PLATA Posted November 30, 2015 Share Posted November 30, 2015 Subscribed, very entertaining thread, you have talent , wish you the best of luck . ENJOY THE RIDE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted November 30, 2015 Author Share Posted November 30, 2015 Thank you for encouraging me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted December 12, 2015 Author Share Posted December 12, 2015 Got 5/8"-18 3" length 9T bolts for LCA and TC-rod pivots from Amazon.com because the AN bolt in similar length at Pegasus auto racing is stupidly expensive ($40/bolt). LCA bracket was welded on the E46 cross member. The bump steer was projected on wood board. Laser pointer works fine and the test revealed bump out. Because the tie rod end is already located top of the adjustment of the bump steer stud, rack was moved down 1/2". Strut upper mount sheet metal was cut out by plasma. The strut was temporary welded to the frame. The strut top mount ring was welded to bent tube. The ring is genuine BMW parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
98blackbell Posted December 12, 2015 Share Posted December 12, 2015 Wow can u say re engineer. Keep up the good work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted December 23, 2015 Author Share Posted December 23, 2015 TC-rod bracket was cut from square tube and welded to the engine compartment frame and the floor rail. The rectangular tube which connects the TC-rod bracket and the side sill tube was replaced. The area between the frame and floor rail was closed from both sides. I couldn't do this before because I had floor-mount pedal master cylinders there. That arrangement considerably affected the chassis rigidity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 Left side inner steel sheet. Hood ledge was welded. Right side has been cut out. I bought LED headlamps for my z. Made in China, 45/45w hi/lo, with angel eye rings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted January 9, 2016 Author Share Posted January 9, 2016 My bad. The chassis center was not the body center. The strut upper mounts are half an inch off to the left. The frame was cut between cross member and the TC rod brackets. The clip was replaced to the right and welded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted February 29, 2016 Author Share Posted February 29, 2016 I don't have car lift so there are hard to be welded areas. For someone may not be realized where the pic is shown, showing is the behind the passenger side front wheel area. I could not see the other side of the rectangular tube mating weld. I use an inspection mirror for welding there and it worked fine at least for me. I doubt this area was painted as a new car. I estimate the chassis repair will take one more month. I'm interested in CAE ultra shifter. Shift lever without side play. Meanwhile in my car, play prevents quick shifting because of the bad connecting rod design: If you do not familiar with CAE shifters, search on YouTube. They are expensive ($900- ), and there is no CAE or equivalent shifter for Nissan/Datsun. So I fabricated a test assy for my car The shift rod is from Hayabusa handle bar The most important part of this is the side to side centering spring. Bent a spring by using TIG torch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted March 7, 2016 Author Share Posted March 7, 2016 (edited) Rectangular tubes had been welded under the hood ledge reinforcement . Edited March 7, 2016 by KAZU Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted March 20, 2016 Author Share Posted March 20, 2016 RB25 is in. I'll fabricate a brace between the cross member and TC-rod pivot. I've ordered a Threadstone TR10C intercooler. It will be mounted horizontally. The compressor outlet to intercooler piping will route top of the engine bay, so the air filter and turbo intake pipe should be relocated. I cut whole radiator core support and relocated the frame laterally 2". There is plenty room for the straight intake pipe. Also, the scavenge outlet hose end doesn't interfere with the frame anymore. The other side is still crowded. The CPC connector on the wall should be rotated 90 degree clockwise. The left side inner fender reinforcement was welded. There is no reference point anymore so I used outer fender and stock hood as guides. The other side warped badly but I decided to repair. The strut upper mount area was cut and the rust was removed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted April 21, 2016 Author Share Posted April 21, 2016 Slant mount was not good. Radiator assembly was too bulky because this car has condenser and its cooling fan. Also the slant mount radiator requires electric fans. There was no room for oil cooler. Radiator was placed in an ordinary fashion. The intercooler inlet/outlet hose elbows leave no room for hood hinges. So I welded an aluminum elbow on the right side and ordered an elbow for left side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted May 7, 2016 Author Share Posted May 7, 2016 Intercooler elbow of the other side had been welded. I could not find any good zero-pressure radiator cap for the expansion tank setup with regular USDM radiators. Once I got a zero-pressure cap from Summit Racing and found out that zero-pressure = can not seal any coolant pressure. So I bought JDM filler and Trust GReddy breather tank seal cap. I cut the filler portion of Griffin radiator. The filler can not be welded because this is spun aluminum, too thin to be welded there. I welded AN4 male there for air bleeding. Lower hose fitting had been modified using RB25NEO engine water inlet. The expansion tank return AN6 male and coolant drain were welded so the lower hose can be connected directly. I could not form the radiator brackets very well. It should be replaced by thick aluminum. Oil cooler is located under the radiator. I fabricated a swirl pot. The coolant filler is there, welded from underside. End plates were formed using shop press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted May 28, 2016 Author Share Posted May 28, 2016 Three AN4 male bungs were wedled on the coolant expansion tank. AAC valve boss was cut from RB25 intake pipe. Compressor outlet to intercooler pipe was made from A6061. Better than stock RB26 outlet, at least for my car. The stock RB26 outlet blocked the access to the air conditioner gas port. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted June 11, 2016 Author Share Posted June 11, 2016 Air filter to turbo compressor inlet pipe, 4-stage oil pump, and s14 silvia sway bar. Detachable radiator core support made my job easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted June 26, 2016 Author Share Posted June 26, 2016 (edited) The floor-mount master cylinders were located between the frame rails and the TC rod bracket. After the last year's collision, I found that such arrangement weakened the chassis considerably. Reverse-mount box will be fabricated. Master cylinders will be located under the heel plate. Edited July 3, 2016 by KAZU Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted July 24, 2016 Author Share Posted July 24, 2016 The reverse mounted masters are better than I thought before. Easy to adjust the balance bar. The brake pedal doesn't interfere with the steering shaft. I fabricated a prototype shifter. Final piece will be made from bicycle pedal spindle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted September 5, 2016 Author Share Posted September 5, 2016 I found a right angle gearbox for brake balance remote control. Less than half price of the Tilton's. Must parts for floor mount pedal. Without it, the remote dial doesn't turn smoothly. I decide to paint with 2K. I bought dual action sanders and HVLP gun. Bosch GEX 125AVE was better than air sanders because of its vibration reduction mechanism. I don't want to hold the air sander more than a couple of minutes. Four-state oil pump inlet fittings interfere with the BMW rack. I place the pump 1" upward. Air-con compressor is also relocated. Then I remove the twin electric puller fans from the radiator. Coupling fan blades were trimmed as they hit radiator inlet/outlet. Blow-off valve return piping is required to pass the inspection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted September 25, 2016 Author Share Posted September 25, 2016 Sway bar brackets were welded under the rails. I added tub for the link rod end and the rod end is off the center of the lower arm. No good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAZU Posted October 7, 2016 Author Share Posted October 7, 2016 Paint top coat didn't bind to primer-surfacer. The color layer can be easily peeled by using a heat gun and scraper for head gasket. Windshield has been removed. I thought the weatherstrip should be cut, but it has been there only a year since replaced so it came out in 5 minutes without cutting. I'll reuse it. Engine is out and old paint has been stripped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boben Posted October 8, 2016 Share Posted October 8, 2016 Did you retrofit an evaporator core from some other car or is that a stock unit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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