Honcho's Long Road to Imola Type-S Zero

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 67

Headlight adjusters

Today's "small stuff" is the revised headlight adjusters. These are the bane of any early NSX owner, since the bolts freeze up and spin the housing. Thanks to a FB post by [MENTION=7468]latzke[/MENTION], I remembered that Honda actually revised the part for the later pop-up years. The new part number is: 33129-SL0-N11. These bolts are coated and use a brass ferrule in the housing to help prevent corrosion. I also added a bit of Mobil 1 synth red grease to assist in the initial aiming.

Of course, this meant removing the headlights again, but it was quick work. I love working on clean, new cars lol.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 68

Sway links

In installing the NSX-R front sway bar, I noticed that the end links were pretty rough. One was leaking grease. I decided to replace them before installing the MCS suspension. I was also able to adjust the sway bar centering, as it was too close to the lower radiator coolant hose for my liking.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 69

Wiring

With the Type-S battery installed, I was able to test each circuit and verify before buttoning up the interior again. Everything is functioning normally, including the AP1 S2000 ABS unit. Here you can see the trouble codes flashing, since I have the SCS check connector attached. Basically, the ABS brain is telling me that the wheel speed sensors are disconnected.


View attachment 20220809_194739 (1).mp4

Also, the Wideband O2 controller is powered up and running properly via the TCS fail safe relay.


View attachment 20220809_194806 (1).mp4

My oil temp warning light is working, but the Arduino controller is acting up. Will have to troubleshoot that more, but at least the light wiring works correctly. For those of you curious, this light is the cat temp light from the JDM S Zero. I'm repurposing it as an oil temp light for the track.

The Blackvue dashcam is working in both ignition and switched power (parked) mode.


View attachment 20220809_195133 (1).mp4

The auxiliary usb charging port is also working great- powered off of the stereo leads.


View attachment 20220809_195604 (1).mp4

Also, I noticed that the gas tank sender light was also wired and working properly (the tank is empty)

Now that the car is wired properly, I can return to "mechanical" stuff. Next up is installing the front brakes and MCS suspension. I'm trying to have the entire front section fully assembled before engine install.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 70

MCS Suspension, Brakes, Subframe

Moving along on the front end, I was able to get the final subframe nuts and bolts fastened below the headlights. This is a tricky move to complete, since the socket extension will not fit straight down on the nuts. Also had to take care not to mar the beautiful new Imola paint.

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Next, the front Motion Control Suspension shocks. First, I was able to fit the very nice BC Racing brake line holders to the shock body by using some EPDM shelf liner material to take up the space and provide a snug fitment without damaging the threads. I did something similar on the A/C receiver/drier. The BC part number is A-12.

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Installed the new stainless brake lines. These are the Techna-Fit brand, which are DOT certified and coated with a PVC plastic to prevent debris-related wear. Dali Racing used to sell them and I had great success with this part no my 91 during all 4 seasons of driving.

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Next, installed the MCS dampers. Fairly straight forward process and I used new OEM nuts. These are 8 kg Swift springs for those curious. Ride height will have to be adjusted once the car is on the level alignment rack.

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[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 71

Brakes, NSX-R Sway Bar

Shout out to [MENTION=33290]MITA Motorsports[/MENTION], who include these clever wire harness protectors with their NSX-R front sway bar. This helps minimize any clunking from the bar contacting the lower NSX-R chassis brace.

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Also on the sway, it gets awfully close to the lower radiator coolant hose. It's been so long since I have seen another NSX-R sway bar that I can't remember if this is normal. [MENTION=25737]Kaz-kzukNA1[/MENTION]? I did loosen the end links and knock the bar to the right about 5mm before snugging it back down.

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Finally, after 4 years, the finished brake calipers are back on the NSX.

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I used new OEM bolts (after seeing AJ snap one of the caliper bracket bolts) and Carbotech AX6 pads. My beloved Project Mu HC800 pads appear to be a victim of the Covid supply chain problems, so I'm trying the Carbotechs as a viable street/track pad, on the recommendation of SOS. If they don't work well, I'll try the Endless MX-72.

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Fun note-- these rotors are my track day rotors from the 91. They have about 5 HPDE sessions on them using Carbotech XP8 pads. The cool thing about Carbotech is their compounds play nice together, so these rotors are already "pre-bedded" so to speak.

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[RYU]

set up a zoom meeting!!!

Are you using any special oil for first fill or just standard weight?

In for the Zoom please! How exciting

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 72

Seatbelt

My first attempt to glue the broken seatbelt grommet resulted in a shattered piece when I tried to snap it into the B-pillar trim. This time, I used a large paperclip wire and some plastic-bonding epoxy to create a steel-reinforced version. It's quite robust and I hope it holds up to install. Just need to paint it black again.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 73

Prothane Bushings

I'm happy to report that the forward rear cross member bushings did not require any trimming or adjustment. A welcome break.

https://photos.google.com/u/1/photo/AF1QipNN8lsZysW5dqo7o9N7nB1u9NII-9oc9oE6xwRh

Cleaned the sleeves to this level.

However, as @RYU mentioned, the upper control arm bushings need attention. Casting defects in the cross-members prevent the metal pins from seating flat. Some grinding was required.

Next, I will have to machine the bushings to accept the metal washers.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 74

MT Driveshaft, CV Joint, Rollers, Etc.

After I realized I would need to seal the differential before running the transmission, that meant the driveshafts must be ready. Although my AT Left shaft is already rebuilt, I wanted to use the shorter MT version both for weight purposes and proper fitment. This MT Left is from a wrecked 1999 NA2 NSX. I re-used the Right side shaft, since they are the same AT to MT.

The 1999 driveshaft was in remarkably good condition. The car must not have been driven much or hard, which sounds about right for a NA2. The grease was still tacky and a light tan color. However, there we no evidence of any prior CV service. First, I started with the Right side shaft from my AT.

Rollers out.

This is a really messy job- plan on a lot of paper towels.

Really clean grease on the needle bearing. Still, it must all be removed and replaced with fresh grease.

Roller disassembled and cleaned. Ready for new grease.

Packing the needles one at a time. I'm using Redline CV-2 grease, since this car will see higher temps in the joint.

Painting the Right side cups.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 75

MT Driveshaft, CV Joint, Rollers, Etc.

Next is the Left side MT shaft from the 1999 NSX. One roller had a good section of rough surface on the race, but it was salvageable. Here it is all cleaned, re-packed and ready for assembly.

Also, I painted the intermediate shaft and re-assembled with fresh seals and bearing. It took a lot of work with a file, sandpaper and dremel to get this bashed up housing from ATR to fit properly. It looked like a gorilla went after it with a claw hammer at some point in its life. I put a very light coat of anti-seize on the housing to help it come apart again if needed.

A note on the set ring. We installed a new one, but there is no way to get it to go on without spreading it slightly. I'll wrestle with this one (using a good glob of CV-2 grease to hold it centered on the shaft), but my advice is to keep your old ones on there and re-use them.

Job complete.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 75

Pride Headers

It's much easier to install headers while the engine is off of the car.

New NA2 studs with copper anti-seize.

New NA2 nuts with copper anti-seize. New factory NA2 gaskets. They are directional and marked, so make sure "Manifold Side" faces the header flange.

Installed. As others have noted, they don't fit. You have to remove about 1mm of metal on the outside of the outer-most holes. Lots of dremel grinding and sandpaper. The rear headers were worse. Pride should really address this. The V1's fit fine.

Rear header installed with cat and O2 sensor.

Note the orientation and compression of the factory spring bolts. To reach the specified 16 lb/ft torque setting, they had to compress to this level. @Kaz-kzukNA1 is this correct? I recall you mentioning that the springs should not be fully compressed.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 76

A/C Compressor

Another preparatory task before engine install is to fit the A/C Compressor service cover and main A/C suction and discharge lines. This will be next to impossible to do with the engine in the car.

Removed the service cover from the old compressor and cleaned it to this level. Lots of brake cleaner.

Beginning the clean of the hose section. Note I removed the pressure relief valve.

Recently, there have been instances of old NSXs (91-92) leaking fluid out of their pressure relief valves. It can cause quite a mess in your engine bay and potentially damage your compressor. Considering these parts are now 30 years old, it's not surprising. Unfortunately, the replacement part is discontinued from Honda. However, one of our Prime members found and aftermarket replacement that fits the threads on the service cover.

Installed and torqued to the spec. Don't forget some oil on the O-ring. Should be good for another 30 years!

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 77

A/C Compressor

Installed the suction and discharge lines with fresh O-rings and torqued everything to the spec.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 78

Engine Installation, Cradle, etc.

@NSX_n00b and @mskrotzki stopped by for this difficult task. First, we had to re-assemble the rear subframe and install it con the cradle.

Then, we had to lift the engine/trans assembly onto the subframe and cradle.

After looking at the clearance to the front beam, we had to install the front header while the engine was still hanging.

This is where things got wonky. When we removed the engine, it had the original NA1 manifolds. So, we built the cradle on those dimensions. However, the headers hang lower than the manifold pipe, so the headers impacted the cradle when we lowered the engine! That meant some emergency carpentry work. Spencer and I lifted the subframe by an additional 1.5" at all of the mount points using pieces of 2x2. That solved the clearance issue.

Next snafu was that the engine tilts in a way that makes it nearly impossible to put back into the cradle from above. If we had more people we could have probably wrestled and tilted it into place, but it was just me and Spencer. Our solution was to remove the side crossmembers and get the engine mounted to the front and rear beams. Then, we installed the side pieces back into place. That got us here:

Note the new engine mounts. Front and rear are OEM NSX-R/S-Zero. Left side I found new in a box from a guy in Kyoto, Japan. Right side is also brand new. Type R mounts:

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 79

Engine Installation, Cradle, etc.

Success.

Since we had fewer people than planned, there is only one picture from the process. Spencer setting up the hoist.

For future users, the process was relatively simple. First, lift the rear of the car so that the engine will roll into place under the rear opening. This ended up being about 8 inches higher than the jack stands for this car. Second, lower the car back onto the stands and lift the engine vertically into place. This worked out great because with the engine suspended on the hoist, we could easily turn and tilt it to line up all of the bolt holes. Overall a big milestone reached. Now to hook everything up and prepare for the first start!

 

[96-nsx]

Outstanding build well done.

 

[Honcho]

A few more pictures from the engine install. Me, Mark and Spencer.

 

[Valhalla]

Holy hell! Looks like you''ll be ready for NSXPO!

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 80

Rear Control Arms, Prothane Bushings, etc.

My parents have been in town and we had my company legal retreat up in Vail, so not much progress over the past week. Still, managed to get the rear subframe rigid collars installed. As we torqued the bolts, we could see the entire subframe shift slightly. Thus, I do believe these will serve a useful purpose.

Because I am not a baller like @RYU and @MotorMouth93, I don't have a lathe. So, I needed to figure out a way to machine the recess pocket for the washers on the upper control arms. I settled on my drill press and a forstner bit, which is used in woodworking to cut flat, clean pocket holes. More on this later, with possibly a video!

Finally, using the flat file to prep the control arms and correct any casting defects before pressing the bushings.

 

[RYU]

You would be happy to know that things have been drama free so far operationally speaking in regards to the prothane. No squeaks, no play, no real noticeable negative NVH (my car is noisy already anyway). BTW.. i'm not a baller like @MotorMouth93 since i borrowed lathe access from a friend.

 

[MotorMouth93]

I'm glad everyone forgot my lathe came from harbor freight otherwise I'd lose the coveted baller status.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 81

Cutting the bushings. The forstner bit worked quite well.

 

[Honcho]

Re-Assembly 82

Wire harness, flywheel, throttle cable, oil sensor, etc.

Spent a good amount of time doing a lot of the "little things" necessary to get the engine hooked back up to the car. Got the transmission side wire harness connected again. Transmission ground, alternator cable and everything routed.



Hose assembly mounted to throttle body with new bolts for the dressup.



Throttle cable installed and adjusted to the initial setting. Need to warm up the car and re-adjust for the final setting.




Flywheel inspection plate installed.

Type-S battery installed in the permanent fixture.



Brake booster vacuum hose installed. We are now ready to install the new brake master cylinder.



One potential issue. The left rear brake hose nut is frozen. Even using the vice grips did not budge it. I soaked it in PB blaster and will try again tonight. Next step is heat. After that, I may have to cut it and re-flare the line...

 

[nigel]

Before you try heat, in aviation, we use a product called Aero-Kroil and it works miracles. It's in an orange spray can and works on frozen turbine disc bolts after extreme heat, 850 C. It should be in every mechanic tool box. Just a spritz and wait 15 min and carry on.
Maybe give it a go.

Cheers
nigel

 

[Honcho]

Before you try heat, in aviation, we use a product called Aero-Kroil and it works miracles. It's in an orange spray can and works on frozen turbine disc bolts after extreme heat, 850 C. It should be in every mechanic tool box. Just a spritz and wait 15 min and carry on.
Maybe give it a go.

Cheers
nigel

Got the first one off. Multiple cycles of heating and then PB blaster. Second one is more stubborn. Maybe I'll pick up some Kroil.