A musician's therapist (The $300 Z)

[Zetsaz]

On 12/12/2022 at 10:04 AM, 1969honda said:

You just need to say the word and I can drop an engine hoist off at your house. Mine is currently easily accessible with no dedinite plans.

I'll probably take you up on this! I really appreciate it

 

Bit of something happening at my cousin's right now, too 👀

 

[Zetsaz]

New 3D printed fuel and brake line brackets done

 

Hoping to get these while I'm home for the break. Cousin is shipping them out today. They're designed for stock, I'm hoping my situation is close enough that they're usable. Printed 10 just in case

 

[calZ]

What material? 

[Zetsaz]

1 hour ago, calZ said:

What material? 

 

PETG. Should hold up fine. Cousin said the biggest difference (since it's not in the trans tunnel like on a 240) will be UV resistance so it's fine since it's not exposed to sunlight really. 

We'll reprint in ABS if it's an issue. 

 

Apparently he would have just printed in ABS first time (even though he thinks it won't be necessary), but he only had neon green haha

Edited December 16, 2022 by Zetsaz

[jpndave]

Those look nice. Should make routing much cleaner. Might want to look a nylon too?? I have some parts printed in nylon that seem solid. I think nylon is harder to print. We have a printer and JD does as well if we can get time to run it. JD's boys might be up for the challenge.

 

[lowrider]

On 12/16/2022 at 6:22 PM, Zetsaz said:

 

PETG. Should hold up fine. Cousin said the biggest difference (since it's not in the trans tunnel like on a 240) will be UV resistance so it's fine since it's not exposed to sunlight really. 

We'll reprint in ABS if it's an issue. 

 

Apparently he would have just printed in ABS first time (even though he thinks it won't be necessary), but he only had neon green haha

You might have a look at ASA if those PETG pieces cant stand the heat. ASA has similar properties as ABS but is UV stabilized.

 

I have a few interior pieces done in PETG that have held up really well, but I'm not sure if I would trust them in the engine bay/under the car with the radiant road heat. 

[Zetsaz]

Home for the holidays!

 

Seen here is me embracing my gift to myself haha.

Assembled the throttle and got the correct IAC valve (forgot mine is a 4.0l Jeep valve which is just the right amount of different from a GM valve)

 

Did all the preassembly on the new crossmember and bolted up the new steering rack.

 

Current job is measuring for the hole I need to drill and making my current coolant mod a bit closer to the second pic which should flow better and clear the new solid flange on the Protunerz intake

 

[rossman]

Nice! My son got one of those for his l6 build.  It's definitely a nice manifold.

 

Are you simply drilling a hole in the manifold flange or slotting it so that you can pull the manifold without opening the coolant system? 

 

I would avoid cutting all the way thru the manifold flange.  I did that on mine and it immediately bowed out of plane due to the internal stresses from all the welding.  I managed to bold it on as-is without straightening/stress relieving it but it's not ideal.

[Zetsaz]

2 hours ago, rossman said:

Nice! My son got one of those for his l6 build.  It's definitely a nice manifold.

 

Are you simply drilling a hole in the manifold flange or slotting it so that you can pull the manifold without opening the coolant system? 

 

I would avoid cutting all the way thru the manifold flange.  I did that on mine and it immediately bowed out of plane due to the internal stresses from all the welding.  I managed to bold it on as-is without straightening/stress relieving it but it's not ideal.

 

Yeah I just drilled a hole. Took a sec to figure out the most Ideal way. At first I did it with some tape, but then remembered it had to be reversed. Piece of paper then taped was easier to flip, but i tripled checked some distances just by using masking tape as a straight edge and measuring the distance (roughly) to the bolt holes. 3 different types of measuring and checking got me close enough.  I drilled out to 5/8" which was big enough to account for small measuring errors (like the PO not drilling and tapping straight into the head for the cooling mod...). I'm juuuuust off center after checking. Might take the drill and just give it a tiny bit of extra clearance with the 5/8" bit. 

If I had better tools and a more proper workspace it would have been very Ideal to make some sort of U cut out from the top to pull it without disconnecting things, but as it stands I'll just have to deal with draining a bit of coolant and topping it off any time I need to service it  Realistically it might be as simple as taking a saw and cutting down into the drilled portion from the top, but I don't want the exposed aluminum so visible against the anodized aluminum.

 

 

Other mini project was a cable stop for the Lokar universal cable. I know one guy had issues with the cheaper one melting so I got the one with a stainless sleeve. They all come with cable ends for carbs though. I figured out the smallest cable end from a Dorman cable stop kit from any auto store is about the right size, but the hole was too small. Borrowed my brother-in-law's vise and drilled it out with his second smallest drill bit haha

 

 

Currently the bigger hangup is my wastegate actuator bracket. The way I positioned it puts it right below the intake. I thought I could give it enough clearance by very slightly filing the threaded piece but it's still not enough. (my Tial piece is a bigger diameter than a more OEM style actuator). 

The intake is sitting right on the weld to the plenum in the center. Gonna check later if it might be possible to just reposition the mounting point by cutting it and rewelding closer to the exhaust. I still have enough room that I'm not worried about temps, but if I can move it maybe an inch and a half closer to the block It'll clear the weld and sit right between the runners for cyl 3 and 4. 

[Jboogsthethug]

dang that's a nice piece of hardware right there! That flange makes me feel the happys haha

[Zetsaz]

22 hours ago, Jboogsthethug said:

dang that's a nice piece of hardware right there! That flange makes me feel the happys haha

 

Drilling into that brand new flange on such an expensive part (even with black friday discounts) raised my blood pressure for a few hours haha. Especially on a part that's so Immediately visible when you open the hood

[Dat73z]

On 12/30/2022 at 10:20 AM, Zetsaz said:

 

Yeah I just drilled a hole. Took a sec to figure out the most Ideal way. At first I did it with some tape, but then remembered it had to be reversed. Piece of paper then taped was easier to flip, but i tripled checked some distances just by using masking tape as a straight edge and measuring the distance (roughly) to the bolt holes. 3 different types of measuring and checking got me close enough.  I drilled out to 5/8" which was big enough to account for small measuring errors (like the PO not drilling and tapping straight into the head for the cooling mod...). I'm juuuuust off center after checking. Might take the drill and just give it a tiny bit of extra clearance with the 5/8" bit. 

If I had better tools and a more proper workspace it would have been very Ideal to make some sort of U cut out from the top to pull it without disconnecting things, but as it stands I'll just have to deal with draining a bit of coolant and topping it off any time I need to service it  Realistically it might be as simple as taking a saw and cutting down into the drilled portion from the top, but I don't want the exposed aluminum so visible against the anodized aluminum.

 

 

Other mini project was a cable stop for the Lokar universal cable. I know one guy had issues with the cheaper one melting so I got the one with a stainless sleeve. They all come with cable ends for carbs though. I figured out the smallest cable end from a Dorman cable stop kit from any auto store is about the right size, but the hole was too small. Borrowed my brother-in-law's vise and drilled it out with his second smallest drill bit haha

 

 

Currently the bigger hangup is my wastegate actuator bracket. The way I positioned it puts it right below the intake. I thought I could give it enough clearance by very slightly filing the threaded piece but it's still not enough. (my Tial piece is a bigger diameter than a more OEM style actuator). 

The intake is sitting right on the weld to the plenum in the center. Gonna check later if it might be possible to just reposition the mounting point by cutting it and rewelding closer to the exhaust. I still have enough room that I'm not worried about temps, but if I can move it maybe an inch and a half closer to the block It'll clear the weld and sit right between the runners for cyl 3 and 4. 

I lowered my tial on the bracket by clearancing the cast compressor housing and lowering the bracket. It gained me 1/8" but I could've probably gone for more. Otherwise I had also considered fabbing a new bracket but I had too many other things going on at that time. Your project looks great though, keep at it!

[Zetsaz]

13 hours ago, Dat73z said:

I lowered my tial on the bracket by clearancing the cast compressor housing and lowering the bracket. It gained me 1/8" but I could've probably gone for more. Otherwise I had also considered fabbing a new bracket but I had too many other things going on at that time. Your project looks great though, keep at it!

 

Didn't quite want to do that just yet but ended up having to clearance the exhaust housing just slightly so I wouldn't risk the rod rubbing and restricting the movement. So here's what I ended up with for now. I removed the bolts and clocked it over to a position that cleared the plenum then marked and drill new holes. Couldn't go the opposite direction without cutting and rewelding to change the mount. Most aftermarket billet pieces are only two bolts and slotted so you're not limited by the clock of the compressor housing, so I figured this will be okay. Compressor threaded hole that used to be occupied with the hole on the far left of the bracket will just be a washer now.

 

Got the intake mounted and it clears fine! Did the throttle cable as well but not entirely happy with how much it has to flip direction with the skillard Lokar bracket. Seems to work fine for now, but I'll just run it through the firewall and direct to the pedal when I have more time.

 

Next step is shortening the AN hose going to the turbo, but now that's it's looking so much tidier I'm tempted to start rewiring. I initially just used the partially completed harness from the previous owner but it's not as nice as I'd like.

 

[Zetsaz]

Heading back to Mexico tomorrow. First thing I got done was shortening the coolant line to the turbo. But also remembering the housings make this thing impossible to tighten. Need to find some low profile AN wrenches or something.

 

Didn't quite get everything done, but DID manage to make a better wiring harness. It's not amazing but it's better than it used to be.

 

Notable improvements are:

-Actually reaching the new sensor location

-More tucked up wiring around the thermostat housing

-No more terrible grounds. Ecu grounds now run to an intake bolt near injectors 5+6

-Fewer crimped or soldered connections that were just temporary repairs of of PO's work to better suit what I was doing

-Sensor ground connections and splits are more well thought out

-Pre-ran required wiring for a fuel pressure sensor for extra security later

-Now has boost controller wired, Owner had de-pinned a lot of the other harness.

 

Notable wastes of time:

-My longer harness may not even get me where I wanted. Planned for under driver seat, but may not work as well as I thought

-Didn't improve the way I was running 12v lines for the injectors and coils. If I wasn't a total amateur I'd be rewiring the whole car same time and putting the ECU in a way better spot right next to relays.

-Need to make a little sub harness to get power from driver side of the car to my relays on the passenger side, but it'll at least be better than the hack job I did last time

-All that work meant I didn't replace the glass oil filter

-Bought the wrong size silicone coupler for the throttle, but I may need to remake the intercooler pipe going from the IC to the throttle anyway, so this thing isn't moving soon.

 

 

 

 

[Zetsaz]

Tiny updates and partially just a list for me to do over summer while I'm thinking of it:

 

Recent purchases:

-Floor mats (finally). We'll see if these even work, Between my sound deadening and carpet, I think the gas pedal might start rubbing against the carpet. 
-Engine lift hooks (mine were cracked). Important for lifting and replacing the crossmember and steering rack this summer

-OEM brake booster check valve. 

 

Summer work in order of priority for this summer:

-Replace glass fuel filter

-Replace crossmember along with steering rack and re-align

-Purchase correct size coupler for new throttle

-Chamfer IAC inlet on throttle with a dremel (some serious whistling sounds happening, really obnoxious)

-Redo intake side of intercooler piping

-Tighten coolant lines and refill coolant. 

-Make power subharness from relay board on passenger side out to driver side where the ECU is under the seat

-Install catch can (even if hose routing isn't super tidy)

 

Lower priority

-Redo center section of exhaust to improve clearance (would be high priority if I was driving more, but moving to mexico changed things haha.

-Replace exhaust hangers with more rigid pieces to remove rattle.

-Finally bother to build the AC hoses and charge AC system.

-

Edited June 5, 2023 by Zetsaz

[Zetsaz]

More recent purchases for the summer work:

 

-T3 mustache bar: I ran the original for a long time, but it actually rubs against the dogbone for the drop mounts which concerns me

 

-Kameari Engine Mounts: after consulting a lot of people and posts I decided against poly mounts since this is a full street car. RHDJapan with shipping was about the cost of buying OEM rubber units so I went for it. I'll report back on quality/comfort.

 

-Adjustable engine mounts: for whatever reason my engine always sat high when first installed. I had to go without the front/rear isolators or my valve cover would rub the strut bar (it already put a notch in it). Lowering it slightly will fix that, PLUS hopefully fix my downpipe issue. When I added a spacer on the new turbo, the added angle on the downpipe to clear the floors made it just high enough to rattle against the trans crossmember. Hopefully I get a two-for-one on this part and don't have to redo the downpipe.

Edited June 9, 2023 by Zetsaz

[Jboogsthethug]

You'll have to post some pictures as you go along! I am just "finishing" my huge house remodel, so I'm looking forward to getting back to the Z!

 

[calZ]

On 6/9/2023 at 10:00 AM, Zetsaz said:

When I added a spacer on the new turbo, the added angle on the downpipe to clear the floors made it just high enough to rattle against the trans crossmember. Hopefully I get a two-for-one on this part and don't have to redo the downpipe.

 

If the mounts don't fix it, you could always just put a small dent in it with a hammer where it rubs. I know it would be painful to do, but there have been plenty of tests showing that dents (especially just one) aren't going to noticeably affect things 

[Zetsaz]

On 6/11/2023 at 8:32 AM, Jboogsthethug said:

You'll have to post some pictures as you go along! I am just "finishing" my huge house remodel, so I'm looking forward to getting back to the Z!

 

 

Oh I'll absolutely take a ton! Flight is scheduled for the 26th this month. 27th and 28th of June will basically be full car work all day with some food breaks haha. I want it to be ready for the Cache Valley Cruise-In.

 

On 6/11/2023 at 5:47 PM, calZ said:

 

If the mounts don't fix it, you could always just put a small dent in it with a hammer where it rubs. I know it would be painful to do, but there have been plenty of tests showing that dents (especially just one) aren't going to noticeably affect things 

 

I've considered that, but opted against it. If the mounts don't work I'm just going to cut and splice in about a 1/4" section to the middle of the downpipe. The midpipe also has to be remade to add clearance to the resonator anyway. Had incredibly good exhaust clearance until i opted to add more to quiet the sound - my frame rails were the lowest part of the car.  I think I have enough room for an upturn in the midpipe that raises the already dented Vibrant unit. 

[Zetsaz]

Summer Update before the show and parade:

 

-Fuel filter replaced

-Intake piping between IC and throttle remade and working now

-Ended up have to purchase a new battery ($$$ ☹️)

-Cleaned out inside of car

-Vacuum lines for ECU and BOV redone

-Car is now back to driving!

 

 

Notable problems/hangups:

-Did not have time to install the new crossmember and engine mounts. Will save for next week.

-I was mostly ready to install the new T3 mustache bar then realized it uses bolts instead of the studs on the diff cover. Spent several hours trying to remove the studs with no success and ended up putting the OEM one back on. I'm so sick of this type of work and hang ups that I'm ready to just drop it off at a shop and have them pull the studs for me

 

-Car can't seem to idle below 1100-1200 once warm. Can't tell if I'm missing a vacuum leak somewhere, but idle timing correction IS kicking in and PWM on the IAC is near zero. I'll check it when I'm not rushed to show it off this weekend

 

-After driving again after such a long break I'm now pretty certain what I thought was an exhaust rattle is actually unfortunate timing and one of my CVs has gone bad. I think I just had a luck of the draw in a part that didn't last. When I was checking the sound I noticed it only happens under load and the speed of the tapping depends on the car's speed - not on RPM. Exhaust tapping would get faster with engine RPM, I tested multiple gears at the same speed and it made no difference. Rock Auto replacements of what I have are cheap so bought another couple. Hopefully problem is solved because that's the only thing that makes this car unenjoyable to drive right now. Most other things feel pretty good!