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alchemyst micra blog

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
well i started my 2.0 conversion this weekend, took the current 1300 out and dropped the 2.0 in for a bit of a measure got three of the engine mounts sorted and also the alternator mount using micra alt and mount with a custom adapter plate as the primera alt was in the way.
pulled the engine back out and fitted the gearbox last thing tonight so will drop it in this coming weekend (can only work on it at the weekend as I'm using the factory as a garage!)
will need to sort the gearbox mount next weekend but shouldn't be too difficult hopefully.
then its on to getting the drive shafts measured for some custom shafts to be produced.
i will then whip it all out again to sort the wiring for the engine as i am going to attempt to strip the engine loom out of the full primera loom i have! not as easy as it sounds as the wiring runs round both sides of the engine bay and into the interior section of the loom plus its a nats system so that should be fun!:laugh:
having said that i have been studying the wiring diagrams and i think i can bypass/disable the nats entirely so if i can i will!
once I've got the engine loom stripped from the primera loom i will need to splice it into the micra loom this can/will be a bit of a headache but hopefully i will get it sorted! so thats the jobs for this coming weekend and the next!
weekend after that i plan to do the simple jobs like fit the power steering rack
and make up the hoses for the cooling system make the exhaust link etc.
weekend after that drop the whole lot back in and start final assembly/wiring/plumbing/trouble shooting as theres bound to be somethings i forget or have done wrong! :blush: hopefully nothing major!
so I'm planning on it being installed and drivable in 5-6 weeks barring any major fooookups and parts being delivered on time!
but we shall see i know these projects have a way of getting longer and longer and more and more complicated and expensive as they go on but my plan is to keep it as basic as possible to start with and then if it works (and only if it works!) then start tricking it up a little :devil:
heres a couple of pics to start with
 

frank

Club Member
alchemist

impressive progress (Y)
good luck on this, i,ll look out for a pre-nats primera ecu, if you want
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
been doing a bit more today dropped the engine and box in, That was fun not! engine box combo is longer than engine bay is wide, so i tilted it 45o and slipped it in but it took way longer than planned i will fit it from the bottom next time or fit the engine first then fit the box on once thats in.
with it all in position i found that there is insufficient clearance for the water pump pully bolts so i will do a little reshaping of the right hand chassis leg tommorow!
i will also finish the gearbox mount it is in position but needs finishing, had the gearlinkage hooked up earlier and even with the quickshift all the gears are available first time round (result!!) :wow:
jobs for tommorow drop engine/box out reshape chassis rails, finish gearbox mount, make new mount for powersteering on front of block if poss, fit drive shafts for measuring purposes that should do it for this weekend, may also make a start on stripping the primera loom down so i can wire the engine up before it goes back in! but we'll see! :suspect:
 

NeX

You're after my robot bee
Club Member
wow amazing work :D

if i were you i would see how many of the ancillerys you can take off the engine eg: get an electric water pump and PAS pump. i used a Citroen Saxo electric pump, very easy to fit and adapt and also have a res built in. the main point is not to adjust the chassis too much, first of all if you adjust it too much you may need to have the car SVA tested which would set you back alot.

oh yea and never take the engine out through the top ;) it is sooo not worth the hassle :D
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
water pump will not be much of an issue, the changes definately wont need an sva test the powersteering i recon will fit on the front.
taking an engine out through the top is the easiest way (aslong as the engine/gearbox unit isnt wider than the car!) micra engine/box came straight out no probs, but as the primera set up is wider than the chassis rails it will come out from the bottom next time!
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
right had a bit of a slow weekend last week as i didnt get in there to do much on the car due to working saturday! done some more today refitted the engine made the gearbox mount fitted the poly mount in the rear mounting clearanced the left chassis rail to clear the gearbox just bending the seam over was sufficient to gain decent clearance fitted alternator startor motor radiator (decided to use the primera radiator which is twice the size of the micra one) this required the slam panel reshaping wich took quite a while and is not perfect but will do for now may make a new one later when the conversion is done. what else oh yeah, fitted the clutch cable speedo cable accelerator cable the fuel feed the inlet pipe and afm and heater hoses,think thats it for today!
tommorows jobs fit fuel return (need some more pipe) fit rad top pipe had to mod the standard fit with some fittings from work but will replace these with silicone later they are just to get it up and running! fit the carbon cannister the exhaust manifold (nice stainless 4 to 1) fit the power steering pump (need some pipe for this aswell for the fluid return) refit the bonnet connect the brake servo hose and the screen washer hose, then its time to fit the gtir calipers and primera discs and bleed the brakes.
think thatll be it for tommorrow but if i get time ill try to get the drive shfts in so i can measure them for the new shafts but only if i get time

after that lot i should be in a position to start the wiring but i will probably give that a whole weekend at least then it should just be a case of re filling the engine and baox with oil filling the rad and system with coolant and it should hopefully be ready for a trial fire up!
then will be the agonising wait for the drive shafts to arrive!
but im trying not to rush things if i can help it so a good wait for the shafts should give me time to make sure all the other bits ive done work ok!

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/driveshaftsinnoengine.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/engineinalternatorshot.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/engineinitstight.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/enginemountfitted.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/geraboxfromthetop.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/leftfrontwithenginefittedbeforebigb.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/modifiedenginemounting.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/polybushmicrarearmounting.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/standardgearboxandlinkage.jpg
 

Manny

Ex. Club Member
right had a bit of a slow weekend last week as i didnt get in there to do much on the car due to working saturday! done some more today refitted the engine made the gearbox mount fitted the poly mount in the rear mounting clearanced the left chassis rail to clear the gearbox just bending the seam over was sufficient to gain decent clearance fitted alternator startor motor radiator (decided to use the primera radiator which is twice the size of the micra one) this required the slam panel reshaping wich took quite a while and is not perfect but will do for now may make a new one later when the conversion is done. what else oh yeah, fitted the clutch cable speedo cable accelerator cable the fuel feed the inlet pipe and afm and heater hoses,think thats it for today!
tommorows jobs fit fuel return (need some more pipe) fit rad top pipe had to mod the standard fit with some fittings from work but will replace these with silicone later they are just to get it up and running! fit the carbon cannister the exhaust manifold (nice stainless 4 to 1) fit the power steering pump (need some pipe for this aswell for the fluid return) refit the bonnet connect the brake servo hose and the screen washer hose, then its time to fit the gtir calipers and primera discs and bleed the brakes.
think thatll be it for tommorrow but if i get time ill try to get the drive shfts in so i can measure them for the new shafts but only if i get time

after that lot i should be in a position to start the wiring but i will probably give that a whole weekend at least then it should just be a case of re filling the engine and baox with oil filling the rad and system with coolant and it should hopefully be ready for a trial fire up!
then will be the agonising wait for the drive shafts to arrive!
but im trying not to rush things if i can help it so a good wait for the shafts should give me time to make sure all the other bits ive done work ok!

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/driveshaftsinnoengine.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/engineinalternatorshot.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/engineinitstight.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/enginemountfitted.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/geraboxfromthetop.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/leftfrontwithenginefittedbeforebigb.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/modifiedenginemounting.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/polybushmicrarearmounting.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/standardgearboxandlinkage.jpg

very good and good luck
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
didnt get much done today due to having a powercut at work our factory substation blew out so i wasted several hours trying to sort that out and waiting for people but still got a little bit done got the exhaust manifold on which needed the mounting holes drilling out a little as it was too tight on the studs also got the downpipe on so thats coming together nicely unfortunately the new downpipe is 4 or so inches longer than the standard micra one so it wont fit with the catalyst and janspeed system! i considered chopping the janspeed down but as i planned to build a new big bore stainless system later anyway i decided not to i will sell it instead so that will be going in the forsale section, i could have ditched the cat and put a pipe in but it would fail the mot so ill keep it and build my system earlier than planned
what else have i done today? erm ive fitted the power steering pump and ran the hipressure up into position fitted the p.a.s. switch and pipe mounting.
oh yeah, reshaped the gear linkage to give a little more clearance.
bloked of the egr pipe on the inlet (the exhaust has a bung allready!).
thats about it for today no big progress but a few small jobs done and a step nearer the end
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
few pics
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/DSC00087.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/DSC00085.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/DSC00086.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/DSC00084.jpg
http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn253/crimson-devil/DSC00002.jpg

Cool (Y) When's estimated completion then?

depends how long it takes for the supplier to make my driveshafts?
i think i will have done everything i need to do by the end of the month! maybe a little longer but shouldnt be much (as long as i can get it to run that is!)
then it will just be a wait for the shafts so end of july probably! :grinning:
 
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alchemyst

alchemyst

Ex. Club Member
right then been a while since i last posted! micra has been hold for a few months due to work/health/money problems oh and moving house!!! but i should be getting the correct ecu for it this weekend so hopefully i will get the little pig to fire! will report back when ive had chance to get some work done on the thing! :)
 
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