4 Seat Chenowth Repair

[n8ball]

I may have to come use your drill press. Mine crapped out on me recently. BFH, I have one or 2.

Ok so I am heading to the junkyard and shall return with a motor.

[n8ball]

Well, not quite. I got out there, looked over a dozen or so cars. Found a Saturn with a state farm salvage sticker on the windshield, which was rare because most cars are not labeled as to how they came to be there. It was a little smashed on the front driver side from the corner to the door, but not enough to even damage the radiator. Also written in the corner of the windshield, "runs + drives". Bonus. Got deep into it. Junkyard closed. They open at 9 so I'll be first in to finish up. Then I'm off to Snowbird to shred.

[n8ball]

OK, got a motor. I was in the door as it opened, and I was out by 10 am. The cashier guy was impressed I could pull an entire engine assembly in under an hour, but I had to come clean. The previous day's efforts set me up for a quick removal. And we made it to Snowbird by noon.







I saw something at the junkyard and it made me sad.

[no1clyde]

That is sad......but did you look to see if the transmission lived through the fire? Glad you got the motor and am looking forward to seeing it on the road again.

Ed

[JUSSUMGUY]

Glad you got a motor. Did you get the wiring harness and ecu too?

[n8ball]

I got it all. 2.2 L61 ecotec from a 2003 Saturn L series. I am going to pull the flywheel and return it with one of the fans I got. That will knock about $50 off from my total. About $360 out the door for all that I got.



And this is where I spent the rest of my Sunday.

[n8ball]

Ed the bus was behind a fence, not accessible from the yard. Usually that means they haven't been drained, or someone bought the whole thing. I couldn't get close enough to check it out.

[n8ball]

Here is the before pic of the harness. It should be back from engine wiring dot com by the end of the month.

It really is a 2.2-


Valve cover before-


After-


New timing and balance shaft gears and chains, as well as a new water pump. The timing cover got a similar cleanup as the VC. This stuff was all insurance. The old ones were probably fine based on the very limited wear on the guides but I didn't know until I was already installing new stuff.-


Back together-


Going into the car at first I actually broke the new 6 puck clutch because i was moving it around and forcing it to get the splines to line up. So i just went with the old 4 puck clutch that had plenty of life left. $120 lesson learned.


Bolted in-


Beyond all that, today for my birthday I ordered a new fuel pump- $100, the power steering pump bracket- $175 from turnkey as well as their billet water neck $150. The headers from turnkey $400 look pretty sweet but I don't know if I am going for those just yet. The conversion is going to cost me between $2-3000 by the time it is all done the way I want it. Next time a replacement long block will be fairly cheap. The fab work will have to wait until next week as my wife is literally in surgery right now and I'll spend my birthday tomorrow taking care of her. She broke her fibula by rolling her ankle last Friday. The doctor just informed me that the procedure went well and I can go see her in the next half hour or so. Happy Fool's day BTW, there are no jokes in the above post.

[no1clyde]

WOW I hope things go well for Crystal and I wish both of good luck...Oh and happy BD. Good to see your buggy coming along. Nate PM me your email address.

Ed

[JUSSUMGUY]

Sorry to hear about Crystal. Hope she gets better soon.
The clutch line up tool I loaned you didn't work?
Happy Birthday!

[n8ball]

It worked the splines were just so tight i swear they only lined up one way on the input shaft. I really thought I had the wrong clutch until I held an old input shaft in my hand and rotated until it slipped tightly into the clutch. Live and learn.

[mikeadams]

What is the serial number on this one? 6 years ago two of my best friends had #426 and 427. They have since sold them but I picked up 425 about a month ago.. Can't wait to build it...

[TimS]

Nice work Nate! I'm excited that you are getting closer to a reliable package. That will be an awesome expedition rig! I hope you plan the dates for Elko this year.

How did the under-clearance compare with the VW motor? Is the ecotec lower at all?

[n8ball]

Mike, Where do I look for the SN?

Tim, It hangs lower, but not much. I am rebuilding the removable engine cage, and it'll get a little bump on the bottom. With a 1/4" skid plate. Damn that list keeps getting longer. Luckily I already have the aluminum, I'll pick up tube next week from MK.

Yesterday I spent a little time draining and removing the fuel cell. And the remaining signs of German engineering from the engine bay. Coils, fuel pump, oil cooler. Cut the brackets from the chassis, but I still need to clean them up.



I also need to cut this tube out the rest of the way. I have some chromoly interlocking tube clamps that will make the new tube removable. It'll get a bump in it to clear the protrusion on the motor. The fuel tank was a major pain to install and remove. Getting the oil cooler out of the way is an improvement, but I have an idea or 2 on the drawing board for that. Not a deal breaker by any means so if it means getting into the desert sooner I can deal with it later.

[mikeadams]

Mike, Where do I look for the SN?

Mine is on the rear torsion tube driver side to the left of the inner pivot. Its a welded tab with the scripted "C" for Chenowth.