After a little bit of re-cutting and wiggling I think I like the setup in the pics below much better. There is a lot more symmetry to the pipes and it gives more clearance for the coolant hoses and wiring under the piping.
Next step is to glue it up and take it to a few shops to see what they can do
Since I’m back from good old Spain, I was able to pick up a bunch of new bolts, washers and gaskets from Robbie and started mocking up my new intercooler piping. I wasn’t able to finish the passenger side because of that damn ABS unit that will have to be removed before I can finish
I also mocked up where the power steering reservoir, BOV and coolant reservoir go so that I could get a look at how it will all come together. My polished turbo inlet and forge coolant reservoir have finally cleared Canadian customs so they should be here any day now.
And now for the pictures.. Picture the 2.5″ pipes all nice and polished
After getting back from one week in Barcelona for work, I found a little bit of engine bay accessory bling
It should go well with the Forge reservoir tank that is on the way. It fits right over top of the OEM cap and secures with a set screw. Just like the Project Mu caps I have.
I think the raw silver aluminum version of this 70mm throttle body will be finding its way to my car too
Direct bolt on that accepts all stock sensors. I removed my cruise control, so I don’t need the second cable.
Say hello to my Home Depot intercooler piping mock-up kit!!! A sack full of 45/60/90 degree bends and a bunch of 2 inch PVC piping. The outer diameter of the PVC piping is only 1/8 inch smaller than the 2.5 inch stainless pipes. So it should make for a pretty accurate representation.
I’ll be able to cut and piece the piping sections together like LEGO. I’ll then use some PVC pipe glue to hold them together and then take them to a shop to make me some stainless pipes with the same bends… or at least that is the plan 🙂
I definitely will be making up some new braided lines with AN fittings for the fuel system. The lines I have now are just way too long and aren’t going to route the way I want them to. I’ll need to make some up after I get all the intercooler piping figured out. So I ripped out the fuel distribution block and lines this morning. Man.. does that ever give me a bunch more room to work around in there. Those damn lines were always getting in the way.
Now that I have the fuel distribution block disconnected, I can start looking at creating my aluminum mounting bracket for it to sit up on the pitch mount
I also was able to rotate and trim the coolant lines going to the firewall this morning. That way they will be tucked down more for where I intend to run the intercooler piping.
After talking with my local race shop, I’ve also decided to stick with the OEM fans instead of going with the Mishimoto shroud and fans. Frank warned me against getting some after market ones because the OEM ones are so good and reliable. I’m guaranteed not to have any cooling issues no matter how or where I drive the car with the OEM ones.
So I decided to give the OEM fans a little flare where they attach to the rad (see below)
I’ll end up taking the fans back off again and give them a good scrubbing before I fully re-assemble. I just wanted to see if the fasteners that I had would work.
I made some more progress this morning. The girls went out shopping so I was able to dig in. I was able to do the following:
– Depressurize the fuel system
– Get rid of the stock fuel filter and bracket
– Re-route the drivers side fuel rail hose to go under the manifold
– Disconnect the power steering reservoir
– Disconnect the power steering pump and tie back the lines so they are out of the way
– Got loopy off of fuel fumes 🙂
I was able to find some aluminum that I will be using to make a bracket for my fuel distribution block on top of the pitch mount. It looks like it will do the trick quite nicely.
I’ve also been playing around more with the Power Steering reservoir bracket to see how I will be able to mount it where I want. I think I’ll have to tap some of the holes that are on the block and re-use some of the existing threaded areas.
I’m not that familiar with how those Power Steering lines connect into the rack but I’ll have to get the car up on jack stands before I tackle that job. First step is getting the reservoir mounted so that I know how many feet of braided line I’ll need.
I REALLY NEED BETTER LIGHTING FOR PICTURES
I’ll try and pick up another work light to hang above where I’m working. You can never have too much light
Full engine bay shot.. you can see my ghost friend that helps me.
Tucked the fuel line under the manifold.. I’ll end up doing the same on the passenger side:
Bye Bye big ugly fuel filter:
This is where the power steering reservoir will be going:
I’m thinking that after I get everything in place and all the intercooler piping the way that I want it, I’ll likely get some new fuel lines made up. The lines I have now are just way too long!!
I’m starting to make some more progress. I finally have the harness from the front of the car that goes behind the headlights and under the rad taken care of. The ABS plug has been deleted as well. It’s taking crazy amounts of time just standing there staring at the engine bay looking for routes and trying to be smart about how it all goes. My fingers are numb from peeling away old harness wrapping
I apologize in advance for the lighting of the pictures.. that is what I am working with in the garage.
It still looks like chaos, but you can start to see some of it taking shape
All the wiring is now gone from around the ABS unit. Man there is a crap load of wires that go into that thing. Now the unit is all set to just get lifted out of the car and have the lines re-routed.
The TMBLER 