Joel's LS1 FC parts list/swap thread (remixed)

[frijolee]

Mandeville Big Brakes Fitment
 

Rear brackets installed. 
 

Rear all bolted up
 

Front bracket test fit
 
I also updated my brake calcs above.  I'm pretty sure this is right so if you're changing things in the brake system you can use this as reference.
 
Although Mazda doesn't appear to have two part numbers for the boosters for the N/A cars that's the only way you can get different pressures out from an otherwise identical system.  (Piston area is the same regardless of 4 piston or single piston fronts).  I was talking with Charlie (Bowtie7) who mentioned he had a customer change from single to 4 piston front and solid to vented rears and had my exact symptoms.  A booster swap fixed it for him.  It appears that it does in fact matter where your booster came from.  This means I could solve my brake bit connundrum if I choose to track down a 9" NA booster from a car that was originally 4 piston.  However, it looks like the added leverage of the big rotors will just about balance things out so I might not need it.
 
-----------------------------------------------
 
Brakes are in!!  No leaking, no vibration, no drama, just solid feeling brakes.
 

 
 
I've got a set of Evo 8 wheels w/ r-comps waiting in the wings as the Mustang jobbies didn't quite have the needed spoke clearance... (Needed plus 12 mm clearance vs. my kit)
 
Still to do:
-Figure out the damn clutch issue
-Rebuild a the CV axles
-Oil cooler
-Install my oil pan baffle
-Gauges
-Wire OBD2 port, speedo, and backuplights
-Figure out the power draw that kills my battery if it sits for more than a week...
-Install small battery.
-Tune it
-Front suspension bushings
-Wet sand the front end and reinstall trim
-Put the chin spoiler back on
 
I swear these projects never finish...  At least I'm done with grad school in June, then it's playtime...

[frijolee]

Clutch MC Rebuild
 
Clutch issue solved...  at least for the moment.
 
I was really worried that the seals were going bad inside my MC as I had a ton of black crap in my reservoir. 
 
Here?s the black crap.
 

 
 
[Ed note: the corvette guys eventually proved the black that most LS1 owners get is clutch dust. More info on that here.]
 
I had been thinking that the duty cycle for a brake master cylinder (which this is really supposed to be) might be different from a clutch master where you see a full pedal stroke every time.  I had a rebuild kit sitting on the shelf and I finally got to tear into this.  The view from the top looking down into the MC is even worse...
 

 
 
Disassembly is pretty easy it's just a single circ clip and everything pulls out the backside. The inside looked like it needed to be cleaned by I couldn't detect any wear on the piston seals and the walls were still pretty.
 

 
 
So I threw it all back together (using the new piston just because I had it.)  After a good bleeding it's happy again. 
 
Overall I'm in agreement with the sticky clutch pedal trouble shooting writeup over at LS1 tech.  The only thing I might mention is that rebuild kits can be had pretty easily so that might be an option before replacing the master.  Also the "drill mod" doesn't really apply to our cars...
 
Beyond that he nails it.  I couldn't believe that having skunky fluid could make that much of a difference in a pedal sticky.  I had gone to bleed this before and convinced myself I was wasting my time and should just tear it down instead...  Turns out that probably wasn't needed but at least I got to clean out the reservoir real well so I'll know if it starts getting bad in the future.
 
Joel

[frijolee]

Sometimes days wrenching just SUCK...
 
I had one hell of a Saturday yesterday trying to get my car ready for a Willow Spring event that would have been today.  If you read this thread top to bottom you know I've been out on track once before and decided that it needed more brakes and more tire (and a pilot bearing for the transmission should help too :coolugh:).  Well, the big brakes finished up a couple weeks ago so when I heard about this track day from a friend (who should be in attendance) I got all excited.
 
All I need to do was to fit up tires and while I'm at it, screw it I'm going to reinstall the factory oil cooler with some -AN hardware.
 
Well in the tire department I bought a set of EVO wheels with used RA1s not realizing they're not lug centric.  There's a bunch of guys from the club who all run these...  What the hell?  I go buy the what looks like the correct lug nuts only to realize that they're scary loose in the holes.  We're talking that the holes are like 1/8" bigger than they need to be. 
 
Is this right?  I though the evo used the same m12x1.5 wheel studs we have... Answer, yep I bought the right right lug nuts...   BUT the wheels HAVE to be centered by the hub bore and I don't have the hub centric rings to adapt these.  I must have called 60 wheels shops yesterday starting at like 6 pm and no one has these on short notice.
 
Damn, looks like I'm running street tires...  This sucks but I can live with it.  Moving on?
 
The oil cooler is pretty tough to fit as well.  It means relocating my radiator backwards by a couple inches.  I've got space to do it because of the vette engine accesories but it's still a tight fit and I'm breaking out my friend the dremel tool before long.  It's getting late (11:00ish) and I'm supposed to meet my buddy at 5:00 am. 
 
I'm not going to make it...
 
Well, I don't want to be dumb ass and ball my car up on track (while wearing it's pretty street wheels no less) because I pulled an all nighter to get there.  I decide to abort the oil cooler for the time being and will have to be content to try out my new brakes and take it a bit easy if things get hot.
 
I'm putting it back together and I'm getting tired but I'm almost done when I my inner genius decides it would be a good idea to wire up my fan black box backward.  Ya know ground to power and vice versa.  I'm under the car screwing down the tiny brass lugs above my head and I know I've got it right because each wire is fitted for the perfect length, when suddenly it stars pouring magic smoke.  Oh my god what did I do?
 
All the electronics are embedded in polyurethane or something so when it lets go the magic smoke is impressive.   You've got to be kidding me.  Yeah sometimes the car can be a love hate thing but I'm not ready to burn the sucker down.  I'm yanking on the wire and it's starting to get hot...  Oh but it's a happy slow burn so it's not blowing the fuse I have on it.
 
I finally manage to yank off the wiring lug and the smoke clears.  I go to hook it up the right way but of course I shorted it...   The fan turns on and it throws some more magic smoke for good measure.  The bitter smell seems fitting to go with my bitter thoughts.  DAMN IT!!!!  and this was supposed to be simple job. 
:bigun2:
 
NO, SCREW YOU LITTLE BLACK BOX...  I'm not defeated yet.  I go rummaging through my electronic box and find a big ass breaker switch from car audio stuff.  I wire it up so I can turn on the fan and drive.  It'll mean I have to turn it off every time I stop the car or I kill the battery but whatever, I have jumper cables.
 
However, when I finally test it out it blows like CRAZY.  It's like a freaking wind tunnel.  It seems my little black box never had to let this thing go full bore (at least while I was leaning over the engine bay).  I'm not sure my alternator can keep up with this fan at 100% duty cycle.  There's no time to test it so I lay on the concrete for a while and weigh my options.
 
-Street tires
-No oil cooler
-2 hours sleep
-Ghetto-rigged fan
-Still need to drop in the track pads for brakes
 
There's no way around it...  Limping it around a racetrack with inadequate prep is really bad idea.  I'm dead in the water and I can't go.  :wtc:
 
Insult to injury #1
-My garage is tiny.  I have a couple plastic crates in front of my car so normally I have about 8 inches to spare in front and about 4 inches to the closed door in back.  I've been working on the front of the car so I had it on jackstands hanging out the back.  As tired and bummed as I am I have to put the wheels back on and drop it back down so I can actually close the garage door.
 
Insult to injury #2
-I'm a young guy and I don't have a lot of extra coin to play with and I've just got this hunch that I'm not going to like SpeedVentures refund policy for the track day.   (This of course is in addition to the other bad feelings because I messed up my car and I'm flat out bone weary.)  I go inside and jump online.  "Cancelation within 24 hours of start of event results on no refund what-so-ever". 
 
[Edit 5/12/08...  Speed Ventures was gracious enough to offer me $50 toward my next track event so it looks like my entry fee wasn't a complete and total loss.]
 
Damn.  The event technically started yesterday so I wasn't even registered 24 hours prior to the start of the event.  I tried to play it smart and be sure my clutch was up to snuff before I pulled the trigger on that.  I wrote the guys running the event with a condensed version of the above just to see if they could do something.  Maybe I should have flown out to SNS after all. Finally went to bed at like 3:30. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, at least I slept in.  I guess that's something.

[frijolee]

OK, grad school done!!  Finally getting to play in the garage a bit and having a good time of it.  Need to get the car track prepped so I can finally put some real use on my brakes...
 
OEM Oil Cooler Retrofit
 
I decided to cut out and re-weld my cross brace ahead of the radiator about 6 inches forward of it's former location.  Spot weld cutters are nice...
 

 
 
Shortened the net bar length by 3/4" because the frame rails taper and moved the passenger side bracket for the power steering cooler inward by about 3". 
 

 
 
I finally threw down for a little 110v mig welder and I've been having lots of fun.  Here's the result of burning it back in...   I haven't played with welding gear since college.  Maybe should have ground off a bit larger of paint but it was orginally held in place with 4 spot welds so I assumed it didn't need much.  Note I also redrilled the holes to move the cooler ~1/2" vertically so it'll clear the splash guard.
 

 
 
Power steering cooler still fits but you have to gain some length by straightening out the bends as it goes around the corner of the cross bar.  It's a pain but it came out nice.
 

 
--------------------------------------
 
Oil cooler hoses are undergoing assembly.  I used:
 
-2x m18x1.5 to 10 AN male adapator fittings (some folks swear by the ones from Pegasus racing) I bought these from my local hydraulics shop, Orme Brothers, and don't know who made them.
-1x 150 deg 10 AN fitting
-3x 90 deg 10 AN fittings
-8 feet of stainless braided line (only needed 6 but get 7 just in case)
-3 feet of fire shield for running next to headers
-The OEM foam to protect in abrasion.
-Lingenfelter adaptor block (it should clear the headers but it'll be close)
 
At the adaptor block the lower fitting is output the upper input. 
 

 
 
Oil cooler.  The 150 degree (oil inlet) fitting points the upper line down toward the frame rail where it lines up nicely with the lower 90 (oil return).
 

 
 
And the end result... 
 

 
Just need to reinstall lower radiator mounts and button it up.  I intentionally moved this far enough forward to leave myself space for the OEM AC condenser between the two.

[frijolee]

Oil Pan Baffle Install
 
While I was working under the motor I decided to install the Improved Racing oil pan baffle I had waiting in the wings.  I wanted to do it without pulling the motor but I still needed some clearance so I lifted the block with hoist (just slightly) and dropped the subframe enough to yank out the oil pan. 
 
I pulled off my intake manifold to be sure I wouldn't crush my MAP sensor and also had to loosen my headers for added clearance.   It was still tight, but you can remove this from below.
 
Note the big gap to grannies engine cradle.
 

 
 
Oil pan off
 

 
 
Baffle installing
 

 
 
This piece is pretty nice...  The fitment was literally dead nuts perfect.  Even gaps all the way around... Tight where it needed to be tight.  Call me impressed.
 

 
 
Hopefully it helps control the slosh in the pan as advertised.

[frijolee]

Blown Motor at Buttonwillow
 
Most regulars on here know I blew a motor running around a HPDE track day at Buttonwillow.  I was pretty bummed out and it screwed with my head for a while.  I finally decided that you just have to be prepared for freak things to happen once in a while so I?m going to build it back better than it was but try not to go crazy and overdo it.
 
The other thread is dead so here are the pics of the carnage?
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Windowed both sides of the block:

 

 

 

 
 
 
Finally here?s oil pan after I started cleaning things up.  The amount of metal shavings in there was ridiculous.
 

 
 
Note to self, if you here a tick tick sound from the motor that you think MIGHT be P to V contact shut it down immediately.  Do not pass go do not collect $200.  I heard mine about 20-30 seconds prior to the block failure but tried to limp it around to get back to the pits.  Lesson learned.
 
PS I decide to cut open the pickup and see what it looked like inside. 
 

 
 
For a while I debated whether this could be cleaned up and all the little tabs I made bent back in place.  However, the pickup tube itself turned out to be slightly bent so it got replaced.

[frijolee]

Why Did It Happen?
 
This is really the key question?  Note, there was a video of some instructor at the track day talking about how ?the guy in the white RX7 did well to stay in his car after he spun.?  The first part, yes I did as they requested during the driver briefing in response to mechanical difficulties.  As to the later, I never spun, so he was mistaken on that score but a lot of folks got up in arms over me ?concealing stuff.?  That was pretty annoying.  I got a loose a couple of times but I never put the car backward on the day.
 
I did, however, screw up how I measured my oil level (so much for disguising things)?
 
If you?re reading this thread in order you know I?d just added the factory oil cooler back in and installed the ?Improved Racing? oil pan baffle (note they have an ?improved? Improved Racing baffle with trapdoors now.)
 
For whatever reason, back in the day I?d learned to check my oil with the car cold and engine off.  It?s very consistent and effectively all the oil is in the pan.  I did this the morning of the track day and filled it even to the ?top? dipstick marker.  I didn?t overfill based on Hyperion?s positive testing results with the baffle.  The guys I talk to at the track tell me they try to check oil with engines running if possible or else fully warm, you shut off the car and run around front to check before much extra drain back occurs.  The logic is that you want to measure the oil level while the oil is where it?s supposed to be.   
 
It appears that oil from my cooler may have managed to flow back into the pan overnight so I measured more oil in the pan that I would have while running.  Combine?
 
-high RPM (constant displacement pumps move oil in proportion to speed)
-with high lateral Gs (so oil in the pan is pinned to the wall and oil in the outside head can?t drain back to the pan)
 
?and I starved a can rod bearing and the rest is history.
 
A good baffle helps with slosh but only a dry sump or Accusump can help with the drainback issue.  Having my oil level too low was just the straw that broke the camel?s back.  It was a hard day for sure.

[frijolee]

Plan for the Rebuild?
 
-04 GTO motor, bought mostly for the bottom end.
 
-Cam didn?t make it so I?m due for a new one?  I thought my former specs were nearly perfect (and I did a ton of reading) so I?m going back to another Futral F13.  Only difference will be trying a 112 lsa instead of 114.  Idle will be a touch rowdier but it?ll help the midrange a bit.
 
-I?m adding an Accusump.  3 Qt with EPC valve (and thanks Charlie for the hook up)
 
-I?m changing my intake setup to run above the radiator using an MTI c6 intake and ls7 MAF/IAT combo sensor.  This means running hood pins so I?ll be using Aerocatch plus flush locking pins and ditching all the standard hood hardware.
 
-I?m rerouting my heater hoses from behind the intake manifold to the firewall.
 
-I?m adding AC
 
-I?m redoing my seat mounting brackets as there were a few areas I thought needed fortifying.  Hopefully I can also get the 5th point anti-sub belts hooked up too.
 
-I?m adding gauges for oil pressure, oil temp, and water temp.  My custom gauge pod is almost done. (This will also mean relocating said idiots lights down by the radio). 
 
-I?m going back to an ls6 clutch and Fidanza fly (Mcleod twin with alum fly is for sale if anyone wants it).  Clutch came stock with my GTO so I?ll run it for a while then eventually change to a Spec 2+ with alum pressure plate once it dies.
 
-I?m also going to try a depowered steering rack (via the Flying Miata instructions). 
 
-I?m finally also weeding down all the spare connectors leftover in the engine bay from its rotary days.  Doing this after the fact has pros and cons but it does make getting the wiring functional initially a lot easier.
 
-You never know I might even get my speedo and back up lights wired?  Someday I need to get the rear diff bushings swapped in too but that can likely wait till the car?s mobile again.
 
 
Lots to do before SevenStock/SNS so the push is on.  Go baby go.
-Joel

[frijolee]

Dash Removal and Lightening
 
I pulled the dash both in anticipation of heater hose relocation and to let me rewire the harness in back for idiot lights.  I took it ALL the way apart so I could epoxy some cracks and broken hardware mounts.
 

 
 
Figured I'm unlikely to take it apart this far again anytime soon so I thought I'd lighten some non-structural parts of the steel frame.  (Those windows are new).  Dropped about 4 lbs doing this.  I should have bought a knock out punch set as this was a pain in the rear job?
 

 
 
Got to play with the welder some too.
 

 
 
Quick shot in the process of extending the harness for the idiot lights (to be relo'd down below the stereo).  100% solder and heat shrink for me.
 

[frijolee]

Custom Triple Gauge Pod
 
I've been planning on installing a few better gauges and had been eyeballing pods from the now defunct "5one5 Innovations."   However, the 5one5 pod points the gauges a bit upward toward the roof and that kind of thing annoys me.  APC makes a universal 52 mm gauge pod that looks like it's fit in the idiot like location pretty well with a little shaving. 
 

 
 
Here?s the work in progress and end result?
 
Trimmed (hole in bottom section of OEM part will help with mounting):
 

 
 
Filled voids w/ triple expanding foam, added body filler and a touch of putty:
 

 
 
Semiflat black (looking grey from the flash and some dust but you get the idea):
 

 
 
Gauges loaded.  Prosport Peak/Hold with audible alarm
 

[frijolee]

DIY Depowered Steering Rack
 
Found an EXCELLENT writeup on TeamFC3S.org by a gent called Titanium TT on depowering the steering rack on an FC...  You probably also want to read up over at Flyin Miata where they have torque specs.  Between the two you should have everything you need (and I saved all Titanium's pics and text in case the link ever goes bad), so I'm only going to enclose a few general pics of the process.
 
However, be warned it's a pain the ass job.  I must have fought with the inter tie rod connections for almost an hour before I got them loose.  I finally had to resort to a torch to warm things up and use a mallet in conjunction with a giant crescent wrench to get them loose.  A small C-clamp does wonders for keeping the boots out of the way.
 

 
 
Quill removed, it really is quite the stack of seals on this bad boy.
 

 
 
These are the "springs" that titanium mentions removing...
 

 
 
My little 110 welder had some trouble with welding this heavy of steel so I had to preheat pretty heartily to get it done (hence the pretty colors)
 

 
 
Ports trimmed down and welded (I didn't go all the way flush because I didn't want to make the backside lumply as there's a guide that still has to slide in there)
 

 
 
2 solid days from the time I started pulling the rack and a total of 8-10 hours later and we have finished results:
 

 
 
If you can't weld aluminum you'll need plug bolts in m12x1.25x20 and m16x1.5x10 for the main pump input and return (assuming you have the two hole rack like me).  I welded up two of the stock fittings for the rack hardlines on the other side.

[frijolee]

Motor Build v 2.0
 
I think it was Steve (Brismo7) who once posted up about the boost you can get from some local heroes showing up to give you a hand.  Yesterday was certainly one of those days.  If you're a newb who's hardcore enough to read this thread top to bottom I certainly recommend doing what you can to meet some local board members, just the motivation to finish is huge. 
 
We didn't quite get to the goal of dropping in the motor (albeit it would have been cam-less) however it was still a stellar day and we did get a ton of stuff done.
 
Local heroes in attendance:  Dan "the Man" Snyder, Steve Brismo7, Mike 65imp, Jack Jacklin6, and Andrew/Anjew "I do my best wrenching naked" Ruiz...
 
The teardown and rebuild of the GTO motor with some of the hot parts finally happened.  I got my head back last week.  4 bent valves replaced, radiused valve job, springs/spring rates all checked out OK, some time in the hot tank and, new seals across the board and we're good to go.  I'd like to take a moment to pitch Ollie's Machine Works in Van Nuys CA.  I work with a large group of older gear heads at work and they all recommend Ollie.  He's a bad ass, incredibly meticulous, and quite fairly priced.  I was STOKED to be out the door for about $250 in head work.
 

 
 
I finally got a pic of Dan working...  :naughty:
 

 
 
For the record, all the crew works hard, it's just that we're usually running out of steam by the time I reach for a camera so it's usually only Ironman Mike Lenhardt still working a torque wrench while I shoot and everyone else stands around.

[frijolee]

Poly Motor Mounts for Granny?s Kit
 
I decided to upgrade to Poly mounts while I had the motor out.  After a bit of research I discovered that the rubber motor mounts that Granny's kit uses with the ls1 adaptor plates are from a 63-72 SBC chevy truck.  That was annoying to track down, so for future reference there it is.  Got mine from Summit.
 

[frijolee]

DIY Oil Pump Porting
 
If you ever lunch a motor you can assume that your oil pump is done too.  The pickup screen is the only thing between the pan and pump so any fine stuff that gets through is going to hit the gears and tear up the surfaces.
 

 
 
Because I still had my stock oil pump on hand I decided to tear that down and compare porting (hence I could take the shot above).  Spring rates seem to be the same everything else looked identical so I broke out the dremel and ported to match the lunched upgraded pump.  Here's your author:
 

 
 
And here?s what you?re going for?  (Note my picture came out blurry so these are two shots of Sabre002?s work on Kukri?s oil pump?  Same idea for me.)
 

 

 
FYI I didn?t pack mine with grease (I assume this is made for the purpose knowing Josh) but you do have to make sure the gear goes in the correct direction as it has a chamfer on the lower face but is pure square on the cover plate side.
 
By the way, either my pump had been replaced in the past or there really is no such thing as an ls6 oil pump because the part numbers on both pumps matched and I could tell any difference in the springs or internals.

[frijolee]

Rod Bolts FYI (Beware Ferrules & Stock vs. ARP vs. Katech)
 
So why didn't we get the motor dropped in? 
 
First, the ARP rod bolts don't mention anything about removing the ferrules (tiny sleeves in the cap side of the rod) and the boys were halfway through the install before I caught it.  It's a little scary because the neck of the ARP's are about 0.030 larger than the shaft under head of the stock bolts.  If we really had a 0.030 press fit it could compromise the integrity of the cap head.  However, after a little investigation we found it's just about a slip fit even with the ferrules and added about 5 ft lbs of prevailing torque that wouldn't go toward bolt stretch.  As such we torqued the bolts +5 ft-lbs over factory recommendations using the correct factory lube. 
 
I'll put a call in on Monday to talk to the ARP guys and confirm that this works.  The only reason we went through with the rest of the install is that getting the ferrules off the installed rod bolts looked it could result in damage to a bolt and we had to do all or nothing from a balance perspective.
 
Anyone engine experts have thought on the above?  (But so you know I'm not especially interested in arbitray opinions)
 
In case anyone was interested here's the bolt differences: