Sam's VN [Archive] - Australian LS1 and Holden Forums

savage1987

18-01-2010, 03:44 AM

This is my little project
I've owned the car since 3.1.2006 and it has well over 500,000km behind it by now.

1989 VN V6 series 1 (Lexcen)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/26oct09a.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/26oct09b.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/26oct09.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/samsvn1.jpg

a couple of pics that some people generously drew up :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/VNonStockies1.png

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAMVNfinal.jpg

shot of the sway bar setup

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMGP2772.jpg

and a quick snap of where it will be living throughout the motor swap :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMGP2770.jpg

Interior and stereo:
Alpine head unit
Alpine 4" front speakers
Alpine Type S 6" rear speakers
2xCPU cooling fans for head unit - still not wired up yet
Mulberry interior (interior number four?) in progress
VY SS pedals
New cream coloured roof lining - not actually in the car :P
SAAS steering wheel - nothing but problems and shittyness, don't buy SAAS
VP Calais parcel shelf, speakers under stock grilles
VN Calais L3 instrument cluster and trip computer
Sound deadener and carpet stripped from floors and boot

Exterior:
Clear front indicators (Lexcen ones were orange)
Electric antenna
15"x7" interceptors
VN Calais front grille

Motor:
Rebuilt VR V6, internally standard
Bellmouth modified and opened up, shaped a bit
2.5" cat-back exhaust, stock catalytic converter, Pacemaker headers
K&N panel filter
Greenfoam tune
Smoothed out throttle body - http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/v6-development-modification/116920-massaging-vr-v6-throttle-body.html

Suspension and driveline:
Rebuilt gearbox 11/1/08 with baby shift kit running 3 trans coolers - http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/vn-vp-holden-commodore-1988-1993/97949-seems-transmission-coolers-really-beneficial.html
King superlow springs
Koni adjustable shocks, reds
Noltec adjustable strut tops
Wasp HD sway bar link pins
Whiteline strut brace
DBA gold drilled and slotted front rotors
Dual rear sway bars - http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/1386896-post309.html
Minispooled 3.08:1 rear axle

Engine swap underway..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2830.jpg

Best ET so far is 15.762, should hopefully skip the 14s and maybe even the 13s unless something goes wrong :)

I hope you like it :)
Sam

QIKMIK

18-01-2010, 07:38 AM

I once hade an affair with a VN V6. See here (http://www.ls1.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=13005&highlight=Chiptorque) for a few posts about the old girl. Also see here (http://users.on.net/~nweber/commodore/modified/vn-vs.html) for some pics and details. High 14's on a hot night in Brisbane with street pressures :doh:

Mick

savage1987

18-01-2010, 11:59 AM

Awesome :) they go alright for what they are. Mine hasn't broken down once in the 5 years that I owned it. Blew a radiator one time but that was entirely my fault and i was still able to drive it home so I don't think that counts as a breakdown.

Mine isn't going to be a VN V6 for long though ;)

Tecca

18-01-2010, 05:29 PM

Nice mate, sounds good. Ive had 2 VN's (one a manual and one an auto) and they are a tough machine and very easy to maintain! then i upgraded to a VP which is now sold :(. And that never ever broke down on me for over the 2 years i had it.

savage1987

18-01-2010, 05:58 PM

Hopefully you will be impressed when my pics will finally work :)

motomk

22-01-2010, 12:26 AM

First post updated!

Drew SS

22-01-2010, 04:22 AM

vn a nice car voted most popular car for bank robberys quite a few years ago

savage1987

23-01-2010, 04:09 PM

Picked up my T56 today :)

Long drive, but worth it I hope.. well - there's the motor and 'box in my shed, there's no backing out now !!

Sam

savage1987

18-03-2010, 09:47 PM

Went down to licensing's technical section this morning for a last minute double check the maximum CC rules.

Word is it's all OK :) the fact it's a Lexcen has no bearing on how big an engine you can put in, it's calculated (in WA at least) based on the weight of the vehicle's heaviest model variant. (Lexcen Newport sedan in my case).

PARTS ORDERING TIME!

Got a VL V8 K Frame on the way from QLD to kick it all off, will be placing orders with C.A.E. and Mal Wood very shortly.

I'm very excited, and a tiny bit scared.

Sam

savage1987

20-03-2010, 03:35 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/CAEorder.jpg

redvxr8clubby

20-03-2010, 04:21 PM

I had a 88 VN Exec manual, form 1989 to 1994, bought a '93 VP V6 auto in '94. The manuals are fantastic, went very well considering I think Holden claimed 125Kw power. I never liked the handling of the VN, and the VP was little better, they never felt stable. No doubt if I would have pursued some suspension mods they could have been improved. I bought a new VS in 97, and it was a lot better, I know the front suspension was changed from VN/ VP to VR/ VS series. Main problem I had with VN I think was computer died on me, and water pump otherwise pretty good from memory. The manual was the ants pants really. When it came to buying the VP I wanted a manual again, but couldn't seem to find one, or they were rather expensive. In the end I bought an auto. I think really not much has changed - if your are looking at getting a near new Commodore V6, an Exec auto (now Omega), will be heaps cheaper than a manual car. I would say you would probably spend nearly $10,000 extra to get a VE (SV6) manual over an Omega auto, yet theoretically a manuals are about $2,000 cheaper than an equivalent auto. I think I have gone of the original topic. Enjoy the modded VN, in that light weight VN - VS body the V6 goes very well.

savage1987

20-03-2010, 06:59 PM

Enjoy the modded VN, in that light weight VN - VS body the V6 goes very well.
I know what you mean about the changes from VN to VR/S.. whatever they did made a big difference. I notice this all the time, as I bought a VR runabout for while the VN gets its motor swap.

The V6 does go alright in the VNs, mine went incredibly well on fuel too (read: low 7.x L/100km in the hills), hope it's up to the task for power handling with the LS1 in it!

Also, first thing I decided when doing this conversion was it would be a manual. I am so sick of automatic cars, they annoy me in so many ways it's not even funny. I could easily have mated the LS1 to the already strong T700 in the VN, but I decided from the start it would be a T56.

savage1987

23-03-2010, 06:28 PM

Well here she is at the moment guys...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010433.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010434.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010435.jpg

Interior:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010436.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010437.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010438.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010441.jpg

Inspiration:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010449.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010452.jpg

Sam

Pickles

24-03-2010, 06:55 AM

Savage.....good post & good info.....looks like a nice straight VN you've got there.....keep the info & photos coming.
Cheers, Pickles.

davus

24-03-2010, 07:00 AM

looks like a great project mate. Good on you.

Keep the photos and progress coming mate. Very interesting!.

Dave

tuff304

24-03-2010, 09:52 AM

Looking good mate, will be quite the sleeper once it is finished.

savage1987

06-04-2010, 10:33 PM

C.A.E gear mostly turned up today.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/cae1.jpg

also, Dad's barge came home today, purchased yesterday:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/P1010454.jpg

Sam

hotbox

07-04-2010, 12:16 PM

nice project lad :goodjob:

savage1987

12-04-2010, 11:08 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/malwoodorder.jpg

savage1987

13-04-2010, 09:07 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010468.jpg

Tecca

13-04-2010, 09:35 PM

Looking good Sam! keep us updated. Great project.

savage1987

14-04-2010, 11:06 PM

Installed Mal Wood's remote clutch bleed setup, dead easy fitment, took me about 15 minutes and that was with me being super fussy with small amounts of teflon tape on fittings etc.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010471.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010470.jpg

I held the factory bleeder up to show where it was, this is virtually impossible to get at in the VN transmission tunnel I believe...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010472.jpg

Also have removed most of the air con gear (still under dash stuff to go but I'm getting there)...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010474.jpg

And the dash is out, making way for the mulberry one when I can get un-scared enough to go and do it.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010473.jpg

Fun!

Nidz

14-04-2010, 11:50 PM

Nice project ya got going on there. I really hope you colour code those bumpers.. lol..

savage1987

15-04-2010, 12:31 AM

Nice project ya got going on there. I really hope you colour code those bumpers.. lol..

No colour coding will occur, eventually they will be painted jet black, with the sill panels done to match, factory VN style. Grandpa, under-the-radar while very clean/neat look with 300rwkw is the aim.

MR GMH

15-04-2010, 07:54 PM

I hope you are putting in a new slave cylinder

savage1987

15-04-2010, 10:50 PM

I hope you are putting in a new slave cylinder
Done tonight, bit of a rort at $242.40@trade price

Holden wanted $360!!! What a joke!

MR GMH

16-04-2010, 08:38 PM

Done tonight, bit of a rort at $242.40@trade price

Holden wanted $360!!! What a joke!

F@#k me that is pricey, the last time i got one it was a bit over $100 i think

savage1987

17-04-2010, 04:28 PM

F@#k me that is pricey, the last time i got one it was a bit over $100 i think
Yah heard this from a mate also, he had a receipt for $161 full price for the same item, genuine GM. Seems bullshit how they can jack the price whenever and however much they like just for no reason.

savage1987

17-04-2010, 08:01 PM

Hit a hiccup, need to get the spigot bush out. Not as easy as it sounds.

dawkinsdisciple

18-04-2010, 12:29 PM

savage1987

18-04-2010, 04:56 PM

K-frame got a quick squirt of paint:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010480.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010481.jpg

Replaced then spaced out the slave cylinder for the CAE starter relocation

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010484.jpg

Waiting on flywheel bolts to continue here

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010483.jpg

savage1987

18-04-2010, 05:03 PM

spigot bush - is that near the throw out bearing in the gear box?
not to hard if the gearbox is out was my understanding...

btw mate, be a ripper when it's done - i wanted to do something like this with my old calais but went the qikmik route and blew that up so got sick of it, saved and went the SSV instead!

ironically, one of the main reasons was the creaky old VN noises were starting to piss me off and now the bloody VE has picked a couple up!

always great to see people doing it a bit differently though!

Thanks for the comments mate always good to hear people are interested :)

It should surprise a few people and be awesomely fun to drive, which is what I'm building it for. It certainly won't spend much time in a shed ;)

Spigot bush was a press fit brass item into the back of the crank. Tricky to get out but I snapped a hacksaw blade in half and sawed through each side til it pretty much fell out. Took about an hour but it was free :)

savage1987

23-04-2010, 01:17 AM

Got stuck again today, things were going so well when I decided to lose a clutch bolt for no reason whatsoever. It was nowhere to be found. Vanished into thin air. I EVEN tidied up some bits of shed to look for it; still no luck. :(

Progress today:

ARP flywheel bolts arrived in the mail

MAFless tuned, VATSS disabled PCM arrived in the mail

Bought a torque wrench

Flywheel installed - ARP bolts are awesome.

Lifted the motor off the bench to trial fit the mounts and K frame

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010485.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010487.jpg

Thought it was too easy, too much sump clearance... found out I had the mounts on the wrong sides :(
Roughly installed clutch, having no idea what I was doing, and minus 1 bolt :(
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010488.jpg

Switched mounts to correct sides, depressingly small amount of sump clearance..
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010495.jpg

Couldn't do too much more without the last clutch bolt so I moved on to interior
Many swear words and bent/broken things later, the mulberry dashboard is in
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010492.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010493.jpg

savage1987

25-04-2010, 08:09 PM

LOL someone linked me this on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?op=1&view=global&subj=270205687470&pid=30971227&id=1368159251&oid=270205687470#!/photo.php?pid=30971228&op=2&o=all&view=all&subj=270205687470&aid=-1&oid=270205687470&id=1368159251

I love keyboard warriors.

savage1987

27-04-2010, 01:27 AM

Not so much driveline progress today but the interior had to start coming together at some point

Installed manual pedal box, lots of stumbling points that soaked up too many hours.. was midday before it was in for the final time.

You can just see in this pic the fitting from the clutch master cylinder sticking through my hacked up firewall clutch grommet.. I need to find a grommet for the hole above it.. some split convoluted tube might do for now to keep the rubber line from sawing itself open

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010499.jpg

Cleaned up the rest of the mulberry trim pieces

Removed a pile more sound deadener from the firewall (bit left in the middle, too hard to get at with HVAC in the way)

Began installing more trim pieces to complete the dash area.. being fussy and obsessive this took a loooong time to get right and I'm still pissed off by at least 10 individual aspects of it all. But they're problems for another day. Steering column trims have shattered mounts so I spent far too long cutting and glueing mounts from the blue set onto the purple set... Probably won't even survive the installation but I'll find out for sure tomorrow night.

I love how all the trim panels change colour differently over 20 years. Fuuuuuu....

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010498.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010497.jpg

Separated engine and gearbox again to clearance the gearbox for starter motor fitment, didn't grind anything yet because at 10pm I think that'd be stretching the friendship with the neighbours..

Here's a pic of the general state of my shed at the moment...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/P1010500.jpg

Slowly but surely progress is being made, I must keep telling myself this :)

Sam

vzss05

27-04-2010, 06:32 AM

Awesome Thread and great pic's. :goodjob:

H1GHROLLR

27-04-2010, 11:21 AM

looking good sam cant wait to have a drive

savage1987

27-04-2010, 07:21 PM

looking good sam cant wait to have a drive

Makes 2 of us, Mark :)

dawkinsdisciple

28-04-2010, 05:57 PM

hah ha! the mulberry dash, i forgot that colour existed! each to their own man!
one of my favourite VN's was the guy who put the carbied LS1 into the taxi yellow VN and turboed it. awesome and insane... I always rated VN's as such a better early model then the VL, the VN looks smoother, handled better, nicer interior...

she'll be sweet when it's done, keeping an eye on it!!!

savage1987

29-04-2010, 01:10 AM

Cleaned down the motor and box SUPER quickly... no time for cleaning, it's not going in to look pretty :) (I must keep telling myself this so I don't get carried away and blow the time limit)

Finished relieving the T56 casing for the starter conversion, also enlarged the bottom air hole quite a bit. I will have to come up with a brilliant plan to block up the gap where the factory starter motor is meant to sit... can see straight in to the flywheel from the forward side and I'm not happy with that.

I fitted the motor and box together for possibly (hopefully) the final time this evening.

I find myself wondering why the CAE starter relocation kit only came with 6 bolts to hold the setup together when there are 8 holes from factory.... I figure an intelligently placed six will do fine until I get to a bolt shop and dig up another pair.

Starter fitted:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010502.jpg

Extractors test fitted for clearance around T56 and starter:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010503.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010504.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010505.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010508.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010506.jpg

And a pic of the general mess, as per usual in my shed..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010507.jpg

Sam

hRTHSV

29-04-2010, 08:17 AM

H1GHROLLR

29-04-2010, 08:49 AM

sam do you have to get a tail shaft made??? or did it come with the kit ? if you have to get one made dont use that rubber donut , throw it to the alpacas :dancenana:

[TOPGEAR]

29-04-2010, 02:00 PM

looking good mate. ive just done the same thing on a vs ute.

had problems with the extractors like everyone else. let us know how u go

savage1987

29-04-2010, 03:14 PM

Sam have you tried the extractors on in the car. I am fitting an Ls2 into a VS and trial fitted everything before I sent it to get painted, left hand extractors no problems, had to lightly flatten a small section on the drivers side set where it was coming into contact with the edge of the chassis rail.

A tip when putting them in, slide drivers side extractors in before the engine is lowered onto the engine mount or it's impossible to get in. left side is okay.
Haven't had it in the car yet, still waiting on CAE to send me a bloody trans crossmember, which they said would be done 2 weeks ago!!! *rage*

cheers for the tip on the pipes, I'm expecting some sledgehammer work to firewall etc if necessary :)

sam do you have to get a tail shaft made??? or did it come with the kit ? if you have to get one made dont use that rubber donut , throw it to the alpacas :dancenana:
Tailshaft will be my T700 one shortened to suit, they have the same yoke.
lol@alpacas

hRTHSV

29-04-2010, 04:01 PM

I had no problems on the firewall I found they fitted better than most people said they would.

savage1987

29-04-2010, 07:52 PM

I had no problems on the firewall I found they fitted better than most people said they would.

I do know CAE have changed their header designs a couple of times.. These being their latest arrangement. I'm interested to see how they go :)

Jezmont

30-04-2010, 11:37 PM

savage1987

01-05-2010, 04:16 AM

Awesome project mate, the thing is gonna go like a rocket with an ls1 in it!! I had a vn v6 a while back and even it was quicker than my vt v6, only thing you might have trouble with is keeping it straight! :rofl:

^Yeah that worries me a bit.. going to have a couple of issues for sure

also,

Tuned stock cam VN V6 > Tuned stock cam VT V6 I believe :) (having one of each in my household until the VN turned into a Vzero)

TommyVTss

01-05-2010, 09:05 AM

Car looks sweet dude

Making some good progress,

Any mods to the motor while it's out ?

savage1987

01-05-2010, 11:16 AM

Car looks sweet dude

Making some good progress,

Any mods to the motor while it's out ?
Nope because as soon as it's in, it's getting licensed with the new driveline. THEN it's cam and heads time :)

savage1987

05-05-2010, 12:43 AM

Need to sort out some parts ASAP then it's full steam ahead until the next hiccup...

Walbro intank 255L/hr pump
SARD adjustable fuel pressure regulator
GMM Ripshifter, have a nasty feeling it will have to be a custom one since it just has to point straight up out the top of the shifter assembly, none of the gay linkage from VT-VZ setups. Anyone know if a Corvette one or similar would do the trick??

Flung a pile of emails at people tonight so we'll see how far I get :)

Sam

2BCORT

05-05-2010, 07:41 AM

No better place than to roll around in a Hay shed working on a car LOL LOL
great effort

savage1987

09-05-2010, 02:26 AM

Well, there's been a bit of progress today.

The general state of affairs this morning when I started was a bit depressing...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2877.jpg

Pulled all the shit up out of the way to do a quick and dodgy repaint of a brake fluid scarred rail...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2875.jpg

Polished the bay a little bit while it was easy access... nothing too fussy just a quick one to get rid of some surface shit

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2879.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2882.jpg

Notched the V8 K frame for sump clearance and installed it

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2884.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2883.jpg

Started prepping the motor and box to go in..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2891.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2893.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2889.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2892.jpg

Cover made up to keep small birds and school children out of the flywheel

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2894.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2895.jpg

Fitment time

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2897.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2896.jpg

MMmmmmmmmmm.....

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2898.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2899.jpg

Couple of bits that will need some love:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2902.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2903.jpg

Some things I am unsure of..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2888.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2890.jpg

HSV Manta

09-05-2010, 02:57 AM

Watching this with interest.

I was going to do this to my old VS Manta but chickened out.

Looking good.

SirNemesis

09-05-2010, 10:59 AM

Oil pressure sensor goes in the hole in the last picture. Keep up the good work :)

savage1987

09-05-2010, 11:41 AM

Oil pressure sensor goes in the hole in the last picture. Keep up the good work :)

I thought this was the case for the bigger fitting... only it doesn't seem to fit the V6 oil pressure switch in any way at all, which I'm sure it is supposed to so that the factory oil pressure warning light will function properly.

The fittings are listed as

Temp gauge adaptorsuit 1/8" N.P.T. thread
Oil pressure 3-way T piece

fairly self explanatory, just the sensors from the V6 that I thought were meant to fit up to them simply don't. At all.

Any ideas where that water temp one goes?

adamRSLC

09-05-2010, 02:07 PM

savage1987

09-05-2010, 02:37 PM

Job well done so far sam , ive done the same conversion into a VL ( which is basically the same as yours ) and reading/looking at the mods you have made it is identical to what i had to do .

As mentioned yes that is the oil pressure switch for the LS1 , from memory the LS1 computer needs that switch as an input to function correctly . Is the brass fitting an adapter so you can run both switches ? .

Regarding the gearbox castings , to fit the VL body i had to remove all of the excess castings ( about 8 in total ) and "clearence" the trans tunnel to clear the reverse lockout solonoid from touching the body . It is also important to get the driveline angles correct as T56's will chew out the extension housing seal very quickly if they are wrong . I can give you a reference point if you need some help .

ps. Have you got a slave cylinder spacer in your kit ? If so can i have a pic of it . Ive got one of the 1st mal wood kits in mine and it didnt have the slave cyl spacer which im going to have to get soon to help fix the gear selection problem im getting as the clutch starts to wear .

adam

Thanks Adam

It seems the brass 3-way fitting is so I can run both the LS1 and the 304 oil pressure sensors. This is doing my head in though, because surely with the fitting standing up at the back of the manifold there it will just air lock and give false readings.......?

I read about a VL LS1 conversion and it was mentioned that a lot of that casting removal was unnecessary in the VN-VS tunnel as the VL's one is significantly smaller.. I'm hoping to get away with bashing the tunnel out where necessary, bearing in mind of course that it will twist over a fair bit under load so allowing extra space for that.

Any advice you have regarding driveline angles will be appreciated. I'll get some adjustable upper arms for the rear axle one day but I don't think they will be critical at this stage. Still unsure on this.

The slave cylinder spacer can be spotted in the plastic bag in this picture:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/cae.jpg

SirNemesis

09-05-2010, 02:50 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2889.jpg

This is where your crank angle sensor goes aswell. You'll need that :)

adamRSLC

10-05-2010, 04:42 PM

Thanks Adam

It seems the brass 3-way fitting is so I can run both the LS1 and the 304 oil pressure sensors. This is doing my head in though, because surely with the fitting standing up at the back of the manifold there it will just air lock and give false readings.......?

I read about a VL LS1 conversion and it was mentioned that a lot of that casting removal was unnecessary in the VN-VS tunnel as the VL's one is significantly smaller.. I'm hoping to get away with bashing the tunnel out where necessary, bearing in mind of course that it will twist over a fair bit under load so allowing extra space for that.

Any advice you have regarding driveline angles will be appreciated. I'll get some adjustable upper arms for the rear axle one day but I don't think they will be critical at this stage. Still unsure on this.

The slave cylinder spacer can be spotted in the plastic bag in this picture:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/cae.jpg

Thanks for that , ill be ordering one of those !.

Its not the rear section of the driveline ( ie centre bearing to diff ) but the front section ( extension housing to centre bearing ) that needs to be right . 2 ( +/- 1 )degrees is acceptable on the angle of the front section of the tailshaft . It basically means mount the engine as low as possible and tuck the gearbox as high as possible.

Your right on the VL trans tunnel its the tightest fit out of all the commo's for the T56 . I wasnt sure on what the VN was like , proberly more like a VR/VS.

adam

savage1987

10-05-2010, 08:23 PM

Here's the progress from last night:

Realised there was no way the passenger side header was going to fit in while the motor and box were bolted in position.

Both annoyingly and conveniently I realised that the braided line from the clutch master cylinder is actually meant to go all the way direct to the slave cylinder.. I had not connected this. SO it was time to pull the gearbox. Nightmare of a job, but somehow not as bad as I'd expected it to be.. Refitting it was much less awesome.

While I had it out, I took the opportunity to clear some unneeded castings from the gearbox

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2904.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2905.jpg

Connected the clutch line I had misunderstood previously:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2909.jpg

and took a random photo of nothing once it was all back in:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2910.jpg

although you can kinda see the leftovers of the mechanism by which the T56 made its way back up into the tunnel, haha I love backyard engineering.

So, this is how it sits at the moment. (only with a passenger side header also, this photo was taken before the box came out)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2906.jpg

baby steps :)

VT 2 EXEC LS1

10-05-2010, 09:21 PM

looking good sam..
keep at it,youve done most of the hard yards already..
cheers dave

adamRSLC

13-05-2010, 02:39 PM

Sam , ive done a bit more research on that spacer for the throw out bearing and its not a simple as bolting it on and hoping for the best . Go to ace clutch and look up clutches then fitting instructions to get it right , spoke to a switched on guy at mal wood today and also mentioned that the VX ( the donor gearbox in my case ) clutch master is 19mm , my VL one is 15.88 mm so needs to be modified to suit . Im going that way first , ill let you know how i go .

adam

savage1987

13-05-2010, 10:06 PM

Shit I've no idea what you just said :( will check out that site when I get a spare moment

adamRSLC

15-05-2010, 01:51 PM

Sorry sam i thought you knew about clutch issues when using a spacer plate .
In my conversion i use a spacer plate to re-mount the starter motor to the passenger side ( like you do ) . As you effectively space the gearbox back 7mm , the clutch slave cylinder is also spaced back by the same amount effectively increasing the distance from the throw bearing to the fingers on the clutch plate .

Problems that can arise are hard to select gears , wierd engagement hieght in clutch pedal , slipping clutch and future problems as the clutch wears . In my case as a new clutch was fitted i did have the odd pick up point for the clutch but otherwise it was close enough , problem is as my clutch starts to wear its getting harder to select gears as the clutch isnt releasing correctly . The website i mentioned explains how to set up an internal clutch slave cylinder .

As most poeple use a VL pedal box in 1st generation commo's ( when fitting an LS1 )the clutch master cylinder due to its smaller bore doesnt push enough fluid to fully extend the slave cylinder which only compounds the problem , hence by re sleeving the clutch master cylinder to the correct size it will in my case fix the clutch issue i have atm.

adam

savage1987

15-05-2010, 05:22 PM

OK Adam, thanks for that, I will have a read!

I'm using Mal Wood's pedal box and incorporated master cylinder, so hopefully that will work OK but I will keep an eye out for issues arising from it anyway - I wasn't aware that it could even be a problem :) since I've never played with a manual transmission setup before

Thanks again
Sam

Sleek_vz

15-05-2010, 05:40 PM

Wow, nice work mate, she is a beauty!!! Keep up the great work

savage1987

15-05-2010, 06:19 PM

Wow, nice work mate, she is a beauty!!! Keep up the great work

Thankyou so much :) It took me a long time to come to appreciate a nice clean VN (after a horrible phase with a VX Clubsport style bodykit, 19s, etc etc) and I'm finally getting the image together in my mind of what I want to build mine into. This driveline is the first step :)

Sam

savage1987

15-05-2010, 10:19 PM

GMM Ripshifter is on its way :)

Got nowhere near as much done today as I'd hoped..

Driver's side header:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2914.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2915.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2925.jpg

Passenger side header:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2913.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2916.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2924.jpg

Transmission crossmember bolted up for the first time

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2920.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2921.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2918.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2917.jpg

Took a couple of quick pics of the manual pedal box in place...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2922.jpg

Thick deadener mats were never going to stay on the firewall, I want to hear every bit of that valvetrain noise

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2923.jpg

And a pic of how it all looks in the bay at the moment .. still so much to do!

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2927.jpg

More to follow tomorrow
Sam

SirNemesis

15-05-2010, 10:33 PM

savage1987

15-05-2010, 11:57 PM

I'm sure I've read about CAE kit clearance issues like that, and have a feeling it relates to the position of the engine mounts. I might be talking shit, but is there any other way they can go on? Upside-down? Other side of the engine?

Nah pretty well tried all options for engine mounts.. tried them on every which way while it was all bolted to the K frame outside the car :) ... at least I *think* I tried every way...

douglas

16-05-2010, 09:20 AM

nice Car Fella!!!:)

with even a mild LS this car will be a weapon :goodjob:

savage1987

16-05-2010, 07:24 PM

nice Car Fella!!!:)

with even a mild LS this car will be a weapon :goodjob:

Thanks champ

That's what I'm hoping :):) I am trying to build something that'll be fun to drive, last forever, and surprise a few people ... reckon it'll tick those boxes :)

80gus

16-05-2010, 08:27 PM

Awesome build good work mate!! bit of a sleeper i like it.

savage1987

16-05-2010, 09:59 PM

Solution to last night's header problems:

http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/458/picture033j.jpg

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/7161/picture034br.jpg

Passenger side:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2931.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2938.jpg

Driver's side

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2933.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2936.jpg

Another hammering down by the steering

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2945.jpg

And just random pics at random :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2946.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2947.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2948.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2950.jpg

That's all we got done today, between polishing H1GHROLLR's twin Lexcen :p and exhaust swapping Dad's WH LS1...

Sam

[TOPGEAR]

16-05-2010, 10:50 PM

looking good =)

i used the CAE headers also, very disappointed. mine sit pretty close to the rails but i didnt have to modify anything up there although the ends on my (the flange) hit on the floorpan/chassis. had to heat the pipes up with the oxy and bend them. also mine was fine around steering arm/knuckle.

has anyone actually rang up CAE and gone nuts cause their stuff doesnt fit ?

does ur sump hit on the k-frame ? ive made up 10mm thick space plates to fit ontop of engine mounts to raise up the engine a bit more.

also my bolt holes for gearbox mount were no where near where they should of been and is showing signs of bending after a couple of drives. might have to strengthen it i think.

in the end its all worth the wait. driven mine a couple times and it just frys tyres like no tomorrow =)

savage1987

17-05-2010, 12:15 AM

;1726997']looking good =)

i used the CAE headers also, very disappointed. mine sit pretty close to the rails but i didnt have to modify anything up there although the ends on my (the flange) hit on the floorpan/chassis. had to heat the pipes up with the oxy and bend them. also mine was fine around steering arm/knuckle.

has anyone actually rang up CAE and gone nuts cause their stuff doesnt fit ?

does ur sump hit on the k-frame ? ive made up 10mm thick space plates to fit ontop of engine mounts to raise up the engine a bit more.

also my bolt holes for gearbox mount were no where near where they should of been and is showing signs of bending after a couple of drives. might have to strengthen it i think.

in the end its all worth the wait. driven mine a couple times and it just frys tyres like no tomorrow =)

My understanding is CAE recently updated their design, probably to this one, which evidently does not work so it defeats me why they thought it was a good idea.

I sent an email off to CAE this evening with links to a couple of posts in my thread on SC (also found in this thread) outlining the header modifications I found necessary, I'm not expecting to hear anything back from them about it but time will tell. I'm unimpressed with the kit over all, to be honest. It fails at being a bolt in conversion kit on all fronts.

I think my K-frame to sump clearance is perfect, 10mm or so, but I will have to have another look to be sure.

The threads in my CAE transmission mount base plate also failed - one completely stripped out with next to no torque applied to the bolt. Thankfully this was fixable, I had room to add a spring washer and a nut to the top of each of the crossmember-transmount bolts.

Sam

hRTHSV

17-05-2010, 08:52 AM

SAm my extractors must be the version before yours because my right hand one doesn't have the little bolt up flange on the header pipe yours appears to have. I had to make a very minor mod to mine and they fitted quiet well.

I added a 7mm plate to my engine mounts to raise it above the cross member and away from the bits you cut out of your cross member braces. I reckon you might get knocked back on that by the engineer, be interesting. I think without the 7mm lift of the engine the axtractor would have cleared the bottom edge of the chassis rail.

savage1987

19-05-2010, 12:41 AM

Fuel pump arrived in the mail today

Waiting on wiring harness and Ripshifter

Still need to find a FPR, steering lines from VT-Z, rad hoses to suit (possibly VT-Z LS1?) and no doubt a heap of other bits and pieces

Hoping for first startup this weekend.

(Also waiting on motivation to swap 2 fuel pumps :( .. Walbro->VN, VN->VR)

savage1987

19-05-2010, 10:00 PM

Ripshifter arrived today:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2955.jpg

Installed:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2956.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2958.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2960.jpg

Random interior shot to show bulk mess and parts storage :p

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2961.jpg

And a shot of my AWFUL HORRIBLE EMBARRASSING roof, which I will hide with a roof lining and pretend like it isn't like this at all :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2962.jpg

Fuel pump install to ensue when I have the motivation.

Sam

[TOPGEAR]

22-05-2010, 09:21 PM

did u use the starter relocation kit ?

my gearbox in mine sat too far back and i had to cut a little section out of the floor for clearance ?

savage1987

23-05-2010, 01:55 AM

;1730168']did u use the starter relocation kit ?

my gearbox in mine sat too far back and i had to cut a little section out of the floor for clearance ?

Yeah I did mate and it all fits in OK.. just needed a custom handle on the ripshifter to come straight up, and not use that linkage setup present in VT-VZ T56s

[TOPGEAR]

23-05-2010, 09:45 AM

hmm im guessing thats why mine was hitting on the floor then ?

savage1987

24-05-2010, 01:19 AM

Tailshaft has been shortened and is ready for install. Thanks to Final Drive Engineering in O'Connor, top job at an awesome price - fully rebuilt, shortened and balanced for $440 with a one day turnaround.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2971.jpg

Fuel tank out..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2968.jpg

Walbro in-tank installed (not much to see really so here's a random photo)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2969.jpg

Couple of pics of how the car sits now:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2966.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2964.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2965.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP2963.jpg

Also picked up a SARD fuel pressure regulator and gauge for $90, and my wiring harness turned up in the mail - $270.

Getting closer. I think I have all the hardware I need to test fire this thing, was hoping to do it this weekend but got caught up in a few other things and lost interest.

Sam

utc305

24-05-2010, 07:46 PM

hi mate just wondering what harness you used for your conversion ?

savage1987

25-05-2010, 11:32 AM

hi mate just wondering what harness you used for your conversion ?

ProVK on SC forum took care of this for me for a very reasonable price. I sent him my original V6 harness and the LS1 harness, and he does all the necessary work and mails the conversion harness back.

VNBT1

30-05-2010, 11:27 AM

isit_ls1t

30-05-2010, 06:09 PM

Hey mate, looks very tuff, I am currently going through the exact same project except i have much less photos then you lol you can have look on etstreet.com if you want. Only difference is i sprayed my bay, have aircon, power streering and a 9inch diff... The motor is started, just working out the fuel pressure now!!

I've got the same project running aswell.. I'm going to run the standard 5ltr fuel rail so as to use the orginal vn fuel system with fuel return. saves dickin about with adding in extra fuel regs and the like

savage1987

31-05-2010, 12:22 AM

You guys need to add me to MSN :) I could use any help you can give with getting this thing driving!! savage1987@gmail.com

SO here’s the weekend’s progress report:

Saturday 7am start, H1GHROLLR kindly came up for the day to help out, which was a good thing since I never get anything done on my own :( ..

Fitted a set of Pacemakers to H1GHROLLR’s VN Lexcen first thing in the morning and I broke a plug doing it :( so we changed those too.

Mark relocated my troublesome coil pack while I ****ed around with removing his old headers, did a bloody ace job too

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3025.jpg

Ended up needing a longer pair of leads for the two stacked coils (yes both, funny story) .. problem solved TEMPORARILY with some V6 leads lovingly attached to the LS1 ones :p

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3027.jpg

Wired up the VN as much as we could figure out how… had zero room above the T56 to reach up and run the loom across there so that’s a problem for another day…

Knocked up a fuel system, when Mark said ‘oi I have found the perfect place for this reg’ I didn’t believe him, but he showed me and I was like :o omg! Yes

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3015.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3013.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3012.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3014.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3019.jpg

Had a couple of fuel leaks the first time it primed.. so much for NPT fittings on the reg. Careful application of Teflon tape quickly fixed that issue. Mark saved me a lot of time by guessing EXACTLY 58psi on the reg’s adjustment first go (!!!!)

Dropped the oil and threw some Penrite 10W-50 in it, figured this batch isn’t really an important decision as it’ll be throw away oil quickly enough anyway.

Had no starter from the ignition barrel for some reason I’ve yet to work out so we rigged up a manual starter wire :p

After a few teething issues we got it cranking over nicely and it was firing on 1 cyl sometimes.. this became 2cyl, but no more. Carby cleaner in the intake worked wonders and got all 8 bellowing out the headers, but only for a moment each time and we’d be back to 2 again and rapidly die.

Diagnosis: ****ed injectors from sitting 12months in an uncapped fuel rail out in the weather.. so I pulled them out this morning and will drop them off for cleaning tomorrow at United Fuel Injection. I pulled the baskets out of all the injectors, they seemed clear of any debris but turning the injectors upside down with baskets removed yielded some weird smelling (sort of like kero?) green-coloured fuel which had flecks of solid matter in it.. yep, solid stuff BELOW the injector baskets. Surely this is my problem :)

More to follow once injectors are cleaned and ready to go back in.

Interior is stuck for the moment, as I need a power windows main loom - apart from that main loom I’m sure I have all the bits I need to get it together.

Also require a VY style charcoal canister as the purge control is different to the VN style canister. And a metal cross over pipe thing from an LS1 VT-Z, so I can hopefully use VT-Z LS1 radiator hoses.

It also deserves mentioning that Owen (Big O from antilag.com forum) has helped me out a LOT with parts over the last week or 2, has been a massive assistance.

Couple of random pics:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3020.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3022.jpg

Cannot WAIT to drive this machine. Should be a bit of fun :)

isit_ls1t

31-05-2010, 09:58 AM

have you connected the correct wire to the starter motor for the trigger.. it comes from the smaller plug of the 3 next to the fuse box.. my wire was a purple one

[TOPGEAR]

31-05-2010, 10:41 AM

if your car was auto, u will need to bridge out the wires under the center console (where the inhibitor switch was)

isit_ls1t

31-05-2010, 10:43 AM

you will be bang on the money there topgear.

savage1987

01-06-2010, 01:06 AM

;1734554']if your car was auto, u will need to bridge out the wires under the center console (where the inhibitor switch was)

I realised this while half asleep in bed this morning :p oops.

I'll bridge it later, for now I'm happy to flick a wire to +ve to fire the starter ;)

VIDEO:

YouTube- Sam's VN LS1

[TOPGEAR]

01-06-2010, 08:53 PM

nice... how long till u drive it ?

savage1987

01-06-2010, 10:41 PM

;1735546']nice... how long till u drive it ?

no idea how long steering will take to sort out. That's the big one.

Also need that power windows loom or i can't put interior back together.

isit_ls1t

02-06-2010, 09:59 AM

what do you need to sort out with the steering.. the power steering hose's ?

savage1987

02-06-2010, 12:54 PM

what do you need to sort out with the steering.. the power steering hose's ?

yeah and need to either cave in CAE's bull shit header pipe more, or grind down that sleeve that connects column to rack... already hammered the pipe in, but still worried about them interfering under load and jamming steering :(

****ing piece of shit headers, don't ever buy them.

got a high pressure line brand new suit VZ LS1, i think the rack end will need bent to clear the header.. have been told I need to heat it up to do that.

isit_ls1t

02-06-2010, 01:04 PM

yeah. ok.. best to heat it and try not to crush the pipe and restirct flo.. hmm i was going to buy there 4 into 1 1 7/8 headers from them.. but seeing your havin so much drama with the smaller tri y's i may not bother.. looks like some custom ones are the go

savage1987

02-06-2010, 01:50 PM

i'd email them and ask for confirmation in writing that they will fit, and money back guarantee if they don't.

stupid ****s, if i had time to deal with it, I'd be on their case trying to get some cash back from them but it's too much of a head **** and i have less than 4wks to finish this car now :(

isit_ls1t

02-06-2010, 02:00 PM

I've been unhappy with every thing that i have brought from cae and the rod shop. nothing ever fits how they say it should. when i got the starter relocation kit they supplied me with a starter for the old cast iron block 350.. when i rang them they told me i was looking at it wrong. lol

i'll probly just buy the headers and modify as required.. I can actually get them cheaper through chris mills in perth rather than direct from cae.. figure that one out heh

[TOPGEAR]

02-06-2010, 10:55 PM

ok let me rephrase my last question...........

how long till we see a burnout in the garage ? u dont need steering for that =) or windows

isit_ls1t

02-06-2010, 11:44 PM

;1736284']ok let me rephrase my last question...........

how long till we see a burnout in the garage ? u dont need steering for that =) or windows

gold.. i know the moment mine starts i'll be backing it out to test the transbrake :goodtime:

savage1987

03-06-2010, 12:13 AM

LOL no burnouts in garage, shed full of hay. :p

After this Friday I am leaving my job to make some serious progress on the car. I want it driving ASAP, not even going to set a deadline because I'll just look like a retard when I miss it.

[TOPGEAR]

04-06-2010, 09:13 PM

well its running now so not far off !!

VNBT1

05-06-2010, 04:12 PM

I've got the same project running aswell.. I'm going to run the standard 5ltr fuel rail so as to use the orginal vn fuel system with fuel return. saves dickin about with adding in extra fuel regs and the like

I tried that too, standard vn pump and standard fuel system/return lines but the fuel pressure wasnt constant, i even tried a BMW X5 external pump that has the fuel reg in it but it didnt help so with the prices of aftermarket fuel regs, pumps and surge tanks i decided to do a boot setup! It saves so much headaches/messing around

yeah. ok.. best to heat it and try not to crush the pipe and restirct flo.. hmm i was going to buy there 4 into 1 1 7/8 headers from them.. but seeing your havin so much drama with the smaller tri y's i may not bother.. looks like some custom ones are the go

I went custom pipes built by professional exhaust in victoria, i couldnt trust people that claim that they made a set of pipes that guarantee fit when i believe every car is different!! Pipes i have sound great and fit perfect even with the little room we all have in the engine bay :)

justin_d

05-06-2010, 04:32 PM

I went custom pipes built by professional exhaust in victoria, i couldnt trust people that claim that they made a set of pipes that guarantee fit when i believe every car is different!! Pipes i have sound great and fit perfect even with the little room we all have in the engine bay :)

Where did you get your's done?

isit_ls1t

05-06-2010, 05:36 PM

[QUOTE=VNBT1;1737512]I tried that too, standard vn pump and standard fuel system/return lines but the fuel pressure wasnt constant, i even tried a BMW X5 external pump that has the fuel reg in it but it didnt help so with the prices of aftermarket fuel regs, pumps and surge tanks i decided to do a boot setup! It saves so much headaches/messing aroundQUOTE]

the only cause of inconsistant fuel pressure is the pressure reg on the back of the fuel rail. so if you had a problem with the fuel pressure not being constant than that was where the problem was.. nothing to do with the the standard system or pump.. you can flow as much fuel as you can to the rail but if the reg is faulty then it will give inconsistant pressures as it will be bleeding off too early.. a simple fix to that would be to have a separate reg on the return line or just buy a new reg

savage1987

10-06-2010, 01:22 AM

adamRSLC

11-06-2010, 04:19 PM

Instead of belting the body with what seems a very large mallet , why not just heat up the extractors with an oxy and massage them to clear any obstructions .

I heated mine a few times to get them to clear various rails / steering components and floor , no biggie just a bit of patience . They are built to a price and work ok , ive fitted a few to VL-VK and VH's and all needed some massaging but worked out fine .

adam

savage1987

11-06-2010, 07:20 PM

walabyraceing

12-06-2010, 03:59 PM

Small progress..

Bent the rack end of the VZ V8 high pressure line and removed the locating tab near the bend to clear the header pipe. This was surprisingly easy, although the first time I bent it 180degrees the wrong way. Boy did I feel like a retard. Anyway 2 directly opposing dodgy vise-and-visegrip spec bends later I had a line that will fit and hopefully do the job.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3051.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3049.jpg

There was a fair bit of stuffing around with bullshit angles and tight spaces to get the steering all bolted up, but a few nasty words later I had it all in place for a test fit, which turned out good enough to become the final fit :) You can't see much of bugger all in these pics but they're an idea of where I'm up to anyway:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3058.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3057.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3056.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3054.jpg

Also bought a black momo steering wheel for it, and one of these is mine:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/tachos3.jpg

hey Sam
I feel your pain and i feel your happness im doing the same thing but in a vh commodore check the link out for photos http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=742506799#!/photo.php?pid=3423468&id=742506799&fbid=146802256799
mine is ment to be getting dynoed this week but having problems with my spacer behind the slave/thrust bearing i cant get gears make sure yours is set to the right specs i thought mine was right untill i took a ruler to mine now its the 4 time the gearbox has been out but hopine it is now sorted out and the box will go back in and hit the track this week mate if you have any problems please pm me and ill see what i can do just somthing i did diff was i had my headers done custom cost abit but i think it was worth it and i used a vh 6 cylender radiator and i had a surge tank made up to take the standed pump so i didnt have to stuff around with return lines mate all the best with the build if you need any help pm me and ill do my best to help

Dave
p.s here is a video of my frist start up taken from a phone
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=742506799#!/video/video.php?v=423856611799&subj=742506799

savage1987

13-06-2010, 12:46 AM

hey Sam
I feel your pain and i feel your happness im doing the same thing but in a vh commodore check the link out for photos http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=742506799#!/photo.php?pid=3423468&id=742506799&fbid=146802256799
mine is ment to be getting dynoed this week but having problems with my spacer behind the slave/thrust bearing i cant get gears make sure yours is set to the right specs i thought mine was right untill i took a ruler to mine now its the 4 time the gearbox has been out but hopine it is now sorted out and the box will go back in and hit the track this week mate if you have any problems please pm me and ill see what i can do just somthing i did diff was i had my headers done custom cost abit but i think it was worth it and i used a vh 6 cylender radiator and i had a surge tank made up to take the standed pump so i didnt have to stuff around with return lines mate all the best with the build if you need any help pm me and ill do my best to help

Dave
p.s here is a video of my frist start up taken from a phone
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=742506799#!/video/video.php?v=423856611799&subj=742506799

Nice mate :) always good to see what other people have done differently, like your radiator! It's backwards to mine, making your coolant lines easier to run.

Got some more work done on mine today, will have an update shortly.

savage1987

13-06-2010, 01:11 AM

Here's the general idea of how my steering setup runs, this would have helped me out to see how others had run theirs so I figure someone will benefit from this :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3063.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3064.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3065.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3067.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3069.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3070.jpg

Bit of slit hose as a temporary grommet to stop my clutch low pressure line from sawing itself open

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3074.jpg

Clutch reservoir mounted, this took an ODDLY large amount of time..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3075.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3076.jpg

Also on the reservoir I had a good laugh at this cast into the plastic

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/P1010544.jpg

Moved on to interior work, as a result the car now has a more complete interior than it has had in 5???? years, maybe longer.

Leftover bits still in the boot waiting on power windows install...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3077.jpg

Never mind the ripped seat, these are only temporary anyway until I find some better ones :) same goes for a fair bit of this interior really

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3078.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3079.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3080.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3081.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3084.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3085.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3086.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3088.jpg

Bridged park/neutral safety switch, the starter now operates from the key which is nice :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3086.jpg

People seem to love writing in my dust :(

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3089.jpg

Also had a crack at bleeding the clutch setup tonight; I'm not really confident it's right just yet, unsure how to approach it due to a couple of weirdly running lines. I have been reading a lot lately about people having issues with the clutch slave setup in these conversion kits, I REALLY hope my box doesn't have to come out again.

Also filled the power steering reservoir then realised that until I start the engine and get the pump going (which I won't until coolant is present) I can't really fill it properly, since the high pressure line comes out the top of the pump and it doesn't seem to want to run down the low pressure way :)... not just by turning lock to lock anyway. No big deal, will do once started with drive belt on. Also connected 1 tie rod end, got sidetracked before doing the other one so I must remember to do that in the morning :p

That's all for now, more to follow tomorrow.
Sam

savage1987

15-06-2010, 04:48 PM

TEST DRIVE DONE
clutch is dicky as ****
like, doesn't release all the way
but shit it's quicker than a 304 or 215i

vysswgn

15-06-2010, 09:32 PM

Mate I just saw the vice grip bends on your pipes further up the page and think you should have a look at this link I find these very helpful while doing custom brake lines on my car

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Brake-line-bender-pliers-NEW-/320546214480?cmd=ViewItem&pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4aa20b1250

savage1987

16-06-2010, 12:04 AM

walabyraceing

16-06-2010, 10:50 PM

TEST DRIVE DONE
clutch is dicky as ****
like, doesn't release all the way
but shit it's quicker than a 304 or 215i

sam took mine foe its first drive today OH MY GOD :bow: GEN III EVERYTHING off to the Dyno on thursday then a few laps arpund eastern creek of friday lets hope so anyway

savage1987

17-06-2010, 05:06 PM

took VN for longer drive
got clutch now after re bleed
started losing gears half way through drive
then lost ALL GEARS ON BOTTOM ROW and half the time top row would pop out
pulled over
ripshifter stops had come undone :) and wouldn't let it engage gears
so pulled them out
drives ok now except having no cyls under load at low rpm lol it drops 2 or 3 cyl, betting plugs / leads are to blame here :)

SirNemesis

17-06-2010, 05:12 PM

You might want to put those ripshifter stops back in, adjust them properly and loctite them before you end up damaging the gearbox...

savage1987

17-06-2010, 05:19 PM

You might want to put those ripshifter stops back in, adjust them properly and loctite them before you end up damaging the gearbox...

I thought it would go without saying, but yes that will be done.

VNBT1

17-06-2010, 07:29 PM

savage1987

17-06-2010, 07:48 PM

Funny that, i took mine for a drive 2 fridays ago and should be back driving it regulary from tomorrow!! Seems the GENIII conversions are all finishing at the same time :) i have minor issues with overheating and the custom OTR is getting finished on saturday!! I cant wait!!!!

I don't even know if I have overheating issues, got no gauge :p need to work out where that CAE brass adapter for temp gauge goes, and what sensor from the V6 fits into it. Their post purchase support is poo I've found :(

isit_ls1t

17-06-2010, 08:05 PM

the temp sender will go in the back of the right hand cylinder head. just unscrew the blanking plug and screw the adapter in. then just use the original v6 temp sender

savage1987

18-06-2010, 12:35 AM

the temp sender will go in the back of the right hand cylinder head. just unscrew the blanking plug and screw the adapter in. then just use the original v6 temp sender

Cheers, I'll have another look. I don't think any of the sensors I kept from the V6 intake manifold (kept all of them) screw into the adaptor fitting... not impossible that CAE ****ed up here also, they already sent me the wrong oil pressure T piece. They make 2, they sent me the wrong one. How fkn hard can it be!!?

other news:

Here's the pic from last time that I stuffed up and missed out - park/neutral switch bridging:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3087.jpg

my awesome throttle cable bracket o.0

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3102.jpg

Coolant plumbing (temporary as it is)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3098.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3099.jpg

unsure why this happens :(

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3101.jpg

Car looked like this for its test runs... and open piped for Mad Max appeal

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3097.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3095.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3094.jpg

Also this arrived today :) instal tomorrow:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3092.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3103.jpg

Getting there :) just need to sort out the way it drives (plugs/leads/f.pressure/temp gauge) then it's time to head to Kwinana to get an exhaust built.

savage1987

18-06-2010, 07:41 PM

OK so my super fantastic VE upgrade kit is shithouse, safety / fitment issues galore, and while it alleges it is ADR approved, it seems engineers have been alerted to dodgy brake line manufacture method present in these kits and will not pass them without a hose upgrade.. :(

There were a few other things about the kit I was not happy with safety wise, I'll copy paste from another forum:

================================================== ================================================== ==

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/VE%20brake%20upgrade/IMGP3115.jpg

^This is how the kit came in the box, there are no bushings for this. It's the "Big Brake Kit":

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3092.jpg

Anyway people are telling me the rim will hold it in place just fine when it's bolted on, but no, surely all that will hold it is friction!! and i bet there is less friction there than there is on the rotors under full brakes!!

Now I know realistically, chances are that once you've bolted the wheel on, etc the first time you brake, the studs will bunk up against one side of the hole then after that it'll probably stay there, unless you do lotsa hard breaking in reverse.

That said, it still does not seem right to me.

Also, for a full kit, it should really come with some instructions on how to fit those gay little metal clips that retain the brake pads. I was told by the supplier that these can be put in 2 ways and that one of those ways is wrong and will score the rotor. Guess what, mine are the wrong way then. WTF. :( I had a bit of a hunt on google but could only find a guide for rear brake pads on VE, not fronts.

Also was under the impression this kit would fit under my 15s, since they are VY 15x7s, but they definitely do NOT. I was then told to reverse the caliper adapter bracket to bring the caliper in toward the hub a little. I did this, and it does not bolt on at all, the rotor interferes with the caliper :(

Anyway main point, someone explain to me how this kit possibly passed ADR with that much rotational play in the rotors!!

================================================== ================================================== ==

Anyway pics of the fail install can be found here: VE brake upgrade pictures by sam_brown_05 - Photobucket (http://s534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/VE%20brake%20upgrade/)

Anyway I now have a bigger brake upgrade lined up for it instead since I can't keep my 15s with a VE kit anyway (no I'm not going VT upgrade.. same money all told for far less gain) and have lined up a set of VP GTS 17s from a mate to get me by for now.

isit_ls1t

18-06-2010, 07:50 PM

that kit looks like an epic fail.. i just use vt calipers and discs and a custom hub

savage1987

19-06-2010, 06:41 PM

oh my word

well my spark plugs must be cleaning themselves, and my 2piece ignition leads must be welding themselves together.. because it's getting better at not dropping cylinders.

ripshift stops adjusted properly, have all gears now every time, no longer have to be scared of synchro grinding.. took it for a run and it impressed me a lot

2nd gear no hope of grip, 3rd gear if you clutch into it hard you still have no grip, 4th gear as speed and revs pick up, you have to watch out, gets loose if you hit a bump at full stick

I'm in love.

VNBT1

20-06-2010, 12:08 PM

Thats sounds tuff mate, what diff gears do you have? Forgive me if you have already said i might have missed it?

savage1987

20-06-2010, 02:09 PM

Thats sounds tuff mate, what diff gears do you have? Forgive me if you have already said i might have missed it?
Stock 3.08 BW gearing at the moment, 3.9s to go in later if I decide it's appropriate. I think it's more the minispool and dual rear sways that really liven things up under power.

savage1987

20-06-2010, 07:27 PM

lazy update in the form of copy/paste from MSN:

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!1! so many problems fixed!!!!!! in one hit!
alternator plug
wasn't plugged in
= not charging system
= running on a half flat battery
= <12V
= <12V to fuel pump
= fail fuel pressure
= weird lights coming up on dash as battery breathed its dying breaths
= i thought it was overheating when it stuttered and died
= ****ING WIN NOW

jump started
went for a drive
came home, reversed into shed
thought **** me i can hear the fuel pump... ???????
got under car
fuel pump whirring like crazy
thought holy shit i'll have 58psi now!!
checked gauge
75 ****ING PSI OOPS

_ANGRY1_

21-06-2010, 08:23 PM

savage1987

21-06-2010, 08:33 PM

yes!! bit of stuffing around to get it all set up 100% (I'm not even close yet) but worth it over all !

isit_ls1t

22-06-2010, 10:04 AM

good work mate, atleast things are starting to workout better now, it will be awesome once you fit a cam
im having a few problems trying to work out if i should sell off my efi 304 setup & go ls1 im betting you would agree the ls1 is much better option

the thing that you would need to weigh up is a) the money and time spent getting the engine in using conversion kits that dont fit they way they should.

You could just spend that money on putting a pro charger or vortech on the 304 and working that. atleast then all parts that you buy for it are designed for that car and will fit without piss fating around. ending up with roughly the same results.

there have been many times during the build on mine i have rued the fact i sold the 304 /t5 from my ss to drop in the ls1/powerglide. although once its driving that thought may change:p

savage1987

22-06-2010, 12:45 PM

Update, after sorting out fuel pressure I took it for a thrash this morning, a WOT run to see if my low rpm and high rpm problems had sorted themselves out..

They haven't.

My new diagnosis is that my engine has a cam in it. After ordering my MAFless to suit a stocker, I was told by the dude I bought it from (SUSPECTSS on here) that there's a strong possibility of cam.

Up high it starts to flutter and carry on (no idea what rpm, need to install tacho), and down low it is all sorts of fail. Midrange is strong as anything.

This is both a blessing and a curse

blessing:
it's a bigger cam, bigger cams are good.
depending what cam it is it might be pure awesome with a set of heads.

curse:
tune is all wrong
don't know specs of cam so will need to haemmorhage money on a dyno
will make passing emissions interesting (apparently for some bullshit reason I have to..)
it's probably (99.9% probably) not the cam I want

savage1987

23-06-2010, 11:58 PM

nearly had a bad slip up tonight. Well, it WAS a bad slip up - sideways and backwards at ~70ph, onto someone's footpath/front lawn.. but could easily have been a LOT worse so I'm .. grateful, not the word, thankful, not the word.. happy? nah not the word.. anyway:

no damage beyond pride and a TINY bend in a 15x7 that I whacked straight with a hammer

Lesson learned: this car now demands full attention when driving, it is all too easy to lose the tail end, especially in the rain (i.e. tonight).

So anyway time for some photos, I've been a bit slack in this department lately:

A better shot of my stacked coils

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3123.jpg

Coolant temp sender installed and functioning well (yes, tested :( overheating is never fun)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3121.jpg

All sorts of temporary fixes in the engine bay.. none of the circled problems are permanent

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3133.jpg

And a few pics of the exhaust tips of the system I got pieced together today, twin 3" most of the way through:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMGP3131.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMGP3130.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMGP3129.jpg

I like them :) they look like they mean serious business!

I'd also like to say that the car, while not easy to handle in the wet, is SUPER FUN to drive and properly fast when it gets grip

I'd also like to *suggest* that it *possibly* does awesome light throttle 'nuts in 2nd gear, in like zero space. Turns on a dime.

And that in the rain, I can now change lanes on the freeway without using the steering wheel.

:)

vx mad

10-09-2010, 02:47 PM

any updates on this

OMR346

10-09-2010, 03:40 PM

Nice work mate. I was going to do the same conversion in my old VP SS, but sold it and bought my SSZ instead.

Just a thought about that VE brake upgrade. The VE's have bigger studs, right? Maybe that could be why they have so much room, becuase they are ment for VE's with bigger studs? Just a though though. Im not sure how much bigger the VE studs are over the pre-VE studs.

savage1987

01-10-2010, 03:53 PM

any updates on this

update is that there is no update.

Sorting out brake upgrade via email from here in Sydney, but car is still with H1GHROLLR and as far as I am aware pretty much just how I left it, which suits me just fine

As soon as I'm back in Perth, whenever that may be, immediately the following will be done if my plan holds up:
brakes
wheels to fit over brakes
interior sorted
cam+tune (heads possible at same time but probably later)
new clutch+flywheel

Sam

savage1987

23-12-2010, 02:33 AM

Bought myself a Christmas present today...

Lunati Voodoo 60511, 222/228 (@0.050"), 113LSA, .567"/.567"
http://image.trucktrend.com/f/8538687+w750+st0/163_0608_aftermarket_15z+lunati+voodoo_hydraulic_r oller_cam.jpg

Lunati 72332 lifters
http://www.byunspeed.com/images/LUN72332LUN.jpg

Lunati 74818K1 valve spring kit - single beehinve springs, I didn't see the need for duals with this camshaft.
http://www.race-mart.com/assets/images/Lunati/Spring_Kit.jpg
^this, but with beehive springs:
http://www.unlspeed.com/ebay/LUNATI_74818.jpg

$1001 all up, excluding freight, coming in from the USA

Also got stuck in to the power windows install, should be done tomorrow all things permitting.

I must remember to get a fitting brazed into my radiator as well, so I can get rid of that hose with a knot in it and cool those heads properly!

savage1987

25-12-2010, 03:01 PM

Power windows done. And central locking done also because I got carried away. :p

savage1987

26-12-2010, 07:54 PM

Small update because the sun started pouring into my shed and it got a little warm ... so I'll sit in the cool and write this :)

Not sure how I'm going to get around this problem..
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/untitled-1.jpg

Engine bay: no change except I got proper leads made to replace the cut-and-shut LS1->V6 extended leads I was using on the pair of stacked coils.
Need to pull the headlights and repaint the base of them silver.
Also pretty keen on a black/white theme for that horrid looking strut brace - that is all sorts of fail. Black supports and white bar, or white supports and black bar - thoughts??
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3167.jpg

I got all the doors together and made sure everything in there is 100% how I want it, I'm finally happy with how the wiring is run, the adjustment on the central locking etc etc so I started with the rear right door and am putting the trims back on. They are a richer more purple colour in real life, for some reason this stuff doesn't photograph very well.
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3157.jpg

I got sick and tired of the birds' nest of wires that were splayed and tangled everywhere under the steering column, so I got in there today and cleaned it up a bit. There's more to be done, I know at least a few loose wires in there can be removed altogether, but that's a job for another day. This is good enough for now :)
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3164.jpg

Here's the ORSM wheels I'm rocking out on for now.. nah just kidding, they aren't awesome at all on this car :( I reckon they look all sorts of fail. Need to change them out ASAP.
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3166.jpg

Now here's just a few pics to show the general state of affairs.. for the last week the interior has been pure disaster. It was bad enough it made me not want to work on the car at all and it was just depressing to look at and be in. This is but a shadow of its former mess; I'm slowly getting through it all.
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3160.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3159.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3162.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3158.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3161.jpg

Sometimes it feels like no matter how much I get done, there are always another ten things that need doing. Some I can rattle off the top of my head..

Speedo needs wired up
Shift light doesn't work
Reverse lights need wired up
Need to find a floor plate to stop the hot air rushing up around the shifter
Windscreen cracked top to bottom
L3 dash cluster trip computer readouts don't work at all
Cruise control needs installing, if I can even get it to work
LS1 computer needs mounting in the factory VN ECU spot, if I can work out a good way to do it
Need to sort out air intake
Fitting needs brazed into radiator for that hose with a knot in it
Diagnostic plug isn't wired in, need to do that and check for lurking electronic fails
Need to find somewhere for that stupid little immobiliser light and imagine in my pretend fantasy world that a little flashing light is going to make someone NOT steal my car.

Anyway I'll go get started on these other door trims :)

Sam

hotbox

02-01-2011, 03:10 PM

hey bud what top radiator hose u using?

savage1987

04-01-2011, 12:50 PM

good question!!!!

I went to Veales with the top hose off a VT LS1, I sort of knew the adjustment I needed based on that hose.

I think it ended up being one off a 2000 or 2002 Subaru, not sure which model though. Was SLIGHTLY too big but a hose clamp took care of that easy enough. Not like it was loose and flopping all over the place..

but yeah, a Subaru one.

savage1987

07-01-2011, 12:35 AM

Some good news...

after a fairly solid day of fixing up random bits and pieces, there have been a few developments.

had a theory about pressure drop across fuel filter, so I turned the fuel pressure up a few PSI to see if it cured the knock of impending doom.. first run to 6200rpm or so was ok, second time i tried it knocked at about 5700 and i jumped off the pedal like a scalded cat :(
engine is now earthed by a nice fat lead to the strut tower.
strut brace became 1000% less gay, painted it to blend in better.
speedo now wired up and functional, more or less accurate (about 10% on the low side at a guess)
reverse lights work fine, and handbrake light started working also
fuses seem to have stopped melting - 20min drive and they're not warm to the touch.
misfire/knock at high rpm seems to be cured - possibly thanks to a decent engine earth.
HIDs installed and working fine, just need to re run some wiring so it looks a little more factory fitted.
replaced all damaged sections of fuse/relay panel in engine bay.
got rid of ugly ass coolant overflow bottle on the strut tower. Mount Franklin bottle tucked behind front bar ftw.
fixed the power steering pump bent pulley squeak with a hammer. Belted the shit out of it and it went perfect. Like, 100% unfaultable. Seriously what the ****, that never happens.

I think that's all.. pics tomorrow if I remember :)

oh and ordered a Powerbond underdrive setup for it - balancer, pulleys and belts. Yayy.

Bad news on the cam front however. Due to JEGS' incompetence I have cancelled my order. It was delayed time and time again and it's reached a point where there is almost no chance of it arriving in time to get fitment+tune done by the 14th EVEN if they had the parts in stock, which they still don't. I will place the order again when I have time to wait for parts to come in stock, probably when I'm in Townsville after February.

Shame, I was really looking forward to that.

And in the meantime, putting in bullshit amounts of research on a new PC build which will be a learning curve for me, having been out of the loop with that stuff for a good while now..

savage1987

10-01-2011, 07:19 PM

OK little bits and pieces happening with this car..

Picked up a set of rotors and calipers from a VY Maloo, 330mm ones.. that should keep the engineers happy once installed along with a quick-fill type master cylinder

Changed wheels again.. now running XHP Jet 18" in chrome, should look ok around the big HSV brakes.

Picked up some new front sway bar link bushes (discovered my brand new ones are fuxxored)
Picked up some new steering rack ends.. gota work out how to install those tonight for a wheel alignment tomorrow, after which I can put my steering wheel on straight, and maybe try to reattach the horn ring that fell off the boss kit while I'm there (###cing SAAS piece of shit don't ever buy their stuff)
Picked up some new battery terminals with a built in voltmeter.. I used to think theses were gay (still do a bit) but they have come in handy on my 304 VN a couple of times diagnosing stupid problems!
Picked up some 4ga power cable to run to my little 2channel in the boot to power up my 6"s in the parcel shelf.

also got some HPR15 and a filter, and some weird looking red coolant concentrate

things I want to get done tonight:

oil change
coolant flush and replace
sway bar link bushes
steering rack ends

and if I get really super keen, paint up those HSV brake rotors so they look pretty again how they once did.

going to be busy!!

savage1987

11-01-2011, 08:18 PM

auto sparky down in town drew me a diagram and sold me enough shit to get the two AU fans running off their own separate relays with a nice fat 60A circuit breaker in place of the blade fuse with some heavier gauge wire throughout. Going to try get that wired up tonight ready for drive down to dyno tomorrow. Meanwhile, bastard shat a water pump tonight. JUST WHEN I GOT HOME after driving back from town where I could have bought one an hour previous... and the day after a full coolant flush and a bottle of red concentrate went in. Vindictive bitch.

stockergts

11-01-2011, 10:26 PM

are you just having a power run or are you getting a tune done?
i have the master at work for you too sam if you can get a double dia booster i have one i can mod to fit that master too

savage1987

11-01-2011, 10:39 PM

are you just having a power run or are you getting a tune done?
i have the master at work for you too sam if you can get a double dia booster i have one i can mod to fit that master too

full tune since i'm not sure on engine specs (unsure if stock cam).. and my tune is poo :)

Shoot me an idea on price for the double diaphragm booster (is it 1inch?), master cyl and hub adaptors, I can bring home and throw it all on in one hit then ... although I've never done a booster / master cylinder; i hope they are straghtforward !! :S

Thanks rodney!!

stockergts

11-01-2011, 10:42 PM

yeah all straight forward mate same as what isaid in the email i just need a booster to replace the one for the vy brake kit i have

savage1987

11-01-2011, 10:55 PM

yeah all straight forward mate same as what isaid in the email i just need a booster to replace the one for the vy brake kit i have

ah shit i see what you mean.... don't have time to chase a booster up man :( epic panic last minute rush mode at the moment...

:(

meanwhile, back at the ranch:

some quick pics, even though they are shit night time ones... :(

rockin' these wheels for now, although I may keep them, they are starting to grow on me..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3185.jpg

interior still epic shit fight...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3186.jpg

where I mounted my HID ballasts.. for now

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3188.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3187.jpg

engine bay slowly getting tidied up / done properly... ah i love how camera flash makes the dust just 'pop'....

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3180.jpg

and my mount franklin bottle ahahahahaa

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3182.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/LS1%20transplant/IMGP3181.jpg

hopefully once Mitch@WAPerf is done tuning her tomorrow afternoon I'll have a solution for the big hole in the floor, and the interior can go back together :)

savage1987

12-01-2011, 05:41 PM

dyno'd at WAPerf today at 326rwhp, happy with that for a stock motor :)

Mitch didn't even worry about tuning it, he said he'd be happy to do it but honestly the AFRs and WOT map were close enough to make no difference.. so we dropped the fuel pressure from 65 down to 58 to make the AFRs prettier and left it at that. said I should just wait til the cam / heads are done and do it all then.

He did however adjust my speedo properly :) so it reads correctly now (was low by 12% ... 3.45/3.08). Although, the car did try to eat a PCM by cutting power to it half way through a burn... think the immobiliser must be to blame there, has a time out on it. :(

picked up a bottle of genuine Holden coolant for it on Mitch's recommendation..

got the thermo fans wired up properly last night.. one relay per fan, 6mm power to relays through 50A circuit breaker. Took me til midnight but they run perfectly now :) kept her cool in traffic and more importantly on the dyno.

Filled the hole in the floor this morning, so much nicer to drive now.. amazing :) I'd forgotten what it was like !

Installed centre console this morning also, that's a pretty major win for the interior although I still don't have a manual shifter surround..

Today I want to try to wire in the stereo, and work on getting the dashboard back together as completely as possible.

savage1987

24-03-2011, 09:34 PM

Still going strong - this car's in Townsville with me now.

To date have only managed a 13.763 at the track up here.. the locals reckon it's a slow track but I reckon I'm just a vagina/spastic/noob on the clutch. All runs end up at 104-106mph, not really a die hard 1/4mile fan so I don't know if that means I should be going quicker or I'm going alright.. 60' times are in the 2.5second area.. which I'd imagine is quite rubbish. Hopefully I can improve this in the near future :)

Meanwhile, bit of work on the other VN, she goes alright for a donkey 5 litre.. and a few odd jobs on this one like sourcing a decent local diff builder for 3.9s and a truetrac to piss this locker off and make it a bit nicer to drive around town, as well as give me a hope of getting it engineered. Got VY maloo brakes I'm preparing for paint and they should be good to go within a week or two.

Really I'm waiting on stable internet access at my place up here to start sniffing out which local workshops are decent and which to steer clear of, and hopefully find some sort of modified car scene which to be honest I haven't really seen much of around here :(

savage1987

21-04-2011, 09:52 AM

had 8 runs on Saturday night with a new best mph of 107.91, and the quickest run so far at 13.26something.

Almost happy with that, but I want a 12 before cam.

Underdrive is on the car as of yesterday, I don't really expect that much difference from that alone though

ADAM 26

21-04-2011, 10:54 AM

savage1987

21-04-2011, 05:11 PM

cool convesion mate. would go a bit better than the old v6!

i had trouble with my cae headers on my big block, they didnt come close to fitting!

hav you thought of getting rid of the pod? that will be suckin hot air and slowing things up i bit!

Yeah mate I need to do some serious research into leaning the radiator back and fitting some sort of OTR, not really keen on running an airbox if I can get away with it..

and yes, certainly worlds apart from the old boat anchor :p

savage1987

19-05-2011, 01:09 PM

Looking for suggestions on a cam.. decided to go a little bigger on it, to complement a nice set of heads.

No longer after the 222/228 113 .567/.567 I was looking at before. I still want to stick with a Voodoo grind for my own weird curiosity mainly, so here's the options:

durations at 50thou'
227/233 113 .584"/.584"

232/238 113 .599"/.601"

237/243 113 .600"/.600"

Just interested to see what people's opinions are on these grinds based purely on the numbers; more info on the range here: http://www.lunatipower.com/ProductGroup.aspx?id=288&cid=60

Before making the final choice I need to do a whole lot more research including having a good talk with Mr Higgins who I'll use for the heads - he's bound to know what will work well with his setups better than most :)

Also need to do a bunch of research on how a shot of happy gas will effect cam choice and generally grow to understand how it changes the overall airflow in the motor.

On that topic, if anyone has any info / tips to share on nitrous setups that work well on LS1s, I am trying to sponge up as much info as I can in that area before making a decision either way.

Getting pretty close to the start of what really will end up being a whole new combination that I've personally never played around with before - I've never even dabbled with a basic cam swap before so I'm really just jumping in the deep end with this one. I don't want to do a half assed job and end up wanting more. This must perform :)

ADAM 26

19-05-2011, 01:17 PM

have a look at some cams on a 110 lsa, will wake up the torque that the ls1 really lacks.

personally, i would not bother with a cam with less than 230/230 duration for a non-daily.

if you want it to really move with a big cam, you will want some 3.9 or 4:11 gears. that will make a HUGE improvement, even with a stock motor.

boggers007

19-05-2011, 01:17 PM

The last cam 237/243 is very similar to gm motorsports turbo killer at 237/242 and that nets some serious power and quarter mile times so id say the lunati on should just do as good as that.

stockergts

19-05-2011, 01:19 PM

sounds like what i said when i started getting all my parts that grew into something much bigger now running just over .650 lift

savage1987

19-05-2011, 02:34 PM

Thing is I want this to still be useable as a daily if/when the need arises.. hence the 113, I'm thinking they will probably throw less fuel out the ass end than a 110 in an urban environment.. bit better on highways too. Or am I way off?

I suppose really even if I get it wrong it's not that big a deal, swapping sticks isn't that hard in these engines after all :p

And I guess fuel use will come down largely to how I drive it.

Got 3.9s in the shed that need to be installed when I get around to it.

ADAM 26

19-05-2011, 03:13 PM

iv got a 109 lsa and drive it everyday, but its low lift and short duration.

the low lsa makes it pull like a freight train. and i get about 450-500km from a tank

savage1987

20-05-2011, 01:22 AM

iv got a 109 lsa and drive it everyday, but its low lift and short duration.

the low lsa makes it pull like a freight train. and i get about 450-500km from a tank

Nice. Definitely food for thought

VNA380

26-05-2011, 10:49 PM

hRTHSV

26-05-2011, 11:41 PM

Sam, after driving my VS with an Ls2, I would make sure you don't have to much grunt down low or you'll just turn the tyres into smoke. I have revised my cam selection for that very reason, no point having to much bottom end if you can't use it.

savage1987

27-05-2011, 04:16 PM

hi mate

currently doing the conversion in my vn nearly got the thing running. What did u do about emissions in regard to a charcoal canister as such? Do u need one for a emissions test and did u run a vacuum hose for ur fuel pressure regulator?

any advice would be great

cheers
I haven't got a canister in mine at the moment, I'm unclear how to go about setting that up. I just blocked off the vac hose on the motor that usually goes there.

There is no vac hose run to my FPR, it's set at 58psi and stays there.

Sam, after driving my VS with an Ls2, I would make sure you don't have to much grunt down low or you'll just turn the tyres into smoke. I have revised my cam selection for that very reason, no point having to much bottom end if you can't use it.
You revised your choice to a bigger cam then? Interesting thought.

hRTHSV

27-05-2011, 04:51 PM

Yes that's right I went a bit bigger than I intended. I would pick the 2nd cam from your list, but I was more referring to the coments about low LSA numbers.

savage1987

27-05-2011, 06:17 PM

Yes that's right I went a bit bigger than I intended. I would pick the 2nd cam from your list, but I was more referring to the coments about low LSA numbers.
Ah I see now, you're saying a 113LSA's possible shortcomings at lower rpm won't necessarily be a bad thing :) This is good news for Voodoo grinds :)

savage1987

10-06-2011, 08:06 PM

Very happy with the Elite Engineering oil catch can!

Now I need advice on engine oil coolers, anyone make a nice setup to suit?

Little jobs getting ticked off the list feel good :)

savage1987

11-06-2011, 12:31 PM

To do list:

sort out a proper air intake
clean up wiring spaghetti in driver's side engine bay
delete that stupid vacuum ball
connect fan adjust vacuum hose to vac so it won't be stuck permanently on feet any more :p
connect up oil catch can (mounted, not plumbed in yet)
get a new damn clutch!
work out where a phantom annoying hot oil smell is coming from
get brake lines made up so i can fit the VY R8 330s
find a couple of minor bits of mulberry interior trim
find some sv89 seats
fix up the rear passenger power window which is stuck at the top
sort out a shifter surround trim piece
replace flogged out bushes in rear trailing arms that the minispool has killed
instal 3.9s in diff or build a truetrac with 3.9s
shroud the FPR properly with a stone guard of some sort
wrap fuel lines in convoluted tubing to prevent friction problems on the top of the tank etc
fix up the exhaust so it doesn't bump on the diff housing over big bumps
probably more i can't think of off the top of my head right now :p

hRTHSV

11-06-2011, 06:30 PM

So why does it have a vaccum problem casuing the vent to always be on your feet?

savage1987

12-06-2011, 09:24 AM

So why does it have a vaccum problem casuing the vent to always be on your feet?
direction of the vents is controlled by vacuum, which is fed by one little vacuum hose up the back of the engine bay. It plugs onto the V6 throttle body from memory, with the vac' ball/canister feeding from the same line.

I don't have anywhere convenient at the back of the LS1 to piggy back it onto a vac hose so it's been disconnected since the swap :p

also add 1 to the list: PIPE UP THE DAMN HEATERS, almost froze to death driving around last night!!

Anyone got tips on what heater hoses to use?? :S

hRTHSV

12-06-2011, 04:30 PM

direction of the vents is controlled by vacuum, which is fed by one little vacuum hose up the back of the engine bay. It plugs onto the V6 throttle body from memory, with the vac' ball/canister feeding from the same line.

I don't have anywhere convenient at the back of the LS1 to piggy back it onto a vac hose so it's been disconnected since the swap :p:S

Sam it should go on the back of the inlet manifold there is a little tree near the brake booster hose. VT - VZ use the same vaccum set up as VN to VS for the vents. I connected mine there VS V6 to Ls2 works fine.

savage1987

22-06-2011, 11:34 PM

found a video!! what luck.

start at around 1:45... YouTube - ‪TEST AND TUNE AT TOWNSVILLE DRAGWAY 2011 AND THANKS FOR WATCHING AND PLEASE SUBSCRIBE AND COMMENT THANKS‬&rlm;

watching the rest on unbearably slow connection to see if there's any more in there

the metal

23-06-2011, 12:11 AM

found a video!! what luck.

start at around 1:45... YouTube - ‪TEST AND TUNE AT TOWNSVILLE DRAGWAY 2011 AND THANKS FOR WATCHING AND PLEASE SUBSCRIBE AND COMMENT THANKS‬&rlm; (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHd9s--Xj_E)

watching the rest on unbearably slow connection to see if there's any more in there

Also your beautiful VN is at 28:45 :goodjob:

Dan.

savage1987

23-06-2011, 04:15 AM

well spotted :)

shame they didn't film that run. maybe i did a shit burnout :(

savage1987

01-08-2011, 10:39 PM

I got around to doing the brake upgrade today.

The list of parts going on was to be as follows:

330mm VY HSV slotted rotors
VY HSV twin piston calipers
VN-VT adapter hubs
s/steel braided hoses
VS V6 booster
VY V6 master cylinder

Started by modifying the VS booster according to this guide (http://www.********************/showthread.php?t=134762).

I moved the calipers aside and stripped everything off the front hubs, changed the sway bar links while I had plenty of space. For the first time in what feels like a long time I was pretty inspired/excited to actually get working on this again.

Discovered it could use new ball joints and tie rod ends, rack end boots and strut boots, those are on the to-do list.

Wiped everything clean and installed new wheel bearings, seals and the adapter hubs with plenty of fresh blue grease.

Installed the new QFM pads into the calipers, and removed the VY brake lines.

Installed the 330mm rotors onto the hubs. Pretty. :)

Removed the VN V6 caliper and flexible line from the driver's side, fitted the new setup. Looked like this:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG254-01.jpg

Trial fitted a wheel:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG255-01.jpg

Started working on the passenger side caliper and the 10mm fitting was pretty damn tight.. felt like it was beginning to round off with the open ended spanner. Here arrived a brain fail of colossal magnitude. I looked at the fitting, thought "a ring spanner will get this off". Only way to get at it was to cut the line beside it. Looked at the caliper and its line, thought "this will make this line worthless but that's ok because nobody wants VN V6 calipers anyway so I'll just throw them out". Got side cutters out and cut the hard line next to the fitting. The hard line. Hard line. Something doesn't seem quite ... oh damn. Damn damn DAMN that was VERY much the wrong thing to cut. Now I can't drive the car til I replace that whole hard line from the passenger side back to the master cylinder. What the hell was I thinking, I don't know how this happened. FAIL.

Gave up at this point since there was no reason to continue and I had other things to do, and I was SUPER annoyed. Left the car on stands for the night til I can HOPEFULLY get hold of a new line tomorrow. I'll do the rubber rack boots and tie rod ends too while I'm working in that area if I can find time to buy some.

So yep. I don't have a car I can drive at the moment. The 304 is out of rego til I organise an inspection and probably fix a bunch of stuff, and this car has no brakes. Little bit depressing really :(

Sam

savage1987

03-08-2011, 03:31 AM

Discovered I still need one more part to finish this off - a VS V6 reservoir. I thought the VN one would do but they attach differently so it doesn't bolt up to the VY master cylinder. That's an easy enough part to find :) so I'm not too worried.

I did manage to get myself a replacement hard line today, got that all fitted up this afternoon - not an easy one!

Fitted the VS booster and VY master cylinder. Only tricky part there was the hole for the brake pedal pin had to be widened by about half a millimetre in diameter. The coil pack I have stacked on top of the other one will need relocated as well :( a line from the m/cyl has nowhere near enough room.

I left it there for tonight since I didn't get any of the other new parts I wanted today. I'll try to get them tomorrow and continue with finishing off the setup if I get a little time.

savage1987

06-08-2011, 02:19 PM

The VY reservoir couldn't be used because it sits at a way wrong angle so the fluid level can't be done properly.

Picked up a VS reservoir

That didn't fit as easily as expected. Drilled some stuff and got it to fit up OK.

The hard lines interfered with my stacked coil pack. While I bumped it one spot forward some of the baked wiring snapped (whoever thought that wiring in contact with the rocker cover was a good idea should be shot) so that needed rewiring.

The new booster / mcyl setup is longer than the original so the bracket onto the strut tower needed modifying as well.

Oh and while I was there I changed the rack boots, and once I had both tie rod ends off and ready for new ones I discovered auto one had supplied the wrong ones. The thread was totally different. SOOOOO the shit ones went back on. I really really fkn hated cars/salespeople/life/the world at this point..

Put everything together, bled it and leak checked - all looks good! Brakes initially felt like shit of course but quickly picked up as they bedded in.

A couple of tiny adjustments are needed before I'm completely happy with it. I need to space out the strut tower-master cylinder bracket a little, because an unforseen problem reared its head when i pulled the mcyl slightly toward the strut tower to fit the bracket..... the pedal box rotated SLIGHTLY, but JUST enough that the clutch pedal now scrapes down the side of the firewall metal bulge thingo around the steering column and it's more than a little bit annoying. I dare say a couple of spacer nuts will sort this out. Apart from that, the brakes need a little re-bleed as I don't think they are quite perfect yet. The first little bit of pedal travel still feels a tiny bit spongy. And a wheel alignment is definitely required as I didn't count the turns taking the tie rod ends off (since I needed an alignment anyway thanks to a pothole) so there is MASSIVE toe out at the moment. Like I think almost 10 degrees massive. I'll do a butcher's rough adjust on it to get me by til I get around to doing new tyres and an alignment :)

savage1987

06-08-2011, 03:24 PM

and a quick pic of the two of them together :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG257-01.jpg

topflyt

07-08-2011, 08:06 PM

Yeah I did mate and it all fits in OK.. just needed a custom handle on the ripshifter to come straight up, and not use that linkage setup present in VT-VZ T56s

did you modify the standard vt-vz shifter or make a new one up from scratch to go straight up?

savage1987

08-08-2011, 01:07 AM

the straight shifter handle was supplied by GMM with the ripshift after I described what I needed on the phone, they had one still there from a batch they had in stock previously. I think it might be the same top handle the corvette setups use but don't quote me on it. There is none of the VT-Z shifter involved except the VY SS gear knob and boot (which I'm still not sure how to get integrated into a VN centre console)

savage1987

08-08-2011, 08:37 PM

so ummmm

tonight I grabbed second pretty hard off a set of lights, was up at the limiter and I gave it very little sympathy with the shift, and I heard a weird snap noise from down the back somewhere. Car started lurching left a bit under power, and had next to no traction.... and the minispooled diff is no longer minispooled.

Snapped her first axle :) I'm kinda upset, but mainly proud lol, and to be honest a little happy because this is the kick in the arse I needed to build my 3.9 TrueTrac diff.

:D now I REALLY need to get the other car back on the road ASAP!!

savage1987

14-08-2011, 09:11 AM

Stripped the front end yesterday to get some new control arms in - Pedders are making me up new front LCAs, and rear upper and trailing arms with Nolathane through them and new ball joints - unfortunately I couldn't get the old LCAs to separate from the struts so I just removed the whole strut/LCA assembly on each side to take in to Pedders. By the time I'd finished stuffing around they were closing so it will have to wait until next week. While I was there I replaced the tie rod ends and threw in some new Superpro mounting bushes around the sway bar, which as it turns out was 26mm from the factory.

Also I'm in the unfortunate position where I've installed new steering rack ends, boots and tie rod ends, but the rack could use replacing. I'm wondering if it's going to be possible to get a reconditioned rack without those parts on it.

I got a quote from Brinks Performance here in Townsville on a Truetrac setup using the 3.9s I have in the shed. It wasn't as much as I expected - $1900, with about a week turnaround.

Fair bit of work going on but it should be well worth it once it's done.

Oh and I got in touch with Joe from AutoTek in NSW (first Momo distributor I came across) and he said if I email him a photo of the steering wheel in this car he will talk me through all the options available for a horn pad - I bought it without one and I think it will look so much better once it's set up properly - it is a good looking wheel :)

Aaaand there's an exhaust leak I keep forgetting about that kinda stinks up the cabin if the windows are up. It's from the driver's side header where it joins to the head. These CAE headers just keep getting less awesome. Should be just a matter of unbolting the header and being generous with some sealant on the gasket then sliding it back in and bolting it all up again.

savage1987

15-08-2011, 01:22 AM

couple of quick photos...

Here's where the car's at right now - doesn't look too happy really haha

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG266-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG261-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG267-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG260-01.jpg

when I figure out how to do a neat boot instal whose layout I'm happy with, this will make its way into the car...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG262-01.jpg

I still need to get around to this job as well.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG263-01.jpg

and if anyone wants slotted 330mm / skyline 4pot brakes to suit a vn/p, LET ME KNOW as these are taking up room in the shed!! They were for the 304 but didn't end up fitting behind the spokes of the 16s.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG265-01.jpg

RB30X

18-08-2011, 02:45 PM

savage1987

18-08-2011, 06:40 PM

Regarding the shifter mate, I've got an LS1 in a Datto 240Z and I bought an shifter from ebay US for cheap as, which included a shifter knob with the 6 speed pattern on it. I think it looks great plus if someone ever needs to drive your car they will know where to find reverse..........eventually.

I actually have a VY SS shifter on it now, just need to work out how to integrate that into the centre console. At the moment it's just sitting out in the open with the leather boot just flopping around :p

savage1987

22-08-2011, 05:40 PM

OK this is where we're at right now:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG273-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG271-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG272-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG270-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG274-01.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/IMG275-01.jpg

There's a new bonnet cable on the way, the new door locks have arrived (awaiting inspiration), and the four rear arms have been re-bushed with Nolathane.

Also discovered the tailshaft bolts had worked loose presumably from the minispool's violent tendencies.. not ideal but there you have it :)

hotbox

22-08-2011, 06:11 PM

where do u live man? intersting setup

savage1987

22-08-2011, 08:50 PM

Townsville mate, which part are you talking about in particular? :) The dual sways? They are coming off due to me not being happy with the link setup.

savage1987

25-09-2011, 10:28 PM

Took the front suspension out of this car today and put it in the 304. This car will get the overhaul I had originally planned for the 5 litre, which should hopefully allow me to move to a much better setup overall.

I don't know what options are available for getting coilovers into a VN, but if there isn't huge (structural) modification involved then I'm very interested in going down this road.

The axle is still snapped clean in two, still chasing options and a bit of free cash to get this fixed (I recently moved house so financially I'm a little behind where I'd like to be at the moment)

Once these jobs are done I can finally decide what to do with the motor, whether it be continue down the N/A route with the cam and head swap or avoid my header fitment issues and turbo it. Need to look into legality for engineering there but in a perfect world that's probably where I'd like to end up.

qwigybo

13-12-2011, 04:21 AM

good write up man :) any more progress lately ?

savage1987

15-12-2011, 08:04 PM

good write up man :) any more progress lately ?
Thanks :)

on the way: Harrop Truetrac LSD centre!!!

getting somewhere finally!!

http://www.harrop.com.au/prodimages/truetrac.jpg

and for anyone who hasn't seen inside these things, they are a helical / mechanical type LSD, no clutches:

http://www.carmodsaustralia.com.au/ecommerce/products/483/harrop-truetrac-ba-fg-irs-ford-falcon-30-spline-harrop99-ttrc9830-0-483-2781-lrg.jpg

:)

A few people have asked why I went this way instead of a Kaaz centre. My answer has always been that a clutch type just seems so much less efficient and I don't like them. It's like they just threw a whole crapload of consumable parts in there that are bound to just loosen up / burn and cause problems over time.

I like the helical design, ever since I first saw them :)

for comparison, a kaaz centre:

http://supercar-engineering.com/sc2/images/prod-KAAZ.gif

Here's the Harrop page (http://www.harrop.com.au/drive_detail.php?prod=99-TTRC9837-00) for anyone interested, contact details are on that site also.

Anyway she's in pieces again at the moment getting a wiring tidy up / freshen up, the battery moved to the boot, this new diff with 3.9s, and probably coilovers while I'm at it. I really do miss driving it. Feels like such a waste having it just collecting dust in the shed.

savage1987

12-01-2012, 09:10 PM

Small progress

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01885.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01884.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01890.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01886.jpg

cthawes

13-01-2012, 07:30 AM

this is really coming along well great job :flip3:

savage1987

13-01-2012, 06:53 PM

Thanks :)

we (well I didn't help much so mostly Brad) have almost finished up the driver's headlight. The loom for that incorporates the thermo fan wiring as well, so it's a bit of a fatter one. I have started re-routing a few wires through the guard from the driver's footwell; not many have to go through there at all which is nice. While I was there I put the bonnet cable through the same sheetmetal so that will be hidden under the guard as well, although the way I am running it will mean it needs extended a little.

Haven't attacked the fuses/relays or the main power wiring yet, but we're getting there.

Also yet to mount the battery box and figure out exactly where everything is going to end up in the boot area.

savage1987

15-01-2012, 11:38 PM

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01899.jpg

still working on this area, too busy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01901.jpg

Still need to cut dust cap to cover up the HID light and allow its associated cables to come out, ala passenger side
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01902.jpg

Starting to take shape:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01904.jpg

Jets!!!!!!!!!! :S with terrifying wire spaghetti!!!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v487/AOD999/DSC01905.jpg
http://archivethumb.foolz.us/board/a/thumb/0560/24/1318833949296s.jpg

savage1987

25-02-2012, 07:23 PM

I decided today I was going to get something done on this car, so I did. I picked something easy and simple - the battery box (lol) - and it took me most of the day to do because I'm pretty fussy with random things and didn't exactly have everything I needed.

I started by deciding where I wanted it and immediately hit a hiccup..
http://www.squaredarches.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=2542#p27141
One of the mount points was right on top of a chassis rail (the one the fuel tank strap is bolted to).

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1812.jpg

Scavenging for some spare metal to make into a bracket led me to a spare VN ECU in a box in the corner. I took the memcal cover off and used that to make a bracket to fix both the chassis rail problem and the height difference between the mounting points.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1809.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1810.jpg

I decided four tech screws would be plenty to hold it to the floor pan, thinking about the forces that'd be applied under accel/braking and considering the solid mount on the opposing side I was happy with that. I triple checked the position and mounted the bracket to the floor.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1813.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1814.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1817.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1815.jpg

A quick test positioning..

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1811.jpg

Drilled the hole in the bracket for the mounting stud

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1820.jpg

I realised one of the supplied mounting rods would require shortening because of the setup of my little bracket so I got onto that with a hacksaw.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1818.jpg

I figured it'd be easiest to drill the holes in the box (positive, ground and vent tube) before it was mounted to the car so a bit of guesswork followed and I drilled three 7/8" holes to suit the same grommets I've been using to cable through panels in the wiring relocation (the Moroso-supplied grommets weren't big enough to comfortably get 0AWG through). I drilled a fourth hole in the boot floor for the vent tube outlet at the same time.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1821.jpg

The little bit of rust-coloured stuff was annoying me to look at, so I popped the grommets out and sprayed the local area with grey primer just for my own peace of mind.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1823.jpg

Final fitment of the box was actually quite an annoyingly fiddly process, and God help me the next time I need to get the battery out of the car - those mount studs actually do not mount solidly enough not to turn, so the nylock nuts that fasten the battery down actually just turn the studs when you try to undo them. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I'll probably get the nuts under the car welded in place, and the studs welded into those.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1825.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1826.jpg

I wasn't happy with how the battery was free to slide forward and back even with the hold-down bracket firmly in place, so I found a very conveniently sized piece of wood to chock it back with.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1827.jpg

Unfortunately not enough thought went into cutting the carpet and a patch of floor is visible :( but it's not the end of the world.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1830.jpg

I'm pretty happy with the way it looks in the boot so far - I sat the lid on loosely to get a better idea of the final finish.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1831.jpg

Battery box aside, here's a few pics of the front end just for an idea of where it's currently at.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1833.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1834.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1835.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1837.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1838.jpg

tantrum

26-02-2012, 10:48 AM

looking good mate. glad its you with the wire nests though...it would frustrate the hell out of me haha

savage1987

06-03-2012, 07:09 PM

Put in another hour or two on this tonight, didn't get that much done but here's a couple of pics anyway:

I wasn't happy running the wire through the big obvious hole in the rear firewall so I gave it its own grommet

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1913.jpg

This is how I plan on securing the power cable along the sill. If the room is there I'll wrap it in convoluted tube between mounting points to reduce rubbing on the cable insulation over time/kms.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1915.jpg

I used my last two 22mm grommets on the vent tube - I can't do much more around this box until I get more. Turned out neat enough I guess.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1917.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1919.jpg

hotbox

07-03-2012, 12:05 PM

coming along well lad, well done for having a crack at it yourself ;)

savage1987

07-03-2012, 08:26 PM

cheers, appreciate the kind words :)

Diff is finally in at a shop - the housing is acid bathed, I'm picking it up empty tomorrow to take it in for powdercoating and I'll get my new nolathane bushes pressed into it while it's out and about. Progress!! Just in time to go away with work again next week so this will all stall again :(

savage1987

27-03-2012, 08:41 PM

Going to have to get some better photos, and needs a bit of tidying up (and a belly full of oil) but it's a step closer to fitment!!

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo4.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo1.jpg

A smashed off stub in the minispool that came out

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo2.jpg

A bit of a twist in the non-snapped axle's spline (which you can actually barely see in this photo)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo3.jpg

So I have a little painting and attention to detail to go on with before she goes back in, and I'm going to ask Harrop what grade of oil they recommend then buy the best I can find (within reason), after all you only have to fill it once if all goes to plan :)

I have next week off work so I'm really hoping I can get it running again.

savage1987

31-03-2012, 10:39 PM

Today's progress:

Tape-and-spray (http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1924.jpg) job on the diff cover. Primer then gloss black. Came up OK I think!
Filled the diff with some Castrol GTX 90 mineral oil for its 300km gentle run-in.
Fitted new handbrake shoes, adjusted with a bit of guesswork.
Watched some plans I drew up for a mate's sub box coming to fruition making a mess all over my shed :p and now there's dicks drawn on the windscreen and back window of my 5.0L in the sawdust..... this is why we can't have nice things :p

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1926.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1927.jpg

Mate took a couple of photos of me struggling to fit my new handbrake shoes. These things are more of a bastard to change than I had ever imagined. If there is a trick to it, I do not know it. :)
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1929.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1930.jpg

savage1987

02-04-2012, 06:41 PM

I put in some work on the battery box today, been hurting my brain as to how to wire that end up for a while now so I decided it was time to tick it off the list.

I'm going to cut the screws off short but I don't have the right tool for the job at the moment so that's been put on hold.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1942.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1945.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1946.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1947.jpg

Unfortunately the battery terminal popped right off the end of the cable as soon as I was done taking photos, so I'm going to need to find a way to make sure that doesn't happen! Any tricks/tips welcome, I really thought it'd have been in there tight enough but the sharp bend in the cable just put too much strain on it and it wiggled itself out when I moved it.

Here's a pic of where my isolator switch is going to end up that just isn't cool enough to go on display in the thread so it gets a link: http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1952.jpg

And here's a couple of pics of everything from last night all said and done.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1941.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1940.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1936.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1938.jpg

Also spent an hour or so this morning hating on old cars while adjusting my handbrake cable to correct spec. While this was happening I made the horrible realisation that the tailshaft bolts I painstakingly installed last night have to come out again because I still have to swap clutches :(

Feels like I'm getting somewhere finally! Long way to go on the wiring yet, though.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1949.jpg

dogsballs

02-04-2012, 07:31 PM

both of my stub axles had twisted input splines when i pulled my smashed 4.11's out recently. supposedly very common.

Underdog

02-04-2012, 09:28 PM

Diff came up nice. I've never seen one done in white before but it's very clean looking. Great build

Adam007

02-04-2012, 09:55 PM

As someone who is doing an LS1 into a VL I enjoy reading your thread mate, keep the updates flowing!

savage1987

02-04-2012, 10:13 PM

Diff's actually silver - just a lot lighter than it looked on the colour swatch :p I like it though.

Adam007 - thanks for the kind words! More coming I assure you - I have a week off work to play with :)

savage1987

04-04-2012, 07:19 PM

Little bits of progess, got a negative battery terminal that should let me finish that area off. Also earthed a cable for the battery so the boot is pretty well taken care of.

Got a stud through the passenger side of the trans tunnel hump that gives a nice short run to the starter motor under the car, and a grommet next to that for some 4GA to the alternator.

Test fitted the sill panel and it doesn't fit. Need to clearance it around each tech screw I used to hold the 0GA in place.

Couple of other bits and pieces but that's the main stuff.

davemoni

04-04-2012, 11:18 PM

savage1987

05-04-2012, 10:15 AM

hi good writeup. Am putting LS engine in VK. Is the vl k frame best to use? Is it different to the vk one? What steering rack did you use? I see everyone seems to have problems with clearance in this area so I want to make it as easy as possible.
Dave
I'm not sure on the differences in the K frames but as far as I know they are fairly close to the same from VL-VS, not sure about earlier but wouldn't be surprised if same again. I used the factory VN V6 power steering rack, and yes I have trouble with clearance to the shitty CAE headers.... I hear Pacemaker's new release VN LS1 headers don't have this issue so I'm looking to move to those once my steering wears a hole in these ones.

Sorry I can't give you more than that :)

savage1987

05-04-2012, 10:31 AM

Someone dug this up for me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He4U76kkm_Y

don't know how to embed it here

Adam007

05-04-2012, 06:08 PM

Have to bring it down to Mackay once Palmyra is back up and running and go for a run on a decent strip mate. Maybe make a weekend out of it and pop into see Jezza @ HDT :)

savage1987

06-04-2012, 10:17 AM

Yeah for sure! Would be worth a drive. Have to run the diff in properly first though :p not going to go hammering this one straight off the bat like the last one haha

...........UPDATE

Well a fair bit of progress was made last night.

Got to a wrecker during the day and picked up a VX bonnet cable and a few spare main fuses.

It was actually surprisingly easy to route the bonnet cable around the outside of the guard and inside the top radiator support panel (or whatever it's called) so it's all neatly hidden. Cable was the perfect length for it; the only problem I had was the little cable crush-clamp's screw stripped its thread, so I threw a bolt/washer/nylock in to take care of that.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1963.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1965.jpg

Brad was working steadily away on the driver's footwell area - I pretty much left most of that to him because he's much better at soldering than I am :) .. and he's done a pretty damn good job of tidying everything up into manageable bundles.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1956.jpg

With the starter / alternator wiring I started by choosing the best possible path (as much clearance to the exhaust header as I could manage), placed a grommet and a power stud through the floor from the cabin, adjusted the cabling to length through the grommet, attached terminals and wired everything up before test fitting the alternator and finalising the setup. Once I was happy with how it was running I did as nice a job as I could manage with convoluted tubing and eletrical tape in an awkward-to-get-at spot. I'll probably need to revisit this harness later on with some heat-proof insulation but I'll see how it goes. I think there's about 50mm from the header at any given point.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1957.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1962.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1959.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1958.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1966.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1967.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1968.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_1969.jpg

It's also worth mentioning that on the advice of the bloke who built my engine harness for the conversion I routed the battery sense (white) wire from the alternator plug straight to the positive post on the alternator. Is there a reason they don't do that from factory? Or is that the difference between a 1- and 2-wire alternator? I have no idea but it seems to be charging fine anyway.

Oh, funny story. I did one of those amazing things I seem to have such a habit of doing, no matter how careful I think I'm being. Choosing the spot for the power stud, I drilled a 2.5mm hole first to make sure I was in the right spot. Sliding under the car I decided to move it about an inch to a better location. I drilled another 2.5mm hole and decided I was happy with that, sliding back under the car to confirm of course. I got the holesaw ready, thought about what I was doing to make sure I wasn't cutting the wrong hole, then proceeded to cut the wrong hole. Damn. Anyway it turned out fine, just not the ideal spot I'd have liked to use.

A few more hours connecting things and stuffing around with less-than-ideal battery terminals saw everything ready for testing. We checked over everything we could think of, hooked up the battery and flicked the isolator on - lights came on and nothing shorted out :) .. turned the key to 'on', the immobiliser disarmed nicely and we had a healthy 4bar fuel pressure. The battery barely had enough left in it to turn the motor over but it got there.

At the end of the night's work we had achieved startup - on the first attempt. It wouldn't idle very happily but I'm putting that down to what is probably 6 month old fuel. There's still a lot to get done before it's ready to drive anywhere but it's a damn good start! Now I can get on with tucking all the wiring away and getting the body back together. Here's a little video for anyone interested ..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDqtDg_PECY&feature=g-upl&context=G230a6b8AUAAAAAAAAAA

savage1987

08-04-2012, 11:22 AM

yesterday's progress:

Adjusted and mounted wiring so it was (mostly) out of the way.
Got all interior trim panels back on except the sill panel.
Crafted an under-guard-mounted washer bottle from a dishwashing liquid bottle and some cable ties, a grommet, some silicone and a bit of garden hose
Guards back on
Front bar and grille back on
Lowered onto 4 wheels again

Short test drive

Needs hard core wheel alignment so I'll do a tape measure job on that for the moment.. and the only thing so far I've found that doesn't work is the headlights. High beams work fine so the HIDs have power, hopefully just a dud fuse/relay. Really kicking myself I didn't check the lights BEFORE putting all panels back on. Got too excited and forgot to :(

dogsballs

08-04-2012, 11:42 AM

good work. reckon put it on interceptors :)

savage1987

08-04-2012, 12:33 PM

good work. reckon put it on interceptors :)

It was at one point :) but they don't fit over the VY HSV brakes

I don't like the Jets. I've got a set of VZ R8 19s to go on it, just need to get them here from Perth. Should look a lot nicer with those.

dogsballs

08-04-2012, 01:54 PM

can you run the 16's?

savage1987

08-04-2012, 04:10 PM

probably fit VE 16" stockies but I don't see it being worth the effort, at all. I'd rather keep a set of nice wheels on it and forgo the 'stalker' look :)

savage1987

14-04-2012, 10:38 PM

Thermo fan fuse blew before they got a chance to turn on, I guess 20A was always going to be optimistic for both the AU fans coming on at once.. I put a 30A in there to see if that one has more luck. (edit: don't think so - pretty sure it blew tonight)

First lot of diff run-in Kms are done so I dropped the oil (pain in the ass, no drain plug in a VN).. and gave it a bit of a flush with some fresh oil from my Kincrome Giant Syringe (I like to think it's actually called that), resealed the cover and refilled it with the same cheapo stuff - LSX90 for now, will put some better oil in it later.

I decided the brake lines would be a quick job to do while I was in the area. Fail. Took hours. 2 out of the 5 10mm fittings were too seized for my pipe spanner to undo, had to butcher them off with a combination of pliers, rage and incredibly sore hands. New braided lines are present all throughout the car now. Bled the brakes to finish up and called it quits for today.

Adam007

15-04-2012, 12:09 AM

Hey Sam, yeah those AU thermo's draw massive on startup, I always thought twin 30 amp's were the go. Have heard of them when combined melting 40 amp fuses.

RE the diff, the VL is the same with no drain plug, I actually think they are the same, a borg warner unit.

Also i went through the pipe spanner business recently, ended up using a pair of vice grip's and then heading to the local brakemart store and getting new hardline's made up! Was cheaper then what I thought, whole rear diff hardlines fore about $40.

savage1987

03-06-2012, 05:48 PM

VZ R8 19s are on their way to Townsville. Hopefully I don't come across any fitment issues with them - their offset is a little different but I don't think it'll be enough to ruin everything.. I hope :)

Holiday in Perth is nice. Got just under a week left here now.

CapriceLS1

11-07-2012, 12:01 AM

savage1987

12-07-2012, 08:22 PM

Hey Mate,

congrats on the hard work paying off! can I ask a stupid question, would you do it all again? would you recommend doing doing it? I only ask as i know someone wanting to attempt this conversion but it looks like a lot of messing around, what power does it make & has it been on the quarter??

cheers
I would do it again, yes. Particularly because I have a sentimental attachment to this car, but even if I didn't I consider the gains to be worth the cost (conversion cost, perhaps not total cost including me stuffing around with other setups before LS1..)

326rwhp (stock, exhaust+MAFless+underdrive)
13.2 @ 107mph (I'm not much good at launching it, also changed tyres and diff gears since then but haven't had another run yet)

savage1987

13-07-2012, 06:33 PM

Sneak peek :)

I'll endeavour to get some better photos up eventually but this is all you get for now!

Before:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo.jpg

After:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/photo2-1.jpg

:)

savage1987

14-07-2012, 03:31 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2511.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2513.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2515.jpg
http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2516.jpg

savage1987

21-07-2012, 05:00 PM

Today I finally got around to doing one of my least favourite jobs to do on a Commodore... thankfully everything went fairly painlessly...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2520.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2523.jpg

Swapping struts back between the two cars so the good set (King/Koni, new bushes / ball joints) wound up back in the LS1. Of course, the brakes had to be swapped over as well. Nothing is ever as straightforward as I want it to be :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2524.jpg

While I think of it, does anyone know if these seals should be 'stuck down' with anything, or are they supposed to rotate on their seats? To me it seems like that should create heat, and wear them down/out over time and grease will go everywhere.... or am I jumping at shadows?

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2528.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2529.jpg

anyway here's a bunch of generally random happy-snaps...

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2525.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2526.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2527.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2530.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2531.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2532.jpg

:)

savage1987

02-08-2012, 06:51 AM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2571.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2572.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2574.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2575.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2576.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2577.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2581.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2584.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2585.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2586.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2588.jpg

savage1987

02-08-2012, 07:07 PM

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2590.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2591.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2593.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2594.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2595.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2597.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2598.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2599.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2602.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2605.jpg

savage1987

08-08-2012, 08:57 PM

OK, time for another mini-update.

Repair work finished up on the rear today. The photographs do not represent any particular milestones, they are just randomly taken whenever the mrs got a break from her work, so don't be alarmed by unfinished bits and pieces.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2656.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2657.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2658.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2659.jpg

By early this afternoon the work on the rear window area was finalised and primed up. Getting close now!

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2672.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2671.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2673.jpg

I'm not really sure why I'm getting so excited about this (really once all is said and done the car will look exactly the same) but it's something I'll know is fixed and that will make me really quite happy :)

The front window was removed as well, to assess the level of work required. They expected quite a bit although only one spot was really visible by just pulling back the external trim/seal. You can see that spot getting some careful attention in this photo.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2663.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2662.jpg

That spot turned out to be severe enough to leave a hole....

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2666.jpg

...which didn't last long before it was all plated and welded up

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2670.jpg

Fortunately, very little rust was actually present and that one bit was the only section requiring any form of metal repair. I had expected a far worse scenario in this section, for example:

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2676.jpg

You can see in the foreground of this photo a previous repair. Not sure how long ago that was done but it must have been a while because I've owned this car for 6 years now and I certainly never had it done.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2665.jpg

You can see in this photo another spot on the top right where a previous repair has been conducted.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2669.jpg

A few finishing touches before primer was applied.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2674.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2675.jpg

This is where we leave it for today - I think some more work was done this afternoon but it will be finished completely and ready for pickup tomorrow evening, just in time for me to give it a quick diff oil change (required, Trutrac warranty) and wheel alignment before the weekend's 2800km round trip to the Gold Coast to pick up my beautiful new car :) (new to me, not new new).

savage1987

19-08-2012, 09:30 AM

Bit more progress... finally got around to doing the job I've been putting off for 18months or so.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2724.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2727.jpg

What does it mean if my plugs are really bright shiny white :p a bit lean but probably still OK?

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/SAM_2733.jpg

savage1987

20-08-2012, 08:43 PM

Have had some problems over the past few days.

http://forums.justcommodores.com.au/lsx-development-modification/202956-ls1-wont-turn-after-new-clutch.html

Long story short, thanks to CAE's shit product lineup I have to effectively do the entire clutch instal a second time without even being able to start the car in between.

JezzaB

20-08-2012, 09:33 PM

You need to sort out that tune. Those plugs are insanely white and its lean as hell!

savage1987

20-08-2012, 11:07 PM

You need to sort out that tune. Those plugs are insanely white and its lean as hell!

yeah maybe, not on the top of the to-do list.

Mitch@waperf had this on his dyno and the AFRs were within safe spec.. has been a little slow lately though so maybe pulling timing.

Don't care to be honest...
It'll get a tune whenever I get around to heads/cam. For now maybe I'll check the FPR is still set where I left it. Don't even want to look at the car at the moment to be honest though..

JezzaB

21-08-2012, 08:40 AM

Get over it, shit happens :) You will spent more time procrastinating and posting about redoing it then actually doing the job.

Put on a box of beer, bbq and invite some mates over and get stuck into it

savage1987

25-08-2012, 11:07 AM

OK last night saw some good progress.

I clearanced the adapter plate so now there are no more issues with it interfering with the flywheel.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/clutch/SAM_2748.jpg

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/clutch/SAM_2751.jpg

The clutch was all fitted up OK very quickly after that, and I took some measurements to check the slave cyl would be in its 'happy place', and all was good.

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/clutch/SAM_2769.jpg

Here's my little helper who wouldn't sit still long enough for a photo where he was actually looking at the camera :)

http://i534.photobucket.com/albums/ee345/sam_brown_05/my%20VN/clutch/SAM_2770.jpg

Couple of mates helped me get the gearbox up, everything went smoothly but it wouldn't slide the last ~7mm to sit flush against the bellhousing. Three times we had it down and up again before realising you can't do it with a fully bled up clutch system.. dumped all the clutch fluid (again) and it bolted up OK although we did use the bolts to run it in the last stubborn 3mm or so, which I was comfortable with because I knew it was located correctly in the spigot bearing by that stage and it didn't take much to bring it home.

Tailshaft was next, then 'box oil, then Ripshifter, then exhaust.

To check it was all OK, we raised the back up onto another set of stands and gave it a test run. Clutch function was all normal, no turning wheels in gear with clutch in, etc etc, all good. Such a relief :)

Test drive!!

Mandatory test of a new clutch... lays nice fat lines.

Unfortunately I did manage to flatspot both front tyres in a bit of a surprise braking situation (damn these over-capable HSV stoppers!), super annoying 'wub wub wub' sound now especially noticeable at slow speeds. I'll flip those tyres to the rear for the drags this afternoon so hopefully a few staging burnouts should round them out a bit.

If I do manage to race, wish me luck as I try to break into the 12s! 13.2 was the previous best, with shit tyres, a stuffed clutch and 3.08 gearing ... decent tyres, a new HD clutch and 3.9s will hopefully be enough to counteract me being rubbish at launching the thing :p

savage1987

25-08-2012, 02:37 PM

OK I have just finished some last minute prep before scrutineering opens in a couple of hours.

Rear wheels swapped with fronts, hopefully burnouts fix that flat spot issue by just wiping the whole top off the tyres :p

Replaced the rubber exhaust hangers at the rear - 1 snapped weld and 1 broken hanger resulted from all the exhaust up-and-down-ness over the last week.. Nothing I can do about the weld right now but the fresh hangers will hold it well enough for now.

Changed the circuit for the thermo fans. I put the old 50A circuit breaker in again instead of the blade fuse setup that just flat out didn't work. Fans operate correctly now and it was surprisingly easy although it was in the tangle of wiring behind the driver's kick panel :p

I do have an almost completely torn gearbox rubber mount, but I don't have time to fix it now so I'm going to just hope for the best.

Hopefully it all goes to plan :)

savage1987

26-08-2012, 11:11 AM

Well I didn't get my 12.

$2500 on diff and $1500 on clutch as well as better tyres, and I got a slower car now :p but I think only because either I can't drive it, or the Townsville track (which is closing down) is pure rubbish.

First run 16.7 @ 96mph, had to get off throttle because I ended up in the other guy's lane. Just went all over the place.

2nd run 13.670@106.13 with a better 60' of 2.173. RT 0.919 so that was a bit off the money.

3rd run 13.246@106.63. This run I finally got my 60' under 2sec (which I've been trying to do for a while now) with a 1.974 and a 0.569 RT.

The first run obviously had no grip at all, even into 3rd it just went everywhere. The second and third runs were later in the night (couple of hundred cars there) so they must have stickied up the track a fair bit :) and I had no more trouble with wheelspin even off the line, so I probably could have gone into the launch a lot harder. I didn't feel like waiting an hour to do another run though so we called it a night.

I did get video but it turned out poo, so I'm waiting and hoping the Townsville dragway fairy has video'd all my runs again and that they turn up on youtube soon. :)

SICK SS

26-08-2012, 11:18 AM

come down the road to palmyra mate and bring all your townsville budys with ya

savage1987

26-08-2012, 12:35 PM

Yeah I think that's the plan in future. Should be a bit stickier of a track there too, from what I've heard.

savage1987

16-12-2012, 12:42 AM

Well things have taken a turn for the worse today.

I hit quite a harsh bump recently (Townsville people will be familiar with the Dalrymple Rd floodway) and things started to go downhill. I slowed down for the dip and pushed 3rd gear for a hard pull up the other side, for no reason other than to feel the torque and get a little rush :). The car quickly began running rough and shaking quite violently when I tried to put any power through it, and it smelled strongly of fuel. I limped it the 2km or so back home and did a quick walkaround while it idled - roughly - to see if I could find any signs of an obvious fault. I didn't find anything of use except to notice the exhaust was making weird pulses that pulled my hand back onto the pipes sometimes, and I'd almost certainly broken my T56 mount because everything seemed to be moving more than normal.

The next morning I started it up and had another look. With a rough idle and a totally different exhaust note and a smell of fuel I checked out the engine bay to find the driver's side header had separated a little from the head and the rearmost cylinder was spraying fuel vapour out the resulting leak so quickly that it was actually forming droplets in addition to the fine mist. One of the pipes at the rear (the right hand one) was pulsing with vapour (possibly fuel but I couldn't really smell anything on my hand) and the exhaust from the other pipe seemed clear and fine.

I crawled it up the sloped driveway into the shed with difficulty - lost lots of power - and left it there for a couple of days. The odd startup yielded the same symptoms, obviously, since it wasn't going to fix itself.

I've been having trouble starting it lately (unrelated) and the trouble seems to be with the ignition switch itself. I figured that was an easy one I could handle so I pulled it apart and cleaned it up. I put it back on to test whether I'd fixed anything to find out, annoyingly, that if anything I'd made it worse. That's neither here nor there, just a side story. What is relevant here is that when it did finally crank, first it fired lazily and failed after a couple of seconds, then I tried it again and it cranked and fired into life but immediately stopped with a nasty bang and a sound like dribbling fluid, but no sign of any leaks anywhere. Cranking it after that was hit and miss; I couldn't get it to run at all, sometimes the cranking stopped with a nasty clunk and it sounded like the starter would come out and engage the flywheel, but something had jammed it.

Hoping I was wrong about the sound, I tried it again this morning. I just wanted it to run for a few seconds so I'd know the motor was, internally at least, OK.

The cranking started and ended with a pretty horrible bang. The shaft of the starter motor broke in two.

Unsure where to go from here.

Quark

16-12-2012, 06:09 PM

If it was p!ssing fuel into cylinders it's not impossible that it hydraulically locked on cranking. Not something I've seen before, but your other thread mentions excessive fueling. Pull the plugs on the suspect bank and check for liquid fuel in a cylinder.

When you say you drove through the floodway, it wasn't flooded was it?

savage1987

16-12-2012, 09:43 PM

When you say you drove through the floodway, it wasn't flooded was it?
haha no, it's just a terrible piece of road. Like this \___-->___/ very very harsh transition to suddenly uphill.

I'm thinking liquid fuel in there as well, noticed today my oil stinks of fuel too.

Quark

17-12-2012, 12:02 PM

The internals probably won't be pretty if its hydraulically locked. :(

savage1987

20-12-2012, 05:06 PM

Finally got the starter wreckage out of the way.

Got a full revolution by hand with no noticeable grinding/seizing, so that's a good thing I guess. Did it with the plugs still in. I did hear a weird amount of bubbling/squirting noise from a cylinder though, like fluid bubbling, but nothing came out anywhere, so my guess is either air bleeding back into the fuel line through a buggered injector under compression, or fuel being forced down past the rings, or fuel getting sucked INTO a cylinder under vacuum. Next thing is to pull the fuel rail and see what happens if I prime it while I can see all the injectors I guess.

Quark

20-12-2012, 05:21 PM

That sounds better than a worst case scenario. Good luck!

Woodchukka

20-12-2012, 09:03 PM

is either air bleeding back into the fuel line through a buggered injector under compression, or fuel being forced down past the rings, or fuel getting sucked INTO a cylinder under vacuum. Next thing is to pull the fuel rail and see what happens if I prime it while I can see all the injectors I guess.

You say what now? Injectors will not be subject to compression from engine unless it is direct injection and if fuel (or anything else) is getting sucked in past the valves under vacuum you have bigger issues. If an injector is leaking under fuel rail pressure then it could fill a port and drop into the cylinder when the valve opens.

savage1987

21-12-2012, 11:01 AM

You say what now? Injectors will not be subject to compression from engine unless it is direct injection and if fuel (or anything else) is getting sucked in past the valves under vacuum you have bigger issues. If an injector is leaking under fuel rail pressure then it could fill a port and drop into the cylinder when the valve opens.

Right you are, never mind me :p I am definitely losing the plot.

savage1987

28-12-2012, 04:36 PM

I decided to get back into it today and pop the fuel rail up to see if I have a dud/leaky injector that filled a cylinder up with fuel when I primed the system like 100 times (shitty ignition switch) before starting it up... but I got sidetracked and now I'm sitting in my air conditioned study with a piece of the PCV hose arrangement in front of me, sneakily modifying it so my catch can hoses will end up wayyyy neater than before and hopefully still factory-looking.

Hard to explain without pics and I'm very lazy and haven't taken any, but the catch can setup was a mess so I'm making the hoses run much more directly than before and should remove maybe 12" of hose in total. Doesn't sound like much but when they loop all over the place it'll make a big difference to general tidiness. Maybe once I've put it all back together I will actually get around to pressurising this rail and see if any injectors squirt/dribble when they shouldn't...

Anyway, back to chopping and rearranging this hose, sneaky under-factory-foam-sheathing-spec.
:)

................

lifted fuel rail, turned ignition on

fuel POURING out of that driver's rear injector. that cyl would have filled to the brim in no time, it's a wonder it cranked at all. REALLY hope no more damage but that's potentially a real bad scenario in there... :(

Now to swap injectors around and see if it's the harness or the injector itself..

on a positive note, the new PCV setup looks nice, and it's going to be easier than I thought to hook up a carbon canister as well. Don't know why I didn't do it ages ago. Probably order a brand new one to avoid getting a VT LS one that's full of shit :p