Bluhm Designs

24/02/2022

205.9whp on the Refresh. The last time it was on the dyno it made 204whp. That was using a much lighter tyre with less rolling resistance.

It is quite likely that the engine is now producing a decent bit more power than before masked by the stickier and heavier wheel and tyre combination.

While it came in for an engine refresh it turned into numerous other jobs.

We completed the following work:
- Engine Refresh, a number of issues were identified and rectified during this process.
- Cooling system assessment (the filling point and bleed points appeared to be too low to allow adequate cooling in the cylinder head.
- Replace Diff
- Make mounts and mount wing to new fastback
- Identify and repair the electrical issue, a mixture of starter beginning to fall, Cartek requiring resetting and we made our own mistake during the diagnostic process of using a battery with insufficient cranking capacity.
- Replace broken throttle cable
- Fit new EGT sensors, repair threads and make a mount to tie EGT wiring to.
- Mount Catch can and overflow
- Replace injectors and modify rail to suit (apparently not all 3/4 length injectors are the same length)
- Repair fuel lines
- Repair oil line

We will be working with Car drives Man in the lead up to and at World Time Attack Challenge with Andrew Price providing driver coaching.

30/11/2021

https://bluhmdesigns.com.au/product/gr-yaris-lithium-battery-kit-pre-order-delivery-by-christmas/

Our first production run of Lithiumax GR Yaris Battery Kits are ready to order.

Cutting over 15kg of weight out of the Yaris with this high quality Lithium battery kit.

The Mount (In sale notes please advise if you wish for the tray to be powder coated (and what colour) or left raw.) The Bluhm Designs GR Yaris Battery mount bolts straight in with no modifications at all. The kit comes supplied with the following: Battery: Lithiumax Restart 7 (Bluetooth and Restart....

28/07/2021

One part of a bigger project. This Impala came over with a lot of rust. The rear body mount is virtually gone.

This is the replacement body mount we made.

22/07/2021

Shannon’s Yaris hit the track today.

Monday and Tuesday Andrew Bluhm designed the lithium battery kit and I went about trying a couple of different spring options. We settled on a 10kg front 8kg rear arrangement with the Shockworks coilovers.

We sourced Weds TC105X 18x9.5 +39 that weigh in at only 8kg. Unfortunately Yokohama do not have stock of the 255/265 tyres we wanted so Shannon located a set of 245s through his regular tyre guy and aligner.

The car then went to AK Racing to fit the new Lamspeed Racing Titanium exhaust and brakes. They also ran the car over for the alignment.

It resulted today in a 57.5 on QR Sprint track with Shannon only getting quicker. He was set for a high 56 on his final lap before having to abandon the lap.

Won’t be long before we see 56s in a Yaris at QR and it wouldn’t surprise me if a 55 isn’t too far away after that.

21/07/2021

Our first development kit for the GR Yaris. Using a Lithiumax Restart 7. The entire kit retains all of the factory wiring and retainer clips for the positive terminal.

No cutting or drilling is required and can be powder coated in any colour for a small additional charge.

The battery and mount weigh approximately 3kg. Over a 15kg saving from the factory battery.

Initial costing is $699 for the battery $199 for the tray and mount.

08/05/2021

Spent the day out at Queensland Raceways for the General Practice and Sprints.

We had two customer cars out Shannon in his GR Yaris and Eleanor taking her WTAC car out for a spin before the new engine is fitted.

Shannon I think now has the fastest (or very close to fastest time) around QR sprint Track. Running a set of off the shelf street spec Shockworks coilovers. Supplied by us and fitted by the AK Racing guys and a set of 255 wide Yokohama Tyre Australia AD08r.

Shannon dropped down to a 58.8. A quick damper change from what was used on the street made for a drastic change on track. Making the car much easier to drive. A few suspension alignment changes were recommended and I think Shannon will be down to a low to mid 58 his next time out.

Ellie managed a 64.6. Little teething issues and some suspension changes were identified. It runs an SLR arms and Shockworks coilovers.

The poor compact sprung a vac leak which meant unplugging the MAF. The unfortunate side effect is that it goes into a base map file and loses a lot of power and you can no longer heel and toe.

Given the issues and traffic in Group 3. Eleanor Terry did an incredible job.

07/05/2021

Started on the cooling system mods last night.

[Andrew Price] Yesterday Mini and I sat down at Bluhm Designs and really went over the car with a fine tooth comb.

We identified a few more items we wanted to fix.

A major one was to redesigning part of the cooling system to raise the fill point and make it easier to bleed the system.

Last night Mini started making the changes on the engine before it’s refreshed. That way we can bolt the new parts onto a fresh engine rather than trying to fabricate and keep the fresh new engine clean.

03/05/2021

Making a little over 200rwhp this little MX5 is a little weapon.

While Mark is busy posting about the new shell he’s prepping. I’ve commandeered his account for the blue shells overhaul.

It’s with us at Bluhm Designs for an engine refresh, mounting the rear wing and a few other odds and ends.

A few are items Mark has identified and some are things that we would like to do to improve reliability and/or reduce the risk of breakages.

Considering Mark had done the vast majority of work at home the car has been incredibly reliable (a testament to his attention to detail).

Mini (Andrew Bluhm) will be going through and ensure the car is reliable.

I’ll be working with Mark on chassis setup (along with Shockworks) and driver development.

26/04/2021

K24a3 sitting about where it needs to be, now to make mounts, a kit and a write up...

25/04/2021

Our K24 Development car is underway. Will be a fantastic upgrade from the factory option engines.