Project Thread Vortech on a tired 1UZ-FE

[Thermactor]

If the trans is shifting into all gears I would think it's still fine. Change the filter and use fresh dex III and cross your fingers. Is it water or coolant? If it was coolant contamination it will turn white and will smell very foul. Oil will float on top of the water so there's a chance that the trans oil pickup was circulating the oil and not the underlying water that will settle at the bottom of the pan.

The a341e is a pretty durable unit. They cost $150 from junkyards for a reason.

It was water - it was clear and there was no smell other than the smell of the trans fluid.- and I don't think it was circulating inside the unit. As I cleaned up the gasket surfaces and stood the transmission up on its bellhousing, the fluid seeping out of the pores of the valve body was dark, like old trans fluid, but not milky. I might get lucky on this one. Close inspection of the components visible from pulling the pan indicates a clean transmission with no rust or deposits. There wasn't any crud buildup on the pan either besides the floating layer of water. My guess is that the trans sat outside for some time and water got in through the dipstick tube or cooler lines.
Anyway, it's airing out in the garage right now. Tomorrow I'm going to put the gasket and filter on there, and continue pulling the old trans out. Wish me luck

 

[Thermactor]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH
So I'm taking off the transmission, right? I get one of the oil cooler hard lines off, no problemo. As I'm removing the other one, the aluminum tube got TWISTED.:egads:
So now I have to either buy a new hard line ($$ and more downtime) or find a barb fitting and simply tap out the cooler end to an appropriate NPT size.
I am not happy.

 

[Thermactor]

Ok, changed the transmission and went for a test drive. A couple blocks away from my house, the car stopped moving and started freewheeling in all gears. I had to get a tow to bring the car back home. Hmm... straight back to the drawing board. My uneducated guess is that the water in the trans ruined the clutch friction plates.

 

[Thermactor]

Alright... lol. At the end of my tether, I tried to run the car again today. It wouldn't move in the driveway. Well, it would - if I revved the hell out of it, it moved an inch.
So I jacked it up and pulled the trans pan. whoa... the pan was chock full of metal specks. The magnets had a hell of an ashy buildup on them... and I saw some shiny bits. The filter was pretty much clogged up.
So what could I do? I cleaned it up and put the banged-up old pan of my old trans, along with my old trans filter, on the car, and put it back together. I refilled it with the T-IV I had just pulled out of the new trans because I wasn't keen on spending another cent on this transmission, this was a curiosity thing. Lo and behold, it moves again. The shifting is instantaneous and quite abrupt. I didn't go past the cul-de-sac, however - I was not about to get towed again.
This is no excuse though - the trans has GOT to go. I'm going to buy a new filter and put my old transmission back on. If anyone wants to know, I got this POS from Camargo Transmission, in Mt. Sterling Kentucky. DO NOT BUY FROM THEM.

 

[spf_lexus]

I bent my P/S line while removing my engine and I just picked one up from David, but an extra from a junk yard should't be very much. Dealer will be rediculous as always. I suppsoe if you could match the threads, you could use steel braided lines instead. SS brake lines support over 1000psi so your P/S high pressure line will be fine.

 

[Thermactor]

I tapped out the union boss to 3/8"NPT and used a 3/8" flared NPT fitting to a 90 degree tee to a barb to a trans cooler hose, back to the original hard line. In the time I've run the car it hasn't given issues yet but I will want to find some hose that can withstand the heat of being close to the cat, and maybe some kind of heat wrap.

 

[Thermactor]

The car's doing better now. After doing another pan drop, cleaning the filter screen, and putting some more magnets in, the shifting is getting better.
I have a new filter on order from RockAuto, I'll put it on as well as some more fresh T-IV. The trans might end up being all right.

 

[Thermactor]

hey Therm,

Do you have the second version of the FISH bracket? The 1st one I used smacked the A/C lines until the second version was made. Now I have 2" clearance above those lines. The frame rail shouldn't be any different between our different years.

I just got the second version of the fish bracket and tried it on. I was able to get it mounted up on the motor. The A/C lines are still interfering but they can be bent out of the way. The issue is with the mounting holes for the blower itself. None of the holes line up and the radius of the bracket is smaller than the radius of the mounting pattern on the blower. Not sure what I can do at this stage.

 

[Thermactor]

Got out a piece of paper and traced out the mounting holes of the blower on the second fish. Then with a center punch I banged out a 5-hole pattern for the V2 blower. One of the bolts won't line up, but five should be plenty enough. I'll try to get to the machine shop to drill and mill the bracket into shape sometime this week. I'll also get to improve my A/C and P/S line clearance in the battery area. I'll take pictures before and after for reference.

 

[spf_lexus]

drop David a pm. I know for fact the fish fits the p1sc and the v1. Thats weird if the v2 has a different bolt pattern. Worst case You can mig weld all the holes shut and grind flush, re-drill a new 5-6 bolt pattern. Can you post a pic of the v2 and the fish up close?

 

[1uzvl]

that strange,i have a fish bracket and a v2 and that bolts up fine.although i cant use the fish, It doesnt fit my car and my charger is not ccw.

 

[Thermactor]

Hope this helps explain what I mean. Also two of the mounting holes are 3/8", the proper size, the rest are all 5/16", which is the bolt thread I think is used on the V3-V5 and the ATI chargers.

 

[1uzvl]

not even close,mine a different bracket too as mine's inclosed all the way around the top.I cant remember the difference between the two setups, its was so long ago.

 

[Thermactor]

I had the original fish bracket, the one you describe - and it did have the correct bolt pattern for the V2, it was just aligned on the car in a way that severely interfered with the A/C lines and the battery tray in general.

 

[spf_lexus]

hmmm, so the v2 fit with the original but will not fit with the updated fish? If I had this issue, I would weld and re drill the holes or I would go buy a 2' square piece of equivelent steel/auminum and trace/cut. Thats a damn shame the plate will not line up.

It looks like the last pic shows 2 of 3 bolts lining up (may just be the viewing angle). If so, use these and drill a 3rd hoel in between. looks like enough meat to allow another bolt hole.

 

[Thermactor]

I just redid it at a machine shop. I chopped off some material from the top and bottom of the fish, and then drilled the five holes to make the V2 fit. Now I'll just need to test fit it on the car to see where to go from there.

 

[Thermactor]

It's on the vehicle for alpha-stage test fitment and refinement. So far, it's something. Two thumbs up.

 

[stevechumo]

That looks pretty good. Some shavings and it's ready to boost.

 

[Thermactor]

I might be able to fit a little battery to the right of the blower. That would save me the trouble of the trunk relocation. I've done the trunk relocation before, but undid it because I was unhappy with the results.
Steve, you know it! The return line is almost ready to go, I just have to chop off the hydraulic hose end and then throw it on the barb. I have the fittings to do the intake feed, just need to get some SAE30R9 5/16" hose to the blower. Once the spacers are done up, I'll start measuring for a belt to order. Then I'll get some pipe and run it across the front of the motor, straight to the AFM, no intercooler for now. Since this is a centri at low boost, I don't need the IC yet.
And thank God for this blower having such an easily adjustable volute. I can turn it any which way my heart desires, LOL

 

[spf_lexus]

looks nice! All we need is 1 more centri'd LS400 and we can start a clique