blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Well, I've gotten all the wiring hooked up. I've had to take a painful break the last few days to finish a term paper. All next week I'll be in The Netherlands for a 4 day, 100 mile ruck march. The upside is, I'm waiting for some fuel and oil pressure sensors (didn't have one for the fuel and more accurate one for the oil). I also ran into some trouble getting the last bits to plumb the cooling system, but those should be here by the time I get back.

I'm hoping that, if I get to spend all of tomorrow in the garage, I can get the ducting mostly finished.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

So, I got the fuel and oil pressure sensors installed and wired. I have also completed the v-mount ducting. Here's a bunch of pics:










Tomorrow I'll paint the frame and peel the protective coating off the ducting material. Hoping the last plumbing bit gets here tomorrow or thursday.

nepopolus

awesome v mount set up, I may have to steal this set up :P, gl on getting it running.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Radiator plumbing is all done and the system is full. I need to make a few more tweaks tomorrow, then it's time to start her up. So close...

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Tweaks all done. Attempted to fire it up tonight, but my timing settings (and perhaps the fuel too) are not quite right. She coughed and almost caught a few times, til I ran the battery flat. I put it on the charger and will do some research and give it another whack tomorrow night. Feeling pretty good that it didn't catch on fire, though. LOL

Uwan

iTrader: (4)

damn it, I reached the end. Just read this entire thread, good stuff bro.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Well...I coaxed the car into stinky, missing, pig rich, life. It took a little throttle and some fuel trim adjustment. I'm 99% sure I can't do anything more with it until I put new plugs in it...they're pretty well fouled. Unfortunately, I don't think I can get any locally (at least not for less than an arm and a leg). So my poor planning will cost me a week of tuning time, at least. Time to focus on getting the body panels finished in the mean time.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Well I'm able to start the car without any pedal now. I discovered that the trailing plugs weren't working. Turns out we wired the signal wire to the wrong input on the coils. It's still really really rich...so much so, I think it's causing it to miss.

Also, I managed to fix that pesky front cover oil leak. The "doweling" worked.

Now that it's running, everything appears to work correctly. It's time to buckle down and work on the body parts. Once that's done, I can get it out on the street and do some more tuning.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Tonight I got the hood scoop mould cleaned and coated in PVA. I also took care of the bumper's headlight buckets. Tomorrow I'll attempt to do the glass for the hood scoop. The bumper requires a bit more cleaning and prep, but I hope to have a finished bumper by the weekend. It'd be nice to have everything fitted and be test driving it this weekend.

Also, my Aerocatches came today.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Hood scoop is pretty much done. Needs a little touch up and some more primer, then some rivets to hold it down. I have an appointment for my alignment on Thursday. Aiming to have the bumper done Friday. Little tweaking and I'll be headed to a car show on Saturday. Yikes.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Today was a day of significant progress.

I got the alignment done:
Front
Camber -2deg
Toe -3/32
Rear
Camber -1.5
Toe -1/8

I was able to get the car to idle nice and clean. It likes an AFR around 12:1 at idle. Which still seems a lot of the rich side to me.

Since I got the idle cleaned up I was able to let it warm and see if the cooling fans operated properly and if the system circulated enough through my snaking pipes and if the opening for the radiator was large enough to allow enough air flow. The answers to all of that is a resounding yes. The cooling system had no problems bouncing between the 193deg and 185deg switching points.

Also, I was able to see how much heat soak I was going to get with the ducting in place and the radiator nice and hot, but with no air flow. The answer there is absolutely none! The ducting did a great job of isolating the intercooler, but still allowing the radiator to do its job. The intercooler was still nice and cold after sitting for quite a while.

This morning I had some time on my hands, so I decided to modify the tail lights. Here's a couple pics:




Tomorrow I have a lot to get done to get ready to show the car off. We'll see if I'm able to get a bumper molded. Lots to do.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

More pics to come:




I'm rocking the front bumper for right now, until I can get the FC2000 molded again. I got her out for a test drive last night and she goes like a stabbed rat. There are some rough spots in the tune, but just adding a little skinny pedal gets past those, LOL. At 8-10psi, it feels amazing! It'll be interesting to see what happens when I crank the boost a bit.

Some minor things need to be tweaked. I have an oil leak at the lower cooler hose...think it just needs new copper washers. The tach reads at about half what the RPMs actually are. The downforce on the back makes for a very light front end...more motivation for the new bumper (and some canards). The chassis is rock solid, which means I need to soften up the dampers as everything is a little too tight.

All in all, though, I'm very happy. I was shaking from the rush of getting her out on the street again.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Well, last night I fixed the oil leak, faulty blinker (my helper plugged it in the wrong plug), adjusted the spoiler, and investigated my funky tach. Then I proceeded to take it out and thrash it a bit. After work, I'll fix the tach and maybe I'll remember to take the GoPro out with me. It looks like I'm only revving to 3.5krpm right now anyway, LOL.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Uploaded a new timing map. It's actually Aarghx's RTek map that I adapted to the Haltech. The power is quite smooth and there is a ton of it. Tomorrow I'm going to get the BAC working. The tach is good to go now.

On the buy list is the rest of the -10 AN fittings and hoses to replace the oil cooler lines. The banjo continues to seep and I hate that. So I'll replace them with the AN setup and do away with the leaky banjos.

A new problem to investigate is the fact that the FPR doesn't appear to be raising the fuel pressure under boost. So I'm sure I'll have fun with that one. First I'll try a different vacuum port and work my way through some other options.

hIGGI

iTrader: (7)

fit the FC2000 on

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

I got the BAC working. I have my idle at 900 rpm and 13.5:1 afr. It doesn't make my eyes water anymore, lol. The -10 oil lines and fittings are on order, along with a new adjustable strut for the spoiler (broke one when I did my adjustment).

I'm having some kind of slippage. At first I thought it was a clutch issue, but there's no tell-tale smell. I could be wheel spin, but it doesn't cause any noticeable loss of control. The LSD is a torsen, so slippage isn't possible there. I'm kind of at a loss. I'm going to pull a speed signal from the power steering computer and log it along with RPM, just to make sure I'm not losing my mind.

I'm hoping to get the FC2000 bumper molded tomorrow.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

It's been a while since I posted an update, so here goes.

I no longer have any motor oil leaks. The AN -10 oil cooler lines did just the trick. I've manage to do a bit of tuning and the car hauls some serious ***. However, the 4000-6000rpm range is tough to tune because of the clutch slippage. I was finally able to determine it was the clutch when I had a heavy friend in the car. The extra weight was just enough extra resistance that I was finally able to smell it. Also, the crunchy transmission makes catching the gears a little "fun." I think with the much larger amount of air I'm pushing at the higher RPMs and boost levels, the power just completely overwhelms the stock pressure plate and the friction disc.

So, what's happening with the car now? Well, I got a new-to-me transmission. I am waiting for my OS Giken friction plates to arrive. After they get here, I'll be able to install the twin plate clutch and the new transmission. Then hopefully I can get at least one Nürburgring lap in before I have to park the car for the winter.

Over the winter I'll be getting the Haltech Racepak gauge cluster, a roll cage, and hopefully finish all the fiberglass work. I also just got a deal on a FD motor that is in pieces. The fate of that motor has yet to be determined. I really want to play with a PP motor, but I can't afford to go turbo with it, and I really like boost. So it may just get some seriously large ports and a balance job so I can run it to the moon. I'll also be finalizing the wiring harness (trimming and wrapping it), with the possibility of a alternator relocate. I'll be stocking up on tires and brake pads through the winter as well.

Next summer will be the summer of lap times. Stay tuned, it's going to be a fun ride.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Well, my OS Giken clutch plates finally arrived. I gathered all the tools and parts together.

In addition to the OS Giken twin plate that I'm installing, I'm also replacing my transmission with a 5 speed RX8 transmission. My transmission is pretty crunchy and I don't feel like rebuilding it. It's a pretty straight forward swap and I took some pics. The RX8 5 speed has the same ratios and is nearly identical to the FC transmission, with some slight changes to the bell housing, input shaft and a different tail housing.

To make the swap work with the FC driveshaft you have to swap over the tail housing. It's very straight forward. You pull the guts out of the FC shifter housing, pull out the bolts that connect the tail housing to the gearbox, smack it with a hammer and pull it off. With the RX8 tail housing, you unbolt the shifter housing cover, pull off the shifter, unbolt the tail housing to gearbox bolts, smack the tail housing, and slide it off. Then you can reinstall the FC tail housing on the RX8 transmission. Pretty easy stuff. The resulting conglomeration is about 2cm longer than the FC transmission, but with the built in slop in the FC driveshaft yoke, it should bolt up with only a little tweaking.

Unfortunately, I didn't procure the counterweight to flywheel bolts for the OS Giken setup, so that's going to delay me until at least tomorrow. I did get a chance to compare the weights of the factory clutch/flywheel and the OS Giken assembly. The factory stuff is 38.5 lbs and the OS Giken is 18.5 lbs...that's incredible, considering how much more holding power you get with the twin plate.

Here's some pics:















When you swap over the speedo gear, make sure you remember this little guy...it's what makes the speedo gear spin with the output shaft:




Hoping to do a good video recorded run after I finish buttoning everything up.

sharingan 19

iTrader: (16)

Is that the 5spd rx8 tranny? Hope it's a lot more stout than the 6spd.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Yes, it's the 5spd...it's nearly identical (internally) to the FC's transmission.

I think some of the bearings were changed to a sealed type (as evidenced in the pics).

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Damn transmission...I don't think I'll be doing this nonsense again. I don't recommend this particular swap, unless it's really easy for you to get these transmissions.

Since I have to have the driveshaft shortened (it's 15mm too long now), I'm just going to see about having an aluminum one made. I have to modify the trans mount. I also have to figure out how to make the RX7 slave cylinder work right. The RX8 slave cylinder's plumbing goes right where the oil filter housing is on the RX7 motor. The RX8 slave cylinder has an angle to it, so the FC slave cylinder will have to me modified to work.

So, long story short, the car still isn't self propelled....and I'm irritated.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

Dropped the driveshaft off to be shortened (160 euro). Picking it up on Thursday. Tomorrow I'll modify the transmission mount and work on the slave cylinder. It's possible (though unlikely) that I'll be able to get the car out on Thursday.

coxxoc

iTrader: (3)

So how much did the RX-8 transmission swap cost? It is an interesting choice if you can't find used TII transmissions in your area. They are between $250 and $350 in my experience. I had a normal wear item transmission rebuilt for $700 and could not be happier with how much better it is. Any transmission shop can rebuild an RX-7 gear box. They are similar to a T-5 and many vehicles use the same replacement parts. If you have broken "hard parts" the cost goes up quickly.

Good luck getting it moving under its own power soon. The time invested will be worth it after you get out on the track.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

The swap cost me $200 for the transmission (with slave cyl and starter) and about $200 (exchange rate) for the driveshaft shortening and balance. I have a welder, so I modify the crossmember and slave cylinder mount myself. So I'm coming out ahead of a rebuild...even more so over here because everything is more expensive in Europe.

blk87Turbo2

iTrader: (23)

So I got the car all back together and it feels really good. It's much quieter now, since the original trans was quite noisy (think dog gear sequential noisy). The clutch will take some getting used to, but it's holding well. Tomorrow I'll get out on the autobahn and finish the tuning.

Also, when I took the car out for it's shake down run (it was pretty dark) I noticed "embers" or sparks coming off the front brakes. Not sure if they're normally there and just not visible in the light or what, but they seem to be stopping me just fine and there's no visible problems with the rotors. I also get a fair amount of the tell-tale Hawk HP+ noise. I'm going to see about putting some good ducts together for the brakes, maybe they need a bit of cooling.