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Finally got around to replacing the TPS connector wires. This was a necessity since the old connector was broken and the wires were breaking also from age.
Car now seems to idle correctly after revving out. Only time will tell though.
What part of Alabama are you in? My wife and I bought some land in Huntsville back in December.
Haven't been on Club Lexus in a while. Was scrolling your thread and saw this. North Alabamian here. I work in Huntsville or at least I did until I went to telework only haha.
Haven't been on Club Lexus in a while. Was scrolling your thread and saw this. North Alabamian here. I work in Huntsville or at least I did until I went to telework only haha.
Nice! We haven't moved yet, maybe in a couple years we'll make the move. I'm trying to get some things in order here in DC first. Probably going to make a drastic career change before moving...
It's been forever since i posted about my build... Really I've just been enjoying the boost! Yesterday I finally did some small stuff to the car:
1. Installed a titanium turbo blanket. Hoping that this will help to keep the under hood temperature down.
2. Next I finally installed the coolant overflow bracket that Bruce (bbyatv) bent and painted for me. I must say that it looks a lot better than my old single screw and zip tie method Bruce also gave me a pipe insulator for use over the IAT sensor, but I cannot for the life of me find it! I will keep looking and if I find it, I'll put it on.
3. Adjusted the TPS to get a more stable idle. Hoping that it continues to idle better!
I also sent a set of headlights over to Organized Garage Status for the Permanent Restoration, Projector Upgrade, Horus HID upgrade, and LED Switchback conversion. Thinking that I'll get the car painted before putting those in along with the glass high beams
The blanket looks nice. Glad the bracket worked out and that she is idling smooth. Let me know if you need the pass side inner fender.
Enjoy the ride.
Bruce
Originally Posted by mrmj2u
It's been forever since i posted about my build... Really I've just been enjoying the boost! Yesterday I finally did some small stuff to the car:
1. Installed a titanium turbo blanket. Hoping that this will help to keep the under hood temperature down.
2. Next I finally installed the coolant overflow bracket that Bruce (bbyatv) bent and painted for me. I must say that it looks a lot better than my old single screw and zip tie method Bruce also gave me a pipe insulator for use over the IAT sensor, but I cannot for the life of me find it! I will keep looking and if I find it, I'll put it on.
3. Adjusted the TPS to get a more stable idle. Hoping that it continues to idle better!
I also sent a set of headlights over to Organized Garage Status for the Permanent Restoration, Projector Upgrade, Horus HID upgrade, and LED Switchback conversion. Thinking that I'll get the car painted before putting those in along with the glass high beams
Finally installed a catch can setup. I didn't run the line from the front intake of the turbo, just running a filter for now.
Also, found the insulator that Bruce gave me for the IAT Sensor. While looking at this image, I realized that there is entirely too much crap in this photo. Would love to clean it all up one day!
Hey guys... Bad news, a few weeks ago I tried to start the car and it cranked extremely slowly. The car had 13.3 volts, and still cranked very very slow. It never started, I walked away from it. Today I changed the oil and found ball bearings in the oil filter. I’m thinking that the turbo dropped the bearings into the oil return, which is scary because now I’m thinking that the engine is probably shot...
If you were in my shoes, with all that I have invested in it, what would you do? I have a spare engine in my garage that needs to be rebuilt, would you rebuild or would you part out and walk away?
Hey guys... Bad news, a few weeks ago I tried to start the car and it cranked extremely slowly. The car had 13.3 volts, and still cranked very very slow. It never started, I walked away from it. Today I changed the oil and found ball bearings in the oil filter. I’m thinking that the turbo dropped the bearings into the oil return, which is scary because now I’m thinking that the engine is probably shot...
If you were in my shoes, with all that I have invested in it, what would you do? I have a spare engine in my garage that needs to be rebuilt, would you rebuild or would you part out and walk away?
Oh my... I am so sorry Marcus!
That’s as horrible a disaster to wake up to with a vehicle as I can imagine...
You do have a garage and a spare engine which to me are HUGE plusses right now.
If you love that SC and if it makes you you happy to own and drive as you had it set up... if it brings you joy... then yes, especially since you have the spare engine and garage to work in I’d say there’s a good reason to build that other block up with fresh parts (and with a different style turbo) and get the car ready to swap it in using as much of your original wiring and other supporting hardware as possible.
Do you have another vehicle you can rely on in the meantime?
It may be possible that your current block and head can be brought back into spec later on but it would involve a full teardown, hot tank and build up from scratch. Hopefully the crankshaft is not damaged (just the bearings) but there is no way to know that without a full inspection of everything.
I’m so sorry you had to wake up to this disaster. I think you have a very good potential path to resurrecting the car with that spare engine with your garage space. It’s just the downtime, much extra work and additional investment that it will require for a while to get it there.
The rest of your car is fine, correct? The body, interior, electronics and everything from the transmission back?
If you’ve been happy with it before this big setback occurred then I think it is worth considering. But it should come down to how you feel about it.
With a garage to potentially park it inside for now and a spare engine already set aside I would if I were in the same boat.
Just so long as your decision either way aligns with what will truly make you happy over the long term
I’m just sorry this happened to you and without any warning either. Usually turbochargers that are failing make their death whines heard very clearly before breaking internally and damaging anything else along with it.
Hey guys... Bad news, a few weeks ago I tried to start the car and it cranked extremely slowly. The car had 13.3 volts, and still cranked very very slow. It never started, I walked away from it. Today I changed the oil and found ball bearings in the oil filter. I’m thinking that the turbo dropped the bearings into the oil return, which is scary because now I’m thinking that the engine is probably shot...
If you were in my shoes, with all that I have invested in it, what would you do? I have a spare engine in my garage that needs to be rebuilt, would you rebuild or would you part out and walk away?
Marcus, I am sorry to hear this. What a dreadful morning. I recently had a small disaster, but nothing like this. I know it is a lot of work to pull the engine and start over. I understand your reservations. I have seen this car and I know you have a lot of time and work invested in it. Tough call. Maybe once the initial blow wears off, you will feel better about digging in again. Either way, let me know if I can be of any help.
That’s as horrible a disaster to wake up to with a vehicle as I can imagine...
You do have a garage and a spare engine which to me are HUGE plusses right now.
If you love that SC and if it makes you you happy to own and drive as you had it set up... if it brings you joy... then yes, especially since you have the spare engine and garage to work in I’d say there’s a good reason to build that other block up with fresh parts (and with a different style turbo) and get the car ready to swap it in using as much of your original wiring and other supporting hardware as possible.
Do you have another vehicle you can rely on in the meantime?
It may be possible that your current block and head can be brought back into spec later on but it would involve a full teardown, hot tank and build up from scratch. Hopefully the crankshaft is not damaged (just the bearings) but there is no way to know that without a full inspection of everything.
I’m so sorry you had to wake up to this disaster. I think you have a very good potential path to resurrecting the car with that spare engine with your garage space. It’s just the downtime, much extra work and additional investment that it will require for a while to get it there.
The rest of your car is fine, correct? The body, interior, electronics and everything from the transmission back?
If you’ve been happy with it before this big setback occurred then I think it is worth considering. But it should come down to how you feel about it.
With a garage to potentially park it inside for now and a spare engine already set aside I would if I were in the same boat.
Just so long as your decision either way aligns with what will truly make you happy over the long term
I’m just sorry this happened to you and without any warning either. Usually turbochargers that are failing make their death whines heard very clearly before breaking internally and damaging anything else along with it.
I appreciate the kind words! I do have another car to rely on. The SC is my toy, albeit a very expensive toy. I will most likely want to get the head refreshed for the other block if I get it running since the head is customized. Doing another head will add another few $1000 to the build...
Originally Posted by bbyatv
Marcus, I am sorry to hear this. What a dreadful morning. I recently had a small disaster, but nothing like this. I know it is a lot of work to pull the engine and start over. I understand your reservations. I have seen this car and I know you have a lot of time and work invested in it. Tough call. Maybe once the initial blow wears off, you will feel better about digging in again. Either way, let me know if I can be of any help.
Good Luck,
Bruce
Thanks for the kind words Bruce! I definitely will keep in touch! This is the irritating part of bringing these older cars back to life. I can’t help but to kick myself for not spending the extra few hundred for a BW S366 Turbo. I’m almost certain that the bearings are from the CX Racing T66 BB turbo...
Originally Posted by Bimmerbill
Marcus,
What can I say that has not already been said. I am truly SORRY for you.
Bill
06-25-20, 12:41 PM
Bruce also gave me a pipe insulator for use over the IAT sensor, but I cannot for the life of me find it! I will keep looking and if I find it, I'll put it on.
