Finally back to working on the Corolla, doing everything I can do get the body work in the bay done so I can drop this motor in and really kick this project into high gear. Only did a little bit tonight but a little progress is still progress. Where I left off/whats left in the bay was the battery tray delete. Got a lot of work left to make it perfect but in retrospect, we are so close to color!
The Camry has been doing great, still trying to find all the kinks before the cold weather and snow comes our way making repairs more of a chore than they already are. Decided to install the new Denso radiator that I had ordered aswell as the new coolant overflow tank which also had a leak. Was able to take advantage of some amazon savings and got an OE Denso Rad and the overflow for ~78 bucks, really love parts for these aren't an arm and a leg, like a certain older corolla of mine... ha. While I was under the hood I put the new PCV valve and check the spark plugs and thought I might aswell do a compression test to confirm my repair and re asses the health of the motor. I over looked it before, but I noticed the pistons are stamped 040, thus it has been bored out and didn't realize this. This became for evident as the compression numbers are cold are way higher than oe spec. I did clean number one piston up more than the others so number 4 could be higher for that reason, just more carbon deposits. Even so, this passes with flying colors.
Did a few day hustle, got the head on and everything buttoned up while trying to clean up stuff as I put it back on. As I'm not in a testing state, I decided to hollow out the pre-cat that had failed. Was more work than I had thought and it made a pretty decent mess but managed to do a decent job. After double and triple checking that I didn't forget anything it was time to bring the thunder. Left the coil unplugged for the first 30 seconds to get oil pressure while it was getting fuel pressure, plugged it in and started right up and purred beautifully, super smooth! Will do a compression cycle soon when I check the plugs and set the timing with a light. Very stoaked, this is turning out to be a very solid car, ended up taking it around the block to the store and its not a bad driving car at all.
Did a little push last couple days after work to get this buttoned and ready to fire it up. Nervous a bit to see how well I did and how it does, hopeful the rings are in great shape and compression is back in #2. I still need to do a few things like an EGR delete (it was so plugged, cant let myself put it back on), hollow the clogged pre-cat before putting the exhaust manifold back on. Its too bad header options don't really exist and celica ones aren't known to fit without modification. Will get the distributor back on, the torque mount, plugs, wires, coil, and put the alternator and belts back on and it should be ready for the thunder.
I really need to step up the progress on the side projects so I can lay some paint down on the corolla before winter hits, hoping to have the motor in and the car rolling by then. I have about 2 months left to finish the Camry and work out any remaining bugs, fix the Mercury and why the TCC isn't getting power, prob another wiring deal in that area, and finish the shave, paint, and motor install on the 86. A lot to do in a short amount of time but the blows of day to day life end up taking a tole and you end up not wanting to do anything at all. As much as it might seem, fixing stuff I don't really enjoy as much and the bay shave has taken me from being excited to do the beams swap to not wanting anything to do with the car, among other reasons. Didn't want to do anything today, but I manged to muster up some motivation to clean up the fuel rail on the Camry so that it's ready to reassemble. Maybe its not wanting to half-ass stuff anymore, but I could have just slapped all this back on without cleaning any of it but I guess if I just couldnt help myself. Thinking I may actually enjoy this car so I'd like to think I could make it halfway decent with some effort. Some motivation and progress soon.
This might give you a little idea as to how filthy the intake manifold was, this was taken after I had already started on it. The final product its a show quality finish or anything but it'll work and good enough for me, much better than before. Now a guy can at least assemble everything without having to get super slimy.
Finally got my gaskets and everything together to put the new head on and see if the effort fixing this was worth it...so far this is what I have into it.
Reman Cylinder Head w/Camshafts and Valves
Felpro Intake Manifold Gasket
Felpro Exhaust Manifold Gasket
Felpro Head Gasket
Felpro Throttle Body Gasket
Mahle Exhaust Converter Gasket
Felpro Head Bolts w/ Washers
Bosch Cap and Rotor
Victor Valve Cover Gasket
Victor Cam Cover Seal
Victor Fuel Injector Seal
Spectre Ignition Coil
Wagner Ceramic Pads w/ Hardware
NGK Spark Plug Wires
ITM Engine Torque Mount
NGK Spark Plugs
