E-Rod LS3 Base FD Build

[Jordan Innovations]

I used the tach output wire from the GM Controller Kit "bulkhead" connector with a 10k pullup resistor (conveniently tied into the supplied 'ignition switched' pink wire).  Works great.

[viper2oo2]

I used the tach output wire from the GM Controller Kit "bulkhead" connector with a 10k pullup resistor (conveniently tied into the supplied 'ignition switched' pink wire).  Works great.

That's what I did, except I don't have the pull-up resistor yet, the tach doesn't seem to work without it.  As far as an update, I've been busy working on the car instead of updating.  I got it started and it throws a code for lean, but I'm 95% certain that the problem is my shitty welds that leaked on my temporarily positioned cats.  I've since cut the cats up again (like I was planning) and am redoing the whole exhaust. I will have someone else finish welding it (I'm just tacking it together) which I'm hoping will happen this week.  Once I get it running, I'll go through everything I've done, I've been taking pictures, so I have it all, just haven't been posting.

[Jordan Innovations]

Lol I didn't put the pullup resistor in there just for kicks, of course I put it in because neither the stock tach nor the Speedhut ones work without it haha.

Never seen a lean code on a crate motor without a fuel pressure problem - it's the front o2's that report that AFAIK.  Make sure you've got the fronts and rears properly arranged.

[ls3_rob]

sorry for the crappy drawing but is this kinda what you are meaning for the (tied into ignition)



will this wiring work?

Or should I splice the white and pink together then add resistor to yellow/blue

thanks

[Jordan Innovations]

Yup, that's correct.  You just have to decide whether to do it on the GM side or the 'mazda' side.  I did it on the Mazda side.

[ls3_rob]

I am not exactly sure what you mean by "mazda side" or "gm side"?

I am assuming you mean mazda wire (yellow/blue) or gm wire (white)

that you instead of wiring the resistor to the (white) you wired to the (yellow/blue)

so you have resistor at (yellow/blue) and (pink)

btw appreciate the help. im gonna tackle the wiring issues Saturday

would you mind if I pmd you Jordan? you seem very knowledgeable about ls3 wiring

[Jordan Innovations]

GM side meaning the pre-wired Controller Kit side of their connector.  Mazda side would be the 'other' side - most people don't want to chop into the Controller Kit's wiring, especially if it's on an E-rod where any modification can make your legality questionable.

Shoot me an email Rob, I'll be out of town this weekend and I'm trying to not bring a computer haha.

I am not exactly sure what you mean by "mazda side" or "gm side"?

I am assuming you mean mazda wire (yellow/blue) or gm wire (white)

that you instead of wiring the resistor to the (white) you wired to the (yellow/blue)

so you have resistor at (yellow/blue) and (pink)

btw appreciate the help. im gonna tackle the wiring issues Saturday

would you mind if I pmd you Jordan? you seem very knowledgeable about ls3 wiring

[viper2oo2]

Lol I didn't put the pullup resistor in there just for kicks, of course I put it in because neither the stock tach nor the Speedhut ones work without it haha.

Yeah, I haven't put it in yet... but I'm putting in the pullup resistor in before I start it next. I didn't put it in because the article on motoiq didn't show a pullup resistor, but once the tach didn't register I was pretty sure it needed one or that I hooked up the wrong wires.

Never seen a lean code on a crate motor without a fuel pressure problem - it's the front o2's that report that AFAIK.  Make sure you've got the fronts and rears properly arranged.

You haven't seen how terrible my welds are...I think leaks in the exhaust just upstream of the front O2 sensors would cause them to read incorrectly.  I checked fuel pressure before I started it and all I did was idle it. Yes, the fronts check for lean, rears check catalyst efficiency, both are labeled clearly and I've got them in the correct order.

ls1_rob: if you've spliced the white and the yellow/blue wires together you can connect the resistor to either wire anywhere along either wire as they are now one wire, just make sure you put the resistor in between the 12V and the white or y/blue wire.  Your picture is correct and you can move the resistor up or down (in the picture) so it only connects to yellow/blue, white or both wires, doesn't matter.

[viper2oo2]

Well, I'm stumped and seem to be screwed.  Engine starts no problem and idles pretty rough.  It throws P0171 and P0174 lean bank 1 and 2.  It was throwing those codes when I know I had an exhaust leak, so I fixed that and then started it again, still shows the same codes.  It also needs to have the crank learned, so it shows those codes too.   

I first checked fuel pressure and it was at 50 with the engine off but running it showed 70 psi.  I don't think high fuel pressure  could be the problem (should run rich, not lean), but maybe I'm wrong and that is the problem???

I checked for vacuum leaks by spraying carb cleaner all over the place and no change in engine speed.  The engine pulls 18 inHg at idle and 20-21 inHg at 1000 rpm.

Front O2 sensors show usually around 0.050V and if I rev it up to 1000rpm and then let off it'll go to 0.850V or 0.900V and then back to 0.050V ish (it fluctuates around that). Rears are usually the same.

MAF reads around 0.6 lbs/min at idle (don't know if this is close to correct or not) and fluctuates around that quite a bit.

I just checked for vacuum leaks using a cigar smoke and pressurized it though the brake booster hose.

I have the brake booster hose blocked off when I'm running, just in case the booster was leaking.

I checked for exhaust leaks by having my wife cover the exhaust and I didn't hear anything that sounded like a leak, but I'm going to pressurize the exhaust with smoke right now.

I disconnected the MAF and the engine seemed to run better, BUT then just died.

Any ideas??  I'm basically out of ideas.

Anybody know if I can test sensors somehow?  Or is there a test where I disconnect sensors to see if it runs better?

I'm going to post this in the drive-train section too.

[Jordan Innovations]

Your lean codes are weird.  Where are you testing fuel pressure, at the rails schrader valve?  Why does it change engine on/engine off?

Your o2's could be backwards as well, the harness is certainly long enough.  MAF isn't the issue unless it's throwing a MAF code, and even with the 3/8" vacuum hose disconnected the engine still runs OK, so I doubt that's it.  The whole crank relearn thing doesn't change how it runs by much.

Do both o2's move together when you rev it/etc?  I'm guessing you've got an o2 problem.

[viper2oo2]

Your lean codes are weird.  Where are you testing fuel pressure, at the rails schrader valve?  Why does it change engine on/engine off?

Your o2's could be backwards as well, the harness is certainly long enough.  MAF isn't the issue unless it's throwing a MAF code, and even with the 3/8" vacuum hose disconnected the engine still runs OK, so I doubt that's it.  The whole crank relearn thing doesn't change how it runs by much.

Do both o2's move together when you rev it/etc?  I'm guessing you've got an o2 problem.

Yes, I agree these codes are weird.  I thought for sure it would be a vacuum leak but the two test I've done (carb cleaner and smoke) haven't shown anything.

Yes, I'm testing fuel pressure at the schrader valve.  The two things I can guess on why it changes with engine on is either, 1) with the battery only, the pump only gets 12V and flows a little less, with alternator on and pump getting 14V it has enough flow to overpower the regulator, or 2) It needs more time to pressurize to the full amount the regulator lets it than the 4s I've let it run with the engine off (two 2s primes). 

I have the sensor marked "rear" on the harness as the downstream, which has the white connector, the attachment shows the O2 sensor I put in the rear.  If it doesn't look correct, let me know.
[attach=1]

"even with the 3/8" vacuum hose disconnected the engine still runs OK, so I doubt that's it."
Do you mean your engine runs fine without that hose connected?  I haven't run with any hose disconnected, just the MAF and I can't find any vacuum leaks if they are there.

On my OBD2 reader one O2 sensor is on a page and the other 2 are on the other, so I haven't looked at both front O2's at the same time, I can use my other OBD2 reader and connect it to my phone so I can see both of them tomorrow.

Is there any way to check for an O2 problem?  I could replace 1 and see what happens, but I'd rather not spend the money before testing it if I can.  I'm also concerned that there's a wiring issue causing this that I'm not going to be able to find. 

Does the PCM itself need to be grounded?  I grounded the 3 eyelets on the harness to the block (I had originally grounded them to the frame but moved the to the block...well the head...today since the manual says to ground them to the block).  But I think those are the only grounds for the E-ROD I did, other than 2 2ga wires from the block to the frame.

Thanks for the help.

[viper2oo2]

I forgot to mention that I did find a tiny exhaust leak (maybe a porous weld) just after the front O2 sensor on the passenger side.  I don't think it's the problem (as it's only 1 side and it's very small), I could only find it using a shop-vac to pressurize the exhaust and check with soapy water for bubbles.   I didn't find any exhaust leaks up stream of the O2 sensor and the exhaust flanges didn't show any problems.

[viper2oo2]

OK, I've figured out the problem. I had a 90 degree coupler like 6 inches in front of the MAF and it can't get steady flow with that up ahead of it.  Looks like a 45 might work, but not sure how I'm going to fit the intake now.

Thanks for all the help guys, hopefully nobody else will waste as much time as I did for something like this.

Now that I've got it running I'm going to try and catch up with what I've done and upload the pictures I've got.

[viper2oo2]

4/6-4/7
I found the parts to cover the spaces between the T56 bellhousing and the LS3 block, where you can see the flywheel, 24261712 and 24261714 a little hard to find, but I found them on ebay, they're called dust covers I think. 

[attach=1]

I was installing the the starter and it seemed to be hitting the dust cover, so I started cutting that up, only to find that I had purchased a 2010 camarao starter thinking since this was an LS3 that would work, but I needed an LS1 starter to fit the bellhousing.  I got super luck as that was the last day I could return the starter, of course I had to ship the starter back to Amazon that day and found out I didn't have enough ink to print the label and the run order.  I asked the UPS store if they could print our a file for me if I brought it in and they said "no".  WTF? Ok so had to pick up new ink and then go back to my house and print the label and then go to the UPS store to make sure it got recorded as shipping that day.  What BS, and a waste of time, but I got my $100 back, so that's fine.

I also swapped over the exhaust manifold from the crate motor manifolds to the camaro manifolds provided with the E-ROD kit.  Straight forward swap just basically line up the old gaskets and then torque the bolts down in the patern (basically from the middle out, 15 ft-lbs then 18 ft-lbs).  I also swapped over the dipstip tube, which I thought wouldn't fit, but then I figured out it doesn't go thought the same two exhaust ports as the original one.

[attach=2]
   
I installed the oil pressure sender.  I just picked up parts from Pepboys and maybe home depot along with a gauge adapter from Amazon.  I used a 45 and then a tee with one side blocked off (so I can install an aftermarket gauge if I want) and then the sender inthe other side, with the sender facing down so it takes up less space.  I made sure to use locking thread sealant, so it won't loosen up or leak.

[attach=3]
[attach=4]

I also cut off the brakets in the engine bay that I thought would interfere with the install and the trans mount.  I found the best way to remove the brackets was to drill the welds most of the way through and then use a screwdriver/mallet/pliers/prybar to bend them until they break off.  I think I also cut through them with a grinder to take them out in sections.  I do know that using the grinder to actually remove the brakets didn't go well and I remove a little bit of the frame rail, which I didn't like.  I didn't remove the complete trans mount as I didn't feel it was necessary and now that I've got evertying installed I haven't had a problem with that. I painted over the spots so they shouldn't rust.

[attach=5]
[attach=6]

33 days, 157 hours

[viper2oo2]

4/13
Engine install time.  Finally time to fill the void in my life (and my car) with an engine.  I had two of my friends who were supposed to help me install it, but one had to go to a funeral and the other went to coachella.  Screw it, I don't need friends when I have an engine leveler.  I had two of my friends who don't work on cars on standby in case I got to a point I needed someone else's help (and hopefully that wouldn't be when my had gets stuck). 

I installed the wiring harness right before starting the install so it would be easy to connect everything up.  I don't know if this was really worth it, but the harness didn't really get in the way much during the install process, so it was fine. 

I also decided to bend the firewall lip up instead of cutting it off, just in case if was somewhat structural.   I don't think this has hurt me too much, the wires are kind of difficult to get behind the engine, but I don't think that would change much if I had cut the lip off.

[attach=1]
[attach=2]
[attach=3]

I also removed and replaced the last of the RX7 fuel hose, and attempted to kill myself with with a hose pick while doing that (the attempt was unsucessful).  I should have bent the fuel tubes closer to the firewall, but I didn't realize how close the exhaust manifolds would be, so get those things close and maybe even put a heat sheild around them if you're doing your build.  Definitally a mistake to not do that and I'm going to have to figure out what I can do with the engine in to fix that now.  the picture with the fuel hose (and the capped center tube (since my return line is at the axel.

[attach=4]
[attach=5]

I Jacked up the rear of the car so I wouldn't have to angle the engine quite as much and used the emergency jacks to raise the front a little bit so the hoist could get unterneath it.  I got the engine out of the garage and pushed it to the front of the car (moving an engine hoist is a bitch on asphalt). I also should have removed the hood latch (which I did with the engine in the air).  The engine had to go super high to get over the frame and super angled to get into the trans tunnel, but I got it there, I did thing it was going to fall over and kill me, but it didn't. 

I removed as much of the trans tunnel as I thought I needed to make the shifter fit, but as I found out later, I needed to have removed a little bit more.

[attach=6]