1
Interior/Exterior / Re: FB HID retrofits
« on: November 25, 2012, 02:09:03 PM »
Im interested...
March 17, 2025, 01:52:08 AM
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2
Build Threads / LT1 going into 83 RX7
« on: September 11, 2011, 03:07:12 AM »
My buddy helping me with the build and I have started some interesting discussion. We are thinking of swapping the rear subframe from a C3 vette. It would give a better lug pattern, an independent rear suspension, bigger brakes, and many more choices for ring and pinion combos. Toying with the front subframe as well. Again, bigger brakes, better lug pattern, etc...
I know it will be a lot of fab work, but I think it could be really cool if done right. In a world of bolt on modification, this would be truly a build, and definitely one of a kind.
I know it will be a lot of fab work, but I think it could be really cool if done right. In a world of bolt on modification, this would be truly a build, and definitely one of a kind.
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Build Threads / Re: LT1 going into 83 RX7
« on: May 28, 2011, 02:58:14 PM »
Thank you very much for that pic!
Due to family matters (mom had brain tumor) I got sidetracked. I'm getting back to it today!
I have the firebird gauge cluster as mentioned above and I will be seeing how easy/impossible it will be to mount it in the FB. I am planning to complete the removal of the stock rotary this weekend.
Due to family matters (mom had brain tumor) I got sidetracked. I'm getting back to it today!
I have the firebird gauge cluster as mentioned above and I will be seeing how easy/impossible it will be to mount it in the FB. I am planning to complete the removal of the stock rotary this weekend.
4
Build Threads / Re: LT1 going into 83 RX7
« on: February 05, 2011, 01:12:56 PM »
That sounds like a great idea... I wonder how they adapted the tank... It is about the same capacity as the original RX7 tank. I love the idea of using the Trans Am cluster... I wonder how I can get it to mount in there...
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Build Threads / Re: LT1 going into 83 RX7
« on: February 04, 2011, 10:56:19 PM »
I actually called Grannys. I am told that with their kit it will fit under the stock hood IF I relocate the Alternator as it is the highest point on the engine, and I will need to cut some of the bracing under the hood out. That it is tight, but it will fit. He said that the hardest part will be mounting the radiator as the LT1 has the gear driven water pump that sticks out. I asked what radiator to use, he suggested the stock Trans Am radiator, mounted in front of the cross member in front on an angle. I figure this should work as the radiator is mounted on an angle in the TA anyhow. I also have the fan stuff.
So if I eliminate most of the emissions garbage, can I cut down on the vacuum crap running all over too?
Fortunately I have the entire car to pull what I want from, so I am thinking of transplanting some of the electronics as well. The remote to unlock and such. I am probably going to switch it to an OBD I computer since tuning it will be much more economical, and it will eliminate the need for the rear O2 sensors, and I do not plan on cats on it.
You guys that have done this engine, where do I start to pear down the unnecessary garbage? I would like to have functional AC and cruise as the car will be making its way to Phoenix on occasion. I am hoping to get rid of the Power Steering pump as I have a manual rack in the Mazda, and I don't see the need to convert. I was kind of hoping that I could move the alternator to the P/S pump location...
As I have the entire fuel system and lines and pump, I am hoping some way to convert it to the stock fuel tank on the Mazda. Not sure how well that will work as it does not have the injected tank. It is a GLS but it was the carburated version. I am told that there is a tank difference. As I think the injected car was relatively rare, I am not sure how easy one of the tanks would be to find, and I am not sure if it would even fit in the stock location of my car. Any guidance is appreciated.
I will probably have a lot of questions as I progress, so I hope you don't mind.
So if I eliminate most of the emissions garbage, can I cut down on the vacuum crap running all over too?
Fortunately I have the entire car to pull what I want from, so I am thinking of transplanting some of the electronics as well. The remote to unlock and such. I am probably going to switch it to an OBD I computer since tuning it will be much more economical, and it will eliminate the need for the rear O2 sensors, and I do not plan on cats on it.
You guys that have done this engine, where do I start to pear down the unnecessary garbage? I would like to have functional AC and cruise as the car will be making its way to Phoenix on occasion. I am hoping to get rid of the Power Steering pump as I have a manual rack in the Mazda, and I don't see the need to convert. I was kind of hoping that I could move the alternator to the P/S pump location...
As I have the entire fuel system and lines and pump, I am hoping some way to convert it to the stock fuel tank on the Mazda. Not sure how well that will work as it does not have the injected tank. It is a GLS but it was the carburated version. I am told that there is a tank difference. As I think the injected car was relatively rare, I am not sure how easy one of the tanks would be to find, and I am not sure if it would even fit in the stock location of my car. Any guidance is appreciated.
I will probably have a lot of questions as I progress, so I hope you don't mind.
6
Build Threads / LT1 going into 83 RX7
« on: February 04, 2011, 12:02:04 AM »
I am now ready to start the thread. I have been planning the swap for sometime now. I have had the RX7 for about 7 months now. I bought it specifically for the swap. The original owner of it bought it new, and she had just spent about a grand redoing the interior, brand new leather. She seized the engine (carbon lock) and so I bought it for a couple of hundred bucks.
It was just what I was looking for. The inside is immaculate. The paint was dull and the clear coat shot. I will be spraying it as soon as I get the rotory out. Just for the record, I got the rotory busted loose with a can of Seafoam and a can of WD40 and a bit of work with a breaker bar. Even so, 100 stock ponies is just sad. I had a ninja back in college with more power than that.
I purchased the drivetrain out of a 5.0L Mustang while in Phoenix over thanksgiving. Hauled it all the way home to seattle, and was planning on using it in the Mazda. The price was right, and it is an easier swap than the Chevy engines. However, I got a call on the way back to Seattle from my best friend up here, and he told me that his kid put his 97 vert Trans Am into a wall when he hit ice. It took out the passenger side corner. Headlight and bumper. Ate the core support. Stuff like that. The engine was untouched. Even the radiator is in tact. He planned on replacing it with another TA or getting another one for parts and fixing his 97. Regardless, he would have an extra LT1 so I could have one.
As I love the Chev 350, I immediately decided it was worth a little extra work for an engine that would easily make a pony per inch with minor modifications. I put the FORD engine on E-bay, and it was picked up by a gentleman who is putting it into a Jeep Scrambler. Should be a cool project when finished.
Anyhow, my buddy has his replacement. He bought a 94 T Top TA in green. Originally he was going to pull the body parts he needed and I was going to take that engine. It is the one I have been posting about trying to get it running right as I figured it is easier to do that now instead of trying to figure it out after a swap and adding more to the equation. He made the mistake of taking it home from his shop. His wife prefers the green to the silver, and she prefers the T Tops to the vert, ergo, he is keeping the green 94 and I am using the drivetrain out of the 97. They have virtually the same number of miles on them so he didnt loose much there.
I have now started cutting into the 97 the last couple of days. Finally getting a sunny day or two after months of rain and even a little snow. Figure I had better make hay while the sun is shining, literally. I am pulling the intake and the harness before I pull the drive train out. I have to admit, getting the intake out of this is much more challenging than it was on any of my 8 past Mustangs. I am also seeing a few things I have never dealt with before, like the gear driven water pump, and that weird smog pump or carbon can or whatever that black thing is next to the water pump. I am really excited about this project!!
One cool thing is that the Mazda is emissions exempt due to its age, so I can do anything I want to the 5.7 engine. I could use a bit of advice in this arena. I would really like to get rid of the smog thing, as it sticks out the furthest on the front of the engine, and that real estate will be very valuable as I shoe-horn a radiator into the little car. Also, I would love to simplify as much as possible under the hood.
I have seen pics of Trans Am and Camaro owners who have relocated their alternators when they do turbos or blowers. I need to relocate mine due to hood clearance issues. I want to keep the RX7 as stock looking as possible so that the BMW douches are really surprised when I kick the pee out of their Nazi go-carts with my little grocery getter Mazda from the early 80s. The look on the faces should be worth the price of admission. Also due to the lack of emissions I plan to eliminate cats, and put a beefier cam in. Maybe heads too. And I will probably swap to an OBD1 setup so I have an easier time without cams, and I can update the tune online. Any thoughts on this will be appreciated. Anyhow, I will begin posting pics later this week. Feel free to share tips, advice, insults, whatever. I hope to have it going by sometime this summer.
It was just what I was looking for. The inside is immaculate. The paint was dull and the clear coat shot. I will be spraying it as soon as I get the rotory out. Just for the record, I got the rotory busted loose with a can of Seafoam and a can of WD40 and a bit of work with a breaker bar. Even so, 100 stock ponies is just sad. I had a ninja back in college with more power than that.
I purchased the drivetrain out of a 5.0L Mustang while in Phoenix over thanksgiving. Hauled it all the way home to seattle, and was planning on using it in the Mazda. The price was right, and it is an easier swap than the Chevy engines. However, I got a call on the way back to Seattle from my best friend up here, and he told me that his kid put his 97 vert Trans Am into a wall when he hit ice. It took out the passenger side corner. Headlight and bumper. Ate the core support. Stuff like that. The engine was untouched. Even the radiator is in tact. He planned on replacing it with another TA or getting another one for parts and fixing his 97. Regardless, he would have an extra LT1 so I could have one.
As I love the Chev 350, I immediately decided it was worth a little extra work for an engine that would easily make a pony per inch with minor modifications. I put the FORD engine on E-bay, and it was picked up by a gentleman who is putting it into a Jeep Scrambler. Should be a cool project when finished.
Anyhow, my buddy has his replacement. He bought a 94 T Top TA in green. Originally he was going to pull the body parts he needed and I was going to take that engine. It is the one I have been posting about trying to get it running right as I figured it is easier to do that now instead of trying to figure it out after a swap and adding more to the equation. He made the mistake of taking it home from his shop. His wife prefers the green to the silver, and she prefers the T Tops to the vert, ergo, he is keeping the green 94 and I am using the drivetrain out of the 97. They have virtually the same number of miles on them so he didnt loose much there.
I have now started cutting into the 97 the last couple of days. Finally getting a sunny day or two after months of rain and even a little snow. Figure I had better make hay while the sun is shining, literally. I am pulling the intake and the harness before I pull the drive train out. I have to admit, getting the intake out of this is much more challenging than it was on any of my 8 past Mustangs. I am also seeing a few things I have never dealt with before, like the gear driven water pump, and that weird smog pump or carbon can or whatever that black thing is next to the water pump. I am really excited about this project!!
One cool thing is that the Mazda is emissions exempt due to its age, so I can do anything I want to the 5.7 engine. I could use a bit of advice in this arena. I would really like to get rid of the smog thing, as it sticks out the furthest on the front of the engine, and that real estate will be very valuable as I shoe-horn a radiator into the little car. Also, I would love to simplify as much as possible under the hood.
I have seen pics of Trans Am and Camaro owners who have relocated their alternators when they do turbos or blowers. I need to relocate mine due to hood clearance issues. I want to keep the RX7 as stock looking as possible so that the BMW douches are really surprised when I kick the pee out of their Nazi go-carts with my little grocery getter Mazda from the early 80s. The look on the faces should be worth the price of admission. Also due to the lack of emissions I plan to eliminate cats, and put a beefier cam in. Maybe heads too. And I will probably swap to an OBD1 setup so I have an easier time without cams, and I can update the tune online. Any thoughts on this will be appreciated. Anyhow, I will begin posting pics later this week. Feel free to share tips, advice, insults, whatever. I hope to have it going by sometime this summer.
7
Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 31, 2010, 01:27:24 AM »
DING DING DING
We have a WINNER
It was the O2 sensors.
Unplugged them and drove around. It is a whole different car now.
Even unplugged, I didn't get a code until I had been driving around without them for over 20 Min.
Thank you all SO much for all of the help and ideas. Funny thing is that it was more than one problem. It was the O2 sensors, but also the intake issue. Crazy.
We have a WINNER
It was the O2 sensors.
Unplugged them and drove around. It is a whole different car now.
Even unplugged, I didn't get a code until I had been driving around without them for over 20 Min.
Thank you all SO much for all of the help and ideas. Funny thing is that it was more than one problem. It was the O2 sensors, but also the intake issue. Crazy.
8
Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 30, 2010, 05:30:56 AM »
I cleaned the MAF while I had the intake apart.
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Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 29, 2010, 02:35:41 AM »If the stumble is at low throttle and clears up at WOT, I would concur with O2s. Vice versa (which is where I thought it was) I still blame opti.
It was the issue until I straightened out the intake stuff. Now the problem has seemed to change. Ergo, it is a combination of things. So if I unplug the O2 sensors it will run better? Or if it does run better it is an O2 sensor?
10
Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 29, 2010, 12:46:51 AM »
Here is the update...
So far I have swapped the temp sensors, and corrected an intake issue. When I pulled the intake off from the air filter back, I found that the rubber elbow that has the temp sensor in it had not been seated properly on the throttle body and thus it had not only split. but was sucking in copious amounts of air behind the MAF sensor right at the throttle body. I figure that this would be the entire issue. It really improved things a lot. probably 80% better. However, when it warms up it still stumbles at low to medium throttle. WOT it seems to get with it. So it is BETTER but not what I would call good. I think I will fool with the OPTI tomorrow, as I do have an extra one I can try out. Hopefully this will be what the doctor ordered. Any other thoughts?
So far I have swapped the temp sensors, and corrected an intake issue. When I pulled the intake off from the air filter back, I found that the rubber elbow that has the temp sensor in it had not been seated properly on the throttle body and thus it had not only split. but was sucking in copious amounts of air behind the MAF sensor right at the throttle body. I figure that this would be the entire issue. It really improved things a lot. probably 80% better. However, when it warms up it still stumbles at low to medium throttle. WOT it seems to get with it. So it is BETTER but not what I would call good. I think I will fool with the OPTI tomorrow, as I do have an extra one I can try out. Hopefully this will be what the doctor ordered. Any other thoughts?
11
Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 24, 2010, 02:39:52 PM »
HOLY CRAP those things are expensive. And you have to pull the water pump to get at it? FREAK! Would that thing stop working just when its hot?
So if I understand, this glorified distributor, that was a great theory, costs 3X as much as a regular distributor?
So if I understand, this glorified distributor, that was a great theory, costs 3X as much as a regular distributor?
12
Drivetrain / Re: LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 24, 2010, 06:33:27 AM »
Ok dumb newb question...
Opti=spark
What where and how much is it? Bearing in mind my mostly ford and jaguar background I have never heard of an opti spark before this thread... Sorry for my ignorance.
Opti=spark
What where and how much is it? Bearing in mind my mostly ford and jaguar background I have never heard of an opti spark before this thread... Sorry for my ignorance.
13
Drivetrain / LT1 runs perfect until it warms up then stumbles A LOT
« on: December 23, 2010, 01:01:44 AM »
I have been driving the donor Trans Am trying to trouble shoot the engine before I begin the transplant. I figure it will be much easier if I get it running perfectly before I move it so that it doesn't complicate matters when it gets its new home. I am planning to put a T-56 on it, but it currently is matted to an AT.
1994 LT1 with AT. Starts right up. Runs great for about 5 minutes. After it gets warm, it stumbles and the idle gets a little erratic. I originally thought the tranny was failing. It seemed to not want to shift when anything above about a quarter throttle. I realized through playing with the throttle in Neutral that the engine is stumbling badly.
The car has 107K miles. When it is cold it shifts crisply and runs great.
I am thinking it has to be a spark issue. Perhaps a bad wire that may arc when it gets warm, or a coil starting to fail when it warms up, perhaps a plug failing at temperature.
It has occurred to me that it could also be fuel related. Perhaps a weak fuel pump.
There is no check engine light, there are no trouble codes. Even when it stumbles.
I figure it needs a tune up anyway, so I plan to start there. Has anyone dealt with this that may be able to suggest something? I am a recent GM owner, and am MUCH more familiar with Ford engines. I know that each engine tends to have its own idiosyncrasies so I am hoping for a voice of experience here.
Merry Christmas everyone.
Casey
1994 LT1 with AT. Starts right up. Runs great for about 5 minutes. After it gets warm, it stumbles and the idle gets a little erratic. I originally thought the tranny was failing. It seemed to not want to shift when anything above about a quarter throttle. I realized through playing with the throttle in Neutral that the engine is stumbling badly.
The car has 107K miles. When it is cold it shifts crisply and runs great.
I am thinking it has to be a spark issue. Perhaps a bad wire that may arc when it gets warm, or a coil starting to fail when it warms up, perhaps a plug failing at temperature.
It has occurred to me that it could also be fuel related. Perhaps a weak fuel pump.
There is no check engine light, there are no trouble codes. Even when it stumbles.
I figure it needs a tune up anyway, so I plan to start there. Has anyone dealt with this that may be able to suggest something? I am a recent GM owner, and am MUCH more familiar with Ford engines. I know that each engine tends to have its own idiosyncrasies so I am hoping for a voice of experience here.
Merry Christmas everyone.
Casey
15
Hinson Supercars / Re: swap kit ordered
« on: December 16, 2010, 12:38:46 AM »
I will give you a buzz tomorrow sometime. Look forward to meeting you.