[Hutnicks]

If you don't drive like a hooligan it likely wouldn't be an issue, driving one like you stole it (at temps barely above freezing) is detrimental to battery life, or so I was told by Tesla. Yeah, I called them to let them know I only got 2 hours

, and they assured me it would get better as the batteries "settled in" and the weather gets warmer. We also took out the Diablo SV from the auction last month, the crazy thing with 900bhp, and it's really not scary if you stay out of the boost, <4500RPMs. The best thing you can say about a tuned car is that it feels like it came that way from the factory, and that one does. I know they're mostly known for turning $200k Porsches into $400k Porsches without increasing the power AT ALL, but Gemballa did a fantastic job tuning and modifying that car. The clutch feels better than a factory car, by a large margin, as do the brakes and gearbox. The suspension is firm but doesn't break your back, the seats are much better than standard, and overall stiffness of the chassis was improved, removing that weird flexing that all Diablos suffered from. If Lamborghini had built a car just like this one, they would have handed all of the other car makers their asses. The tech was there, they just didn't do it.

Out of curiosity, what is the safety margin on the batteries? When it reports dead, just how much actual power do you have left to get yourself home?
 
Is it a new gearbox and clutch on the SV, or did they just beef up the original?

 

[Magick Man]

They replaced the clutch with a twin-plate and rebuilt the gearbox/diff. What I like is that, unlike other tuners, they actually rebuilt/reinforced the entire engine and didn't just rely on bolt-ons (which would have been catastrophic with the stock V12). To me, this exemplifies "insane Lambo", but at the same time was overbuilt to handle it. No, you really can't see out of it, and it does want to murder you, but that's what it's supposed to be; a bodybuilding, supermodel psychopath. What gets me is the electronics all work, not even the Aventador is 100% in that area (the passenger door lights usually work, but sometimes they don't, it's a fault in the door itself). It's a salvage though, so I cut it some slack. I think I have a buyer for the other SV, so that works out too.

I think it's ~20 miles on the Tesla batteries after it says, "Operating on reserve power, proceed to the nearest charging station." But you get small warnings before then, starting at 30% capacity, but that's adjustable in the settings.

 

[Hutnicks]

They replaced the clutch with a twin-plate and rebuilt the gearbox/diff. What I like is that, unlike other tuners, they actually rebuilt/reinforced the entire engine and didn't just rely on bolt-ons (which would have been catastrophic with the stock V12). To me, this exemplifies "insane Lambo", but at the same time was overbuilt to handle it. No, you really can't see out of it, and it does want to murder you, but that's what it's supposed to be; a bodybuilding, supermodel psychopath. What gets me is the electronics all work, not even the Aventador is 100% in that area (the passenger door lights usually work, but sometimes they don't, it's a fault in the door itself). It's a salvage though, so I cut it some slack.

I think I have a buyer for the other SV, so that works out too.

I think it's ~20 miles on the Tesla batteries after it says, "Operating on reserve power, proceed to the nearest charging station." But you get small warnings before then, starting at 30% capacity, but that's adjustable in the settings.

I wonder if they went through and modified the wiring harness all the way through. Probably be a prudent move if the car is that big a maneater.
 
I'm curious with the Tesla's batteries. The current generation of thought on rechargeable is to never let them get below 30% before informing the user that they are completely discharged. If the car is built on that type of technology, then there would be significantly more reserve than they let on.
  Do you know of anyone who has completely run one down. It would be interesting to know what the actual shut down process is in that scenario.

 

[Magick Man]

Billy, in your neck of the woods: http://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/4309270396.html

 

[billybob_jcv]

There was a time when the Bimmer street racer would have really appealed to me - but now I just see a car that has been screwed with to the point that its barely still an E30 M3. I would never be able to get that car legal for CA plates - I just don't have the patience or the skill it would take to make it happen.

 

[Achmedisdead]

 
Epic! 

 

[Magick Man]

There was a time when the Bimmer street racer would have really appealed to me - but now I just see a car that has been screwed with to the point that its barely still an E30 M3. I would never be able to get that car legal for CA plates - I just don't have the patience or the skill it would take to make it happen.

Completely understandable, looks like they did a half-ass job on the engine swap anyway.


The remains of an R8 front diff/carrier (not mine, it's a customer's), 2 months after a TT install.





Our mechanic: "We really should remap the torque vectoring more, the front axles probably can't handle the added power."
24 y/o know-it-all: "No, that'll make it too much like a rear wheel drive. I read online that it'll work fine."

a couple months later...

know-it-all: "This is a warranty issue!"
Our mechanic: "No it isn't, because you elected to not let us finish the work. I wrote it on the invoice and you signed it."



$6000 mistake, but oh well, it helps pay the bills and it's daddy's money so he doesn't care.

 

[Hutnicks]

Completely understandable, looks like they did a half-ass job on the engine swap anyway.


The remains of an R8 front diff/carrier (not mine, it's a customer's), 2 months after a TT install.





Our mechanic: "We really should remap the torque vectoring more, the front axles probably can't handle the added power."
24 y/o know-it-all: "No, that'll make it too much like a rear wheel drive. I read online that it'll work fine."

a couple months later...

know-it-all: "This is a warranty issue!"
Our mechanic: "No it isn't, because you elected to not let us finish the work. I wrote it on the invoice and you signed it."



$6000 mistake, but oh well, it helps pay the bills and it's daddy's money so he doesn't care.

Oh, bless the internet. Must have been the Summit forum over on R8 Fi

 

[gikigill]

The most pissing off part for me is "it will make it too much of a rear wheel drive"
 
I would love to ask him "whats wrong with that"?

 

[billybob_jcv]

How would a failed front diff be a "warranty issue" on the twin-turbo install? Was he claiming you didn't put it back together correctly? People have no understanding of "power" and "torque". They just automatically assume "more is better" without thinking about how easy it is for a machine to tear itself to bits.

 

[veyrongatti]

There was a time when the Bimmer street racer would have really appealed to me - but now I just see a car that has been screwed with to the point that its barely still an E30 M3. I would never be able to get that car legal for CA plates - I just don't have the patience or the skill it would take to make it happen.

I think Billy should just fit the IT stereotype and just get an M5 or an E63 or an RS6

 

[billybob_jcv]

Well, I do own a BMW 530 - I just never get to drive it...

 

[Hutnicks]

Well, I do own a BMW 530 - I just never get to drive it...

Ah, buck the trend, build yourself a Lotus 7.

 

[billybob_jcv]

I used to work for a guy that was your classic nerd scientist. The guy was 60 years old, has a PhD in Astrophysics, wore bow ties, never married (surprise, surprise) and can barely communicate with "normal" humans. But he drove a late 80s E24 M6. In my book, that made him instantly cool...

 

[veyrongatti]

Well, I do own a BMW 530 - I just never get to drive it...

why?