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Congratulations on getting it started. I've been watching your journey all this time, but have refrained from comment thus far. I'm not sure I have the words to describe my admiration of your skills. The car, as a product or result, is great, but I enjoyed watching the process far more. All in all, this has been fabulous.
Also, congratulations on the R100 as well. I can't wait to see what happens there.
Hey thanks, I'm pleased I made the build thread to share the process with other enthusiasts. Not sure what's happening with the R100 yet. But I will make another build thread for it.
The dash is now installed, very simple to install with just a few wires. It looks good and is easy to read. The car is booked In for tuning the first week of October. I'm slowly making progress on the badges. I have the casting process sorted, now it's down to getting the right paint finish. I had a go at chrome powdercoating but the pewter warps slightly in the oven. So a bit more trial and error is required.
The car was on the dyno on Tuesday this week. Had a few issues that need sorting. The oil cooler thermostat would not allow oil to go through the cooler. Pulled it apart, just appears to be a terribly designed part that will only hinder the oil flow. So made an adapter today to get rid of the thermostat. I did a pressure check just to confirm i machined the o-ring grooves correctly. A pin hole leak in the intake manifold #1 runner is an easy fix. Oil leaks from the front hub and somewhere inside the bellhousing put an end to the dyno session. These leaks will require some investigation, but I have a guess what the causes are. Other than these issues the engine runs really well, sounds good too. It made 245rwhp at 4500rpm which is promising, plenty of rpm left for more!
Shame that the Earls part is bunk as I was about to order one. Any details on why you think it's garbage would be appreciated. PM me if you want to keep it out of your thread, thanks!
Hi,with those cranks Ive had issues with the oil leaking down the spline of the rear counter weight and then directly onto the clutch, also from the grub screw in the back of the shaft. Just a couple of ideas that might speed things up, nothing worse than pulling a gearbox out over and over searching for leaks!
Cheers
The oil cooler thermostat would not allow oil to go through the cooler.
Curious how you determined the thermostat would not allow oil to flow through the cooler? I have a first generation Earl Oil thermostat and have always been curious if they really work. I have 100 PSI oil pressure as measured at the filter at idle. I think I'll add another oil pressure gauge on the cooler side of the Earls thermostat output to the cooler. This would allow me to see both sides of the thermostat. This is on a stock port 12A.
No dyno videos yet, thought I would wait for a full run.
Originally Posted by dguy
Shame that the Earls part is bunk as I was about to order one. Any details on why you think it's garbage would be appreciated. PM me if you want to keep it out of your thread, thanks!
The way it works is that the thermostat lifts a steel washer of a seat. There is nothing that seals this washer to direct the oil flow to the cooler. So when the oil is at temperature, it can flow around the washer and back to the engine completely bypassing the cooler.
Originally Posted by rotatrix
Hi,with those cranks Ive had issues with the oil leaking down the spline of the rear counter weight and then directly onto the clutch, also from the grub screw in the back of the shaft. Just a couple of ideas that might speed things up, nothing worse than pulling a gearbox out over and over searching for leaks!
Cheers
Thanks, yeah that's my guess. I will find out when I pull the gearbox out during the week. I might machine some oring grooves somewhere around the counterweight to fix the leaks. The front hub leak was from oil running out the keyway. I made a big washer thing similar to a factory hub bolt to fix that. Can't use the factory bolt as its m18. This crank is threaded for m16.
Originally Posted by KansasCityREPU
Curious how you determined the thermostat would not allow oil to flow through the cooler? I have a first generation Earl Oil thermostat and have always been curious if they really work. I have 100 PSI oil pressure as measured at the filter at idle. I think I'll add another oil pressure gauge on the cooler side of the Earls thermostat output to the cooler. This would allow me to see both sides of the thermostat. This is on a stock port 12A.
As I said above, the internal washer that directs the flow has no sealing at all. Its mainly the size of the ports in the thermostat which will restrict the flow. It would be fine for most engines. But I have 12an lines feeding it from a dry sump pump and it's just a really big restriction in the system.
I removed the transmission to get access to the rear of the engine. There appears to be 3 leak locations. The grub screw in the end of the shaft, the splines on the counterweight and a small weep from the stationary gear. The engine has rx8 stationary gears and the rear gear has no groove for an o ring. This is causing a small leak so I machined an o ring groove in the gear, I just copied a 13bt gear. Also a good chance to have a look at the bearing, still looks like new. The grub screw was an easy fix, just cleaned it then reinstalled with Loctite 577 thread sealant.
It was hard to tell exactly where the oil was leaking from the splines. When I removed the main nut it was wet with oil underneath. Just to be sure of no future leaks i machined an o ring groove in the nut. I reinstalled the counterweight with Loctite flange sealant on the splines, the nut o ring and underneath the nut. The threads were coated with 577 thread sealant as well. All of these fixes should guarantee a leak free engine.
Next job is reassemble everything, change the oil and then book In another tune.
absolutely amazing build! reading all of this have giving me so much enlightenment and inspiration for continuing on my 4 rotor journey for my 93 FD with the same trans but the gforce gf4a and a ford 8.8 rear end. I am also going to be doing a full Pport, but will be doing RX8 rotors instead for higher compression.
absolutely amazing build! reading all of this have giving me so much enlightenment and inspiration for continuing on my 4 rotor journey for my 93 FD with the same trans but the gforce gf4a and a ford 8.8 rear end. I am also going to be doing a full Pport, but will be doing RX8 rotors instead for higher compression.
Hey thanks, sounds like a cool build. Give me a pm if you need some advice or help.
The car is all back together again, no leaks so far! The cold start needs a bit of tuning yet.
Booked in for tune #2 on Wednesday next week. I have made a heatsheild for the exhaust. It's aluminium sheet with some 12mm fibreglass fibreboard used for making furnaces. Just need to make some brackets for it now. Should be able to hold my hand against the top side if it works as intended.
Very successful day on the dyno yesterday. The car made 512hp atw @ 8500rpm and 333 Ftlbs @ 7700rpm. I was expecting the same sort of figures but at a higher rpm, So it means the engine doesn't have to work as hard which is good. Decent numbers considering this is the first peripheral port engine i have built. It was a hot day as well with a lot of hot air being drawn into the intake so it's going to make a bit more power with the car driving. No real issues either, the gear box spewed some oil out the breather. But I think it's just finding its correct oil level. Oil pressure drops a bit at the top of the rpm range which is probably a pump gearing speed issue. All the hard work is just about done and now I can start driving it. I took a video of the dyno run but it's just too loud for the microphone so the audio is not great.
Its probably just the video. I use Castrol Edge 25w50, i think theres about 15L in the system. For premix im using klotz benol castor oil just because it smells good.
U should use Penrite HPR 40 , Is a 25 w 70 Is far better oil.. I have used it for many years and is the best oil for a Rorary. I think it is available in NZ
U should use Penrite HPR 40 , Is a 25 w 70 Is far better oil.. I have used it for many years and is the best oil for a Rorary. I think it is available in NZ
I may try that oil, you can buy 20L drums of it here in NZ which would be handy.
First drive today. It's great fun, engine runs good and makes all the right noises. Very different power delivery compared to my turbo rx7. This cosmo handles way better than my factory ones, adjustable suspension and less weight. The gear ratios seem about right and the shifter works great. Air inlet temp just stays at ambient temp when driving. Oil and water temps are good. The Aim dash is really good, I spent most of yesterday configuring it. Just need to work out how to get the wheel speed sensor working. I will try make some videos tomorrow. I think I will be pushing my luck driving it any more today, a few thumbs up but mainly very upset looking people trying get photos of my fake number plates haha ��.
Last edited by 7rotater; 10-26-18 at 06:19 PM.
Reason: Spelling
09-11-18, 06:31 PM
