HDP's Red R1

[HDP]

I decided to go with a smaller battery (51R) to allow more room for the intercooler. I made a custom tray that mounts in the same location as the stock piece. After looking at the tie-down brace installed, I decided I will make another one to match the strut brace.

[HDP]

While keeping the CAI I had, I wanted to have the filters permanently match the color of the blue used for the brake calipers, strut brace, and other accents. I used RIT navy blue dye to get them as close to the color as I possibly could.

[HDP]

Along with the fuel pump upgrade, I had to upgrade the rest of the fuel system as well. I installed the fuel pressure regulator on the front of the UIM where the stock boost control solenoids were mounted. I had to fabricate a bracket to mount the FPR to one side in order to install the fuel pressure sensor. I also upgraded my fuel injectors to provide adequate fuel for my power level goal. Thanks to David Garfinkle, I was able to mount stock 850cc in the primary rail and 1200cc in the secondary. To get everything flowing smoothly, I opted for -6an fittings and braided stainless hose connected to the hard pipes at the fire wall.

[HDP]

I also used Dale Clark's method for rewiring the fuel pump but I added my personal touch to it. After reading Dale's write-up and after examining everything, I decided to use one of the empty fuse holders in the stock fuse block to mount the fuel pump fuse. I used fuse terminals from a junk car (Mazda MX6) which is the exact match to that of the 7 and soldered it to the existing wire (see Dale's write-up for detailed directions). I pushed the fuse terminals into the fuse block and inserted the 20A fuse. I still need to label the cover for the new fuse.

[HDP]

I ported the wastegate on my 99 spec twins using a dremel tool. It was easier than I thought it would be. Not sure the exact size I ported it, but I left about 1/16" for the wastegate door to close on. Since the R1 didn't come with cruise control, I mounted the HKS Twin Power on an old cruise control module bracket I got from a forum member (can't remember who it was).

[HDP]

More to come... stay tuned.

[HDP]

Well, on to the most important item in the interior, the steering wheel. I never really cared for the plain stock wheel but didn't like most of the aftermarket wheels either. When I had visited Phil (Herblenny) on numerous occasions, I saw the display of all the steering wheels he had collected over the years and there was one that really caught my eye, an Efini wheel. I quickly dismissed the thought of getting one when he told me how much he had paid for it . I'm not a cheap bastard by any means, but there are things that I will put off until "the price is right". Fast forward about 2 year... while checking eBay, I came across the very wheel I would want as a replacement for the bland OEM one. From looking at the pics and the description given, it seemed to be in excellent condition. It was local, meaning no over-seas shipping cost, and the deal maker... it was only $78 shipped. I jumper on that deal and took receipt of my new replacement steering wheel.
According to everyone I had talked to and all the info I had read, this new steering wheel should be a direct bolt-on. After receiving it, I found that was not the case. First obvious thing was the new wheel had no airbag. In order to use it, I had to deal with this issue, so I painstakingly removed the airbag connectors, crash sensors and all related items. Next was the actual mounting of the wheel which was impossible to do and still retain the stock clock spring for the horn (and airbag if it was to be used), so here is where the major modification came into play. There was a write-up on a botched modification on another message board but I knew there was a better way to do it, so after removing the clockspring and looking at the wheel, I figured how I would go about it. After reading through the wiring schematics in the FSM, I took the steering wheel and clockspring apart.