[2.3T_GT]

hey guys, sorry its been so long since i posted here but i have been very busy. i was working for a drilling outfit by the name of dynatech and was working an average of 90+ hrs a wk so i didn't exactly have much room for a life outside of work. the money was good though. anyways i saved some cash for a bit and decided to go back to collage, as you can imagine i suddenly had a lot more free time on my hands then i was used to .

so i decided to put it to good use and am glad to say that i have finished making my motor mounts, engine crossmember, tranny mount and a whole more little things done with the fitment of a ford 2.3 SOHC turbo motor backed by a world class T5 tranny.

iam pretty happy with the engine placement it is set back quite a bit as i had to beat back the firewall about a inch in some spots and the shifter location is like 7-8 inches further back than factory (yes i had to take out the E-brake lever, i'm still trying to figure out an alternative spot for it now) but i think it will still be a comfortable spot for my shifter. height wise i'm not to sure if it is sitting any lower that the factory 1.9L. i know the bottom of my oil pan is about level with the bottom of my engine cross member.

speaking of, i had to butcher that one pretty good as i had to "modify" it quite a bit. i will admit that most of the work done isn't the prettiest looking but considering i had basically nothing other than a small craftsman MIG welder and a small assortment of power tools (namely a power drill, 4" angle grinder, and a dremel) i'm pretty happy with the results. and it was all done in about 4 days time.

now i'm in the middle of installing my 18 circuit painless universal hot rod wiring harness as well as the engine ecu harness. this should be quite interesting i figure

oh also i just ordered a garret GT 32 series turbo for my motor which should be good for a mind blowing 320-350ish HP range. the turbo is actually rated up to about 420 HP the shop told me but that might be overkill but its nice to know i will have room to grow. oh i also ordered a areomotive A1000 fuel pump, stage 2 clutch, 100 amp mini alternator, turbo blanket, and a accel 300+ ignition box with the 375+ add on module. i may be broke now but i think its safe to say christmas came a little early this year.

next up on my to do list is get the rear end situated. i am planning on doning the jon.haas route and using the rear end out of a 87 thunderbird turbocoupe and have it shortened to fit and just basically weld on the factory style ople suspenion bits to it. it will be a while before i can get this done as i have exhausted my fundage for a while but i hoping to at least have the drivetrain and electrical situated and running by the end of winter. and then start in on the body this coming spring and summer.

sorry about the length of the post but i'm just very excited to see it all start to come together. hopefully i can get some pics of it with the motor mounter posted within the next few days. the motor is out of it right now so that i could modify the engine bay where needed to help with the fitment as i am trying to figure out how the hell i goign to fit a intake manifold in there. it looks like i might have to make a custom log style out of aluminum.

anyways just thought i would drop a line and let you guys know whats up. jon.haas if you read this please PM me as i would really like to compare notes.

 

[Travis]

i am planning on doning the jon.haas route and using the rear end out of a 87 thunderbird turbocoupe and have it shortened to fit and just basically weld on the factory style ople suspenion bits to it

How are you planning to deal with the lack of a torque tube on the axle? torque arm, three link, four link....? I've heard rumors that Jon Haas had welded the trailing arms solid to the spring buckets, but it's far from an optimal approach, especially if you want to turn.

In my Toyota axle conversion I went with a three link but it's REALLY tight. I was initially planning to do a decoupled torque arm but there just wasn't room. There's not alot of room for a four link either unless you widened the track a bit and stuffed the upper links in the wheel wells.

There are numerous good books out there on suspension geometry that you may want to pick up if you're not not already up to speed on these things. If you just try to 'wing it' you'll very likely end up with something that handles even worse than stock, likely much worse.

Good luck...

-Travis

 

[RallyBob]

oh also i just ordered a garret GT 32 series turbo for my motor which should be good for a mind blowing 320-350ish HP range. the turbo is actually rated up to about 420 HP the shop told me but that might be overkill but its nice to know i will have room to grow. oh i also ordered a areomotive A1000 fuel pump, stage 2 clutch, 100 amp mini alternator, turbo blanket, and a accel 300+ ignition box with the 375+ add on module.

Don't forget the bigger fuel injectors! A bigger turbo may feed more air, but you need larger cc injectors to keep the air/fuel ratio safe.

 

[2.3T_GT]

Don't forget the bigger fuel injectors! A bigger turbo may feed more air, but you need larger cc injectors to keep the air/fuel ratio safe.

heh heh, thats why i have a set of 46 #/hr sitting in the fuel rail. actually i'm thinking of stepping up to a set of 52 #/hr and then just using an adjustable fuel pres reg to set the base fuel pressure down a bit to help compensate that way i can still stay little bit fat on the top end of rev spectrum. i also have a roller ranger cam and roller followers, a round port head, i'm going to order a esslinger undrive pulley kit with an adjustable cam pulley. the factory style computers have been known to be fairly decent up to the 350+ish range (i not completely positive) so i shouldn't have to worry too much about getting it reflashed or stepping up to a programmable stand alone just yet. the more i think about it the more i think i would probably be really happy with a mediocre stock 2.3T 190-220HP in this small of a car but hey if i'm gonna spend money on a project i might as well do it in style.

for the rear suspension i haven't completley finalized any ideas yet but i do plan on getting some literature on suspension geometry and setup since i have a friend who fabricates his own sandrails. (last one he built had a scoche over 20" of travel and yes he made his own control arms and everything it wasn't a prefabbed setup) we are thinking about maybe trying to figure out a mustang II style front end for it so i will have more spring options to help handle my increased front end weight. and it may sound weird but i have been reading through the mini truckin magazines for any kind of ideas on the rear end setup. those guys do some pretty wild stuff with their rear ends i have a few ideas but i need to get it on paper and work out the bugs.

 

[Travis]

and it may sound weird but i have been reading through the mini truckin magazines for any kind of ideas on the rear end setup. those guys do some pretty wild stuff with their rear ends

While it doesn't hurt to look around at different approaches, keep in mind that many of those vehicles are optimised for looks, and not necessarily handling. Also, as they are largely frame based, some of their approaches may not apply.

-Travis

 

[2.3T_GT]

very true travis but the main reason i was looking at the minitruckin scene is that they sometimes have space contraints as well and come up with some good ideas. obviously as cool as air baggin the opel would be i think i would miss being able to hit the curves in it too much to go through with it.

 

[bear]

hey guys i couldn't help but notice the thread...i took the 2.3 gt to last years GRM challenge and plan on taking it again this year, along with a ford 4.6 dohc powered porsche 914. anyway the rear end setup did amazing well in the autocross. it handled better than i ever dreamed. while having no stock basis to judge from it could be worse that a normal gt. but i was impressed. my front suspension needs some help. i bottomed out bad on the course and screwed up the fenders. as for a drag race launch. the setup was horrible, but i think it was my tires (32 psi) yeah i know i'm an idiot, and i cut the factory springs which made launching impossible. my 60' time were almost 3 seconds (horrible) but i was crossing the line with 15.6 @ 92 mph. with a huge boost leak and my distrubutor loose!!

anyway i'll post some pics on the final product soon...

you NEED to get a hold of the electrical and vacumn troubleshooting manual for the correct year tbird...and i mean you NEED it.

see ya and good luck,

jon

 

[2.3T_GT]

hey Jon, I was hoping to hear from you. I have some quick questions on how you setup up yourmotor mounts and a few other things.

I was wondering if you could send me pics of how your engine bay is situated. The way mine is I think I may have to make a custom tubular intake manifold so that I can clear the driver side footwell. But I noticed you used the stock bottom lower intake manifold. How did you get it to fit? Did you have to notch the footwell? Also what about your turbo placment? Are you running the factory manifold as well or did you make a custom log manifold or tubular header. My GT32 is almost twice the size of the factory T3 and it looks like it will be an adventure in making it fit. Also pics of your rear suspension setup would be highy appreciated. Just send them to [email protected]. I would GREATLY appreciate the help. thanks

 

[Dave Brode]

2.3T,
You might measure the tail on an S-10 T5 tailhousing. Afaik, it'll swap onto your Ford T5 to locate the shifter further forward.
Dave