Tuned In High Performance Academy

Looking to up your game with a super-informative masterclass on professional-level motorsport wiring? This episode of Tuned In featuring Erik Reinertsen of Hardwired Performance is exactly what you're after.

Use “HWP50” to get $50 OFF our HPA Motorsport Wiring Starter Package:  https://hpcdmy.co/wiringstarterb

Erik specialises in building top-level motorsport wiring harnesses, choosing to focus primarily on the demanding offroad racing market — but wiring wasn’t always on the cards for this Californian. Despite growing up around hotrods and motorsport with a father who built cars for a living, he was actively discouraged in following his Dad’s footsteps, instead being pushed towards a more conventional career.

The problem was, you can’t really expect your kid to not become a diehard car guy when he spends all his time messing around in your shop full of cool builds and weekend after weekend at the track. So, straight after school, Erik walked into an apprenticeship at a hotrod shop and began building his skills in fabrication, engine building, and nearly everything else in the car building world — but it was wiring that he excelled at. Many years later, Erik is a self-taught maestro building ultra-high-end motorsport looms for some of the most impressive race cars and trucks out there.

In this episode, we dig deep into Erik’s huge bank of knowledge and experience, discussing a big range of wiring-related topics — from the art of concentric twisting, autosport connectors, which tools are worth the investment, the correct gauge of wire to use for different applications, and a whole lot more.

Erik also weighs in on the myth of “Milspec”, discusses the many cases in which a pro motorsport wiring harness is complete overkill, and the lessons learned from running his own wiring business — particularly when it comes to the challenge of accurately quoting work and turning down jobs that you know just aren’t right for you.

Vicious Mustang: https://www.instagram.com/viciousstang

Follow Erik here:
IG: @hardwiredperformance

Don’t forget, you can use “HWP50” to get $50 OFF our HPA Motorsport Wiring Starter Package: https://hpcdmy.co/wiringstarterb

Time Stamps:
4:06 How did you get interested in cars?
13:50 How did you get into motorsport wiring harnesses?
19:57 Why did you decide you were most passionate about wiring?
33:18 When did you go out on your own?
37:50 Overview of Hardwire Performance
44:57 Colour coding in wiring
47:41 What makes up a professional motorsport wiring harness?
52:39 Why do we concentric twist our harnesses?
1:07:44 Do you use software for designing your harnesses?
1:11:36 Coupon code
1:14:39 Advantages of an Autosport connector
1:20:53 Tooling required to work with Autosport connectors
1:34:05 What are service loops?
1:42:10 Using glue-lined boots vs non-glue-lined boots
1:46:19 Sizing wire gauge for circuits
2:00:12 Final three questions

Can 3D printed parts hold up in an engine bay or elsewhere on a car when compared to the use of lightweight aluminium or similar, or is it still just technology best leveraged for prototyping?

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Grant Luttinen of Intamsys helps us understand some of the pros and cons of additive manufacturing, what is required when it comes to software and some options out there for printers as a hobbyist or professional.

We take a quick look at printing options from $1,700 to $150,000 USD, as well as printing media/materials that start from $20-40 for a spool of ABS plastic and then go to $100, $600 or more for nylon, PEEK carbon fibre and 3D printed metal options.

Accusumps. Whether you're a motorsport enthusiast, a professional racer, or simply keen on advanced car maintenance, this video covers many of the common questions on how an Accusump can enhance your engine's reliability and performance and bridge the gap between a wet sump and (let's be honest, expensive) dry sump upgrade.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Iann Criscuolo from Canton Racing Products answers some of the common questions we all have when it comes to how an Accusump works by filling with oil and supplying it via manual or electronic control that can be based on RPMs, g-force and more, how easy Accusumps are to setup with their optimal -10 ('dash 10') hose sizing recommendations and how long you can expect oil to be supplied at 7-10 psi of pressure.

It's important to note that you can set your Accusump to fill much faster by using higher pressures, but that also means the oil will be supplied to your engine much faster, so racers need to find a balance that suits their application whether that is drift, drag, circuit, offroad racing or something else.

The formula for building a big-power LS is pretty simple — but things get a little more complicated when the motor needs to produce all that power for sustained periods of time in applications like drift or circuit racing. In this episode, we sit down with Mitch Pullen of Pullen Spec Engines, who specialises in putting together ultra-durable LS builds to discuss the ins and outs of these motors and much more.

Use “PULLEN50” to get $50 OFF our HPA Engine Building Starter Package:
https://hpcdmy.co/enginepackageb

Thanks to his father’s involvement in motorsport, Mitch Pullen started young, assisting in the pits and moving into the karting world at 10 years old. By 14, he was building engines, creating his own wiring harnesses, and figuring out fabrication. It’s probably no surprise, then, that he left school fairly early to learn everything he could about nearly all aspects of motorsport engineering.

Although Mitch is a jack of all trades, he decided to focus on performance engine building, and this now sees him running the well-respected and very busy Pullen Spec Engines based out of the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia.

In this conversation, Mitch goes into detail about how he builds LSs, discussing their inherent weaknesses and strengths and the work that’s needed to create a motor that can sustain high horsepower and high RPMs for more than just a pull or two on the motorway or a run down the strip.

Mitch is also well known for his unique S13 Silvia competition drift car, which runs a massive Roots-style blower sitting atop a Dart iron-block LS. There are a few obvious questions when it comes to this setup — why bother with this type of supercharger, how does it behave in a drift car, and can you even see anything when you’re driving? Mitch answers all these questions and more.

The conversation finishes with some great discussions around car setup, forged vs cast engine parts, performance aircraft engine builds, and more.

Watts linkage illustration: https://hpcdmy.co/watts

Follow Mitch here:
IG: @pullenspecengines, @mitchellpullen
FB: Pullen Spec Engines
WWW: pullenspec.com

Don’t forget, you can use“PULLEN50” to get $50 OFF our HPA Engine Building Starter Package: https://hpcdmy.co/enginepackageb

Timestamps:
4:08 How did you form an interest in cars?
11:31 Did you do any formal engine-building training?
15:09 Where did you go from rebuilding 2 stroke karts?
20:07 Watts link vs Pan hard rod overview.
24:53 Getting more power in the KE70.
31:43 How did you learn all these skills at such a young age?
32:52 What happened after the Khanacross?
35:03 Learning about LS engines and circuit cars.
45:40 Load on an engine for a sustained amount of time.
48:52 What do you do in your LS to make it live?
59:08 LS engine package.
1:07:27 Forged vs cast pistons.
1:16:52 Does the LS have enough factory clearance for boosted applications.
1:27:16 Why the roots blower?
1:35:57 Overview of Pullen Spec Engines.
1:45:50 Focusing on the LS.
1:48:47 Final three questions.

Why can't you tune any ECU however you'd like or fit any aftermarket ECU to your vehicle without a care in the world?

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Ryan Nicholls Powertune Australia answers these common questions and more in relation to what can be done with the right skill set and tools, in this case, MoTeC's M1 Build and knowledge of C# (C Sharp) development language.

Some key takeaways from this chat include some insight into CAN Bus, LIN Bus and FlexRay, plus the fact that reflash tuning is not equal for all platforms, and some are much better developed than others. Ryan also mentions how you are often relying on an interpretation rather than an absolute when it comes to reflash tuning software vs the lack of OEM information, as well as sharing encouragement from Ryan for anyone interested in learning the skills he has to do so, even at a hobbyist level.

This interview was recorded at GTR Fest Australia, where we somehow managed to film more about EVOs and MoTeC ECUs than GTRs, and had a ball doing it too.

Hot rodding has been and always will be a HUGE part of American car culture, and electric vehicle conversions are bringing a wider range of options to the street.

Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in

Why do a Tesla swap and not use aftermarket components? What happens to the 12v electronics including the lights and indicators without an alternator or the brakes without engine vacuum to operate with?

At SEMA, Casey Loter gives us some answers to the above and insight into this customer's 1959 Chevy Apache Fleetside electric vehicle conversion, which is powered by a Tesla Model S motor and battery pack that's been rehoused for better packaging and suspension options.

While Tesla parts are used, they are scrubbed clean of Tesla's limited software by companies like EV Control, who can easily tap in remotely for this process. An Orion battery management system is used along with Stealth EV charging components and a cooling system for the charger and batteries up from and motors in the rear for this specific Chevy Apache conversion.