sevenspeed

I just thought I would take 5 minutes and post about my REW swap. It has been sitting idle for a long time, but I finally got off my a** and ordered some of the small fuel bits I needed today.

I spent a few minutes reading some of the other posts, and felt I needed to clear up a few issues.

1) Mounting is not a big deal, and can be done very cleanly! My approach was to remove the FD oil pan, and carefully tap the center housing for the passenger mount without any disassembly of the engine. Care is required, as is the proper bottoming tap. Any misplaced shavings here would certainly be bad news. At this point, the FC oil pan and passenger mount bolts up directly. I had an oil pan baffle from my last build, and it made the perfect buffer between the FC pan and the FD profile -- even the FD timing cover remained.
Next, the FC driver side mount already has one hole that aligns perfectly. I simply made a custom bracket (using the FC mount as a core) that added an
additional tab on the center housing, and tied it into the front housing for additional support. This was all done in about two evenings, and does not involve any messy fabrication -- a template can be made in moments out of flat stock.


At this point my car sat for about 1 year while I was caught up in my busy career. Jesse (bladz) was kind enough to let me drag the car up to his workspace and dropped the engine back in its home. Still, I have no time to work on the project. Parallel plumbing of the fuel system should be rapped up in the next couple weeks, and I'll likely do the wiring in January. This one is using a PFC I had available as a standalone of sorts. I have such an extensive library of maps that it just made the most sense. Plug and play aside from a couple custom harnesses I whipped up -- but all very straightforward stuff.

I'll post pics and info as I progress, trying to include relevant thread pitches etc for those who need to duplicate plumbing, etc.

Currently, the doug nash sequential is staying put unless someone buys the car before I finish (which would be ideal -- I have lost motivation to waste time on cars lately).

MattB

looks nice in there...what size turbo is that? looks big....keep us updated...

staticguitar313

iTrader: (2)

very nicely donr keep us posted, more pics more pics!!!

RotaryResurrection

iTrader: (8)

So you are using a stock FD engine harness? And splicing on plugs for the dash/car harness wiring, ecu, etc? Being familiar with swaps as well as stock FD and FC layouts I have contemplated how one might be best served here, and the answer was always a full standalone such as a haltech, with the FC CAS and front cover. Good call on the motor mount situation as well as ditching the crappy *** FD stock leak prone oil pan and mount location. You'll be lucky not to get leakage around the FD rear iron's old motor mount bolt holes unless you did a good job of filling them in.

ZeroDrift

iTrader: (1)

Not that I'm interested, but how much do you want for your unfinished project?
(I too lack the time and interest in projects such as these)

iceblue

Wow supurb work

RETed

Is this thing running yet???

I guess you missed the part about the FC oil pan does not match up with the bottom edge of the FD front oil cover, huh?


-Ted

sevenspeed

To keep the picture attachments sorted by category, I'll reply individually.

RR: Using a PFC is the absolutely fastest technique to get an engine running in any recipient car. The engine harness is stripped to the essentials in my case, but it could keep all of the sequential goodies for those that go that route. I do not connect anything to the recipient car harness. Instead, I make a small harness that connects the essentials (igniter, fuel pump, ign, etc). It's almost plug and play aside from about 10 wires that must be connected manually -- a lot less than making a full engine harness! It helps to have extra chassis harness plugs for the ecu -- in my case, there were collected from various FD's I parted out. My FC does not actually have a factory harness at this point. Several years ago I de-loomed the harness and stripped it to the essentials. Oh, it's not that I'm not a fan of standalones -- I've installed hundreds, and had a couple in this car as well. I always tried to lead by example with techniques that are simple, easy to reproduce, time saving, and cost effective. I have hundreds of maps in my archive for the PFC, so I could literally take it to the track on the day of completion and fine tune en route.

Here are a couple pics of my Tec II setup from mid 90s, and my Tec III from 2002 or so.

sevenspeed

Ted: The custom oil pan baffle served as an interface between the mismatched oil pan and engine. The baffle has a FC profile, so it mates perfectly to the FC oil pan. Now, where there would be large gaps between the oil pan flange and engine there is now metal. On the FD side, the baffle was modified to accept more
of the stock oil pan bolt locations. There are no gaps, and everything is bolted tightly and evenly around the entire perimeter. No leaks.

On oil leaks in general on the FD, well -- they suck. Even Mazda was not getting it right on remans when I left off with them. On my builds I spent a lot of time in this area cleaning, and cleaning again before switching to alcohol and cleaning more to insure a dry underbelly!

I am a little confused about the 'missed' comment. This part of the project was completed a long time ago. I don't read the forum to copy other results, or I would not be able to provide fresh, useful ideas. A couple of years ago I kept new ideas to myself to prevent them from being duplicated by competitors, but I really have lost all interest in cars and hope I can help others with some of this information now.

sevenspeed

MattB: T72BB

ZD: PM me if you are serious

I'll try to get to the car, crawl under, and get some pics sometime soon. If I can get a weekend off, maybe I'll even work on the car again this year.


Here are a couple general pics: the sequential tranny, and the exterior. Hah! I just realized I have owned this car for almost 14 years -- it's been through many, many changes! I even built a 20B for it, but sold that to get a fast tunnel hull instead (boat).

RETed

I guess you're talking about this part...

Thank you for clarifying your post.


-Ted

Turbo II-FB

very nice work

sevenspeed

Well, the warm weather and a brief break from the 'day job' gave me a chance to dedicate some long overdue hours to the project.

I completely finished the wiring. The important part is that I detailed the wiring pin by pin so I can post a write-up later. In short, the PFC is a great candidate to use with an REW in any swap. You could install one in a random econo-box in an easy weekend project.

I created a plug in sub-harness that takes care of the igniter and pressure sensor, leaving just a handful of wires to connect to the recipient vehicle. Here is the short list of wires:

Constant Power
Switched Ignition Power
Cranking Power
Fuel Pump Relay output
Ground

I pulled the pins for the wires that will never be used, but left others with the tail shrink-wrapped for future use. As an example, I'll hook up the clutch switch if there is a solid 2-step working for the PFC in the future -- or hook up the speed sensor if I ever have a transmission that contains one!

When I write this up in the PFC forum, I'll provide the link here.

Also more info on using an FC oil cooler on an FD engine. It just made more sense to use the larger cooler that was already in place on the FC chassis. I'll post a complete parts list.

sevenspeed

How to use a PFC as a 'standalone' for engine swaps:

https://www.rx7club.com/power-fc-forum-47/how-use-your-pfc-standalone-rew-engine-swaps-547012/

sevenspeed

I finished most of the installation today, but my pictures are lagging behind by two days. The engine is running great, but I have not fabricated the custom mid-pipe to take it out on the road.

Here are some useful notes:

OIL COOLER:

I used the 2nd gen oil cooler because of it's size, and the fact that it was conveniently mounted in the car. The FD oil cooler could be used if budget was an issue. I decided to build AN lines, using the following parts:

(4) 18x1.5mm x -10 AN Fittings
(4) Copper washers for above
(2) 90 degree -10 AN Fitting
(1) 120 degree -10 AN Fitting
(1) 45 degree -10 AN fitting
(6) Feet, -10 AN Line

All of the 18 x 1.5mm adapters thread into both ports on the block, and both ports on the oil cooler. The 45 is used on the front of the block, and the 120 degree is used on the same line which feeds to the top of the oil cooler. Both 90's are used for the line that runs from the rear of the block (oil filter housing) to the the bottom of the oil cooler.

Another note, and probably in other threads, but I use the FC style oil filter because of the larger size, compatibility, and more than adequate room in the FC bay. PH3593A Fram or your choice... just happen to have that part number memorized from all these years of building...

You could also take bits from the FC and FD lines and have a hydraulic shop connect the pieces as needed. This would be much less expensive.

INTERCOOLER:

I decided in advance that the least restrictive route for piping involved the real estate reserved for the pop-up headlights. East Bear to the rescue, and TONS of space is cleared. I cut the area immediately below where the EB brackets end, leaving tons of space for 3" piping with couplers and all. Using piping I had around, I came up with a great looking configuration. Some had to be modified, and I beaded them with a set of vicegrips modified with the TIG and a grinder. This works on aluminum piping, contrary to posts here. My advice for custom IC setup: buy a big kit on eBay with more pipe than you will need, and take your time working the puzzle to find the best fit and flow.

THROTTLE CABLE:

The FC throttle cable will work with a slight modification. I used the FC bracket, flipped it upside down, and drilled a new hole to match the FD upper manifold. It works great, and was a welcome surprise. I'll post a closeup of this for clarification.

FUEL:

Easy for stock REW -- just upgrade your fuel pump, and connect the lines. In my case, I already had an SX FPR mounted from the last engine with a big Weldon 2015 pump, -8 lines, etc. I decided to run the fuel rail in parallel, so my -8 feeds a -6 wye which feeds each rail and then terminates at the FPR before dumping to the return. I did this to eliminate problems associated with no pulsation damper, upgraded injectors, etc. I currently have 550/1600, but will change this to 850/1600 once the initial dial-in is complete. I also tapped the -8 feed with a distribution to my nitrous solenoids while I was completing the job.

COOLING:

Stock FC radiator might be up to the job, and will take a friendly parts department at your auto store to allow you to browse hoses for the best fit. I am using a thick upgraded radiator, so my hose fitment was a bit more challenging. this may receive more attention in the future for aesthetic reasons, but it is certainly solid. I recommend using an electric fan, which will have to be added. Use the white/blue wire from the blue connector on the engine harness to trigger a relay for your cooling fan so that you may program it from your PFC.
For the hoses, some of the universal 1.5" flexible hose with internal spring will work well on the upper hose. The lower hose will require something like this:


|
------------
| Where the horizontal line is approximately 6-8" wide. This is also 1.5" diameter hose.


More updates in the next issue....

Happy to answer specific questions as well.

snowball

impresive build

KeloidJonesJr.

iTrader: (8)

Good stuff.

Stanello

iTrader: (1)

Nicely done! I'm just posting here so that I can find this thread later.

sevenspeed

Here's a recent picture. Once fedex shows up, I'll have all of the AN bits to finish up the wastegate and bov plumbing. The first for reliability, the second for cosmetics. Using anything less than threaded connectors on a wastegate is bad news for high boost.
To duplicate this, order 1/8" NPT x -3 AN 90 degee fittings for the turbo outlet and wastegate. Summit and others sell inexpensive -3 AN lines pre-assembled for $20 or so in various lengths. Add a tee in the middle to jump to a wastegate solenoid.
Planning on ordering an electric cutout today (for delivery tomorrow) so I can weld the custom mid-pipe and head to the track later in the day.
Later, I will post pictures of the underdash wiring. Since the car had the wiring harness removed, I had to build my own! The swap would certainly be easier in a 'stock' car with all of the wiring intact.

sevenspeed

IGNITION:

It's a well-practiced procedure for FD owners to update their coils to the FC version. For this reason, it would be wise for many FC swaps to simply re-wire the FC coils and use existing spark plug wires, etc. In my case, the coils were long gone since the last ECU was an Tec III. I'll likely have to upgrade coils, as I was used to problem-free ignition.

TACHOMETER:

In my notes, I state that the #2 ECU connector is not required. I was using an aftermarket tachometer, and this was the case. I decided to ditch it and re-connect the factory FC tach. The tach is fed by a yellow/blue wire. It lives near the firewall on the driver's side, and has a female bullet connector. This runs to ECU Connector #2, Pin 2B. Easy. It can also be tapped at the dash location, and likely others. I have no wiring harness in the car -- it's all stripped. My FC tach does not seem to be calibrated exactly for the FD ecu -- more notes on this later as I learn if the error is constant or proportional.



Oh, the car is done, and being driven on the road. Perhaps some track times by this weekend with more pictures and video of course?

Did I mention NO OIL LEAKS?

88rxn/a

iTrader: (6)

HOLY CRAP! good work!! that is clean!!
when i come to pittsburgh i GOTS to see this!!

sevenspeed

Ok, here are the final pictures of the engine bay. The only thing that will change is the temporary oil filter installed inline with the turbo will be replaced by the shiny -4 AN Earl's piece I have here. It's there to protect the bb turbo from debris and contamination before the first oil change. The Earl's will remain after as an extra measure of safety.

I was hoping for more technical discussion in the thread, but so be it. I hope others pack REW's into FC's, lawnmowers, etc. Post here when you do! Ask questions now, b/c I guarantee I'll foget any details not logged here a few months from now. I'm getting old and cenile!

88rxn/a: Noticed the H-Trim comment with your profile. H compressor with a Q trim is violent combination. Undersized compressor with a big turbine. That was my first turbo almost a decade ago!

sevenspeed

I neglected to mention how much I enjoy the electric cutout. It's a 3" unit from Summit for about $190. At the flip of a switch, a 12V actuator opens the exhaust direct to atmosphere just behind the downpipe. It's the best of both worlds, as the RB exhaust is nice an quiet for the street with the valve closed -- and I get the needed flow on demand. Nice where you might want to keep a catalytic converter, and only 'remove' it for races when needed with just a button press.

|)arkSpeed7

iTrader: (5)

Incredible work man, It looks awsome.

arghx

iTrader: (3)

holy crap, somebody said they were going to do an FD motor swap and actually did it.