say, you're half way through a swap...

what would you do?

repaint?
firewall re-insulate?
re-locate items?

tell us what you did & show us pics if you have 'em

cheers,

Nick

d) all of the above.


i grabbed a heat sheild thing off of FieroX too... wow is it nice...

i didnt do anything, all 6 times ive replaced the engine. i regret it. that fiberglass looking stuff looks aweful

when i was in that situation, a few years back with my V8 swap i grabbed a scrub brush and some degreaser and cleaned and cleaned, then i got out the grinder and cut off every bracket that wasnt bieng used then i spray'd the bay with truck bed liner
looks great, got many compliments

[This message has been edited by $Rich$ (edited 03-21-2008).]

Second that !!

Fiberglass matt belongs in the rafters of a house, not an engine bay.

i cleaned the engine bay, primered the engine bay and pulled all the insulation except the piece on the firewall.

quote Originally posted by lurker: i cleaned the engine bay, primered the engine bay and pulled all the insulation except the piece on the firewall.

x2, leave the "bulk head" insulation there, then get the grinder out and cut all the little shield mounts and crap off, they are just annoying later....

The fiberglass on the bulkhead will help keep noise, vibration, and um, deadly fires away from you in the cab. It might not look nice, but its naturally black, so it sorta just fades in with the background usually.

Clean it up.
Remove all the fiberglass stuff.
Paint as neccessary.
Use the foil insulators for the firewall. This stuff is way better than the stock fiberglass. Keeps noise down, keeps the heat down and the engine compartment cooler, fireproof, easy to keep clean, doesn't hold dirt or oil which can make the old stuff flamable, and finally looks great.




------------------

Happiness isn't around the corner...
Happiness IS the corner.
ZZ4 Powered !!

[This message has been edited by Oreif (edited 03-21-2008).]

Remove everything that is not needed. If it is needed, relocated it out of sight, consolidate the 2 bulkhead harnesses to 1, move it lower, eliminate the rubber grommets for the shift/throttle cable, add thermal/acustical material, add fake firewall, modify the strut studs to accept button head bolts, remove dog bone bracket, etc....

[This message has been edited by fieroguru (edited 03-21-2008).]

1. Remove old fiberglass blankets.
2. Remove battery tray (or replace).
3. Sand and repair battery tray area.





4. Sand engine bay.
5. Clean with toxic death (xylene or xylol).







6. Paint you on some bedliner.
7. Topcoat the bedliner with UV protectant so it won't break down.









8. Apply new firewall heat shield.
9. Replocate as much as you can out of the engine bay to keep it clean looking.





Only problem I've noticed with the bedliner is that it makes it fairly difficult to clean since it's no longer a smooth surface. The peaks and valleys of the liner will trap dust and dirt in it easily. I found that I can get most of it off with my air compressor by simply blowing on it. However, I'm going to try a brush and some water tomorrow and see how that goes (I don't want to get water all over my engine so I'll have to be careful.

[This message has been edited by grsychckn (edited 03-21-2008).]

quote Originally posted by BobadooFunk: d) all of the above. i grabbed a heat sheild thing off of FieroX too... wow is it nice...

Some excellent ideas, suggestions & jobs folks. Thank you very much for sharing.

Where can i get some of that foil/thermal firewall insulation stuff from ( & how much would i need)?

[This message has been edited by OHNIKO (edited 03-21-2008).]

quote Originally posted by grsychckn:

grsychckn, you have a PM.

Hehe. I use scrubbing bubbles to clean it. Takes grease and dirt away very quickly. A 3-4 dollar can is usually enough to do the job.

The fiberglass stuff gets pulled also. Then I sand, zinc primer, and paint as necissary. Don't remove the factory paint unless you have to. Its better them most anything you can spray on. I usually replace the fiberglass with a 1/2 inch acoustical foam and don't bother with anything except for the firewall. Make sure the foam has an reflective cover and is the sticky stuff for ease of installation. You can get in anywhere for around $50 or precut for the fiero firewall from Westcoastfiero.com for around $120. They include the reflective tape to seal the cracks. Total cost around 75 dollars. It looks great and really drops the engine sound nicely.

[This message has been edited by Fieroseverywhere (edited 03-21-2008).]