Nothing to see here, just project Sisyphus, move along
#3281
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#3282
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This isn't "pot scrubber" material
This feels more like stainless mesh, like a screen door, or maybe a gauze? It's continuous strands and they aren't broken up.
It's not coming apart and it doesn't match what I found in the drain pan, or the bottom of the catch can.
Blasted both sides with brake cleaner and nothing interesting came out. Checkmate, atheists!
This feels more like stainless mesh, like a screen door, or maybe a gauze? It's continuous strands and they aren't broken up.
It's not coming apart and it doesn't match what I found in the drain pan, or the bottom of the catch can.
Blasted both sides with brake cleaner and nothing interesting came out. Checkmate, atheists!
#3286
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Dirty foreigners you say? Yes, they very well could be at fault here 🤔 🤣
Exhaust cam will come out this weekend because it'll take 5 minutes at this point and there's no reason not to do it. I also still need to drain oil into a clean container and see what there is to see, I just ran out of time and air quality today.
Exhaust cam will come out this weekend because it'll take 5 minutes at this point and there's no reason not to do it. I also still need to drain oil into a clean container and see what there is to see, I just ran out of time and air quality today.
#3288
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Nothing shitty under the exhaust cam or cam caps, however...
This ***** nearly impossible to photograph with the tools I have available, but there's definitely flakes of metal in this thing.
Engine isn't going to make it out this weekend, or probably next weekend either. I simply don't have time to get it done right now without frying like a strip of bacon on my driveway. I'll probably drop the front subframe and pull it out the bottom as that's what I did last time, but it's going to be a couple weeks of little to no progress.
This ***** nearly impossible to photograph with the tools I have available, but there's definitely flakes of metal in this thing.
Engine isn't going to make it out this weekend, or probably next weekend either. I simply don't have time to get it done right now without frying like a strip of bacon on my driveway. I'll probably drop the front subframe and pull it out the bottom as that's what I did last time, but it's going to be a couple weeks of little to no progress.
#3290
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I'd like to revise my bullshit - 8/8/21
Maybe I just got really lucky and caught this before it went completely to ratshit. Who knows at this point, I'll find out more when I dump the oil and drop out the engine and pop the mains & rods
Last edited by EO2K; 08-08-2021 at 07:47 PM.
#3291
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So between the airborne cancer and the ridiculous heat I managed to make some progress.
Drained the cooling system and pulled the radiator to make room for activities.
Its amazing how so little antifreeze can make your coolant such a vibrant green.
I finally got around to draining the oil and its crazy dark what I'm pretty sure was 120min of track time and just 100mi of street driving. You'll also notice that I only got 3 quarts out of the motor. Which is... confusing. But then, I think I know where the other quart went...
There wasn't a pile of metal in the oil so I spent some time slowly pouring it across the bottom of my drain pan.
This was all well and good, but I'd initially forgotten I'd drained and cleaned the drain plugs for the transmission and differential into this same pan and knocked some metal off in the process. I did find a couple new little flakes of metal using this method, but not what I was expecting.
Just for fun, here's the guts of the stock sized WIX 51365 vs a Mobil 1 M1-110A filter, which is the Millenia filter (interchanges with a WIX 51356) that everyone uses as an "upgrade." There is a 20-30 minutes of run time on the M1 filter, whereas the 51365 was the one I was using for the trackday.
If I learned nothing else from these filters, its that I won't be buying any more stock Miata sized WIX 51365/M1-108 sized filters, and I'll be sticking to the WIX 51356/M1-110 sized filters from here on out.
I cut open that WIX 51365 after the track day and claimed that I didn't see any metal. I tossed the M1 on there and then ran it for 20min before pulling the Blackstone sample, then I drained the oil, cut open the M1, and here we are. After letting the WIX core sit around for a week and drip out, I realized I could see a lot more junk in the filter when it wasn't saturated with oil. So I wrapped an old terrycloth rag around the core and let the oil wick away for 48hrs.
And then...
The M1 filter is super clean, as one would expect for only 20 minutes of runtime. The WIX tho...
As soon as I started to unravel it, I started to find white metal.
Its not in every pleat, but its definitely there.
I'm actually kinda impressed with the build quality of these filters, they are a real bastard to disassemble.
As you can see its mostly small flakes, and they are very thin.
I've also figured out how to better use the camera on my phone
Clearly, there is metal. No word from Blackstone yet, I'm hoping to hear back form them early this next week.
Drained the cooling system and pulled the radiator to make room for activities.
Its amazing how so little antifreeze can make your coolant such a vibrant green.
I finally got around to draining the oil and its crazy dark what I'm pretty sure was 120min of track time and just 100mi of street driving. You'll also notice that I only got 3 quarts out of the motor. Which is... confusing. But then, I think I know where the other quart went...
There wasn't a pile of metal in the oil so I spent some time slowly pouring it across the bottom of my drain pan.
This was all well and good, but I'd initially forgotten I'd drained and cleaned the drain plugs for the transmission and differential into this same pan and knocked some metal off in the process. I did find a couple new little flakes of metal using this method, but not what I was expecting.
Just for fun, here's the guts of the stock sized WIX 51365 vs a Mobil 1 M1-110A filter, which is the Millenia filter (interchanges with a WIX 51356) that everyone uses as an "upgrade." There is a 20-30 minutes of run time on the M1 filter, whereas the 51365 was the one I was using for the trackday.
If I learned nothing else from these filters, its that I won't be buying any more stock Miata sized WIX 51365/M1-108 sized filters, and I'll be sticking to the WIX 51356/M1-110 sized filters from here on out.
I cut open that WIX 51365 after the track day and claimed that I didn't see any metal. I tossed the M1 on there and then ran it for 20min before pulling the Blackstone sample, then I drained the oil, cut open the M1, and here we are. After letting the WIX core sit around for a week and drip out, I realized I could see a lot more junk in the filter when it wasn't saturated with oil. So I wrapped an old terrycloth rag around the core and let the oil wick away for 48hrs.
And then...
The M1 filter is super clean, as one would expect for only 20 minutes of runtime. The WIX tho...
As soon as I started to unravel it, I started to find white metal.
Its not in every pleat, but its definitely there.
I'm actually kinda impressed with the build quality of these filters, they are a real bastard to disassemble.
As you can see its mostly small flakes, and they are very thin.
I've also figured out how to better use the camera on my phone
Clearly, there is metal. No word from Blackstone yet, I'm hoping to hear back form them early this next week.
#3293
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Its been a nut buster of a weekend so far.
So as I alluded to in the previous post, the metal refinery is out. But what shall take its place?
Mystery motor, of course! "Fresh" from our friends across the pond. I keep forgetting those cars literally rust out from over their drivetrains. Yikes. Essentially unknown mileage, compression and leak-down. Hopefully I do OK in this lottery and this turns out well, because its a huge amount of work to be doing outside in August.
First order of business was stripping down the 4W because I'm going to reuse all the ancillaries. I know they work so no point in adding additional variables. I didn't take a lot of pictures of this process because, well, its not that interesting. I did snag some highlights though.
Teardown has been entertaining. The block came with a power steering pump mount, which I was going to remove, but the steel spacer bushing was blocking the lower mount bolt. I guess someone else had the same idea and got in there before me with a hammer and mushroomed it the hell over.
Nothing I couldn't resolve with aggressive application of propane torch, Kroil and a hammer. I eventually got it free and discarded the bracket. Check out that radiator inlet, SO CRUSTY. I'll need to clean that before I get too far. The pink crap is leftovers from the odd antifreeze they use overseas. Hopefully that means minimal corrosion in the block.
I planned on moving the
Lol. Maybe not. Orange gak and more pink fuzzies. Nothing I can't remove with a carbide scraper and some time.
Moving back to the water pump inlet, I cleared all the corrosion off and found this. Well, methinks there may have been a leak here at one point. Clearly someone tried to do something with the cooling system at some point. This is a recipe for a leak so I'll swap it with the one off the other engine.
Removing the inlet housing and I found this:
That is super soft rubbery silicone, it feels EXACTLY like the stuff you would use for your tub or grout. ****. This, my friends, is what our Commonwealth friends refer to as a "bodge." I really ******* hope this motor wasn't fighting cooling issues.
Anyway, QMAX was moved over and nothing else dire in the cooling system, other than a bunch of iron oxide from the block. Bolting spiffy anno'd orange parts to this undersea relic is quite the contrast.
I suspect this motor has never been run hard, at all, ever. Check out the carbon ring around the exhaust port:
I squirted it with some Kroil and it just ... disappeared. haha! Absorbed into the blackness. Another shot of Kroil and a rag broke up most of it, carbide scraper did the rest. Nice fresh surface for fresh gasket.
Looking at the above image I suspect the cam seals are weeping. I have new OE cam seals, valve cover gasket, etc but I really don't feel like fighting it right now. If this motor turns out to be GRRRREAT! then I'll order parts to do a timing belt and water pump service, and knock this all out at the same time.
Another interesting find:
The winged DK shield logo is the Japanese Daikin corporation, founded in the 1950s they made clutches and other OE parts for decades, and then rebranded as Exedy in the mid 90s. Up until the mid to late 00's you could still find Daikin logos on OE parts from Mazda, Subaru, Honda, etc. When I say "OE" I mean "installed in Japan and shipped in the chassis" where the Exedy branding was used on replacement parts, such as you would buy from the dealer. I believe what I have here is an original clutch, and nobody has touched the bolts on this thing since it was torqued down in Hiroshima. Kinda cool actually.
Reused my ARP flywheel bolts, cleaned and torqued to spec. Turns out the Mazda SST 49 E011 1A0 is compatible with the QMAX. Who knew?! Those 949 guys think of everything!
I opted not to use the clutch that came with the donor engine and instead put the purple Protegé clutch (or whatever FM used that barely works with the Miata hydraulics) back in it. My clutch hydraulics are already bodged into adjustment to work with the thing and I'm trying not to cause myself more undue stress today. What I'd really liked to have done was put a Supermiata Sport Clutch with the organic disk in this time, but I didn't think to order it in time to get here this weekend, so the purple whatsit will have to do. I actually found my clutch alignment tool in my toolbox so I made good use of it, and thankfully the transmission dropped right on to the block. Installing the trans after dropping the front subframe is so much less awkward and trying to do it on your back under the car.
Mazda sourced gaskets and hoses where applicable. Fuel rail, injectors, and intake manifold are all BP4W parts. You'll note the fresh WIX 51356 filter here. This motor isn't super clean inside. Not like, neglected dirty, but more like used dinosaur oil its whole life dirty. I plan on filling it with FLAPS 5w40 synthetic oil and running it for 50-100 miles and then doing an oil change. The oil that dribbled out of the pan and came out of the euro Bosch filter that was on the motor when I got it was very dark. I want to cut open this WIX and also the Bosch and see if there is anything to see.
Almost ready to shove it back up in there and give it a twist.
This always seems like its going to be easy, but its a shocking amount of work once you include all the little bits and pieces that all need to fall into place. Especially in the heat. Thankfully, this is all OEM parts so it goes together like Mazda intended. I don't know if I'll have it running before the end of the weekend, but it'll be pretty damn close!
#3297
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Always appreciate reading your detailed posts, @EO2K
I try to post details and minutia that I couldn't find when I was preparing for the project, or wish I knew before I started, or things I find funny. Also frustration. It's a good place to vent.
#3298
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So bloody close.
It took an excessive amount of time to get the subframe back into the car, mostly because I'm a moron and couldn't get the splines lined up in the steering shaft universal. If you use the engine hoist to try to lift the engine and subframe into place and the splines are off, it is possible to lift the entire front of the car with the entirety of its remaining weight with the steering universal. This weight plus 3 hours with a prybar, ratchet strap, dead blow hammer and kicking it will not help in this situation. As you can imagine, this buggers the splines fairly badly. Nothing that 30min with a set of jewelers files can't fix! I'll need to contact one of the Miata dismantlers and see if I can get a replacement, but for now its together, and I don't plan on taking it apart again for a while < queue foreboding music >
Here's a fun little find.
This poor rear oxygen sensor has seen some serious ****. Its been in and out of a half dozen exhausts probably 400 times since I bought the car. Here I've replaced the electrical tape for probably the 2nd or 3rd time, but this time I'm trying the fancy Tesa tape, and built it up a bit of a strain relief. The front sensor was replaced some years ago as part of some bullshit troubleshooting Kraftwerks made me do, but I've never changed the rear.
That's literally an OE Denso Mazda BP4X sensor, haha!
Anyway...
(ignore the ludicrous white o2 sensor extension, it only needs to be about 8" long but sometimes you run whut you brung)
Its been one HELL of a push to get to this point. Here's what's left:
Ordered NGK 96457 / FR5BHX spark plugs (we Ruthenium naio, bitches!) and a pair of FEL-PRO 61593 pipe flange gaskets for the Racing Beat exhaust, but neither of those things are going to stop me at the moment. It turns out the NGK 6418 / BKR6EIX plugs I was running are actually 1 step cooler than what Mazda recommends. The 6 were probably fine for turbo stuff, but a 5 is more appropriate for NA. Maybe. I dunno, we'll see.
What IS stopping me right now is this:
I knew this bastard had gotten scorched on the EGR tube but I didn't realize it was cracked and leaking. so... kinda boned. This is of course the hose that goes between the reroute and the heater core. I'll probably just order a Gates or Continental from the FLAPS and chill out until it arrives.
It took an excessive amount of time to get the subframe back into the car, mostly because I'm a moron and couldn't get the splines lined up in the steering shaft universal. If you use the engine hoist to try to lift the engine and subframe into place and the splines are off, it is possible to lift the entire front of the car with the entirety of its remaining weight with the steering universal. This weight plus 3 hours with a prybar, ratchet strap, dead blow hammer and kicking it will not help in this situation. As you can imagine, this buggers the splines fairly badly. Nothing that 30min with a set of jewelers files can't fix! I'll need to contact one of the Miata dismantlers and see if I can get a replacement, but for now its together, and I don't plan on taking it apart again for a while < queue foreboding music >
Here's a fun little find.
This poor rear oxygen sensor has seen some serious ****. Its been in and out of a half dozen exhausts probably 400 times since I bought the car. Here I've replaced the electrical tape for probably the 2nd or 3rd time, but this time I'm trying the fancy Tesa tape, and built it up a bit of a strain relief. The front sensor was replaced some years ago as part of some bullshit troubleshooting Kraftwerks made me do, but I've never changed the rear.
That's literally an OE Denso Mazda BP4X sensor, haha!
Anyway...
(ignore the ludicrous white o2 sensor extension, it only needs to be about 8" long but sometimes you run whut you brung)
Its been one HELL of a push to get to this point. Here's what's left:
- Torque lower shock bolts
- Add oil (FOUR GODDAMN QUARTS!!!)
- Add coolant
- Add transmission lube
- Install shifter
- Install center console
- Install midpipe
- Install sway bar
Ordered NGK 96457 / FR5BHX spark plugs (we Ruthenium naio, bitches!) and a pair of FEL-PRO 61593 pipe flange gaskets for the Racing Beat exhaust, but neither of those things are going to stop me at the moment. It turns out the NGK 6418 / BKR6EIX plugs I was running are actually 1 step cooler than what Mazda recommends. The 6 were probably fine for turbo stuff, but a 5 is more appropriate for NA. Maybe. I dunno, we'll see.
What IS stopping me right now is this:
I knew this bastard had gotten scorched on the EGR tube but I didn't realize it was cracked and leaking. so... kinda boned. This is of course the hose that goes between the reroute and the heater core. I'll probably just order a Gates or Continental from the FLAPS and chill out until it arrives.
Last edited by EO2K; 08-16-2021 at 10:31 PM.
#3300
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Meh. I suspect direct contact with an exhaust component would destroy any hose, OEM or otherwise.
Short section of sleeve would probably be a good idea regardless. I think I've got some scraps kicking around the garage somewhere. I wonder if anyone makes a cover small enough to fit the EGR tube itself? I believe the factory ones were sleeved, probably for this exact reason. I'll have to do some looking.
Edit: lol
Genuine Mazda 1999-2000 Mazda Miata Egr Pipe BP8J-20-31X
https://www.prioritymazdaparts.com/o...pipe-bp8j2031x
Ordered, along with OE heater hose set and a couple gaskets. Let's see how well a new, unmolested one fits around the reroute. And how much I'll want to brain myself trying to install it now that the engine is back in the car. Lolol
Short section of sleeve would probably be a good idea regardless. I think I've got some scraps kicking around the garage somewhere. I wonder if anyone makes a cover small enough to fit the EGR tube itself? I believe the factory ones were sleeved, probably for this exact reason. I'll have to do some looking.
Edit: lol
Genuine Mazda 1999-2000 Mazda Miata Egr Pipe BP8J-20-31X
https://www.prioritymazdaparts.com/o...pipe-bp8j2031x
Ordered, along with OE heater hose set and a couple gaskets. Let's see how well a new, unmolested one fits around the reroute. And how much I'll want to brain myself trying to install it now that the engine is back in the car. Lolol
Last edited by EO2K; 08-16-2021 at 10:37 AM.