caymantrackrat

After seeing the photos of your front end I made sure to check my Miata purchase when I picked it up! All was good, so I now own an engine/trans less Miata.

WolfGT

Yesterday at the shop. My brother is in town and finally had a second set of hands to help me to some serious work.

We got right to it and pulled the remaining items from the engine in the Miata (fuel lines, clutch cable, starter wire, heater hose...). Then hooked up the engine hoist. The big bracket that connects the front to the back (transmission to rear end) was the hardest to get loose. Those bolts were seriously torqued. But it all came free somewhat easily.









Then we rolled it outside and took a bunch of purple power and pressure washing to it. THANK GOD! I am so happy to get this thing somewhat clean. This is the point I realized that I am going to have to remove everything from the engine compartment at some point so I can paint it. A white engine compartment would look kind of odd on a green car.











I soaked up all the puddles in the floor boards and we left it in the sun to dry while we went to work on the donor motor. We picked a hot day (low 90's) for a this reason. Time to attack the Mustang.

This was a pretty easy job but it took a little more than I though it would. Nothing bad though. It cooperated and gave me the engine.







And here it is ready to go on the engine stand.





We got it mounted to the engine stand and put it in the main shop area. Then rolled the Miata back in the shop now that it is nice and dry.

That is 6 more hours for me and 6 for my brother.

My Time: 19.5 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0

WolfGT

Just ordered the Monster Miata conversion kit from Martin. Plan to have the K-member pulled and shipped this week. This weekend at the latest.

I have one small problem that I need to figure out. The V8 that you see above was originally out of a 1979 Ford Econoline Van. When it was in the van (at least this is what research has told me), the oil pan was a different shape and it had the dipstick going into the side of the oil pan. When it was put into he 69 Cougar that I used to have, the pan was changed and the timing chain cover was replaced to accept the dipstick up front. Now I have an issue. I am planning on using a March Performance serpentine setup that has a low profile timing chain cover and water pump (which will help with radiator clearance). But this kit requires a side mounted dipstick. Which my engine does not have provisions for. The later 5.0 mustang engines have the side mount hole, but mine doesn't. Any ideas? I need to get this figured out so I can get the proper pan to Martin for modification.

tbone heller

You will need to send him an oil pan for a "Fox-bodied" Ford. Since it is a rear sump design, a timing cover located dipstick won't work. Since the block does not have a hole in the side to mount the dipstick, you can't put it there. You could transfer the dipstick mount from the Econoline pan to the modified "Martin" pan, which should be a simple task, or see what Locar has to offer as far as universal dipsticks.

WolfGT

Been working with Martin on this and I ended up finding a Lokar dipstick that has a weld in bung that the dipstick threads into. I have ordered that and I'm going to send it to Martin to weld into the new rear sump pan along with the normal modifications he already does to it.

I also ordered the T5 transmission and rear sump pickup today.

WolfGT

I don't know how they do it, but my Transmission showed up this morning. I just ordered it yesterday afternoon. Summit Racing is awesome.

Here is a list of the part numbers for anyone interested.

OIL PUMP PICKUP: SLP-224-14118
Dipstick and bung kit: MIL-22080
American Powertrain Tremec T-5: AWR-TRFO-30001

My hardtop also showed up in the same FEDEX truck as the transmission. Happy day!!

The next workday is going to be Friday night and then Saturday. My plan is to complete the tear down and have it down to just the main unibody so I can get it ready for the body shop. Hopefully be ordering the Monster Miata body kit next week. I'm going to work on prepping the engine and tracking down parts while all of this is going on. Hopefully the body shop won't take long.

caymantrackrat

Boy, you are rockin and rollin! You may have this car on the road before winter. Me, I'm trying to decide which way I'm going Ford or Chevy.

WolfGT

That's the plan. I'm wanting it to be ready and tested before the 2014 SCCA season. But we'll see.

WolfGT

Today it was time to get the k-member and rear hubs pulled and cleaned so I can ship them to Martin.

First I got the front of the car up on jackstands so I could drop the front out. It went pretty smooth.









As you can see above, I just disconnected it from the frame and rolled it out on the floor jack. Then I separated everything from the k-member and this is the remains.



I took the stripped unit outside to be degreased and pressure washed. I had to hurry because a storm was rolling in.



Here she is all cleaned (I hope it is clean enough) and strapped down for the trip to fedex tomorrow.



Then I jacked the back end up and removed the rear spindles. Then popped the hubs out. Wrapped them up so they are ready to be boxed up.



Here is what is left after I removed the hubs.



After I get these items shipped out, I will spend a couple nights this week getting the rest of the remaining items stripped off the unibody. Then all I need to do is fix the front end (hopefully locate a replacement piece this week) and get it to the body shop to have the body kit put on. But at this time I am waiting on the manual from Martin to begin any mods outlined.

Another 4.5 Hours of my time.

My Time: 24 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0

WolfGT

And off it goes to California.

WolfGT

No pictures from last night. Well, none for here at least. I began by taking a bunch of pictures of the engine bay the way it is so I can remember how everything was mounted and routed. Then I started to pull everything off. Got to the brake booster and realized I needed to get the dash out. So I started working on that. Would have been a lot easier if I just looked up how to do it to begin with. There are only 9 bolts holding the dash in place. I found 8 pretty easy and had to look up the instructions to find the one in the center at the windshield. So, got the dash out and then paused for the night for two reasons. 1. It was time to go meet my girlfriend. 2. Honestly I was a little overwhelmed when I got the dash out and saw everything under there. I am going to continue to take everything off the car and get the bare shell to the the body shop. (I say that out loud to reinforce my decision to myself) I can't wait until the body is done, painted, and it is time to start putting this back together. Because of my inability to know when to stop, there is no way this is going to be done in three months. I'm shooting for the end of the year. I can't help that I am a perfectionist. I hope the final product shows how much I am putting into it.

Ordered a couple more parts the other day. Turn Signal Intakes, tow hooks and a black power coated billet fuel lid/door from Moss Motors. I know I don't need these things yet, but just adding to the pile.

I really want to have the car stripped of all items and the body kit on the way by next weekend. Hopefully have the car to the body shop by the following weekend, depending on how long it takes for the body kit to arrive.

I haven't gotten anything from Monster Miata yet. I haven't even been able to get Martin to respond to my email request for an update. I'm sure he's just busy, but that isn't helping my schedule any.

Add another 3 hours of my time.

My Time: 27 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0 (this number does not include the mods made by Monster Miata)

WolfGT

Yet another day in the shop yesterday. I feel really good after getting this piece done. I removed all wiring from the car. The only piece left is under the car running along the drivetrain support (the power lead from the battery). That will come off when I get under there to drop the rear. But for now, the only items left on the car are:

- Fuel Lines
- Brake line running to the back
- Rear subframe
- Back 2/3's of the exhaust
- Fuel tank
- Some trim and rubber around the windshield
- Soft top
That's it.

I should be able to get the rest of this off this week and be ready to begin the modifications next weekend or the following week. Hopefully I'll have the manual from Martin by then. I got him on the phone yesterday. He says there is a box on the way.

Here are some pics of the, um, car, as it sits.











Here is a pic of the damage to the rear corner. I'm trying to get ahold of a replacement panel for this rear quarter that I can just hand the body shop. But having a hard time locating one that is close enough to pick up or that will ship. If anyone knows of one, let me know.



Also, after finding some more damage to the drivers side of the front framerail and fender as I dug deeper, I decided to go ahead and get the entire front clip (Front Core Support) for the car to take care of the damage. Not sure how much of this clip I'm going to use, but this one is on it's way.



Add another 5 hours of my time to the clock.

My Time: 32 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0 (this number does not include the mods made by Monster Miata)

ToySnakePMC

You are moving along at lightening speed! Looks good with your tear-down. I look forward to watching and seeing how you decide to proceed with the front clip repair. Getting that whole red one will give you a lot of options! Keep it up like this and you'll be ahead of me in about 3 weeks.

WolfGT

I'm trying to keep moving. Loaded a bunch of junk that I removed from the car into my truck to take to the dump. Free up some space. I'm probably going to have the body shop do the front clip. I don't know if I trust my welding ability enough to do it myself. Unless I just do the part in front of the shock towers, which is still a possibility. I'll think it over when the part arrives.

WolfGT

A couple of the items from MossMiata.com came in today.

The TSI's. I'm really impressed with how substantial these are. I wasn't expecting them to be so thick and strong.



And the tow hooks. Nice silver powdercoat.



Still waiting on the fuel door, but that was being sent from another warehouse. Should be back in the shop tomorrow night.

WolfGT

The front end arrived today. It was shipped via Greyhound Express. I have never had anything shipped like that and I was skeptical. But I am impressed. It arrived in just a couple days and it was nicely padded and wrapped. I'll post up a pic once it stops raining so hard. You have to pick it up at the closest Greyhound terminal but that is no big deal for me because it is right downtown (about a mile). It was only like $60 to ship that big heavy part, not bad.

WolfGT

WolfGT

Well, the fuel door arrived today. Disappointing. The powder coat is very uneven and it is scratched. By looking at the scratch, it just looks like they took the chrome version and threw powder coating over it. Terrible. That finish will never last. The first time a gas pump nozzle hits it, chip. So, back it goes. Anyone have any suggestions for a better vendor for a gas door, I'm looking (black, not chrome).

WolfGT

Going to be in the shop tonight and tomorrow night but I will be spending most of my time cleaning the shop. I barely have enough room to move around. Going to work my way through the piles and take pictures so I can get this stuff sold and get it out of the way. After pictures are taken, move the pieces over to the storage area. Once I get the shop clean, I will begin splicing that front end on while I wait for my monster kit to arrive. I got the manual yesterday. I'm really hoping to have the shell and body kit to the body shop in the next 2-3 weeks. While it is out, I will be cleaning, painting and prepping the engine.

WolfGT

Got the shop mostly cleaned last night and laid out the front clip to be spliced on. Trying to figure the best spot to do the splice. I have a few ideas.

Just talked to Martin and my k-member should be here on Friday. The rest of the kit is leaving Cali today. Except my oil pan. He is doing a little custom work on it. Adding a dipstick bung to the side of the pan. It should be on it's way next week. That should give me enough time to work on the frame and the doors a bit before it all gets here.

Another development. As you can see in the pictures I posted of the front clip I ordered, it had tow hooks on it. I thought that was cool and I may use them. Well, I finally unwrapped the delivery last night to stage it to be installed and ..... no tow hooks So I emailed the guy and he blamed one of his workers and is shipping them to me. Don't even know if I will use them, but that is a little crappy.

WolfGT

I have been held up waiting on parts. I have gotten the first box of items from Martin but still waiting on the majority of the kit.

WolfGT

Back from vacation and it looks like the final items are here from Martin (at least I hope so, haven't opened the boxes yet). Need to do an inventory, catch up on some sleep and I'll be back at it later this week.

WolfGT

Popped the boxes open and there are still a few things missing (backordered), but I have enough to get started.

He did an amazing job integrating the side mounted dip stick into the oil pan. I needed to move the dip stick to the pan because of the pulley setup I'm going to run. We worked together to come up with a solution and he made it happen.





The diff, axles and hubs also showed up while I was out. Here is the diff.

WolfGT

Took a break working on the car while waiting on parts and also spent some time cleaning the shop. Spent an hour or so last night trying to come up with a plan on where to cut the front end to splice in the replacement clip. I have decided to go an get a construction laser and use it to mark and make my cuts. With that, I will be able to more accurately make straight cuts on the uneven surfaces. I will do that on Sunday. After racking my brain with that for a while, I worked on fixing the huge dent in the passenger side rocker panel. It was so bad, I figured the best way to fix it would be to cut the damaged piece out, pound it back into shape and weld it back in. Here are a couple pics of the section cut out.





Add another 2.5 hours of my time to the clock.

My Time: 34.5 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0 (this number does not include the mods made by Monster Miata)

WolfGT

It was great to be back in the shop today. I have kind of gotten off track because of the difficulty getting my parts from Monster Miata. I finally got the last box earlier this week. So the first thing I needed to do today was to go through all the parts and do an inventory to make sure I truly had everything.

Everything is there and the inventory checklist is complete. With one odd exception. The filler neck for the radiator.

Anything look a little strange to you?


I'm pretty sure there should be a hole there. I sent Martin an email about it. Haven't heard back.

So it's time to get the front clip all taken care of. I have spent a lot of time trying to come up with a good plan to get this right. So here is the steps I took tonight.

First I bolted up the K Member. I am only planning on cutting behind one of the shock towers (the driver side). So with the K Member bolted up and the front end leveled before any marks or cuts are made should give me a good baseline. Then after I cut the pieces, I can use the K Member to hold that side in place and level while welding.

Here is the modified K Member bolted in place.


Here is the $15 laser I picked up from Home Depot. I set it up on the passenger side to shoot across the car. Got it all level and parallel.


I then located a couple points on the driver side inner fender that I could use as reference points on both front clips. Marked those points with a marker and a punch (on both front clips), then shot the laser down the panel so I could mark a straight line to cut on. Here is the laser marking the line.




I found at this point that etching the line down the panel just wasn't accurate enough and I didn't have a good sharpie. So I called it a day. I will return tomorrow to make this happen. I hope to have it all cut and tacked in place before I leave tomorrow.

Add another 5 hours of my time to the clock.

My Time: 39.5 hours
Friends & Family: 6 hours
Paid labor: $0 (this number does not include the mods made by Monster Miata)