Atom's 2 door Amazon wagon Project:Headquarters

[Meeve]

LOL @ worrying about Pick a Part wheel stands and weird concept-bashing. Meeve must really **** E30s or something, haha.

I can't wait to see the dash and engine done!

Hey, bmw was actualy the first brand to win my hearth. My first one was a 535/5 e34, just like yours I've had many a bmw since then, volvos too. I dislike no brand but surely love some more than others.

That said, I was quite tired when I've made my first comment, so it came out harsher then usual. This project is definitly dope, I was only surprised at 4h30 am by that turn of event lol. I'm over it now and in love with this project again loll. Carry-on.

[Atom]

Haven’t really done anything on my own car. Was traveling for work among having a foreign exchange student staying with us. Trying to get my brother his car back too. Got his head back from the machine shop. Had to check valve lash since it got all new valves and this car runs solid buckets. Volvo LOVES them some “special tools” so I just made my own cam clamp (also put handles on it to help with install) so I could hold the cam down and get feeler gauges in there.



All looks within spec, so I’m going to start reassembly this weekend.

[Atom]

Can we walk through oil pan stuff together? Trying to look at the discrepancies from RN to RNC engines.

So, RNC oil path (as I understand it):

Pickup into pump:



Out of pump into oil cooler:



Cooler inlet and outlet:



Then to oil filter on the side of the block:





RN (in this case B6304):

Pickup into pump:



Out of pump into filter:



Out of filter into block:



(Note that this port exists in the RNC block, but is blocked off by the pan):



So, if I want to use the rear sump pan, do I just need to black off the oil filter in/out on the side of the block and just use the bottom mount filter?

Thoughts?

[duct-tape]

remote mount filter?

[Atom]

Well, it’s a bit more involved than that. I need to to be sure that pressure gets where it needs to be.

[Atom]

Worked on my brother’s car today. The handles made it really easy to set the head in place. Also, a little trick my dad taught me was to use dental floss to hold the exhaust gasket in place, then get the studs started and pull the floss. Didn’t get quite as far as I wanted cause I seem to have forgotten to order head bolts. Powder coated some parts. I heart clean parts when putting an engine back together.



It’s making me think maybe I should make extra of the handles. I can’t say if it’s easier than just grabbing the head, but it sure seemed like it.

[CSBolger]

I'd think that so long as the output side of the oil pump is still being fed to the appropriate port, and chamber diameter doesn't become large enough to drop pressure, a dogleg "pipe" of sorts may work.

[duct-tape]

big fan of the powdercoat.

[Atom]

Got bro’s car back together and back to him. After a few more issues getting sorted out.



Haven’t really spent much time on my own stuff. Too many deliverables at work. The Alodine works great on parts that can be soaked, but just spraying it on the block didn’t result in the color I wanted, so I got creative and just came up with my own custom color. Got the oil pan cut, but not welded yet.



I starting making the equipment to cut the bellhousing and the trans, but haven’t completed it yet, or cut anything. Still dialing in the last stuff. No pictures.

[Atom]

Got the pan welded back together and added some -6 AN fittings onto an OE rail.



I built a table to section the bellhousings. I’ll take some pics tomorrow. It’s supremely overkill, but I made it out of leftover junk from the shop.

[Fruttolo]

Love the pan chop job, really nice welds on cast aluminum

[Atom]

Ok, so here’s the table for cutting. I used two thick a$$ plates of aluminum with a lazy Susan bearing between them, put it on some slides with a chunk of allthread (I know it technically should be acme thread, but I’m using scraps) with some nuts welded to the end for adjusting. I welded some C channel uprights and made a fixture to bolt to my angle grinder using the spots where the handles go. That bracket isn’t really square, so my plan was to c-clamp it in place and adjust until I got it to the desired height and level with the table then drill for bolts to “pin” it at that height. Seemed to work alright.



Then on to the cutting. I started by just making a “contact” ring most of the way around so I could be sure that as I cut deeper I could verify the disk wasn’t deflecting or diving. Then I cut through in most spots, leaving a few areas NOT cut all the way through so it wouldn’t pinch the wheel. Then I laid the trans on its side and finished off the last bits.

The rings line up pretty good. I’m going to make a few mounts so I can stand my block on it’s nose, bolt the 960 bellhousing ring in place then put the trans section on and start welding. I plan on putting “straps” of aluminum across the weld to help tie everything together. We’ll see.

[Fruttolo]

I'm impressed, like a lot

[Atom]

So, while sticking the two together, I was a little worried about alignment knowing that the trans input shaft has a bit of slop. I took two precautions. I made a sleeve of thin aluminum that I put around the splined portion of the input shaft and slid it into the throw out guide sleeve and I made basically an extra thick pilot bearing sized block of aluminum hoping that having more engagement on the output shaft would help align things. Then I put everything together and started with some sturdy tacks, then longer welds, then all the way around (where they meet at the moment) and lastly added the “straps”. I’m going to let that sit over the weekend and weld the inside next week. Then before I assemble anything for good, I’m going to take a scrap plate of aluminum and make a fixture so if I need to duplicate this down the road, I don’t need a spare engine laying around.



I’m also going to make some filler plates to cover the gaps between the two.

[Atom]

I'm impressed, like a lot

Thanks man. I’m hoping it all works out. I love the sound of a turbo five cylinder and 300+ hp is a cakewalk for this engine, so that should be fun too.

[Atom]

Couple of pics with the pan on too.



Once I’m for sure done welding stuff up, I’ll make the trans and pan match the engine.

I’m pretty sure I can get by with the rear sump pan if I make a few modifications to the front crossmember and flop sides on the sway bar.

[Atom]

PCV spacer/Oil filter blockoff/Motor mount plate (future)/Alternator adapter (future). Only got one side done. The second side should be much easier since there’s no PCV in the way.



Stoked to test fit things this weekend. Not stoked to do it in the rain (as usual).

Modified crossmember (still need to add some bracing, but want to check fitment first.

[MikeyRa]

This is an amazing display of fab work!

On a side note, one of my other hobbies is about to show itself, what wrist watch are you wearing?

[Atom]

This is an amazing display of fab work!

On a side note, one of my other hobbies is about to show itself, what wrist watch are you wearing?

It’s just a Gen 0 Apple Watch. It’s the buffer I use to keep from ruining my phone at work. I like watches as well. Most are low end, but my crown jewel is a PAM127.

[MikeyRa]

I like watches as well. Most are low end, but my crown jewel is a PAM127.

Ahhh a Fiddy! Very nice watch!

My daily rotation consists of Orients, Lorier, Casio, Citizen, AndroidWear etc.

[Atom]

Ahhh a Fiddy! Very nice watch!

My daily rotation consists of Orients, Lorier, Casio, Citizen, AndroidWear etc.

I took a Triwa (Swedish), pulled the straps and machined a plate to use it as an analog clock in my wife’s S80.

https://instagram.com/p/BM7rnQAhK3L/

[MikeyRa]

Well, that's just fucking cool.

[Atom]

Crossmember braced up a bit.

[Atom]

Tent city set up. Got fixturing to do before I can even start playing.

[Atom]

Well, sits a little tight to the firewall. The trans mount and driveshaft are adjustable though, so I’ll probably slide it forward just a hair. The good news is the modified crossmember clears the 960 pan without having to cut into the sump any more. Sway bar might be tough. I made a fixture to locate where it ends in stock configuration, so I’ll flip it and see where it lands on the front of the pan.

Anywho...



Plenty of room to the core support



Overall height comparison (without the top half of the Volvo intake



Maybe it’ll transfer some weight back??