125 replies to this topic

[Barbbachello]

VOS chips were/are your old school "ecu chip". Safe to use with all standard hardware afaik just have to make sure you have the right turbo for the ecu. Theres a TD05 version and a VF version. They have different wastegates iirc 

[El_Freddo]

Thanks barbs,

I’ve done a load of reading this morning on the VOS chip. Sounds like it’s a good thing. And yes, there’s a 6psi and 9psi waste gate version. I need to reference the sticker on the chip - it was quite hard to make it out last night.

I’ll have to get the switch setup sorted for family or friends that might drive it without me... but first I’ll run the stock ECU in the effort to just get this thing running first.

Cheers

Bennie

[El_Freddo]

Quick update:

Pics of the instrument cluster LED conversion - I wanted new incandescent globes but they apparently aren’t available anymore - or more to the point Jaycar sell more LEDs so they don’t stock the old globes.

Same pic as above: LEDs on left, incandescent on the right. No mods to LEDs:



LED’s end dome painted with a white industrial texta, light setting at highest:



Lowest setting:



^ hot spots are very noticeable on the low setting, the camera highlights these really well as they don’t look this bad to the naked eye. I usually have the setting at mid to full depending on in town or country driving so this doesn’t bother me

Things to tick off the list:
- WAIC pump refitted. I had to swap the main bracket over to match the bracket mounted off the side of the impeller housing, why did they make two different mounting setups for the same thing in one model??
- rear right drive shaft slides freely in the hub

Things to add to the list:
- remove driver’s seat and sort out the rear seat base to seat rail mounting.
- replace rear left tail light - I forgot this off the original list above. It has a small hole in the housing.

Engine build:
I’ve made up my mind - I’ll put the engine together and check rotational clearances. A member on the RS lib forum said he did it with a 2.6mm HG (THICK!) to help drop compression (thanks Jimmy!). I’ll be using stock HGs so we’ll see how this goes in the long run.

Cheers

Bennie

[El_Freddo]

Well this is a downer. Lucky no heads were put on at this stage. This is cylinder 2 - same one cylinder in the pic of the two different pistons, just that the piston was at TDC.

Now assessing different options. One includes a home to see if it comes out...



I toyed with the LEDs again today. Roughed up the sides with some 800 grit emery paper.

I’m yet to see the results.

Cheers

Bennie

[RX25SE]

That's a sad sight Bennie. The down side of flat water cooled engines......

[El_Freddo]

Yeah not happy. Back to square 1 with this engine build now. I purchased it as a runner (whole vehicle) so I knew it was good. Just goes to show you never really know. Money that couldve gone towards a build on a block I already have

Live and learn I guess.

Cheers

Bennie

[Barbbachello]

At this point just pickup up a running Phase 1 turbo engine. Be $1000 or under id think and slam it in

[El_Freddo]

At this point just pickup up a running Phase 1 turbo engine. Be $1000 or under id think and slam it in

Got any good sources Barbs? I put the feelers out to a few places over the weekend, just have to wait to hear back. A new EJ207 bottom end would be nice but that’s waaaay out of my price range. There’s an EJ20G with the original two bolt RS heads from import nation - it’s tempting but they’re asking too much and it comes from a dodgy sounding conversion (sounds like they never got the engine running in the conversion) and the engine has a super dodgy spray job on the cam covers and the intake manifold. Would be an easy solution but I don’t want to be paying for someone else’s problems (like I apparently have already...).

I have other engine options - convert a NA block to turbo block by swapping pistons, seek an imported engine or rebuild an engine I have. I haven’t decided yet. Part of me wants to slap this NA together to get the car going then build a good long engine that will sit and wait until it’s needed...

Earlier today I started working on the tailgate swap. I was going to do it without removing the headlining - remove the hinge bolts on the taligate, pull the RS wiring out of the old gate and slide into the replacement. But while doing this I was rather shocked to find condensation on the underside of the roof of the car above the roof lining. So I moved to pulling that out too. It was on the to do later list as it’s starting to sag in places. This is what I found:



Further confirms with me why a shed would be ace... anyway, can’t do much about that atm.

I’m not sure where the moisture is getting in or if this is just a result of it currently living outside.

That’s all for now.

Cheers

Bennie

[Barbbachello]

Your best option is honestly facebook, which i know you dont have. 

The import nation engine is a decent buy considering it comes with a turbo which is probably a TD05. If you contact them directly id be surprised if they didnt do you a deal. Ive bought some stuff from them before and theyre decent blokes. Least if its dickered you have some warranty vs a gumtree engine. 

Condensation id say would be an outside issue. We've been having mold issues in our house and the mold bloke says its been a crazy winter for moisture issues. Chuck a damp rid thing in. Also a good time for some dynamat on the roof

[allpaw4]

LED upgrade looks good Bennie!

Shame about the block, is it something that a machine shop might be able to correct, then just add oversize pistons? I know this is a fairly expensive route, but guarantees the finished product (as much as one can guarantee an engine build!)

 

Cheers,

Ben

[El_Freddo]

Yeah Ben that block could be bored out and run new oversized pistons. It’s not an expense I want to take on atm. So I’m going to slap together a NA block with the correct turbo pistons in it. Build that up with fresh rings and go from there.

On the VOS chip - Adrainvos over at RSlib club forum got back to me. Seems I have the VF chip yet the engine ran a TD05, could be why it killed the big end bearing on no1 cylinder and did this on no2:



^ that explains why it smoked like no tomorrow!

So I have two options - 1) have the VOS reprogrammed for the TD or 2) find a VF which seems to be neigh impossible!

I’m also chasing a stock steering wheel and crash pad for the RWC process. The aftermarket one I have does not have a crash pad and I believe this is not roadworthy.

More to come on the project. Looking at swapping the tailgate and pulling the rear diff for new seals, a clean and maybe a lick of paint.

Cheers

Bennie

[allpaw4]

Is that a chunk missing around the top of the piston and crunch marks on the bottom? Almost like it ate a bit of steel... (although thinking about it now, its probably the missing piece from the piston that made the marks on the bottom)

[El_Freddo]

Is that a chunk missing around the top of the piston and crunch marks on the bottom? Almost like it ate a bit of steel... (although thinking about it now, its probably the missing piece from the piston that made the marks on the bottom)

Correct on the chunk. I think this engine leaned out due to an over boost event or three, cracked a ring landing then proceeded to round off the edge of the piston where it cracked. Ill dig up a pic of the rings behind that cracked missing section, its nasty!

From what Adrianvos was saying, having a 6psi wastegate chip with a 9psi turbo wastegate setup can lead to over boosting. I reckon thats what happened or the dude got a dud replacement engine for the stock block that blew a HG.

Heres a pic of the piston damage that I hadnt uploaded yet:



Its amazing that the engine still ran - not well by any means, but it ran...

Tailgate swapped, its dummied in place for the expected wet weather to keep the interior dry. This is because I found some surface rust thats hidden by the tailgate when its open. I also found some on the LHS rubber grommet opening - could be where my moisture issue began. Ill treat that when the weather is good next. I should line up the brumby and get that done too (too long on the to do list).

Rear diff is out. I had rust and wonder why I keep buying white cars as it shows the rust so easily! This car looks like it lived on a dirt road. Lots of chips and surface rust under the car... one day itll get done.

It seems that the diff is a 3.545 or whatever that funky diff ratio is. So its probably got the original gearbox. Oil initially looked clean until it got to the last bit, thats where the usual grey crap came out.

Cheers

Bennie

[allpaw4]

Oh wow... thats proper rooted!!! I am honestly surprised it ran, let alone for as long as it takes to do that!!! Smooth rounded sides to the damage etc. Its been doing that for a long time!

[El_Freddo]

Oh wow... thats proper rooted!!! I am honestly surprised it ran, let alone for as long as it takes to do that!!! Smooth rounded sides to the damage etc. Its been doing that for a long time!

Yeah - the dude that sold it to me (sight unseen - and not at a good time in my life) was ready to throw a match at it. Wish I knew that before I bought it, I wouldve offered him less!! And it came from Tassie - was driven on AND off the boat as freight. It was cheaper than driving over, collecting it and returning. It was a smokey gutless wonder too!

Ive got another engine given to me by a mate that rally crossed his RS - no 3 or 4 had low compression. On the face of the piston you can see that the edge is rounded. I cant remember if its only one spot (11 oclock position comes to mind) or right around the whole edge. Bore looked good from memory too (I should pull it out to look closer at it), where as this one above has a burnt out section at the top of the bore where cylinder pressures are at their highest.

Cheers

Bennie

[El_Freddo]

This project build has paused on the account of a) work being busy at the end of term and going camping...

Cheers

Bennie

[El_Freddo]

Finally did some stuff on the RS today - chasing a water leak on the RHS of the vehicle. There’s evidence of it coming in above the rear door. I removed all the rubber seals and the metal trim piece behind these. Many of the screws were stuck hard - used the impact driver to get them out. One was rusted really badly, only had half a head to work with! Lots of little rust spots to deal with under these trim pieces.

I think the moisture was getting in through one of the roof trim mount bolts above the rear window. Once the rust is sorted (when that will be I don’t know) I'll be sealing these bolt holes up good and proper!

I want to get this rear diff back in too - just need to find out he new seals I got ages ago and get it done.

Engine: doing the NA block with turbo pistons - only issue is the aftermarket rings don’t quite fit the WSM specs, and they’re a bit light on for their own specs. Frustrating. Might just have to suck it and see - not like this is a performance build by any means.

Sorry there’s not pics. She’s looking pretty sad with interior bits all over the place in the cab. The roof lining in clearly visible from the outside. It’s just sitting on top of everthing.

I got the driver’s seat fixed. $30 to have it welded up professionally, works mint now.

Got a steering wheel sorted. Ideally it needs new leather but I’ll sit on that for a while before it’s done.

Cheers

Bennie

[El_Freddo]

After the last update little was done in all that time. Well, it seems small/little but its a big effort. Ive wire wheeled the rust and acid treated it on the roof in the above pic, along the RHS upper door arches and across the top of the tailgate jamb on the main body - seems libertys like to peel paint then rust in this hard to see and access area.

I got a day to work on the RS, I and it needed this time. I decided to pull the outer trim off the LHS to check it all out and do it properly. These beasts arent like the MY or L series - cant just pull one bit of trim off that you want to deal with...

This is where I realised how the water was getting in on the RHS, and I reckon my RS isnt the only one out there doing this (while quietly rusting in sections under this):



This is the factory silicone that seals the roof panel to rest of body pinch weld seam, its separated from the typical ridge cars had pre-90s (and probably some in the 90s). Get enough water in that ridge and it looks like it would use that gap as an outlet. I tested this with some grease and wax remover and I was sure this was the issue. So I went in deeper:



^ some sections came off easy. At this point I was only using a flat head screw driver to scrape it off, this was relatively common along the ridge:



The silicone hides this rust. If your RS or liberty of the same era (Gen2 as well I reckon) lives inside but spent a good majority of its life outside, I dare say this will be occurring to yours too.

With more work via the wire wheel, Ive currently got this result:



Now to decide, after a treatment with the Rustbuster, do I paint with etch primer, red oxide or just silicone the seam with something like sikaflex then paint over the whole exposed area covering the sikaflex too? Is there a better silicone to use (have thought about three bond but think this might not be the best idea)?

The windscreen isnt any better. With a windscreen replacement some time in its past, it lost paint around the windscreen area, couple this with a wobbly rubber sealing the windscreen that trapped dirt and water, you have a perfect environment for rust to form. Ultimately I want to pull the windscreen, if I was in a shed I would be looking down the barrel of that job right now. Heres whats there at the moment after cutting the rubber to the shape of the windscreen then wire wheeling the area the best I can:



Heres a section above the trim line that I was forced to treat, its already had the rust buster applied but will require a tidy up before paint:



Currently the aim for this RS is to get into the rust while its still young and solve that issue. My RS wont be the greatest example out there (none of my vehicles are unfortunately), but it will live on as an RS with plenty of the original RS spirit.

Once this stuff is all sorted out, Ill get stuck into some mechanicals. I picked up a good TD05H to replace the one that was on there as it looks like the compressor wheel tried to eat something and its difficult to rotate like a bit of engine bearing is in the turbo bearing (highly likely!).

I would like to get the rear diff back in so it can roll again. It needs new seals. Ive got what I need, just need time to do it then refit (the not fun bit).

Ill leave off here as Ive gone essay again. Hopefully the next update isnt so long between drinks.

Cheers

Bennie

[Barbbachello]

Nice Bennie,

I found a few rusty spots under various trims when doing my car. Mainly under the boot seal. Thankfully nothing major but left long enough who knows

[allpaw4]

Mmmm. Might have to check the gen2 car I have in those spots mentioned. Gen3 I do not care much about as it will be gone once I get another ute. Good to see it's being checked over and fixed though Bennie! Good pics showing the issues to look for as well!

Cheers,
Ben