Another “ since I’ve gone this far” thread

[Mike7447]

Elsewhere in another thread I stated my plan to upgrade the 72k mile engine in my 89 tsi. I said I wanted to upgrade the turbo, add an external waste gate and bov upgrade the fuel system, to supply the 4 separate injectors, and DIY convert the intake to MPI, control the engine with a MS3 pro. Replace the distributor with a plugged hole, and run LS coils in a wasted spark config.

here is where I am as a result:

exhaust and intake manifolds off, im gonna pressure wash the lower part of the engine tomorrow. Since it’s this far apart, is there anything else I should consider doing before putting stuff back on?

Edited May 5, 2024 by Mike7447

[psu_Crash]

If there is anything you want to do with the steering box or its lines. Now is the time while the intake is off. Sounds like you already have a good plan. Clean it while you can get to it. 

I assume you plan to install a trigger wheel on the crank for the MS tach input? Just FYI you can run a modified distributor from a mighty max that will give you crank and cam signal. Then you have the option of sequential down the road. If you want more details just let me know. 

 

[Mike7447]

3 hours ago, psu_Crash said:

If there is anything you want to do with the steering box or its lines. Now is the time while the intake is off. Sounds like you already have a good plan. Clean it while you can get to it. 

I assume you plan to install a trigger wheel on the crank for the MS tach input? Just FYI you can run a modified distributor from a mighty max that will give you crank and cam signal. Then you have the option of sequential down the road. If you want more details just let me know. 

 

I appreciate that, but right now, the words “ batch fire”, and “ wasted spark” are my go-to to keep the tune simple. I pulled the distributor, it appears that it does nothing other than “distribute” the spark like any other old school dist. Based on that, it will get omitted and the hole plugged.

i do intend to run a crank trigger. No springs, no vacuum advance to mess with, and a much cleaner engine as far as wires go.

[psu_Crash]

12 hours ago, Mike7447 said:

I appreciate that, but right now, the words “ batch fire”, and “ wasted spark” are my go-to to keep the tune simple. I pulled the distributor, it appears that it does nothing other than “distribute” the spark like any other old school dist. Based on that, it will get omitted and the hole plugged.

i do intend to run a crank trigger. No springs, no vacuum advance to mess with, and a much cleaner engine as far as wires go.

Staying with wasted spark definitely reduces the amount initial setup heads aches. you are correct, the distributor is just that. There are a couple guys who sell the dizzy block off plate. Here's one. 

https://www.motocam360.com/component/hikashop/product/174-starquest-distributor-blockoff-plate

You are way ahead of the curve already. Sounds to me like you know exactly what you're doing. I'll sit back and wait for the updates 😎

[Mike7447]

8 hours ago, psu_Crash said:

Staying with wasted spark definitely reduces the amount initial setup  x heads aches. you are correct, the distributor is just that. There are a couple guys who sell the dizzy block off plate. Here's one. 

https://www.motocam360.com/component/hikashop/product/174-starquest-distributor-blockoff-plate

You are way ahead of the curve already. Sounds to me like you know exactly what you're doing. I'll sit back and wait for the updates 😎

I bought the trigger wheel from that company, but 44.00 for a piece of aluminum  with a hole in it seems a little stee. My plans for a distributor hole block off plug comes straight off the AZ help counter in the form of an expando-freeze plug.

That said:

The only thing I know exactly about is that I dont know nuthin bout birthin no babies.🤔

In addition to that “unknown”, I don’t know for sure about:

1. how to get the crank pulley/balancer off.

2.With a 250-300 hp goal in mind, is the factory intercooler adequate?

3. What size ev-1 injector should I get in cc or lb per hour to adequately supply the fuel ( will probably use MS recommendations from mega-manual)

4. Whether I should build a new intake from scratch, or modify the stocker to accommodate the injection.

 

I just don’t know.

 

[psu_Crash]

Getting that pulley off can be fun. Strategic percussion application and a puller work best in my experience. 

There are still some multi port intake manifolds out there for sale if you look around a bit. Modifying a mitsubishi magna intake (never sold in the USA) is a very popular option, also what I am currently running. There have been a lot of DIY multi injector manifolds over the years too. So pick your poison there. 

I ran 75# low impedance EV-1 injectors for a long time putting down more power than your goal. I would still recommend something in that size range though so you have a little head room in the future. 

The stock intercooler is too small for any real upgrades in my opinion. You can get an upgraded IC from CX Racing that is tried and true. 

 

[Mike7447]

20 hours ago, psu_Crash said:

Getting that pulley off can be fun. Strategic percussion application and a puller work best in my experience. 

There are still some multi port intake manifolds out there for sale if you look around a bit. Modifying a mitsubishi magna intake (never sold in the USA) is a very popular option, also what I am currently running. There have been a lot of DIY multi injector manifolds over the years too. So pick your poison there. 

I ran 75# low impedance EV-1 injectors for a long time putting down more power than your goal. I would still recommend something in that size range though so you have a little head room in the future. 

The stock intercooler is too small for any real upgrades in my opinion. You can get an upgraded IC from CX Racing that is tried and true. 

 

This thread appears to be a two person party, so I’m sorry in advance if you are the only recipient of my replies. 
 

None of the old pics work here, and the gallery pics just go black when I try to open one. Is there any actual examples of how people have plumbed a traditional intercooler out the opposite end back into the engine compartment somewhere?

[tux]

I relocated the battery to do mine.

I come through where my washer bottle was and up to the intake.

 

I converted over to mpi though

[kev]

On 5/9/2024 at 8:34 AM, Mike7447 said:

This thread appears to be a two person party, so I’m sorry in advance if you are the only recipient of my replies. 
 

None of the old pics work here, and the gallery pics just go black when I try to open one. Is there any actual examples of how people have plumbed a traditional intercooler out the opposite end back into the engine compartment somewhere?

 

Here's mine...this is the CX racing intercooler but not too much different than the stock one.  I would cut the factory piping off the stock intercooler and weld in 2.25" inlet/outlets.    More of the detailed photos in this link:  Intercooler Piping | Hot Rod Forum (hotrodders.com)

 

 

 

 

[psu_Crash]

There's the rest of the party! 

I routed mine very similar to how Kev did it. Just with a lot less shiny! 

[Mike7447]

Wow!.. thanks for the replies…

Kev, that looks really great.

I know interest in a thread  in a forum lasts only as long as there are pictures,….and it’s my intent to start posting the progress I’m making.. but I’m not the guy that’s one to post ghastly pictures of “ attempts” of fixing junk.

Im about 3 weeks into this new car, Despite what the online seller stated about the lower front fender “ surface rust” they are far more rotted than what can be labeled as surface rust.

i think after tomorrow, I’ll have a decent “ before and after” set of pics to show how I dealt with that. Along with the urethane cracks in the front bumper.

If I can get to a point where I’m proud enough to post the progress pics of what I’ve done, I’ll post them tomorrow night. Right now, working on them about 2 hours a day, I’m about 75% done to a point where I’d consider them “ roughed” together.

its all hand fabbed stuff…I’m pretty confident that I can make it look good. 

Tomorrow will tell about that.

As for the intercooler, I’m keeping the AC in the car, that means an Air to water unit mounted between the lower crank pulley and the radiator with a heat exchanger taking up the space the old a2a took up is the plan.

Edited May 11, 2024 by Mike7447

[psu_Crash]

Most of us are hacks compared to Kev's work, so don't worry about judgement here! 

i spent the past 4 years cutting rust out of mine, then fabbing and welding. There is ALWAYS more rust then you think. 

Looking forward to some pics of your progress to keep this thread alive 😊 Very interested to see am air/water IC setup and how you do it. 

[Mike7447]

Today would’ve been a win. I got both fenders close enough to put them in primer.  If tomorrow wouldn’t have been Mother’s Day, they'd both be back on the car painted.  ( no way in hell I’m getting away with spending one minute on the car)

And you’d be right to wonder where the problem is then….fenders free of the rust,…bodywork’d and almost read for paint….

One of the freakin fenders fell off the work stand and is now royally f’d. 
There was an intermittent breeze/wind today, and a gust came along and pushed the fender right off the stand. It fell face down of course. Paint is damaged in several places.

If you zoom you’ll see the carnage. When it hit the ground, I had a full on meltdown that was followed by a mandatory cool down session to keep from having a stroke in my driveway.

Now that that is done, I’m conflicted.

I bought a paint kit on line. It came with a rattle can of this color- ( Light Buckskin Metallic), a rattle can of clear, a rattle can of primer, a small bottle of prep-sol, a tack rag and a trigger Handle to better control the rattle can for 100.00 bucks. It also came with a “ spray card” so you can make sure the paint will match. 
It looks like it’ll be really close.

Down low on the fender, it would’ve been imperceptible if there was a slight color mismatch…. But if that whole freakin fender has to be repainted,…. You’re gonna see the mismatch.

The paint on the car is 35 years old.

The car has been bakin in the Arizona sun for many years.

The rattle can is 12 ounces….. It might paint the whole fender… it might not. It might look good enough, it might look like a ss when it’s done.

Im banking on a ss.

I’ve painted before. It’s been a 50/50 experience.

I could go to a paint supplier and have them mix me up a qt of base, and buy the required clear and all of the other crap ( reducer, hardener) to make it sprayable….

And have me a wrong colored fender that’s way too shiny.

See what I mean?….Conflicted.

I digress.

The longer the car sits, the more likely it’ll sit.

its officially in jackstand hell already.

The rotors are all rusty, the sun keeps beatin down on my dried out interior,…I keep dousing the seats in leather conditioner,….And I keep adding junk to the “ plan”

I have to dump pictures though… I said I would.

The car was purchased off auction. The seller stated that the car had some surface rust in the lower fenders.

this is what “ surface rust” looks like to this guy.

You get the picture..

I made the patches in 3 pieces. The rolled part, the part that bolts to the body, and the front edge that the plastic inner fender panel bolts to. They all got Frankenstein’d together and the lap welded. That way, I was able to adjust the fitment using welding clamps and clecos to hold everything together till it got welded up.

From there it’s body filler and paint.

 

Edited May 12, 2024 by Mike7447

[psu_Crash]

Of course something has to kick you while you think it's good! Paint the whole fender and in a month you will be ready to paint the whole car. I would do as small of a spot as possible and try to feather it out. I hear you on the paint though. Sometimes it goes great. Sometimes .... 

Those patch panels look good to me! The moment you saw a spot on the outside of the rear quarter, we all knew what you would find. Keep up the good work! Once it's driving again you will remember why you fight with it 

[Mike7447]

Well,… I got up and immediately did the honey-doos that I said I’d get to tomorrow ( today). 
That left me with a few hours to mess with the car.
I’ve managed to take on so much with this project, I can spin 180 degrees and still find something to spend several hours messing with.

The cooling fans got my half day today.

I don’t know how long ago, but I  bought a radiator for the 1980 Corvette project that takes up my lower garage. The fans that came with it were deemed insufficient, and I popped for a mega-sucker Derale unit to put on the radiator, as corvettes are notorious for bad cooling issues.

 

That left a completely functional dual 12” fan mounted shroud with no place to go.

Until today.

I mounted the thing in place of the two old factory fans, it fit almost perfectly…. Only had to modify the thing for the radiator hoses . 
The radiator was full of crud, but I think it’s adequately flushed, The brackets I made to mount the cooling fans are painted and drying,… the holding point is that IDK if I want the radiator pressure checked  before I consider it done enough to put it in the “ complete” column. I’m of the mind set that it’s easier to have something checked while it’s out, rather than put it together and find out afterwards that it leaks.
 

Edited May 13, 2024 by Mike7447

[BKB94]

My experience with the ready to spray cans is its very thin and does not cover well. I did a dark green fender and it took 3 cans, your result may very.

[Mike7447]

4 hours ago, BKB94 said:

My experience with the ready to spray cans is its very thin and does not cover well. I did a dark green fender and it took 3 cans, your result may very.

This is one of those custom mixed and then “ injected” into a spray can things. When using the supplied spray card on a white base, it took very few coats to match the paint color.

It’s lacquer I’m pretty sure, easy to fix should I “f” it up. the paint on the car is showing its age, I don’t think it’ll matter much at this point.

Edited May 13, 2024 by Mike7447

[Mike7447]

Ok…( man I hate freakin paint and body work..)

The lesser of the two fender projects met its 90% completion date today. Not without several self-inflicted calamities mind you…

This fender only needed the new bottom blended into the existing fender. Despite my declarations that it was good to go, primer revealed that it was not.

After about 3 of those come to jesus moments, I finally came to a “ F” it moment and decided that the paint job on the rest of the car determined howjz I should be on the repair. It’s not great by no means, but it looks way better than rusty- a ss holes in the bottom of the fenders.

At least on the easy side.

This may or may not tell any tales to a seasoned body/paint guy. at this point, I was confident enough to clear it.

those diagonal things are some kind of optical phenomenon, I swear they are not there in real life. At this point, I’m waiting on paint to dry. I’ll wetsand and buff to blend, paint the bottom with a bed liner to protect the bottom ( and to try and match what’s goin on underneath) and this side is done

On 4/9/2013 at 10:33 AM, jszucs said:

Edited May 22, 2024 by Mike7447

[kev]

It came out really good.   I actually love doing the fab/welding work, just hate when it comes to painting.   My anxiety goes through the roof when It is time to spray...usually because I always mess it up in some way or fashion.  

[LizardKing]

That came out fantastic! Nice job!

[Forklift]

Looks good, where's the next update?

[Mike7447]

2 hours ago, Forklift said:

Looks good, where's the next update?

all future progress updates quarantined to the Darkstar thread. Thanks