EDM620 Posted July 4, 2022 Report Share Posted July 4, 2022 About the only reason not to go with the new Y is just for the sensor, but not like you really need that do ya? Hell I'd forgotten just how much fun it is working through the damn doghouse and around the seat mounts n shit. Better you than me! Those new headers are shiny! 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 4, 2022 Report Share Posted July 4, 2022 1 hour ago, EDM620 said: About the only reason not to go with the new Y is just for the sensor, but not like you really need that do ya? Hell I'd forgotten just how much fun it is working through the damn doghouse and around the seat mounts n shit. Better you than me! Those new headers are shiny! I am 100% sure that Texas doesn't require a smog sniffer test on a 1997 vehicle. I am also 100% sure that the "smog test" for an OBDII car is done though said OBDII port when a smog check is required. I am 98.2356714% sure that a 1997 vehicle does not even require that smog test. And I am 100% sure there is no (way anyone could do a) visual inspection to see if the cat is there (with the van as low as it is). Having said all of that, everyting I am reading says that I need the first O2 sensor for the engine to run right. The second one is just for the dirty hippies out there crying, "Waa waa waa! We gotta have clean air! Waa waa!" Oh, stupid autocorrect! I typed "to keep the check engine light off." Also, we figured out that if you unbolt the passenger seat base at the floor, it will scoot back out of the way of the doghouse. Then there's ample room to work. Wait, is "ample" the word I want there? Hmm... no. "Almost enough" is what I meant to say! Quote Link to comment
EDM620 Posted July 4, 2022 Report Share Posted July 4, 2022 Now there's some good news... even if you're only 98.2356714% sure 😄 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted July 4, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2022 (edited) After pulling a few more bolts, and straining my guts out, autotragic is gone... And flex plate/flywheel is gone... You may also notice the flange on the back of the crank is only 3/4" thick, so these ARP bolts are about as long as they can be and still work... Got the manual flywheel in and torqued down... Tried to put in the pilot bearing but hit another snag. Seems this transmission is set up for a needle bearing that goes in a steel sleeve, not a bronze bushing that goes down inside the crank like the older cars do. Our clutch kit came with a new needle bearing, but not the steel sleeve. I found the right part number to get a bearing with the sleeve though... Once we get that installed in the crank, we are just about ready to stab the manual. After taking some measurements today, I think there's a cross brace on the floor we will need to modify to get the trans in there, though. Stay tuned... Edited July 4, 2022 by datsunfreak 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 5, 2022 Report Share Posted July 5, 2022 And since I am currently a multi-thousandaire... 17x8 American Racing Torq Thrusts baby! Many thanks to John "Bad Influence" Roper for driving me over to Summit Racing and enabling my dumbassery by transporting these back to the shop. 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 5, 2022 Report Share Posted July 5, 2022 11 hours ago, EDM620 said: Now there's some good news... even if you're only 98.2356714% sure 😄 We've decided to just run the cat and both O2 sensors because... I don't know. Laziness? Sure. We'll go with that. Quote Link to comment
EDM620 Posted July 5, 2022 Report Share Posted July 5, 2022 35 minutes ago, dimlight65 said: Laziness? Nah, that's proactive energy conservation at its finest 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted July 7, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 One step forward, two steps back... Got the pilot bearing in, so went to install the clutch and found out our clutch cover bolts were the wrong size... 😄 Tim was working on installing the headers, and may show you some pics shortly... Also couldn't resist chucking up a wheel for a look see. Nice... 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 43 minutes ago, datsunfreak said: Tim was working on installing the headers, and may show you some pics shortly... Well, if you insist. Got the cast iron manifolds out, Popped the passenger side header in for a look-see It in focus in real life. I noticed it really is the hugger of blocks though, I'm going to have to forego the oil cooler until I can get some longer hoses. I needed another set of hands to install the driver's side header so it sits on the floor for now 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 7, 2022 Report Share Posted July 7, 2022 I also removed the ratchet shifter from the House of Dogs and sat there looking at the four 1/2" bolt holes. I know, I'll make a fire extinguisher mount! Is it beefy? Hell yeah! Is it overkill? Double hell yeah! Do I care? Not in the least. 2 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted July 9, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2022 Hole cut for shifter, slightly oversized. This took waaaay longer than it should have... Tires mounted... And on the van... Front needed a spacer to clear the hub, so we took the 1" adapters off the back and put them on the front, then put our old set of 1.5" adapters on the back. We won't know until it's on the ground if this is the final fit up... 3 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 12, 2022 Report Share Posted July 12, 2022 On 7/9/2022 at 3:33 PM, datsunfreak said: Hole cut for shifter, slightly oversized. This took waaaay longer than it should have... And the reason being... There's a whopping great crossmember right where we want the transmission to go! Well, there was a whopping great crossmember where we wanted the transmission to go. Now there's half a whopping great crossmember behind where we want the transmission to go. We measured once and cut twice to make sure we have the spacing correct. Also, I installed the clutch while John was off retrieving my wheels and tires from the tire shop. Hello Mr. Clutch! I see you way over there! 1 Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted July 12, 2022 Report Share Posted July 12, 2022 I was thinking about you guys today. I put a new spin-on oil adapter in my '40 Ford. It's held in by two 5/16" bolts, and the torque specs are 7.5 foot pounds! I double-checked the interwebs, and indeed that was the torque spec. No mention in the manual, but I went to 8lbs, and also added some Blue Loctite on the threads...Surprisingly, 8lbs of torque required more pressure than I would have thought.. Okay, back to your badass manual trans install. I think your van will be WAY more fun to drive when its all said and done. 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 13, 2022 Report Share Posted July 13, 2022 (edited) 4 hours ago, Duncan said: I went to 8lbs, and also added some Blue Loctite on the threads Edited July 13, 2022 by dimlight65 Better meme clip 1 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 13, 2022 Report Share Posted July 13, 2022 5 hours ago, Duncan said: I think your van will be WAY more fun to drive when its all said and done. This is what we are hoping as well. I know my five-speed Smart car is fun to drive even though it isn't all that fast. Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted July 13, 2022 Report Share Posted July 13, 2022 2 minutes ago, dimlight65 said: This is what we are hoping as well. I know my five-speed Smart car is fun to drive even though it isn't all that fast. Same with Datsuns with L-Series. Really simple and really fun. 1 Quote Link to comment
Skib Posted July 13, 2022 Report Share Posted July 13, 2022 I just went threw this whole tread... god damn this thing is silly... but in the best way lol Its definitely a Dajiban 2 1 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted July 14, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2022 We got the transmission in!!! 😁 Started looking at how to do the mounting of it. Figured out if we make a choice cut on the crossmember... Then use the rubber isolator from the manual truck... And now she fits like a glove. So we started looking top side and think we will go with something like this (once we close the hole)... Also looked at installing the headers. Right side is in, left side is fighting us. Tim probably has oics... 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 14, 2022 Report Share Posted July 14, 2022 33 minutes ago, datsunfreak said: Also looked at installing the headers. Right side is in, left side is fighting us. Tim probably has oics... Oh... um... yeah. About that. You see... the thing is... uhhhhh. No, I don't. I forgot. Sorry. I do have a couple of my progress on the GPS speedo! Cut a clearance hole so I can hook up the antenna and access the function button (black spot next to the red thing which is the antenna connector). Then I agonized over how I was going to wire the thing. I traced the circuit board and I am 99.2754639% sure I know what pins do what. I crimped on tiny little ring terminals and slipped them over the pins of the master plug. Red goes to +12v. Yellow goes to illumination. and black goes to ground. 3 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 14, 2022 Report Share Posted July 14, 2022 (edited) On 7/6/2022 at 9:15 PM, dimlight65 said: I'm going to have to forego the oil cooler until I can get some longer hoses. I have longer hoses. What we're going to do is run 90° hose ends at the sandwich plate so the hoses run straight to the frame rail, then we'll use straight fittings on the cooler. And this time I'm going to make sure the pressure side feeds into the bottom of the cooler. It might have been plumbed that way before, but we just slapped it together the first time, so there's no telling. I debated relocating the filter, but decided 1) I already have all the components to make it work, and B) there really isn't a good location for the filter that's any less inconvenient than stock. Edited July 14, 2022 by dimlight65 Quote Link to comment
datsunfreak Posted July 16, 2022 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2022 We took the driver's header back off so Tim could run a tap through all the holes... Then we studded the ends... Now both headers are in... While he did that, I made a thing... To go here... Decided that was good, so modded that to fit the boot, and... Then Tim decided to trim the stick down about an inch and weld in a stud for a knob. We nabbed the knob and angle corrector from the old ratchet shifter. Trying to decide between straight... Or pointing up... Took that back apart to paint the stick and angle corrector satin black. Should be able to reinstall Wednesday and make it "permanent". We also got the starter back in, the new clutch slave installed, and measured for a clutch line. Driveshaft is being resized as we speak, so we are getting very close... 2 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 16, 2022 Report Share Posted July 16, 2022 (edited) Well, John seems to have covered everything pretty well. So I'll just add that I made a couple washers to sammich the shift boot. They go here. Edited July 16, 2022 by dimlight65 2 Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted July 17, 2022 Report Share Posted July 17, 2022 That looks good! I'm thinking the angled up shifter might be more comfortable to operate, but what do I know? Seems like you were just thinking about going to a manual, and there it is looking pretty much done! Nice...👍 1 Quote Link to comment
dimlight65 Posted July 17, 2022 Report Share Posted July 17, 2022 2 hours ago, Duncan said: That looks good! I'm thinking the angled up shifter might be more comfortable to operate, but what do I know? Seems like you were just thinking about going to a manual, and there it is looking pretty much done! Nice...👍 LOL. Actually, what worked best and was most comfortable was using the angle thingy to point the thing forward. It looked totally stupid though so that's not in the running. The second most comfortable, for me, was straight. Angled up was the least comfortable for me, but looked the best... until I saw these pictures. I think I'm going to vote for straight. And since it's my van...😋 Yeah, my mind is swimming a bit at how quickly this is going down! But, even though I'm not showing it in person, I am super excited about this project. Quote Link to comment
Duncan Posted July 17, 2022 Report Share Posted July 17, 2022 2 hours ago, dimlight65 said: And since it's my van...😋 You are the ruler of your domain.. My opinion is always worth what you pay for it... I've always liked vans, and I've had metric shitloads of them over the years. My current daily driver is an HHR panel van. Seeing yours makes me Jones for another full sizer.. 1 Quote Link to comment
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