Sprocket's Competition

I have been unfaithful and strayed.
The past several weeks, Sprocket has not been the center of my hardware fantasies...she's been supplanted.

Not really her fault, if anything, her goodness had lulled me into a state of complacency...dare I say boredom?
I needed some strange.

As it happens, the solution found me.
I answered an ad for help on a car project- a project that's long been near and dear to me...swapping a V-8 into a Mazda RX-7.
This is something I've been considering for well over a year and the chance to get paid while practising on someone else's car was irresistible.

A bit of background...
This car (a third generation 1993 RX) was purchased by the current owner last March.
The engine had already been installed and (supposedly) the car had been driven on the street for over a year.
When purchased, the transmission had issues and the engine was thought to have a blown head gasket.

The new owner flailed away but made little headway and finally sought help.
Enter moi.

We've been working one day each weekend and there is finally light at the end of the tunnel.

I should note that IMO the engine was improperly installed from the git-go and, while the new owner agreed, he wanted to continue so he could actually drive the car and see what he thought.
So, it's likely that we're going to rip out the whole install and start all over with a proper engine mount, but that will happen in the future.

Anyway, when we started the car was in need of a lot of basic assembly.
We started with the easy stuff, new ignition, wires & plugs, oil and filter...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...r/Optiplex.jpg

The engine is an iron block LT1 with a six speed T-56 transmission from a '96 Camaro. It's been ported and has solid lifters and a more aggressive cam.
After installing the new Optiplex ignition and waterpump we moved on to the intake and cooling...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...er/Intake1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...er/Intake2.jpg

All of this had to be pieced together to fit into the limited space we had to work with.
At this point we were able to start the car and decided that it ran too well to have anything seriously wrong...it had probably been suffering from a flaky ignition.
So far, so good.
More detail work and wiring followed.

New brake pads and wheels/tires were installed.
This week I rolled her out and she got her first bath in over a year...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/wash1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/wash2.jpg

(That's my red second gen RX on the street...)
Still to go is installing the new (to us anyway) bodykit...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/Snose.jpg

There are also sideskirts and rear wheel spats.

Sometime next week the car goes into the shop and the transmission gets rebuilt/upgraded.
After that she goes to have the final exhaust fabricated.
Finally, paint.

While she's out getting worked on, we'll be recovering all the interior panels with black Alcantara.
We already have new carpet and new Corbeau seats.

I can't wait to drive this thing.
Compared to the stock car, we've added @ 125-150 horsepower and tripled the low end torque, something the Wankel engine is notoriously lacking.
Gas mileage should be similar to- if not better than- the original engine.

All told, the new engine weighs about 75lbs more than the stocker and this is exacerbated by the poor engine location (it's about 4-5" further forward than it should be).
Effects on handling and suspension are as yet unknown.
We'll deal with that after it gets driven for a while.

The owner plans on using this as his daily driver.
Should make the daily commute interesting.

So, that's what I've been up to.
Sprocket has been understanding so far...

So far she has, wait till you "a come a callin'" Then we'll see.

After this weekend I'll have some downtime from the car and have some plans for Sprocket.
There's a different CPU waterblock to try and an OS upgrade (with possible hard drive rearrangement) in the works.

It's actually been kind of weird to just use the computer and not work on her constantly.
This may be the longest she's ever gone without an upgrade or change.
I think this is how normal people deal with their PC...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clocker

I think this is how normal people deal with their PC...

---

Just so.

1) What kind of transmission upgrades.

2) Did you get the other three through the shifter yet, or will this fix that, as well.

3) Have any other of us done this type of stuffs.

1) Improved shift forks and synchros

2) The new shift rod block finally arrived and will be installed Sunday...then we'll see.

3) I dunno.

We were going to drop off the car today but Mother Nature intervened with a spring blizzard.
Now going to work on the car some more Sunday and take her in Monday.
The owner goes into the hospital Tuesday for back surgery, so I don't know our timeline from there.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by clocker

1) Improved shift forks and synchros

2) The new shift rod block finally arrived and will be installed Sunday...then we'll see.

3) I dunno.

We were going to drop off the car today but Mother Nature intervened with a spring blizzard.
Now going to work on the car some more Sunday and take her in Monday.
The owner goes into the hospital Tuesday for back surgery, so I don't know our timeline from there.

---

Ah.

Back to 'bated breath, then.

Indeed.
The scope and conditions of his recovery are unknown (to me, at least).

This is a concern because I've expended a lot of energy into the project and have become quite invested in it's success. It's also been a source of income.

To date, money has not been an issue...the owner has spent freely when necessary (and sometimes, even when not) but I really have no idea what the budget- if there is one- might be.
I am also unaware of what "finished"- as he would define it- is.

No matter the outcome of this particular car, my desire to perform a similar swap has only intensified.
A lot will depend on the difficulty we experience passing emissions.

In Colorado, any car less than twenty five years old must pass a regular sniff test (which includes a visual examination).
Cars older than that (i.e., model year 1984 and earlier) are subject to a more relaxed test and qualify for "historic" status.
This status not only gets you a tag good for 5 years at a time (my 240Z had one) but also only gets tested the first time you register the car. From then on, as long as you own it, the car is never tested again.

This means that if I bought a pre-1985 RX ( the first generation body style), I could test it with the original engine and then perform the swap with no further inspection at all...ever.

It also means I could use a carbed engine which is not only cheaper but significantly simpler as it is absent the computerized engine management system.

So you can see why I have more than just one pony in this race.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by clocker

Indeed.
The scope and conditions of his recovery are unknown (to me, at least).

This is a concern because I've expended a lot of energy into the project and have become quite invested in it's success. It's also been a source of income.

To date, money has not been an issue...the owner has spent freely when necessary (and sometimes, even when not) but I really have no idea what the budget- if there is one- might be.
I am also unaware of what "finished"- as he would define it- is.

No matter the outcome of this particular car, my desire to perform a similar swap has only intensified.
A lot will depend on the difficulty we experience passing emissions.

In Colorado, any car less than twenty five years old must pass a regular sniff test (which includes a visual examination).
Cars older than that (i.e., model year 1984 and earlier) are subject to a more relaxed test and qualify for "historic" status.
This status not only gets you a tag good for 5 years at a time (my 240Z had one) but also only gets tested the first time you register the car. From then on, as long as you own it, the car is never tested again.

This means that if I bought a pre-1985 RX ( the first generation body style), I could test it with the original engine and then perform the swap with no further inspection at all...ever.

It also means I could use a carbed engine which is not only cheaper but significantly simpler as it is absent the computerized engine management system.

So you can see why I have more than just one pony in this race.

---

The "pony" reference would be of greater significance if you were talking a Ford swap.

Have you given that any thought?

All options would be open...I'm not really knowledgeable about any American drivetrains.
Which do you prefer?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clocker

All options would be open...I'm not really knowledgeable about any American drivetrains.
Which do you prefer?

---

The underdog in me says go Ford, and there are more options, but it just stands to reason Chevrolet will hold the edge in installation numbers.

Personally, I like the OHC options Ford offers (they go back a few more years as well, and should have good availability), but it comes down to the best deal you can find.

I can't claim to be right up-to-date on this stuff, but the install-kit websites ought to be a resource.

Install kits are available for either Ford or Chevy.
I haven't researched the relative merits of either- especially in a first gen chassis- as yet.

As you say, finding an engine/trans package will probably be the determining factor because really, either would probably be stoopid fast.

Yeah.

Reality doesn't bite in either case.

Today's loverly weather.
Really makes you want to get out and work on the car...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7.../Aprilsnow.jpg

It's just a few degrees under being rain, shit weighs a ton.
Apparently we're setting a record for moisture with this one.
Supposed to start clearing in a few hours, if the sun comes out the roads will be dry by tonight.
I hope...

I feel for you.

Yesterday's weather was the polar opposite (see what I did there?) of the days preceding...65 degrees and sunny.
Today will be even nicer and most of the snow will be gone.

We put in a marathon session, prepping the car for it's trip to the shop later today.

Inexplicably, I forgot my camera but will have it ready for today's meetup, so you'll just have to trust me that she looks like a real car, mostly.

Installed the new shifter block...all six forward speeds now work.
The new short shift assembly is also in and works pretty well although the lever will need some massaging to get it's height down.

Although mostly intact, there are still a plethora of issues to be addressed, all of which we decided to ignore in favor of a test drive.

All I can say is "Clocker, come to Jesus!"...this thing is a monster.

I have never, I mean never ever, been in a car with such a visceral sense of power.
She'll light up the tires in the first four gears without even trying.

The sense of sheer brutality is heightened by the gawdawful loud exhaust (next on the list after the tranny is done) and the extremely tight cockpit of the third gen RX.
The car seems to consist of two seats and a motor- my car is positively Cadillacian in comparison (note to self...stop making up words!).

My entire automotive life I've been an adherent of the European school of thought...small+ light + suspension= speed...and disdained the crude American approach- "Fuck it, gimme more motor!".
After yesterday, I'm rethinking my philosophy.

The animal nature of the car is exacerbated by the wonky clutch action (soon to be fixed, we hope) and the hair trigger throttle (no ideas yet but will have to be tamed).
As I said, we still have a long ways to go.

After yesterday though it'll all be easier since we'll probably still have these idiot grins plastered on our faces.

I'll get some pics up later.

I'm grinning, myself.

We're getting your snow, so until I read that, I was a bit depressed.

I feel much better now, thanks.

Did you ever dope out the final drive ratio.

Thanks for the crappy weather dude. It's rain now BTW and its not going to stop until Thursday :(. Can't wait to see more car pics ;)

Oh boo-hoo...you get rain, we get 35° and snow.
Trade ya.

Yesterday was nearly 70°, snow all gone.
Car is in the shop.
Wednesday night I go in and we put her on the lift and begin to see what's what.
Pics then.

Edit:
Much to my surprise, when he showed up at the shop yesterday, the car's owner- who we'll call "S." from now on- pulled out a folder that had specifics of the engine build...why I've never seen this I don't know.
Our engine is bored/stroked 350 (now 383 ci) with forged rods, larger valves, porting, bigger injectors, cam, yada, yada.
Most interesting was a dyno chart from 18 months ago.

There's no telling what's she's making now but back then it was 420 HP and 400 ft/lbs...at the wheels!
In a car that weighs @2800 lbs.

No wonder it seems fast...it actually is!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clocker

Oh boo-hoo...you get rain, we get 35° and snow.
Trade ya.

Yesterday was nearly 70°, snow all gone.
Car is in the shop.
Wednesday night I go in and we put her on the lift and begin to see what's what.
Pics then.

Edit:
Much to my surprise, when he showed up at the shop yesterday, the car's owner- who we'll call "S." from now on- pulled out a folder that had specifics of the engine build...why I've never seen this I don't know.
Our engine is bored/stroked 350 (now 383 ci) with forged rods, larger valves, porting, bigger injectors, cam, yada, yada.
Most interesting was a dyno chart from 18 months ago.

There's no telling what's she's making now but back then it was 420 HP and 400 ft/lbs...at the wheels!
In a car that weighs @2800 lbs.

No wonder it seems fast...it actually is!

---

Yeah...that 420 is also (as I recall) stock LS7 for the car it came out of.

No ATC or ATW referenced, so...

I'm gonna guess your 383 is closer to 480-500 and 450 or so at, what, about 4500 rpm?

A total noob could probably break 11 in the quarter.

Relentless torque - shit, you'll never have to break 5K, unless you're showing off.

Did you get that link I sent.

BTW-

We've gotten about 18" inches of heavy white-stuff so far; it's not scheduled to stop until about 0300 tomorrow.

What's this shit about rain.

Our engine is an LT, not an LS, but that's neither here nor there.

You were on the money re: RPMs....which is a good thing because we have a real breakup/stumble issue right around 4500.
It does clear up over 5 grand* but you'd better have a lot of clear road ahead of you at that speed.
S. and Dan (the mechanic) are hoping that the ignition control module is the culprit.
It's relatively cheap and poorly located, bolted right to end of the head.
We'll get a new one and move it to the shock tower, a much cooler environment.

Can't wait for tomorrow night to get started in a real shop.
It'll be my first real look at the underside of the car.


*When S. first bought the car it had an AutoMeter Monster tach in it.
The telltale read 7400RPM.
We don't know what to make of that...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clocker

Our engine is an LT, not an LS, but that's neither here nor there.

You were on the money re: RPMs....which is a good thing because we have a real breakup/stumble issue right around 4500.
It does clear up over 5 grand* but you'd better have a lot of clear road ahead of you at that speed.
S. and Dan (the mechanic) are hoping that the ignition control module is the culprit.
It's relatively cheap and poorly located, bolted right to end of the head.
We'll get a new one and move it to the shock tower, a much cooler environment.

Can't wait for tomorrow night to get started in a real shop.
It'll be my first real look at the underside of the car.


*When S. first bought the car it had an AutoMeter Monster tach in it.
The telltale read 7400RPM.
We don't know what to make of that...

---

7400 shouldn't be undoable, considering it's probably got reasonably fresh (and maybe heavier-duty) valve springs.

I'd guess you're right about the ignition, too.

I'd also guess your throttle response will calm down once the exhaust is done; I'm sure the 'puter doesn't have the slightest idea what to think, just now.

You/he might look into the possibility of some reprogramming as well - the Camaro was quite a bit heavier than the Mazda, which would probably like more advance and a quicker curve.

The lower-end should be up to flashing it, but with all the cubes, it's certainly not necessary.

I really like the looks of that little rig.

I'd better go on a serious diet...

I think the throttle is actually a mechanical issue.
A different cam on the throttlebody should clear that up.

Reprogramming/tuning is definitely on the list.

Don't bother with the diet...just get a second gen like mine.
The quality of the 3rd gen interior is really crap and it's just very poor from an ergonomic perspective.

For some reason I just flashed on a fantasy of Kenna's face being ripped off as she sticks her head out this one's window.
Humorous in a disgusting way...apologize to her for me.

I just helped a friend with a swap on a 2nd gen Prelude.
New engine was very close to this one-
http://www.preludeonline.com/attachm...engine-008.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by LaPistola

I just helped a friend with a swap on a 2nd gen Prelude.

---

Details, please.
What did you swap from/to?
What did the swap gain you?

Well, last night the car went up on the lift and I got my first good look at the underside.
To put it mildly...we have issues.

We knew there were problems- no reverse, for one- but things are worse than I suspected (and certainly worse than S. hoped, for sure).

Where to begin?

The exhaust was as big a POS as we thought but that's not a problem as we'd planned on building a new one anyway.
It's crap construction was actually a boon as it literally fell off the car after the header bolts were undone.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/Exh1.jpg
Everything was a slip fit...no wonder it sounded like it leaked...it did!

Moving on...
The 3rd gen RX has a "floating" differential, tied to the transmission with a fairly elaborate brace structure.
As we no longer have the stock tranny, the "builders" (very generous use of the term here) had to fab a new brace.
Their engineering, welding skills and material choices leave a lot to be desired...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/Diff2.jpg

It's also apparent we have some oil control issues with the diff, hopefully just seals (fingers crossed).

Moving on, we were finally able to access the transmission proper.
Let me clarify a bit, Dan the mechanic was able to access the transmission...my duty to was to stay out of his way. Two factors aided us here- Dan has every tool known to man and the transmission was missing three of the eight mounting bolts.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/Trans1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/Trans2.jpg

The hope ( fervently expressed by all) was that the lack of reverse was due to a shift linkage problem, a bad lockout solenoid or, worst case, shift forks.

Ah...no.

Removing the rear of the housing (which exposes reverse and 6th gear) revealed this...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/Trans4.png
Note all the gunk in the bottom of the casing- helpfully pointed out by the red arrow (Yay Paint!)- this is ALL METAL!
Not a good thing.
Removing reverse gear (the large one on the top shaft) exposed the culprit...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...r/Synchro1.jpg
This is the reverse gear synchro and needle bearing, what's left of them.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/Shaft1.jpg
The carnage extends to the output shaft (it never rains but it pours) which is so badly galled that the remaining gear can't be removed (yeah, it's a terrible pic so just take my word on this).

At this point we retired to the office and began to look up parts.
The first one- the output shaft- is $700.
Yikes!

It was quickly apparent that a rebuild of this unit was going to be very expensive.
The shop (Precision Import Repair) is tied into a nationwide network of junkyards and we searched for a suitable replacement online.
Nearest result was here in town- a rebuilt unit for a mere $2600.

Ouch.

Searching further afield we found others in the $1700- 2000 range but they would involve shipping, so not a real big savings.

The owner, S., just had spinal surgery on Tuesday and I haven't spoken to him since.
Besides hoping that the operation went well, I'm also hoping that he's now doped to the gills on Demerol (or better!) so breaking this news won't be so shocking.

We'll see.

Revealing (and heartbreaking) pics.

You're going to find out how deep S's wallet is, I think (best to him, btw - rehab is major suckage).

The "builders" you refer to should be made to answer for their affront.

I think S. should buy the one I linked you to and start over.

Have spoken to S. several times today, he is now at home doing as well as could be expected, wishing he had more Percosets.

In a flurry of phone calls, we have located and arranged to pick up a NEW T-56.
Never installed, still in crate, $1650.
I'm picking it up tomorrow morning, it's about an hour north of me so, really not a big deal.

I should have it Dan's capable hands by three or so.
Not that he'll do anything with it right away but at least we're not holding up the show.

Whew.

As to the "builders"...
Realistically, S. has no recourse.
He knew there was a problem with reverse when he purchased the car over a year ago.
They would obviously play dumb and point to the passage of time...case closed.

Dan and I suspect they knew exactly what and how devastating the problem was.
Three missing bolts- and two finger tight ones- point pretty conclusively to someone having removed the gearbox in situ, just as we did last night.

Life is a bitch.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clocker

Have spoken to S. several times today, he is now at home doing as well as could be expected, wishing he had more Percosets.

In a flurry of phone calls, we have located and arranged to pick up a NEW T-56.
Never installed, still in crate, $1650.
I'm picking it up tomorrow morning, it's about an hour north of me so, really not a big deal.

I should have it Dan's capable hands by three or so.
Not that he'll do anything with it right away but at least we're not holding up the show.

Whew.

As to the "builders"...
Realistically, S. has no recourse.
He knew there was a problem with reverse when he purchased the car over a year ago.
They would obviously play dumb and point to the passage of time...case closed.

Dan and I suspect they knew exactly what and how devastating the problem was.
Three missing bolts- and two finger tight ones- point pretty conclusively to someone having removed the gearbox in situ, just as we did last night.

Life is a bitch.

---

Yeah - it goes that way as often as not.

Super lucky to find a new trans...solid friggin' gold, in fact.

S. should call those guys and ask them to check around, see if they still have the bolts, huh?

Maybe give them a compliment on their engineering and fabrication skills.

I urge you also to congratulate Dan on his no-nonsense mien.

Impressive.

If by "no-nonsense mien" you mean "scary mofo", then I agree.
Really nice guy though and a ferocious mechanic.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by clocker

If by "no-nonsense mien" you mean "scary mofo", then I agree.
Really nice guy though and a ferocious mechanic.

---

Yes, I do, and I appreciate your use of the adjective.

Some people can weld without resorting to pedestrian AC voltage.

Today I picked up a brand new T-56 which we found on Craigslist.
Only $1650.
Still in the shipping crate, all the temperature telltales zeroed.

Work will resume Monday night.

Worked on the car again last night.

Here's the new T-56 tranny...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/T-56.jpg

She looks all grungy because she's been stored for 4 years in a shed but the temp telltales prove she's never been run...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...r/Telltale.jpg

Discovered that the old bellhousing had a broken mount (center bolthole)...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...enbolthole.jpg
...so we pulled it and used the new one.
Also used the new throwout bearing lever/pivot.

Now in place (all hardware new as well)...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/T-56In.jpg

A few random shop shots...here's a nice 1st gen RX (probably an 81)...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...ker/1stGen.jpg

...and one for Kev...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/Kev.jpg

Now we're just waiting on some parts.
Should have enough stuff in hand by Friday to work over the weekend and get most everything done.
Maybe.

Our two largest remaining fabrication projects...

-Proper alternator mount.
The LT1 engine accepts a wide variety of alternator brackets, depending on the vehicle application.
Because of the way the builders chose to mount the engine- using very simple engine plates instead of proper subframe motor mounts- none of these factory options are available to us.

Instead, they cobbled a simple- and structurally unsound- install which has been nothing but trouble.
This needs to be addressed and I think I know how to do it.
Preliminary fab work begins today.

-The "Power Plant Frame".
First used in the Miata, the Power Plant Frame (or "PPF", for short) ties the transmission to the differential with a lattice-like structural member.
This is what the stock part looks like...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...plantframe.jpg

For some reason, the original builders completely discarded this piece and crafted a replacement out of what appears to be random pieces of stock laying in their shop.
Outside of the crappy build quality, the biggest problem is that the replacement piece completely ignores the original mounting points and inexplicably ties to various random parts of the rear subframe.

I admit that I don't fully understand the the Mazda engineering- and there are several aftermarket replacements meant to address weaknesses in the stock design- but it seems bizarre and willfully ignorant to deviate too far from the original design.

So we've found an original PPF in Chicago and it's on the way.
Obviously, the transmission end will have to be modified to fit the T-56 transmission- until the part is in hand I have no idea how difficult this will be- but it should be a far better solution than what we started with.

There remain myriad smaller issues to deal with, but once the above two are completed- and the exhaust fabricated- the car should be legitimately "driveable".

Speaking of the exhaust...the one that came on the car was so horrendously built and welded that driving the car around the shop with just the open headers is no louder than it was with the "exhaust" installed.
Remarkable.

Despite my silence work has been ongoing.

Primary focus has been on adapting the stock PPF to fit the T-56 transmission. Finally got it (mostly) bolted up last night.

This has been quite a tedious process, requiring that the PPF be bolted in, assessed, marked, removed then trimmed about 20 times.
When we finally got the differential pinion angle and the transmission angle correct it was finally time to tack weld on the first transmission mount bracket.

Then fit, adjust, remove and finish weld.
All that's left now is a bit more bracing and a spacer fabricated to install the rear transmission mount and she's done.

Working again Thurs. night and after that one more day in the shop should have most of the little stuff addressed.
It sure has been nice to work in a real shop instead of the owner's garage and Dan the mechanic has been a godsend.

After this, she's off to get a real exhaust fabricated and some final detailing done.
Then she goes on the dyno for tuning work and finally we see if she'll pass emissions.
It's almost scary how rasty this thing is and even scarier is the fact that it's running pig rich and untuned.
When properly setup, there's no telling what this car will do.

Probably blow the rear end off...

No real good pics from the latest work session since I was too greasy to handle the camera.
I do have one from when we were done and Dan wanted to test the integrity of the PPF...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v78/clocker/Chirp.jpg

The tire chirps on the floor are the result of revving it up and dropping the clutch...in third gear.
I think we're going to need a pinion snubber.

Oy.

Well...
bring the car into the shop tonight and the clutch pedal goes to the floor.

Up on the lift expecting to see a blown slave cylinder, but no.

A more detailed exam reveals that the throwout bearing has broken into pieces.
Gaahh.
The transmission we just installed had to come right back out.

New clutch and bearing on order, won't arrive until Monday at the earliest.

The good news is that we finished the PPF, just need to clean up some welds and paint it.

I wonder if this damn thing will ever be finished.

Be patient.

I've never had a TO bearing go to pieces, btw.

That's new.

Me neither but then again, I've never seen a Stage 2 ACT, pull-type clutch before either.

We should have pulled/inspected the clutch while the gearbox was off the first time.
Probably wouldn't have caught the TO bearing but the friction plate was fairly worn and S. would have almost certainly decided to replace the unit anyway.

Just a waste of labor really.

On a happy note, I'm almost finished piecing together a really trick two stage controller for the efan in my car.
A triumph of internet investigation and junkyard scouring it is.

Not sure if anyone is still following this (besides Kev) but since I like to hear myself talk I'll keep going.

Thirsday night Dan and I pulled an all nighter (5:30PM to 4 AM) and basically thrashed all the remaining problems into submission.

New clutch installed and clutch pedal properly adjusted (sits level with brake pedal now). Pedal feel is somewhat stout but actually not bad while driving.

Transmission back in, shifter installed and PPF finished and bolted in.

Diff opened up for inspection (appears brand new, has 3.9 gearing from an automatic), resealed and filled.

Ebrake cable bracket fabbed, welded in and cables installed- now have functioning ebrake.

Relocated/rewired ignition module from DS head to wheelwell, away from the heat.

Added helper spring to throttle body, eliminated tendency of throttle to hang open.

Friday morning (at 7:30...I'm definitely too old for this shit!) we again met at the shop, got her off the lift and fixed a few more piddly little things.
At lunchtime, S. met us at the shop, paid Dan for his work (thanks, Dan!) and we prepared to drive the car to the exhaust shop.

S.'s recent back surgery precludes him from driving this beast (manual steering rack with big tires= high steering effort), so I was the driver by default.

Hairiest ride of my life.

Car has no exhaust, just open headers, so it sounds like the end of the world is approaching.
Harley riders- with their typically stupid loud exhausts- quivered in envy.
So, we had to plan out route to avoid any known cop hangouts...instant ticket if caught.

Worse though is the way she drives.
Without an exhaust there are no O2 sensors in place, so the CPU assumes it's in START mode all the time and adds lots of fuel...and keeps pouring it on.
This means that as the car warms up, it won't hold an idle and must be revved over 4K to continue running.
So, I'm driving a kinghell LOUD car, revving the piss out of it to keep from stalling and then drag launching at every stoplight- don't want to be slipping/overheating a brand new $500 clutch, ya know.
All this on neighborhood streets with 35 MPH speedlimits.

Fortunately, I only had to go a few miles but still, was completely frazzled when I arrived.
Exhaust should be done on Monday.

Hopefully, she'll be easier to handle cause then I drive her to my house to do some fab work on the alternator mount and cobble in a fuel filter.

Then it's off to Boulder for some dyno time/tuning.

Finally, we'll see how badly it fails emissions.

No pics of recent work since I've been too greasy to handle the camera but I'll try for some while she's up on the lift at the exhaust shop Monday.

There is light at the end of this tunnel.

I'm still with you.

Sounds like you're having fun.

Just call me green (with envy).