Porsche 944: Actually there is a substitute

[AnotherWs6]

Why the decision to go with a v6 car rather than an LS? Just curious. Is it because of emissions somehow? Doing a lot of good work, like the chunk of Mustang grafted in the back.

[sparkydog]

I started prepping the spring shackles to morph into motor mounts. The shape of the paper template was a little awkward but I quickly used it to cut the side angle on the shackles and then got rid of it before anyone asked any questions...

I also spent some time on the new gas tank. After I folded the seam over it fit nice and snug up against the spare tire cavity and the "floor" of the trunk. Hopefully this choice of tank shape/size will give me the room I need for panhard/watts/shocks. Time will tell.

[sparkydog]

Originally Posted by AnotherWs6

Why the decision to go with a v6 car rather than an LS? Just curious. Is it because of emissions somehow?

Budget. I have the last of 3 kids starting college. #2 was still in college when I started this project. I also like being abnormal. And if I ever get it running and if it turns out I like driving it - then I'll use it to commute several days a week and could use the slightly better gas mileage of the V6.

[sparkydog]

I fabbed up the motor side of the motor mounts this morning. I have new bushings coming in a few days and then I can work on the K member side of the mounts.

[sparkydog]

Motor lift tool 3.0.

My previous version wasn't getting the job done. This one is overkill. The other one did not allow me to be able to slide the motor left/right. And partly because of that - and partly because the allthread was just too small - I kept stripping the threads on my leveling nuts. So on 3.0 I went with big ass long nuts and a hollow/slotted style to the design of the beam so I can more easily position the motor accurately left/right.

It also has a taller clearance over the motor and adjustable height legs!!!

[sparkydog]

And the front motor mounts are bead blasted, primed and also some seam sealer back in the crannies. I have the new bushings but will be using some machined mockup bushings for the time being while I get the K member side of the brackets designed and fabbed.

[Zoomin]

I admire your tenacity! Keep after it.

[Palf70Step]

[sparkydog]

The transmission cross member is coming along. Now I have to rip open the floor pan. The tubes will be "buried" into the floor halfway.

[sparkydog]

Well...
It doesn't look like much but man what a lot of work for such unspectacular results. Burying the cross member down into the floor of the 944 required mucho prep work. Shaving the urethane underbody coating off the bottom. And same same for the tar on the interior side of the floor.

Then cutting into the floor, different widths for the 4 different levels of floor from the factory stamping. Die grinder to relieve the transitions.

Long story short - I created a lot of extra work for myself (just like the other places on the car). But now I can see the light at the end of this tunnel. The cross brace is stitched in and now I can begin to design/fab the trans mount bracket. Whew!

[sparkydog]

Since my last update I have been designing, fabbing, starting over, yada yada on the transmission mount brackets. They are finally the way I want them and I will post pics after I get them painted and installed. But once I finally had them finished I decided to jump over to something "fun" like the clutch & brake pedal assembly.

I had a basic choice: use the 944 pedal assembly as the basis for my car or use the Camaro pedal assembly. In the picture you can see that they are significantly different. The 944 pedal guts are straddling the steering column while the Camaro guts are set off to the left side of the column. After a lot of gawking at them I ultimately decided I would use the Camaro guts. So I shaved off the gas pedal branch of the bracket and also the clutch master cylinder bracket so that what remained of the guts would be the portion I had to locate up inside the 944 firewall.

It's hard to describe how many variables are involved with trying to decide where to locate the pedal assy in 3D space but (at least for me) it was a real brain strain. I eventually picked my location on the firewall and drilled the mounting holes. It was almost a home run. But there were a couple of minor clearance issues - the biggest was that the brake master cylinder was just barely above the surface of the hood.

[sparkydog]

So next I cut that small area where the pedal assy mounts to the firewall and then hung the booster/MC on some wires and was able to get the whole thing pointed such that it cleared what it needed to clear and still position the pedals approximately where I need them. Then I re-welded the plate into the firewall.

Now I could cut the clearance hole in the roof of the cowl so that I could mount the clutch and brake pedals.

[Palf70Step]

Been wondering what has been going on with this. Looking good.

[sparkydog]

Merry Christmas everyone!

I've had these transmission mount brackets fabbed for some time now but was waiting for the primer, seam sealer and color coat to cure. Today I bolted them up. These are only the 2nd things in the whole project to have final paint on them.

[sparkydog]

I have also been working on finishing up the clutch/brake pedal surgery. First up was the dog house in the cowl to cover up the pedal assembly but also juuuuusst missing the wiper motor. Next was the location and orientation of the Camaro clutch master.

Getting the right position and compound angle for the clutch master cylinder proved to be difficult for me. But after hacking into and around the mustang frame graft - I finally figured it all out and then reversed my hack with fresh metal that had the required clearances for the brake and clutch master cylinders.

[sparkydog]

And some brushed on primer to clean things up a little. Also the clutch cylinder assy mocked up.

[sparkydog]

Pedal assy back in the 944 for what I thought was the last time - but the clutch master cyl is leaking so it will be back out again sometime soon.

Now I am moving on to the mods to the gas tank.

[TexasLS1]

Nice work!! How did you know the Astro van module would work out so well? Just a lucky try or did you have to check out a few from several vehicles? I really like the modifications to make it all come together.

[sparkydog]

Originally Posted by TexasLS1

Nice work!! How did you know the Astro van module would work out so well? Just a lucky try or did you have to check out a few from several vehicles? I really like the modifications to make it all come together.

Thanks! I went into the yard looking for just the locking ring portion to cut off a donor tank. I was prepared to buy a new pump module from something else after I had a locking ring. I was targeting either an S10 or C1500 because I wanted to get their style of pump module. I also thought I'd have a better chance of finding a pickup with the tank already dropped so I wouldn't have to work as hard. And I knew a truck tank would normally be taller than a car tank.

But while I was walking around I realized an Astro might work too and would have at least a 4.3L sized fuel pump. Once I got under one to look I knew the tank height was going to be about right. The rest was luck. When I opened up the tank and saw how good of shape it was in I decided to buy the pump too and use it for at least mockup.

[sparkydog]

My hydraulic clutch rig looks like the stuff in the upper picture. My slave cylinder is the puck style with the short pipe and the female connector. The 944 trans tunnel hugs the transmission real tight and therefore the access to the coupling and the routing of the flex hose from the master cylinder is wrong. You can see in the lower pic where I have slit open my tunnel for a temp fix.

Does anyone know if I can replace the short little pipe (see my arrow) with a flex line between the puck and the female connector? This would move the whole thing down and away from the side of the transmission.

[demian5]

Being you are in Fallbrook, California, how are you going to smog this thing?

[sparkydog]

Originally Posted by demian5

Being you are in Fallbrook, California, how are you going to smog this thing?

Get the CARB/BAR inspection for the 96 Camaro L36 to 86 944 engine swap, then the sticker, then go to a smog station and get it sniffed to 96 standards.

[sparkydog]

Continued to prep the tank for it's role in the 944. The fill pipe spout will need to be re-aimed so off it came for now.

Here's my new clutch master cylinder - probably the 3rd new thing I have bought for the car.

Had to get the car on the ground and push it out of the shop so I could access my hoard of parts. I dug out my 944 gas pedal, the Camaro evap canister and the Camaro fuel lines. Also the Camaro and the 944's gas pedal linkage mechanisms. (944 on the left, GM on the right.)

I'm going to retain the 944 gas pedal but adapt it to the Camaro/GM throttle cable. The stock 944 pedal mechanism has a Teutonically typical uber-strong spring on it. The GM throttle body has a reasonably strong spring on it. I'm going to try and figure out how to get a hybrid that feels strong-ish, looks like a 944 and pulls about 1.2" to full throttle.

[sparkydog]

The Camaro fuel lines have two sections. The front section is nylon and snakes down the inner fender and firewall, then darts inboard. Then there are quick connects that take it into a straight-ish section of steel tubing which takes it back to the fuel tank area. I think the front section will end up working well on the 944. I will probably route it through the fender skirt just forward of the shock tower, then across the top of the inner fender area and out the bottom near the A pillar.

The Camaro steel lines won't mate well to the bottom of the 944 floor pan without some mods and the 944 steel lines are bent to fit down the passenger side - which won't mate well with the Camaro front section. So I'll either marry the best of both steel sections or go from scratch.

Almost too many balls in the air right now. I need to finish one of the three areas - gas pedal, fuel lines or tank mods.

[sparkydog]

Routing the fuel lines off the Camaro was such a no-brainer that I ended up punching the hole for them in my inner fender and mocking them up. 95% of their formed bends look like they are made for the 944. It's only the short section under the A pillar that I wish was straight instead of having the hat section. Does anyone know if I can heat up the hose and get the bends out?

Pic1 is of the lines going into the hole I punched in the inner fender.
Pic2 as they look across the top of the inner fender past the shock tower.
Pic3 down the A pillar area and their molded 90* bend is at the perfect spot.
Pic4 of the hat section I would like to remove and have them just go straight.