Greetings everyone,
Looks like this is my 100th post on the 986forum and as much as I want it to be a video of me firing up the ol' LS Boxster we're not quite there yet! However I wanted to take a second to thank everyone for following along on this adventure, it wouldn't be as fun if you all weren't along for the ride!
Well I got a bit more together this week and am starting to get down to the little things. All of the main bits are in place and now it is a matter of making it all work together! The exhaust is the last main component I need to get in place and was able to get most of it sorted out this weekend. After that I need to finalize the cooling system then figure out the wiring and hopefully this bad boy will be rollin'!
*Technical bits - For those who are taking notes*
Transmission spacing - I ended up with about 1/4" spacer or 2 fat washers. Gave me the clearance I needed for the shifter while leveling out the motor in the engine compartment a bit. I'm sure every installation is going to be a bit different so just make sure you have clearance where you need and adjust accordingly.
Porsche Coolant Sensor - I answered some PM's about this but I don't think I went over it here. The GM computer needs the coolant temp sensor on the block to run and tapping into the wires can screw up the signal so If you want your coolant gauge to work in the car the easiest thing to do is add a Porsche sensor to the LS block. Both cylinder heads are already tapped for GM sensors so all you need to do is locate the GM coolant sensor and pull that plug out on the opposite cylinder head. The thread pitch on the Porsche sensor is 14 x 1.5mm which requires a 12.5mm or 1/2" drill, luckily the GM sensor is small enough that there is plenty of meat to drill out the GM threads and tap it with the 14 - bada bing~
So the focus this weekend was on getting the exhaust sorted out which is probably about 75% done, although the hardest part is done! Still need to hang one muffler and sort out the tail pipes, then i'll need to weld in the o2 sensor bungs and finish up all the welds. Hopefully i'll get that done tomorrow - boss is away for a few days
Here are some pictures to help explain things...
Old factory axles vs. FEQ axles - the FEQ actually has a larger axle shaft and looks pretty good! We will see how long they last! Need to look into getting some upgraded ones made...
This is the X-Pipe mount in progress... I took the factory aluminum bar off and found a nice piece of steel to bolt in its place, a bit of hammering and twisting and voila!
So my original intention was to have the x-pipe sit flat up top, but space is at a premium and I had to bend the last inch of my mount which gave me just enough clearance to tuck the x-pipe in up top at an angle and tack it into place.
Once the X-pipe was mounted to the transmission I began connecting the pipes, I made a mistake on this first pipe which caused me quite a bit more time/frustration because I got in a hurry. I should have angled it a bit more out of the V-Band clamp to give better clearance to the outlet of the x-pipe to the muffler. No big deal, just took longer to fabricate the output to that muffler as I had to make a few tight bends happen to make it all work, the other side will be straight out to the muffler!
From this photo it is hard to appreciate the trickery it took to get this freaking muffler into place!!! HEED MY WARNING MY FRIENDS! That V-Band Clamp on the muffler... yeah it could be there forever, we will see when I take it apart! Needless to say clearance is tight there too...
Well this side took a bit more trickery on the cat to x-pipe bit, but as you can see this time we have a straight shot out to the muffler!
So that about sums it up for this week... as always feel free to comment or ask questions!
Here is this weeks quick video:
https://youtu.be/GBc76XCD3fI
THANKS!
J