My 3.3L Subie Conversion Thread, Got me some 914rubber stuff Options

[Mueller]

Bummer about the stud, on my 1.8 I used an electric heat gun from HF to heat the area on the case where the stud was. I used the double nut method since I broke my stud remover year ago and keep forgetting to buy a real one.

Glad to see forward progress on this. Keep it up!

Glad you liked the 3.3 , that ought to confuse a few people when they see that on the car.

[Chris H.]

Thanks Mike! Yes I like it a lot. This year I have a bunch of little stuff to work on on the 914, nothing too serious.

And yes Kent, I will post more than one pic of each project (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) !

I knew about the head stud beforehand so it was all good. Luckily it twisted right out once I got the correct tool. Explains why it was suddenly parked. On an air-cooled engine a broken stud would probably cause a little wobble, but when you lose a stud on a Waterboxer the coolant leaks out. I was all but sure I would do a conversion but now I am thinking about putting it back together and turbo'ing it with a low pressure turbo. That's for the other thread though (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) .

Side note: If you are thinking about a displacement badge like I got, consider getting a matching "914" as well. My plastic "914" looks like crap next to the new one and has a broken post. Will probably be reaching out to you again soon Mike.

[motoTrooper]

Hey Chris, making progress were ready to put an engine in!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-hHcJIREVE

[motoTrooper]

Hey Chris, don't know if you're still having issues with the megasquirt but I happened upon this guy's videos and he seems like he's solved some stuff in his swap. Hope it helps or entertains at the least.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2goHLEVvkh0

[Chris H.]

Wow that is a great build! Thanks for the heads-up. They are turbo'ing it as well. Looks like you're Scorpion is really coming along!

[Chris H.]

Well it's finally been warm enough to test out the new aluminum coolant tank I was so dang proud of. And...it leaks. At first I though the cap was the problem, but after looking closely at it while running it's definitely got at least one pin hole in the weld around the coolant neck. It just weeps a drip or two once in a while after it pressurizes. I'm not a good enough welder to fix it, and I don't HAVE a good enough welder to either. Just thought you should know in case anyone is thinking about buying one.



Might go back to the globe if I can't get this fixed. There is a version with no puke valve in the back.

[A&P Mech]

That's a bummer! I bought my expansion tank from Canton racing. It has worked out perfectly. https://www.cantonracingproducts.com/cgi-bi...&key=80-202

I purchased it from the garage sale section and paid around 80 bucks because it was scratched. To be honest I still haven't found the scratch? Great product and good service.

Ray

[Chris H.]

Thanks Ray! Not a bad option.

[A&P Mech]

Here is a picture of it mounted. I made a bracket that allows me to bolt it into the stock relay panel mount.

[Chris H.]

Here is a picture of it mounted. I made a bracket that allows me to bolt it into the stock relay panel mount.

Very nice Ray. Always rewarding to avoid making any holes if possible. I have no experience with aluminum but after a few searches it looks like it could be fixed. It takes quite a bit of pressure for it to start leeching coolant. Probably be able to use a brazing rod. I’ll try to get a video of it. If I mess it up no big deal.

[BIGKAT_83]

Send that tank down here and I'll welder it up (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)

Bob

[Chris H.]

Thanks Bob! I THINK I fixed it but we’ll see. If not I’ll send it right down. I brazed the holes with aluminum brazing rod. Now I just need to drive it around a while and see if it holds.

[Chris H.]

Of course I can't leave the car alone...so I swapped over to a horizontal radiator similar to rnellums' setup last year and it's working fine, but can't stop thinking about this one:



It's out of the Renault Alpine A310 V6 3.0. Monza-looking car that was not imported to the US.

So the original radiator I wanted to use years ago was the the 4.0 Jeep Cherokee rad but unfortunately it was too wide. This one is JUST narrow enough to fit. It's 10" tall and just under 31" wide. It would stand up vertically in front so I could push it almost flush with the front of the car. My only concern is whether it is large enough to cool the EG33. Assuming yes since the Renault is a V6 3.0l mid engine with radiator up front, but I guess there's only one way to find out. If it was a $50 RAD I would just go for it, but these are ~$200. What do you guys think?

Link to e-bay ad with more info:

Renault Rad

[76-914]

Is that Celica set up not working for you Chris? How's everything else working? Did you get it running to your satisfaction? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[Mueller]

Of course I can't leave the car alone...so I swapped over to a horizontal radiator similar to rnellums' setup last year and it's working fine, but can't stop thinking about this one:



It's out of the Renault Alpine A310 V6 3.0. Monza-looking car that was not imported to the US.

So the original radiator I wanted to use years ago was the the 4.0 Jeep Cherokee rad but unfortunately it was too wide. This one is JUST narrow enough to fit. It's 10" tall and just under 31" wide. It would stand up vertically in front so I could push it almost flush with the front of the car. My only concern is whether it is large enough to cool the EG33. Assuming yes since the Renault is a V6 3.0l mid engine with radiator up front, but I guess there's only one way to find out. If it was a $50 RAD I would just go for it, but these are ~$200. What do you guys think?

Link to e-bay ad with more info:

Renault Rad

How the heck did you stumble upon this radiator? Talk about rare and obscure! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) I'm shocked someone is actually making this for such a small market, crazy...looks good.

[Chris H.]

Hi Kent! The Celica setup worked fine but I switched over to a BMW Z3 rad lying flat like Ross has so that I could reclaim the upper half of the front trunk. It's working well but this Alpine rad keeps calling my name. It SHOULD be a perfect fit and stand up right against the front trunk.

Car is running well. I bought a chipped ECU that really smoothed the power curve out. How about yours? Did you drive that V8 beast yet?

[Chris H.]

How the heck did you stumble upon this radiator? Talk about rare and obscure! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) I'm shocked someone is actually making this for such a small market, crazy...looks good.

An embarrassingly lengthy internet search a while back Mike..(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) . Just kept searching for the dimensions until I found one that might fit. I agree...how many of these could they POSSIBLY sell??? I have never seen an A310 in person.

[mgp4591]

Hi Kent! The Celica setup worked fine but I switched over to a BMW Z3 rad lying flat like Ross has so that I could reclaim the upper half of the front trunk. It's working well but this Alpine rad keeps calling my name. It SHOULD be a perfect fit and stand up right against the front trunk.

Car is running well. I bought a chipped ECU that really smoothed the power curve out. How about yours? Did you drive that V8 beast yet?

Pictures of your flat radiator setup would be great to see! Do you vent out the bottom or somewhere else? And the Alpine radiator looks suspiciously like the stock SVX radiator that I've planned to use. If you go the way of standing it up in front, how will that affect the trunk space you've got left and where will you vent it? And it's good to see you have the chipped ECU also! It works great in the SVX now so I can only imagine the difference it makes in a smaller chassis.... Did you pick it up used or send yours out?

[Chris H.]

Sure I can add some pics of my current setup. Right now it's sitting a little high on a somewhat temporary mount but you'll get the idea. I have not added any ducting yet so I assume the air flow is pretty undirected and could be refined. Before I finalize the install I want to be SURE this is what I'm sticking with. Air exits out the bottom. If I go to the alpine setup I could still build a shroud similar to (but much wider than) an oil cooler shroud angling downward to the floor vent.

The SVX rad is actually quite a bit taller than the Alpine rad. The Alpine is only 10" tall, whereas the SVX is about 15" tall and not quite as wide.

Regarding the chip, it's actually an earlier version of the ECUTune chip. Same map and also allows you to use 87 octane if you want. There is a switch that you install that retards the timing a bit in 87 octane mode...so...I won't be using it unless I do a long road trip or something. I actually bought the ECU with the chip installed from a guy who did a bunch of Vanagon conversions. Really smoothed things out.

[mgp4591]

Sure I can add some pics of my current setup. Right now it's sitting a little high on a somewhat temporary mount but you'll get the idea. I have not added any ducting yet so I assume the air flow is pretty undirected and could be refined. Before I finalize the install I want to be SURE this is what I'm sticking with. Air exits out the bottom. If I go to the alpine setup I could still build a shroud similar to (but much wider than) an oil cooler shroud angling downward to the floor vent.

The SVX rad is actually quite a bit taller than the Alpine rad. The Alpine is only 10" tall, whereas the SVX is about 15" tall and not quite as wide.

Regarding the chip, it's actually an earlier version of the ECUTune chip. Same map and also allows you to use 87 octane if you want. There is a switch that you install that retards the timing a bit in 87 octane mode...so...I won't be using it unless I do a long road trip or something. I actually bought the ECU with the chip installed from a guy who did a bunch of Vanagon conversions. Really smoothed things out.

Since the Alpine engine is a 3.0, I'd think the cooling would be sufficient. It's also mounted in the front too, correct? And I didn't know it was only 10 inches tall! I'm measuring around 17 on the SVX radiator and I'm still thinking about the venting solution but I don't want to go out the bottom - I'm trying to keep it as stable as possible at speed and in crosswinds since we have more than a few of when I drive out of state - almost anywhere results in desert.
And the switch on the chipped ECU is a neat option especially if forced induction is added. The availability of fuel options on road trips is nice to manage too - I'll have to look into that as an option. Thanks for the info!