Voting for October FOTM

[Damkid]

Here are the entries again from Gforcefd (Logan) and gorgonheimer

Our story starts like this:

The pimptiva 3 had died, it had been torn limb from limb and I was given the carcuss at a resonable rate of $600 goul bones. I drove the 4+ hours down to PA with a friend and their dad with a trailer to pick up the shell. If I had only know Simon's dad was getting ready to get rid of a brown festiva I would have brought a longer trailer....

I worked over night the night before and we left right from work in the morning I believe, arrive sometime around noon, you will have to pardon my memory it has been a few years.

When I got there the car was basically a orange shell, with the fun top, doors, and hatch, and only the front struts, The back ones were missing so it was kinda hard to move. The door poppers were not working, and there wasn't a battery anyways. We loaded it up, said good by to simon and headed back to Ithaca, NY. Once I got to my dad's with the shell, which I think I may have told him about before hand..my uncle stopped because he was another festy owner and had to see what this bright orange festiva on a trailer was doing at my house.

I unloaded the car in this condition:







The first thing I had to do (which I started working on the car that night) was figure out why the door poppers where not working. After a couple hours with a volt meter and my fingers wiggling wires and nothing happening (no manual or anything to go by for the wiring). I got annoyed and started mashing the buttons on the remote. Turns out the thing had been armed into safe mode, which locks out the remote from accidentaly opening the doors......

Since the car needed so much, and my other festiva was in poor state:




I used it for parts and bits and pieces. The engine bay had a ton of rust, and underneith it wasn't looking so pretty.

When I got the car I have never done anything automotive in my life, other than tearing apart some other festiva's and the usual stuff on cars, brakes, oil, heat boxes, but I knew if I was going to do this car right I would have to put a BP in it. Keep in mind this was a few years ago when it wasn't such a popular swap. Matt Swabb led the way for me, and after a few emails I ended up with this BP bolted to my 5spd festiva transmission:






I took it pretty easy on the car since I had heard the festiva transmission would not hold up to the Bp, but eventually I cracked it and decided to upgrade. I wish I had pictures of the donor car but basically I got a 1994 Mazda protege from FestivaGT(no longer on this board but don't do business with him if he comes back) It had been into a fight with a gaurd rail and lost. I flipped the car on its side, and cut out the engine and Hydrolic G25 tranny and put them into the festiva. So at least I am one of the few guys around with a hydrolic transmission in a festiva.






Notice in the pictures how far forward the motor was sitting, this was because of the steering rack interferring with the transmission, and I couldn't weld so my mounts where not the best. The next winter I got tired of this and redid my mounts, learned to weld, and got it looking like this.



I had some fun this year doing autoX




But I really wanted more power from the car. I have been on the fence about selling it for some time and I figured it was about time to turbo it. I have been gathering parts for the past couple of years and finally got there








And that is where I am at so far. Right now I am working on a Mega Squirt 2 vs 3. Along with the car getting some fancy new looks this winter. Hopefully come spring the engine will be rebuilt and it will no longer be called the old pimptiva.

Stats:

15" Centra Rims, spelled Centra they are german made, and I have never seen another set in the states
BP 1.8 DOHC motor
T3/T4 .60 trim
Zeitronix with LCD display Boost, EGT, wideband AF
Hydrolic G25mr transmission
Honda civic coilovers extra stiff ebay kind, good for autox bad for streets, the car transmissions beautifully though
KYB Gr2's in the back, Monroe sensa trac in the front
2 12" Subs
800 Watt amp
Custom rear enclosure
2 6x9's in the back
Black racing seats
Full cage
4 point harnesses
Megasquirt fuel and spark piggyback
Custom made quick release steering wheel and adapter
Black headlight covers
Custome engine and transmission mounts
Custom clutch pedal
Shaved doors, hatch, gas filler
Custome 2.5" exhaust
Altenator moved to front of engine
Dual core autmatic radiator
sure there is more....

Sorry I don't really have many pictures of all the work I did in the last couple of months, but this will have to do since the car will be completely different come April'ish.

Logan

[Damkid]

And here's gorgoheimer's entry

ok

i got the itch to build a festy when i saw on sitting in my friends junk yard. i promptly went home and searched and found this site. then all the dreams started flooding in and i decided to build a bp with a turbo. i told the people at the yard that i wanted "the little red car in the back." he was like "ok" but the next time i went to look at it the owners had let the local fire dept practice with the jaws of life on it. i was bummed.

so off to craigs list i go. find one for 1350. kinda steep considering the condition so i was able to talk him down to 550 cash. drive off and what is this?! no forth gear. ran it out of gas on the way home cause the gauge said 1/4 of a tank. so i got this car. im stoked. needs lots of work. interior is all molded cause the taillights leak(and the windows)

so i strip the interior



then as i am driving the festy in to the shop(WHERE I WORK) for some work i get pulled over. this results in a ticket for no insurance, no inspection, and no registration, and it is towed. bummer!!

so i get it out of car jail. now i have 2 weeks to get it registered, inspected and insured. and fix all the safety stuff, and emissions.

so...
aspire swap.


wheels and tires

ok they are steel wheels but they are 15" and have good tires, cooper zeon zpt 195/50/15

head lights and wipers and seat belts. oh yeah my seats!!!

seats stolen from a cavalier


after barely passing emissions with a stuck injector on my b3 i drove it like that for 3 or 4 months, collecting parts for the bp swap. got the motor for 300 and the next week i get a whole protege for 100! (minus tranny) get the tranny.

then i start cleaning and painting and replacing gaskets and stuff on the bp




then i put it all together:
old motor and trans out


frame notch and patch



bp in


radiator mounted in "custom" location with upper support removed and new piece made from angle iron, works really well and only takes like 5 min to remove radiator and fan and both hoses, oh and lower hose is only like 4 inches long


finished


93 festy gl
Bp swap with hydrolic g tranny/ clutch=bp pressure plate+v6 probe disc
ghetto shorty ram intake
2.5 in exhaust from motor to back (built by me) using high flow cat and a magnaflow muffler
18deg base ignition timing
bronzeoil shifter bushings from corksport
power mirrors
grant gt wheel

future mod:
turbo using ct26 from a supra
coilovers with agx shocks
full cage and...
paintjob

Thanks to everyone

[geezerstiva]

tough choice this month.

[Gforcefd]

Here is a picture of my sound system Amanda helped me build this spring, best shot I could get.

[Gforcefd]

OKay for some reason the forum is rotating this photo? Not sure why.

[Damkid]

once votng is done i can add your picture

[Gforcefd]

Hey looks like we may have a tie, very tight race this month.

[cubstiva1]

wait, wait..... what says October more than baseball?

[Gforcefd]

I drive a Jack O Lantern, I think that says October alittle more than most ;-) If I would have thought about it I should have cut some big face pieces out of black contruction paper and taped them to the side of my car, that would have been funny

[gorgonheimer]

YES! that would be hilarious. you still have time

[Damkid]

wow is this ever a close one this month!!

22 voted for Logan and 20 for gorgonheimer so far

[piratewilly]

wait, wait..... what says October more than baseball?

hey just so u know the dodgers are gonna win the NL baby haha

[cubstiva1]

the family next door are dodgers fans, i've been hearing it from them for a while now....... we'll jut wait and see how it all plays out

[Levitan]

I voted for Gforce. How can you vote against a funtop? But, really, I just did it to make it 25-25!!!

[Gforcefd]

you bugger...haha just kidding. Yep last day of the month looks like its going to be close. If there is a tie do we get to hold a race off :-)