Viriiguy

After watching Tom build his LS3 Miata, and blowing up the MSM engine I bought from him.. trying to chase down 300 hp, I decided it is time to stop with the 1.8's and go for a 5.7. So here we are!

This is going to be a slow build. I have a LOT of OT to work to pay for all of this. I am planning a year to get it finished. Anytime sooner is a bonus. However, my company is making me go Salary soon... So I have to put in all the hours I can at work while I can still get OT.

Here is the plan for the car.
Boss Frog front Subframe
Custom Transmission and Diff mount
Ford 8.8 Differential with 3.73 Gear set
DSS axles
Sport Brake upgrades
Slightly warmed over LS1 pulled from a 04 GTO with 80k Miles and making just under 400 hp to the rear wheels.
T56 from same car.
ECU from same car. tuned by BlueCat in Kentucky
Dual Exhaust with electric cut outs.


So to start this off, here is what Ryu used to look like.


However, I have been busy in my free time taking the car apart and selling off my driveline bits. So a few picture updates...

The motor is pulled, this is how it looked before the transformation began.


And then we yanked it out.


What a mess.

So I started shopping for a good deal on a LS1. I found one locally from a 2001 WS6 Trans Am with 102k miles. Runs and drives fine, but it was hit in the rear. Other than the dent, the car looked showroom fresh. Interior was mint, exterior was good.. But it comes with an automatic transmission. This is both good and bad. Bad, because I still have to find a T56. Good, because an automatic car is generally not ragged out like a stick would be.

My good buddy Josh modeling the new and old engine.



Now it's time to strip out the interior.




No wonder my heat smelled so bad....


It was about this point in disassembly where I sat down and asked myself just what the hell have I gotten myself into. But in the end it will be completely worth it!

pj_mcgarvey

Nice! You guys have some nice looking twisty roads around there. Jealous.

Viriiguy

The Dragon, is the most widely known twisty around here, with 318 SHARP curves in 11 miles. But it is far from the best one Us locals keep some of them a secret, so we don't have to deal with all the traffic like the Dragon sees.

portabull

i wanna watch this....

Viriiguy

This will be a slow build Still lots of money to spend, that I do not yet have. My next order will be a rebuild kit for the LS1. I should be able to get started on the wiring diet after the holidays. And I have a few more parts left to pull off and sell.

SupaDupaSteve

Nice! And yeah the dragon is loads of fun. I found a road up there. 32, that was loads of fun.

Viriiguy

Yea, we have a plethora of great roads in this area!

A minor update, I have not gotten much done the last couple of weeks. However, I did get the engine harness pulled out today.. that was fun... NOT!

ToySnakePMC

You are on your way with a good start so far! If your build is slooow like mine was, make sure you tag & bag or label small stuff as you disassemble to lessen the headaches when this 5.7L V8M all goes back together.

Thanks for posting your build thread here with us! This is going to be fun.

Viriiguy

One lesson I learned from Tom, is label EVERYTHING!!!!

I didn't label squat when I did my MSM swap... That was a mistake!

Viriiguy

Just a small update...
I sold my LS1 and 4L60-E. Yep. It's going bye bye tomorrow. Already paid for.

Why?

Because I found a better deal
I am picking up a 2004 GTO LS1 with a T56 this coming Saturday. And it has already been upgraded! Cam, Port and Polish and the head has been shaved 0.40, then tuned by BlueCats and making 397 hp at the wheels on stock GTO exhaust. And it only has 80k miles. And for just $900 more than I sold my original setup for! Major bonus!

crispy

Cool. Banging gears is the only way to go in the twisties!

Viriiguy

Yea I planned to buy a T56 all along. But this deal saved me about $3k!!

BGordon

Good start on your build.
What year is the car?

One question for you that I haven't seen addressed in any of the disassembly threads so far.
Does anything special have to be done when removing the steering column to make sure the air bag does not deploy?

Viriiguy

No, the air bag can't really deploy without power. So once that is cut, you are good to go.
My little Ryu is a 99.

And as a small update, This is Ryu's new motor!!! I pick it up Saturday!

Viriiguy

Well crap.... That is a serious wrinkle in my plans.

Boss Frog has gone out of business.
Boss Frog - Automotive Rollbars and Aftermarket Products for Miatas and MGBs

wcw5023

I think I read somewhere that they are going to be liquidating current inventory. Dont waste any time, call em up! Maybe youll even be able to get the stuff at a discounted price !!

Viriiguy

Yea, I have tried to call, no answer.. emailed a couple times.. no answer either.

pj_mcgarvey

Can't say I heard good things about the quality of the Boss Frog pieces, at least on this and other forums.

Side question - what is the significance of your handle "Viriiguy". Do you work for the CDC or something?

Viriiguy

I have had experience with some BF swaps in the past. It is not all that bad. And, I just arranged to purchase a BF Front subframe and a ford 8.8 with 1 and a half DSS axles. and DSS has replied to me, to let me know they WILL rebuild the broken one for me.

So my "budget swap" is still on budget! My best friend, who happens to be a fabricator, is going to fab up my diff and transmission mounts for me. I am shooting for a $10k total in the end. But I have budgeted for $16k just in case.

As for my handle.. It has to do with Computer Viruses. I used to be a Computer Forensics Expert, that specialized in back tracking trojans and virii. Now I am an Infrastructure Engineer and Virtualization specialist.

pj_mcgarvey

very cool, that was my second guess. I'm an Info Sec guy, used to do Incident response and Forensics - though not quite an expert in the field.

Viriiguy

I'm not any more. That was what feels like, a lifetime ago. But while living in Canada, i did help the RCMP track down several pedophiles, using the same skill set.

Viriiguy

Tangible progress is slow. Most of it is ordering parts and waiting on them to get here. Or waiting on the person to be "ready" to ship them....

However, I did get the transmission off my engine yesterday! In doing so, I learned it had a Monster Stage 3 clutch. Now, I am not really a fan of 6 puck clutch discs, so that baby has to go. I contacted Monster about buying their Stage 2 clutch disc, but the guy wasn't having it. They only sell discs to the original purchaser... Fine by me... I bought a Centerforce Dual Friction Disc from summit. My Pressure plate and Flywheel will be dropped off to World Clutch this week, to be checked over. They look to be in pretty much new condition, but I would rather have them checked by a professional.

He has resurfaced a few of these for me over the years.

I also found that my rear main seal is leaking just a little, so I ordered a new seal and gasket for that. I should have all my parts tomorrow. I am still on the fence as to if I go thru the headaches of making hoses fit on my pretty much brand new Miata racing radiator, or if I spend the coin on a custom one for the swap. I'll get to that eventually. And I am still hunting for an oil pan solution, as I won't be able to use the GTO pan on the Boss Frog subframe.

pj_mcgarvey

I wouldn't say a custom hose solution is all that dire - check out my build thread, I have some details on how I did mine. Cheap and easy.

Viriiguy

Will do!

Viriiguy

Using Nathan's build guide, I ordered all my fuel stuff last night. So this weekend, I hope to get the fuel system mostly completed.