So I take a trip into the garage the other day and it looks like we have a skunk living with the project 505!?!?! Anyway, more updates coming soon. The Radiator is now fixed but it looks like we'll also be looking into an electric water pump due to clearance issues. Also the FMIC project is on its way as well. Stay tuned!

I got the new Garrett -31 actuator a few days ago, and was able to test it out. It wasn't quite what I was hoping, but it looks like it will work better from the stock unit:

Lift @ 5psi
Fully extended @ 20+ psi

Rod length (measured from top of the canister to the end of the rod):
Neutral length 0psi = 140mm
Fully extended = 157mm
Continue reading "Garrett -31 Wastegate actuator"

While I was looking for an actuator to use, I had people telling me they were all the same, and that there was no way I could find one with a stiffer internal spring. So I start looking around, see pretty quickly find Garrett actuators with stiffer internal springs made for a Ford Sierra Cosworth RS, and even some aftermarket actuators with replaceable springs for adjusting just how much boost you want to run.

The two I was looking at were the Garrett -34, and -31. I couldn't find any official documentation on the differences between these actuators, so I decided to buy a used -34 from a fellow eBay'er from the UK, and test it for myself.
Continue reading "Garrett -34 Wastegate actuator"

The stock 505 turbo radiator seems to do it's job OK in stock trim, but I've always wanted to try out some aluminum racing radiator in one of these cars. Ron Davis was suggested by a friend due to the amazing work they do.

I sent an old warn out Valeo (OE) radiator for Ron Davis to use as a template, but also told them I didn't need the level sensor, and to make it a dual row. I also decided to ditch the electromagnetic fan + clutch and go with a (supposedly) kick-ass Spal electric fan. I asked to have the fan mounted to the far right (passenger) side of the radiator so I could (hopefully) clear the water pump assembly. When the radiator showed up, the fan was mounted in the middle (!!). After thinking about hacking the front of the water pump off, and installing a aftermarket electric pump, I decided to send it back and have them -relocate- the fan like they said they'd do. I've yet to get it back, but I'm hoping that'll work....
Continue reading "Ron Davis radiator"

I've always been curious to see how efficient the 505 turbo cylinder head is. I had a spare cylinder head, and got hooked up with a recommended cylinder head shop with a flow bench, 4 months later I picked this up.

The spare head I had was cracked (of course ), so this place did the works. Fixed the crack, complete valve job, resurface, and porting work. I asked that they just do mild porting because I didn't want to go completely nuts, but that didn't seem to soak in. Anyway, they said they made some huge increases (especially from the exhaust side), and that they can't wait to see how it works. I'm optimistic, so we'll see.
Continue reading "Cylinder head work"

Here are a few pictures comparing the N9TEA's A/R .48 to the new hybrid T3/T4 unit.
Continue reading "Stock T3 vs. T3/T4"

This was a big decision. Due to the 505 turbo exhaust manifold not being compatible with anything else, there really wasn't much flexability. I could either get a complete exhaust manifold and downpipe made and go with some new style Garrett GT28, or try to find something to work with the stock setup. I did a fair amount of calling around, and finally found someone who was willing to work with me on this....
Continue reading "Turbo upgrade: T3/T4 Hybrid"

The OE wiring harness was in really bad shape. Finding a complete new harness from Peugeot was out, but luckily I was able to get some really good aerospace wire from an engineer friend. It's teflon coated, and good up to some super high temperatures. I didn't have enough wire to rebuild the complete harness, but was able to the parts that needed it most. Most of the wire behind the firewall (or what was left of it) was in pretty good condition, so no real need to replace it. In any case, some pictures of a few sub-harnesses below:
Continue reading "Wiring harness work"

As you can tell from these few pictures, some things are in pretty bad shape. Wire is suuuper brittle, and cracking from 20 years of heat cycles. The firewall is totally out as you can tell, and everything is exposed. Picture(s) below:


Continue reading "Tearing things down"

Below are some pictures of the firewall. It's super brittle and cracking as you can tell. This is actually all that was left in the car. The newer 505's had a different, more rubbery firewall with better insulation (which helped in both longevity as well as noise cancellation).
Continue reading "Firewall removal"

This car has been in the family for years. It was bought from woman in northern California back in 1997. She bought it new, drove it infrequently. Always took it to authorized Peugeot mechanics, always on time. To give you an idea, the car had 60k miles on it when we bought it. After we bought it, it was passed to different family members, used for different experiments ;-), and thrashed on for years.
Continue reading "Background of the 86 505"

Welcome to the blog of the 86 505. I got this car a year or so ago, and wanted to go nuts with it. The circumstances were right, so we ripped into it, and its the new project 505 ....
Continue reading "Welcome to the 86 505 blog"