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Duncan

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Everything posted by Duncan

  1. Duncan
    Well I sorted out the loom problems this morning and then finally got the smartwire finished this afternoon Basically the smartwire replaces all the relays and fuses in the car with a programmable system. There are only 3 relays (4wd, ignition, high beam flash) and 7 fuses (main fusable links under the bonnet) left in the car. Instead the smartwire has both CAN input from the ECU, and additional switched where required (thus the custom switch panel). You then set each of about 40 outputs to turn on or off depending on any of the ECU or switch inputs. This also covers all of the race/rally additional circuits like cool suit, rally safe, intercom, radio, camera etc etc as well all in one place. Hopefully I'll get the Haltech ECU and I/O expander wired up tomorrow and also the main battery power which is the main thing left before testing it all....
  2. Duncan
    Oh and no real pics of progress today, it ended up a bit frustrating anyway. I've wired in the car side of the dash, and every wire I need is now in place (I hope.....) Only the smartwire, ECU and I/O expander plugs were remaining (so I thought), until I decided to take the dash loom out to make the final plugs easier (since there are about a billion pins to do). Which is when I realised in about 5 different places I'd hard wired too much together (eg front, rear and dash looms) without plugs to remove them. So tomorrow is starting with adding 3 more plugs to allow everything to come apart, then hopefully getting the last pins done.
  3. Duncan
    I run standard sway bars (rules...), 350 rear and 450 front springs with Gary modified bilsteins. I've always been happy how it handles and the times have been good considering the lack of power so I'm not looking to change anything there at the moment. And apart from adjustable bushes the only trick is the front LCA inner mount is about 20mm outward which is allowed under production car rules to get desired camber
  4. Duncan
    Anyway, only one job today, but it was a good one. All the wiring for the switch panel is done and tested Everything is working OK, I did initially have 2 switch wires the wrong way around for the fuel pump. Wiring at the rear was a pain but should be reliable and trouble free now
  5. Duncan
    Armageddon again? I hope it's zombies this time, I'm ready....
  6. Duncan
    lol not until I work out which year the ETA is....
  7. Duncan
    Be careful, that won't remove all drive from the front wheels in a C34 (or and R33 or R34 for that matter), if you are going to do this you still need 4 wheels off the ground. I think you might be better to take it to a competant mechanic, they do this sort of stuff all the time without a ferris bueller's day off type ending
  8. Duncan
    umm not really sure who else, but I'll be flying the (very quiet) flag for SAU
  9. Duncan
    hey good searching at least sorry I don't have stock rears to check, did you try an m8 bolt if you think m10 is too large? It's a common thread size from memory rather than something unusual
  10. Duncan
    also sorted out the final fuel system stuff with new braided lines at the front to the fuel rail, and from the regulator to a Y piece then back to the rear, with the other arm going to the fuel sampler required for targa and production car racing So a good day overall, back to wiring tomorrow.....
  11. Duncan
    Also replaced the stripped upper arm bolt (thought it would be hard since it was m12x1.25, but Lee Bros at Parramatta re-opened today and had them in stock. And pulled out the starter motor wiring, adjusted, re-wrapped and got it back in with the right lengths (very hard to get the wiring looms right on the floor rather than in the car. And finally adjusted the lower and upper splines on the steering rack and got it all bolted up OK. From there I finished up pretty much all the mechanical stuff under the car including torquing everything up. Rear is all done including brakes but not all wiring. and the exhaust is still on the floor. Also finished off all of the front mechanicals and suspension excluding the brakes. The silver subframes and arms have come up well, and make it easy to spot the obligatory GTR fluid leaks too Speaking of fluids, the car was 100% dry with all the work done. I've put in Gearbox - redline lightweight / smurf's blood xfer case - castrol transmax z front diff - castrol 85w140 mineral oil. I've never run it before but have taken Terry from Award's advice on this, he says all the synthetic oils are too slippery and lead to glazing on the gears (and he raised the issue after looking at my old diffs). Will see how this goes, I'll change it more often because I'm worried about mineral oils and racing/hot oil lifetime. Will also use this in the rear diff but forgot to do it before putting the diff in (yes Neil...) engine - I'm running nulon 5w40 synthetic will still need to put in coolant, power steer, attessa, brake, clutch....so many fluids required to make this thing work!
  12. Duncan
    Despite the good progress on switch panel and engine in, yesterday was one of those frustrating days where lots of little things went wrong. I stripped a bolt in the upper control arm while torquing it up (probably had it threaded all along because my UCAs are a PITA for some reason, presumably something has been bent over the years). Also the steering splines were short and the starter motor wiring was as well. Today started with more of the same. Went to put the tailshaft in... The problem is really not obvious to look at, but when I had the tailshaft reco-ed they replaced the centre bearing, and put the bracket back on to hold it in place. In fact they took the initiative and welded the upper and lower halves of the bracket together. With the bracket backwards. Took me a while to work out, particularly since it all looked one piece since they painted after welding it on. Anyway some angle grinder loving to sort that, and the tailshaft is in
  13. Duncan
    Correct. The OS box lets you go faster in first gear although it will take longer to get there (as long as you haven't broken traction). The patrol option would get to 1st gear redline sooner but at a 20% slower speed. Patrol's focus was ability to pull heavy stuff from idle, OS's was to let you run a high power car with less gear changes. Horses for courses. Of the options you have, I'd jump at the patrol option and see how it goes because your shop is familiar. Personally I think the OS gearset isn't a great option, if you really need a stronger gearset there are stronger options, although they cost 3-4x more.
  14. Duncan
    I haven't seen one, a quick check of SEVS say Fuga aren't eligible for import. It looks like Infiniti are selling the Y51 model as a Q70 for about $80k though.
  15. Duncan
    OK, engine is back in, everything was very straightforward there. Down about 70% of the motor's height with the hoist, then subframe/engine up on the lifting platform. Actually I can't remember any issue at all with this, it was good Lots of bolts and stuff to do after that of course, the upper control arms have always been a bastard in this car (something about the alignment/chassis) and I managed to strip a bolt in the upper arm while doing it up to Nissan torque spec which is a prick as it's an unusual thread and I don't have another. Also the steering splines are not quite right, and I have to re-wrap the starter motor loom because it's not in the right place. Also, Neil put together the switch/light panel, just needs the carbon fibre sticker and no-one will ever know it's MDF. Still needs to be wired of course.
  16. Duncan
    Then, pick some lifting points for the motor. On the GTR I loop an old seat belt around the top radiator hose and across to a bolt on the rear right of the motor, GTST may be different, but the important thing is you need to be able to change the angle of the engine if it’s wrong, so the lifting loop must go from front to rear. Connect the engine hoist (at full extension). You may bash the wheels, if so remove them and support the front of the car/subframe on engine stands (as low as possible). Slowly lift the engine out, looking in particular for any wires you (or I’ve) missed. In your case, with the reo cut out it will be pretty easy because you only have to lift the sump over the sway bar and lower radiator support/intercooler. Some general suggestions Spray lots of degreaser, then wd40 on the main bolts as they’ve been there for 25 years. It can be really frustrating and you are likely to lose skin Always use a full contact tool (socket or ring end of a spanner) when you can to avoid rounding things off, and try and pull towards you rather than push away as you're less likely to slip and mash skin Old electrical contacts can be a bastard to remove. Avoid pulling on the wires. There is almost always a tab you have to unclip to undo the connector, undo it with a small flat screwdriver as you pull the connector apart Keep all bolts separate and labelled. Sandwich bags are good, or even little boxes/spray can lids/whatever. Just keep each set separate and label them all to make re-assembly much easier. Always check carefully as you lift because there are about a billion connections between the car and chassis, and I'll have forgotten some for sure...
  17. Duncan
    Then, underneath.... remove the exhaust (for anyone doing a gtr, also remove 6x p/s driveshaft bolts, and the d/s lower control arm ball joint (2 bolts to the lower control arm), then pop the d/s driveshaft out of the front diff, you'll need pry bars/big screw drivers and it can be a PITA) Undo the engine mounts (bottom nuts, they come out with the engine) Remove the driveshaft from the gearbox. On a GTR it’s 4 bolts but I think GTSt is a yoke that just slips out? Put a jack under the rear of the gearbox and take the weight off the gearbox cross member. Then undo the 4 cross member bolts and lower the gearbox somewhat (as far as you can in a gtst, ie until the head is touching the firewall or on a GTR until the attessa line at the rear of the gearbox is about to be stretched). If you are taking the box out as well remove the speedo sender plug (or cable in 32), reverse and neutral swtches. In a GTR you need to remove the attessa line at the rear of the box. Next is possibly the trickiest 2. (You don’t need to do these if you are taking the engine and box out together) Undo the starter motor bolts. Best way is to get a stubby 14mm spanner and a length of rope. Put the spanner on the top bolt and the rope around the other end of the spanner and pull down to crack the bolt, then undo it. Remove the bottom starter motor bolt and pull the starter out. If you skipped the battery disconnection/removal step you probably just set the car on fire. Top engine bolts are the next trick. The easiest way is with 4x 1” long extension with a 14mm socket, going over the top of the gearbox. If you can’t do that you may be able to get to the top bolts with a spanner from above, or possible with a spanner from below if the motor is tilted back enough. It can be frustrating to crack those top nuts, especially if they’ve been there for 20 years. Then undo all the other engine/gearbox bolts (no real trick here)
  18. Duncan
    Then, from the top, Remove the fuel pump fuse near driver's knee and crank the car a few times to clear the fuel lines. Then remove them from the fuel rail take the battery out. undo positive first so no shorts will happen once it is off. drain the radiator, remove the bottom of the shroud, remove the fan nuts, pull the fan out the bottom. undo the radiator hoses (easiest at the radiator) and overflow hose and pull the radiator out the top. drain the oil (and front sump in a gtr) if you want, it can lead to less mess but expensive repairs if you forget.... remove the throttle cable undo the intake piping to the intercooler (stock or front mount, either way) undo all electrical wiring to the engine. this includes the injector plugs and any temp senders, CAS, earth at the front of the motor, connector to the coil packs (coils, coil loom and plugs stay on the motor), 02 sensors, alternator, starter motor, oil temp and pressure senders, engine sub loom (one plug to AAC, PCV, knock sensors etc). also the earth from the chassis to the engine mount and you may also have others on the exhaust manifold(s). First time doing this you'll miss some wires for sure so take it slowly and keep looking as the motor comes out remove the vacuum lines to the carbon canister (almost forgot this one, lol ) remove the 2 water lines from the motor to the heater box in the cabin. connection is behind the dump pipe on the passenger side. remove the power steering pump from the engine and leave it on the car. you may want to cable tie it to the car to keep it clear. remove the a/c pump as well and leave it in the car (almost forgot this too ) make sure there is nothing between the rear of the head and the firewall (because later you will tilt the engine into this space)
  19. Duncan
    Well definitely give that other key a go, but I think it's more likely to be electrical in the barrel than the key. Removing the lock isn't as bad as it looks; you remove the steering column cover, one plug which has all the key's wires, and 2 bolts. The bolts will be either easy or hard because they are antitamper....if you can get them undone (sometimes you're lucky) it's easy, if not you have to drill them out which can be a pain.
  20. Duncan
    lol yeah that's why I was asking, but I think it would be a pain without a hoist. if you're not using this shell again the key thing I'd do is remove the radiator support panel; cut it at both end with a recip saw, angle grinder etc. And take the front bar and reo off too, then you will have plenty of space to take out the engine and box together. If you need that part of the car intact it is better to seperate the gearbox from engine if you are coming out the top.
  21. Duncan
    sorry I've got nothing! But hey there's an internet full of people out there
  22. Duncan
    Great to see a full track at Eastern Creek, and on a non-working day, well done to the committee! I'll be along Not sure what in yet but hey, I've got 5 months to work that out. Entry details and payment sent today and I'd like #32 thanks
  23. Duncan
    It does sound like an ignition barrel issue, the ACC and IGN are separate within the barrel so only the ACC might have failed/be loose. I understand you should be able to change just the barrel and have it rekeyed, you'll need to talk to a wrecker or car friendly locksmith
  24. Duncan
    Interestingly, I've never seen a good one on SAU, even though we have lots of DIY threads....please take detailed notes and pics when you do it. First question, what space/equipment do you have? A hoist? An engine crane? A couple of jacks? First decision is whether the engine and box are coming out the top or bottom. And second question; do you really need to remove the box or is leaving it in the car an option? Depends what you need to do....
  25. Duncan
    Sorry to hear about the problems, although it's kind of good to know there are shops that don't know what they are doing on both side of the world.... Good luck with the reassembly, and I'd also have to give some credit to the engine shop for covering the cost of a new head; they are expensive and lots of times shops try and duck responsibility for their mistakes...
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