I know I’ve been quiet over the past few months. Myself and everyone else at JHM have been busy testing, testing, and testing all the parts we have been working on to start the first phase of 3.0 advancement. We started this first phase knowing that the JHM 3 Liter ECU tune was a great addition to the car that was being held back by the stock sized DPs. Secondly, we knew that once we uncorked the exhaust that the added power of the JHM chip adapting up to a full exhaust would put a large load on the already prone to fail 3 liter clutch and dual-mass flywheel. With this in mind, We went to work on deep research.
The end of this research was actual hardcore testing at the track and because of that testing we had a VERY exciting weekend here at JHM. Without getting into too many details, it’s safe to say that we’ve completed the final phase of our research and development for our first batch of 3 liter performance parts. Most of you know that we’ve had several different products in development for quite a long time but we’ve never felt it necessary to release a lot of details about them. Even though we’ve had clips of a couple revs with the new downpipes or footage of some tire spinning launches courtesy of the new clutch, we thought it’d be inappropriate to post those videos without REALLY testing the products. We didn’t want to officially release anything until we had REAL, TRACK TESTED, PROVEN, RESULTS.
This past weekend, we went out and got those results. We got those results at the track, in true JHM fashion: With back to back to back 1/4 mile testing. while we were able to get solid data prior to this through other testing, we got hard core proof of what results can be had with the proper modifications to the 3 liter.
But first, let’s remind everyone where the 3 liter started before we show where we’ve taken it:
STOCK B6-A4 3.0:
[video to be added soon!]
Not exactly fast, huh? (Even though that’s better than many chipped 1.8Ts :o )
STOCK B6-A4 3.0 Exhaust:
[video to be added soon]
Not thrilling, but it still shows potential…
From there we’ve now gone further and faster (and louder!). But before we get into the glamorous items like Downpipes, a Cat-Back, and a Lightweight clutch and flywheel, I’d like to share with everyone what some of the guys who have received our ECU tune found out. They’ve definitely seen the increase in horsepower from just a chip. And they’ve also seen that a stock 3 liter can run okay. But when you bump the power by adding some performance parts, you tend to see the weak spots in your car that are the result of not doing the boring, maintenance stuff.
So here’s a little Keaton@JHM PSA: KEEP UP ON YOUR REGULAR MAINTENANCE! When I first bought my 3 Liter it seemed to run well enough and everything looked okay when I peeked under the hood, scanned for codes, and checked the oil level. Before we started really getting into testing tunes and logging performance data, we did a full inspection of the car and found out that I had THREE separate vacuum lines that were damaged or completely missing. Additionally, we found that my spark plugs were toast! We replaced all of those vacuum lines and swapped in a new set of NGK Laser Platinums for my 3.0.http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/spark-plug-ngk-laser-platinum-oem-for-30l-v6-p-777.html. Those two things ALONE made a world of difference! It felt like I got a fresh new fresh car!!! It’s amazing how the car seemed fine but I didn’t know what I was missing until I updated my old, worn out parts with much needed, new maintenance parts. The lesson to be learned here is that regular and preventative maintenance are JUST as important as bolt-on modifications when it comes to making power and going fast. (great point… make sure to say this more then once) That’s why here at JHM we’ve had a FULL LINEUP of regular maintenance parts on our website ever since we started tuning the B6-A4 3.0…
At JHM we want to add power IN ADDITION TOO making sure we add a longer life to our cars. I made sure that we got the best replacement parts for the best deals. We know how hard it is to spend money on parts that aren’t going to make the car faster so I tried to address that by tapping all of our resources. I’m also trying to start stocking some of the other parts that tend to brake or fail on the 3 liter, so look for those in the store as well. Our hope here is to not just create a big power movement but to make sure we support you on what’s considered by some “the smaller stuff” on the car.
Click here http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/30-v6-c-21_62_64_302_303.html to take a look at everything we have to offer. A few key maintenance items to think about before you start modifying are the spark plugs I mentioned, good oil and a high capacity filter http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/oil-change-kit-jhm-motul-cess-8100-5w40-for-30l-v6-p-952.html, a new fuel filter http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/fuel-filter-mann-for-b6-a4-early-02-03-30-v6-p-772.html, a K & N air filter http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/air-filter-for-b6-b7-a4-kn-30l-32l-v6-p-750.html and timing belt components http://jhmotorsports.com/shop/catalog/jhm-b6-a4-30-v6-timing-belt-kit-p-788.html. Of course, there are a lot of other items to consider - many of which we have - but those are the basics. We want to make it so you don’t have to search all over the internet for the parts you are going to end up needing. I tried to add just about all the parts we need or that tend to break so let ME know if you need anything we don’t have listed on our site! ADDITIONALLY, we will BEAT any publicly/nationally advertised price out there for the B6-A4 3.0. Contact keaton at JHMotorsports dot com for more information.
Enough of the maintenance stuff! Let’s get down to the performance talk (but remember "regular and preventative maintenance are JUST as important as bolt-on modifications when it comes to making power on these cars!!!).
The first JHM 3 Liter Performance Product that we tested out was our JHM ECU Tune. While we saw immediate and noticeable improvement (as a few guys on here can attest to), we found out that this car is definitely corked from the factory on the exhaust side. Nonetheless, the ECU tune alone gave us solid gains throughout the RPM band, improving power response, driveability, With mid range and top end power increases. Compared to stock, a JHM tuned 3.0 likes to run a lot up top.
Next, we tested the removal of the stock catalytic converters on the B6-A4 3.0. After much guessing and debate, we finally took this car’s downpipes off and gutted those HUMUNGOUS cats. The 3.0 is both the same and a little different than Audi’s other 90 degree V motors: while each bank of the motor has a downpipe with both a pre-cat and a main cat like a B5 or B6/B7-S4, the B6-A4 3.0 has the pre-cat and the main cat sitting right on top of each other instead of spaced apart - pre-cat near the head and main cat further downstream - like the other motors. On the 3.0 they have twice the cat material located right off the back of the motor, creating a HUGE and IMMEDIATE restriction to airflow. We knew from all our past testing on the B5-S4 and then with the B6-S4 (albeit with much smaller cats) that these cats on the 3.0 had to go.
We promptly replaced these cat sections with straight, STOCK SIZED piping just to make sure we got data at every step. We didn’t want to jump right to increased sizing if we didn’t have too. So we ran the car again without an ECU tune and found that gutting the downpipes did give us a nice, moderate bump but the car was still really sluggish to respond to inputs and seemed to not make the power it should and could have. Without our ECU tune, the motor couldn’t take advantage of the increased airflow. All we had was more noise and a CEL! We made some adjustments to the tune and put it back on the car with straight pipes and we were pretty thrilled with the results. The changes that were found when we first put the ECU tune on were MAGNIFIED. The power response down low was awesome and once you got above 3000 RPM the car never stopped pulling, we were really impressed with what just gutting cats and adding our ECU tune could do but we still had a long way to go…
Knowing that we had made solid gains with the ECU tuning and gutted cats, we started looking for other areas of improvement in otherwise stock, 3.0 liter A4s. We pulled out the motor mounts and found that they weren’t just “normal” B6-A4 mounts. We searched through our stock of 034 motor mounts to see if they had a direct application, specific to the 3.0L, but we couldn’t find any. We continued to worked with our friends at 034 Motorsport to select the right density mount to offer an increase in driveline stiffness over stock 3.0 motor mounts while still making sure that we didn’t excessively increase vibrations in the cabin. After some research, we were able to find a mount. The result does for the 3.0 just what 034 has been doing for many other Audis: decreased drivetrain movement leading to better handling. While this is a modification that feels great on the street, these mounts definitely shined at the track this weekend… more on that later.
Next, we also took a look at the intake manifold and applied the principles from our 4.2L work to the 3.0. Again with some help from 034 Motorsport, we created a JHM/034 B6-A4 3.0 Intake Manifold Spacer Kit to help prevent heat soak of the intake manifold during prolonged periods of hard driving. Our intake spacers keep the intake temperatures down by 10 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit while increasing the length of the runners between the head and the manifold by 5mm. This spacing not only helps separate the heat of the head from rising into the manifold and soaking the air that travels through it but also provides a small increase in torque. We all know this motor needs all the help it can get!
After the spacers, I decided that it was about time my car got the JHM modification that started our company: a JHM SOLID SHORT THROW SHIFTER. Now the B6-A4 3.0 is interesting in that in seems to be a Frankenstein sort of car that Audi tried out a combination of different parts on. The 2002 to 2003 3.0s have the same transmission as the B5-S4 and other 2.7t cars, the 01E. The 2004 to 2005 cars have the 01X - 02X that every other B6-A4 has. So keep that in mind when you’re ordering your shifter. Anyway, we installed the shifter and I had the same smile on my face that I did when I put it in my 1.8T. While the 01E transmission in my car feels a little different, my JHM shifter still brings that same smile to my face that can only be had by confidently rowing through all of the gears in my V6. This was another modification that was an all-star performer when put through the strain that back to back 1/4 mile runs (hard launches and power-shifts) can put on a car.
Speaking of top track performers, one of the most effective upgrades we did to the 3.0 was to create a JHM V6 Lightweight Flywheel and Clutch Combo. Specifically created for the 3.0, our Lightweight Flywheel and clutch kit features an upgraded clutch disc that will take you all the way to JHM Supercharger power levels while still offering excellent, OEM-like, day-to-day driveability. The pressure plate we use in this kit comes from a B7-RS4 so not only is it’s clamp load overkill for (almost) anything you’ll do to this car, it also drives like an OEM setup!!! Additionally, the lightweight flywheel (that’s half the weight of the stock dual mass unit) solves two problems on this car: it increases the throttle response and allows you to make fine power adjustments while getting rid of a faulty, prone to failure, dual-mass flywheel design. And you get all of that for under $1000!!! The awesome holding power of this kit was an excellent asset at the track and really allowed the JHM 3 Liter Tune, Downpipes, and Cat-Back to perform to their potential.
Once we collected all of our data from the gutted, stock pipes, we worked to find a properly sized downpipe for the car. We tried out 2.25 inch pipes and found that while there were some minimal gains to be had, they weren’t enough to justify the labor for removing stock pipes, buying new down pipes, and installing them. After all the stock pipes are already close to 2.25 inches so doing that upgrade only to get a few tenths of an inch larger than stock would be just a waste of money. For the money, gutting your stock DPs would be a better option. So we put the exhaust diameter myth to bed.
Thanks for tuning in so far. There is more info to come. Let us know what you guys think of what we have so far. My PERSONAL email is keaton at JHMotorsports dot com. If you have 3 liter questions, comments, or concerns send them to me at that email address. I can’t wait to hear from you!
I’m definitely looking forward to the downpipes and tune. But I guess I should probably check my maintenance first… :