shadowghost21

So I figure my final questions post was wearing a bit thin as I am actually starting the process.

So back in August we(my Fiance and and I) purchased a decent running 86 GXL (129kmiles). It's grey with pretty good interior and a little rust. Our intent is to build a weekend cruising car and autocross fun box. I also wanted to have my dad help a little as I never got to do much with him when I was younger due to family issues.

Time line(Get yall up to speed):

October came around and we hadn't done much with the car other than buy some new plugs, break pads and drive it around. Bought the TII mirrors and a new back bumper. Also fixed the electric window switches as they had some scoring on them.

December came by and I bought my engine and transmission from japan2la (recommended, great guy, great service) Winter is too damn cold to be out in my one car garage so I decided to wait until it was a bit warmer to start work. Also ordered a front lip spoiler, rear stock wing, TII->NA driveshaft from Mazdatrix and front motor mount from Mazdatrix.

March (present day) Have new racing clutch, boost sensor, gauge, engine, TII hood, transmission, TII->NA drive dhaft (didn't replace the back end), ecu, and enough patience to rip the whole thing out and put it back together.

I'll have pictures up when there is more to take pictures of, currently I have removed the seats and dash. We intend to paint the dash to back from burgundy as it will help me fix all the other internal trip parts with epoxy, filler and paint to make them look like they never broke in the first place

Engine removal starts tonight! Stay tuned for progress updates. This isn't a bought and left it kinda project, been in the acquiring stage for about 5 months and have enough cash we need to get finish the swap and restoration. Been working after work in the evenings for a few hours each night then getting on the forums for help and support in the morning

I want to thank everyone that has helped me get even this far, without the community I'd be just another stupid smart guy as my friends like to say hehe.

At the end of October my father passed away. He was suppose to fly out in the winter and help me complete my engine swap. This build is dedicated to him.



Now on to the details! Pulling the dash was... less than fun. It looks like someone had been in there before me and the wires were all taped with electrical tape albeit out of the way at least. And holy cow there are a lot of wires connected to the dash! I didn't think it was going to come out!

I jacked the car up and drained the oil and coolant. Had a hard time getting the tranny bolt off to drain that fluid so I put the wheel back on and lowered the car. I get really nervous under a jacked up vehicle. I don't like to go more than mid chest and I couldn't get any leverage on the bold. I'm sure I am going to need to get over the fear because I need to get under there to pull the exhaust and get the tranny bolts etc..

Before I but the tire back on though I spent a while trying to knock the caliper bolt loose so I can clean, rebuild, and paint my calipers. Damn bolts are so old they are stuck on there. Need to get a blow torch and try heating and then banging on them again.

Next up tonight is going to be removing what I can of the engine after work and before sleepy time and maybe ordering a blow off valve and possibly picking up new vacuum lines from the auto parts store. Lots to do and I wish I had this weekend to work on it. Have company coming over and 'grown up' stuff to do. Man if only I could invent more time

Currently my one car garage is starting to fill up, quickly and I think I will start hauling things into my apartment to save room to move the engine hoist around.

I have some pictures of the carnage but not sure where I should post them, anyone have recommendations on where to post pictures for these build threads?

ImpartialMouse

iTrader: (2)

Good luck with the build! Sorry about your father, but it's going to be a great car. Don't give up when things get frustrating.

I think most people have a fear of being under a car on jack stands, and be glad you do. If you didn't you would be careless. Some things to help with that is keeping the wheels on whenever possible that way if something did happen you wouldn't be completely crushed. Also you can never go wrong with putting extra support. Be careful though and make sure someone is around.

I usually post the pictures in the order they were taken. Or if they are all mixed up you can have a section with each seperate project. ex. Putting the engine in, taking out the dash and painting it, etc... Make sure you do a good before and after so we can see a change. Even if you mess something up post those pictures anyways so we can help you point out whats wrong.

Overall though it sounds like its coming along pretty nicely. Be sure to get a video when it's running good.

Good luck!
Matt

shadowghost21

Just a short update today before I hopefully get to tear into it tonight.

I got the radiator off. What a PINA! All the stupid hoses are were stuck to the parts they attacked to and had the hardest time getting my vice grips in to hold the clamps open. Got the airbox off and battery out.

Started taking off lines that run into the engine and removing belts since they are still very new. Forgot I didn't drain the power steering pump lol, leaked fluid until I could drain it into a glove. I was about an hour in last night and started to have a caffine+low blood sugar crash (on a low calorie diet, makes me woozy some times) so i needed to go clean up and get some dinner. It had occurred to me that I have to freaking idea how to actually get the engine out of the car lol. All I know is that I need more space in my one car garage and to drain the tranny fluid then dig into the manual and find the magic bolts and yank it with my picker. So that is the goal tonight. I'm avoid caffeine this afternoon so I won't get any crashes and I'll be able to pull the engine since my Fiance will be home early and I'll have extra hands in case I get crushed :p

She loves the car every bit as I do. Which is good, it needs 2 people!

Ordered a new exhaust system from topspeed pro-f1 or what ever. The price was really hard to beat since my NA exhaust is trash and I don't have 1000$ for the RB exhaust I wanted so bad. Still need to get a larger fuel pump, AFM, and throttle cable as per one of the best NA-t2 swap pages I found. But I think with everything I have I can at least start the car when I get the engine in.

My boost gauge and caliper rebuild kit should be here today. Exhaust should be here next week.

TODO Tried to get it in order but I think I got lazy, turned into a check list!

• Clean manifold of corrosion. (On new t2 engine)
• Clean Injectors.
• Port wastegate.
• Paint stuff cool colors
• New vacuum lines
• Install engine, Transmission and exhaust.
• Clean and shampoo interior.
• Fix broken trim parts and paint to black.
• Clean Dash, paint black.
• Paint car white
• Rebuild Calipers, paint calipers.
• Build TID from home depot intercooler parts.