain in the ass to pass in a straight line (Ferrari 360 was my favourite victim last Friday).
An unusual point I've discovered is that the Katana helps you concentrate on the "driving" experience as opposed to the constant battle of keeping your engine on 2nd cam so that you stay within the power band. On track, its actually nice to leave it in 3rd and focus on corner entry, apex and exit without having to dig into 2nd gear, balance the throttle/cam change and then exit with a gear change into 3rd with the engine screaming for its dear life. The Katana map is also super smooth so its so easy to balance the throttle whilst cornering without worrying about whether you'll unsettle the car mid-corner. Water temps hit no more than 90 degrees last Friday when it was 27/28 degrees on track.
One thing I've noticed which might surprise a few people is that the biggest gain on track has been down to the set of Nitrons I invested in. I seem to be out cornering pretty much everything on track days and was rather surprised that I was able to keep up with caterams in the twisties The Katana seems to be the icing on the cake in a lot of respects rather than the silver bullet which I think a few people might expect it to be. Sure, you arrive at corners much faster but being able to carry that speed into and out of corners is where I seem to be making the most gains on other cars at track days. Maybe its just practice or my Walshy Jedi skills but I was actually surprised last Friday at Abingdon at how easy it was to corner whilst following modded VX220's that were understeering and struggling for grip.
Another surprise is my conclusion that every Exige should have left the factory with 250bhp. When I went to buy an Exige I was sucked in by the 0-60 times quoted by Lotus and the feeling that it was a "quick" car whereas in reality its really not that quick unless your hooning it around a track and cornering like a house fly. The speed and sensation you get from the Katana is really something that I was expecting the NA Exige to deliver. Maybe I was naive or didn't know much about cars, engines, horses and torques but the Katana definitely fills in the void of disappointment that I'm sure a few Exige owners feel after the honeymoon period is over. Yep, they'll be a few die hard Exige owners that claim "My car is just great with 190bhp and I don't need more power" - I bet 90% of those owners would change their mind after a ride with a Katana or similar aftermarket kit. I'll say this again and again, sure £5k is a lot of money for a Katana but it really is worth every penny. You can have a reliable everyday 250bhp Exige for £22/23k - and it will cost you peanuts to run compared to other cars that give relatively the same performance.
In summary, the Katana isn't silly quick but it transforms the 190bhp Exige into the car that everyone expects it to be (looks fast and is fast). If you think your 190bhp Exige is quick then you obviously don't remember those times being chased by Ford STs, Subaru Impreza's and S2000's that don't seem to disappear in your rear view mirror when your engine is screaming for you to change gear. Get a Katana or aftermarket SC and you'll find that your car is as fast as you were hoping it to be.
So it's been a month since I've had the Katana kit installed and all seems to be hunky dory. Sinclaire Motorsport fitted the kit for £4,799 all in and it was installed in a day as they promised. The car was independently dyno'd at TDi the day before (175whp > 196bhp, 122lb > 137lb) and the day after (226whp > 253bhp, 144lb > 161lb) it was converted with as identical conditions as I could have got (same fuel - Optimax, same dyno guy, ...). The engine had done bang on 50,000 miles at the time of conversion and had the following mods: K&N Carbon Induction Kit, Larini Sports Cat, 2Bular 8x24" GT3 exhaust.
Sector 111 Claim 53whp and 24lb gain. I got 51whp and 22lb gain so overall I got what I paid for regardless of the peak bhp and torque figures. This is with the stock Katana map, since then I've had a custom map done to take advantage of the mods and this produced a better torque curve with 3 to 4lb more torque across the rev range and a smoother (literally linear) bhp line. The car also feels/pulls alot better than the stock Katana map. Thanks Dan!
Daily driving is now a piece of cake as I knew it would be. I no longer have to drop down to 2nd for things and just keep it in 3rd for pootling around. It's fairly civilised as well at low rev's so it's not like you get a crazy supercharger whine unless you stamp on the accelerator. The power delivery is related to the throttle position which is also cool, it has a variable 2nd cam change so if you stamp it reacts straight away and if you gently press it just pulls smoothly.
The power delivery is as smooth as my old RX-8, its *that* good. At first you naturally think the car is slow and then you realise it pulls hard all the way to the rev limiter without any blip or power loss. Around 4k rpm you start to hear the supercharger whine, by the time you get to 7k rpm its really loud and very very addictive. It's pulls a lot harder in 1st, 2nd and 3rd and will [Censored] up to three figures. You feel it pull from 2k rpm unlike the NA map which is around 4.5k rpm and then at 6,250k rpm. I reckon I'm comfortably hitting 0-60 in 5 seconds without giving the clutch much abuse, 0-100 feels a lot faster by the time you change from 2nd to 3rd. 3rd gear really feels like 2nd. Motorway driving is dead easy as well, stick it in 6th and your done even if you need to overtake or get to fast speeds. Without commenting irresponsibly the car is faster than a EVO FQ300 in a straight line after the driver put his foot down and a cloud of brown smoke came out of his exhaust.
Sinclaire Motorsport were as usual very good. There were a few small niggles but Wayne and Andy dealt with them as good and professionally as they could have which is exactly what you want when your spending £5k. They also detailed my car for which was nice They is plenty more in the pipeline with charge coolers/intercoolers and Dan at Sinclaires is also the best person to map your car.
My 11,000 miles/1 year writeup:
Yep, it's been 11,000 miles (61k miles total) since it was fitted last September by Sinclaires and the good news is that everything has been hunky dory. More importantly, its survived four long track days and in the process helped me pass cars that would normally have been a pain in the ass to pass in a straight line (Ferrari 360 was my favourite victim last Friday).
An unusual point I've discovered is that the Katana helps you concentrate on the "driving" experience as opposed to the constant battle of keeping your engine on 2nd cam so that you stay within the power band. On track, its actually nice to leave it in 3rd and focus on corner entry, apex and exit without having to dig into 2nd gear, balance the throttle/cam change and then exit with a gear change into 3rd with the engine screaming for its dear life. The Katana map is also super smooth so its so easy to balance the throttle whilst cornering without worrying about whether you'll unsettle the car mid-corner. Water temps hit no more than 90 degrees last Friday when it was 27/28 degrees on track.
One thing I've noticed which might surprise a few people is that the biggest gain on track has been down to the set of Nitrons I invested in. I seem to be out cornering pretty much everything on track days and was rather surprised that I was able to keep up with caterams in the twisties The Katana seems to be the icing on the cake in a lot of respects rather than the silver bullet which I think a few people might expect it to be. Sure, you arrive at corners much faster but being able to carry that speed into and out of corners is where I seem to be making the most gains on other cars at track days. Maybe its just practice or my Walshy Jedi skills but I was actually surprised last Friday at Abingdon at how easy it was to corner whilst following modded VX220's that were understeering and struggling for grip.
Another surprise is my conclusion that every Exige should have left the factory with 250bhp. When I went to buy an Exige I was sucked in by the 0-60 times quoted by Lotus and the feeling that it was a "quick" car whereas in reality its really not that quick unless your hooning it around a track and cornering like a house fly. The speed and sensation you get from the Katana is really something that I was expecting the NA Exige to deliver. Maybe I was naive or didn't know much about cars, engines, horses and torques but the Katana definitely fills in the void of disappointment that I'm sure a few Exige owners feel after the honeymoon period is over. Yep, they'll be a few die hard Exige owners that claim "My car is just great with 190bhp and I don't need more power" - I bet 90% of those owners would change their mind after a ride with a Katana or similar aftermarket kit. I'll say this again and again, sure £5k is a lot of money for a Katana but it really is worth every penny. You can have a reliable everyday 250bhp Exige for £22/23k - and it will cost you peanuts to run compared to other cars that give relatively the same performance.
In summary, the Katana isn't silly quick but it transforms the 190bhp Exige into the car that everyone expects it to be (looks fast and is fast). If you think your 190bhp Exige is quick then you obviously don't remember those times being chased by Ford STs, Subaru Impreza's and S2000's that don't seem to disappear in your rear view mirror when your engine is screaming for you to change gear. Get a Katana or aftermarket SC and you'll find that your car is as fast as you were hoping it to be.
I know of a few people who have the charge cooler setup.
In short you get between 285-295bhp and 185-195lb/ft depending on your exhaust/cat/manifold set-up. The charge cooler is pro-alloy and allows you to turn the boost up to 10PSI via a shorter pulley.
The gearbox limit is 200lb/ft. There has been a few failures reported but nothing more, just try not to give the gearbox much abuse on downshifts. It's normally 2nd & 3rd gear that takes most of the punishment on track.
In short you get between 285-295bhp and 185-195lb/ft depending on your exhaust/cat/manifold set-up. The charge cooler is pro-alloy and allows you to turn the boost up to 10PSI via a shorter pulley.
The gearbox limit is 200lb/ft. There has been a few failures reported but nothing more, just try not to give the gearbox much abuse on downshifts. It's normally 2nd & 3rd gear that takes most of the punishment on track.
Frimley111R said:
Stu_00 said:
Very interesting, My choice would be Ohlins first by the sound of things!
Would that the ones for £2000 or £3000?Or get a 2-11 but that might be a bit more extreme....
Single Way Nitrons/Ohlins are fine for the road and track if your happy to fanny around with them. Two way Nitrons/Ohlins are more likely to be compliant on the road and track without the need to fanny around with them. I think I would go with two way dampers as I do a lot of road miles and about half a dozen track days a year.
STEVEY_SC said:
Single Way Nitrons/Ohlins are fine for the road and track if your happy to fanny around with them. Two way Nitrons/Ohlins are more likely to be compliant on the road and track without the need to fanny around with them. I think I would go with two way dampers as I do a lot of road miles and about half a dozen track days a year.
Cheers, very helpful!well worth it, and now available with a discount too !
http://www.pistonheads.com/xforums/topic.asp?h=0&a...
http://www.pistonheads.com/xforums/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Stu_00 said:
STEVEY_SC said:
Single Way Nitrons/Ohlins are fine for the road and track if your happy to fanny around with them. Two way Nitrons/Ohlins are more likely to be compliant on the road and track without the need to fanny around with them. I think I would go with two way dampers as I do a lot of road miles and about half a dozen track days a year.
Cheers, very helpful!
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