What are you working on? (7 Viewers)

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Project Fluffy is Running!!!
VID_20171105_102521.mp4

Couldn't think of a better way to share the start up video from today, that is the link to the vid in my google drive.

What it got:
-Timing Belt
-Water pump (with correct gasket and not clear silicone...)
-Spark plugs (Denso not autolite -_-)
-Spark plug wires (again Denso, and not melted autolite...)
-Valve Cover Gaskets
-Radiator (Denso, the original brass tank one finally corroded through...)
-Serpentine Belt
-Oil pan reseal
-Oil Pan fluid level delete
-Transmission pan reseal (with just the felt gasket, not felt and silicone...)
-Exhaust hung correctly (not with coat hangers attached to rear lower control arms...)
-17" after market wheels with slightly larger tires (left over from the Camry)

Took it down the road and around the block a few times, no more overheating or massive oil leaks, this whole process was fixing up a hack mechanics work...

Now its onto the electrical and figure out why the brake lights and shift light will not work, and the brake light switch was replaced...
I also have to figure out the power tilt steering, I can;t even figure out if it has the normal grinding culprit due to the motor not working at all....
I have a feeling I am about to get into a wiring mess, this thing was really hacked into, but after the test drive, its staying with me and my partner in crime.

The plan has changed and my partner in crime on the project and myself have come to the agreement, we are going to autocross it.
So after we get it so we can actually drive it down the road (also needs some lower ball joints and maybe upper arms...) we will start with some slight modifications (LS400 brake upgrade, some coilovers, some stiffer sway bars, and some seats that don't have us on the gangsta lean all the time...)

Like I needed another project in my life, but this thing is so cool!!
 
caz said:
SC400 right?

Love that engine. It's my dream swap!
Click to expand...

Yup SC400, the 4.0l is a dream to work on, it's just the previous owner or tech that worked on it used pro judgement or just pure hacking repairs that I have been correcting.

Im.somewhat surprised the swap hasn't been more popular in the 80 series.
 
Found out that I now have a leak from the hose to the left of the PHH. This may be a professional fix for me. The PHH sucked the life out of me and I cant't even see this other hose. Anyone done this repair before?
 
Took this guy for a drive to the garage.
One of the oil cooler coolant lines looked like a balloon. Figured while i was there, id try an 88c thermo this winter.
A bath was in order as well. It doent get driven much and was covered in leaf spots and other tree crap.

20171118_094212.jpg
 
Hey all,

Figured I'd ask here, but this is probably one of those "if you have to ask..." Type questions.

My power steering box is installed too low (wasn't my doing). With the thick shackles I installed, I needed to grind them down but I still found evidence of the shackle hitting the steering box (highlighted in yellow)

image.jpeg


I am thinking about shimming the box out a bit to alleviate the conflict (instead of re-doing the whole conversion).

To that end I picked up some heavy steel bushings from the hardware store, shown below:

image.jpeg


I ultimately ended up only going 1/4 instead of 3/4 but the wall thickness, etc. is the same.

Do you think this is a thick enough wall bushing and strong enough to withstand the forces exerted by steering?

I was thinking about picking up some thick-wall DOM tubing but then I have to worry about cutting the tube and getting a completely square surface or the forces will distribute unevenly.

image.jpeg


Thoughts and opinions from the local metal experts and engineers would be appreciated!
 
Would think you would be ok as long as the inner diameter of the space is the same as the tube through the frame. You don’t want slop in there. Wouldn’t hurt to tack weld the bushing in as well.

Also, you will need longer mounting bolts for the box now. The new bolts should maximize the length of the unthreaded portion of the bolt for strength.
 
jtaco1 said:
Would think you would be ok as long as the inner diameter of the space is the same as the tube through the frame. You don’t want slop in there. Wouldn’t hurt to tack weld the bushing in as well.

Also, you will need longer mounting bolts for the box now. The new bolts should maximize the length of the unthreaded portion of the bolt for strength.
Click to expand...

That was my thinking. There's actually less slop in the bushing than there is in the tubing through the frame. I bored out the bushing a touch for a close fit. The tubing, I think, is 1/2" ID so it's a looser fit on the 7/16 bolt.

I hear you on the bolts - I drove 20min to my local Fastenal today for the longer, grade-8 bolts, only to find out they're closed Sundays :doh: The sad part is, this is the second time I've done that...the hard ware stores seem to only cary 7/16-14 Grade 8's in 4" (too short, what I currently have) and 6" (too long, would need to cut the entire threaded portion) so I'll need to head back to Fastenal this week to grab a 4.5" bolts.
 
Agree with everything @jtaco1 said. Maybe get grade 8 bolts for max strength. Does that throw off any of your steering geometry? Might require some other minor adjustments on the steering arm as a result. Just a thought.
 
Yellow Jacket said:
Agree with everything @jtaco1 said. Maybe get grade 8 bolts for max strength. Does that throw off any of your steering geometry? Might require some other minor adjustments on the steering arm as a result. Just a thought.
Click to expand...

It might a touch, I'll probably check when the truck is back on the ground. I'll definitely be sticking with grade 8.
 
I like it. But I bet as stated. You will need to adjust some steering parts.
 
Yep, should be easy enough, I've had the steering apart so I was already planning to go through and alignment to make sure everything was kosher when I put it back together.
 
I actually made longer standoffs when I did Saginaw. There really wasn't a "good" place to put the box so don't fault your PO!. I think what you've done will be fine provided the bolts are long enough. If you are worried you can weld them on.

Maybe looking for thinner shackles would be another direction you could try.
 
caz said:
I actually made longer standoffs when I did Saginaw. There really wasn't a "good" place to put the box so don't fault your PO!. I think what you've done will be fine provided the bolts are long enough. If you are worried you can weld them on.

Maybe looking for thinner shackles would be another direction you could try.
Click to expand...

Yeah, this conversion is actually a local shop's correction to the PO's which was dangerously bad (box welded straight to the frame, no bolts, no sleeving). It's much better than it used to be, and given the location, the steering shaft clearance around the engine, etc. I completely understand compromises have to be made.

The conversion was done with the stock shackles installed which were much thinner. I may go back to something along those lines down the road. In the meantime this seems like a decent option.

Thank you all for the input!
 
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