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Hi everyone. I've been lurking for a while, so I figured I'd start one of these build threads so I can keep tabs on everything I've managed to do with my Evo. First thing's first: an introduction.
Meet Isabelle. She's a 2003 GSR, and... well... The previous owner did some things decent enough, but definitely took some shortcuts in a lot of other areas. I picked up the Evo in November of 2017, and have started the slow process of fixing all the lapses in judgement the previous owner exhibited while attempting to build this car. My wallet hates that I have so much to fix, but I am definitely happy that I get to correct the wrongdoings by handling the next stage by myself.
I did the 120k service back in July, and tackled a few other little projects along the way.
New stubby antenna and vortex generator, since the old ones were both broken.
I also pulled down my headliner to start tackling the problem of my sunroof that won't open, and decided to reupholster my headliner, while I was in there.
Of course, shortly after I finished with the timing belt, I developed this massive exhaust leak. Upon inspection, my external wastegate had unbolted itself from the turbo hotside housing. Time to fix that issue. While I had everything disassembled, I learned that the turbo was in fact NOT the Garrett GT35R that I was told it was, but in fact some kind of Precision turbo. The numbers on it are fairly worn off, and of course I didn't get any paperwork about anything from the previous owner. While fixing the exhaust leak, I figured out that the turbo has a wastegate flange that is not the normal Evo o2 dump flange, so typical gasket kits didn't have the right gasket I needed. I couldn't find anything similar to it in a parts store, and I was actually really frustated with the previous owner at this point. I also figured out that the core issue of the exhaust leak issue was a turbo hotside housing stripped bolt hole. I wound up having to drill out, tap, and helicoil all 5 (just for good measure) bolt holes in order to fix the issue. So far, so good. But now I hate that setup and am working on saving funds to change it up to something I like better.
I have since replaced the bad tires and brakes.
And I've managed to have a little bit of fun just enjoying the drive and getting a couple of nice shots. The body needs some attention at some point, so she's a great 15-foot car, and that's about it haha.
I've got a long ways to go before she's anywhere close to where I'd like her to be, but for my first year of ownership, she's doing alright. I'm excited to keep making progress, to keep fixing all the dumb issues that I'm finding.
Last edited by Selena_2000; Mar 22, 2024 at 11:33 PM.
Reason: updated mods list
Congrats on the pickup! Its cool to see people fixing their Evos and saving them from being beat to ****. You easily did more maintenance in the first year when compared to the other Evo owners around my area.
Merry Christmas Evo fam! I hope everyone got all the parts that they wanted this year. I have added a fairly significant part to my collection, and am stoked to keep adding to my tiny hoard of needed bits.
I've been collecting bits to do the JDM HVAC swap, and those motors on the HVAC blend box are absolutely critical. I've also got the HVAC control brain with the digital knobs. I only need to get a couple sensors, sort out the wiring, and then find a day to take the car apart to do the install. Needless to say, I'm stoked.
Hello out there! It has been a long time since I've updated anything, and there have been some strides in the right direction as far as continuing to fix issues discovered from the previous owner.
First thing, an update on a previously reported issue: the turbo with the stripped hot-side housing bolt holes. I had drilled, retapped, and helicoiled all of the holes and got everything put back together. I thought that it would hold out till I could replace stuff and permanently fix the problem. I wasn't so lucky.. No amount of locktite or anything would help hold new bolts in place, so I've had one hell of a time keeping that aspect of the car together. In order to fix things the way I wanted to, I decided to replace.. well.. everything. So! I have, on the way, the following: STM hot parts kit (v-band), PTE 5858 turbo (v-band), Tial 44mm wastegate, 1200cc FIC injectors, AMS fuel rail (was given to me when I bought the car), Fuelab FPR with gauge, oil temp gauge, oil pressure gauge, wideband gauge, boost gauge, and Grimmspeed EBC. The previous owner had upgraded the turbo stuff without putting in any kind of gauges or boost controller, so that made me super nervous about everything. Needless to say, it sure feels nice knowing I'll finally have everything fixed, monitored with gauges properly, and a good tune is on the way, of course.
Pics of parts currently on hand; everything else is en route, or away for powder/ceramic coating.
To continue on with the saga, Isabelle decided to give up the ghost on the factory oil cooler. We had a TON of snow this winter (see pics below), and I think the oil cooler got damaged during the Snowpocalypse. With this in mind, I had ordered a new Mishimoto oil cooler to replace it during the next oil change. The week before I was aiming to go the change, the cooler finally finished bursting and spewed all my oil out in a Jack in the Box parking lot. Fortunately for me, the drive-thru lady pointed out that "I might be leaking something," and that I should check it. I did, expecting a small little stream of something. NOPE, all the oil was everywhere. I immediately shut off the car, and went into a blended panic/fix-it mode. I am eternally grateful that I had a) shop towels, b) the new oil cooler, and c) the correct tools for the job, all in the car with me at this particular moment in time. So I was able to change it all out and get the new cooler in place before driving home. (There was a Walmart across the street, so I was able to grab new oil too, phew.) Got a free lunch out of the deal because the staff were all surprised I tackled things that quickly in their parking lot haha.
Also! I managed to get my sunroof 100% fixed as well. There were a few problems that had led up to the whole "it won't open" symptoms I encountered last year. Two of the three motor screws had gone missing, one side of the assembly was off the track, and the cross bar that connects both sides of the track was missing half its hardware and had disconnected itself and got bent... I managed to fix it all, got the motor reinitialized, and promptly celebrated by riding around with the sunroof open, enjoying the blast of sunshine we've had the last few weeks. It's been absolutely glorious being able to open the sunroof for the first time since I've owned the car, and just in time for summer!
As promised, here's some photos from our Snowpocalypse we had this past winter. For my area, this amount of snow is basically unheard of; a heavy winter for us usually consists of like... 3-6 inches. Total. We hadn't seen snow like this in over 20 years, so everyone was basically freaking out. I think, by the time it was all said and done, we received something around like 3 1/2 FEET at my folk's house. Totally out of the norm for our area!
One final update for the time being:
I have finally finished collecting all of the necessary bits to do the JDM hvac conversion in my car, so that should be happening about as soon as I can figure out the wiring situation. It's not my forte, but it's time to learn! Yay for notes and help from others. Then I'll be able to get all my gauges installed and wired up as well, in prep for all the new go-fasty bits that are arriving here soon.
AAANNNDDD we're back. Next stage of the saga... I wish it came in a dose of better news, but alas.. here we sit.
My motor blew up this past weekend. Pretty sure something timing related let go, and caused things to just.. die..
It all started Friday night, where the car stalled in an intersection after dinner. I thought I had just run the car out of gas, since my gas light was on (yes yes... shame on me. *smacks wrist*). I ran up to the gas station and grabbed a couple gallons of fuel, put it in the car. Nothing. Ooook. It's like 10pm, so I call the flatbed to get me to my friend's house, and we'll keep troubleshooting in the morning. Since I had just done plugs and coils less than 6k miles ago, we figured that maybe the fuel pump got burnt out. So I ordered in a new Walbro 255 fuel pump. Yay for overnight Amazon Prime shipping. So I get the pump put in, and... Nothing. I unbolt the fuel line from the rail to just test to make sure the pump is working right, and it is. So fuel is good. Just for the hell of it, I pull the spark plugs.
FML
No plug gap, and cylinder #3 plug is F*$KED. I peeked down the spark plug tubes, and saw damage there too. Cylinder #3 looks to be the worst, with what appears to be a hole in the piston head. Can't 100% confirm it yet, but that's what it looked like. At this point, I check my timing belt. No tension on the part of the belt that comes up from the rear of the block...... FML FML FML. Ok. So, I have it towed to another friend's house so that way I'm not on the side of their street and will actually be in a garage while I start the teardown.
So I have started the teardown. I'm pulling the whole motor/trans so I have plenty of room to work and figure out WTF just happened. Gives me a chance to clean up the bay a little bit, and take care of a few other projects I've been rolling around in my head.
Damn car, if you wanted a motor build project, you could have asked nicer!!!
On a bit more of a positive note, let's play a game. WHAT'S IN ALL THE BOXES?!?!
Any takers? Guesses? Let me help:
AMS fuel rail, freshly powdercoated.
GrimmSpeed 3-port electric boost controller
Innovate AFR gauge and wideband sensor:
Having this gauge finally completes what will be my new center console view. I'm excited to get all this put in the car and wired up.
Fuelab mini FPR and gauge. Also in box, exhaust manifold gasket, new studs, and nuts:
My box of goodies, all waiting for proper install:
But alas! My favorite box!!
PTE 5858 turbo; ball bearing, 3" inlet, 2" outlet, .82 A/R, all v-band. I. AM. STOKED.
Still waiting to join all this turbo go-fasty goodness is the STM v-band manifold, hot parts stuff, and injectors. Soon to join the party: all the 2.0L motor build stuff. I think I have an idea of the route I want to go, but I'm also open to hearing suggestions. The block and head will both be worked over. I'm staying away from e85 because there's nothing close to me.
Some of the below is cross-posted here. Remember how I said that last weekend I had run into some motor issues? I finally got to the motor teardown this weekend, and found the culprit. During the motor teardown, it was revealed that one of the tension pulleys for the timing belt had come loose and caused the timing to get all out of whack. Pistons, meet valves. In a glorious fashion. See pics below.
Phase 1: motor and transmission removal. WHAT A PROCESS haha. I had NO idea what I was doing, so it took a while, but I eventually got it.
Phase 2: transmission and clutch removal. Apparently the previous owner had launched the car hard a time or three. I haven't driven the car this hard in the 2 years I've owned it (yet), so... The clutch and flywheel will be replaced.
Phase 3: motor teardown..... Let the rollercoaster begin.
Pulley right by the water pump is the culprit. The bolt had come loose and allowed the pulley to shift out of alignment, causing the rest to happen.
the impact of valves and pistons had a lasting impression on my lifters. all but one intake lifter sheared off and came to rest in the bottom of the head.
So about those pistons and valves.....
Like 6 valves snapped off their stems and came to rest on top of the pistons. Or in them.. I plucked at least one valve out of each piston with pliers... Cylinder #3 had one lodged in the new hole in the top of the piston, and cylinder #4 was cracked all the way across......
Needless to say, the car was very unhappy. I am currently in process of researching replacement parts for absolutely everything. While the motor is being replaced/rebuilt, I'll be scrubbing the engine bay clean, and seeing if I can finagle a tranny and t-case rebuild while it's all apart. I'm also taking the time to do the JDM HVAC swap while everything is down. Also, a ton of parts are getting powdercoated, so things will start looking a lot better too.
Man thats some good work you got going on.
I have been meaning to tackle that Hvac conversion myself, please document as much as you can, i have been gathering parts but still not sure how to tackle this.
I have the two motors but not the enclosure I have the lower part by itself and have been wondering if i can change it into this.
Man thats some good work you got going on.
I have been meaning to tackle that Hvac conversion myself, please document as much as you can, i have been gathering parts but still not sure how to tackle this.
I have the two motors but not the enclosure I have the lower part by itself and have been wondering if i can change it into this.
Yeah, there's a LOT going on right now haha. It's kind of overwhelming? But I guess the car has finally decided to DEMAND some attention. As for the HVAC swap, I have ALL kinds of info on it. I'll shoot you a PM with everything that I've got as far as info and the like.
Wow that sucks. I hope things smooth out for you moving forward.
Keep posting your progress.
A great many things are starting to happen with the motor! I will DEFINITELY be posting progress updates as they happen.
Which... I guess that means I should sneak it out there that a new block and crank, along with a known good 8 head, have all been ordered... Good stuff coming!!
Parts for the motor rebuild have been ordered. It felt really daunting pushing the button on all of that, but I am pretty darn excited for the route I've chosen to go. I've also managed to swing a transmisison and transfer case build too, because I felt like those were also important. As things start coming in, I'll post up pictures of the progress.
Without giving away too many details yet, let's just say that this car is going to be pretty darn solid by the time I get her back in one piece. And I'm excited and a little scared of it haha.
Oct 29, 2018, 12:10 PM
