Wanna sell her man ? lol just kidding, nice car man, real glossy, i like it...not bad...not bad at all...:banana:
James92TSi's 3000GT
James92TSi's 3000GT - aka "Red"
Red is a '91 3000GT VR-4, which I bought in November 2004. Always garage-kept and dealer maintained by previous owners (a good thing in this case), she is what one might refer to as "a keeper". She is actually one of the first 100 VR-4s to come over to the States, denoted by a gold "Premiere Edition" badge on the glovebox (Pic 1 Pic 2).
Red was bought as a daily driver to back up my DSMs, and performed that task quite admirably until early 2007. She started to have little issues here and there, and the final straw was when the output shaft failed in late June (Pic 1). I started plotting and scheming -- as my original plan was to have Red as my daily car, and my '92 GSX project as my track car. It seemed Red had other ideas.
I eventually arrived at the difficult decision to cut my losses on the GSX project, make Red the track car, and shop for a newer car with warranty to serve as my daily. Shakira (my G35 Sport Coupe) was added to the family in late August, and Red officially moved into the "toy" role.
More pics of Red, including shots on-track, can be found in my Picasa album: http://picasaweb.google.com/James92TSi
Here's the rundown of what's done to her so far:
Electronics
• Eclipse AVX2494 - touch screen DVD/CD/MP3, 20GB HDD (visible in these: Pic 1 Pic 2)
• PPI 5440 5-channel amplifier (Pic 1)
• Infinity Kappa 60.5cs 6.5" component set (front)
• Infinity Kappa 692.5i 2-way 6x9" coaxials (rear)
• Infinity Kappa Perfect 10 DVC sub (Pic 1)
• Audiobahn 1-farad capacitor
• Optima Yellow battery
• PAC SWI-X steering wheel radio control interface
Under-hood gadgetry
• Matrix cone filter with 3SX MAS mounting bracket
• HKS SSQV
• MSD spark wires (and NGK coppers, of course)
• 3rd revision lash adjusters
• Alamo Y-pipe (Pic 1)
• Emissions/vacuum line reduction (EGR removed and blocked)
• Supercar Engineering oil pan with trap door and kick-out (Pic 1 Pic 2)
• Northbend Technologies Quadco XR output shaft and input spool (Pic 1)
• EK2 poly motor mounts
• Otherwise just your typical stock 2-bolt 6G72 TT, as maintained by an anally retentive person.
Brakes
(Pic of all parts - note that brakes were not installed yet in pic above)
• 2G VR-4 front brakes - powdercoated red & rebuilt (Pic 1)
• Porterfield R4S pads
• Drilled/Slotted rotors (eye candy from when the car was my daily)
• Goodridge braided SS lines
• ATE Super Blue fluid (or ATE TYP 200... same fluid, yellow color... good for alternating flushes)
• Speed bleeders
Suspension, Wheels, and Tires
• Tein FLEX coilover system
• MB Motorsports Weapon wheels, 18x9 gunmetal finish (+1 in the garage as a full-size spare)
• Falken FK-452 tires, Y-rated 255/35/18
Miscellaneous
• Chrome front emblem
• Snake Eye mod (Pic 1)
• Hella H4 conversion headlamps
• Supermac race shifter
• 99 GSX leather shift knob (the last remaining piece of the Talon)
• Active Aero that actually works (a rarity among first-gen VR-4s)
• Brushed aluminum defrost vents (Pic 1 Pic 2 Pic 3)
• Leatherseats.com reupholstery kit, two-tone with custom logos (Pic 1)
• Tint, yo!
Parts I have that are not on the car yet
• 2G VR-4 rear brakes (same disassemble/powdercoat/rebuild treatment as the fronts)
• Greddy/GT Pro FMIC kit
• TD04L 13T turbos
• DNP precat eliminators (tubular o2 housings)
• Alamo 3" downpipe
• More brushed aluminum interior bits
• A whole lot of body parts (for 2G/99 conversion), including a Cianci Viper hood
• Parts for quad e46 bixenon HID retrofit into 94 Stealth glass headlights
... and probably some other stuff I'm forgetting to mention.
Future plans for the car are
• Repair of damage from off-track incident at September's HPDE event (including installation of Tein FLEX system)
• Replacement of the three factory center gauges with accurate stuff
• Another rework of the braking system, to include better quality rotors, more race-oriented pads (most likely from Carbotech), and ducting for the front rotors
• Installation of the 99 front end, Viper hood, and HID retrofit
• A second set of wheels, most likely 17x9.5 with 275/40/17 Toyo RA1 tires.
• Installation of the remaining 2G body parts and repaint of the car
• Resisting the urge to put all of those other performance parts on the car until my driving improves... a lot.
The eventual power goal is 400 to 425 awhp reliably on pump gas, which is well within the capabilities of the parts I've chosen. At that power level, she'll be a complete hoot on the road course... all in due time. Engine management will most likely be AEM EMS.
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4
I love those cars. But then again James, you've seen me enough on 3si
7
Update
I think I mentioned something about a leatherseats.com kit, right? Well, they ran their annual group buy on 3Si a couple months ago, and I snuck in at the last minute. Mine are charcoal and red two-tone, with red 3000GT logos on the front seats.
Pics:
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Logos just below the headrests on the front seats
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Rear bench in progress / comparison to stock cloth
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Rear bench complete
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Passenger seat in progress (yes, my NES still works)
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Completed passenger bottom cushion
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Completed passenger backrest and headrest
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Passenger seat reassembled
The back seats have been reinstalled in the car, the passenger seat is still in my living room, and I haven't touched the driver seat yet. Maybe I'll get to the driver seat this weekend and wrap this project up.
Other than covering the headrest and reinstalling the dumb seatbelt hook at the top of the passenger seat, this has been relatively easy work. It's time-consuming, but not difficult at all.
I think I mentioned something about a leatherseats.com kit, right? Well, they ran their annual group buy on 3Si a couple months ago, and I snuck in at the last minute. Mine are charcoal and red two-tone, with red 3000GT logos on the front seats.
Pics:
Logos just below the headrests on the front seats
Rear bench in progress / comparison to stock cloth
Rear bench complete
Passenger seat in progress (yes, my NES still works
)
Completed passenger bottom cushion
Completed passenger backrest and headrest
Passenger seat reassembled
The back seats have been reinstalled in the car, the passenger seat is still in my living room, and I haven't touched the driver seat yet. Maybe I'll get to the driver seat this weekend and wrap this project up.
Other than covering the headrest and reinstalling the dumb seatbelt hook at the top of the passenger seat, this has been relatively easy work. It's time-consuming, but not difficult at all.
Does that thing have two turbos???? uke:
It looks nice.
uke: It looks nice.
Thanks!french_hustler said:
There are some changes planned for it in the "appearance" department:
- 99 VR-4 front end (bumper, headlights, corner lights)
- 94-99 VR-4 side skirts and rear bumper
- 99 sail panels
- 97-98 VR-4 hoop spoiler (ditching the Active Aero)
- Cianci "Viper" hood (has a functional NACA duct and slightly raised cowl, otherwise it's just like a 94-99 OEM hood)
All of that is in the name of better lighting (the pop-ups are terrible, but I can do a nice HID retrofit into the '99 lights), and better airflow to the FMIC that will eventually be going on it.
Well, that and I really like the 94-99 stuff.
Yes, they completely replace the factory upholstery. In the "passenger seat" pic you can see that the factory material has been stripped off of the seatback. The small holes in the foam are where the new covering gets attached with hog rings.95GSX6bolt said:
Yes, it has two turbos that are so small you can't fit a golf ball into the compressor inlet. Stock TD04 9B turbos... they're cute.giganews35 said:Does that thing have two turbos????
It looks nice.
I have a set of TD04L 13Ts for it, but those won't be going on anytime real soon (I'm in no rush to start pouring engine mods onto the car).
It's not fun, that's for sure. It can be done with the motor in, but it helps to have midget hands and nine foot long arms with six elbows.french_hustler said:
Good thing it's not a racecar. I don't give a crap how much it weighs.Red1991TSI said:
BTW - the weight is awesome for high-speed stability. The car goes where I point it, pure and simple. I love it.
Do the local P.D. fuck with you about your tints?
Funny you should say that. Most of the plans are in my head and subject to change if something better comes along... but when I decide to execute something, I like to think about all the details and get them right.95GSX6bolt said:
The HID retro is going to be quad E46 bixenons. Yes, I'm crazy. 3000K outer lights, 4100K inner lights. I could go into infinite detail on that project if necessary.
I haven't seen the leatherseats.com product for an Eclipse, but I know they have the patterns for it. I went for a lot of optional/custom stuff on mine, but I figured I may as well get what I really want if I am going through the trouble of installing them. I'd recommend the same if you decide to go for it.
No they don't, but my tint isn't illegal. It's difficult to tell due to the angle and lighting in that pic, but the tint on the driver/passenger windows is lighter than that used on the rear quarter, hatch, and windshield eyebrow.eagleone1980 said:Do the local P.D. fuck with you about your tints?
They do like to screw with me every now and then about my refusal to attach a license plate to the front of my car, though. What can I say? It looks like total crap.
Nice NES in the background!
3
Brief update and a couple pics
Red has been sitting for a month and half with a stripped output shaft and t-case input spool (the "95% drivetrain loss" in my sig). I took the opportunity to do a "forced upgrade" using a Quadco XR output shaft & input spool from Northbend Technologies. The stock output shaft is a known weak point on these cars, so I'd rather not risk using stock parts and breaking again.
I installed the new output shaft yesterday in rather painless fashion. It took about 6 hours total, working at half-grandpa speed with a lunch break thrown in. Not bad at all for a guy who doesn't dig into transmissions at all.
With the drivetrain breakage resolved, my attention will shift to preparing Red for her first HPDE next month at Texas World Speedway.
Here are a couple quick pics from yesterday.
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Still sexy, even with 2 months worth of dirt on her.
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These little guys are part of the car now. NBT output shaft & input spool.
Since I'm focusing on track prep right now, I'll have to hold off until after the event to work on the rest of the interior. I do have the seats installed, so here's a quick snap of them. The rest of the interior work is minor stuff (shift boot, speaker grilles, upper door trim, etc) that I can do after TWS.
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TWS is Sept 15-16. I'd like to get the car running in the next 2 weekends so I can evaluate if everything is ready for the track in the week leading up to the event. Here's my to-do list:
- MSD wires (hopefully will fix the occasional miss I've been getting ~3000RPM)
- Supercar Engineering oil pan + reinstall downpipe, t-case, front aero, etc.
- New front CV axles + fill gear oil in trans and t-case
- New front upper strut mounts (RF is trashed, may as well do both)
- Install 2G VR-4 rear brake stuff (fronts have been on the car for a while)
Not too bad.
Red has been sitting for a month and half with a stripped output shaft and t-case input spool (the "95% drivetrain loss" in my sig). I took the opportunity to do a "forced upgrade" using a Quadco XR output shaft & input spool from Northbend Technologies. The stock output shaft is a known weak point on these cars, so I'd rather not risk using stock parts and breaking again.
I installed the new output shaft yesterday in rather painless fashion. It took about 6 hours total, working at half-grandpa speed with a lunch break thrown in. Not bad at all for a guy who doesn't dig into transmissions at all.
With the drivetrain breakage resolved, my attention will shift to preparing Red for her first HPDE next month at Texas World Speedway.
Here are a couple quick pics from yesterday.
Still sexy, even with 2 months worth of dirt on her.
These little guys are part of the car now. NBT output shaft & input spool.
Since I'm focusing on track prep right now, I'll have to hold off until after the event to work on the rest of the interior. I do have the seats installed, so here's a quick snap of them. The rest of the interior work is minor stuff (shift boot, speaker grilles, upper door trim, etc) that I can do after TWS.
TWS is Sept 15-16. I'd like to get the car running in the next 2 weekends so I can evaluate if everything is ready for the track in the week leading up to the event. Here's my to-do list:
- MSD wires (hopefully will fix the occasional miss I've been getting ~3000RPM)
- Supercar Engineering oil pan + reinstall downpipe, t-case, front aero, etc.
- New front CV axles + fill gear oil in trans and t-case
- New front upper strut mounts (RF is trashed, may as well do both)
- Install 2G VR-4 rear brake stuff (fronts have been on the car for a while)
Not too bad.
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