BUILD Broke EF turbo LS SC400 Build

Mr_Roboto

Doing the jobs nobody wants to
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Nashotah, Wisconsin (AKA not Illinois)
Thanks!! Its pretty great! The only negative is that I want to take it apart to do a bunch of stuff, but then I dont want to take it apart cause I want to just drive it all the time. You need to get your car done! What do you have left on it?

All of it :rofl:

Seriously anything from swapping the knocking engine to a trans swap to a shitton of body work.
 

Broke EF

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Over the weekend my buddy came by to work on his Audi. So that meant we had to shuffle all the cars around, and I ended up putting the SC back up on the lift. Whew buddy, what an ugly sight to see! I will get some pics soon, but basically the bottom is a mess from the power steering BS. It also has a couple small leaks I need to take care of. The general plan for now is to get it patched together, and then turn it up for the track rental. After that I am gonna blow it apart and get it ready for Drag Week.
 
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Broke EF

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This damn car. I finally got a chance to work on it this weekend to try and get ready for the track day this Friday. Saturday I started by wiring the trans brake. The plan was to wire it all through the holley. I can get into the details if anyone wants, but the plan was to use the buttons in the IS300 steering wheel I have. I thought I checked them a long time ago and remember them being simple momenary switches. Turns out that isnt the case, so after fucking with it for a while I had to abandon ship on that idea. The only real downside is that I wont be able to bump the car, but that should be fine for Friday. I wired one of the inputs to the switch, so I can still turn on a two step, possibly the boost control etc.

Speaking of boost control, I also wanted that done for Friday. I ran the airline the rest of the way to the solenoids finally, but thats all. I didnt realize (or forgot) that the Terminator X can ONLY do dome pressure boost control. I have a sensor, but I dont have a pigtail that I can find. I may try to order one, but Im also not sure I will have time to wire everything. I will need to wire the compressor, the solenoids, and the sensor to have boost control. Not all that much, but the way the car is wiring is a pain in the ass. I cant wait to change that and rewire the car bumper to bumper.

I still need to do an oil change and install the driveshaft loop as well. Which means I need to go get oil and maybe a filter. I also need to get some hardware for the driveshaft loop. After that I need to clean the car up so it looks less like a pile of shit and just nut and bolt it all.

Thats all. Been annoyed/burnd out on the car lately. Lets hope it survives Friday, and hopefully runs well. Either way, after Friday the real work begins to get it ready for Drag Week :D
 

Broke EF

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Well the wife and I spent the day up at GLD yesterday. We both really enjoyed how laid back the day was, and overall we had a great time!

The car made it there and back with no issues. It still runs hotter than I would like, but I suspect that will be a lot better when I change out the rearend and knock down the cruising RPM.

Thats about the end of the good news I guess. Yesterday was the first time out with the transbrake hooked up. Unfortunaely I was not able to finish getting the boost controller done, so I was trying to control the launch boost with RPM. I ended up setting the 2 step at 3500 RPM to start. I am not 100% sure how much boost it would make if I stood on the brake for a longer time, but I was aiming to launch at about 5psi. For context I usually run 1.5 60' time launching with no boost off the foot brake.

Pass 1
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Because I am rusty, I messed up and got no data log so it was completely useless. I did a pretty weak burnout, and it spun badly off the hit. I pedaled it and the rest of the pass was fine. Because of no data log I have no idea what boost it launched at, no idea about peak boost, no idea about shift points etc. The MPH was OK, if a little low and the ET was terrible.

Pass 2
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First off I set up the datalog to automatically start, so I got data. I didnt change anything on the car. Double checked that the tires were the same pressure as the first pass and went for it. I did a better burnout on this one, and I launched at 5lbs of boost and 3500RPM. The trans brake button is on the shifter, and because of that I hit it into second immediately at the hit. So generally that pass didnt tell me much either. I did notice that the boost was low. Last year I had a 14lb spring in it, and it would hold right about 14lbs with a bit of a bump at the shifts. Yesterday I had a 17lb spring setup in it, and it was holding 13lbs on that pass, and up to 13.5 for a split second at the shift. I have to assume the first pass was a similar story since I was down MPH from previous passes.

Pass 3
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I am the left, car #31. No changes again, I was wanting to get a clean hit to set a baseline. It wheel hopped very badly so I had to pedal it. The rest of the pass was drama free, and slow. I still havent looked over the data log for that pass, but I imagine its all the same. The MPH was similar, ET was slower but similar.

So overall the car went the slowest its ever gone. The heat was starting to get to me so even though I never got a clean pass with the car setup the way I had it we packed up and went home. I have some stuff to look into and change up. I need to do a lot more testing, but I need to get the cage and seat in the car first. Unfortunately that means next time I take it out there will be a lot of changes, but its unavoidable. It pretty frustrating because I know the car should be MUCH faster than its been. It makes the power, but I just cant get everything to come together. I will probably get some rear suspension for it sooner than later just to give me some control/adjustment.

Anyway I was glad we came out. As I said the wife and I both had a great time, and there were some bad ass cars there. I wish I would have gotten around the pits more, and met/talked with some of you guys. Hopefully the next one will go better and I will be more social.
 

Broke EF

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Nothing really new to report, but this is my thread so I am posting anyway!! With the long weekend I was able to spend some time cleaning all my junk including the SC! I dont think I have washed it in over a year. This was just a quick job to get the bulk of everything off of it, but man does it look a lot better!!

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It really needs a full detail, and the front end put back on. BUT for now I need to strip it down to do the cage. Unfortunately due to time I am going to have the cage installed. He will be installing the kit I already have from Rhodes race cars, and also mounting the seat and harness for the driver side. I dont think I am going to do a light seat for the passenger yet, even though they are heavy as fuck. I will handle the window net myself since I want to order a custom one from Stroud. Once that is done then the car will finally be legal to go as quick as 8.50. Not that its even close to that right now :( I did also want to add engine bay bars, but that will have to be done later. There is just to much that needs to be moved in the engine bay right now, and I dont want to get that involved in the wiring yet.

I also got some tools yesterday to make sure that its in tip top shape. (I was too lazy to rotate these pics)
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I do have some concerns about the motor, but the general concensious is its not worth doing anything about it. I am on the fence, but for now I can at least verify my base timing, and check for a dying cylinder. I also will be doing a boost leak test at some point since I cant find why its down on boost.

The car should be going in for the cage in a couple weeks, and hopefully he gets it done in about a week. Once I get it back I want to finish up some things and be testing sooner rather than later. It has a long way to go from my last outing to be where I want it, but I think it should be able to get there. I am just hoping I dont NEED suspension to get it there. Suspension is super expensive for these, and is something I am planning for later on. If I have to do it, Ill find a way, but I hope I can hold off on that for now.

Anyway, thats enough rambling for now. I just need to get time and motivation to get this thing where I want it to be!!
 

Broke EF

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Its time for some action on this pile! I am dropping the carr of Friday to have my cage installed. Just a reminder I have a Rhodes Racecars 10 point Chromolly cage kit that I bought a while back. I had planned on installing it myself, but I just dont have the time. Kind of sucks, but I know it will be done nice, and I will get it back quick. So in preperation, I started stripping the car.

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Headline out
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What a massive pain in the ass! Whos idea was it to build a 90's luxury car anyway!! Also, I really cant wait to re wire the car. That is my #1 plan for this winter assuming it survives drag week. Anyway, I got the whole interior out except the door panels. I need to put the stock dash bar back in and put the stock column back up so I can get it loaded easier. In doing all this I decided fuck that stock steering column though. That thing is heavy as hell, so I ordered up a motion DIY column, and then the wife bought me the wheel and everything else for my birthday.

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I also think I may have found my boost leak during all of this.
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I dont think it was fully off because I would have noticed it (I hope) but it may have been coming off at the track. When I walked by I saw it laying there completely disconnected. So I will change out that fitting and the line before the next time i take it out.

Well thats all for now. Ill probably throw up some pictures of it loaded up tomorrow or Friday.
 

Broke EF

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Shes all loaded up and ready to go!!
Cage all set
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Quick shot of the nightmare inside. Stock seat is in with 2 bolts, wheel is just set in place.
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And now for the good stuff :)
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I need to figure out something better for strapping it down, but it will work for tomorrow. I drove it around a bit and it does great. Obviously not the quickest thing, but I dont have a lot of starting and stopping on my drive tomorrow. I am pretty stoked to have a complete setup for the first time. I actually wish it was all clean even LOL
 

SleeperLS

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Shes all loaded up and ready to go!!
Cage all set
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Quick shot of the nightmare inside. Stock seat is in with 2 bolts, wheel is just set in place.
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And now for the good stuff :)
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I need to figure out something better for strapping it down, but it will work for tomorrow. I drove it around a bit and it does great. Obviously not the quickest thing, but I dont have a lot of starting and stopping on my drive tomorrow. I am pretty stoked to have a complete setup for the first time. I actually wish it was all clean even LOL
Get a set of Mac’s tie down wheel nets. I use them on my side by side and they work really well. You can get whatever color you want too.
 
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Broke EF

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Small update time. First up some new parts. Just a steering wheel extension kit, and some carbon fiber tube protectors.

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And I got sent some cage update pics today as well :)

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He has had a hell of a time with this cage kit. Between talking with him, and the pics, he has bent pretty much every bar to have it fit a lot better. Besides being OCD, he is also doing everything he can to gain me as much space as possible. I cant remeber if I have ever mentioned it here, and I am too lazy to look, but I dont really fit in the car. With the stock seat, and a helmet I have to slouch down and have my head cocked over in the sunroof area. Knowing this he had to work really hard to get the most amount of headroom possible while also working with the prebent bars everywhere else. To be honest I really wish I could have him just do a full custom cage, but I just can swing the money to do it. I cant even say time, becase he would have already been done if it was custom bent LOL. He also said that if he was bending it up he would be able to get me 5-6" more room :(

I am really excited to get the car back. I think the cage is coming out great for what it is. I know its a million times better than if I had installed it for sure. I need to get more parts in preparation for drag week. Once I get the car back the trash starts to get everything buttoned up and get testing. I need to fix the fuel leaks that just wont go away, add in the flex fuel sensor, wire the boost controller, wire in some other things, get the stereo working, make an exhaust that goes somewhere, put the front end back on. I am gonna have to take a week off of work just to get it all ready!!
 

Broke EF

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Not much of an update, but I went down and got fitted in the car today. The good news is I will probably fit after some more work. Setting the seat flat on the floor, my helmet still hit the halo bar. The way this cage is designed it has a U shaped halo bar, and then the A-Pillar bars connect from that near the windshield down to the floor. Its not really my favorite style, but oh well I guess. If he had done the A-pillar bar from the main hoop instead I wouldnt have any clerence issues at all. Since he was working with what he has, he opened up that halo bar as much as possible, and then kicked it back in at the main hoop to try and give me as much room as possible. You can see it in some of the old pics, but I got pictures of it that show it a litte more clear. My helmet is also a little above that bar, but its below the main hoop so that was good. In order to make both of those things better he is going to cut out the stock bracing/mounts for the seat which will drop it down another inch or so. That should get me away from that halo bar just enough to be able to sit normal with a helmet and have the required SFI padding. Enough talk, here are a few more pics I took while I was there.

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I cant express how much I hate all of this wiring!!! It kills me that I wont have time to do anything about it until after Drag Week.

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The sock heavy ass steering column
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So the rear down bars were ready to go. He was dialing in the fit and the plates when I got there, but he put them in place while I was there and they looked good. The door bars are also already fit, and he set it in with me in the car to check how I fit and that was good as well. He added some bends to those as well to give me more room, and if he hadnt it would have been annoying for sure.

The moral of this story, I should have built a bigger car LOL. Or I should have gone full race car with aluminum door panels and no interior with a custom bent cage to gain me a LOT more room. I dont think I will cut this one out or anything, but It does show how much tighter a custom cage could have been. If I had installed this cage myself there is pretty much no way in hell I would end up fitting in the car. So big shout out to Neil for doing a kick ass job working with what hes got to make it WAY better than what I gave him. Im hoping to get the car back next weekend, and then I can start the thrash :)
 

Broke EF

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Well I got the car back today!!

I was worried about rain, so I didnt take any pics there just got it loaded up.
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Once I got it back in the garage I grabbed some real quick pics. Keep in mind that the stock steering column is laying in the middle by the shifter so we could start the car. Just makes the nightmare wiring look even worse than it already is.

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I am sure I will have more pics soon as I start the real work now that its back home. I have a TON to get done before Drag Week. I am not even going to list it all out because its overwhelming to be honest. Anyway I am glad to have it back, and I am for sure I am happy I decided to have the cage done instead of tackling it myself. I would have been able to get it installed, but there is NO way I would have fit in the car with it. I would have a signifigant amount more room if it was a full custom cage, but Considering what he started with I am very happy. I will be sure to get more detail pics of the work he had to do to everything to gain me space where possible.

Now to go work on my many many lists in preparation for Drag Week, what I need to buy, what work needs to be done, what I need to fabricate, what to pack, what I need to do for certification, safety equipment, license etc. SO MUCH SHIT TO DO!!!! OK stay tuned for updates shortly :D
 
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Broke EF

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Well fellas, I was off work today so I actually got to mess with the car some. I took some video, so I should have something for Youtube soon with more details. BUT I have a few pics, so here we go.

First up for you guys, I put the hood on to make sure everything clears. I was a bit worried about the BOV mainly. I originally planned to have it rotated down more, but there was some marks on the tubing that I decided to cut out which made it stick up higher. The pressure sensor on the FPR was also a bit questionable, but also super easy to fix so I wasnt too worried. BUT...

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She fit with no issues! I am still going to test fit it again now that the radiator is out just so I can see what kind of space there is. but I dont think anything even touched the felt. After that was done, I puled out the radiator, belt, overflow, and some other shit. Then I moved into the interior to work on the wiring. I pulled out the whole dash harness, and some computers.

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Still a mess, but that is mainly just long wires for the Holley. It looks worse than it realy is. Unfortunately, I am pretty sure I am going to have to reinstall the dash harness. I assume it carries everything over to the passengerside door, seat, and also the cluster and lights. Its pretty obvious now, but I was all excited that it could all come out for a bit there LOL. Lucky for me I didnt hack it out, and just unplugged it all. We will see how involved I get with it, or if I just put it all back and tie it off nice for now.

Welp that about does it. Like I said I did some more, but Ill have it in a video soon. SO MUCH TO DO!!!!
 

Broke EF

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Work was so crazy today that I totally forgot I posted a new video to YouTube!!

I am getting ready for Hot Rod Drag Week in September, and this is the first video going over the plans and starting work on the car. I have a TON to do, and not a lot of time. I plan to stay on top of the videos for the prep, and then throughout the week.

 
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Broke EF

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Man, I am getting sick of this damn car. This weekend didnt go very well, but I guess I at least made some progress. It started when I went to put the switches in my steering wheel. Nice simple project, an easy win you would think. Nope!

The motion switches dont fit the switch holes in the motion wheel.
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I guess it kinda worked out since even with my big hands I cant really reach those that well anyway.
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So I guess I get to order the switch brackets. I am also going to get more switches so I can have the line lock and a hor button on the wheel in addition to the trans brake and bump/scramble.

With that simple project derailed I went to work on my exhaust.
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I think I am going to order some tight radius 4" 90's to help make some of these bends
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I then had to run out for a bit, and went to get a new alternator while I was at it. The one in the car was starting to act up some, so I exchanged it and then also put on the 3" Motion pulley to help it live.
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Just look at this pile of shit.
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I then make a mount for the expansion tank, but no pic. After that I started on the dash.
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This was really the worst. Its a long story, but basically I should have done a damn custom cage from the start. The way the cage ended up being installed (which I am NOT upset about at all) meant that the a-pillar bars land at the front of the dash. They are also pretty far out to the edge of the dash, so there was only a sliver left on each side. Anyway I hacked it up and got it in.
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I need to actually mount it since the main points are now non existent. I also had to cut out the part that actually holds the custer in, which means no stock cluter. Thats a real kick in the dick since I kept the stock tank for the gas gauge, I figured out how to get the tach working, and I got a GPS speedo that would talk to the custer so basically everything was going to work like stock :( I have no idea what the plan is now. Since I plan on carrying 20 gallons with me in the trailer I can probably just let the car run out of gas. I am SOL for a tach, and I can use a GPS for a speedo.

Ill spare you all the disapointment after that point and we can just focus on the next project which was exhaust. I started with making what will be the tip.
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And I kind of started in the middle
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That was as far as I got before calling it a day. I need to get more straight tubing so I dont have a million welds. Also, yes I did get a little fancy and swedge a connection. Mainly because I didnt want to tack it but I only have two stands so I swedged it to keep going. I have a bit more figured out further back but I need to get this actually mounted before I go any further. So hopefully I can do some of that during the week and the material I need to finish will be here by the weekend.

Welp, thats all. This car is really depressing the fuck out of me lately. Just so many things that arent going right, or at least how I want them to go, and I dont have the time, money, or skill to fix them right now. I just need to get it done for drag week, then it needs to survive, and then its getting ripped apart for massive changes.