My VH45 Pathfinder

[tmorgan4]

Never really posted up a whole topic with pictures of mine, so I thought I'd share a few from the project. Not that it's over.

I've been getting countless emails and people telling me I need to update my project. I had good intentions of documenting the whole thing, but after working on it for almost year I got a little burnt out and starting documenting less and less. All I've got left is pictures, so here's a few from the hundreds that I've gotten over the entire project.

Here's how it started...hydrolocked VG33. The VH45 won't be THAT much more work...right?



Picked up a VH45 locally that had low oil pressure from worn bearings. Entire engine got rebuilt....bored .040" over (It's now a 4.6 liter), rebuilt heads due to leaking valves (one was slightly bent), and all sorts of other parts.



Updated guides since the older ones didn't have a metal backing and were prone to cracking and ruining the engine.



Heads are on, new knock sensors installed, starting the cooling system.





New injectors from the later model VH45s. The older ones are more prone to failing than the new ones.



Almost complete



First test fit. It's going to be close.



Started the engine mounts...all I had was some 1/4" wall DOM.



Engine is finally in.



Started on the steering. Decided to go full-hydro since I already had most of the parts and the oil filter housing on the VH interfered with the stock steering box. Cutting the rack and pinion mount off with a grinder was horrible.







Steering valve mount



Onto the wiring. At this point all of wiring is labeled but needed to be spliced into the body harness.







New DXD stage 2 clutch. Good for 480 ft-lbs of torque. I will recommend these clutches to ANYONE. Good prices and it drives awesome.



Transmission needs installed. After sending half my transmission to Florida for machining I get it back and it won't work. Send another transmission to Florida and get it back. I now have a "hybrid" transmission that uses the front half off a NA Z32 300zx since the starter is now mounted on the side of the transmission instead of the front.



More pictures on the way.

[tmorgan4]

Once the transmission was in, there were a good 2 or 3 months spent on getting it running right. I had a large vacuum leak and I kept cracking the lower runner for the #6 cylinder. Turns out a hose clamp on the IAC valve was keeping the plenum from sitting flat, so when the bolt was torqued it would crack the runner. Vacuum leaks appear to be gone now.

I've got a huge oil leak from the oil pan. The entire underside of the car is covered in oil. It has a UV dye in it so people like to tell me it's antifreeze.





Haven't taken the time to install the other 3.5 to 3" coupler I waited 3 months for on the intake.



How I ended up routing the upper radiator hose since this one is a little shorter than the stock radiator.



How my interior looks:

[craigztoyz]

Very Nice Project. Lots of work and Fabbing. Hows the power feel? Is there a lot? How did you tighten up the crank bolt?

[tmorgan4]

Thanks on the compliments.

The crank bolt probably has one of the best stories I have from the entire project. I hope it's a learning experience for someone else.

I was trying to roughly set the timing with the CAS by setting the engine at 15* BTDC and lining up the two marks on the CAS, and decided to leave my 1/2" Proto torque wrench on the crank while I checked something else. (I know, you can see it coming already)

"Well lets start it and see how it runs now." "What's that clicking sound.......?"2 seconds later I see a mystery object launch 50 feet out the hood onto the neighbors driveway."Uhh....I better kill it!"

After shutting the engine off and examining the mysterious object, I realized I left the torque wrench on the crank bolt. It got smashed up against the frame rail and unscrewed the crank bolt, which turned out to be the UFO.

I told the guys at the race shop across the street after it happened. They said I was lucky it wasn't a Honda or it would have broken the crank instead of getting unscrewed.

I did break the torque wrench though. Ratchets both ways now.

The CORRECT way to tighten the bolt (which I've had to do twice, now) is to get a 24"+ chain wrench, clamp it on the balancer over an old belt or rag, and wedge it up against a frame rail or something solid. Ideally you'd get a big torque wrench that goes to 300 ft-lbs, but a lot of people don't have access to that (me included). I ended up getting a 3 foot long bar that slipped over a 1/2" breaker bar and estimated hanging 90 lbs at the very end of the bar.

Not the best, but better than using an impact I'd think. My oil pressure seems to be right where it should.

[T45]

That's some funny **** right there! lmfao ahahahahaha I could totally see myself doing this though.

When doing my build there are so many things going on that it's hard to keep up with what needs to be done, what has been done, and what you're forgetting to do. Usually it's the obvious things that end up biting us. My buddy would always come over and go "why are you always sitting here staring at it and not working on it?" My response... "Because I'm trying to remember what I need to do next. Do I have everything done? Do I have a 1/2" Proto tq wrench hanging from my crank?" lol

[SuperHatch]

When doing my build there are so many things going on that it's hard to keep up with what needs to be done, what has been done, and what you're forgetting to do. Usually it's the obvious things that end up biting us. My buddy would always come over and go "why are you always sitting here staring at it and not working on it?" My response... "Because I'm trying to remember what I need to do next. Do I have everything done? Do I have a 1/2" Proto tq wrench hanging from my crank?" lol

I know this exact feeling and I've done the same thing!

Tyler,

It's great to finally see pictures of your project. It looks great and I'm impressed with the work you've done. Glad you got that #6 runner issue figured out. Can't wait to see more...

[craigztoyz]

That's some funny stuff. I sent a breakerbar through a radiator/condensor in a SHO once doing that. People rarely make that mistake twice in life.Thanx for info.

Your ride is sweet, and can't wait for the offroad vids to start.

[qsiguy]

Great laugh, thanks. I think we've all done something stupid we can laugh about later.

All the good builder/fabricators spend lots of time "staring" at their projects. I'm sure I've spent many hours staring at various projects over the years. Sometimes you just have to work out in your head how it will work out before you start the task. Seems to go much smoother when I do that.

Awesome project

[tmorgan4]

Thanks for the compliments.

Of course I had to test out my drivetrain and make sure it can hold up. Considering the tires are 35" tall, 80 lbs, 13" wide and pretty soft, spinning them all the way through first gear on dry pavement seems like an achievement. I seem to make quite a monster truck statement to some people.

http://www.youtube.com/v/GStyVA_XwZQ&hl=en

http://www.youtube.com/v/iD9Ed0Ql6bM&hl=en

[elwesso]

that thing sounds awesome dude!

[craigztoyz]

All the good builder/fabricators spend lots of time "staring" at their projects. I'm sure I've spent many hours staring at various projects over the years. Sometimes you just have to work out in your head how it will work out before you start the task. Seems to go much smoother when I do that.

Truer words have never been spoken. People wonder what is wrong, or think I am mad, just sitting there off, in my head, thinking, and visioning.

[craigztoyz]

WOW!!!!!!!! Thanx for posting those vids. Nice power. So this engine rocks in cars, boats, trucks, what an engine.

Can't wait to see more vids.

[T45]

sunday sunday sunday

lmfao!!!

[tmorgan4]

Ha...that would be a friend of mine that has to insult everything I do.

[T45]

I just watched it again.

"we'll sell you the whole seat but you'll only need the edge"

Dude I'm ****ing crying over here!!! lmao