1993 4.8l
 

I have a Red 1993 with a body in good condition with 150km, that is my dd.

I'm looking to convert it to a stock 4.8l with t56 over the next 18month, ideal would be for my 60th bd in 2018.

there is a T56 on it's way to my door, and should be here by July 4/5.

I bought a lr4 from a 2000 Silverado(supposedly 15km, but it looked like it was the original oil). The engine has just returned from the machine shop and is now 20 over. The refresh parts are all stock. I've put together most of the short block.

I have a Holley 302-2 oil pan.

I'm looking at all things clutches now, i am leaning towards the stage 1 monster clutch package with the light flywheel.

Once i get the engine together i will be shopping for stuff until the fall when the plan is to sell the 1.8l engine in the car and start to take it apart.

Cool man, welcome to the forum!

got the heads on and test fit the ls1 intake. I found out that the steam vent tube from the truck intake dont work with the ls1 intake. after much reading it looks like the simplest and cheapest is to purchase a kit. I was hoping the truck lines could be cut up and be reconnected with tubing, but the lines are a couple of odd sizes and i dont see any one suggesting how to do it. I suspect it could be done, but would probably cost more than the kit.

I have come to the same conclusion wrt to the truck fuel rails. They could be modified but the cost would probably be > cost of a simple rail. Can anyone explain what the difference is between a cheap rail and an expensive one?

which brings up another plumbing issue. I am planning on using the miata fuel pump which has the regulator at the rail. it looks like the ls1 is expecting only one fuel line. So i need to put a regulator in and i guess close to the tank would make most sense, and strip out the extra fuel line.

Use a 99ish corvette fuel filter, it has a built in regulator (that regulates to the LS 58PSI) and can be mounted near the fuel tank to easy installation.

Unless you are REALLY pinching pennies, do not leave that factory fuel pump in there.

Look at Post 10 on my build thread linked here--> https://www.v8miata.net/general-moto...10ae-ls1-2392/

You can see a list of all the fuel parts thats I used, which still only totaled to less than 300 bucks. I'm sure you could still cut out some of that cost as well if you are budget building. There are also pictures of my system further down.

thanks for the advise. i'll check it out. It'll be a while before i get that far.

I ordered a monster clutch today. pretty good deal at Maryland speed. also a few bits and pieces from summit.

I put on the harmonic balancer today. That was a bit of a bear. i ended up renting a 4foot long torque wrench to try to get to 240ftbls I never got i to click. i'm not sure it's possible to do it by yourself. I was lifting the engine and engine stand up on one side. then i thought i was going to break my breaker bar backing it out again. the book said the crank had to be within .175 of the lip of the balancer, mine is at .135 so i'm calling it good.

If you are using a factory intake and want a 4-corner steam vent, then you will have to buy a used one(no longer made) from the original LS1s, and sellers seem to be getting about $100 for them. The aftermarket kits that I know of are not going to fit under the intake manifold.

I was in the same bind. I ended up building mine out of the truck vent blocks and some brake line tubing. I taught myself how to bronze braze with acetylene in the process. My intake(LS2) required a little clearancing at the ribs on the underside, but it works well.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1468011827

very cool. looks really good. i'll give it a try.

bad news in the tranny dep. the guy i was buying from backed out. now i'm hunting for the elusive t56 transmission. I have a line on a car with a dodgy t56, it pops out of 2nd. Is it any harder to rebuild a transmission than an engine. It looks like basically the same skill set.
The transmission is in an rx7 with an equally dodgy lt engine. but the car body looks pretty good.

Any thoughts.

I bought a t56 for 400. Then purchased a mid plate input shaft and bell housing. I'm waiting to take it apart as I'm going to go through the whole thing. It just takes time and patience. And a press. Lol. It looks like the trickiest part is getting the shims right for the end play.

Lt t56 is different and will not work as is with an ls1.

The lt version has different clutch engagement scheme. The input shaft is different as are the bell housing and mid plate.

T56's of any kind are kind of rare, esp in Canada. So rebuilding and converting one looks like a good option. of course then i need to find the conversion pieces. There seem to be a couple of threads on conversion around.

The guy with the rx7 sold me just the t56, i'm taking it apart now to make if fit the ls. The po said it popped out of 2nd. I took it to the machine shop to have the shift lever bolts removed after i broke 4 torx bits on it. I also received my Monster Clutch.

I'm planning to start selling the engine in the car mid Aug.

I'm trying to decide between sheet insulation and lizardskin. How many square feet need to be covered? I would guess about 6x6 underneath and 8x8 inside?

removed engine
 

sold everything from the rad to the diff and removed it over the weekend. Had a ton of calls, could have sold twenty engines.

parts for the transmission showed up, so that's next weekend task.

I'm curious just how loud the fm exhaust is. the description from them was 'solid'. My wife would like this car to be quieter than my last. i think a good measure is can you continue a conversation while mildly accelerating.

now the real fun begins
 

Finally got the v8r and fm stuff. now i can start putting things together

Attachment 5613

Attachment 5614

I'd be nervous with those jack stands.

They look more like steel wheels to me. :sly:

As you progress with the build and start dropping large heavy things into the engine bay, please consider something different.

The trick to the shift rail bolts is too heat them with a torch first. This boils off the Loctite that is supposed to be used on them.

If he has got the wheels welded, then there's definitely nothing to worry about. Millions of cars across the country are sitting on wheels just like that at junkyards

doesn't it make a funny feeling when driving?

a bit bumpy

I used supadupasteve's cart idea for fitting the engine and his process for mounting the engine on the v8r subframe. Both worked very well. My engine ends up a bit further back than others. i had to get rid of the bump behind the right head. all the subframe bolts line up ok.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1480307693

Glad to see it helped someone! I feel that once the engine has a transmission on it, it will change the angle so it's not so close to the firewall.

Picked up my radiator, a customized Northern Radiator. Got my transmission reassembled today. Clutch installed on the engine. And welded the interior transmission tunnel braces in. Once i finished i realized i had put the braces on the wrong sides. No wonder they took so much adjusting. Now i have to figure out the clutch lines so i can put the transmission on the engine.

I got a bunch of stuff done over the holidays.
-seam sealer paint and insulation on the trans tunnel and engine bay
-seam sealer and insulation in the cabin
-routed a new the 2/0 battery cable (welder cable) through the cabin
-rechecked bolt torques on the engine
-final install of engine on subframe with engine mount heat shields
-started reinstalling brake lines
-started rethreading the wiring back into the engine bay
-sent off the ecu to be reprogrammed

It feels like i have turned a corner and started putting stuff back together.

I didnt have to clearance the right engine mount heat shield at all, just a little bit on the left.

I've managed to misplace my left front brake line. I may have to get one from the wreckers. Do they still let you wander around the wrecker's yards and pull off stuff in the States? They dont let you do it here. That means that the little things are unavailable.

Wheels and tires arrived. TR Motor sport c1 wheels and Toyo R1R proxies.
https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1484697416
I cut two holes in the firewall for wiring. one at the top of the block for most of the engine wiring. One down by the starter, to thread the battery cables, crank sensor, o2 sensor wire through.
https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1484697416

I installed the engine in it's forever home, then ran into a couple of problems.
https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1484697416

- i wish i had made sure i had access to the shifter bolts while the engine was out. it was annoying to cut some holes after.
https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1484697416
- I wish i installed the upper control arm on the subframe before it was installed. i am hoping i can persuade the bolt through the sway bar mount once i have the bushings.
https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...1&d=1484697549

Lookin good!!! I see where you got your username from now haha :)

As far as that upper control arm bolt goes, you can get it in no problem if you fish it in from the front of the car OVER your swaybar mount, aka through the chassis mounting bracket. Ive done it several times now lol. Youll have to put the washer on after it passes through the bracket but before it goes into the subframe.

http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b2...pszfgfvl8f.png

heater core
 

I changed the heater hoses to the passenger side like Wallyman
except i dont have ac so i used the ac holes. i need a port for my water temp sensor and inserted it into the heater inlet.

I also installed and hooked up the steering and found a could of problems. first the steering rack mount on the left side interfered with the subframe. V8R advised me to adjust the rack. then the joint interfered with the subframe. waiting for advise on this one.

I'm very jealous of the exhausts made by others. I've spent about three week working on mine. So far i'm happy with the piece between the headers and transmission mount. i have cats and o2 bungs and flanges just before the transmission mount. After the transmission i have an H pipe and then resonators.

Nice progress, I'm at about the same place in my build. Finding all kinds of little hickups along the way.

Nice progress! I love that more people are routing the heater hoses over the the pass side. It make for a much much cleaner finished product! Having those two heater hoses run over top of the engine really bothers me for some reason haha.

I would not move the steering rack, its looks like you shouldnt have any issues just by taking a grinder and clearancing the aluminum housing of the steering rack. Id def give that a shot first.

Lemme see dat exhaust!!

What are people using as a lower rad hose?

Might depend on the rad you're using, the inlet/outlet diameter or where you're placing it, but I found some options that seem to work for me. Posted to my build thread:

https://www.v8miata.net/general-moto...d-thread-2961/

mine is on the lower right, 1.5". the swaybar is in the way.

btw i admire your exhaust chops.

I had a similar rack mount issue with the joint hitting the subframe when you turned the shaft. You may not need to move the rack mounting locations but if you can rotate the rack housing down a bit, you may find just enough clearance as I did. You could try a washer under one of the rack mounting bolts and test that out. Not sure how you'd make it more permanent w/out cutting or modding the rack mount.

i got the cai installed and the hood cut as per toysnakepmc instructions https://www.v8miata.net/general-moto...e10/#post18828

installed the aerocatch latches. the right side worked out perfectly and took about two minutes to adjust. The left was a pain, but is finally lined up.

I also installed maf in the intake i used m3x10 bolts. i noticed there is a hole in the side of the rubber accordian section. What goes in there?

How do you put the pictures inline?

Use the yellow "insert image" icon in the toolbar, paste in a valid image link (with file extension, such as .jpg) and that should work. Works for youtube videos as well.

If the site hosting your image doesn't allow embedding their images in other sites, that could be your problem. I've been using imgur.com for my pics, works great.

On a plane right now, but I cannot recall if I have a nipple with vacuum hose or not located there. Will check pics on laptop later tonite for you...

The hole holds the valve cover exhaust return line (EGR). Many of us use a catch can in series to keep oil and any thing else but the air fumes from re-entry back into the engine.

ok, so my tb has the pcv inlet and outlet.So, i just plug that.

I'm digging into the final wiring, and i am realizing the fuel pump is not as simple as i thought. It looks like i can just put 12v to the vio wire in the circuit opening relay and tie the lt grn to ground.

I'm also looking for pictures of what others did to mount the ecu in the passenger firewall.

Not sure if your car would be similar to mine (1999) but I just posted some wiring info that might be helpful. https://www.v8miata.net/general-moto...ge7/#post23046

i was just reading. Great posts and good references.

Spent the weekend wiring, wiring,wiring and chasing fuel leaks. I got enough wiring done to start the fuel pump, and bumped the engine. It's a good thing i like to feel my music, that fuel pump is loud.

First Start - Yaaaa hooo.
 

Started her up tonight. Primed the oil with a little device the machine shop lent me. It was a bit rough for the first couple of minutes, i think it was clearing the assembly lube. Idles perfectly, but doesnt go into closed loop or rev above 1400. it starts to pulse between 1500 and 1000. I think the maf is not working, the numbers never change. Nothing changes when i removed it or unplugged it. Probably my wiring. There's also an oil leak at the back top. probably the oil sensor isnt tight enough.

Pretty stoked. maybe on the road by the end of the month.

:thumbsup:

I put tires on the car tonight and lowered it to the ground for the first time since august. And i found out the stock front suspension doesn't hold it off the ground. The back seems fine. I also discovered i blocked the oil drain plug with the exhaust. I think i can get away with a shorter bolt, but it looks like i'll have to at least loosen the exhaust to drain the oil.

Does any one else have the 5pin blade style maf 15865791 can you tell me the pinout. i have found several options on the net, but nothing official looking.

finally got the v8r dsd coilovers. of course there were no instructions. i installed the fronts with 3.5in between the lock rings which gave me a ride height of 13.5in. i have about 2in of clearance under the exhaust. anyway i took it for a careful ride up and down the street. the tuner is coming by tomorrow to get it runnning properly. it's hunting at idle and wont rev over 1500

tuner came and the car's running now. if you have the blade style maf there are several pinouts available, it's pretty tough to determine which to use. i got the maf though a wrecker with a pigtail, thinking this would identify the correct pinout. i still had to swap the iat wires to get it working. my engine/ecu originally had an automatic. the 1500rpm limit was a torque limiting abuse mode when the ecu couldnt find the automatic.

so i've rolled the fenders and put the big shoes on. the car is highly addictive and extremely fun.

there are still a few minor things to fix.
-the o2 sensors arent working
-the exhaust is hanging too low and i have about 2 inches of clearance. no problem on the street, but it's going to be an issue getting into a gas station.