I have heard rumours the Nissan crank sensor plugs in from the top or 45 deg like the svx. I have not confirmed that but I will have a look next time I'm pocking around the wrecking yard.

Interesting. Thanks Jeff. I ordered a couple of Legacy ones for a whopping $16 each. They are the OEM replacement on Rockauto so not the el-cheapo ones.

Slight progress while we wait...

Oil pump is off. Never resealed in 21 years. Seems like it might have been leaking slightly from both the seal around the pump housing and the front seal around the crank ( I think referred to as the front main seal). I got the seals I need in the Subaru reseal kit, just never used them.

Click to view attachment

Look at the crap behind that thing.

Click to view attachment

O-Ring is not very pliable. It broke later.

Click to view attachment

Got the RTV removed from both surfaces. RTV is the OEM way to seal the oil pump. Same with the oil pan.

Click to view attachment

Click to view attachment

Tomorrow we clean the gunk off from on and behind the oil pump, re-seal it, get the timing belt back on. I'll detail the procedure for doing the timing belt when I reinstall it. Easiest one I've ever done (3 times now ). Non-interference too. It's gonna be flying down the road in no time .

I am working on my 3.3 vicariously through you! Great photos and description, you are saving me so much time when I actually get my donor car. Looks like that Celica radiator will fit the Scorpion too as the old one I pulled today is 31(l)x10.5(h).

I do not wish to hijack your thread but want to share pics. So shall I post a link to one of the Lancia/Fiat sites that I have build threads on?

Best regards -Christopher

Sure that's fine. Go for it.

Great progress Chris. So tell me, I've never used siliconed as a gasket. Is the proper technique to apply and tighten or apply, tighten some, let cure then complete the tightening.

The Audi factory manual for the oil pan says to torque the bolts to 5lbs the wait one hour and torque to 10lbs.

I did the same thing for all my other things I RTVed. Hopefully it works....

Yes that's it Kent. I'm gonna pick up some fresh RTV today since I'm out so I don't remember the exact timing but you apply the stuff, put the parts together but only tighten them a bit, then finish torquing when the stuff is almost completely set.

It'll work Andrew, believe it or not (I was skeptical). My oil pan has held up fine for 3 years.

That's good info guys. I was wondering what the factory procedure was with the RTV, as I had never used it on two machined surfaces before. I saw that the factory RTV was the orange stuff when I pulled my oil pump, however, I'm inclined to go with the black RTV - more oil resistant. I really like the grey/Hondabond/Yamabond, but it might be a little too thin for this application.

Yes I went with the black on my oil pan George. Might use it on this too.

I love Hondabond! Some of the best stuff made IMO.

I do too. A great candidate for metal-metal seals, but not sure with the case halve parting lines and other irregularities in machining, it might not be a good candidate here. If the factory orange RTV lasted 20 years, I bet the black RTV will be just fine.

Let's call in 19... ..ah just kidding I know exactly what you're saying. The oil pump was still really stuck to the motor. When I took the bolts off it didn't budge at all. Had to carefully pry it a bit.

And BTW the oil pump o-ring and seal you need do come in that kit I sent the info on...the mega-every-seal-kit.

If you store your tube of silicone in the fridge it will keep for 2 years or more.

On ALL applications involving aluminum to aluminum, i.e. oil pans, etc., we used Hondabond exclusively according to the manuals and never had a leak. With the oil pans, we'd use a bead and let it set up 15 minutes before installation - I don't think I'd use a bead on the oil pump though. A light skim of no more than 1/16th inch would probably work, maybe a tad thicker. Let it set up a bit til it's sticky/hard, them bolt it in but make sure to avoid getting too close to the inlet/outlet holes. Should work fine! Just make sure all surfaces are clean and dry with brake kleen and a dry cloth.

Yeah my tube is older but that's good to know for next time. Might replace my oil pan someday.

What's this Hondabond you guys speak of? Never tried it. Probably stick with RTV since that was OEM but good to know.

It's specially made for bonds with aluminum. It's stickier and sets up differently than RTV, has more consistency to it also like it's got a fibrous matrix to it. I've never had it fail but it's only available at dealers or so I understand. If RTV is OE, I'd go with their brand of it.

This has turned out to be one of the most informative threads ever! Thanks for the info. Chris - Permatex Grey is darn close to Hondabond/Yamabond and intended for similar uses.

You going with grey George? Might be a good call. Just looked at it.

This?

Ultra Grey

Great info guys. Hey we're getting pretty excited about silicone gasketing material .

Back to the cam sensor; What change can you expect after it is replaced? Was it performing on a sub par level with only one sensor working?

Yes, i have only used Yamabond and Mercrusier Bellows Cement. You need to glue a piece of hose to metal, and never have a leak Bellows Cement will do just that. Do it fast, it is not designed to dillydally around with! Yamabond, is great stuff, easily sourced at your local Motorcycle dealer or on Amazon.

lots of choice in the Yamabond range

I normally use 4, that being said is that if your pieces have wide gaps the 6b works wonders. One thing to note they out gas a lot, so you might want to work with some ventilation. Now that we are heading out of winter this is much less of a problem.

Yes it was performing sub-par-ly. And I think when I hooked up the VSS it flushed out the problem. So thanks Kent! I hooked mine up because you did. Bet she'll be even faster when I get this fixed

I THINK the symptoms were due to cam sensor #1...but...maybe not. Technically the car should not start if #1 is dead, but my hunch is that it was barely working and I broke it fully when I tried to remove it. Did some searches on the SVX sites and one person mentioned the exact symptoms I was having, which I thought were more than one problem, which were:

- occasional backfiring on hard acceleration
- hard starting
- that whole hesitation thing I described before.

Since the crank and cam sensors set the timing, this makes a lot of sense now. Hopefully this is it! I ordered a couple of sensors, they should be here in a day or two. Didn't get a chance to put the oil pump back in but did get the grey RTV last night.

Hey Chris, hope you're well and progressing on your build. Here's the link to my Lancia if you want a quick read. Good news is I do have the space for the EG33, thanks again for the measurements!

http://xwebforums.org/showthread.php?t=28514

What? Rusty 914s aren't enough for you? That is some scary stuff going on in the interior.

Seems to be a rite of passage for Scorpion ownership. Still I'd rather be doing this than doing this...



Maybe see how I'm doing in a year and ask me if I want to change my mind.

p.s. Some of these smilies are out there. End thread hijack.

Looks like a 914 barn find...scary until you clean it up a bit, then not that bad once you vacuum the mouse crap out. Nice Cromodoros! That engine bay is set up for a transverse layout. What about a Lotus (Toyota V6) style setup? Could use a lot of MR2 parts most likely.

That's what I was seeing when he first posted - a Toyota or Honda transverse setup would be the best, easiest, and most balanced setup for that chassis....

Hey Chris, any updates or pic's?

Yes sir. I got the oil pump resealed. Don't think it was really leaking as much. It was the front main seal primarily but hey...you can't leave 20 year old RTV on there when it requires removal of the timing belt to redo.

No pics of that since it's a messy job that requires both hands, but here is the diagram from the manual.

Click to view attachment

Just follow that line with the RTV and you're good.

And then the timing belt reinstall. This is one of the easiest TB to reinstall...The most important thing to remember is to line up the marks before you remove it.

There is an arrow on each cam sprocket. They both must be pointing UP. There is a notch on the outside edge that lines up with one on the black plastic piece behind it.

Click to view attachment

At the same time the lines on the crank sprocket and the notch above it must line up.

Click to view attachment

If you take it off that way it most likely won't move.

For reinstalling, first take the belt tensioner off, compress the tensioner and stick a small allen key in the holes keeping the pin in the middle from moving forward. Unfortunately I had to redo mine several times last time and the back side snapped off, so I added some JB Weld to the end.

Click to view attachment

It worked just long enough to reinstall the belt then crumbled off. I could drill new holes but it seemed to hold OK with just one and the JB Weld subsitute. Go ahead and bolt the tensioner back on but don't tighten it down.

Putting the belt on can be fiddly, so get a Harbor Freight $5 wood clamp and clamp the left side JUST ENOUGH to hold it in place, lining the white line up with the marks on the cam and plastic piece.

Click to view attachment

That keeps it from repeatedly flopping off, skipping notches, and keeps you from swearing a lot.

You most likely won't be able to get the belt stretched over both cam sprockets, so remove one of the non-geared idlers and line up the belt.

Click to view attachment

The dotted line goes on the crank sprocket marks, and there is another solid white line for the right bank. Reinstall the idler pulley, double check your work, un-clamp the left side, triple check your work, make sure the belt is on all the teeth with no skips, then push the tensioner to the left and tighten it to spec (I think 35-40 lbs). Check the belt again...do a drum roll....and pull the pin out.

Click to view attachment

You are done. Put the covers back on. Say "Yeah". High five yourself.

Click to view attachment

Question for the engine cleaning gurus...is there something I can get to attach to a drill to clean the crevices of this engine? There are a lot of little pockets that need to be scrubbed out a little better.

Click to view attachment

Looks worse than it is in this pic but you get the idea.

Wow, you got a lot done. Have you ever counted the number of times you've dropped the drive train. A 1/2 or 3/4 wire cup brush will do 98% of those areas but not the corners. Gunk engine cleaner in the corners?

I used a pressure washer for that kind of stuff.

Yeah thanks Kent. Such small little sections. Was hoping there was some sort of scrubber pad I could mount on a drill. Looks like the old fashioned way...

Andrew...yeah the little bit of water I used last time seemed to find its way into my ^&^* crank sensor! . Not the cheap one of course...the one-of-a-kind $300 one.

They do mount in a drill. https://www.waresdirect.com/products/commer...CFc5hfgod1JUDFA

The ones pictured in the link are very agressive . You can find similar brushes with brass bristles.

It shouldn't be ?? It's SS and not the "wire rope" style. I would caution that you keep the rpm below 1500 rpm. They will shoot out little wire darts if run too fast. Just don't use a Steel brush on aluminum.

Maybe a dremel with a small wire brush attachment? You can sleeve it with a bit of shrinkwrap to keep the wire under better control and use low rpms.

Brake clean and a brush. The brake clean does most of the work.

Thanks guys. I was thinking of a 3m green scotch brite pad material in a bullet-ish shape that could be used with a drill linke one of those rim cleaner/buffers but I guess soft metal brushes and cleaner will have to do.

Feel free to invent that green pad thing and I'll test it .

Brake cleaner is amazingly versatile and does a helluva job. With the supplied spray head tube, it reaches everywhere and dissolves everything. A soft brush or sponge should take care of everything else that you can't take off by scraping or brushing. Take off all the thick stuff first, then use the spray for everything else. It works!

I'm back at it. Kent didn't even have to me this time! My kid graduated from high school last weekend so my schedule is getting much more open.

Cracked into my goodies from Bob's...there's gotta be 10 coils in that pile along with the rest of the stuff. The smell of old gas is dominating the air for now...but I'm working on that. Just a small amount in the fuel rails is all it takes. That stuff was sitting at his house for a while.

Click to view attachment

2 sets of injectors!

Click to view attachment

Here's a riddle for you...the larger, more substantial (temporarily smellier) injectors came from Bob's car. The all plastic smaller wimpy ones came from mine.

Click to view attachment

My car ran fine with the smaller ones. I'm thinking I'll use the ones from Bob's car though. They have a larger metal tip and when I search the OEM part number (16611AA310) the pic looks like the bigger ones. Don't know for sure if the later cars used the more plastic-y ones or if these were replacements. Anyone hate the idea or am I good? I'll send the injectors to Mr Injector for a cleaning and re-sealing.

BTW the plastic ones' pintle caps (plastic piece at the end) were VERY brittle.

Click to view attachment

Three of them just crumbled off when I touched them. Mr Injector replaces those as part of the service. I might get both sets serviced, we'll see.

Next up I'm cleaning up the engine and intake parts, getting ready to flip the intake. Back to the garage and I'll update later.

This is the vacuum canister that is attached to the underside of the intake. I had to JB Weld one of the tubes on mine. Now I can swap it!

Click to view attachment

Here's a good example of Bob's skill level. You have to make a blockoff plate if you eliminate the EGR system. Mine is a piece of scrap metal. Bob of course pinched and perfectly welded the end of the original piece right down the center. Think I'll use his .

Click to view attachment

Air tight seal

Click to view attachment

Next (when my dremel recharges) I'll be fixing a small problem that's a real PITA for me. This little nipple helps regulate the fuel tank pressure in the SVX. Not needed for the 914.

Click to view attachment

I left this on there in phase 1 and it really got in the way of things at the back. I'm planning to cut the nip off right past the nut and fill it with JBWeld. I have an extra one if anything happens but it should be fine.

And now it's just a bolt .

Click to view attachment

I tried looking for a bolt to fit into the hole but it's tapered and it's a strange size (I think M10x1.0). Since there can be NO leakage I didn't want to risk using something that might fail. I'll wait a week and this sucker will be solid.

Cool stuff Chris! Did you remove the injectors from the rails, or did Bob do that before you got them? I have not been successful at getting mine out and I'm really worried about breaking them.

You cut it close. Glad to see your back on it. You need to start planning your first trip to an event in your car, now. Our trip to AZ was a good shake out run and I'm in the process of tweaking little things. Re-doing the exhaust for the 4th time. I'll post after I have it nailed. Keep the pics coming.

I removed them and honestly they were a bitch to get out. They're in there so tight that I didn't know if they were keyed with a notch or not. They are not keyed, and technically rotate "freely". I sprayed a small amount of WD40 into crack between the injector and the rail underneath and that got them a little loose. The technical procedure is:

- rotate injector 90 degrees so that the top is over either lip where the cover screws in
- use a VERY WIDE screwdriver to pry the injector up (1/2")
- if that doesn't work find a fairly soft surface, set the rail on it evenly and gently tap the rail a bit with a small rubber mallet.

Here's a set of directions I found.

Injector Removal

Hey George what do your injectors look like? Bob's or mine?

Yeah, I tried the service procedure with no luck. Was super worried about breaking something. I'm thinking of building a little jig to grab them at the top, tighten a screw and pull them out, sort of like a mini 2-jaw puller. Since I haven't gotten them out, I don't know for sure, but they have the pintle caps on the bottom, so I think they're the smaller version.

Pintle cap should = smaller one. weird that Bob's are so much bigger!

Yeah so I'll just OK George ? So on Rockauto all of the injectors pictured for the SVX are Bob's style. I think either is fine but most likely ours have been replaced with cheaper ones. So that means unless one or more of his are bad we'll have some extras of the pintle cap variety. Good news for you !

Keep it up or else I might beat you back on the road

















Don't worry that was the optimistic project manager in my head, he tends to over estimate the rate of work and severely underestimate the amount of time it will take.

I have a bunch of parts I should send your way also, as I don't need them anymore. I just ordered up my new EFI system. It is an SDS, a little primitive compared to the MegaSquirt Pro or III. I finally decided to as I have liked the design for a long time, and they do lots of EG33 work in aircraft. Yeah I don't have launch control, flat throttle shifting and a million other options. But If I wanted all that stuff, I would buy a new car. The 914 needs to have a certain basic raw feel to it, make it to nice and it becomes a Cayman!

You just might beat me Steve. You're a welding madman.

Got a bunch of small stuff done which I will update, but working on flipping the intake now.

Question for George (The Painted Man)...

So when I put the intake in place backwards the ^*&^*ing (gosh darned) diaphragm for the induction control valve hits the coolant pipe. This keeps me from bolting the manifold down by about 1/2 inch or so on the left (passenger) side.

Click to view attachment

Just BARELY off!

Click to view attachment

But it seems like even with a spacer it'd hit a little.

Click to view attachment

It's also pretty amazing how HIGH the intake is flipped around. WOW!

Click to view attachment

Did you run into this George? I know Bob mentioned he ran his without the induction control and didn't notice anything. I'd like to run it if I can though. The coolant pipe is aluminum so I'm not skilled enough to carve a notch in it and weld it up, and I'm not sure if the flow would be too restricted either. Still thinking about it...

Well, If I would have looked at George's thread for 5 seconds I would have gotten the answers. Looks like he addressed this in his flip. Be back soon!