Superman Update

Got some work done this weekend. I decided to remove the rear to finally address the service rust. I cleaned up the rust and then painted everything. It came out ok. I also started on the front, cleaning up the engine bay, and cleaning up the harness. At this point I won't be removing anything from the harness. I don't know enough about how a DSM is wired to go messing with the harness, and I really don't want any issues at start up. I also bought some parts. I got a drive shaft loop, JMF catch can and battery tray. Here are some pics.











Painted





This thing is built like a tank

Who makes that driveshaft loop?

bastarddsm said:

Who makes that driveshaft loop?

Click to expand...

Andrew Kisner/Frontline Fab

Ahhhh like the new paint. Don't forget to post pictures once you get all that installed again!

96awd said:

Ahhhh like the new paint. Don't forget to post pictures once you get all that installed again!

Click to expand...

Should have some more pics up this weekend. I originally wanted to get the engine bay painted; but, I can't afford that right now. I plan on using some Eastwood paint coupled with some good surface prep to get the job done. I will also attempt to mount the Fuse box in the dash to clean up the look of the engine bay.

Superman said:

Should have some more pics up this weekend. I originally wanted to get the engine bay painted; but, I can't afford that right now. I plan on using some Eastwood paint coupled with some good surface prep to get the job done. I will also attempt to mount the Fuse box in the dash to clean up the look of the engine bay.

Click to expand...

Me and a buddy ended up just buying some high-heat paint from Wal-Mart along with some clear. Spent maybe $50 bucks total (including cleaning products before painting) and it didn't turn out too bad. It's a cheap alternative and will do what it's supposed too. I always paint my engine bay's with the same setup and never had a problem with pealing, cracking, bubbles, etc. Just something to take into consideration if you want a freshly painted engine bay!

Here's a pic before clear. The wiper motor has been removed along with everything else though; plans were a tad different when I painted and was gonna leave it all.

Hey man, that looks good.

Superman said:

Hey man, that looks good.

Click to expand...

Thanks. As I said, if you really wanna paint it without spending gobs of money to have someone do it, it's a cheap, yet very clean job if you can do it yourself.

Hey guys; just wanted to get your opinion on turbos. I had my heart set on a BB GT42R Turbo for this build; however, the price is higher now and I am thinking I may have to go with the standard GT42 or a Borg Warner unit to fit my budget. Which one would you guys recommend?

Borg Warner s374/5 w/ a bat wheel

96awd said:

Borg Warner s374/5 w/ a bat wheel

Click to expand...

Agreed. We've run a BEP s375 on our shop car for a few years now and NEVER had any problem. Their great turbos, make a lot of power and VERY reasonable price wise. Whatever you get, NO TURBONETICS!!!! haha

boosted240 said:

Agreed. We've run a BEP s375 on our shop car for a few years now and NEVER had any problem. Their great turbos, make a lot of power and VERY reasonable price wise. Whatever you get, NO TURBONETICS!!!! haha

Click to expand...

Is it as durable as the BB GT42R turbos?

No journal bearing turbo will survive at high PRs as long as a ballistic center section will.

JohnTSI said:

No journal bearing turbo will survive at high PRs as long as a ballistic center section will.

Click to expand...

I may be wrong here, but didn't you run the BW unit as well then switch out? Was that maybe your reason?

I also believe Mike Wohler has been on the 374 for 4 years, only replaced the seals once in this time period (normal at the power.) I think it's a perfect candidate for the spot even though it's JB, but you really can't beat the price and performance of the turbo seeing how many are putting it through a beating and coming out OK.

Don't have to take my word for it, just an opinion which is what you asked for, Superman.

Hey guys, been doing some work on the car. (I will post some pics shortly.) I just wanted to get your opinion on compression ratios. I had intended to run E98 because it was cheap and people are making big power on it; but, you can't buy it unless you order 55 gallons. I can't store that much fuel in my garage. It looks like I'll have to run race gas, maybe C23 (which is 120 octane), or maybe VP Import (which is really expensive). What compression ratio should I be aiming for? I know with e98 you can run as high as 10.5:1. What do you guys think?

SUPERMAN UPDATE
Got my fuel cell from JM FAB. Also picked up the HD clutch upgrade from TMZ performance for my twin disk (Thanks Tim). Installed the rear and some new brake lines. I didn't attach the shocks because I think I am going to need some stiffer springs. What would you guys recommend for spring rates? More updates coming soon.

Here's a link from Tim Zimmer I think will be helpful in your fueling situation brother:

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/cyl...alf-filled-block-ok-street.html#post152902124

What did you have Jim do for sizes on the feed/return?

10.5:1 isn't all that high now a days. Some of us have 11.5-13:1 ratios. I will have some NIB custom 11.5:1 Wiseco HDs FS here soon. With Ethanol you can get away with the higher compression because it helps dissipate heat, that an the alcohol loves the heat making it a win win situation. You now have a motor that can put down the same power as a lower comp motor at a much lower boost setting.

96awd said:

Here's a link from Tim Zimmer I think will be helpful in your fueling situation brother:

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/cyl...alf-filled-block-ok-street.html#post152902124

What did you have Jim do for sizes on the feed/return?

Click to expand...

The feed lines are -10 the return is -8.

Superman said:

The feed lines are -10 the return is -8.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that info.

In that link I provided, don't know if you checked it, was to Tim explaining what fuel was good for what compression and such. Hope it helped you.

ready to see it come together more.

96awd said:

Thanks for that info.

In that link I provided, don't know if you checked it, was to Tim explaining what fuel was good for what compression and such. Hope it helped you.

ready to see it come together more.

Click to expand...

I read that thread. That info was great. I decided to go with some wiseco 8.5:1 HD pistons to run with race gas just to be safe. I should have them this week.

Superman said:

I read that thread. That info was great. I decided to go with some wiseco 8.5:1 HD pistons to run with race gas just to be safe. I should have them this week.

Click to expand...

8.5 to one, is good with boost and nitrous. I have never tried nitrous on anthing bigger then a T-67, but it is highly addictive.

Superman said:

I read that thread. That info was great. I decided to go with some wiseco 8.5:1 HD pistons to run with race gas just to be safe. I should have them this week.

Click to expand...

I'm with you on that. I went with 9:1 on my drag motor even though I'm planning to go with E98. I'd rather just run more boost, especially for a track only car.

streetdsmpwr said:

I'm with you on that. I went with 9:1 on my drag motor even though I'm planning to go with E98. I'd rather just run more boost, especially for a track only car.

Click to expand...

Your reasoning is backwards...

Superman Update

Ok guys just a quick update. I saw a thread on the forum where a guy put aftermarket gauges in the stock cluster. I thought it was a cool idea so I tried it myself. I used VEI dual gauges. These were perfect for the job because they are not deep gauges, so they fit inside the stock cluster without having to cut up the back of the cluster. You do have to grind down some of the plastic tabs inside the cluster, but all in all, it was not bad for my first time. It came out ok. I have these gauges on my street car and they work well. Dual gauges also minimize space. This put all my critical functions right in front of me. The gauges show: fuel pressure, oil pressure, water temp, oil temp, boost, and WB O2.
I have more updates coming shortly.

looks good