i love the 3/4" tap idea!

i ende dup doing something so horrible i am embarrased to share what i did, but it works...and i actually needed that hole to flow some water....

we'll see if it lasts

Yeah, i'm glad I found that trick. I went ahead and added an AN fitting now so I don't have to mess with it later.

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My Exocet will be up and running this weekend, we should get together soon

Hell yeah. I'm turning the key on mine for the first time on Saturday. Not sure how long after that it will take to get it on the road though.

i hate that this board doens't auto-rezise pictures.....can't watch this on my phone

I dropped off the donor and frame 3 weeks ago. I'm working on being able to drive it home next week

My first attempt at starting the car late Saturday night was thwarted by a dead fuel pump. I replaced that Sunday before the Super Bowl but now have no spark. My tach isn't moving while cranking so signs point to my CAS but I'm still not convinced that's the problem. I've got one coming in the mail just to eliminate that as an issue. I've checked all my grounds and they seem to be in order.

Looks like I'll be doing some troubleshooting this coming weekend.

Even though I didn't get the engine running I did get the drivers seat mounted. Three bolts go directly into the frame and I used a bar of A2 tool steel for the cross member for the fourth bolt. It keeps the seat nice and low with the side mount so I can pass the broom stick test for racing. I'm using sliders because my wife really wants to attempt to drive the thing when it's done. We'll see.

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The Crank sensor came in last night and didn't do a damn thing to help with my issue. I've read that the CEL should be lit when I turn the key but it's out. Main relay bad? I hooked up my MSPNP and still no CEL so I'm assuming my ECU is not the reason for the CEL light to be unlit. I'm picking up a new main relay today to test.

Shit just got real....

Congrats! Gorgeous exocet!

That's so great, Gary! Congrats on the milestone. I can't wait to go for a ride along one day.

Maybe you will let me ride along at a track event one day.

For sure. I’ll let you drive the damn thing.

I’m trying to button up the brakes and get the wiring situated so I can do the break in of the motor. First drive might be tomorrow.

It’s been almost a year since I started this project. I really feel like I might get this on the road soon.

Ive only started it twice. And it sounds great. No stumbling or anything. Settled into a nice idle. I was too excited to check the rpms.

The shitty (but pretty) Chinese cam gears were my problem. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why I wasn’t getting spark. Finally, I decided to check timing. Everything looked good but I decided to go ahead and put the OEM gears back on just to be sure. Sure as shit, fired right up.

Ive got about 7 other fail videos that are pretty depressing. My wife was getting sick of coming out to the garage to video everytime I wanted to try something new.

I’m literally on cloud nine. I was worried about my rebuild of the engine but initial signs are good. Once I get it up to speed and accel and decel without any issues I can really celebrate.

Mmmm, Chinese cam gears. How many hours did they cost you between machining, figuring for machining, attempting to start, troubleshooting, and replacing with the stock gears? Let others beware.

I really feel bad for you for all the extra effort you have put in.

Yeah, that set me back by at least a week and a half. Plus, I had family in town for the Super Bowl and wanted them to witness the first start. Bummer.

I was in Ohio for a small (and very cold) vacation last weekend so no progress but I'll have some time this weekend to get back to work. I need to check my valve clearances because I have an annoying valve tick that needs resolved. Seems like it is coming from the rear of the engine. See video. I should have done it when it was out of the car but I just replaced the springs and seals, ported the head, lapped the valves and ran it. Apparently, it's better to check the valve clearances after bolting the head to the block anyway so more lessons learned.

So valve clearances are perfectly fine. The weird ticking sound came from the open EGR port on my exhaust manifold that I did not plug prior to starting it up. It's running like a top.

Took my son as my copilot to record my first drive. A screaming 10 mph around my cul-de-sac.

You Tube

are you running stock ECU or aftermarket...?

Stock ECU right now but I have a MS2PNP that I want to play with before I install the turbo.

install turbo then play with the MS...why make it so hard.
also, install the MSPNP and remove EGR.

I've heard it's a good idea to get used to tuning MS without the turbo if possible. I have no idea what I'm doing with the MS so I need to read up.