The CSX: September 17, 2006

Posted in Automotive on September 17, 2006.

Well, the strut is still on there.  Turns out that the strut rod nut was loose and was somehow pushing the center part of the strut mount up.  Once it was tightened, everything moved back to where it should be.  The strut is shot though and the other front strut isn't fairing much better.  I am going to try to warranty them.  I did fix the passenger side window and both have stayed fixed for now.  The car developed an annoying missfire/breakup above 3000rpm above 15psi of boost.  I fiddled with a few things and finally replaced the plugs with some new AutoLite 63s, as the AutoLite 64s that were in there had about 35k on them and were really worn.  That seemed to help, but it is still not as strong as it was before.

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The Daytona: September 15, 2006

Posted in Automotive on September 15, 2006.

So a while back I picked-up a Relentless Performance "Triple-Core" intercooler (three stock cores welded together in parallel).  The photo on the left shows (from the top down) the Spearco "1080" that is sold by a few of the vendors, the RP Triple-Core, and the early Dodge Conquest intercooler that I used in my Shadow for several years.  I finally got it and all the plumbing fitted.  It just fits behind the early Daytona fascia after some trimming to the plastic structure.  I wanted the plumbing to fit without having to move the radiator or the battery.  The intercooler pipes are all 2.25" T304 stainless steel (one U-bend, one U/J-bend, and a 45 degree bend).  The silicone couplers are from Silicone Intakes, which is by far the cheapest I have found.  I chose 2.25" pipes because the intercooler and airbox had 2.25" connections and that was the largest that would squeeze between the battery and the radiator.  The only change I had to make was I switched to a P-body coolant overflow tank to give me the gap next to the radiator fill neck.

The Daytona: August 23, 2006

Posted in Automotive on August 23, 2006.

Actually have quite a bit done, just haven't updated in a while.  The interior is in...just have a few odds and ends to hook up (like the guages) that need to wait until the end.  The picture shows the interior after the dash was up and the center console was finally mounted, but before the carpet/seats went in.  The power train is in, as is the core support.  The front part of the core is tacked to the sheetmetal on the cowl, but I'm going to wait until I have the intercooler plumbing all figured out before I finish it up and paint it.  The RP triple core intercooler is mounted and I have designed the layout of the tubing.  It's a really tight fit, but I'm pretty happy with it.  I didn't even have to move the radiator.  The early G-bodies have a lot of room behind the nose, but some carving of the plastic was required.

The CSX: August 23, 2006

Posted in Automotive on August 23, 2006.

Well, the trans is still holding up well and the OBX still rocks.  There is a bizzare noise that happens when the axles get torqued-up a certain way by the diff.  I think it's actually a wheel bearing, possibly from the guard rail impact.  It sounds like a bearing.  The rest of the car seems to be falling apart.  The fallout from by little guard rail adventure continues.  The driver's side strut started getting really loose a few weeks ago (4-year old Koni) and the strut mount self-destructed last week.  The impact, which whacked the top of the wheel hard enough to shove the camber adjustment all the way in, must have bent the tube slightly.  I can't tell by looking at it, but some paint flaked off where the tube may have collapsed and popped back out.  It must have made the piston bind-up or something, because the strut mount is practically punched-out.

In addition to that, I have this continuing battle with the windows.  First, the driver's side would get stuck due to the misshapen tracks from the impact mentioned above.  After fixing that, the next day the passenger side window track tab broke and the window kept falling out of the track.  I put up with that for about a week before I made a new tab out of aluminum.  The next day the driver's side window motor started acting wierd where the window would stop but the motor kept going.  Eventually that window would just fall down every time I hit a bump.  Finally I took the motor apart, replaced the wacky cushions that go between the drive gear and the external gear.  Then the next day the passenger side window started getting stuck on the way down.  It looks like the glass is hitting something metal, as it is getting scratched.  Argh.  I'm afraid to fix it, for fear of what will happen next on the driver's side.

The Daytona: June 23, 2006

Posted in Automotive on June 23, 2006.

Completed a major rewiring under the hood.  It's now a hybrid 1987/1989 system that can run either the 1987 Turbo II LM/PM or the 1988/1989 Turbo II SMEC setup.  It was a lot of frickin work, but I wanted something that I could use as a test bed to play around with SMEC stuff.  I compiled a chart that I used to do the actual splicing that lists all the circuits and how they need to correspond between the two.  Luckily the SMECs are functionally close to the LM/PM setup, so it only got hairy in a few places.  All connections were soldered inline without cutting any of the original wires.

The CSX: May 11, 2006

Posted in Automotive on May 11, 2006.

The new trans seems to be working well.  It's an A555/A520 hybrid (A555 with the mainshaft and ring gear from an A520) with a 3.50:1 ratio.  This is the perfect gearing for this car.  This setup with the OBX torque biasing differential is a great combo.  The only weak point is the mainshaft bearing surface.  The bearing near the pinion gear rides right on the shaft and eventually the area starts to break up from surface fatigue.  This shaft has a bit of life left in it, but when it goes I won't have anything to put in its place.  The later transaxles (A523/A543/A568) have a real inner bearing race here.  The bearing itself is the same, so it may just be a matter of machining the shaft down to accept the race.  My main concern is the weakening of the shaft from removing the hardened surface in that area.  It may create a stress point at the base of the pinion gear.  If it were to break, the transmission would be destroyed.  That is not something I am willing to risk with this tranny.

The OBX is an interesting piece.  The car really wants to accelerate in a straight line, as the torque tends to get biased to the inside wheel.  The effect goes away when coasting.  I didn't beat on it too much since it is brand new and I also put in a new clutch that needs a little break-in time.  It is made in China and is basically a cheap knock-off of the Quaife unit that was designed for the Dodge Neon 420A transmission.  It definitely needs to be gone-through when received.  There are issues with the spring washer orientantion, the case bolt torques, and the axle fitment.  The machining on the element gears, the axle holes in the case, and the splines are also pretty rough and need to be checked/honed/deburred.  Time will tell on how they hold up down the road, but at one third the price of a Quaife they are an attractive option even with their flaws.  I will be changing the trans fluid once it gets a couple of hundred miles on it.

The Daytona: May 7, 2006

Posted in Automotive on May 07, 2006.

Got a little work done.  The ATC is all installed and seems to work OK.  The CSX broke again, so more detours.

The CSX: May 7, 2006

Posted in Automotive on May 07, 2006.

Well, it's running so sweet that I broke 2nd gear.  It was an A520, but it had the chrome-moly bearing retainer plate.  Time to accelerate the A555 build-up that I've been putting off, as the Daytona is still apart.  Picked up an OBX and JT hooked me up with some carrier bearings.  The main shaft in the A520 still looked pretty good.  It's got one little dink on the bearing surface...like it chewed something (a gear tooth perhaps...).  Hopefully it will hold for a while.  New shafts are no where to be found.  Gonna have to find a way to fix these things.