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Been making progress on the car in a lot of little areas. After I wired up the fuse box, made some measurements, and checked clearances the engine came out again for all the regular maintenance items and install of all the accessories.
The wiring took way longer than expected, I probably have 2-3 months in it but I'm happy with how it came out. I can see why heat shrink label makers cost so much - because the alternative, doing it with white heatshrink and then clear over top, is a real pain. I accidentally bought clear heashrink with hot glue on the inside, the labels will never fade but it makes them bulkier than I'd like. All the white wiring is new, I used wax-covered lacing tape to keep it organized before I wrapped it in harness tape. Photos are pre-wrap.
Based on other build threads I decided to run the fuel line and battery cable down the driver's side, then run them across when they get to the engine bay. This was in an effort to clean up the mess that will be the passenger side firewall area since the AC lines, heater hoses, and header tank need to live there. It made sense, then, to mount the flex fuel sensor along fuel line's path, and I found a spot on the lower driver's side firewall.
Holding the flex fuel sensor is tricky since it's designed to snap into a plastic bracket. There are a bunch of mounting options online ranging from $15 to $130, I went the $15 route since one of my goals of this project was to get better at metal fab. The mount I bought is supposed to attach to the chassis through two countersunk screws, one of which is under the sensor. I didn't want to drill holes in the firewall for a nut so I had to get creative with how to mount it.
How they made this thing for $15 is beyond me. It's made with Real Metal™ and it's even clear anodized! I picked up some 1/4-20 weld studs to mount stuff to the firewall - these ended up working out great, a quick tack with the MIG on 3 sides and I had a solid mounting location for the not-under-the-sensor location. The other side was a little tricker and involved welding some tabs onto the mount. Which I can do since I have a TIG welder! I saved $115 on this bracket, at this rate the TIG will had paid for itself in a decade. Definitely a solid financial decision.
I almost turned the mount into a puddle at one point, but I'm learning at least. I didn't take into account how large (and ugly) the weld bead would be so I ground it down with a burr to clear the nut and washer. The
set I bought for my Dremel has to be my second favorite tool I've bought for this project (besides the welder), they've made massaging metal way easier. I did have an issue with them clogging when working with aluminum, but I remembered a tip I read in the http://midlana.com/stuff/book book and coated them with some (clean, obviously) toilet ring wax. After that they didn't clog again. Welded a few more studs to the firewall and the flex fuel sensor was mounted.
I then moved on to mounting the ECM. Mounting options are limited based on the harness length so I opted to go a similar route to @rdb138 and mount it at an angle. I started by putting the ECM into the ECM holder (which is discontinued, thanks Chevy) and placing the ECM where I wanted it. I then bent some coat hanger into the rough shape of the bracket that would hold the ECM in that position.
From there I trimmed it until the leg lengths were about right. I decided to use 3/4" x 1/8" AL bar stock for the mount because Lowe's had it and I wanted more practice welding aluminum. After cutting the stock to length I bent it using some 1" round stock and a vice, using the coat hanger as a template. I also cut and bent some reinforcements to avoid the ECM vibrating and cracking the bracket.
I didn't want to rely on just the right angle pieces to keep the ECM from moving forward under braking so I added a horizontal member. It extends far enough aft to pick up a stud on the shock tower.
From there the ECM holder was riveted to the brackets and the brackets were mounted to the chassis with some M6 bolts.
There are a few more things I need to mount before the engine can go back in, but that list is getting pretty short.
Nice updates! I'm jealous of your aluminum welding, what welder do you use for that?
Thanks! I'm definitely not a good welder but I think the joints are structurally sound. I got an Everlast 200DV back when they were having a Christmas sale. Runs on 110 or 220V which is nice. The torch cooler is 110 only unfortunately, if I had to do it again I'd just buy a cheap one on ebay - the one Everlast sold me is identical to those anyways
07-24-2024, 08:49 AM
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