69 510 2dr Project - VG30E/Autocross

[moath]

Passenger's side done!

 

Seams sealed!

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully this weekend I'll get the engine bay sanded and build a "booth" to paint it in.

[qwik510]

Filling some holes in the firewall.  Solo prepared class rules say no holes more than 1/8" in diameter.  Anybody got a picture of what a 510 firewall is supposed to look like?  Mine's kind of like swiss cheese.

Looking good. Nice work.

 

Here are pics of my 1970 stocker firewall after pulling the motor.

 

 

 

 

[moath]

Here are pics of my 1970 stocker firewall after pulling the motor.

Thanks!

[moath]

Shifted gears a bit this week. Started work on the brackets for the RX-7 calipers.

 

They'll work fine, but I think I'm actually going to go back to the idea of Wilwood calipers. I started comparing them to them and the Wilwood pieces have a structural piece that ties the two halves of the caliper together across the top. Here's an example I found:

 

This part should be the right piece for my purposes (the -SI bit on the end of the part number includes the bridge piece):

http://wilwood.com/Calipers/CaliperProd.aspx?itemno=120-9703-SI

 

I also did a bunch of degreasing on the crossmember and got it repainted. It looks like it's had the right modifications to deal with roll center with the car lowered without external adjusters. Nonetheless, I'll probably end up going with the GTX2 pieces from T3 for all the adjustibility:

 

I still need to do more firewall cleanup before I paint it. I think I'm going to fill in most of the standard circular holes that are still there.

[moath]

Hey. I painted the engine bay. Wanna see?

 

Primer

 

I think this was taken near the last coat.

 

This one was taken after it had a chance to cure a bit. It's a little more yellow than what I can see of the original, but I think I like it that way a bit more. It's also hard to tell if it's a different shade because the old paint just faded.

 

Any holes still in the firewall will be plugged with rubber grommets or used with the new engine.

 

 

I spent 45 minutes or so starting to clean up the engine harness. Non-chlorinated brake cleaner seems to work pretty well without damaging the plastic of the connectors. I need to heat shrink a few parts where the PO's electrical tape loom is coming apart, but overall it's in usable shape.

[Draker]

Nice work man. That bay looks great!

[moath]

I got the fuel tank back from City Radiator in downtown Portland.  They enlarged the outlet and return to fit a 1/2" ID hose, which will get plumbed up to the surge tank.

 

Here you can see the difference between the two lines internally in the tank.  One is angled down and the other is just a stub out.

 

I also wasn't able to source a replacement steering column gasket, so I decided to try making my own.  I bought a sheet of rubber from Grainger, then used a blade to cut out the bits that didn't need to be there.

 

I also took a wire wheel to the worst parts of the steering column (it had some surface rust) and painted it.  The paint dried in a weird pattern though...probably a good thing it's living under the dashboard :)

 

The B210 brake booster also got a quick tape and spray:

 

I'm still finding time here and there to keep re-assembling things.  The master cylinders and steering column are the next things on my short list.

[Draker]

Looking good man!

 

You sure that paint isn't wrinkle coat? lol.. looks like it. 

 

did you have the rad shop clean the inside of the tank and stuff too? or was it already clean?

[moath]

Looking good man!

 

You sure that paint isn't wrinkle coat? lol.. looks like it. 

 

did you have the rad shop clean the inside of the tank and stuff too? or was it already clean?

Nope, same paint can as I used for the brake booster and cross member.

 

They hot tanked the gas tank as well as enlarging the outlets and painting it when they were done. I wasn't in a hurry so I got it done for a good price.

[moath]

Steering wheel is now installed. I had a helper too :)

 

I also rolled the edges on my ignition bracket so I wouldn't slice my leg open.

 

 

I installed the reservoirs on the master cylinder too. Perfect fit!

 

I also started some work on some steering braces. I saw some on eBay made of mild steel, but I started thinking I could make a set out of aluminum and save a pound or two.

 

It's 6061 aluminum, though after a bit more research I should have gotten 7075 aluminum at this thickness (1/4"). I'll just double them up instead! I got them cut out yesterday and just need to drill out the mounting holes.

 

Hopefully kiddo falls asleep well tonight so I can get some more done.

[Draker]

Do you need any 69 interior parts?

[moath]

Do you need any 69 interior parts?

Yea, the firewall interior panels and footwell panels were basically toast and came out in pieces. I will at least need carpet to run in the Street Mod (SM) class when I get it back out for autocrossing, but I'm not super concerned about it in the meantime. Do you have some you were wanting to sell?

[Draker]

I've just got a steering column shroud and the key mount. Maybe a few other odds and ends.

[moath]

I've just got a steering column shroud and the key mount. Maybe a few other odds and ends.

You've got a PM :)

[moath]

More progress.

 

Finished the reenforcements for the steering box mount and idler arm:

I'm still finding aluminum shavings...

 

Gave the fuse box a vinegar bath and cleaned up the wiring harness. It's not all heat shrunk or anything, but I replaced a lot of the electrical tape loom that the PO had done..

 

I installed the steering box this weekend too. Next steps are re-installing the wiring haress and inspecting the bottom end of the VG30.

[moath]

What's been happening lately? Cleaned up the garage some so I can start tearing apart the engine. When I had the heads worked over there was a damaged lifter and the cylinder head shop suggested looking things over on the bottom end before putting it all back together.



Nothing too terrible on this side...


This side has a fair amount of copper showing though...


Yea, I think we're going to do some new bearings.

So at the machine shop I'm planning on having them:

• Hot tank the block and replace the freeze plugs
• Check the cylinders and hone them assuming they don't need anything more
• Clean up the deck
• Polish the crank
• Balance the flywheel (it's an Aluminum Fidanza unit) and clutch

I'll be ordering new rings, bearings, a 300zx turbo oil pump and water pump to go along with it.  Judging by the water pump that was on this engine before, it must have come out of a 4wd Pathfinder.

 

Eventually I'd love to put a turbo on this car, but for now that's not in the budget.  Might as well get the bottom end ready for it while I've got it apart though.

[moath]

Bad news from the machine shop, the bores are fairly tapered and will need at least a 0.020" bore.  They should get back to me Monday with more info on what bore it'll actually need.

[moath]

It's been a while since I updated this thing!  Fortunately, there's been some progress.

 

Engine is back from the machine shop and getting put back together.

 

My wife loves it when I use the oven for my projects :thumbup:

 

Pistons and rods assembled

 

There was one piston with some slight damage in the ring land, but I was able to file it and get things seated correctly

 

Prepping for paint

 

Primed

 

Painted

 

Assembly starting.  I'm using a 300zx Turbo oil pump and water pump, along with VG33 style adjustable cam gears so I can use a round tooth timing belt (supposedly lower friction/longer life). The crank sprocket is from a 93 Maxima with a VG30E (NOT the VG30DE).

 

Disassembly of the 200SX intakes for soda blasting.  They have a lot of grime on them.

 

Also repainted the VG30E comp oil pan.  I bought it used from a guy back east that was going to an SR in his car.

 

After we get home from Christmas I'm hoping to finish assembling the engine and attaching it to the transmission before the beginning of the year.

[moath]

Progress has been a bit slower than I'd like, but it's getting more and more complete.  I got most of the accessories mounted up tonight..just missing one stupid exhaust manifold nut and washer.

 

[Big_E-Dog]

no timing belt cover??

 

looking good either way. ass for the turbo i had one on my maxima with no problems on the na motor with na pistons.. hell im thinking about doing it again in the wagon.

 

didnt hear you say anything about timing hope you got it right if not all that work and money will be for not first time of startup when ya bend valves......

[moath]

no timing belt cover??

 

looking good either way. ass for the turbo i had one on my maxima with no problems on the na motor with na pistons.. hell im thinking about doing it again in the wagon.

 

didnt hear you say anything about timing hope you got it right if not all that work and money will be for not first time of startup when ya bend valves......

If I find the cover I'll put it back on, but so far I think it's buried in a Tupperware in my garage.

 

I think there's an eBay turbo in my future, but I'll probably go NA for a while so I can get the car sorted out and save up for engine management and fuel injector upgrades.

 

As for the timing, I've rotated the crank many times to set the tension on the bend and check for interference and all is well so far.

[Busta Nut]

Amazing work man!!

[Big_E-Dog]

omg you didnt use the marks??

 

 

not over reacting or notin just dont wanna see all your good work go to crap

[moath]

omg you didnt use the marks??

 

 

not over reacting or notin just dont wanna see all your good work go to crap

Oh! The marks are on the back cover, and everything was lined up for the tensioning of the belt. Once you turn the belt to do the tensioning procedure they move off the marks on the belt, but the marks on the sprockets all line up. Does that make sense?

[moath]

Amazing work man!!

Thanks!