Hello All, I am working a very special project, the car is a 9,200 miles Spider from 1995. One of my best friends dad bought this car new, I remember when the car first arrived and all the neighborhood was stoping to sneak the car. Unfortunately his dad passed away last year. The car wasn’t used that much, it was a garage queen. They never changed the belt or the water pump. Some weeks he will start the car to warm up the engine and that was all. Two years ago the belt snapped during a warm up and he just left it there without checking or fixing the car. I was surprised about the belt, it lasted many years without breaking and the car was used in 2019. I decided to take everything apart to clean it up. I want this car to look and run better than new. I am not a mechanic by profession but I love cars and is more like a hobby. I started modifying Honda engines in the 90s, later Porsche and Ferraris. I don’t like stock so you are going to see in this thread some modifications, all original parts I keep them in storage. I am in the process of outsourcing parts, in particular the Valves. SI Valves is waiting for blankets to have them available since March 2021. Supertech asked for dimensions to cross reference and Ivam Valves do not have. I have toured a few Ferrari parts sites and the prices are ridiculous in comparison to 308QV and others. Anyway I need to replace 6 Intake and 4 Exhaust. Any recommendations are welcome. My first language is not English so my apologies for any mistake. I will add resources and recommendations later.
I did some research to rebuild the Brembo calipers. These aftermarket parts fit perfectly. $2.50 for seal and inner rubber seal in Alibaba each set Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login John Borchelt at MAcarbon was very helpful, very nice guy. I decided to do the interior because the original plastic was cracking
Image Unavailable, Please Login Hope everyone is well, Cams are calibrated, found some good posts from FatBillyBob and Ernie in the forum, good reading. During my research, I also found this video from San Francisco MSports, short and directly to the point if you want to find TDC and degree the Cams. There are many ways but I think this method is more accurate. I also found the aluminum covers in Ebay, the plastic one is a joke.
I know a guy out here whos plastic cover had a chunk break off and it went under the drive pulley belt and belt all the valves when timing skipped. Is that TB linkage powder coated gold or Zinc plated really bright? Engine looks good, not OEM but good, like a model... enjoy!
Thanks. Everything is powder coated, I like to always upgrade the engines I work with PC and POR-15 engine paint. Not fan of OEM look but original parts in storage in case a future owner will like to switch to OEM. Same with the interior parts. The plastic timing belt cover will probably last 10-15 years, same with interior parts. Better to go with carbon fiber parts and aluminum.
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login I took a few days off to do some improvements. Did some research in the forum and found the Dis-4 independent Bosh coils setup thread. I ordered the Bosch coils for Suzuki GSX 700R from Alibaba, they have many factories that manufacture for Bosch and other’s that sale the same item but unbranded. Min Order is 1 item and the cost for the 8 coils is around $110-125 including shipping. Dis-4 from Summit Racing The engine was cleaned, painted with POR-15 engine paint 30% diluted with mineral spirits. The rest powder coated. This car sleeps 5 miles away from the coast and the platina and rust is more ugly. The paint will protect those parts. I will post later the Dis-4 install to help others.
If someone is looking to replace the fuel lines, a good alternative to OEM is a PTFE fuel line. I bought the Aeromotive braided 6AN fuel line in summit and found a fitting kit in Ebay 6AN (Search for: Swivel Stealth Teflon PTFE E85 Fuel Line Hose Fitting 20pc) Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login $62 the fittings $72 the Aeromotive 15302 - Aeromotive PTFE Stainless Braided Fuel Line I changed the fuel rail fittings to 6AN male, 14x1.5 female.
I had to do a base for the SARD fuel regulator without damaging the original ones. SARD regulators are available on ebay, around $57 dollars each, search for: SARD Turbo Fuel Pressure Regulator Gold For WRX EVO Civic RX7 Skyline 240SX R32 Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Some updates, I cleaned the handbrake area and learned a few things. Image Unavailable, Please Login 1. Use penetrating oil, it would be more easy. 2. Remove the screws and keep them in the same order they are removed or you can upgrade to the Stainless Steel version that SP-UK store have, I paid around $17-19 each. 3. Use a wire wheel to brush clean the parts. Image Unavailable, Please Login 4. After cleaning the parts, you can spray clear anti-rust or engine ceramic clear coat, just a light coat. After everything is dry use synthetic grease, I like to use Mobil 1. 5. For the hub area you can spray or hand brush with Por-15 Rust Preventive Coating and for the top coat use Por-15 Silver engine paint. Image Unavailable, Please Login . Below is everything back together. Be careful with the springs that hold the pads, they can fly across your garage or even worse a screw can break when you are trying to put springs back. Ask me why I know Image Unavailable, Please Login Below the engine after been removed, day 1 Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login So far below. Now working with PITA wishbone bushings, will report later how it goes. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login I plan to do the same to a F355 soon. It would be interesting and much to learn. Thanks for the support of forum members and their advise.
