conebasher Posted December 19, 2015 Author Share Posted December 19, 2015 My rear roll center was 7.5" at it's lowest setting and I could make the suspension work with this but I would rather have a little more adjustment. The axle side mount needed to be re-made so here's what it looks like now and a video of how I did it: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted December 20, 2015 Author Share Posted December 20, 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted December 20, 2015 Author Share Posted December 20, 2015 It's been a deeply frustrating week. The HPTuner has not been able to turn off or turn on whatever it needs to do to get the engine to run. Another person on the HPT Forum with an Ecotec LHU was successful getting theirs to run but they left their Body Control Module, Transmission Control Module and Fuel system intact-I have none of those things. There was a theory that I needed a relay installed, which required the whole wiring harness removed and sent out to be wired up and I did that but nothing changed. The company that modified my wiring harness insists that it is done correctly and that had I gone with the tuner they recommended, I would not be having this trouble. I didn't go with their recommended tuner because they will sell one tune and if I wanted any changes made, it would cost more. With HPT I can make as many changes as I want to.The latest blow is that GM now sells (for $2200 USD) a complete wiring harness/ECM to run my engine and the kit description talks about the required 84 psi fuel pressure to feed the high pressure pump. My low pressure fuel pump is only 14 psi so now I'm thinking I have to scrap the pump I just bought and get something else. Fortunately, I still have the pump from the Ford 5.0 and it's capable of the required pressure but it does mean I have to get a bunch more of the AN fittings and adapters to make it work. On the plus side, Briget is excited about the car and is going in to work early to do the bodywork. Some have criticized the color choice of the car but trust me, if you get your wife on board by giving her creative licence over your cars colors, it makes the build go a lot smoother. Personally, I would have gone with GoMango orange frame and black bodywork but it's not my department. Here's a short clip of Briget at work on the cowl: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Need my Focusin Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 I like you new video based format. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted December 25, 2015 Author Share Posted December 25, 2015 I have spent many hours building the firewall, and ran out of material so it's not done yet. The packaging is pretty tight on one side and complicated by the shifter being right there, plus I have to make it in such a way as to be easily removable to gain access to important bits. Here's a sneak peak picture and the video will come when it's all done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 Firewall is done, here is the video Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 1, 2016 Author Share Posted January 1, 2016 With the engine still not running ;( I am left with little jobs like mounting the battery in a battery box. It's just in front of the rear tire and I have a connector coming off of it for a charger to plug into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRS Joe Posted January 2, 2016 Share Posted January 2, 2016 Awesome. Good luck on starting it. Just a suggestion, wrapping the surfaces on the firewall in vinyl where the harness will/may hit and your leaning and rubbing against may be more durable then paint. Only issue would be heat if your not insulating the wall at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Awesome. Good luck on starting it.Just a suggestion, wrapping the surfaces on the firewall in vinyl where the harness will/may hit and your leaning and rubbing against may be more durable then paint.Only issue would be heat if your not insulating the wall at all.I do need to consider the spots that get rubbed and I have some insulating self stick panels that might work really nicely. I'm not very worried about heat because all the hot bits are on the opposite side of the engine and have cold air blowing by. Besides, the V8 and the V12 had hot manifolds and exhaust running inches from my feet and legs and it wasn't so bad, this has to be a lot better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 5, 2016 Author Share Posted January 5, 2016 Running out of things to do, I painted the front suspension: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRDTurko Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 I'm glad that if I did a build with my wife there would be zero chance of anything ending up pink. The worst I would get would be red which is not so bad on race cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRS Joe Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 I'm glad that if I did a build with my wife there would be zero chance of anything ending up pink. The worst I would get would be red which is not so bad on race cars. I feel it suits the original name and the old graphics of the "pink panther".Besides the car isn't all Mary Kay pink. It's white. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRDTurko Posted January 7, 2016 Share Posted January 7, 2016 plus ou can tell people the parts are pink because they were made by Sti.. as in the Sawatski Technical institute Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 21, 2016 Author Share Posted January 21, 2016 Finally some progress with the engine. I have been trying to get the engine running since the middle of December and nothing worked. Theories were thrown around, VATS, sensor problem, missing pieces, etc but in the end, it was simply a tiny wire in the middle of the wiring harness that had broken. Video here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRS Joe Posted January 21, 2016 Share Posted January 21, 2016 Awesome. I'm sure that's pressure off your shoulders. Any theories how the wire broke, looks like it was buried in the main section of harness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 21, 2016 Author Share Posted January 21, 2016 Awesome. I'm sure that's pressure off your shoulders.Any theories how the wire broke, looks like it was buried in the main section of harness.Yes, I'm feeling a big sense of relief. I think that the way the harness was all taped together in a curve and when I had to straighten it out a little, it was too much stress on that wire. Just a theory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRS Joe Posted January 21, 2016 Share Posted January 21, 2016 Yes, I'm feeling a big sense of relief. I think that the way the harness was all taped together in a curve and when I had to straighten it out a little, it was too much stress on that wire. Just a theory Yeah. They lay the wires into a jig usually and then wrap them. If it was in the inside of the bend (first laid) then that makes perfect sense. Now we all wait for the drift video.Do you miss the v8/v12 rumble at all, or does the spool of the turbo make it a distant memory? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 22, 2016 Author Share Posted January 22, 2016 Yes, I'm feeling a big sense of relief. I think that the way the harness was all taped together in a curve and when I had to straighten it out a little, it was too much stress on that wire. Just a theory Yeah. They lay the wires into a jig usually and then wrap them. If it was in the inside of the bend (first laid) then that makes perfect sense. Now we all wait for the drift video.Do you miss the v8/v12 rumble at all, or does the spool of the turbo make it a distant memory? There is nothing like the sound of the V12 and the shooting flames out the exhaust, and I miss those things, but I think the noises of a high revving turbo 4 can sound pretty good and it turns out the Ecotec can do something that the V8 could not do: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Need my Focusin Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Awesome sauce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 25, 2016 Author Share Posted January 25, 2016 I drove it today! I'm thrilled with how light and tossable the car feels. The electric power steering seems to have some trouble keeping up in really rapid direction changes but it's really minor. Also, the coolant temp was only good when I kept rpm up but got hot at idle so I must have an air pocket in there still. Looking at the data logger, the MAF is getting confused and only allowed throttle to open 37% so that explains why it felt a little less zippy than the 5.0 V8. The brake bias knob works perfectly, a few clicks changed from locking up rears only to locking up all four. The shifting is pretty easy,too. I linked to the edited video but I will be uploading the raw, unedited video and you will need to be a subscriber to see those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miguel Posted January 26, 2016 Share Posted January 26, 2016 Very very cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted January 27, 2016 Author Share Posted January 27, 2016 That electric power steering problem I was having? It was actually an Ackerman problem. The suspension program I use shows Ackerman error and such and I wasn't reading it correctly so I had anti-Ackerman. Watch the video, see how I solved it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Need my Focusin Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Wicked, and I love that you can drive it on your own personal track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted February 2, 2016 Author Share Posted February 2, 2016 Had some tricky cooling system problems, and I solved them with a coolant surge tank. Video: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted February 3, 2016 Author Share Posted February 3, 2016 A new video two days in a row! I had some strange things going on with the MAF settings and the fix was surprisingly simple and effective. You may have similar problems with your modified car and not even know it. Video here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRS Joe Posted February 3, 2016 Share Posted February 3, 2016 A new video two days in a row! I had some strange things going on with the MAF settings and the fix was surprisingly simple and effective. You may have similar problems with your modified car and not even know it.That's odd that there was no screen/air straightener in the maf from factory. My Mazda, toyotas, and Vw all had it as part of the maf assembly. Cool to see it makes that much of a difference but I had heard it causing grief if removed. Did the factory intake system have a screen or something before the maf inside at some point?Great job on the videos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted February 3, 2016 Author Share Posted February 3, 2016 A new video two days in a row! I had some strange things going on with the MAF settings and the fix was surprisingly simple and effective. You may have similar problems with your modified car and not even know it.That's odd that there was no screen/air straightener in the maf from factory. My Mazda, toyotas, and Vw all had it as part of the maf assembly.Cool to see it makes that much of a difference but I had heard it causing grief if removed. Did the factory intake system have a screen or something before the maf inside at some point?Great job on the videos. The MAF was located at the air cleaner box and I don't remember seeing a screen or anything but there must have been something because it makes such a big difference Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted February 27, 2016 Author Share Posted February 27, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conebasher Posted March 5, 2016 Author Share Posted March 5, 2016 I needed to improve the doors so I tried fiberglass and I tried aluminum, one worked and one did not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRDTurko Posted March 5, 2016 Share Posted March 5, 2016 On 2/27/2016 at 8:39 PM, conebasher said: you should check out www.quik-latch.com ... the sleekest pin system I have come across. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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