- 5,610
- Druids Bend
- Z4E_Midnight85
Good bit of progress you've been making there! Makes me wish I had a garage...
Duke Racing Celica GT-Four Time Attack Racecar
- Thread starter Punknoodle
- 1,059 comments
- 146,401 views
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
I've nearly always had a garage in all the places I've lived, with the exception being the house I rented just before buying this house. I hated every second of it. And so did my wife lol. She had to put up with me a whole lot more when I didn't have a man cave and a project to keep me out of her hair..
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Bride rail is about $400 shipped. Yikes! Do I need the adjustability of having it on rails? Hmmm maybe. Handy for when it goes to get tuned etc, but the original seat will be in it for that purpose. So I decided to make my own floor bracket.
FIA specifications say no welding and 3mm plate. So I made a template, bought some plate and got busy. Quite simple, it's just a flat plate but with some folded down tabs at the front and the back and a few holes.
Large square hole is for the centre strap of the harness and the triangular ones are just to try and remove some weight but keep the strength.
I'm short, so I gave it 3 sets of holes to bolt the side plates to it, enabling me to shift the seat rearwards for taller people if the need arises. My position is the further most forward. It's not a simple shift, requiring a couple 13mm spanners, but it's better than nothing.
Painted it black along with the side plates (they were looking a little rough, second hand) and picked up some new high tensile bolts and nuts along with large washers and it's all good to go, it's a good fit.
Photo from one of the many test fits. Clutch leg is at full extension, leg is out straight so distance is good, it sits angled a little further back than the standard seat (I can adjust this, of course, but I like it like this) and the front is a bit higher than standard. So my knee, when on the clutch at the very start of travel, rubs lightly on the bottom of the steering wheel, at least when I have the steering wheel in a position I like. Didn't have this issue before.
Its no huge deal, but it has me looking for a flat bottom steering wheel. Not urgent though.
Seat is as low as it can go, and my bracket is as low as I can make it, so it's ok. Top of my helmet is about 10mm from the roof.
FIA specifications say no welding and 3mm plate. So I made a template, bought some plate and got busy. Quite simple, it's just a flat plate but with some folded down tabs at the front and the back and a few holes.
Large square hole is for the centre strap of the harness and the triangular ones are just to try and remove some weight but keep the strength.
I'm short, so I gave it 3 sets of holes to bolt the side plates to it, enabling me to shift the seat rearwards for taller people if the need arises. My position is the further most forward. It's not a simple shift, requiring a couple 13mm spanners, but it's better than nothing.
Painted it black along with the side plates (they were looking a little rough, second hand) and picked up some new high tensile bolts and nuts along with large washers and it's all good to go, it's a good fit.
Photo from one of the many test fits. Clutch leg is at full extension, leg is out straight so distance is good, it sits angled a little further back than the standard seat (I can adjust this, of course, but I like it like this) and the front is a bit higher than standard. So my knee, when on the clutch at the very start of travel, rubs lightly on the bottom of the steering wheel, at least when I have the steering wheel in a position I like. Didn't have this issue before.
Its no huge deal, but it has me looking for a flat bottom steering wheel. Not urgent though.
Seat is as low as it can go, and my bracket is as low as I can make it, so it's ok. Top of my helmet is about 10mm from the roof.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
New tank and water neck are finished
And to give you an idea of how it's going to to sit:
I need to fabricate a bracket to secure it, which won't be too difficult.
I measured how much water it takes. Roughly 2.2L. Condidering the whole system holds 8L, it's a significant increase in volume, which will also help with the performance of the cooling system.
- 5,610
- Druids Bend
- Z4E_Midnight85
Looking great! Puts my engine bay to complete and utter shame!
New tank and water neck are finished
And to give you an idea of how it's going to to sit:
I need to fabricate a bracket to secure it, which won't be too difficult.
I measured how much water it takes. Roughly 2.2L. Condidering the whole system holds 8L, it's a significant increase in volume, which will also help with the performance of the cooling system.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Haha thanks, it still looks messy as there are still things floating around not installed in there but once it goes back together properly it should scrub up alright.
- 5,610
- Druids Bend
- Z4E_Midnight85
I like that it actually looks like an engine bay, not like the sea of plastic in my BMW engine bay!
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Makes it easier to spot leaks 
- 1,759
- NZ
What's the little hose fitting off the back of the head for? Based on the direction it takes, it's for water coming from somewhere after the pump rather than going to something? Also the 2 threaded fittings on the side of the tank, what are they for?
The tank looks awesome. Especially the curved top section.
The tank looks awesome. Especially the curved top section.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Turbo return line. It actually only has about a 6mm hole through in to the neck to limit flow, as the turbo doesn't actually need that much flow and I don't want to create too much of a bypass past the engine.
Two threaded fittings are for two temperature sensors (ecu and water pump controller)
- 1,759
- NZ
That makes sense. All the sensors are usually in the fitting on the head but as you've removed the standard one they need a place to go. I was going to ask where the temp sensor for the gauge was going but then I remembered you aren't running the standard dashboard anymore and the ECU will show you.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Made the bracket to hold the tank, so this is final position.
Also this arrived in the mail today
I spent about two hours lying under the car trying to find the best spot for it. Came up with a pretty good solution, so now just need to make a small bracket for the pump.
Hardest part now is finding some premoulded hoses that are the right shape. I've bent up some old coat hangers in to the shape I need and will take them to try and find some hoses.
Made an appointment for Tuesday for my tuner to remote access my ecu via my laptop and team viewer to remove the password protection so I can configure my new inputs and also set my base timing. This will allow me to start the car, get it up to temp and check for leaks etc before I send it to get tuned again.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Close up of my super back yard engineering bracket. It's like this for a reason though. With a pump, I didn't want anything too rigid that would transfer all the shock and vibration in to the pump. Doing it like this means I can have some foam between the pump and bracket and use little cable ties and it sort of insulates it. Other than that, there isn't really any weight on the bracket, the pump is light and held by the hoses, so its basically to stop it from floating around.
Looking at it from behind the pump.
Here from the side. As you can see, this spot tucks it up higher than the oil filter, and the bracket has the added benefit of acting as a shield to stop any stones or anything from striking the wiring that comes out the back of the pump.
And this is the view looking down at it. The angle of the pump allows me to route the hose up beside the oil hoses and in to the inlet. I experimented with ways to mount the pump that would bring the hose up on the other side of the oil hoses, but it meant the pump would be pushed right in to the chassis rail and would likely knock around, and the hose would rub against the oil lines, so this is the best solution.
Still a fairly good gap to the downpipe, not much closer than the OEM setup so I think I'll be safe in that regard.
Tomorrow, off to try and find some hoses armed with my coat hanger templates. Hopefully I can find something. Hopefully next weekend I'll get the wiring done. Then we are pretty close to firing it up!
Last edited:
- 5,610
- Druids Bend
- Z4E_Midnight85
That's smart. I like your reasoning.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Have been searching for hoses that suit but so far not so good, I have found nothing.
So, I've made some better quality templates out of conduit and will get some aluminium pipes made in the right shapes. All I'll need to do is use straight sections of hose as couplings. It isn't the cheapest way of doing things but should look the goods.
That's the one for the bottom hose. I made one for the top too, but I'm not happy with it at all so I need to remake it. I can't get the required bends using my bending spring so I'm going to have to try and do it by heating it and bending it without a spring.
So, I've made some better quality templates out of conduit and will get some aluminium pipes made in the right shapes. All I'll need to do is use straight sections of hose as couplings. It isn't the cheapest way of doing things but should look the goods.
That's the one for the bottom hose. I made one for the top too, but I'm not happy with it at all so I need to remake it. I can't get the required bends using my bending spring so I'm going to have to try and do it by heating it and bending it without a spring.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Yes good call. The top one won't need any flex, however the bottom one will need to be slightly shorter and I'll use a slightly longer section of hose. That will allow for movement. Not that there is much, due to my upgraded engine mounts.Make sure you have some flex in the hoses to allow for engine movement. Don't want to pop a hose because it's all too rigid.
Good progress though. That water pump looks very interesting. Twin turbo engine bay
One thing I forgot to mention is that while I can fit the tank in ok with the distributor cap in place, there is a lot more room without it in the way. So I've removed it, and I'm ordering an aluminium blanking cap for it.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Oh yes, also forgot to mention another exciting development, I have full access to my ECU now (tuner locked the tune, long story but I've now got it unlocked and it will stay that way for good) so I can do the things like set up the new sensors, set the base timing, configure the engine protection to use th oil temp and pressure etc.
While I was in there I had a look at the trigger settings. Looks like they may have been a bit wrong, so once I have my timing belt on and I'm ready to set timing I'll change them and see how it goes. Might improve things a bit.
While I was in there I had a look at the trigger settings. Looks like they may have been a bit wrong, so once I have my timing belt on and I'm ready to set timing I'll change them and see how it goes. Might improve things a bit.
Ibonibo
Premium
- 5,440
- Luxemburg
- Already paying my Isp 4 Access
This will be so awesome once finished.
I do unterstand that tuners lock their maps thou. Seen a lot of maps beeing stolen. Even on locked ECU's, they put it on dynos and copy the values they get from the dyno... shaddy stuff
Eager to see this on the track again and on how the improvement will feel.
I do unterstand that tuners lock their maps thou. Seen a lot of maps beeing stolen. Even on locked ECU's, they put it on dynos and copy the values they get from the dyno... shaddy stuff
Eager to see this on the track again and on how the improvement will feel.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Got stuck in to some wiring yesterday but on a different car
My youngest just got his first big sized bed and I pimped it with some LEDs and a little illuminated switch behind the rear spoiler to operate them. All 12V, of course.
I'll try and get some real car wiring done today!
My youngest just got his first big sized bed and I pimped it with some LEDs and a little illuminated switch behind the rear spoiler to operate them. All 12V, of course.
I'll try and get some real car wiring done today!
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Wiring update:
Engine bay side of the wiring is completely done. All the sensors are installed and wired, as well as the pump wiring and also I changed the wiring for the radiator fan - it now has a dedicated relay and fuse and decided to control it via the EWP controller rather than the ECU, so that when the EWP controller runs the pump upon shut down the radiator fan can also run on.
I changed the wiring of the controller and pump circuits though. I added another switch, it's function is to bypass the controller and run the pump and maximum as well as run the radiator fan, independent of the temperature or whether the engine is on of off. The theory is I will flick this switch on the cool down lap and it will try to cool the engine as much as possible before bringing it in to the pits.
And here is the location for the EWP controller.
Just the wiring in the passenger footwell to do now and it will be done.
Pipes for coolant are being fabricated now, so not long till I add fluids and do some testing.
Engine bay side of the wiring is completely done. All the sensors are installed and wired, as well as the pump wiring and also I changed the wiring for the radiator fan - it now has a dedicated relay and fuse and decided to control it via the EWP controller rather than the ECU, so that when the EWP controller runs the pump upon shut down the radiator fan can also run on.
I changed the wiring of the controller and pump circuits though. I added another switch, it's function is to bypass the controller and run the pump and maximum as well as run the radiator fan, independent of the temperature or whether the engine is on of off. The theory is I will flick this switch on the cool down lap and it will try to cool the engine as much as possible before bringing it in to the pits.
And here is the location for the EWP controller.
Just the wiring in the passenger footwell to do now and it will be done.
Pipes for coolant are being fabricated now, so not long till I add fluids and do some testing.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
All the wiring is done!
Configured and calibrated the new sensors in the ECU and they are displaying what they should be. Max cooling switch works perfectly, when you flick it on the radiator fan starts up and I get 12V at the plug for the pump (it's disconnected until I get water in the system).
I'll be buying some crappy throwaway oil and filter tonight and tomorrow I'll fill the oil and spin the oil pump with my rattle gun and see if the pressure goes up. Then I can fit the timing belt and set the timing. Getting very, very close now!
Configured and calibrated the new sensors in the ECU and they are displaying what they should be. Max cooling switch works perfectly, when you flick it on the radiator fan starts up and I get 12V at the plug for the pump (it's disconnected until I get water in the system).
I'll be buying some crappy throwaway oil and filter tonight and tomorrow I'll fill the oil and spin the oil pump with my rattle gun and see if the pressure goes up. Then I can fit the timing belt and set the timing. Getting very, very close now!
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
I'm working nights at the moment and so I'm supposed to be sleeping during the day, but I'm no good at daytime sleeping so made some more progress with the car instead.
Bought some cheap 10W40 Castrol oil and a Ryco filter just to use as a flush as I've had the engine open etc. Put in just under 5L until it was full on the dipstick then turned the pump over with my rattle gun, while watching my sensor inputs on the laptop. Took a few seconds but eventually it went up to 40psi.
Checked the oil level and it's gone down a heap, to be expected due to the cooler. Poured in the remaining oil from the 5L container and it wants more. I'd say the capacity now sits somewhere around 6 to 6.5L, I need to buy another container.
Anyway I was happy with that, no leaks at all, so I put on the timing belt, engine mount, alternator belt and power steering belt. Also disconnected the injectors and plugged in the 4 coil packs (with No. 1 out and plugged in to a short spark plug lead so I can use a timing light).
Tomorrow I'll crank it over and check the timing with a light and adjust as necessary. Oh yeah, this thing came in the mail:
Nice little aluminium cover for the distributer. Makes room for the coolant lines. This one is actually for a 4AGE 16V and so it's not quite deep enough. To fix this, I cut the bottom off my distributer cap to act as a spacer ring and sealed the inside between the two with sealant. I think it looks pretty tidy.
Bought some cheap 10W40 Castrol oil and a Ryco filter just to use as a flush as I've had the engine open etc. Put in just under 5L until it was full on the dipstick then turned the pump over with my rattle gun, while watching my sensor inputs on the laptop. Took a few seconds but eventually it went up to 40psi.
Checked the oil level and it's gone down a heap, to be expected due to the cooler. Poured in the remaining oil from the 5L container and it wants more. I'd say the capacity now sits somewhere around 6 to 6.5L, I need to buy another container.
Anyway I was happy with that, no leaks at all, so I put on the timing belt, engine mount, alternator belt and power steering belt. Also disconnected the injectors and plugged in the 4 coil packs (with No. 1 out and plugged in to a short spark plug lead so I can use a timing light).
Tomorrow I'll crank it over and check the timing with a light and adjust as necessary. Oh yeah, this thing came in the mail:
Nice little aluminium cover for the distributer. Makes room for the coolant lines. This one is actually for a 4AGE 16V and so it's not quite deep enough. To fix this, I cut the bottom off my distributer cap to act as a spacer ring and sealed the inside between the two with sealant. I think it looks pretty tidy.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Here's how it is as of this afternoon. Exhaust fully on now, timing set, recalibrated the Wideband O² sensor, fitted the final crossmember and finally the wheels. So good to see it sitting on the ground again
I now have the radiator caps, straight hose for doing the couplings, clamps, 6mm silicon hose for the overflow, so now just need the hard pipes (should be done tomorrow).
Should be able to add coolant and start the car tomorrow 👍
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Sorry, double post.
- 3,211
- Brisbane
- Punknoodle_Nick
Awesome night tonight.
Today I went and picked up the two new pipes. Yet again Richard from A.R.E Cooling has done a great job, they look great, match up to my templates perfectly and so when I went to fit them, they just slotted in like factory items.
Anyway, after that I wanted to recheck my timing. I'd sent my map off to a friend who suggested my trigger settings weren't right (I had one of the reluctor settings at Rising edge, but it should have been falling. It ran the car fine, but isn't ideal).
So after playing with them again I was able to get it where it was supposed to be and base ignition timing is again correct.
Bled through the coolant by running the EWP at maximum, enabled the injectors, double checked everything and then cranked the engine. Took a little while, but success! It fired and began idling.
Double checked timing with it running, fine tuned the trigger angle to get it perfect and then left the car to warm up just checking temps and everything as it did.
Coolant got up to 80 degrees, fan kicked in, then off, and it held steady at the set point. Bloody ripper.
Anyway here's a little video I took. Don't mind my 2 year old shrieking with joy the entire time, I think he was as excited as I was.
That's it for now. Basically need to wait now to get it tuned, but there is no point taking to tuners in the new couple of weeks as they are all down south for World Time Attack (wish I was there
).
So yeah. Pretty happy considering I'd never done anything as involved as replacing a head gasket before and I was able to do it all myself. I've checked the coolant and oil again and under the cap and there is no sign of any issues (touch wood) so yeah, very proud of myself.
Today I went and picked up the two new pipes. Yet again Richard from A.R.E Cooling has done a great job, they look great, match up to my templates perfectly and so when I went to fit them, they just slotted in like factory items.
Anyway, after that I wanted to recheck my timing. I'd sent my map off to a friend who suggested my trigger settings weren't right (I had one of the reluctor settings at Rising edge, but it should have been falling. It ran the car fine, but isn't ideal).
So after playing with them again I was able to get it where it was supposed to be and base ignition timing is again correct.
Bled through the coolant by running the EWP at maximum, enabled the injectors, double checked everything and then cranked the engine. Took a little while, but success! It fired and began idling.
Double checked timing with it running, fine tuned the trigger angle to get it perfect and then left the car to warm up just checking temps and everything as it did.
Coolant got up to 80 degrees, fan kicked in, then off, and it held steady at the set point. Bloody ripper.
Anyway here's a little video I took. Don't mind my 2 year old shrieking with joy the entire time, I think he was as excited as I was.
That's it for now. Basically need to wait now to get it tuned, but there is no point taking to tuners in the new couple of weeks as they are all down south for World Time Attack (wish I was there
).So yeah. Pretty happy considering I'd never done anything as involved as replacing a head gasket before and I was able to do it all myself. I've checked the coolant and oil again and under the cap and there is no sign of any issues (touch wood) so yeah, very proud of myself.
- 5,610
- Druids Bend
- Z4E_Midnight85
Sounds like it's running well! And that engine bay looks boss now!
Similar threads
