ATX MKIV #9644 Coyote Build Thread (Index #137) - Trickle Charger Port Added

[dbo_texas]

I'll get back to the fan stuff in a bit - I have a plan to fix that. In the meantime, the last time I had the engine running, I had a couple of things happen which just make me shake my head. It's like one step forward, 3 steps back with this build. I'm beyond frustrated and feeling a bit like the problems will never end. I took a week vacation on the beach to clear my head. Still not happy but ready to get back to work and fix this stuff.

Power Steering Leak:
I'm real concerned my PS rack has a blown seal. When I turn my wheel, a fair amount of PS fluid comes out of the PS rack where the steering shaft enters it. It's not from any of my hoses. You can see the location in the pic below. I've never seen a leak here....wondering if my rack is done and and needs to be completely replaced. Can anyone provide advice here? Is this rack toast?. If so, which rack to I need to purchase? I'm dreading the responses here...the thought of pulling apart the front suspension at this point in my build...let's just say I'm not excited about the possibilities. I have the KRC Coyote power steering setup from FFR, and running the fluid through a Forte hydroboost before entering the rack. On the KRC pump, I changed from the included #6 to the #4 flow restrictor which many others have recommended to reduce the amount of "assist". I was wondering if the hydroboost has somehow contributed to applying too much pressure? I'm not real familiar with how hydroboost works....I thought they just use the pressure difference between a diaphragm to provide the brake assist (i.e. high pressure from power steering side helps "push" on the master cylinder for the brakes).


Engine oil leak?
After running the engine for a while, I noticed some oil underneath the PS footbox panels. When I looked down into the engine bay, I can see some engine oil sprayed on the inside footbox panel on the passenger side. It's hard to get a pic, but you can kind of see the splatter here. I wiped it up, and ran the engine some more....no more spray/leaks in this area. Then a few days later, it showed up again. I'm thinking that when I rev the engine and pressure builds up, that's when it happens. My best guess here is maybe the header gasket has a bad seal? Any ideas here for troubleshooting? I haven't re-tightened the header bolts yet (after a few engine heat cycles) - I'm using the Stage 8 locking bolts. Should step 1 be to just re-tighten the header bolts and ramp oil pressure to see if problem persists? If that doesn't work, is it time to pull the header and inspect the gasket? I'm using Remflex #3609 header gaskets with the FFR stainless steel headers, as many others have used.


Brake Leak
Another strange thing happened. When I was pushing down on the brake, I felt the pedal go soft. Brakes haven't been an issue in quite some time so I was surprised this happened. When I let off the pedal, it didn't rebound back to position....it crept up slowly. Inspecting around the car, I found some brake fluid under the rear driver side connection. Same one I had a leak on in my post #185. I haven't had time to investigate...I was already frustrated at this point from the other 2 leaks above, and I'm just disappointed this popped up again after months of no issue. I guess better for it to happen now than when I'm on the road. I'm considering replacing the fitting completely, or replacing my steel lines with ni-copper lines. I'm not 100% confident in my crimping job on the end of the tubes.

[danmas]

I feel your frustration, believe me. I went with good quality racing soft braided brake lines at pre made lengths. I figure if it’s good enough for racers, it’s good enough for me. That and I’m awful at plumbing (which is what this is). I have chased down multiple leaks. I think that’s part of the gig. Driving your rig will be fun. Keep on keeping on.

Dan

[dbo_texas]

Couple of minor updates.

Radiator Fan / Fan Controller
Ducky2009 was kind enough to send me his old Maradyne controller that he removed from his build. I wired it up over the weekend and happy to report that the fan finally kicks on, so I finally have a working fan. I still need to adjust the temp when the controller kicks on - need to see what temp the gauge should be reading when this happens. Anybody happen to know (for Gen2 Coyote)? My temp probe for the controller is in the return hose from the radiator to the engine. I am still seeing 2 anomalies with my setup using the new Maradyne controller.
(1) When the controller turns on the fan, one of the LEDs briefly flashes green then turns off. I thought this was supposed to stay lit green whenever the fan is running, and the orange LED comes on when the fan is on high (per Maradyne instructions). Despite the LED only briefly blinking green, the fan continues to run so at least its functional.
(2) I'm still baffled by my dash LED indicator lamp. As soon as I turn on my master cutoff switch, before I even turn my key to "ON", the dash fan indicator lamp is on. I'm stumped because this negative terminal on this LED is connected to the white wire on the Maradyne controller (switched ground) which is the ground path for the actual fan, which should NOT have a closed ground path until the controller closes the circuit. The positive terminal on the lamp is connected to RF Speed/Clock Memory (BATTERY CIRCUIT) so it has power as soon as the master cutoff is turned on. I'm a little worried this will drain my battery if I don't figure out why this circuit is grounded through the controller. The easy fix is to just disconnect the lamp and be done with it, but I went through the trouble of installing it so I'd like to use it. Open to any ideas here.

Steering Rack
I 100% confirmed the leak is coming from where the steering shaft enters the rack. Another forum member was kind enough to sell me their brand new FFR PS rack (they are going a different direction). The nice thing is it comes with the rack extenders already, so that's one less thing I would need to buy. I hope to drain the PS lines and swap the rack next weekend. Hopefully I can put the PS nightmare to rest and this resolves all the leaks with that circuit.

Brake circuit leak (at rear DS)
No change...just haven't had time to look into this one yet. I'm pretty sure it's at the same "T" connector that I had a leak previously. What's weird is this one was fine for so long and then just randomly showed up again.

Engine Oil on PS footbox panels
No change on this one. I haven't had a chance to trouble-shoot this yet but I have a few ideas to check out. The leading candidate is that I'm getting a leak from the PS valve cover but I'm just not sure yet. Seems to only happen when I romp on the throttle and build up the oil pressure >100 psi.

[PNWTim]

I would not think the oil leak would be from your headers. If possible, buy a piece of white poster board and have someone hold it in there at an agreed upon position and then give it some throttle. I think you will be able to identify pretty quickly where it is coming from based on the height and location of the spray. Sounds like something with pressure behind it for it to come out horizontally.

[Nigel Allen]

82C fan on, 78C fan off on my gen1 Coyote.

[dbo_texas]

Well, after way too many hours troubleshooting this, and testing every conceivable combination with two different Maradyne fan controllers, I've come to the conclusion that it just wasn't meant to be. After Ducky2009 graciously sent me his old controller (which was working in his car before he opted for a different setup), I hooked it up and did a bunch of testing. No matter what I did, I still could not get the controller to work properly. Even with the brand new controller, it seems like the fan ground circuit is still closed as soon as I apply battery power (as indicated by the dash light coming on even before I turn the ignition key to on). I even clipped my dash LED indicator, thinking maybe that was throwing things off, but it didn't change the behavior. I also swapped around the orange/gray wires just to see if maybe the controller was wired wrong internally. No dice.

In the end, I yanked the Maradyne controller out of my setup and just have the Coyote ECU controlling the fan. It's just simpler this way. Yeah, it's super loud when it kicks on (gauge temp is at 75°C when fan kicks on for reference). I'd prefer to have this turn on later (like 85°), but it wasn't mean to be. If the noise ends up bothering me long term, I will replace the stock FFR provided fan with Flex-Wave LoBoy Electric Fan, Puller Fan, 16 Inches (238/105390) - others have used this and said it is WAY quieter than the stock fan. So I have options. It's a bout $190 currently, so not too bad if I want to go that route.

[dbo_texas]

As noted in post #321, I had a leak in my PS rack where the steering shaft enters the rack. I bought a brand new FFR provided rack (for an MKV) from another forum member - this already has the rack extenders on it plus he gave me a good deal.



The first thing I did was disconnect the power steering lines going into the rack and let the system drain. Then I disconnected the steering shaft. Next, I got underneath the car and uninstalled the old rack and removed the Breeze offset bushings as well as the travel limiters I had installed on the original rack. Overall not too difficult even with the radiator in the way. One issue I encountered was that I couldn't seem to get the tie rod ends to release from the control arm sockets. I tried the BFH method...smacked it pretty good with a sledge hammer but I still couldn't get either side to release. So I left them on temporarily (just unthreaded the rack arms).


After a few minutes scratching my head I made a quick trip to Autozone and borrowed one of their tie rod pullers. This thing did the trick and only took about 3 seconds per side. Gotta love how things work when you have the right tools.


So I was able to get everything was removed without too much trouble. :


Here is where things turned out like they always seem to. Taking 3 times longer than it should have. I hammered the bushings out of the new rack (using a SAE deep socket to push them through), then inserted the Breeze bushings. When I tried to install the rack, I was able to get the bolts through one side, but couldn't seem to get the 2nd one through. The bolts were just ever so slightly off. If I reversed it, I could get the other side but never both together. So I pulled out a dremel and slowly opened up the holes on the frame until I could just barely get both bolts through the Breeze bushings and frame (loosely). Then I followed the Breeze instructions - turning the all the rack all the way to one side, and measuring against the 2x3 frame tube. Then turned the rack all the way to the opposite side and took the same measurement. The difference between these two measurements, divided by 2, equals the amount the rack is off-center. In my case it was only about 1/4". So I used 2 screwdrivers to rotate the Breeze bushings and pushed the rack toward the PS by about .25". Re-measured using the same method as before, and the measurements on each side were identical. So the rack is now centered. Tightened up the bolts per torque spec, and marked the bolts. Reconnected the power steering hoses after this. From here, I threaded on the tie rod ends and got it eyeballed straight. I'll dial it in later.

All-in-all this took me the better part of the day, mostly due to the difficulties getting the tie rod ends removed and then trying to get the new rack mounted. It was a process for sure. I haven't tested for leaks yet - I will need another free day to try that. Hoping to put this to bed and move on the the brake leak & engine oil leak.

[dbo_texas]

Can anyone tell me the p/n and where to get replacement parts from the stock FFR kit for the two highlighted parts? I have the Wilwood kit if that matters. I'm having an issue with my rear brake junction. I had a leak about 6 months ago. I loosened, then retightened the connections here and everything has been fine for 6 months. Then all of a sudden I push on the brake and get mush...then a puddle. Same spot. I'm thinking I might want to just replace these parts now and see if this fixes the problem. It could be my flare, but it seems like the flair is fine. I can't really pinpoint which joint the leak is actually coming from so was thinking to replace the brass "T" block and the fitting where the soft-line screws onto.

#2 looks like it might be Allstar Performance ALL50100 (Brake Line Adapters, -3 AN to 3/16 in. Inverted Flare) but I wasn't sure if the size was correct. FFR manual doesn't describe any of the fitting sizes.

I'm not sure what size ports the #1 tee fitting has...so any info here would be appreciated!

[TXeverydayDad]

Sorry to hear of the issues you’ve been having! Keep powering on!

Unfortunately I don’t know the part numbers for those parts.

[edwardb]

#1 is a standard 3/16 IF T fitting with two female and one male connection. Came with the kit from Factory Five, right? Not super common but found one at Summit https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kys-100-43582355

#2 you have the sizes right. If that came with the Wilwood flex line kit it's their https://www.wilwood.com/LineKits/Lin...emno=220-13124. Same thread sizes as the Allstar Performance link.

[dbo_texas]

#1 is a standard 3/16 IF T fitting with two female and one male connection. Came with the kit from Factory Five, right? Not super common but found one at Summit https://www.summitracing.com/parts/kys-100-43582355

#2 you have the sizes right. If that came with the Wilwood flex line kit it's their https://www.wilwood.com/LineKits/Lin...emno=220-13124. Same thread sizes as the Allstar Performance link.

Perfect exactly what I was looking for. I'm going to mess with it this weekend and see if I can figure out where the leak is happening. Will likely disassemble the entire joint and re-mount all the fittings, adding a little brake fluid to the interfaces on the flares.

[Its Bruce]

The photo appears to show sealant on your inverted flare fittings. Just stick with a drop of the brake fluid or some other light oil on the threads for the makeup process.

[dbo_texas]

I spent some time over the holiday weekend working on the car, and for once I feel like everything went well. Here's what I did:

1) I filled the power steering reservoir and bled the system - so far no leaks with the new rack I installed. The steering isn't jumpy like the last rack. I followed the same procedure....start engine, turn wheels lock-to-lock a couple of times, shut down, refill reservoir, repeat. All good now - level is constant in the reservoir.

2) I was having a power steering leak on one of the return hoses going to the oil cooler. I ended up just tightening the fittings and for now at least, it seems to have resolved the leak. I'll keep an eye on this one...I'm not 100% sure I addressed the problem but time will tell.

3) For the rear brake leak, I inspected this more closely and it wasn't either of the fittings in the image above, but it was actually coming from the flex line going to the rear Wilwood caliper. The hose was under quite a bit of stress just from when I tightened the swivel nut. So I loosened it up completely, straightened it out, and re-tightened. Then I bled the brakes (with my 13 yr old daughter pushing the pedal). We bled both sides just to be safe and got a firm pedal. So far so good on this and it seems to have fixed the leak. I'm going to keep an eye on this one too - if it fails again I'm going to replace the flex line with a new one. I looked through my box of leftover parts and I do happen to have extras for both the brass fitting and the stainless steel one that came with the Wilwood kit, so worst case I could replace both of those. Unfortunately, this will prevent me from installing the trunk aluminum for now because where I have the fittings mounted, it will be extremely difficult to replace them once the aluminum is installed.

4) Finally, I figured I would try to track down the engine oil leak. This turned out to be somewhat of a "duh" moment. I reported a while back I was getting MIL check engine light errors on my OBDLink+ scanner. They were P0369 & P0365 - Camshaft Position Sensor B, Circuit Bank 1 errors. After doing some searching, I found that Bank1 refers to the passenger side (same side as cylinder 1), and Sensor "B" refers to the outer-most camshaft sensor which is the exhaust sensor. So after finding a diagram of where the sensors are from a service manual, that's the first place I checked on the engine.


To absolute surprise (and disbelief), it turns out there WAS NO SENSOR INSTALLED! I have absolutely no idea how this happened, because I've never touched those sensors, and definitely never uninstalled one. I can't fathom how this wasn't on the engine. It was plain as day...oil coming out of that port on the back of the engine. There was a connector from the engine harness in that area and I had always wondered what that was supposed to plug into. There are a few connectors on the engine harness that are not used in the crate engine setup, so I figured it was just another one of those. Turns out it was this camshaft position sensor plug. I'm pretty sure those sensors are pre-installed by Ford, so I'm not sure how this could have happened. I'm not even going to speculate at this point. I'm just thankful I found the source of the leak at this point, and it's an easy fix. The thought of tearing apart the valve cover was not something I wanted to do. Here's a picture showing the open port:


The good news, is that Blitzboy54 (Jesse) from the forums has shipped me a set of these sensors (he had spare set of aftermarkets) so I could swap out and try to get rid of the codes. I hadn't installed them yet because it was low on my priority list. I had to make a run to AutoZone and buy an M6 x 20 bolt, then installed the sensor he gave me. I lubed the sensor (and o-ring) with engine oil, installed the screw, and plugged in the connector.



Here it is fully installed with the plug connected:


After this, I fired up the engine. Guess what? No more oil leak (duh) and after resetting the codes, no more MIL check engine light. Everything purring like a mean kitten. Feels like a win. I'll take it. I am going to go back and try to find some old pictures of my engine before I installed it to see if I have any shots of the back of the engine, just to prove to myself it was never on there.

[danmas]

Nice win!

[dbo_texas]

I've been having an issue, described in THIS POST where it seems my hydroboost has a slight pressure imbalance on the return line, causing it to very slightly engage the brakes even after I let off the pedal. This only happens when the engine is running. I suspect the issue is the Y-adapter I used on my hydroboost return line merging with the power steering return. If that PS return is at a significantly higher pressure than the hydroboost return (which it likely is), it may be putting a backpressure on that HB return and not allowing it to fully vent and release pressure. I was planning to move the y-adapter to AFTER the oil cooler, but I'm not sure that would solve my problem. I still may try that, but in the meantime I wanted to try out adding a small return spring to the brake pedal. I 3D printed a little clamp bracket and mounted a spring, and so far this very slight assist seems to be removing all pressure from the brakes when I release the pedal.

I've read that adding a spring to the brake pedal is a band-aid fix, and doesn't really address the issue which is likely the pressure imbalance. SO I will continue to mess with it, but in the meantime I think I have a workable solution to hold me over. Here are the details of my hack:



CAD model of bracket (orange parts are just spacers to prevent over-clamping):


3D printed bracket




Installed on brake pedal arm:

[dbo_texas]

So I was never thrilled with the solution I posted above, adding a spring to the brake pedal to lift it back up. This only really serves to pull the break pedal arm off the master cylinder push-rod...it doesn't solve the actual problem that the master cylinder has some amount of pressure applied from the hydroboost diaphragm. After watching this video, and seeing some other comments from THIS thread and THIS post from canuck1, I think my issue is how my hydroboost was originally plumbed. In my setup I was bringing the hydroboost and power steering returns into a Y-adapter before the oil cooler. In this setup, if the power steering return pressure is higher than the hydroboost return, it will put a back pressure on the HB return line, which prevents the brakes from fully releasing.

The ideal fix is to have 2 separate returns on the reservoir, and route the power steering return and HP return independently. I have the KRS PS reservoir which only has a single 6AN return port. So, for my setup I opted to re-route the houses and simply shift my return hose intersect to the other side of the oil cooler. This means the pressure from the PS return has to go through the oil cooler first, where it will hopefully experience a pressure loss, before merging with the HB return line. My hope is that by the time they merge, the pressure differential will be less than how I had it plumbed originally and it won't put any back pressure on the HB line.

RESULT: So far it looks like it has worked...when I let off the brake pedal, now the pedal lifts off immediately and the brake lights turn off instantly. So there doesn't appear to be any brakes applied after letting off the pedal. I'll monitor this closely as I start to go kart.

To fix my setup, I had to buy some new adapters - outlined in the diagram below (UPDATED):


I'm still using a 180° fitting between my PS low pressure return and the 10AN oil cooler input line, so needed a reducer adapter there. This has been secured with a zip tie so it isn't flopping around inside the engine bay.


Then I bought a new T-adapter for the merge near the reservoir return port. I still had to use a 10AN to 6AN reducer for the oil cooler (PS) return hose going into the T-adapter. The HB return is coming in from the right side, routed under the Coyote air intake.



All this is detailed in my video below, followed by some pictures and updated diagram.
https://youtube.com/shorts/u22ZOwq5Zs0

[dbo_texas]

I've got all my major mechanical systems completed, including all the plumbing and testing of brakes/coolant/engine. I would love to go kart this bad boy to verify all systems are working when the car is moving. BUT, I need to mount the seats & safety harness first. The issue is that to mount the seats, I need to mount the body...my seats are high-back Intatrim Stoneleigh seats and could interfere with body if not positioned correctly. To mount the body I think I'd need to trim the front cowel near the dash.

For anyone who used high-back seats, what did you do here? Are there any work arounds so I can go kart this (like temp mounting the seats in a non-final position?), or do I just need to suck it up and mount the body, then fix the seats & harness?

[dbo_texas]

Finally have confidence that my rear brake leak is fixed so I went ahead and installed all the trunk aluminum including the separator wall for the rear cockpit cubby. Laid down the silicone bead first, then tacked the panels in place with clecos, then riveted. Went pretty smooth. I did drill a 1" hole near the PS roll bar rear leg for the trunk license plate electrical harness. Here are some pics.









NEXT UP:

• sound/heat mat install (cockpit & trunk)
• carpet install (cockpit and trunk)
• body mount
• seat fitment (w/ Breeze seat mounts)
• safety harness install
• go kart

[dbo_texas]

I wear size 13 shoes and have definitely had a hard time with the pedal spacing with the Coyote DBW setup. There are a few ways you can orient the Coyote pedal pad. I like it in this position better but every time I press the gas my shoe always catches the edge of the brake pedal. I saw another builder do something like this, so I figured I'd give it a try. I chopped the bottom right corner off the brake pedal using a Dremel tool. I'll hopefully be go karting soon and can verify if I want to keep it this way or try something different. There are quite a few ways people have dealt with this on the forum, so there are many other options I can try out if I don't end up liking this setup.

[gbranham]

I just take off my right shoe when I get in the car, amd tuck it under the driver's seat. Lol.

Greg

[dbo_texas]

Due to how packed it is behind my dash, there's no room for the bottom hose entry style dash defroster vents that FFR provides. I've been told that you can buy these side-entry style defroster vents from Factory Five. But someone posted some pics of this custom 3D printed version on the Factory Five Builder FB page, so I reached out to them and they were kind enough to share the 3D model with me. Loaded it up onto my Bambu P1S printer and used a high-temp polycarbonate (PC) resin. The vicat softening temp for the PC is fairly high at about 115°C, and the typical air temp coming out of the vehicle vents is in the 60°-70°C range (I think...based on a quick Google search). So should hold up fine.

Here's a timelapse of the print.




Using the aluminum Vintage Air bezels p/n 63100-VUQ (got them from Summit) which are a perfect fit:


Behind the dash....like I said, very packed:

[Nigel Allen]

Cool solution.

[edwardb]

Vary nice. What size hose is the piece for and can you share the print file?

[PMD24]

Yes, I'd like a copy of the file as well, or the contact who created it.

[dbo_texas]

Vary nice. What size hose is the piece for and can you share the print file?

This is for the 2" hose that comes with the standard FFR heater kit from Vintage Air. I will check with the person that originally provided the vent 3D CAD model to me from the Factory Five Builder page on Facebook. I assured him I wouldn't share the model unless he agreed --> I already reached out to him to see if he minds, and will share it out to folks requesting it if he agrees. Stay tuned...

[dbo_texas]

This weekend I 3D printed some louvers for the footbox fresh air blast gates. I wanted something I can adjust to direct the airflow where I need it. This was a first attempt and it turned out pretty good. I didn't design the model - just downloaded it from Bambu Studio (model name: air vent cover landini by user Mateusz). I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, although I will need to add some little retainers to the assembly. The current print allows the pivot pins to pop free too easily but this should be an easy fix. I also had to scale the model a little bit to get it to fit right. I'm using some Poron foam and it just press-fits into the blast gate port, so it's easy to twist and readjust if necessary. I'm not sure yet if the vents will stay in the "open" position during road vibration...time will tell. There are ways to fix this if necessary.

Here's the downloaded model:


Installed in driver's side blast gate in the footwell:


Front view:


Closed view, although I may just keep it open all the time since I can still close the blast gate shutter with my choke pull.

[dbo_texas]

I used the Thermotec Cool-It heat and sound barrier mats (p/n 14620). Comes in a 60" x 36" rolls. Another option would have been the Breeze pre-cut Koolmat kit, but it was about 2x the cost so I opted for the Cool-It mat instead. In some areas I cut out templates using craft paper then just traced it onto the mat, and cut using a razor blade and straight edge. To apply, since it was a little chilly here in TX, I heated the mat with a heat gun which made it super sticky, peeled the liner and stick it down to the panels. Used a carpet roller to smooth it down.

To do the entire cockpit (footboxes, seat pans, rear cockpit wall, trans tunnel, & trans tunnel top) it took about 3 full rolls, so at today's price of $78/roll it was around $240. I ordered another two so I could complete the trunk area as well. So add another $160 to do the trunk and I'll be about $400 all-in. Total time to cut and install was probably in the range of 8-10 hours. Wasn't hard, just tedious. I did try to use as many of the little scraps as I could so I didn't waste a lot of material. I did apply to the inside of the trans tunnel top between where the 3/4" cross-braces touch, using mostly some of the leftover scraps. Wasn't sure how much relief (if any) was needed near the edge of some of the panels where weather stripping or edge guards go, so I left about 3/4" inch of clearance. Hopefully that was the right choice...if not I can add some more material from the scraps. Here are some picks of the finished product - let me know if anything looks like it will be a problem with installing the carpet, weather strips, or seat belt trim rings.

[gbranham]

Looks about right. I used 5 rolls of Thermo-Tec for mine. Nice work!

Greg

[cv2065]

Looks good! Don't forget to spray paint your seams with black spray paint before laying down your carpet.

[Mike.Bray]

Looks good! Putting that sticky stuff down was the least enjoyable part of my build.

You can seal the seams with Mastic tape. https://www.amazon.com/3M-Aluminum-P...3&sr=8-13&th=1

[Nigel Allen]

Put black 'gaffer' tape where there are going to be carpet joints. This will prevent the foil showing through any gaps in the joints.

[dbo_texas]

Finished applying the Thermo-Tec Cool-It heat & sound barrier mats in the trunk area. I didn't put any on the two side walls yet, as I wasn't sure if the FFR trunk carpet kit includes pieces of carpet to cover those. I thought I remembered reading somewhere the kit only covers the floor. After I go through the carpet pieces, if they include some for the side trunk panels I'll add the barrier to those as well, but for now I left them off. I think I'm going to have to buy some more of the black carpet from FFR (p/n #16957 - 72" Wide Raw Black Carpet Material) to cover the Breeze cubby wall, drop trunk, and maybe the trunk side walls too if that's not already included in the trunk carpet kit. I'll need to take some measurements and order a roll or two from FFR.

I bought some black gaffer's tape, so I'll apply that to all the areas where there are carpet seams, then plan to use the Weldwood gel contact cement or Weldwood All Weather Outdoor Adhesive. Seems like both give you around 10 minutes of working time and several people on here have used both with good results. Seems like the 3M Super 77 or Super 90 contact adhesive spray also work well but have less working time. I like the idea of being able to adjust the pieces for a few minutes.

[cv2065]

The trunk carpet kit includes pieces for the lower deck sides. I put some panels on the upper deck sides and obviously, you need to buy more for that.

[dbo_texas]

The trunk carpet kit includes pieces for the lower deck sides. I put some panels on the upper deck sides and obviously, you need to buy more for that.

I wonder if they changed the carpet kit...mine is from 2018. I just looked through all the pieces and I don't see any pieces for the lower deck sides, and the build manual I have doesn't show any pieces for that area either. It only has piece #18 which is for the trunk floor only, not the sides.


Here's the area I will need to buy carpet for (the panels without Cool-It mat on them):

[dbo_texas]

I went ahead and bought some black gaffer's tape on Amazon ($9 for a roll). I applied it to all the areas where the carpet seams come together. Fairly easy to work with, although in a couple of places it seems like it doesn't want to stick very well...wondering if the Cool-It mat has some oil on it. I may need to clean those and re-apply.

[dbo_texas]

I could use a little advice. I really want to get my Intatrim Stoneleigh high-back seats mounted so I can go-kart, but I know that due to the potential for interference with the body, I need to mount the body before seats. So I have a couple of questions around this.

1. I know I need to mount the body before finalizing seat location (due to the high backs). I know I'll need to trim the cockpit body cowl roll where it touches the dash by about 1/4" to 3/8", and also on the rear of the cockpit wall. Then align the body per some of the forum threads (using the door jam as the measurement location like THIS). What's the best tool to use for trimming the cowl edge? Anything else I need to modify on the body besides those to edges for body placement to get the seats in place?
2. Should I install the carpet before mounting the seats? Or should I just position and mount the seats directly onto the sound/heat barrier? I'm planning to use the Breeze adjustable seat mounts. If I don't install the carpet until later, how to you locate the mounting holes through the carpet? Do you poke from the underside of the seat pan sheet metal, through the carpet, then burn a hole in the carpet in that location?

[dbo_texas]

I went ahead and bought some black gaffer's tape on Amazon ($9 for a roll). I applied it to all the areas where the carpet seams come together. Fairly easy to work with, although in a couple of places it seems like it doesn't want to stick very well...wondering if the Cool-It mat has some oil on it. I may need to clean those and re-apply.

Well that didn't go very well. After about a week, the black gaffer's tape I laid down on all the seams is peeling up. Maybe the ThermoTec mats out-gas some type of oil that prevents good adhesion. Who knows. I'm going to rip it all out and just go with the black spray paint on all the joints. Lesson learned I guess.

[TXeverydayDad]

I could use a little advice. I really want to get my Intatrim Stoneleigh high-back seats mounted so I can go-kart, but I know that due to the potential for interference with the body, I need to mount the body before seats. So I have a couple of questions around this.

1. I know I need to mount the body before finalizing seat location (due to the high backs). I know I'll need to trim the cockpit body cowl roll where it touches the dash by about 1/4" to 3/8", and also on the rear of the cockpit wall. Then align the body per some of the forum threads (using the door jam as the measurement location like THIS). What's the best tool to use for trimming the cowl edge? Anything else I need to modify on the body besides those to edges for body placement to get the seats in place?
2. Should I install the carpet before mounting the seats? Or should I just position and mount the seats directly onto the sound/heat barrier? I'm planning to use the Breeze adjustable seat mounts. If I don't install the carpet until later, how to you locate the mounting holes through the carpet? Do you poke from the underside of the seat pan sheet metal, through the carpet, then burn a hole in the carpet in that location?

Good to see your progress (and lessons learned along the way).

I used a right angle disc sander/die grinder with a sanding attachment. 80 grit sandpaper and it makes quick work to get it roughed in. I’ll be doing the finishing work with blocks later to get it straight.

I installed my seats (regular Roadster seats) without carpet for now. I plan to carpet before I put the painted body on for the last time. I am planning on poking through the carpet from the underside with a heated nail.

You might get better answers from those that have actually done this, but that’s my plan.

[cv2065]

I could use a little advice. I really want to get my Intatrim Stoneleigh high-back seats mounted so I can go-kart, but I know that due to the potential for interference with the body, I need to mount the body before seats. So I have a couple of questions around this.

1. I know I need to mount the body before finalizing seat location (due to the high backs). I know I'll need to trim the cockpit body cowl roll where it touches the dash by about 1/4" to 3/8", and also on the rear of the cockpit wall. Then align the body per some of the forum threads (using the door jam as the measurement location like THIS). What's the best tool to use for trimming the cowl edge? Anything else I need to modify on the body besides those to edges for body placement to get the seats in place?
2. Should I install the carpet before mounting the seats? Or should I just position and mount the seats directly onto the sound/heat barrier? I'm planning to use the Breeze adjustable seat mounts. If I don't install the carpet until later, how to you locate the mounting holes through the carpet? Do you poke from the underside of the seat pan sheet metal, through the carpet, then burn a hole in the carpet in that location?

I used a flap disc to trim the cockpit body cowl. Just be careful with it as it cuts pretty much like butter. And wear a mask and protective eyewear of course. For the seats, you already have the insulation installed. I sat my seats on the insulation where I wanted them, then I traced around the Breeze seat mounts with a marker. Not sure what you are using to mount them? Then I pulled the seat, cut out the insulation from my outline, placed the Breeze seat mount again to the metal, marked for the holes, drilled and then riveted. Then carpeted around that. You don't want anything between the seat mount and the floor metal.

[Nigel Allen]

Well that didn't go very well. After about a week, the black gaffer's tape I laid down on all the seams is peeling up. Maybe the ThermoTec mats out-gas some type of oil that prevents good adhesion. Who knows. I'm going to rip it all out and just go with the black spray paint on all the joints. Lesson learned I guess.

I made that suggestion, I'm sorry I created a headache for you. It worked well on my build, so I guess it was likely down to different product combination.


Nige.