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Thread: The turbomacncheese build thread

  1. #81
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    Wow, a month goes by pretty quickly, doesn't it? Not a ton to report, as I have CERTAINLY made it to the "little wins" stage. Didn't think it would be such a challenge to get seat brackets put together that allowed access to the bolts like I want. Finished the driver last weekend, spent a good chunk of today on the passenger side.

    Positive note: I've learned my lesson about only tacking metal together until I'm sure it's right, lol. Chopped up the shift cable mount (on the transmission) to try and solve a problem I'm introducing, found out it wasn't quite right...cutting that back apart was horrible. Seat bracket, I screwed that up too. Came apart much easier!! I'm happy with it, but no pictures.

    I picked up a bottle of C25 from a guy on craigslist, and jesus, welding goes so fast now, and no pops or splatters...but I kinda have to learn how all over again. So I'm hiding my work until then!!

    Speaking of hidden work, I spent a couple weekends trying to come up with some sort of crank to replace the FF bracket. I'm not an engineer by any stretch of the imagination, so I didn't go out and buy a bunch of stuff. I did get an approximation of what was in my head with some of the scrap I had laying around. FAILURE. Really hard to move in and out of gears or across the neutral zone (say from between 1/2 to between 5/R). So I scrapped it, and made two brackets that basically work the way FF set them up. Main difference is the longitudinal cable is in line with the shaft now, and the lateral cable approaches from the other side. Still really hard to shift in and out of gears. Is that because I don't have the clutch working yet? Because there is no oil in the trans? It didn't feel like that with the top mount before I disassembled the donor, even with the clutch engaged. Only change is draining the oil and using cables. It's really not good.

  2. #82
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    Other change, 2wd conversion. Could I have screwed something up there?

  3. #83
    Senior Member STiPWRD's Avatar
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    Try removing your linkage off of the trans and shifting into gear by directly turning and pushing the shaft on the back of the trans. This will tell you if there's an issue with the trans or with your linkage. Even if there's no oil, you should be able to engage every gear. If you're using the FFR provided cables, it can be difficult to get into gear from the large amount of slop in those things.

  4. #84
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    It doesn't seem terribly difficult to move by hand side to side, and it's nearly impossible to stop in neutral when I push/pull it out of gear. Example, in 3, give a tug, pop-pop into 4. Whoops. Push, pop-pop back into 3. Thought it would feel easier at the shifter because of the leverage on the shifter arm. Much more difficult. I guess I was just concerned that maybe it was supposed to be even easier at the trans. As is, I don't see how this thing is drive-able, and I'm not a picky guy.

  5. #85
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    I thought the same thing! i eventually lightened my touch and was able to find nuetral but took me a while.

    from the "upgraded" aluminum shifter i have no idea what gear i am in

  6. #86
    Senior Member STiPWRD's Avatar
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    Sounds like the trans is fine and it's the linkage or cables that are giving you trouble.

  7. #87
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    I agree. Just really surprised. I'm looking at lance's solid shifter linkage solution and another one that uses only a single rod. Maybe I'll make some headway there. Thanks.

  8. #88
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    I've decided to punt on the transmission linkage until I get this thing together enough to run. Bending my brain to it is taking a bunch of time, and it's not any fun to not see any progress. That said, I started screwing around with other stuff.

    I'm looking for alternative brake master cylinders, but I'm having trouble finding information on the mounting patterns for any of them. Sure, I can measure mine, but how do I know how far apart the holes are on the ones I'm looking at? I found a great resource from Cardone that has a lot of information (piston size, number of ports, thread size on the ports, etc) but none of that is any good if it doesn't BOLT UP!!! Here is that link, at least.

    https://s3.amazonaws.com/pageturnpro...ide_MCID14.pdf

    and now that I've done my part here, if you have a resource that gets me that info, I'll be very happy indeed.

    Moving on, I made a bracket for the degas tank,to move it off to the side. Not as nice as Mechie's, but if you count the metal, gas, wire and paint, I'm in it for less than 3 bucks. Less than 2 if I get a discount for using paint and metal I had leftover from another project.
    bracket.jpg

    And with the tank mounted....
    Degass Mounted.jpg

    I used 4 bolts and 2 nuts from my bucket-O-donor-bolts. Getting harder and harder to find hardware that matches for these little projects, but I still have a bunch in there. That bucket has probably saved me 30 or 40 bucks so far.
    And how did I get that hole spacing on the bracket you ask? What with me being pretty much a hack?

    bolt template.jpg

    That's right, dollar store packing tape. It's pretty thick, so it doesn't stretch or crinkle. Just rip a piece off, lay it where you want it, rub it really good with a thumb, then pull it and put it on whatever you need to drill. These were from the top of the manifold. I drilled right in the center of those circles there, and couldn't be happier.

  9. #89
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    Another slow weekend, but I think I can roll with my MC as is (more or less). I'll have some pictures of that later (maybe). Mounted the ABS controller on the floor right behind the battery. Next job is probably brake and clutch lines, but I'm camping next weekend so exactly nothing will get done then. And button up the engine. Gotta get those little bits like the purge solenoid, spark plugs, EGR figured out.

    Also bolted the turbo on. I was going to replace the cartridge with a pre-fab job, but I think I'll hold off until I see how my budget holds up. Still need to get a radiator, AC unit, power steering hoses, tires (although the donors are still pretty soft and miles of tread deep), etc.

    Also got the shifter mounted, still a sonofabirchtree to shift the gears but mounting it has helped considerably. I think the shifter might have been flexing, or perhaps the rubber grommets were flexing (I had it mounted to a board through those). Still sucks, but it won't get in the way of a first drive, so it's staying for now. I like Andrew and Tamara's solution, and I'll likely copy that down the road.

  10. #90
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    Weekends have been pretty busy around here. Just got back from vacation yesterday, so today I decided to make the parking brake work. It does, but I had to run the adjuster nut out pretty far. I think I can get some better fitment in the rotor and take some of that back off, so I might look at it when I bleed the brakes. It DOES look like I can bleed them without taking the wheels off, though, so I might end up leaving. Speaking of bleeding....

    Also got the clutch line run, filled, and bled. I haven't mounted the line to the frame yet, but a couple zipties are helping out. Pretty sure I should grab a roll of brake line before I do the brakes. I ran from the MC to the ABS controller, and that plus the clutch ate up most of my FF provided lines...and I didn't even waste any. Maybe it would be enough running the brakes the manual way...only one pipe going to the back that way, after all...but definitely not enough for the ABS unless my inexperience is fooling me. Anybody reading this who is using the ABS, feel free to mention how much extra line you used.

  11. #91
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    Man, what a waste of a Saturday morning. Made this really sweet bracket that mounts front/center below where the windshield surround will go so I could mount something for the brakes....turns out I'm not gonna need it. Damn. I did get both front brakes plumbed in. My extra brake line will be here tomorrow so I probably won't get the rears done until next weekend. I ended up ordering a 25ft roll.

    I really need to get the radiator in, buy some spark plugs, and sort out the fuel system. My plan for wiring is to only change the harness where I absolutely have to until I can verify that the engine runs. Then I'll take it apart (the harness) and make it right.

  12. #92
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    Good plan on the harness, get it started first. Hope the 25' brake line is enough I'll be doing an ABS setup as well.
    Factory Five 818c #456

  13. #93
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    Wiring is a fun one LOL I spent way to many hours doing mine. My guide might help you now or in the future. https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...wiring-harness

  14. #94
    Senior Member mistasherm's Avatar
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    I stopped keeping track at 75hrs on my harness, but then again I was a wiring rookie. I am turning the key this weekend for a first start. Hopefully the wiring is good - if it isn't, there will be a grown man crying in his garage in MD.
    220,221 whatever it takes....

  15. #95
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shawn818c View Post
    Good plan on the harness, get it started first. Hope the 25' brake line is enough I'll be doing an ABS setup as well.
    I'll post back what I ended up with. I think it will be plenty if I don't make any mistakes.

    Quote Originally Posted by redfogo View Post
    Wiring is a fun one LOL I spent way to many hours doing mine. My guide might help you now or in the future. https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...wiring-harness
    Thanks for this. I'll be sure to read it thoroughly

    Quote Originally Posted by mistasherm View Post
    I stopped keeping track at 75hrs on my harness, but then again I was a wiring rookie. I am turning the key this weekend for a first start. Hopefully the wiring is good - if it isn't, there will be a grown man crying in his garage in MD.

    I've seen where a couple guys had problems with wiring harnesses, and it turned out to be something really simple and super easy to fix. Even if it does turn out that way, you might end up with a non-problem. I'm rooting for you over here!

  16. #96
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    I got the brakes run and bled. 25ft + FFR supplied tubes was enough for abs braking and clutch. I've also been keeping a little secret. You may have read Mike (Ipassgas) mention that I attempted to fit the stock brake booster, but gave up on it. Turns out that I could NOT get it to fit into that corner as-is because the mounting studs are way too long. I ended up disassembling the firewall to fit it, only to find out that the left MC port was blocked by a frame tube. I picked up a 7inch single diaphragm universal booster and drilled some holes in the mounting plate....and had just enough room to use the stock MC. For reference, the wrx booster is right around 9.5 inches, dual diaphragm. It took a little bit of thinking, and I have some plans to change a thing or two once I'm sure I like the amount of assist, but it is assembled in a fantastically low-buck way. I got the booster for $37 bucks (I know, I know, "I can't believe you bought it off ebay"...but I wasn't prepared to spend a few hundred on something that might not work or stay...swapping it out will be easy if I decide to later). Everything else is donor...."recovered."

    Since the brakes are bled, I used my hand pump to squeeze about 15mmhg vac on the booster, and I was able to get about an extra inch, maybe inch and a half, on the brake pedal vs an empty booster. That was enough to convince me to post it. I think it should represent a solid middle of the road between searching for aggressive pads while getting used to a really stiff pedal and having "touchy" brakes. Since it's a universal unit, it should be easier to find MCs that bolt up, and I have a list of potential candidates. Many of them have all the ports on the right side or top, and would eliminate the near-interference you'll see in some pictures, once I put them up. I have a write-up coming together so somebody who's good at this stuff can improve it after seeing what I did, how, why, and what I might change, but it still needs some editing.

  17. #97
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    I got the brakes run and bled. 25ft + FFR supplied tubes was enough for abs braking and clutch. I've also been keeping a little secret. You may have read Mike (Ipassgas) mention that I attempted to fit the stock brake booster, but gave up on it. Turns out that I could NOT get it to fit into that corner as-is because the mounting studs are way too long. I ended up disassembling the firewall to fit it, only to find out that the left MC port was blocked by a frame tube. I picked up a 7inch single diaphragm universal booster and drilled some holes in the mounting plate....and had just enough room to use the stock MC. For reference, the wrx booster is right around 9.5 inches, dual diaphragm. It took a little bit of thinking, and I have some plans to change a thing or two once I'm sure I like the amount of assist, but it is assembled in a fantastically low-buck way. I got the booster for $37 bucks (I know, I know, "I can't believe you bought it off ebay"...but I wasn't prepared to spend a few hundred on something that might not work or stay...swapping it out will be easy if I decide to later). Everything else is donor...."recovered."

    Since the brakes are bled, I used my hand pump to squeeze about 15inhg vac on the booster, and I was able to get about an extra inch, maybe inch and a half, on the brake pedal vs an empty booster. That was enough to convince me to post it. I think it should represent a solid middle of the road between searching for aggressive pads while getting used to a really stiff pedal and having "touchy" brakes. Since it's a universal unit, it should be easier to find MCs that bolt up, and I have a list of potential candidates. Many of them have all the ports on the right side or top, and would eliminate the near-interference you'll see in some pictures, once I put them up. I have a write-up coming together so somebody who's good at this stuff can improve it after seeing what I did, how, why, and what I might change, but it still needs some editing.
    Last edited by turbomacncheese; 06-16-2018 at 10:15 AM.

  18. #98

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    I may do something similar. I looked at it long enough to see that the reason why they might be touchy with the stock setup is the firewall is about 3/4" thinner than in the wrx and I would have to cut the studs down for it to fit. Thanks for posting this, it saves me a couple hours of frustration trying to fit the factory unit. I was thinking I would just ditch the PB, but I like your solution. I may copy it.

    I still haven't done the motor mounts. I will get there soon hopefully. I'm just doing suspension, cleaning and painting things as I go.

  19. #99
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    I look forward to see how your brake setup works out! I'm still just starting my build so I've hardly even thought about how to make a booster work, but I'd like to keep some sort of boosted brake setup in the car rather than going manual brakes.

  20. #100
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    The brakes have an adjuster, so the first half inch of pedal is always the first half inch of pedal. I think the touchiness comes from the size of the booster. I opened the manual and the diaphragms are 8.07/9.06 (not the size I mentioned earlier) and at 66 lb on the pedal deliver 1208 psi MORE than no booster. I can't find any actual claims for my booster (or most aftermarket boosters, actually), but from the things I have been able to find, I expect somewhere between 250psi and 350 psi at that pedal force with this master cylinder. Judging by the reports from people with manual brakes, I think this might be enough. If not, I can either step down to a 1 inch bore, step up to an 8 inch booster, or drilling the upper hole for better ratio (which I have not done yet). 7 inch dual diaphragm is also an option, but then I'd have to get a booster AND a master because of the interference with the stock port.

  21. #101
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    Nice work on the booster. For those that take the optional Wilwood pedal box and masters I believe also corrects the pedal ratio problems and allows to size the master to the caliper.

  22. #102
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    First start? Sorry. Lots of video like this while I tried.

    https://youtu.be/GFseyh-_evE

    Checked compression, dug out my pictures of the timing belt installation, checked fuel pressure, checked spark plugs. ARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

    Then about an hour after posting for help and double checking the suggestions, I remember reading last weekend (after I tried to start it) that somebody on NASIOC had put a MAF sensor in backwards. Not sure if I did that because its an aftermarket intake tube and looks like it only goes in one way (and honestly, I'm up here posting before I bothered to pull the sensor out), but I unplugged it for grins and giggles.

    https://youtu.be/BWndZIerXOk

    This is the second start, because I didn't expect the first start to be the first start. I expected it to be the 10th no-start. It did fire up about as quickly, but that was with about an hour of priming the fuel pump, lol. YAY ME!!! Now I can take the wiring harness apart!

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  24. #103
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    awesome! very exciting mile stone
    Factory Five 818c #456

  25. #104
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    Man, I wish you could have seen my smile. I do have a shot of it, but the angle and lighting makes my slightly crooked grill look absolutely meth-head brown and half-knocked out. I edited it out of the end of the video, actually, lol.

  26. #105
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    I'm starting to look into brake booster options and had a few questions about your setup. What was necessary to get the Subaru master cylinder to bolt up to the universal booster? Are you fairly happy with the fitment or you would you go another route?

    I'm considering swapping to an entirely different OEM's setup but bolt pattern info is hard to find. Lotus Elise boosters and MC are tempting because they're compact, remote reservoir from the factory, and have side ports.

  27. #106
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    I had to notch the bolt holes on the master and save the push-pin from the OEM booster. After adjusting the pin depth, everything else is finagling it into place. I still have my booster in the scrap bucket so I can measure the bolt pattern if you need it.

    As far as fitment goes...

    It's good enough if you fall into 1 or more of 3 camps:
    1) your goal is to retain the stock equipment, travel, and the level sensor
    2) you want to see what stock feels like so you know which direction to adjust when you DO purchase brake stuff
    3) you're a cheap ******* and want to just get it done.

    I visit each of those camps from time to time. That said, if it's in the budget, it's likely less hassle to find a similar master with ports on the passenger side and/or top. In fairness, I'll probably do exactly this once I drive it a bit and determine whether the brakes are good enough for my needs. This would also allow for a larger dual-diaphragm booster if you decide you want one. I'm betting the price of my booster that it will be enough, since all comments I've read is that the manual brake setup is ALMOST BARELY JUST ENOUGH, unless you get some spendy pads and practice braking. I have a list of some potential masters already, so let me know if you want me to cut down some of your search time. I'll get off my butt this weekend and finish that writeup. I have some really good pictures, but it's full of notes right now that are probably not helpful for most people.

  28. #107
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  29. #108
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    Not much happening lately. I'm trying to get ahead of studying for an actuarial certification exam, and if anybody knows any actuaries, they'll confirm that exams are a TIMESUCK. But the car ain't going anywhere and I need to pick up a board to lay out the wiring anyway. Wifey had my chop mine up to help corral some puppies. I'll likely not post here again until I'm actually doing something, unless I get sad and want to share some pictures that I haven't gotten around to, lol.

  30. #109
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    I finished all my studying videos, and all I have left is about 70 hours of practice problems and practice exams. Since the exam isn't until the middle of November, I'm a little ahead of schedule there.

    As for the 818, I'm working on the wire harness.

    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...dieting-advice

  31. #110
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    Got all the chassis harness separated into its parts. What a mess. Very confident I'll be able to put it back together, though, so there's that. Next up...engine compartment harness. I'm going to double check how that one will lay out before I take anything apart, though. With any luck, I'll like how it goes and just be able to clean it up.
    Last edited by turbomacncheese; 10-22-2018 at 09:24 PM.

  32. #111
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    Just wanted to make note of some links I think are helpful at this stage in the wire diet. Since getting all the chassis harness torn apart, I was feeling pretty good. Tried to make sense of the ECU and fusebox mounting today, and ended up wasting a crapload of time. I really don't like the idea of just cramming **** under the firewall with all of 2 inches for clearance and no way to get to the relays except pulling the firewall or pulling the engine. And the manual is super-helpful here....they "mount over the fuel tank." With what? Some duct tape? And I managed to block off the ECU mounting location with my seatbelt spool. I like it enough that I'm going to leave it there, and move the ECU. Maybe behind the driver seat. Looks like just about enough room. I'd rather put it up front, but it sounds like a lot of the ecu wires have to go to the back of the car, which means through the tunnel.

    I was hopeful that the main harness would be able to stretch where it's supposed to go, as the manual says to lay it out in the right place, and it will fit. Looks like I have to chop that SOB up, too.

    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...unt-fuse-panel
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...e-box-mounting
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...y-s-818S/page4
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...the-fuse-boxes
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...8s-build/page2
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/atta...6&d=1438569626
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...y-s-818S/page3
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...ring-questions
    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...hassis-Harness

  33. #112
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    Still here, still chugging away, still working on the wires. Blech. I was totally set on using the crimps, and ordered a whole bag of them. I thought 18-22 gauge would do, but what I got was huge. No good. For the record, I'm convinced that crimps are superior to solder-only in every way that counts. Speed, durability, reliability. Solder only wins on cost as far as I can tell. That said, I'm not worried about the shortcomings of soldering. My harness is not going to flex specifically at a joint. At a stretch of wire including the joint, maybe, but then the rest of the wire will do the bending first. And since I already had solder, a 100ft roll of shrink tube, and a couple days off work, I got busy.

    Bob's advice to label each wire with where it goes AND the wire position number has paid off in spades already. Several connectors have the same color wire in more than one place!! I also gave up on putting the harness together on a board. I didn't have one handy, my Hyundai won't easily get one, and - most importantly - I realized the very high likelihood that I'd screw it up. So I'm doing it in the car. It's amazing to me how much of this thing is going to disappear just by making it fit, never mind getting rid of the stuff I don't want.

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  35. #113
    Senior Member AZPete's Avatar
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    Whenever a builder enters the nearly endless maze of wiring, they disappear for months, like you have. All I can do is assure you that lengthening and shortening each wire, one at a time, will eventually pay off. I know the tunnel is long but there are lots of thrilling victories ahead. I remember that once I had the courage to add 12V to the system, each light and each gauge was a reason to cheer! Have patience and beer.
    818S/C : Chassis #25 with 06 WRX 2.5 turbo, ABS, cruise, PS, A/C, Apple CarPlay, rear camera, power windows & locks, leather & other complexities. Sold 10/19 with 5,800 miles.
    Mk3 Roadster #6228 4.6L, T45, IRS, PS, PB, ABS, Cruise, Koni's, 17" Halibrands, red w/ silver - 9K miles then sold @ Barrett-Jackson Jan 2011 (got back cash spent).

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  37. #114
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    Not much to report. Still chugging away, but pictures aren't exciting here. I got the ECU wires all finished up, so there IS that...
    Found a discrepancy in the wiring diagram. I had this bit hooked up right at some point, which tells me I labeled my wires correctly, but managed to snip through it while trimming up another wire. Pretty sure the two were supposed to go together, but I wanted to double check the book and it showed the wrong wire color, and the wrong destination. I must have convinced myself of the error when taking it apart, labeled it correctly, then forgot about the whole fiasco, lol. Thankfully, ipassgass was on standby with his harness at pretty much the same condition as mine and was able to confirm that I'm not crazy.
    Basically, the HID relay gets power from a different circuit than in the book. Details here...

    https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/show...l=1#post356292

    I've had a couple other tangentially related projects going, but nothing worth mentioning here....yet. I still get in the car and fix a few wires most nights after work, and a few more on the weekend unless I need to drive to Scottsdale and share some beer and burgers with AZPete. Thanks bud! He's got the best perspective on these builds, as far as I can tell.

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  39. #115
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    Well, for the next project, I'll know to take really good notes as I tear the harness OUT OF THE CAR. Last week I spent about an hour looking for the security horn relay, because I had a plug for it. Apparently it wasn't plugged into anything, but I labeled it "Steering column" anyway. Eventually found the other end of the ghost relay that plugged into the ghost security horn. It was all packed with the special grease. This was right after I found Mechie's thread on NASIOC where a guy claimed that the 2006 didn't get that particular horn. I believe it.

    Spend another hour tonight looking for the security system shock sensor because I have a plug for that one that ISN'T full of grease. Decided to check the net and apparently that one is a dealer option upgrade, so in all likelihood, I just don't have it. It looks like the kind of part I would have just left plugged in like I did with the integrated unit, drl controller, keyless entry, etc.

    The going is still slow, but I got to switch from the velcro zip ties to some plastic zip ties on the fuse and relay panels, so there's that.

    fuse and relay.jpg

  40. #116
    Senior Member AZPete's Avatar
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    The maze of dead-ends along the wiring path are all planned to make the end of the journey more rewarding. Your photo really cleared up any questions!
    818S/C : Chassis #25 with 06 WRX 2.5 turbo, ABS, cruise, PS, A/C, Apple CarPlay, rear camera, power windows & locks, leather & other complexities. Sold 10/19 with 5,800 miles.
    Mk3 Roadster #6228 4.6L, T45, IRS, PS, PB, ABS, Cruise, Koni's, 17" Halibrands, red w/ silver - 9K miles then sold @ Barrett-Jackson Jan 2011 (got back cash spent).

  41. #117
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    I'm very happy to report that I'm not dead. So many things to take up time and get in the way, and the AZ summer heat in the garage didn't help. We also spent some time looking at property and bought 9 acres on the outskirts of town. Moved into a rental last month and signed paperwork to sell our old house Friday. Plans for the new house are drawn up, and we'll have a shop just over 1000sq ft. I'll get to drop some 220 outlets in there, too, so no more goofing around...getting serious. But I'll have to share about 200 ft of that with the wife. Upside, outskirts mean no HOA, which means I can put up a carport or shed and park there, leaving the garage free for fun stuff!

    But now that I don't have a house to maintain, I got to put in some hours on the wiring harness. Got as close to done as I could see with that pesky ground circuit. Hooked up the battery, turned the key, nothing. Apparently it helps if you have the power supply to the fuse block hooked up. Did that, and I got a couple lights and some noise!

    cluster.jpg

    The battery was at 11.5 volts, so I was hopeful, but all the relays and controllers started buzzing and when I checked the battery it had dropped to 5 volts. Not surprising after sitting for 2 years, so I'll take it to O'Reilly and see if they can put a charge on it.

    Nothing in the bumper or fenders is mounted, so some of that wiring is not hooked up and I can't test any of it. But I am pretty pleased that I didn't let out any magic smoke. That counts for something. Forgot I have to ground out the rear door sensors, too, and also need to figure out what's up with the security light.

    I can say out loud that, while happy overall, I'm a little disappointed with the wiring. In my head, it was all going to be so much cleaner, but getting anything into and around that fuse block cluster just....sucked. I pulled a LOT of stuff out as it is, and most of the wiring is pretty OK. I filled up one of those 15 gallon cans with wire, tape, and plugs. I was going to share a picture when I finished, but it didn't make sense to move it to the rental. Suffice to say that I've still got twice that much out of the car that I can toss as soon as it's running again. So that's not nothing, either. But at least a dozen times I seriously debated just ripping it all out and starting over with new wire and new connectors everywhere. I may decide to turn this car into a project again, once I've finished whatever I build after this, and that's what I'll do next time.

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  43. #118
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    Well, it runs. Fired right up with a new batter. So fast, my wife didn't even get a video of it trying. Been sitting for 2 years and 4 months. Just a very small amount of gas in the tank this whole time. And it didn't....even....hesitate. I don't think it was cranking for a full second and it just WENT. Never had a car do that. Ever.

    That said, I had plenty of lights ont the cluster this time:
    "ABS", didn't expect that one.
    "Brake", I had the sensor plugged in, but the fluid was low - right at the min level. Didn't plug in the hand brake, either, so that doesn't make sense. I think that one is normal open.
    "Check Engine", I'm not sure what this would be about. I got rid of the air pump and the TGV valves but I don't remember that light coming on last time. Could be that I had the valves plugged in, though. My scanner took a crap and died. But I also tried the start without the MAF hooked up, since that's what it took the first time. Plenty of leaks between the filter and the TB because duct tape is holding it all on there.
    "Airbag", no surprise. Might just unplug that light.
    "Cruise", not real happy about that one. I left all the cruise control stuff in.
    Big bright dot near the "E" on the fuel gauge. I guess that's the one that means "Quit screwing around and get some gas!!"
    I think I'll spend tomorrow putting the firewall back in, then the seats, and start tieing up the wires that are gonna get in the way (lights and all that). Odds and ends like some vacuum line for the brake booster, radiator overflow, etc. Might get a gokart in next weekend if I'm lucky.

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  45. #119
    Senior Member AZPete's Avatar
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    All looks good, Tony, but I recommend Gorilla tape instead of duct tape on your TB.
    818S/C : Chassis #25 with 06 WRX 2.5 turbo, ABS, cruise, PS, A/C, Apple CarPlay, rear camera, power windows & locks, leather & other complexities. Sold 10/19 with 5,800 miles.
    Mk3 Roadster #6228 4.6L, T45, IRS, PS, PB, ABS, Cruise, Koni's, 17" Halibrands, red w/ silver - 9K miles then sold @ Barrett-Jackson Jan 2011 (got back cash spent).

  46. #120
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    Quote Originally Posted by AZPete View Post
    All looks good, Tony, but I recommend Gorilla tape instead of duct tape on your TB.
    That's a great suggestion, but the whole point was to just try and trick the MAF sensor. If I put that gorilla tape on there, that's a permanent solution!

    Quick update, looks like my scanner wasn't trash after all. Worked just fine on the other car. Turns out I took a LgB wire from the ECU and branched it in to a LgB bundle that does something else entirely. So the good news is that (after pulling all the wires from the scanner display and resoldering them, lol) the scanner scans the car now. I have a few codes that I think are related to the TGV, a couple related to the air pumps, and one each for the MAF and IAT, which I believe are the same sensor.

    Bad news is that I still have way too many lights on the dash. It looks like they're all on the same power circuit, so I guess I'll start there. But later. Now it's almost time for a nap.

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