[X3_4_life]

That is a solid remote battery install

Thanks buddy, I thought about buying a kit, but they're are pretty expensive, especially some of the ones that come with a battery box, so I decided to just piece it together myself.

Today was one of those 2 steps forward 1 step back type of days. I received my new coil in the mail, so I decided to get it mounted, but as luck would have it the main wiring harness that I previously rerouted and wrapped was right in the way of where the coil would mount and because of how tightly I wrapped all the legs that branched off the main harness, I didn't have enough slack to install the coil. So I had to take off the throttle body (again) and the cold air intake and unplug everything and unwrap the harness all the way back to the main fork where everything branched off.
I basically just had to rewrap each individual branch of the harness separately instead of all together.

I went to regap the NGK spark plugs but they were already preset at .035" so that was cool. The old plugs that I removed were Bosch Platinum Fusion spark plugs that have the 4 electrodes instead of just one. I dont have any experience with them, but i kept them just in case they were worth cleaning up and reusing down the road.
As far as wiring goes I'm pretty much finished under the hood, except for running the wiring harness for the aftermarket oil pressure sensor, and then in the trunk I need to wire up a disconnect switch to the battery and a ground to the chassis. On my next days off I will be wrapping the header and lifting/blocking the car up off the ground so I can finally start on the exhaust! 🔥🤯

*EDIT: Quick question, is there supposed to be a cover that goes over the spark plug wires? I notice the threaded inserts and looks like a cover goes there.

 

[geezer101]

*EDIT: Quick question, is there supposed to be a cover that goes over the spark plug wires? I notice the threaded inserts and looks like a cover goes there.

Yep, check my thread so you know what it looks like. They are only on the Beta 1 engines (1.8 and 2.0) Make sure you take the bolts with the cover as they have a shoulder on them that prevents you from over tightening them and cracking the cover. I prefer the look of the 'bikini' plug wire cover over the humungous 'beauty' (ugly...) cover on the Beta 2 engines.

Good luck with the DIY exhaust fabrication. If I had the resources and the skills I'd be making all kinds of custom stuff like adjustable control links, an exhaust and maybe even an intake or 2...

 

[X3_4_life]

Yep, check my thread so you know what it looks like. They are only on the Beta 1 engines (1.8 and 2.0) Make sure you take the bolts with the cover as they have a shoulder on them that prevents you from over tightening them and cracking the cover. I prefer the look of the 'bikini' plug wire cover over the humungous 'beauty' (ugly...) cover on the Beta 2 engines.

Good luck with the DIY exhaust fabrication. If I had the resources and the skills I'd be making all kinds of custom stuff like adjustable control links, an exhaust and maybe even an intake or 2...

Awesome thanks, I will see if I can find one!

I wish I had a better welder, I just have a little 120 volt Lincoln wire feed that I use without argon gas, I just use flux core wire. It does ok, but the weld quality varies alot depending the material and thickness.

Today I got Zippy up off the ground so I can crawl underneath and start tackling the exhaust. I have it blocked up almost 1'ft off the ground which gives me enough room to roll under with the creeper! I will start in on the exhaust tomorrow.

 

[geezer101]

Work safe! I know we sometimes have have to resort to some sketchy practices due to lack of accessible equipment and tools. If there is any way you can attach ratchet straps front and rear to a secure anchor, I'd do it. It wouldn't take much bad luck for it to move on those blocks. There's an unfortunate statistic that here in Australia about 20 people are crushed to death under their own cars every year. I would bet that number is exponentially higher in the US.

At least with the exhaust you can check your pipe alignment, do a few tack welds and then finish it up on the bench. I'd personally like to see this up and running without having an update in 6 months time after being told you got badly injured...

 

[X3_4_life]

Work safe! I know we sometimes have have to resort to some sketchy practices due to lack of accessible equipment and tools. If there is any way you can attach ratchet straps front and rear to a secure anchor, I'd do it. It wouldn't take much bad luck for it to move on those blocks. There's an unfortunate statistic that here in Australia about 20 people are crushed to death under their own cars every year. I would bet that number is exponentially higher in the US.

At least with the exhaust you can check your pipe alignment, do a few tack welds and then finish it up on the bench. I'd personally like to see this up and running without having an update in 6 months time after being told you got badly injured...

I appreciate you pointing out your safety concerns with the car being on blocks. I do sometimes get in a hurry and probably do things that might be a little sketchy. It is always nice to have a second pair of eyes that may see something that you are missing or to offer safer alternatives. I would have liked to have stuck to my original plan and built some wider wheel cribs as pictured earlier in this thread, but i just don't have the time or money to put out on the lumber. I could attach a ratchet strap and achor the rear of the car, but I dont have any way of anchoring it in the front. I have since added jack stands and additional blocks under the frame as a added safety measure.

So we recently found out that the house we are renting is going to be put up for sale. We were offered the option of buying the house (we have lived here 3 years) but the asking price in my opinion is too high. Additionally the house would require some remodeling to make it fit our needs better (it would need another bathroom as it only has one, and the floor plan layout would need to be changed in order to accommodate a second bathroom). So we are opting to move, which ups the timeline in which to complete this engine swap on Zippy.

I did make some progress on the exhaust. I couldnt find a 2 bolt exhaust flange that matched the one end of the flex pipe. Incidentally the flange that bolts to the header is slightly different than the flange on the opposite end that bolts to the exhaust. So I made my own flange, I also built a little mounting bracket that helps keep the resonator tucked up in the tunnel better. After the resonator there are two 90° bends that puts me right in front of the passenger side rear wheel well. I stopped here out of frustration. Trying to get the exhaust pipe routed up and over and then back down to meet the muffler and still have the exhaust tip come out in the factory location is proving to be a challenge, so I quit for the day. I will start again fresh in the morning before work.

^I tried to think ahead for a once and cut out the majority of the shape/pattern before cutting out they whole flange.

^1 MILLION drilled holes later

^ Here is the flange that I made tack welded to the exhaust pipe, then bolted to the end of the stainless steel flex pipe. My flange is only 3/16" thick, but I think it should be fine. (The gasket hasn't been installed at this point,this is just mock up.)

^ I made this little bracket to install the resonator. The ends are threaded and lock nuts are being used to attched to the rubber bushings.

^ the amount of weight savings i will achieve getting rid of this beast will probably make up for the larger diameter 2-1/4" exhaust tubing I am using. The only thing I overlooked is the new muffler is a straight thru design where as the old one the inlet and outlet are offset to one another. 🤔Might take some head scratching and the moving of the hanger brackets to get this all to line up.

 

[geezer101]

I like your combo clamp/exhaust hanger solution. The factory mufflers on these things are ridiculously heavy and I doubt your exhaust pipe diameter increase will have any real effect on weight. As the adage goes - light makes might! Sorry to hear that the owner is forcing you to move. Moving is always a major PITA and having to move a car that isn't 100% up and running just makes things more complicated. You've made some good progress. Thanks for the update!

 

[X3_4_life]

Monday (my day off) we made a trip down to the new rental house to move some of our belongings, so I didn't have time to work on Zippy. Today I had some time and got some more work done on the exhaust. All I have left to do is make a couple steel hooks to attach to the rubber hangers in the factory locations in the rear wheel well and the other one where the muffler exits the rear of the car. Then I have a couple of slip-fit seams to weld up. I didn't really get any pics of the exhaust progress, but here are some pics of the other project I was working on:

^^^🧐 in between working on the exhaust I built this monstrousity of a contraption.

I wanted to have some separation between the battery and the main trunk area. I also needed a place to mount the battery kill switch. So I built the steel 3/4" square tube frame and covered it with more of the 1/4" thick HDPE that I had. I made the frame/ wall to where it doesnt interfere with being able to get to the spare tire.

^^^ Tomorrow I will screw this top piece down to the frame, and wire up the kill switch to the battery. My replacement electric cooling fan came in today, I just bought a factory style replacment off ebay.
Things left to do:
·finish up welding the exhaust hangers hooks and a couple seams
·remove the header and wrap it, then reinstall
· install radiator and cooling fan, and upper radiator hose and fill up with coolant
· Wire up the battery, kill switch, and attach the top piece of HDPE
· rob the oil pressure gauge, sending unit and wiring harness off my pickup and install it on the car
· probably a half a dozen other things that I can't think of off the top of my head! 🤯

 

[X3_4_life]

This morning before work it was rainy and dreary. I had planned to get the exhaust finished, but that would require me to open the garage door for better lighting and let what heat was inside escape, so I started on the battery kill switch. I got it all wired up, tested it out by turning the key to accessory, I had warning lights on, so thats a good sign.
🤔Note to self, You need to run a ground wire to the engine, dont forget! Lol Also a bracket to hold the CAI/filter in place...I will add that to the list.

So after wiring up the kill switch and battery I just couldnt get in the mood to start welding, also the open top with the battery exposed was bothering me So... I made a lid to cover the battery. I totally should be working on more important things to get this finished and drivable, but my OCD was kicking into overdrive.

^^^Does the lifted corner on the right side of the lid bug me?...Yes, yes it does, I will fix that and probably eventually replace the 2 screws holding the lid in place with wingnuts for quicker removal.

Tomorrow before work i have to work on finishing the exhaust, and I need to remove the header so I can wrap it the following day. Then hopefully things should be falling into place after that.

 

[X3_4_life]

I like your combo clamp/exhaust hanger solution.
Sorry to hear that the owner is forcing you to move. Moving is always a major PITA and having to move a car that isn't 100% up and running just makes things more complicated. You've made some good progress. Thanks for the update!

Thanks, we are moving about 4hrs away from our current location, the one good thing about the move is I found out the area has 5 or 6 wrecking yards near by! As soon as we get settled I am going to check them all out, hopefully they have some older Hyundai's, I really want to do a brake swap/ upgrade and get rid of the captive rotors.

 

[geezer101]

You were destined to move! I should've commented earlier on the battery box you've built. Clearly you've put as much thought into it as the rest of the build. Countersinking the screws are a nice touch and the subframe for it is as tough as hell too! Was it intentional putting battery on the passenger rear corner to offset weight? Whenever I tackle a job that isn't 'all that important' I ask myself "if I don't have time to finish it the right way now, when will I?" It's a check/measure to getting things done properly...

 

[X3_4_life]

You were destined to move! I should've commented earlier on the battery box you've built. Clearly you've put as much thought into it as the rest of the build. Countersinking the screws are a nice touch and the subframe for it is as tough as hell too! Was it intentional putting battery on the passenger rear corner to offset weight? Whenever I tackle a job that isn't 'all that important' I ask myself "if I don't have time to finish it the right way now, when will I?" It's a check/measure to getting things done properly...

Thanks for the positive comments, I always appreciate them and it helps keep my motivation level up! Yes I intentionally mounted the battery in the passenger rear. I can't take credit for the weight distribution idea, as I had watched a few youtube videos on rear battery installations and got the idea from those. It also made running the power cable from the terminal block in the engine compartment back to the trunk alot easier.
The battery box concept just kind of came to me. I was going to just build the battery tray and call it finished, but I still wanted to be able to use the trunk as it was intended, but didnt like the look of having the battery exposed even though it is a AGM style battery and wont leak, I liked the idea of having it enclosed. I will admit the enclosure turned out better than I anticipated. I built the frame basically looking for good attachment points to keep it secure. The only thing I wish I had done differently is I would have made the box go all the way to the back of the seat instead of stopping short. That was basically done because I only had a couple of scrap pieces of 3/4 " square tubing left. But overall I am pleased how it turned out, and am happy with the kill switch location.
Since those pictures were taken I have removed the 2 lid screws and replaced them with threaded studs so I can now secure the lid with 2 wingnuts for quicker install/
removal.
We had been thinking about moving before the rental house was put up for sale, this just moved up our timeline a bit. It is a major bonus having all of the wrecking yards close by!
😆🤘

 

[X3_4_life]

Today I stole the oil pressure gauge out of my Toyota. I got the sending unit swapped in and the wiring harness ran through the firewall. I just need to mount the gauge and then wire up a constant 12V power source, a accessory power wire (12V that comes on with the key) a ground and a dim wire that dims the gauge lights when the headlights are turned on. I also wrapped the header today. It was every bit as frustrating as I had imagined. I used every swear word I could think of and probably made up a few. I am far from happy with the results, but its going to have to be good enough ( for now). I installed the radiator and new electric fan. The fan was supposed to be a factory style replacement, but only 2 of the 4 mounting holes lined up. 🙄 I modified one so now 3 of the 4 are holding it place and it feels sturdy. I also had to relocate the wiring on the fan as it was routed to the opposite side and wouldn't reach the plug. I totally forgot about the radiator over flow reservoir. It is supposed to mount up against the strut tower in the space that is now occupied by my power and ground distribution blocks. So I made a bracket and relocated the reservoir forward a little bit from the factory location.
Tomorrow before work I will try to finish installing the oil pressure gauge, fill the radiator up with coolant, and I still need to make a bracket to support/hold the cold air intake tube to the inner fender.

 

[jpweigand]

This morning before work it was rainy and dreary. I had planned to get the exhaust finished, but that would require me to open the garage door for better lighting and let what heat was inside escape, so I started on the battery kill switch. I got it all wired up, tested it out by turning the key to accessory, I had warning lights on, so thats a good sign.
🤔Note to self, You need to run a ground wire to the engine, dont forget! Lol Also a bracket to hold the CAI/filter in place...I will add that to the list.

So after wiring up the kill switch and battery I just couldnt get in the mood to start welding, also the open top with the battery exposed was bothering me So... I made a lid to cover the battery. I totally should be working on more important things to get this finished and drivable, but my OCD was kicking into overdrive. View attachment 4525

View attachment 4527

^^^Does the lifted corner on the right side of the lid bug me?...Yes, yes it does, I will fix that and probably eventually replace the 2 screws holding the lid in place with wingnuts for quicker removal.

Tomorrow before work i have to work on finishing the exhaust, and I need to remove the header so I can wrap it the following day. Then hopefully things should be falling into place after that.

Today I stole the oil pressure gauge out of my Toyota. I got the sending unit swapped in and the wiring harness ran through the firewall. I just need to mount the gauge and then wire up a constant 12V power source, a accessory power wire (12V that comes on with the key) a ground and a dim wire that dims the gauge lights when the headlights are turned on. I also wrapped the header today. It was every bit as frustrating as I had imagined. I used every swear word I could think of and probably made up a few. I am far from happy with the results, but its going to have to be good enough ( for now). I installed the radiator and new electric fan. The fan was supposed to be a factory style replacement, but only 2 of the 4 mounting holes lined up. 🙄 I modified one so now 3 of the 4 are holding it place and it feels sturdy. I also had to relocate the wiring on the fan as it was routed to the opposite side and wouldn't reach the plug. I totally forgot about the radiator over flow reservoir. It is supposed to mount up against the strut tower in the space that is now occupied by my power and ground distribution blocks. So I made a bracket and relocated the reservoir forward a little bit from the factory location.
Tomorrow before work I will try to finish installing the oil pressure gauge, fill the radiator up with coolant, and I still need to make a bracket to support/hold the cold air intake tube to the inner fender.
View attachment 4562

View attachment 4563

View attachment 4564

View attachment 4566

Today I stole the oil pressure gauge out of my Toyota. I got the sending unit swapped in and the wiring harness ran through the firewall. I just need to mount the gauge and then wire up a constant 12V power source, a accessory power wire (12V that comes on with the key) a ground and a dim wire that dims the gauge lights when the headlights are turned on. I also wrapped the header today. It was every bit as frustrating as I had imagined. I used every swear word I could think of and probably made up a few. I am far from happy with the results, but its going to have to be good enough ( for now). I installed the radiator and new electric fan. The fan was supposed to be a factory style replacement, but only 2 of the 4 mounting holes lined up. 🙄 I modified one so now 3 of the 4 are holding it place and it feels sturdy. I also had to relocate the wiring on the fan as it was routed to the opposite side and wouldn't reach the plug. I totally forgot about the radiator over flow reservoir. It is supposed to mount up against the strut tower in the space that is now occupied by my power and ground distribution blocks. So I made a bracket and relocated the reservoir forward a little bit from the factory location.
Tomorrow before work I will try to finish installing the oil pressure gauge, fill the radiator up with coolant, and I still need to make a bracket to support/hold the cold air intake tube to the inner fender.
View attachment 4562

View attachment 4563

View attachment 4564

View attachment 4566

MAN THAT IS A KNOCKOUT ! The best mod I have seen yet as far as results.That is a big ol battery you moved, what 40 lbs? Ihad a 58 alfa romeo & battery was in same place (fanatics on weight & balance)

 

[X3_4_life]

MAN THAT IS A KNOCKOUT ! The best mod I have seen yet as far as results.That is a big ol battery you moved, what 40 lbs? Ihad a 58 alfa romeo & battery was in same place (fanatics on weight & balance)

Thanks for the reply and positive feedback!... Yeah the battery that came in the car was probably half that size lol...I wanted a AGM style battery, and just used one I already had. I didn't think to weigh the battery, you got me curious now, I will try to remember to weigh it before reinstalling it! A 58' Alfa Romeo?...now that sounds like it would be a really cool car!

 

[geezer101]

Wrapping headers is a time consuming job to get right and it doesn't help when the header pipes are so close you can't get more than one layer of wrap in between them. That being said - nice job This stuff is evil to handle, hard to get it to overlap for optimal coverage and ridiculous to make it bind tightly. My eyes itch just looking at this stuff...

 

[X3_4_life]

Wrapping headers is a time consuming job to get right and it doesn't help when the header pipes are so close you can't get more than one layer of wrap in between them. That being said - nice job This stuff is evil to handle, hard to get it to overlap for optimal coverage and ridiculous to make it bind tightly. My eyes itch just looking at this stuff...

Yeah, not a fun job at all! I didn't realize the header tubes were that close together (as you mentioned) that you can't get more than 1 layer wrap between them!...PITA!

Not much to update. The move has taken up most of my spare time. I did finished wiring up the oil pressure gauge. I used these little fuse taps that adds a circuit by tapping into a existing circuit, but it also provides its own fuse. For adding a constant power source I tapped into the hazzard light circuit and for keyed power I used the wiper washer sprayer circuit. These little fused pigtails made it really easy to wire up the oil pressure gauge, I would definately use these again!

The universal pillar pod that I was going mount the gauge in was way to large to fit the "A" pillar trim, so I mounted it lower next to the dimmer switch in this little cubby. The only drawback is the OBD 2 port is directly above the gauge, so if I need to do a diagnostic to check a code, I will have to pop out the bezel that the gauge is mounted to, not a huge deal.
Here are a few pictures of the oil pressure gauge mounted and the fuse tap wiring.

 

[X3_4_life]

So now I am at the trouble shooting part of the swap, not my favorite😬. I have a "crank no start" issue. I know I have fuel. I had changed the fuel filter, but didn't tighten it all the way so fuel was pouring out at the banjo fitting on the return line. After tightening up the banjo bolt I pulled the spark plugs after cranking the engine over and they were not wet, I dont smell any fuel. I am thinking that the injectors are plugged up. I think tomorrow before work I will swap in the alpha injectors and see if it will try to fire up.

 

[geezer101]

Guess all you can do is check for a signal pulse from the injector harness and check for spark. If both are out simultaneously, it has to be a sensor either not working or a fault in the harness. I hate fault diagnosis... Btw nice job on the gauge install - very tidy! 👍

 

[X3_4_life]

Guess all you can do is check for a signal pulse from the injector harness and check for spark. If both are out simultaneously, it has to be a sensor either not working or a fault in the harness. I hate fault diagnosis... Btw nice job on the gauge install - very tidy! 👍

Thanks Geezer...I may have to pick your brain if I dont get this figured out, Im not very good at trouble shooting! 🤓

 

[geezer101]

Thanks Geezer...I may have to pick your brain if I dont get this figured out, Im not very good at trouble shooting! 🤓

Oh god no. With a swap like this there could be any number of issues. Is the pin out for the ECU the same? Is there a firing order anomaly? Fuel pressure regulator the same? I got lucky with the crank sensor and that was only after buying another fuel pump and a pressure regulator (that turned out to be the wrong one...) I was about to fire the parts cannon at it and hope I eventually got a hit, otherwise I would be down to hunting a break in the engine harness somewhere😰