[5S-FE] Syaoran's Build, Update August 14! Options

[Syaoran]

So I've bought myself a 1994 GT, black, with NONE of the extra cool stuff (sunroof, foglights, cruise control, automatic climate, 8-speaker etc)...... but who needs that? It's all just extra weight! Here's the background:

The car was bought from a fellow University Student who sold it because there was an issue with the car he couldn't solve. The issue apparently was both a bad (brand new) distributor and a bad ECU that was losing sync every 5 or less seconds.

It is in pretty bad cosmetic shape and had some massive 18 inch wheels running 225/40/18 way-oversized tires. The brakes are bad, and it seems the wheel bearings on it are going. It has a pretty bad oil leak (it's not burning it however) right around the cam cover. Seems like the timing belt is wet in oil, and so is the axle boot below, and part of the engine around there. The other side of the engine is completely fine, bone-dry, however.

With that said, it's got a working A/C, good-shape Transmission (it's an upgrade from my previous S53!), overall-good shape engine, turns on fine, the hatch struts work fine, has no interior rust holes, etc. It's pretty good.

I bought it for $1300!

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With that said, I started working on a list of priorities and started tackling all the issues to get it up and running. First up was the issue of losing sync. Got rid of it by getting a new alternator from Advance Auto under warranty (saved $145! let's hope it lasts a bit) and I also got a MegaSquirt-II EMS installed. The car is no longer losing sync and idled like a purring kitten.

Next up was the brakes. I might need to get new brake lines because the rear passenger side brake line didn't pour out any brake fluid when I removed the calipers. All others poured at least a little. Might have to check what's going on... Maybe it's air trapped in the lines.

I removed the rotors to get the turned, and the calipers to get them cleaned and painted. I chose a copper-orange metallic color for them.

Once that's done, I'm putting the wheels back and getting it to my mechanic to have the oil leak fixed and likely giving it a cam-side tune up (waterpump, tensioner, idler, cam seal, crank seal and timing belt) and I will change the valve-cover gasket with plug tube seals.

Next up is getting new wheels because those 18s are WAY too damn big. Getting BBS RX 16x7" +42 in 5x114.3. I'm buying a set of 20mm front and 25mm rear spacer adapters which are double hub-centric. (54.1mm to 67.1mm). Tires will be 205/50/16 stock size. After that, I'm taking it in to the bodyshop to get the exterior quoted for fixes.

Then comes a turbo

I'll keep this thread updated. I will upload some pictures soon enough!

This post has been edited by Syaoran: Aug 14, 2014 - 1:27 PM

[Xander_X]

Wouldn't know what language to translate it to ... probably couldn't if I did know. Um ... it's a small valve that all the break lines go to, shortly after they leave the brake master cylinder. The proportioning valve reduces the pressure to the rear brakes. Idk, I'm a mechanic, but I've only owned this car for about a month and looked under the hood maybe twice now I haven't had a lot of time to mess with it yet. I don't know exactly where it is but it's usually on the engine side firewall in between the passenger and driver seats. Again, I haven't looked, 6 gens might even have a combination valve instead .... now I gotta go look.

Here, read this ... http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/b...ster-brake2.htm

[Syaoran]

Wouldn't know what language to translate it to ... probably couldn't if I did know. Um ... it's a small valve that all the break lines go to, shortly after they leave the brake master cylinder. The proportioning valve reduces the pressure to the rear brakes. Idk, I'm a mechanic, but I've only owned this car for about a month and looked under the hood maybe twice now I haven't had a lot of time to mess with it yet. I don't know exactly where it is but it's usually on the engine side firewall in between the passenger and driver seats. Again, I haven't looked, 6 gens might even have a combination valve instead .... now I gotta go look.

Here, read this ... http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/b...ster-brake2.htm

Thanks. If that goes bad, what might happen?

Here's some pics of what I did today. I cleaned the calipers and sprayed them burnt copper. I like the result. It took a while even with help, but I was making double sure that it had a clean surface before spraying... I didn't like the final result of the cleaning, but I hope the paint holds.

Here's what I'm working with:



Rust hole in the hatch near the glass and wiper base:



You can see some of the dents and the big scratch here:



Bad side (looking for a bumper and lows for the right price):



Good side:



Here you can see the faded paint on the hood and some of the roof:



Front Pads:



Front Calipers. As you can see I focused mainly on the visible parts to save paint. In the end, I almost didn't have enough the way I did this. Had I taken those spots, it would've come out not as good:



Brake Pad brand... They seem to be about the same build quality as OEM pads:



Front ones again:



Bracket:



Before Cleaning:



After cleaning, before paint:



Love a girl who's willing to get dirty:



She compressed the front calipers on her own, with her own invention:




Tomorrow: Pics of the MegaSquirt-II in the car, and the brakes installed. Gotta put everything back on and bleed them. I might get a new tire for the busted tire on the 18" rim and put those on for now.