Frank818 -1993 VW VR6 Turbo donor- Build Thread

[Frank818]

Leaving from my parents' condo garage, better video to come some day:

[Jetfuel]

Frank...that looks soooo good...but if I may just say..you're lit up like a Christmas tree up front but the back is not..sitting low and dark color car makes an easy target for distracted drivers....just saying
Once again ....darn that looks sooo good

Jet

[Frank818]

Tnx Powerful Jet!

I can address your concerns, which would be for me as well. I think all this is an optical illusion of the video. The front DRLs are not very bright as soon as you get outside, you can only see tinny dots but not much lighting. I probably have a video with Brian from last Oct showing this, I'll check.

EDIT: Try this:



As for distracted drivers, what do you mean exactly? That the dark colored car would not be seen by distracted drivers? I don't really need lights for that, the car is actually very bright colored outside, but then again I believe it's the video inside that garage.

[Frank818]

Car is still running! 1050km out of 1500 done (break-in). No engine stalling.

I went for an alignment Friday morning.

2020-08-28 08.40.26.jpg2020-08-28 09.15.17.jpg



Final result:

Front Toe In - 1/16 total
Rear Toe In - 3/16 total

Front Camber - -1.1 maxed out
Rear Camber - -0.7

Front Caster - +6



Feels like a different car, a better car. Turns in much quicker, although it was already much quicker than any car before! No more steering fight club when hitting bumps or other road imperfections. It's true an alignment is night and day.
My front was not bad, but my rear right was deadly! Over 1/2 inch of toe OUT. The rear left was almost 3/16 toe IN. So you can imagine the result I drove with for 1000km.

Taking turns with this car is the most satisfying moments I have ever experienced driving cars. Although I believe I still have a constant vibration on right turns, I have to test more.




I have 2 coolant leaks. Head gasket and water pump. Believe it or not, my NEW all cast aluminum high flow water pump crapped out. The internals are shut, cuz coolant leaks from the vents.

2020-08-17 08.13.22.png

I have had all possible weird issues with this car, now.
I blocked off both vents, but that's not a good idea. I believe I can do another 500km like this and end the season. I might remove the plugs and blow off the coolant in a few weeks just to make sure.
It seems I have controlled the head gasket leak after 6-7 layers of sealant.

Good news is I believe I can remove the pump without pulling the engine off and since I need to flush coolant to change the head gasket, it will be very minimal time "lost" swapping for another new pump.



I woke up very early this morning thinking about how to test my exhaust vibration. There is minimal clearance between the dump tube flange and WG flange, so it's out of the question to be able to block off the dump tube using bolts and nuts. I don't know how I will test that. I need to disconnect the dump tube in order to test but other than using high temp sealant and a small alu plate glued onto the flange, I don't know how I can block it off.

I don't want to not test it and find myself in the winter cutting the dump tube and finding a different solution to install a flex pipe over there. I need to get it SS welded too. And then what if next Spring it still vibrates cuz that's not the source... all that time spent during the winter for nothing and now at the start of a new season with exhaust removal and tests to perform, wasting valuable driving time. That is why I absolutely need to test the dump tube disconnected before the winter.

That is where I am now, as the car runs great, fuel is stable, timing has improved and the engine is very snappy which is great.


Next step, that damn dump tube test...

[Frank818]

I might need some of your advice from you guys running your 818 and living with FFR’s parts installed on your car.


But first the good points.
If you want to skip those and go straight to the advice section, plz see below.

Firstly, following Rob’s tip I tried -1.5 camber at rear, instead of -0.7. It’s true, car turns in even quicker, I got surprised the 1^st time and “over-turned” crossing the apex (well, the yellow line on the road). I can now imagine how freakin QUICK that car would be with 1/8 front tow out and camber F-2.5/R-3.0! You guys must be having a lot of fun!

Mike what was your setup for your one and only track day in the past 7 years?


Secondly, for some reason my oil pressure has increased slightly, at idle from 6.5psi to 7.5-8. And at 3000 it now reaches 60. That is a first. I don't know why but I certainly won't complained!


Thirdly I found how to cold crank the engine even faster. I had too much timing on cranking, I just reduced by about 1/3 the crank time, it now cold cranks in 1sec which is in normal car territory. Fine tuning is cool when you find nice improvements. But that also reminds how complicated and long the process is with a stand alone ECU.






Fourthly, I have tried a feature in my ECU software which controls Closed Loop PIDs differently. I tried that feature when the engine was in the Corrado and had not very good results. I tried it again now with a newly rebuilt engine and had wonderful results! This had a HUGE impact on my driving. Car is smoother, quicker, more precise with no extreme trimming/increase.




About the advices…


1- Fuel has started leaking from the fuel cap (yes, the cap) while driving and of course splashing a very little bit on the top of rear fender, enough so that I can smell fuel while driving. It piles up inside at the bottom of the FFR aluminum filler cap and its o-ring, can’t see in the pic cuz I had cleaned it but you see my setup. I am maybe at half a tank, it never did that before and I do not understand how fuel can run upwards of the filler neck or vent hose (my vent hose is connected at the very top of the filler neck, that brass fitting there, it’s the highest point). Have you guys had that issue or what could you do to fix that? The cap’s o-ring seems a bit small, the cap jiggles a very little bit once locked in so maybe a slightly bigger o-ring diameter would squeeze things in place and seal better?
But that still doesn't explain how the hell fuel backs up that high.

2020-08-30 17.24.00.jpg2020-08-30 17.24.33.jpg


2- Is it possible by increasing camber, front and/or rear, it could increase wheel vibrations when turning at a certain speed? I always had a constant vibration only when turning right and usually that happens above 40-50mph and up on tighter turns, like in/off ramps, or I can reproduce even at 25-30mph but I have to turn super quick. Left turns are a joy! But right turns it vibrates, like an engine running on one less cylinder at idle but quicker. This morning I felt the entire car was vibrating more on straight lines this time, so I was wondering if -1.5 camber at rear could cause that. I’ll back off at -1.0 for next ride and see. Wheel alignment seemed fine, car remains straight if I don’t touch the wheel.

[aquillen]

Re your fuel cap.

My tank would not hold pressure during my tests, because of the skinny o-ring on the fuel cap. I dug around in my parts bins and found one that would work, sorry no info on a part number though. How did I find this?

I built my car to meet emissions, mostly as a personal challenge to get it all to work, and keep the OEM ECM happy. Between 2012 and 2014 any 818 posts about the EZ30 were that it would not be possible to get it in the 818 with a manual and have it run civil without going to an aftermarket ECU. So I took that as a challenge to use the OEM computer, and keep it all happy.

One of the things that must happen then is keep all the fuel tank plumbing. I changed the plumbing and made my own parts, but kept the functionality, which includes an ability for the ECU to seal the tank so it can do a pressure test looking for leaks when steady state driving on the road. I also had to leak test the tank after I welded it up from aluminum plate. Air pressure (4#), soap bubble wash, and 24 hour sit looking for any pressure drop. Fixed 7 leaks in all. The very first leak was major - the fuel cap would not seal.

And - tighten that little pin retainer set screw or someday the pin will fall out and the cap won't lock.

[aquillen]

Frank, update, I couldn't leave you stranded. Turns out I determined what to buy and use, not junk box. McMasterCarr item. I bought the minimum 15 pack and must have used some in other things already, I have 7. You want one from me PM your address and I'll get it out. N/C for a pal in need. Art

PS, it fits good, but can get a bit tight, I put just a bit of grease (not silicone) to help.

2418T179
Material Buna-N Rubber
Cross Section Shape Round
Dash Number 224
Fractional
Width 1/8
ID 1 3/4
OD 2
Actual
Width 0.139"
ID 1.734"
OD 2.012"
Hardness Durometer 50A (Soft)
For Use With Acetic Acid
Ammonia
Boric Acid
Brake Fluids
Butyl Alcohol
Calcium Hydroxide
Citric Acid
Diluted Salt Solutions
Ethanol
Ethylene Glycol
Glycerin
Grease
Hydraulic Oils
Methanol
Mineral Oils
Motor Oil
Petroleum Fluids
Phosphoric Acid
Potassium Hydroxide
Sodium Bicarbonate
Specifications Met ASTM D2000, SAE AS568, SAE J200
Temperature Range -30° to 225° F
Color Black
RoHS RoHS 3 (2015/863/EU) Compliant
REACH REACH (EC 1907/2006) (06/25/2020, 209 SVHC) Compliant
DFARS Specialty Metals COTS-Exempt
Country of Origin People's Republic of China
Softer than standard Buna-N O-rings for a better seal in low-pressure applications, these are also resilient and offer excellent tear resistance. They resist hydraulic oils and motor oil. These O-rings have a round profile and are suitable for a wide range of static and dynamic sealing applications.

Inch O-rings have a dash number and are sized to the SAE standard AS568.

[Jetfuel]

Hold your horses Art...I have many -224 series O rings that we can send to him..
I'll check the fit on my cap and see if a -223 or -225 gives a better seal

what you say Frank...can you wait a little?

jet

[Frank818]

Did 4 runs this week and only this morning it did not leak. Maybe cuz I start to get under 50% full tank.

This is how it looks when it leaks:

2020-09-04 07.07.01.jpg

See that puddle at the bottom of the opening? And also once I open the cap it leaks on the wrap you can see a little bit towards the center right. No wonder why it flung on the rear fender twice in my previous runs.

I think the best solution to that is a better o-ring and it seems you guys already have millions of those? loll

And - tighten that little pin retainer set screw or someday the pin will fall out and the cap won't lock.

Art, it seems to be a pressure-fitted pin, I'll look again tonight. The pin seemed to be holding pretty fine when I played with it but we never know, always good to quadruple check, yes!

Frank, update, I couldn't leave you stranded. Turns out I determined what to buy and use, not junk box. McMasterCarr item. I bought the minimum 15 pack and must have used some in other things already, I have 7. You want one from me PM your address and I'll get it out. N/C for a pal in need. Art

PS, it fits good, but can get a bit tight, I put just a bit of grease (not silicone) to help.

2418T179
...
Inch O-rings have a dash number and are sized to the SAE standard AS568.

That helps! I tried measuring the o-ring but it's so easy to be off by 0.5-1mm! And more so if that ring is American and not metric.

Hold your horses Art...I have many -224 series O rings that we can send to him..
I'll check the fit on my cap and see if a -223 or -225 gives a better seal

what you say Frank...can you wait a little?

Absolutely I can, at the moment what I try to do is be careful when I lock the cap, making sure I press on the ring until the cap is locked and then I pull the little twist handle while pushing the cap in, making as best as I can a seal. Sometimes work, sometimes not, but so far it prevented flinging on the fender and smelling while driving. The fuel (which is not Jet fuel lolll) most of the time makes a puddle at the bottom so it is at the limit of that o-ring seal.

Art, I'll see what Jet comes up with with -223 and -225 sizes. The best fit I can get the better for long term use.
And Jet, I already owe you one.


Art, if you know more than I do on this, what's that thing about having pressure in the fuel tank? I thought there was no pressure in there or even vacuum cuz the pump sucks fuel which in turn sucks air from nowhere since it's a closed circuit, or maybe from my carbon canister. There must be air going in there when fuel gets out of the tank, but I would have never never never thought there would be a high positive pressure in the circuit? And what causes it so that fuel would back up my 5/8 vent hose like that?

Fortunately there seems to be an easy fix, tnx to you guys! Still very curious to understand how pressure works in this fuel circuit.

[Frank818]

This week I tried as much as -2.5 camber in the back.

2020-09-04 12.45.01.jpg

Gives a pretty nice look!
But it seems to increase my rubberized, muffled vibration coming from the left rear in higher G right turns only. This morning I dropped to -0.3 camber and it was softer with less vibration, but still some. I'll check if my axle nut is tight, we never know. Next step would be to drive with my mech and let him feel and hear it.
I do not know which parts of the car/suspension take on some stress when you corner, so very hard to know where and what to look for.

I start to have more and more trouble preventing myself from pushing on that gas pedal. But I never go over 50% TPS and 3500rpm not cuz I now about the 50% but I stop at what I feel, that 50% TPS is already considered agressive driving in town, I cannot imagine full boost and 6000rpm.
Car is quick, very quick, my timing makes it very responsive now.

Metallic exhaust vibration, fuel cap leak, left rear vibration on right turns and coolant double-leaks and still I can have fun driving it. That too I cannot imagine once all those will be fixed.
The 818 is one hell of a special car!


So far the rest of the car seems to hold on pretty good!

450km to go and I can remove that RPM limit during engine break-in.

[aquillen]

Pressure in the fuel tank - a temporary thing. Subaru (and I suspect many/most other "newer" cars). A typical system would be much like Subaru, which I have a drawing made for...



During "steady state" highway cruising, the ECM does a lot of system tests and will report via check engine or whatever indicator, when it finds a fault. One group of tests looks for fuel system leaks. There are fast and slow leak search methods that use variations of the following (a fast leak test is simpler):

Measure fuel temperature. From this calculate the vapor pressure for typical gasoline at that temperature (seach this to see curves and details: gasoline vapor pressure vs temperature). Also have on hand a curve of the evaporation rate for gasoline at that temperature (this is not the same as the ultimate vapor pressure the fuel would achieve). Measure fuel tank level, tank must be between 1/3 and 2/3 full to continue so that sufficient empty space can be used to monitor expected pressure increase during the test.

ECM BEGINS TEST:

Running steady state between a predetermined speed for x amount of time, engine warmed up, battery voltage within spec, etc.

Start with tank vented to atmosphere, by opening pressure solenoid and drain valve then measure and verify that tank pressure is at atmospheric pressure. This would normally be vented through the charcoal canister and/or via the purge vacuum back to the intake manifold.

Close tank vent pathways (pressure control solenoid).

Fuel evaporation proceeds in the tank as it already was doing, and based on fuel temperature it increases tank pressure to a known value for gasoline at that temp. So pressure builds in a good tank at a specific rate based on known volume of space above fuel (tank size and current fuel level), etc.

Monitor for the pressure rise for a predetermined amount of time, likely determined by the fuel level, since empty volume will affect how fast pressure should rise.

At tend of time, is pressure within expected range? yes - good. no - issue fault code.

Fuel cap loose? Probably a big leak, so pressure will not increase much, if at all. Major problem with getting pressure to rise = issue major leak fault code vs minor leak fault code, etc.

[Frank818]

OMG Art! I am prehistoric compared to your diagram!

All I've got is:

- The tank
- Charcoal canister vented to atmosphere and a breather filter (NOT connected to intake manif)
- 5/8 hose vent from tank to top of filler neck
- Fuel pump
- Fuel level sender (FFR's)

End.
No solenoid, no sensors, no ECM link, no drain, no pressure sensor.
Am I screwed?

But I do understand now the pressure buildup! By "pressure" I was thinking of the way pressure rises in the fuel rail, it is 100% liquid fuel pushed by the pump, so obviously pressure rises. I was wondering how that could happen from within the tank.
But I totally forgot about pressure rising due to a change in temperature which causes evap gases to increase pressure! This happens in any fuel can (say a 5gal can) so it must happen in a fuel tank being hit by a lot of heat coming from the engine sitting 8 inches behind!
Then when gas (not liquid!) pressure rises, it follows the less restrictive path to escape, which is probably my 5/8 vent as the filler neck has fuel in it up to a certain level anyway. All the gases escape from that vent located right on top of the tank. This also explains why my hose smells fuel. I have used a HEATER hose for the vent, cuz I said to myself "I don't need a FUEL hose, it's only AIR going in that vent". Well no, the gases flow through it along with liquid fuel obviously, or it turns back to liquid when it reaches the top of the filler neck on the colder brass fitting and aluminum fuel cap.

ALL MAKES SENSE! I need to change my vent hose too, already part of my plans but now it's mandatory!




This morning I did 2 runs. Both made me dizzy, cuz fuel was spilling out the cap and smell was coming back into the cabin. The fuel cap is located a couple of inches behind your head! The simple fact of turning your head to the left and I could smell unburnt fuel.


Although I don't recall anyone writing about this issue, everyone using FFR's fuel cap should test it for leak or change the o-ring and find one that fits in very tight, to make sure.

[Frank818]

-2.5 rear camber rubs on the inside of my inner wells. So I settled with -1.0 camber. This is already too much for certain types of roads around here. We have many highway stretches where trucks dug into the tarmac where their wheels are rolling. These make the car tram line a lot, even with good alignment. I found out the higher the camber the more it tram lines, both front and rear. Since I've got -1.2 front I decided to leave it at -1.0 rear, it's a good compromise "tram line vs sharp handling".



I finally was able to experiment fuel starvation! On a green light downtown, took it in 2nd at low RPM, maybe 2500, sharp turn, very quick, that was a test, without slowing down at all, maybe around 25mph or so. Engine got lean, fluttered for about 2sec, but no other symptoms. My guess it is was fuel starvation. I could not even see that moment on my log file, I'm surprised. 1/4 of tank maybe.
But 10mins prior, I was at 65mph in a tight "S" off-ramp. It's an amazing few seconds stretch of off-ramp to drive onto, no matter the car. I did not have any starvation issue, maybe the G forces were less or not as violent as on that green light right turn.

[Frank818]

Check out first few secs how close the front splitter is to the tarmac. I think I still had a good quarter to half an inch though, sun shade is tricking our eyes, I believe.

Damn I love that sound on acceleration!!

[Frank818]

Well, from the outside you can tell it roars!

[lance corsi]

Frank, your car has a good sound! Wish I was driving mine.

[Ajzride]

Frank, aren’t you bored of driving your car yet?

[Frank818]

Frank, your car has a good sound! Wish I was driving mine.

Lance! What's up with your C? You started in 2015 if I recall... where are you at now?

Frank, aren’t you bored of driving your car yet?

Yes I am. Not revving over 3500 due to break-in period and juggling with 7 issues (2 oil leaks, 2 coolant leaks, 1 rear left wheel vibration, 1 exhaust vibration and 1 one fuel cap leak) is quite boring!
But that's normal, cuz I built it.

[Frank818]

How interesting!

LamboWarning.png

[Frank818]

Art, Jet, I think I have fixed my fuel cap leak issue.

I got lucky and found some o-rings around, took a chance on 43mmIDx4mm and it fits. I think it's as thick an o-ring as you can use there, cuz the cap doesn't fit flush anymore, but barely!

2020-09-15 12.19.55.jpg

Good news is the spring works harder to compress the o-ring and I didn't smell any kind of fuel smell on my 30mins drive. That does not mean it's working, I need another 2-3 rides like this and I'll know.
The o-ring is also softer than OEM FFR, it is 70A. Maybe FFR's got harder with time I don't know.

[aquillen]

I suppose the only thing that you could run into still is it gets tight on you after being in place for several days. If so a touch of grease probably would fix (not silicone grease - messes up 02 sensors, etc.)

[choobs]

Wow, real happy to see this car out on the road Frank! And that is what an 818 should sound like, vr6 bliss

[Frank818]

I suppose the only thing that you could run into still is it gets tight on you after being in place for several days. If so a touch of grease probably would fix (not silicone grease - messes up 02 sensors, etc.)

Funny, many forums tell me using silicone or lithium based grease is compatible with fuel. However they don't say anything about O2 sensors, but do you mean some of the grease would get in the tank, sucked up by the pump and sprayed in by the injectors then burnt fuel to the O2 sensor in my down pipe?

Wow, real happy to see this car out on the road Frank! And that is what an 818 should sound like, vr6 bliss

Yeah and I tell ya it sounds monstrous when the rpms increase! But that will have to wait for many reasons which I will post in the next posts...

[Frank818]

Hey guys,

A lot of efforts in the past weeks.



ENGINE TUNING

Tuning seems fine, there are always small adjustments cuz everything is impacted by everything else, so it requires a lot of iterations but it runs fine and I use closed loop to control small variations, I was able to tune closed loop so that helped. I am now in the process of setting up pops and cracks at high vacuum. Not sure I will have a video before next year.
Believe it or not but cold starts perform better than hot starts, cuz I very rarely crank the engine when already hot, so I could not have a lot of opportunities gathering data and testing settings. But it starts all the time, always within 2secs, engine never stalls and I can control everything as intended with my ECU.


This is fixed well enough, even though it'll remain an on-going process for another season at least.




FUEL CAP LEAK

It seems the o-ring I found works good enough. I think once every 3 rides if I stick my nose, literally, on the cap, I can smell a little bit o' fuel, but no leak. However I know if I ever go at the gas station I NEED a towel or scott towel so that immediately when I open the cap I absorb the fuel puddle piled up at the bottom of the inside of the cap before it pours. If I don't, it will leak right away on the fender. Trust me I have tried in my garage and I swore bad for 5mins. Small drawback I can live with. One day I'll look to stick a rubber flap inside the cap.


I fixed this issue.



OTHER LEAKS

3 coolant leaks and 8 (EIGHT!) oil leaks. So far 1 coolant leak fixed and nothing else I could, either I cannot find the exact source of the leaks or I require removing the head to have better access down, especially on top of my filter housing which is leaking in 2 or 3 places.
One leak is on the clutch fork, I suspect the piston seal of the slave is shut and leaks through the rubber down to the metal tip pushing the fork. It's a Carrera 4 slave.


Failed fixing these this season.


2020-09-29 18.38.27.jpg

[Frank818]

WHEEL VIBRATION

Don't know. Next test is to push the lower lateral links outwards, pushing the wheel outside, and re-aligning. I think I have an idea what it is: compressed CV joints from the distance between the hub and gearbox. I think the entire drive shaft uses its shortest length to fit and maybe on high Gs it pushes on the shaft which cannot compress the CVs anymore. This adjustment can be tried next Spring.


I failed on fixing it this season.



EXHAUST METAL VIBRATION

After performing many tests, I cannot find the cause. That killed me. I think it's related to my dump tube flex bellow which has a hanging tubing inside the flex. That tubing touches the edges if you shake the flex, or flex it. On the video you can hear it clinging when I hit the muffler. That happens when cold, but not hot. Curiously the noise while driving happens only when hot and not cold. Anyway I fixed the noise on the video but it did not fix when driving.

Since this is an area with very high exhaust gases, you cannot perform quickie tests! I need to delete the WG and block off the manifold WG hole. I have to fab a block off plate 1st.
I did disconnect the dump tube and block it off, for that I had to flip upside down the WG and pray it won't open while driving. But since I had to bolt an alu plate in sandwich between 2 flanges, the top one is VERY close to the WG, I could not secure the flex, so the flex was still flexing and the noise was similar as when it's connected to the WG.
On the other hand, it may cost less time if I buy a different design flex, cut the actual one and pay a pro SS welder to come home weld it in place, this winter. But I am not 100% sure it will solve the issue since I cannot identify what causes that damn noise!

I failed on this very very important one this season.







2020-09-23 05.13.48.jpg2020-09-23 10.12.08.jpg2020-09-23 10.28.08.jpg

[Frank818]

15PSI BOOST REACHED!

Engine break-in restrictions being a thing of the past, I was able to test higher RPMs and boost. At only 65% TPS it can easily reach 15psi at 3750-3800rpm. At WOT, I am expecting 25psi around 3000 or under. At 4000rpm under load, the engine is loud, at first I thought everything was about to explode. But after a few times I realized the engine seems to take it very nicely. I even tried to destabilize the engine by boosting 15psi at 4000 and then quickly shifting back to 2000 steady. No hiccups, no overheat, AFRs came back to 14.7 in an instant, all was smooth. Basically it was like a normal car. The back push I feel when rpms increase is definitely more than I was used to on the Corrado at WOT. So that was impressive. I never went over 4000rpm yet, cuz of what's below.



NO BOOST CONTROL - SKY IS THE LIMIT

However, for some reason I am yet able to explain, my boost controller or WG is not working. The WG never never never opened since I got it out of the Corrado in 2015. The dump tube has no carbon dust inside (meaning the gases from the main pipe don't flow back in the tube which is important to know!) and even though I am asking my boost controller to open the WG at UNDER 8psi, the boost keeps on creeping and never reaches a plateau. Which means no WOT on this car until this is fixed. Maybe I'll have to ditch my boost controller and implement a new one, would have to do it this winter cuz I need access through the center tunnel, I don't want to waste hours removing and reinstalling seats and under seats next Summer!

Yes I have dismantled the WG which was making a noise anyway. I played with the shaft by hand and it was sliding no problem so it's not stuck in there.





I don't have a lot of days left for testing cuz I cannot drive for months with my blown head gasket, destroyed water pump, 3 coolant leaks and 8 oil leaks including clutch slave.

So cuz of all that I am very very busy trying to identify my issues promptly so I can take proper decisions before the winter and fix all that before next season.


I honestly don't think I will make it and next season will also be another one difficult with restrictions.

[lance corsi]

Frank, you might try applying some anhydrous lanolin to your o-ring for lubricant. Other than that, there’s the barium based o-ring lube sold thru McMaster Carr.
As far as my car progress, it has slowed this summer because of me hurting my back. Again. So I’m getting started back now, but it’s hard to get that groove back. Each time I set a finish date goal, I never reach it, so on it goes. Also, I see more details that need attention as I go, which seem to consume massive amounts of time. Working unassisted is fine but there are those times when a second set of hands are necessary, so I sometimes defer to other tasks until I can get help. My lifting capacity is down to 20 lbs or less, so I must be patient. I’ll finish some day. Your thread has been inspirational for me, so I thank you for your addition.

[Frank818]

Tnx Lance, I've taken notes of those products, should I ever need them.
I think the key is to keep the o-ring soft. It does not prevent the puddle from forming above the o-ring, but at least the ring stays tight.

Lifting only 20lbs is not a lot on such a build! Not an easy stretch, man, definitely not an easy stretch of project life... what % completed you think you're at?

[Frank818]

Done!

I am done for this year. This morning was my last ride of the year and I have already started the "Repair Season" by taking apart 75% of the parts I need to remove for the winter repairs. I figured with my head gasket, water pump and that slave leak, there is no point driving any longer this year since there is nothing more I can test or tune until I have a better working car. Also it will give me almost 2 months more to work on the car, which lowers pressure and provides better time flexibility. Wise decision and I absolutely don't regret it.

This last ride was great cuz for a very rare moment I was able to fix something quickly. My boost controller.

Turns out the required settings on my Corrado and now 818 are totally different! I suspect the SUPER MASSIVELY restricting exhaust on my Corrado required very high settings on the controller and since on the 818 things flow without restriction, those settings need to be dialed down quite a lot.

Normally I use manual settings on the controller, but this time I used the automated setting. I set a desired boost (in bars), a proportional gain (yes, that thing uses PID control) and a limiter (never really understood what that does) and the automated settings learns how to reach the setpoint as fast as possible, while following the gain I set (allowed overboost) and keeping a flat pressure all the way up in rpms.

Turns out on my very first boost it worked awesome! Yes, I do have a video for you guys!



The test was done on the exact same location I previously did my boost tests, starting at the very same rpms in 3rd, at a similar outside temp and engine temp and at the EXACT same TPS (65%). I am a pretty consistent guy when it comes to testing.

I have asked 8.7psi and the controller reached 8.7 psi without overboosting (I set a low gain so it doesn't overshoot) and KEPT 8.7psi give or take 0.4psi overall fluctuation (+/-0.2psi), which is ridiculously stable! Of course that was just for about 600rpm, but it couldn't be better and I reproduced that 4 times. With time the controller learns how to reach that setpoint faster, but time I don't have for that this year. At least I know it works! And it works superb!! I WILL have fun playing with that next year.

Oh god, just realized I reached 100km/h in a 50km/h zone, that is just enough to get my license suspended here. Sorry, cops! It was just a test!


Once I boost 25psi and I floor it at WOT, that thing will be a monster. So far I believe the engine loves better 15psi than 9psi. Not surprising since I run 7.7CR.


Anyway, that ride cheered me up just enough so that I will not be too disappointed this winter fixing my issues. It gave me hope for next year. I will burn the time and efforts to fix what I need to fix, I think the car prove to me it deserves it.

[Frank818]

I have another video for you guys. Playing with ECU settings to generate cracks and pops, I go very slowly on the settings so it's not that noticeable yet, but it's a start.




Also I find out I am not the only one who had fuel cap leaks issues! That proud American pick-up is leaking! loolllll

2020-10-04 14.42.10.jpg

[lance corsi]

Frank, I’d estimate that I’m 75% finished. Quitting isn’t an option. I hope this winter allows me to double down on it. My business has been booming for the past 2 years, so I must keep up with that too. Sometimes I feel a bit overwhelmed with all the mechanisms in my life. It’s non-stop 24/7 mechanical stuff for me.

[Frank818]

75% is quite respectable! Plus your business is having great times even through the pandemic. Just those 2 things should cover the understandable disappointment of still being in the build process, although not much can shadow back pain, damn that thing must suck.

[Frank818]

I need to remove the gearbox! (most of the oil has been removed from these pictures already)

2020-10-06 12.28.37.jpg2020-10-06 12.28.50.jpg

The slave is not leaking, it's a seal inside the gearbox, damn it. There goes a lot more efforts and hours and I need to bring it to my mech for repair. Basically everything will be off the car, cuz of the high steel welded supports in the back of the gearbox, I need to lift the engine block 8, maybe 10 inches. That requires disconnecting everything around. My problem is I only got one hoist and I don't think I can jack the block that high from underneath.

Gearbox is still 160lbs wet, I can lift it up but I cannot manipulate it and move around much, so I need the hoist in order to slide off the long bolts on the block side but it needs rear clearance first.


Well I have to see something positive in there! This will allow me to look at the drive shafts and ensure nothing is wearing out of the ordinary. It will allow my mech to look at the gearbox and ensure nothing else is bad in there. And it will give me more space around to install my head gasket and water pump.

But still...

[Jetfuel]

I know this sucks....but .... you got this

Jet

[AZPete]

Jetfuel is right - you got this. You've learned so much in your long journey that this will not be tough for Frank818.v2020. Rent a second engine lift?

[aquillen]

You need physical exercise on a regular basis, go for it!

[Frank818]

Jetfuel is right - you got this. You've learned so much in your long journey that this will not be tough for Frank818.v2020. Rent a second engine lift?

I got updated to Frank818.v2021 on Oct 3rd.
Seems my jack works fine to lift the engine, very precise and smooth. What's difficult is that the engine sits tilted on the driver's side, as a VR6 sits tilted to the front in transverse form. So when I lift, it tilts a bit more and that causes the gearbox to slide to the left and I loose all my clearance to get it out. If the alignment of the gearbox is not perfect and I really mean perfect, it cannot slide off, neither back in! I once spent 2h last year trying to slide it in and that was with the engine OUT of the car. The first time I tried took (only) 15mins. So it's very easy to misalign that thing.

Since I got only 2 hands, it's hard to move the gearbox while lifting it with the hoist or lifting the engine, so I have to attach it in a way it won't mess at all its balance, which is impossible to know until it slides off and you then see where it wants to balance... therefore I gotta be super creative and guess. As always. Normally it's getting out tomorrow!

I am very pissed at this oil leak, cuz I drove only 1600km since its rebuilt, I never went over 4100rpm, less than 10 times, and my average RPM is probably less than 2000. So I hope that failing seal was just a lemon and that the new one will never fail. I do not want to take the gearbox out ever again.



On the other hand, that made me found something! Don't tell anyone, this is between you and me , but one of my 2 engine mounts' nut was LOOSE. I think it had almost no torque to it!

Hush...

You need physical exercise on a regular basis, go for it!

Actually I do exercise 2 to 4h a day in summer and 1.5h a day in winter. 5-6 days a week all year long. Working on the car is a beneficial add-on to that and sometimes very much exercising! Like yesterday when I needed to lift with one hand the wheels of my hoist in order to push in with the other hand the locking pins (I have foldable lower long legs). That required great strength on the legs and back, keeping a perfect posture so that I don't hurt my back. Poor Lance I cannot imagine with his back pain doing this. I could not use my car jack as it was lifting the engine.




Regarding my high Gs right turn deep frame vibration coming from the left rear wheel, so far my assumption was right: my left driveshaft CV is compressed to its maximum when installed. Normally you have 1in of play on the inner CV, extending and compressing the entire shaft length by about 1in. In this case it's at its shortest. I still believe on right turns the forces on the wheel might want to push just a little the shaft inwards towards the gearbox and without play it bottoms inside the CV. Couple of ideas to test this next year.

[Frank818]

I lied!
I just got the gearbox out tonight. When I wrote my post this afternoon it got me thinking about how to attach the chain and strap to balance the box. I knew I wouldn't sleep if I wouldn't give it a try tonight. I did and I got it out on the 1st try, or 1st re-try should I say.


2020-10-11 17.24.22.jpg

Clearance really is to the mm!! A lot of sweat, but I think most of it was from the fear of breaking something!



That freakin' bolt is about 2mm too long!!!

2020-10-11 17.24.35.jpg

It causes the box to jam on the frame at the rear and I couldn't really raise the engine more, would cause more jamming on other parts at the top.
Thank god those long bolts flex a lot, I had to jiggle.

I learned that it would be much better if I get the left driveshaft out. That should give me clearance to take into account this long starter bolt.


There is a lot of oil everywhere inside!

2020-10-11 17.29.19.jpg


It comes from the gearbox' shaft sleeve guide, drips on the shaft, then on the clutch release bearing and then inside the clutch and the crank gear!
I hope I won't need to remove the clutch.

BUT, that explains the small oil leak I was getting right at the bottom of the adapter plate! I thought it was engine oil but couldn't find any leak! Now everything is self-explanatory...

I don't understand why it leaks. What a surprised, it got rebuilt and it leaks already. I cannot afford removing the engine, head or gearbox every year while driving like a 120yo guy for the summer cuz I don't want to get things worse. That is not funny at all.


And what is that thing:

2020-10-11 17.39.50.jpg

Couldn't find any wear on the clutch side or flywheel or starter ring gear, so I guess it's fine! We'll see what my mech says about that.


On the + side, it's gonna be a lot easier to get the head off and back in! And we are just at mid-October, which means plenty of time until April to fix everything else. So I'll stay calm and continue filling up with pink hibiscus gin...

[Frank818]

Didn't happen often during this 6.5years build I was happy about something.

Turns out my friend fixed the gearbox oil leak in only 48h elapsed! That kind of job would be more like 2 to 6 weeks elapsed as since I am lucky to be his friend I don't pay the same rate so he does my stuff when he has time, unless it's urgent. In this case I was expecting to get the box back during the winter!! I was not prepared, I had to move things around in the garage to make space for the box while all bolts and parts are spread everywhere. But there is no way I will complain!


Happy also that my major issues have found causes and fixes!




GEARBOX OIL LEAK

My fault!! I put too much oil 1800km ago, maybe half a quart too many! This increased pressure and popped 2 or 3 seals!

2020-10-12 11.48.32.jpg2020-10-12 11.48.49.jpg2020-10-12 11.50.47.jpg

You can see oil went all the way to the crank splines. And inside the clutch it was dripping down on the adaptor plate and also flinging off while rotating. The blue stuff you see through the holes is my floor tile. That explains the drip I was having around the adaptor plate and obviously the huge oil leak through the shaft and down the release fork.

FIXED!




WATER PUMP

No my fault! I guess I got a lemon part or just that the AWESOMELY looking Schimmel Performance (from PA in USA) high flow pump was badly designed. It's made in USA how can it be badly designed? It's the one on the left of course. He doesn't sell that pump anymore so I had to buy a std OEM pump although with a metal impeller, not the plastic OEM version. Those pumps are super cheap, thank god. Hopefully it will flow sufficiently, I'm sad to throw away the high flow pump, but it failed, so...

2020-10-13 12.13.53.jpg

FIXED!




DEEP VIBRATION ON RIGHT TURNS

My fault!!! I removed the CV cap from the left driveshaft in order to test my theory about the fact the rod is too long and bottoms out on high G right turns. Quite unusual thinking, you'd say? Well I was right!
Expecting to have some differences when you get a custom driveshaft built from measures taking from on your phone camera, hey...

2020-10-14 12.39.01.jpg2020-10-14 12.41.32.jpg

On the left pic you CLEARLY see the round marks right in the center.
On the right pic you see the right cap looks to have a slightly bigger or rounder center bowl. That is where the rod was pushing and bent the thin aluminum.

Multiple fixes to that:

- Pushing the wheel outwards using the 2 lower lateral links and adjusting with the camber link and maybe a little with the bumpsteer link. Free.
- Sending the rod back to DSS in SC or NC so they can cut it half an inch and send it back. Maybe 50-100US + shipping twice.
- Buying a new rod from DSS the correct length. 500US + shipping once.

As of now of course I will try pushing the wheel and see if it fixes 100%. If I feel the wheel is not too much on the outside and that doesn't cause any collateral damage (rubbing on fenders, flinging off gravel or etc.), I will keep it that way and push the right wheel outside as well, so both rear wheels are simetrical.

FIXED!!



HEAD GASKET BLOWN UP

My fault!! That we knew. I am in the process of removing the head, we know the fix to that.

FIXED!!




EXHAUST VIBRATION

My fault!!! Yes, that one is also my fault. The exact cause isn't known, but there is definitely something wrong with the WG flex bellow. It has almost no flex in the direction the engine moves and when the flex hits its maximum flexing point, metal parts inside touch and it makes a CLING sooooo similar to the one I hear while driving. The flex on the other direction is fine with lots of flexing angle and no noise.

Multiple fixes to that:

- Changing the bellow for another design. Not yet, the solid inner liner I have now is the best to be used on WG dump tube. Replacing with a double braid liner is so-so, some say the inner liner will fail, burn out or collapse, some others say it's fine if the quality is there. I checked for the interlock inner liner and they don't recommend for turbos.
- Changing the bellow for same design but a new part. I believe very much the installation and welding was not done properly. I think we fitted the 1.5" tubing at a slight angle inside the bellow (it's a slip-on bellow, slides over the pipe), which would be the problem. Also I think it's possible during welding the metal changed shape and is now very close to the side of the bellow which prevents it from flexing and causes the noise. Replacing with a new one I would know how to do it right. But I need a SS welder and I am having problems finding one that would come in my garage and weld on the car. Stupid QC with only 8 million people and businesses not advertising themselves on the web...
- This one is really out of the box, check this out guys: Cutting my dump tube in the middle, flipping it 180-deg so that the side it flexes fine would be in the direction the engine moves, bolting the flange/bellow to the WG, approaching the rest of the pipe underneath, leaving a cut say 1/8 or 1/4in, sliding in an interlock tubing https://vibrantperformance.com/catal...1527_1070_1248 over the 2 sections of the pipe and clamping the sections with 2 U-bolts. I already have the interlock tube, only need 2 U-bolts.

That will work and remove all stress on the bellow (I have some now cuz it's not perfectly aligned and the stress is on the wrong flexing side!), what I don't know is if it will make noise in a different use case cuz the non-flex side will be flipped. Maybe it will make noise differently. But it's almost free, quick to perform and totally worth trying.

From there I'll judge what to do next. If it works fine I could drive like that for a long time, as long as it wouldn't leak.


ALMOST FIXED!



All the above issues will be worked on and ready for testing I'd say in 2 to 3 weeks. The car will not be back up in 3 weeks though, but those major parts will be worked on completely.
From there, curiously, I only have minor issues to fix or improvements, nothing that would prevent driving the car, but I still want to do this winter so it's even better next summer. I am WAY ahead of time in my planning for this Repair Season. Which is also why I am happy. At the moment.

[Frank818]

Oh boy time flies fast.

I guess this will be my last update categorized as a "build update".

Next few posts will be split into various subjects so you can read only what you want.




I never knew what criteria would allow me to say if the build is completed or not. Until I knew it was completed. Everything build related is done, running and wearing out normally. That is when I knew the build was completed.
I do have a very few things to improve or implement in the future, but I don’t consider that part of the “build”.

As much as I can and once I get a proper cam I will post videos driving. Probably not this year, I have other concerns first.