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It's been a while, updates to come on progress soon. Been super busy so haven't had much time to spend with the car. Teaser... I finished knocking all the ugly off!!!
Alright starting to get into the slower meticulous time of the build... Lots of parts have been ordered so now its all about tweaking everything to get to do what I want. You know the stuff that's hard to spend time on because its so cumbersome and time consuming that it is un-motivating... Modifying Interior Panels, installing gauges, Building Brackets, Re-Wiring the harnesses, painting, adjusting exterior panels. Today gave me a little motivation as I got my big shipment in from Shine. Still a few pieces outstanding but all the pretty carbon made me feel good. An update from Austin over at ESH that my interior is almost done and a few pictures of the awesome work they were doing was inspiring this week making me look forward to the weekend to see what I can get done this weekend. I think after the 1st of the year I should have a majority of the big pieces to start makings it resemble a car again.
Parts Received since the last update:
Haltech Elite 2500 ECU w/ Premium Harness
Haltech IQ3 Dataloggit Dash
Shine (FEED) Front Bumper
Shine (FEED) Front Fenders
Shine (FEED) Rear Fenders
Shine (FEED) Carbon Sides
Shine RE Carbon Street Diffuser
Front Bumper Carbon Canards
Progress Made Since Last Update:
Sanded and Primered Back Half
Carpet Padding and Carpet laid out
Started De-Pinning Wiring Harness to Remove unnecessary Wires from harness (Thats what Ive got to say about wiring)
Parts Still Waiting On:
Shine (FEED) Carbon Hood
Shine (FEED) Carbon Bumper Protector
Car Shop Glow Tail Lights
Car Shop Glow Rear Carbon Duckbill
Full Interior from ESH
Been debating on if I do paint or if I get it wrapped... I saw a Mustang about a month ago that looked really cool in person and it had a custom wrap that was the 3M Psychedelic. I was thinking about doing it, it would definitely make it stand out as it should! Thoughts?
Few pictures of the parts and some pictures from Austin on the interior pieces. Also came home and just placed the Shine Panels on to make it at least look like a real car even for a second...
Chris
Last edited by twomucboost4u; 12-14-17 at 10:12 PM.
The wrap job pictured for me is a bit much. Also, those wraps can cost WAY more than you would think, like approaching a paint job. I would go with something more clean personally, but at the end of the day it's your car.
You can also think about doing Plastidip, there's a lot of cool colors and effects and it's pretty inexpensive to do and have a good looking job. My car is in yellow CYM Plastidip now to buy time until I finally get a real paint job .
The wrap job pictured for me is a bit much. Also, those wraps can cost WAY more than you would think, like approaching a paint job. I would go with something more clean personally, but at the end of the day it's your car.
You can also think about doing Plastidip, there's a lot of cool colors and effects and it's pretty inexpensive to do and have a good looking job. My car is in yellow CYM Plastidip now to buy time until I finally get a real paint job .
Dale
Hey Dale,
Yeah I originally got a quote from a few shops in town for paint. Was thinking a nice metallic Charcoal. I was quoted anywhere from 6-9k. The wrap is around 3300. I am definitely on the fence I really like something that is super clean, but the Mustang I saw was super eye catching and actually looked pretty clean and not as goddy as You might think. Either way I have a lot of panel fitting and body work to do before either so I should have an easy 3-4 months before I need to actually decide. Appreciate the insight though and for checking in on the build!!!
I ended up wrapping my car and it looks great. The is one small issue about wrapping an FD that I encountered, which is you're going to have to put a tiny seam on the roof above the doors. This is because the FD doesn't have any rain gutters to tuck the vinyl into, and you can't get a piece of vinyl so large that you can cover the roof all the way back to both quarter panels without a seam. If you're a super perfectionist, the seam might bother you, or it might not. A good wrap shop can hide the seam very well though, by following the curve of the door frame and using 3M knifeless tape to get that perfect, curved overlap. On my satin white, this worked out fine and it's very hard to tell. My real question is how well this will work for the prismatic wraps. Those prismatic wraps have a "direction" (actually, so do the pearl wraps) and if you the entire side of a car isn't laid with the direction facing the right way, the color looks off. The pearl/prismatic effect will be flipping in opposite directions. I'm not sure how noticeable this is when you carry it over onto the roof with no rain gutter to visually break it up. It might (emphasis *might*) make the seam more noticeable. You might want to check on a wrap shop about that.
Well it's starting to look like a car again which is pretty exciting. Going to take some time to get everything primed and prepped and fitting just right but at least now it's all there. Decided while I had it out I would paint the dash frame. Still slowly working throug the electrical which is not fun at all! Thr rear will all get molded, I'll be going back over everything now that it's on and doing a final sand then hitting it with body filler then sand everything nice and even then a flat black finish primer and that's how it will sit until I decide if it's getting a wrap or paint.
Question for the group I am debating on taking on the rears myself. On a scale of 1-10 how hard is it to cut, shape and weld the rear fenders along with molding it nicely? Or should I leave that to a body shop and just finish the rest on the body. Rear offset is pretty perfect for a flush fit.
I also need to start working on my fender mirrors and cutting installing gauges for my internal panels.
I ended up wrapping my car and it looks great. The is one small issue about wrapping an FD that I encountered, which is you're going to have to put a tiny seam on the roof above the doors. This is because the FD doesn't have any rain gutters to tuck the vinyl into, and you can't get a piece of vinyl so large that you can cover the roof all the way back to both quarter panels without a seam. If you're a super perfectionist, the seam bother you, or it might not. A good wrap shop can hide the seam very well though, by following the curve of the door frame and using 3M knifeless tape to get that perfect, curved overlap. On my satin white, this worked out fine and it's very hard to tell. My real question is how well this will work for the prismatic wraps. Those prismatic wraps have a "direction" (actually, so do the pearl wraps) and if you the entire side of a car isn't laid with the direction facing the right way, the color looks off. The pearl/prismatic effect will be flipping in opposite directions. I'm not sure how noticeable this is when you carry it over onto the roof with no rain gutter to visually break it up. It might (emphasis *might*) make the seam more noticeable. You might want to check on a wrap shop about that.
How hard was the wrap to do on the few sections you did? Mine needs sprayed but I planned to wrap it this winter as a DIY project till I take it in next year...
Soooo it's been a while since I gave a little update. Some big things happening right now and will be giving an update soon. This was the **** gets real week and I bought myself quite the birthday present!
Alright... Well update is due and I promise to add some pictures as soon as I get back home later this week as stuff is still coming in...
As far as the list of goodies to add to the build and where I am at. Well I was taking on the body wiring harness, which was proving to be a headache. Low and behold right at the time I am looking into option what do I find... An Infinitywire 20 Circuit kit with Wiring Harness. So I decided to just rip everything out and start from scratch. (Thats going to be me after going through this whole wiring thing)
Bought some brackets for the seats so I can mount those in...
I bought an FFE Crank Trigger Kit with Hall sensor,
Also picked up a FFE EMAP Kit with sensor as well.
Car Shop Glow Tails with Center Section
Car Shop Glow Carbon Duckbill
For my Birthday Present... (This is about 10 months ahead of schedule) I went ahead and bumped up the build timeline a bit and purchases the fully built Bridge Ported 20b Addicted Performance had for sale (This just means paint and body work will have to come later which I am ok with)
Mated to that will be a custom Twin Turbo set up I picked up from another forum member along with a large front mount kit. Currently running Twin Precision Journal bearing Turbos, which I might trade out for a pair of Ball Bearing GT35's. HP Goal I am shooting for will be around 650HP on a daily drive-able tune. (Once I get everything built up I might push it on race gas as see what it can really do)
Still a lot of little things that I need to get. Ill be converting over to a Smartkey system, Also want to convert E-Brake over to a modern style electronic one. Fuel system will get a full upgrade with dual pumps/new filters/lines, as well as a custom 5 Gallon Secondary Tank built into where the spare tire was. This will hold the Race Fuel for secondary tune with a tank switchover.
Should be getting the interior back soon so it will be nice to finish out the interior and get that all set up and mostly finished while I finish the electronics and getting the new motor in. Austin has been sending my pictures and needless to say I am really looking forward to getting this stuff in.
Once I get through this next phase we will be turning attention to drivetrain, which will consist of Sequential trans, custom driveshaft, cradle and read end upgrade along with axles. Hopefully the stock tranny and other components will last for a short while so I can get all the funding for that phase together.
Then after that well finish up brakes ans suspension with all new bushings and links along with Rear Upgrade to match the front.
Then Once its all done and finished and everything is as it should be, Ill tear it all down and get everything cleaned up, powder coated/painted then put back together for its hopefully long term final assembly. (That's what I am going to look like driving)
Chris
Last edited by twomucboost4u; 01-21-18 at 09:33 PM.
Reason: Added some pictures from Motor Sale Thread
Wow this build escalated so quickly!! Love it! Curious about what you are thinking for a smart key system as I have been also thinking of doing something similar too. All I have have been cheeper no name brands.
Wow this build escalated so quickly!! Love it! Curious about what you are thinking for a smart key system as I have been also thinking of doing something similar too. All I have have been cheeper no name brands.
This is the one I have been looking at. I agree it's been hard to find a good one that has solid reviews.https://advancedkeys.com/Prod_AK105B.htmlThanks for checking in on the build! Chris
Busy Busy Busy... Work has been crazy, whole family getting sick, so haven't had a ton of time to spend on the car. I am still ordering parts like its going out of style, I cant seem to stop thinking about things I want to buy. Few positive things...
Interior Came Back (Holy SH*T those guys did an amazing job)
Started Wiring and was able to get the back half cleaned up and sorted (Trying to keep everything hidden and clean). Soldering and heat shrinking every connection is a major time suck!
Cleaned out the garage (still needs a lot more work) but I can actually work in there now!
Motor shipped last week and is due any day!
Seat Brackets came in and got seats mounted (Going to need to make the passenger a fixed mount and remove the sliders)
NRG Hub and Momo Steering Wheel Installed
Finally decided on paint! Going to go Gloss Black with the rear Wide body in Matte just to give a little contrast.
Once I get some time in the garage Ill share some pictures to update with. I need to start getting rid of some of my extra/old parts that I am swapping out as stuff is starting to pile up. Ill also start to update on the installation and quality of some of the pieces. Thanks for tuning in and look forward to getting this thing all back together. I am shooting for July/Aug time-frame to have this thing to be driving.
Was able to get the Intercooler mounted up today, and take some pictures of other progress.
Interior is coming along, custom built a mounting plate to hide the rear body Harness computer but keep it accessible. Carshop Glow tails with carbon Duckbill...
Was also able to do some heat massaging on the fenders and head light buckets to get them to sit and fit better.
Chris
Sooo to say this has been a journey would not do it justice. Full of victories, defeats and everything in between. Figuring this out as I go and really trying to push myself to not sacrifice during any part of this has been extremely hard to do. I am trying to get all my pictures downloaded to this computer and will post some updates. Here is where we stand after almost three years... Car is around 85% Complete, Engine/Transmission are in and mounted, engine wiring is 95% done, body harness is 80% done, Paint and body work is done, have some lines for oil/water/fuel I am waiting to make as the last pieces have been on order and back-ordered for the past two+ months. Drive shaft is being built and still 3-4 weeks out. Rear interior and a few other interior pieces I am waiting on. Hoping to try and start it within the next month as long as I can get the Vibrant order in. This has been a great learning experience and a fun project. I recently started documenting the build and here is what we have.
Exterior
Shine Auto Compete Feed Kit Front Bumper Front bumper Lense Covers 4 Piece Carbon Canard Kit Carbon Bumper Protectors Front Fenders Carbon Sidesteps Rear Fenders Full Finished Carbon Hood (Only One) Rear Carbon Street Diffuser
Car Shop Glow Tail Lights V1 Car Shop Glow Rear Carbon Duck Bill
BlackTie Motors HID Lights (Mirimoto Ballasts) Custom Carbon LED Combo Lights Carbon LED Rear Combo Lights
VIS Hatch With Lexen Window
Seibon Carbon Doors
Corn Carbon Carbon Wiper Cover
Square Craft Carbon Rear Mirrors
Full Custom Paint & BodyWork Eisen Grey/Dark Metallic
All New OEM Seals
Engine/Fuel/Cooling
20B 3 Rotor Engine (Addicted Performance) A-Series E&J Seals All New OEM Hard Seals Rotary Aviation O-ring Kit Full Bridge CNC Drilled 1/2in Full through Studding Balancing Whiz Lightning, Balancing,side/face Clearance Xcessive Man. Short LIM Xcessive Man. Deep Oil Pan, Adpater Kit Xcessive Man. High Rise Motor Mounts FFE Primary And 6 Port Secondary Fuel Rails w/ Billet Injector Sleeves 3x ID 1000's Primaries 6x ID 2000 Secondaries FFE Billet DBW TB Mount w/ LSA DBW TB CTV DBW Pedal with Samburg Mount E&J Billet Oil Adapter OEM UIM Polished REW Front Cover REW Exhaust Sleeves
B2A Billet Water Adapater B2A Dual Pump In tank Surge System (Twin Hellcat Pumps) B2A Side Mount Alternator Bracket -20 Fittings and Nylon Braided Water Lines Custom Ron Davis Radiator w/ Shroud and Dual Fans Sake Bomb 25 Core Setrab Dual Oil Coolers Custom FMIC w/ Piping And Tial BOV Full Custom Twin Turbo Set Up Twin GTX35 Turbos Dual Tial Waistgates Custom Dual 3 inch to 4 Inch Downpipe 180A Upgraded Alternator -10AN Feed / -8 Return FFE Fuel Filter and Relocation Elite Performance Oil Filler Neck Elite Performance Drive and Alternator Pulley
Carbon Miata Carbon Cooling Panel
Vibrant PTFE Fittings and Lines for Fuel/Water/oil
Water Meth Kit
Full Custom 4 Inch Titanium Exhaust (Still to be built)
Suspension/Brakes/Drivetrain/Wheels
RE DG5 Custom Tunes Coilovers with Swift Springs Custom B2A Billet Arms Front and Rear Spherical Bushings Sake Bomb Billet Front Sway Bar Pedastool Custom Valved Manual Rack Conversion
Brembo GT Front Brakes Sake Bomb Garage Rear Brake Kit Willwood Master Cyclinder All SS Braided Lines Custom B2A Carbon Brake Dust Seals Vented Front/Rear
Front And Rear Subframe Collars
Tremec T56 Magnum Quicktime Bellhousing Tilton 6000 Series Slave and Throw Out Bearing Custom McLeod Twin Disk Clutch/Flywheel Willwood Master w/ Adapater Custom BAC Carbon Driveshaft w/ Chromoly Input High Torque Starter Samburg T56 Transmission Mount Samburg 8.8 Rear Subframe Rebuilt Factory Racing Cobra 8.8 w/ Axles
Rays Gramlights 305/30/19 Rear 275/30/19 Front
Interior/Electronics
Full Custom Alcantara Interior Custom Status Carbon Seats Evo-R Carbon Panels Corn Carbon Carbon Shifter Panel Carbon Miata Carbon Door Handles
Haltech 2500 Dual Wideband Three Runner EGT FFE E-MAP IC7 Dash All Haltech Sensors 4 Port Boost Controller
Infinity Wire 20 Circuit System
I had to run back through your earlier posts to remind myself on this build. Excited to see some more photos when you get them up. I am doing a lot of similar work to my car right now. I am at the fully stripped down stage right now. Have a ways to go
12-14-17, 10:07 PM
Modifying Interior Panels, installing gauges, Building Brackets, Re-Wiring the harnesses, painting, adjusting exterior panels. Today gave me a little motivation as I got my big shipment in from Shine. Still a few pieces outstanding but all the pretty carbon made me feel good. An update from Austin over at ESH that my interior is almost done and a few pictures of the awesome work they were doing was inspiring this week making me look forward to the weekend to see what I can get done this weekend. 
I think after the 1st of the year I should have a majority of the big pieces to start makings it resemble a car again.
(Thats what Ive got to say about wiring)
.
Going to take some time to get everything primed and prepped and fitting just right but at least now it's all there. Decided while I had it out I would paint the dash frame. Still slowly working throug the electrical which is not fun at all! 
Thr rear will all get molded, I'll be going back over everything now that it's on and doing a final sand then hitting it with body filler then sand everything nice and even then a flat black finish primer and that's how it will sit until I decide if it's getting a wrap or paint. 
(Thats going to be me after going through this whole wiring thing)
(This just means paint and body work will have to come later which I am ok with)
(That's what I am going to look like driving)
Keep it up, looks great so far.
