98 GSX Time Trial build

[gsxitement]

Got some work done over the weekend. Got the turbo setup out and apart. Gasket is good and blown out. Already in talks with Archer about the new setup so that's good. Also cleaned up the wheels and scrubbed them down really well. Other than that, just been dealing with house stuff. Trying to figure out a heat situation for the garage. But in due time.

 

[gsxitement]

Got some work done the last two days. Got the radiator and all the coolers out. Dropped the radiator support harness and started removing the ABS wiring that's just been sitting there for years. Also got the fenders off in anticipation of doing the compworks fender braces. Definitely have some rust repair to make as well. So that'll be fun . Still don't have my toolbox or any of my benches or tooling at the garage yet, so I'm limited on my ability on what I can do. But at least now the cars in the garage right outside and I don't have to commute to work on it. As long as I can put some time into getting things done, shouldn't be a problem getting all my stuff done for next season. Need more light in the garage badly. Also got the fuel filter out and apart and found some metal in there. Just more proof it's time to change that pump out. Also found the giant ground wire that goes to the starter bolt on the trans was loose. Hoping that was also contributing to the fuel cut I was having at NJMP.



 

[gsxitement]

More wiring fun! Engine bay ABS harness depinned and out. Next is the inside harness. Gotta pull the dash and start looking at all the stuff I don't need to have like airbag, HVAC and stereo stuff. And start picking through all that and eliminating it. Good times.

 

[BLACK'98DSM]

Looks like you've got a lot of work ahead of you! Good luck, make it look and function better!

 

[gsxitement]

Looks like you've got a lot of work ahead of you! Good luck, make it look and function better!

That's the goal. Shed a little weight, try and make the front of the car a little more functional when the aero starts going on, and hopefully the next turbo/manifold setup works flawlessly to maximize seat time. Planning on doing two GTA events next year. Road Atlanta and NJMP. I know we won't be very competitive with those guys and girls cause they're fast as shit. Hopefully, get the car to be more reliable, maybe make a little more HP and TQ. But reliability is the absolute goal. Even though we won't be ultra competitive, there'll be a lot to learn from those guys.

 

[gsxitement]

Got more done this evening. Got the majority of the dash wiring harness out. Still have the rear harness to go and the radiator support harness. Plan is to reconnect the harness to the fuse box, and start back tracing all the stuff I already know I don't need. Luckily most of all the stuff I plugged is staying for now. Not ready to go to a full race style electrical system yet. So, with everything plugged back into the fuse box, I'll trace out all the stuff that's going, HVAC, stereo, airbags, ABS and de-pin all that stuff. Then turn signals, wipers and whatever else I can find. Got a lot of work ahead of me, but I got time this whole off-season to get it done.

 

[BLACK'98DSM]

Do you have any idea why the inside of your car is so rusty?

 

[gsxitement]

Do you have any idea why the inside of your car is so rusty?

I'm gonna go with sitting outside under a cover with no windows . It will be dealt with.

 

[gsxitement]

Some updates from last weekend. Pretty much eliminated everything I don't need. Just the engine harness and the harness that runs to the rear of the car remain. Sorted the brake lights out. Did some testing and locating of things, and tagged a bunch of stuff. Pretty much have all the powers figured out for the ECU. Repaired a couple broken grounds. And need to figure out the gauges and DLC wiring. But getting there. I have time to get it all done

 

[GSXbooster]

Nice putting some work in! Now that's a race car diet right there.

 

[gsxitement]

Nice putting some work in! Now that's a race car diet right there.

I totally didn't mean to get this crazy with it . It kinda just snowballed and now I'm here .

 

[gsxitement]

Got another piece of the puzzle. Hopefully next weekend I can start putting it all together.

 

[gsxitement]

Well, this weekend was a wild one. Met up with a buddy, and we loaded up our trucks with a ton of stuff from the old garage and brought it to the new one. I should've never told my wife the trailer fits in the garage . Space is definitely at a premium. And I still have my compressor and another work bench to try and fit. Definitely gonna have to get a storage shed. But anyway, been getting the garage setup and cleaned up. Got the car turned around. Gonna get set to work on it in the next few weeks.

One of the things I have planned to do is the CompWorks fender braces. So, a while ago I pulled the front fenders in anticipation of doing that. I noticed that at the bottom of the A pillars, where the front clip is attached to the car, there's some cracks, presumably from the car being jack stands and the front sagging. So after the fender braces go on, these cracks will be welded and maybe I'll add some gusseting around. Not sure, but the fender braces will be a huge help in keeping the car rigid.

 

[gsxitement]

I was able to spend some time in the garage last night and got one side of the fender braces on. Super easy and straight forward install. CompWorks made a great kit. Just mocked up For now till I get some paint to paint the bare metal. Stoked to see how the car feels on track with them.

 

[gsxitement]

Got the passenger side fender brace done today. Still really impressed with just how well this kit is put together. Can't wait to see the difference!

 

[silvreclips]

The braces look good. I am interested to see your feedback on them.

 

[gsxitement]

The braces look good. I am interested to see your feedback on them.

Really looking forward to trying them.

 

[gsxitement]

Got a couple things done yesterday. And by a couple, I mean I installed to 4' LED shop lights. Really brightened up the place well which is what I really needed. So now it's actually bright enough to see.

Then today I started a project I wanted to do for a while, which is lean the radiator forward. This will help give space to work on the turbo and everything if the situation arises at the track that we have to work on anything related to the turbo. Getting mounting ideas. Playing with a couple different id as at the moment. Good thing is it doesn't change the body work at all. So tomorrow or Friday I'll work more on that.

 

[GSXbooster]

Let there be light! And it was good.

Hmmm... very interesting choice you made there.

I'm super curious on what you have planned for tying the top part back together and supporting the bumper (since you have some aero on it).

 

[gsxitement]

Let there be light! And it was good.

Hmmm... very interesting choice you made there.

I'm super curious on what you have planned for tying the top part back together and supporting the bumper (since you have some aero on it).

I have........a plan.

 

[gsxitement]

Let there be light! And it was good.

Hmmm... very interesting choice you made there.

I'm super curious on what you have planned for tying the top part back together and supporting the bumper (since you have some aero on it).

Also.....any aero I do, is going directly to the chassis, so the front bumper won't actually be that heavily loaded with downforce, but since there will be some load on it, I have an idea for some mounting solutions.

 

[gsxitement]

Started working on my radiator basket with support to be able to lean it forward. Still in it's early stages but I think you get the gist of what I'm gonna do. Also gonna have provisions to mount the oil cooler and PS cooler, along with the bumper mount.

 

[gsxitement]

Made some more progress today. Getting there. Have to make some adjustments to the setup, bit it's all working out pretty well. I'll add a comparison of the space before as compared to now with the rad leaned forward.

 

[TSiAWD666]

Do you have to keep your oem cross support? If not, cut it out and make a new one that's lower . You can lower your radiator, tilt it more, and get a better overall airflow path. It's wins all around, and you will save some weight especially if you do it out of aluminum.

 

[gsxitement]

Do you have to keep your oem cross support? If not, cut it out and make a new one that's lower . You can lower your radiator, tilt it more, and get a better overall airflow path. It's wins all around, and you will save some weight especially if you do it out of aluminum.

That was definitely the initial intention. But mounting up the N/S bar made me wary of doing it. I had originally thought about just using some rollcage tubing I have laying around but as I progressed with that idea, the N/S bar started making me second guess things. And even though the season doesn't start for some time, I didn't want to give myself too many projects. I still have to do the wiring in the car and a couple other things. It's definitely on the to do list though. Maybe next off season.