So the last couple days i've spend a total of about 9 hours under the car. I'm getting burnt out on cleaning guys.... There is OIL everywhere!!!! and there's no easy way to get it off. I need a 1 piece suit and a head mask. and a pressure washer filled with Degreaser instead of water.....and a GIANT vacume that sucks the mess into a tank somewhere outside the gorage.
Anyways.. excuse the rant. I got the Drive shaft off. Degreased.. and started to drop the whole rear sub frame..but luckily.. it truly wasn't that dirty and the paint is in good condition. So i've decided to leave it in and just clean a couple of the parts that needed it. But I pulled my Gunked to eff Diff and pumkin out by removing one of the axles then sliding the thing to the open side. It was easier than I expected but it was pretty dirty. Enough hogswash... heres some pics !:icon_tup:
Pumpkin/Diff
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...504_190433.jpg
Old bushings come out
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...505_121321.jpg
Sand blasted Diff cradle, then pushed new bushings in.
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...505_140914.jpg
I'll post pics of the final product later tonight

But check out these old pillow balls.. they actually moved front to back when I shook them!! So worn...:icon_tdow
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...505_114115.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...505_114121.jpg
Nothing better than New Parts:nod:
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...505_114201.jpg

Keep it up!

If you got under there with some spray de-greaser and put it up on stands as high as you can (and got some goggles), you could probably get under there with a power washer! Just spray everything!

ps: garage :)

Garage* Garage* hey....its just one of those things haha. I'll use the excuse that I type excessively fast lol.

I could get under there with a power washer...but It's in the garage, so it'd be a huge mess to get all the water/degreaser. Plus,...the degreaser I have scares me. I caught a whiff of it a few different times and it instantly singed my lungs.. It honestly hurt. So i feel like i'd need some sort of Breather face mask or protection.

Heres some pics of recent progress...
diff cradle done
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...506_084453.jpg

And originally I thought I had replaced all the bad pillow balls.. But I ended up ordering the last 2 and installing them yesterday morning because I could feel my wheel move slightly with pressure. But I kinda like installing pillow-balls.. Now that I have my method figured out.. I wouldn't mind doing it for people if they sent me the pillows and suspension arms:icon_tup:
anyways..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...506_084513.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...506_084520.jpg

build is looking great, to make degreasing a little easier use some break cleaner then pressure washer, that usually does the trick but make sure to capture the mess as break cleaner in the water system is a big NO NO.

Yea I'm gonna go buy a box of brake cleaner :icon_tup:

Today I didn't get to do much to the fd.. but I got a few little things done. I ordered my thermotec heat shielding material for my tranny tunnel,...which i'm glad they offered an adhesive backed option because I wasn't looking forward to sticky icky hands and having to deal with all that adhesive spray etc. I also bought a Tii Limited slip diff. I have read a decent amount about these and i've talked to a few people including howard coleman about them and everyone says they perform just as good as any of your 1200-1500 dollar units. I could definitely use the extra cash somewhere else with the car so i'm thinking It was a good purchase. Got it off fris from Lucky seven..."Shout Out!!" haha.
So I emptied the diff fluid tonight in prep for the new but used Tii lsd unit and just cleaned the whole pumpkin because again..like everything else under the car...was covered in oily tar.
I also started on my fender roll. Now my car came with a terrible paint job... must be a single stage.. because they forgot to take the mirrors off the doors before they painted it haha. THeres also over-spray in the back hatch on some of my tan plastics.. wtf.. IMO thats just being lazy. But the roll is only halfway done.. I'm only going with an 11 in rear and 10 in Fronts. So I don't want to bow it out too much.. Im just working on making the transition from the upper fender to the flare as smooth as possible. I'll eventually paint the car when i'm done with the body and I get my skirts and front end back in shape.
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...509_213648.jpg

Oh yea..and I slapped my motor together yesterday in prep to send it off to Howard for the build.
Dynamic Balanced Rotating assembly:icon_tup:
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...507_171118.jpg
Low Mileage weight matched and balanced 3mm Rotors.. :icon_tup:
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...507_171134.jpg
my work station haha
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...507_172247.jpg
And assembly..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...507_173905.jpg
nice
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...509_213400.jpg

Next on the list:
- Freight the motor to Howard
- Thermotec Tranny Tunnel
- Install Tii Limited Slip Diff
- Put rear end back together
- Blast my brake calipers & Paint
- Paint Engine Bay
- Look for someone in CA preferably in LA to widen my wheels and buff the living Eff out of them.

post 101, pic 1 shows the big fat rubber bushing (BFRB) that secures the diff... it is one of 2 sets of bushings that need to be "fundamentally transformed" / changed on any serious roadgoing FD.

the other is the front of the lower (longitudinal) link. it is another BFRB and it creates toe change under braking and acceleration. it needs to be solid. you don't want no stinkin toe change in the rear.

those rotor housings look familiar:)

hc

Hey howard.... I put the super pro bushings into the diff Cradle.. Are you meaning that I should push them out and get solid mounts? And by longitudinal link do you mean this part here needs to be solid?
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...208_222433.jpg.........

yes that is the (missing) bushing.

as to solid or no... there is nothing wrong w a higher durometer bushing to replace the OE marshmallows...

Alrighty awesome... they're already replaced then:icon_tup:

Well my father passed away last week. So i've been out in texas for the funeral and dealing with all the stuff that goes on when someone passes away. But I can honestly say that he's in a better place and that his time had come, I'm just happy that things weren't so bad for him. He was a Vietnam Vet, and had undergone chemo therapy so many times that I never thought he'd make it this far, yet alone be on his feet and fully independant up until his stroke 2 weeks ago and his death 1 week ago. If there was ever anything we shared.. it was the love of automobiles. And i plan on building this car...a car that he'd be proud of.. in his name.

It just motivates me more to build an even better machine :icon_tup:

Progress:

Got a couple things in. My aluminized heat barrier from Jegs, which I feel is the perfect size.. but just eye-balling it.. it looks like it's gonna be perfect. It was 24" X 48" so we'll see how that works out. I also got my J-spec Tii Diff in ..and though there's virtually no difference.. it's in excellent shape from what I can see..thanks fris:icon_tup:. They even game me a dumb Jegs hat that i'll most likely NEVER wear haha.. and enough stickers and magazine's to feel overwhealmed with opon opening the box..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...518_235622.jpg
Tii LSD unit
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...519_000124.jpg

this looks great
keep going on :)

Car is looking great but why the TII diff over the torsen? I can understand for a drag car but not a track car. Unless the JDM TII is also a torsen unit and I jusy don't know it.

Alrighty... I spent about 4.5 hours under my car tonight. The brake Cleaner worked excellent, so installing the adhesive backed thermotec heat barrier wasn't too bad. But it is time consuming.
At first I used aluminum foil and coated the entire tranny tunnel and figured I could just trace it onto the big piece of thermo tec.. News flash.. first grade is out and unless you are tracing something flat.. then FORGET IT. So I just went at it, sat under the car and traced and cut..and traced and cut.. but the final product looks excellent. Definitely well worth the 70 bucks and 4.5 hours.
check it..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...520_215144.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...520_215157.jpg

Nice work
 

My man sorry for the loss of your pops, the tunnel looks clean, you build will be awsome when you get done. Call simple wheels works in the OC area for your wheel mods.

damn dude, your car is coming along nicely. i remember those days when i was single and childless restoring my 69 camaro and then a 1950 chevy pickup. now it seems that all my fd does is sits, i'm a little envious to say the least. good luck ad keep it going dude.

also, sorry to hear about your dad bro, glad you're handling it so well though. good luck

wow, this is a great build. I just read all the pages on this. I hope to build mine from the ground up like this but I think I'm going to have to invest in a lift to make life easier

Thanks for the kind words, and i'll definitely be giving them a call.

Yea, to tell you the truth.. working on the car is the perfect therapy. Sitting under the car and working on it all together is perfect because i get time to myself to reflect and think about life in general. It's kind of like soul clensing. Thanks for the kind words, i'll be just fine:icon_tup:
You know what... I have a small furniture dolly thats completely flat.. That combined with the jack stands all the way high really hasn't been bad at all. The car is about 2 1/2ish feet off the ground. I've had plenty of room. But a lift would be so rad :nod:

the thermo tec heat barrier on the trannel tunnel makes a night and day difference. definitely worth the money.

I'm hoping so... cause that sh*t got hot!!

So this morning I took apart the pumpkin to instlal my TII LSD unit. It actually went very smoothly.

OEM Torsen in pumpkin
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_142554.jpg
TII LSD UNIT... Clutch type
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_142602.jpg
Knocked the big rings off both...
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_143146.jpg
Popped axles out and took out the OEM unit
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_143153.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_143536.jpg
OEM Torsen out of pumpkin
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_143638.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_144332.jpg
And...pretty much done.
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...521_144341.jpg

Well just from my research... I've read about a lot of guys breaking them. The TII Unit is a clutch type diff... But they're much stronger and seem to suite the track guys better than the OEM fd units.:icon_tup:

Removed a bunch of the Silicon or whatever the hell this stuff was... What a pain.. Pulled the fender off as well to get some work done this next week. Also just quickly went over the old green with some rattle can black. I can't stand the green hiding in-between and under everything.. ughh..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...524_161946.jpg
Before
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...524_161959.jpg
Took the grinder and wire wheel to it..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...524_190329.jpg

If anyone else does it.... lay down some dirty towels or something to catch all the grit.. because it really does get everywhere...

The foil job looks really nice, reminds me of NASA or something haha. I know what you mean about the heat. It's ridiculous like a toaster oven or something. Ever try driving around and then changing the oil in one of those pit bays like they have at Jiffy Lube? The amount of heat radiating off the bottom of the car is enough to keep you warm for hours doing an oil change in the dead of winter.

It's not actual foil, but thank you much! I just used foil to help me trace out certain hard to get to areas. But yea....you don't have remind me of how hot it gets.. last summer it was 115 out and I was afraid to turn on the ac in the fd haha. My car got to 108 C on my pfc... I was stressed sitting in traffic. It always went down once I got moving...but cali traffic just doesn't move very fast for very long sometimes.. I think this might've contributed to my oil control ring failure. But a new essence will be taken on cooling the motor and keeping everything cool so thats where I'm not going to cut any corners.

I plan on running an oversized custom Radiator in a V-mount configuration with as high a CFM rated dual fans as possible. As well as 2 additional fans on the trailing ends of my dual earls coolers that will be on a toggle for traffic. Everything will be ducted in the most efficient way possible :icon_tup:

Your build is meticulous. Can't wait to see more progress.

Damn Aaron... I love the pics and detailed posts. Great work man, I can only imagine how much work you've put into this thing. I can relate somewhat. You're way more picky about a lot of stuff (lining the trans tunnel, for instance) than my ghetto ass. I haven't burned my hand on the shift knob yet, so I think I'm OK there :) Keep it up and can't wait to see this thing back on the road. Black FDs are sexy. I never see them. If you're ever in the LA area holler at me.

Thanks much!! just trying to build as solid a car as possible!

Mike why didn't you tell me your car is running!! how do you like it?!!

And thanks for the kind words!, i'll def hit you up when i'm out there. But right now realistically...unless I hit the lotto.. i'm looking at seven stock for a completion date. I'm going as fast as I can!!

- ap

Well I finished cutting out the inside of the rear fender well... It was pretty difficult to get it done. I had to be very careful not to run over the lip of the fender. But I got it done...just took me abou 35 min. Cleaned it up with the flap wheel, it looks pretty good. Tomorrow i'll try to work out the rest of my roll. Also wire wheeled off the rest of that silicon ish crap off my PPF,...getting ready for some reinforcements!!
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...525_160032.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...525_160037.jpg

man, I feel sorry for you cali guys that drive your cars in that traffic in the heat.

Its really not bad, no humidity, very rarely goes over 90 unless you're in the desert and they can drive all year long

Where the op is its not uncommon to see 90s in May. However in June, July, August and September you can see consistent 100+ degree days.

Aaron if you want to weld up your bay i still have my small tig.

lol ya man, I've been driving it, sorting out bugs. about 95% there, I have to tune it now... I decided to do it myself, so until that's done (probably 3-6 months minimum) I can't really rip on it... but I love it. Around town it's perfect. I miss the turbo rush and compressor/turbine whine, but the stupid torque off of idle is so much fun around town.

One thing I realized about myself when I was doing the swap... I was very schedule driven at the beginning to about 3/4 thru it (before it was running/drivable on the street. took about 4 months total). After that 3rd month of pushing, spending a shit load of money, taking 3 trips a week or more to the hardware store, parts store, etc. I was actually burnt out. when I finally got the car running in Feb I was so unmotivated I just drove it around w/o any interior or shifter panel. I could see my driveshaft spinning on my way to work lol. I took a break and didn't really work on the car for a bit and I feel so much better... I basically took the pressure of myself to "finish" it. FWIW I have full interior now minus a glove box :D

Now I enjoy working on it. One piece at a time :) Anyway, take your time dude, have fun with it. Shit is expensive. I have delayed my progress just because I didn't want to spend more $$$ at the time. Anyway, you're doing a great job and can't wait to see it on the road again. :cool:

^ I know exactly what you mean there haha. The push for deals gap to get my car done was brutal, but now finally going back and finishing it up.

Manny... I'm installing bushings on the entire car and am cleaning up the wheel wells like you did. Did you completely disassemble you front control arms? Meaning new ball joints?

I was planning on powder coating everything, but I forgot about the fact that I'd have to remove the joints in order to do so.

Also, are you powder coating any of your suspension arms. I've heard it can make aluminum brittle, so I need to do a little research, but might end up switching to paint instead.

^^^ He painted his arms with a high quality paint.

I pushed out all bushings and Pillow balls...but left the ball joints. They seem to be in great condition still and are still stiff and tight so I didn't even think to replace them. Evan is right, I painted everything. My logic behind that was exactly what you were thinking. I didn't want to put the ball joints in the oven, and worry about stuff not fitting due to things being Pc'd where it wasnt supposed to. (like on the inside of the pillow ball areas etc). And what was the decision maker was if I chip the powder coat.. its chipped. The paint I can just spray a little more paint on. It was expensive at 17 bucks a can. But its a high quality ceramic paint, and I got to choose from a million different shades. Believe it or not.. the paint is really hard and won't come off even when I push hard with my finger nail and scratch. :icon_tup:

Awesome, do you happen to have a link to where you bought the paint, or the brand? I need some dark blue.

Also, did you clear coat with tough clear coat as well?

I got it from a local shop out here called av auto paint they've been open out here for 25 years. I can give you their phone number if you want. But no clear coat. I was really surprised at how durable the paint is dry.

Not much of an update really. Just worked on my large fender pull/roll. I don't think the fender was damaged before...but something was really weird about the inner lip. In some areas the metal was actually thicker so when I rolled it..it would push up more in some places than others.. making it very un-even.. Now we all know I can't have that crap. So I pulled out my grinder and worked a few of the parts down a little. I plan on having a buddy of mine weld in a piece where I cut it out for strength. But since i'm repainting the car soon anyways.. I got rid of the crappy single stage where I was working on the fender. Been working on it...and its just about right... Maybe a little smoother transition up top..but the general idea is in place..
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...530_203306.jpg
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...530_203238.jpg

and this little lady has nothing to do with my car..but a lot to do with me haha.. My best friend!
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...r/IMG_2605.png


ANd finally... Got some wood for my short block to crate up and get ready to send to Howard :nod:

Mmm. The rear fender work and wheel setup is gonna be supreme. Looking forward to completion.

Great morning read.
Really inspiring! Have fun with smog.
Rx7's can barely pass even when stock!
Those ssr professors? I like.

Btw, is that piece of metal at the top what you cut-off?

thank you! I'm hoping it comes out as planned:icon_tup:


Ive had fun with smog for the last 16 years, i'll worry about it when the car starts. as is.. she's registeres as a non-op.

They're Work Meisters thanks.

sick car bro! you gong to mazdafest? hope to see you(your car j/k) there. keep up the work

Yes! i'll be there for sure...but not with my sled.. I wish haha. :icon_tup:

I just have to ask: are you a transplanted Rastafari?



http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...r/IMG_2605.png

Great build! Really enjoyed reading it and look forward to seeing what she'll do on the track! One thing I'll mention that has already been brought up. The stock diff in the FD is great for road course stuff and I don't know of any actual failures from driving on the road course. I know some of the AutoX guys have split the pumpkin, but that comes from drag launches in pro solo. I ran the stock diff in my T78 track car and am currently still running the stock mazda diff in my LS1 track car. Not saying you should go in there and change everything back out, but you might keep your stock one handy in case you don't like the TII's characteristics on the track. Adding a diff brace(like the TweakIt Racing one) will pretty much make them bullet proof.

Tranny tunnel looks great!

I'll be running the Banzai diff brace for sure. I just heard that the stock torsens arent as strong and tend to fail at and around 500ish whp. I don't plan on passing the 500 mark but i'll be up there close to 460-480 for sure, and I do drive my car as hard as possible when I can, so I figured I might as well change her out. I'll prob end up keeping one spare anyhow. Thanks for you insight!!!:icon_tup:

its drag style launches and the stresses they put on the drivetrain that cause the parts to fail.