The 98GT - 4.6L to 460 (and a turbo!)

[BBR]

Fits good.

[BBR]

I wanted a different db37 connector case so I printed one. Haha.

[BBR]

Connector case works great.

[BBR]

Big print this time. This should take about 59 hours by the time it finishes tonight.

This is an airbox for the car. I will probably have to print it from abs for the real version. I printed this to see if: a. I could, and b. To test the fit in the car.

I didn't print support everywhere, just touching the buildplate. It really needed it in that left side hole because it sagged a bit. I have since found a slicer program that lets me control where support will be printed better. (Prusa)

For scale, the big hole is 4" in diameter id.

[BBR]

Print finished and I test fit it. I definitely have some changes to make to the design but this sure helped me see where it needs to be modified!

[BBR]

Yesterday I wired up the water pump relay to the previous ABS system's power circuit. Since the ABS system is not going to be used, I decided to use the ABS system's 12+ circuit to control the electric water pump. The electric pump will turn on with the key so there is no accidentally forgetting to turn it on. I also tapped into the right rear wheel abs sensor's wiring to provide a signal to the transmission controller. The trans controller will then output a signal to the speedo and cruise control..

[BBR]

I set it completely on the ground for the first time today and she's low. Too low. The trans pan is basically touching the floor. Haha. If it still had the long tubes on it, they would be sitting on the floor.

I should have known it would be too low because the 83GT was too low when I first big block swapped it.

I have 3 sets of springs that I can play with to get it right where I want it.

[STINEY]

Wasn't the cure for the 83GT K-member spacers? Or was that for hood clearance?

[BBR]

The kmember spacers were for hood and header clearance. I actually have those exact spacers in this car. Haha. I played with springs on the 83 several times to get it at the desired ride height, then later went to coilovers. (Which I regretted because the ride wasn't near as good.)

Today, I disconnected pretty much everything from the trans and jacked the tailshaft up as high as it would go. It went up quite a bit higher. I guess it was angled down more than I perceived. I just need to make a new trans crossmember. This one won't need the dropped middle section. It will be straight across.
I disconnected the vband connecting the hot side to the turbo and it barely moved. I can still move it easily in place with my hand so I think it will be fine as is.

[BBR]

Simpler is better. I started making the new transmission crossmember. There is a tab above the cooler line that is hitting the floor pan. If I zip it off with the sawzall, I think I can raise the trans a little bit higher.

[BBR]

I trimmed the tab off and raised the trans a little more. I am very happy with the fit now and I went ahead and tacked the angle to the tube.

[BBR]

Oh yeah. Way better. I should have done it this way the first time. Haha. I also swapped the front springs to a morre normal pair.


I also swapped the front springs to a set of drag springs that I ran in 83GT for a while. Probably the easiest spring swap I've ever done in one of these cars.

[BBR]

The hot side wouldn't fit at all after all the trans mount shenanigans were finished. So I pulled it, cut it just below the v-band at the turbo and extended it 1" to where it would fit back perfectly again

[BBR]

Shifting to shifters. The shifter I previously installed is a Speedmaster Billet Pro shifter. It works ok, but has a rear exit cable. There are two ways it can attach and work properly.

1. Shift arm pointing up, cable approaching from rear
2. Shift arm pointing down, cable approaching from the front.

I had it seup up as 1, but now there is no room to point the arm up. 2 would be fine but would require an absurdly long shifter cable.

So I pulled the shifter out and started installing the B&M Magnum Pro Stick that was in the truck. It has a front exit cable and needs the shift arm pointing down with a rear approach cable. We actually used this very shifter with this trans way back when the truck had a stock efi460. I like these shifters a lot and it has a real reverse lockout unlike the Speedmaster. 3 holes in the trans tunnel, 3 rivnuts, and it's bolted in. Rivnuts rule!!

[BBR]

Maybe I could 3d print a cover for that hole in the console.