Tuning Feature: Nissan VR30DDTT Modified

"Comprehensive guide to tuning and performance parts on the Nissan VR30DDTT engine!"

We are always getting messages asking how to improve the VR30DDTT from people wanting to know what are the optimum VR30DDTT modifications. So let us look into Nissan VR30DDTT upgrades and outline the best mods that work on this great engine and point out some problems along the way.

We shall detail the best approach to VR30DDTT tuning and report on the optimum upgrades. Nissan VR30DDTT make awesome project engines and with carefully chosen upgrades like remapping, turbo improvements and camshafts you will greatly increase the drivers fun of your car.

The optimum VR30DDTT mods on an engine are as we have found the ones that give the biggest return for your cash.

We won't be swayed by popular VR30DDTT mods, they need to be cost effective.

The camshaft profile plays a big part in the engines power output so camshaft upgrades make quite a large difference. The intake & exhaust durations will alter depending on the chosen camshaft profile, so large engines power gains are on offer for camshaft upgrades.

NB: Fast road cams tend to push up the torque throughout the rev band, you could sacrifice a little bottom end power but your top end will be better.

Race cams, push up the top end band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

A Race camshaft will just annoy you whilst driving in heavy traffic.

You should ideally match your engines power to your driving style so for a daily driver stick with a mild fast road VR30DDTT camshaft

Different VR30DDTT engines respond better to mild cam durations than others.

The ecu map and fuelling also will make differences on the torque gains you'll make.

Extending exhaust or intake durations can alter the torque band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

VR30DDTT Tuning Stages

Stage 1 VR30DDTT modifications: Sports exhaust manifold, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Panel air filters, Fast road camshaft, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Intake headers.

Stage 2 VR30DDTT modifications: Fast road cam, fuel pump upgrades, induction kit, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Ported and polished head, high flow fuel injectors.

Stage 3 VR30DDTT modifications: Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Twin charging conversions, Competition cam, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Engine balancing & blueprinting.

Remaps will help release the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your VR30DDTT.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but the outcome usually rely on the upgrades you've done and the condition of your engine.

It is the main goal to any performance tuning project to feed more air into the VR30DDTT engine

Headers carry the air during the suck phase from the intake filter and allow it to be pulled into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.

Shape and flow characteristics of the Headers can make a big change to fuel mixing and power on the VR30DDTT.

On popular production engines headers are ripe for a performance upgrade, although a few OEM provide decently flowing headers.

Big valve conversions on the VR30DDTT, getting port work and head flowing will also lift bhp, and more importantly will permit raising the bhp increase on other upgrades.

Turbo upgrades for the VR30DDTT

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your VR30DDTT

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes superb power gains.

When your motor is turbocharged, upgrades are simpler to install and most turbo charged engines use better components.

However most engines have weakspots

We recommend you find these restrictions and fit better pistons and crank to utilize the power.

We've seen tuners spending a loads of money on turbocharger upgrades on the VR30DDTT only to suffer the indignity of watching the whole thing explode on it's first outing after it's used in anger.

Larger capacity turbo units will usually suffer no power at low rpm, and little turbo units spool up much more quickly but don't have the high rpm power band gains.

Thanks to new tech the selection of turbo chargers is always increasing and we commonly find variable vane turbo chargers, allowing the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end torque.

Twin scroll turbo chargers divert the exhaust flow into 2 channels and feed these at differently profiled vanes in the turbo. They also increase the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is not unusual that there is a limitation in the air flow sensor (AFM/MAF/MAP) on the VR30DDTT when considerably more air is being drawn into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited performance at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large bhp gains, although harder to install. We have this article on twincharging if you want to read more.

Uprating VR30DDTT fuel injectors

When you increase the bhp you will need to ramp up to the fuelling.

More bhp needs more fuel. It makes sense to over specify your flow rate on the injectors.

As a rule of thumb add another 20% when buying an injector, this accounts for injector deterioration and provides some spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best VR30DDTT performance exhausts

You only need to to upgrade your exhaust if the existing exhaust is actually causing a restriction.

On most factory exhausts you'll see your flow rate is still ok even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts can usually air flow from the engine but avoid an exhaust that is too large or you may end up reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches as a rule of thumb.

Typically exhaust restrictions come around the emissions filters installed, so adding a better flowing performance alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the VR30DDTT

The VR30DDTT engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues. {But if neglected they can cost a small fortune|When neglected they get very expensive to run|They can however be quite expensive if neglected| }

Regular oil changes are vital on the VR30DDTT, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your VR30DDTT engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our VR30DDTT owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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We really like hearing from our readers, and hearing about which tuning mods were the most effective for them, it helps us improve our recommendations and articles to reflect current trends in modifications and ensures that our VR30DDTT guides and tips are kept up to date.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Nissan. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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