Matt's Red GN

[d3v147]

I bought this red GN with a slipping clutch for 800 bucks in August last year. The condition was too good to allow it to slip into the hands of the common bogan.



I replaced the clutch, pulled the motor down and replaced all the seals. Installed Manga head and EFI. Here are some random pictures I may organise later.




I probably could have welded something to the front of the intake but this seemed the easiest way. I used the sigma thermostat housing


I had to lobster the throttle body pipe a bit as it hit the bonnet. I notice most people use the older style intakes. This one was also hard to get into the engine bay as it wanted to be intimate with the strut tower.




I ran it with the wheels off my drift car for a while. They were too big though.


Recently the exhuast got noisy.



So I decided that now was the time.





Anyway, I am sick of uploading images. Here's one more. If anyone is actually interested I may come back and fill in some blanks

[Scorpma82]

How is it ur running the black Ford Territory wheels in the back....what diff is it running

And believe me, given the progress you've made so far.....people (myself included) will be watching your thread rather closely


Keep it up mate

[d3v147]

It just the standard diff. Wheels were redrilled to 4x114.3.

[Sigmaproject]

I sent a TM Magna manifold to be converted..I wanted the thermostat moved to the front so that I could just bolt it on my GN Sigma head. But unfortunately they didnt do it..and I did not know that they had not done it untill after I had received back in the post. I have a Magna M4 head so the plan (if I go thru with it) is to bolt the whole thing onto the Sigma block. The plan is to just run NA and decent exhaust.
I have a Magna ECU and wiring harness in pieces ..and an old Haltech that looks just too simple to work properly.

[d3v147]

I was a bit concerned with how close the turbo was to the steering so I modified it a bit.

[astronturbo77]

Good to see you on the site! I had a brief conversation with you on facebook a while back,.ive got the green galant in kingston. Your work looks really good mate, I see a rack.and pinion conversion happening aswell..

[d3v147]

Thanks mate! Yeah steering conversion is complete. Japanese cars are basically like Lego it seems.

[astronturbo77]

yeah thats the best way to look at it, who did the tig welding on your intake? Ive recently bought a tig for my shed, its been a good learning curve so far with fabricating bits for my starion. what rack are you using?

[d3v147]

I did the tig welding. It's a bit rough but functional. I have a bit of a complex about doing everything myself.

[d3v147]

(Sry for double post, couldn't find the edit button) It's an S13 Hicas rack.

[d3v147]

Today I got a smaller oil cooler that would clear my turbo. It has ROF-99 written on it. I think it's off a Subaru Forester.



I also chased down some of the turbo fittings I needed and welded (dodgily) an oil drain onto the sump. I also found a bung in the block behind where the turbo that i can use for a water feed.

[geezer101]

Nice DIY work you're doing there d3v147. That is some bad ass welding on your custom turbo manifold! I gather you have solid experience with fabricating and TIG welding judging by the level of work you've put in so far. And I see you've installed rack and pinion steering in your Sig too - did you take any pics of the process you went through to get it in there?

[d3v147]

Thank Geezer! It's awesome to get some appreciation for this. As you have mentioned the turbo manifold and rack conversion I will share some more details about them! I know you didn't really ask for more info about the manifold but I like talking about it

A fair bit of work went into that manifold. Indeed it was the most difficult project I have ever tackled. I learned new technology such as 3D scanning and pipe routing in Solidworks The flanges and merge collector pieces were all CNC machined which allowed for perfect fitment when assembling. I've never welded something like this before (well i welded some bike frames a decade ago but that's different) so some of the welding is not great but definitely functional. All runners are equal length and as short as I could get without cutting custom bends so hopefully it will perform reasonably.

Toolpath for one section of the merge collector. I tried using 4 axis machining method before this but it kept snagging so I went for 3D machining with a ball end.


Toolpath showing porting of the turbo flange. This was to save work with the die grinder and to cut a tiny relief so that the pipes were exactly located.


Merge collector sitting on jig showing how good alignment was (you'd hope so for a CNC process!)


Now for the rack conversion. I'll cover it as a guide as that might be more informative.

Requirments: (What I used, if you are up to this you will figure out substitutes I am sure)
*GN Sigma
*R32 Crossmember/K-Frame
*S13 Coilovers
*Adapter plates for S13 coilovers to fit GN strut towers (I CNC'd mine, could make more easily)
*S13 Steering rack (I used a Hicas one as that is what I had)
*R31 lower control arms
*S13 CA18DET brakes and lines
*S13 steering column
*Astra power steering pump
*Custom Hydraulic lines
*Lathe
*Welder
*Grinder

Firstly cut the engine mounts of the GN and R31 racks. Use some common sense here and take some time as it it a pain in the a. I'm certain this is covered in another thread but anyway.

Comparison of each:


R32 xmember (top) GN mounts (Bottom)


You will need to notch out the inside of the GN mounts a lot and also cut the 32 crossmember down at the ends. Do this in many steps and keep checking fitment as shown as you go. If you do this badly you will end up with something crooked or have a real bad time welding later. You can just sit the lot on a jack and lift it in and out of the car as you need. The column is sitting there in this pic but don't bother yet.


Once you have it all cut, you need to weld it. I made up some shafts to go in the LCA holes to help line it up. If you can't figure out how to line the parts up, you probably need another project to hone you skills first.

Here I drilled an extra hole to allow less track. I am unsure how much bump steer it will add so I'm not sure if i will use them. You will also see a sneaky bit of RHS you will need to add to strengthen the assembly up.

If you do it well and paint it black it should look stock(ish)


Ok, just got sick of writing! I'll add more later! If you look for powerstump on FB you will find more pics there. Next installment I will deal with the column.

[Sigmaproject]

Does the Astra power steering pump bolt onto the original Sigma factory mounting holes?

I have my turbo oil return to the sump pretty much in the same location as you..but unfortunately I do not have room enough to mount the bracket for a factory power steer pump.

[d3v147]

The S13 column will bolt right up. You will need to rewire it obviously (I haven't done that yet - may post a diagram if i make one). You will need to install 3 rivet nuts in the floor. I also suggest disassembling the column. Factory tilt function will still be functional.

The rest of the steering shaft will bolt in. You will need to adjust them at the splines. The rubber coupling will hit the chassis rail and you will either need to notch the chassis rail or cut the coupling and join the shafts with a bush. There is a picture of the bush in a previous post.

For the power steering i think the best way to go is the electric hydraulic unit out of an Astra. It will mount nicely where the battery is was mounted as you should have moved this to the boot long ago.

Custom lines will need to be fabricated. I got this done a a local hose supplier for about $150. The small hole is the oil inlet. I got this wrong and the power steering went spastic and had to spend another $50 changing lines.


Once more interest pipes up I will cover the control arms.

[75wagon]

OK, I'll admit, I overlooked this at first (not many do anything this interesting with GN Sigma's )

Wow. I am paying attention now.
Keep the info coming

How far are you through this now?

Dave...

[d3v147]

I recommend using the LCA from an R31 to keep the track a bit narrower. You could drill more holes in the crossmember but I fear this could lead to bad bump steer.

The Sigma castor rod will line up with one hole in the LCA. Make sure it's the one with the smaller diameter hole. You can then bolt through this and mark/drill the other hole. The extra hole will still be in the reinforced area of the R31 LCA which is great! Easy!



For the sway bar links I used R31 items as they were a little shorter. No matter what you do here it's going to be on a crap angle and wear out the rubbers. I imagine this is of little concern really. Interested if somebody comes up with a better solution here.



You will need to shorten the tie rods due to the shorter length of R31 LCA.

I remember reading that stock S13 coils will hit the towers. You want coilovers anyway. I made a custom top and 3D printed a strain relief for the accumulator hose.



S13 brake lines will bolt right up. You just need to enlarge the hole in the tab on the chassis.



This should get you to this stage

[d3v147]

As the front of the car was sitting even lower than before, I needed to lower the back even more. I cut an extra coil out, but now with the stock shocks the springs would no longer be captive. I think I would have a bad time if i was driving spiritedly and ejected a spring mid dori.

Here is a pic of how low the crossmember is with no engine. Incidentally this is with the coilovers at MAX ride height!


Anyway, my mates at repo hooked me up with these. The will need some sleeves machined up but otherwise fit. I jury rigged them in to test and they kept the springs in place nicely. They were so stiff i don't think I need to increase the rear spring rate!



Thats brings me to tonight - trying to get the motor back in. The problem I found is that the edge of the block and part of the sump fouls the steering rack. Nothing a grinder and hammer could not handle but I had the engine in and out 3 times before I got it right. I also cut a hook off one of the clamps for the rack and shortened one of its associated bolts. (Describing as I didn't take photos)

First fitment. You can see the mounts are nowhere near seated and the block is sitting on the rack. You will also see some crude scratches where I'm about to get my grind on.


Engine nicely ground away to make space, but the sump is sitting on the rack still. Mount is just sitting there as a measuring stick.


Dirty Deeds!


Finally it fits! Also plenty of space for a 3" dump!


I also got the turbo lines figured out


Finally! I'm up to date!

[geezer101]

NO SHIT MAN, this is one of the most extensive modifications to a front end I think the site has seen to date. I went to uni to study industrial design so I could get a better grasp of CAD and CAM applications, engineering drawing, prototyping and construction - and ended up wasting a year learning about the F@CKING RENAISSANCE when I should've been getting an education that would've lead me into being able to design stuff like your exhaust manifold. O.k, enough of me ranting like a lunatic. I have looked at the power rack thing myself and knew it was going to be really tight between the trailing edge of the front cross member and the sump but had a suspicion it was 'doable' - but the hydraulic/electric power steering feed is a stroke of genius, freaking awesome stuff!

[d3v147]

Thanks Geezer,

I went to unit for a couple of years but then dropped out as it was sending me crazy. The marking system is extremely dated and spending hours on end scrawling notes was stupid.

All of the work you see here is self taught. I have completed a tafe course on fitting/machining, but that was after I picked up all of these skills. Solidworks is easily learned from the built in tutorials. CAM is something you just have to play with until you get it.

I think this kind of front end conversion has been done before, it just doesn't get documented. I only attempted it because I found scraps of info saying it would work. Hopefully I've provided enough info that more people will attempt it now.

I suspect using a non-hicas rack could allow for clearance for the motor but I don't think the grinding and hammering I did is really a problem.

I couldn't easily find a Sigma hydraulic pump and I didn't want to muck around with the pulleys and reservoir that would be needed with a magna unit, I would have needed custom lines anyway. The electric unit is awesome too as it seems to allow for a standalone 'on demand' mode where it ramps up on steering input or a direct controllable mode where it will run at the speed its control line gets pulsed at. This should be good for highway driving where the assist can dial down at speed and for drifting where you want full assist all the time without any lag. I need to find an mechanical to electronic speedo sender to get this to work well, but I have plenty to get done before that stage.

[crystalmeths]

freaking hell what a awesome job you have done looking forward to more regards Chris

[d3v147]

I'm tired. It's late. Here are some pics to bump the thread up and prove it's not dead. Just getting ordinary jobs out of the way.

[geezer101]

We're a patient mob. Sometimes build threads don't move for months and then there is a big surge of updates and posts. Just the way it goes with a project car...

[d3v147]

OK. Seems like the site in general is pretty lethargic in all honesty.

[Scorpma82]

We are in a bit of a dead spot at the moment it seems......We do get pockets of activity (eg in the summertime or before a major car event)


Like any project car.....lack of funds/time kills any form of (speedy) progress and also family/work commitments tend to recieve a higher priority than the project cars

[geezer101]

OK. Seems like the site in general is pretty lethargic in all honesty.

...ouch.

[75wagon]

OK. Seems like the site in general is pretty lethargic in all honesty.

I suppose it depends on what you are after?

If you wanted more attention, maybe you should have bought a Nissan.

I bought this red GN with a slipping clutch for 800 bucks in August last year.

Popular cars don't get bought for $800.
You have a small crowd here, they come and go (some more often then others).
Maybe it's not enough for you?

Dave...

[geezer101]

Regardless of Mitsubishi's reputation (actual or perceived) they are a good product but underrated. There are all sorts of things that influence the old school car scene and it draws people for all sorts of reasons (the restorer, the learner car buyer, the "I just need to know how to get it running right as it's my daily", the scalper "my grandad's car with 67,000 original k's so I want $9000 for it" or the enthusiast who is sick of driving something with the character of cardboard) If we all had access to resources I would be sure there would be more activity but most of us are either building or driving. Tis' the nature of the beast...

[Superscan811]

geezer101,
You forgot a few.

1.) The "slack bugger" (like me) who usually doesn't feel the need to post all that often.
2.) The person who feels overwhelmed by the work being done an feels they don't have anything relevant to contribute.
3.) It's an abomination to modify a car like this and they want to force you to repent your evil ways.
4.) The person who knows everything from their Brother's, friends, Uncle, who used to know a holden mechanic, and was told that what you are doing won't work.


Personally, I'm enjoying this build and I'd guess many others are as well, with over 230 views so far. I check every day, just to see the quality work going into this build.

While I'd do (or at least plan to do) some things a bit different, it's good to see how other people work around problems, some creative, some rough, but in the end, it gives me ideas on how to tackle other issues.

d3v147, yes this site is a bit slow sometimes, but there is a wealth of information to be found if people are willing to search.

I'd much rather a few genuinely interested people to post, rather than a mindless mob salivating over the "shiny bits" but not understanding what they actually do.




Cheers.

[d3v147]

Like any project car.....lack of funds/time kills any form of (speedy) progress and also family/work commitments tend to recieve a higher priority than the project cars

Apologies. My comment was stupid and clearly incorrect given the response it generated. I can totally appreciate that not everybody can blow bulk time and money on their projects!

I suppose it depends on what you are after?

Really I just wanted to give back some of the discoveries that I've made as I've been lurking here for a long time looking for the answers.

If you wanted more attention, maybe you should have bought a Nissan.

Sorry, can't help myself.

And here it is upside down (I crashed it and decided to rebuild... one day, got sick of it and went back to the Sigma)

Regardless of Mitsubishi's reputation (actual or perceived) they are a good product but underrated. There are all sorts of things that influence the old school car scene and it draws people for all sorts of reasons (the restorer, the learner car buyer, the "I just need to know how to get it running right as it's my daily", the scalper "my grandad's car with 67,000 original k's so I want $9000 for it" or the enthusiast who is sick of driving something with the character of cardboard) If we all had access to resources I would be sure there would be more activity but most of us are either building or driving. Tis' the nature of the beast...

I actually thought Sigmas were rubbish until I inherited one and had endless amounts of fun being a stain in it. I also like that the reactions go from - "what is that piece of crap" to "that is sick" from person to person! Also doing a project a little less common than the typical nissan lego converisions is significantly more fun.

geezer101,
You forgot a few.

1.) The "slack bugger" (like me) who usually doesn't feel the need to post all that often.
2.) The person who feels overwhelmed by the work being done an feels they don't have anything relevant to contribute.
3.) It's an abomination to modify a car like this and they want to force you to repent your evil ways.
4.) The person who knows everything from their Brother's, friends, Uncle, who used to know a holden mechanic, and was told that what you are doing won't work.

Personally, I'm enjoying this build and I'd guess many others are as well, with over 230 views so far. I check every day, just to see the quality work going into this build.

While I'd do (or at least plan to do) some things a bit different, it's good to see how other people work around problems, some creative, some rough, but in the end, it gives me ideas on how to tackle other issues.

d3v147, yes this site is a bit slow sometimes, but there is a wealth of information to be found if people are willing to search.

I'd much rather a few genuinely interested people to post, rather than a mindless mob salivating over the "shiny bits" but not understanding what they actually do.

Cheers.

I love this post SuperScan! Sums it up really well and I never really thought of it like that. I'm glad you are enjoying the posts and will work to keep up to date as I can. I also just realized that there are probably a lot of lurkers looking at this and hopefully it will be useful to them.

OK! Now I've cleared that up; I got a lot more work done on the exhaust.

I'm pretty happy with how this worked out. It will be low to the ground, but there is nothing I can do as the shell simply is not intended to have something that large in the exhaust recesses! I had thought of flattening it a bit but I am sure that will happen naturally in normal driving anyway.


Here is a comparison of the old and new. I didn't actually use the old one to help me make the new one but it's interesting just how close they are! I'm guessing there should be an improvement in flow.


I need to find some kind of compact flex fitting as I really don't have much space for the normal braided type due to the steering column. I would love some suggestions here. I had thought of bolting the dump off to the motor/bellhousing and just leaving it rigid, kind of like factory, but I dont know if that is a good idea. I also need to consider if it will need a muffler or whether the turbo will keep it quiet enough.