gman6262

Yeah - getting pretty close to wrapping this up. Have completed all the engine and transmission related items - front and rear crank seals, oil pan seal, head gasket, valve cover gasket, turbos, transmission input shaft seal and transfer case output shaft seal, front differential seals. Got the engine back in the car about 3 weeks ago - have completed installation of new radiator and AC condenser, all hoses with new seals and electrical. Started up the car last week to test and check for leaks - had a small issue with the VANOS timing wheel alignment which I fixed and now the engine runs with no codes. Now I'm just completing the front bumper - reinforcing bar is installed and I'm into headlights, bumper cover, strut braces and trim. On drivetrain - I dropped the rear differential last night - it was a bit of a mess with all seals leaking and I can see that it was down to about half it's normal oil level. Going to flush it out and replace the seals. Have the rear wheel bearings, parking brake and rotors done - as soon as the diff is back in I'll install the rebuilt CV axles. On the front - still need to do the tension strut bushings, install the front CV axles - then I'll be ready to get it out of the garage. Should be another couple of weeks.....

Sandblasted and powdercoated engine subframe. Sent this out to a shop - was a huge amount of rust and it would have taken forever for me to try to clean it up in the garage.

Head off - cleaned up, ready for head gasket.

Rear brakes - new bearings, new splash shields (old ones had completely corroded away at the wheel carrier), new parking brake shoes, ready for new rotors.

Engine in the car - just completing hoses in preparation for test start.

Engine and transmission going back into the car - straight through the front. Subframe supported by floor jack and axle stands as a backup for the subframe.

Redoing the VANOS timing.

Turbo installation - was a breeze with the engine out of the car - could access all the fasteners and be really careful about all the torque verifications.

Engine mated to transmission and ready to reinstall. Changed the transmission oil pan, filter and Mechatronic seal with the engine / transmission on sawhorses.

Rebuilt CV axles and power steering rack - new seals and boots.

Engine block - cleaned up and ready for new head gasket.

kd7iwp

You're doing awesome work. Any updates over the holidays?

gman6262

I haven't gotten much done over the past 3 weeks - but the rear axles are in, the rear differential flushed and the cover gasket renewed, rear driveshaft in. The rear differential needed all new seals and was quite badly rusted, so i wire cupped it and painted it prior to replacing the seals. Rear brakes are done - new parking brake shoes and hardware, new rotors. Since I had a front drive axles out, I decided to replace the front bearings - those are done now - just working on getting the front axles replaced. When I went to install the right front axle - I found a small oil leak in the oil pan - one of the panel covers underneath the right axle bearing support was weeping. So I've drained the oil, will remove the bearing support (4 bolts) and renew the gasket under that panel. I considered skipping that, but since I'm there - there will never be a better time to do it.... I've also replaced the tension strut bushings - one was blown and leaking fluid.

New rear rotors and parking brake shoes / hardware.

Drained and flushed the diff, wire cupped and painted prior to replacing seals.

Pressing in the new front wheel bearings.

Replacing the tension strut bushings.

kd7iwp

gman6262

I'm up to about $10k CAD ($7500USD) for everything - turbos, tools, radiator, AC condensor, all four axle rebuilds, steering gear rebuild, wheel bearings, rotors and brakes, bushings, hoses, seals, hardware. I've got a spreadsheet with all the detail - will share when I'm done. It's pretty clear that I'm going to have to drive the car for another 5 years to make this make financial sense - but at least I know I should be in pretty good shape to run this to 300,000 km. I still love the car. All my friends think I'm crazy....

gman6262

It's running. Finally got the brakes, suspension and wheels back on, finished the cowl over the engine, radiator cover, intercooler support, etc. Took it out today for a short run to warm up the transmission to check the fluid levels. I want to polish the headlights before I replace the front bumper cover, then I'll take it in for a wheel alignment, charge the air conditioning, and torque the axle nuts. I have the heat shields and exhaust to replace, that shouldn't take too much time. Looking forward to getting the back out on the road.

It's running!!

pocholin

WOW, what an undertaking! Kudos to you!
It is pretty admirable what you did, enjoy it for years to come!

DaHose

DANNNNNNNNGGGGGG!!!!! Way to work for what you want. Nicely done. You have a great space to work in, and obviously some solid skillz.

Can't wait to hear how it runs after break-in.

Jose

gman6262

Guys - I just wanted to thank everyone for their encouragement over the past few months while I've been working on this project. I just got back from the dealer - they did the wheel alignment, torqued the axle nuts at the hubs, charged the air conditioning system and adjusted the parking brake

The car runs awesome now - it feels a good as when I got it at 78,000 km. The little stumble / hesitation on acceleration is gone now - i credit that to the intake valve cleaning / walnut blasting, and it's awesome to have full boost and torque back - acelleration is awesome. Great to have my car back, I don't have to borrow my wife's Outback anymore. I took a few hundred photos, when I get around to it I'll add a few of the lessons learned along the way, mistakes I made and pitfalls to avoid. Overall, it was a great project, lots of fun.

pocholin

That is awesome and, again, what an undertaken!! Congratulations and enjoy your car for a lot longer now!!!