A Poor Man's Dream S13.

[S14rebuild]

Just asking cause in the pic poormans posted theres a headgasket betwwen the torque plate and block....

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by S14rebuild

Edit... any concern with reusing the headgasket since its already been torqued down on durning the boring/hone process?

That is an old headgasket. I definitely wouldn't re-use a stopper-type gasket.

[S14rebuild]

True, kinda was expecting that answer.....

Nothing beats minty fresh machine work

[PoorMans180SX]

[IIIXziuR]

I second that. Minty fresh machine work and clean engine bits are always a treat to look at, ha

[PoorMans180SX]

Well I finished with the gold tape on the exhaust side. Started with DEI but bought some non-branded stuff on Amazon, hopefully it holds up. Seems quite similar.



Haven't gotten my THL crossmember, so I decided to just put it back together with the GKteck rack forward bushings for now. I don't want to wait to put the engine in. If it comes in the meantime well... That's life.



Fitment is on point, obviously need to mount the fenders and fine tune, and the front needs to come down two fingers.



I also need to get the inner tie rods in so I can see if this is realistic.



And what I'm going to have to do with the lock stops to keep the wheel off the LCA

[RalliartRsX]

I used the non branded Amazon stuff and.......wasn't impressed

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by RalliartRsX

I used the non branded Amazon stuff and.......wasn't impressed

Lol, great! I was hoping it was a case of the same factory kinda thing... I could tell it wasn't by the different backing but... Should have just shelled out the cash

[RalliartRsX]

These cars already have shit all for insulation, so yeah. Shell out the bucks. Fatigue and heat related failures due to turbo heat is a real issue on any turbo track cars.

A similar situation saw a weekend go up in smoke at VIR a few months ago. Got like 10 laps total for the entire 2 day weekend because of inadequate heat management.....

Yeah, I have learned my lesson

[Krusty_s13]

Looking good!
I had to switch over to the GKtech FLCA's because i had that same issue with the wheel contacting the lca.

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by RalliartRsX

These cars already have shit all for insulation, so yeah. Shell out the bucks. Fatigue and heat related failures due to turbo heat is a real issue on any turbo track cars.

A similar situation saw a weekend go up in smoke at VIR a few months ago. Got like 10 laps total for the entire 2 day weekend because of inadequate heat management.....

Yeah, I have learned my lesson

UGHHH, now I'm seriously considering tearing it all off and redoing it haha. Just read about how the cheap stuff is basically party balloon foil . Might just get some of the heavier duty barrier stuff that has some thickness to it at this point. Do it once, do it right kids...fml hahaha.

Originally Posted by Krusty_s13

Looking good!
I had to switch over to the GKtech FLCA's because i had that same issue with the wheel contacting the lca.

Yeahhhhh, I'm highly considering this. I was really trying not to "space ship" this build, but here I am...

In other news I'm picking up the block and head today!

[PoorMans180SX]

Got the engine back from the machine shop last week. A couple of minor things up with the block, but nothing that should really affect performance at the power levels I'm looking to make. I need to take some pictures when I get to work on it today. Line hone has a nice scrape in it though, luckily it's a low spot and shouldn't affect bearing clearances when it's assembled.



Also discovered that a few of my head and main studs were stretched, probably because the previous engine builder had zero idea what he was doing. The headstuds were the old 8470 VW kit. While some stretch is okay on an ARP stud, I've decided to replace them with Mazworx studs due to the superior design and ARP2000 material. Even after the hot tank I had to rifle brush and blow out the main and head stud holes to get the ARP moly lube out of them :rollseyes:

Ordered a cleaning tap for the head stud/main stud holes and some other odds and ends, but I'll be chasing every hole in the block. This thing will be put together correctly!

Crossmember from THL supposedly shipped out today. I guess it's going to be four or more weeks until the fender braces are done. Still waiting on the turbo as well for some reason. This project has definitely stretched well beyond the original scope and timeline. I need to go drive!

I've been trying to get this Evo X wiring project done so I can concentrate on my car more, here's some shots.





Lots of tidying up to do in here. Don't ask me why he has the fuel tank in the passenger seat, IDK.

[PoorMans180SX]

I guess it's harder to see in these pics than I thought, but here's my attempt at capturing the stretched studs and thread damage on camera. Anyone interested in a "how to assemble an SR20" write-up or video?







Looks like the Mazworx studs will be here on Friday. Have a few other things showing up this week too .

[TheRealSy90]

Wouldn't you want to use new studs when doing the torque plate and when assembling the engine? I'm on the fence myself currently over doing a headgasket and arp head studs on my sr that i'm prepping. I don't want to worry about pulling the block threads out lol. The gasket is fine but I suspect there's an oil leak at the front cover

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by TheRealSy90

Wouldn't you want to use new studs when doing the torque plate and when assembling the engine? I'm on the fence myself currently over doing a headgasket and arp head studs on my sr that i'm prepping. I don't want to worry about pulling the block threads out lol. The gasket is fine but I suspect there's an oil leak at the front cover

Ideally yes, but as long as the studs torqued to the proper value then nothing should change dimension wise. I didn't know they were stretched (I've actually never seen it happen) until I went to re-assemble it. I guess that's what happens when you put ARP lube on both ends of the stud like a dunce. Honestly they'd probably torque fine again, I'm just wary of putting them in this rather expensive engine.

I've never seen someone pull the threads out of a block unless they installed things wrong.

There is definitely a bunch of junk in the bottom of the head stud holes I need to clean out (I'll try and get a pic). I have a tap coming to make sure the threads are nice and clean as well. The devil is in the details.

[TheRealSy90]

I could have swore the ARP instructions said to put lube on the block-end of the threads also. Its been years since I last installed ARP head studs for someone. Albeit there were no issues it all went fine.

[S14rebuild]

how many stretched? And was that pics of the headstuds, cause i know on my mains, beleve it was 2 or 3 were shorted, to clear the rwd oil pan...glad i checked instructions and saw that..

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by TheRealSy90

I could have swore the ARP instructions said to put lube on the block-end of the threads also. Its been years since I last installed ARP head studs for someone. Albeit there were no issues it all went fine.

Negative. No lubrication on the block side. You can loctite them in if you want a permanent install hah.
https://tech.arp-bolts.com/instructions/102-4701.pdf

Originally Posted by S14rebuild

how many stretched? And was that pics of the headstuds, cause i know on my mains, beleve it was 2 or 3 were shorted, to clear the rwd oil pan...glad i checked instructions and saw that..

Two of the mains are much shorter than the others hah. Looks like two or more headstuds stretched (They are all at different levels in the block). Looks like 3 mains stretched. The pictures are of both.

Also, if you put main studs in your block, you need to align hone your crank main bore. Mine were .002" out vertically.

[S14rebuild]

Originally Posted by PoorMans180SX

Negative. No lubrication on the block side. You can loctite them in if you want a permanent install hah.
https://tech.arp-bolts.com/instructions/102-4701.pdf



Two of the mains are much shorter than the others hah. Looks like two or more headstuds stretched (They are all at different levels in the block). Looks like 3 mains stretched. The pictures are of both.

Also, if you put main studs in your block, you need to align hone your crank main bore. Mine were .002" out vertically.

Was just checking...

Correct had mine lined honed with arp studs. Motors almost back together, turns over perfectly... super excited

[TheRealSy90]

So i'm just trying to educate myself here. If you install ARP fasteners, the "correct way" is to install them using a stretch gauge, right? So they are supposed to stretch a specific amount. If you do that and then align hone it to set the mains, since the studs already stretched aren't those studs then no good to use for assembling the engine? And you'd have to use another set of new studs and stretch-gauge them again.

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by TheRealSy90

So i'm just trying to educate myself here. If you install ARP fasteners, the "correct way" is to install them using a stretch gauge, right? So they are supposed to stretch a specific amount. If you do that and then align hone it to set the mains, since the studs already stretched aren't those studs then no good to use for assembling the engine? And you'd have to use another set of new studs and stretch-gauge them again.

You can?t accurately use a stretch gauge on studs. Also, they?re elastic. The goal is to stretch them the right amount so you don?t permanently deform them.

[PoorMans180SX]

These came in yesterday:

[TheRealSy90]

They're a really great arm. I just haven't figured out how I want mine adjusted. And having to rearrange the shims on either side of the heim to make significant castor adjutsment is kind of a pain.

[PoorMans180SX]

Originally Posted by TheRealSy90

They're a really great arm. I just haven't figured out how I want mine adjusted. And having to rearrange the shims on either side of the heim to make significant castor adjutsment is kind of a pain.

Yeah my good friend Joe had them on his car. It's definitely a pain, but I'm kind of a "set it and forget it" kind of guy with things like this. I'll probably shoot for 5-6* of caster and be done with it. Looks like my crossmember should be here in a week or so, so that'll be cool to setup.

[koukis13]

Duuuude, your building a beast!

[PoorMans180SX]

Got the new studs in on Friday and measured bearing clearances on Saturday. I got King racing bearings with .001" extra clearance, which turns out was not necessary on the mains. They were at .003" which is a bit big for my liking. So I'll be getting some normal bearings which will bring them down to .002" which is pretty golden. The rods are at .0022-.0025" which is right where I want them. This thing will always have 5w50 in it, so that extra cushion should provide some margin of safety.

One thing I did, which I would not recommend, is running a tap down through the headstud holes. I couldn't find a thread cleaner long enough anywhere, and after doing some reading, it seemed like it wasn't a big deal to run a tap down them. Maybe I should have used some tapping lubricant or something, but now I feel like I should have just rifle-brushed them out. Anyway, the result is that the studs have a very small amount of wobble when threaded all the way in now, which I don't like, but I'm just going to assemble and send it.

The mains weren't an issue since the thread cleaner I had was long enough.







And just some of the little detail work I've done radiusing or chamfering the oil drains and such.






Also took the dremel to the rough casting area at the water pump inlet.

[RalliartRsX]

There is so much core shift in the SR block it's rediculous. I could almost peel off some of the "slag" from the casting process just in the head alone

[S14rebuild]

Hope those studs hold for u..... what u gonna torque them to, using the new evo washers?

[RalliartRsX]

^^ Should be anywhere above 80 ft lbs (if using the proper assembly lube)

[S14rebuild]

Originally Posted by RalliartRsX

^^ Should be anywhere above 80 ft lbs (if using the proper assembly lube)

i ran 85ft lbs..didnt know with the wider evo washers, but seemd to of worked.... been slackn off motor should be in the car by this weekend, running shortly after if i can figure out the power fc initial setup