I've neglected this thread
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After getting the engine, I picked up all the external engine parts I needed (LIM, flywheel, a couple sensors, I had the exhaust mani lying around).
I did a mock-up of the long block (minus WP/WP housing and alternator):
I eventually added everything else:
The water pump, water pump housing and a couple other things were media blasted locally, they be shinin'. I then painted the water pump and pulleys with black engine enamel and scrubbed the hell out of the intake manifold pieces with engine degreaser.
I still need to clean up the air pump and it's bracket, the alternator, and the LIM. The flash makes the dirty stuff look worse than they reallyare, but they're still dirtier than I'd like.
I then got my flywheel resurfaced and bought a clutch kit:
It's an Exedy "stage 1". The "stock replacement" one would have been enough to hold the power I plan on making (barely over stock), but I plan on driving the car pretty hard at autocrosses and hopefully some track days so a little breathing room couldn't hurt.
Then I bought a bunch of gaskets:
one day, I found possible evidence of a mouse invasion:
So I left out some coolant in case the fuckers came back:
They never came back, no carcasses, no more damages, so maybe they came in once and decided to stay out.
I also found some shady wiring that I haven't fixed it yet:
Who would use wire nuts on anything other than a ceiling fan?
Today, after getting the car up on dollies, I decided to have a look at the undercarriage. I was aware of some slight floor damage, caused by what looks like someone driving over a rock or something. I wanted to inspect it closer and start repairing it.
This rail was dented from the bottom and from the side:
And there were some gouges in the undercoat:
After some hammering and prying, I got it straightened out a bit. It's not perfect, but I'm not too worried about it:
After that I hit the area with a wire brush and sprayed it with primer to protect from it from further rust, until I figure out what kind of undercoat I want to apply.
Here's an interesting shot from today, taken from the trans tunnel looking out of the open hood:
As for the project as a whole, I only have a few more parts to get before I can put everything together. In addition to engine stuff, I'm going to be getting new bushings all around the car, and I plan on painting the engine bay as well. I found a rattle can color that matches the stock color pretty closely. I'm getting pretty excited, the end is coming into sight. I'll finally have an FC I can be proud of, that doesn't shed more of it's body mass every time a door is slammed, not to mention the "yeah, I did it" feeling of doing a bunch of resto work myself.
The detailed list of what's left:
- Purchase and install Banzai Racing Oil Pan Brace
- Purchase and install complete bushing set. I'm looking at MMR, but I've heard horror stories about their shipping times and customer service. hmm...
- Torque flywheel and install clutch
- Purchase and install block-off plates for OMP, ACV and sub-zero start valve
- Paint engine bay
- De-rust and paint subframe
- spend a day under the car removing surface rust
- Finish restoring passenger side tail light
- clean and paint various engine and engine bay parts
- Assemble engine with gaskets and proper torque
- Degrease transmission
- Purchase and install shifter bushings
- Mate engine and transmission together
- Apply undercoating (???)
- Install engine & transmission
- Purchase 2 summit RPM switches and rig up 6pi & VDI actuati0on system utilizing factory air pump
- Purchase and install driver side door handle
Might have missed a couple steps, but that's the gist of it.