Introducing "Dirty Penny" - Former $2010[$2012] GRM Project, Running. Driving. Boosting. FUN! Options

[jpnovak]

I wanted to introduce myself as a new member to the World. I am new to the 914 but not new to air-cooled. I have two 1971 911s; a T - soft-window targa and an ST-replica track car. I am sure I have seen many of you on Pelican. With the 911 I have done it all, rust repair, paint, engines, transmissions and chassis setup. I felt it was time for something new.

Introducing my new project. "Dirty Penny"

Penny is a 1975 Porsche 914. She has been sitting unattended for a while. I found her at a friends house under the old oak tree. Penny is wearing copper metallic paint and had a white interior. Penny arrived without a heart. I am going to give her new life.

Penny will be built as a Grassroots Motorsports $2010 Challenge car. For those not familiar that means you have $2010 to build a car where it competes in a concours, drag race and autocross. The prize? Notoriety in GRM and ridicule from those who already think you are nuts and cheap. My wife doesn't affectionately call me Fred Sanford for nothing. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Here are a few pictures of Penny being unearthed from her previous home. The TX sun has not been kind to the paint, nor the interior. However, the dry climate has left her remarkably rust free. There is rust in the Hell Hole that has been previously cut out yet never welded back in. Rot is almost non-existent.

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How much money I have left to spend on the project.

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The plan is simple to do well at the Challenge. Get a car that handles well. Strip the weight out of it. give it some extra HP. Let's see... A 914 handles well. they are already pretty light. but the Type IV doesn't lend itself to high HP without major $$$.

A bit of late night ebay browsing and I came across a JDM Subaru EJ20G drivetrain. Yes, that's what I need. ITs still a flat-4 - yet has to be water cooled and makes 140+ HP/L in stock trim. I like it. The vendor was in Dallas which means reduced shipping costs. Yep, that's the rule. you must account for ALL purchases.

The new heart and soul... Oh yeah it will have soul!

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to be honest, work has been crazy and I have 13 months to build the car. Progress won't be fast. I am excited to make this go forward. The challenge of swapping the entire drivetrain begins with connections. The engine mounts are easy. Trying to get the shift linkage, clutch linkage and throttle cable done on the cheap is not so easy. I know there is a wealth of information on this site. Thanks to all those who have traveled this road before me.

Until the next update...

Now I have to figure out how to post images on this site rather than link external.

[jpnovak]

I thought I would bump this thread since I finally moved on to get some progress completed.

The car and project goals are still alive. Just delayed a year or so. Life, family and work got in the way. Now I am committed to getting Penny to the Challenge! Hey, I have an extra dollar to spend this year.

I will update some pictures later tonight but thought I would give a brief description of my progress (and lack of).

1. The cooling system is in. I bought some EPDM heavy wall hose from McMaster Carr. This 1.25" ID/2"OD hose runs under the car through the floor stamping recess that outlines the center tunnel. Like others before me I snake the hose between the front suspension cross member and steering rack. In the rear I machined adapters that step from 1.25" up to 1.5" using scrap aluminum. This mates to the factory Suby inlet/outlet. Looks clean and is leak free.

Interesting note: Red hose is $0.40/ft cheaper than black hose. Guess what color my radiator hose is. Besides, red is faster right?!

2. Shifting system. I used Evinrude boat control cables I found on eBay for $5. These mate to welded adapters on the shift-select rod.

In the car I installed a manual shifter from a Nissan Versa. I know its not the same as most other builds but there are a few notable differences. First the shift cables exit the front and then loop down through the tunnel. Worked perfectly with my long boat cables. SEcond the shift position is fantastic. The shifter knob is located to the right about 6", back about 3" and middle of the wheel for height. My hand naturally drops of the steering wheel and onto the knob. The throw is about 3" front-to-back and about 2" side-to-side.

Oh, I was the one with he DIY Bremar kit. Shifting works great now.

3. Fuel system. I pulled the tank and cleaned it out. Then I made my own rust etch and ended up with a nice, internally clean tank. I used a Ford Crown Vic fuel pump. Also used on the 98 F150 and a bunch of other Ford cars. Fuel pressure spec is up to 50psi and plenty of delivery volume. Best of all it was $30 delivered.

The stock fuel lines were cleaned and connected to the subaru fuel inlet/outlet using a bridge fuel hose. my 75 had the poly lines through the tunnel. The OD is the same as the ID of the stock Subaru hose. A simple clamp made the connection. Simple, cost nothing and is leak free.

4. Wiring and electrical. This is where I have had the most trouble. I bought a JDM 98 Forester turbo drivetrain. Great except that the wiring diagrams are one-year only and really do not exist. Thankfully all of the GC-X (X = 1-8) series EJ20 motors have similar pin-outs even if the wiring colors are vastly different. It litterally took me 2.5 months to trim the factory subaru harness down to the engine controls. I have traced every wire coming out of the ECU and verified the colors were correct. This was difficult considering that 80% were different colors compared to the wiring diagrams I was using. I found that the UK version of the 1998 WRX had the best match for a wiring diagram.

Once I had the ECU wired in the car I started to make connections to the 914 wiring. Where do I start?

ON a car that sat for 12 years it was an exercise in frustration the first time I connected the battery. Nothing worked. First I cleaned the ignition switch. Then the main relay. Then the light switch. Then all of the grounds. Finally, the lights, starter, fuel pump and most of the gauges work.

Someone please answer this question. Why did the factory switch wire colors from Black/Red to green in the middle of the wiring harness under the dash for the fuel pump 12V supply? I spent hours tracking that down and only found it by splitting the harness and pulling out the wire to find the change in color. This change was not noted in ANY 914 wiring diagram I could find.

Yesterday I was very excited to finally reach the point of starting the motor. I bought some oil late yesterday afternoon and filled the sump. Next I primed the fuel system and turned the key. Spins and spins yet, no spark/no injector pulse. HMM. Time to start tracking signals starting with the crank sensor.

Hopefully, I will get this car started soon. Then it is off to more important things like building axles, figuring out the clutch and rebuilding the brake system. First, it must run.