Second Modern project/Daily 1993 Capri XR2

shes back together enough to run now, the front is torqued, the rear is next.

 

rear is torqued, however, i live in ohio.



gotta love this God forsaken state.


bumper will go back on after im done testing it.

i dont have a pic, but i used the time i had after cleaning to clean out the interior and clean off the exterior, its funny how even with all these aftermarket components the factory service manual is still the go-to for the torque specs.
funny 2005 interior picture with some old stuff.

 

its a good thing that snow hit when it did, my pcv system isnt done! i would have driven it and ****ed a bunch of dirty air into my engine. the port for the inlet should be here tomorrow, otherwise the car is ready to drive again.

the horn on the car had died, figured it was time for an upgrade with some Hella Sharptone horns. a nice pleasant sound.


beep beep!
with the horns in, the bumper went back on, i have plans to add "quick release" push ****ons to the side so it looks cool



the "changer splitter" that allows two aux inputs and two ai net connected inputs, which allows for an Ipod connector and a Changer, or even two changers if i so desire.


the sound system is finally fully complete, i may or may not add a 6 disc changer later on. but now i have both an aux cable and an Ipod input, very correct to 2004-2005, especially with that being a Monochrome ipod.

 

huh, last post never posted, whoops.

i finally got the car ***embled and able to do some test driving!


the first time i took it for a drive it spewed oil EVERYWHERE. the cam seals i had installed were not sealing at all, the front main seemed to be holding fine, so i ordered and installed some new front seals. the old ones were completely blown out, i think i drove them too deep somehow. on top of that, i had forgone bead rolling my pipes as i didnt think it mattered that much it very much does matter and nearly immediately it blew one of the hoses... oopsie

the intercooler on this ****s... its way oversized and I'm having problems with it gaining and holding boost, the volume is so large that the turbo couldn't even hit target boost at 100% under 5500 rpm. so I found a much smaller one, this one is 314 percent smaller by volume, sure it wasn't 20 bucks, but it also works and Isn't laggier than a bethesda game. (may be too new a reference for here, lets see if you guys get it lol)


for reference, the intercooler I HAVE is rated for 1450 cfm, the one I'm installing is rated for 450 cfm, oversized yes, but not 4 times oversized. the turbo i have is a 270 cfm at 18 psi turbo, the Hybrid turbo I'm planning on building and installing after I have the exhaust made is a 415 cfm at 16 psi turbo,

so i bead rolled them with this little tool from china, it works!

my muffler and exhaust tip have arrived, they should sound wonderful with the 2.5" system.


the car had a horrible grinding noise while driving, the castings on the calipers are pretty inconsistent so with the swap i did i needed to "throat" the caliper with a die grinder and remove a bit of material, i had just missed that before.
(i forgot to take a pic of this one, its not really interesting as i just had to die grind it)

the guy i bought the multi input adapter from messaged me and sold me a 6 disc changer for 100 bucks, so i am installing that, its currently on its way from Sweden.


the secondary source of leakage seemed to be the valve cover casting itself, upon removal, i had missed the gigantic crack on either corner of the valve cover when i changed the seal... well isn't that great? got a dremel and cut out the inside of the crack, then jb welded inside the crack and sealed it up, then sanded it down quite a bit to a smoother finish, after sanding I repainted the valve cover, its now setting up and will need to dry for the next TWO DAYS before installing, gotta love wrinkle paint.


if this doesn't fix the oil leaks... I'm probably going to keep throwing money at it until its fixed...

 

Some ford valve covers of that era were a one and done type deal. You bought a new valve cover when you got the gasket. The tempo was like that, maybe others too?

 

this ones fortunately not like that, according to the capri group its a common sign someone at some point overtorqued it.

 

This all looks like time well spent to me.

 

in the last couple days not only did the new intercooler arrive but the 6 disc changer did aswell, i also finished up the valve cover and installed it, reused the relatively new gasket, hopefully itll be okay, if not, no biggie to remove it.

i was going to sand all the raised bits but decided against it as i liked how it looked.

i also overdrilled the 90 for the intake port on the pcv system, got a new one (thicker silicone too) and put it together.
i also believe part of the issue i was encountering was a boost leak, there were a few parts that were kind of sketchy, aswell as the fact that the intercooler was too big, so hopefully it behaves now.

the new intercooler looks close in size but if you actually measure it its literally a quarter of the volume internally. i also took the opportunity to add some additional pipe where needed, the extra holes on the intercooler will be useful should i need to add an intercooler sprayer.

and finally, the actually complete audio system.
i think im actually done with futzing with it now... until i get bored and add a screen and ps2 or something lol

 

the capri is officially a driver again!
made it to work once, school once, and work again!
during lunch at school i found this neat little miata, caught the owner walking in, 2.5 swap, 240whp, not bad.

stuck the bumper back on friday evening

and had to move the changer because the sub kept making it skip

 

Good deal. A nice member to your fleet.

 

and i dropped it off at the exhaust shop today!

 

it is done... 800 dollars later, the exhaust is in.
this shop has been around for the last 40 years, Mike is a master in his craft and it really shows in his work, even the hangers have the cleanest of welds.
he had me spot where i wanted the tip to be when i got there, he placed it right where it needed to be.
(this tip was 50 dollars lol)

it really does look good even from a distance...

now for the best part, how it sounds


it doesnt have the typical import shrill when you throttle it, it has a nice mellow, deep, tone. its loud enough to hear it when i lay into it, and quiet enough to hear the BOV when i let off.

 

I forgot to post some updates! a month later the exhaust still sounds great, and I had a great birthday. (turned 21! discovered alcohol tastes like **** lol)
more importantly, i got to experience autocross!

I adjusted the coilovers and dropped the car on its nuts, sits 3.5 inches off the ground at its lowest point now.

an issue that appeared is that the soft top is falling apart, it was not in the best shape to start with it didnt like a high speed run I did on the freeway, glue gave and ripped the vinyl that was already torn.



2.5 hour drive to cleveland.

finally...
Autocross!

the car did pretty good for what flaws it has, I learned it REALLY needs better tires.
Girl i met there let me switch cars with her, she drove mine, i drove hers.
i managed to lay down a half second faster time on my first run in a car i had never driven before. (side note, if I ever blow up or wreck this car, I am getting a miata)

drive home... and make some orders.
first thing in the new plan, oil seals, it may only need a valve cover seal, so im doing that first, but im tired of the dripping. a catch can is next on the list, Mishimoto had the one for some subaru on sale for 25% off, so I ordered that.
next is power steering, the wide and sticky tires will make turning hell so its getting a volvo electric power steering pump. if the alt cant take it its getting an alt for an FD RX7 (1991-1994) and it should be fine after.


next is wheels, i need a dedicated set of wheels for these as they cannot be stored outdoors in the cold.
behold, Enkei RPF1s, 16x7 4x114.3, +43mm offset. I am also getting a set of Falken Azenis RT660+ 200tw tires for these wheels, these cannot be exposed to temps under 35 degrees safely and last around 8000 miles tops.

these wheels will need a 23mm spacer in the rear so i am grabbing and installing a set of ARP studs to match the fronts.

 

RPF1's!!!
For the price point/weight they are great. Just dont drive them on ****py roads they can bend easily.

4x114.3 really?
Thought those Capris were 4x100, that would explain why everytime I see them its either stock wheels or that same AR swirly wheel like yours.
FWIW, 90-02 4cyl Accords are also 4x114.3mm as well, 15x6 for alloys common on LX and EX. DX models came with 14" steelies.

 

these wheels are likely never going to see the street, theyre getting the nice 200 tws and are going to be used on the track only.

good to know that about hondas, i thought i was in a wheel desert for choices, these wheels were on sale so i got them for a couple hundred off of a new set. these wheels are actually an Enkei Ek82, not the american racing one. few years more vintage and far rarer.

 

Forgot about those Enkeis.

~10years ago you would have been.
90-02 Accords/92-96 Preludes started getting some traction. Early 90s boxy 240SX are 4x114.3mm, so the drifter aftermarket for those cars also blew up. But the offset maybe wrong with 240s. 00's Sentras are also 4x114.3mm FWD.

94/95 7 spoke and 96/97 12 hole Accord wheels are stupid easy to clean brake dust off of. These also clear 282mm/11" brakes. Only goofy thing is the lug nuts on Accords uses a ball seat, not tapered.

 

where was i? oh yeah, autocross!
car does okay at autocross, not especially fast but it can lift a rear tire when turning in and is fun enough for me.

ive done quite a few mods since i last checked in, of various types! i installed a new head unit i got locally, its from 2007 so its a bit newer than the rest of the system but its great for p***engers during road trips as it plays movies and can display a ps2!





the nitrous system is fully complete but non functional as it doesnt have any n2o in it yet.
that 19mm solid rear swaybar was expensive but completely changed the driving dynamic of the car, worth every penny.

car has been basically my every day driver for the past few months, it drives very good minus a few little problems... the most pressing issue is that the turbo is going bad. the actuator specifically. its a turbo and manifold out job regardless so i may as well upgrade to a bigger, and better turbo.
below is the original hybrid setup i was going to use first
vs the one im actually using.
its a Garrett GT2554r, ball bearing turbo, should spool faster, lower, and make more power than the stock one by a long shot. to install it I will be using this manifold from Samet Industries. its a good cast steel piece made in europe by Kraken.
and to better utilize the turbo i will be importing one of these very rare "jdm" intakes that have more plenum volume and overall more flow.
(completed engine minus turbo)

last weekend i drove over 6 hours total I went and saw a Nirvana tribute band with a buddy of mine and got his dart back up and running.
I got upgraded to p***enger after the concert as i started falling asleep while driving, he hadnt driven manual in years and had limited experience at that. he figured it out though.


its a '74 ******* special with a 340 from a challenger, indy lax heads, performer rpm and a 650 edelbrock.
i got it hopped up, running really good, i had to have doubled the overall power from just my adjustments alone over what the last guy who tuned it did.
(turns out, when a car sits for a year and some change it runs out of gas really fast, i was driving when it died on me lol)

heres us after we hopped it up and ran around town, did some mild street drags, somehow his cammed engine with double the displacement is on par with the capri.

this is his daily, an 86ish corolla.
runs good, idles a touch high though.

overall, its been a good car and has a lot more coming for it

 

two thursdays ago i was driving to work, did a 4th gear pull, hit limiter and POP, blew the armature on the original alt. the first step of replacing the alt? rip the tiny turbo out and install the big one!

it runs good but the alt needs a different pulley, which i ordered and it should be here today or tomorrow.

 

Looking good!

Would an RX7 100A alt fit your Capri? Wondering if it would be better suited for your current usage.

 

unfortunately only the 80 amp is a direct fit. should be fine as the stock is only 60.

 

i just realized i never mentioned what exactly that alt is. thats a 1991 rx7 alternator. 80 amps internally regulated. uses small diameter windings so 7000 rpm shouldnt be an issue.