Calan

Ok...where was I?

When I started working on the rear of the car, it was pretty apparent that the fasteners were in even worse shape than the ones on the front of the car. After some close inspection, it turned out that most of it was just surface rust and years of road grime. So rather than spend lots of $$ on new suspension bolts, I decided to media blast them all and started thinking...

I got a lot accomplished with the car this weekend but before we get to that, there was one more thing I forgot to mention in the last entry.

Since I live out in the country, I decided I could use some driving lights. The stockers are long gone, and wouldn't work anyway since I'm using the factory locations for a CAI and oil cooler. What I ended up getting was a pair of mini halogens...

Well it's been about 6 months, so I thought I better post an update on what's been going on with the never-ending project (but that's why we love 'em ).

The car was running really well after firing it up, and still is. After break-in and a bit of tuning, ECMLink HP and 70-90 estimates put it right around 400 awhp on the e316g, which feels about right. (I plan on getting to a dyno...

It's ALIVE!

It started right up, and other than a couple of very minor issues it has been running pretty well. The only real "problem" I've had so far is a weeping turbo oil feed line that just doesn't want to go away. It's not enough to even smoke or drip, but still...I'll probably end up going to a stainless line with AN fittings in the next week or so.

In the interest...

We're getting closer!

I've finally gotten the suspension back together and the brake work done, but as usual... it ended up being more of a project than originally planned. While getting ready to put everything back together, I inspected the calipers and found quite a bit of corrosion, so I decided to rebuild them. (I wrote a tech article on it that can be found here).

...

As I get closer and closer to "finishing" this build, I find myself having a hard time remembering what things were like before it all started. So much has changed, but the last year has been a blur.

In an effort to remind myself of what I've gone through and to help keep me motivated, I started going through some of the pictures that I've shot over the last three years since owning...

Things are moving along fairly quickly now, but I still have some minor hurdles to get past. The biggest issue is that I still need to find a proper J-pipe and get my LICP welded up, and then get the fans/radiator in place and wired. But more on that in a later part...

The last few weeks have mostly been spent dealing with the bolt-on stuff. (SS lines, oil cooler, VC, etc). I also wrapped...

Once I figured out what I wanted to do with the catch cans, everything else around the intake manifold started falling into place.

First up was modification of the PCV valve outlet on the VC. I've never liked the way it comes straight out and into the TPS, so I decided to modify it for a better angle towards the catch can. I also wanted to keep the snorkel to help eliminate as much...

This one is a bit long...

I finally got around to finishing the design of my catch cans and getting them built. But first, a little history...

Some of you (with no life) may have read through the Stupid PCV question thread and remember that several of us were trying all sorts of different things a couple years ago to find a catch can setup that worked. Long story short,...

Since dropping the motor in, I've been working mostly on re-assembling the little stuff and finishing off some sensor wiring, along with some more minor fabrication projects.

While working on the new injector wiring, it quickly became obvious that the ignition coils had to be moved. Besides being in the way of injector #1, I've never been crazy about the way the coils sit in the manifold....

I've got the motor in, so now it's just a matter of lots of tedious work; a bit more wiring, some minor fabrication, and hooking everything back up.

I wasn't really looking forward to torquing the flywheel bolts, stabbing the tranny, and dropping the motor in by myself, but it was actually really easy. (Most of this entry will be spent describing the method I used).

For...

The last couple weeks were spent wrapping up the motor, and finishing up some little projects that needed to be done before the new stroker gets dropped back in to it's new home.

While waiting on parts, I finished up the wiring harness down by the battery, and got the cables wrapped and tucked out of the way. I also got the coolant overflow painted and mounted next to the CAI, and...

The last few weeks have been all about more blasting, polishing, detailing, and some odds and ends that don't require much cash.

I took my E316G apart and cleaned up the porting a bit more and re-polished it. While I was at it, I blasted the compressor cover, hotside, O2 housing, and exhaust manifold. I also ported the manifold, and took it (along with the O2 housing and hotside)...

Well it seems like I'm FINALLY seeing a little light at the end of the tunnel, but there is still a lottttttt of tunnel left

A couple weeks ago I finally bit the bullet and picked up a blasting cabinet and a bucket of 80 grit glass media from Harbor Freight. I've wanted one for about 20 years now, and with all the DSM parts that needed some TLC for my rebuild, I said what the hell...

YEAH BABY! I got the 2.3L stroker short block back from the machine shop, so now the real fun can begin.



Before I start building the motor, I wanted to set it in the car temporarily so I could do some final mock-up on a few remaining parts. After attaching the front and rear mounts, I dropped it in and bolted up the driver's side mount. I then...

Well after a lot of thought, I decided not to relocate my battery. My excuses include too much stuff already coming through the firewall, potential NHRA tech problems, cost, screwing with my interior, etc. etc. But while looking into it, I started getting some ideas for power distribution and that crazy mess of wiring connected to the battery.

While sourcing parts I came across a 3-in/4-out...

Not a whole lot to talk about with this one, but thought I better stay up-to-date. I spent the majority of last weekend cleaning my garage and workbench; it had gotten WAY out of hand and I couldn't find anything anymore.

But I did get a few things done on the car as well. For starters, that used up yellow tubing for the windshield washers had to go. I bought some Excelon RNT clear PVC tubing from U.S. Plastics,...

I spent the last few evenings working on mounting the radiator, modifying my bumper, mounting the intercooler, and various small projects.

I bought this CX Racing radiator off ebay last fall, and never installed it. So now that the time has come, I found that it didn't fit as nicely as I wanted. The main problem is the top mounting posts; they are uneven and not located in the same...

It's been a few months, so I guess I need to get this thing updated. Now...Where was I?

I didn't get much accomplished over the holidays, other than finishing up the engine bay cleaning and getting the first coat of paint on. After taking a break for a couple of months, I caught a few warm days in early March and finished painting the bay. I used Duplicolor Low Gloss Black, with Gloss...

I spent the last week or so finishing up the basic cleaning, building new brackets, and mocking up the new firewall layout. Extensive work was done on the wiring harness; several wires were shortened and others that were not needed were removed.

I also started testing various paints for the engine bay. The first paints I tested were standard rattle cans of Krylon and Rustoleum. Interestingly,...

Well I finally got the motor torn all the way down and off to the machine shop for measurements and a thorough inspection. Over the next few weeks, it will be tanked, magnafluxed, and blueprinted. In the mean time, I'll be trying to decide exactly which direction I want to go with it and trying to come up with the funds to actually do it .

As of right now, I'm leaning towards a 2.3l...

The last several days have been all about removing more crap and cleaning, cleaning, and doing some more cleaning. It's unbelievable how much grime and gunk can accumulate in every nook and cranny over the course of 17 years.

First things first, I had to remove most everything from the bay and get the firewall pad off. It wasn't too bad, but getting it out from behind the brake booster...

A few weeks ago I decided to replace my radiator...which led to needing a new fan and wiring. After staring at the wiring for a minute, and knowing that a recent compression and leakdown test had shown cylinder #1 to be low, I decided to put the car on stands, maybe pull the head and do a "few" other things to it over a couple of weeks.

Well as it usually goes, one thing led to another...