This is my friends car that I am fabbing up the turbo set up for. It started with a turbo that I scored from a previous employer for free that sat on my garage shelf for a few years. We came to the conclusion that turbos belong on vehicles, not on shelves. Since I did not have a project that lacked a turbo we decided that he could use some turbo goodness. Here is a run down of his fun street NA combo that will be used for this project since changing out parts costs more money. We are going to work with what we have.

91 firebird
0.040" over 350
10:1 comp --> hence E85
215 cc intake Dart Iron Eagle Heads, 64 cc chambers
Victor Jr intake (being changed from Performer RPM)
650 holley dp that's going to be modified for blowthrough and E85 by me
Clevite flat solid cam ~0.530" lift ~240* duration @ 0.050" 110 lsa --> not optimal but it is much milder than the specs show and besides swapping the cam is more $
T56
centerforce DF

Goofy GT4094/GT4294 turbo from a CAT C12 68/94 comp 82/75 turbine with a 1.28 a/r T4 turbine housing swapped onto it --> certainly the compressor is too small but for free who cares
JGS 50 mm wastegate
RPS 50 mm BOV
stock manifolds

Mallory 4309 reg
Walbro 417 lph E85 pump

the manifolds to turbo is almost complete just need to finish the merge. Shown is last Saturdays progress, project progress should continue this weekend. Oh yeah don't bust my balls about the turbo support, it is temporary and will be completed after the wastegate is fabbed in. In it's present state it is probably the worlds shittyest support..haha

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that compressor side isn't too big for a nice street setup, but the cam and the turbine side are too big to go with it or vice versa. I'd still try it and see how it goes, it might be ok

what do the rest of your accessories look like? I'm wondering if whatever you're doing might be a solution to a problem I have (in a '87 TA, so if your packaging works it should work in mine)

 

I plan on eliminating the a/c and tensioner brkt. I will make a slotted bracket that will bolt to the alternator bracket (toward center of engine) that will allow the alternator to rotate and become the mechanism of adjustment. It is not complete but I have made something similar in the past. However this will mean that the grooved side of the belt will be riding on the smooth water pump pulley. Since only the pump is being driven off that pulley (not a mech fan) I believe it will work fine with out slip and the shoulders on the pulley will keep the belt from walking off. Hope my crappy explanation clears things up. I will post up pics when I make the bracket.

edit: I will have to change to a standard rotation water pump as well.

Im of the opinion that the compressor is too small, but we will see. Need to further research compressor upgrades, damn GT series screw on comp wheels.

 

Small update from yesterdays progress. The merge and downpipe is completely tacked together. The plan is to finish weld everything and then locate and weld in the wastegate. Then of course move on to the rest of things that will take 3x longer than it should. But as of now things seem to be progressing and fitting nicely.

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Edit: not cross over the second is the crossover

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Not too much to update this weekend. Finish welded everything. Certainly not my best welds but they will hold and seal. Still have a long list of stuff to do but next on the list is to plumb in the wastegate and fab a carb hat so everything fits under the stock hood.

A turbo brace is on the list as well. The sch 40 pipe is plenty stout but is in an unsupported cantilever arrangement that I don't like especially since the most stress will be on the steel to cast iron welds. I have run steel to cast iron welds on a turbo set up before with success but not in a load bearing fashion (only thermal and pressure stresses acting). I would like to see a brace and my buddy doesn't want to do it yet. We will probably try it with out since im lazy and its his car.

Attached are some progress pics and my buddy enjoying a celebratory beverage.

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pics as refrenced above.

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last one as referenced above

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This is my car that we are doing the build for. We still have quite a bit of stuff to do before we get to tuning. I figured I'd post what pics I have of the exterior.

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A little goodness to report this weekend. Got the Walbro 417 lph E85 put in and the wastegate plumbed in.

This weekend will be painting and "final" installation for the complete exhaust (plan is to have everything coated next winter) and carb hat/cold side set up.

 

Started on the carb hat this weekend (only worked on Friday night). Need to make the air inlet/diffuser/transistion into the hat yet but the "hard" stuff is done. Everything fits under the stock hood! The hat is similar in design to my "mustrolet" build except the execution is much better. Below are pics of the wastegate plumbing and carb hat progress. The time frame goal is to be making some low boost passes for our track opener the last weekend in April.

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More progress pics. Have a laundry list of small things to do like plumb oil lines, plumb signal lines, get a belt, mod alternator bracket, mod carb, etc.

 

For some reason the pics didn't attach. Try #2.

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blbalbalbabl

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Well my buddy got sick so progress was halted for awhile.

Small list of things to complete:
turbo brace
exhaust bracket back by the trans tailshaft
pressure signal line plumbing
pour oil in
purge turbo oil feed line
install Clockwise rotation waterpump
pour coolant in
pour E85 in
fire up and start tuning; baseline carb mods are complete

 

I like the carb hat. Did you pre/post heat the manifold for welding? Which filler?

 

I would like to know the same, on the manifold. I am going to be getting to mine very soon and I have seen people do both, with pre/post heat and without any heat.

 

I didn't use any pre or post heat. Filler is standard 70 ksi wire that I have in my millermatic 212.

Not the way it is "supposed" to be done but in my experience with other projects it holds up well as long as no load bearing stresses are acting on it.

 

I never saw a carb bonnet like that. you are very resourceful.

 

well everything is done except for the braces for the turbo and the bracket for the exhaust by the trans tailshaft.

Clockwise rotation water pump is installed after drilling out the pulley for the different pattern (vs the ccw rotation pump) and cutting of the power steering mounting boss on the pump to clear the serp style alt and ps bracket.

The fuel pump now works, for some reason the relay ground for the switching circuit was cut.

We attempted to crank the engine over and nothing. Everything working except for the starter. Well my friend and another friend relocated the fusible links on the starter and the battery distribution point. They must have missed one of the fusible links because now we do not have available power to the ignition switch for the cranking circuit. After doing some research away from the car I think that power is not getting to the G8 terminal on the firewall connector. When I get back to the car I will trace this wire back and I am betting that it used to have a fusible link on the battery terminal on the starter. This is my first time diving into the wiring on a third gen and they have some goofy power distribution methods.

This would not have been difficult to find if the schematics specified where the wires go between the ignition switch and the power distribution point. And the location of the starter enable relay for the VATS was a joke, behind the kick panel and behind the black goo weather sealant when the schematic specified that it was "near the fuse box".

Overall not that big of a deal, just frustrating with multiple people working on a car and enough information to make you think you can find something.

Should be working on the car tomorrow and hopefully get it running. I should have been running Friday night.