Well things didn't go 100% as I had hoped :(. We set the base timing, it started right up and then we broke the motor in on the dyno. Ran it for about 30 min, at which time we noticed the coolant bubbling out from the rad cap. Shut it down to cool, and decided to change the oil. When I pulled the oil drain plug, I noticed coolant in the oil. Arg ! The guys at the shop seem to think it's my copper head gasket, as they haven't had good luck with them sealing properly in the past. I'm going to try and do a leakdown test this weekend and see where that gets me. I did get to drive the car off the dyno and onto the trailer though. Granted it was only 15 feet or so, but it was the first time it's moved under it's own power.

I'm a little bummed at the outcome, but it was still neat to hear it run. Hopefully it's just as simple as the damn gasket and not a cracked block.

 

damn, i was ready to see crazy videos of this beast in action!

i hope all works out well.

 

Good luck hopefully its just the HG. I know the feeling of almost having your car complete and something happens. I have had 2 issues like yours and it really sucks. Keep your head up and finish that beast.

 

I'm pretty confident it's the HG after reading up on copper head gaskets. Hopefully I'll catch a break!

 

Guy who made me a custom composite head gasket told me that he wouldn't sell a copper gasket to anybody unless it was with an o-ringed block because that's the only way it'll seal. That said, I've also read of using ss wire laid around the bore so it essentially o-rings the gasket. I had a cometic copper gasket on my first FE3 and it never sealed right. IMO MLS is the way to go, unless you're planning on running some absurd amount of boost.

 

awesome build, spent the last hour reading it and it wasnt until like page 9-10 when I realized 1) you started in 08, and 2) you're in RI. Glad to see you've been working on it through that time instead of just giving up.

Also, slightly offtopic, but how much is dentsport going to run you for the tune more or less?

 

Yeah it's been a while hasn't it? All their prices are up on their website . I'm not done with the tune yet, so I can't accurately say how much it costs. www.dentsport.com

 

oh damn, didnt even check it. price doesnt seem bad at all considering they're right outside of boston

 

This happened the other week to me at the track. Brand new motor in the mini, copper HG, and milk oil. What spray did you put on the HG?

 

to be completely honest I don't even remember, it was so long ago!

 

Couple pics the guys at Dent Sport took of my car:











I really can't wait to lower the car!

 

I ended up ordering a new OEM headgasket, as the spare I had was in questionable form. UPS tracking says it's out on delivery, so I'm planning to swap it out tomorrow

 

Got everything about 99% completed on Saturday, hoping to go home after work today and finish it up.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcHuCL0KSuY

 

going back to finish the tuning this Thursday at 10!

 

Love the work and time that you have put into the car; truly amazing. I am a fan of everything you have done with the exception of the ricer stretch you have put on the tires. What is the reasoning behind it? If it is the look that you are going for, I can respect that. But man does it hurt my eyes.

Keep up the good work on an amazing build!

 

The tires were already mounted and balanced on the wheels and were thrown in for free. They are brand new (they still have the stickers on them) so I'm just going to run them for now, rather than spend more time and money swapping them out. There's what- ~3 months left before it's put away for winter?

 

I have an idea on how you can wear them out sooner than later.

 

finally it starts! It's been a long journey. Now that it's running we can do a little meet once my car is put back together.

 

you and I would get along real well