J's V8 Conversion - Pic Heavy

[Luxluc]

Nice

[J-Meiser]

On Monday, I got my radiator and fan assembly into my car and connected up the hoses. I had to take a bit off the corner of my battery tray in order for the fan shroud to fit , but apart from that, it dropped straight in . It was then it became apparent that the hose apertures for the Supra are smaller in diameter than the Soarer's, as the Soarer’s hoses dwarf the apertures on the Supra radiator.

 

For now, I have used a section from the Supra’s hose to go from the radiator top aperature to the temperature sensor for the electric fans and a shortened Soarer hose from the other side of the sensor to the outlet on the engine block. Bizarrely enough, the lower hose fitted fine, as the aperture was "stepped".

 

 

 

 

Once sorted, the hoses going to/from the auto ‘box cooler at the bottom of the radiator connected up and I started on a now redundant pipe for the coolant.

 

 

For the Soarer, the engine drew extra coolant directly into the block from the bottom of the expansion tank as and when necessary, whereas the Supra drew extra coolant in to the radiator. Fortunately, I retained the expansion tank and its hoses from my Soarer, so I cut a small section off, blocked the end and then blocked off the pipe.

 

 

 

I then started filling the engine with coolant, oil and the auto ‘box with ATF. I did notice a small leak of coolant from the thermostat housing, so I tightened it up a bit further and that appeared to solve it. I will keep an eye on it, once I (eventually) get the engine started.

 

Once all of the fluids were in and settled, I decided to try and start the engine . That didn’t go too well, as detailed in this post here - http://www.mkivsupra.net/vbb/showthread.php?323834-Electrical-Short-or-bad-earth

 

Yesterday was spent trying to fathom why I was getting minimal power to the electrical systems, in the end I retired for the day, rather despondent and figured that I would give it another go tomorrow morning (today).

 

Today, I went out to the car with 2 possible solutions – either the positive connection was poor and not enough current was able to flow through it or the ground contact point was poor. In the end, I tried both solutions and it turned out to be the ground contact, although I’m sure swapping the positive terminal clamp for the one from my 2JZ wiring loom helped.

 

So, this was the moment I first tried starting since figuring out what the problem was; I do talk through this video, just so I could record my thought process

 

 

Here’s the moment I decided “let me try one more thing, one more time”; please excuse my jubilant outbursts:

 

 

 

Since those videos were shot, I have fixed the coolant leak from the thermostat housing (I hadn’t put the thermostat in the seal, I placed it on top of it ) and I am looking into the ticking from the left bank. I tried starting it twice more and it started first time, every time . I will sort out my plug and play adaptor to make sure I get the select wiring accurate, but for now I’m chuffed to bits that it starts !

Edited July 6, 2015 by J-Meiser (see edit history)

[David P]

Well done for breathing life into it, that "ticking" sounds more of a knocking?

[J-Meiser]

Well done for breathing life into it, that "ticking" sounds more of a knocking?

 

Thank you David ! I do hope that it isn't knocking, but I'll have a good poke around and (try to) find what's going on .

[Timlowthian]

Loving how you are documenting this build mate, great to read!

 

Going very well now, keep it up.

[Shane]

Great work J, real inspiration for me to get off my backside and get mine progressed. I do hope that knock isn't too serious. Lifter dry maybe?

[J-Meiser]

Loving how you are documenting this build mate, great to read!

 

Going very well now, keep it up.

 

Great work J, real inspiration for me to get off my backside and get mine progressed. I do hope that knock isn't too serious. Lifter dry maybe?

 

Thanks guys, thankfully that tapping noise wasn't anything serious . I have been quite busy of late, but I will post another update soon; things are coming along, slowly but surely and I'm just waiting for a couple of bolts before I can finish fitting my exhaust .

[J-Meiser]

Sorry I’ve been a bit quiet for a while, having returned to the world of work, weekends are now the only time that I get to do anything .

 

I have managed to sort out of the tapping noise; I disassembled the front of the left bank, removing the covers, distributer, and rotor arm, then tightening everything to the correct torque. Whilst tightening everything up, I found a bolt in that area that were slightly looser than it was meant to be (it held the coil pack in place); once I tightened them all up and started the engine – no more tapping !

 

I carried out a few more tests and found out that the engine only starts in R. I have gone through my wiring diagrams over and over again (as well as the ones that Nellie lent to me – thank you ) and as far as I can tell, I have wired everything up correctly . I enquired on Lextreme and a suggestion was put forwards that the position of the starter inhibitor may need adjusting, so as soon as I can find my multimeter, I’ll look into it .

 

My new LS400 power steering pump arrived and I wasted no time in getting it fitted.

 

 

The power steering pumps themselves on a Soarer and LS400 are identical, it’s the reservoirs that differ. The Soarer has a remote reservoir (see image below) whereas the LS400’s reservoir mounts directly to the pump (see previous picture).

 

 

Once fitted, I primed it by hand, then attached the pipes, fitted the pulley from my old pump (now painted black) and fitted the new auxiliary belt.

 

 

 

With the pump in place, I need to cut a small bit off the exterior of the MAF sensor. If I used a cone filter instead of the “stock” airbox, I wouldn’t have to make any changes, as I could bend the inlet out of the way of the reservoir (and the inlet tract of the LS400 takes this into account and is slightly different to the Soarer’s inlet tract) but as it is, I need to grind a little bit off the corner so that everything fits nicely.

 

 

With the exception of the MAF sensor housing, electric fan wiring and air con pipes, the engine bay is pretty much finished and shouldn’t look much different to the above (apart from looking cleaner and having all of the bolts in place ).

 

I decided to get my Soarer prop shaft shortened, as that will give me the most flexibility and options for the future. Ideally, I would like to swap to a LSD and this way, it doesn’t matter if I get hold of an NA or TT diff as I now have suitable prop shafts for any setup I choose.

 

Below are my 3 prop shafts:

 

 

 

The top most prop shaft in the image is from my Soarer and it has been shortened; unfortunately I didn’t have the foresight to take a picture of all 3 of them in their together before I got my Soarer prop shortened. The middle prop shaft came from my (NA) Supra and the bottom most prop shaft is from a TT Supra (thanks David P and Delboy52 ). The Soarer and TT Supra intermediate shafts and propeller shafts are interchangeable with each other whereas the NA prop shaft is the odd-one-out and cannot be mixed.

 

Once I’d finished comparing the 3 shafts, I fitted my shortened Soarer shaft to my car and got everything bolted up.

 

 

Edited July 4, 2015 by J-Meiser (see edit history)

[J-Meiser]

I then refitted the rear chassis brace and heat shield.

 

 

It was then I retrieved the exhaust from the back of my garage ! This was one of the first parts I stockpiled for my 1UZ conversion, once I decided I definitely wanted to go ahead with it (before I even bought my Supra).

 

 

 

I said earlier on in this thread that I would measure the pipe diameters before I fitted it and here they are:

 

Down pipes to Y-section (inclusive) = 2.5”

 

Y-section to single pipe = 3.5”

 

Exhaust exit = 4.5”

 

The tip/exit is from an HKS Priest back box, but I do believe that the rest is custom made. The auto trans fluid in the above picture is for the power steering system, not the auto box .

 

 

 

I have fitted the mid-section but I was waiting on some new bolts and the gasket to arrive before I could fit my back box. They have now arrived, so this weekend I should have the complete exhaust system on, so I can start the car whenever I want, knowing that I won’t be deafening the neighbours or trying to blow the roof off my garage !

 

I'll post another update as soon as I can .

[J-Meiser]

Yesterday was quite a good day for getting stuff done !

 

I got my back box on, thus completing my exhaust system and to me, it seems pretty big! When I compare it to what I took of my car nearly 2 month ago, it dwarfs it:

Stock:

 

 

New:

 

 

 

A neighbour of mine said that I’d best keep small children and animals away from the back of my car .

 

Once that was fitted, I went underneath to tackle the starter inhibitor, to see if I can sort out the starting in ‘R’ issue. It turned out to be a relatively simple fix, although regrettably, I didn’t take any pictures (I may try and take one next time I’m underneath the car) – I loosened the nuts securing both ends of the transmission control rod and removed the end attached to the switch on the ‘box. I put the selector in the ‘N’ position, aligned the switch in the Neutral position, secured the control rod to it and then tightened the nut at the selector end, thus ensuring that everything was aligned with where it was meant to be. I then tested turning the engine over with the selector still in the ‘N’ position and voila, it turned over. I repeated the test with the selector in ‘P’, ‘R’ and ‘D’ and it turned over in ‘P’ but not in ‘R’ or ‘D’ !

 

I FINALLY managed to get my gas struts for the bonnet sorted out

 

 

Having a peep at Nellie’s last weekend did help (thanks for that ) and I’m quite chuffed that they’re on and work well .

 

Once I’d sorted that, I topped up the fluid in the power steering reservoir and fired the engine up; this was the first time that I had started it with the complete exhaust system on, so I had no idea how it was going to sound or how loud/quiet it was going to be:

 

 

I’m not convinced that the video does it justice, but I was on my own when I shot this video, so next time I may enlist my wife to either record or rev a little bit for me. It’s best heard through a 5.1 system with a subwoofer, but either way, I’ll let you make up your own minds .

 

I have noticed a power steering fluid leaking from the steering box (I believe), so I am going to try and rectify that as soon as I can. No fluid is leaking from the pump/reservoir or any of the other pipes (I think), but I will try and fault-find when I next have the opportunity.

 

I made a start with re-assembling the interior. I haven’t made much progress, but then I didn’t plan to, as I need to finalise my plug-and-play adapter and secure the new wires that I have run, so I’ll try to get those sorted by next Sunday.

 

 

I think that it’s safe to say that I am on the home straight! I’ve ordered some more fluid for the auto ‘box as the 2 litres I put in were not enough and it isn’t providing any drive yet.

 

I’ll update the thread when I have made some progress !

[David P]

I am pleased that the rattle was a simple fix, this project is coming along nicely.

[J-Meiser]

Thank you David, I too, am REALLY pleased that the rattle was a simple fix . It is getting there and I can't wait to get out and about in it . It is in a serious need of a clean, though...

[J-Meiser]

 

 

Voice-overs and bonus sound effects are provided courtesy of my 17 month-old daughter .

[a98pmalcolm]

sounds awesome dude :-)

[trebor69]

Nice work dude

[David P]

Well done that man.

 

Is it done and dusted, or are there any remaining niggles to iron out?

[Luxluc]

[MadMax2042]

Fantastic thread and project!

[Chris Wilson]

Nicely documented and excellent work, well done and thanks for sharing! Should you have any overheating or air lock issues in use you *MAY* need to consider the importance of the small bleeder hose on the engine. It's probably to remove air / steam from parts of the cooling system.

In the original application was the overspill tank higher than that pipe?

[J-Meiser]

sounds awesome dude :-)

 

Nice work dude

 

Well done that man.

 

Is it done and dusted, or are there any remaining niggles to iron out?

 

 

Fantastic thread and project!

 

Nicely documented and excellent work, well done and thanks for sharing! Should you have any overheating or air lock issues in use you *MAY* need to consider the importance of the small bleeder hose on the engine. It's probably to remove air / steam from parts of the cooling system.

In the original application was the overspill tank higher than that pipe?

 

Thank you all very much - it's been a heck of a journey, but it's not quite finished yet .

 

David - There are a couple of niggles that have only popped up since the test drive:

1. The auto 'box was a bit dithery when changing gears, so I'm assuming that I over tightened the pressure cable after I reunited the engine and 'box late last year. I'm going to have to gradually loosen it and test it until it feels "right".

2. Since I wired in the power supply for the auto selector/park-neutral switch/auto indicator/speed sensor no. 1, my odometer no longer remains illuminated, my clock no longer works and some of my dash lights have gone a bit skewif. I believe that I am going to have to run slightly thicker wires for to/from the alternator, as my ground point is still making perfectly good contact and when I had fewer things wired up, what was wired up worked fine. Either that, or I'm going to have to buy a more powerful battery .

3. I also need to wire my fan controller in properly, as at the moment, it is getting is 12V supply directly from the battery as opposed to a ignition switched feed. I ran it directly from the battery as a temporary measure, just to make sure the controller and the fans worked as they were supposed to - and they do . Any useful tips, tricks or advice (from anyone about any of the wiring gremlins) would be very much appreciated!

4. I still have to fit my other set of wheels, but I'm saving them for when I am happy that everything is working as it should be.

 

Chris - I have been and will continue to keep an eye out air locks and overheating . I filled the engine from the highest point (which is what the workshop manual recommended) and that is highlighted in the image below:

 

 

I also kept the radiator cap off the radiator whilst I was filling the engine with coolant, so I'm hopeful that I've done everything I can to avoid such things, but only time will tell . The expansion tank was lower than that pipe and it attached to the bottom of the tank - I'm not sure if that helps at all?

[EdMorris]

Good work fella. Idle is smooth. The exhaust note will give you a nice sound track for when you have the roof off too

[Hammer]

Brilliant work mate. Car sounds awesome, got to love that V8 rumble. Thanks for putting together such a detailed thread, hope you get all the final little bits and pieces that are bugging you sorted soon and can get out and enjoy all your hard graft.

[David P]

J,

 

Look at the line pressure cable at the throttle body and you should see that the inner cable has a brass collar crimped onto it, this should be adjusted so that the outside end of it is flush with the end of the threads.

 

Hope that makes sense?

 

However, I doubt that could cause what you report, more likely to be a confusion with speed, TPS and rev sensor signals if the final ratio is different from stock?

 

Check that the TPS is adjusted correctly too.

Edited July 14, 2015 by David P (see edit history)

[J-Meiser]

Good work fella. Idle is smooth. The exhaust note will give you a nice sound track for when you have the roof off too

 

Brilliant work mate. Car sounds awesome, got to love that V8 rumble. Thanks for putting together such a detailed thread, hope you get all the final little bits and pieces that are bugging you sorted soon and can get out and enjoy all your hard graft.

 

Thanks guys, I do appreciate it ! No worries about putting together a detailed thread, the main purpose was to show what's really involved with this swap so others have an idea about what to do/expect . I am hoping to get the niggles ironed out as soon as realistically possible and once I do, I'll share what the solution is/was .

 

I went out for a very quick test drive again this evening (no video, I'm afraid) and this time I gave a little bit of throttle to get to 40 MPH (that's the limit on the main road near my house) - it sounded awesome and pulled REALLY well ! I was also able to test my cruise control and that worked flawlessly too .

 

J,

 

Look at the line pressure cable at the throttle body and you should see that the inner cable has a brass collar crimped onto it, this should be adjusted so that the outside end of it is flush with the end of the threads.

 

Hope that makes sense?

 

However, I doubt that could cause what you report, more likely to be a confusion with speed, TPS and rev sensor signals if the final ratio is different from stock?

 

Check that the TPS is adjusted correctly too.

 

Hi David,

 

Your description made perfect sense, once I got out onto the engine this evening and had I good look . Following what you said, I've taken a picture to show the closest I could get to what you described:

 

 

The outer adjustment nut is right at the end of the thread, so I've left it there as I cannot go any further. As I stated above, I went out for a second test drive this evening, but I went out after adjusting the cable; I went out onto the main road and it felt a LOT better than in my first test drive! I was paying more attention to my driving instead of what was/wasn't working this time round, though so perhaps the "dithering" was down moreso to me being distracted ? Either way, this evening I parked up feeling much happier with the way it drove, so thank you very much for your advice!

[David P]

That looks good, the transmission will function smoother at low revs, yet suggest that you check TPS adjustment too.