Isabelle's Resurrection
 

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.

Mod list:
Engine:

• Head:
  • GSC S2 cams 272/272
  • GSC titanium beehive valve springs & retainers
  • ARP L19 head studs
  • GSC intake/exhaust +1mm valves
  • GSC no-tick lifters
  • GSC valve seals
  • Manley valve keepers
  • Bronze valve guides
  • .051mm Cometic MLS head gasket
  • EGR delete
• Block:
  • 4G64 block
  • 2.4L crank, 100mm stroke
  • Crank cryotreated
  • Manley 2.4LR pistons, 156mm/100mm
  • Manley 2.4LR rods, 156mm
  • ACL main studs
  • ACL rod/thrust bearings
  • ATI harmonic balancer
  • Kiggly HLA
  • English Racing 2.4L water pump
  • Balance shaft delete

Air/Fuel/Spark:

• STM v-band exhaust manifold
• STM v-band O2 housing
• STM downpipe
• Invidia catted mid-pipe
• Invidia cat-back w/titanium tip
• ETS upper intercooler pipe
• ETS lower intercooler pipe
• ETS 2.5" intercooler
• PTE 5858 turbo; ball bearing, 3" inlet, 2" outlet, .82 A/R, all v-band
• Tial 44mm wastegate
• Forge BOV
• Grimmspeed 3-port EBC
• Stock intake w/EGR block off plate
• K&N intake/filter
• Walboro 255 fuel pump
• AMS fuel rail
• 1200cc FIC fuel injectors
• Fuelab fuel pressure regulator w/mini gauge
• SpoolinUp COP setup
• JDCustoms hideaway mount plate w/harness
• NGK BPR8ES spark plugs

Cooling:

• ​​​​MAP oil cooler
• CSF aluminum 4/5/6 radiator

Other bits:

• Torque Solutions motor mounts
• KDN shifter cables & shifter housing
• DSS 2-piece aluminum driveshaft
• Hood shocks
• STM radiator mounting brackets
• Buschur lightweight mustache bar

Drivetrain:

• Transmission:
  • Jack's Transmission performance service
  • Carbon fiber synchros
  • 4.0 final drive ratio
  • Exedy HD twin clutch
  • Radium clutch fork
  • ACT monoloc collar
• Transfer Case:
  • Jack's Transmission performance service
  • Wavetrac LSD

Interior:

• Custom headliner
• Auto-dimming rear view mirror with homelink & compass
• Prosport boost gauge in gauge cluster
• Prosport oil temperature gauge
• Prosport oil pressure gauge
• Innovate LC2 AFR wideband gauge
• JDM HVAC swap
• KDN shfiter housing & upgraded cables

Exterior:

• Stubby antenna
• JDM 9 taillights
• Evo 8 front bumper
• JDM 9 rear bumper
• JDM MR headlights

Wheels/Brakes/Suspension:

• RotorPros slotted rotors
• Girodisk magic pads
• BC Racing coilovers
• Motegi Racing wheels, 18x8+38 [winter wheels]
• Bridgestone Blizzaks (225/45/18) [winter tires]
• Avid-1 AV-40 wheels, 18x9.5+22 [summer wheels]
• Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS (245/40/18) [summer tires]
• Whiteline rear bump steer correction kit
• Whiteline roll center bump steer correction kit
• Whiteline caster correction kit
• Whiteline rear essential bushing kit
• Whiteline steering precision kit
• Whiteline sway bar kit (26mm front; 24mm rear)
• HardRace rear ball joints

Here she in the day I brought her home.
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I did the 120k service back in July, and tackled a few other little projects along the way.
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New stubby antenna and vortex generator, since the old ones were both broken.
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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.
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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.
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I have since replaced the bad tires and brakes.
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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.
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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.

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.

Excellent job. Welcome & thanks for posting up. No more lurking :cool:
Looking fwd to more updates

Joe :beer:

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.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...8cac45192d.jpg


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.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...aef0ba5865.jpg

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0dfb75ce39.jpg

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!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...7bac8b4b0b.jpg

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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!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...190a3aee1c.jpg

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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.

Yes, we have been waiting patiently. Excellent work BTW!!!

Great job so far! Keep @ it! Very impressed!

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

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...5f4533db2c.jpg

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.

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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?!?!
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...1d8fba9990.jpg

Any takers? Guesses? Let me help: :D

AMS fuel rail, freshly powdercoated.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...8d9954e43e.jpg

GrimmSpeed 3-port electric boost controller
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...c6d30ab5c8.jpg
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Innovate AFR gauge and wideband sensor:
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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.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...80ef32b406.jpg

Fuelab mini FPR and gauge. Also in box, exhaust manifold gasket, new studs, and nuts:
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...92e73748b8.jpg
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My box of goodies, all waiting for proper install:
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...418d27d1cc.jpg

But alas! My favorite box!!
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...bbbb21d3f9.jpg

PTE 5858 turbo; ball bearing, 3" inlet, 2" outlet, .82 A/R, all v-band. I. AM. STOKED.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...4d8a28a28a.jpg
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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.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...33cf3fcdd6.jpg
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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.
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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.
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...4e98699302.jpg

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.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...be833fe38d.jpg

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......
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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.

My wallet is dead and screaming.

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.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...7ed7e5afeb.jpg
I have the two motors but not the enclosure
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...00d8b324cb.jpg
I have the lower part by itself and have been wondering if i can change it into this.

Wow that sucks. I hope things smooth out for you moving forward.

Keep posting your progress.

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.

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!! :D

UPDATE:

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.

With all the fresh new clean parts coming in , will you be doing some engine bay cleaning ? Now may be the best time since everything is out .

You betcha I'm going to scrub that engine bay clean while everything is out. I'll be tackling as much as I can during the time the motor/trans/tcase are all being sorted out.

Update for the car:

The block, crank, and head have all arrived. The head has passed the initial pressure testing and is cleared for the rest of the machine work necessary. Most of the internals have shown up; I'm mainly waiting on valve keepers and pistons right now. Some of the powdercoating has gotten done, but there's a lot still left to do on that front. The transmission and transfer case are being shipped out tomorrow for a full rebuild on each. Progress is happening! I'm aiming to have the car back on the road by the end of July, assuming everything goes smoothly and there's no hiccups. Which.. knowing my luck, there will be. End of July is just a very optimistic and early estimation. My birthday is in mid-August, so I'm more betting on that timeframe. But we'll see!

Hello out there! Lots of things have been happening with the Evo lately, and I have a lot to update y'all on. Buckle up for the wall of text and photos haha. #notsorry.

The first big undertaking was moving my car to a new garage/shop since the original place I had been working out of was my boyfriend's, and we have since broken up. I got lucky in that the new garage/shop space belongs to a guy who does 24 Hours of Lemons racing, so it's pretty neat to see the racecar and hear all the stories.

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0d5f1945f0.jpg

The silver E36 tucked in the corner is his Lemons car.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...50ef029630.jpg

First up, project-wise: the HVAC swap is in full swing. It's a lot more involved than I was thinking wiring-wise, and that is definitely not my forte so it's been quite daunting. But! Thanks to help from a good friend of mine and some wiring diagrams and other sources of info, I think I finally have most of it sorted out. Part of the ordeal was gaining access to the heater box. In order to gain access to that, the dash and the dash cross support bar all had to come out of the car. My cross bar was covered in surface rust, so of COURSE I tackled that and got it all cleaned up.

My current cockpit view. So many changes coming to this, I'm excited!
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Getting all of that surface rust taken care of sure felt nice, and it definitely looks a bit better. Not that literally anybody will ever see it haha. Oh well.

Next up was the actual HVAC swap aspect of all of this. I had managed to get the motors and all attached to a new heater box. While I had it out, I had taken it apart and replaced the blend door and made sure everything was greased and could move smoothly. There shouldn't be any issues going forward, assuming I actually managed to sort out the wiring correctly.

The USDM heater box, on the left, next to the JDM heater box, on the right.
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Figuring out the pins/connectors/wires for all of this took me a bit longer than I was anticipating, and I can only thank my friend so many times, as I'm sure he got tired of me asking all kinds of dumb questions about what we were doing. I'm electronically/wiring retarded, so this was a HUGE learning curve for me. Fortunately, I now have a much better understanding of what I'm looking at and how it's all going to go, so it was worth it. I don't have all of it done yet, but I'd say about 85% is all done.

While I was all up in this under-dash-mess-ness, I learned that the early Evo 8's didn't come factory with a cabin air filter. I decided to remedy that and cut out the block off plate on the heater blower box (black box on the far right side) and install the new filter.
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I've finally gotten everything sorted out enough to where I managed to get the heater box fully reassembled, the cross bar put back in, and the steering wheel remounted to where it goes. For anyone that has to lower the steering wheel off that cross bar for some reason, what a damn headache it was to get it telescoped to the right spot so the bolts would all line back up. Also, I'm not the best painter, as evidenced by runs and fisheyes lol.
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One other completely unrelated update, but is still an interior update. I repainted my dome light housing black to match the rest of what the interior is going to be like. Much better than tan, for sure!
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Alright! Now on to the fun stuff: the motor updates! This has been an overwhelming decision-making process, and I have lots of thanks to those who had to put up with me and all my questions about literally everything. With that said, I feel like I'm on the right track for a pretty solid build. I decided to go the 2.4LR route with all the internals to go with it. My wallet/bank account are dead and I'm on the ramen noodles diet right now, but I think it'll be worth it haha. The machining for the block is going great, and everything for my shortblock should be assembled by this weekend. The head is still undergoing its own assembly, but I should have updates for that soon.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...776e8829d2.jpg
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I had mentioned I had a bunch of stuff sent off to powdercoating. Some of it is done, and I'm still waiting on the rest of it. My manifold, O2 housing, and downpipe all got ceramic coated. You can kind of see my charge pipes and ignition coil mounting plate in the background too, all powdercoated the same color as my fuel rail. I'm still waiting for my valve cover, front strut bar, brakes front and rear, and turbo to all get done as well.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...326baddcda.jpg

*not my red turbo.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...b9e28c2d9a.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...4bcaa03c8e.jpg



So, I had ALSO mentioned that I'm having the transmission and transfer case rebuilt while everything is out of the car. I'm still waiting for an update on the transfer case, but the shop was kind enough to bring to my attention more neglect from the previous owner. I can only imagine how hard this car was driven before I got my hands on it, as I know there's no way my driving style did this kind of damage in the last 18 months I've owned the car. Basically all of the gears need to be replaced before the transmission can go back in the car.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...565d10d1f9.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...9ee1170382.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...ecc2c3ca31.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...7707d859e2.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...fb2defa9dc.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...db44d517d8.jpg


Anywho, there's my wordvomit for the day. As of right now, I'm still on track for my mid-August goal of having everything back in the car and running. It sure would be a lovely birthday gift to myself!

Excellent high level re-build right there. Thanks for sharing & well done

Hi there, awesome work on the interior dash you're braver than me that's for sure haha! Question what is the benefit of going to the jdm hvac setup vs usdm besides that it's jdm? I too have been uncovering the horrors that is the previous owner on my evo also...keep pushing through great work here!

Man you are going all out and that JDM Hvac does look daunting, i probably won't take that on until end of the year.

@SoSoEVO Benefit i see with the JDM Hvac is it had sensors for inside and outside for temp, so instead of our mechanical one it is electronically. Someone correct me if i am wrong. Plus JDM baby !!

Thanks! It's been a helluva process so far, but it'll be worth it once she's back on the road.

Taking out the dash was the easy part. I did it enough times back when I had my Eclipse that I'm not intimidated by that anymore. With the JDM hvac, it's all electronically controlled, whereas the USDM hvac is all cable driven. Ever get tired of having bound up cables and hard to turn knobs? The JDM hvac won't ever have that issue since the blend door is opened via servo motors. Plus, the control unit looks a lot nicer than the USDM one.

If you have all of the parts, and are wiring savvy, it's really not that bad. A little time consuming, and the correct parts can be tricky to track down, but once you have everything, then it's fairly straightforward. I have a couple of how-to's I've been following for information, and that's been crucial. I also have a lot of info I've discovered along the way I can pass along to anyone who's interested.

Great thread!{thumbup} I am definitely interested in your HVAC conversion. I'm assuming you bought the box+actuators as a single unit? I know that you said it was a jdm unit, but it appears from your picture to be from a LHD car. So was it that you sourced it through a JDM supplier, or did you just mean it was part of the "jdm" hvac swap? You and DEMON both went with the single din radio panel instead of relocating the controls to the lower cubby. Was it because that's what was available?

Yes, I bought the box and motors as a single unit that all came out of a LHD car from somewhere in Europe. There were a few makes/models over there that came with them, so.. I got lucky in finding it on ebay as all one big piece. For those who just use their USDM box and manage to find the LHD motors, the USDM box as all the mounting points for the motors already, so you won't need to take it out of your car to do that if you didn't want to. The huge bonus for me finding the box that I did was that everything was already mounted, and a lot of the wiring harness was already there, so that helped me out a LOT. Plus I rebuilt the blend door, so I would have had to take it all out anyways.

I sourced all the parts on my own through ebay, or a local dealership. A lot of the sensors I bought brand new, and sourced a couple connectors from a different website vendor that worked out pretty well. I'm actually following DEMON/Alex's write-up, and he's been instrumental in answering a TON of my really dumb questions over the last year or so lol. I went with the single DIN placement because my radio is already relocated to the lower cubby. I could have (well, technically I did, but that's another story) bought the controls for the lower cubby and put my radio back in the stock location, but I kind of like having my radio in the lower cubby spot. So having the controls in the radio panel like I do makes sense to me, as I'll have the gauges above the hvac controls, with the radio in very easy access to my hand on the shifter. :D

Thx for the info! Good luck with the build. :mitsu::headbang:

Super awesome! Especially the HVAC!
On that, anyone ever just ripped the entire ETACS system from JDM car and plunk the works into USDM unit? Get the power folding mirrors and everything? Anyone wanna split getting a front cut from Japan? I take ETACs you take anti-lag and sell the rest for MAD profit!?! I'm only half joking...

does anybody know exactly what all the usdm vs jdm etacs controls?

The only super major differences seem to be Power Folding Mirrors and auto climate control. People with more savvy than me might chime in with more detail if we're lucky.
Not that you care now your swap is done. CHAMPION WORK!

DEMON was able to complete his hvac swap without messing with etacs, so I dunno if etacs actually manages any part of the auto climate control. I've read about the heated/power folding mirrors though, so that would be neat to figure out if I can.

ETACS has it's own ecu and wiring harness and controls...quite a lot. There is a page on Evoscan about it but doesn't tell diffs between market models.
https://evoscan.com/technical-vehicl...ishi-etacs-sws

If I'm not mistaken, the Auto Climate system has its own Control unit, and what I remember from the wiring it doesn't interact with the ETACs any differently then the Manual Climate control setup.

Yeah, I found the ETACS controller while I had the dash out. Of course it's going to control a lot. But it doesn't touch the auto climate system at all. Just like what @Biggiesacks says, the auto climate system has it's own control unit. It's the brain behind the knobs if you look behind the radio face plate. That's what all the wiring and splicing gets done to.

Doesn't HVAC plug into ETACS ecu though? Seriously, I'm not sure yet because I haven't torn into my wreck to see a fresh anything, the roller I bought had butchered wiring and plugs hanging about all willy nilly and that's what I've stripped so far. This has made me realize I gotta be sure to track all the gadget sensors and swap them over...thanks guys!

There's two plugs on the back of the JDM hvac ecu. Neither of them have wires that route to the ETACS ecu. All of the wires that come off the two plugs route to the new servo motors and various temperature sensors that get added to the car.

Update time!

This past weekend has been a big deal as far as parts goes. All of my parts are done at powdercoating, except my valve cover, and I picked up my block yesterday! I am SUPER excited. :D

All teal parts got dual coated. Base coat in Hyper Silver, top coat in Jamacian Teal. Pictures really don't do it justice.
Front strut bar:
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...9fee469a8e.jpg

Brakes. I'm still waiting on the Brembo stickers, but those will be done soon too. All the bleeder screws got replaced with new black ones, and the Brembo stickers will be black to match.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...2ea0bc0094.jpg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...c8dfd080a2.jpg

Turbo coldside. I think it's going to look so neat next to the ceramic coated hotside!
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...3691058cc3.jpg

I'm super excited for all the pretty parts to get back on the car. In order for all that to happen, the fun stuff has to take place: getting the motor assembled! The first big step was picking up the block yesterday. I'll post specs of everything below.

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...8308ce98ee.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...f6327e5571.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...90e18472ee.jpg
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...d7a528ae1a.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0b1a7203b5.jpg

Specs:
4G64 block
2.4L crank, 100mm stroke
Crank cryotreated
Manley 2.4LR pistons 156mm/100mm
Manley 2.4LR rods 156mm
ARP main studs
ACL main bearings
ACL rod/thrust bearings
ATI harmonic balancer
Kiggly HLA
English Racing 2.4L water pump
Balance shaft delete

All the oil galleys got rolled and smoothed. All the cylinder walls got honed. Everything got weight balanced and rotation balanced (I have the spec sheet in the box of parts). I'm really excited to get all of this put together and get it mated with the head. Which, that should be done next week. As soon as I have that back, I'll list out the specs for that too. In the mean time, I have a lot to do to get the car ready for her new heart. I have new stainless braided brake lines to install, a new exhaust to install, and an engine bay to clean. And the rest of the block to assemble. Best to get to work!

Not painting the pistons , rods and crank in teal ? jk

Looks good. I’m curious how your engine bay will look. Sorry if i missed this but are you going to have a forward facing turbo setup ?

:lol: yeah no. Am girl, am not dumb. Most the time haha. I'm hoping the bay will look good and not too much teal. But there will be enough black in there to counter balance everything, so I think it'll be alright. Nah, no forward facing turbo for me. Just stock placement. At least for this iteration of things. I'm not going all kinds of crazy right now.

Update time.

My valve cover and brakes are 100% done and assembled. I love how everything has turned out so far, and am definitely excited to get it all back on the car.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...104bb5b69b.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0cc6c31cac.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...1567f71d07.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...57744a8429.jpg

I started assembling the rest of the block yesterday. I'm still waiting on an order of all the gaskets before I can do too much more, but that should all be here next week. Also, my head got done at the shop yesterday, so I'm picking that up today. Needless to say, I'm pretty excited! Now, my transmission and transfer case just need to get finished and shipped back to me, and I can start reassembling this giant puzzle I've got called a car.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...c96d2e20d4.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...6b367f5e4e.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...25f5d53386.jpg

I also picked up a bunch of other parts necessary for the build.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...4625992b9e.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...2b5b5d3ac9.jpg

Radium clutch fork
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...2854a7b732.jpg

Exedy HD twin disk clutch
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...5ded9c1d2a.jpg

ATI harmonic balancer
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...a1a8366e0b.jpg
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...f7bf257673.jpg

ARP head studs
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...f63aa1498b.jpg

New front oil case
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...7936830576.jpg

Progress is happening, and I'm stoked to see everything finally coming back together.

The brakes are a lighter color in the sunlight? If so that is pretty nice.

Yeah, the color definitely is lighter, more blue-ish in the sunlight and more green-ish when in inside type lighting. It's super cool; I love it. I can't wait to see how everything looks on the car and get some really nice shots of everything.

Progress looks amazing. Now would be a good time to pull out the stock crankcase vent tube and open up that port on the valve cover to relieve excess crankcase pressure. Kind of back tracking at this point because I am sure that you have removed the baffles on the valvecover to clean out any powder or media that might have been left behind after powdercoating since that will easily contaminate bearings.

Ah man, I didn't even think about that. Yeah the baffles all got removed for the powdercoating process, and all of that is done now. Maybe that'll be a project for some point in the future.

Update again!

The head is complete and back from the machine shop!! I am super excited to have this back in my possession :D Now I'm just waiting for the gasket set that I ordered to come in so I can start assembling the motor as one piece :D:D:D
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...1134e6c688.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...3435b24d69.jpg

Specs:
GSC S2 cams 272/272
Titanium beehive valve springs & retainers
Manley valve keepers
ARP L19 head studs
GSC intake/exhaust +1mm valves
GSC no-tick lifters
GSC valve seals
MLS head gasket
Bronze valve guides
EGR delete

I am getting really excited to see everything starting to come back together. It's already been 9 weeks since the motor blew up, and I miss driving the Evo every day. I cannot wait to take her for a spin!

Loving the rebuild so far. Keep up the good work.

Update:
I'm still waiting for the Wavetrac LSD to come in so the transmission shop can finish the overhaul on my transfer case before they ship that and my transmission back to me. In the mean time, lookit the giant adult-sized puzzle I have in the garage! I have days where I feel like I can tackle anything, and days where it's so intimidating that I avoid it altogether lol. But! I'm making progress on getting everything assembled into one big piece, so that's good.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...a449e2c724.jpg

The new guts of the head sure look nice!
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...6c2321e9e9.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...382a7f3263.jpg

I got the head mated to the block over the weekend, and got everything torqued down. Talk about daunting! But, it feels good to have the halves together finally.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...3a82c75cfb.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...5bb121667b.jpg

I'm stoked at how everything is looking as it comes together. Well worth it so far. I'm still waiting for my new cam gears to come in, as well as my balance shaft delete spacer thing to come in before I can get the harmonic balancer on and I can finish up the timing components. Progress! I cannot wait to take her for a spin and give her a bath.

Update time! A lot has been going on in the last few weeks, and I'm super excited to be making progress.

I got my new AEM adjustable cam gears and got them all set up. That timing tool really makes it a lot easier to hold everything in place; I wish I'd had it last year when I did the timing belt. Also, I realized after this photo was taken that I had the crank reluctor wheel thing on wrong and have since fixed that so everything is lined up accurately.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...93bc82f5ec.jpg

I'm still loving how this valve cover looks.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...28c3e9b8d8.jpg

Spark plugs and COP setup installed.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...22325fe3f3.jpg

Of course, new shiny cam cover.
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...715b5e0964.jpg

Finally got my AMS fuel rail and FIC1200's installed. It's the little things like the rail and COP mounting plate being powdercoated the same color that make a difference to me.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...741f083706.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...bf3fa7077b.jpg

All has not been work work work and no play. On the 20th, I got to do an Xtreme Driving Xperience day at the local track, and lemme tell ya! That Huracan is an absolute BLAST to drive! I was giggling the entire time I was ripping it around the track.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...c934bac21e.jpg
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...147fc7755b.jpg

The following day, on the 21st, I ran in my 2nd Tough Mudder 5K. Had a great time doing that as well, and have already registered for the race next year. What a mess!
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...a76b0504ba.jpg
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...666ad0c594.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...dcaef6122c.jpg

Enough of my shenanigans; back to the shop! I finally had the engine built enough to get it off the engine stand and back onto the cherry picker, not-so-patiently awaiting the day when my transmission and transfer case get shipped back to me.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...5bcfd056d6.jpg

Timing components all set. I've double checked all this multiple times, and I'm sure I'll double check it multiple times again before getting the engine in the car, because I'm paranoid about all of this. Also, that harmonic balancer was quite a challenge for me to get pressed on all the way (I have no access to a press, so a block of wood and lots of hammer swinging took place).
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...56838acc48.jpg

Alas, the new Exedy twin-disk clutch was ready to go on! It was only after I had gotten it put on that I had a blond moment and realized that the starter plate goes on first..... *head desk* So, it got taken back off and the starter plate was installed, and the clutch was re-installed after this photo was taken.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...1882d4a79f.jpg

AND NOW!! What I've been waiting for for a little too long! My transmission and transfer case finally showed back up on the 26th! I was giddy and the delivery driver was almost certainly laughing at me as I squealed while tearing in to the box and wrapping. There's a Wavetrac LSD hiding in that transfer case, and I'm stoked to drive the car.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...810e9aa8cd.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...6bd82f5be6.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...f306f3a207.jpg

It's all so shiny and new! Unlike the engine bay and lower suspension components of the car. So I've spent plenty of time scrubbing things clean. The only downside to the shop that I've been working in is that it was zero access to running water, so pushing the car out into the driveway and using a pressurewasher to help clean things was out of the picture. Thankfully, Simple Green and Tub-o-Towels work wonders for cleaning stuff.
Before:
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0cedbc9f16.jpg

During:
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...77788d816d.jpg
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...78e1b11603.jpg

After: (the other part of the LCA will get cleaned when I tackle the brakes; I didn't feel like moving a whole bunch of stuff I have on that side of the car right now)
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...c0bcb328a7.jpg

The transmission shop had sent me back a box of miscellaneous hardware that goes on the transmission, and I got to spend most of an entire day figuring out where it all goes. I've got a few other bits to place, but I'm like 95% of the way done with getting it all put back together.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...a6363c5b2b.jpg

Needless to say, it's been an eventful few weeks, and even with all the progress that has happened, I still have a long ways to go. Slow and steady wins the race (in this case)!

That looks awesome! Do you plan to bolt the engine and transmission together before dropping then into the car? Great job on the cleaning of the control arms. It does look a lot better and it will make a difference in the future. I am glad you went with the wavetrac LSD for your transfer case. I have no experience with it so i'm looking forward to hearing how it does compared to stock. As in, is it just stronger or also makes the car handle differently. Your strength and ambition to get the project done shows.

Good choice with the ATI damper but it is a giant PITA to install as well as remove. the best way to press on the hub portion is to use a damper installer tool which basically threads into the crank then you use a nut to press it on. Much safer than wacking with happer or using the crank bolt to pull it on.

Just curious, is there a reason you left your lower timing cover off the motor? Bc you should really put that back on to keep crap outa there!

Otherwise great update and keep up the good work!

Yep, I plan to bolt the engine and transmission together before putting it in the bay. Transfer case in first and held off to the side while the motor/trans combo drops in, then I'll bolt it all together as one giant piece FINALLY. There's still a TON to do, so I can't stop now!

Hm, yeah, I didn't even think about a damper installer tool. Noted for the future, for sure!
I left the lower timing cover off because with that ATI damper, the lower cover just does not fit. I'm trying to figure out a way to trim the lower cover to get it to fit as best I can while still being able to cover as much as I'm able to, but it's a trick. I'll try to take some photos of it when I get to the shop later. Unless someone out there with more experience than me has any tips on everything fitting lol. #newb

Was hoping I could find a pic when I trimmed mine but seems I didnt snap a photo. I get to pull my motor again so if you want a few weeks Ill snap some closeups. But did find this pic so proof that it can be done :)

Off memory, its pretty easy honestly. Where you would slip the crank pulley in, there is a lip that goes around the circumference of the hole. Trim, down that lip until it is flush with the cover. There is also a little nub that sticks out which you can see in my pic in around the 3'oclock position. That needs some material removed to fit the acc belt. I also had to trim mine bc I have an ER underdrive oil pump gear in the bottom corner. But all in all it can be made to fit with minimal work so get it back on there. That being said have fun removing the damper assembly. I still havent figured out the best way to remove that. I've had to remove a few times now and basically end up with a pry bar and the trick is to pry carefully. Keyword carefully bc I was impatient last time I did it and cracked my cover. So yeah be careful removing it, lol!

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...7c1d6f25ea.jpg

I pm'ed you with some questions. Definitely makes me rethink how I was gonna go about it.

Thanks to @heel2toe for the pointers on the lower timing cover. I have since gotten it trimmed so it'll fit around the new damper. I still have to trim the little knob thing on the right side to have clearance for the serpentine belt, so that's why the damper hardware isn't installed in this photo. Little progress is still progress!

Also, one little hiccup I'm having is getting all of the timing cover bolt holes to line up. I can get all the lower ones lined up and the bolts put in, but then the ones by the water pump and the two at the top don't line up at all. What dumb thing am I overlooking? lol.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...382071084c.jpg

If the cover is fully seated as it should then it should line up. Have you snugged down the bolts that you got in already? I get every bolt started but keep it loose until they are all threaded in and then snug down. The two head tins are bolted to the head with 2 bolts so there is a small chance those are up too far so you could try loosening those up as well but I doubt thats your issue since you cant get either side and the bolt on the water pump. Guessing you just snugged the others down and shouldnt have already.

Cool rebuild, love seeing these getting cleaned back up.

You should feel zero discernible difference in the wavetrac vs OEM. Any stated difference between them is worn down/off nearly immediately and the rest is marketing. Its just stronger, that's all. And unless you're a track rat, its all you need.

Thanks! She's been getting the royal treatment lately. I'm definitely not a track rat, but I wasn't about to have the transfer case be a weak point after the rest of the work I've done with it lol.

The transmission and the transfer case are looking great. I like the silver metallic look. Was the rebuild done through Sheptrans?

May want to run with the lower timing cover off just to check for leaks on startup.

The trans and tcase rebuild were done through Jack's Transmission. The only complaint I'd have with running with the lower cover off for the initial start-up would be getting that damper back off in order to reinstall the lower cover after making sure there's no leaks. It was tricky enough to get it off with the engine on the cherry picker like it is; I imagine it'll be significantly harder with the engine installed in the car.

Yesterday felt like a huge success!

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...752668a92b.jpg

I had a small hold-up with the clutch fork springs and seals, but I finally got the new seals (little felt washer things.. ugh lol) and got them along with the springs installed. Clutch fork now works as I expect it to. Got the engine and transmission mated together, and got my starter bolted up! I still have a few things to finalize on the timing/accessories side of things, but that is my goal for today. This week looks to be a pretty big one as far as making progress, so I'm hoping to have some good updates by the weekend!

No pictures to accompany the update today, but an update nonetheless.

I've been plagued by little issues of my own making the last few weeks, and I'm beating my head against a wall as I sort them out. After the last update, I had managed to get the engine in and bolted down, only to struggle to get the transfer case in place. So, back out the engine came in order to bolt the transfer case to the transmission before dropping it back in. It's snug, but it definitely fits with the accessories taken off. Got it all bolted back together, to then discover I didn't pay attention to the starter/battery cable wiring harness, and it had gotten routed all dumb and managed to get pinched between the transfer case and oil pan. *HEAD DESK* Back out the engine came, again, to undo all that and get the wiring out of the way. Then I had issues with getting the rear engine mount to actually line up so I could bolt it in. After some digging, I found out that I had managed to bolt the rear mount bracket to the transmission upside down. So now I get to yank the motor back out of the way... AGAIN... in order to sort that out today after work. Needless to say, I've gotten more practice at removal/installation of this engine than I ever anticipated. But! With this latest issue smoothed out, I should be set to finally get her all bolted down and start tackling the wiring and plumbing. I've still got my fingers crossed for a start-up the weekend following Halloween, but we'll see how that goes.

The Evo has officially been down 5 months, and I'm beyond antsy and nervous to get her back on the road.

I feel some of your pains, those things really like to go in a certain way. There are some things that can help though.

You should be able to pull the bracket off the tran (rear motor mount) in the car unless you didnt remove the part with the two rubber ends. But thats one bolt and comes out without too much drama as long as you use a wobbly (universal joint) and long extension.

The t-case is fun to put in with the engine/trans mounted (/sarcasm). I put a ratchet strap on a bolt hole from the trans bell housing and pull the whole thing forward till the wg just about hits the radiator. Then lots of muscle and grunting.

I actually haven't had any issues with putting the motor/trans/tcase in as one big piece. Take the front mount bracket and the accessories off, and it goes right in. I'm sure a lot of it has to do with the fact that I don't have the radiator or any of the turbo stuff in yet either, but that's besides the point lol. I'm really hoping today is the final time of moving the engine around so I can finally focus on literally anything else. I still have a lot to do, and I'm ready to be done.

Stabbing back in the xcase with a second set of hands makes all the difference in the world. North/ south bar removed then have helper pry the engine forward with a bar. There is a nice spot between the block and subframe that is ideal positioning. Also removing the 4 bolts on the tailshaft stock portion makes a huge difference. With that off and engine py'd forward it comes out and goes right in.

Yeah, with all the bits that I still have currently off the car (all accessories, the cross member, all turbo stuff, front mount bracket, wiring, etc), I can get the engine/trans/tcase out in like 10-15 minutes. I've had plenty of practice the last few weeks lol. At least I know I can do it pretty well now :updown:

Make a video! It took me an hour to squiggle my engine and trans in WITHOUT the t-case so it would be really cool to have a video of the entire works slithering in.

If I have to pull it out again (hopefully not any time soon), I will definitely take a video. I'm going to try to better about video-documenting my build going forward anyways; a lot of my friends have been pestering me to do like a YouTube channel to document my build and all the progress I do on the car, along with any track events and meets and whatnot that I do with the car.

I finally managed to get the whole motor bolted in tonight. Got the rear mount bracket fixed, and then fought with the rear mount itself for an unnecessary amount of time before it finally lined up. Tomorrow, I shall tackle getting the bay wiring all plugged back in.

I called it a day at the rear mount after deciding to get a pin bar to help line it up. Spent too long cursing and was about to get rammy...

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...95c0e8d772.jpg

I DID IT, I FINALLY WON. Well, I've won this particular battle. I still have a lot to do, but with the engine in the bay on its own mounts, none of the wiring pinched in places it shouldn't be, I can now start tackling the rest of the tasks in order to get her running. I'm aiming to complete the bay wiring and get everything plugged in today, so we'll see how that goes.

This past week or so has been fairly productive, I'd say. I'm finally done moving the motor around, and have everything all bolted into place as far as that goes. I've been working on getting the engine bay wiring harness all plugged in (success), and all the turbo stuff sorted out (work in progress), and all the interior stuff buttoned up (work in progress). It's all a bunch of little things at this point.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...86d8034e8c.jpg

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...76e250f6dc.jpg

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...0bbb24b335.jpg

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...f074bc9104.jpg

Getting this JDM HVAC swap all done and wired in has been a bit more challenging than my electrical/wiring-retarded brain could handle, but it's all done and it has tested out fine so far. I'm excited to do the full test once the car has fluids.
I still need to finish up the exhaust, brakes, oil drain line (ordered a new one, so that has to come in), charge pipes (waiting on a few couplers to come in), radiator and hoses, wastegate and all the boost lines, ebc, fpr, and the gauges on the interior (boost, afr, oil temp, oil pressure). Then it's fill everything up with fluids, bleed all the systems, and prep for start-up. It's crunch time!

Did a little project last night while I'm waiting for a few little pieces to come in to finish the charge pipes and turbo stuff. Prosport 45mm boost gauge tucked into the cluster. I love how it came out. Nevermind the white face of the gauge; I'll match it to the factory red of the rest of the cluster as soon as everything else settles down.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...74f57a7da3.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.evo...d695c89cb7.jpg

Hey guys. I could really use some help, as electrical is not my forte, and I am super stumped. So, I've been rebuilding my Evo 8 the last 6 months after timing let go. I've gotten all the mechanical stuff done now, and am basically ready to start the car. However.. I started experiencing some weird issues.

Some background:
While the car was down having the motor rebuilt, I decided that it was a great time to do the JDM hvac swap. I had collected all the parts, and did my due diligence with the wiring following a known-good write-up. Once the engine was back in the bay and I had the engine bay harness fully connected, I added my battery to the mix so I could turn the key to ACC and test the hvac wiring to make sure I did it correctly. When I connected the battery terminals, nothing out of the ordinary happened, and I was able to successfully test the new hvac system; blower speeds worked and the servo/direction motors worked, all as they should. Yay me! At this point, I did some wire management before putting the dashboard back in the car and continuing on with some mechanical stuff I needed to do (brakes, exhaust, etc). Two weeks after I initially tested the hvac system, I was at the point where I was ready to tackle wiring in the new gauges I got for the car (boost, oil temp, oil pressure, and afr). During those two weeks of in between time, I did not have the battery connected at all. When I went to put the battery back in so I could test for a good ignition wire power source, issues started happening. Note: new gauges have not yet been wired in yet because of said issues.

The problem:
Keep in mind, throughout all of this, the key is not in the car at all. The engine bay harness is fully connected, and the interior ground tails that come off the dash harness are all connected.
When I connect the battery terminals, all my lights come on. And by all, I mean high beams, low beams, blinkers front and rear, running lights front/rear/fenders, and brake lights. If the gauge cluster is connected, the fuel pump comes on. All these things happen even with light plugs (headlight/blinker stalk, and fog light switch) unplugged.

Troubleshooting:
I'll lead by saying I am absolutely clueless about electrical, so I'm sure I'm missing something somewhere with reading the wiring diagrams, but I've had a couple people try to teach/show me some things with that.
I followed the wiring diagrams to try to find things the lights all had in common. What I found was that things ran through a "front ecu" in the engine bay fuse box, and ran through the ETACS box that's connected to the interior junction/fuse box. If I remove the front ecu and separate the ETACS box from the junction box, then my symptoms go away. If I leave the front ecu in place and just separate the ETACS box, then my side markers and DRL's turn off but my highs/lows and tails are still on. Removing various combinations of relays from the junction box had no effect. If I leave the front ecu connected, and remove the junction box completely from the car, then my side markers, DRL's, and driver side taillights turn off but the rest still come on.

Does anybody understand how the junction box/interior fuse box, the ETACS, and front ecu get their power? What else can I check?

im in for what you find....
ive never heard of anything like that.

obviously it is something that has been done during the wiring work.
somehow you are energizing something... that is turning on all the relays.
may even be you have a ground wire energized that is back feeding all of the relays... turning them on.
If this is the case... could burn up easily.

i would pull out all your relays and see if you have power on both sides when the battery is plugged up.

I've already gone back and retested the hvac wiring I did, and eliminating all the new wiring I did doesn't change any of my symptoms. I had pulled the interior fuse box completely out of the car, and my lights still came on.
I just tested a known good front ecu yesterday, and that didn't change anything, so now I know that mine isn't faulty. I'll be poking at it some more this weekend to see what I can find. I've been stumped for two weeks.

It could be something back feeding power into the circuit. Kind of like an accidental hot wire. Does the car have an alarm installed, turbo timer etc? I don't have access to diagrams for a few days but you could try strategically unplugging things and see if that corrects the issue.

No aftermarket alarm. I pulled the turbo timer off the car a few weeks ago because I didn't like having it. The only aftermarket wiring that exists is the radio. Well, and the hvac wiring I did, but I've already tested that, and it's not the issue.

Have you tried plugging everything in and see if the problem remains? I noticed you said that many things weren't plugged in, and In my experience some cars freak out and do weird things when certain devices aren't attached. It could be safety related, who knows.. but If you haven't tried doing that yet, give it a shot.

another question/suggestion (sorry its early for me I should have read your description twice before posting) I noticed you said you did wire management after testing everything, but did you retest after doing the wiring management? If not you might go over all of that again, because stuff can happen when moving around all those wires.

When I first experienced the issues, I had everything I could plugged into the dash, except the gauge cluster and the hvac brain, since I was going to be wiring in gauges from those locations. Yes, I tested after doing wire management. I even went back through and essentially rebuilt the hvac harness that I had initially created because I didn't like how I had built it the first time.

Ok good, I just wanted to kinda start at the basics. I can't really offer much targeted troubleshooting advice until I can study the diagrams a bit. Next thing you could try though is hooking it up and start pulling fuses until the lights go out. Then jump down that rabbit hole and start pulling fuses that are subs of that fuse etc until hopefully you find the problem.

does the low side, ground on the relays have 12v positive power?

pull the light relay... clip a test light to the frame... and then check all the sockets and make sure they are all not hot.

So what must be happening is Battery +12v is sending power to the Front ECU and all the lights are turning on. I would think that by accident maybe a power wire is connected to a ground point on the headlight harness.

All the lights are on the live +12 volt circuit.

correct... thats what im saying to check... if you test the low side of the relay and it is hot, then you just got to start unplugging stuff untill it goes away... then you trace that circuit down and find the fault.

THIS is exactly what was happening. Essentially, I'm an idiot and had connected the ground wire from the transmission to the power lead cuz that positive terminal had gotten taken apart and I didn't pay attention to what was where *FACEPALM* stupid mistake, easy fix. Now, back to the regularly scheduled programming of getting things buttoned up and wire in the new gauges in prep for the first startup.

I. Feel. REALLY. Dumb.

So I'm battling a no-start issue.

I've confirmed fuel (pulled the feed line from the rail, watched fuel spit out), confirmed spark (pulled each spark plug and watched them spark as I cranked the car over). I've confirmed the crank position sensor trigger wheel is installed the correct direction, the crank position sensor is brand new. I've confirmed the camshaft position sensor trigger wheel is installed in the correct direction, and the camshaft position sensor is brand new too. I've triple and quadruple checked timing multiple times throughout the course of this whole rebuild by hand cranking it over and over and over again, and everything lines back up. The battery is brand new, but it's been used to try to start the car a bunch so I'm going to put it on a charger today after work.

I'm not sure what else to check, and I'm pretty stumped.

Since you just rewired a bunch of stuff, check your coolant temp sensor. I had a wire break on an old DSM and without it connected ECU would read something like -200deg. The compensation for coolant temp basically flooded the motor and it wouldnt even try to fire.

Could also put a timing light on it while cranking to make sure its firing right and not 180deg off.

If im not mistaken the timing should be locked at -5 degrees during cranking, so I would verify that with a timing light. Also try connecting to the ECU with evoscan and log while your cranking. Look to see that the ECU is seeing RPM during cranking and log Injector pulse width, and make sure that looks like a sane vale for your injector size and starting conditions etc.

You should also double check over the injector wiring. I'm not sure if your using High or Low-Z injectors but make sure your injector resistor pack is bypassed properly for high-z or hooked up right for low-z. Verify you are getting power VBATT at the injectors themselves, and you can use a timing light in series to verify it is getting signal from the ECU while cranking. Just unplug an injector and use the tester between then terminals in the pigtail. You could also just remove a spark plug and check if its getting wet with fuel after cranking.

You can use EVOSCAN to probe the various sensors and make sure they are reporting sane values, as well as test a bunch of different systems on the car.

I don't have evoscan or a tactrix cable or anything that will let me do any kind of logging. I am running FIC1200's for my injectors, and have the injector resistor pack properly bypassed with the FIC delete plug from STM. The injectors are spraying; the spark plugs definitely smell like fuel each time I've pulled them to check things out.

You should get that stuff. Its IMO a must have tool in the toolbox of anyone with a modded Evo. Since you know you are getting fuel, then checking ignition timing is pretty much the next step. If that comes back good then its going to be about how much fuel the engine is spraying and you will need those tools to verify that yourself*, and if need be modify it. Also fuel pressure at the rail could be effecting things so you might want to verify that.

*You could use like an oscilloscope to also check IPW but thats probably more hectic than evoscan.

Yeah, I should have it, but I don't trust myself to know how to read it or to make changes that won't hurt the car. I've had a lot going on, and haven't really felt up to the task with learning yet another new thing amongst everything else happening.

Step one before ever changing anything is learning to read the logs. Just doing that without ever turning a dial in the tune has huge value in monitoring your cars health. I swear tactrix isn't paying me anything to harp on about this :lol:

With all the effort your putting into this build, I really believe this is something you should make some time to learn about. However if you would prefer, this is probably the point to engage the services of a tuner to help get it running.

If I'd undertaken this whole project as a "because I want to" instead of as a "because I literally have to" (thanks, grenaded motor), then I likely would have gone that route lol. I definitely agree it'd be great for me to learn, and in time I likely will. But I just hadn't had the opportunity to buy the software and cable, and then teach myself how it all works without causing further damage to things.

I'm enlisting some professional help next week, because I am 100% stumped on what to do moving forward. And of course I can't post up the video I took from my phone the other night to show what it's (not) doing.

Dbl post....

I hear yah, time is a luxury. One other thing that crossed my mind that you could verify is compression. I also see you are running a 4g64 block, I think the cam timing on those is a little different then a 4g63. If you haven't gone down that rabbit hole I would suggest you look into it.

I was going to check compression tonight after work when I have the chance to go rent one. Also going to get my battery on a charger to make sure it's fully charged. In regards to the cam timing, the guy that did the machine work on my car is running a 4g64 block and an evo 8 head in his eclipse, and I followed his guidelines on how to set the cam timing with the AEM gears I've got.

Ok good, I just wanted to make sure you were aware there is a difference.

Thanks for lookin' out! I had asked a LOT of dumb questions to the engine builder during the entire process, and I'm sure he got tired of seeing my name pop up on messenger lol.

I love the color scheme!

Thanks! I'm excited to get the strut tower bar back in place so I can see it all together. Same with getting good shots of the brakes :D

WELL!! SHE LIVES! <3

I wound up taking it to a shop to figure out exactly what was wrong and preventing it from starting. It was a fairly straight-forward fix, and I'm glad I had them go over everything. Turns out, the timing was a tooth off, and the crank position sensor was bolted to the block with the wrong bolts, so it wasn't reading correctly. Definitely all my own mistake, especially the bolts. I tried my darndest to keep things labeled in bags during the teardown, but I had a couple people helping me, and this wasn't the only case of something being mislabeled or not labeled at all. Anyways, I'm glad they found the issue quick and got it fixed! They're going to do a final check-up on everything else today and check for leaks and all that. If that all goes well, I get to pick her up and drive her home tomorrow and start the break-in process!

It's a fairly short clip, but this is what they sent me last night at like 5pm. Needless to say, when I got it, I cheered and did a happy dance in my kitchen for like 5 minutes; I was REALLY excited.

Evo timing is a bit of a pain lining up to marks on the valve cover instead of center line like on DSMs. And the way the cams want to twist is always a pain in my arse.

I did put this up on thingiverse for people to print their own alignment tool since its such a pain to do without one. And its a perfect functional use for 3d printing.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3925590

3D printing is super neat. Not sure I'm creative enough to justify the cost of a printer, but it's always neat to see what people come up with. I do have an alignment tool I used though; it's a blue one and can be seen in some earlier photos. I'm pretty sure that it was just an honest mistake on my part, what with this being my first big build and my first DOHC car.