RX7 FC finding out what it wants to become

In reply to Skervey:

I will look up that wire for you.

This was originally a manual non turbo car, right?

Skervey wrote: Grate question I didn't want a LS for a few reasons, cost the motor itself is cheap'ish they are getting better and better but all the other parts can kill you. A T56 is a heavy little thing and cost a ton. But the biggest reason is I wanted to do the swap fast. I have never done anything near this hard before. Iv done lots of little things with cars but this is my first big build and having the knowledge of the 302 (I work at a hotrod shop) and the tons of cheap used or even free parts for the 302 can't be beaten. I would have used a lQ4 if I would have gone with a LS and they make about 300hp give or take what you do to them. My 302 will make less but is only a cam shaft away from 300hp ($100 on CL). There are a lot of really cool motors that will fit into this car with kits (even some crazy rotatory thing) but the price, knowledge, cheap parts, reliability, and over all ease of the SBF made it a no brainer for me. And less wiring! So back with the updates. Made another run to napa and got the right size belt, Im putting the pic of the box up just in case it comes off when im going down the road and I need to call a friend to get me a new one. He can look it up here on the forum go to napa and buy the right one and bring it to me! Its all about thinking ahead. I also got my new distributor in, and it came with a surprise. It had two caps! So I have a choice on what I want. The back is much smaller and shorter and will look better so its an easy pick. But I will need new spark plug wires to fit the female terminals. This should show how they fit in the car. I also went through and marked some of the wires I need to hook up to get the dash working. Oil pressure, starter wire, main power, back up switch. could never find the coolant temp wire... So now onto some questions! 1. How do I wire my stock mustang alternator to be a one wire unit? Most of the info online talks about going to a 3g or a true one wire unit. 2. Does anyone know what colors my temp sensor wire would be? Iv looked for the wire granny speed says to look for but its not there... All of the other wires were so I don't why this one is not.

Great post, wondering what the weight difference is between the 5.0L and the LS4. There are a variety of LS motors, the LS1 being the most common and the 5.7L LS6 or 6.0L LS2 400hp motors being the most practical. I agree about the T56, but a World Class T5 would hold up to the LS4 and then you could benefit from the Ford 9" rear like most GM cars did lol. At one point I did look into doing a GT40 build, different firing order than the 5.0L, but would have required mixing gas all the time.

The coolant temp wire is under the dash on the passenger side, near where the original ECU was. Grannys was a bit off on mine but I found it. Grannys info is based on an S4 car and mine is an S5, what is yours? I think Grannys said it was X-15 and it was X-16 or the other way 'round. I can take a pic tomorrow if you need. I still have all that wiring exposed.

I'm really close to driving it down the muffler shop for an exhaust. Fixed a few issues with the shifter and coolant fan. Cut the hole in the hood and found a scoop I like so I just need to paint the scoop and stick it on.

Skervey wrote: 1. How do I wire my stock mustang alternator to be a one wire unit? Most of the info online talks about going to a 3g or a true one wire unit.

when i was building my race truck i think a 3g was the best way to go for a one wire, you have a different alternator mount set up then i had but it still may work.

looking at the picture from my poject you can see the 3g bolted up to the stock mounting holes, i just had to grind some of lower part of the mount to get it to fit in there. with your adjuster arm (cant think of its real name) for the top mount on the alternator i think a 3g would be able to fit in with little to no modification.

and i think i got the alt. of of a late 90's/early 2000's taurus at the junkyard.

Nice let me know how much the shop charges you so I can have an idea. Then get a cool video of some burnouts or something!

Yep mine is a S4 and granny speed says it should be a yellow wire with black stripe, and it should be near the oil filter aka be near the oil pressure wire right? Still a little lost there. Its hard to look at the two pages on grannys and find the wires in my crazy car...

edizzle89- Id like to use a 3g but I have two stock mustang alternators so I might as well just use them unless I come across a really cheap 3g, Im not planning to go to a pull-a-part soon. I also wonder if the stock unit will give me enough power especially since I have the under drive pulley. I have no AC not much of a radio as of now but hope to put a aftermarket head-unit in and better speakers no subwoofers. So I don't see a huge need for a better unit unless I can run a smaller lighter battery, but I think the battery size has more to do with the cranking amps and the starter, not all the accessories when the car is running. Im open to any thoughts on the topic and I haven't wired it yet so please feel free to talk me out of it or correct me if im wrong!

svxsti wrote: Great post, wondering what the weight difference is between the 5.0L and the LS4. There are a variety of LS motors, the LS1 being the most common and the 5.7L LS6 or 6.0L LS2 400hp motors being the most practical. I agree about the T56, but a World Class T5 would hold up to the LS4 and then you could benefit from the Ford 9" rear like most GM cars did lol. At one point I did look into doing a GT40 build, different firing order than the 5.0L, but would have required mixing gas all the time.

Ya the aluminum LS blocks will be lighter but my 5.0 was only $500 and has 45K on it. Don't think I would have found any LS motors for that price/millage. After reading about the T5 iv found that it is better than people say it is. One guy was saying the T5 is crap because it blew out after "only" 4 runs at the drag strip with his 350hp car power shifting it... Idk I though some things would be obvious but maybe not. As for the ford 9" its epic but I wanted the 2nd gen rx7 just for the independent rear end. I had a 01 mustang for a while and was never crazy about the solid rear end is seemed to just "float" back there. Mine was stock and could have been made good with new control arms and pan hard bar ect but independent seems much better in the long run as long as I don't blow it up. As for the firing order everyone makes it out to be such a huge deal but its really not I have the same order as the 351 since mine is a "HO" but it just depends on the cam. Just simply swap the order of the plug wires and you are good to go as far as I know.

And why would you have to use premix in a 5.0?

if you look at a 4-7 swap cam for a SBC or the stock LS firing order, they're the same firing order as an HO / 351. :) You could probably put LS heads on the Ford if you were a sick twisted evil genius machine shop guy.

The best part of "Why did you use a 302" is you're getting damn close to done!

Beagle wrote: You could probably put LS heads on the Ford if you were a sick twisted evil genius machine shop guy.

That I would like to see!!

I got a little work done during my brakes at work. Finished the cut out just have to wait to go to the exhaust shop to see if it will work.

Also finishing up a shift knob for a friend, if anyone want one let me know!

Skervey wrote:

svxsti wrote: Great post, wondering what the weight difference is between the 5.0L and the LS4. There are a variety of LS motors, the LS1 being the most common and the 5.7L LS6 or 6.0L LS2 400hp motors being the most practical. I agree about the T56, but a World Class T5 would hold up to the LS4 and then you could benefit from the Ford 9" rear like most GM cars did lol. At one point I did look into doing a GT40 build, different firing order than the 5.0L, but would have required mixing gas all the time.

Ya the aluminum LS blocks will be lighter but my 5.0 was only $500 and has 45K on it. Don't think I would have found any LS motors for that price/millage. After reading about the T5 iv found that it is better than people say it is. One guy was saying the T5 is crap because it blew out after "only" 4 runs at the drag strip with his 350hp car power shifting it... Idk I though some things would be obvious but maybe not. As for the ford 9" its epic but I wanted the 2nd gen rx7 just for the independent rear end. I had a 01 mustang for a while and was never crazy about the solid rear end is seemed to just "float" back there. Mine was stock and could have been made good with new control arms and pan hard bar ect but independent seems much better in the long run as long as I don't blow it up. As for the firing order everyone makes it out to be such a huge deal but its really not I have the same order as the 351 since mine is a "HO" but it just depends on the cam. Just simply swap the order of the plug wires and you are good to go as far as I know. And why would you have to use premix in a 5.0?

No premix for a 5.0, I was referring to the high compression 289 and 302W with a different firing order from the 60s and 70s. I remember on my 70 Mustang 302W 2bbl the owners manual said minimum fuel requirement 94 octane lol. Yeah the LS2s are more expensive: 2006 Engine Pontiac GTO (New Style) COMPLETE CORE 95,000 A 00006206 $1750 St. James Auto & Truck Parts - QRP, ARAPro, PRP Midwest USA-MO(St.-James) Request_Quote 1-800-264-3294

but the LS4 is not and comes in the FWD package with the LS6 heads and at 5.3L I'm sure it could rev higher than the 5.7L for less torque and more hp in a light car:

2008 Engine Chevy Impala -79K 79,000 A 66977 $750 BeBe's LS3 Trucks & Auto Dismantler USA-CA(Fontana) Request_Quote 909-356-1111

Also came in the 06-07 Monte SS and I didnt check those. Gotta love car-part.com.

Here is where the wire is normally attached to the engine.

It is a little bullet connector that just clips over the sensor.

If you don't know, this wire is on the front wire harness by the barke booster / steering column.

I will get you the wire color in a few...

Depending on where you see the wire it will be yellow and black or yellow and white.

At the ends of the wire it will be yellow and white.

Connector FEM-01 (which is a 21 pin connector near the computer) has a yellow and black wire on the "front" harness and a Yellow and white wire on teh "Meter" side of the harness.

This connection is on the bottom row of the connector. It is 2 pins off being in the middle.

Find the big 21 pin connector and you have found this wire. Again, it is Yellow and Black on one side and Yellow and White on the other. Bottom row near teh middle.

There will be a Red / Green wire beside it. There will be a Green / Black wire beside it as well.

In other words, the wire you are looking for will be between the red wire and teh green wire on teh bottom of the connector.

The bottom of the conenctor is the row that has 11 pins in teh row. The top only has 10 because it skips a pin right in the middle.

Let me know if this is clear as mud.

Skervey wrote:

Is that still going to fit under the hood with no cutting?

I think it's the angle of the pic - have a look at the shock tower and it definitely fits under the hood... :)

Yep should still fit under the hood as far as the distributor goes (the larger gray one fit before) The new issue will be the alternator if that sits to high now.

Here is where I am with the wires, I think the temp should be close to the oil wire looking at the pic that wvumtnbkr put up (big thanks by the way) the yellow with red is for the oil and I am guessing one of the other two will be the temp but which?

I also shortened up the main battery cable and kinda put a new lead onto the wire. I tried my best to solder the wire up then put some cut pieces of solder into the new end and heat it up and let it make a good connection but I don't have a torch right now so the heating part will have to wait.

Last but not least is the alternator here is what im working with. That's as fat as I got...

Well I take that back I did find this.

So to me it looks like all wires except the green with brown stripe go the the battery (aka the starter solenoid for me) But then I can run the green with brown stripe to the fuse block of the car. The only issue I see is I don't have the white and black wire as in the pic.

Either way I will need to go buy some wire next week!

I think it's the angle of the pic - have a look at the shock tower and it definitely fits under the hood... :)

Skervey, you can do anything you want if you're the evil genius machine shop owner.. this guy put an LS head and a half on a 300 Ford!

source: http://bangshift.com/bangshift1320/mad-science-a-drag-racer-sliced-and-diced-a-pair-of-ls-heads-stuck-them-together-and-mounted-them-on-a-ford-inline-six/

there was a thread on the 460 boards many years ago, not sure if it ever got completed because the trash talk on the thread drowned the tech out.

This is a Windsor gasket on an LS head:

from: http://www.460ford.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114796&highlight=ls1

I really enjoy sick stuff like that. I'm pretty much a Ford guy but I tend to look at all of this car stuff as just another way to keep from walking, so I'm not stuck to a brand. Sorry for the derail, on with the RX!

Im fine with a good derail like that! That is epic but seems like so much more work than it needs to be! But then again I pulled a good motor to put another motor that doesn't even fit into the car...

As far as the hood it bends up in the middle a good little bit so it sits about 2" high in the center than the sides. this was just the best view I could get showing a comparison of the two caps.

Iv been running wires tonight I pulled a part of the harness with the oil,water,backup light. I think Im going to get rid of it since so little of it is used. I will use the factory plugs and only use the wires I need from them. Anyone know what color the wire going to the water temp sensor is? They say its yellow with a black stripe but I don't see one in my harness at all...

Your water temp wire IS yellow with black OR yellow with white depending where it is. It may have turned a creamish color or whitish if the harness is crispy!

I added a few new pictures to my gallery, including where I tapped in for the dash temp gauge. It is a yellow/white wire under the passenger side dash. I also included some shots of how I hacked up the hood. My pics are here: https://www.flickr.com/gp/68576104@N02/2405p5

Taking car to muffler shop Monday, should have it back mid-week. Getting excited!

Dropped car at muffler shop today. Drove the 3 miles without issue but after I parked it it would not restart to drive it on the lift. So we pushed it. It's always started cold so it seems to have a hot-start problem. Hopefully I can get it back home and figure it out easily. Annoying though. They quoted me $800 for the work.

Good to hear you are getting close! Stinks the car wouldn't crank after you got there. And im hopping to get mine done for much less if they come back with a $800 quote you will see a good step by step guide on how to do a system yourself haha. Im not looking for perfection but it sounds like they should do a killer job! The place Im going to did a friends of my dads cobra with was $300ish including mufflers so im going to try there first.

Wow, around here $300 won't even cover the pipes, mufflers, and tips. I hope it sounds good, went with Magnaflow mufflers. The shop does a lot of hot rods so maybe they are more priced to that crowd :)

Doing some research I think the hot start issue is TFI module so I bought a new one. Hopefully it will start when cold so I can get it back home...

http://www.theturboforums.com/threads/324772-LS1-heads-on-a-SBF-Yes-they-fit

Skervey wrote:

Beagle wrote: You could probably put LS heads on the Ford if you were a sick twisted evil genius machine shop guy.

That I would like to see!!

Finely an update. Mostly small stuff. I found the water temp wire. Me not reading the full post I thought the water temp wire would be on the drivers side but it is in fact on the passenger side. So I ripped up the wiring harness on that side and found my wire,

I picked up the first set of wires, I know I will need more.

Then I started on the harness...

Making good progress but its not much to talk about or look at.

I also got the water temp fitting to put it into the ford motor.

I made a little bracket for the fuel pump regulator and mounted it onto the fire wall.

That's about it for tonight!

Hey guys iv been doing some work trying to get more parts coming so I will be that much closer to a running car. Does anyone know what treads the rack uses? I will need a nipple fore the return line, A plug for the low pressure line, and a fitting or hose for the high pressure side. I have a 6an fitting that will fit into the pressure side of the ford power steering pump if that helps me at all.

I found lots of info on how to hook the rack up and hot to depower it but not what lines I need.