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18 minute(s) of a 390 minute read
2-21-2016
Well gents, it's been awhile and I have definitely had some developments in how the car has been running and driving.
Vibration
I have had a vibration issue since the swap was first driven. It took me some time to really address it as I spent some time reworking the exhaust, and doing some initial tuning to get the car driveable. But once I started actually looking at the vibration, it was a bit worse then I originally thought. Under 40mph it was pretty much nonexistent but once speed increased it slowly got worse. Any pull beyond 80mph would vibrate the car badly. The vibration had a very high frequency, which pretty much dismissed tire vibration or bent axle. Nonetheless, looked them over with no avail. So I knew it had to be in the drivetrain portion that spins faster. At first, I dismissed it as a likely a bad pinion bearing since the differential was howling pretty loud. As previously stated, in my build thread, it was a low mileage unit from a good seller. After a rebuild, the bearings were found to be fine, BUT the spider gears were chipped, so it wasn't a complete waste of time. Of course, when I bolt up the new differential, nothing changed and the vibration was still present.
- Working Angles
So I started looking closer at my u-joint working angles. They were definitely out of whack. The rules dictate that u-joint angles for the front and rear of my driveshaft must be equal and opposite, less than 3 degrees but not 0 degrees. The closer to 0 the better. Samberg instructions dictate a 5.5" distance from center of the transmission output shaft, to the tranny tunnel surface. After things were mounted, wedged and bolted in, I was sitting at about 6.25". After a little inspection, this was a problem. By changing the pitch of the transmission, it ultimately was changing the front working angle. Furthermore, the pitch of the pinion on the diff was not right either. So it was an easy fix. Added some shims (washers) to each side and got them right where they needed to be. My front and rear working angles now sit perfectly at .5 degrees. Unfortunately, this didn't change a thing....
- Axle ABS Ring
Totally stumped I took an air gun to my pinion bolt while the rear was in the air. I just wanted to see it all move so if anything presented itself. Sure enough, when spinning the diff and the subsequent axles, I could see the inner cobra ABS ring wobbling like crazy. After looking closer, it seemed the ring was pressed on crooked. Why I didn't remove these damn things when I built the axles, I don't know. But, I pulled the axles, removed the ring on both side and took it for a drive!! I was pretty excited and thought for certain I had found the vibration source. Unfortunately, this didn't change a thing....
So I was stumped. The transmission is a new Magnum, driveshaft is new from Drive Shaft Shop, diff was freshly rebuilt, axles had no play in the CV, and the rear tires were checked for runout and flat spots just to be sure. So what the F.... Well... I figured I would have the driveshaft balance checked just in case...
- Drive Shaft
Boom! My brand new DSS driveshaft was out of balance, by a good bit. I was pretty pissed, but also relieved. I had a local shop look it over and they got it sorted. I've had it up to 110mph and it's smooth as silk. I truly couldn't be more happy. You can see from the picture above, the silver washers are the weight the local shop added. FINALLY the car is smooth and drives like it should. Chasing a vibration is one of the most frustrating things I have done. Very happy to have it sorted out.
Showtime!
After getting some things sorted, I got a chance to take it out and drive it more! I even got a chance to win a local car show for Best Import. Felt pretty good to get the attention in the sea of muscle cars.
This brings it all up to day fellas. Life is on hold for awhile as I knock out another deployment. Plans for the car when I return...
- Change output shaft seal on Magnum. Pretty sure my driveshaft got it leaking
- TUNE!! My street tuning has been going well as I learn the Holley and more about tuning. The car pulls hard safely, but it needs a professional's touch, and of course dyno pulls. There are some great options down south for Holley Tuners. I will likely take it to these guys..
Home
- Under tray and front cowling. My bumper has large openings and leaves a lot of space throughout. I plan to build an under shield and side vents to protect my coils, direct air to the radiator, and keep you from seeing through the bumper to the ground.
- Holley 3.5" LCD. It's going to be the perfect add for what I need. It's very similar to a Power Commander. Supplies basic tuning functions, a gauge display, stylus, and data logging straight to an SD card. Pretty trick.
- Standard stereo receiver - With the LCD I will have access to all the ecu data and gauges I need. With that, I will install a nice clean stereo. Nothing crazy, just something that is quality.
8/12/16
More Holley
Hood Pins
Magnum Leaks and the Fix
Well I am knocking out projects and getting the car closer to full form. It's very close to me scheduling a dyno day. The one thing I have been battling since day 1 istransmission fluid leaks. Once I started driving the car more I realized I had a few leaks. They have all been fixed and the car's shakedown continues. Dangerously close to seeing some chassis numbers and the full tune!! :yay: Details below...
1. Output shaft seal - Apparently Tremec ships some of their transmissions with an old design seal as some of their stock is still floating around out there. I assumed my seal bit the dust due to my out of balance drive shaft. However, after a little searching it's an apparent issue with many people. Once they got the new seal, it was good to go. Well, I was the perfect candidate because my seal was the old design and leaking all over my exhaust. Not terrible, but any leak is bad news. A call to GNX7 at Norcal Autogroup (where I purchased my Magnum) and he got Tremec to send me the new design. Once received, it was apparent the new design was a winner. It had a steel shell as opposed to the all plastic design of the old one.
2. Mechanical Speedo Plug - Mark warned me about this little guy. He said to add RTV to the plug when I installed it and I did. Still leaked. Removed and added a 2nd O-ring and RTV... Still leaked. I was at wits end. I tried one last time to clean the hole thoroughly, add black oil resistant RTV and see if that fixed the issue. In the process, I found an aluminum machined piece from Bowling Performance Transmissions and I believed it would do a better job than the plastic plug design. Once I started looking closer, I found my shifter was leaking as well. The shifter was leaking and dropping fluid down that left rear side of the trans since the Magnum sits slightly tilted when mounted up. What appeared to be a leaking plug was likely the fluid running down and surrounding the plug giving it the illusion it was the source of the leak. Once the shifter was fixed, I left the plastic plug in place, but I plan to re-inspect and see if thealuminum plug will be used next.
3. Shifter - Yep, it leaked. It was the source of the majority of my leaks. Once removed it was apparent there was a rip in the inner boot. From what I have learned this is critical for the Tremec Magnum. There is a gear that sits up towards the shifter housing that sprays fluid much more than a standard T56. As such, lots of companies have had issues with leaking shifters because of either the lack of a boot or a poorboot design. I looked at this as an opportunity to try a new shifter on the market so I ordered American Powertrain's White Lightning shifter. I am nothing short of impressed. First, the piece is machined perfectly and the quality is on point. Next, thespring tension is adjustable via Alan key! Finally, the shifting action is excellent. I found shifts to be more exact and smoother. I gave them a call and got it for $347 shipped which was considerably cheaper than their website. Just ask for the 4" extension as we need it for the FD applicaiton.
Detail and Some Driving
I got a chance to detail the car and do a little driving! My buddy will be by next weekend and we will do some tuning and videos!! He is bringing his GoPro.
Road Shakedown!
All pulls were done with approximately 1/2 to 3/4 throttle, max of 5500rpm and using my current engine dyno break-in tune. The Holley handled everything well without a hint of knock or funny business. My idle currently sits at 1k and rests there pretty well.
I switched my plugs from a TR6 gapped at .040 to a TR55 gapped at .050. That seemed to smooth out my cruising surge quite a bit.
It pulls VERY strong right now with more power than I will ever need for the street. I'm looking forward to opening it up on some drag radials.
Dyno
Well, the deed is done. I decided to take the FD to my original choice of Schexnayder Racing, and I'm glad I did.
www.Shexnayder Racing.com
Earl, the owner did a great job with the car. The reason ultimately was because their tuner Scott Evans is a Holley senior member over on their forum. They use the Holley on all of their track cars and their experience with it shows. After reading a few of Scott's posts awhile back, I was convinced my car would be in the right hands. Much of the deviation in choice and considering B&B stemmed from them being half the distance. 1.5 hour drive, instead of 3.5 hours. Nonetheless, I made the further trek to Earl's shop.
They had the car for 3 full days. Because of my work schedule I only had time to drop it off on a Tuesday, and come pick it back up that Saturday. I did miss out on a lot of the face to face discussions and seeing the car make pulls in person while taking video, but it is what it is. The results were still excellent.
So, the NUMBERS.... they aren't impressive. In fact, when Earl messaged me and told me what it made, I literally laughed out loud. Why? Because I know it's just a number and the infamous Mustang dyno is what they used. When I dropped my car off we sat down and went over everything I wanted them to do, which was basically tune the car in every area: WOT, cruise, idle w/AC, and cold starts. He warned me they use a Mustang load bearing dyno and their numbers read notoriously lower then pretty much everyone else's. How much lower, I didn't really know. But as he said, "it will be done right and how it runs is the most important".
So my 416ci LS3 didn't even break 400whp...LMAO
So the question is, what are the REAL numbers??? I don't know, and frankly I don't care. The car starts, and drives amazing. I enjoyed cold A/C the entire way home and still breaking them loose in 3rd on a whim. I fired it up from dead cold and holy **** it idled. In fact, it drove!! No surge at light throttle, no stalling. It drove like I always knew it would once it was sorted out. I think my cheeks were sore from smiling so much.
I did do a little research on the inertia vs load dyno's and some say the disparity is as high as 140whp difference. Either way, the car absolutely rips!! It has gobs of power everywhere and it definitely feels like a 500whp+ Rx7. Based on feel, I estimate the difference of 140whp to be pretty close to correct.
Dyno Confusion FINALLY Cleared Up
Scott did some very tricky stuff to get the idle solid with A/C. The combination of my lightweight flywheel, cam, A/C and light rotating assembly gave them a hell of a time making things consistent. BUT, they got it done. Using Holley's version 4 advanced section gave him the flexibility to make quite a few custom maps to get things right. When I picked the car up, we sat down for a good 30 min going through everything he did and what it needed. I was impressed, and I'm also glad I have been doing my own research/tuning to where I could follow the conversation intelligently. As he said, with a normal flywheel it would settle in at around an 850rpm idle. As it sits, it idles solid at 1k, and 1200rpm with A/C engaged. I don't foresee myself pulling the tranny any time soon to swap flywheels, but if the occasion arises, I will do just that. It's pretty much a non-issue but for the purpose of the car, I think a heavier flywheel would be more fitting.
So one more thing down..... time for phase III.... otherwise known as "Project Refinement"
I am extremely happy with the tune. They put in the time to make it right.
I too had the car running pretty good. My main issues were cold starts, and idle with AC. I thought cruise was pretty smooth but they made it even smoother. I had a hint of surge before but now it's completely gone. All smiles.
PROJECT REFINEMENT:
This phase is going to focus on truly making the car modernized, and dialed-in across the board. Refining the experience of driving the car around turns, in a straight line, and even around town. I have said many times that what makes a car feel old is the little things. The inconveniences, dings, rattling interior, little annoyances, and random things that just haven't been tended to.
I have been very focused on the swap and getting the car running reliably. My goal from the beginning was 3 fold: run 10's, win car shows, and do it all very reliably. But we all have those last order items that are in the back of our minds, but they are at the bottom of the priority list because of the vast undertaking of building a reliable running car. I could literally not do another thing to the car if I chose; drive, wash, wax, repeat. But we all know the hobby never ends. So the short list is as follows:
- Steering- Either electric, OEM Mazda pump, or Turn One. I want tight precisesteering with the right feedback and effort. It can easily be speed sensitive and ECU controlled. In fact, one of my goals is to incorporate the Holley V4 ECU.
- Sound deadening- I want more. I will likely pull the entire interior to add either lizard skin or fat mat. The doors and headliner as well. Road noise makes a car feel cheap. If it costs 50lbs then so be it.
- Sound system- This has been on the list for awhile. Nothing crazy, but a nice head unit, component speakers, and self powered sub. I am debating using a GPS double din.
- Security- A quality Viper or Howard system is going in. It will be top notch with a few nice tricks. I will incorporate GPS tracking and independant power. The Holley will also likely play a role here.
-Interior Love- This is going to be a fun one. It really is just bringing the interior up to the level with the exterior. Of course nothing crazy but it includes all the nice touches that make a car feel premium.
* New floor mats
* Momo Champion steering wheel
* Shift ****
* New boots
* Padded map pocket cover
* USB socket
* Sakebomb fire extinguisher mount
- Seats- OEM in alcantara or factory Recaros. I am still deciding.
- Gauges- All Holley. ECU driven. It will be epic.
- Traction Control- Davis Technologies unit will likely go in but I want to see how it grabs with proper tires first. With a good tire, it may not be needed.
- Roll bar- Likely the Samberg but I'm not certain yet. The bar is being added for my and my wifes safety, and not really to be able to run a number at the track. Time will tell but the Samberg piece is just so convenient looking to install.
- Tires- Proper tires are needed with the power I am making. I am debating on a drag radial vs an autocross tire. I am looking for balance and more research is needed.
- Etc...- I can see the list growing but this is a good start.
