Project: Trizz'l Vee Dos.. by n0ftInc

42 minute(s) of a 92 minute read

Project: Trizz'l Vee Dos..

Compliments of n0ftInc

04.15.06

Let's recap. I purchased the car bone stock, and was delivered from FL May 1st, 2004. It's my first car, and my babygirl.

Fast-forward to last winter, when I added my Cams, MK4 HG, GIAC, H/D Valvesprings, and everything wearable in between. Since then, I had been loosing a quart every 400 miles or so.

This winter, I was determined to find out the cause of my sudden consumption. Rip the head off, and find bent valves, screwed guides, and a busted valvlespring. The block was the main concern this winter, and it wasn't even the main problem. I had planned for a 3.0 VR and even though it may not need it, a 3.0 is what we will have..plus some other goodies.

Engine Parts I have:

JE Forged 83mm 9:1 Pistons

APT Tuning Ported 2.9 Intake Manifold Upper & Lower

Autotech 10lb Steel Flywheel

Samco Hoses

ABA Hose Clamps

Thermostat Housing Kit w/ Aluminum Water Pipe

New Oilpump

New Waterpump

Timing Chain Kit

Supertech +2mm Intake Valves

Supertech +1.8mm Exhaust Valves

Autotech H/D Valvesprings

Valveguides

ARP Headstuds

ARP Rod Bolts

ARP Main Bolts

New Injector Seals

Head Gasket Kit

Block Gasket Kit

New Rod, Main, & Thrust Bearings

Interior/Exterior Parts I have:

SS HVAC Rings

SS Gauge Rings

S3designs Gauges (Hopefully)

MOMO Horn Button

B3 Cupholder

DDI Polished Aluminum Doorsills

Rear Europanel

Brake Parts I have:

Front Hawk HPS Pads

MKIV Rear Calipers

SS MKIV - Corrado Brakelines

Brembo Crossdrilled Rear Rotors

ATE TYP 200 Fluid

04.16.06

Finshed recovering the suede headliner with the mega industrial strength carpet adhesive. This stuff was so tacky..hope it holds up to the sun this summer.

The brake components are on and fit great.

The engine is pulled and off to C-Tech, where it will all be inspected & machined.

05.08.06

Finally got all the LEDs in today.

06.07.06

Motor bits are in..

Now, I need to source a few misc. gaskets I missed, a new knock sensor, low temp. fan switch, and to play it safe, a blue coolant sensor. Add in a bottle of water wetter, and I'll be ready to go.

06.14.06

Got the motor in tonight..few more bits to go!

07.01.06

Ready to rock!

Till next time..  

12.06.06

Well..out with the motor and off to C-Tech it goes for a nice follow-up inspection as to why my bottom end has been eatting a qt. every few hundred miles..over 8 qts. on the trip to H20 alone..

I'll try to keep this updated as progress is made. We are going to be mixing it up a bit, restorating a lot, and of course, taking advantage of some lower compression..

12.11.06

Made some progress with the car tonight.. Joe spent some time on the harnesses in the bay.

I got started on the interior. After the dash was out, we got started on the rats nest that lied underneath. 

By the end of it, we got the engine harness out.

I also ordered some goodies that should be here this week. 

Pry won't be working on her again till this weekend.

12.17.06

Went back over to the garage last evening to check the progress and do a little bit of work. I pulled the carpet and doorcards while Joe finished working on the wiring. The harness is fully separated as to what we are going to need and soon it will be time for splicing. We also got all the ABS crap out.

I took the doorcards home to renovate, along with the heaterbox.

Today, I went to work on repairing the damaged flaps. Here is what I am dealing with.. 

12.18.06

Today I got most of the factory bracets and studs out and started removing the body sealer. 

Time to go shopping for body shops..

12.20.06

I washed the heaterbox out and put it back together today. I wanted to try and get ahold of a Non-AC box, but my search has came up dry.

12.21.06

I was thinking about what to do about the subframe and steering rack etc. It needed to come out for the work in the bay but then the car would be stuck on jackstands. then it would have to be put back on to move it to the paint shop then back off for paint etc. etc. Concerned about all the hassle and potential damage/overspray I decided to build a set of wheels for the front.

Not only is it more safe but now the car can be moved around the shop effortlessly. 

And the subframe and associated parts can be detailed or powerwashed or whatever.

01.04.07

Almost done stripping the engine bay. Just a little touch up from here and it should be totally clean.

I've heard allot about this stuff called aviation stripper and decided to try it out. It's pretty wicked stuff. 

01.08.07

Joe got going on the block, while I continued to rip things out of the interior.

This is about all we can do on the engine till I get some powdercoating done. I plan on taking the pieces to Pro Finish here in town..anyone ever deal with them?

Getting ready for some Euro goodness..hmm, what's missing?

02.07.07

Whoa, this thread was about to slip into the archives. Been waiting on parts mainly, but have made some progress.

Pretty much got as much of the engine bay done as I am comfortable doing. I'm leaving some of the trickier welds to the body shop.

Scored this sweet Schimmel Performance short runner..

And applied the obligatory polishing..

Blingdified the oil cooler and crack pipe and staged them on the motor. Most of everything else is out for powdercoating.

02.17.07

Made a trip out to Clinton, MI for these few bad boys today..

I sold my Patecs to Dave, and had intentions to get some Konis, but when these V2s popped up, and I had to jump on them. A little cleaning and they should bling like new..can you say stainless..?

Also picked up a Peloquin. Soon I can get going on the transmission and get that out of the way.

As for management, I'm going to be running MS..not 100% complete yet, but soon it should be ready.

Until then, the harness can be worked on and sensors mounted.

Big props to Jon for the hookups..thanks again man!

02.23.07

256 cams came in today:

And, I have started to piece the rest of the standalone goodies together.

I have to pick up a trigger wheel and sensor yet, and then that should be set.

Powdercoating also was picked up today, too.

02.24.07

Got going on the engine today..but didn't get too far because of missing parts/hardware. This is about all that got done.

Lightweight lifters all goobered up and ready for the cams..

..but what's all that in back?

Shizzam!

There are a few articles that are missing from the photo..some forgot at the shop..some still inside, but in the end, they turned out great I think.

Added a little ballerstatus stainless hardware..

..but another order has to be made for the forgotten bits (thermostadt housing/misc accessories/transmission/motor mounts/etc..)

Other then that, we're left with this pretty much..

..and testing the injector spacing.

Should be all together early this week. 

03.06.07

Made some progress tonight..no camera though, so no pictures. I'll update it when I can score some shots..

Other then that, I received this puppy in the mail today..South Bend OFE Kit. 

..super fast shipping and looks to be top notch. I'm anxious to see how it grabs.

03.09.07

We test-fitted a few of the Non-ABS items in the bay and they fit like a glove..

..all new lines will have to be ran since we closed up the fender holes.

The alternator got a full rebuild and came back in it's saucy black casing..

The head is tapped and all bracketry is installed..I'm still going to be getting ahold of a Dual Idler from C2, but it's for the most part complete. A little polishing here and there on them will be worked in soon..

The coilpack itself is rather not too sharp looking, so it's to be hidden under the SRI. It still needs a little bit of work, but the general idea is there..

The wires are going to have to route down under the SRI, so after going through a few different options I decided on going on something like this..

..it's a rough display, but they will sit flush against the vertical of the valve cover and loop around, two through each opening of the SRI. If anyone has any other ideas of routing, throw them out, I'd love to hear them. They will need to have the Ford plug-ends put on them, so they were measured and will be sent back to Magnecore to be cut and have the new ends placed on. 

03.18.07

A little progress was made over the weekend..

This little adapter came in the mail which adapts the GM Sensor to the thermostadt housing..fits nice and snug.

Then, it was time to mount the transmission up and slap her together for measurements.

..don't mind the dirty transmission and sandblasted starter. They will be recieving attention soon.

..look at all the room back there..hmm. That's how it's going to be kept too. I've decided to kill the heater core hoses that run back there. They just take too much away from the shave,

The front end back together..

Tight clearances make running the stock fans no option whatsoever. No fear,slimer fans are on the way..

..and lastly, the last time you're going to see the Red Sammies in the bay. There's not really a point to butcher such a nice set if you're only running a couple hoses. I'm going to miss them.

..got some more parts on the way. 

03.31.07

Ordered up some tid-bits that came in yesterday. Some of which included most of the fueling supplies, another cooling fan, wiring kit, and some cooling bling. Checking some length..

The Bosch CIS Inline and new filter ready to go. Joe worked on fabing up a neat little holder for these, that utilizes the stock mounting point. It's all ready to go, just needs to get welded..

Raised that azz up and swapped over the coils..

Jon had them sky-high!

..soon all this stuff will have to get tackled.

..oh and thanks for the idea Matt, it fits great.

04.06.07

Not too much getting done this weekend, but a little progress was made throughout the week..

No more bungee tie down in the trunk..

..I wish Brown would show up already.

04.19.07

So, the ladies already know, size really does matter..

..seriously.

Ended up getting a V2 and passing on the V9..glad to have something that actually fits the brackets. Needs a quick polishing, but should be ready to go.

Started placement of the heat exchanger which will be feed by a 6GPM Pit Bull..

The idea..

..and just to be sure it's possible size-wise, a little introduction into the world of boost tube fabracation.

More to come this weekend..

04.22.07

With all the major components sourced we had much fabrication to do. Joe started on some of it yesterday.

Made this power steering reservoir bracket to bring it out of the way

Tucks up as far as possible

Once we had the location of the IC figured out I ran some string to mark the spot

Did my best to measure everything so that it was centered/angled correctly. Once that was done I made the little square frame. This will be the platform the IC sits on. Later it will have tabs that the cooler will bolted onto. 

With it in position I tacked up some rod to hold it firmly while the actual supports were made. Then went to work on the actual mounting. Here's one of the mounting points. A beefed up transmission bracket.

Things all tacked together. Note the temporary rod has yet to be cut out.

All done

A strength test. Holds up well which is good cause that IC is pretty dang heavy.

Safe and secure!

05.07.07

Getta ottah hur..!

Joe's box..

Onward to this afternoon, we brought her out into the light..

..and off she goes!

Weeeee..!

Should be a good week. 

05.11.07

Over at the shop, they aren't getting a whole lot done quickly, but I stopped in yesterday and they were done filling what needed to be filled and cutting when needed to be cut..here's a little taste.

Back at the garage, we got some pizzipes almost ready for welding..

05.15.07

Next time you see her, she'll be all painted up and coming home..

05.23.07

Finally out of the body shop today and got a couple pictures..black is a bich, but in the end I think it came out rather well.. 

..and back to the garage we go!

05.26.07

Joe did a little experimenting today.

A while back he bought a nice HVLP paint gun from Craig and had been itching to use it on something. I figured my transmission would be a good victim.

Now for a place to do it. I found out a canopy isnt just useful for shows and camping. It also can become an instant spray booth.

Here's the trans. Freshly built with a Quaife and highway 5th. Power washed, sand blasted, scuffed up and finally cleaned and ready for paint.

After some high quality primer to grip the metal we layed down the base and two coats of clear.

It's got some runs and such but thankfully the casting hides them well. I'm just glad it looks pretty good and will hopefully be more glossy and durable than the usual rattle can.

05.29.07

Monday was a nice day to work on the car.

I have been itching to install these puppes. They're a little dirty, but you get the idea..

Then it was off to glassin'..all taped off and the first layer down..

A few layers later, we have a nice mold going..

In between layers, I worked on getting the last bit of the boost tubes ready to bling.

These were also picked up, but didn't turn out as perfect as the first batch, so I sanded them up a little and sent them back to get another coat..

I also recieved the custom plug wires..time for a test fit.

Ooo, it's going to be cramped down here.

Final assembly soon to come. 

06.11.07

The weekend's progress:

Got the clutch, trans, and acessories bolted up and the assembly is back on the stand. Looking all shiney with all new hardware:

And after hours upon hours of prep work it's time for polishing. Some stuff needed the full bling treatment. Other items just some touching up.

Several hours later:

The engine is starting to take shape in it's fully detailed form. Exciting stuff.

07.31.07

Polished up the TB.

Before the engine could go back in, it was onto the brakelines..forming them from scratch didn't take too much time and the extra bling factor of SS accents it rather nicely I think.

The holes that the brakelines normally pass through in the fender were sealed, so the lines are tucked under the framerail and then connected to the braided lines into the stock holder in the well.

From there, the fuel situation was taken care of.

Can't have fuel without air.

A little paint, and BAM!

There has been lots of blasting and painting going on..and why go through all the effort if you're not trickin' it out.. Joe created a sick setup for the front heat exchanger. Check it out.

..it fits snuggly in the bumper cutout, but still has a bit of a stealth factor to it. Big props to Arnie at C-Tech for all the aluminum welding on this piece.

On the backside, we constructed this nifty PCV outlet, which runs off to a tube and then to a filter under the car..trying to make it a little cleaner then a re-route.

While I was in there, I figured, I might as well throw down a few pounds of sound deadening.. I ended up doing the roof, rear seats, part of the trunk, and floorboards. 

I have a bunch left, and will hit up the firewall when the time comes. I am also going to be putting another layer on the rear seat area to try and overcome the buzzing of the pumps.

..and speaking of pumps.

Mounted underneather the car, we tried to get rid of some of the drone.

Other then that, the whole intercooler sha-bang is mostly complete..

Starting at my (hopefully leak free) reservior, we travel through the rear of the trunk to the rear seats..

Then it get's hit with the Puppy and flows down the side..

Up and over the fender, and to the heat exchanger. Then it hits the intercooler, and back down the line to the trunk..

We figured the whole setup will hold about four gallons of water..this makes us very excited.

08.19.07

After the first attempt got destroyed because of some glue misplacement, I went ahead with round two of finishing the tank.

Friday I picked up some SS Hardware and flew as fast as my little dzl could go home to install. Upon getting through 3 or 4 of them in, I just wasn't feeling it, so it was off to ACE for some overpriced Chrome.

A little bit more glass and some time and boom..all capped up.

Either or, it's all set..

..and how it will fit with the rear tray..

A few other things has been happening at Joe's with dealing with wiring, more metal fab, and the exhaust, but I haven't gotten a chance to get pictures. 

09.09.07

So, yesterday I went and picked these up from Full Blast..

They turned out really well. My only real concern was the time frame he originally gave me, but it wasn't a big deal. I seriously can't tell the difference between the four.

Here are the new set of 195/40/16s T1Rs mounted..hopefully I can get a little bit lower than last year running the smaller series.

If anyone is interested in getting some wheel repair done, I recommend giving Todd a call and having him take a look..he was a nice guy and his pricing was super fair..616.893.1917.

09.11.07

Wiring in the front is all set and ready to go..

The rear is almost there..

10.20.07

So close it hurts!

11.04.07

Just in time to put it away for the winter..not before a final GTG.

12.18.07

I invested in a Throttle Cable off a MK4 2.0. It's connection is a little different at the pedal cluster, but it's fricken long as all get out..it no longer has to sit on top of the valve cover and can be tucked nicely alongside the engine.

Other then that, I wanted to get something that matched the stock guages a little better and 42DD had this on sale, so I went for it. I started making a new pod for it, but it's cold out so it hasn't gotten very far.

Other then that, I went and got these from our firends over at GruvenParts to dress up the bay a little more/upgrade my poor waterpump pulley before it explodes..

I have a few other things I am waiting on backorder for..but that's all for now.

..or is it.

01.13.08

Stopped in to Joe's to check up and see how things were going..

The seats are fully torn down and reshaping has begun. The headrests and tops of the seats are getting rounded out while the bolsters and frame are getting tweaked a bit to conform tighter to my fat arse.. The material is getting backed with 1/2" foam to hug even more. There's still a bit more to do foam/frame wise, but this is how they sit.

Patterns were also mapped out, but I'm going to go back Monday to see some of the changes I wanted made. Other then that, all the material is in and we're awaiting new heaters for the seats.

02.10.08

Picked these up last week..

Door cards are now under the knife.

02.29.08

Got around to the shop the other day and checked on the panels.

We shaved the holes that weren't going to be used anymore and they were backed with metal to hold.

The pattern was then mapped out and tested..

Rears should be done Monday..then it's onto the fronts and a couple other things.

04.16.08

The fronts were a little bit more tricky..

Start with some inserts..

Fill some holes..

Add some foam..

Thread some needle..

A finished pod..

05.08.08

Took the car out for a little shoot this evening..enjoi.

05.22.08

..won't be needing this anymore.

06.05.08

Picked up this beauty from the body shop today..

08.09.08

Had a mishap..here's some pictures.

..not really sure what happened, but Vortech helped me out.

08.15.08

Got busy on this today after work..this thing is huge.

Old vs. New..

Re-polished and ready to bolt in..

09.17.08

..got to pick up the rest of the interior stuff from Buckskins.

Nothing crazy, but just wanted to get everything matching and uniform..I did have the visors section filled in flush since I won't be running them anymore. Turned out great.

Also had the center slide done since it wasn't before..and then the kneebars.

Just waiting to get a small tidbit back and then I can install.

09.19.08

..made a last minute decision to remove everything I didn't need.

..as in scratches, dings, and dents.

..time's running out.

09.22.08

I've been trying to get these small projects done on the car..still have a bit to finish up tomorrow after work.

Got the new hood ready to go this weekend, but unfortunatly it won't be painted in time for the show, so I will just be rocking carbon I guess; better then the one I got.

Picked up the new hatch from the bodyshop today and installed..

..mocked up the new popper in the old hatch first.

..and got the button installed tonight.

Still got lots to do tomorrow. 

01.07.09

It turned out pretty well I think:

..it's popped in that picture. 

06.06.09

Buttoned up the oil cooler install when I got this jazzy piece back from a jazzy man! 

Core Installed; I've got a total of 8qts flowing.

Washed off the inch of dust:

Boost Gauge installed:

Went for a little country drive to check for leaks and temps were solid. Oil wasn't above 210 and coolant 190.

08.21.09

So I met up with Jason at Mobile 1 since I am in Chicago this weekend. Best run was 353hp, but didn't get a print of that one saved on my laptop (maybe he still has it). Hope this slightly lower one suffices: