Winter Journal

[evilmonkeyMSP]

looks good

 

[melicha8]

ugh car WONT start!

 

[melicha8]

Success! Fuel line was reversed so the chamber wasn't getting gas. After reversing the two lines back to the correct feed and return lines it started right up and belched about 5 cubic feet of smoke. I took it for a spin around the block and let it warm up. The idle is running quite high at about 1.5 rpm after warm up. The idle adjustment is all the way down so I'm gonna have to use other means to reduce it. I also had to shut it down because the needle on the temp gauge was climbing into unsafe territory. Hopefully it's just air in the system.

 

[melicha8]

All good. Idle is still high. It runs at 1.5k on start up and 2k after it's warm with the idle air screw at full choke. I think some TPS recalibration is what is needed. Maybe I put on my throttle cable too tight. Anyway the car is running tip top with the air purged from my coolant system. I think I may take it for a drive and get the coolant flushed. I saw a lot of nasty crap come out of the jar full that I drained. I drove it to work today and I'm sad that the onramp was clogged with traffic so I couldn't "dyno" test it.

 

[melicha8]

Update 1/19: I haven't been messing around or anything. I've been enjoying driving the car. I longed for the sound charging onto the onramp so I've been getting my fill. My upper console vent arrived today and gave me some incentive to start on the gauges. I also cleaned the wheels and readied them for their inevitable marriage with...

It'll be some holy matrimony out on the autocross course

 

[meinp5]

This is a cool build. Whats your goal for the car? Are you just trying to fix it up and restore it, or is it a race car?

 

[melicha8]

Goal? Well depends. I achieved all of them in my first post. But my ultimate goal is to beat the miata's in ST2. This year I was just going out there with a "run what you brung" mentality. My 60 series traction T/A's were not up to the task and it was seriously keeping me from being competitive with the miata's. Check out these results real quick.
http://www.sfrscca.com/solo2/Sacramento/Results/2006/Cup/st2.html
On good days I was less than a second behind on the courses. On bad days I was nearing 2 seconds. These are lifetimes in autocross. So I want to come back this spring and have good days when I come in first...and bad days when I come in first. Along the way I'm replacing some tired/missing parts; interior and exterior.

 

[meinp5]

Goal? Well depends. I achieved all of them in my first post. But my ultimate goal is to beat the miata's in ST2. This year I was just going out there with a "run what you brung" mentality. My 60 series traction T/A's were not up to the task and it was seriously keeping me from being competitive with the miata's. Check out these results real quick.
http://www.sfrscca.com/solo2/Sacramento/Results/2006/Cup/st2.html
On good days I was less than a second behind on the courses. On bad days I was nearing 2 seconds. These are lifetimes in autocross. So I want to come back this spring and have good days when I come in first...and bad days when I come in first. Along the way I'm replacing some tired/missing parts; interior and exterior.

Cool, I wasn't sure if you were going to clean it up and steam clean the engine and do a full interior or gut it and make it in a track car. Very cool none the less.

 

[melicha8]

Gauge install continues. That stainless is nice but I'm gonna have to can it. It's all bent up and I don't feel like doing body work on an insert. Below is are the three materials I tried. You can see the last is much more refined. I didn't bother with the fiberglass and went to the local hobby store. I made it out of 2mm thick polystyrene sheet. Easy to work with, paintable, and glueable. I also picked up some small polystyrene I beam for model railroads I'll use to reinforce it and give it some more rigidity lengthwise. These will be bonded together with hobby glue.

 

[Kansei]

*subscribes*

just read through the whole thread, very nice stuff. I'd love to get an FC someday... but then my P5 would become my winter car and that would make me and the P5 very sad

 

[melicha8]

Put them in and gave them a test run with them wired in. I'm having problems with my oil pressure maxed out all the time. I wish I could read what's going on with the sender if that might be the issue. I just maxes out as soon as it fires up and remains there. The others do their job. Water temp rises faster than oil temp. Anyway some pics.
The Polystyrene was the way to go. we'll see how it fares in the ca summer heat. For now I must say I'm surprised with how well it came out.

Gauges lit up at night you can see oil pressure is maxed

Here is a pictoral explanation of what I picked up at the hobby shop. The total cost me 5.50 at the hobby shop.

Here is a bad shot with the stock gauges. Their not the same type of light so they give off varying intensities and tones. It'll have to do.

 

[Kansei]

the oil pressure sender will be pegged if the sensor wires get crossed or if the ground on the sender isn't proper. Check all the wiring to the sensor.

 

[Roywhitep5]

guess what i got for my fc

 

[melicha8]

I big dildo shifter?

 

[melicha8]

jdm style yo

 

[Roywhitep5]

i got a full road race exhaust. put it on today and it made a massive differance. its actually quieter at idle. revs all the way to 8 effortlessly

 

[melicha8]

They sound goooooood!

 

[Roywhitep5]

very deep sound. the exhaust manifold is a pita because the studs that hold the header to the block come out when you try to take off the manifold.

 

[melicha8]

Not something I ever wanted to bother with until rebuild time. That's why I went with a Bomez Superflo and RB catback so work is faster on smog years

 

[melicha8]

I wanna see your own project thread Roy, stop spamming mine up.

edit: I also see you're on rx7club. Rotaroy?! nice but what happened to roywhitefc?