Aaron's Festiva Build Thread

[Advancedynamix]

good stuff Aaron! Did you get the chance to check your cam timing yet?

[Aaronbrook37]

good stuff Aaron! Did you get the chance to check your cam timing yet?

NO! *grumble grumble* I did have some time to swap my grills and give her a quick wash though.

[fastivaca]

Re: Aaron's Festiva Build Thread

It just isn't the same without the graphics

Sent from somewhere west of here!

[Oren09]

....

[festyfreak39]

Hey Arron, how did you place your battery like you did, is there a writeup? any more detailed pics?

-Julian.

[Aaronbrook37]

You'll have to ask sasquatch! It's a custom welded battery tray that is exactly to the specifications of my tiny little lawnmower battery. I may be able to get you some more pictures if you like, but as I recall, it's a pretty simple design. Maybe he can chime in on his inspiration for the design!

[sasquatch]

pm'd

[Aaronbrook37]

Whole bunch of updates... mostly preventative maintenance and fixing various vacuum leaks and minor things. Attempted to swap to a dual stage thermostat, but the gasket interfered and cracked a housing. Waiting on that... so I did a little engine bay cleaning. Here's a before and after of the B6T swap:

[festyfreak39]

looks great, love how clean the engine bay is.

[Aaronbrook37]

So after cracking a second thermostat housing (what luck, right?), I've finally gotten a third one installed on the car today with a correct OEM brand new dual-stage thermostat. I'm waiting for the RTV gasket maker to dry so I can fully tighten up the thermostat, and then we'll fill her up with coolant and see what happens. I've taken it upon myself to re-torque a lot of bolts and nuts lying around the car that have come loose or were out of spec for a number of reasons. Whatever the case, it's good peace of mind.

In other news, I think the radiator might be leaking, but I'm not quite sure where the surplus coolant/smoke is coming from. With the cracked thermostat #2, I took it for a quick ride to ensure things are running alright after a month off and found coolant spattered throughout the front of the block and behind the radiator. May have just been spewing all over while it was under load out of the old dead thermostat. Here's hoping we're all good and there aren't any major problems come tomorrow!

I know it looks dirty so far... the engine needs a good scrub and shampoo. Soon enough. Here's the pics of the broken one, new thermostat, and work in progress. Man that bottom bolt sure is a pain on these DOHC motors:

[Aaronbrook37]

Thermostat appears to be holding coolant/water successfully! Hurray. One thing leads to another though and the radiator is literally spewing coolant and spraying the turbocharger (when pressurized) with it. Replacement coming soon.

[Flyin4stroke]

oh no

[Aaronbrook37]

[Aaronbrook37]

General text update on the direction of the car and current thoughts on fuel economy. Still got a lot of parts waiting to go on the car for sure. Right now, I need to get my performance diagnostics up to spec before I go anywhere with the car, and so that'll be happening early next month I suspect.

1. Eclipse Stock BOV / Diverter Valve
2. Manual Boost Controller
3. Corksport Racing ECU
4. Wideband, Boost, and EGT Gauges

5. After that, I'm going to be swapping to Honda VX rims, new ball seat lug nuts, and brand new all season 185/60-13's to reduce weight and improve grip. My current steelies and 185/60-14's are practically bald, which isn't very nice in the wet when boosting the way the car does!

6. My turbo gushes oil, so we're either going to swap to another VJ11 or make a VF10/VJ11 hybrid. I already own the latter, so that makes the most sense if there's room by my radiator.

Then in the spring, once things are a little warmer:

7. Install new 9.4:1 compression long-block to upgrade from 7:8.1.
8. Install new control arms, tie rods, and suspension bushings.

And thoughts on fuel economy. My car refuses (or at least has thus far refused) to give me more than 17MPG. I think I finally have it figured out... loose O2 wire, cruddy wiring on the ISC and CTS, and a considerable number of vacuum leaks. My guess would be the vacuum leaks plus the improperly sending CTS was fooling the car into thinking it was constantly cold and thus was dumping fuel every chance it got. Maybe the lack of BOV is contributing too, I'm unsure. With new spark plugs, wires, ignition components, fuel injectors, filters, and fluids, it has to be getting close now that the timing is correct - both cam and ignition, and things are running pretty nicely overall. Here's hoping that the low compression isn't holding me back - the rings didn't seat properly and I'm stuck at 140-145psi dry at the most in some of the cylinders if I remember correctly.

That's the reason for #7... swapping the block out for something a bit more fancy. Miata automatic bottom end and a B6T stock head with new rebuildables, water pump, timing belt, and so on.

[Aaronbrook37]

So Charlie, our local guru, has a theory on my supposedly blown turbo and blue smoke issue that we were discussing this morning via PM that I've mentioned in a past couple of posts. His theory is that my crankcase is building up too much pressure, which in turn is forcing oil through a combination of the turbo (assuredly) and the valves and or rings (theoretically also). If I understand it all correctly (not likely), this would make it seem as if the turbo is blown when really it could just be a simpler issue considering the age of this turbo (I've had it on for two months now). Blue smoke like a diesel turbo chimney at the moment FYI even when warmed up.

As such, to prepare for a test to see if crankcase pressure is the cause of my turbo leak and smoke, I've disconnected the PCV valve, checked the oil lines to the turbo, and went through the entire car: compressor, BAC, intake, intercooler, and piping scrubbing everything down and cleaning it with Simple Green and removing/washing/drying any oil I could get my hands and rags on. With the crankcase now ventilated and the oil in the system reduced by a significant margin (still some remains in the intercooler), I'll run the car for a few days to see if the blue smoke clears up or at least noticeably reduces itself. Should it do so, hurray for a simple fix - crankcase ventilation. Should it not, then it is likely that my turbo seals indeed have gone and thus the turbo will require replacement as per earlier thoughts.