Hindsight's build thread

[RM1SepEx]

Thanks Dan, makes me feel better.

Tony, not sure why the shifter is stiff if you have Wayne's setup, since it's doing all the right things to combat stiffness: Cables going straight back, good shifter mechanism up front, and well-designed bracket in the back. The only thing I can think of is that I believe the VCP shifter makes one of the cables do a 90 degree bend into the linkage at the back. It's not a sharp turn by any means but I'm not sure if that may be creating some drag on the cable or not. Most all of us who have gone the MR2 route and made our own linkages have used bell cranks in the back instead so the cables stay as straight as possible, but again, since I haven't compared the two setups, I can't say that the extra bend in the VCP unit is actually causing any drag. Have you contacted him?

The loop causes drag due to friction and adds to the "slop" because the inner cable has to move from the inside of the cable to the outside of the cable's inner sheath. The cables that Bob and I bought have almost zero inner clearance and less of this "slop" in a curve of the cable run (Teleflex Extreme control cables)

Andrews exhaust comments may be explained by the turbulence behind the car due to airflow, at low speed you can expect the air to cascade back towards the cockpit. Have you ever sat in the back of a pickup? I made my exhaust exit low behind the tire where the airflow should be backwards due to a smoother airflow

[Hindsight]

I'm not sure if the custom-length cables I ordered are "Teleflex Extreme" or not, but I think they are Teleflex. The guy I spoke with at Custom Cables in California was very knowledgeable and said these were the best cables for shifters and that he sells a ton of them so fingers crossed.

[brian b 36]

my ext is under the diff and get no smell at all

[Hindsight]

Well.... after putting the body on temporarily and trying to see how things fit, the high center exit is going to be REAL tough to make fit. Hardly enough room for bends. I could do a hidden dump between the rear lower lateral link and the bumper, just outside where the diffuser would go. That might be better for exhaust fumes......

Decisions decisions.

http://i.imgur.com/8L21Eq5l.jpg (http://imgur.com/8L21Eq5)


http://i.imgur.com/IpbCN8el.jpg (http://imgur.com/IpbCN8e)

[Tamra]

Why do you think our exhaust ended up with so many bends - it's tough to fit for center exit! If we did it again we would probably exit under the bumper to reduce exhaust fumes. We like how it looks as center exit though...

[RM1SepEx]

Well.... after putting the body on temporarily and trying to see how things fit, the high center exit is going to be REAL tough to make fit. Hardly enough room for bends. I could do a hidden dump between the rear lower lateral link and the bumper, just outside where the diffuser would go. That might be better for exhaust fumes......

Decisions decisions.

http://i.imgur.com/8L21Eq5l.jpg (http://imgur.com/8L21Eq5)


http://i.imgur.com/IpbCN8el.jpg (http://imgur.com/IpbCN8e)

You can see why I went down, 90 to the side and out low behind the wheel

50134 50135 50136

[Pearldrummer7]

Is the exhaust a need or a want? My AJW exhaust exits above the transmission, in the center (ever so slightly off center, perhaps?), and it isn't THAT loud. It passed NY inspection

[Hindsight]

Just too loud for me without a good sized muffler.

[RM1SepEx]

I can't get it on the road w/o a cat and muffler. It sounds pretty mean with the high flow cat and straight thru 3 inch muffler

[Hindsight]

Yeah Dan, looks like I will probably end up with a similar setup as you. I don't need the cat though so I will skip that, and will probably opt to just dump the exhaust out the bottom instead of going through a body cutout.

[svanlare]

I've just got the Cat and it is loud, going to wait until I try it on the road to see if I need to add both. Are you going to mount both the Cat and the Muffler?

[Hindsight]

No just the muffler. I don't need the cat so I can skip it.

[RM1SepEx]

Hard to understand "not needing a CAT" it's Federal law... Maine is simple, no testing just visual inspection. Too bad it isn't enforced with Harleys, they are OBNOXIOUS

[Buzz Skyline]

I have a cat, but I'm not sure homebuilt cars need to pass emissions in Maryland. So in that sense, I don't need one to be legally on the road.

Even if it does need to pass emissions, we're an OBD-based emissions testing state, and it's very easy to fool the OBD into reporting the cat as properly functioning even if there isn't one installed. Legally, you need a cat in Maryland, practically speaking (for scofflaws anyway), not so much.

[tmoretta]

I am using a small cat and then the FFR supplied chrome end exiting behind the rear tire. I have mounted a Supertrap adjustable plate silencer to the pipe. The Supertrap allows me to change the tone/loudness very easily by varying the number of plates. I did find that too few plates will "snuff out" the turbo with the back pressure.

[Hindsight]

Hopefully wrapping up the exhaust tonight. I'm going to have to wait until the body is fully fitted, the real wheels and tires are mounted, the deck hinge is on, and the splash guards are in place before I fabricate an exhaust hanger to support the end of the muffler because all those things are going to have to factor in to where I can mount the support brace.

After the exhaust, I just need to bolt the seat in, set a very very rough alignment, tighten the suspension bolts, and install the custom-length shift cables which get here tomorrow, then it's first go-kart.

[Hindsight]

Here is the final rear shift linkage after cleaning it up and cutting off the bits I didn't need. Have the new custom length cables on it as well. They look a little different than others I have seen, but they work great and have nearly no slop. The length was perfect too. 79" on one and 81" on the other. Can't wait to test drive it and see what it feels like while the gears and synchros are turning. I got high-temp cable housings but also wrapped the cables in heat sleeving as well for added protection.
http://i.imgur.com/chQwVIxh.jpg (http://imgur.com/chQwVIx)


Here is the exhaust. I just need to add a bend or two and a short pipe dumping the exhaust out the bottom via hidden tip, and add a wide-band bung to the bellmouth. Hoping for go-kart this weekend.
http://i.imgur.com/F8ec9tTh.jpg (http://imgur.com/F8ec9tT)

[FFRSpec72]

Interesting ...

[RM1SepEx]

Did you check your rear inner fender clearance?

[Hindsight]

Thank you for asking Dan! Yes, I have been checking it obsessively... but it's difficult to be exact since I can't be 100% certain where the inner splash liner (the piece that hangs off the frame) will be until I get my new wheels and tires mounted. I currently only have the wheels, not the tires. But I eyeballed it, assuming that the tire would be as far inward as possible before hitting things, and even then, I do still have room for the tip. The angle of the pic makes it look like the corner of the muffler is closer than it is, but there is about 5-6" between it and the donor tire.

Here are some pics of the cables and the final implementation of the shifter (still need to install my fancy new knob).

http://i.imgur.com/MKzBLrhh.jpg (http://imgur.com/MKzBLrh)

http://i.imgur.com/VTqzRoZh.jpg (http://imgur.com/VTqzRoZ)

[Aero STI]

The cable casing you got is very unique. That's the first I've seen that style.

[Hindsight]

Same here. I've seen the purple, and the black - both smooth, but never this. This is high-temp... not sure if that has something to do with it. I got them here: http://www.controlcables.com/

[Scargo]

That is a very nice installation! I am questioning the racing durability of the connections, front and back because they are not double-shear, in design. Your holes and connections look quite small on te shifter. Less than 1/4" or 6mm on the shifter? It's not just you... this is what I am typically seeing and Subaru has a quite stout arrangement for the transmission (a double-shear design) and I wonder if it doesn't all need to be that strong for long-term durability?
Edit: Yes, in many instances I am suggesting a "clevis rod-end" solution. Thanks

[Hindsight]

Thanks Glyn, I hear what you are saying. I'm using 1/4" hardware and the cable ends are 1/4" as well, same as from the factory. I didn't really feel I would need any more than what I have, in terms of durability, especially considering the moment-arm is so short (all the force is being applied right where the bolt comes out of the part as opposed to be spaces out). If I do end up with durability issues, clevis rod-ends would provide the double shear support but you have to be SO exact on the holes you drill for them or you end up with slop (i mean, if you drilled a plain 1/4" hole, I'm sure the pin would be slightly loose in it so you'd have to drill it a little smaller).

Speaking of double shear, am I the only person who cringes at some of the bump-steer setups where your tie-rod end is all hinging on a 3" long spacer up to the knuckle? That's a pretty critical component (steering!!!) and when going over FIA curbs at 100mph, it would terrify me.

[Scargo]

... am I the only person who cringes at some of the bump-steer setups where your tie-rod end is all hinging on a 3" long spacer up to the knuckle? That's a pretty critical component (steering!!!) and when going over FIA curbs at 100mph, it would terrify me.
Let me speak from experience that the steering and suspension components and their modification needs a very hard look and then constant inspection. I believe Whiteline discontinued their bump-steer product. I had one on my 2011 STi. It did not fail, per se, but the forces contributed to a failure which caused me to total my car. Others have had issues.
That step... that spacing down, needs to be done with the very best quality components and far beefier than stock. IMHO, it is an accident looking for a place to happen. Other designs could be better rather than that kind of spacer/bolt joint.

[RetroRacing]

50335

Normally, we would weld, but I want to test the handling first. Note the size of the base of the spacer and a grade 8 bolt makes the weak spot the actual arm. BTW, the spacer is for a pinto rack and you can buy them online.

[Scargo]

I purchased a highly modified Chevrolet from an Aerospace Engineer who started a racing machine shop with dyno. In the '70's he became the premier builder of Sprite racing engines in the US. When he did the disc brake conversion on the Chevy, he modified and TIG reinforced the Chevy spindle. He then had it heat treated, magnafluxed and then he shot-peened it. He left nothing to chance. He assumed nothing.
A lot of things like this from my past, including an engineering background, working with consulting, registered professional engineers on failures (including Corvair and Pinto issues) being on fire from an auto repair incident, losing a ball joint at Watkins Glen at over 100 and totalling several cars has given me a perspective of feeling like I need to be very careful, 'cause I can see what can happen and most of my nine lives are used up.

I am not interested in being Debbie Downer or hypercritical of others ideas and work. I just want everyone to be safe; as safe as you can be when driving a race car at high speeds. Not being a full-fledged engineer, I am sometimes reluctant to give advice. I might even give the wrong advice.
The leverage or torquing force on that joint and arm has been multiplied perhaps 6-10 times? Perhaps it is a common thing to do in racing but it bothers me and I would want the fewest pieces possible, tight tolerances on the bolts and holes, really high-grade nuts and bolts, safety wire, Loctite, extra castle nut and cotter pin. I hope I made somebody snicker or laugh, but you get my point.

[RetroRacing]

Agreed, that's why i'm worried about the arm twisting, leverage. THough, we have had this set up (welded and fluxed) on two GT3 cars with no issues, just not this long.

Stop scaring me or I won't drive it.....:p

[Hindsight]

Exhaust done. Tip is cut to be stealthy and I'll probably paint it flat black when I get around to it. Also need to do more than tack weld the tip but I'm going to keep it that way for now until after the body and splash guards are permanently in place in case I need to adjust it. The duct tape you see to the left of the tip is mocking up the diffuser that I will eventually add.

Just need to torque/check the suspension bolts and bolt the seat down and I'm ready to kart. Should be go-karting Saturday around lunch time.

http://i.imgur.com/Anl3vdvh.jpg (http://imgur.com/Anl3vdv)

http://i.imgur.com/EgZOGelh.jpg (http://imgur.com/EgZOGel)

[Frank818]

The diffuser doesn't cover that place for the exhaust tip, great idea. I didn't do it that way cuz I don't have the space and I didn't want the exhaust sound to rebound on the tarmac, it's gonna be loud enough without that. loll

[Tamra]

It's past lunch time... any updates on go-karting??? Good luck!

[RM1SepEx]

I like it but won't the rear get very dirty from the exhaust?

[Hindsight]

Go kart was successful! Had a real head scratcher moment when I went to start it and it wouldn't start. It hasn't run in 3 or so months, but I didn't do anything that would cause it to stop working.... or so I thought. I had unplugged the crankshaft position sensor while installing a new belt and an oil pressure sensor. Whoops! Once I figured that out, it fired right up and I pulled out of the garage and took off down the street. It was scary to drive due to the alignment.... was all over the place so I didn't get out of second.

SO satisfying after 1.5 years of work. Yet there is still so much ahead of me.

Dan, the exhaust angles downward so much of it should miss the bumper. Time will tell though!

Pics and vid shortly.

[Hindsight]

Here's the video.

https://youtu.be/HRh-ISTxlvg

[AZPete]

Okay, we see it starts and moves but we need more video! Considering that Tamra slapped you around for not posting soon after lunch, you'd better post a longer video before she sees this. :eek:

[metros]

Congrats! Enjoy this moment as a major milestone in your build.

[Hindsight]

Funny story about that... I took a longer one of me driving away down the street but as I walked from camera to car, my wife called, so the audio cut out and the screen shakes from vibration. A friend took another one though... will post it up soon.

[Mitch Wright]

Agree, the first drive is really satisfying, congratulations.

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Here's the video.

https://youtu.be/HRh-ISTxlvg
Great job Hindsight,
Bob

[JAubin]

Congrats! Must be awesome to take it out for a spin! I was close to doing that today, but w/ the snow we just got I decided to just do a first start and not try and kart the same day. Exhaust sounds great!

[Hindsight]

Okay, we see it starts and moves but we need more video! Considering that Tamra slapped you around for not posting soon after lunch, you'd better post a longer video before she sees this. :eek:

Ok here is the other one I have:

https://youtu.be/jk8c4G11uZw

Thanks for all the kind words everyone. Still have a lot of work ahead of me but yet another major milestone reached!

[Tamra]

Nice, congrats!!

[Pearldrummer7]

Awesome job, Jeff. That was the second most exciting milestone in the whole build so far. You must be ecstatic!

[STiPWRD]

Awesome! My toe angle was also messed up the first time I drove mine too and I had to fight the steering wheel to keep it straight. Nonetheless, it's an amazing moment.

[svanlare]

Congrats! Huge accomplishment and a major milestone. Time to find some local autocross sessions now.

[Frank818]

Wow awesome!! Fired up like if it was running few hours ago! Man that must be a nice feeling...

Huge hand shake, man, for the success.

[AZPete]

I LOVE go-kart vids! There is so much that has to go right from kit delivery to moving down the driveway. Congratulations!

[Frank818]

There is so much that has to go right from kit delivery to moving down the driveway. Congratulations!


Damn right!!!! Pete has said it again!

[FFRSpec72]

Where is the body ????

[Hindsight]

In the crawlspace :)

I have a number of things I need to do before putting the body on... e-brake, looming the wiring harness, running down some electrical issues (gauges are cutting out when cranking the starter and traction control system isn't picking up on any of the wheel speed sensors, among other things).

[Aero STI]

Did you use a laptop to check on the signals going in to the traction control? If that fails I would check things out with an o-scope. 3 of my sensors picked up consistently around 15 km/h. I wasn't getting consistent signal from all wheels until around 30 km/h.

[Hindsight]

Yeah I checked it with the laptop. I have an email out to RLTC so we will see if they have any ideas. I don't have a scope to check the sensors with - only a multimeter .

[Hindsight]

Ok, I know there are very few out there with the Race Logic Traction Control System but I figured I'd post this here in hopes that anyone searching to resolve an issue will find it.

For my 818, with the 2007 donor, the RLTCU system wouldn't pick up the ABS wheel speed sensor signals. I finally got it working to the point where I can see the speed sensor signals in the live chart plotter, but I have yet to get the car to a point where I can test it by performing the calibration and systems check. What I had to do was connect the race logic ABS signals wires to the BLACK wires coming from the wheel speed sensor. The ABS wheel speed sensors are all two wires, one black and one white. They terminate in a two-pin plug that connects to the main OEM wiring harness. The connector they plug in to has either a black+white or a green+blue twisted pair of wires. On my car, there didn't seem to be any matching pattern as to which color (white, black, green, or blue) connected to which color wire on the wheel speed sensors (black,white), so I just ensured the RLTCU wires were connected to whatever color wire ultimately let to the black wire on the ABS wheel speed sensor. The second thing I had to do was ground the shield wire on the RLTCU multi-conductor cable to the chassis. In other words, the RLTCU has four wires running inside a shielded cable from the RLTCU computer, and at the end of the cable there is a bit of bare wire sticking out which is the shield. At the computer end of that multi-conductor cable, the shield is grounded inside the computer. So it struck me as odd that both ends of the cable had to be grounded (normally for a shielded wire, only one end of he wire is shielded), but without grounding the other end of the shield wire, I received no ABS signal from the sensors at all in the RLTCU.

Long story short: Ensure the RLTCU signal wires ultimately connect to the black wire on the RLTCU, and ensure you ground the end of the shielded cable for the ABS signal wires that comes with the traction control system.

All that said, I think Andrew did it differently, and I think he used the white wire. But he isn't using the factory ABS computer like I am so his wheel speed sensors are only there for the traction control system. My understanding is that the ABS sensors generate a low AC voltage as their signal. So if that's true, I guess it doesn't matter which signal wire you use, but in my case, since I had the wheel speed sensors hooked up to the ABS computer, and the ABS computer is grounding one of the two speed sensor wires (I checked this with my multimeter). Since this is the case, whatever wire the ABS computer is grounding (white on my car) obviously can't be used to send back to the RLTCU computer so you have to use the other wire. The only part I'm still mystified by is why I also had to ground the end of the shield cable (because it wasn't like I was having an issue with noise - I was having an issue with no signal coming through at all), but whatever; as long as it works I'm reluctantly happy to let that mystery go.

[Aero STI]

I sent a PM, but I did some searching since I sent it to confirm my suspicion. There are posts on the racelogic forum suggesting that you can ground the shield wire to the chassis at the same point of the abs unit to clean up your signal.

[Hindsight]

Did a number of odds and ends over the last week or so.

I replaced the driveshaft seal that was leaking. I bought an aftermarket one and after buying an OEM one this time around, it's no wonder the old one leaked. It was definitely installed on the wrong side, but also it was missing the suction-cup type outer lip that helps seal it to the CV joint. I put the new one in using SgtGator's cool seal installer and seal protector, both of which worked very well. The installer is much nicer than a flat plastic universal seal driver because it's hollow on the inside at just the right diameter for the suction cup seal to fit inside so you aren't crushing it while you drive the seal in. The new seal isn't leaking so far but need to drive it to really confirm.

I also installed my Momo steering wheel and got the horn and turn signal cancellation working. To do that, I cut off the connectors on the clock-spring piece (the plastic module that goes between the steering wheel and the turn signal housing) all the way down to the pins, then soldered a wire onto the pin. Other than that, the clock spring stays in place and has the turn signal cancellation piece on it. Be careful not to cut off the two alignment pegs - these fit into the steering wheel hub and keep the clock spring turning with the steering wheel. I can hear the horn relay clicking when I hit the button so, so-far-so-good.

I installed my dash most of the way until the part where you drill the last holes in the bottom of it to secure it to the brackets. I realized I should have my windshield glass and doors in place before doing that because they could change the position the dash mounts to.

I bought a digital level gauge. It will help a lot with the alignment. Can use it for checking camber and caster and also for checking the rear parallel link adjustments (I put a small piece of angle iron across the two lateral links at the inward end, place the digital gauge on the angle iron, zero it out, then move the gauge and angle iron to the outer end of the lateral links. If the reading isn't zero, I adjust the upper trailing link until it is. Done. Took 2 minutes for both sides). I will post pictures and a write-up of it later.

Also pulled the trigger on some tires. Decided to go with Z2 Star Specs in 235/40/17 and 265/36/18 in the back to go on the RPF1 wheels I bought a month or so ago. Once the tires arrive and I get them mounted and installed, I do the alignment.

Familiarized myself with my AccessPort and AccessTuner Race. Got it talking with my Innovate wideband successfully, and loaded the stage 2 OTS map which should be a good base point for me to adjust as necessary (guessing I may need to scale the MAF and might need to make adjustments for the different exhaust).

And lastly, I started fabricating the AWIC front HE mount. Far from finished in this picture. I'll be getting the brackets powder coated black and will also be putting a light coat of Eastwood Radiator Black spray paint on the HE.

http://i.imgur.com/xTyGWchl.jpg (http://imgur.com/xTyGWch)

http://i.imgur.com/MHZZ2s3l.jpg (http://imgur.com/MHZZ2s3)

[Harley818]

I like your steering wheel. Care to share where you got it?.... and your digital level? I'm going to have to get to that soon.
Looks like same gauges? Just not as many as I have.
Good call on the black HE. I'll have to make a note to do that too.
I downloaded Stage two on the Accessport and it makes alot of difference to the idle and smooth ramp up.
Ultimately, I'll get it tuned, but till then it sounds good.
Started it with my new exhaust today.....after all this time... it sounds good.

[Hindsight]

Hi Harley, both the steering wheel and the angle gauge were purchased from Amazon.

The angle gauge is this one:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006JR8XBG

Here is a great video that shows you how to use it, or a plumb-bob to check your caster. Checking camber is obviously as easy as putting it up against a straight-edge that is sitting vertically against the face of your wheel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oco27WtOip8

Here is the steering wheel:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0065BK3WS

And the hub for it:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000KECTTG

The gauges I have are oil temp, oil pressure, manifold pressure, water temp, wideband, and pre-/post IC intake air temp. They are all from pro-sport except for the wideband which is an Innovate MTX-L. I plan on putting most or all of the gauges in holes I will drill in the dash, and possibly a couple of them in the console. The water temp gauge will serve double purpose to check both the engine coolant temperature as well as the AWIC water temperature. I have two sending units (one in the AWIC radiator and another in the coolant manifold) connected to a dual pole switch that allows me to toggle between them. Also have some toggle switches you can't see in those pics: One to disable ABS, one to disable the AWIC water pump (in case I need to leave the key on and don't want the pump running), and one to kick both radiator fans on high speed. These will live in the console.

[Hindsight]

Here is a picture showing how to use the digital angle gauge to check and set the upper trailing arm link as described in my previous post.

Set across parallel links on the inside and zero out the gauge:
http://i.imgur.com/Cx7sam2h.jpg (http://imgur.com/Cx7sam2)

Then set them on the outer side and check the reading. If it's not zero, simply adjust the upper trailing link until it is. Done.
http://i.imgur.com/FL5SiCMh.jpg (http://imgur.com/FL5SiCM)

[Tamra]

Very nice! On the tune, are you going to try to do it yourself, or bring it somewhere?

[Hindsight]

Thanks Tamra. I was always going to take it in somewhere, but the more I have been reading about tuning on the RomRaider site, and also reading through the Cobb tuning guides, I'm very comfortable with doing it myself. Especially on the stock turbo. I know that a dyno can help you fine-tune the timing and the fuel ratio in order to produce the most amount of power with the safest levels of timing and fuel, but I think I can get close enough on my own without it.

[Mulry]

I thought that once with my first MegaSquirt. Learned I was wrong when I popped the motor at the first race. But I'm sure the AccessPort is better now than my map was in 2009.

[Hindsight]

What happened? Too much timing? Too lean?

[Mulry]

Yeah, too lean at WOT. Burned a piston, which we learned when the dipstick kept popping out of the tube. Also the tach signal was flaky as it turns out.

[Harley818]

Thanks for the info on the steering wheel and digital level.
When I bought my guages from prosport i asked about the same thing.... I wanted to toggle between two sensors.
I don't recall the detail, but they said it wasn't advisable. Maybe just a ploy to get me to buy two gauges, but if I recall it was something about switching between the different sensors and different resistances. You might want to check with them.
I'm using oil pressure, oil temp, intake temp, and boost. I'll use my stock gauge for water temp and if I want better, I'll just display it on the accessport.

I'm also looking into an RFID keyless start system. My wife's mini has it and it works great. Just jump in, it recognizes the RFID, and push the start button. I saw one by Advancedkeys for S$350, but hopefully I can find something cheaper.
I have plans for an electric ebrake using a 12 v linear actuator that will sit below the shifter in the tunnel.

[Hindsight]

Thanks for the input about the gauges. I haven't yet installed both sensors and wired them up to the gauge and probably won't for a while - I'm going to start out with the AWIC water temp only and when I get extra time and feel the need to check engine coolant temp on the same gauge, I was going to wire it in too, but to do that will require pulling the intake manifold and the upper coolant crossover pipe, welding a 1/8" NPT bung on there, and installing the sensor. That's a lot of work for not a lot of benefit so I'll probably do as you are which is to check engine water temp on my access port.

That keyless sounds cool! I wanted to do a push-button start but couldn't find a good push button. The ones Amazon has are crap. The OEM kinds are all ridiculously expensive (S2000 is a popular one it seems).

Ok, I've spent some time over the weekend and this evening and I have wrapped up the front AWIC heat exchanger. It is painted with a very light coat of Eastwood's Radiator Black. I wanted everything inside the bumper opening to be black - I think it looks better. I fabricated the brackets out of 3/16" aluminum. The bottom and top press against the radiator and to complete the seal, I am planning on adding some silicone sponge foam on the sides. I'll then do as some others have done and add aluminum ducting to force all the air through the AWIC heat exchanger.

The cold-side of the AWIC return hose is wrapped in some foam plumbing adhesive I found at Lowes. It's split down the middle and has an adhesive on the split so when you pull of the backing tape and squeeze it together, it holds together very well. I'll be wrapping that cold hose in the insulation all the way back to the rear heat exchanger and in the hot areas (engine compartment and behind the radiator), I'll wrap the outside of it with fiberglass reflective heat sleeve. Hoping this will keep it as cool as possible.

I built an alignment tool to help measure camber and caster. I'll post pics when I have the string setup going. Tires came in today and having them mounted and balanced on my wheels tomorrow.

http://i.imgur.com/fXzcoGMh.jpg (http://imgur.com/fXzcoGM)

http://i.imgur.com/ZkRRdPch.jpg (http://imgur.com/ZkRRdPc)

[FFRSpec72]

I built an alignment tool to help measure camber and caster. I'll post pics when I have the string setup going. Tires came in today and having them mounted and balanced on my wheels tomorrow.


Will be interested to see what you came up with and where you attached it, we are going to make a portable one for the track, so has to be able to fold and quick to attach.

[Hindsight]

Well I got my wheels and tires on tonight and was very surprised. 265/35/18 on 18x9.5 in the back and 235/40/17 on 17x8 in the front. 38mm offset in the back and 45 offset in the front.

The surprise is that in the front, they clear just fine. I was nervous about the front rubbing on the frame but they are so far from rubbing... about a full inch, that I have nothing to worry about. Maybe the tires (Dunlop Direzza Z2 Star Specs) are smaller diameter than other 235/40/17 but these fit fine and don't even hit the frame rail at full lock in either direction. No spacers... nothing. Dunlop lists them at 24.4" diameter. I did the free caster mod up front but everything else on the front suspension is by the book. I have not aligned it yet but I don't expect it to rub after I do.

The other surprise is that in the back, I can run them with NO spacers at all and all I had to do was change the spacers for the upper trailing link. I removed the inner spacer sleeve and replaced it with a single M10 washer which is about 2mm thick or so.... enough to space the rod-end out from the tab enough that it keeps the rod end from binding on the tab. I will have to cut another sleeve to length for the now-longer outer portion inside the tab (at both ends of the upper trailing link). But still, I'm shocked it was this easy. There is still plenty of room before hitting the lower trailing arm (which is Wayne's VCP adjustable arm). I'm almost disappointed I didn't go with wider tires in the back.... 275 or 285 because it certainly looks like they would fit fine. I don't have the body on yet but I am guessing I will actually need to shim the wheels OUT to get them close to flush with the body which means I could have gotten away with wider tires. Oh well, guess I'll have to be very, very hard on these tires......

http://i.imgur.com/FYhQN1Rh.jpg (http://imgur.com/FYhQN1R)

http://i.imgur.com/SFt19qih.jpg (http://imgur.com/SFt19qi)

http://i.imgur.com/pZd9jBah.jpg (http://imgur.com/pZd9jBa)

http://i.imgur.com/E26HrQnh.jpg (http://imgur.com/E26HrQn)

http://i.imgur.com/ZBqtqOXh.jpg (http://imgur.com/ZBqtqOX)

http://i.imgur.com/LZuanKuh.jpg (http://imgur.com/LZuanKu)

http://i.imgur.com/PmL3NYwh.jpg (http://imgur.com/PmL3NYw)

[Mulry]

Always been a fan of the RPF01. What size & offset are those?

[Hindsight]

38 rear, 45 front.

[Mulry]

17x8 & 18x9?

[jcpresto]

I'm running 285/30 18 out back with 45 offset on 9.5 in wheel. The tire is Bridgestone RE-11. I fit everywhere except the VCP trailing arms. I only have 3mm of clearance and will need to push them out some. So that gives you an idea of how mine fits if you want to go bigger later.

[Hindsight]

Mulry, 17x8 in the front and 18x9.5 in the back.

Thanks JC..... I'm guessing you have room to add a spacer without hitting the fender?

[Bob_n_Cincy]

265/35/18 38mm offset in the back .
But still, I'm shocked it was this easy.
I don't have the body on yet


Hindsight,
congratulations, but don't get so excited about bigger tires until you get the body on, go full suspension travel and then take it out to an autocross.
Your tires and wheel sizes are close to mine. I think I'm close to max without going to Wayne's trailing arms.
Bob

[jcpresto]

I have coupe. I have not fitted the body yet. It was not a concern for me as custom fiberglass work SEMA is our speciality. When I fit the body I'll then determine what spacer needed. I also have adjust toe bars so I have some flex to push out a little more still without a spacer. One the body is fitted we will determine what size spacer is needed. Most likely we will set it up to work with 295 or 285. I am running a 225/35r18 up front 45 offset 18x8.5 and have clearance with the sheet metal mounted. I have full rolling chassis. We start motor install this weekend and AC. Then electrical and body.

[Hindsight]

Ahhh, I didn't even consider having BOTH of the lower parallel links being adjustable. Good idea.

Your progress sounds good.... wiring is fun but took me FOR EVER.

Bob, that's a great point.... didn't consider full compression clearance to the body. Fingers crossed!

[jcpresto]

Bob, how did you check full compression? Simply use a jack independently at each wheel?

[Hindsight]

I've seen people remove the springs from the struts then do that.

[Tamra]

So your fronts are 17x8, et 44, with 235/40/17 and don't hit the frame? That's interesting. Ours are 17x8, et 45, 215/40/17, Also Z2's (can't remember if they're Star Specs or regular Z2's though), and we slightly touch at full lock. We also have the castor mod (plus spacer for additional clearance). I wonder what's different... the math would say that we should have more clearance, but your photos show differently.

[Hindsight]

Well, I haven't done the alignment yet. The rear small tube nut is tightened in as far as it will go, and the camber is close-ish, so I don't expect the actual alignment to change much. But I have no idea what the toe is so that MIGHT impact hitting the frame at full lock if I'm toed in really far now.

My wheels are 45 offset (typo above), but yeah otherwise that's correct. I can't imagine what would be different between our cars unless you used different mounting points anywhere? I'm using the S mounting points. Are you using the aluminum front lower control arms? Are you using the inner or outer rear control arm mounts? Could the extra caster spacer be hurting you from a clearance standpoint? Are you hitting the lower frame at full lock or the vertical firewall frame? I take it you are running rack limiters to combat this? That was going to be my plan, if I ended up rubbing.

I believe I have all the supplies I need to do the full alignment this weekend so I will post my results when I'm finished.

[jcpresto]

Did you install front aluminum yet? I lost clearance once I did that and had to dent them about 1/4 inch.

[Hindsight]

If you're talking about the firewall aluminum, yes it's on there. When installing it, I ensured it sat right up against the tube (as much as possible).

[Hindsight]

I made some spacer sleeves tonight for the upper rear trailing arms (since moving them inward and replacing the inboard spacer with a 2mm washer). Everything fits together nicely now. I bought a foot of the spacer tubing from McMaster: http://www.mcmaster.com/nav/enter.asp?partnum=89955K839

Also re-set the ride height with the new wheels installed and set the camber, and adjusted the rear upper trailing links. I made the tool in the pic below to help set camber and caster out of angle aluminum. I have three screws going through rivnuts on it and each screw has a rubber vacuum cap on the end. The idea is that you lay this thing flat on a known-flat surface like a granite counter top, then you use a digital level and the adjustment screws to ensure it's level both ways. Then you rest it on the lips of the wheels and use the angle gauge to ensure you have the bottom line horizontal. From there you can check the camber and also the caster using the digital gauge on the vertical bracket. It would look a lot better if I used bolts to secure the adjustable top piece to the bottom piece instead of using those clamps but this works fine.

I'm going to do the full string alignment this weekend (hopefully) so I'll try to get more pics and/or video of it all.

http://i.imgur.com/M9QlGbHh.jpg (http://imgur.com/M9QlGbH)

http://i.imgur.com/O1rosLkh.jpg (http://imgur.com/O1rosLk)

http://i.imgur.com/UrbX4Hzh.jpg (http://imgur.com/UrbX4Hz)

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Bob, how did you check full compression? Simply use a jack independently at each wheel?
If you have already adjusted ride height, mark the ring position on the threaded sleeve.
Then loosen the spring all the way or remove the spring if necessary. Put that wheel on a 4" block under the tire until weight of car in on the shock bump stop. Be careful the car does fall off the block while rotating the steering lock to lock.

Bob

[Hindsight]

Oh Bob, question for you: I remember a while back you posted somewhere about a solution to the allen set screws for the shocks... someone was saying they were marring the threaded tubes and making it very difficult to adjust the perches. I feel like I remember you had a solution to it but I can't remember what it was or where to find it.

Thanks in advance!

[Bob_n_Cincy]

So your fronts are 17x8, et 44, with 235/40/17 and don't hit the frame? That's interesting. Ours are 17x8, et 45, 215/40/17, Also Z2's (can't remember if they're Star Specs or regular Z2's though), and we slightly touch at full lock. We also have the castor mod (plus spacer for additional clearance). I wonder what's different... the math would say that we should have more clearance, but your photos show differently.

Tamra,
Spacers make the tire uses a bigger arc. Think about it. If you used 12" spacer the front tire would hit the side of the door.
Bob

[Hindsight]

Oh Bob, question for you: I remember a while back you posted somewhere about a solution to the allen set screws for the shocks... someone was saying they were marring the threaded tubes and making it very difficult to adjust the perches. I feel like I remember you had a solution to it but I can't remember what it was or where to find it.

Thanks in advance!

Nevermind..... I found the post but after taking my set screws out, I see that they already have nylon tips and I never replaced them so they must be coming from FFR that way (at least with the yellow Konis).

[Tamra]

Well, I haven't done the alignment yet. The rear small tube nut is tightened in as far as it will go, and the camber is close-ish, so I don't expect the actual alignment to change much. But I have no idea what the toe is so that MIGHT impact hitting the frame at full lock if I'm toed in really far now.

My wheels are 45 offset (typo above), but yeah otherwise that's correct. I can't imagine what would be different between our cars unless you used different mounting points anywhere? I'm using the S mounting points. Are you using the aluminum front lower control arms? Are you using the inner or outer rear control arm mounts? Could the extra caster spacer be hurting you from a clearance standpoint? Are you hitting the lower frame at full lock or the vertical firewall frame? I take it you are running rack limiters to combat this? That was going to be my plan, if I ended up rubbing.

I believe I have all the supplies I need to do the full alignment this weekend so I will post my results when I'm finished.

We are using some different mounting points. I'll look tonight to know for sure. We have to run the aluminum arms to do the caster mod, and the caster spacer should give us more caster (pushing the wheels forward) so shouldn't that result in more clearance? We hit the vertical firewall frame but nowhere else. No rack limiters yet since we aren't rubbing enough to cause a problem, but we will likely need them with the race tires.



Tamra,
Spacers make the tire uses a bigger arc. Think about it. If you used 12" spacer the front tire would hit the side of the door.
Bob

Not wheel spacers - caster spacers as part of the caster mod (the spacer gives more caster). Sorry, I should have clarified that. Our wheel offset is identical to Hindsight's.

[Hindsight]

String alignment is done. I was able to get the 3 degrees of caster I wanted and could have gotten even more if needed, but I wasn't able to get a full degree of camber up front. I guess I need to do what others have done and cut the long tube nut down? I got about -.75 degrees though, so not too far off.

Moving on to deal with a couple issues now. Car is overheating at idle. Going to replace the thermostat and also swap my heater core block-off caps with the heater core loop.

It still isn't running well with the MAF on it. Using the Cobb Stage 2 tune through the AP. Seeing a lot of AF learning and correction errors on it and when it is fully warmed up I can't keep it running unless I constantly pulse the gas pedal. Fuel pressure is good, injectors are stock, and there are no intake leaks. Pretty sure the MAF must just needs to be calibrated.... the housing is an APS unit with a K&N on the end of it but it is of stock diameter (65mm) so not sure why I'm seeing such high correction values in the fuel trims.

[STiPWRD]

That's interesting, do you have an OEM MAF housing you could swap in? Is the MAF old or non-OEM? Also, what kind of AFR are you getting at idle?

[Hindsight]

I don't have the OEM MAF housing; the donor came with this aftermarket one, which I also had to modify by shortening it to make it fit. I did order an OEM MAF housing from eBay yesterday so will use that to see if I can't isolate the issue. The MAF itself is an OEM unit and I'm assuming it's original with 60k miles. At idle I see around 14.5 -14.7 AFR, but once it's warmed up and in closed loop mode, after raising the rpm above idle it chokes badly. AFRs are all over the place, moving too quickly for me to really see. I'm planning on data logging it so I can get a better view of what's really happening.

My concern with the OEM MAF housing is that I thought they were all the same size (read that somewhere) for 2002-2007 but after looking at the Cobb tuning excel spreadsheet, apparently there are many differences in diameters.... ranging from 55.x to 56.x between the various years and non-STI vs STI.

[Scargo]

I don't have the OEM MAF housing; the donor came with this aftermarket one, which I also had to modify by shortening it to make it fit.
This may be your problem. I have read that you must have something like 4-6 inches of straight, undisturbed tubing before the MAF for it to read accurately. So, it may depend on where you shortened the manifold.
About the alignment: I can't remember your goals with the car but the caster and camber sound a little low. Performance-wise for track/Auto-X I believe you want 6° or more on caster and up to -3.5° camber. I don't know that additional caster will hurt you on the street.

[STiPWRD]

I think it's the MAF housing as well. If the OEM housing doesn't fix it, it may be the MAF sensor itself. You could check the voltage range and see if it's within expected values. One thing I did was buy a brand new MAF since it is a critical sensor and I didn't want to take chances with an old sensor. I'm not sure if your plan is to run speed density though.

How is your long term fuel trim? Is is greater than 5% and is it + or -? Does the engine still run poorly when your AFR is 14.5-14.7?

[Hindsight]

Thanks for the input guys.

The alignment specs I found from Wayne on another thread. For a street/road-race setup, he suggested Front: 3 caster, -1 camber, 3/16 toe-in and for the Rear: 1/4 toe in, -0.75 camber so that's what I followed. This car will never see AutoX - only street, some HPDE days, and a few drag race days. If you think I should do something different for alignment on the 818 given those needs, I'm definitely open to it.

Regarding the MAF, yeah I have like 1-2" of pipe before it hits the filter, so not much at all. I went ahead and just bought a Cobb short-ram as well.



Slava I'm not sure on long term trims because I've flashed and reset the ECU a number of times while trying to figure this out (so there really aren't any long-term trims to speak of). When it's at 14.7:1 or so, it runs great, but as soon as I rev it just a little, the MAF voltage changes to a region where the ECU hasn't had enough time to learn and adjust the fuel trims to make it work properly and it just chokes. I will try with the stock airbox later this week when it arrives, and with the Cobb Short-Ram and report back.

[Loring]

+1 for the MAF housing. You can always unplug it as a diagnostic step. No input is better than bad input, and any turbulence in the pipe will cause erratic readings. If it isn't that, check for air leaks between the MAF and TB.

[Mulry]

In case you need it, Vibrant makes a MAF adapter plate in case you need to fabricate a longer/different intake. Only like $20:

http://vibrantperformance.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=1022_1077&products_id=388

[Hindsight]

Well, no dice on the MAF housing. I bought both a used OEM housing and a Cobb Short Ram which has the stock diameter. Neither fixed the issue. Car still won't idle with the MAF connected.

I also flashed a Cobb off-the-shelf stage 2 map onto it (mostly for the three port EBCS control) and turned off the ECU codes for the things I removed like air pump, rear o2 sensor, evap, PCV, TGV, fuel pressure and fuel temp senders, etc. I notice something odd now - it appears the ECU isn't going into closed loop now, even after the car is warmed up. When I started it up today, it did start and it ran ok, even with the MAF connected. But as soon as it warmed up a bit and the ECU turned the idle down, the second I touched the gas to rev it just a bit, it wouldn't idle beyond that. I start it up, it starts, then immediately dies. Unplug MAF - then it starts and idles fine. The reason I think the car isn't going into open loop is that there is no value showing up in AF Learning #1 or AF Correction #1.

The donor car ran and drove just great with the MAF I'm using now and it only has 60k on it so I'm reluctant to think the MAF itself went bad and I'd really rather not spend the ~$230 for a new one on the chance that it might be the issue.

I'm open to ideas. I'm not seeing any MAF or intake temp related codes. I checked in AccessTuner Race and the MAF calibration numbers for the Stage 2 map I have loaded are exactly the same, cell-for-cell, as the stock map. Fuel pressure is set to about 43 psi static (engine off, fuel pump on).

I think the next step for me is going to be to build a block-off plate I can install onto the 3" hose were the MAF goes, and pressurize it to 15psi with my air compressor and see if I can't find any leaks in the intake system. I have good access to the entire intake system and everything appears tight and solid but I think a pressurization + soapy water spray test is my next step.

[Mulry]

We had similar problems on our Lemons BMW when we had a vacuum leak on the intake side of things.

[wleehendrick]

I think the next step for me is going to be to build a block-off plate I can install onto the 3" hose were the MAF goes, and pressurize it to 15psi with my air compressor and see if I can't find any leaks in the intake system. I have good access to the entire intake system and everything appears tight and solid but I think a pressurization + soapy water spray test is my next step.

It might be easier to use the old propane trick. move a slightly cracked (unlit!) propane torch around the intake tract while it's idling. Any flammable gas sucked in should raise the idle and ID the vicinity of the leak.

[RM1SepEx]

Mine had a similar problem it was a fuel pressure issue, the tubing wasn't holding on well at the output of the pump inside the tank with the stock Subaru clamps

[metalmaker12]

What's fuel pressure

[Hindsight]

Thx guys. Fuel pressure is 43 psi engine off and around 32 to 38 at idle.

[Mulry]

What's fuel pressure

It's the pressure generated by the fuel pump in a confined space, but that's not important right now. #airplane

[metalmaker12]

Fuel pressure totally matters, it will throw of a tune and cause his symptoms.

41-45 Is Normal range at idle bud. What happens when you give it throttle and let right off?

[Hindsight]

As soon as I give it throttle and let off, it dies... or are you asking what does the fuel pressure do?

[Loring]

Do you have a MAF voltage at idle?

[Hindsight]

Yes. Key on, engine off I get 0.66 volts. At idle I get around 2 volts, but it's hard to provide an exact number since the idle doesn't stabilize and the RPMs keep surging. When I first start the car and it's cold and the idle speed is set high by the ECU (1200 to 1500 rpm or so, the MAF voltage is 1.4 to 1.7 volts).

I should have time today and then all weekend to dig into this. Was up until 1am this morning because my brain wouldn't stop grinding away at this. I did a lot of research and I'm really thinking at this point that this has nothing to do with the MAF and instead has something to do with an intake leak. I also have a blow-off valve and I need to check that it is not getting pulled open at idle; it should have the right size spring in it for a typical WRX but with all the changes in the intake/exhaust for the 818, it might need a different spring. I can't fathom where I would have an intake leak since everything seems to be very sealed and secure but I built a pressure tester last night so I'm ready to do an intake pressure test later today.

[Mechie3]

Fuel pressure totally matters, it will throw of a tune and cause his symptoms.

41-45 Is Normal range at idle bud. What happens when you give it throttle and let right off?

Fuel pressure should be ~42psi plus the pressure in the manifold. At idle, if you're pulling a -12 vacuum them fuel pressure would be 30. With the car turned to on, but not running, the pump will prime and then should see 42 psi. Subaru uses a 1:1 RRFPR (rising rate fuel pressure regulator).

[Mitch Wright]

I had a similar problem when I go karted, I had a vacuum cap come off under the throttle body. Replaced the cap and added clamps to all of them problem solved. Something else to check as you are doing your troubleshooting.

[STiPWRD]

1. Are you using stock injectors?

2. I couldn't find pics of your air intake. Do you have any bends in the tubing right before the MAF and is the air filter on?

[Hindsight]

Stock injectors yes. Intake is an APS turbo inlet pipe with the un-used ports capped off with vacuum caps, then I have some 3" aluminum pipe with silicone couplers that take it down to the MAF housing. I previously had an aluminum APS MAF housing that I cut down, but have since swapped it out for a stock airbox+MAF housing I bought on eBay and also a Cobb short-ram intake I bought new from Cobb this week. Neither changed anything.

So I really feel like this MAF stuff is a symptom and not the actual problem.

[STiPWRD]

Did you cap off all the ports on your APS turbo inlet or use any to provide vacuum to your AOS? I'd double check the AOS for any vacuum leaks. Also, double check the intake manifold to make sure all of the ports are either caped or being used. Did you keep the stock PCV?

What's the vacuum reading at idle? Just brain storming here. I'm also staring to think it's an air leak.

[Hindsight]

All inlet ports are capped. There were only two I had to cap: BOV port and the port that I think went to the evap. Yes, I am using a port on the inlet for my AOS and have not checked the AOS for leaks but I will do that today - thanks for the suggestion. I'm pretty sure all intake manifold ports are utilized - the big one goes to my BOV, the tiny one goes to my boost pressure gauge sensor, and the one on the front goes to my FPR, but you never know with these things.... could be one I missed. I think there is one on the throttle body and I have that capped too (I know there are two for coolant - which wouldn't cause this - maybe I missed something here... the leak test will find it). PCV is deleted for the AOS.

I don't know the vac reading at idle but it's on my list of things to check today. I two gauges to use to check it with (electric boost gauge and a manual style gauge). I will check and report back.

Thank you and everyone else who has helped!

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Did you cap the brake booster port?
Bob

[Hindsight]

That port has been re-purposed to connect to the blow-off valve (it's the signal hose now).

[Tamra]

Is your BOV leaking? That was our problem.

Anyway, if you end up thinking it is the MAF, I'm getting ready to list our used one for sale since we went to speed density. Let me know if you end up needing to get one and we can work something out that won't cost you as much.

[Hindsight]

Just got back from the garage and I found the issue.

I love that Tamra makes one guess and she's right on the money. I hooked up my intake pressure tester and set it to 7psi. Heard lots of hissing at the BOV. Turned out to be two small holes in the intake pipe where the collar for the v-band ring is welded to. I actually bought that pipe pre-made, which makes me irked that it had holes, but whatever. It is stainless steel so I just tig welded the holes closed. Put everything back together and zero leaks. Held pressure great and no hissing.

I disconnected the AOS and plugged the intake pipe port for it and left the AOS venting to atmosphere. Started the car, let it warm up and while it did, I put my hands near the BOV and I could feel air rushing in. The piston was open slightly. Shut the car down, unplugged the vacuum reference to it and plugged it on the intake manifold, started it back up and no more leak. Car idled great and am seeing low A/F Learning and A/F correction numbers. Took it for a spin and it drove and idled flawlessly. Reconnected the AOS and still worked great.

The strange thing is that I pulled the BOV apart tonight and it has a yellow spring which is correct according to the chart on Tial's website. I have 20-21 inches of vac at idle. They only make one spring stiffer and it's for 21-23 inches. Guess I will move to that.

I may just sell it and get the QR Bypass Valve Version. I'm not 100% certain I will run speed density anymore (which is why I originally got it - plus intake plumbing simplification) and the bypass valve will work in either mode.

Thank you all who gave advice. Such a helpful community.... as soon as I asked a question I had a dozen responses from helpful fellow builders!

[metalmaker12]

Nice to find such an issue

[Scargo]

Super! I thought about a vacuum leak. Any credit for that?

[Hindsight]

Haha yes Glyn, I'll mark you down - a few more points and you can cash-in :D

I wrapped up the AWIC today. I just needed to add the last hose to the rear exchanger, wrap the hoses with insulation, attach the hoses to the frame with saddle clamps, then fill the system with water and run the pump to cycle it. When doing so, I found a small pinhole leak at the top of the front heat exchanger where I welded a mounting bracket in place so I had to drain the coolant, weld it closed, re-paint, and re-fill and cycle. Leak is fixed and I'm happy to report that my automated AWIC bleeder setup works perfectly. You can see in the video that when the pump is on, all the air in the system comes out the bleed line and into the reservoir. Note that only some of the coolant makes its way through this hose; I still have the 3/4" hose that travels down to a T, connecting to the bottom of the reservoir. I made my AWIC mounts such that the front left of the intercooler is highest, so any air will find it's way there and that's where the bleeder hose attaches.


https://youtu.be/PeQsz4gCRKk


The system took a total of just under 1.5 gallons of water so that's only 12lbs. I thought it was going to take a lot more. Probably 2lbs of hose. The intercooler and brackets probably weigh 6lbs or so, and the front heat exchanger is very light at around 3-4lbs. Pump might weigh a pound. So probably about 25lbs or so. I could be off on my weights of the intercooler and heat exchanger, but it can't be more than 30lbs total. And when comparing that to an A2A, you have to deduct the weight of the A2A intercooler, though they are obviously pretty light. Couple pounds maybe depending on size.

I also fabricated a battery hold down. The tiny J-bolts that are supplied with the kit may not pass tech inspection at a track, and I felt uncomfortable at the thought of a 50lb battery coming loose, flying through the thin aluminum firewall and into the cabin. Most tech inspections I have been to won't allow J-bolts and they want 3/8" hardware. So I took some 3/8" threaded rod from the hardware store, cut two pieces to length, welded a nut to the end of it to turn them into long bolts, and inserted them through the underside of the battery tray. Then I made the top piece out of som 1/2" thick aluminum and some 1/8" thick aluminum angle that I welded together. I coated the inside of the angle bracket with a few coats of plati-dip to make them sticky which worked well. Now the battery is VERY secure and should pass tech.
http://i.imgur.com/ZCA7FUoh.jpg (http://imgur.com/ZCA7FUo)

Passenger side AWIC hose routing:
http://i.imgur.com/9kmLORGh.jpg (http://imgur.com/9kmLORG)

Leak:
http://i.imgur.com/fn8PYYXh.jpg (http://imgur.com/fn8PYYX)

Pin-hole I found last night in the BOV pipe (that was not the actual main leak source - but I did weld it up):
http://i.imgur.com/79QQFgOh.jpg (http://imgur.com/79QQFgO)


Ok back to it. Trying to get the passenger seat and e-brake done this weekend then I get to start on the body.

For those of you running the 1.25" quick-latches, are you really running 6 in the back half of the car? I'm counting the need for 4 on the engine cover and two on the trunk lid. I really, really want to make my engine cover hinged but I think Mike is the only one who made a hinge and it won't work with my setup due to where my AWIC and BOV are sitting. Having the hinge would be nice in general, especially at shows, and would eliminate the need for two of the quick-latches or hood pins.

[RM1SepEx]

Quick latches etc... for the engine cover

I used none. I screwed the cover down to an aluminum bracket in the back and into an aluminum bracket from the side in the front. I did use a set of locking pins for the trunk. I added a small door with a cover to access the oil fill and dipstick w/o removing the cover. Added a light with switch too

[Hindsight]

Thanks Dan, do you have pics of that in your build thread? If so I will check it out.

[RM1SepEx]

yes, I added Craig's rear body brace, modified the bracket so it doubles as a hold down spot for the engine cover, I just added photos of the finished front mount today. I basically added a 2 x 2 aluminum angle attached on that flat section that is used for the front engine cover hood pin. I doubled up the thickness with 1/4 AL plate and threaded it for a 10-32 screw and came in from the side. Aloha818 did something similar from the front.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Dan - I like that. I may consider doing the same thing or something very similar. Maybe use a ball-lock pin instead of a screw or something.

I welded in the seat mounts for the passenger seat today and got it all bolted in. On to the e-brake now.

[Hindsight]

E-brake is mostly done. I need to shim the e-brake cable support bracket just a bit to get the angles perfect, and need to add two more rivnuts to the vertical support pieces, but it all fits fairly well and I'm happy with the position of the handle. I still need to mount the cables to the frame in the engine bay and adjust the brake shoes to get everything perfect. After this it's on to the 6-point harness mounts. I'll be welding some tabs to the frame for that.

Chopped off the mounting foot that came off at an odd angle and welded this on to provide support:
http://i.imgur.com/roeYmiGh.jpg (http://imgur.com/roeYmiG)

Aluminum angle bracket in the front, bolted to the frame:
http://i.imgur.com/sINX6tth.jpg (http://imgur.com/sINX6tt)

I also welded a small steel extension to the right side of the rear of the e-brake to gain an additional rear mounting point as seen here:
http://i.imgur.com/f6y2Xf0h.jpg (http://imgur.com/f6y2Xf0)

[Tamra]

Glad my suggestion helped!

[Hindsight]

As I get closer and closer to having the car on the road, I've been thinking a lot about registration and decided to change course. I'm going to go the typical, yet more expensive path which requires full inspection, title, and lots of sales tax. This means I need working wipers. I plan to do what Tamra and some others have by making the wipers temporary, but I'd like to find a way to to do it without having to touch the windshield cowl or move my remote brake reservoir. The closest I could find in a search was Erik's here: http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/showthread.php?10507-And-it-begins-quot-The-Flash-quot-Build-Thread&p=114746&viewfull=1#post114746

His cowl is cut up in that pic but by the looks of it, it almost appears it doesn't need to be. The wiper arm might even clear the remote reservoir but hard to tell now. I sold my donor's wiper assembly on eBay so I ordered a replacement off eBay for the same price I sold mine for.

This also means fabricating a "test-pipe" exhaust with a cat and rear-o2 sensor. For that I'll probably re-use the FFR provided turbo output flange/pipe, cut the pipe, then fab up something that just goes out the lower rear of the bumper through the lower vent hole.

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Hindsight,
Maybe I could fab up an extra one like mine to send around.
Only requires a small hole in the windshield cowl. No hood trimming necessary. It's like $150 in parts.
Bob


https://youtu.be/U-HMdbagCuE

[Hindsight]

That's a clean setup Bob and I appreciate the offer. Let me take a look at the motor and linkage I ordered from eBay and figure out which way to go.

Loved your split screen vid, btw. Your son is a very smooth and controlled driver!

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Loved your split screen vid, btw. Your son is a very smooth and controlled driver!

Obviously you haven't seen this video :o



https://youtu.be/UMEPSYvlMAI

[Loring]

Thank you all who gave advice. Such a helpful community.... as soon as I asked a question I had a dozen responses from helpful fellow builders!

It's seeing stuff like this that make me happy to be a part of it. Knowing that this community is here will surely be some good motivation when the build gets frustrating.

As far as the BOV goes, you can shim the spring, but it is possible you have the signal lines crossed? If they're set up properly, you really don't need much spring at all. All you're overcoming with the spring is the pressure differential between the intake pipe and manifold under boost.

[Hindsight]

Hi Loring, thanks for the comments. The spring also overcomes the difference in pressure at idle, which is quite high..... at idle I have like 20-21 inches of vacuum inside the manifold but hardly any between the turbo and throttle body where the BOV sits. So the vacuum line that goes between to the top of the BOV and the intake manifold has enough vacuum that it is overcoming the spring and pulling the piston open at idle, causing a massive post-MAF air leak.

I decided to just get a bypass valve instead so I have one from TiAL on order (QR with 1" outlet port). I will sell my TiAL Q BOV on eBay - it's basically new, unless someone here wants to buy it from me. I can't use the stock-location 1" barb on the APS turbo inlet because it's just in a real bad spot for me and my setup (AOS hoses, etc), so I'm going to weld on a short 1" pipe to the front of the turbo inlet and connect the new BPV to that with a 1" diameter silicone heater hose. That setup may be a little more quiet as well. I'm hoping to tackle this over the weekend but I have a lot of stuff on the punch-list.

[Loring]

Yep, apparently I've forgotten how these work, and your TiAL only has one signal line anyway, haha. :o

[Hindsight]

I don't think there are any other locals or semi-locals other than Bob, but for any lurkers around: I'm going to trailer the 818 to Caffeine and Octane this Sunday March 6th. I'll be with the Subaru folks (wherever that ends up being). Will be there bright and early so come say hi.

http://i.imgur.com/b5XKSQyl.jpg (http://imgur.com/b5XKSQy)

[shoeish]

Looking good!! Now to cover it with a fine layer of fiberglass dust. :)

[Hindsight]

There is a lot of dust on it already, just not fiberglass :D

[Frank818]

Nice progress, nice welds, nice ideas here and there too!

[Hindsight]

Thanks Frank.

I got some more welding done today - I welded almost all of the harness tabs to the frame for the driver's 6 point harness. I just need to add a little brace to one of the mounts (very hard and in some spots impossible to weld when so close to the side of the frame), and do the anti-sub mounts. I welded tabs to the top of the square frame for the shoulders and I think it will work out very well. Simple, easy.

Car is loaded on the trailer ready for Caffeine and Octane tomorrow morning. I took it for a short test drive around the neighborhood today and gave the wife her first ride in it.

Oh yeah, and replacing the U-shaped heater core bypass hose and replacing the thermostat has fixed the overheating issue. I would bet the thermostat is fine and the issue was the heater core bypass hose. I think my theory about the turbo coolant hose supplying the thermostat with enough hot water to make it open was flawed. Maybe the coolant coming out of the turbo at idle is actually cooler than the coolant coming out of the cylinder head? Who knows - but the issue is fixed.

http://i.imgur.com/6LwfvNBh.jpg (http://imgur.com/6LwfvNB)

[Tamra]

Car looks great! Take photos today, please.

Also, glad you got the cooling problem solved. I remember researching it extensively at one point and determined that the u shape hose was required.

[Hindsight]

Hi Tamra, I didn't take as many photos as I should have. There was never a time when I didn't have at least a couple people at the car asking questions. It was a great outing. A lot of people asked "what did this start out as?" thinking that I had started with a car and deconstructed it to this. My wife showed up with our dog, which, I think may have brought even bigger crowds than the car.

Here are the few photos I have. There may be more later as people from the event start uploading theirs. I'll post them if I see some.

http://i.imgur.com/YpZ3G4jh.jpg (http://imgur.com/YpZ3G4j)

http://i.imgur.com/NH5iOrJh.jpg (http://imgur.com/NH5iOrJ)

http://i.imgur.com/TwZqCiqh.jpg (http://imgur.com/TwZqCiq)

http://i.imgur.com/4RDMOxOh.jpg (http://imgur.com/4RDMOxO)

http://i.imgur.com/A2lIIQzh.jpg (http://imgur.com/A2lIIQz)

[Tamra]

Looks great! Cool dog :)

[Frank818]

Man that car is clean.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Frank :)

So I have come to find out that on the later model donors (like 2007 and possibly 2006), there is a barometric pressure sensor in one of the secondary EGR valves. The ECU uses this to establish current atmospheric pressure as a calculation input. If it's not there, the car may not run properly. Might be a source of one or more of the issues I've been chasing lately because my donor had an air-pump delete. I did some reading and found out that the "right" way to do the delete is to remove the pressure sensor from the EGR valve housing, mount it somewhere, and keep the connector plugged into it. However, I dieted everything to do with the air pump system from my harness. Not a big deal - I have the wiring diagram and could very easily add the wires back in, however, the air pressure sensor is combined with the electronic EGR valve in one unit and there are five wires going to it.

What I can't seem to find is: which of the five wires are needed for the air pressure sensor to work? I could re-wire the whole setup but it uses a relay and I would prefer not dealing with all that if I don't have to. If I had to take a wild guess, I would guess pins 1-3 are for the pressure sensor and pins 4 and 6 activate the valve. I'll keep searching but if anyone happens to know it off-hand, I'd appreciate it. If not, when I get the valve/sensor in (ordered a used one off eBay), I'll just take a shot and see what happens.

[Mechie3]

Its 07 up. I sent a.link to someone regarding this. I'll find it tomorrow. It makes the ecu trip up as it has no base line atmospheric pressure.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Craig. I am guessing pin 1 is power, 3 is ground, and 2 is signal since pins 1 and 3 are also connected to a bunch of other sensors, and pin 2 goes to the ECU directly so it's probably the signal. All the links I've read about deleting the air pump stuff don't get into the wires because most people just leave the connector plugged in and never monkey with the wiring itself.

Edit: I did see a post on Nasioc from you about it from quite a long while back. Your screen name pops up every so often when I'm searching stuff over there.

[Mechie3]

Yeah, I guess they don't call out the actual wire. Here it the post I was thinking of.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showpost.php?p=29588444&postcount=275

I've got a few writeups to my name on there. Use to be much more active back when I owned and autocrossed a subaru.

[Scargo]

...http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showpost.php?p=29588444&postcount=275

I've got a few writeups to my name on there. Use to be much more active back when I owned and autocrossed a subaru.
I remember that! Not it that thread it seems, but somewhere in those forums I went through what I did and now my harness is stripped of all that in the STi. You inspired me!:D

[Hindsight]

Whew, long productive weekend.

The barometric pressure sensor is in the car and working. Shows up good in the logs now. It didn't fix the issue I'm having with the engine occasionally dying when I push the clutch in (it's like the drive by wire throttle plate just isn't doing enough to keep the RPMs up at idle), however, I will say that I have been resetting the ECU a lot as I have been working on various things and the issue seems to get better after the ECU has had a chance to learn and adjust, but we'll see what happens as I put some more miles on it.

I got the bypass valve all installed. Due to the rear firewall I added, it's impossible to remove the turbo inlet tube without removing the intake manifold (which is always a lot of fun), so I pulled the intake, removed the turbo intake pipe and welded on a 1" SS tube at an angle. Repainted it black and re-installed, then connected a 1" silicone heater hose between the new 1" barb I added and the bypass valve.
http://i.imgur.com/7ipEWOfh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/PmFfGxrh.jpg


I had two leaks pop up in my AWIC front heat exchanger. If you bought one from Frozen Boost take note:
1. The overflow barb has like 1/8" worth of threads, maybe 3/16" at most and it doesn't seal well. I had put it in with hondabond some time ago and it still leaked. So today I unscrewed the barb and welded the hole for it shut on the filler neck.
2. The rubber o-ring they use on the drain plug fitting is not compatible with ethylene glycol so it disintegrated on me. I have ordered some buna-n o-rings from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FMYRBG?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00
http://i.imgur.com/7LDYLY2h.jpg

Added wiring for the windshield wiper and connected it to the switch. Still need to modify the windshield wiper transmission to convert it to single wiper but will do that once the body is on.

Oh yeah, I can't remember who but someone posted these cool line clamps from McMaster (http://www.mcmaster.com/#2216t12/=x1r97n) with the suggestion of using them for brake lines. They allow you to clip as many brake lines in side by side as you want. While they were a great idea and looked awesome, they just didn't hold up for me. They all cracked and broke with time and especially if any coolant got on them. Very brittle and heat sensitive stuff. I just replaced them with the padded line clamps instead - not as pretty but more reliable and stable.

Lastly, I tested out my race logic traction control setup by logging the wheel speed sensor signals. Something isn't right because the signal from the rear two wheels is rock solid while the fronts are totally haywire once I get over about 8mph. I've tried testing it with the shield wire grounded and un-grounded and it is the same either way. Really scratching my head on this one because the rear ABS wires are like 8x longer than the front two; the rears go from the rear, all the way to the front, then all the way back to the rear where the traction control computer is. The fronts only have to go from the front to the back. I have a few things I need to try, but after I get this sorted, I am ready to start mounting the body! Very excited about that. It's been a long time coming.

[Scargo]

Good luck! Sounds like growing pains...
I've read about issues with Frozen Boost on here before. Thanks for the heads-up about the clips. I saved that MM-C part for future use. Now, I'll discard.

[Frank818]

I knew about the HE! I was sure there was something fishy on that o-ring, when I tighten it up it torn apart. I told Craig to be careful about this one. Bought a set of o-rings a long time ago and one fit but guess what, I bought my set in China! So even though they are supposed to be coolant-proof, I'll soak it in coolant to test. I will use Permatex sealant on the overflow barb as I don't weld alu.

How long did it take for your o-ring to fail in your face?

[Hindsight]

Hi Frank, the o-ring failed under coolant exposure in about two or three weeks.

[Hindsight]

I've spent the week fussing with my race logic traction control system. The issue I'm having is that both front wheel speed sensors show a really crazy signal into the race logic traction control unit (RLTCU). They are ok from about 10mph to maybe 15 and above that they just go nuts. Rear sensors work just fine. I even made a little spacer sleeve that allowed me to mount a rear sensor in the front and this worked fine for traction control but probably won't work for ABS. I even bought a brand new OEM front wheel speed sensor and it didn't resolve the issue.

I tested about 100 different things and will save the blow-by-blow, but in the end, I have narrowed it down to the fact that the 2007 Subaru WRX front wheel speed sensors simply won't work with the RLTCU, and oddly, the front sensors are quite different from the rear sensors. They are a different size and shape, but also, they produce different signals. The rear produce about 1 volt at 20mph while the front product about 2.5. Also interesting is that the rear sensors are the same part number for WRX from 2002 to 2007, while the FRONT sensors are the same from 2002 to 2006 only - there is a different part number for 2007 (and some 2008). So this leads me to believe that Subaru changed something in 2007 with the sensors and whatever that change is (perhaps they turned them into active instead of passive sensors - active won't work with the RLTCU), it won't work.

Since I want working ABS, I'm going to try a couple routes:
1. Test a used older version of the wheel speed sensors (got one coming from eBay off a 2003 I think). If that works with the Race Logic unit, I'll see if it works with my ABS module. I doubt it will, but I do see some part numbers for the modules showing up as working for both 2006 and 2007. At any rate, if it works with my ABS module, great, done, but if not, I will then buy a used 2006 ABS module and swap it out for mine. I've checked the wiring diagrams and everything is basically the same so it should work.
2. If #1 fails, I'm going to have to see if I can swap the RLTCU out for one that works with aftermarket wheel speed sensors, then add additional tone rings and sensors to the outer CV joints front and rear and fabricate mounts for the aftermarket sensors. That will be a lot of work and RaceLogic may not have any stock to send me.

Since I'm stuck on that for now, on to the body.......

[idf]

If it turns out that what you need is an '06 ABS module (or any other related part) I have one for you.

[Hindsight]

Nice thank you! I should know by late next week or next weekend. Will let you know.

[Loring]

IIRC, the inductive 3 wire sensors send a digital square wave, vs an AC signal for the 2 wire magnetic pickup type. If that's the case, I don't think you'd get a signal, even at 10-15 MPH.

Can you measure the resistance of the sensors?

[Hindsight]

Yeah resistance checks out. Like 1100 ohms I believe. All the wiring has been ruled out, same for the connectors. The most telling test was that a brand new OEM front sensor using the same wiring harness won't work with the RLTCU, but my existing REAR sensors work just fine both in the rear, and when made to fit in the front via spacer bracket (again, using the same wiring harness, connectors, everything). Since the rear sensor works in the front, it can't be and issue with the tone ring, air gap, or wiring. And it can't be an issue with the front sensor since I tried a brand new one.

I might try getting two used rear sensors so I can run with four rear sensors on the car and see if the ABS computer has a problem with it. I doubt it will work if I'm getting vastly different signals between the front and rear sensors now, but it's worth a shot, especially if I can get a pair of rear sensors cheaply.

[Loring]

Yeah, that's weird. 1100 would indicate it's a pickup sensor, and if they generate two different signals (front vs. rear), it would suggest that Subaru set it up like that with the required software. The RLTCU isn't setup to run like that. I agree, run rear sensors in the front and call it a day.

And that also makes sense that the RLTCU would clip out after a certain MPH, when the voltage profile exceeds what it's designed to read.

[Hindsight]

Not much progress. The used front ABS sensor I received was busted (open circuit) so I ordered another and will have to test it next week when it arrives.

The wife got me a nice big 60 gallon air compressor for my 40th birthday (I guess it's more of a consolation prize) so I spent a couple days installing that (running 50 amp wire, adding a regulator and plumbing, and anchoring it to the cement floor).

I brought all the body panels out of storage today and gave them a good cleaning. I'm read to start mounting the body tomorrow. Very excited about that.

Yesterday I was bad and took the car out for a spin on the main road outside of my neighborhood. Tried to do it at a time when there would be no traffic and the street isn't a very busy one. I was finally able to wind it out a little in second gear and part of third. With the Cobb S2 tune in it, the thing is scary fast. I'm sure I'll get used to it and crave more power soon but for right now, especially with how low it is and how big the other cars look, it's definitely scary. I data logged the whole thing and think I may change my mind about tuning the car myself. I saw some significant knocking on two occasions, and my wideband is showing leaner than the command fuel final is calling for, often times under boost which isn't right. The injectors are stock (and were pro tested), the entire fuel system is new and upgraded, and the fuel pressure is right so I can't imagine what would cause this. It also seems like it doesn't flip over into open loop when it should; there are times at WOT in 10-15 pounds of boost where it is still running in closed loop though I don't know for sure if that's an issue but it doesn't seem right. Oddly, the values for AF Correction #1 are generally very reasonable (under 10 and usually under 5) and AF Learning #1 is 0, so I don't think the MAF needs to be recalibrated. The only thing I can think of is maybe it needs a new MAF but I get sick of throwing money at parts that don't fix any issues. That's a long winded way of saying I think I may actually save myself some time and money by paying for a pro-tune.

[Hindsight]

Started fitting the body today. Already stuck.....

I have the side sails clamped in place in the door area. They are 5/8" back from the firewall, about. I put the engine cover on and shifted it around a little bit until the front of it is flush with the door jambs of the side sails. I have experimented with supporting the rear center of the engine cover to get rid of some of it's midline sag.

At any rate, the issue is that I have 3/8" gaps between the side sails and the engine cover on each side! It should be half that or less no? I can get the gaps to about 3/16 at the very front of the engine cover, but then it widens as it goes back until reaching 3/8" at the rear. The trunk cover has the same problem. My issue is that I can't figure out how to correct it. I thought I could just pull up on the top of the wheel well arch and push in at the top of the skirt to slide it inward and then maybe clamp it that way to the shock tower mounting surface, but that won't work because it's too close to the rear bumper. The rear bumper sets the width of the side sails in the back. There really isn't much you can do to adjust the wide of the side sails..... at least, not that I can figure out.

Am I missing something? I see others have closer gaps.

Thanks in advance!

http://i.imgur.com/l4skgfxh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/7LarOAgh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/UDMpxcDh.jpg

[nkw8181]

There isn't much you can do other then just play with it and get it the best you can. That's what I resigned myself to

[AZPete]

You can change the width of the rear bumper a little by pulling the center forward to make a nice gap with the rear engine cover. I attached a wire from the center of the bumper to the 1 x 1 frame with a turn buckle. After a few months the bumper remembered its shape and the wire wasn't needed so it's now gone. Also, consider the 5/8" placement of the side sails as a suggestion, not gospel, because you may have to adjust if your humps hit the roll bar.

[Hindsight]

Thanks guys.

Pete, if you pull the center of the bumper forward, would that not reduce the curvature of the rear bumper and actually lengthen the width of it? But you gave me an idea.... I could reduce width by increasing the bow of the rear bumper by attaching a wire across a bolt on each side and using a turnbuckle as you did, to tighten. That would bring the sides of the bumper inward. I would have never thought of that thank you!

Also, how does the front-back orientation of the side sails affect the width of them? I didn't think it would change that. I seem to be good at 5/8".... the engine cover comes forward enough to line up at the doors.

[Mechie3]

The rear fender brace I made helps somewhat with this. It pulls the middle of the side sails in to help with the outward bowing. You have access to machine tools right? It's just two tabs on the end with a 1/4-28 rod end attached to that to support a shaft in the middle with LH and RH threads.

[Hindsight]

Ok much better. I pulled harder than I thought I should on the fender to squeeze them further in on their perch and it worked. I won't need to mess with the rear bumper now I don't think.

I do have that ugly gap in the trunk cover, and Pete I think that's the gap you were referring to in your post above right? IE not the side-side gap but the gap between the bumper and the back of the engine cover? I feel like I have seen this was an issue for a lot of people in reading other threads. I think I read Aloha built his trunk cover up to deal with it. I could shift my side sails and engine cover forward but if I did that, I'd have to move it a full 1/2" in order to close the gap between the bumper and trunk and I would worry that I'd then be too far out of alignment for the doors or front fenders or something.

http://i.imgur.com/7DGlsPbh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/eQXu86hh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/lxx1Ievh.jpg

[Scargo]

No silver bullets! Make some shims for gap spacing then use duct tape to bring panels together. I had to trim down some vertical edges to bring things flush and get panels closer.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Craig, I missed your post earlier. I think I was able to get the fenders inward enough by forcing them and bolting them to their perch. Basically same thing as your brace I guess... hopefully they will "learn" their new fitment on the car.

Glyn, thanks. And thanks for your recommendation of the recip air saw. I bought one and it has already been indispensable!

I may wait to do much more to the engine cover until after the doors are on. I really want the doors to line up with the front of the engine cover and even with the door skin just sitting in place, it's very tough to tell. A 1/8" change will make a big difference. I also noticed that the door skins are quite different left to right. I'm going to end up with a big gap on the right side of the car not matter how I adjust the engine cover unfortunately. You can see it in the pic below. Sanding down the returns on the engine cover is going to be tricky as well. The body has a curvature where the side sails come up and meet the engine cover.... it continues that curve.

http://i.imgur.com/hzcoEy3h.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/YpRZyXrh.jpg

[Frank818]

Nice to see you can make things somewhat ok by just playing around with figerglass flexibility and not machine too much.

Keep updating with details man, I'll get there soon enough, I wanna to keep issues fresh in my mind. :)

[Hindsight]

Quick question: My clutch pedal doesn't always return to the full upright position automatically. It has the return spring and the return spring is working and functional, but for some reason, sometimes it gets stuck on the last half inch or so have travel ("last" really meaning "first" half-inch of travel when you are starting to press it down). So after pressing the clutch pedal in then releasing, it stops about 1/2" behind the brake pedal instead of even with it. Clutch master cylinder is new. Clutch slave is old. When the pedal is all the way up and I push on it with my hand, there is a tiny bit of play (1/16" or less) before the clutch master cylinder rod starts moving forward which, I believe, is correct... basically means the clutch master is JUST barely set to not be permanently pressing when the pedal is all the way up.

Thanks!

[AZPete]

Are you sure you have bled the clutch system completely? My clutch pedal would not stay up until I had all the air out.

[Hindsight]

It WAS bled completely yes, but my master cylinder ended up being bad (found that out when I tried to bleed the system and couldn't), and I'm going to assume that since my master was bad, there are good odds that the slave is also bad. So it could be that I bled it, and now after some time, air has leaked in through the slave. I only noticed the clutch pedal thing recently... it hasn't done that in the past few months (I bled it several months ago).

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Hindsight,
The pressure plate (clutch cover) is what pushes the pedal back about 70-80% of the way. There is a spring mechanism that brings the pedal the rest of the way to the top. Disconnect the clutch master cylinder clevis pin and make sure the spring mechanism is working.
Bob

http://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=52190&d=1459386604

[Hindsight]

Thanks Bob, the spring is there and working. For some reason, it just doesn't always get me that final half inch or so. Maybe it just needs to be greased or something.

[Scargo]

Do you have the spring (shown) in place on the clutch lever? Did you lube the shaft for the clutch lever when you put it in? The only other thing I can think of is the pressure plate itself. It having some friction at the end of its travel.
52191

[Loring]

You should be able to clamp the slave in the rest position and check for sponginess on the pedal. This doesn't take a lot of force, btw. Don't blow your slave or master seals out.

Should feel like there's a brick under the pedal.

[Hindsight]

Thanks guys. Glyn, I don't have the spring in there but I think it's because I have the later model style clutch where the slave is on the engine pushing toward the back of the car. Per the Subaru parts diagram for the 2007, there is no spring there. I did lube the transmission input shaft yes.

Thanks Loring, that's a good idea... that should also determine whether or not the slave cylinder is dragging.

[Frank818]

Hey man, after what, 3 weeks now? I have checked my 3 o-rings that I soaked into coolant and they are in perfect condition. I'll cross fingers heat won't disintegrate them...

52248

[Scargo]

Uh-oh! One looks like it is turning brown!Is it Viton?
On a serious note, some materials that are being used just don't live up to the specs of Buna-N. It should be good to 250°F. A Buna-N (NBR) Nitrile is good to 275. A good reference. (http://www.marcorubber.com/index.htm)
Don't feel alone. I have square ring seals and Buna-n looking o-rings that are not holding up on my oil filter adapter. I fixed one issue by ordering Viton seals from McMaster Carr.

[Hindsight]

Nice Frank, I hope they work for you.... and look at that pink VW coolant! I miss that stuff. Works great and seals small leaks wonderfully.

[Frank818]

Brown? It's probably the silver paint that was on the o-ring mixing with the coolant. But I'll take a closer look tomorrow after getting them out.

Yeah pink stuff! I think it's used in Porsches too, that's what my mech uses, or at least a few years ago it was.

I think I'll buy a set of viton (aka Fluoroelastometer) rings good for 400F, just to make sure. My local store has some.

[Hindsight]

Spent a little time on the body today. Seems there isn't much adjustment intended for the fender to side sail, and bumper to fender connection points, which is good because it makes it easier. Wheels are centered with side sail 5/8" back as shown in manual.

Looks like the fender has a mount near the windshield but that isn't referenced in the manual.

Did any of you add some washers between the top of the side sails and the rear perch? I need about 2 or three in there it or it looks like the body is pulled down a bit.

[Mechie3]

That little front fender mount wasn't on the first 30 or so frames. FFR actually has three different variations of the frame at that location.

[wallace18]

Spent a little time on the body today. Seems there isn't much adjustment intended for the fender to side sail, and bumper to fender connection points, which is good because it makes it easier. Wheels are centered with side sail 5/8" back as shown in manual.

Looks like the fender has a mount near the windshield but that isn't referenced in the manual.

Did any of you add some washers between the top of the side sails and the rear perch? I need about 2 or three in there it or it looks like the body is pulled down a bit.

Yes you need to add washers to get it right most of the time.

[Hindsight]

Thanks guys. Interestingly, It seems I need more washers on the right side vs the left to keep the panel from pulling down on the bolt. I may just shim the left side up higher than it needs to be in order to match the right.

The joint between the front fender and front bumper is really bad. It doesn't line up well - I can either get the fender arch lines somewhat lined up, or the curvature of the fender-well lined up but not both. The gap is also pretty bad. Maybe I'm just being too picky.

[wallace18]

Thanks guys. Interestingly, It seems I need more washers on the right side vs the left to keep the panel from pulling down on the bolt. I may just shim the left side up higher than it needs to be in order to match the right.

The joint between the front fender and front bumper is really bad. It doesn't line up well - I can either get the fender arch lines somewhat lined up, or the curvature of the fender-well lined up but not both. The gap is also pretty bad. Maybe I'm just being too picky.
It takes a lot of work to make the 818 panels line up good. Now you know why a Huegenics charges what they do. You can get it close yourself though with patience. Do not forget a wrap will still show any imperfections in the body like paint will.

[Frank818]

And wrap won't fix gaps, of course.

[Hindsight]

Yeah, I plan on addressing the body issues myself the old fashioned way. I've done body work in the past so I'm comfortable with it - even if it isn't my favorite thing to do.... sure does make a MESS! After the body work is done I'll do the wrap. Then a year or two later if I decide I want to, I'll give it a full paint job.

[Hindsight]

Haven't had any time to work on the car much lately, but a couple weekends ago I was able to put my wheel speed sensors on an oscilloscope to try and figure out what is going on with my non-working traction control. The wheel speed sensors appear to be fine so a replacement traction control ECU was shipped to me and I should have it today. Hoping to test tomorrow or Thursday, and REALLY hoping this fixes the issue once and for all.

My local tuner is running a half price dyno tuning special this month for all Subarus so I'm going to take advantage of that and trailer the car there this Saturday for a tune. I would expect around 225-240 WHP... nothing much on the stock turbo but I am hoping it will also indicate if there are any issues with my setup. When just logging in the AccessPort, I am seeing some knock and also seeing it run leaner than the ECU is targeting so I'll be interested to see what they tuner thinks that is about.

After the tune, it's back to fitting the body.

[Frank818]

RaceLogic sent you a free replacement ECU?

[Hindsight]

Not free, they are exchanging my old one for a new one. They did send the new one in advance though which was great. They have a handful they will keep on stock for warranty purposes.

[flynntuna]

It takes a lot of work to make the 818 panels line up good. Now you know why a Huegenics charges what they do. You can get it close yourself though with patience. Do not forget a wrap will still show any imperfections in the body like paint will.

Huh, :p. Maybe I should rethink my wrap plans..:rolleyes:

.

[Frank818]

Duct tape isn't bad, you could even try to hold the panels on the frame with duct tape while you're rethinking your wrap plans. lol

[Hindsight]

Camo duct tape FTW.

So good news for me: The replacement Race Logic ECU appears to be working great. I have only tested a single wheel speed sensor and will need to do a full test of all of them connected together with the full wiring, but so far I was able to get the front sensor reporting cleanly in the logs which I've never been able to do before on the old ECU. VERY happy about this because I have been struggling with it for months scratching my head and buying new wheel speed sensors etc.

[Frank818]

Great news!!! And now that you have proof the old ECU failed, you can ask them to refund you the replacement costs! :)

[Hindsight]

They were actually nice enough to send me the replacement ECU in advance at no cost to me. I'll need to cover shipping of the old unit back to them but at this point, I'm just glad to have this behind me.

[Frank818]

I agree, when you spent so much efforts and time trying to find the cause to a problem and then at the end you did, you don't care much about the cost cuz that's the price to pay to leave it behind!

[UnhipPopano]

Taking a WAG, the hardware is using digital inputs for the wheel speed sensors. Digital inputs are normally found in groups of 8. Do you know what the other digital inputs are used for? Testing those may have tipped you off that their was a problem with the digital inputs.

[Hindsight]

The traction control system uses analog AC voltage signals generated from passive wheel speed sensors. I believe the newer active wheel speed sensors do send a digital signal but the Subaru uses passive sensors and the race logic unit only supports passive sensors.

I put the sensors on an oscilloscope and their signal looked good, clean and consistent. By providing a video of the oscilloscope test to race logic, I was able to demonstrate the wheel speed sensors were good and based on this, they sent me a replacement ECU which so far is working well.

[UnhipPopano]

The output of the wheel speed sensors is indeed an AC voltage signal, but the digital I/O is tracking when it is high and when it is low. Then code running on the processor is keeping track of both the counts from each wheel and the elapsed time of the count. By knowing the counts over a period of time, the system calculates wheel speed.

If you would like a full dissertation on both digital and analog I/O I can oblige, but it can also be found on many web sits.

[Hindsight]

I really appreciate the offer but I think the issue has been solved by exchanging the computer.

You sound like you have a lot of knowledge in this area.... if you haven't already, you might consider checking out Sponaugle's traction control thread. He's looking to make an open-source traction control system that will be a community-effort. It sounds pretty cool and comes at a good time since Race Logic is no longer offering their kit (though they will support them indefinitely).

[UnhipPopano]

The idea is good in that what they are looking to do goes beyond what you would find in the systems that you would find in most cars, but if I understand the racing rules, you can not use these systems for some of the classes. The common strategy in most systems is to apply breaking at the wheel that is slipping and reduce the fuel to the engine. I like the idea of using the 2009 Subaru system for traction control. There are a couple of unanswered questions though, such as how to fit the 2009 Integrated Display unit.

With CAN bus, third party suppliers are developing these systems and selling them to different manufacturers. If you look at ABS Pumps and controllers, they look alike. Another advantage of CAN is in recording what is happening with the car. You can see if you are getting knock and find the best gas that minimizes it. You can add a tire and brake temperature system and set your dash to display the temperature. To me it is more interesting to develop very small monitors that talk over CAN.

In the racing games you can see when your tires are getting hot or cold. Seeing this make its way into a real car would be real cool.

[Hindsight]

Got the car dyno tuned today and am very happy with the results. Top Speed Motorsports has a new tuner named Taylor Leier and the guy is outstanding. Really knows his stuff, no attitude, and very friendly. On the stock turbo, I ended up with 268 hp and 321 ft/lbs at the wheels. I took it for a spin around the block and I think I felt my brain slam into the back of my head in second gear. Going to take a while to get used to. Now I need to get back to working on the body.

Video:

https://youtu.be/VH9JRrRWtSc

http://i.imgur.com/rWcckBih.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/1u8St16h.jpg

[Rasmus]

Must feel so nice to get it running, sorted, and tuned.

[Aero STI]

Those are great results, Jeff. 270 WHP is excellent for the stock turbo. Did you get to test the traction control with this much power?

Remember how you were asking about upgrading turbos? Try to imagine twice the power you have now. Not at all necessary, but very amusing.

[metros]

Congrats!

[Bob_n_Cincy]

Great Job Hindsight.
Be careful.
I am sticking to <200 Hp for the first year. Then I should be able to do the same as you next year with no hardware changes.
Bob

[Hindsight]

Thanks everyone!


Did you get to test the traction control with this much power?
No not yet. I've only had time to test the new computer by laying it in the car and connecting it to a single wheel speed sensor. I now need to mount it and re-wire all the ABS sensors so they are once again hooked to the ABS computer and the RLTCU. I'm hoping to get that done today and get back to working on the body. I will say that on the fresh asphalt in the business park in second gear, I didn't need any traction control; it hooked up perfectly. Part of that is probably 265 Dunlop Z2 Star Spec tires. I didn't test first though.... I'm sure it would spin.


Remember how you were asking about upgrading turbos? Try to imagine twice the power you have now. Not at all necessary, but very amusing.
I can't decide if terrifying or amusing. Everything happens so quickly with the amount of power I have now, I can't imagine double. Between trying to watch the tach and the environment scrolling by in a blur, it's a lot to pay attention to. I'm going to have to be very careful on the street.

Oh, one thing I will add is that the AWIC seemed to be working very well. The stock turbo is being pushed hard at 18PSI and it isn't very efficient up there. After a 4th gear pull from 3000RPMs, the highest I saw on the intake temps was about 88 degrees. Pre-intercooler temps were around 140 or so. Ambient was about 75.

[Frank818]

321 around 3k! That's awesome!!

[BC Huselton]

Did you get to meet Mike Adams?

Glad to hear things went well.

[Hindsight]

Did you get to meet Mike Adams?

He wasn't there on Saturday but I've met him many times in the past. They are located less then five miles from me, in the same city (Alpharetta). I've tried to purchase most of my bolt-on parts from them in order to support a local tuner instead of an online store. I chose them specifically because I wanted a vendor who could support me by providing answers to my Subaru-specific technical/performance questions during my build, and of several vendors I have interacted with, Top Speed was the most consistent and responsive to my questions via phone and e-mail. They answered questions about things that weren't related to immediate purchases I wanted to make and in doing so, they earned my repeat business and loyalty. They've been great at price matching and Mike is a great guy and has been wonderful to work with.

[Loring]

Awesome work, buddy.

[STiPWRD]

Those are awesome results! Any feedback on the knock and lean condition you were getting before? I'm guessing they straightened out all the bugs?

[Hindsight]

Thanks! I haven't done any logging since the tune, but he said it wasn't knocking after he did the tune, during the final couple of pulls. He said the closed loop tables needed a lot of updating and the MAF needed calibration. I watched the AFRs on the dyno during the tune and they looked great. So yeah, I believe it was all sorted out with the tune. The idle issue hasn't gone away and the tuner didn't really have any idea on what could be causing it, but it hasn't been dying like before... it just acts a little strange from time to time. Sometimes it almost dies when pushing in the clutch and letting the RPMs drop to idle. Sometimes at steady idle, it sounds like the engine shuts off for 1/10th of a second and then the idle quickly revs up to 1500rpm for a couple seconds then slowly drops back down.

[shoeish]

Topspeed is who built my "Pro-8" GT-R with 860whp. It's an assault on the senses when driving at 10/10ths. I love your torque curve. I'm hoping mine isn't too laggy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-VHv8oor58
http://i.imgur.com/Njf0fYr.jpg

[STiPWRD]

That sounds like your BOV might not be closing fast enough after you let off the throttle - if your engine dies after the RPM's drop. I had a similar problem in my old wrx with my BOV and had to add more washers to increase the spring preload. Another thing you could try is increasing your idle RPM in the ECU, I believe stock is 750 rpm after warmup.

[Hindsight]

That's pretty cool Shoeish. Top Speed always has like 25 GT-Rs there. There is never any room to park because the parking lot is filled with them hahah. Very amazing cars, and much different from an 818. I felt like David vs Goliath in there.

Slava, yeah that's a good point, but I swapped my Tial BOV for a BPV after having those exact issues. The BPV is now plumbed back into the turbo inlet between the MAF and the turbo so I don't think that's causing the issue.

[Loring]

If it isn't a stumble, and it's a clean cut of the engine (as if someone in the passenger seat reached over and shut the key off and back on), you're probably looking at something like an ignition driver issue, fuel injector b+ feed, crank sensor dropping, out, etc.

Some input based things, like the CKP dropout, will show up on a data log.

How often does it happen?

[Hindsight]

Honestly it has been so random that I can't really say how often it happens, but yeah, I do plan on logging it once I get the car street legal and can get more run time on it. What do you mean by "ignition driver", and when you say fuel injector b+ feed, that wouldn't really be something I could capture in the logs, no? If the crank sensor dropped out, that should definitely show up in the logs.

[Loring]

I'm not familiar enough with Subarus to say, but it's basically the transistor that controls the coil, or coils. Give the ICP setup, there are probably 4, which means that it's less likely that that's what you're looking at. If it were the ignition dropping out (and not the fuel) due to some output fault, it would be in the PCM (or the coil power feed, if it isn't integral). I'll have to check the ignition schematics on that.

The injector b+ feed needs to be a certain amount of time before the PCM picks it up. Most OEMs run that code at a half second or more. IIRC p0251-p0254. I don't believe a logger would pick it up.

If you go through the logged inputs and you don't see it, i suppose we can go from there at that point. Those intermittent faults can be a PITA.

Does it only happen at idle or otherwise closed throttle conditions?

[Hindsight]

Only at idle so that probably rules out a number of things.

[Loring]

Yeah, including most wiring issues and weak connections. Still doesn't rule out CKP or CMP issues. Let's get a log of it and see what we can see.

[nkw8181]

Is your car drive by wire if so it could be if you've recently disconnected the battery it takes awhile for the car to relearn idle. I learned the hard way. Let it idle for 15-20 minutes and it should be good if this is the case

[Hindsight]

Thanks for the input guys. I'll give that a try. I really just need to get the body on it so I can get it registered and get some road/engine time on it.

I'm working on finalizing the ABS and traction control wiring today. The RaceLogic unit is incompatible with the ABS system and I don't want to give up either one so I'm going to have a toggle switch on the dash where I can flip between them for now. At some point, if I can round up enough people smarter than myself, perhaps I can build some circuit that allows me to have both at the same time but I'm DONE mucking with this portion of the project and need to move forward. Installing the body and windshield wiper is the only thing standing between me and registration. I will get back to working on the body after I'm done with this last bit of wiring.

[Hindsight]

Spent my weekend garage time working on the traction control, again. I probably have more hours into the traction control system than quite a number of other items on the car. But, at last, I can finally say victory. Not only do I have it working but I have it working with the ABS at the same time.

The rear wheel speed sensors are a bit noisy under 12mph so I setup the racelogic so it only activates above that speed. Pretty sure this car will get up to 12mph in the blink of an eye.

So very glad to have this behind me. Most of the time and extra money I spent on it was related to my trying to make a defective traction control computer work, without knowing it was defective. I got a replacement computer and it worked great. I was even able to figure out how to get the ABS working with the traction control at the same time.

Now I get to start back on the body. I feel like I've said that 10x though.

http://i.imgur.com/0Uo9Ehxh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/GRNBQxuh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/kTP6vqMh.jpg

[Aero STI]

Phenomenal perseverance, Jeff! I had one noisy sensor too, may have been a rear, and I set my engagement threshold somewhere similar.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Andrew, your help was very appreciated.

I also figured out my clutch pedal issue last night. The pedal wasn't coming all the way back up if you let out the clutch slowly. The spring was in there and working fine. Turns out the clutch master cylinder pushrod just needed an adjustment. When I replaced the clutch master cylinder, something was just slightly different about it vs the original one from the donor and that caused an adjustment issue. Properly adjusted, it works great now.

Can't wait to get started on the body this week.

[Hindsight]

Got back to the body tonight. Everything is going fairly well except for the hood to bumper area. The hood seems just a bit too wide to fit all the way into the bumper opening. This is most noticeable as you pull the hood forward the last two inches or so to make the front of the hood flush with the front of the bumper. I've tried sanding the returns of the hood down a bit, but those don't have much impact because the returns are vertical (almost) and this is a total width issue. I can't open up the bumper because there isn't much fiberglass there. It isn't awful as-is, but will require some force to keep it in place. Not sure how that will pan-out when using Craig's hood hinges. I think the only thing that would really help the hood to fit would be if I put some curvature in the hood, sort of like the engine cover which flattens out during storage and needs some bow to it. I'm curious if others have had the issue and what they did to make the hood fit into the bumper properly?

[RM1SepEx]

gravity is your friend, curvature is essential, sand down the side edges at the very tip and you can get it to slide forward all the way

I use heavy weights on the edges and had to add a center support with a rubber tip in the center (1 in sq aluminum post)

[Hindsight]

Thanks Dan.... you added the support on the front of the hood? I am using Craig's hood hinges, so am thinking I can use the bracket he provides as an aid for curvature.

[Pearldrummer7]

I think I had the same issue, Hindsight.

My hood actually sits ever so slightly back (towards the driver) since the wedge didn't fit in the front of the nose. It's not too noticeable aesthetically and seems to hold down just fine.

[RM1SepEx]

I have his hinges too, all of the body panels "settle" with time. They are pretty flimsy, much thinner than the Cobra bodies for example. The hood needs some nside layer to hold its shape but it's only in the correct shape when it's mounted and the liner would be upside down for us.

Mine fits all the way forward with almost no gap. It's finally getting warmer, a few sunny days pointed south with 30 lb weights and I'll get a good shape to the hood. I'd love to make some sort of inner liner.

[Hindsight]

Thanks for the input guys. I will try putting some flex into the nose.

[Frank818]

Looks like your images from the 24th are gone.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Frank. I use Imgur to host photos and normally it's excellent for it but lately their mobile app has been getting dicey. It uploads things partially, freezes up, and then deletes the pictures days later.

I just re-uploaded from my computer and they are back up.

[Frank818]

Better now.

So traction control works well? On what grounds/tarmac conditions have you tested it?

[Hindsight]

The only person with an 818 who has tested it so far has been Andrew. My testing has been limited to just jacking up the rear of the car, and with the engine running, accelerating the rear tires in gear. Once the wheel speed passes 20kmh (which I configured), you can tell the traction controller is cutting injectors. I haven't been able to test it on the road because it isn't street legal yet. I did drive it through a business park after I got the dyno tune but it hooked up so well in second and third that I didn't need any traction control. It will be needed for first gear, but I'll need to wait to test it until it's street legal.

[Frank818]

Is it supposed to work the same with and without torque applied to the wheels? I mean, you know when you rev the engine in neutral, there's no torque, it's not the same as driving the car. But for the traction control, wheels off the ground or on the ground it's the same **** for this ECU?

Yeah you better leave it spin in 1st for the first few yards, otherwise it may cut too much power and you'll get smoked by a Honda Fit! lollll

20kmh? This thing makes you think in kmh? :)

[Hindsight]

Haha, yeah I don't like thinking in kmh, though I do wish we'd adopt the metric system.

To answer your question, it is a very simple system and doesn't have anything to do with load. It simply reads the signal from the rear and front wheel speed sensors and if the rears are spinning faster than the fronts, it knows there is a traction issue. Load doesn't come into play and shouldn't because if you were on ice or a very slick surface like dirt or gravel, the load wouldn't matter - you either get traction or you don't. So once it sees that, it starts cutting the fuel injector pulses. It cuts one injector per cycle, completely, so you don't have a lean condition leading to engine damage. It changes which cylinder is cut each time to distribute it. It is designed to modulate the power you put down to the tires to the point where you have ONLY the amount you can hook up with, no more, no less. There is some adjustability though... you can dial in a knob or zero slip, 10% slip, or 20% slip. I believe 10% or 20% slip gives you the quickest acceleration performance.

Did some work on the body today. Shaved some of the returns down on the hood and am trying to line everything perfectly so I can mount my fenders the frame near the back of the hood. I have all this weekend to work on it as well and am hoping to get enough of it done that I can put the lights in it, then start the process of getting it licensed and street legal.

[Frank818]

The RL ECU is piggybacking the Subaru ECU past its signal so that the Subaru ECU doesn't know about the inj cut?

[Hindsight]

That's correct, however, the ECU will be able to detect the misfire so you have to turn the codes off within the ECU for that.

You simply cut the wires that go from the ECU to the injectors, send them into the racelogic unit, then out of the racelogic unit to the injectors. They give you a couple nice multi-pin connectors so you can bypass the racelogic unit if you are experiencing some sort of odd issue.

[Hindsight]

Been working on the body lately. The front end is all gapped, adjusted, and bolted in place securely including the side sails. When measuring from the upper balljoint to the finder, I'm within 1/16" of even from side to side so I'm pretty happy with that. I still have to do headlights, doors, engine cover and trunk.

Started on the headlights today and wow. Now I see what everyone else has been talking about. This is definitely going to be the hardest part of the entire build if I want to make it look half decent. There have been a number of good threads on doors, but not on headlights. I did see Bob's excellent writeup and the video as well but maybe my stuff isn't going together quite the same as his was. Are most people putting the front lip of the headlight bucket on TOP of the bumper, or below it?

[metros]

Below it. The curved nature of that lip makes it difficult to line up and hold in place while you drill through the fiberglass fender and into the headlight bucket.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Metros. Where do you drill between the fender and headlight bucket though? All I see is to mount the bucket to the bumper in several places.

I was able to get the lights fit "ok" today but I have a lot of fiberglass splinters to show for it :rolleyes: Having the bucket lip under the bumper really did help things.

I need to add the bracket that supports the front side of the headlight bucket. I'm going to do the same thing Bob did here with a Z bracket and a glue-on stud, but I think I'm going to use two studs: one that helps hold the bucket up, and one that helps pull the bucket forward to give the light a better fit with the bumper (less gap).

My biggest lagging issue now is that the front-most tips of the fender are a little higher than I'd like. The hood won't sit down flush when they are like that. The headlight is pushing the fender up and I can't really get the light any lower than it is without causing a lot of issues. I may add the hood pin bracket in there and use it to try to pull the fender down, though I am a bit nervous on how much that may stress the fiberglass. I'm not sure why the light doesn't want to go lower here since I cut down the bumper where the bucket rests enough that there is room to move down, though the top mounting bracket is making contact with the mounting position on the bumper as it should, but that also means if I try to pull the light down further, the upper headlight mount is stressed.

[metros]

I'll have to check his posts to see what bracket you're referring to. I haven't drilled mine yet, I'm only speaking from when I test fit them. I've been too busy working on other areas.

[Hindsight]

Thanks Metros.

Anyone else have an issue pulling the front points of the fender low enough to allow the hood to sit flush with the bumper? If so, any tricks to share? I'm close, but would like to be another 3/16" to 1/4" lower. Maybe that hood pin bracket will get me there.

[STiPWRD]

Are you referring to the tabs on top of the radiator support? I've seen some bend those down on the sides and even round the corners a bit. I'm hoping to start on the front end soon, it's being delivered today.

[Hindsight]

No, the radiator tabs seemed ok for me. I did round the corner a bit to ensure clearance, but I think they are ok where they are.

My alignment issue is picture in the circle. The points of the fender (circled) stick up a little high and the headlights are causing it.


53472

[Mechie3]

I had that problem. Rm1sepex had it. some of the FFR cars had it. The headlights prevent it from coming down all the way. I think my driver side is better than my passenger, don't remember off hand though. It's another reason I went to the new front end. The old end has the bumper, hood, fender, headlight, and bucket all meeting at that point. Makes alignment difficult. The new front end has only three parts: Fender, hood, grille.

[Rasmus]

Body panel alignment seems so frustrating to me. Good work powering though all the issues.

[RM1SepEx]

Many have come up with "tricks" to get everything together in the 3D puzzle that is the body panel arrangement. I had to relieve the return on the fenders at the headlights and remove material underneath. I put it together and align with the headlight support loose and tighten them after forcing them up into the panel. I modified the Z brackets and added a molded in 1/4-20 stud. I like Quiny's soln better. (I bought his original nose last weekend!) Extra fiberglass parts are a no brainer.

53480 53481 53482 53483 53484

I can do a wee bit better on the left light, will remove more under the fender lip at the headlight, use the hood pin bracket to pull it down

[Hindsight]

Thanks for the input guys. Dan - that is exactly what I was thinking on the Z brackets with molded stud.... also using the hood pin brackets. I have molded studs on order and am hoping to get back at it this weekend when I'm back in town. Will post pics.

Your panel alignment looks fantastic, BTW.

[RM1SepEx]

You don't want to know how long... and remember my first set was returned to FFR and replaced. Doing it the second time made me realize just how much variation there is in these panels. Still using my concrete filled kart tires to get the hood to sit just right. The hood should have a liner to hold it in shape and make it stiff. And everything gets more complicated when your a pig headed, anal retentive engineer. I refused to cut my hood for wipers so keeping the rear edge of the hood away from the windshield is key. I also have a 1x1 post of aluminum with a rubber tip and height adjustability to hold up the center of the hood. Had to do the same in the back with the engine cover. The panels need curvature to fit just right. I'm still not perfect... but close! :rolleyes: