Hey guys, hope all’s well on your end of the world in these trying times.
I’m running a K3VET engine at the moment with a hybrid TD04, “Carrillo” conrods (yes they are knock-offs), ART Japan cast pistons and factory stock cast crankshaft.
I’ve been looking to rebuild the engine and I’ve already got in touch with Pauter for a set of 4x conrods and it seems like they’re the only manufacturers that do make anything for the Daihatsu engines at all. Maybe a little overkill but I endeavour to “legitimise” the engine and rid of the knock-off bits and pieces.
On to pistons, I realise that we do not have very many options especially when it comes to forging the engine (For cast, Nissan Micra / March K10 / 11 low compression pistons are a good fit however, and are but one option). I did however find something interesting from Wössner, part no. K9470DA (Fiat Abarth 500);
Piston Size 72.00mm
Compression Ratio 9.8:1
Pin Diameter 18.00mm
Rod Length 129.00
Stroke 84.00mm
Displacement 1368CC
Application Turbo
Comp. Height 26.80mm
There are 2 issues here however that I can see immediately;
The stroke of the K3VET (according to the manual) is 79.7mm vs 84mm
that’s a lot to clearance to overcome Im not sure it can be done only a machinist familiar with it all would have a better idea I would imagine. I guess you could use just the pistons as I thing the gudgeon pin is same diameter from memory that would take 3.3mm down but then you have the comp height that neads to come down heaps. Not sure if you could take that much off the pistons or if the crank could be modified to help reduce the stroke also. Have you looked into Suzuki vitara pistons at all? It maybe worth a look. I dont know much about them but I think a few people have used them in ejde builds which use a similar piston to k3.
You can manage this with factory parts if you choose right
They’re going to be way better than rolling the dice imo
Give my bro a msg he’s doing a couple of rebuilds of them at the moment and tell him I sent you
Hey thanks for all the replies. Sorry for the late response, been a busy long weekend (public holiday).
Thanks for the “Wilson Engineering” suggestions. I’m not so keen on them as, no offence, they’re most likely a Chinese knock-off and the fact I’m willing to spend about 1k USD (over 5k+ ringgit in local currency) for Pauter Conrods should say something. Those “Wilson Engineering” pistons are as legit as those “Manley” conrods in those very same photos. I’m already trying to move away from such items so there’s that.
I’m currently still running a stock ECU and am looking at options from Haltech (unfortunately not much local support here) to MicroTech (apparently they’re outdated? But at least there is a local presence here), maybe something from Link. I will however give Compact Motorsport Ltd a buzz, thanks for the heads up and thanks for the replies guys.
(PS I do go to bed sometimes daydreaming of maybe one day being able to afford something from Syvecs or Pectel. Maybe one day, a boy can dream… Hahahaha)
Sure does. it’s your choice anyway. But we have been running without any issues. and track proven . I’m just giving options and suggestions. at the end of the day, it’s you build and your choice.
I suggest on using Link G4 as it is very friendly with K3-VET. I’ve used it before and might used it back in my 3SZ turbo build soon. The support that Link themselves gave is really much helpful. Trigger setup is straight forward. I’ve using Link G4+ Plugin Evo 1-3 as it offers much more input and outputs and will allow you to control the VVT.
Another user friendly and widely used for K3-VET is Maxxecu.
Another option is to use L15A honda jazz piston. This piston you could get from reputable brand from JE, CP or Wiseco. however the piston height is only 26mm and will be lower than the block deck. You might need to use a thinner head gasket for this to play around with the compression ratio.
