Matt's s2k Build (Project Mess2k)

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question on that splitter.

isn't the splitter supposed to move independently of the bumper (and the space filled in as necessary)? from the photos shown it looks like the whole bumper can just move up or down.
 
question on that splitter.

isn't the splitter supposed to move independently of the bumper (and the space filled in as necessary)? from the photos shown it looks like the whole bumper can just move up or down.

That's correct and I won't be running it on track exactly as shown. I'm going to add struts to the front of the splitter and mount those to the chassis, then remove the bolts holding the splitter to the bumper. I left everything attached for now just to make it easy to get the splitter positioned.
 
I'm fairly certain the excess heat from the unwrapped header + the lack of a heat shield was causing my battery to struggle to crank the car when warm. I had a DME heat shield that came with the car, so I put that in place but have not driven enough to see if it has had any positive effect.

While I sort through the charging issues, I contacted Rotora and got a drawing of the brake pad so I can get some pads made for the car. The caliper is their FC4 caliper and it is paired to a 330x30 mm rotor (need to verify rotor dimensions, but this is what I suspect..). I couldn't find this info anywhere on the interwebs, so the pad is roughly the same shape as FMSI D810. The Rotora pad is a few mm shorter, has clearance for dowels/pins, and ~3mm thinner than the D810 shape. Needless to say, I called Porterfield and they were able to immediately start on a set of Raybestos ST45 pads. I also picked up a set for the stock rear calipers.

More on the tail light issue: the driver's side tail light running light is dim, the passenger side is too bright. When I unplug the driver's side, the passenger side looks normal. When I unplug the passenger side, the driver's side doesn't work at all. If I switch the lights, the lights work the same regardless of position. I also snagged a cheap AP2 driver's side light and plugged it in, nothing changed.

I checked and I have 12v at both running light pins with the wiring unplugged. I'm going to check voltage at those same pins with the lights connected and see what I get. This is the definition of an AP1>AP2 tail conversion gone wrong, lol.
 
Those calipers require a bespoke pad? that is bananas.
B-A-N-A-N-A-S

So, we had a bit of a rough weekend.. all I'm going to say is it ran dry on oil and spun a bearing (not sure if main or rod, likely rod) engine ships out today to InlinePro for a fresh rebuild. I'd normally tackle this in my garage but I have a bit too much going right now.

Drained the oil and confirmed my suspicions
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Just about ready to drop the engine/transmission. I chose to drop the whole front subframe out the bottom of the car which was easiest with the tools I had available.
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Loading the engine into the Taco to drop off for shipping
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I have plenty to work on while the engine is being rebuilt (3-4 week turn around). Ohlins should be here Friday, I can tidy up the wiring, and work on the splitter/bumper setup. It wouldn't be a build thread if I didn't pull the engine at least once, right?
 
damn, that sucks. so soon...
and not even boosted yet.
between this and pickles boosted civic, thankful for my get it and drive vehicle for now.

so did the oil slosh in the turn? or was it legit low?
 
UGH it sucks when its something stupid that you shouldnt have had to...

I'm not sure how this could've happened, but the dipstick had popped out and it seemed like oil was potentially pushing past the filler cap, which was tight.

damn, that sucks. so soon...
and not even boosted yet.
between this and pickles boosted civic, thankful for my get it and drive vehicle for now.

so did the oil slosh in the turn? or was it legit low?

It was legitimately out of oil. It pushed it out somehow.. I need to further diagnose to see if I can figure out a cause.
 
PCV valve bad?
I seen some weird things with a bad PCV value, but to push all the oil out, that's a new one, especially without forced induction.
Are you suspecting at all that there was something wrong with this car when you bought it now?
 
had to go somewhere and everything looks really clean.

do you think it burned the oil?
 
I had serious PCV issues with my B series I used to race in. I've also lost oil pressure on track and spun a bearing. I ended up venting the valve cover more (added 2 large AN ports) ran that in to a catch can and had the catch can drain back into the block. Hopefully you already have a baffled pan as well?
 
PCV valve bad?
I seen some weird things with a bad PCV value, but to push all the oil out, that's a new one, especially without forced induction.
Are you suspecting at all that there was something wrong with this car when you bought it now?

The PCV valve was recently replaced (I was told that by PO and it looks new..) but I haven't really looked at it yet. There might have been something wrong with the car but I really don't care. Even with $4k in a rebuild, I still feel like I got a decent deal on this car. I've been in contact with PO and he's been pretty cool about trying to help out.

had to go somewhere and everything looks really clean.

do you think it burned the oil?

It might be hard to see but it is all over the bottom of the hood.. I was surprised there wasn't more in the engine bay but it was definitely there
I had serious PCV issues with my B series I used to race in. I've also lost oil pressure on track and spun a bearing. I ended up venting the valve cover more (added 2 large AN ports) ran that in to a catch can and had the catch can drain back into the block. Hopefully you already have a baffled pan as well?

It is currently on the stock pan. These pans are supposedly okay for track use until you throw really sticky tires on the car. I don't think it was starved due to oil sloshing because the dipstick was dry when I pulled it in the pits.

The PCV issue is interesting. I may have to get a catch can setup put together and installed before I take it out again.
 
my buddy with the race s2k doesn't have a catch can or sticky tires. the engine bay is pretty much all stock though except for the header and exhaust...

he had a weird trouble with the TPS a few times where it was not responsive but i think it was just a gremlin.
 
my buddy with the race s2k doesn't have a catch can or sticky tires. the engine bay is pretty much all stock though except for the header and exhaust...

he had a weird trouble with the TPS a few times where it was not responsive but i think it was just a gremlin.

I'm going to trade this DC header for a stock one. It looks/sounds like ass and the stock header is pretty stout on these cars. The .00005 hp I might gain from it is not worth the noise
 
And here we see two more examples of why some people should never work on cars!

Exhibit A: cigarette butt in the oil filter/factory oil cooler housing for twice the filtration! This is on the outlet side of the oil pump, so it'd almost have to be deliberately placed here.
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Exhibit B: old school Ferrea B series valve springs retrofitted (read: Mickey Moused) to fit the F-series engine. This should rev to 9k, no problem, eh?
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And now, the damage:
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At this point I need a new crank and new rods. The plan is to try and source a crank/rods locally (either F20 or F22c, I really don't care) and send to InlinePro for them to complete the build. As consolation for his endless asshattery, PO offered to trade me his engine out of his other S2000. I politely declined.
 
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