2005 Lotus Elise VW 4.0 W8 Twin Turbo Swap

The W8 is riddled with a number of problems that lead most people to tell you how much they hate the motors. One of the issues isn't actually a W8 specific problem but does effect them. The motor used an external oil filter and cooler combination that is know for o ring failures that mix the coolant and oil and in my case is a little too bulky. It can be seen off on the passenger side of the motor sitting on the 4x4 in this picture:

Since we removed the oil filter housing we needed to...

Any time you add power you have to add fuel. Pumps and Injectors are the normal steps to achieve your goal, but sometimes, like in the case of the Elise, the engineers didn't put much effort into easing the replacement of the parts when they are worn or needing upgraded and most the time you pull the pump you actually break the assembly. Couple that with the fact that the Elise uses a built in pressure regulator in the fuel sending unit we have one hose running from the tank to the fuel rail that is made of vinyl. Luckily for...

The motor fit in the bay without problem, but we were having issues with the intake manifold fitting under the factory decklid. With a quick trip to the band saw the factory manifold was a little smaller and the trunk was fitting:

You can see the intake just under the fiberglass:

The next hurtle we wanted to work around was one of the things that makes the narrow angle cylinder bank engines make such iconic sounds, intake runner length. The VR6 known for its Wookie sounds works around a intake runner...

From the beginning of this project one of the things that was crucial to making this all fit and look good was the use of an Audi FWD manual transmission. The AWD transmissions used a central differential placed at the end of the assembly and therefor added significant length to the assembly that I didn't have to spare. Some might have noticed in the background of some of the early pictures I had a US spec FWD Audi A4 01x 6 speed manual transmission. The 01x transmissions are said to not be as strong as the 01e transmission found in...

You have heard people complain about sticking a Small Block V8 into a compact car and how little room they have. As a glutton for punishment once I had the W8 fitting I decided mid engine turbo noises was another thing this car needed. I almost gave up though, with my choice to not cut the rear fiberglass and my inability to fit the turbos after the rear subframe and still get all the charge piping and plumbing where it needed to go. I also attempted to go with a single turbo since there was so little room for a pair...