99 10ae ls1
 

Well, after lurking and conversing a small amount of the past several months, I have finally secured a car that I am pleased with for my build, so I guess it is time to start a thread, I'll start from the beginning.


I got married a couple years ago to a wonderful young woman who completely supports this effort, which as Jim will say is key to a successful build. She at that time told me any cash I can make in my shop I can keep for my own enjoyment. As a hobby I part out or buy+fix and sell other cars/bikes to make a little extra cash. I never get rich off of any of it, but I do make enough to keep going back for more.

So last December I was trying to decide if an LS1 miata project was something I wanted to take on or not. Well, the good lord obviously had a plan for me because he dropped an ad in my lap that had a 2002 LS1/T56 combo with all the trimmings out of a 17k mile 35th anniversary SS camaro, for 3k. After that the miata was ON!!

I have had two other miatas before this, my extremely clean 1994 was laid to rest on 11/6/12 when a bus decided to not stop behind me.

Attachment 6283

Attachment 6284

My second miata was another very clean 99 10AE, which had some light suspension mods on it. I sold it last year about this time to help fund my return to school to pursue an MBA.

Attachment 6285


Well now here we are a year later, and I have been looking for a good clean chassis to complete my build on. I had two requirements only that could not be negotiated. Clean title, and rust free. I actually bought a nice 96 m-edition at first to complete my swap, but then changed my mind as I had wanted another NB. As luck turns out, I found this 10AE that a gentleman from nashville had used as a donor for his catfish, so it was perfect for me since I didn't need most of the stuff he had taken. Here she is...in all her glory.

Attachment 6286

She has 57k original miles, and is clean as a pin. He got a little intense taking everything apart to get the drivetrain out, which is why the headlights are gone, but it is all there. He kept the motor, trans, rear, suspension, steering column, and fuel tank.

Since I have been looking for a car I have been shopping for parts. On top of the engine, I picked up a handful of key parts from a guy in Cincinatti that was starting his build, and ended up not being able to complete it. I got the full V8R swap kit (Subframe, transmount, etc), New style FM oil pan, and FM cooling kit, all for just under 2k to my door, brand new. I also picked up an 03 cobra rear end with 19k miles because it has the aluminum housing, 3.55 gears and trac lock. I plan on switching out the spider gears to 28 spline and calling it good.

Wish me luck....

Good luck...sounds like a great start!

Oh jeez....it hurts....just bought some V8R longtubes....the wallet hurts.....

Officially Jealous. :appl:

Good lookin chassis. Diggin that AE paint color.

Nice to have another NB/LS builder...

...and you should be alone when you open that box of longtubes. :love:

Another day another dollar......started stripping the car down a little bit today. I was actually sick so not much to speak of. I did go ahead and order the roll cage though. I couldn't bring myself to spend ~600 on a hard dog or boss frog unit, so I ordered this one that you actually weld in yourself.

8 Point Roll Bar - 90-98 MIATA

Then as luck turns out I figured out the vendor has an ebay store and I got it on sale there...

Roll Bars and Cages 8 Point 90 98 Mazda Miata MX5 | eBay

Wow luck is right! Never have I seen such a remarkable pile of parts collected by anyone! That is a really good looking car and soooo perfect for your build! Congrats on the find!

Been busy with school+parting of my donor car so I haven't really had a lot of time to work on the 10AE. I have some pics that I'll post this weekend of progress though.....oh and my wallet hurts again today....roll cage and 15x9 Konig Dial ins were added to the list of parts waiting to be put on. I was going to wait on the wheels since I won't need them for a while, but goodwin had them on sale and free shipping, just couldn't turn them down......

So as I'm sure I don't have to tell any of you guys, life gets in the miatas way all the time, and I dont even have kids yet!!!

Anyways, on to the progress......I got the 10AE stripped most of the way stripped down to begin doing some real work on it. Luckily for me a lot of stuff was already gone from it so I didn't have to deal with that like the majority of you guys do. I feel sorry for those of you that start with a car that has been neglected, this car is almost too clean to cut up....almost.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878


I also bought a parts car a couple weeks ago to get some of the parts back my car needed. This little 99 had a locked motor due to a failed crank bearing, and I got it for 1000. At that price it just seemed smart to me to buy it and part out what I didn't need, keep what i did, and scrap the rest. If nothing else I have found out as I go that I am able to test out a few things on it before moving on to my good car. For example, the roll cage I bought will need to be welded up by me, so I will be welding it in this car before transferring it to my good car.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878
Now sadly with all the parting out of the other car, school work, work, etc, the only real progress I've made on my build car so far is cutting the corners from the engine bay, and I haven't even got them all cleaned up yet.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878


on an unrelated note, here is me and the wife on Monday, our second anniversary. As has been stated before, for these projects to be a success, make sure your wife is on board. She stands by me the whole way through....for the most part....

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1435803878

So following the lead from itsallrigged, and a little motivation from charchi, I have bought all the fuel system parts individually to put together. For someone like me that has NEVER dealt with fuel systems aside from changing a filter, this was a little nerve racking. That being said, I think I have it worked out. For those of you thinking about doing the same thing, my parts list is as follows:

(1)Walboro 255lph fuel pump-GSS342-Ebay-$65.99
(1)Fuel Pump install kit for GSS342 pump-EBAY-$6.99
(1)Wix fuel filter/regulator-33737-Ebay-$31.46
(20')3/8" Stainless Hard fuel line-Ebay-$51.90
(3)GM 3/8" quick connect to -6an fittings-61744123-Speedway motors-$14.99 each
(2)5/16 quick connect to -6an fittings-61744113-Speedway motors-$14.99 each
(1)Male quick connect to GM fitting-Ebay-$9.71
(1)-6an to 3/8 hose fitting-Jegs-799-610025-$9.99
(1)-6an to GM quick connect 90 degree elbow-799-610165-$14.99
(4') 3/8 Steel Braided fuel hose-Jegs-865-29404-$17.99
(1) 6an to 6an male union-Jegs-361-AT981506-5.99

UPDATE!! 7/13/15 A couple things that I did not include in this list, but am learning as I go....plus one mistake

Like I said, fuel line newb, for each connection that is made you will need a tube nut and tube sleeve to connect to each fitting. I went ahead and ordered six of each, part number 361-AT581906 and 361-AT581806 on Jegs, about an extra $30 for the whole set. Also, as it turns out the return line on the Corvette regulator is actually 5/16" so I will be returning one of my 3/8 fittings and exchanging it for the 5/16-6an

If you are keeping count that is $283.97, which is approximately 200 cheaper than Flyin miata, and 180 cheaper than V8 roadsters.

A note for my particular case, there are a lot of good people on this forum that are willing to help with our common interest. I absolutely love the look of itsallrigged fuel setup so I messaged him with a few questions about it. He was very helpful with my questions, and he also sold me a couple AN fittings that he had accidentally ordered in excess...for half what he gave for them......and then he was such a nice guy he tossed his nice flaring tool and bender in the box with it for my use until I am done.

Just had to plug for a bit

have you gotten your Rhoades cage yet? I'm curious about them. They are so cheap I'm hesitant to get one.

Yeah I got it last week, my honest opinion of it is I'm not crazy impressed, but I'd buy it again. First and foremost, you have to be confident in your welding skills, otherwise forget it. The reason I'm not overly impressed is that I was expecting the kit to be a little closer to ready to go in the car, but really most pieces will need some trimming before final install. That's not a huge deal, but to each his own. I will say that the hoop is very nicely bent and fits in just like it should, I'll be modifying mine some like charchi did because they send you a hoop that will go all the way to the floor. Problem is it takes up a couple inches of seat travel and I'm big enough I don't want to give that travel up.

Don't forget this: Russell 640940, Russell Specialty SAE Quick-Connect EFI Adapter Fittings | Russell

I couldn't tell if this was listed in your parts order.

yeah I've got that one on there, 4th from the bottom, $9.71. That's the piece for the engine side of the filter/regulator.

ah, I'm confident in my welding abilities but I'm not sure that I'd want to have to "fine fit" the cage. I Think I'll stick to a premade bar by Harddog or Blackbird fab. Thanks for the insight!

+1 to the roll bar. I you just like to putz in the garage fitting and making things work it's a good value but if that's not how you want to spend your time it's no bargain.

Things are looking really good Travis! When I think of the life you are giving back to that car and where it probably would have ended up, cutting it up is no doubt the best thing that will ever happen to it!

Don't worry about life getting in the way of the build. Many here will tell you that the build can completely consume you if you let it and you, the wife, and the car will all come out better if you pace yourself and enjoy life as you go. Besides it's over 9 months till The Mitty and you (we) can get a lot done the night before! ;)

So as noted above in my fuel system post, I have an extra 3/8-6an quick connect fitting. If anyone wants it, I will sell for half what it costs from speedway, just send me a PM.

On another unrelated note, I didn't mention before that the deal that I got on the subframe did come with an issue for me.....the subframe is meant for an NA, which is basically all the same except the location of the steering rack mounts. I was just going to change steering racks, but I got to thinking, if anyone is about to pull the trigger on a new subframe na kit, perhaps you would be willing to buy the NB kit and swap me? Just trying to make my life a little easier, even though it would kind of complicate someone elses.

Just thought I'd throw it out there.

It's been a busy week for the man in the brown truck. Got most all of the fuel system parts I need except the parts I forgot.....:doh: I on the other hand have been busy as well still stripping my parts car. My earlier post about feeling sorry for you guys that have to strip your cars before you work on them, now I feel your pain. I had a guy from Michigan buy the complete interior minus the seats from me so when I have time I have been pulling all of that out.

On a more positive note, I did receive my intake in the mail yesterday. I am actually surprised that I have never seen anyone try this. Some people decide to use the Z06 or C7 intakes, which is great, but I thought maybe try a cold air intake from one of those cars? I found a great deal on a lightly used Airaid intake, ins't she purty?

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1436881014

I mean, if the stock vette intake will fit, this one will to, and it led to marginal gain(as far as CAI's go) on the vettes, so why not.

So despite the intense heat this past weekend in Southern Illinois I actually made a little progress on my build car:biggthumpup:. According to my thermometer in the barn, it was 103+ each day, but I powered through.

My build car did not come with the fuel tank from the previous owner, so my weekend started with me pulling the tank out of the parts car, cleaning it up, and installing the new pump. The install was very straightforward, and the only thing that was not basically plug and play was the wiring. I just cut the pigtail off the old pump and wired the new one in place, with plenty of heat shrink over the connections. If you are building an NB car, don't forget to remove the stock regulator inside the tank. You will not need it with the Vette filter/regulator.

One other thing to note is that the screen that goes on the inlet end of the fuel pump had to be reused. The new one that came with the general install kit I bought did not work. The Miata factory pump mount is angled toward the back of the tank, so the screen needs to be at an angle that counters that to run along the bottom of the tank. No big deal, just a heads up. Here is a picture of the stock setup. I only took about 100 pictures this weekend, but somehow I forgot to take a picture of the new pump in place. It looks basically the same except it has the noise blanket wrapped around it.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858



From there I moved onto the filter/lines. Thanks to some inspiration and a really nice tube flaring tool from itsallrigged, I was able to create a fuel line setup similar to his, he only charged $150 for the copyright....:lol_hitting: About the only difference I could tell in our setups is he used one additional fitting(that I could see at least) where the line 90's toward the front of the car from the filter. It probably would have been cleaner that way, but I am cheap at those fittings are pricey, so I just bent a 90 there, it will work just fine. I plan to put rubber hose around my fuel line the entire length of the car for insulation and protection.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858


Another little tid-bit of advice, hard lines and flaring tools. Inherently, you need to screw up a few times on these hard lines before you can really run with them. There is a learning curve to pick up on them as far as what needs to happen to make them just right. A few things that I picked up:

1. I found it easier to get all the tubing bent the way you want it, then flare them last. The tubing nuts will slide around a 90 degree bend, but the sleeves won't even come close. If you have a flared connection close to a bend, you won't be able to get the sleeve around the bend, so put the fittings on last and flare.

2. I have to assume aluminum tubing would be less forgiving because it is inherently more brittle than Stainless Steel. With my stainless steel tubing, I was able to form it at least a small amount just by hand without the bender. Don't get me wrong, if you are too agressive it WILL kink, so be careful.

3. I wasted about 2 feet of tubing just practicing, I highly suggest this before you ruin a piece the length of the car!

4. Finally, the quality of your tools will have great affect on the quality of your work. I'm not saying these things can't be done, but nicer tools make a big difference. I bought a tube flaring tool at a yard sale for $3 bucks some time ago for this work. It could have done the job, but itsallrigged was nice enough to send me his flaring tool to borrow for my lines. His tool was made by rigid, and was very easy to use. Its key feature was it had a torque release pin that would only allow you to put the exact amount of torque needed to flare the end properly, which made the process very painless.

If you are keeping tabs on my posts, I plan once again to do like itsallrigged did, and run a stainless braided line in the engine compartment, so for now I just left about a foot of extra tubing sticking into the engine bay until I get it test fitted and ready. Don't forget to cover this open end up!! Hate to get anything into your engine.

I then moved onto cutting/cleaning/welding. I cleaned up the corners of my engine bay finally, and I cut/hammered in the area on the passenger side to allow fuel lines clearance. After than I broke out my $50 harbor freight sandblaster. Great thing about the cart my shell is on is that the whole thing is easy to move, so I wheeled it to the edge of my barn, and hung plastic around it to keep the mess down. If you are thinking about getting a blaster just for this, I'd advise you to reconsider. It works great stripping rust and paint, however the sand just bounces off the seam sealer as seen here:

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858

I did a fair amount of blasting, but ended up having to wire wheel it anyways. Seam Sealer makes a MESS! My engine bay looked like I slaughtered a lot spider webs. Here is another shot with a little bit of welding started. Make sure to get everything clean, and I mean CLEAN. The areas of good weld here are areas that I got all seam sealer out, the other areas where the welds look like crap are where I didn't.....

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858


And finally, I have been asked a couple times about what wheels I am going to run. I bought 15x9 konig dial ins because they were on sale at goodwin. I was nervous about the black at first, but I after setting them in place I am very excited to get them on.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1437400858

All in all it was a good weekend for the car, felt really good to finally get some progress made on it.

If you go over the seam sealer with a brush dipped in lacquer thinner after you apply it, it will make it pretty.

I thought the people who used such a nice low mile 10AE as a Catfish donor were morons. I'm glad to see that you swooped in to save such a nice car and make it even better than it was originally, kudos!

Looking good!

Yes, although it is sad that this car was sacrificed so something else could live on, when the smoke settles it will re-emerge better than it ever hoped to be.

Had a good weekend worth of progress this weekend so its time for an update, and a couple of questions.

Started out on Friday by finally nutting up and cutting the trans tunnel. This has been a point of hold up for me just because I was a little nervous about making the cut. I'm past the point of no return now though so we must press on. I started out with a mediocre amount of widening since I have read from multiple people that the FM guidelines are further than they need to be.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444056596

One thing I wanted to point out that I did different than the instructions and what others have said, is I did not cut the interior braces completely out. My interior braces where slightly different from some of yours I have seen before, and I just figured with the way they went all the way up on top of the tunnel, there was no reason to completely remove them. Perhaps it is the difference in NA and NB cars, but I just figured I'd leave them in place until I had to move them. It did take a little more persuasion with the hammer in that area......Notice in the pictures they curl up over the tunnel almost half way across. I ended up just drilling out the spot welds against the firewall and going at it with the hammer.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854

That was all Friday night. Saturday I finally pulled the LS1 out of its corner for the first time in 6 months and started in on it.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854

Got all the wiring pulled off, factory manifolds, oil pan changed, etc etc. Only thing I didn't get to was flipping around the fuel rail.

What a drastic improvement these are!

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854

and what a huge scary mess this is! What you see is a well labeled engine harness from the LS1, and non labeled body harness from the Camaro donor car, and the harness from the miata. Before you flame me too much, keep in mind that I did not pull this car apart so labeling it was not an option for me. I do on the other hand have the parts car harness that I have been keeping good tabs on:thumbsup:

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854



Now for a couple of questions I have coming out of the weekend.

1. The factory oil pan bolts up to the bottom of the t56 bellhousing, and protects it from any debris getting in there. The new pan obviously does not, so did you guys just leave this open, or did you make some sort of cover?

2. I thought I had read somewhere that it is impossible to install the oil pan with the engine right side up, and it must be turned upside down, but I had no trouble at all just lifting the engine up and putting the pan on. I have the newer style FM Pan and unless I am missing something, I think it went on without a hitch!

3. Please see the picture below, This piece goes between the front of the intake manifold, and connects to the fuel supply line, can anyone tell me what it is and what you did with it? Obviously it is not used with my new custom fuel line, but I am still wondering.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1438697854

Anyways, progress on the car will be slow for the next couple weeks. I have a final paper to finish before Thursday, then Friday we are heading to Costa Rica for some much needed R & R.

A simple dust cover can be made from a card board template with an outline of the bellhousing and holes for mounting. Mount the cover by using the two holes on the bottom of the bellhousing to mount the dust cover. The dust cover material I used was a piece of aluminum of relatively thin stock. It has been on my car several years with no issues.

Yeah honestly thats what I was planning on doing, just curious what a few other folks had to say.

Yep, not on my Miata but I have one on my truck like that and it works fine. Probably too late now, but I found the best way to remove the seam sealer was a screw driver or scraper. As you saw the wirewheel just melts ig and slings it everywhere.

Enjoy Costa, I love that place!

Alright, I'm getting a little tired of watching itsallrigged' progress so I had to put something up. Sorry I know its been about a month since my last real update, I have been working but I just haven't had time to put anything on here.

I came back from vacation and I had left her at a spot that was pretty well close to test fitting the engine...so after about 4-5 tries of installing-massaging-install-massaging, I finally got her in place, and good grief is she tight!! I felt like I had to do a little more loving on the firewall itself than some of you have but oh well!

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After a few choice words, a few adult beverages, and one very black finger I was relieved to see the engine/trans in the car finally!! Don't get carried away I know the air cleaner does not fit like that! I really just got excited and wanted to see it on there.

After that I obviously pulled her back out and began the welding process on everything that was left. All the seams that had been exposed or cut were addressed, as well as the tunnel and the support gussets inside.

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For some reason I didn't take many pictures of the car with the seam sealer back on, but I did put it over all locations I removed it from plus some:

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Now that it is all on and dried it was time to paint....I will be undercoating as well but I have not gotten to it yet so don't flame me too bad. I didn't want to change the color of my engine bay, so I went to a local paint shop and had them mix me some paint of my code and put it in an aerosol can(Love the 10AE Blue). It matched really well actually, and it will look even better when I get the rest of the engine bay cleaned up. These pictures don't do it justice with all the dirt in areas I was not working! Worst case scenario I'll just mask and paint the entire engine bay.

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Last real bit of progress to mention on this car is the welding under the kick plates as seen in these pictures. In my opinion, this is one of the key areas to stiffen up for launching the car.

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Last but not least, for those of you who have been keeping up regular tabs, I have been parting out another miata as I have been building my car because:

1. I needed some of the parts from it for my car
2. I have been able to use it for a test dummy as I build my car
3. I use the funds from it for my build car, after all said and done, I have netted over $2300 from this car after I kept what I wanted

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I had complete intentions of keeping it until my car was complete, but alas....Another Miata has come into my life that will be parted out, so this one is on the way to the scrapper this saturday.

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New parts car is also a 99, very rusty so I don't feel bad sacrificing it. It had 120k miles on it with another spun rod bearing.

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Alright, time to get back out and work!

Good progress! I hope youre going to strip the fenders off the red one before scrapping it.

i was thinking about the very same thing
why are the fenders still on there
those are $150 a piece

I'm up in the air, the back of the passenger one is trash from contact with the door at sometime in its life, so it's going, I'll probably snag the drivers one though because it just has a few little imperfections.

How about a little update?

Got a handful of things done since my last update, still feels like nothing but it is what it is.....

First and foremost I got the new cam/springs/pushrods into the motor. This was my first cam swap on a OHV engine, but I thought it went about as smooth as one can hope for. As I have said before, my engine only has 17k miles on it, and it shows when you pull off the timing cover and valve covers....boy is she clean. I decided to go with a Texas Speed 228r cam, .588 lift, 228 dur, 112 LSA. Obviously I had an advantage since I had nothing in front of the engine to give me trouble, but I honestly think I did the whole swap in just under 3 hours total.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

After that I started putting some stuff back together. Got the starter wrapped up and back in, also turned the fuel rail around to come in on the passenger side.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

Heres a picture of my helper, hes been with me through it all.

http://i353.photobucket.com/albums/r...pssw1udvnf.jpg

Also got started on the cobra rear end mount setup. I used Mike Moninger's idea seen here (MiataV8 Conversion: Rear subframe) with a little bit of my own changes. I for example used 1/2" plate for the bottom of the backside mount, and drilled/threaded the plate itself for mounting bolts instead of welding lug nuts on the back side.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

I worked on it for a while one day and put my tools down for the night, then when reading a few threads I got nervous about my mounting locations on the subframe, so I am going to hold off doing any more of the rear diff mount until I get the axles to verify fitment location.

After that I decided I needed to start on something I had been avoiding the whole time....wiring...... My car if you remember came already disassembled a fair amount, so my first probably 8 hours was dedicated to labeling wires with the wiring diagrams. I was able to identify all plugs except for one, but it was on the center leg of the harness that goes over the top of the engine from the factory, so I felt secure enough that it would not be needed and I got rid of it. My wife decided to take a picture of me at work.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

Its hard to tell in this picture, but this is what is left of the factory miata harness after I removed all of the wiring I believe I do not need(Fingers crossed). I kept all the AC stuff, cruise control, and all the stuff required to run the body lights, locks, etc. I decided not to take it completely apart like many of you have done, I instead cut wires at plugs, then pulled them through the length of the harness to a major plug, and un-pinned them there. The factory camaro computer is setting there also, in this picture it had just got back from Brendan at lt1swap.com. I had him do his quick flash to remove VATS, EGR, tune for tire/gear size, 5 wire MAF, etc. Obviously it won't run great with that big cam but this will at least allow me to get it on my trailer to go have it dyno'd.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

Here is the pile of wires that I removed. Not quite as organized but still a lot of stuff.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

I still have to make the connections between the camaro harness and miata, but I think that will end up being better if I do it with the engine in the car, or at least close.

Now back out to the barn to let some sparks fly, I went ahead and made a set of cowl braces. I decided to angle the top brace as far forward as I can to help counteract the moment force on the end of the arm. I think they will work very well. I had to trim a small bit of seam sticking out to get them in but I think they will more than make up for that.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1444655269

Thats about all I have got for now. I ordered a BUNCH of suspension stuff, so hopefully my next update will have that info and possibly a motor in its final resting spot?

Nice progress!

Nice update! I'm so anxious to work on mine again

I like those cowl braces, definitely on the list of things to do.

Keep up the good work!

I love that wiring shot and the look on your face! Priceless! Looks really REALLY good Travis!

GM wiring, clutch parts
 

So if you are like me, you did a lot of reading before you started your project, and thought you had it all figured out until it came right down to some of the details leaving you scratching your head a little bit.

GM HARNESS MODS

I managed to complete the diet on my GM harness last week to my liking. Don't get really caught up in this portion of the build, because the GM harness is near standalone as it is. For my diet, I really just wanted to get rid of the 2 connectors that went to the factory F-body dash, and the 3 connectors that ended near the ECM connectors. This for me was strictly for cosmetic reasons, but as you can imagine did serve some functional purpose as well. A few main points to hit.....

-There are 5 pink wires in the c100, c101, and c105 connectors, keep all of them
-There are 2 orange wires in the C100, C101, and C105 connectors, keep them
-Remove your low oil sensor plug, there is no provision for it any of the custom pans
-Re-pin your rear O2's to your front O2 locations, saves on soldering
-Keep wires for Tach, Speedo, CEL, OBD2 if your car is new enough

-Keep the wires to trigger fan relays, there is one on each ECM connector. On the blue connector it is pin #42, green wire, on the red connector it is pin #33, blue wire. This is a big one because many of the write ups you will see are only to get the engine running, and don't discuss this. I haven't finished it yet, but my plan is to use the miata wiring for the fans, and the GM computer to trigger the relay's. I may have to put different relays in place depending on how they are triggered, but the wiring is already there so why not use it?

-Lastly you need to decide how to run your fuel pump, whether by using the GM system or the Miata system. It can be done either way, I think it will be easier for me to use the miata relay. Both ways are discussed in the links below.

Most of the rest of the stuff in those five connectors can be removed or safely taped away.

READ READ READ!! I had three of the following links printed and spread out in front of me, and the wiring diagrams on computer for reference, and I used every bit of them!


LS1 into third generation F-Body
LS1 harness: Start to finish - Third Generation F-Body Message Boards

FM Wiring instructions
https://www.flyinmiata.com/support/i...structions.pdf

Wiring Diagrams for LS1 cars
Wiring information for 1998 to 2002 Camaro & Firebird LS1

Nathans Wiring instructions for NA
Nathan's LS1 Miata

Keep in mind that a combination of all of these led me to what I believe is a good setup. My setup was not exactly like any one of them because I am too cheap to buy a new harness(And its not needed) and I have an NB. Also, I did not do a complete 100% diet of my harness, because a lot of things will be out of sight when all said and done. You can pull it all apart if you want to, just wasn't value added for me.


Now that you have a fair amount of your wiring done, what is left to get the engine in the car? For me its the clutch.....I have done well with holding off buying some parts until they were actually needed, and now that I am ready to put the engine/trans in their final resting spot, I need to get the clutch worked out.

CLUTCH

V8R sells a kit with everything you need to get a working clutch in your car. At $228 shipped to my door, I almost bought it, pretty reasonable. I am however still looking for ways to save some cash, so I spent a little time researching alternative options. To save any onlookers some time, here is what I found.

98+ T-56 transmissions use a quick disconnect fitting that is really convenient if you are using the stock hydraulic line, or could jump in a time machine and go back to when adapters were made. As far as I can find, there is no real reasonably priced options for this on the market anymore, there are options out there, but with the cost of them you would end up being better off buying the V8R kit, which doesn't have the adapter anyway. The V8R kit uses parts that are all readily available elsewhere, except the adapter bracket that anyone who has done the other FAB for this swap should be able to build. Speedway motors is a great place to get stuff for this entire swap, and had everything I needed.

Here is my list of parts bought:

7/8 bore master cylinder(same as V8R)-$69.99
Wilwood Combination Remote Fill Master Cylinder Kit

Adapter kit to make MC outlet in a AN -3-$24.99
LS1 & LT1 T56 Clutch Line AN3 Banjo Bolt Kit

Stainless Braided line-$12.99
Braided Stainless AN 36 Inch Brake Line

Fitting for Throwout bearing(when you remove quick connector)-$13.99
LS1 & LT1 T56 Release Bearing to AN3 Line Fitting

Speed bleeder-$29.99
T56 Release Bearing Remote Bleeder

So total to make this happen is $151.95, or about $77 cheaper than V8R's kit and I have to make the mounting bracket. Not a huge gain, but every penny counts and now I have done all the hard work for you. You could go cheaper by not including the speed bleeder, but it was worth the extra cash for me.

Hope this helps a few people out there. All this information is out there somewhere, It just took me a lot of reading to find it!

Nice job on the diy clutch setup.

But the big question is....what clutch are you going with?

My engine and trans only has 17k miles on it, so for now thats one thing that I am saving cash for at a later date. I don't expect to put more than 385-400 at the wheels, so I plan to run the stock clutch until a later date.

Ahh thats right, I forgot your motor had such low mileage.

Elevating this thread to the builder resources and links thread for the outstanding detailed write up on the F body wring harness conversion. For all who come behind you I offer a collective THANK YOU!

Thanks Jim, really not a whole lot of new info in my thread, its just all in one spot now.

Just a great thread that's fun to read and has tons of swap info (wiring, fuel lines, etc) for future LS swappers!

Travis, per this question in post #24 if you haven't found your answer...

3. Please see the picture below, This piece goes between the front of the intake manifold, and connects to the fuel supply line, can anyone tell me what it is and what you did with it? Obviously it is not used with my new custom fuel line, but I am still wondering.

Simply remove that useless GM stuff, and cap off that nipple on the intake manifold with a correctly sized rubber cap. It also cleans up that good looking LS intake.

I like how you're salvaging other Miatas and using them as templates and sources of ideas for this bad toy you're building.

Keep doing what you're doing!!

Thanks for the tip and the kind words. I still haven't really figured out what it is there for, but like you said, I have seen several others just cap it off so thats my plan.

Going through your list to figure some things out It looks like you've got the part numbers mixed up, the ones in red I believe to be swapped.

AHH, nice catch sir!

I also added one more piece that I ended up needing for my setup, a 6an to 6an union.

Ok time for another post weekend update, and since I was lazy last week this will account for two weekends. I have actually had a lot of time here lately to get some good work done on the car, and I feel like I have made a lot of progress. I haven't necessarily gotten any one huge thing checked off, but I have gotten a boat load of smaller things done.

To start off, last weekend i began fitting the roll cage into the car, haven't got it complete yet but it is coming along nicely. I ended up putting it together with the main hoop in the exact same spot that HD puts their Hardcore M2 Hardtop bars. It looks low to me, but unless I have forgotten how to read a tape measure, its correct. Please not it is not complete here, and the door bars are just laying in place.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

I'll admit that I wasn't as strong with the camera last weekend as I should have been, but once again most of the things I was working on were just small little tid bits.

I did get the transmission off and I put the new clutch lines/fittings/bleeder in place. I am happy to report that my list from a previous post worked perfectly. I dont yet have the master cylinder installed, but as this point we are good.

I also went ahead and flared the end of the fuel line about where I thought it should be.

Finally, I got the car off the temp stands I built in preparation for installing the engine for hopefully the final time!

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Keep on meaning to show off my custom fuel rail covers....what do you guys think?

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Now fast forward to this weekend. I had a half day Friday, and my wife was booked up most of the weekend, so game on for miata work!!

Just about the last thing I thought I needed (Be sure you not that I put the last thing i THOUGHT) was to make some heat shields for the motor mounts. Based on the pictures I had seen of FM's shields, and what Jim made for his, I thought I can make a set for sure! I ended up taking the extra package tray from my parts miata and cutting it up. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, but here is the finished product. I cut them to fit around the top and the sides, figured there was no need to make them along the bottom. I then wrapped some extra heat wrap leftover from my LT's, I think they should work just fine.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Something that should definitely be noted here is that I made the drivers side shield too big the first time, and had to do it over, no worries, but I didn't notice until I was attempting to install the longtubes, gollee gee they are tight!

After I got the shields done, a nice long look and a beer later, I felt confident that I was ready to lift the motor into its final resting spot. I know most of you do it with the trans separate, coming in from the top. I wheeled the motor under the car, then used my hoist and picked it up through the engine bay, using a floor jack to pick up the transmission.

Home sweet Home-or so I thought

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Something to note that I guess I had either not read or not remembered from anyone else. The V8R longtubes will NOT go in on either side with the engine in the car. They look like they might, but they don't....trust me. Oh well, out came the heart one last time and with the LT's loosely in place, back home she went.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Notice I had already trimmed the pinch weld on the passenger side near the front header tube, I can definitely see where it would have made contact, so thanks to SupaDupaSteve for pointing that out in his build thread. Just goes to show that no matter how many hours you have spent learning, and how much knowledge you have, there are still little quirks here and there and it saved me time just by watching other forum members progress. I ended up cutting it flush with the rest of the rail, then welded it back together and ground it smooth, then painted, looks OEM.

Next, now that I had the whole assembly in place I located the sub frame connectors with the trans mount, and put them in place. Not much exciting here, but I had forgotten to locate them when I test fitted the engine so I had to wait.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Another learning experience for me here.....When I test fitted the engine/trans, I just used my floor jack to hold the trans up about where I thought it should have been....boy did I make things hard on myself there. When It came down to it, The trans was about 4-5 inches lower when I test fitted it than when I actually mounted it. This may not seem like a big deal, but it was HUGE when It came down to the amount of room I had between the firewall and the back of then engine....Lets just say I did some firewall massaging for no reason......oh well.

Well now the engine is in right...time to start it up? Boy I wish.....

I had my FM radiator all assembled so now I just needed to put in it place. I've seen a lot of pictures of other setups, some lower, some higher, some angled, difference intakes, etc..... I like to make things look as OEM as possible, and obviously if I can I try to make things easier on myself. As you can see in the picture below, I move the radiator bracket down and forward, using the front hole of the sway bar mount to bolt down the rear hold of the radiator mount. I then just cleaned up the front area and welded the hole shut in the front.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

I think this setup will work perfect, still has a fair amount of ground clearance, but with the core support folded forward I have plenty of room.

As I said, I things to look at least similar to OEM, I had to modify the upper mounts some since the radiator is now lower. I took the stock mount, beat the curve out of it with my hammer. Then I put it back in place and if you are strong enough(Read that fat) like me, you can fold the mount down around the top of the core support. I then cut it at the correct distance down, removed some its length, and welded it back at the correct spot. Cleaned up and painted. My welds here were less then impressive, but the radiator sure won't go anywhere, and hopefully when I pop my hood they won't be the focal point anyway.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688150

Now it's time to get busy on that big intake....I was scared that the big filter wasn't going to fit under the bumper cover.....it does but by a very small margin.

This was pretty straight forward with all the good ideas from other guys, and the FM plans. Only thing different is I used the CAI from a C7 instead of an OEM unit. I had some square tubing laying around so I did like toysnake and used it instead of the angle a lot of guys use. This will function just the same.

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

Had to make sure the bumper fit......

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

Finally here is where I left her at the end of the weekend....My last bit of work involved making the soldered connections for the next 5 wire MAF. Hopefully my next major update will have a video of it started....if you believe in prayer, go ahead and add me to your list! I bought on starter yesterday using supadupasteves part number, hopefully it works!

https://www.v8miata.net/attachment.p...ine=1447688439

As far as I can tell, I need to make the wiring connections, put fuel in, put a battery in, install the new starter, and tighten the header flanges.

I don't have power steering hooked to anything right now, will it cause me any trouble to fire it up without any fluid in there, probably 30 seconds max?

You're gonna have to do some fandangling with the headers and all to get that starter in there. It MAY NOT be possible to get it out with the engine/headers in the car.

also, one thing I noticed.. I hope you don't ever have any issues with your sway bar mounts. They are a known weak point, and lots of guys that autox or track their car replace them with heavier duty ones.