'91 TSi AWD - Undecided Name

[undefined0000]

Got this 91 TSi AWD M/T , after trading my 92 TSi AWD A/T
She needs body work, but nothing that's too difficult. Hardest part is going to be finding a good way to get the headlight covers on because it looks like whatever they attach to has been annihilated. The PO hit a dog not to long before the trade.

Before you guys go ahead and flame me, reasons I traded:

The guy was a lil older and seemed like he had much more use of the a/t than me, It was a good opportunity for me to learn 5-speed. Body work doesn't bother me because no cars I've had have been in great exterior condition.

Mods:

Engine -
BSE
Tranny -
None/unknown
Drivetrain/Suspension -
KYB AGX struts and Eibach lowering springs 1/2"
Bolt-ons -
Dejon Intake
Hallman MBC
Aftermarket In-filter 1G MAF
Solid Mounts

Its basically back to square one. The engine bay is a little nasty, nothing too bad though, looks like there was a massive exhaust leak at some point, I have to clean that up and my PVC inlet side hose just fell off, I blame the IC piping. Gotta clean up a little oil and find a solution to that.

I'll be doing all maintenance as far as fluids and timing. I'm probably just going to be shooting for 300hp for now. Just to give the hondas a hard time. They're like cockaroaches in this town.

 

[serviceguy]

First thing find a battery strap. No strap and the battery positive exposed without insulator is a recipe for melted hood reinforcement. Ask me how I know. Pic of the front to assess what mounting bracket is missing would help. Digging the Get-In-the-Zone UICP.

 

[undefined0000]

Alrighty, will do , and the autozone uicp is what came off of my other car, we traded piping because he had a 3" GM maf setup he wanted to keep. I'll get pics of inside the bumper area tomorrow, its too dark now.

 

[IrishBeatdown]

Oh wow subscribed this is going to be epic

 

[serviceguy]

I just noticed the exhaust studs and double nut job on them...the body does not look too bad, I am a little bit worried by that headlight cover seating at an angle like that and the fender being crashed nearby, make sure the frame isn't bent. With a car in that condition I would invest in a complete set of rubber hoses for the cooling system, gaskets (valve cover, spark plugs etc), radiator cap, thermostat, go through all the electrical connector etc. That is what I did with mine once I got it 11 years ago and served me well. Also look for all the little things missing here and there at junkyards, it's amazing what a little bracket and some cleaning can do for your engine bay. I wish you the best for your new project.

P.S. I noticed the discoloration on your passenger side strut tower, it's due to the battery squirting fluid at some point. I would take the battery tray off and check if it went through the paint and bared the metal that will eventually start rusting you may want to check that and fix it if that is the case, clean it even if it hasn't rusted, that stuff is nasty. It will not give you any additional hp but it keeps the whole thing together and add to you feelings for the car.

 

[undefined0000]

Oh wow subscribed this is going to be epic

Not sure if thats a good thing or a bad thing ol

I just noticed the exhaust studs and double nut job on them...the body does not look too bad, I am a little bit worried by that headlight cover seating at an angle like that and the fender being crashed nearby, make sure the frame isn't bent. With a car in that condition I would invest in a complete set of rubber hoses for the cooling system, gaskets (valve cover, spark plugs etc), radiator cap, thermostat, go through all the electrical connector etc. That is what I did with mine once I got it 11 years ago and served me well. Also look for all the little things missing here and there at junkyards, it's amazing what a little bracket and some cleaning can do for your engine bay. I wish you the best for your new project.

P.S. I noticed the discoloration on your passenger side strut tower, it's due to the battery squirting fluid at some point. I would take the battery tray off and check if it went through the paint and bared the metal that will eventually start rusting you may want to check that and fix it if that is the case, clean it even if it hasn't rusted, that stuff is nasty. It will not give you any additional hp but it keeps the whole thing together and add to you feelings for the car.

Thanks for all of the advice. Will most def go through and do everything described. I never even noticed the strut tower, will take care of that soon with some sanding and paint. Thanks!

 

[undefined0000]

Alrighty, ordered a bolt for the manifold-turbo and a gasket as well. I'm starting from the most obvious leaks then going to start re-doing everything. The exhaust leak is so bad I can't even hear the turbo. Sounds like open dump. Got some engine degreaser to clean up any oil and stuff so I can find leaks and sandpaper/clearcoat to touch up that area by the battery.

 

[serviceguy]

Actually from the engine bay pics it looks like you could have an open dump. What O2 housing is that?

 

[awdtalon4451]

Actually from the engine bay pics it looks like you could have an open dump. What O2 housing is that?

Yep gonna go with him on this. Good eye service guy! Get us some more pics, interior and a good walk around of the car.:thumbup:

 

[undefined0000]

Actually from the engine bay pics it looks like you could have an open dump. What O2 housing is that?

Megan 3" o2 housing from what it seems. Its not open dump

Yep gonna go with him on this. Good eye service guy! Get us some more pics, interior and a good walk around of the car.:thumbup:

Will do later on. I was actually just out there with engine degreaser wiping everything down. Looks a little better.

 

[undefined0000]

Alright, nothin too special guys, just did an oil change and I am questioning how well the previous owner maintained the car. I got a confirmed history of the car since 2008 and it was rebuilt from a shell and was autox'ed a bit. BUT, looks like it got to the wrong hands after that.

Here is a little glimpse of the oil:

As soon as my hand oil pump thing gets here and I get some gear oil, I'll change tranny, t-case and rear diff fluids.

AND I fixed the oil pressure gauge. Now to figure out my water temp gauge situation.

Went ahead and took a gander at my E-brake situation since the light stays on and it doesnt work.

Discovered this:

re-positioned the sensor so the handle actually hits it in the disengaged position. Time to hunt down a spare cable.

 

[undefined0000]

Played with the clutch adjustment today and I was like:

The clutch pedal was "Like a truck clutch" before as described by some friends, now it feels more like the gas pedal. Car shifts ok, I still feel like the clutch is grabbing a little late. Not really sure how it should feel. Time to snag one of them and get an opinion. I'm starting to fear a failure further down in the hydraulic system. I see a master/slave cylinder replacement, clutch assembly replacement, and all of the other goodies that I don't know getting replaced in the near future.

Replaced one of manifold to turbo bolts that wasn't quite torqued down. Replaced it with an OEM one from extremepsi. Got that sucker on and the exhaust leak is still there like I assumed it would be, I've got a new gasket in the mail, so hopefully that fixes it and I'll be able to actually hear the turbo . Working all weekend. I'm a server at Outback Steakhouse and I'm hoping to make at least $150 this weekend, but $250 is possible as well, just gotta hope people are hungry.

 

[undefined0000]

Just took the exhaust mani off to inspect for cracks and it looks like its cracked a little on the inside and so is the turbo. Check out the old gasket that was in there too. Ask Jared how much damn exhaust was getting out .

def an exhaust leak there, got a new mani -> head gasket going on as well.

You can see the tiny cracks there, not sure if that's a big issue or not, feedback please.

The stud job was done so horribly, will be ordering studs when I come across the money.

Old manifold to turbo gasket on the right. Wtf.

 

[undefined0000]

Just replaced my broken shift cable and the whole shifter assembly with one that had good bushings in it. Car shifts like a dream now and the job wasn't very hard at all. First thing I've done that's related to the M/T

 

[undefined0000]

Super baby steps, replaced the e-brake handle assembly today, its going to be weird using the ebrake now instead of just leaving it in gear. Will be buying a new driver's side fender here soon to start getting the body in order for a new paint-job.

 

[EisHERE]

i remember seeing you post about your 92 before. I love seeing cars come from looking rough to looking great. I'm hoping that's what happens here so I subscribed.

 

[undefined0000]

Thanks man. I basically brought that 92 back to life, kinda. Same with this one. I spontaneously traded the 92 for this, mostly because I wanted to learn 5-speed and I like the 1ga look.

 

[EisHERE]

learn five speed as in learn to drive it? I personally like 1gb look more but that's just me

 

[undefined0000]

Yep, learn how to drive it . and to each his own. This car was actually in the middle of a 1gb conversion but was dropped because of how big of a hassle it is

Pretty sure I killed my trans from getting stuck in the snow today. 1st gear is wining like reverse. I've got no choice but to drive it till it explodes at this point, wasn't planning on a trans rebuild any time soon *sigh*

 

[EisHERE]

Yep, learn how to drive it . and to each his own. This car was actually in the middle of a 1gb conversion but was dropped because of how big of a hassle it is

Pretty sure I killed my trans from getting stuck in the snow today. 1st gear is wining like reverse. I've got no choice but to drive it till it explodes at this point, wasn't planning on a trans rebuild any time soon *sigh*

Just look for deals on CL for a used one. I just sold one with the transfer case for $150. Save yourself some money and just do that.
edit: stuck in the snow in an AWD, duh fuxk??

 

[undefined0000]

Just look for deals on CL for a used one. I just sold one with the transfer case for $150. Save yourself some money and just do that.
edit: stuck in the snow in an AWD, duh fuxk??

Well it took days on days of thinking and she sold yesterday . I picked up a 95 civic today and I'm planning on using my tax return and some more money to start a build from scratch. I want DSMing to be a hobby and not a chore

 

[EisHERE]

... WTF