FYI: Official Alien Build thread Started 2003, Alien Resurection is underway. Flywheel changed direction - transaxle is altered - Starter still works Options

[Root_Werks]

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Better to find it now than have a failure on the road. Still, sucks to have to pull the engine again.

So close!

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[Spoke]

Bummer on the timing belt but better safe than sorry. That engine looks badass.

Are there covers for the timing belts? Without covers they seem quite vulnerable to debris being kicked up into the engine compartment.

[mgp4591]

I feel your pain, Rick. I just had a local shop with a great reputation rebuild my long block after a meltdown last fall...nothing was seriously damaged, thank heavens. New bearings, rings, crank polished, and heads decked. I reinstalled the engine and it only fired on one bank. (flat plane crank, so basically two 3 cylinder engines.) Checked spark and fuel, cam and belt timing, all good. No compression on the right bank. Leakdown was perfect. The only thing I could think of is bad valve springs, so pull the engine again. Replaced the springs without seeing much of anything I'd call bad but I'm almost done with reassembly...we'll see if anything I've done has made a difference. Good luck with your efforts to get to Durango! I'll probably be driving my Subie down to hang with friends and keep someone's passenger seat warm yet again.

[rick 918-S]

Worse part if there is one... checked all the local flats, no joy, called carousel Porsche Audi, $176.00 for the belt and 5 days out to their store. They are 150 miles from me so that means another three days shipped to me. For a $50.00 belt. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif) Ordered one off ebay. I hope to have it by the 2nd.

[Maltese Falcon]

Your exhaust system is totally 100% and very well mfg for a garage build ¡
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/very_first_smiley[1].gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)
Marty

[rick 918-S]

Your exhaust system is totally 100% and very well mfg for a garage build ¡
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/very_first_smiley[1].gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/welder.gif)
Marty

Thanks Marty! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[rick 918-S]

The timing belt arrive early! The engine will be back in this weekend (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smash.gif)

[Root_Werks]

Sweet!

[rick 918-S]

Getting closer. Engine is back in. Started it and ran it a few times for a minute. Bled the clutch and went to start it to try the clutch. Wouldn't start. Fired and died a couple times. The fuel pump sounded bad. My oldest son and I took guess the pump was failing. Started to change it but noticed (as an afterthought) we didn't notice the sound of fuel swirling in the tank. I gave Ed Morrow a call and he suggested the fuel pressure regulator or the piston operated by the sensor plate may stuck.


Well I have a new pump and filter on the shelf for the 6 so in goes the pump. Tried running the pump and checking for the squeal when moving the sensor plate. Nothing. Little to no resistance on the plate. Checked the lines. The feed to the filter was hard as a rock and appeared to be ballooning. The feed line on the other side of the filter you could squeeze.

Pulled the filter and checked it. Crap was coming out the inlet side. Went to install the new filter only to discover the barbed fittings on the old filter would not swap on the new one. I checked every parts store here today. Can't get metric fittings in a flats. I ordered a M16 x1.5 and a M14X1.5 today. Delivery on 11-2. Once the filter goes in I still can't be sure there isn't some other issue. Cars that sit for years are very hard to wake up.

[Maltese Falcon]

...also good to observe the operation of the CIS Check-valve, which is inside the output (barb) fitting of the fuel pump. It basically keeps slight line pressure after engine shut off>> so you have an easier start up after rest. If the Check valve is stuck closed...you solved it. Also you mentioned that the CIS sensor plate moves freely, so probably have not built up any residue inside the fuel distributor head and that's good. I sometimes unscrew the dist head and add a small spray of wd40>> if the plate is not free.
Filter change is good, and if your accumulator is over 5 years old>>change it out. For a complete discovery, get a good look into your fuel tank...might be time. Mine just replaced as the camera gave me a real-time picture of the decay in there. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/marty914.jpg)

[rick 918-S]

...also good to observe the operation of the CIS Check-valve, which is inside the output (barb) fitting of the fuel pump. It basically keeps slight line pressure after engine shut off>> so you have an easier start up after rest. If the Check valve is stuck closed...you solved it. Also you mentioned that the CIS sensor plate moves freely, so probably have not built up any residue inside the fuel distributor head and that's good. I sometimes unscrew the dist head and add a small spray of wd40>> if the plate is not free.
Filter change is good, and if your accumulator is over 5 years old>>change it out. For a complete discovery, get a good look into your fuel tank...might be time. Mine just replaced as the camera gave me a real-time picture of the decay in there. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/marty914.jpg)

You got me thinking about the accumulator. The one I have was used from a Volvo. I scavenged from the salvage yard in 2002 when i was building the fuel system. Hey back when I started the project I was barely familiar with the internet and searching for parts like we can now. Of course the Volvo unit is completely different than the new one I have here. So I am going the risk a couple more days setback. I just ordered 3 more M14x1.5 fittings. They arrive Wednesday. After work I should be able to reinstall everything new up to the engine and see what happens.

[Maltese Falcon]

Full face shield when you are starting up engine>>especially around a Hemmoraging rubber fuel line (IMG:style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

M

[rick 918-S]

I haven't updated this thread in a while. The car is running! That is the good news. I was attempting to make the RRC this year and was close. All that was left to complete this phase of the redesign was to get some paint on the car.

I went to my local FLAPS. Seems they are changing paint lines. Okay, Give me the next best thing. Brought it home and went to shoot on a base coat. The paint was defective. It looked like it had sand in it. Went back to the FLAPS. They opened the can of binder and it was bad. Looked like sand in the bottom of the can. I spent the rest of my vacation stripping the defective paint off the car. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

Anyway, since then I have it back in an epoxy primer and I drove it around with no bumpers or rear lid to get some test miles on the transaxle. The odometer is showing 65 miles.

I dumped the clutch in the driveway to test out clutch, custom built flywheel and all the other custom parts I made in my shop. Fortunately I discovered while in the driveway the 914-4 axle was just a little short. The balls are riding on the outer side of the joint. when I dumped the clutch the balls popped out of the 944 inboard CV.

I had another axle that is longer but too long. I brought it to a machinist friend and had him cut the stop back 1/4" on both ends. I have it in the car and I believe this is the correct length now.

When I changed the cams over the winter I installed the lifters I sourced with the 210 "S" cams. Turns out one of the lifters is bad. It is not pumping up and makes a ticking noise. So the engine is coming back out over the winter and I will get that corrected.

Yup, winter is coming here faster than I would like to see. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/bruce.gif)

[Root_Werks]

Yikes, never heard of paint being defective like that before. Frustrating to have to sand all that paint off and try again.

Yes, winter is rolling in quickly.