Build thread

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Sun Apr 27, 2014 9:14

FDEEZ wrote:So about 30min worth of work left over...give or take?

Haha, I wish.

RXMiles wrote:Love it, can't wait to see updates.

Thanks! Hopefully one of the updates soon will be "IT'S RUNNING!" lol

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Fri May 02, 2014 9:14

I haven't been working on the car much for a while now, but doing little things here and there and collecting parts for the upgrades. I'm still waiting on FFE to get back to me about a coil mount, but I think in the mean time I'm going to weld one up because I got the harness from Ludwig today and I think he made it to fit the way I was planning on welding it, not the way FFE likes them.

I think installation will be more involved than I originally though lol. I'm guessing I have to run it through the passenger side of the cabin, and then through the firewall somewhere. I'm just not sure how I'm supposed to get it through there.

I'm still debating what to do about the fuel situation. After getting the Stealth pumps, I talked to HPP to see about getting the parts to connect to the bottom of the pumps and they said they couldn't find anything that works with them. DOH! So, I have a few options...

1. Suffer while installing the Bosch pumps with the HPP TNT.
2. Try to rig something to work with the Stealth pumps and the HPP TNT.
3. Try to find a Hyperion sump cover for the stock plastic sump in the tank.
4. Try to find a stock sump cover that apparently came on the later series FDs in Japan (which I'm currently trying to do).
5. See if I can make a sump cover or a modified one that sits a little higher, effectively making the top half as deep as the bottom half.
6. Make a surge tank to sit directly under the pump hanger.
7. Make a tank that goes around the pump hanger and drops in with it.
8. Wait for CJ Motorsports to make their system which MIGHT be out this fall.

To accomplish 7 and 8, I have to pull out the stock plastic sump, which is the point of no return because it will be destroyed in order to pull it out. I'm not quite sure I want to do this just yet. I've thought about buying a spare fuel tank and doing it to that one instead. And if it doesn't work out, oh well.

I've been cleaning the house and cleaning the garage, and I put up some Mason jars to use for nuts and bolts (like has been done for decades), and I've been checking threads on every nut and bolt I have and putting them in their respective jars, and I got this thread checker to help with that.

Now I just need to figure out where to put it and finish cleaning the garage. Then it's onward to the sheds for parts inventory, selling, organizing, and cleaning! Well, maybe I'll try to fix the car before this. But if I get it fixed, I'll want to be out driving on nice days instead of doing the sheds lol.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Mon May 05, 2014 9:14

I put everything back together this afternoon and put new gas in the tank...no deal. I swapped out the ignitor...no deal. For one, I'm pretty sure my battery is toast because I have to keep putting the charger on it to jump the car with 150a. Furthermore, I'm wondering if a mouse chewed some wires or something. For it to just not start at all is really weird. Also, when I first jumped the fuel pump through the diagnostic box in order to prime the lines, I heard what sounded kinda like a thump. Almost like an exhaust pulse. It scared me a little, and I smelled for smoke. But it didn't scare me enough to not try to start it lol.

$crillaTor · Postby **$crillaTor** » Mon May 05, 2014 9:14

Very confusing... I'm sure it will turn out to be something stupid. Blown fuse or some crap.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Mon May 05, 2014 9:14

I hope it's something that simple, but so far all the fuses and relays check out.

FDEEZ · Postby **FDEEZ** » Tue May 06, 2014 9:14

Is it cranking but not firing? Or does it not even crank?

VRx8 · Postby **VRx8** » Tue May 06, 2014 9:14

are you getting spark on both leading and trailing? are you getting fuel? does it want to start? does it just cranks ? New plugs?

This is crazy, wish you had Haltech to do Team Viewer so I can see whats going on in the ECU from here.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Tue May 06, 2014 9:14

FDEEZ wrote:Is it cranking but not firing? Or does it not even crank?

It cranks, and at times it seemed like it wanted to start, but not last night. I'm still having a problem with what sounds like the starter clicking, but that might just be due to the battery being crap. I'm going to swap that out and get back to troubleshooting.

VRx8 wrote:are you getting spark on both leading and trailing? are you getting fuel? does it want to start? does it just cranks ? New plugs?

This is crazy, wish you had Haltech to do Team Viewer so I can see whats going on in the ECU from here.

I put the test light between each spark plug and wire and it lit up each time. The fuel lines are pressurizing, and the injectors checked out good, but the only thing I didn't check was to see if the wires to the injectors are activating them. I have no idea if it wants to start actually. Sometimes it sounds like it, but not recently. A few weeks ago or so, the last time I messed with it, one time it sounded like it wanted to start, but not since then. The plugs are fairly new. And Zico and I cleaned them and then heated them with a torch to try to get them to fire the last time we worked on it, and got nothing.

I think I'll get a new battery, make sure the alternator is working OK (although that doesn't have anything to do with my current problem, at least I don't think it does anyway lol), and try to pull start it.

Back in 2008 when I took it to SR Tuning to get tuned, I filled up at the gas station across the street on the way. The next day, Frank (the tuner) called and said he couldn't start it. Turns out the fuel was bad, which we discovered after a couple hours of troubleshooting. We swapped the fuel and had to tow the car around the block twice to get it to start. Then it ran fine. I can hear exhaust pulses, so it sounds like compression is good but I can't be sure. As far as I know I'm getting good fuel and spark. But it does sound kinda weird when trying to start. I think it does anyway, I barely remember what it sounds like lol.

FDEEZ · Postby **FDEEZ** » Tue May 06, 2014 9:14

speedjunkie wrote:It cranks, and at times it seemed like it wanted to start, but not last night. I'm still having a problem with what sounds like the starter clicking, but that might just be due to the battery being crap. I'm going to swap that out and get back to troubleshooting.

Definitely sounds like a weak battery. When I first moved to the Springs, my batteries were horribly drained. After unflooding my motor (caused by multiple starts using a weak battery), I tried starting the motor using my Napa battery charger (in 75A Start Assist mode). It didn't work. After using the Napa charger to recharge my batteries, the motor finally started.

Over the weekend, the Napa charger charged my batteries...but I only got about 3 cranks before both batteries (wired in parallel) were completely drained. I figured the charger must be broken, so I went to Autozone and bought the Schumacher SSC-1500A charger. After a few hours of charging, my Optima Reds performed like brand new and the motor fired right up. There was a significant difference in performance from switching from my Napa charger to the Schumacher. I'm still ditching my Optimas though :-)

I can let you borrow my charger over the weekend if you want. Or we can try jump-starting your car with my diesel truck :-) That has 2 batteries wired in parallel as well, lol...definitely enough starting Amps there. For me, I don't trust the "starting-assist" mode on most chargers. Other than heating the crap out of my batteries, I've never had luck with those. I can't imagine how much heat your 150A starting-assist creates.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Wed May 07, 2014 9:14

Actually the charger I have is a Schumacher, but I don't remember which model. Either way, that's why I want to get a new battery. The Yellow Top I have now says that it's charged all the way, but I think the cranking amps might still be way low. I know the charger makes a difference, but maybe not enough. That's why I also want to try tow starting it.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Mon May 12, 2014 9:14

Zico pulled me and we pop-started the car right away, and he said the rear wheels locked up when it started, indicating the compression is good. I drove it back to the house and it died when I let off the gas. We pulled it back up the hill and I rolled and pop-started it and drove it around the block a couple times and back to the house. I let off the gas slowly and it idled on it's own. It got up to 215 degrees and the fans kicked on. I kept my foot on the gas to keep it going and let it idle on it's own with the fans on. They turned off and it idled until 215 again when the fans kicked on and it died. Later on we put gear oil in the engine and it started, then I let the engine suck in Sea Foam to clean out the carbon, and then water to clean all that out. Anyway, it won't start under normal cranking, but will start with oil in the engine and/or pop starting, and THAT indicates low compression. So I'm not sure what to think.

Another problem is something I believe to be electrical. I had the battery tested last week but I'm still not fully convinced it's good. And if it's not the battery I REALLY don't know what it is. When I crank it, the first crank is usually strong, but when I try again right after, it cranks real slow. If I wait a bit, it will usually crank strong again, and then slow again. Almost like it has to build up power again. And when it cranks slower the voltage is lower, like around 9 and 10v, as opposed to when it cranks strong at around 11 and 12v. FDEEZ brought a couple batteries over and we tried those and also hooked them up together with no luck. I took out the grounding buss bars that I put in a while back, no luck. I took out the breaker on the power cable of the battery, no luck. Tonight I disconnected the ground cable to the transmission from the battery, no luck.

Postby **RX-7 Chris** » Tue May 13, 2014 9:14

It really sounds like a grounding problem. There has to be a ground you are missing. How is the ground from the battery to the body?

FDEEZ · Postby **FDEEZ** » Tue May 13, 2014 9:14

The battery grounds, battery power, and starter were all good.

In my opinion, I think the problem is in the ignitor area. If anything, the ignitor may not have a good ground with the chassis.

speedjunkie · Postby **speedjunkie** » Tue May 13, 2014 9:14

Yeah actually my grounding is quite excessive lol. It might be an issue with ignitor grounding. I do get spark though, and it runs fine once it's already started, so I'm not sure. Maybe I'll go ahead and install the new coils and see lol.

Website · Postby **Shadowden** » Wed May 14, 2014 9:14

Maybe you are too well grounded and all the electrons are going to ground as opposed to running the vehicle.

Sorry I don't have anything useful to add.

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