Naomi: Can't keep a good bitch down!

[Sharingan 19]

Remember back when I broke that oil metering pump line removing the LIM? Well i eventually had to fix it and for cheap (as always). After searching for Turbo omp lines for a while and considering ordering the supplies to build my own I found a great deal (free since I was ordering something else) from a forum member for some n/a lines. Unlike ss line which can bend the stock lines are molded, especially used ones. Fortunately these had a little give in them and I was able to make them work.


So, for the record N/A omp lines will work on a turbo block. The one caveat being that they don't go to the same injector location they would on the n/a block, but as long as injector has a line I'm happy.



The lines were color coded (not sure if this is a factory application or something the PO did to assist with his installation :scratch.

[Sharingan 19]

So, after freeing up both the intake and exhaust I was greeted with the pleasant surprise of crisp throttle response, more power, better acceleration, and a wonderful sound. I was also greeted with the unpleasant surprise of the stock ecu's 8.5 psi fuel cut

It was fine while the weather was warm but when it started to cool down I would have to shift early to avoid hitting fuel cut, and when it actually got cold it was so bad that I couldn't even merge into traffic. So I babied her around for months saving for an ecu (I did not an still don't trust band aids like fuel cut defenders).

well, apparently secondary injectors don't like going unused for long periods of time so when the weather warmed up and I tried to boost I was getting all kinds of bucking, studdering and hesitation. I changed the fuel pump...no help. So next on the lest was the in-tank fuel pump sock, I cracked it open and discovered a fair amount of rust , varnish and sediment.

First step was to drain the gas. Make shift fuel can FTW!


Then the insides:




I wan't going to pay to have it cleaned, so I researched/tried various DIY methods:
There were some guys (apparently malnurished contortionists children) who reached in an scrubed their tanks...no real man can do this.
There was a redneck on youtube shaking his tank with small rocks and old gas inside....tried it, it does NOT work.
There were some VW guys putting acid in their tanks...as a general rule nothing VW guys do is a good idea, lol
Finally I ran across a product called evapo-rust that made some pretty bold claims and has been used by motorcycle guys with good success.

All I can say is WOW! I picked up a gallon ( I would recommend 2) , poured it in and proceed to rotate the tank into a variety of positions over the next 3 days allow roughly 6-10 hours in each position.

[Sharingan 19]

In preparation from my future ecu upgrade I used this as an opportunity to revamp the entire fuel system:

• Areomotive A1000 fpr with fluid filled gauge
  -6 lines/fittings
  Converted the fuel system to parallel flow
  New fuel filter
  New fuel pump outlet hose
  Flushed the hard lines
  I found a set of used 720's and sent them off with the stock 550's to be cleaned and flow tested at Injector Rehab.

Unfortunately during the process of removing the primary fuel rail one of the bolts snapped. I was in a rush so I tried to bolt down the other side tight enough to hold the rail.....DON'T do this. Fuel leaked like I had a bad PD. I then tried to use and easy out to remove the bolt....DON'T do this. It snapped and it took 3 rather expensive drill bits to eventually drill out the easy out and bolt .

[Sharingan 19]

Also in preparation for my ecu (and eventually a turbo) upgrade, I decided to do something about that restrictive heatsoak-prone top mount. As with everything else, I set out to do this in a cost effective manner, so I gathered some supplies:

• Evo 9 IC $50
• Various 80's-90's Volvo IC pipes and clamps $30

My first thought was a FMIC setup, since they are popular and well documented. However I didn't want long runs of piping, and the lag they produce. I looked into the corksport FMIC which has slightly shorter piping and a core thats almost the exact size as the one I had but it required some pretty specific bends that would increase the cost of the project and even a short-pipe FMIC is a decent amount of piping.


The next thought was doing a middle mount setup, positioning the IC above the oil cooler but still in front of the rad. The piping would be shorter and thus easier to route and less laggy. However the core was too large for that and I would have no place for the a/c condenser.



Finally I placed in in a VMIC configuration....like it was meant to be. Shortest possible piping, easiest routing, plenty of space for the condenser, and it looked like the pieces I had would be enough to get the job done. The problem with the v mount is that cutting and welding of the IC core became a requirement as well as fashioning mounts for the rad (at least)


Decisions decisions....

[MrNizzles]

Dood, you seriously got INTO this car.. damn. Sorry u had the accident. keep up the good work and good luck in the future.

[Sharingan 19]

back...

[GySgtFrank]

Originally Posted by Sharingan 19

back...

updates?

[scarsofcarma]

First of all, great project! You have good taste I like the look of this FC.

Originally Posted by Sharingan 19

No worries, I found a great deal on a set of Ground Controls on Tociko Blues. Certainly not a raceworthy setup but damn sure better than what I had both in terms of performance and appearance.

Lots of people knock Ground Controls in favor of full coilovers but in all honesty real coilovers are often over-hyped. Ground Control uses Eibach racing springs, some of the finest springs made. I ran GC's w/ blue's for a while and then upgraded to AGX's. A very decent setup IMO. If I was going to spend money on real coilovers I wouldn't go mainstream off-the-shelf either, I'd get a custom set made by these guys...

www.fatcatmotorsports.com

That'd be worth paying for. I talked to one of their tech's before at a meet who has an FC. After talking to him about the setup on his FC I know these guys know what they're doing. Fat Cat bumpstops for example are used by MAZDASPEED.

Originally Posted by Pete_89T2

Have you considered the Borla dual catback? That's what I've been running since 2000, and I'm very happy with it. All SS construction, very similar in performance, sound & quality when compared to the RB catback. After about 12 years on it there is barely any surface rust on any of the pipes, and the muffler cans & tips still look brand new. It is heavy though, but probably just as heavy as the RB or any other dual system.

I dig the Borla dual catback, I ran it on my 91 and it sounded very good. Super well made too. I don't remember it being heavy at all though, quite the contrary. I think it would take at least 2 Borla's to = 1 Racing Beat exhaust in terms of weight.

Originally Posted by Sharingan 19

#1 The dumbass Florida Highway patrol officer didn't cite her for the accident, they didn't even walk the scene and write a real report, and with no non-involved witnesses it becoms my word vs. the dumb bitch in a wheel chair who can't drive.

Dude I feel your pain. My first FC got t-boned directly into my drivers door by a woman who was speeding and uninsured and not even driving her own car. What's worse, when I heard her tires squealing I got the hell out of her way (entire out of the lane she was in) but it didn't matter, she steered herself into me anyway.

The moment before she hit me, before I blacked out I remember the terrifying feeling of shock and bewilderment wondering why his person was seemingly trying to kill me?!

She hit my FC so hard I was launched across 2 lanes into a pole. I regained consciousness a few minutes later as the paramedics were pulling me out of the passenger side because they couldn't get my drivers door open with the jaws of life. It was crushed inward to the point that it bruised my hip.

My whole body felt like one big bruise. The aching and the pain were terrible. However I didn't think I had anything to worry about legally because she was so obviously at fault. However, just as in your case, the police failed to properly survey the accident scene and interview witnesses. The woman was scared and sobbing so they took pity on her and bought her story that the young guy in the red sports car must've been to blame.

I went back and surveyed the scene myself taking pictures and measurements. Her skidmarks were over a hundred feet long and curved right at the end, out of her lane, into the center lane where she hit me. The police refused to reopen the case though so I got stuck with a totalled FC and no compensation because the cops put me half at fault even though I had uninsured motorist coverage.

I'm glad your FC looks salvageable, mine wasn't... but I had four more afterwards so its all good

[speedjunkie]

Originally Posted by Sharingan 19

There were some VW guys putting acid in their tanks...as a general rule nothing VW guys do is a good idea, lol

This made me LOL.

What are the dimensions of the core of that EVO IC?

[Sharingan 19]

Wow, I have some heavy duty updating to do...

First of all , thanks for all the comments guys, its certainly a work in progress but slowly but surely its coming around. The next few updates will be pretty fast and furious, as they were completed a while back.

Now, to bring this thread current...

[Sharingan 19]

While trying to figure out The IC situation I decided to handle something a little more straight forward. As part of the "No 10ae left behind act" I vowed to use ever part that I could from the one I found in the yard, that included the interior.
Stripping out the old interior


The Red sun roof you see here is a replacement for the original which was rusted through near the drain. This water ran down the A-pillar and pooled in the floor...or more accurately absorbed into the spongy material under the carpet, which made removal a bit of a mess.


Progress! I thought for a split second about grabbing some dry ice to tear out the sound deadening, but i was pressed for time and came to the conclusion that in a daily, the minor reduction in weight isn't worth the hassle.


The old carpet next to the new one


Installed


As mentioned previously the 10ae (and Infini) had bronze tinted glass. One more item saved from an ignominious death at the junk yard


Installed with new door panels on the right, old ones on the left

[Sharingan 19]

So I made up my mind, V-mount for sure! In order to make more room for the necessary fabrication (and clean up the clutter in the engine bay....and improve weight balance) I decided to relocate the batter to the passenger storage bin. I also scooped up a pre-87 coolant reservoir which is located on the drive strut tower instead of right in front of the radiator.



Leveling the mounding brackets for the battery box


150amp breaker...check.
2 gauge welding cable...check


Platinum Power!


Since I had the interior largely disassembled and I was playing with electricity I figured I'd go ahead and replace the tired old and hot incandescent bulbs with LEDs

Map lights are 30* cone single "amber" LED's from SuperbrightLEDs.com They aren't the brightest but them provide enough light to read....a map. If anyone these days is still competent enough to use one /rant. But they are dim enough to keep on without them being distracting kinda like an "attack mode" of sorts


Decided to touch up the sunroof switch since I had it removed. Not sure why mazda made these white in the first place?


Dome light is a 4-LED wide cone unit that slips right into the factory fuse-style socket. Yes, its as bright as it looks

[Sharingan 19]

Finally got around to getting the V-mount fabbed up, no easy task as this is my daily, but when there's a will, there's a way. While I had the basic concept and most of the parts necessary, the devil is in the details and I did not possess the welding skill to make it happen. So I enlisted the help of a fellow forum member, and this was the mock up.








More details on the K-Tec V-mount setup can be found here: http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=933572

[Sharingan 19]

Once the mount locations were finalized and the pipe routing was worked out the project started really coming together. The fans were placed on top of the a/c condenser because it was believed there wasn't enough room to fit them between the cross bar and the top tank of the rad


IC uses a 2" inlet because that is the outlet size of the stock (as well as hybrid) turbos. and the outlet is 2.5"


Going to have to work on clearing out this area. Removing the stock coolant overflow was a big help, but there is still plenty of obstruction left. Testing would reveal how much a problem it really is

[Sharingan 19]

A seemingly minor, yet important change to the setup, I swapped the fans from pushers (inefficient) to pullers (more efficient) and moved them between the cross bar and top tank of the rad. They BARELY fit, but them fit.




In an effort to provide additional cooling I also made some bumper vents. These are the V1 prototypes and while not exactly stylish they do keep temps in check on the highway