TPI SBC refresh with G6 6 speed trany upgrade (Page 10/16)
Alex4mula DEC 04, 07:50 PM
Looks like this thread is about me and plane vibrations only... Well today we took out the exhaust flanges were they meets the headers and re-angle new ones and all issues with the exhaust were solved. But I have a damn oil leak. Still not sure where it is coming from. Very sneaky one but not a show stopper. We also bled the clutch and tested shifting (still on towers). Wow!! Two things. First I would pay the $3000 trany dealer cost just to be able to have a system so easy to bleed. Compared to bleeding a Fiero system this is a candy dream. Second the shifting. OMG! This is so nice and smooth!!! I got a climax just feeling that Well as promised here are couple of videos of it idling. Not bad for a cam with 0.576 lift and marginal duration. Thanks God for these fuel injected designed cams. Also it sounds even better with the whole system connected today so I may get another video if I see interest. In the meantime I think this may be all for now until I hit the dyno and come back to update with those numbers. From now until then it is tuning time C'ya.

This one shows the temp after idling about 15 mins and the current rich idle AFR.


Another one



Enjoy

[This message has been edited by Alex4mula (edited 09-12-2007).]

wftb DEC 04, 09:22 PM
do you use the stock fiero shifter or does it have to be modified to work correctly?thanks ,i really enjoy your thread .
Alex4mula DEC 05, 07:23 AM

quote
Originally posted by wftb:

do you use the stock fiero shifter or does it have to be modified to work correctly?thanks ,i really enjoy your thread .



Thanks. Archie use a modified 4 speed shifter. I think the main reason for this is that reverse is located the same way as the 4 speed (left front) and it needs a stop mechanism to avoid getting into reverse instead of 1st.
John Boelte DEC 05, 09:53 AM
Sounds and looks awesome! Really looking forward to the dyno runs. Maybe some burn outs & donuts?
Alex4mula DEC 07, 10:33 AM

quote
Originally posted by John Boelte:

Sounds and looks awesome! Really looking forward to the dyno runs. Maybe some burn outs & donuts?



Thanks. Took a long test ride yesterday. Everything is more or less ok. The engine dies when I get suddenly to a stop (like at a red light) but otherwise feels fine. I have that small oil leak to check and I think I may have some exhaust leak as exhaust doesn't sound as I like. But it may be the tune. I measured vacuum and I lost 1" (16" vs 17") at idle. Cooling is perfect. The shifting is smooth but needs get to use to. Even if ratios are close to the Getrag the new 5th seems like too high now. The Spec clutch is nice and smooth with no chattering. The shifter center console interferes with the shifter when moving to reverse position so I have to deal with that too. Also speedo is not working as I'm waiting for an interface from Archie to take care of that.
sspeedstreet DEC 07, 12:10 PM
Beautiful work, man.

How does the shifter throw feel compared to the Getrag? (Fore/aft).
Alex4mula DEC 08, 08:32 AM

quote
Originally posted by sspeedstreet:

Beautiful work, man.

How does the shifter throw feel compared to the Getrag? (Fore/aft).



I had a short shifter and now have the regular 4 speed so it is not a good comparison. For whatever reason the throw on the fwd shifts (1/3/5) is very short. So short that sometimes I think it didn't engage. Then 2/4/6 feel more normal. It is like 1/3/5 takes 1/4" movement and 2/4/6 takes 1/2" movement. Reverse is tricky because once engaged (far left fwd) the shifter moves like to the center again so you think you are in 1st or 3rd. But then it moves backward ok .
Alex4mula DEC 18, 01:55 PM
Update: Bad alternator fried the ECM and then had a bad oil leak on the intake manifold to spoil my 6-speed enjoyment. Well, a new alternator and a very creative oil leak fix trick solved both problems and I'm on the road again Also the 1/3/5 shifting issue got solved. The cable was not traveling enough for those. A call from Archie, cable got adjusted and now this thing shifts like hot knife over butter Here is a final touch. I changed the TPIS TB plate for the correct Formula one. Now this is how it should had come from the factory back in 88


Jake_Dragon DEC 21, 09:27 PM
Very nice.
87GTZ34 DEC 22, 01:15 AM
So Alex calls me up today but I'm on another call so he courteously leaves a message. As soon as I can, I listen to his message... He says he has the new ECM and Alternator installed and wants me to stop by. I call him back and tell him that I'm on calls for computer service but I can stop by in about an hour. Well, it’s more like two and you know how that goes. So I call him when I’m done but he can't come out and play right then as he is on Mr. Mom duty and the princess is fighting her naptime. So I show up about 45 minutes later and as I drive up, I see the stance of the little red car looking menacing and ready in the garage. I tell him, "She looks much better sitting on the ground with motor in it.” He immediately mentions that it drives better than it looks. At that instant, my mind immediately shifts to a 5 second fantasy of a little red hot rod ripping thru three gears from a traffic light and of course a broad smile overtakes my face. Just then the Mrs. arrives home to relieve him of his baby-sitting duties. He reaches into his pocket and says, "I have a four o'clock appt to get her aligned so let's go... you're driving." Again that same uncontrollable smile effortlessly reforms the lower part of my face. I put it in neutral and turn the key to an unfamiliar rumble. The upgraded cam and heads have done their job and I can tell just from the sound and vibrations that this is going to be fun. I put it in 5th and Alex jokingly asks me,
"Where are you going the driveway is back there?" At that point I remembered that he also upgraded the 5 speed to a 6 speed and so I glared down at the shift console to find the shift pattern. He comments that reverse is up and to the left so I obediently follow his direction. By now the V8 has a slight lope to it as if to say its time to get underway and put some road behind us. I back out of the driveway and when I try out the 1st gear, the car introduces me to the bounce of a lopey cam when under its power range. I pop in the clutch, give the throttle a quick pop to eliminate the cam bounce, ease out on the clutch and Chevy V8 answers my call to march forward. I gracefully accelerate and the response is smooth and VERY deliberate. As I listen to the tune of the beautiful note being played on the true dual exhaust, I realize that the familiarity is not of the same engine before the mods, but of a childhood friends father's '72 454 El Camino. The word incredible jumps to the forefront of my thoughts as I gently row thru 2nd andinto into 3rd gear. I tell Alex that it now sounds like a "Big Block" and he chuckles and says that Lou said the same thing. I check the gauges and notice the coolant is still not up to temp so I continue to drive it easily out of Alex's neighborhood. We make a right onto the main street leading from his development and I notice that the temp gauge is now almost operational so I jump on it while in second. Some pedestrians walking on the sidewalk about 80 feet from us snap their heads around to see what the commotion is about. I see the startled look on their faces but when they see the little red car, the look on their faces relaxes to the look of an old familiar friend (they obviously know Alex's car but didn't recognize the new sound). We exit Alex's development and I reacquaint myself with the Fiero's pedals by getting a little more demanding of the stout looking red Fiero. We quickly approach the first traffic light and of course it is red. Once we get the nod, we make a left onto a road with some spirited driving opportunities so I use up the short 1st gear rather quickly and start shifting into 2nd in mid-turn of the broad 4-lane intersection. Alex asks me why don't I get on it? I respond and snap the shifter into 2nd and time the accelerator activities appropriately to the shift. The Fiero's back-end steps out a bit but tells me to ride it out without adjustment so I faithfully follow its instruction. The tires continue their mild objection to the side load traction duties but the car tracks a flawless power turn and by the time we exit the broad turn, the rubber has reached temp. This is acknowledged by pegging our heads to the headrest as neither the tires nor the engine flinch on my request. Alex lets out a hearty laugh and before he can say anything, the six speed clicks easily from 2nd to 3rd and the sweet note of the V8 exhaust is working hard to get back to its revs before the shift. By this time, traffic appears to be rushing backward at me from the front but of course traffic is just being traffic so I fall into formation. I'm no dyno, but this car has some serious power and when spread across the close ratio of the six speed, has some serious acceleration. Alex's plan for me no doubt worked as I have two stock '87 GTs in my garage just waiting to get my attention... Stay tuned on that one.

Thanks for the phone call Alex and I want to tell you that is one sweet ride. I can't wait until you get the tuning dialed in, and take it to the dyno and strip to see the numbers!!!

BTW - I will be picking up the engine stand very, very shortly.