The Hotwad

[rollertoaster]

what I've got : 89L

mods to date:
gutted interior, no radio, rear seats, headliner, carpets etc,
OMP racing seat
custom center dash gauge pod (BMW tach, innovate wideband, maddad boost gauge)
Weber 3236 carb conversion with 1" carb spacer
custom weber compatible cold air intake with aem dryflow filter
moddified stock shifter to short throw
3000k xenon driving lights
flexalite electric fan
"custom" ghetto aero package
boxed in rear torsion bar (acts like a big rear sway bar)
filled front and pass side mounts

in progress:
5speed swap with phantom grip
battery relocation to trunk (custom battery box with shut off)
4th engine mount
new custom rear trans mount
new clutch

Long term:
megasquirt fuel injection
possible retrofit to gsxr 600 ITB's
turbo (100- 120 hp)
aspire suspension and brake swap
cage
bigger wheels
maybe a paint job

my background:
I'm a BMW master tech. This isn't my first turbo car, I turboed my Honda element with a gt3076r (about 400whp). I sold the Element and got a 2010 wrx. I like to race auto-x, rally-x and mountain bike as much as possible. I have a tig and mig welder and make most of my own parts from scratch. I welcome a challenge, it gives me practice and allows me to perfect my skills. My buddy has a mill and lathe, so what I can't make, he can.

pics of the hotwad:
gauge cluster




battery box


my 2 rides


intake pics

[sasquatch]

awesome fab work good job!!!

[villageidiot]

love the grill..... any details on that? or is it just screwed to the stock grill

[Grey Vw]

I'm a BMW master tech. I have a tig and mig welder and make most of my own parts from scratch. My buddy has a mill and lathe, so what I can't make, he can.

I'm so very jealous of this. One day I hope to have the same tools and knowledge as you.

[dueces]

That is pretty sweet! I like the induction box/manifold!!! You should have your buddy teach you how to use those machines, it's not too bad, I do that for a living.....

John

[drddan]

That is pretty sweet! I like the induction box/manifold!!! You should have your buddy teach you how to use those machines, it's not too bad, I do that for a living.....

John

Machinist?

I am a Toolmaker/Machinist, here in St. Louis.

[rollertoaster]

I do know how to use the machines. It's just that he's better at it than me, and has more time to do it. I prefer to do the fab work and welding. It's kind of a trade agreement, we just trade services.

[rollertoaster]

The grill is screwed to some sheet metal brackets. The stock grill was broken and half gone when I got the car. The material is a thin sandwich board made from 2 thin layers of aluminum and filled in the middle with nylon. It super easy to work with, light, and cheap (I get it at the local scrap yard).

[dueces]

Machinist?

I am a Toolmaker/Machinist, here in St. Louis.

Sweet! Yeah I am just a machinist, I have done a good amount of toolmaker work, but couldn't get into the Toolmaker apprenticeship that I wanted.

It's cool that you guys share skills, it makes things easy for both of you, I try to do the same type of things with my friends, just saves a lot of money on the builds that we do,

The reason I like the induction box so much is because it looks like the one I put on my supercharger for my old twincharged probe, which I worked on last night, and sorely miss the feel of that much power! Ha ha

John

[rollertoaster]

I miss the feel of power too, but a very light car is also fun to drive. My wrx doesn't even feel fast, my Element was way too fast for my own good (didn't handle or stop very well).

speaking of fast here's a crappy vid of a Bmw z4 M that we put a blower on. it does 0-100 in about 10sec.
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/23890542?title=0&amp;byline=0&amp;portrait=0" width="400" height="300" frameborder="0"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/23890542">ess tuning z4 m supercharger kit</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user763734">casey coull</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>

[rollertoaster]

Well I got the 5spd swap done complete with a phantom grip LSD, and a new exedy clutch. I also made a new round style rear trans mount. The car handles better, shifts great and gets better mileage too. I'm very pleased.

Today I scored an aspire swap at the junkyard. Front knuckles, calipers, rotors, springs, and sway bar. Rear torsion beam complete with drums, spindles, all the brake system including hoses, and an e brake cable. All for $180.

Still need a set of wheels and tires, Struts front tie rods and some new bushings. I can't wait to get it all done, then I can move on to adding power.

[rollertoaster]

Phantom grip installed in the diff.


Homemade rear trans mount


The start of my new battery box


Aspire swap donor car in the junkyard

aspire rear beam stripped and wire wheeled. Almost ready for paint. First I need to find a good rust encapsulation primer.



the lid to the battery box all welded up. I'm strarting to improve on the consistency of my welds finally! It takes a lot of hours behind the mask to even start to get good with welding.

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[rollertoaster]

Hopefully I can score a set of miata wheels this weekend. Then I still need to get some things for the aspire swap.

The sway bar is in with some leftover poly front bushings and a set of moog blue ones in The lca end. It was clunking a bit due to the tight spacing up front. Partly because I welding the eyelets in the subframe solid, and because I had the reinforce the front beam where the subframe bolts in. I ended up ovalizing the front trans mount and adding a couple washers underneath to get the clearance right.

Still need to:
Rebuild the front calipers
Turn the front rotors
Get tie rod ends
Replace my creaky right lca
Get an escort MC
Get new rear shoes and wheel cylinders
Get poly bushings for the rear beam
Get alignment shims for the rear.
Paint the rear beam
Get a set of rip front struts
Get a set of aspire rear struts
Do an alignment

Sounds like a lot but it will get done before too long. Then I can finally move on to making some more power


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[resuwrecked]

Looking awesome... You should bring it to FestivaMadness!

[kartracer46]

^x2 bring it to Madness!