B5 S4, operation money pit. Forever evolving, never ending.

[AWDBOB]

Good luck with the build, man!

[Exodus_2pt0]

After a long wait, my $20 set of rings came in!

Time to put together an engine!!!

[MR E30 325is]

That's how it went for me. Random spurts of lots of work getting done and then nothing for 2-3 months. I think the excitement of new parts being ordered and delivered kept my fire alive, but as soon as funds diminished and cool stuff wasn't rolling in I lost the intense excitement that keeps me up into the wee hours of the night.

[Northern]

^ Same here. My car hasn't even been looked at, except to break into the trunk to extract the dead battery. I don't feel so bad about it now haha

[Exodus_2pt0]

Man I haven't touched this thing in almost a month....

I'm off until the 3rd, maybe I can get the motivation to do a little werk.

[ThatOneEuroE30]

Harbor freight boxes? Or find some on Craigslist for cheap. I really wish i had that kind of garage space at home. Driving 20 min to go work on my car gets old.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Spent some time on the shop. Snagged a wood stove for $100 to take advantage of the flue a previous owner kindly installed (didn't leave the stove though).

Did some cleaning, organizing, and finally hung the S4 flag I've been sitting on for a year now.

Feels pretty good, still a lot of things I want to do but it's coming along nicely. I gotta light the stove as soon as I get home, and the garage is comfortable for me to work in after the kids go to bed. Haven't had a chance to really get it cranking yet.





I really need to find a tool box, I've got tools still in boxes or thrown in bags because I don't have enough storage for them. Gets frustrating.

[Exodus_2pt0]

You can buy mine! Been thinking about selling it for S4 funds. Only has 40k on it.

[Northern]

that hardtop on that miata is hot. Almost makes me want one.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Got all the kids together for a motivational family photo. Need a few odds and ends though.



Rings should be here any day, still need intake manifold gaskets (completely forgot about that detail lol). Then I'll pick up a ball hone and be ready to assemble the new engine.

Didn't see any obvious signs of damage on the old engine when I pulled the heads. Heads look to be in excellent shape, not even going to pull the cams out.

After the new engine is together, I'll move on to the trans, then I've got a bit of cleaning to do before even building the single turbo setup.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Side note, the DD got some love.

It rubs on the roll bar though, gotta see what I can do.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Things are going to start getting interesting now.

Parts list, ordered:

-Piston rings
-Rod bearings
-Head gaskets
-Manifold gaskets
-water pump gasket
-head bolts (no need for studs, stock hold)
-034 Trans mounts
-Apikol diff mount
-Trans rebuild kit
-inner cv boot (one is torn)
-crank seal
-rear main seal

Need to order:
-Timing belt
-Clutch disk

Since I just did a timing belt and top end reseal 10k ago, I'm going to reuse what I can.

Getting excited. I've got some vacation time I have to use, so I looks like I'll have 3 day weekends all of December. Should give me some time to work on it.

As for Single, I think I'm still going to go that route.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Did some wrenching tonight. Started to pull the drivetrain out, then remembered I forgot to unbolt the front axles. Everything else is disconnected, so at that point it was 11pm, and I called it a night.

I must be getting old, I'm not interested in working on the car until the early hours of the morning any more. 2-3 hours here and there, and I'm good.



Been meaning to snap a photo of this. We switched hardware suppliers at work, so I got to snag a couple bins from the old vendor that were being trashed. They make perfect organizers, should make reassembly a bit easier.



Also, first fun parts have arrived.


Got a new set of rings coming from a friend, got them for roughly shipping + a meal. Just have to order bearings now and I can put the short block together. I'm in no rush at this point, basically just buying parts here and there when deals present themselves.

[Exodus_2pt0]

Just went through the whole thread. Boost is addicting and you keep breaking shit and coming back with more power. As someone said earlier, you're a crazy bitch

Shake n' bake.

[2mAn]

Just went through the whole thread. Boost is addicting and you keep breaking shit and coming back with more power. As someone said earlier, you're a crazy bitch