ZipDriveX's Avenger & Stingray Blog

2010-12-01T16:49:00.000-07:00

Photo Opp!

2009-07-07T09:42:00.001-06:00

The Best It's Looked In 4 Years!

2009-07-06T12:22:00.003-06:00

Over the long 4th of July weekend I put my car back together and for the first time in years I'm proud of my car! I rattle canned the hood black just cause it's all sorts of messed up and the spray paint red looked like shit compared to the newly painted front end.

Only got some crappy cell phone pics right now:

Wash time!

Next to Dougs WRX swapped RS

Squeek-Be-Gone

2009-05-28T14:00:00.002-06:00

I had a bad noise coming from under the hood and for the longest time I couldn't figure out what it was. When I finally took the time and looked/listened closely I noticed that my tensioner pulley was wobbling terribly and both my belts were toast!! I replaced both belts and the bearing inside the pulley and now no noises and no squeeks!!!

The Venge Gets A Face Lift

2009-05-26T10:18:00.010-06:00

It was finally time to get rid of the hidious front bumper and spray-painted fenders. I found a used front on ASEC that came in very good shape minus a crack on the bottom of it. I fixed the crack in the bumper, straightened the fenders, and sprayed them at work.

The bumper itself is not available aftermarket through PartsChannel or Keystone. Also it's not available reconditioned through Salt Lake Chrome or Collins Collision Products. No yards in the state had one and all the yards that did have one wanted around $200 just to ship the thing!! Add the $200 they wanted for the bumper itself and that's way more then I wanted to spend!

After two months of searching I finally found a guy on ASEC that had one to sell. I paid $200 total for the bumper + shipping!! He managed to fold it into thirds and stuff it in a small enough box to ship FedEx!! When i got the package i took it out and set it outside in the sun for an hour so it could regain it's original shape. The only damage was some cracked paint and the pre-existing crack in the bottom that you can see in the picture to the left.

The following are pics of the repair on the bumper. I grinded down all the paint and used 3M panel bonding adhesive to do the repair.

After removing the paint

Here's patch on the inside of the bumper

After squeezing the adhesive through

Dry time: 24 hours

Fenders are straight and ready for primer!

Primered, sealed, based, and cleared!! Now they're ready for install!

Sunday Wash, BBQ, And Cruise Pics

2009-05-07T10:20:00.005-06:00

A bunch of us all washed our cars on Sunday at a friends house, broke in his new grille too :) Brought my new camera along to take some pics!

Soak & rinse!

After about half a can of degreaser and the engine bay is cleaner now than when I originally purchased the car! (oooohhh, shiney!!!)

This is what I see while I drive and it makes me smile!

Someone doesn't look too pleased!

Next to Pauls sick 06 STI

Doug's WRX swapped RS

The line-up

Compression Test Results = Bad News Bears

2009-05-05T14:16:00.001-06:00

So a friend and I did a compression test on my motor this weekend and I almost wish we hadn't. #3 was about 25-30psi lower than the other three. Dropped some oil in and the pressure went back up to normal thus concluding my piston rings are bad.

No boosted Venge this year :(

Since this is my only car I figure the best/easiest way for me to get her ready for boost is to buy a used motor and rebuild it over the next year or so. If I'm gonna be opening it up that much to replace the rings then I might as well build the sucker right. JE pistons, Eagle rods, sleeved block, 8.8:1 compression, etc.

I'm really bummed and slightly pissed about this whole situation but I know it'll be better this way in the long run.

I was so looking forward to the Lewistown test track, Beartooth Run, SCCA, & the drag strip this year and it really breaks my heart

To Do List

2009-04-30T09:19:00.002-06:00

Alright so the turbo is sitting in my kitchen just taunting me every day to be installed. But there's still a few more things to do before I feel comfortable putting it on:

1: Replace left tie rod end
2: Fix whatever is causing my steering wheel to shake once I hit 50 and other misc front end vibrations.
3: Find and fix my damn oil leak!!!!!
4: Replace the a/c compressor because I'm 99% sure that's where my belt noises are coming from and why not just replace the whole thing when I found one on ebay for $40? My a/c hasn't worked in years anyway and i've had people tell me it's the clutch in my current compressor. That's gettin your cake and eating it too! :)
5: Buy all new gaskets (ie, turbo, wastegate, bov, manifolds, exhaust)
6: Replace all blue couplers with red ones
7: Sand down and repaint IC tubing silver
8: Before the car can go down in the garage.... I must have a new bike motor so I can have transportation.

Once the turbo is on, I have to have exhuast pieces made. The cat-end of the downpipe I got is for a 3" exhaust with a 3 bolt flange. I need to get an exhaust shop to modify it to bolt up with my stock 2 bolt cat. During the install I will most likely be getting a full cat-back with a test pipe to make it a full turbo-back exhaust.

Turbo Pics!

2009-04-24T14:17:00.015-06:00

First off is the snail itself.

Turbo Manifold

Wastegate

BOV

Intercooler

Lower intake manifold with bilet fuel rails and supplementary #30 injectors custom bunged in

034EFI Supplementary fuel injector controller & Golden Eagle vacuum manifold

Aeromotive 1:1 fuel pressure regulator

Wastegate dump (I'm junking this and making my own w/ better welds)

Wiring mess for EFI (I will be COMPLETELY revamping this disaster!)

Tubing and stainless steel lines (this will all be redone too)

This end will not fit my exhaust, I have to redue this end to fit with my stock exhaust until I upgrade.

Speed Sensor Gear Is In!

2009-04-17T11:20:00.002-06:00

Got the gear today! Only cost me three bucks and my speedo works again!

Wheel Hub & Prosport Gauges

2009-04-16T11:28:00.004-06:00

Finally got my boost & oil pressure gauges hooked up yesterday (cause I was bored!!!) It's a crappy phone pic. The gauges are only temporarily on the A-pillar until I get my bezel pod with the rest of my turbo kit that'll ship out tomorrow!

Also I got my right rear wheel hub today so hopefully the weather will be nice again this weekend (like they say it is) so I can replace that!

Got The Sensor, Need The Gear!

2009-04-15T11:15:00.002-06:00

I got my speed sensor today........ and it didn't come with the damn gear on the end of it that I lost into the abist of the old tranny! So I ordered that and it'll be here Friday. Luckily I only drive to and from work during rush hours so I can't speed anyway :)

Almost Ready For Boooooost!!!

2009-04-14T11:16:00.004-06:00

Finished up the tranny yesterday and it worked like a charm! No more grinding, no more slipping, no more chatter, no more leaks! I'm a very happy man!

Now just a few more things before she's ready for the turbo install:
1. Replace right rear wheel hub (Ordered, will be here Thursday)
2. Replace A/C compressor
3. Replace left outer tie rod end

Also I've got the following interrior parts coming on Monday so everything can be pretty and right inside:
1. Stock radio bracket
2. A/M radio bracket
3. HVAC bezel
4. Passenger air bag cover

These should be here this week and turbo will ship out friday!

Oil Sending Unit & Turbo Line Install

2009-04-13T13:44:00.004-06:00

I ordered a Prosport oil pressure sensor that I figued I'd install w/ the tranny out since it's easier to access the stock oil sensor on the back of the block. Below is a picture of the assembly I made for the stock sending unit, the gauge sending unit, and the turbo oil line feed. Thanks to Dougy Fresh for his Ace expertise and employee discount!

The top thread goes into the back of the block, the stock sending unit plugs directly behind that and the gauge sensor is teed off to the right. The final end to the right is for the turbo line feed wich is capped for now until I get the turbo.

Here's a pic of it installed via "transmission" view. You can see the flywheel on the bottom left hand corner. The turbo feed sits at a perfect spot right next to the lower intake manifold, easy to access when the time comes!

Transmission Swap

2009-04-13T13:16:00.012-06:00

The tranny in my car had a bad leak a while back so I pulled it out one weekend, replaced an axle seal that was leaking and replaced the clutch & throw out bearing while I had it out. Once the car was all put back together and I took it for a test drive I found out that it was STILL leaking! And not only that but my TOB was chattering like hell too! Instead of paying a shop to rebuild it for $3000 I found a used tranny on ebay for $400 shipped.

Since it was in the 60s all weekend I decided to put the new tranny in the car. My girlfriend and I spend most of Saturday getting it ready to drop and all of Sunday pulling the old one out and putting the new one in. There was barely any fluid left in the tranny when I drained it, not even 1/4 of a quart (it's supposed to have 2.1).

Once the tranny was out I quickly realized what was wrong w/ the TOB: The one that I installed which came with my clutch kit (shown on the right side of the pic) was the wrong shape & size. The new OEM one I got is on the left, not only are they shapped differently but the a/m one has a bigger outside diameter and didn't fit in the fork quite right. Hence the clickity clack noise it was making before.

After a few failed attempts at jacking the new tranny in we finally got it! I got all the bolts put in and started plugging everything in where it needs to go and noticed that the speed sensor plug on the new tranny was different then the one in my old. I figured I could just pull them and swap them but when i pulled the old one out, I lost the gear on the end of it inside the axle gears. There's another $70!

I didn't get it all put back together Sunday night so I'll have to finish tonight after work. Hopefully this fixes all my drivetrain problems!

My grease monkey! Couldn't have done it without her!

Walbro 255 & B&M Short Throw

2009-04-07T22:16:00.003-06:00

Got my first little turbo package in the mail today, it had the Walbro 255 fuel pump, the B&M short throw shifter, and the "missing link" map fix. I installed the fuel pump tonight. The short throw will maybe be this weekend.

Here's the pump installed on the bracket:

Indiglow Gauge Face & 3D Bezel Install

2009-04-02T22:00:00.010-06:00

A few years ago I had this "brilliant" idea to put glow-in-the-dark pot leaves on my gauge faces and put a black light on top to illuminate them. They turned out really good and I still think they look cool and original. But I've turned a few new leaves since then and decided that the leaves had to go! I bought a set of indiglow gauge faces off ebay and put them on tonight. They look so good!

I had to cut slots in the cluster backing for the wires to feed out and had to cut out and use the needle stoppers off the OEM gauge faces.

Here's the old gauges w/ the black light.

It looks like an F1 car now! :)

Here's what they look like lit up

I will be doing all the wiring for the gauges tomorrow and will take more pictures then.

New Tires, Wheel Balance, & Allignment

2009-04-02T21:54:00.002-06:00

When I painted my wheels the other weekend I noticed that my front tires were shot! To the point where they wouldn't stay up or roll w/o falling over! My rear tires were still in pretty good shape so I only bought two new tires. Got them put on today along w/ a 4 wheel balance and 4 way allignment. Now all I have to do is replace my right rear wheel hub and all my suspension woes will be gone!

Here's a scan of the spec sheet I got from the tire shop. I'd say I needed this realy bad!

New Windshield!

2009-03-31T14:57:00.002-06:00

Downside of a fiberglass hood: If it's not latched 100% all the way there's a good chance it will flip up on you while you're going down the road and crack the hell out of your windshield. This was the case for me a couple years ago and I finally got and installed a new one last night! Man it's nice to be able to see the world so clearly again! :)

The Spoiler Is Spoiled :(

2009-03-30T15:22:00.002-06:00

Took my engine over to Dimension Edge last night to overhaul my bike motor so I can have it running while I do my turbo install and found out it's siezed. :( The crank rusted over the winter. We tried to frankenstien a 43cc bottem end to the jug but the piston and rod from mine were too big for the doner. In other words..... the Lambo needs a new motor! I'm holding off on buying this until I actually start work on the Venge.

FIDDLESTICKS!

Clear/Smoked Park Lamps

2009-03-30T12:00:00.007-06:00

I wanted my parking light corners in my headlights to match the smoked turn signals I got so I found a used pair of clear corner inserts and blacked them out and put them in. Sorry the pic quality sucks, just used my camera phone.

Before & Afters:

Parts Parts Parts!

2009-03-28T23:32:00.004-06:00

Here's everything I have coming for the car. I'm so excited to get started working on the car and getting it back to good shape!

Parts:
*Turbo and 8 injector setup listed in previous post
*Used transmission
*New axle seals
*B&M short throw shifter w/ polyurethane bushings
*New ash tray and fuse box cover
*Engine start button
*White face gauges
*3D gauge cluster bezel
*Prosport boost gauge
*Prosport oil pressure gauge
*Windshield
*OE front bumper (I'm gonna go stock body for a while)
*Two new tires w/ 4 wheel balance & allignment
*Right rear hub assy to replace bad one
*2 white ASEC stickers

Plan Of Attack:

1: Windshield will be installed tuesday
2: Two new front tires, 4 wheel balance & allignment on wednesday or thursday
3: Install the little things like the gauges and engine start just whenever they show up on my doorstep
4: When I get the turbo kit I have to install the Walbro 255 pump and send mine out
5: Replace transmission one weekend after I get it in
6: Install 8 injector setup
7: Install turbo kit & FMIC
8: Cut inner lip of fenders off for the lambo doors and straighten
9: Istall my OE door hinges until I get to fixing the struts
10: Fix up my hood and repaint
11: Paint & install front bumper while doing the turbo kit

Turbo!

2009-03-26T10:51:00.005-06:00

I got offered a deal that I could NOT refuse for a used turbo kit and I took it. $1500 for everything listed below. My plan is to get the bike running (it needs an overhaul) next week so when I start the install I can still have transportation. I'm ordering a used tranny to throw in while I'm doing the turbo install. More info to come!

Here's a list of parts I will be recieving for the turbo kit, it's absolutely everything I need to do the install.

*Custom bunged 8 injector intake manifold for secondary injectors from DMS (Disturbing Motorsports)
*8 injector wireing harness from DMS to hook to EIC controller and tune the extra injectors via laptop
*2 high flow dms billet fuel rails w/ 6an end fittings
*Aeromotive fuel pressure regulator
*034 EIC supplimentry injector controller w/ tune mapped in. Can tune via laptop w/ the 034 program included w/ directions to install.
*2 6an inlet/outlet fittings 1 closed off an fitting for aeromotive FPR
*Walbro 255lph fuel pump
*Earls 15-17 ft 6an ss fuel line from aeromotive fpr to walbro 255lph fuel pump
*#30 secondary fuel injectors
*Extra set of oem #24 fuel injectors used from current motor
*Pipe thread to an converter fitting for oil pressure sending unit to earls ss oil feed line
*Earls 4an oil feed line from turbo to oil pressure sending unit
*Earls 4an turbo inlet flange and hose connection fittings
*Earls 10an turbo outlet flange and hose connection fittings
*Earls 10an ss turbo outlet line from bottom of turbo to oil pan
*T3 42/48 AR turbocharger
*Log style cast turbo manifold w/ gasket
*XS Power black external wastegate w/ nuts/bolts/gaskets
*Custom external wastegate dump tube to fit this turbo setup w/ nuts/bolts/gasket
*2.5’ custom downpipe w/ t3 4 bolt turbo flange welded on
*28x9x2.75 bar and plate front mount intercooler
*Samco 4ply blue intercooler couplers (I will replace them with red ones)
*Custom black 2.25 turbo side & 2.5’ cold side intercooler piping
*All intercooler piping clamps to connect the pipes
*Turbo XS RFL blow off valve w/ all original equipment (washers/mounting hardware/etc) *"Missing Link" map sensor
*Golden Eagle vaccum manifold
*Shit ton of heatwrap
*All high temperature insulated vacuum hoses
*Boost guage
*Cluster guage pod
*Plx Wideband o2 sensor
*bosch o2 sensor and plx hub unit w/ all original hardware and directions.

The guy I bought it from is also going to help me through the install and I bought a B&M short throw shifter from him too!

Painted Rims, Drums, & Calipers

2009-03-22T17:58:00.013-06:00

The second day of spring turned out to be the most beautiful day of the year so far so I did some painting to enjoy the weather. I painted my rims gloss black, my calipers red, and since I hate the look of painted drums I just painted them black so the rust orange color didn't stick out behind the black wheels.

Now I Remember Why I Hate Cars!

2009-03-21T09:48:00.002-06:00

This stupid habbit/passion/addiction/hobbie/love, whatever you wanna call it, for cars has always boggled my mind. How can I love something so much when all it does is drive me mad?

Well here's the scoop: I used to be leaking transmisison fluid like crazy (see pic above) but now I have no tranny fluid left to leak so instead now I start leaking oil. Besides the two leaks I have strange noises coming from the clutch and throw-out bearing, wiring problems that keep my reverse lights on when not in reverse and turns the sound on my stereo off when I turn on my headlights. Headache after headache after headache and I still love my car for some strange reason.

I'm trying to save up money now to get the car fixed so I don't have to finance the repairs in any way but it's going to take a while. All I hope is that she keeps running until I can afford to fix her.

Black Out Taillights Install

2009-03-21T02:58:00.013-06:00

This will be time #3 that I have used VHT NiteShades to black out the Avenger taillights. Once on my first Avenger, once on this avenger, and a third and final time just to get things right ;)

I'm goin w/ a red and black theme on my car this time around. Not only does it match my interrior better but it's also much more "low profile" then the flashy red and white. I like to fly below the radar these days. So to add some black to the outside of my car I tinted all 3 pieces of the Avenger taillamp setup.

First I had to remove all the spray paint from the reverse bar. I used laquer thinner and a shop towl to rub the paint off. The second picture is about 5 minutes into it. Took me about an hour to get rid of all of it.

Before & After:

Installed no brakes and brakes:

I love this shot and use it as my avatar on all the forums:

Clear/Smoke Turn Signals Install

2009-03-21T02:49:00.003-06:00

Somewhere back in time I lost or broke one of my turn signals. For a while I rode around w/o either one of them, just used the mirror blinkers for my fronts. Well now that I'm turning over a new leaf w/ my car (not only in the set up but also in a legal aspect) I needed to get two turn signals. OEM would have cost me over $100 for both lamps. I found these guys (on guess where?.......EBAY!) for around $35 shipped.

They're a clear lense lightly tinted black. The seller also provided me with two amber bulbs so I could be legal.

When I went to install them I realized that not only did I lose/break my turn signals, I had removed the bulb sockets and demolished the socket wires. I called everyone in town trying to track these damn items down. No junk yard had one and the only way to get them through the dealer is to order the OEM signal lamps! Luckily I found the sockets in a scrap bin at work and wired them in. Now people know which way I want to turn huray!

4 to 1 Header Install

2009-03-21T02:42:00.005-06:00

Once again Ebay is my performance center! This little numbers final prices was around $60 shipped. (I love ebay!) My exhaust manifold and downpipe were rusted and cracking and causing annoying exhaust leaks. Not only does the header help performance in my middle range, it was way cheaper than just another OEM manifold.

Header & downpipe next to stock exhaust manifold, so much more smooth flowing!

Installed! Looks great, sounds great, perfoms great!

Strut Tower Bar Install

2009-03-21T02:23:00.012-06:00

Bought this baby off ebay for around $40 shipped. Great cheap and easy mod for better handling.

Stingray Mod List

2009-03-19T12:47:00.002-06:00

Here's a list of modifications I have done to my chopper:

Exterrior
*Custom Lamborghini Orange paint job
*Black painted wheels
*LED "chopper style" headlight
*LED bicycle headlights/taillights
*Chrome mirros
*Brake & Turn lamp combo
*Custom rear fender braces

Engine Setup
*Dimension Edge centrifical clutch set up
*Throttle grip
*1 1/2" polyurethane drive rollers
*ADA Racing billet intake & choke
*Custom duel tip chrome exhaust
*NGK performance spark plug

Avenger Mod List

2009-03-19T12:38:00.004-06:00

Here's a list of what modifications I have currently done to my car. This is just copied from my Registry at ASEC. For more current info on mods visit my Registry at http://aseclub.net/forums/index.php?&autocom=registry&cmd=view_item&CID=292

Brakes/Suspension
*Front upper strut tower bar
*Painted calipers
*Painted drums

Engine
*NGK performance plugs
*Taylow plug wires
*Cold air intake
*Painted valve cover
*4 to 1 header
*Performance muffler

Exterior
*Clear/smoked turn signals
*Flip flop trunk
*Lamo door
*Smoked taillights
*Z3 style LED mirrors

Interior
*Bomz racing seats
*Custom guage faces
*Custom painted interior
*Grand racing steering wheel
*Under dash neons and guage cluster blacklight

Tires/Wheels
*Eagle Racing 17s with Yohohama Avid V4s
*Painted Wheels

2005 Schwinn Stingray Spoiler Intro

2009-03-19T11:02:00.004-06:00

This is my Stingray w/ a Mitsubishi TLE52 motor.

Thank god for Dimension Edge, a local motorized bicycle company in town. Luckily you don't need a drivers license to ride one! The law states that a bicycle can have and aux power source no more than 2 HP as long as the pedals are still in working order and still be considered a bicycle. Therefore meaning no DL is required to ride one!

This is my 4th bike. My first one was a Walmart mountin bike. I then upgraded to the Schwinn OCC Stingray. When that bike broke down I got my first Spoiler witch got stolen a couple summers ago :( Now I have this one and I love it more than all the rest combined!

With a custom Lamorghini Orange paint job, chrome duel tip exhaust, brake & turn lights, and a 52cc (1.5HP) motor it's a one of a kind show wining machine!

Visit http://www.bikemotor.com/ for more information on Dimension Edge and their 200+MPG bicycle motor kits! Tell them Todd sent ya!

***More infor and pics coming soon!***

1999 Dodge Avenger Intro

2009-03-19T10:50:00.006-06:00

This is my 1999 Dodge Avenger 420a DOHC 2.0L 5 speed.

It's not much right now because I lost my license a few years ago and fell out of the tuning lifestyle. It used to be perfect: no engine problems, full body kit hood and wing, no dents/scratches, nothin! Now I've got an oil leak, a transmission leak, clutch noises, half a front bumper, crack-sanded-and broken hood, cracked windshield, dents/scratches all over the place, holes from the wing and body kit, each panel is a different color, a radio that barely works, no system, and so on and so forth.

I got my probationary license at the begining of this year and started work on the car right away. Bled my clutch fluid, changed the oil, replaced some engine seals, new spark plugs, fixed some wiring problems. It's so nice to be able to drive my baby to work again :)

***More info and pics coming soon!***