ChrisB Posted November 3, 2014 Author Share Posted November 3, 2014 Hehe - can't wait - thanks for the heads up on the ground out point in the lane I always liked Thunderbird 2 out of all Thunderbirds with it's hump back and jet noises... Zeds do resemble that shape, now with the noise, maybe I should get a doll of Lady Penelope to stick to my dashboard.. Thunderbirds were real weren't they? Ok TMI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 6, 2014 Author Share Posted November 6, 2014 (edited) ... I've had a mechanical day This means adding more to my install and some tweeks to the existing fitment after nearly 4000 miles of reliability testing. Also it gave me a chance to service some long overdue items (looking at you plugs). First up I'm very impressed by the effectiveness of my indulgent Mishimoto catch can.. excellent separation with some very dark looking oil in the can and bone dry in the pipes and bronze filter thingy down-stream. I know it was expensive (money under the bridge now), but it's working perfectly Changed the Fuchs Titan Pro S with another 6.5l of fresh stuff. I will need to top it up again later - expanded sumps and oil cooler add about 2l to the volume Here are the re-fettled pipes with some new Mishimoto silicone long couplings, and spring clip for the re-routed vac/boost ref line (blue). It seems to sit much better now, and with some extra pipe separators (red of course), my pipe work is looking quite tidy now. I think it will be good practice to have an occasional reassemble of bits and tighten clamp threads every service now. Next thing was to whip the plenums off for servicing, to get to the plugs and fuel rails / injectors and ultimately replace with Wasso plenum spacer, HKS 3 step cooler plugs, and ID725 injectors. I separated the intake from the throttle body, then fought with the insanely stuck water pipe, then fought with the insanely stuck throttle body bolts. And it rained a bit, but it all came good First, this is the level of oil contamination which must have built up before the catch can protection Upper Lower Oooh look - valves. The inlet ports are now covered up with strips of masking tape for protection. I keep all bolts in separate zip-lock bags for each group - I'd hate to think what damage would occur if a bolt was lost down a tube (I do have a magic borescope - just in case though, complete with handy magnetic tip) I'm really pleased to find NO oil in my plug tubes!! So then I sorted my plugs but ran out of time for the injectors.. Plugs came out looking like this - they were well past their sell by date as close up the tips look a bit shrunken and there is a combination of carbon and grey deposit on them - but all in all not *that* bad - so good health, even though my fueling must be all over the place at the moment with unmapped fuel and exhaust mods I've bought all my metal housings in for cleaning and painting tomorrow as it's going to pee it down. The wife is not very impressed at the moment as my dog friendly lounge has one or two additional ornaments. I think they look great.. The giant box behind the sofa, full of front Nismo V2 bumper skin, really sets it off Word to the wise, throttle bodies might look lovely and clean from the outside (58000 miles so far) ..but oh my gawd.. look at the other side! So, tomorrow then will be clean, clean, clean and paint. I am still going for a coat of Bilt Hamber Etchweld primer followed by Hammerite Silver (Hammered) Direct to rust over the top. It will be silver and a bit shimmery. Both paints should be good up to 150C so plenty safe for plenum usage. Froze my butt off too on the coldest day this autumn - I never knew baths could feel so good (more of a shower man myself) Edit: fix autospell Edited November 9, 2014 by ChrisB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 6, 2014 Share Posted November 6, 2014 Well done Chris, ...cracking on with it good to see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jumping350 Posted November 6, 2014 Share Posted November 6, 2014 good work buddy looking good keep those detailed pictures coming its helping me loads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 6, 2014 Author Share Posted November 6, 2014 Thanks chaps - I find it quite pleasing keeping a record of progress Glad it's shining a light for you too. Looks like I will have a weather hold coming up though - or get high in paint and carb spray fumes indoors We're watching 4 seasons of Game of Thrones on AppleTV on the plasma in the dark at the moment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jumping350 Posted November 6, 2014 Share Posted November 6, 2014 it looks like its going really well so far, ive got the same problem with the weather now im laying all the bits out in my living room over the next week or so to check everything and make sure ive got all relevant bits, havent broken that one to the mrs yet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 6, 2014 Author Share Posted November 6, 2014 Shiny bits. Yep, sometimes it's easier to ask forgiveness than get permission. It's a bit easier when you bring new clean bits into the lounge - smelly old car parts cause more flak They love it really... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 (edited) Micro update as heavy rain and gale force winds prevent me from painting or doing anything engine wise outside.. The brass plate in the lower plenum does a good job at catching and pooling the PCV oil - there was quite a puddle underneath it.. Application of STP carb cleaner to the plenums and throttle body - note that this was coked - the difference in looking through the butterfly towards light was huge after cleaning. And then some blingification with an electric drill, wire wheels and grit, of top surfaces and throttle body before painting (tomorrow?). Looks nice and shiny now, but I will be sticking with painting as I'm not one of natures polishers Edited November 7, 2014 by ChrisB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 7, 2014 Share Posted November 7, 2014 Very nice Chris ~ look's like new again that plenum. Guess that's one of the benefits of doing the install yourself at home as you can really let the OCD cleaning take over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 Yep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 8, 2014 Author Share Posted November 8, 2014 Chucking it down outside.. Nice and dry in my garage though. A coat of Bilt Hamber Etchweld primer added to the upper plenum, followed by a 4h dry time Followed by 3 coats of Hammerite Hammered Silver direct to rust at 1/2h intervals ...comes out looking primerish silver. Colour coordinated with my (some would say) primerish silver car It should look fetching enough as a subtle backdrop to the Tarmac dress bolts and washers later on though (and it's certainly an improvement on the stained/oxidised aluminium of before) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 ^^ Looks nice ~ the weathers nasty outside but luckily for me it held off for an hour whilst I went for a drive. Didn't go anywhere really, just drove around through a local tunnel & on the M4 for fun. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 8, 2014 Author Share Posted November 8, 2014 Lol - driving - I remember that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 Not long for you now though ~ you are going to love it so much I'm sure especially as you've had a big wait like I did. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jumping350 Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 nice to see your getting on with things during the monsoon I wonder how long its been for me, I bought mine before either of you and ive not taking it out the box yet 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 8, 2014 Author Share Posted November 8, 2014 Mine was an impulse buy (although I had thought about getting s/c in 2011 - then thought naaah, she's fast enough). Progress was speedy, then slow, then glacial, and now hopefully picking up again. You'll have it in the end - and probably be better off from extra planning time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 9, 2014 Author Share Posted November 9, 2014 (edited) Today on the menu - ID725 injectors with a side order of Wasso plenum spacer, garnished with Tarmac's multicoloured bolts First up was digging around with my fuel rails. I bought plug and play injector connectors to ease the connection process a bit Rails and old injectors off (bit of a tug required - my trim removal tool came in very handy as a bent lever) Old ones are a bit crusty. Because of that I spend a good while with cotton buds dipped in fresh engine oil, cleaning the injectors bores and surroundings. Can't have any foreign bodies under the O ring seats. Reassembled the fuel rails with the new injectors. All O rings are lubed with oil for seal and easy fit Back on with the plug and play leads. These are quite long, so rather than let them rattle around, I zip tied them to the fuel rails. I can't see a reason for this to be bad as there is lots of fuel going through the rails, cooling them continuously, so wires shouldn't be at risk of melting - but they will be protected from movement. Ignore the awesome borescope - I dropped a washer in an impossible place when fettling the FPR mount, down the back.. this is a must have tool BTW Shiny lower collector back on ...and the upper for a nice jam sandwich. I am being different by having blue middle plenum Tarmac dress washers and red every where else, due to the air side being predominantly blue where as mechanical and oil is coded red - it's just how the cookie crumbled, so I went with a flow (disclaimer over - and yes a blue plenum spacer would have been more appropriate with that logic) I also installed an AAM fuel pressure port (from Keyser and possibly acquired from Ian previously based on the envelope it came in - stuff gets around) and moved the mechanical fuel pressure gauge from the Aeromotive FPR. This makes much more sense as I can actually see the thing now. In its place on the FPR is a port plug, which will be replaced with an electronic sender in due course And finally for today It got dark, so I gave up. Bits are missing Edit - remove 'url links' to photobucket. I like it as just images. Edited November 9, 2014 by ChrisB 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 9, 2014 Share Posted November 9, 2014 "Ooohh la de da look at me with my fancy borescope" Not jealous. Could have done with that the other week when firstly one of the engine cover collar sleeves dropped down into the depths of the engine shortly followed a few days later by an allen key. I got them both back the old fashioned way with lot's of swearing, a torch and a magnetic pickup tool randomly poked around the engine until I fished something up. Good progress. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 9, 2014 Author Share Posted November 9, 2014 Hehe - lah de dahh until I tell you that I wanted one for ages, then asked my wife for one for my birthday. It got added to the Costco shopping. How sad am I? Excellent gadget though - I retrieved a spring clip from under the brake booster the other day - would have been pigging awkward without it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 9, 2014 Share Posted November 9, 2014 Great bit of kit to have in the toolbox arsenal. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 10, 2014 Author Share Posted November 10, 2014 (edited) Tidy up today Finished putting intake stuff back on, then straightened out the fuel return line by pulling off all the clips - previously I had only properly fixed the ends and temporarily zip tied intermediate fixings Pipe fettling has increased the clearance with the a/c belt a bit Z-speed under tray on - I had to bend the end tab a bit, but this makes a nice shield for the u-bend pipe I also found that the Z-speed wasn't directly compatible with the Stillen sump - there was a bolt that interfered, so I put in a short one Something I've discovered is the power of flash photography in detecting rust. In photos, a strong flash (well the one in my Lumix) shows up rust that looks far worse than it does to the naked eye. This means it's possible to find surface (or other) rust quite easily - and then eventually treat it (a job for next summer), before it becomes a problem. Glad to say my car has very little rust. I've also swapped in a few more dress bolts. My car is now back on terra-firma. I connected the battery, did the resets for throttle and pedal etc - no spurious lights and all the right clicks - but I won't start it yet though. No day-completed shot today as I am waiting for paint to dry on the strut bar. I actually managed to muck painting Hammerite up (who does that?) I picked up the wrong spray can between coats, spraying away merrily thinking that the silver looked decidedly primer... All I need now through the post is an UpRev cable, software and a safe base map... Edited November 10, 2014 by ChrisB 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 10, 2014 Share Posted November 10, 2014 Nice mate. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted November 10, 2014 Author Share Posted November 10, 2014 Yep. Properly last leg now. When I have the base ECM map on, I'll watch out for any new leaks, top up any levels, check out any DTCs if there are any, and then go for a short test run. The base map includes the belt on, so all systems almost go Mark tells me to keep it sane in the revs department - hopefully there won't be any traffic jams or extended idling either, so I am planning on departing for Surrey at about 5am on Wednesday. Smooth 2500-2750 RPM continuous all the way would be great 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jumping350 Posted November 10, 2014 Share Posted November 10, 2014 (edited) Excellent stuff Chris, 5am should be ok but just aim to clear the M25 before 7am as that's usually the beginning of the chaos Edited November 10, 2014 by jumping350 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMballistic Posted November 10, 2014 Share Posted November 10, 2014 Yep. Properly last leg now. When I have the base ECM map on, I'll watch out for any new leaks, top up any levels, check out any DTCs if there are any, and then go for a short test run. The base map includes the belt on, so all systems almost go Mark tells me to keep it sane in the revs department - hopefully there won't be any traffic jams or extended idling either, so I am planning on departing for Surrey at about 5am on Wednesday. Smooth 2500-2750 RPM continuous all the way would be great Getting excited for you now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.