Originally posted by fiero308: I have watched other threads and saw where Cryzone had dogbone failure/probs and wrecked part of the engine; to the point that he decided to get rid of it; too bad! That makes me think of both the motor mounts and dogbone issue; are you doing something special about the dogbone mounting? It suddenly has my attention for that reason!
I hope to get around to the dogbone Wednesday. It seems to be very important to tie the dogbone to multiple mounting points to distribute the load, and its equally important to make sure the dogbone is not a "hard" limiter when it comes to engine movement. If the engine backs up into the dogbone to the point where the bushings are squashed to be essentially solid while the other mounts still have a range of motion, its going to shock the mounting points and break something... just like bottoming out the suspension. With plenty of rubber (or poly) there should be enough travel that this isn't an issue.
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Idler pulley alignment: if you can (and at this point prob can't) get a straightedge across some of the pulleys that will tell you if your idler is aligned with them or not. Eventually if it does throw a belt) you'll be looking at them anyway so that is an idea.
The pulley faces are not all in the same plane, so I don't see how I could use a straightedge to figure it out. Perhaps I don't understandly exactly what you mean?
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Might be too late on this but I started a thread on an EXCELLENT exhaust article if you are just getting to that now; it is at https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/061365.html and for $3.99 isn't even the cost of one (wrongly selected) fitting. I have read the whole thing and going thru again and it will become one of my guidelines. I can't recommend it enough.
I'll certainly be picking that up tomorrow before I head back to the shop I was planning to buy some exhaust parts from. I really don't have too much of a choice when it comes to exhaust though.. space is extremely limited. There are only a handful of parts available in the dimensions I need. I still have to find a CARB-approved cat that's less than a foot long...
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I hope you can get a sound clip up eventually; I love the sound of these things. And congrats on your diligence and progress.
As soon as the coolant system is hooked up I can run it up to temperature and start working out the bugs. I'll record a high quality clip through my condensor microphone.
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Originally posted by Kohburn: there is the downpipe I need.. I'm going to be welding up my exhaust this week and really can't find a flange to mount it to the manifold..
Looks like a standard piece of equipment to me.. I'll take some pics of the flange if it would help you find it. As Erik said, they are probably available at Autozone or another parts place. It's just a two-bolt flange for flared 2 1/2" OD pipe.
Thanks for that fuel pump relay diagram, Erik. That'll help me find out where I've got a bad connection. I jumped the 87 and .. well now wait a second.. I jumped the power with a screwdriver and got the pump to run. How the heck could I do that if the 30 and 87 terminals are opposite? I must have this thing plugged in wrong.
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03:37 AM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
I fixed the wiring now. I had the 30 (fuel pump positive) and 86 (ECM relay control) connections swapped.
Here's what else I did today:
Routed my heater outlet line. I attached 5/8" ID heater hose to the remains of the original rubber hose that comes off of a hardline on the passenger side framerail next to the alternator. I had cut most of the original rubber hose off when removing the Duke but I happened to have enough to put in a plastic coupler I picked up from the "Help!" section at the auto parts store. The heater hose is clamped to the coupler which is clamped to the hose on the hard line. I routed the hose along the trunk wall with some zipties and clamped it to my slightly modified heater hose outlet pipe. The pipe normally has two bends in it and when oriented toward the trunk wall hits the crossover. The closet it will get is pointing straight up.. so I just cut it off where the second bend starts, making it into a simple 90-degree bend that I could point right at the trunk wall. I didn't bother flaring it; with the hose clamp tightened I don't think its going anywhere. I am somewhat concerned about the quick connect leaking as I had bad experiences with the one on the intake manifold of the duke. I would replace it with a barbed fitting but after seeing the LIM destruction caused by attempted removal of the quick connect fitting I'm leaving it how it is. If it leaks I'll just smear sealer around it and push the line back in for a more permanent and leak-free connection.
I also ran a hose from the brake booster line fitting at the firewall to the large vacuum port on the back of the intake manifold. My original plan was to make a nice hard line but 1/2" line was not locally available so I just bought the hose. It was cheap enough anyway... The hose travels along the trunk wall, on the side of the strut tower, and then behind where the V6 air cleaner goes, then it hits the front firewall and dips down to pass through one of the mounting brackets for the front firewall heat shield (no longer needed since I will have no catalytic converter nearby to cook things there) and bends to meet the fitting on the firewall. It does not appear to bend enough to kink, but if it does become an issue I will reattach a 90-degree bend section of the original hose and attach the new hose to it using a coupler. That was actually what I originally wanted to do, but I couldn't find a 1/2" the coupler at the local Kragen's.
I finally finished my PCV valve connection as well. I was having trouble figuring out a way to get the PCV valve and its hose adapter out of plain sight, as the number of hose clamps necessary made it a sore sight. I used a small part of the PCV line that comes off of the rear valve cover and normally goes to the intake tube. When trimmed properly it allowed me to hide the PCV valve under the throttle body. Since the rubber hose adapter on the end of the plastic PCV line is glued on to the hard line, it reduces the number of clamps plainly visible to one. Excellent! I also plan on glueing the hose adapter piece (the TB side of the PCV valve fits something like 1/2" ID hose) to the plastic line to keep things clean. Obviously I don't like the appearance of hose clamps!
I still have to figure out where I'm going to run the vent line from the rear valve cover.. that will wait until I work out the air filtration system. I originally planned on using the V6 filter box and the intake tubing from a 3.1 W-body but it looks like the intake tubing from the 3.1 is not going to reach. Maybe I just have to reaaalllly stretch it. I'll try again once I'm ready to drive it.
-Steven
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-05-2005).]
you'll want to Y the front and rear valve cover lines and connect to the intake infront of the throttlebody -- I used another pcv valve where they connect tot he intake to prevent oil from backing up those lines from the valve cover - I also intend to place an oil catch can between the pcvline and the plenum. I hate oil getting into the intake system
went and talked to em yesterday - they would have had to order the whole downpip and cat for 189$.. next stop midas - hoping they will have exhaust fittings.
steve - any way you can grab some dimensions off of that downpipe?
if not thats cool - i can do it when I get home
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09:34 AM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
you'll want to Y the front and rear valve cover lines and connect to the intake infront of the throttlebody -- I used another pcv valve where they connect tot he intake to prevent oil from backing up those lines from the valve cover - I also intend to place an oil catch can between the pcvline and the plenum. I hate oil getting into the intake system
As far as I know it doesn't matter what is tied together as long as there's a vent to through the PCV valve to the throttle body and the rest of the vents go to the intake. Notice on a single valve cover engine that the PCV valve simply comes off a seperate hole opening into the same space... It's all continuous inside the engine anyway, through the oil drainback passages and whatnot. In my case the front valve cover line goes to a T at the crankcase vent, and that runs out under the intake manifold to the PCV valve to the TB. The rear valve cover will go to the intake.
How soon would you need the downpipe measurements? I wont get around to it until tomorrow if it doesn't matter, but if you want them tonight I have no problem getting 'em for you. What all do you need measured?
-Steven
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05:15 PM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
The bolts appear to be standard sprung downpipe bolts you can find in the "help" section of any auto parts store. They're probably metric like everything else on the engine.. my caliper reads in inches though and I didn't bother converting as you can do it easily enough if necessary. Hope this helps!
EDIT for engine update: I ran my engine a bit more today with everything connected properly just to see how well it worked. I couldn't run it for too long since I don't have the coolant system hooked up yet but I did get my first real trouble code: 43. This indicates a problem with the knock sensor circuit. Since the knock sensor connector was missing and the knock sensor itself is chipped I ordered a new one and will also keep an eye out for a new connector at the junkyard, as the one I had found had a broken pin which I had to replace it. I think it may have ended up too short and isn't making contact. The idle is perfectly smooth but a bit high (tach reads 1,100 RPM but it could be wrong). If I blip the gas, nothing happens! I have to keep my foot on it to get any throttle response whatsoever. I assume this is due to the computer pulling back timing due to the knock sensor circuit problem. Anything else it could be? MAP sensor, IAC, coolant sensors, TPS are all connected and I get no error codes for them...
-Steven
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-05-2005).]
Thanks steve - I ended up being a little creative and cut up a generic flex pipe to get the flared end off of it and started welding up my "downpipe" today - pardon the hideous welds I spend more time trying to get the feed motor on my welder to work than actually welding - so the feed was jumpy and caused a lot of spatter and blobs toward the end
Check your TPS - I think my 2.8 had veery sluggish throttle response when I had the wrong TPS on there (was testing the compatability of another TPS on there for shits and giggles). I don't think I got an error code either - as long as the readings are within a wide range, it won't trip.
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11:22 PM
Apr 6th, 2005
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
Check your TPS - I think my 2.8 had veery sluggish throttle response when I had the wrong TPS on there (was testing the compatability of another TPS on there for shits and giggles). I don't think I got an error code either - as long as the readings are within a wide range, it won't trip.
My dad and I were talking about it and we came up with a similar idea. As long as the TPS "kinda" works it wont throw a code.. I'll swap it out for the one in my duke (same part #) and see what happens.
-Steven
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-06-2005).]
I'm sorry I came in late on this thread. Your useing a tranny from a 4 banger and it bolted up to a V6? I thought they had a different bolt pattern. Is it just this engine or any V6?
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07:08 PM
Apr 7th, 2005
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
Swapped out the TPS and the change was noticeable but the throttle response is still crappy. I still don't have a coolant system hooked up though, and the knock sensor circuit still has issues so we'll see what happens when I can get it up to running temp with no error codes..
I welded up some of my exhaust today. I don't have a cat yet so I just welded the downpipe into the side of a short piece of 3" pipe, which gets reduced to 2.5" on each end to go through 15" glasspacks. I still have to make the hangers and find some tips that I like. It was much harder to get everything lined up than I thought it would be. I'm thinking about just having the exhaust shop redo it for me when I get the cat. It fits well enough to work but it could be tucked in better (it hangs down past the cradle a bit and hits the heat shield) and the welds could certainly be done better. I'll post some pics on my next update (camera is in the garage).
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Originally posted by 85@49:
I'm sorry I came in late on this thread. Your useing a tranny from a 4 banger and it bolted up to a V6? I thought they had a different bolt pattern. Is it just this engine or any V6?
They do not have different bolt patterns. All of the Fiero transmissions have the same bolt pattern as each other and every other FWD-application GM engine except the Quad 4/Twincam/Ecotec.
yeah I got some arc tan last night for sure on my shins and arms
take a look at just how short this system is - its a 2.5" high flow cat down to two 2.25" turbo tube mufflers - should flow plenty well despite the T I had to do to get it all to fit.
Kohburn - I hate you. That looks like so simple, though I'm still hellbent on making the stocker style system work for me for a couple reasons. I'll really be curious to compare how the two different style systems sound and how they work for sure. Steven - you're going the same route right? We'll have to check it out when we're all done here.
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04:53 PM
Erik Member
Posts: 5625 From: Des Moines, Iowa Registered: Jul 2002
Thats almost exactly like mine except I'm not running a cat and I have ansa resonator tips..its gonna be loud with the short bullets ( mine are longer) and without resonators but, perhaps the cat will make up for it
[This message has been edited by Erik (edited 04-07-2005).]
Originally posted by Kohburn: did some welding - in shorts
yeah I got some arc tan last night for sure on my shins and arms
take a look at just how short this system is - its a 2.5" high flow cat down to two 2.25" turbo tube mufflers - should flow plenty well despite the T I had to do to get it all to fit.
That looks just like mine!
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Originally posted by Blue Shift:
Kohburn - I hate you. That looks like so simple, though I'm still hellbent on making the stocker style system work for me for a couple reasons. I'll really be curious to compare how the two different style systems sound and how they work for sure. Steven - you're going the same route right? We'll have to check it out when we're all done here.
Yeah my exhaust is functionally identical to Kohburn's. I used glasspacks instead of "turbo mufflers".. but is there really any difference? They're just perforated tubes with fiberglass packing, right? It's still pretty loud right now with just the glasspacks but once I get the cat on there and the tips it should be good.
Yeah my exhaust is functionally identical to Kohburn's. I used glasspacks instead of "turbo mufflers".. but is there really any difference? They're just perforated tubes with fiberglass packing, right? It's still pretty loud right now with just the glasspacks but once I get the cat on there and the tips it should be good.
-Steven
do your perferations stick out into the exhaust stream and are directional? mine are directional - glad to know i'm not the only one running this setup..
just to let you know in order to get it to fit I had to cut the neck off the cat and trim the downpipe to about 1/2" long on the bottom and 2+" long on top.. its really tight and the mufflers still hang just below the craddle - with is ok they will be about the same height as the front sway bar on the rear..
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01:52 PM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
Originally posted by Kohburn: do your perferations stick out into the exhaust stream and are directional? mine are directional - glad to know i'm not the only one running this setup..
Yes. I am running them with the perforations sticking out the "sharp" way into the exhaust flow, i.e. gases go ---> and the perforations go |\ |\ |\ |\. The way I have it set up will restrict exhaust flow slightly (and certainly not noticeably) but make it quieter. If you put some flanges on them you could flip 'em around easily to see how you like it best. Could you post some closeups of where your cat hooks up to the downpipe flange?
-Steven
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06:45 PM
Apr 9th, 2005
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
I went down to Lincoln Radiator & Muffler in Watsonville and had them add a filler neck to my thermostat gooseneck. Only cost me a few bucks and all I had done already was drill the hole. Now I just need a passenger's side hose and I'm ready to fill 'er up!
I also dismantled my first attempt at the exhaust system so I could redo it with the cat and a shorter T piece, as the system ended up being too wide. There has been some debate over the desireability of a T in the system, especially directly after the cat, but I'm not worried about it as others have done so with success. The stock exhaust manifolds are essentially a bunch of T's anyway! If I have any problems or noticeably reduced power output when I dyno it or compare to another 3.4 DOHC car I'll just replace the T with a Y made from tight-radius mandrel bends. Not a big deal as long as it doesn't end up too long. I couldn't get a clean cut on my downpipe so close to the flange because I had no room to clamp it down for the radial saw and the sawzall head hit the flange... so I ended up freehanding it with an angle grinder. I've got some gaps to fill in, but I can reach an air die grinder in through the downpipe opening to clean up any intrusions into the pipe from the fills. Here it is tacked together: Is that much longer than yours, Kohburn? I'm pretty sure the cat itself is the same size. As-is, I can't fit a socket wrench on the left downpipe flange bolt to get it in. If I cut it any closer it would get really hard to get that bolt in. It looks like my glasspacks will be the lowest part of the car.. I don't think its a big deal though; I don't think I have enough suspension travel to bottom it out anyway! If a piece of road debris hits them the downpipe flange bolt springs should allow the whole system to get pushed up into the trunk wall without breaking the whole thing apart.. well hopefully anyway
Kohburn, does this look like the inside of your muffler/glasspack?
-Steven
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-09-2005).]
Originally posted by Steven Snyder: .......... ........
I hope you guys don't mind the questions and etc's this IS the peanut gallery, after all ...... but a question for anyone on the cat in particular in this setup. I am thinking that it is now a much more 'stressed' element in the system from a structural point of view than it typically would be (in line somewhere with the whole system equally supported) - whereas now I don't know how you can prevent the body of it from carrying the weight of the rest of the system, and that is my question; can you do that somehow? Hope so; it looks so compact and simple but I have that one concern. Have you thought of this? Ie building up a 'brace' or something parallel to the cat (in particular) to help carry the load and keep things aligned? Or just reinforcing the body of it somehow to help spread the load around a bit. Gussets? Steel ribs or flanges? Something, I guess. That might be a bit of an awkward ($$?) item to get fixed 500 miles from home (my BASE thought for everything I am doing on my car). I know up here some shops will tell you they are 'not legally allowed' to remove a cat or 'modify' it (ie empty it) etc etc (song and dance).
What do you think? If you could grab the manifold end of the cat and shake the rest of the system from that point, how does it seem to you?
Originally posted by Steven Snyder: Is that much longer than yours, Kohburn? I'm pretty sure the cat itself is the same size. As-is, I can't fit a socket wrench on the left downpipe flange bolt to get it in. If I cut it any closer it would get really hard to get that bolt in. It looks like my glasspacks will be the lowest part of the car.. I don't think its a big deal though; I don't think I have enough suspension travel to bottom it out anyway! If a piece of road debris hits them the downpipe flange bolt springs should allow the whole system to get pushed up into the trunk wall without breaking the whole thing apart.. well hopefully anyway
Kohburn, does this look like the inside of your muffler/glasspack?
yeah i put my glasspacks on the same way and they look basicly like that - as for the exhaust flange.. mine is a little short.. I had to cut the spring and use a regular bolt and washer to get it to fit.. and could only get a box wrench on it heh..
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11:44 AM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
Originally posted by fiero308: I hope you guys don't mind the questions and etc's this IS the peanut gallery, after all ...... but a question for anyone on the cat in particular in this setup. I am thinking that it is now a much more 'stressed' element in the system from a structural point of view than it typically would be (in line somewhere with the whole system equally supported) - whereas now I don't know how you can prevent the body of it from carrying the weight of the rest of the system, and that is my question; can you do that somehow?
I didn't think about the cat itself being a problem structurally, but I was worried about the seal at the manifold. The flange is only held on by compressed springs, so if there's enough weight it may not seal properly. My plan will solve both problems though. I'm welding brackets onto my glasspacks that will allow the attachment of the factory muffler support springs, and I may also use tailpipe hangers as well. The cat will bear no load.
I finished my "dogbone" last night. I made a bracket similar to Darth Fiero's; it bolts to the large lift bracket bolt and the small upper one. I mounted one end of a swaybar endlink to it. The other end mounts to a plate welded to a piece of square tubing. I used a dogbone bolt through the square tubing to hold it in place. The front bracket is not welded to lift hook so I can easily remove it and replace it if it doesn't work out or I decide to make something that looks better. I just cobbled it together with scraps that were laying around, hence all the ridiculous weld fills.
I completed my exhaust system as far as routing and the majority of the alignment, but its still just tacked together because I need to realign the left glasspack once I get a Fiero tailpipe hanger from the salvage yard. I currently just have a hanger on the right side; thats why it looks lopsided. I'm also thinking about redoing the T and/or the connection at the downpipe flange because the exhaust system is the lowest point of the car by about an inch. It will come up a bit from where it is in the pics once I pull the left side up, but not by much.. After I get it lined up right I'll finish the welds and paint it all high-temp black to help hide it, as it is quite visible from behind the car. Might help to have the rear fascia back on though..
I also finished the battery hold downs. I put two washers on an angle iron, one in each plane sticking over the edge enough to get a piece of threaded rod through (could just use some battery hold downs from OSH instead of threaded rod). For the front-to-back hold down I made a plate with a nut welded to it that goes on the other side of the battery box. I welded a wingnut to the threaded rod so I can easily screw it in or out by hand. For the top-bottom hold-down I just used one of the hold-downs from a kit I got at OSH. The top side is limited by a washer welded to the angle iron and the bottom has one of the plastic washers next to the "hook" so it wont fall off. The battery can't move back and the holddown can't jump up. It's not going anywhere!
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10:06 PM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
With all of the equipment absolutely necessary for driving the car installed and ready except for the clutch arm modification, I couldn't resist starting up the car in gear to take it for a quick spin. Alas, my starter motor finally decided it was time to be completely dead. I had problems with it before but I was able to get it to go by jumping it with a screwdriver then turning the key. Today it would no longer spin at all, the solenoid just clicked. I pulled it out and hooked up a battery to see if I could get it to work out of the car, but the starter motor just drew a lot of current without doing anything. I picked up a replacement at Autozone, hooked it up, and voila: it works! Starts a lot faster now too. I'm still getting a code 43 and my air temp sensor is just laying in the trunk, so the engine isn't exactly running right, but damn its quick! I don't know how fast I was going or anything, since the tach wasn't even working at first, but I think I hit the rev limiter in first in about 2 seconds at most. No tire squeal by the way. I don't think I'm getting full power out of it due to the knock sensor circuit problem though. After I hit the limiter in 1st I slammed it into second as best I could but then I was out of road . While going up the hill to the cul de sac where I could turn around without stopping the car, it suddenly died. I coast backward down the hill into a neighbor's driveway and pushed the car to get going down the hill pointed the right way and made it almost to the house. My sister brought me a jack so I could figure out what was wrong; turns out I had a badly crimped ring on the positive cable from the starter to the C500 that came loose down below. I stuffed it in so I could just drive the car back to the house and crimped a new connector on properly. The engine seems to be running fine except for the code 43. It does behave somewhat erratically; it will run perfectly smooth for a while and then it sounds like its misfiring on one cylinder erratically. It also will occasionally pop/backfire as its spinning down from a stab of the gas pedal. I imagine these are all symptoms of full ignition timing retard due to the code 43. Anything else it could be? I also remembered that I got the code 43 on the first start (no exhaust). Blue Shift mentioned that he had no codes after his first start (also no exhaust) so I wonder if it isn't my loud/rattling exhaust that is causing it since the problem existed before. I don't think there is any mechanical noise other than from the exhaust and maybe some lifter tick, but the exhaust is still so loud right now that I might not even be able to hear piston slap or something else.. not that I should have any. I did notice after I got back from the first drive that there was some oil on my trunk wall. Turns out it was coming out of the PCV hose I have coming off the rear valve cover that would eventually be connected to the intake. AFAIK I otherwise have the PCV system hooked up properly. Is the oil something to be concerned about? I don't have any cylinders with low compression, unless the punk who sold me the engine put oil in 'em before I got it (sneaky!) to mess up my readings. I didn't get a lot of oil; just an amount about the size of a dime spread out.
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10:25 PM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
After I figure out what the heck I'm going to do about the clutch release arm, I need to find a piece of intake duct that will fit so I can finish my air filtration system. As you can see, the Isuzu 5-speed shift cables enter the path of intake tubing going from the stock V6 air box to the intake plenum. I can't get the 3.1 w-body tube to fit as Darth Fiero did. Anyone know of a similar piece that is a few inches longer at least?
I also have an idea of what to do about the oil fill. I picked up a spare rear valve cover that I'm going to flip around and put on the front with a reloacted fill in it. I've seen it added to the rear cover but I don't like that it is still somewhat out of the way.. although it is nice that it isn't easily seen. My solution will put it where I photoshopped it here but using the more attractive rear valve cover. To prevent it from sticking out like a sore thumb, I'm going to use a flat, low-profile cap painted the same color as the valve cover... it wont be a big black "thing" as I photoshopped.
The engine as it sits:
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-16-2005).]
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10:40 PM
Fastback 86 Member
Posts: 7849 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Sep 2003
Looking good! Only 2 more weeks, better get those gremlins taken care of!
2 more weeks? Eep.. I've got a 10 minute oral presentation to do the day before the Rally, and two midterms next week! Did I mention I'm working at lest 3 days a week too? Argh..It's gonna be close.. but I think I'll make it. I can make a salvage yard run on Tuesday to get an exhaust hanger, hopefully a dipstick, and some stuff for the air duct if I get any leads. What I'm worried about most is getting the clutch arm modification/new slave bracket done, as well as the the ever-present code 43. The clutch release arm mod looks like its going to be a pain in the you know what. I can't just rotate the arm because it is keyed to the shaft via a cutout for where the bolt protrudes. I think I'm going to have to cut the rest of the arm off and then weld it on with the mount portion rotated.. but then I have to make a new slave cylinder bracket that puts the slave at an angle. That'll make bleeding REALLY hard as the air bubbles will travel up toward the piston instead of hanging out by the bleeder.. I don't know if jacking up one side of the car will be enough to offset the angle it needs to be at. I also can't get the old slave cylinder bracket off; the two 15mm bolts on the bottom are stuck. I still have a few more things to try to get them off though. Can someone tell me how much travel the clutch arm/slave cylinder needs on an Isuzu to disengage the clutch? (Measured from where the throwout bearing contacts the pressure plate (can't be pushed by hand any further) to where it is with the clutch pedal pushed in all the way on a properly bled system.) I'd hate to make a new bracket and clutch arm only to find out that it will still hit the crossover before it disengages the clutch.. but I don't want to put it at more of an angle that I have to.
-Steven
[This message has been edited by Steven Snyder (edited 04-17-2005).]
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11:20 PM
May 1st, 2005
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
Just keeping this out of the archives until I can wrap up the build..
I got the swap done to the point of 100% driveability and then 180 miles later the clutch hydraulics died out on me. Once I get it fixed I will take pics of everything and post a major update.
Stimpy and I want to do a Hot Dog run up Highway 9 one saturday when you get your car fixed, I hope you're up for it. Should be good times. I can't wait for you to get that slave figured out. Just waitin' on the good news.
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02:32 PM
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
kinda makes me wish i had stuck with the 3.4 computer I could almost be driving mine right now
what did you use for an intake?
I used 3" PVC tubing and bends with a cone filter behind the quarter panel - no heat soak for me lol
Stock Fiero V6 intake for now. I used 3.1 W-Body tubing to connect the TB to the filter box. I had to stretch it to fit, and it gets pushed in bit by the transmission cables. I just wanted to make sure it works as I need something that looks stock when I go to get CARB recertification. I just need to get the AIR setup and a California 5spd 3.4 TDC VIN and I'm ready to go in. I'm going to take off my manifolds and drill them out for the AIR tubes instead of finding manifolds that are already ready. I'm sitll working out the list of parts I need to get. My intake for non-smog use will probably be similar to yours; 3" PCV tubing to a cone filter by the quarter panel, with a fiberglass adapter scoop to direct airflow into the filter from my custom quarter panel scoop (started working on it last night).
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Originally posted by Fastback 86:
Stimpy and I want to do a Hot Dog run up Highway 9 one saturday when you get your car fixed, I hope you're up for it. Should be good times. I can't wait for you to get that slave figured out. Just waitin' on the good news.
Sounds good to me! Shouldn't be too long now. -Steven
well last night I cut up my stamped metal clutch arm and welded the hell out of it including welding a nut ont he end and fillingin the back of the nut to make a place for the pushrod to rest.. works great except i have air in the lines..
I may take it back off and shorten the arm a little too
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07:06 AM
May 30th, 2005
Steven Snyder Member
Posts: 3324 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Mar 2004
I ended up having to use an Isuzu slave to get enough travel to disengage the clutch. Ridiculous! It won't disengage until its at the end of the inch of travel it gets; with the FWD getrag arm! Ouch. All was well until last Wednesday when, while parking at school, my idle dropped to like 100 RPM, the oil pressure light went on, and the engine was knocking like crazy. I turned it off, waited, restarted, and experienced the same behavior. After resetting the IAC through diagnostic mode I got it to idle okay again. Ever since then it went TOCK TOCK TOCK as it spun down after I turned off the ignition when the engine is hot. It also sounded ratty when I turned it over with the fuel pump fuse out so I could just hear the mechanicals. This was only when hot though. It actually started knocking at idle yesterday morning (cold), so I pulled it into the garage for further inspection. I pulled a few rod bearing caps and didn't like what I saw, so the engine is coming out. More info, and pics of the bearing caps in this thread: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/063422.html On the bright side, I did find out why my clutch disengages after far too much travel and has some pedal vibration. Some of the pressure plate bolts have backed out a few 16ths of an inch, so the pressure plate sits sideways. So my throwout bearing has to push down the first fingers it touches, then after pressing those far enough to get to the fingers that are where they should be, still has to press in far enough to disengage them. Hah! I'll be correcting that once I have the engine and tranny seperated. It could probably be done with a bent wrench through the starter notch, but it'll be much easier to work on the bottom end of the engine when I have it all out anyway. I'm hoping the pressure plate isn't too badly worn.. I'll probably replace the TOB just to be on the safe side though. Some pics to keep your interest: My new resonated exhaust tips:
Completed exhaust: The tips helped smooth out the sound and get rid of some of the resonance while the engine is under load at low RPM. They did also quiet it down a bit, though I wouldn't mind quieting it down some more. It turns heads wherever it goes. The guy at the exhaust shop I went to for the tips said he heard me drive up and couldn't figure out what kind of engine it was. It has a really unique sound.
Going to do something about the dipstick while its out too. Maybe relocate it to the other side of the block if thats possible. I actually broke the handle off it the other day while trying to change my oil because it has to bend so it doesnt hit the firewall and passenger side wiring passthrough. I have a spare rear valve cover that I will mount in place of the front with a relocated oil fill. Its hard to get to the oil fill right now due to the wiring passthrough and its hard to add oil in because of the decklid being in the way.
I'm also going to order the AIR tubes so I can tap the manifolds for them while they're easy to access. Anything else I should do while its out beside a rebuild if it needs it? Hopefully I can just put new bearings on there.. I guess I'll see once its all out..
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03:50 AM
crzyone Member
Posts: 3571 From: Alberta, Canada Registered: Dec 2000
Man, that sucks. When Rockcrawl said he went through 3 or 4 engines to find one with decent rod bearings I guess he wasn't kidding. Seems to be a common problem with the small journals and high rpm's.
Hope you find a good motor and get it on the road as soon as possible. They are a blast to drive.
Levi
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05:57 AM
Erik Member
Posts: 5625 From: Des Moines, Iowa Registered: Jul 2002
Completed exhaust: The tips helped smooth out the sound and get rid of some of the resonance while the engine is under load at low RPM. They did also quiet it down a bit, though I wouldn't mind quieting it down some more. It turns heads wherever it goes. The guy at the exhaust shop I went to for the tips said he heard me drive up and couldn't figure out what kind of engine it was. It has a really unique sound.
Man, that sucks. When Rockcrawl said he went through 3 or 4 engines to find one with decent rod bearings I guess he wasn't kidding. Seems to be a common problem with the small journals and high rpm's.
Hope you find a good motor and get it on the road as soon as possible. They are a blast to drive.
Levi
These rod bearings have 1200 miles on them on a freshly reground crank. Rockcrawl was talking about trying to find a used motor with a good crank; the bad bearing problem isn't something that happens in the first 2k miles on a normal 3.4! There's something else wrong with mine. I think the machine shop may have botched the regrind or something else in the engine failed and pumped a good amount of metal through the rod bearings. Does anyone know about the 3.4 TDC's crank being interchangable with the 3.4 pushrod crank? If it turns out I need a complete or almost complete rebuild, I'll put new bearings on there and run it until it starts knocking again or spins one. I dont have the money for a rebuild, and I probably never will as I'm not going to have a job in the Fall since I'm transferring to UCLA. I'll just try to find a working used motor or a good deal on a crate motor and swap that in when this one dies.
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01:28 PM
Fastback 86 Member
Posts: 7849 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Sep 2003
UCLA? Congrats! Better get that car fixed quick then so we can go for a few drives before you move!
Thanks! All I have to do now is take out the wiring and brakes and then I can drop the cradle, so I'll know how big of a project I have tomorrow or Wednesday. It'd be nice to have it back on the road again by Sunday so I can go to the Fiero corral at Infineon on Sunday but since I'm doing other stuff with the engine while its out thats unlikely, and it probably requires major work. I think I can still go in and just park elsewhere and then meet up with everyone else if I dont have a Fiero.
. While going up the hill to the cul de sac where I could turn around without stopping the car, it suddenly died. I coast backward down the hill into a neighbor's driveway and pushed the car to get going down the hill pointed the right way and made it almost to the house. My sister brought me a jack so I could figure out what was wrong; turns out I had a badly crimped ring on the positive cable from the starter to the C500 that came loose down below. I stuffed it in so I could just drive the car back to the house and crimped a new connector on properly. 
