Hbwiggins

This is my first post on here. I am starting a build I have been wanting to do for quite a while now. In the past, have had a few cool cars like FD LS3 RX7s, Mustangs, camaros, corvettes, etc. Learned a good bit along the way about how weight makes all the difference in the world on how a car performs. I want to build a good daily driver that also runs really good. We do a lot of drag racing around here so I wanted it to make good ETs at the drag strip. I'll post up pictures as I get them. Right now I have been rounding up parts for the last few months. Here is a list so far:

99 LS1 with forged rods and Pistons, ported heads
Comp turbo cam, good springs, pushrods, lifters, trunion kit
4l60 transmission with precision 9.5" lockup converter
Holley dominator EFI with the new 7" screen to use as gauges
V8R mounting kit
V8R Radiator
Cobra 8.8 rear diff with 3.55 gears
76mm turbonetics t4 turbo - not really sure if it's gonna be front or rear mount.
Olhins coil overs from flyin Miata
17x9 RPF1 wheels and 245 tires.

Right now, I'm waiting on axles and machine work on the engine. I can't wait to get the engine pulled out of the car so I can start mounting everything and figuring out where to put the turbo/exhaust/air conditioning. I have been told there is room for EITHER an automatic transmission OR exhaust. I may have to modify the floorpan a little to make it all fit.

Comments are very welcome. I want to make this thing drive very well, have about 750 RWHP on good gas and aggressive tune, around 5-550 on conservative tune, air conditioner, and get reasonable gas mileage.

I'll start the pictures when I start pulling the car apart!

titangts

shoot.. pictures of what you have now, lol.

charchri4

Hey welcome to the fun! Sounds like this is going to be an out of the park great build and I'm really looking forward to seeing it come together. 750 RWHP really? WOW! +1 to photos!

Gator Bait

ya...I'm in work this one too! 750 sounds like a nice goal. ...and maybe... just maybe... almost enough...

Hbwiggins

Just a few quick pics...

Hbwiggins

Hbwiggins

Hbwiggins

I wish I had more to show... Machine work will hopefully be done soon so I can start stripping apart a perfectly nice car!

rowen210

Damn... Xmas came early to your house. That thing will be a monster when it all comes together.

V8droptop

I know the feeling. I got lucky and the top end guy was great, and very quick. I had the block dropped off first and am still waiting for it. But, so it goes. When it is done, everything should be top notch, and worth it afterall. I tell my guys often, the idea is to do it once, do it correctly, and not have to see inside it again for awhile :-D

So, on the more boring topics, do you have any finer details on the engine assembly? I'd love to see what you do, you'll probably beat me to it. What sort of lift is on that cam? I've been convinced to go to Yellaterra rockers for my cam, they are beautiful pieces, help keep the valve guides alive a bit better for my application. Also curious about the damper you plan on running.

I'm going to put together a thread later with LS oem part numbers and tips for LSx motors. No doubt you've got a bunch of your own, I'd love to hear any experience you have with on oil control on track.

Cheers,
Nick

Hbwiggins

I have been busy working on other projects over the weekend. I HOPE to pick up my parts from the machine shop this week and start engine assembly... I have had trouble with local machine shops in the past but I think I have found a good one this time!

The cam I choose is one COMP Cams has setup for rear mount turbo systems. After talking to them on the phone a few times, we decided it should work good for daily use. The lobe separation should calm it down. The lift is a little big at .614/.610 but I have valve springs that should be able to handle it. On rocker arms, I decided to just do a trunion upgrade kit on the factory pieces. Most of the friction is at the body of the rocker and not at the tip. I have a LS7 corvette with the same system and it has been holding up fine.

I have to get in touch with v8 roadsters and find out when my radiator and rear diff mounting parts will be here. I really want to start putting this thing together over the Christmas holidays!

Hbwiggins

Some pics of rods and pistons before going out to machine shop...

Hbwiggins

This was my last Mazda with a V8. It had an LS3 with a small shot of nitrous. Ran really good at the track. 1/8 mile 6.30's on drag radials ON THE STOCK REAR END. My buddy has it now and we are currently doing an 8.8 conversion to it.

ItsAllRigged

Nice looking parts, where did you score the oil pan from?

tbone heller

Every engine that I have used Wiseco pistons in has blown up. LOL!!

Sunshine Guy

I've been calling my car with a mild Ford 5.0L HO a "Monster Miata." Now I think I'm going to have to change its label to something like "Gremlin Miata," or "Little Troll Miata."

750 HP turbo...now, THAT'S a Monster!

V8droptop

You can be the little green guy on the left!
http://tvandfilmreview.com/wp-conten...paper-1920.jpg


Looks really nice so far man. I'm still slowly picking away at the engine build, and other small parts of the project. Looks like you'll be moving quickly!

Hbwiggins

I picked up all the parts from the machine shop this weekend and started assembly. So far, I have the rings filed, pistons put on the rods, main studs installed, everything cleaned up, and the cam and crank installed. Tonight, HOPEFULLY, I will have time to degree the cam and finish up the bottom end. I really want to get it buttoned up so I can concentrate on getting it in the car and fitting all the other parts...

Hbwiggins

tbone - I hope I have better luck than you! I have had a set of weiscos in a 468 BBC. We tortured that thing and they never gave up. LOTS of nitrous!

V8droptop

I know exactly how you feel. I've got a mountain of parts, but still missing a lot of stuff. Slow progress. I'm doing more work on the rear subframe as far as welding and prep work, its slow and I keep changing things.

I picked a dud on my engine builder for my block. He seems to put out good work, but I think he's sat on this project for 4-5 months, which is unacceptable imo. The guy who did the head/intake was great, and finished in half the time. So, I may just ask for what I have and bring it home to another shop for final assembly. Honestly, its not hard to find good engine builders, but really horrible customer service seems to be common in the automotive aftermarket. My last head porter was a nightmare, took over a year, even though he was highly recommended. Just a pain.

Keep us updated with more photos, can't wait to see this go in the car.

P.S. did you ever do research on boosting through a plastic FAST intake? Can those take a decent amount of psi?

Cheers,
nick

rennurx

Since the holley is a full stand alone, are you planning to completely remove the stock gauges? And run just the lcd screens? What about the check engine light and things? I'm doing pretty much the same build. So i will be following yours closely!

523-LSX-NB

Thanks for posting. Look forward to following the build. Only thing in question are the 245's. 275's are doable w/ a little rear fender & strut tunnel work; even on 17's. We run on DOT slicks all the time, either 265 or 275 (16's) depending on the best deal on tires @ the time.

Does the engine use .105" walled push rods? Along w/ the stock rockers that you have chosen (light tips), the .105" walled push rods are a great mod to ensure valve train stability (no pole vaulting push rods).

Hbwiggins

On the gauges, I think the new Holley screen they just came out with should fit nicely where the cluster goes. These things are just starting to ship so I don't have my hands on it yet to verify that. That new screen is pretty cool. You can have completely different gauge setups for different situations, completely customizable by the user. Warmup can have one set of gauges, normal cruise another, race mode another. I am hoping that it works out like I want where the cluster is now and doesn't look cheesy. If not, I'll put it where the radio is now and do something else for the cluster.

On the engine, I just grabbed a set of Lunati .080 chromoly ones. I had a few sets of these in the past and they didn't give me any issues. I have not installed them yet so I'll look into the .105" ones.

On the tires, the 245's fit good on the 17X9 RPF1's. I figure I will grab another set of wheels and tires after the car is running. On my old FD RX7, I used the stock 16" wheels with a set of 265 Drag radials. That thing ended up doing a 1.30 60', 6.31 1/8 mile ET with a 418 LS3 with nitrous. Completely stock 60K mile touring suspension! If this car works anywhere close to as well as that car, I'll be satisfied. I'm going to do whatever it takes to get a decent drag radial on the car without making it look hacked up. I need to get some pics of the car up as it sits now. It is slightly lower than stock and I want to keep that look. I will see how much work this is going to take after the engine and transmission is in place...

Hbwiggins

V8Droptop, you mentioned waiting on a machine shop for your bottom end. I have had SO much trouble with machine shops in the past. I had a Ford 347 and had a shop ruin all my parts. Ended up having to trash most all of it. I was very nervous about having to put rods and pistons in the engine. I started with a fairly low mile engine with the intentions of leaving the bottom end alone simply because I didn't trust any machine shops to do the work correctly. After coming up with a bigger turbo than I originally planned and not wanting to cap the power at about 500 rwhp, I bit the bullet and bought bottom end parts. I consider myself lucky to have found the guy who did this work... He is about 80 years old, built many engines for old time Nascar guys (Farmer, Allison and Bonnet) and current big name circle track guys, has quality machines, and does ALL the work himself. He only takes in what he wants to and turns it around very quickly. This is the type people I like to deal with. Even on the LS stuff, he has kept up with all the current info. This guy loves what he does and probably won't ever quit. It looked really good when I got it back. I double checked clearances and they were right on. When I get some more time this week, I'll finish up the bottom end and get it looking like a complete motor again.

rennurx

From the videos and articles I've read the holley screens seem very nice. Like I mentioned I'm going in the same direction. Can't wait to see it!