Sounds like a great project! Are you going to add an upper pulley? These cars love e85 so if you have a station near you, it would be worth it to add that to the list. Flex fuel sensor and 1050xID injectors will do the trick. The DSX Aux is a great addition. Guys here really like the 4.5" DDP intake. Easy to tune compared to the RPM 5".
Totally Predictable New Guy "Build"
I bought this car about a year ago and I've been lurking, reading threads, and scouring the internet ever since. I've never owned a vehicle that I didn't modify, but this car has me paralyzed and paranoid at the same time haha. I've decided to go ahead and start a mild build for fun, and I think it'll be a good learning experience. There is usually no shortage of mistakes made on my part when I start working on stuff. I used to think I was pretty sharp and had at least a general idea about what I was doing, then I read Rubber Duck's posts.
I don't really have a specific power goal which is probably my first mistake. The car will be used for street/strip and I hope to go on a race week type of event eventually. I will be staying with the stock displacement but trying to maximize efficiency where I can.
So far I have purchased 2' headers with hi flow catted x pipe, ZL1 lid with reinforced brick, 7 gallon PNR trunk tank, CWA 400 pump, C&R hx, Creative Steel elimivibe motor mounts, NW 103 tb, and an ALM fuel hat with hydromat. I probably have some other odds and ends laying around.
I'm making decisions on cam packages, aux fuel pumps, injectors, 5" intakes and all the other stuff now.
Now to kick this off with some pics. I started taking the car apart and couldn't believe how dirty everything was behind the bumper. The car presents pretty clean otherwise.
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I sent the headlights off to Big Tundra. Joe did great work. Installed some Vladi lenses while he was doing everything else.
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A pic of the headers and my worn out SC.
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I'll update as I order parts and start working on it more frequently.
I don't really have a specific power goal which is probably my first mistake. The car will be used for street/strip and I hope to go on a race week type of event eventually. I will be staying with the stock displacement but trying to maximize efficiency where I can.
So far I have purchased 2' headers with hi flow catted x pipe, ZL1 lid with reinforced brick, 7 gallon PNR trunk tank, CWA 400 pump, C&R hx, Creative Steel elimivibe motor mounts, NW 103 tb, and an ALM fuel hat with hydromat. I probably have some other odds and ends laying around.
I'm making decisions on cam packages, aux fuel pumps, injectors, 5" intakes and all the other stuff now.
Now to kick this off with some pics. I started taking the car apart and couldn't believe how dirty everything was behind the bumper. The car presents pretty clean otherwise.
I sent the headlights off to Big Tundra. Joe did great work. Installed some Vladi lenses while he was doing everything else.
A pic of the headers and my worn out SC.
I'll update as I order parts and start working on it more frequently.
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This last month has flown by. I'll be taking PTO for the rest of the year and look forward to working on this thing a little. I've decided to perform a compression test before I take anything substantial apart. Just for peace of mind really.
My trunk tank should be here tomorrow and ALM is still waiting on hydromats to be in stock.
The wife has been listening to my ramblings and surprised me with some early Christmas presents.
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It looks like I'll be using CS bushings for everything. I plan on ordering control arm bushings soon. I also took a couple pictures of the engine mounts. They feel pretty beefy.
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I mentioned earlier that I bought a CWA 400 pump. Everyone wants $500+ for them. I found this one at a European parts supplier for $336. It didn't come with a harness, so I got this one from Ballenger for around $25.
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I picked up a couple of shop tools that might be useful too. If I don't pull the engine, this might help with the mount and header installs. I'm not a big Harbor Freight guy usually, but this seemed adequate for the job. I don't know much about Eastwood either.
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I'll start poking around under the hood this weekend and see where I stand. I really want to just rip everything out and start fresh.
My trunk tank should be here tomorrow and ALM is still waiting on hydromats to be in stock.
The wife has been listening to my ramblings and surprised me with some early Christmas presents.
It looks like I'll be using CS bushings for everything. I plan on ordering control arm bushings soon. I also took a couple pictures of the engine mounts. They feel pretty beefy.
I mentioned earlier that I bought a CWA 400 pump. Everyone wants $500+ for them. I found this one at a European parts supplier for $336. It didn't come with a harness, so I got this one from Ballenger for around $25.
I picked up a couple of shop tools that might be useful too. If I don't pull the engine, this might help with the mount and header installs. I'm not a big Harbor Freight guy usually, but this seemed adequate for the job. I don't know much about Eastwood either.
I'll start poking around under the hood this weekend and see where I stand. I really want to just rip everything out and start fresh.
I managed to work on the car a little yesterday and this morning. It really looks like it hasn't been taken apart before. This is surprising as it has 140,000 miles on the odometer. I bought the car from the second owner, and he had only owned it for a couple months, I think. I checked the history, and it was originally owned by a guy in Texas and was almost exclusively serviced by the dealership. The second owner had installed an Airaid and moroso catch can. It needed a solid isolator, so I installed that and a 2.55 pulley. I'm giving the quick history rundown because I did the compression test today. The results were better than I expected. See my custom cardboard for the numbers. I also included decent pics of the plugs in case there is plug reading savant lurking. They look pretty old to me. The plugs are all ACDelco 12571165.
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I also removed the drive shaft, exhaust, OEM HX, hard lines, and T filler thing. It looks like a lot of grease has been liberated from the factory rzeppa(?) joints. Notice the little factory coolant pump poking out under the pristine HX.
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I'm thinking since the compression test looks decent and the car didn't seem to have any issues, I'm going to slap a cam in this thing and have some fun while I build, or save for the purchase of, a new engine.
I ordered Creative Steel UCA/LCA bushings and OEM LCA ball joints. I've got to find some UCA ball joints. I'm also thinking about ordering a Driveshaft Shop aluminum driveshaft.
Any thoughts?
I also removed the drive shaft, exhaust, OEM HX, hard lines, and T filler thing. It looks like a lot of grease has been liberated from the factory rzeppa(?) joints. Notice the little factory coolant pump poking out under the pristine HX.
I'm thinking since the compression test looks decent and the car didn't seem to have any issues, I'm going to slap a cam in this thing and have some fun while I build, or save for the purchase of, a new engine.
I ordered Creative Steel UCA/LCA bushings and OEM LCA ball joints. I've got to find some UCA ball joints. I'm also thinking about ordering a Driveshaft Shop aluminum driveshaft.
Any thoughts?
I've been working on this thing a little more. The engine is pretty close to coming out. The front suspension is on the floor getting ready to install the bushings. I'm basically jumping from spot to spot on the car. Putting everything back together should go perfectly. No lost bolts or anything. How filthy is a 140K mile brick?
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I've got a bunch of gaskets, seals, and a water pump coming from GM wholesale parts to freshen everything up and take care of some leaks.
Some other parts came in last week! I decided to order the can and fttings I wanted from MM and provide my own hose. I don't want to use the oil filler adapter. I'm thinking I'll just put a -10 bulkhead in the valve cover. I also ordered the GTO fender mount. I think it'll work to get the can out of the way. I don't want it blocking spark plugs or behind the SC. Decided to give the ALM hat a shot too.
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I've got a bunch of gaskets, seals, and a water pump coming from GM wholesale parts to freshen everything up and take care of some leaks.
Some other parts came in last week! I decided to order the can and fttings I wanted from MM and provide my own hose. I don't want to use the oil filler adapter. I'm thinking I'll just put a -10 bulkhead in the valve cover. I also ordered the GTO fender mount. I think it'll work to get the can out of the way. I don't want it blocking spark plugs or behind the SC. Decided to give the ALM hat a shot too.
Got a little more work completed last weekend. UCA/LCA bushings and ball joints are well underway. All the bushings are out, but I only ordered LCA ball joints. The uppers should be here tomorrow. I pressed in the lower ball joints and installed some of the CS bushings. That was pretty straightforward. I have a decent press, but my press tools are lacking. Things got a little sketchy. Notice the hammer blocking the arm from moving up as I pressed on the bushing. I did manage to bust one of the large LCA bushings. Stinky oil got everywhere. I ended up using some old bearing races taped together as a receiver for the large bushings. That worked pretty well. Big nuts came in handy too. Don't worry. There is plenty of PPE around here.
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Pretty much all the bushings were cracking at least this much.
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The motor plate came in. Hopefully I can pull the engine this weekend.
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Pretty much all the bushings were cracking at least this much.
The motor plate came in. Hopefully I can pull the engine this weekend.
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