A high-flow fuel pump from Sigma Advanced Racing Development (SARD) feeds into a custom surge tank designed to prevent fuel starvation during extended high-g cornering. From there, 850cc/min fuel injectors spray high octane, all orchestrated with a custom programmed HKS F-Con V Pro standalone ECU. According to TCP Magic, this Silvia puts out 542 wheel-hp and 470lb-ft of torque in time attack trim.
With the SR20DET producing more than enough power, attention was turned to the chassis. The car had to be lighter, stiffer and endowed with more traction. Lower curb weight was achieved initially with the usual tricks: removing unnecessary items such as the stereo, air conditioning, interior and sound deadening. Then the body was made stiffer through the addition of numerous spot welds on the chassis and with a custom 13-point roll cage (according to experts at Nismo HQ, many JDM tuners use bolt-in door bars and cross beams to comply with shakken regulations. See SCC, August '08 issue, page 74 -JL).
However, the added weight of the metal cage forced TCP Magic to become more creative in the quest for lightness. The window glass was replaced with lightweight polycarbonate pieces while the hood, trunk, doors, side skirts, bumpers, plus both the front and rear fenders were all replaced with lightweight carbon fiber pieces. The front fenders are also one inch wider than stock, allowing the use of deep-offset WedsSport wheels and two types of 265-width Advan tires. TCP Magic then added a C-West carbon fiber rear wing and its own custom carbon front splitter and rear diffuser.
Delving deep into its parts catalogue, TCP Magic decided to fit suspension and braking pars that would provide all the adjustability needed to handle any race track. This meant a proprietary N1 Damper coilover suspension with 12kg/mm (front) and 8kg/mm (rear) spring rates. At the steering end, upper camber plates were fitted along with dropped outer tie-rod ends and spherical bearing tension rods. At the back, all the multi-link suspension arms were swapped out for spherical bearing-equipped pieces with adjustable lengths. This allows for easy tweaking of the rear toe, camber and bumpsteer settings. All the remaining suspension bushings were changed out for higher-durometer Nismo bushings.
The front anchors consist of a pimpy Endless six-piston big brake kit with two-piece rotors. TCP Magic balanced the Endless kit and shifted some of the bias toward the rear with its Big Rotor Kit. Similar in principle to Power Slot's Power Slot Plus kit, TCP Magic's item uses a rear rotor 44mm larger in diameter than stock and includes a special bracket that spaces the stock caliper further out to compensate. The result is greater brake torque than stock without any change in pedal feel. All four corners use Endless CCR pads.
Having hit the targets of being lighter, stiffer and more powerful, TCP Magic has declared this S14 ready for time attack. Now it's just the not-so-simple matter of figuring out which boost settings, tire pressures, alignment and shock settings work best at any particular track. And that might be the hardest part of building a fast Silvia time attack car.
By Jon Legunn
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