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Techboy's 88 Conquest Engine Rebuild and Engine Bay Makeover


techboy
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I was going to do that, but since I have no intentions of using this shell long term, I'm going to just leave it be. I will be removing it from my Starion shell once I get moving on that project.

 

On another note, I believe my dowel pins for the sprocket and head-to-block should be arriving today, so I'm hoping to put some time in on the motor this evening.

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Well, looky what parts showed up .... now I can get moving forward again ......

 

Dowel Pin Installed in Sprocket:

http://imageshack.us/a/img266/1845/dscf1159h.jpg

 

DOWEL PINS: (thanks Dad!)

http://imageshack.us/a/img109/7273/dscf1160h.jpg

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I made some major progress on the motor again last night ... but I forgot to take my camera with me for pics. Totally bummed about that. I'll take some next time I'm down at the shop but unfortunately they won't be of the assembly process .... ugh. Anyway, at this point I have:

  • Timing chain installed
  • Oil pump chain and sprockets installed
  • Front cover back on
  • Head back on and torqued down
  • Lifters installed
  • Water pump bolted up.

It's starting to look like a motor again ... Next time I'll get the intake / exhaust manifold on, and the TB.

 

UPDATED W/ PICS:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img198/9015/dscf1196ng.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img14/9337/dscf1197y.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img641/7727/dscf1198w.jpg

Edited by techboy
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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...
It's been a long hiatus .... turns out my wife and I sold our house, so are we were in the process of moving. We are all moved into our new place now ... so I'm hoping to get back to work on the project this weekend. ... moving is a pain! Edited by techboy
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  • 2 weeks later...

Ok, so here's what I've managed to accomplish working on the motor again last weekend .... basically just bolting up accessories:

 

Intake Manifold Installed:

http://imageshack.us/a/img94/6534/dscf1199o.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img195/3883/dscf1200sr.jpg

 

Throttle Body Installed:

http://imageshack.us/a/img690/1305/dscf1203i.jpg

 

Valve Cover and Dizzy Installed:

http://imageshack.us/a/img442/2326/dscf1207s.jpg

 

Alternator Installed:

http://imageshack.us/a/img853/6087/dscf1202f.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img341/6079/dscf1201b.jpg

 

Water Pump Pulley:

http://imageshack.us/a/img42/2033/dscf1204t.jpg

Edited by techboy
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This weekend I wanted to bolt up the exhaust manifold, however I am having a fitment issue. It's doesn't want to slide on the 2 outside upper studs. I have a simple mill at work, so I'm going to bore out the 2 upper/outer holes on the manifold about 1/16th and it should slide right on. My manifold has relief cuts, and it's a different head than the one it came off of, so for whatever reason, it's not happy.

 

So, here's where we're at as of 12/2:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img14/4826/dscf1209t.jpg

Edited by techboy
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Yeah, already did that. It actually wasn't too bad. I picked the manifold up a while back on here, it was relieved very nicely and worked well for me b/f the build, just doesn't want to slide on this new head .... I think one of the studs on this head was a little tweaked which didn't help either. I already swapped that stud out for a different one.

 

EDIT: Here's the manifold installed once I reamed out the 2 outer upper holes a bit and got everything tightened up:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img339/4576/dscf1294m.jpg

 

You might notice I modified the gasket a little bit. I only kept the "flap" right where the turbo sits just for visual aesthetics.

Edited by techboy
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Just read through this build, and I'm loving the attention to detail and the paint work that you've done on the motor; definitely one of the nicest looking SQ motors I've seen so far!

 

Keep up the great work! I'm excited to see this thing come together!

Edited by ShadowTSi
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  • 4 weeks later...

I appreciate the compliments. It's taking me way longer than I thought it was going too (life keeps getting in the way), but it should be sweet when it's done.

 

ucw458 sent me a link to his build like 2 years ago and it's kinda been the inspiration for mine ... if think mine is nice, you should check his out: http://www.starquestclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=108541&st=0

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  • 4 weeks later...

Got these for Christmas. One of the better gifts I got. I'm excited about how this is all coming together.

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img266/9979/dscf1292xr.jpg

 

INSULATORS INSTALLED:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img145/5220/dscf1295a.jpg

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So, I finally got around to putting the motor back in the car yesterday (Saturday). To start off, I spent Friday night getting the transmission in order and ready to mate to the motor. This a new transmission for me (not the one that came out of the car) so there was some stuff to do.

 

On my way home from work Friday I picked up some Redline Trans fluid. Redline was actually NOT my first choice for fluid since there seems some disagreement in the FAQ over whether we should use this stuff in our trans. I was looking for the Amsoil. The store I stopped at only had Royal Purple ($20), Redline ($16.50), and an off brand I never heard of ($7) so I went middle of the road and bought a mix of MTL and MT-90 since that is what is suggested in the FAQ section. I won't driving this car a whole lot, so hopefully it'll be OK.

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img43/3296/dscf1293s.jpg

 

 

First thing I had to do was swap all the sensors over from old trans, and I also wanted to pop the cover plate, scrap the sludge off and make sure everything was clean. Here are some photos of that process.

 

DRAINING THE "NEW" TRANS:

http://imageshack.us/a/img805/4226/dscf1297s.jpg

 

CLEANING THE COVER PLATE:

http://imageshack.us/a/img9/6287/dscf1296y.jpg

 

COVER PLATE OFF:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img543/6057/dscf1300x.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img827/9882/dscf1301z.jpg

 

SPEEDO SENSOR REINSTALLED:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img580/6301/dscf1298b.jpg

 

OLD TRANS AND NEW TRANS AFTER ALL SENSORS SWAPPED:

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img809/262/dscf1302qt.jpg

 

Gotta put the kiddies to bed, next up is photos of the motor going in ..... stay tuned.

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Forgot to mention this ... you might be wondering why I'm switching transmissions. My original trans was working just fine when I pulled my motor. But, it has an unknown number of miles on it b/c the motor in my car, as far as I can tell is not the original. This "new" transmission has a documented 60K on it - so I know how "used" it is. The only catch is, I've never seen it run, I'm taking the previous owners word of mouth that it's good. I figure the best way to test it out is to mate it up to my motor and see what happens ... if it doesn't work out, I can always fall back on my original transmission. So, here's for hoping .... :D
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Here we go, pics of the motor going in.

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img5/1145/dscf1303o.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img824/5804/dscf1304oa.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img41/756/dscf1305kx.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img254/6373/dscf1306g.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img839/8697/dscf1307k.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img59/9656/dscf1309hn.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img822/5122/dscf1311z.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img72/9310/dscf1310e.jpg

 

http://imageshack.us/a/img687/2897/dscf1313a.jpg

 

http://img546.imageshack.us/img546/8189/dscf1312k.jpg

 

The only other thing I did that is not in these pictures is I got the driveshaft reinstalled, slave hooked up, and the transmission topped off with fluid. And that's where things stand. Not sure when I'll get to work on it next, but it's just a matter of hooking everything up and overhauling the brakes.

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How was that putting that in as a complete unit was the car raised during the install? Does that heater work well

heating the garage?

 

Honestly, I think that was the easiest install I've ever done. I've done about a dozen or so motor installs in my life (not a lot by any stretch, but enough) and most of them have been DSM motors - so I'm used to having to deal w/ transverse motors and getting axles to pop into place. This was cake. It wouldn't have worked with the car in the air. The car had to be on the ground and I had to take the shifter off. We just lowered it in and slid the hoist back at the same. Once we got it to sit on the 2 mounts in the bay, I put a jack under the trans and pumped the trans up til it was level and bolted the trans mount in. It couldn't have taken any more than 20 - 25 minutes.

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Every time I install or remove a driveline from a Starion, I separate the engine from the transmission, except for that one time when I removed the original driveline from my Flatty, I yanked it all out as a complete unit. It then made me ask myself why I don't do it that way, every time. It's much easier doing it all as one assembly.
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  • 5 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Got some more shop time in today. Almost there now ....

 

Power Steering Pump w/ new belt installed:

http://imageshack.us/a/img96/2892/dscf1362y.jpg

 

 

Heat shields and Down Pipe back in:

http://imageshack.us/a/img577/2719/dscf1363qi.jpg

 

Turbo Bolted back up:

http://imageshack.us/a/img856/5134/dscf1364tj.jpg

 

Intercooler back on:

http://imageshack.us/a/img818/474/dscf1365r.jpg

 

Fresh Oil Cooler Lines:

http://imageshack.us/a/img401/6967/dscf1366b.jpg

 

New Heater Core Hoses from Rock Auto:

http://imageshack.us/a/img690/1302/dscf1367y.jpg

 

Where I left off today:

http://imageshack.us/a/img849/3788/dscf1368p.jpg

 

At this point I need to work on re-running the wiring harness and hooked that all back up. Get the radiator in and hook up the fans, and re-install the intake and associated piping. Not too much really .... unfortunately, b/c the car has been sitting outside for almost 14 months now during this restoration the brakes have gone to crap, so I'm going to have to do the extra work of replacing rotors, brakes, and possible rebuild kits on the calipers. Considering the amount of time I get to work on it, I'm thinking I should be up and running sometime in early May, just in time for the season.

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