Feels like I took quite a long break from any garage related projects. Summer’s not such a fun time to work in a garage out here in Florida. That said it’s well into the cooler seasons and the weekends have been flying by. This last weekend I focused on the 818 and managed to get the clutch fully operational. When I started the weekend I had the assumption that getting it working was a matter of adding the last section of hydraulic line then bleeding the system…
I could not have been more wrong, because as I was bleeding the lines things just weren’t working correctly. The clutch was really loose. In fact the piston looked like it was going to break loose, so… I had to do some digging.
Turns out, I did not install the throwout bearing correctly. Also… as it turns out to access the throwout bearing I need to remove the transmission. No problem I thought… this is a kit car. I have access to the entire back of the transmission.
There are SO many things that interfere! Turns out I had to pull the suspension brace, all the bolts on the turbo and it’s mounting brackets, the roll pins and the half axles, the clutch line, a couple suspension bolts (to free the half axles). It just felt very much one step forward and two steps back.
All complaints aside, the fact is that it’s now all buttoned up and I have a fully functional clutch! So truthfully it’s a weekend well spent on getting stuff fixed up and closer to operational.
I first purchased the WRX that would become the 818 in July of 2017. That’s a heck of a long time from then to now, but over that span of time, my wife and I moved cross country, we had a child, there was a global pandemic… and that’s just the last 2 1/2 years! Sure I’d love to have the 818 running right now, but building a car, working full time, having a toddler, AND having a bunch of other hobbies can be a tricky balance. I guess the real point is, I don’t care how long it takes, I’m having fun with it! Honestly my two real motivators right now, my wife and I want to move to a house closer to my new job (and I don’t want to trailer this monster again!) and… I have dreams of the next kit car/project car… I’ve always wanted a three wheeler and I haven’t ridden my motorcycle in an age…
Checklist for the 818:
- Finish up some wiring breaks from reinstalling the harness
- Mount and cable manage the harness/control boxes
- Battery installation and wiring
- Mount the firewall
- Mount the center tunnel
- Install the throttle cable
- Install the shift cables
- Install the shifter
- Install the e-brake
- Install the seats
- Install the last of the turbocharger lines
- Install the intercooler
- Fill with fluids
- Check all the hoses, especially on the engine. I know there are breather lines and vacuum lines that seemingly go nowhere.
- Fire it up!?
Wow…. that’s a lot shorter list than I thought! Let’s get to it!
Oh… also I got the CNC running and it cut its first part! Some of the holes were a bit oblong, but it seemed pretty close to correct!!!
Next major step would be making a new carriage with a dust collection system!
It Rhymes with Hockey 