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Not much of an update, but I believe the answer to my passenger window problem is due to my driver side switch going out. The driver's side is working intermittently and as the passenger side operates off the driver side (according to my research), this would explain the issue.
So, I need to buy a new window switch and maybe a new wiper switch. It would be nice to have wipers that work on low speeds.
Last wiper switch I needed I picked up from rhinehartsautoparts for about $30 shipped. Classifieds section and parts wanted section might be the best bet if they don't have one. You might wanna PM Banzai racing too, they used to sell a few used parts on eBay and may be worth the quick message.
As for the wiper switch it seems like you can read diagrams and understand pin-outs pretty well. Sounds like you've already cleaned the connections, but if not, search "The Spin Cycle" on YouTube. He has a great walk through on cleaning up the switches when they first start seeing issues. If no joy, I would recommend using a Power Probe or even a basic "janky jumper setup*". Heck, a basic incandescent or LED test light might show you a connection or resistance issue. Worth a go if you're bored, short on funds, or want to be sure.
Great build thread. Extremely impressed with the dyno numbers you've managed. It looks like 5700-8500 is a nice band there. I'm not too familiar with gear ratios but it seems like it would pull through all shift points? Is that how it feels when driving? Nice build by the way. Thanks for sharing.
Last wiper switch I needed I picked up from rhinehartsautoparts for about $30 shipped. Classifieds section and parts wanted section might be the best bet if they don't have one. You might wanna PM Banzai racing too, they used to sell a few used parts on eBay and may be worth the quick message.
As for the wiper switch it seems like you can read diagrams and understand pin-outs pretty well. Sounds like you've already cleaned the connections, but if not, search "The Spin Cycle" on YouTube. He has a great walk through on cleaning up the switches when they first start seeing issues. If no joy, I would recommend using a Power Probe or even a basic "janky jumper setup*". Heck, a basic incandescent or LED test light might show you a connection or resistance issue. Worth a go if you're bored, short on funds, or want to be sure.
Great build thread. Extremely impressed with the dyno numbers you've managed. It looks like 5700-8500 is a nice band there. I'm not too familiar with gear ratios but it seems like it would pull through all shift points? Is that how it feels when driving? Nice build by the way. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the kind words and insight! Yeah, this project has been a bit of a roller coaster, but it's starting to turn into the vision I've been aiming for. It's a weird feeling knowing that I don't have much left to do (exhaust, wider wheels/tires, intake box, and small things like wiper switches). I would like to replace the ECU next year with a new elite 750, as my E6X is really showing it's weakness when it comes to tuning a peripheral port.
Regarding the wiper switch, it's not a big expense and I'd like to buy a rebuilt one as I'm on my second used switch (neither the original or the replacement worked on all speeds). I attempted to rebuild one myself following guides I found online, but to no avail.
I've cleaned all the contacts on the window switches and they look brand spanking new. However, the problem is intermittent and for now the windows are working lol.
The power is definitely nice. Overall, it has more power than a stock fc basically everywhere and once it hits 5k, it really takes off. While the current gear ratios in the t2 transmission and NA rear diff will suffice, I'd really like to get a 4.77 in the rear to really wake up the motor (a collected exhaust will also help). I'm not aiming for top speed and this car will be a mountain carver with the occasional track day.
Thanks for the thread revival. I'm back! After switching careers at the beginning of this year(I now work for CorkSport ), I haven't had much time to post updates. However, the car is still alive and has had quite a few changes/modifications. While I'm bad at taking photos while working on things, I'll do my best with the following updates.
Edit: I just noticed a lack of continuity in the photos from my last update. I painted the front bumper and S5 moldings!
Earlier in the year, I decided it was time to replace my custom 6 puck clutch as the pedal feel was garbage. It always felt mushy no matter how much I bled the clutch and after taking some measurements, I found the pressure plate "fingers" were very thin in comparison to a stock clutch. This resulted in a weak pedal/clamping feel. To remedy this, I picked up an OS Giken Super Single clutch/flywheel from Rob at Pineapple Racing. Since the clutch was out, we decided it was best to just rebuild my t2 transmission while we were at it, as it had unknown mileage and was getting hard to shift.
Getting the car in the air to pull the transmission.
Old clutch and flywheel about to be pulled. I forgot to take pictures of the new OS Giken set up.
Transmission case after it was split. Gears are in great shape.
I thought my second gear synchro was going; boy, was I wrong! This is actually 5th gear, which really surprised me as I've had no issues shifting into 5th.
After cleaning the bell housing and transmission case, I resprayed the entire thing in an OEM cast aluminum finish. (Can't find pictures of the case being painted)
On the same day, I decided to finally install my Energy Suspension front control arm bushings. Since I had access to a media blaster for the day, I took the control arms out, removed the old bushings, and blasted the arms.
After the transmission was rebuilt with new synchros and the car was back on the ground, I simply drove it for awhile. With the install of the Energy Suspension front control arm bushings, I was quite impressed with the increased response and feedback over my old OEM bushings. I'd highly recommend that upgrade to anyone wanting to get a bit more feel from the front end.
That said, I didn't enjoy these changes for long. After getting a little too rowdy, I tapped a curb EVER so slightly. However, it was hard enough to bend one of my rear toe rods into a smiley face.
Seeing as I had to get into the rear sub-frame (something I've been dreading), I decided to go all out and redo everything. Here is the sub-frame torn out.
For replacements/upgrades, I bought Battle Version adjustable toe rods. Really, the only reason I bought these is because they were half the price of OEM's.
I also replaced the rear sub-frame bushings and diff mount bushings with Mazda Comp parts that are ~40% stiffer while still being rubber vs poly or delrin (Can't find any additional photos).
I also installed PBM Upper solid Bushings (or whatever the hell it's called). The reason I chose a solid bushings for this location (highlighted in orange), is because I also installed a DTSS delete (highlighted in red), rendering the OEM bushing useless.
As I was going through this whole process, I decided that I should probably get extended lugs for the rear hubs. Reason being, I only get 5 or so threads of engagement with the crown victoria wheels. If I step up to even lower offset wheels, this may worsen the issue. Since FC's are stupid, you have to remove the entire hub assembly to install wheel studs that are longer than OEM. When disassembling, you have to split the the rear wheel bearings and damage them; thus requiring new wheel bearings. So, I took out the hubs, media blasted/painted them, installed ARP extended lugs, and pressed new wheel bearings in.
All shiny and lookin' brand new
Installed on the sub-frame
As of now, the car is back on the ground and more updates to come.
Woohoo! Thanks for the update and pictures.
Wow that looks great painted too, i do have a question, are those Lincoln Mark 7 wheels or are those the Crown Vic mesh wheels, and if they're the Crown Vic wheels, which year since the back spacing changed as the later year models came out.
Honestly, I couldn't tell you. I believe they are crown vic wheels and not Lincoln wheels. They are the step lip +15 sizing though.
In other news, I decided it was time to actually use an air filter for the first time in 2-3 years. Unfortunately, K&N doesn't make a standard assembly that fits my velocity stacks and DCOE style ITB's. After searching their website for hours, I was able to find all of the pieces I'd need for a filter assembly. I spoke with an account rep and was able to order the individual components I needed, despite the standard phone rep I spoke with saying no
Here's the mock up.
Installed.
Full assembly installed. I also switched to a side mount alternator set-up. The Ford Contour alternator was simply too bulky to fit between the frame rail and the block, so I had to "downgrade" to a 100 amp FD alternator. You can kind of see it in the picture below.
Now that I have a filter, it was time to get some cool air into that bad boy (instead of having zero airflow with the 50lb NA hood). So, I picked up a used aluminum T2 hood in arctic silver. It had some damage, so it's since been repainted.
The hood all nice and repainted. As silver is a pain to color match, I'd like to repaint the whole car at some point. There's some minor dents and dings anyway.
Not exactly in the correct order, but I got sick of not having a complete interior. I bought new OEM steering column surrounds directly from Mazda. It's amazing how nice they look and feel in comparison to 30 year old sun baked parts.
Despite owning the car for 7 years, I've never had a fully functional wiper switch. I figured it was time to fix that, so I sent in my spare switches to 13B etc for repair. Turnaround was super quick and I have functioning wipers. You know, like normal cars. That said, I now need a new driver side window switch. I've cleaned the contacts twice and the switch is basically given up the ghost. Oh well, minor set backs.
Love your build. Are you running your brake booster vacuum off that vacuum block or how are you going about getting a decent vacuum source? Always given me a little trouble on my full bridge...
Thanks all! As for brake vacuum, I completely gave up on hoping for a consistent pedal feel. At this point, I've simply capped off the brake booster and run manual brakes. Ideal? No. But the pedal is always consistent and I can still stop as needed, just requires more force. I thought about switching to a 1st gen booster as they're physically smaller and should require less vacuum to operate, but I haven't tested that theory.
Hmmm maybe I'll just have to buy the Tilton pedal setup I've been stalking for a while now... Just hard to throw that much money at them when the brakes mostly work fine on track it's just low speed stuff around town that it really doesn't like.
I keep coming back to this thread to look at that picture you just posted in the car lot. Man your car looks good with those wheel offsets and the body kit pieces. What front bumper is that and did you make that second, upper opening? Looks really sweet!
Yeah, I've spent enough money on the car where I'm starting to eye "easier" solutions to problems like hard pedal feel (a Tilton set up was never even considered ). Rob at Pineapple Racing has a peripheral port in his REPU and states he has no issues with brake vacuum. However, that booster is TINY in comparison to the FC, so maybe that's the trick..
The front bumper is a Shine Auto Project Type 1 bumper and the upper opening is part of their mold. Overall, the Shine Auto pieces are okay and I'm glad they actually make parts for the FC, but the bumper I received isn't nearly as flexible as advertised (check their website for photos of twisting the bumper and causing no damage). On install alone, the corners cracked (with the help of a professional body guy). Oh well, it's fiberglass. It's to be expected.
I apologize as these next few updates are not really in real time. Just posting as I find pictures in the depths of my phone.
Finally decided to attack my drive line vibration. I took out the stock transmission cross-member and found all of the rubber mounts were shot.
Another photo of the torn mounts.
As I felt like being cheap, I ended up buying Level Zero Poly transmission mounts. These are 95A durometer and after about 500 miles of use, they still make the car rattle like crazy. The shifter response is direct, but I can't stand the amount of vibration transmitted to the cabin (EVERYTHING VIBRATES AND RATTLES) and I'll be replacing these with Mazda Competition rubber mounts. (I know the main bushing is missing in this pic, was just for mock-up). Also, my main crossmember bushing was destroyed and since these are not serviceable (WAY TO THINK IT THROUGH MAZDA!), I had to buy a brand new crossmember from Mazda.
Picked up some CorkSport oil pressure and coolant temp gauges as I was sick of my dead/inaccurate gauges.
I bought these mainly because of the price, warning features, and the fact you can wire them to glow both white and amber (to match the factory lighting).
Oh, this was fun. Picked up some NGK BR10EIX plugs. After about 60 miles of 10k RPM pulls, the car started acting odd and backfiring. After pulling the plugs, I found the ceramic tip itself had completely cracked off and only the grounding strip was holding it in!!! I could've lost my engine to these little bastards.
I've since switched to Autolite AR3932X spark plugs. These are the same style as OEM Rx7 plugs (no grounding strap or exposed electrode), much cheaper than NGK's, and are essentially a 10 heat range. This makes them perfect for my use on a peripheral port. After 500 miles, these plugs are still going strong with no misfires, failures, or fouling.
Small update: I was finally sick of my Level Zero polyurethane transmission mounts and bought the Mazda Comp mounts.
After install, I was absolutely blown away. The car drives and feels like a brand new car! All of my drive-line vibration is gone (even the vibration from before the poly bushings were installed/OEM bushings were shot), along with all the obnoxious interior rattles. Despite having a peripheral port engine, the car actually feels "comfortable" now. For those who may be interested, the Level Zero transmission mounts aren't bad; they were simply too solid for me.
Fun fact: I tested the Mazda Comp transmission bushings with a poly durometer and found they're around a 65A Shore rating. I know that rubber to poly isn't a directly linear scale or comparison, but it's safe to say the Mazda Comp bushings are about the same "hardness" as 65A poly. Albeit, the rubber will absorb more drive-line noise and harshness.
This build is so damn cool! I found it yesterday and slowly started to read through the whole thing.
I just recently bought my FC and your build is super close to my vision. I'm still just starting with the simple stuff (fluids, filters, belts, accessories, etc), but will slowly progress to better chassis and engine reliability mods. Your PP decision is so awesome because everywhere I've read, it always seems like "it's pointless on the street". What has your experience been like as primarily a street car? I'm sure it's amazing in the mountains, but how much does it suck driving to and from the mountains?
I will say that I absolutely love having a peripheral port street car. The power never ceases to put a smile on my face and I have no problem driving the car every few days. I would NOT daily drive it, as the gas mileage is pretty poor (averaging 13 mpg so far) and it does take some finesse to learn how to drive. Peripheral ports will not tolerate being lugged around at low RPM (sub 2k) and the car will violently buck and shake. Though, this can be avoided by pushing in the clutch or shifting.
Unfortunately, my car isn't that fun in the mountains just yet. My poor decision to buy an outdated Haltech E6X years ago has really hampered the ability to drive the car through elevation changes (no internal barometer corrections). There are ways to "reset" the ECU's pressure reading or adjust your master injection trim percentages, but it just takes the fun out of it when you have to bring a laptop on every mountain drive. Do yourself a favor and buy a modern ECU with adaptive learning. That's my next purchase.
As far as your own car goes, stick to the easy stuff it it's a daily driver and your only car. I made lots of silly mistakes that I've had to undo because I was massively modifying my daily (trans swaps on the weekend, need to be at work on Monday, etc.) and rushed things. I've since learned that weird little word "patience" and it really goes a long way in ensuring your car is reliable and enjoyable in the end.
That's so relieving to hear that it's streetable haha. My FC is not a daily so I'm pretty open to the idea of aggressive engine mods. I feel you on the whole "don't go crazy on a daily" thing. I owned an Integra GSR in college as a daily and I never could mod it too much because I had to get to school the next day...but it was fun car!
Thanks for the tip on getting a new Haltech ecu, I will definitely keep that in mind. Once the simple stuff is done, I'm moving to everything and anything chassis and trying not to touch the engine. Trying to get this OG engine to run as long as possible so I can save up to do something cool with it when it's on its last legs. It'll definitely be more chassis than engine, but I'm okay with it to keep costs down for a while lol. We'll see!
Please continue to post updates, I'm interested in seeing your progress. Hope you can get the whole barometer stuff figured out so you can enjoy the car more!
Which bushings are you referring to? The transmission bushings? If so, they were simply too hard for my taste. The design was a simple chunk of poly with a bolt through it, I just think a softer durometer is preferable.
Yeah, this ECU is starting to show it's limitations. If I stay at the same elevation where the car was tuned, it runs very well (for a peripheral port with no idle control valve). However, it would be nice to have automatic barometric corrections and closed loop/adaptive learning for different weather conditions and etc. While I've finally nailed the air and coolant temp maps, I could've saved DAYS of effort and my life .
Well, my daily broke down and I'm back to driving the FC everyday lol. So, not much for updates at this point.
However, I did purchase my set of dream wheels a month or two ago. I know they're not everyone's cup of tea, but I was finally able to locate a set of 16x8 +11 Advan SA3's (these have been my dream wheels for as long as I can remember). I knew if I ended up paying top dollar off eBay or a wheel swap site, the wheels would likely still require refinishing. So, I brainstormed for a while and remembered that I met a guy in Japan two years ago at 7's day in Daikoku PA. After contacting him on Instagram (we had each other's profiles after the meet), I asked him if he could find these wheels for me. Two hours later, I was sent this.
He managed to find these wheels for a whopping $300 USD!! Next thing I knew, I said I wanted them and he bought them for me!
He even dismounted the tires and we arranged to send the wheels via EMS.
I really thought I took more pictures, but for some reason I can 't locate them on my phone. Oh well. The wheels arrived safe and sound. All center caps were present (a rare find) and while two wheels had minor curb rash, there were no bends or cracks. The finish on the centers was cracking and the clear coat was also oxidized/peeling on the lips, so I'll be taking the barrels to a local shop for repair and polishing.
Disassembling the wheels (40 bolts per wheel :/)
Having access to a media blaster, I stripped most of the powder coat off the centers with JASCO and then used a soft glass media (it could barely take off the powder coat by itself) to prep the centers for coating. If I can find the pictures I took of this, I'll be sure to upload them.
After the centers were prepped and the mating surface taped off, I dropped them off for powder coating and this is the result so far.
Unfortunately, the centers came out much brighter than the swatch I had picked out (gun metal metallic) and nearly matches the color of my car (not a fan of color matched wheels). So, I picked up 2 lbs of Prismatic black chrome II tinted clear and will have this applied to darken the color up a bit. If this doesn't work, I may just have to apply paint over them, as I don't want to strip and re-coat the wheels again.
Ultimately, I'm hoping to run some sticky 225/45's on these or maybe a staggered 225 front and 245 rear. Rotating tires wouldn't matter as most performance tires in 16's are directional anyway.
Got them back and they look brand spankin' new! This was just a test fit and yes, I applied another layer of power coat on the centers. This time, I used the tinted black chrome II from Prismatic to darken up the tone. I think it worked perfectly.
Getting ready for reassembly.
One wheel assembled with new bolts and a center cap I refinished.
Now I just need new valve stems and tires. Unfortunately, tires will need to wait as I need my wallet to recuperate from the holiday season and my own frivolous spending.
I'm also a bit irritated as my BRAND NEW rear wheel bearings have play in them..... I'm wondering if maybe the axle nuts didn't get tightened down enough... I know the front bearings are going, but I really don't want to do the rear again.
I haven't really been doing anything to the car, as of late. I did determine that it's not my new rear wheel bearings that have play, but somewhere else inside the rear end.
I've also noticed a weird groaning sound from the passenger rear when moving from a stop that I need to diagnose. It sounds like a stuck caliper, but I haven't been able to replicate the sound when turning the wheel by hand. This makes me think it's something in the rear end or drive line. Whatever it is, it's annoying as I just rebuilt the whole rear end.
Other than that, I'm still waiting on tires. It looks like 16's are waning in popularity and I'm stuck with limited options for 16x8's. Since I want max grip, I'm likely going with R888R's in a 225/45/16 all around.
I've also noticed a weird groaning sound from the passenger rear when moving from a stop that I need to diagnose. It sounds like a stuck caliper, but....
mine does something like this, usually in reverse. with my car, it doesn't get driven much, so i think the adjuster is sticky or something.
the R888's are ok for a sticky street tire, they work in the wet too. the RE71R comes in a 225-50-16, maybe close enough?
12-21-18, 07:04 AM
), I haven't had much time to post updates. However, the car is still alive and has had quite a few changes/modifications. While I'm bad at taking photos while working on things, I'll do my best with the following updates.
). Rob at Pineapple Racing has a peripheral port in his REPU and states he has no issues with brake vacuum. However, that booster is TINY in comparison to the FC, so maybe that's the trick..
