Ryan's 1974 M2

[SlamedIAm]

This thread is relevant to my interests.

[JRKOUPE]

the alpinas rock...and that Fjord car is a well known beauty.....but IMO I say go 13 or 15's.....

build what your vision is...


....and I do understand those saying dont cut up a nice survivor.

the Inka pig is mine....an ongoing resto mod...

[kid325e]

Sub'd! Wish I had the dough for an S14 swap!

[Turf1600]

I've always enjoyed the 1600 color "Florida". It's mostly white with a hint of green. Very pretty in person.

[Mistawall]

im intrigued! looking forward to seeing this come together.

[Matt341]

Looks Great Subbed.

[deutschman]

Subscribed. Great project

[RCM3]

Thanks guys, waiting for a few more goodies to get delivered before I get the s14 in. I've been going through the other M2 swaps and there are a few things I either overlooked or didn't think to order.

The engine bay is also still Malaga so that needs to be corrected. Eventually the entire car will be painted but I'm going to hold off on that until I have everything else sorted on the car.

Updates will be posted soon, I try and make it up to my patents place to work on it on the weekends. Studying for board exams is a little distracting!

[RCM3]

Exciting update for post #1000!

It has been a while, but I just dont have the weekend time like I was hoping to have to dedicate to this project. Here is what happened this last weekend:

First I removed all the front suspension; I wanted to get the front sub frame out to inspect it before the new components were installed. A common failure point on the 2002 front sub frame is the driver side engine mount, mine had two cracks forming. This would be a big problem, especially with the S14 plans. I ordered the sub frame reinforcement parts from Ireland Engineering, this included the motor mount piece and the large plate to reinforce the underside of the frame. Since I was planning a trip down the street to Ground Control, I brought these parts with me hoping to find someone with some nice welding skills. I was acquainted with one of the fabricators there and he was happy to take care of my welding needs. First step though, get those 40 year old bushings out.



Got the frame back and had to admire the beautiful welds.




After having it sandblasted and cleaned up, I primed it and painted it. I wanted to have it powder coated, but that would have delayed the S14 install even longer. The paint can always be touched up if need be. Putting the engine hoist to good use.



Next came time to re assemble the control arms. First I cleaned them up (along with the other suspension pieces), painted them, and started to press in the new bushings. I ordered the complete 2002 solid bushing kit from Condor Speedshop. Remember, this 2002 is being built to be a fun car to take to class/ work/ wherever as an alternative to my other DD. I do not mind the increase in NVH that comes with the many pros offered by these bushings.




Next step was to do the same with the sub frame and start the rebuild with the new and refreshed parts. I had ordered a 2002 steering box refresh kit from Ireland Engineering a while back and began to tackle that job also. Started with a tear down and lots of cleaning.



It was a fairly straight forward job, I was defeated when it came time to removing the Pitman arm from the steering box. I tried everything but it would not budge. Since I am at my parent’s place with a more limited set of tools, I ran it down to a 4x4 shop to have the guys work some magic on it. Three second later it was removed and the job could begin. I did paint a few pieces that looked like they could benefit from some recoating and once everything was clean and dry I reassembled the box. Filled it up with some Red Line GL4 fluid as instructed and it was ready to go in with the sub frame.


With that done, I put the sub frame together on the bench.


Next up was installing the frame. This was an easy job and it was not met with any challenges.



I took a step back and realized that it was finally time to get that S14 dropped in to test fit it. Following others who have tackled this job long before me, I took their advice and “massaged” a few areas to make sure everything cleared. One such area was the passenger side front foot well. This area needs to be pushed in about 1 inch to allow for the headers to clear the outer sheet metal. It needs a little more work and then some paint. I was left with about 1mm of space between the downpipe flange on the Euro header and the foot well.



Before lifting the engine, I assembled the painted motor mount arms and mated them to the S14. They would be landing on the already installed Condor Speedshop solid motor mounts. These bushings are beautiful, and very robust. I did have to drill out and enlarge the sub frame mounting holes for the block style motor mount to get the larger studs to fit through. This was published before I bought them and I was happy to do it to get a little more strength in a critical part of the car. You can see what I mean in this picture, they're a great upgrade. With these parts installed I was ready to finally install the S14.



Getting the S14 ready, chaining it up and leveling it with the lift bar.



Dropping it in, a few very tense moments , but it went in smoothly.




With the bolting down of the engine, my 1974 2002 has officially become an M2!!! ;D






With the stress subsiding after hoisting that expensive piece of metal in the air, I began to check over some more areas that past swappers have had to deal with. Most people have to dent the lower down pipe to allow the steering track rod to clear it when attempting to turn the wheels. It essentially swivels and travels both up and down, and left to right when turning the steering wheel. In one wheel position, the track rod wants to occupy the same space as the standard US header, but my Euro headers seem to clear no problem. So no denting was required here. Great news!

After looking over the other spots, my S14 seemed to be clearing everything no problem… UntiI went to slide in my Ireland Engineering aluminum radiator. The radiator itself is beautiful, the installation was not. I managed to slide it in, but I have >1mm of space between the water pump and the radiator. Time to figure out another solution… This mystery remains unsolved for now. I did not get a picture because I thought I was smashing the radiator for a second and I wanted to quickly get it out safely.
Finally, I was left with another Ireland Engineering part, the front sway bar kit. It’s a 22mm bar, and mounts using drop down aluminum blocks and spherical endlinks with urethane bushings. Installation of the blocks took some persuasion in an area on either end of the sub frame, but after banging out a few small spots the aluminum blocks went right in. I got the bar installed also, it’s an older version of their current sway bar, but it looks just as effective. I have the bar connected to the control arms for now, it might soon be connected to the strut housings after Ground Control has finished modifying them.



More will be posted soon. I need the suspension back from Ground Control (I still need to work out a few details with them), Aardvark transmission fitted with the Massive Lee brackets and Aardvark shift plate, complete rear suspension overall and LSD installation, and the dreaded wiring job to all the new components…

And after that, the brakes, wheel refinishing, and interior work.

Stay tuned.

[E30NJ]

Clean install! Keep the photos coming.

[flyboyx]

that is beautiful! those delrin bushings would drive me ape shit insane, but its an awesome build you have going there.

[RCM3]

Thanks guys. I had delrin bushings in my 325iS for over a year and it never bothered me? I can see the solid engine mounts with the S14 causing some increased vibrations to the chassis though. I have some urethane engine mounts too if these prove to be too uncomfortable for a street car.

[varg]

Cool project. I'll be watching this one.

I have some urethane engine mounts too if these prove to be too uncomfortable for a street car.

I'm guessing they will.

[Motorsports]

Nice....

[RCM3]

Cool project. I'll be watching this one.



I'm guessing they will.

Ya, well see. Its going to be a fun car to drive on occasion. It wasnt the bushings that made my lat BMWs overly stiff, but it was the jump to stiffer springs and dampers that made the car slightly less DD-able for me.

...I might be underestimating the buzzy nature of the 4 cylinder however .