Gran Damn

[ericjon262]

Standardize

https://teamenergysuspension.com/produc ... ion-mount/

I've taken a bunch more measurements, and for the top engine mount, I think I should be able to make this work easier than fabricating a whole new mount.



as a plus, this mount was used in 4x4 truck applications and should be able to withstand a TON of torque, hopefully it's not too harsh. I was hoping to find a mount that fit the OEM bolt pattern, which is about 7-15/16" wide center to center. this mount is 7-1/2", so I'll make a plate to bolt to the frame with counter sunk holes, and put the mount on upside down, and another plate for the top to accommodate the mount on the bolt pattern of the engine. it should be simpler than the other design, the big question is will it fit? based on the dimensions on energy suspensions website, I think it probably will, so I ordered one and we'll find out.

The lower mount under the transmission on the other hand still appears as though it will be a headache. I have a few ideas, but GM/Getrag didn't make anything easy to execute in that area, as none of the mounting points are coplaner.

[ericjon262]

I've spent the past 3 weeks or so working on a POS S10 for my brother, it's done now, so I can refocus on getting this car put back together.
At this point, the big things I need to handle are the engine mount, and the 3rd trans mount that goes under the end of the driver's side of the transmission.

Standardize

https://teamenergysuspension.com/produc ... ion-mount/

I really wanted to fabricate a mount using the DOM sleeves and poly bushings I had, after much contemplation this morning, I decided to abandon that plan, any viable design would require too many parts to be assembled together in too precise of a manner. I picked up one of the above linked mounts and I think I can make a much simpler mount for that trans mount.

I've taken a bunch more measurements, and for the top engine mount, I think I should be able to make this work easier than fabricating a whole new mount.



as a plus, this mount was used in 4x4 truck applications and should be able to withstand a TON of torque, hopefully it's not too harsh. I was hoping to find a mount that fit the OEM bolt pattern, which is about 7-15/16" wide center to center. this mount is 7-1/2", so I'll make a plate to bolt to the frame with counter sunk holes, and put the mount on upside down, and another plate for the top to accommodate the mount on the bolt pattern of the engine. it should be simpler than the other design, the big question is will it fit? based on the dimensions on energy suspensions website, I think it probably will, so I ordered one and we'll find out.

for the front engine mount, I decided to slot the mounting holes to accommodate the difference in bolt spread, and I am making a aluminum adapter for the engine side that will allow everything to bolt together with less parts, and less effort. I should be able to finish that up later tonight. then I need to work on the exhaust, wiring, suspension (new struts) and general assembly. this car will practically be mechanically restored soon enough..

[ericjon262]

engine mount progress:





I did a bug dumb on the engine mount, after drilling the holes for the "studs" I went to put the M12 bolts in, and they didn't fit, so I redrilled, and they fit, but they're supposed to be M10... DOH! I'll drill out the other side to accommodate the larger bolts, assuming this will actually fit the car. I might actually remake the mount in steel that I can cut on the Plasma cutter so that I can produce copies.

it's also worth mentioning that the middle mount hole is pretty much useless. as it's currently configured, I'll have to pick whether to tighten the middle bolt, or the two bolts attaching the mount to the engine, and I think we all know which one makes more sense to omit.

trans mount progress:

concept:



reality





I've been playing around with the chassis side of the mount, it's a little more difficult, as there's no flat space to mount it to.

I think I'm going to cut the mount off here to maximize access to the lower control arm mount. I'll make a box around the bushing to provide better support



The front edge of the "box" will extend towards the front of the subframe. it should be plenty strong, but also not something the average idiot can do to their car. if i get to a point of producing the mounts, it will have to be explicitly clear that it's not an easy 1-2-3 install.



I should invest in a good contour gauge....

[ericjon262]

I think I'm pleased with this. if need be, I can add a gusset to the bottom of the frame side mount, I'm not sure that's necessary though. the last step will be to weld the frame side mount to the subframe.

[ericjon262]

not a ton of progress I welded the trans mount to the frame, I may add a support to the underside, because I had to cut down part of the rear gusset to fit the LCA bolt in. I started laying out the new brake lines, and was starting to get super frustrated, it took an embarrassingly long time for me to figure out the issue. The reman front right line is two pieces instead of one, and they sent me two of the caliper side, and not one of the ABS module side... I emailed inline tube, and they're taking care of it for me. Hopefully early next week I'll have the new line. when I get off work today, I plan on putting the powertrain back on the cradle, and working on getting the exhaust started.

[ericjon262]

The correct brake line showed up, but I haven't messed with it yet. I did do a bunch of work on the head pipes coming off each manifold.

this is the flange for the rear pipe, notice the huge gap between the pipe and the flange? filling it with weld was an option, but I had a trick to try first...



I slipped the end of the pipe onto a 2" hitch ball, gave it a few good whacks with a hammer...



TA-DA! no more gap.




I started by extending the front pipe back, then carefully made a rear pipe to meet up with it.



unfortunately, the new rear pipe didn't clear the heat shield that I had neglected to install when I made it....so I cut it apart and started over...

after paying more attention to the spatial constraints imposed by the heat shield, I came up with this:



overall, it's very similar to what I had before, just repositioned, and slightly longer than the previous. ideally, I wanted both head pipes to be the same length, or somewhat close, at this point, the front is a few inches longer, maybe 3-4, but much closer than stock.

by balancing the pipe lengths, the exhaust pulses should merge with each other a little bit better, and minimize "crowding" in the rest of the exhaust past the Y pipe. I don't expect this to make a significant performance improvement, but I suspect it will change the tone of the exhaust some. my current plan is to y them together at the current end of the rear pipe, and tie them into the factory exhaust which should be close by.

[ericjon262]

I have a little more welding to do on the Y-pipe, but so far I'm pleased with the results. tomorrow I plan to finish the y pipe, and try and put the engine back in the car so I can finish the rest of the down pipe. I plan to connect the new y pipe to the factory exhaust and run the factory exhaust. no need to over do it more than I already have.

[ericjon262]

I actually worked on this car diligently for the first time in a while. I was hoping to get the engine back in the car, but I think it will have to wait for the weekend. I finished the Y pipe, installed studs in the front manifold, installed the Y-pipe, installed the fuel rail and injectors, installed the plenum, test fit the TB/adapter, and got a ton of wiring done. I'm working night shift this week, hopefully I can get a few minutes in after work to get the wiring finished, and the powertrain off the stand and onto a dolly.

I was hoping to use the stock LZ4 crossover heat shield I have, unfortunately, I don't think its going to fit well enough to use it. I have some header wrap here that I may use on the crossover pipe, I will definitely use it on the rear branch of the Y pipe, as it's in fairly close proximity to the steering rack, among other things.

I had welded in a O2 sensor bung into the crossover, without the heater supply pipe installed, and hadn't put any thought into the pipe I got lucky as they're both in close proximity, but don't actually interfere.

list:

-hardware stuff

+CV joint boot
+EGR blockoff/ heater pipe support.
+heater supply pipe(done)
+exhaust wrap
+Y pipe
+exhaust mid-pipe
+finish brake lines
+fuel lines
+Fix broken airbox bolts


-Wiring stuff

=Loom harness(done)(mostly)
=WBO2 heater to NBO2 ground, electronics ground to PCM ground.(done)
=WBO2 LED- auto trans wiring to/from PCM(clear pin 57) move to clutch switch breakout harness(done connected at pin "G" gray wire)
=branch clear connector pin 28 to clutch switch breakout connector(done, Pin "H" blue wire)
=WB02 to EGR pintle position (done)
=WBO2 power from auto trans fuse. (done)
=clutch start to breakout connector(Pin 27 on clear) (done, Pin "A" and "B" Yellow wires)
=clutch anticipate to breakout connector (pin 18 clear) (Done pin "C" and "D" black wires)
=coolant temp sensor(done)
=MAP sensor wiring (done)

-PCM stuff

`set gear ratios
`zero auto trans parameters
`Enable bank 1 sensor 1
`turn off EGR, CAT, and bank 3 O2 sensor codes

[ericjon262]

got off work and spent a few minutes working on the Gran Damn. Stock the heater supply pipe bolts to the throttle body, I cut the tabs off, and bent the pipe a bit, and now it more or less fits. I was also able to get the crossover heat shield on, which i'm pretty excited about.



now that the heater tube has nothing to support it, I need to make a new support, I plan to integrate this into the EGR blockoff, which should kill 2 birds with one stone.

[ericjon262]

aye aye aye aye.... what a day... erg.

I hate wrapping pipes, these turned out ok.



I slid the engine under the car, lowered the body down, and then quickly found out that some of my quick measurements were taken too quick...



The new y pipe is pushing against the firewall...

erg. I'll have to take it back out, adjust the pipe, re wrap the pipe, and then it can go back in... I took this as an opportunity to get a bunch of other items test fit.





clutch line fits adequately, with enough clearance to put my hand between the line and the pipe.

the factory air intake, that I was hoping to reuse, does not...



My modified LX5 throttle cable bracket fits without the factory airbox, but holds the throttle open about 15-20%...



the wide band is too close to the brake booster.



and for some reason, the engine is sitting slightly crooked... ERG.

looks like I have my work cut out for me...

I made a new list...

y pipe.
WBO2
wrap exhaust, again...
Fuel line fittings
revise engine/transmission mounts as required to get engine straight
WBO2 sensor grounds
Pedal switch wiring before pulling engine again
Air intake
Acquire map sensor
crossover heat shield rear bolts
fuel line clamp nut
Throttle cable bracket
mount clutch master reservoir

[The Dark Side of Will]

You're using the stock engine mount?

[ericjon262]

You're using the stock engine mount?

I have a mount in the stock location, but it's not a stock mount. the trans mounts, and or exhaust are keeping it from lining up to bolt. I plan to unbolt the exhaust when I get home, and see if that nets enough clearance for it to line up, if not, I'm reworking at least one mount.

[ericjon262]

a bit of progress....

When I originally designed the transmission mounts, I did so with the engine and transmission out of the car, this was clearly a mistake.... I cut new blanks for the trans mounts, and used some of the leftover bushing sleeves from what would have been the engine mount before I developed the 4x4 trans mount adapter, and squeezed them in under the car. this time, I slipped the bushings onto the plates with them bolted in place, then positioned the engine based on the front engine mount and the radiator core support, then tacked them solid.

this was the result, an engine that's squared and centered correctly, I'll need to measure the fitment of the bushings so that I can replicate them for anyone else interested in doing a 5 speed swap.



other than that, I've been working on fixing the exhaust, the front bank is tacked together and ready to go for finish welding, the rear bank is started, but nowhere near done. hopefully I can finish it tomorrow. additionally, I have most of the wiring finished, and the PCM reinstalled in the stock location. tomorrow, I'm going to hit the junkyard and grab a few odds/ends, and maybe a aluminum block 5.3 for another project if it's still there.

[ericjon262]

I've been working quite a bit on getting the car together, I'm almost out of shielding gas, but both banks of the exhaust are tacked together, with the only remaining part being the Y pipe and Mid pipe.

while working on it, I found a wire going an unexpected direction, I'm glad I investigated further and didn't just assume it was a now unused O2 sensor wire... in the diagram below, I spliced the clutch start switch at the red circled area... well, without a PNP switch anymore, the start signal would have dead headed in the wire I found and not made it to the starter... DOH!



I'm going to try and pick up more gas first thing in the morning so I can get the exhaust finished up. I want this car out of the garage more and more on a daily basis, I'd much rather be putting effort into getting the chassis swap done on the Suburban, or IDK, pretty much anything else. I hope once i get this thing back together and on the road it's more fulfilling than I'm thinking it will be, but I'm not holding my breath.

[The Dark Side of Will]

At least it wouldn't have been a sneaky problem.

[ericjon262]

At least it wouldn't have been a sneaky problem.

kinda, sometimes "where did the power go" can be the worst, like last night...

Hooked up the trailer, did a light check, everything worked. got on pavement, tested the trailer brakes, everything worked. Rad.

get about 3 hours away, load the trailer up, drive off. about 10 minutes later, I notice the trailer brake controller's status LED is out, indicating it's not doing anything. Pull over into a parking lot, no lights, no brakes... Start checking fuses. nothing. crawling around under the trailer, nothing looks wrong. checking grounds, nothing (of course I don't have a multi meter...) I spent about 3 hours trying to figure out where the power went. the plug for the trailer brakes had some plastic loom over it.... I started pulling back the undamaged loom to see if I could find something and guess what I found...(note the loom still in the plug)



thank goodness for smartphones, I wouldn't have been able to easily get it wired back without some kind of diagram or a multi meter, and a helper. Thankfully too, inside the plug was just 7 screw terminals. 10 minutes after finding it I was back on my way.

I'm still slowly working on the car, probably will all night to transition back to night shift rotation, I put the fuse block back in, and want to get as much of the interior back together as possible. I haven't decided whether I want to work on the throttle linkage tonight, I guess it will depend on how long it takes me to get the interior back together.



also, I mentioned an aluminum 5.3, I wasn't kidding, got it for a song and a sawzall blade. complete fan to torque converter, oil pan to map sensor(on top of the intake...), with the entire harness, the throttle pedal, PCM, and more! the balance when I cashed out was $320 for the engine and a few other odds and ends. For now, it's going into storage, but I already know where I'm going to put it, along with a T5 (it was free)(I know they're made of glass) it's part of the reason I want this car out of here. the other part being I want to get the duramax chassis back in the shop and get the wheelbase shortened and get started on getting the body on it.

[ericjon262]

I've been wanting this POS out of the garage more and more lately, with it gone, I can work on things I care about much more, like the Duramax project, or the 454 for the Pig Rig, or swapping the Banshee's Fuel tank under a roof...

Today I made a little bit of progress, I installed the new KYB struts that I bought months ago, along with the new serpentine belt. tomorrow, I'm going to try and get the exhaust finished up, do the finish welding on the transmission mounts, and install the radiator. hopefully all that goes smoother than everything else I've tried to accomplish on it.

I also recently found that the throttle cable sticks like mad, holding the throttle just above closed. it did it before I took it apart, I lubed the throttle and it stopped, with it doing it again, I looked for a new cable, as I cant replicate the condition with the throttle cable disconnected. and I found they don't exist. a Grand Prix cable was $20 shipped to my house, so I ordered one and figured I'd give it a go and see if I can make it work without too much fuss. Hopefully GM did GM things and made both ends about the same, and most importantly, the firewall bulkhead the same.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I've been wanting this POS out of the garage more and more lately

If only there were some way anyone could possibly have predicted this

Just fucking drive it. Dont swap shit. Not everything needs to be a project. You have about 5 now and none are done

Can confirm that having a trouble-free DD after years of project vehicles is v.v. nice.

[ericjon262]

I've been wanting this POS out of the garage more and more lately

If only there were some way anyone could possibly have predicted this

Just fucking drive it. Dont swap shit. Not everything needs to be a project. You have about 5 now and none are done

Can confirm that having a trouble-free DD after years of project vehicles is v.v. nice.

Something something I told you so... Yeah, I know.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Something something I told you so... Yeah, I know.

I'm sure no one can tell I'm having my NYE champagne now after spending all of last week and the weekend ripping my house apart to replace rotted 1940's subfloor planks.