the sawtooth build thread Options

[sawtooth]

Wanted to start a build thread for my na suby conversion. The car is my newly acquired '73 2.0L fi. It is very clean, appearance group, 2nd owner, 88K. I currently use it as my daily driver.



I want to do a suby conversion because I believe the overall package will have the performance, drivability, and dependability I'm looking for.

EDIT: I've changed motor selection slightly and am also taking a bigger plunge by going with a suby trans, see Post #49.

[sawtooth]

Back on the project. Since my last update I have decided to go with a different motor, 2000 ej25 n/a SOHC, usdm, 50K. Also using EMS stinger stand-alone ecu. Outfront is building the harness and setting up the base tune this week. This setup will give me much more potential for n/a power then my original 2.2/2.5 combo. Should give me solid 200chp+ for now and potentially 250chp later, with no turbo lag and no ic and ic heat to deal with.


Gave up on the engine bay cooling route, there's room but just didn't want to mess with it. I'm hoping that just opening up the oil cooler holes and using a decent double pass cooler will be enough, we'll see. Homemade gt valance for now, I'll get a real one later.


Didn't cut anything in the front except for opening up the existing oil cooler holes. Still room for a space-saver spare too.



Also decided to do a subaru trans swap sooner rather than later (thanks for the encouragment bigkat_83 and dbcooper). Got a an early 5spd and will have the new engine cradle finished by this weekend. The SmallCar engine mount arms aren't going to work for this setup. Sent the axles off to Dutchman for re-spline to match up to the suby inner cv. Having them shortened by 2.25in for a total of 18 in. I came up with this amount after measuring and re-measuring where I wanted the final length to be. Depending on ride height, foward position, and personal preference yours may be different, so don't assume this measurement is universal.


Found these for building the trans mount at Summit Machine...excellent service & very high quality stuff.


I'll be welding these to the stock suby trans support and will be using a slightly different approach to the engine cradle, more pics coming soon.


I also picked up an '85 mr2 cable shifter with stock cables from a local wrecking yard. I'll use the stock cables to get the bracket assembly built, then get everything in place and replace with correct length cables. Looks like it'll fit nicely into the stock console with slight modification to the tunnel.

[strawman]

Great project (from another Suby guy)! In the pic above, did you weld that bar connecting the longs to stiffen things up, or as part of the engine mounting system?

Also, are you able/planning to flip the intake manifold (so the throttle body faces forward)? That might preclude you from having to cut too much into the rear firewall for the intake air filter tract. On the earlier engines, the intake mounting bolt patterns on the heads permits that... although I had to develop a custom alternator mount and reroute some hoses/wires after flipping the manifold.

Keep up the great progress!

Geoff

[sawtooth]

Great project (from another Suby guy)! In the pic above, did you weld that bar connecting the longs to stiffen things up, or as part of the engine mounting system?

Also, are you able/planning to flip the intake manifold (so the throttle body faces forward)? That might preclude you from having to cut too much into the rear firewall for the intake air filter tract. On the earlier engines, the intake mounting bolt patterns on the heads permits that... although I had to develop a custom alternator mount and reroute some hoses/wires after flipping the manifold.

Keep up the great progress!

Geoff

Hey Geoff,
That bar was put in place originally as a mounting point for an engine bay radiator. After scrapping that idea I decided to keep it in place for now. It seems like a great place to mount my battery down low and forward, and possibly other items, as well as adding some reinforcement.

Still haven't decided on the intake position. I want to keep the option for a/c open. With the 901 trans, the output shaft location allowed the engine to sit just far enough ahead of the trunk wall to fit an elbow in for the intake. But now with the suby trans, wanting to keep the output shafts lined up you can see it's pretty close to the trunk wall. I believe I'll try to flip it for now, and may move it back later if i decide to do a/c, then I'd have to cut the trunk wall.
- Dean