stickyTaco's boosted eff cancer build and ramblings

Oops...this belongs here: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/college-car-rebuild-1996-bmw-z3.814421/

Seats are out and roll bar is in for a test fit. It took some work to get everything lined up...in the end I used a ratchet strap to line up the rear support bars with the seatbelt towers. I'm going to refit the seats to check clearances with the bar this weekend and then drop them with the upholstery guy next week. Then the bar will come back out and I'll start in the install of the new convertible top.

 

Started my diesel heater build...just in time for warmer weather. I'm mounting a 5KW heater in a plano bin that is big enough to keep the fuel in it as well so any leaks will be contained and there is room to store the ductwork. Plan is to be able to run one duct to the GFC and one to the trailer.



Week before last i had the alternator go out on the truck. That was not fun to replace with the supercharger belt and tensioner in the way. Hope the remanufactured Denso lasts as long as the original...12 years and 116k miles.

 

A bit more progress on the heater build this evening. Control panel is mounted and I test fit it all with the heater in. I'm going to make some changes to the exhaust to keep the exhaust pipe further away from the Plano box then I'll heat wrap it and mount the heater. I also modified a metal mount to attach the heater to the case. I think I'm going to use and Anderson on the exterior of the box to power it.

 

Wrapped up the heater build today. I didn't soak the exhaust wrap long enough and/or I heated it more than I should have because it got a little brittle.







I ordered a Y so I can heat the GFC and trailer. They make some with dampers that I may end up ordering. I rerouted the exhaust after this pic to get it further from the heater air intake.


I used wing nut style hose clamps on sections that I want to be able to remove easily so it can be set up and packed up without getting out a screwdriver.


Anderson plugs for power since it's what I'm running on my truck and trailer for aux power.


Hopefully the rubber fuel pump case helps with the ticking noise these pumps make. Super fancy exhaust hanger too.


This is with the exhaust/muffler, a 16ft length of heater ducting and the Y piece. I'm going to order another 10ft length of heater ducting. I'll pour some fuel into it and give it a test run tomorrow to see if the exhaust gets hot enough to melt the Plano box. If it does I'll fabricate a metal plate the run the exhaust through. I may add a computer fan for ventilation in the box as well.

 

I have too many projects

I was going to go with a simple 10A PWM controller to add solar to my second battery but decided it is time to ditch the isolator setup and go with a dc-dc charger with mppt and since I'm doing that might as well replace the old 100w panel with a pair of fresh 100w panels.

Just working on the layout right now. Hope to have it all together by memorial day weekend.

 

Started building the wiring harness for the solar and dc-dc charger. Will hopefully be at a point where I can hook it up to the battery and solar panels and test it this weekend.

 

Eel River?

 

Closer to Canada...but not all the way there

 

Hoping to wrap up the solar install this weekend. Carpet is glued and now I'm working on the solar panel install.



I fabricated the mounting brackets for the first panel last night...wish I made the mounting brackets for both panels last night because it's getting warm out now.

 

The lights tell me that the solar test was successful.



This is with a single panel hooked up with 16awg wire/alligator clips and +10ft of extra 8awg between the controller and battery...amperage and wattage should improve with the proper wire size and the second panel.


Working on mounting the first panel now...I'm waiting on 4 more t-slot bolts before I can get the second panel mounted. They sit just below the rack so I can still strap lumber and paddle boards to it and there should be room to mount the alpine box/ski carrier in the winter. The alpine box will cover one panel but my power use in the winter is much lower so it should be plenty to keep the battery charged.

 

Testing with both panels and it looks like I can add about 10% charge to the 100ah lithium battery per hour.


I have a bit more wiring to clean up while I'm waiting on the t-slot bolts so I can mount everything...hopefully I'll have everything to finish this up later this week

 

More progress. I moved the fuse box over and mounted an electrical box to house two 12v plugs, two USB 3.0 plugs, and a voltmeter. I'm waiting on one more plug that has a pair of USBc plugs and one more USB 3.0. That should be here tomorrow along with some other bits to wrap up the wiring loom. I wasn't a fan of the grey electrical box so I wrapped it with some vinyl wrap I had leftover from another project. I also used a bit of the galaxy wrap on the exterior of the GFC so it sort of matches and when you match you're faster...


Wired in the lighting controller for exterior camp lights. These have the potential to be really annoying and they strobe/change color with music which my daughter is going to love

 

Looks like the cumulative stresses of my off road trips and the weight of the build is taking its toll on the truck. The last two trips I've had mechanical issues that have involved repairs on the road and when cleaning up after my recent trip I noticed the inner fender is failing under the battery.

 

I've had that happen, it's a total bummer Toyota uses such flimsy metal there, although our local shop has a fix for it. I replaced all the bushings for the body mounts etc etc as well to perhaps help ease the impact. I noticed my transmission making a slightly weird noise on our last trip - I think (I could be going crazy too) so I know what you mean....

 

I have the same issue. I think I will drill the ends of the crack then spot weld the crack before grinding and painting.

 

Liked for the picture, not the suspicious noises from the transmission. My suspension is making all sorts of interesting noises so it's due for a refresh...I'll do something about the cracking while I'm in there but I'm hoping to push it off until the spring if possible.

Tell me more about this local shop and what their fix is for this? I'm thinking about the jd fab inner fenders to beef it up.

My plan is to drill it for now and then try to melt some metal into the crack but if I'm going to keep this truck long term I should reinforce the inner fenders or relocate the starting battery.

 

More parts going into the to be installed pile. I need to start planning the cabinet/bench that this and the compressor, house battery, water, tools, and recovery gear will go into.

 

To be honest I just let the shop do their thing, we have one here that the owner has a bunch of race trucks - I've been out back of the shop with him and he yelled out to his Dad and he climbed out from under a old FJ60 and they chatted, dude used to build his own suspensions and makes a bunch of parts (long travel UCA etc etc etc) services all things Toyota, has zero advertising (and is mega busy), is mega honest (has told me not to do a few things) they work fast ~ I arrived at 1pm to talk to him about gusseting the spindles and a bunch of other work, expecting to arrange a time for tomorrow or the following day, he said give me the keys, they did a ton of work and at 7pm when I was there to pick it up 7 of them were standing around the truck trying to find a squeak - thinking it was new, I told him it was old - he smiled (happy it wasn't something they had created I guess) and they continued until they figured out it was a Baja Designs fog light rubbing on the bumper, fixed it and off I went. They do everything - windshields, upholstery, custom metal work There is always some modded trucks there, the workers seem really happy to work on modded stuff and are always happy as, yes its a shop and they charge good money, but for non handy dudes like myself Im happy to support

We have a NOCO Genius installed on my wife's truck, they are pretty great.

Thanks for the compassion on the transmission, Im sure it's fine......maybe I just need to keep using it more

 

Making wiring harnesses can be oddly satisfying.


Getting rid of the 12v lighter plug on the truck fridge and replacing it with mini Anderson connector so I can wire it directly to the fuse panel. No more rattling the plug loose off-road.

PVC foam board arrives next week hopefully and then I can start building out the cabinet system so I have more organized tool, recovery gear, and camping gear storage for my trips to the mall.

 

Made some progress on the PVC storage bench today. The plastic dust was bad, even with a shop vac dust collector attached to the table saw.


The test piece seemed plenty strong so I used clear PVC primer and cement and 1-5/8" screws I had from a fence project.


Test fit in the truck before cementing and screwing. First mistake was only measuring the width between wheel wells at the bottom of the bed. Turns out they are angled out towards the top in addition to being angled in towards the cab. Cuts had been made unfortunately and I didn’t buy extra material so I modified my plans a bit and once it’s covered in carpet it won’t matter.




Tomorrow I'm going to load it up with my gear and then add a couple more dividers before I start on the bench top.