KHT Aftermarket division and racing team [1972 Dominator. KHT builds a Calvinator]

[squidhead]

##1968 Pescara
Based on a 1968 Znopersk Z312 by NormanVauxhall

As 1968 Znopersk Z300 series ( Link ) facelift hit the market, Kraft Haus Technic marketing department, led by Viktor Kruger instantly saw potential in the unexploited market niche. At $9800 you could have a 1.2 liter i4 version or you could opt for the 2.5 v6 corsa, which was marginally more expensive at $16100. With no middle ground between the two, Kraft Haus Technik has quickly designed an upgrade for the base Z312 version, naming it Pescara, after a historic Italian GP circuit.

The design of the car was mostly left as original, only the front grille was changed to allow more airflow, extra cooling vents in the front and back, a lip and a small spoiler finishing the look of the car. The rear engined rear drive car got more efficient modifications under the skin. Wheels were replaced to wider ones, wrapped in medium compound sportier tires, now sporting 205mm rear and 165mm fronts. Brakes were upgraded with sportier brake pads, leaving the drums in place. A slightly stiffer springs and shocks, working together with new antiroll bars helped the handling gain more sportiness and composure compared to the original car, gearbox was left a standard 4 speed unit, now sporting a new clutch, to take more load.

The engine is where most of the engineering happened. First to go was the tiny restrictive eco carburettor, replaced by a 4 barrel unit and a performance intake. The camshaft gained a more aggressive profile, timing and fuelling were also changed, finished off with a RPM redline raised to 6000rpm. Ported and polished head, worked well with a thinner head gasket allowing for a small compression ratio raise, and a better flowing exhaust system was fitted for a bit of a rumble and to free yet more power from the tiny engine.

The Pescara was never sold as a complete car, rather like with the Communitasia, Z312 owners had to leave their cars for 2 weeks at Kraft Haus Technik. KHT also could ship all the needed parts and modification information to any European country so people outside Germany could take their car to a reputable garage and perform modifications on their own. In that case, however, Kraft Haus Technik did not supply the warranty to the finished car. The modifications raised a total cost of a 312 series to 12000, which was still $4000 cheaper than the extreme 2.5 Corsa, and still retained it’s 4 door body, for all your daily needs.

#Stats

0-100kph
Before - 19.7 / After - 13.6

Top Speed
Before - 133 / After - 151

Weight
Before - 894 / After - 923

Max G
Before - 0.78 / After - 0.96

Lap Time
Before - 3:15.10 / After - 2:56.61

#Engine

Max power
Before - 47hp/ After - 77hp

Max torque
Before - 88nm / After - 103nm

Responsiveness
Before - 8.1 / After - 25.7

Loudness
Before - 35 / After - 51.3

Smoothness
Before - 54.6 / After - 52.2

Reliability
Before - 48.3 / After - 47.3

#Misc

Comfort
Before - 20 / After - 15.1

Driveability
Before - 43.7 / After - 39.9

Sportiness
Before - 3.3 / After - 16.1

Economy
Before - 10l / 100km / After - 12l / 100km

[squidhead]

Disclamer - this design is made by TurboJ, and is awesome. I only added the blinkers, 'cause I don’t want to spoil it.
Click for more J.S.C. works
Also - this is how awesome of a story you get if you come around with your own premise to “why you need KHT to work on your cars”

##1960 Cisitalia J.S.C. 1100 KHT Stradale

In 1955 Cisitalia coachbuilders have collaborated with J.S.C, in building the Cisitalia J.S.C. GT-C 1100. A light weight single seater racer, powered by a 1.1 liter i4 rear mounted engine. The car was campaigned by Cisitalia - J.S.C. in Mille Miglia through 56 and 57, reaching high results by the end of the campaign. By 1958 the project was dropped by Cisitalia, seeing as Mille Miglia would not return in 1958, leavign J.S.C. with 17 racecars not compliant with any racing reglament, rendering them virtually useless.

In 1959, Kraft Haus Technik has started to put themselves on the world manufacturer’s map, which prompted J.S.C. to contact the small German company. Seeing how OSCA and Abarth are selling their essentially racing cars with minor modifications to the public as road going vehicles, Kraft Haus Technik was given the assignment to convert 16 of the 17 cars to road going specification, with the intent to sell them to private owners. First car arrived in Germany in late 1959, just as the last Monaco roadster has rolled off the production line.

Right after KHT test driver lost his driver’s license and fined for driving a road illegal vehicle in the streets, KHT began their work on legalizing the car. The 115hp high revving engine had to be tamed down, to comply with the noise regulations, as well as being able to run on a more common 92 ron petrol, so the compression ratio was dropped through the use of modified OEM pistons and a thicker head gasket. First prototype used 2 head gaskets instead of one, while all the rest used custom gaskets provided by J.S.C. The exhaust was left relatively untouched, with only one muffler bringing the noise down to legal levels. By adjusting the ignition the knock was eliminated and the result was a still pretty decent 106hp and 106nm of torque, and retained it’s high redline.

The safety standards, thankfully were not too strict, and by re-welding some of the sub-frame, and with minor modifications to the bumpers and the interior the safety was raised to high enough standards for the car to receive the approval of TUV technical inspection. The interior, which pretty much was bare metal was mostly left unchanged, with only leather trim covering the doors, dashboard, and now included a carpet covering the floor. Seats were changed from racing buckets to comfortable but sporty seats, also covered in leather. Finishing off the interior was a basic radio, taken from the spare parts box of the now out of production Monaco Roadster.

The suspension was left unchanged in general, but received serious overhaul in the setup department, new springs and shocks, combined with antiroll bars and highly aggressive camber settings made for a more stable handling, with mild understeer replacing snap oversteer of the original. The last part was the racing slick tires, which had to be replaced by a road worthy analog. Continental AG provided their hardest slick tires, which were then hand modified to have rain grooves by Kraft Haus Technik (Note - using sports, not slicks, so this is fair street use). This was enough to consider the Cisitalia JSC a road car, and by the end of 1960 all 16 examples were converted.

Customers were allowed to purchase a what was essentially a race proven, de-tuned pieces of racing history for $57,000.

One of the Stradale versions of the Cisitalia J.S.C. fully restored and functional at Scottsdale Cars and Coffee.

#Stats

0-100kph
Before - 7.5s/ After - 9.1

Top Speed
Before - 225kph / After - 206kph

Weight
Before - 576kg / After - 659kg

Max G
Before - 0.78/ After - 0.91

#Engine

Max power
Before - 115hp / After - 106hp

Max torque
Before - 116nm / After - 106nm

Responsiveness
Before - 52.5 / After - 51.6

Loudness
Before - 90 / After - 66.3

Smoothness
Before - 36.3 / After - 33.2

Reliability
Before - 28.9 / After - 36.2

#Misc

Comfort
Before - 3.7 / After - 10.9

Driveability
Before - 7.7 / After - 33.1

Sportiness
Before - 22.3 / After - 27.0

Economy
Before - 12.25L/100km / After -13.6L/100km

##Chassis history as of 2016

Being such a low production car, literally no manuals or information on maintenance or it’s engineering is available, which makes it easy for KHT to track all of the Stradale versions, once the owners contact us with questions regarding the car.

01 - Company owned by Kraft Haus Technik, Hamburg, Germany.
02 - Private owned, Oslo, Norway
03 - Private owned, Doha, Quatar.
04 - Lethal crash in 1984 in the Alps.
05 - Private owned, Moscow, Russia.
06 - Converted back to race spec, crashed in 2014, Nurburgring, during the Historic Grand Prix
07 - Private owned, Rome, Italy.
08 - Private owned, converted back to race spec, Brisbane, Australia.
09 - Company owned by Brown’s Classic Autos, Scottsdale, USA, is for sale.
10 - Private owned, Oslo, Norway.
11 - Private owned, Stockholm, Sweden
12 - Crashed in 1991 in Spain.
13 - Private owned, Yokohama, Japan
14 - Destroyed by rust during transportation on a deck of a ship from Kiel to Virginia USA.
15 - Lost track in 1978.
16 - Private owned, Tartu, Estonia.
17 - Was never converted for street use and resides in J.S.C. private collection

[squidhead]

#1995 Tsukuba R Time attack special

Kraft Haus Technik saw the rise in the tuning industry, and to promote itself entered one of the time attack championships in 1995. The car chosen was the freshly released KHT Tsukuba in R trim, with a number of serious modifications. A very serious approach was taken to the build, with a small army of engineers working on the car, the result was a Tsukuba R modified to the level of complete street illegality and to the point of self destruction.

On the outside the changes were not very drastic, some of the lights went missing in an attempt to save weight on things that were not required at the track like reverse light or foglights. The popup headlight system was also removed to make way for a more aerodynamically efficient covered headlight. Also differing from the regular R available to the public the car was widened even more, and had new aero solutions front and back.

The interior was stripped out, filled with a rollcage and the basic needs of the driver had to be fullfilled by a racing bucketseat, racing wheel and a multitude of gauges. As far as the interior went this was it, unless you count the rollcage and the bare metal surrounding the cockpit.
#####original Tsukuba R served as the base for the project

The Saminda 2.2 engine has proven itself in the N/A guise, but the level of competition required KHT to go to the next level. Numerous things were changed in the H22 series engine including but not limited to new pistons, camshafts, cooling system, exhaust system, intake system and most noticeably - a gigantic custom turbocharger and an air to air intercooling system. This resulted in the development of publicly available Stage 1 and Stage 2 turbocharging trims in 1996 and 97, with Stage 3 being the early prototype for the Time Attack car and Stage 4 being the final version.
Stage 5 was developed, but KHT could not make the stage work, the engine output either melted the pistons or bent conrods no matter what the engineers tried. Even at stage 4, however the power was 4+ times that of the original H22 engine found in the Saminda CZ2, which it started it’s life in.

#####The Stage 4 was only seen on the streets for a few times, both of those were on a closed road

Walking the fine ballance of flooding the sparkplugs and stalling for good, or leaning out and detonating in a spectacular fashion at 10.3:1 fuel mixture, risking complete engine disintegration at high RPM at the best of times the Stage 4 was considered way too risky for sales.

#####The front has seen the most drastic visual changes

The Stage 4 still survives as a one-off in KHT garage, being considered the car that started KHT’s time attack program, bringing the company closer to the people, and providing much needed exposure as a tuner, not only as a manufacturer.

[squidhead]

Ehm… not so much, about 21 liters / 100 km, which is ok for a supercar of early 2000’s. Also, no clue about Monte Carlo, I’m thinking KHT could auction off the concept and production line, since I can’t fit an i4 from Tsukuba in there. Im sort of stuck with it at the moment. In any case, I don’t think this is my best design ever (Parabolica mk2 takes that spot IMO, next to Diabolica), but thank you non the less. And what’s next is… a little bit less exciting

In any case, I’ve promised this to Madrias quite some time ago, so today we get a double feature from KHT

#1997 Storm Knight Dakar by KHT

In 1996 Storm automotive have released their new Knight, powered by a 2.6 liter i4, in two trims, the tame GS-E, and the turbocharged monster GT-4T. Seeing the price difference between the models and the interest in the tuner and sports car scene from the cheaper GS-E, KHT has acquired the rights to produce a performance kit for the GS-E, which would be approved by the Storm automotive.

The modified car had to be reliable, economical, cheap to produce and finally fast, since KHT did not want to enjoy the fame of being a slow car builder. The base GS-E has received a new rear wing and front lip, along with new front and rear bumpers and wide arch kit to house new wider wheels by OZ racing, also wearing wider sports tires. The brakes were not touched, as the system seemed adequate for the task. Sports pads by Brembo were used to eliminate fade. The suspension was left mostly unchanged, except for new springs and shocks, and a re-setup by KHT racing division

Interior has received new sports seats by Sparco, and a new steering wheel along with minor changes to the aesthetics, such as alcantara clad dashboard.

The engine has received a custom exhaust manifold and a turbocharger, running at 1.0 bar through an air to air intercooler. A remap and a 2.75’’ exhaust system with more efficient cats and a straight through rear muffler finished off the picture. There was no change to the engine internals, such as pistons or camshafts, as those were deemed too costly to replace, which would bite into the profits.

First mules of the Dakar mid reliability testing / suspension setup process

While on paper the choice between the Dakar and the GT-4T was a no brainer, in real life the cheaper KHT kit (was a viable option for many petrolheads, who were ready to sacrifice a lot of human comforts to get the inferior car that was a lot more track focused.

#Stats
0-100kph
GS-E : 9.1 / GT-4T: 5.3s / Dakar : 5.8s

Top Speed
GS-E : 225.5 / GT-4T: 255.8 / Dakar : 246.3

Weight
GS-E : 1290 / GT-4T: 1453.6 / Dakar : 1340.4

Max G
GS-E : 0.89 / GT-4T: 1.01 / Dakar : 1.19

Engine
Max power
GS-E : 156hp / GT-4T: 306hp / Dakar : 240hp

Max torque
GS-E : 206nm / GT-4T: 324nm / Dakar : 340nm

Responsiveness
GS-E : 30 / GT-4T: 29.2 / Dakar : 22.3

Loudness
GS-E : 33.1 / GT-4T: 35.6 / Dakar : 31.2

Smoothness
GS-E : 46.2 / GT-4T: 57.4 / Dakar : 46.2

Reliability
GS-E : 61.4 / GT-4T: 50.8 / Dakar : 56.2

Misc
Comfort
GS-E : 29.1 / GT-4T: 34.9 / Dakar : 25.3

Driveability
GS-E : 50.9 / GT-4T: 50.8 / Dakar : 32.6

Sportiness
GS-E : 24.3 / GT-4T: 35.4 / Dakar : 40.5

Economy
GS-E : 7.45 / GT-4T: 8.66L/100km / Dakar : 9.72L/100km

ATT Time
GS-E : 1:38.12 / GT-4T: 1:26.97 / Dakar : 1:25.29

Price
GS-E : $15,000 / GT-4T : $21,000 / Dakar : $19,000

Storm Automotive can be found right here - Storm Automotive - (2016)

[squidhead]

##2015 Sepang AMWEC AP1

On November 25th 2015 KHT held a small public event, where they presented their all new AP1 class race prototype. No direct information on performance specs was given, but KHT boss Gerhard Wagner was optimistic about it’s future. In a small speech he thanked his senior race engineering team, complimenting them on a job well done, and promising to not let this opportunity go to waste and as “motorsport improves the breed” hinted on the street legal version of the racecar (revealed in 2016), before unveiling the car.

Full carbon chassis featured a full carbon bodywork, no interior to speak of and advanced aerodynamics. The design heavily inspired by the earlier Adelaide sportscar mixed well with the bigger body of the Sepang, and had a few distinct features of it’s own. Powered by the bespoke Typ854 R54N2 Engine, reaching (Edited due to NDA) Hp at (Edited due to NDA) RPM, with 80% of it’s torque available as early as (Edited due to NDA) RPM the (Edited due to NDA) kg racecar proved a quick runner, it’s final testing taking place on the Nurburgring nordschleiffe, which took almost 2 months to finalize.

Lastly, KHT Managers could strike a deal with a few companies, such as Eibach, Brembo and Michelin to provide some components and expertise in exhange for sponsorship decals. Seibon Carbon was contracted to produce the shell and the chassis for the car, ZF provided the gearbox, and an american company created engine blocks, which were then modified to exact spec in house.

Racecar livery was not debated, as KHT proudly displayed German national flag colours finished off with the sponsorship decals.

[squidhead]

#2017 Monolith S340D1 Blitz

In 2017 Monolith motors has managed to lock itself in a marketing fight with Saminda after a provocative banner thought up by Saminda’s marketing department. As hits were exchanged by the advertisers it was clear that the battle needed a definitive winner. Enter Kraft Haus Technik time attack division. The idea was that a show car by KHT would drive some sales home, but KHT had different ideas.

Saminda’s advertisment, which started the whole ordeal

As the team received their 3 Monoliths for modification, it became very clear that this is not what KHT usually stands for - an efficient utility pickup, good for the city and mild offroading. This, however was not a huge problem, as Miles Phillips, KHT senior test driver and the leader of the time attack division decided that the best way to improve the car was not mere badge engineering, but to prove that this has speed.

Monolith [Vän]

[image] In the 2010s, the Monolith product portfolio was significantly widened. Part of that was the return of a bespoke compact pick-up truck designed to fill the gap between small, passenger car based minitrucks like the Fiat Strada and Volkswagen Saveiro and purpose built trucks like the Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi L200 and VW Amarok. Thus the S-Series was born. The S-Series is very much a middle ground between these vehicles, as it does not use a ladder chassis like the larger trucks, instea…

Monolith S series was anything but a sporty performer

The 3.4 liter diesel engine was first on the agenda. Simple chip tuning did little in the terms of the results, providing a 25% power increase at best, so a new route had to be found. After countless experiments and some trial and error (which resulted in one of the engines blown) KHT has finally reached the minimum input - maximum gain. Replacing the head gasket with a thicker MLS unit, to hold more boost from a new custom hybrid turbocharger was all the work on the main engine components ever needed. The turbocharger did not receive a filter and a new exhaust route was created leaving the car through the front quarterpanel. A remap of a very versatile Monolith ECU proved successful in running a less technically advanced and more power oriented turbo, resulting in power output of 400hp and 640nm, instead of the original 245hp and 580Nm.

The engine was a challenge for the engineers, but the track testing proved even more time consuming task. Naturally the AWD highrise tower of lumbering menace was impressive in the farmlands and on motorways, scaring small cars out of it’s lane, but the chassis needed to handle. At first the body was taken care of, by removing all the excess detailing that could spoil the air flow, finished off by a custom CF splitter and a small wing with a manually operated DRS system. The body panel gaps were filled in using the high tec solution of foaming them and then cutting them so the doors and hood could close and open. Most of the air intakes were taped off. At that point the car proved good in a straight line, but little else on the track.

Following the regular pattern KHT has worked on removing the extra weight off the truck, and the interior was first to go. Stripped down to bare metal, carbon fiber bucketseats were installed along with a Motec dashboard and an Adelaide RS steering wheel, which was lying around in the workshop. The cockpit was finished off with a rollcage to provide for safety of the driver after the removal of all airbags.

Early tests of cars with this setup proved quite promising, but sadly resulted in another of the 3 cars being destroyed, this time rolled in the gravel trap after bouncing off a guard rail. There was only 1 car left and KHT had to make it count.

The Stock S340D1, as can be bought in any Monolith dealership

As this was finished the suspension received a light overhaul. Racing shocks and springs along with stiffer swaybars allowed the car to lose most of it’s offroad clearance , but gain composure and racing stance. To help stop the beast Carbon ceramic brake rotos and huge calipers off a KHT Mistral prototype were also installed.

In this form the prototype has shown even better results, but as luck would have it, it was not that simple, sadly after a run in with an overly aggressive rumble strip the last of the S340D1’s provided by Monolith has damaged the gearbox in the process of crashing out. The body was not damaged, and the drivetrain took most of the hit, so KHT simply used this as an option to replace the gearbox with a 4 speed hurst racing transmission, overhaul the diffs for a better suited drive ratio, installed custom lightweight wheels wrapped in racing slicks. In this guise the car saw the press event for Monolith, where along the AWD offroad adventure the journalists had a chance to be driven around the track in the S340D1 Blitz (lightning) by KHT.

The S340D1 Blitz by KHT shares a lot of parts with it’s brothers, but little in terms of how it uses it

The car made enough noise in the car enthusiast community to be demanded a Nurburgring lap time. KHT and Monolith obliged, and as Saminda were making big claims about their C2000R hatch dispatching the nordschleife in 7:51.5, the bulky pickup truck took the course and secured a 7:50.95 while returning a steady 8L/100km economy. The feat created a lot of memes coursing the internet, and an influx of interest to Monolith.

(Note this car only uses +5 aero (foam) and +5 tires (slicks), in case you wish to compete on similar terms)

[squidhead]

#2017 Maesima MRZ-3 ST-ZR by KHT

Maesima can be found here Click

Seeing the success of the Maesima in the tuner market KHT has seen the car fit for modification in house to join in on the action. As a revision of the car was planned for 2017, KHT have contacted Maesima with permission to produce performance packages based off the MRZ-3 in 2017 trim. The most powerful version STX-R planned only in small quantities with high enough demand, it was decided to fill the niche bound to be crawling with people wishing for the most powerful OEM version of the MRZ-3 with a performance pack based on the less powerful ST-Z.

Once again, KHT engineers have decided to not go too in-depth with the engine, leaving the camshafts and the whole rotating assembly stock, but producing new head studs along with a much thicker MLS gasket, dropping the CR by 0.8 units, now 10:1. The high performance exhaust had to go to give way to a turbo compatible manifold, the turbocharger fed the intake through a custom air to air intercooler. The package was finished off with a performance clutch, remap and a custom exhaust system. The modifications have brought the power up to 310hp at 0.8 bar, which was enough to get the car on par with the STX-R, Maesima’s top trim for the chassis.

KHT experts have ran the car both on the track and in the wind tunnel to provide for best results, which were new springs, shocks, antiroll bars and a completely new settings for the car, more reminiscent of a track setup than a street one, with new bumpers helped route air in and out for the new cooling requirements. The suspension was finished off with a set of new wider BBS wheels and stickier sports tires, as well as sportier brake pads.

The ST-ZR kit went on sale at the same time as the regular car has appeared on the market, being first to the tuner scene KHT has benefited greatly.

Stats
0-100kph
ST-Z : 5.8 / STX-R : 4.7 / ST-ZR : 4.8

Top Speed
ST-Z : 243.9 / STX-R : 255.4 / ST-ZR : 243.8

Weight
ST-Z : 1277 / STX-R : 1342 / ST-ZR : 1353

Max G
ST-Z : 1.13 / STX-R : 1.23 / ST-ZR : 1.25g

Engine
Max power
ST-Z : 228hp / STX-R : 275hp / ST-ZR : 310hp

Max torque
ST-Z : 203nm / STX-R : 285nm / ST-ZR : 282nm

Responsiveness
ST-Z : 66 / STX-R : 51.4 / ST-ZR : 64.2

Loudness
ST-Z : 32.4 / STX-R : 36.2 / ST-ZR : 37.3

Smoothness
ST-Z : 59.5 / STX-R : 59.4 / ST-ZR : 59.5

Reliability
ST-Z : 60.4 / STX-R : 70.2 / ST-ZR : 58.3

Misc
Comfort
ST-Z : 33.8 / STX-R : 35.4 / ST-ZR : 31

Driveability
ST-Z : 62.4 / STX-R : 52.2 / ST-ZR : 53.3

Sportiness
ST-Z : 51.9 / STX-R : 59.6 / ST-ZR : 55.5

Economy
ST-Z : 6.73 l /100km / STX-R : 7.3 l/100km / ST-ZR : 8.5 l/100km

TG track time
ST-Z : 1:25.36 / STX-R : 1:21.32 / ST-ZR : 1:21.13

KHT has also seized the opportunity to lay the old Adelaide time attack car, replacing it with the Maesima MRZ-3 in the promotional time attack outings.

[DeusExMackia]

Still cannot get over how good the Sepang looks. The livery is so simple and effortless and perfectly complements the shape of the car. And I love all the minor bodywork details, like the little roof scoop and the side vents. So subtle yet so effective.

[Awildgermanappears]

Hi.
Just pointing out that KHT once produced a factory tuning kit for a small 1980s hatchback in exchange for a custom-built V12 engine for the KHT Atlantic.

[squidhead]

#2017 Dimension Axino HAMMER

For the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show, the aftermarket division has prepared something they rarely touch, an SUV.
Link to the original car
The source material for the KHT Hammer was a 2.6 liter Dimension Axino. The original sported budget interior with imitation leather, and a offroad biased manual locking transmission, along with a tiny 2.6 liter turbocharged engine, producing 300+ bhp. With the 7 liter version only a rumour by this point, and no real range topper model in sight KHT has started working on turning the school run special into a real KHT machine.

On the outside, you can instantly spot the Hammer by it’s widebodykit and low stance. The kit is made entirely out of carbon fiber, which provides for considerable weight loss, which is needed, because the car has gained weight considerably in other areas after the KHT team has got to it. The wide body also allowed for seriously wide tires and 22" wheels, which were necessary for what the engineers had planned.

The interior saw a fullscale luxury refurbishment, replacing the imitation leather with actual nappa leather, and finishing it off with custom high quality sports seats and a Bang & Olufsen ICE. The interior changes alone dropped extra 100kg into the car.

The drivetrain has lost both the offroad ability and an automatic, as those were replaced by a conventional haldex center diff and an electronically operated twinclutch sequential gearbox courtesy of ZF. The main change was, however, getting rid of the 2.6 liter engine and slotting in the old KHT 5 liter v8, found in most early 2000’s KHT cars. The engine was given a once-over, now producing 535hp at 0.7 bar of boost. The result has been pleasing to the KHT, as the behemoth managed a 0-100 run in 3.3 seconds flat on regular road tires, topped out at 279 kph and ran the nurburgring in 8 minutes flat, while remaining a comfortable luxury cruiser.

The pricetag was a bit steep, as KHT asked for $65,000 for each car modified, which did not include the $40,000 for the base Axino, but the car quickly became popular among Russian wealthy youth, as a more flashy alternative to the Porsche Cayenne turbo, X5M and G63 AMG, which were becoming common in the streets of Moscow and parked outside VIP night clubs.

[Sillyworld]

It definetely looks better than a Cayenne

[Deskyx]

The original was certainly based off a Cayenne/Macan except it looked dumb with narrow fenders.

[squidhead]

#2016 MRZ-3 PTDS spec

As 2016 drift season dawned on KHT, a new car was needed to promote the aftermarket division. As a deal with Maesima was already underway for the 2017 MRZ-3 performance pack, it was not difficult to secure a few 2016 MRZ-3’s for the drift team.

Maesima MRZ-3

The base car came with the perky inline 4 engine, and a sporty suspension, rigid body and was already a JDM performance icon, so KHT has scored massively even before laying a hand on the car. Sadly the competition was to be fierce, and half measures were out of the question.

Not being able to receive the STX-R version did not phase KHT engineers, who settled for a entry level XZ

The first thing the team has addressed was the power output. While the 1.5 liter i4 provided for enough OOMPH in the city, and on b-roads, it was not enough to get the car sideways at over 100mph while wearing semi-slicks. The choice between turbocharging and an engine swap has been settled pretty soon, with the 1.5 liter lump leaving the MRZ.

KHT’s MRZ-3 in early development trim

The weapon of choice was an easy to source Dimension GB62EI in 2007 trim, from a Dimension Hadron. The engine was dismantled, the cylinders honed and rebuilt to spec. The ALSI v8, displacing in 6.2 liters in it’s pushrod glory provided for enough torque to spin the wheels in 3rd. KHT however arranged for Crower high CR pistons and a Compcams camshaft. Custom exhaust manifolds and a straight through exhaust system were fitted, finished off by a custom map, resulting in 631 hp and 639nm, able to safely rev to 8k rpm. A beefed up transmission and a clutch by clutchmasters were making sure the power gets to the rear diff, which in turn was a unit by Quaife.

A late 2016 version of the car at 2017 Tokyo Auto Salon

Helping control the monstrocity were brakes by Wilwood, tein coilover suspension, and HRE wheels, wrapped in Nitto tires. Custom suspension arms helped with steering lock, and required a much wider wheelbase. A custom FRP kit was created for the car, later to be sold separately to any MRZ-3 owner who wished for it.

http://i.imgur.com/2TPyT8z.jpg
KHT’s promotional photoshoot at irwindale

During the season few sponsorship deals were ended, resulting in changed liveries from stage to stage. This however did little to alter the performance of the car.

[DeusExMackia]

That’s one slick livery

[abg7]

It’s absolutely bonkers, but fitting a big V8 in the nose of an MRZ-3 makes perfect sense if you want to turn it into an extreme drift car.

[squidhead]

#1971 SanRemo RR

Things looked good for KHT as the company marched into the 70’s. Not resting on it’s laurels, the Musanne has been slated for production, having backing by freshly found Flug the future looked bright. In the KHT racing team the move was made to keep the aftermarket modifications branch alive, and the team decided not to re-invent the wheel, and turned to the new MkII Communitasia. The new chassis got the team excited, right up to the point when they found out that it’s pretty much more of the same MKI problems.

Accepting the challenge of turning underdogs into sports heroes the team decided to work on the new 2 liter 3 valve OHV modifcation the R, which was on paper inferior to the PR trim. Once again, as with the Alpenstrasse the front end, saw a redesign using much familiar fiberglass, with the rear receiving much of the same treatment. This time around the quarterpanels saw a widening, again using fiberglass, which dropped the weight noticeably. The hood received a scoop for better cooling, and both front and rear saw aero elements, which did little to the downforce, but helped with the sportier look.

One of the 1971 KHT San Remo RR’s promotional photographs

The engine saw a piston replacement to Mahle forged units, now 92mm in bore, changing the displacement to 2.1 liters. The new thinner head gasket and domed pistons also raised the compresison ratio to 7.6:1. Changes to the fuel mixture and the ignition timing were made, as well as eco carburetors being replaced with twin single barrel units, and custom tubular exhaust manifold, routing the exhaust into the new sports exhaust system. Unlike the previous attempt to please everybody, the new project has been moved away from the low quality 80 ron, and was setup to run the new posh stuff, that was the 91 unleaded. The accessibility was sacrificed for performance. The new setup pushed strong at 123hp and 177nm

The transmission saw a minor change, as the differential ratio was changed to see use of new found power, as well as the suspension, which received new shocks, springs and antiroll bars, along with a more aggressive setup. The tires were now 155mm wide, wrapping new alloy wheels instead of base steelies, and the front brakes were a 2 piston 250mm disc brake setup borrowed directly from the Mulsanne’s rear axle. This got the car the handling capabilities to match the engine.

The rear of the communitasia now sported an “RR” badge instead of “R”, bigger exhaust and a duck tail spoiler.

The interior of the car got a minor re-design, with all the seats being replaced by sportier versions, along with a new steering wheel. To finish it all off, the team installed a basic radio, to provide some entertainment on the long journeys.

While not a hit, the San Remo RR, as the team called their creation did see good sales, again, sold as kits outside Germany, and exclusively KHT installed in Germany. Sadly as the company went bankrupt in 1978, the aftermarket branch got shut down, and the conversion kits became quite a rarity, still being sought after by many restomodders. As with the Alpenstrasse, the San Remo RR saw a minor cult following in the modern day tuner scene, where most popular modifications include stancing or drifting.

One of the many restomodded KHT San Remo’s at a stanceworks meet

#Stats
###0-100kph
Before - 13.6s/ After - 8.6s

###Top Speed
Before - 161.2kph / After - 189.6kph

###Weight
Before - 950.3kg / After - 908.2kg

###Max G
Before - 0.79 / After - 0.97

#Engine
###Max power
Before - 78.7hp / After - 123hp

###Max torque
Before - 117nm / After - 177nm

###Responsiveness
Before - 8.9 / After - 27.1

###Loudness
Before - 37.3 / After - 58.9

###Smoothness
Before - 47.1 / After - 46.0

###Reliability
Before - 46.4 / After - 46.9

#Misc
###Comfort
Before - 14.3 / After - 11.2

###Driveability
Before - 51.8 / After - 46.6

###Sportiness
Before - 8.5 / After - 24.1

###Economy
Before - 12.69L/100km / After - 13.7L/100km

Galt Communitasia is a car by @cpufreak101

[cpufreak101]

As always, love seeing what you get done with the Communitasia platform, probably should do a redesign of the MKIII so you have some better future material

by the way, if you didn’t know, the R is supposed to be the base trim, with the PR being a step up

[DeusExMackia]

Daaaaamn that looks sweet. And that fat exhaust… That must sounds superb with the thrummy i4 engine

[abg7]

I love a good restomod, and the SanRemo RR is just that.

[squidhead]

Assoluto Infinito 850++

Not many people could look at an Assoluto and think that it needs improvement, especially when it comes to their most powerful GT, the Infinito 815. Boasting a massive 6.6 liter v12, producing 815hp the car managed to scare even the most seasoned car reviewers. This however did not stop Kraft Haus from taking a look, especialy since KHT CEO Gerhard Wagner owned one of the first cars produced. The very delicate car demanded regular maintenance, and taking it to the dealership proved a hassle, since the closest dealership was over 250km away. By the time the car reached 15,000km and requested it’s third oil and filter change as well as a brake change it was decided to keep the maintenance strictly in house, even though it would lose the warranty.

Stock infinito 815 is more car than most can handle

By the mid 2017 Kraft Haus team knew the car inside and out, and at one of the regular check ups the ECU specialist asked Gerhard if he’d want to try and re-map the car for more power. Reluctantly he agreed. A lot of tinkering during the summer commenced, slowly incorporating more engineers to perform minor changes to the car. The AFR was left unchanged, limiting the tuners to tweak the ignition settings and electronically controlled VVL. Eventually A thinner custom head gasket was introduced to increase compression ratio, and a lighter, free flowing exhaust was fitted to compliment the OEM race grade exhaust manifolds. These minor changes saw the power increase to 850.

Sporting classy looks the 815 received a lot of praise in the motoring community

The suspension department got rid of the active suspension, since it was proving too much of a reliability issue, like most active suspensions, and installed a new thicker rear ARB. The wheels were changed to custom carbon fibre ones, wrapped in wider rubber, which also was changed to road legal semi-slick tires by Michelin, new carbon ceramic brakes were also installed. The interior saw no changes. The end result was a good improvement over the stock, feeling more dedicated and more driver focused, while not losing it’s GT edge. At that point Gerhard Wagner has commissioned a visual re-style and production of the performance kit.

Infinito 850++ had serious visual modifications without taking away form the classy look of the original

The new visuals changed the look of the Assoluto while retaining it’s original vision, while the aerodynamics department went with a lot less downforce, to improve upon the high speed dynamics. Still providing for 30 kilograms of pressure at 200kph, the car did not experience any lift.

The end result was called the Ininito 850++, and cost $35,000 over the base $320,000.

The best use of an Infinito 850++ in words of Gerhard Wagner is “high speed cruising”

One of the Assoluto Infinitos’ brought into the KHT tuner shop was badly damaged in a high speed race on the autobahn, and received many modifications similar to the 850++ during the rebuild. Unlike the regular treatment, the car had it’s interior stripped to the bare minimum covered in alcantara, lost all ICE, and saw a transmission swap to a 6 speed manual. Instead of the regular engine treatment had twin turbochargers installed, running just over 830hp at 0.3 bar. The car also had a tumbler switch on the steering wheel which closed the wastegate shut on demand and started the overfuelling cycle. The real number has not been revealed, but tuner magazines rumour mill has it anywhere from 1050 to 1100hp at 1 bar. The car also had an alarm system that warns the driver of overheat, since the air cooling was left unchanged from the regular 850++, and is insufficient at 1 bar of boost. The car is known in tuner circles as “Rogue Element”, and was able to reach recorded speeds of over 380 kph on unrestricted parts of the autobahn.

Rogue Element was differing visually only by his matte paint and piping going over the hood, which required extra vents to be cut out.

#Stats
##0-100kph
Before - 3.8 s / After - 3.7

##Top Speed
Before - 340.1 kph/ After - 362.7

##Weight
Before - 1659.6 / After - 1585.4

##Max G
Before - 1.43 / After - 1.36

#Engine
##Max power
Before - 815hp / After - 850hp

##Max torque
Before - 739nm / After - 746

##Responsiveness
Before - 74.1 / After - 73.8

##Loudness
Before - 33.4 / After - 55.4

##Smoothness
Before - 91.5 / After - 88.5

##Reliability
Before - 66.5 / After - 70.2

#Misc
##Comfort
Before - 51.2 / After - 45.0

##Driveability
Before - 59.4 / After - 48.5

##Sportiness
Before - 77.6 / After - 73.2

##Economy
Before - 11.9l 100km / After - 13.2l 100km

##Top Gear lap time
Before - 01:11.8 / After - 01:11.69

Note : every tab that saw me change anything that had quality points lost them. Meaning that I swapped out +6 sports tires to +0 semi slicks. This is why the results are not that impressive. Original car provided by @Deskyx