Progress Of My Turbo/NA/Bridgeport Project (Project Tina)
 

It's time once again for another update on my ongoing turbo-NA-bridgeport project. The previous thread in this series can be found here. Progress over the last few months has seemed slow due to not having large amounts of continuous time to work on things. But in reality, actually a lot has been accomplished. Many of these tasks are small, but in a project such as this, the meat of what needs to be done are small side jobs in between the large chunks. Thus, these pictures probably aren't anything ground breaking or as interesting as an engine assembly. Most of them deal with things outside the engine bay. While these aren't as glamorous as porting or engine assembly, they are necessary parts of the groundwork that supports the larger part of what is taking place.

That said, I don't think anyone will find this post boring. As always, there are a few neat details that you won't see anywhere else. All of this has brought me to what will take place very soon (not in this thread): after almost three years, the engine will be reinstalled in the car.

So, to pick up where we last left off, here's the lower intake after some quick porting. Since it was already being heavily modified, I figured that I might as well port it. The gains are very small, and it's absolutely not worth doing unless you already have the intake removed and are very bored.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...nge Ported.jpg

With the engine moved out of the basement and into the garage, it was time to install the oil pan. First, the oil pressure regulator was installed, and then the pickup. This oil regulator has been modified by shimming. Two M5 flat washers were placed inside the bottom of the piston. This increases spring tension, and thus oil pressure. Two washers should make for about 100 PSI of pressure.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Installed.jpg

Next, the gasket and sealant were installed. On top of that, a Racing Beat baffle plate was installed. This plate prevents the oil from sloshing away from the pickup during deep, high speed turns. A must for anyone intending to autocross or track the car.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...e In Place.jpg

And then the oil pan is installed, with another gasket between it and the baffle. Notice the stainless steel bolts, as well as the wide washers. The washers help spread out the force from the bolt heads, thus going a long way to preventing oil leaks. I had to manually cut each of these bolts to size. Anytime stainless hardware is used, anti-seize MUST be applied to the threads. Otherwise, the stainless will weld itself to the aluminum of the engine.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Installed.jpg

With the oil pan installed, it was time to do a little porting on the turbo wastegate.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ugh Ported.jpg

You can see how the wastegate orifice is becoming much larger then the flapper door itself. This is the ONLY way to effectively port the wastegate. Also, relief has been cut into the backing plate to allow the wastegate to swing open much wider.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...apper Size.jpg

A very dark interior view of that wastegate.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Wastegate.jpg

Since the turbo is disassembled, might as well port those exhaust runners. Here, you see the smaller twin-scroll runner is now ported as large as the "main" runner.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...bo Runners.jpg

My clutch came about this time. Purchased from CP Racing. It's just a nice looking clutch. :) Also, much stronger then stock.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...uck Clutch.jpg

For a change, it's time to work inside the car. The carpets are being replaced, the door panels recovered, and the seats recovered. First step was to remove the carpet, seats and console.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...et Removed.jpg

While pulling apart the storage bin areas, I made a horrible discovery: cancer! This was found on the drivers side.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...e Bin Rust.jpg

More on the passenger side. Clearly, the bolt holes for the rear seats have allowed moisture to get trapped between the frame rail and body in an unprotected area. So it rotted through.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...e Bin Rust.jpg

A few other minor areas of concern were found. Any surface rust was ground off then primed to prevent further corrosion.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...r Touchups.jpg

The only way to fight cancer is to cut it out. Rotted metal must be cut away to expose good metal, then a patch panel made and welded in. Below shows the large hole left after cutting the cancerous skin away, and the new panel of virgin steel.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...atch Panel.jpg

The new panel is welded in. Welding thin sheet metal takes patience, and a thin wire. Unfortunately, I only had 0.035" wire on hand, so there was some frustration involved.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...er Patch 1.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...er Patch 2.jpg

The welds are ground down. Truthfully, this area didn't have to be perfect, since it is going to be covered by a battery box. But it does have to be presentable.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...or Priming.jpg

A similar panel was made for the driver side. The patch was actually quite a lot larger in that area. More care was taken on this side, since in theory, someone at some point might see it. :) But it doesn't need the effort necessary when working on a visible exterior panel. The black mark you see is actually the undercoating that made it's way through the bolt hole and oozed over the primer.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...h Finished.jpg

The passenger side patch is finished. A bolt was welded to the panel to provide a good ground for the battery. But this bolt is actually going to be removed since it's in the way of the battery box.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...h Finished.jpg

After the cancer treatments, the remaining interior touch ups were made and some of the wiring is being laid in place.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ing Wiring.jpg

Since I am ditching the stock ECU in favor of the Microtech LT-8, most of the engine wiring harness is no longer needed. The only thing necessary to keep are the leads to the wiper motor, alternator and coolant sensor. On the right is what's left of the stock wiring harness. On the right is all the unneeded stuff. :) I was amazed at the condition my stock wiring harness was in. Underneath the crusty exterior, the inner wires looked as if they had just come from the factory. Goes to show you that the Mazda wiring, while somewhat unique, is high quality stuff.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ng Harness.jpg

Wires were then run down the driver side sill for the audio and MP3 player. In this bundle, power for both the amp and MP3 player, speaker wires from the amp, signal wires to the amp, and audio to/from the MP3 player. Also a few other misc signal wires. Of course, this bundle tucks neatly underneath the fiberboard cover. It's a cardinal rule to never mix power and signal wires, but in this case, all the audio signal wires are heavily shielded, so there will be no problems.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ide Wiring.jpg

The passenger side wiring was done next. Shown here are the two thick (power and ground) battery cables, the rear passenger speaker wire, and the power and ground for the fuel pump. I prefer to ground my battery to multiple locations. This means running a large ground wire from the battery to the car in several places, and ultimately to the engine as well. Multiple GOOD grounds are vitally important. The fuel pump also has it's own separate ground, as will the ignition box and Microtech. This the only way to assure clean power to these important components.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ide Wiring.jpg

Starting the fuel pump wiring at the pump. I'm going to be crucified for not using sealant-filled heat shrink, but I honestly just ran out. Next time I am in that area, I will correct my sloppy work.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ump Wiring.jpg

And the fuel pump wiring is finished and tied off. Also notice that the harness plug has also been taped. I've seen these break, so any little bit of extra strength is a good thing in my books.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...g Finished.jpg

One of the things that really bothers me when people do electrical work is sloppiness. There is absolutely no excuse for bringing cables through unprotected firewall connections. These are battery bulkhead connectors. They provide a pass through that is safe, clean and sanitary. The solid brass bolt in the middle is insulated by a plastic insulator, which screws into the hole and is secured on the other side with a nut. A stud on each end is then provided to make the electrical connection. Not only is this a highly safe and reliable way to pass thick cables through bulkheads, but it also provides a distribution point in the engine bay. From the ground, I can run a thick ground to the engine and the front of the body. From the +12V, a thick wire can go to the starter directly, and then another to the fuse box (and from there, ignition, e-fan, etc.). In this case, the alternator becomes part of the engine harness, which then connects to the battery which is now located inside the car. The disadvantage of these passthroughs is that they are a nightmare to install if the dash is in place. You can see how I had to drill out a stud from the engine side that served to hold the stock dash wiring harness in place. This was done for clearance. The stud has since been welded back into place.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ssthroughs.jpg

Back inside, here are the finished engine accessories. Intake manifold, water pump and housing, mounts, EGR blockoff, etc.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ccessories.jpg

With the engine outside, some mockup was done to make sure everything still fit. These next few pictures provide a great view of the manifold on it's spacer, and how little clearance there actually is between the turbo and lower intake.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...r Top View.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Rear View.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...Front View.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ottom View.jpg

Some great shots of the turbo and lower intake.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ake Mockup.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ke Closeup.jpg

About this time, the Microtech LT-8s arrived in the mail. Shown in the picture is the wiring harness, ECU, vacuum line, relay, instructions and of course the ever important sticker.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...tech Stuff.jpg

Time for a little more wastegate porting. Some of you might recognize these pictures. :) Here are the stones I used.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...ing Stones.jpg

Widening the orifice...

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Wastegate.jpg

Here's a good shot of the new wastegate passage. It's about twice as large as stock.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...te Orifice.jpg

Test fitting the new flapper door.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...per Door 1.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...per Door 2.jpg

Here's the new flapper door. Two flat washers were simply welded together. The welds were then ground down, and the two washers became as one.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...d Together.jpg

Some shots of the new flapper welded in place.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...r In Place.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...In Place 2.jpg

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...In Place 3.jpg

While I'm at it, I figured I would finish porting the exhaust runners. These are not massively ported, since if you make the center divider too thin, it will easily crack (more then it already has).

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...st Runners.jpg

Since I am making a new upper intake for this engine, I needed some flanges cut. I decided to have them done by a machine shop to save some time. So all that was necessary was to design the flange in CAD, and send it to the shop. They cut it out of 8MM steel with a water jet machine. I had a bunch done, so I can experiment with different intakes.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...AD Drawing.jpg

More work on that damn oil pan. :) I've never been happy with my original turbo drain solution (3/8" 90 degree plumbing elbow). There's nothing fundamentally wrong with it, but there are more elegant ways of accomplishing the task. So I decided to remove the oil drain, and weld on a straight 1/2" NPT pipe union. This would provide a perfect location, that was not in the way of the engine mount like the old drain.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Oil Drain.jpg

Sometimes, the best laid plans of mice and men just don't work out. I purchased a fancy billet aluminum T4 style oil drain flange from ATP Turbo with the intention of going all braided stainless/AN from the turbo to the pan. Unfortunately, it didn't fit. The flange met up with the holes correctly, but the stock turbo simply doesn't provide enough space between the center section and exhaust flange for any kind of fancy fitting. So I am stuck with the stock drain until I upgrade the turbo. Knowing this, I still wanted the setup to be as reliable and leak proof as possible (I had multiple failures with my old rubber hose). Once again hitting the plumbing isle at Home Depot, I found a 1/2" NPT copper sweat threaded fitting. This was brazed into the cut-off end of the stock drain tube.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Brazed On.jpg

From the brazed fitting, a 1/2" NPT to -10 AN 90 degree fitting was used, and the rest was plumbed in -10 AN and braided stainless. This will never leak. When I upgrade the turbo, the line will be remade to match the new (much more spacious) center section.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil... Oil Drain.jpg

Finally, here are the flanges back from the machine shop. The water jet did an excellent job. I also had some throttle body flanges cut for the stock throttle body, even though I won't be using it.

http://www.aaroncake.net/misc/rebuil...langes Cut.jpg

So there you have it. This pretty much brings us up to this weekend. If the weather holds out, the final assembly of the engine (turbo, manifolds, water pump, MOP, flywheel, clutch, etc.) will take place and it will actually be installed in the car. This is a huge milestone, since it means that now I have the location of everything, so fabrication of the upper intake can start, as well as all the wiring, plumbing, etc. I expect things to progress quickly in the engine bay at this point. Now, I can turn my thinking powers to the interior. The seats are heading out to upholstery, and I'm going to tackle the headliner myself. Soon, new carpets will be ordered...

Bout time you started making some progress :)

Good luck with the final install!

You really don't like that front cover do you? :) Just seems like it would've been the easiest spot to run to now that you had everything apart and could easily drill/tap it.

For some reason I thoughth you were going with a larger turbo from the start. Are you worried about choking that stocker with the half bridge? Also, it looks like you could get away with a lot smaller spacer now that the ACV/etc is cut out, have you tried test fiting it without the spacer and seeing how much more clearance that gave you?

Oh, and that red is damn creepy!

Everything you do is soooo nice but,








yea, here it comes.........








You need a TIG welder. It looks like your using a MIG. Effective but crude. A TIG with a small beed would look really nice.


Not being an ass, just making a suggestion, like I said you are doing ten times better job than I could.

One more observation, Do you think that the feed through bolts have enough insulation against electrostatic discharge?? I am not familiar with how other feedthroughs are for other applications, is this an industry norm? Just asking ahead of time. I'd hate to see you put it all back together and then have an electrical problem that you couldn't seem to find simply becuase there is a ton of shit in the way. 12V DC is nothing to sneeze at. A simple Hipot test could determine at what voltage you would see a failure. You would have to replace the Rubber at what not after you found the voltage faliure.

Will that piece that is cracked amount to anything.

I'm so excited, i can't wait till it's done!

Could have, but I don't have any spare TII front covers on hand. Besides, 100% of the engine block is still NA, and I wouldn't want to violate that.

I am going to a larger turbo, but not initially. My problem is that I wouldn't be able to keep my foot out of it during the breakin period. Especially with the sweet-assed turbo I have selected. :) So I'm going to run the stocker for the first 1000 KM or so. Also, I already have all the parts fabbed up, so using the stock unit means I can get the car on the road quicker since I don't have to make a new manifold, etc.

It can be a little smaller, yes. But it still won't fit without the spacer. It's all just temporary anyway, since the stock turbo won't be there much longer.

Beautiful, isn't it? The whole car is black/crimson. The interior is being done in black and maroon, and the wheels are being powder coated semi-gloss black...

Most of the sheet metal work I do with flux core 0.035" wire. Anything thicker I generally run 6011 1/8th or 1/16th rod in the buzz box. But yes, I do need a TIG. I'm currently looking at the Miller Syncrowave 180, which should handle anything that I need to do...But the price....

Electrostatic discharge? I believe you are thinking way too hard. :D The only discharge that could ever take place would be between the terminal and the body of the car. And never could a charge build up in the cables that high since there are so many easier points through which it can reach ground. 12V DC is nothing, trust me. :)

Cracked? What piece?

I think he's talking about the turbo divider. I usually don't swap over front covers, I just drill out the spot on the N/A cover since the casting is there, just not the holes. I either drill it out and throw in an AN adapter, or use an NPT adapter and go from there. What turbo you got picked out? I'll be using a GT35R when mine's all finished. (Working on my fuel lines now). That color combo is going to be pretty damn sick to look at!

you did alot your pictures helped me learn more about how to port my wastegate what color is your intake manifolds? are they powder coated? also your doing a great job on the car

Ah...Well, 90% of them are like that, so I'm not worried.

Yeah, I guess I could have done that...Just didn't occur to me. It's just as easy to weld a bung/pipe to the oil pan.

You bastard, I thought I was going to be the first. :) Sweet turbo...dual ball bearing... :drool:

Glad to hear it. All the red is simply MetalCast red. I quickly polish the piece, then spray on 4 coats of the MetalCast.

Haha, i got the turbo in trade for a car I originally bought for $400! I'm probably going to sell it and get the A-spec T4 version instead though, makes picking a manifold much easier. So far I've got everything done except fuel pump & lines and the exhaust manifold, can't wait to see what that thing does! You're using the same? Seems to be an increasingly popular turbo (hIGGI's car got me hooked on the idea!)

Edit: and I guess it is easier to weld things if you have a welder... Explains why I'm always thinking 'where can I drill now...'

Nice setup.

I do have one Q though.

Your turbo oil drain looks like it dips down and then up at the oil pan. May just be the pic angle though.

I'd think you'd get some good pooling and eventual blowthrough in the turbo.

Goodluck man..looks good so far =)

:drool:

God that thing is awesome.

It does dip down, and then head up into the pan. However, the level of the oil in the pan is still below the turbo from which the oil is draining. So it will still easily drain. Think about a plumbing trap in a toilet, sink or tub.

heh... I was about to ask if that was flux-cored wire... you using a gasless unit, or just run out of shielding? ;)

No weld-through primer on the sheet metal?

The Sycro 180 is a pretty nice piece of equipment. If you pick one up, you will be very happy with it... its very easy to use as far as TIG's go, and produces decent welds in aluminum. I looked into purchasing one, but ended up stepping up to the syncro 350LX.

If your interested Aaron my NA motor with very similar porting to yours has been up and running for quite some time now. I think you like how it pulls whne its together. I kept my 6-port sleaves functonal tho.

The GT35/40 has been a popular turbo for FD's for a long time. IMO I don't think it's very cost effective. The new GT series isnt' THAT much more efficent over the old series.

Tunning can make as big as difference on spool time as BB to non-BB. Is that 300rpm worth it?

That being said I do have a BB wet section turbo :) (62-1)

there's something about the sound of a BB and the peace of mind of a wet section.

I've found that if you cut the oil return line on the solid metal section a -16 AN slides over it nicely and no fittings are required.

Hey Aaron, just a quick thought/comment on something i found while welding my my manifold together. try turning the feed down and the Amps up a bit and you'll get cleaner wels with less splash. Then again i've only been welding for a year just thought i'd drip that bit of knoledge i have.

Engine looks awesome though. Very nice!

Get er done and hopefully bring it out to the next meet!

Frank

Hey mate, great work, but with your wiring for your sound system Id change your wiring so all your power for the amps etc etc goes up the other side, it stops the chance of electrical interference in your signal wires, and even with Well shielded RCA's you get it a lot.... and their nothing worse then having a great sounding car and you can hear engine noise etc but looks great :D

Yeah, I was refering to them on FC's, not very common to find!

I don't think you can beat my cost effectiveness, $400! :)

I find it hard to beleive that a GT35R will spool as fast as a stocker. As a matter of fact, i beleive you are going to have a horrible time staying out of boost with a half bridge NA with a stock HT-18. What ever floats your boat though.

Nice work.

-Justin

I think they'd be pretty close. The stocker is what, around a 1.00 hotside? The GT35's run a 1.06, not all too far of a difference.

Nice...seems like the GT35R is quickly gaining popularity with FCs. I can't wait until A-Spec releases the T4 footprint...I think this is going to be my next turbo when I upgrade. I'm sure you'll see some crazy response time with the BP and high compression.

I think setup properly it would be close also.

The increased wheel efficiency, BB, back pressure, manifold design, tuning, heat wrapping, etc all play a factor.

If I could I'd stay in boost the rest of my life :)

I think there is a smaller .82 A/R for the t3 footprint.

My concern with a small hot side would be the turbo dieing out in the higher rpm. Especially with a bridge -you want to stay up there and maximize it.

Now since he's running Hi-comp i doubt he will look at some serious psi numbers and this mostly likely will not be a problem.

I'd size a fairly large external with the bridge/hi-comp/low desired boost and make sure that it's a effiecient manifold design.

400 bucks for a gt35r would kick ass.

Oh boy...where to start...
Am I going to butcher this thread or what? :D


-Ted

I disagree.
There are other ways to combat boost creep, and porting the wastegate is only one option.
I've ported S4 turbo WG's before with good success even with 3" exhaust systems.
Unless you're going bigger, I see no reason to have to go overboard with the porting.



-Ted

Again, I disagree with this.
I've been using existing stock grommets / rubber harness boots to run cables through with no problems.
I've run 1/0 cable through the main power harness on my '87 with no problems.

If you're worried about shorting, then something is seriously wrong.
You don't leave big cables like that flapping around loose - I secure both ends after passing through the firewall on existing wiring, and this keeps is from moving around.

If you're worried about a short in a collision, I think you need to worry about yourself before worrying about the electrical system in your car.
This is why I run dual circuit breakers or fuses on both ends of the battery cables to prevent damage from shorts.


-Ted

This one scares me.
The washers look like zinc plated stuff?
Even if it was stainless steel, most of the parts inside the turbo turbine are high nickel content iron.
I'd be surprised if your welds actually hold up.
I'd put money it will all come apart in weeks.
TIG *might* hold, but you've confirmed using a MIG.


-Ted

Elbows and 90-degree fittings are big no-no's for turbo oil drain lines.
Check with Turbonetics.


-Ted

ESD?
Are you talking about arcing?
Typically, arcing potential rises as voltage does.
Since we're talking nominal 12VDC stuff, it's highly unlikely it'll arc.
Unless there is a manufacturer defect or something stupid happens, I doubt it'll arc.
These components are typically rated to like 600V (try check the casting).


-Ted

This is still not recommended from almost all the turbo shops.
Try and ask them.

Rule of thumbs for turbo oil drains should be the biggest you can afford, straightest path as possible, and should drain above the oil line.

I try to use -12 if possible.
-10 is sometimes okay, if you can't afford or get the -12 stuff.
Why so big?
It has nothing to do with the SS AN line itself - the adapters and connectors are all necked down - try and look into one of them, and it's significantly smaller than the hose I.D.
In fact, flanged pipes are probably the best drain lines, as they aren't neck down like AN fittings are...weird, huh.


-Ted

What "old series"?
T04B?
T04E?
You gotta be kidding me, right?
You do realize that your typical GT35R or GT3540 uses a *T3* turbine section!
So how can the GT35R get away with a T3 sized turbine section when the 13B can spool a full T04 (turbine section)???
Think about it...


Sure, but in my experience, the BB center is good for almost 1,000RPM faster spool-up.


Is that from Turbonetics?
I guess you got bent over then. :D


-Ted

Dude, you have no idea what you're talking about.
Have you ever experienced a GT35 properly tuned???
I think you haven't.
On a 13B street port, it spools just as quick as a stock turbo.
GO ASK hIGGI.

The BP will cause the turbo to spool even FASTER, if done right.
In fact, with the 1.06 biggest A/R option, I think the turbine section will even CHOKE the potential of the BP motor.

For BP's, I would rather run something as large as 1.3 or bigger!


-Ted

Yes, I was bored.

I guess it doesn't matter if I say this, as I'm sure people are still going to take it the wrong way...
There's a lot of falsehoods in this thread that I wanted to clear up.
If you don't believe me, I've put references if possible to back up my claims.
I want to see this car run...oddly enough.
(I still think it's going to blow up. :D )

3 more hours till the weekend!


-Ted

Is it OK to use a AN 90 degree (-12) off the turbo then straight into the front cover? Not sure if you're talking all bends or not, or possibly even a 45 into the front cover?

How serious are you on this one Ted? How much money are you willing to risk? Are you seriously willing to stand behind what you're saying or is this egomaniacal BS?

I guess my statement was too broad. I keep forgetting about the T3 on the gt35/40 if i don't constantly remind myself.

I guess I was think'n more of the GT40 or GT42. Like the GT42 compared to a T78.

-point noted.

Never knew BB was as much as 1k too

I think it's a Turbonetics :)

I got it used after it has been rebalanced. Not a big fan of turbonetics? I think they are too pricey but not what I paid for it.

I personally don't think i'll hold up either.

Usually they use exhaust valves from cars and not washers. I've done that before with good results.

Arron and ReTED thanks for answering. I was not sure if a ESD would be a problem with the feed throughs. Just a question that you guys obvioulsy have worked through. Good Job.

And Not having a Tig for $$$$ Totally indefensible you should not start building a car until you have every piece of proper equipment to handle the job (That my friends was sarcasm)

My questions were merely posed for thought provocation. Not criticism

Again, you do really nice work.

Since I do all my welding outdoors, I don't see the point of running gas. Since my driveway forms a very efficient wind tunnel, any gas shield is blown away. :) So flux core or stick seems to work best for me. Once I get into TIG, I'll make a little area of the garage into a welding area...

Nope. :)

That's nice to know.

The welds in the car had to be done very deliberately, with as little current and as much wire lead as possible as to not burn through the thin metal. The wire I was running was MUCH too thick for the job, so it required a delicate and very intermittant touch. When I weld other things (ie. oil pans and such) I can keep the wire speed high and the current at medium, with a short lead out. This keeps splatter under control.

The only issue I have with having that on my car is that the union between the braided stainless and the stock pipe is a perfect leak point. I saw several failures in this area with my original rubber oil drain. While in the short term I wouldn't have a problem with it, reliability is foremost on my mind at this point. I want to drive the car 1000 KM at the spur of the moment without worrying (like I can do with the Honda).

I knew someone would say it. :) The cables on the driver side are strictly audio and MP3 player related. They've basically been run that way for about 6 years now, with no interference problems. The trick is to use high quality shielded cable. The cable I have used is tripple shielded. An initial wire braid covers a foil shield, and then each wire is individually shielded. The only difference between the original 6 year old setup and the setup now is the addition of a few signal wires, an extra speaker wire, and the zip ties. :) But in normal circumstances, I would never recommend that anyone set up an audio system like this. It works for me because I have used the proper (VERY expensive) cable.

Apparently, the spool on the GT35 is amazing. Locally, there's a guy that runs one on his FD, and apparently the response is instant...

Now, definitly I will have a hard time keeping the stock turbo out of boost. However, it's mostly a mental thing. If I don't have that big turbine on there and only have the puny stock unit, I'll keep my foot out of it. Or at least have less chance of getting myself in trouble. Plus, using my existing turbo setup initially means that I can GET THE CAR ON THE ROAD faster with a tested system. After having my car sitting in the garage for 3 years, that becomes important. :)

I hate to nit-pick, but I did not say "this is the only way to combat boost creep". I did say "This is the ONLY way to effectively port the wastegate.". I guess I could have been more clear and said something like "In my opinion, this is the only way to effectivily port the stock wastegate in extreme creep cases.".

That's fine. Both methods are completely valid. But in my opinion, I don't feel comfortable running high current wires directly through the firewall. Long before I was interested in RX-7s, I was into EVs. In the EV world, it is not uncommon to run cables which carry thousands of amps continuously, and are connected to battery packs capable of supplying megawatts into a short. When you are dealing with that kind of power, you get a new appreciation for the words "high current short circuit". I've seen inch thick copper bus bars literally vaporize under these conditions. I'm not saying that we need to follow the same rules in this case, but it couldn't hurt.

Plus, if you read my initial statement, it said "There is absolutely no excuse for bringing cables through unprotected firewall connections.". Grommits clearly qualify as a protected firewall passthrough.

Unfortunately, I've been in about 7 collisions since I have had this car, none of which were my fault. Once of which was very serious. If I had a rear mounted battery in that case, there would have been a direct short without a doubt. I will be running breakers as well. And since breakers sometimes fail, there will be an additional fuse in series before the breaker. Anyone who doesn't run fuses/breakers is just an idiot in my books. :)

Yep, they're just hardware store washers. I agree, those welds are pretty bad (I ran out of nozzles, and this one was having feed issues...I also didn't have any electrodes for the buzz box). But they're plenty strong enough for this application. I don't exactly see how TIG would make a difference. While you could get slightly better penetration with a TIG machine, this is hardly a structural application...

The stock drain has two 90 degree bends. Many aftermarket turbo kits include multiple bends and 90 degree fittings. Besides, my original setup worked fine (even though it was much less.....refined?) and had no draining issues. If it makes you feel any better, after the turbo upgrade, there will only be 1 90 degree fitting used.

I'm not sure how to take that. I could point out that the original turbo-NA setup worked fine with spectacular results. Or that others have done the same thing and had similar results. Or that I'm doing it "right" this time with a standalone and a fuel system up to the task. Or that this is not exactly the first engine I have built or the first RX-7 I have worked on. But I won't. ;)

I was about to say that it sounds good in theory, until you start to add the cost up and get to about $3K for a base TIG setup...but that was sarcasm, so it's OK. :D