Engine Refresh - Studs, gaskets, etc...

[KZJonny]

She has a fresh clutch and machined flywheel, and is sitting about where the engine belongs.

Still lots to do, but I think I should have it ready to fire up soon anyway. Couple evenings of working carefully should do it.

[KZJonny]

Hopefully these joiners can be a good permanent solution to the *tiny* barbs on the GS EBCS needing to plug into the largish ports on the turbo inlet. At very least, hoses have a hard time backing off of these barbs, they have some good bite to them.

[rhino6303]

On 4/29/2024 at 7:33 AM, KZJonny said:

Hopefully these joiners can be a good permanent solution to the *tiny* barbs on the GS EBCS needing to plug into the largish ports on the turbo inlet. At very least, hoses have a hard time backing off of these barbs, they have some good bite to them.

Another option is to replace the 1/8 npt fittings on the ebcs with larger diameter hose fittings. Mettleair has these that are nickel plated brass to match the original type. You can do 1/16" all the way to 3/16" hose diameter.

https://www.mettleair.com/store/brass.html?cat=78&p=4

[RumblyXT]

Good progress!

[KZJonny]

11 hours ago, rhino6303 said:

Another option is to replace the 1/8 npt fittings on the ebcs with larger diameter hose fittings. Mettleair has these that are nickel plated brass to match the original type. You can do 1/16" all the way to 3/16" hose diameter.

https://www.mettleair.com/store/brass.html?cat=78&p=4

Thanks man. I had considered changing the barbs too. Just that all the ones I found were a lot longer, and I didn't feel like cutting them down to fit. But if I am unhappy with the adaptors, I will definitly try those out instead. Or, the SS versions of the same from McMaster Carr or whoever. I like stainless steel more than I should, hah!

[KZJonny]

11 hours ago, RumblyXT said:

Good progress!

Yeah, thanks man.

 

I hit a wall last night, mentally, and took a break. It was time to put down the tools for an evening and relax.

Even with the remote mounting kit I picked up, space below/behing the alternator is so tight, I think I need an elbow fitting to avoid hitting the oil pressure sending unit hose with the alternator. Then I could not find an alternator mounting bolt anywhere, and I sure there are a couple in the parts heap.

Then I had my first "forgot to do something important" moment, and realized I hadn't mounted the inspection cover on the bottom of the engine that covers the flywheel. Not the end of the world, and I am pretty sure I just jack up the engine I tiny bit to slide it in... but at like 2100 after a few long late evenings in the garage, I decided to take a break. Maybe tomorrow I will just drink some beer and tidy everything up for a bit.

 

It's always good to push hard to get a job done, but my goal is to have it on the road by the end of the month, and I think the last week of working hard and long hours had paid off. I should have these minor problems solved and out of the way by next week at the latest, and I think on the road and driving by mid-month is totally reasonable. I also have to get my vegetable gardens ready and planted in the same time span, so that is a lot of work to do. No sense burning out now. Hah!

[RumblyXT]

Yeah it happens dude.. I had to remove the I/M after I had it already installed due to not having the fuel lines clamps bolts flipped around so they could later be retighten if need be from up top. From factory, I think the heads of the bolt come facing down toward the long block.

A whole engine refresh is a big job, takes a lot of steps and small important details to make sure are done right. Regardless of how many times we've been there, it's probably good practice to have the steps written down in sections on a board and having them checked as they're completed.

Edited May 1 by RumblyXT

[KZJonny]

6 hours ago, RumblyXT said:

it's probably good practice to have the steps written down in sections on a board and having them checked as they're completed.

I'll consider this for next time. My memory is freakishly good for things like this tho, so I generally do pretty well with projects. Still, it doesn't hurt to have a check list to remind you to put on the damn inspection cover. (realistically, I can drive without it, especially with the big Primitive Racing skid plate protecting the underside, but still... it should be there, so I will replace it.)

On the plus side, I found the alternator mounting bolt!

[Max Capacity]

Don't feel bad about the inspection cover, I left mine off back in May 2012. Never did put it on. I'm on the lap top right now (sitting on the deck enjoying this beautiful day) and don't have pictures, but I think in the photos when I replaced the oil pan back a few years, you could see it was missing.

 

Also, most hardware stores have brass NPT fittings and barbed nipples. 

 

During lunch I found the picture.

 

 

[BoozeRS05]

The guy who put together my specB motor asked me to get cheap 5w30, and he did the same thing you’re describing. No load or anything, just let the car idle up to temp and then changed the oil.

Pretty sure we went with cheap 5w30 again up to 250 miles, but I can’t remember what I did after. I do know that my first UOA showed surprisingly low wear metal. 

[KZJonny]

Well, that isn’t what is meant to happen. Hah.

missed the passenger OCV banjo while installing everything and during the nut and bolt check.

Puked a couple litres of oil, but I was watching for something like this and shut it down right away.

Worst part is the mess and having to clean the floors now. As long as I didn’t get too much on a blanket or anything like that, it should be fine.

Lesson learned: do not install all blankets + heat sheilding until you’ve ruled out oil leaks. You won’t cook the engine bay idling the car and burping the coolant. But if this had been the turbo oil supply banjo, it would have meant taking a lot of junk off to get at it.

Edited May 8 by KZJonny

[KZJonny]

Previous problem solved. Tighten banjo fitting and clean up oily mess.

Lots of Simple Green later, and one piece of wire heat sleeve cleaned up in a TSP bath, and nothing should be waiting ot catch fire now.

 

There is always a "but" however, and I can't get the car to go into gear.... *sigh* I'll try just fiddling with the fork, and see if maybe it got bumped off of it's pivot during engine install, or some such, and maybe the throwout bearing is just hung up....

Ordering a trans jack right now becuase it seems like I never get things that are the easy fix. There is also a leaking seal on top of the trans that I might as well fix, and the short shifter could use a coat of spraypaint too.

Oh, and might as well throw on a set of 'blast plates' while it's out.

Be a good time to drop the diff and replace the broken cover plate too, I would think.

 

It'll be ready by ECM.... for sure.

[KZJonny]

Engine idles great tho. Cylinder roughness was zero across the board while warming up and burping the coolant.

DAM dropped because the battery was out for months, but I am sure a drive or two will remedy that quickly enought.

 

Once I rebuild the drivetrain of course... I'll start tonight. Should be able to get everything that needs to be out of the way off the car and stacked neatly away before the trans jack arrives.
I would think an afternoon should be enough to remove and service the diff + reinstall. Trans may be a little longer while I figure out which seals need changing and clean up the shifter + wait for plates. I still the end of the month is within reach.

Now, getting 500kms on the new clutch before giving it hell may be the challenging part. 

I know I've used the words 'just keep it out of boost' when trying to help others, but that is definitely not how I drive my car....

[Max Capacity]

The sign that the fork fell off the ball is, the shaft from the slave cylinder is normally horizontal, NOT a downward angle. Been there, done that.

[KZJonny]

21 minutes ago, Max Capacity said:

The sign that the fork fell off the ball is, the shaft from the slave cylinder is normally horizontal, NOT a downward angle. Been there, done that.

That is enormously helpful... I took a look and it did seem like the slave cylinder piston was pointing downwards a little.

Can this be remedied by pulling up on the clutch fork? I sort of think it aught to be.....? I would LOVE to not have to drop the trans right now, but I suppose if it comes to that.... Pehaps worst case I can just slide the trans back a little and not have to remove the DP and everything.

I was sure I double checked that before install, but all it takes is a little nudge while wrestling the engine into place to knock the fork off I suppose.

[KZJonny]

The answer is yes.

Remove tmic and slave cylinder. Rip rubber clutch fork cover in frustration. Get hold of the fork and yank up with some pliers. Visually inspect. Success.

Reinstall parts.

You can now engage gears.

 

I nearly shit a brick when it wouldn’t engage, after all that work.

[RumblyXT]

Been there too, I know how it feels having installed so many components, then something doesn't work lol

Glad you were able to figured it out.. 

[Max Capacity]

Success, Great to hear. 

 

To help you not feel so bad, I found this issue after having to remove the used rear diff I just installed, because the PO had over tighten the fill plug and I could not get the plug out to fill the diff. Had to remove the diff and replace the cover 

[KZJonny]

2 hours ago, Max Capacity said:

Success, Great to hear. 

 

To help you not feel so bad, I found this issue after having to remove the used rear diff I just installed, because the PO had over tighten the fill plug and I could not get the plug out to fill the diff. Had to remove the diff and replace the cover 

Huh. Well, since I am also doing a new diff cover tomorrow, I will keep that in mind. I’ll be sure to take the fill and drain plugs out before install to make sure they are removable.

Easier to do on a workbench where I can hit them with the big dog impact if needed.

[BoozeRS05]

PSA - regarding Max’s comment, always make sure you can remove the fill plug first when servicing the rear diff  

[KZJonny]

Well, tidied up the rear end with a new diff cover and CV + a diff bash guard.

Took her out for a cautious spin, and everything seems alright.

Knock feedback pulled a bunch of timing when I first merged on to a highway ramp, but then did not again on any other acceleration. This is all being pretty gentle because new clutch. No WOT pulls for a while. So, I’ll keep an eye on that, and deal with it if it persists, but I suspect it is more to do with the ECM. relearning after being unplugged for weeks.

Clutch is chattey sometimes, especially going into 1st and reverse, but brand new, so I expected this. I also either forgot how light the pedal feel is on this car, or flushing the clutch with fresh fluid made a bigger difference than I expected it to… very light pedal, an the engagement point has moved a little, I would say, as well.

Either way. I’m looking forward to spending some hard earned time with the car.

 

Oh! And I wasn’t expecting how much noiser the group n mounts would be. Happy to have them, but I can definitely hear all the transmission noise now. Fine by me, more mechanical music.

[KZJonny]

Things are still pretty hunky dory.

The feedback knock is still pulling timing in mid-throttle randomly. It always has a little, so I just got used to it, and I suspect it is partly the shuddering of the new clutch, which can be pretty noticeable from time to time. I would also suspect that the half tank of gasoline from last fall that I topped up with 94 octane to try and freshen it up is probably not the best fuel at this point in time. So... all the more reason to be gentle with it until I can get a full tank of known fresh 91 into it and see if that changes things a little.

If it persists after the clutch is all bedded in and smooth, then I'll start logging somehow and sifting through the data. I did give the car some WOT on the highway, gently, as in I worked up to it, and it is 100% fine on the monitors at maximum effort, so I don't think there is anything mechanically wrong. I've got some miles on it now, and aside from the smell of clutch and burning crud off the exhaust system, all seems to be good. No reason to suspect any mechanical problem. Idle is even a little smoother than I remember, but that might be the valve lash all being super-uniform helping a little.

I also notice that I think I am not hitting max boost like I used to, but I wonder if that is because of the Grimmspeed 3-port that is installed as a 2-port for now. It may be that the 17psi I would get to before was perhaps overboost becuase of the uprated VF40 and the factory boost controller not being up to the task. That said, I also have not truly punched it hard yet, because of clutch break-in. So maybe I'll see higher boost once I get a chance to really stab the throttle off the line.

 

Now, to figure out how to log with an AP and look at that? Or do I just get a tactrix cable and learn how to pull learning views? I am not sure which is the better diagnostic tool.

 

Probably also means I should hurry up and install the fuel pump controller + wiring and start getting tuned. The VF52 and injectors will be a next year problem.

[KZJonny]

On 5/10/2024 at 3:23 PM, BoozeRS05 said:

PSA - regarding Max’s comment, always make sure you can remove the fill plug first when servicing the rear diff  

Done and done.

Diff cover replaced over the weekend, plugs came out easily enough with the 1/2' impact gun.

 

However, since I did not drop the trans, and had already ordered blast plates, the 'to be installed' parts pile is already started again. How?! I just finished clearing that shelf over the past few months. Ugh.