• Hello Guest, welcome to the initial stages of our new platform!
    You can find some additional information about where we are in the process of migrating the board and setting up our new software here

    Thank you for being a part of our community!

My first Volvo 90 745t

Mbeas96

Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2017
Location
Charleston
Current mods:
Suspension:
2 1/2 coils off the back
2 coils off the front
Ipd anti sway bars
Ipd chassis brace
Ipd strut brace
Ipd engine damper
960 control arm braces
25mm 5x114.3 wheel spacers
17" mustang bullitt wheels
Mach III 235/45ZR in rear
Mach III 215/45ZR in front

Engine:
RSI H-beam rods
ARP head studs and fasteners
Egr and cold start delete (swapped manifolds)
Ported 90+ manifold
19t with kinugawa oil/water stainless steel flex lines
58mm 6+6 Blade compressor wheel
7cm Angled exhaust housing
3" downpipe
Yoshifab oil drain conversion with 10an stainless steel drain hose
A/c delete (all associated parts removed as they havent worked for a long while)
Fuel rail without cs valve
S60r Green Giant 42lb fuel injectors
Wastegate from TRITDT turbos @ 17psi
012 AMM
NPR intercooler

Trans:
Aw71 with accumulator mod

Ecu/interior:
Turbo fuel chips from sbabbs
954 fuel ecu
Pioneer 6x9 door speakers with modified door panels from previous owner
Triple pod A pillar
Aem UEGO wideband w/ o2 sensor
Glowshift boost/vacuum gauge
Glowshift water temp gauge
LED cluster light conversion

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/bNxRUed' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/bNxRUedl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Its about time I start an ongoing build thread for my 1990 745t daily driver, my name is Austin. Im 22 years old, and since I got my license I've driven a 99 jeep xj that I got from my grandmother. Its got 274k miles on it now and lets just say, being young and broke it definitely made a mechanic out of me. So while learning and fixing things that broke, I obtained a love for working on cars and very much wanted to have a turbocharged something.

About 6 months ago my oldest brother, soclosenotnear on here, had a 1990 Volvo 745 lh2.4 turbo w/intercooler. It had 2 and a half coils off the back and 2 in the front, and some ipd suspension braces. He gave it to me pretty much, for only 700 bucks. CEL was on for the ECT sensor, so a rather easy fix and we were good to go!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/e3TqQ7s' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/e3TqQ7sl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/E38JRTf' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/E38JRTfl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I drove it for about 2 weeks after fixing the ECT and putting a fresh intake manifold gasket on and it started leaking oil pretty severely. Rear main was dripping, as was the breather box and the oil filler cap. We (my brother and I) figured it was a pcv problem, I got new o rings from the dealer and a new oil filler gasket. We swapped the aftermarket nonsense breather box for a Volvo oem one my brother had. Cleaned everything real nice and ensured there were no blockages. The leaks got worse...

I did a glove over my fill cap and posted it on here, some people said there was too much blow by , others said it looked fine and I should just replace seals top to bottom. I drove it one day and it lost 3 quarts of oil in a 20 minute drive...I parked it in my brothers driveway till we decide what to do next.
My brother just so happen to have a freshened up b230 block and head, the original plan for this engine was a holset, my brother had problems with the car, kept the engine...crushed the car. He says, lets put it in your car.
It has RSI H-beam rods, machined head, ARP head studs and hardware, new pistons and it has less than 5k miles since the rebuild. There was one condition for me getting this engine. Its gotta get fast.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/SiACrnL' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/SiACrnLl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Never having done anything major like an engine swap before, this task seemed very daunting...but, with my brothers help I was confident it could happen.

The process for this was very long. For a couple reasons, financially I'm not equipped to just empty my pockets for car parts...we wanted to get everything right the first time. Lets try to not have to learn the hard way and we also only have Sundays off at the same time, so 1 day a week is all we have. With that being said, I started acquiring all the necessary seals that are needed. The more pain in the ass ones I ponied up the funds for dealer seals. Oil pan, valve cover, rear main, breather box seals and oil return hose. FCP euro supplied all the other smaller, not so difficult/annoying to access ones.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/yeHsS0o' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/yeHsS0ol.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/7F8CzLM' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/7F8CzLMl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/NoOcsRh' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/NoOcsRhl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/J2HgICQ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/J2HgICQl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/96NmqST' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/96NmqSTl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/uZQ9J49' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/uZQ9J49l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

The plan is to ditch the stock 13c and get something a littler bigger. So while at a local jy, I found a nice rear end totalled 01 v70 t5 with a 16t. No shaft play, and an angled housing...great. So for 70 bucks it was mine

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Djpt2qJ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Djpt2qJl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
my old 13c
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/RDyR9ri' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/RDyR9ril.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/ZMO2J7E' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/ZMO2J7El.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
"New" 16t
Ditched the angle housing, bought a straight housing from a board member but ended up using a conical housing my brother had as a spare. Will get to exhaust eventually...

Hard lines are aggravating, so I bought a kinguawa oil/water stainless steel line conversion kit, and a 10 an stainless steel hose for the drain. Plus the oil drain conversion from YoshiFab.

We started assembly of the new engine, a stock T cam was used for now, all seals replaced, and we decided to not use any sort of sealant. We cleaned everything meticulously and torque everything down to spec. Lets hope this was the right decision

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/6ySahLJ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/6ySahLJl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/hah7646' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/hah7646l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/rgflq8f' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/rgflq8fl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>


The disassembly process of the old engine started to take place, in about a days work, we got it to the point where we could finally pull this 28 year old worn out redblock. For the mean time, I spent about 4 hours total porting out my 90+ manifold. The outlet and I gasket matched the runner openings.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/q9TNIiA' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/q9TNIiAl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/clgi0lW' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/clgi0lWl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/zLCLJoQ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/zLCLJoQl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/YUG9DqE' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/YUG9DqEl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Now we have access to parts off my car. Everything but the water pump was swapped over, and a cps from the jy. My brother had a set of round tooth gears from a 95 940, so I got a timing belt for that and we set the engine to TDC and installed the belt with a new tensioner from FCP euro. New exhaust gaskets, then installed the manifold, torqued everything down to greenbook spec. Oil filter relocator arm one with 2 square edge seals and a MANN filter. Oil and water lines are ran in the general area for the turbo.
(At this point I didnt have the turbo yet, so it is not installed till after engine goes in)

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/iMm7Wy8' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/iMm7Wy8l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/gl8vph4' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/gl8vph4l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Now, back to the old one. We put her on stands and marked the driveshaft to separate from transmission. All linkage disconnected and OD solenoid was bypassed previously. Soon enough, the engine/trans combo was at our feet. We decided to pull both because we wanted easy access for the accumulator mod.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/vNsDtIz' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/vNsDtIzl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/gWzytaB' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/gWzytaBl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/y7f5agV' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/y7f5agVl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/VwOvThr' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/VwOvThrl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

With the trans we cleaned about 50 percent of the casing with a wire brush attachment and a drill. After we decided that sucked. We borrowed a pressure washer and it did wonders. I'm not gonna explain the accumulator procces, I'm sure there's plenty of info on that on here. But here are the pics from the process. Cleaned the filter as well

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/MSBI3hk' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/MSBI3hkl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/AQ1DVq9' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/AQ1DVq9l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Czd4hFu' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Czd4hFul.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/NZ85pZ1' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/NZ85pZ1l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/rUs6PCc' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/rUs6PCcl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Cleaned the engine bay before new engine was ready to install
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/kgofeYL' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/kgofeYLl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
 
Last edited:
Austin, congrats on the RWD Turbo Brick and welcome to the club.

Your older brother knows me well.... we PM on a regular basis..... perhaps someday I'll attend another SE event and we'll meet.

My advice for you young man...... don't worry about MAX power at this point, but get the wagon back running. You are doing the right things as the "core" of the machine..... and there are a lot of peripheral power adders you can add as time and money allow.

Are you keeping the stock trans? Didn't notice, but if it's an AW71, be sure to do the accumulator mod, and a 100% FLUSH of the entire system. Nothing prolongs the life of an auto trans like clean fluids. The IPD kit does this task well, and will require about 9 quarts of fluid.

Good luck.... and don't get depressed when things get tough. Remember, this car is an antique! As such, there will always be something that needs attention. However at the core you have a very reliable Swedish tractor.... they were not designed/built for obsolescence as everything today (KIA, Hyundai et al). If you have any questions, shoot me a PM.
 
My goal for this car is to be my reliable daily driver. I have a rather far commute for work 4 days a week and my jeeps getting old. With that said, sooner or later the Volvo will most likely end up to a project car and ill upgrade to a gas saver...

But for now. Moderate power, and reliability is what im/we are shooting for.
The car is running and has been for at least 2 months now, of course there are still things happening, like you said its an antique. Everything is gonna need attention. Once I figure out why imgur wont load on my browsers then ill get back to posting our progress, with the several glorious mistakes we've made along the way...

And yes we did the accumulator mod, plus a whole flush of fresh atf, as we had the trans sitting in the garage upright for 2 weeks.
 
Its time to start putting things back together...we started threading the bellhousing bolts thru and just as it was ckosing together, bam. The bellhousing snaps. Frustrated and confused, we seperated the two and called it a night.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/EvmPV5d' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/EvmPV5dl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/OYxZvX2' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/OYxZvX2l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

After some reading, we realized we bolted TC to flexplate and then tried connecting the two...instead of seating the TC onto the trans shaft first. So we bent the crap out of the flexplate. I got another one from a member off here for 50 bucks. But for the time being. We jb welded the chunk of bellhousing back and decided to install the engine alone.

Some new hydraulic motor mounts and the engine went it easily. Got almost everything tidied up in the engine bay. Now only a transmission to go..And a turbo.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/qcojSCm' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/qcojSCml.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/gDDV1hU' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/gDDV1hUl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

My brother had some intake spacers that were going to be used with this engine...so they went back on.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/WLS8dZG' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/WLS8dZGl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
 
The flexplate came shortly after the engine was installed, blue loctite on everything between the engine and trans to make sure we DONT have to do this again. Never having installed a automatic transmission before, its heavy.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/hqjb68D' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/hqjb68Dl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Now we slid the TC tight up against the flexplate and tightened all 4 bolts with loctite...

Driveshaft connected back, making sure we lined up our marks we made, and all shift linkage connected back. There was some old trans cooler line that we replaced just to be safe. Its dark at this point (winter time) so we put the car back on the ground and called it a day!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/QcwcXxw' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/QcwcXxwl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>


Next up is the turbo, we reclocked the 16t for rwd, fabbed up a bracket to hold the Wastegate actuator (we used a crescent shaped peice of metal off the old a.c. compressor we ripped out earlier, one part bolted to the turbo and the other side a nut and bolt held the actuator in place) and hooked up the water/oil lines.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Ytpukz0' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Ytpukz0l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Ill have to get some more pics with the conical housing installed with the Wastegate bracket.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/kER10Iu' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/kER10Iul.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/fbSfQR9' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/fbSfQR9l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

So with that finally done, that wraps up the rebuild process! Now to start her up and see if we messed anything up!

We started her, super bowl Sunday, on my birthday, around 7 at night. It was dark, we were tired but she started first try! Backed up out the front of garage with her own power and went back into park. Good enough we called it a night.

Soon later, we topped off all the fluids and started her, idle was about 2k and real jumpy. We went thru and tightened all hose clamps, no change. Went and tightened all intake manifold bolts...idle dropped to a nice and steady 900. We had a small problem of connecting the cold start plug to the knock sensor (cs start injector blocked and egr deleted) but with that figured out. I drove it 30 miles back home no problem.

Then about 2 weeks of driving, I couldn't get my boost stable, overboost...and I ended up blowing a transmission cooler line on the interstate and losing 4 qts of fluid instantly. But the aw71 still lives.

I adjusted the Wastegate arm and had no effected to my overboost, I added a mbc (spring and ball type) messed up installed somehow and the ball fell down and into the lower hole instead of being held by the spring. I now know what knock is. 25lbs of boost on stock everything pretty much. No good. So with that fixed, I raised the boost to 12lbs, but it will rise to about 15 but no higher, so we're sticking with that for now.

Aem uego wideband installed (ghetto style gauge mounting) so I can finally see what's happening!
(I think I will add a "current mod list" in my first post)
 
Last edited:
Once you get this thread up to current day, you'll be able to ask questions about what's going on right now. It's helpful when everyone can follow what's been going on lately with your car.

Also, this has to be one of just a few project threads that the car is actually daily driven. You've put more miles on your wagon in the last couple months than I've put on my Volvo in the last couple years. That's gotta count for something.
 
Last edited:
I have successfully made it to my first oil change in the volvo! Exciting! The oil was a little dark, but really ive never owned a car with less than 120k miles so, I'd say it looked good. Didn't lose/burn any, so that's good!

The way my oil drain line goes, from the kinugawa oil drain to the yoshifab drain, it rubs right against my oil filter. With the relocator arm, oil cooler lines, then oil filter it really pushes my oil drain line more at a horizontal than a vertical. I will have to get pictures and post. I need to look into a better solution for this, I'm not sure if it will cause problems, as I have not had any that I know of...but I would like it to not be as squished ad it is now.

I had my fuel pump relay fail while sitting in the parking lot at work. Nice suprise, car started, ran for 3 seconds, died and never started again. I took apart the relay to find nothing out of the ordinary...so I pushed and tapped on sonethings and put it back. It worked! I started the 60 mile trip home and about halfway it cuts out. The car dies, in messing with the tabs on the relay and I hear the fp turn on. Soooo, I put a pair of sunglasses in between the tabs to keep it on while I made it home :cool:

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/4ERIsyl' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/4ERIsyll.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I also, contacted sbabbs on here and got some lh2.4 turbo chips for my ezk and fuel. Well, I can say I had a very difficult time. First, I blame myself for rushing through things and not paying close enough attention. I ended up putting the chips in flipped around. So the geound pins were on the opposite side of the board. Frying my fuel chip...it would start when I swapped it back, but not hot. Put the old stock chip back in and started fine hot and cold. I also broke the legs off some pins of the ezk chip. So after sbabbs saw my no start thread, he very generously shipped me multiple replacements free of charge! ( I of course paid for them as I messed them up) but what a great guy.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/vbcfFnX' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/vbcfFnXl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/JmhOERT' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/JmhOERTl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I cant believe I didn't take a picture of my ezk....I had it out 15 times during this whole process.
But after the new chips were successfully installed and working. I love them, smoother acceleration, more power in my seat, and my favorite, no fuel cut :D

I also got some "new headlights" from my bro!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/BbIoSyv' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/BbIoSyvl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/sQQA4rM' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/sQQA4rMl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Got my wideband installed :) real happy to see ehats happening when I stomp it.
Plus, I need welding lessons. I had to pay 60 bucks for an o2 bung to be welded into my downpipe.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/OiUbeKM' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/OiUbeKMl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
(Old o2 to fill the hole)

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/rnFZ0cB' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/rnFZ0cBl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
Tapped into my heated seats (that don't work)

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/nyL8AHN' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/nyL8AHNl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
Theres my ghettoness...for now, plus my ultra brite boost gauge! When I get the a pillar pod, I will wire it up to my dimmer knob.

New ngk copper sparks plugs! ALWAYS check your stuff before leaving autozone...I bought a box of four. When to change them the next day and only had 3. Bummer.
 
We are pretty much at today's point now. The good news is, I got some t5 injectors rated at 391cc or 37 lbs at 3.8 bar. Along with a dodge 4 bar fpr, if the calculator I used is correct, i should be looking around 38 lbs. But, I've also had a rich spike at cruise problem, I believe that this is caused by a sticky injector? So I will install them soon enough with the oem 3 bar regulator to see if this solves my problem. I should just have to bypass the resistor pack

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/ShmihIc' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/ShmihIcl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
The bad news is, I got a little heavy with the throttle going around a corner and slung it sideways, and since after that I have had a BAD vibration coming to a stop, and a thumping from the middle console area below speeds of 30mph. It clears up after that, but has a metallic clicking with driveshaft speed.

I have ordered the bearing and seal for the tailshaft of the transmission, a new hd trans mount and a new carrier bearing and mount. Hopefully replacing these will fix my issue and I will not have to change the u joints. (Which I'm dreading)
 
Last edited:
Parts came in from ipd on Wednesday. They came pretty quick! So I'm headed to a buddies house tomorrow morning to hopefully fix my bad vibration issue. He has access to a hydraulic press to press in the center bearing if necessary. I will post some pics of the process soon!

I put the car on stands and watched the driveshaft spin. it seemed to shake where it comes out of the transmission. There is also what I think is a decent amount of play in the tail shaft, so hopefully the bushing is the cause. Hopefully all goes well tomorrow!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Fy6pJsp' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Fy6pJspl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
Center bearing and mount

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/TePSrQr' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/TePSrQrl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
Trans tail shaft bushing and seal

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/6CQ7ryp' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/6CQ7rypl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
HD transmission mount
 
Last edited:
Just got back home from my buddies. Not with the car... Good news, but bad news also. Good news is the transmission tail shaft bushing seemed fine. After closer inspection with the driveshaft off, there is no leak and it doesnt seem to have any play. But the bearing/center mount was thrashed, as well as the center u-joint. Ugh. Its frozen solid.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/lsnpDPG' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/lsnpDPGl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/3RFwpsK' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/3RFwpsKl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

So, he is going to take it to his shop's go to driveshaft mechanic. He works at a European racing shop, and he can get me a discount :D and I really don't want to tackle the u joints myself. So 100 bucks and ill have it back tuesday with all new u joints, the new center bearing pressed in and installed to the new mount and all reassembled and balanced!

So when we figured out we couldn't proceed with the driveshaft, we replaced the trans mount with the new hd one, and then decided to mess with the new injectors. So I still have to solder and heatshrink but we were a little bit rushed, so until I get the car back, this is what we got with the resistor bypass "mod"

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/n1ktv4v' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/n1ktv4vl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
We decided to cut the harness as my connector was so bad, I'm real surprised there were no issues...or was there? (And I know, "caps are for houses not cars" but it will be fixed soon enough)

We also saw that one of my old injectors was broken at the cap and the pin stick open. I guess I found my sticky injector... Ill try to get a better picture, my phone sucks.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/SfxNgcD' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/SfxNgcDl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Used silicone spray that my buddy swears by, and it worked like a dream on the injector o rings, they slid into place no problem at all, once it dried they were solid. Used a "new" fuel rail with no cold start injector I got from the local jy, finally clearing up my engine bay from hanging wires!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Wb6POUb' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Wb6POUbl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I'm also going to pick up a couple feet of fuel grade 3/8 in hose to replace all the dry rotted fuel hose garbage in the engine bay
 
Last edited:
I got some fuel hose from the local Napa and some new hose clamps to replace all the fuel line in the engine bay.
But while the car sits, and I wait i start thinking about my next modification...and I'm a little caught between 3 decisions. Basically because I'm not sure what is more beneficial to me and my setup currently. That being a NPR big intercooler to replace the stock Volvo one, or should I start my process in getting a new straight flanged 16t housing with a v-band so I can put a 3 in downpipe on (and it would only be the dp, because no monies) or (the one I'm drawn closest to at the moment) the buchka wasted spark.

I have a 2004 Kia Rio (I know, Kia...) Sitting in my yard with a broken timing belt and probably messed up valve/internals, and I just realized it also uses coil packs instead of a distributor. I couldnt find much on these being successful, but I've read about Hyundai coil packs being used. So why not kia? I would just need a miata power stage, and I can grab a black box ezk from the local jy.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/92dHa5K' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/92dHa5Kl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Will my stock intercooler be okay to keep for the time being? As long as I keep my boost lower, <15psi? I know exhaust will help dramatically in the flow of things, especially because I have ported my 90+ manifold. And the wasted spark, well better and more stable spark, "better mileage" , and best of all, no more cap and rotor changes!
 
Last edited:
Any of those next mods will cost you $150-200 at least so no real difference dollar wise. The most beneficial out of those three would likely be a 3" down pipe and straight flange housing. But, I think I would go for an intercooler as a next step, especially coming into summer. You don't know what heat soak is yet, but you'll find out when summer comes into full effect. A nicer intercooler will really help keep heat soak at bay and keep your charge air cooler. Oh, and practically no down time to swap them out.
 
Its been almost a week since I've gotten to work on anything...the driveshaft shop keeps giving me the run around, so I will just let them finish when they finish. As long as its sometime this week we will be okay.

I went to the two junkyards over the weekend, there was a 940 that I found the e fan for, but shroud, temp switch and relay were no where to be found :-(. So I grabbed the fan for 20 bucks. Ive seen people mount these to the stock 740 shroud with very little room between the two, ill probably go that route with some metal L brackets and some door trim foam in the gap to keep the suction at the max. I ordered a relay box that I can mount in the engine bay, hopefully where the old air box was, to house the relay and eventually for some upgraded headlights. And then ill most likely just order some new temp switches, one lower temp one for the low speed and a high temp switch or maybe a dash switch for the high speed, as charlestons summers plus its stop and go traffic will probably have the fan cycling way to much.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/a7NrdXh' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/a7NrdXhl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

The other jy had some cool stuff. One old miata In the whole yard which i surprisingly found the power stage and connector still bolted into place!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/kkLsF3w' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/kkLsF3wl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Then I found a 99? Land rover discovery 2? I shouldve looked better but was to excited when I found these

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/5aEe87b' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/5aEe87bl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

15 bucks a peice since I left them on the original mounting plate, they only charged me for one "coil pack" :cool:
Now I dont have to mess with the Kia packs and maybe have them not work, plus I have an extra!

I'm very eager to start putting some miles on it with the new injectors. Then hopefully soon after wasted spark will come, unless I find a good deal on a decent intercooler first
 
I FINALLY got the car back!!! I'm excited to finally put some miles on it with the new injectors. So, the ds shop took forever, then broke a u joint and then found out I had given them the wrong center bearing..thankfully a local parts store had the correct 35mm ID bearing. So after 3 weeks I get it back, I need to take pictures of the u joints but they look nice, and they are greasable

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/6z02TTQ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/6z02TTQl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I went to the jy again, I feel like I'm there every weekend, and I know I said I was going to fab my shroud to work, but I found a 960 that had the fan and shroud and was in better condition, so another 20 bucks and I got it.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/OMre3U4' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/OMre3U4l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Along with the relays just to make things easy. Temp switches next and it'll be ready.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/EdTMTBI' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/EdTMTBIl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I got cflmoto's buchka wasted spark board the other day, along with some 20 gauge wire for the ezk connections. Im hoping smaller wire will make the solder connections easier to do on the small points on the board. I'm not sure when that will be wired up, i still have to figure out a good mounting point for the bosch coil pack.
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/wcHEwuD' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/wcHEwuDl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

I've seen a lot with them on top of the valve cover, if I go that route I need to find some coupling nuts that thread onto the valve cover studs. Im open to other mounting areas if anybody has suggestions?

I've put around 200 miles on her, and she felt good at 15psi. So I decided to go WOT and as soon as it shifted into 3rd, the car almost died, it stumbled really hard and afrs were going crazy. -10.0 all the way to 16+ then back down and again. Luckily I was 30 seconds from my driveway...coasted in and popped the hood.

Looks like one of the grounds for the injectors and holds down the fuel rail is completely stripped. The thread on the intake were gone, the bolt wasn't bad but It was just dangling, not connected, and the fuel rail pushed the back injector out slightly. I shoved it back down and retapped the intake, a bigger bolt and hopefully were good to go.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/Y8Qzlgb' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/Y8Qzlgbl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Here's the broken injector that came off the old rail

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/tWgmDpk' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/tWgmDpkl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
 
Boost was to high, not sure exactly but it quickly shot passed the mark I wanted. So i turned it down and it went to about 12, now a quarter turn more and hopefully ill be at 15psi. Nothing much going on today. Its mothers day so we went to the in laws for the day. Just tinkering around again and decided to take some pictures

Here's the oil coming from either the cam seal or the front of the valve cover gasket

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/tLlybEV' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/tLlybEVl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Here's my long forgotten about wastegate actuator mount using a moon shaped bracket of the old a.c. compressor
<a href='http://i.imgur.com/sEN3hL3' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/sEN3hL3l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/MeXsEjZ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/MeXsEjZl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

My ghetto "mounted" mbc with super short vac lines

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/1qJ50wq' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/1qJ50wql.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

My very, very rough mock up of my mounting plate idea for my bosch 2x2 coil. I will re-create this with the cnc machine at work in partical board. Then ill take it to my friends next door where they can cut it out of steel on their water jet. I will also see about them powder coating it black for me.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/JiYXZDC' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/JiYXZDCl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Now just some glamour shots of the freshly washed whip!

Notice the license plate decor, thanks bro!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/dXDhq6h' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/dXDhq6hl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/0fEWywo' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/0fEWywol.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/6NoJZMZ' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/6NoJZMZl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/0OkAAWx' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/0OkAAWxl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/bNxRUed' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/bNxRUedl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
 
Last edited:
Ipd turbo cam came in on Monday. Thanks Turbobeans!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/TLotYPp' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/TLotYPpl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/HKtz4s4' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/HKtz4s4l.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Haven't had any time, or really any urge to mess with the car lately. A very unexpected death in my close family has brought the mechanic work to a hault. I will try to recreate the mock up of the mounting plate for the coil pack on the cnc at my shop this next week.

Still having to order seals to swap the cam, makes me not want to mess with it right now. So for now, just an oil change, and continue daily driving her. Shes running super smooth, idling around 800. Boost spikes to 17-18 initially but immediately drops and holds to 15. The stable power feels so much better than rising boost. The rich spikes at cruise are still occasionally happening, like before. I'm not really to sure where to go with that..
 
And there it is...partially. The CNC file was given to my buddy next door to my shop. Sometime next week I should have 2 black powdercoated mounting plates for me and my brother's bosch coil packs.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/qXxAG2C' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/qXxAG2Cl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/D44ydRM' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/D44ydRMl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
 
Time for another erl change! 10w-40 since its so freaking hot...gosh, no AC blows, figuratively. But I deemed today a car day since both vehicles were in need of some maintanence. Jeep had an oil change plus some cleaning of some grounds and other odds and ends. The brick got an oil change, plus I cleaned the AMM, the screen was pretty black, so was the wire. A good spraying of MAF cleaner and looked good as new

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/anq2Z2Y' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/anq2Z2Yl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Mmmm, is this a junkyard AMM?

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/gCfgg4D' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/gCfgg4Dl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Went to the hardware store and found come coupling nuts, there not the 40mm ones I wanted off eBay, but ill double them up, like DET17 did on his build and it'll work just fine. (And there only $.39 each, instead of ebays 17 bucks for a pack on 20

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/uxT4OhM' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/uxT4OhMl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/y1fdjCl' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/y1fdjCll.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

While Test driving/driving cause I love my car, I hit a bird. I jokingly said to my girlfriend, "ha, I hope it didnt mess anything up." Really talking about the dumb pigeon that sat in the middle of the road. Get out 20 mins lafer and see this...

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/kQR2I8h' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/kQR2I8hl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Now kinda angry...I again, not really being serious, said "imma find it otw home.". Well, I did.

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/9t8S1eE' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/9t8S1eEl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>

Popped it back in on tje side of the road, and we're good to go. Light still works too!

<a href='http://i.imgur.com/gH4He3r' title=''><img src='http://i.imgur.com/gH4He3rl.jpg' alt='' title='Hosted by imgur.com' /></a>
(Lools kinda crooked...but my front end has been kinda wonky since I got it.)

For fathers day my wonderful girlfriend got me an ipd strut brace, along with the engine damper! Should be here next week.
I ordered the cam seal and valve cover gasket so I can finally swap to the turbo cam. I wonder how low end 1st gear will feel now...its already pretty terrible
And....the cam plug and retaining plate for the head mount dizzy, the only thing holding me up is the mounting plate...so close to wasted spark
 
Last edited:
When you execute your WS on top the valve cover (I will check the clearance under my 50mm standoffs and advise), make sure to use Blue Loctite when making final assembly. You don't need the camshaft vibrations to set the parts loose which will cost you spark and a running engine!

Keep at it....... ;-)
 
Back
Top