[jbrentd]

Shit, I live in Asheville. Next time just let me know and we'll grab a beer.
Also, that sounds like a nice road-trip.

Haha, I had no idea. Do you know Nick? That's who took delivery of these windshields.

 

[jbrentd]

I got some time to myself out in the shop last night and was able to get a couple things done. First was to swap on another oil filter housing. I guess I got a little too ambitious with trying to remove one of the oil lines so I could make room for installing the starter.

Starter and replacement housing are in now. And I mocked up the AC dryer and oil cooler. They are trying to occupy the same space and the cooler is pretty crusty…I think I might buy an aftermarket cooler and fit some -10AN hoses.

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[jbrentd]

I’ve been wrestling with the issue of fitting an intercooler on my swap for a while. I originally bought the 3B S2 core support and IC, but that’s a no go with my non-s2-style euro bumper. I am willing to pay up for one, but finding one is pretty tough.

With my bumper, the only useable space I can see is where the OEM auxiliary radiator once lived. Last year I thought I had a 2 pass IC that would work, but it’s too long to fit in between the headlights with hoses attached.

My latest attempt involves a small single pass IC and fabricating a custom core support. Things are looking good so far, just waiting on a 2.25” aluminum pipe that goes underneath the IC. Just need to add some tabs or spacers to keep it from coming in contact with the harmonic balancer and AC compressor.

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[jbrentd]

Well, I ended up getting an S2 style bumper and am glad to use the OEM IC and crossmember. I had a little time in the shop to make some more headway on the reassembly. I think I have the entire engine harness all lined out and connected, as well as the hoses/lines for turbo discharge, fuel, evap and vacuum systems.

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[jbrentd]

Was out in the shop yesterday and it seems I took some steps back and some forward. Had to redo some of the coolant lines that run along the side of the block in order to get everything to fit. Was having clearance issues with the after run pump, fan shroud, PS lines, radiator and AC condenser. I think I got it all sorted, but need to make an extension for the wires going to the after run pump. Also, was able to bleed the brake system.

 

[jbrentd]

Haven’t had a ton of time to work on the CQ, but a little here and there. After my first time of attempting to fabricate a down pipe failed, I think I have something that’ll work initially. It’s a mix of 200 3B down pipe and 2.5” fittings to connect to my Stebro exhaust. It’s clamped together for now, but I do plan to come back later and weld everything in.

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[jbrentd]

So, I have been attempting to DIY refurbish the driver's seat. It's pretty cracked and has a couple of holes from normal wear. This is after some filler, but before I applied new leather dye.

This is after I applied a couple coats of leather dye. I still need to apply a couple more coats, but I am having some troubles getting a good color match.

I've also been looking at different aftermarket options for seats and the only ones that I really liked were offerings from Recaro. I definitely did not want to spend that kind of money on new ones and used grey leather Recaros don't show up for sale very often.

Having owned my dad's C4 corvette for a bit now, I have started to appreciate the seats it has and the availability of options for replacement foam/covers. After comparing measurements between the 2 sets and some searching on FB marketplace, I found this set of early C4 non-sport seats in grey. They aren't perfect, but useable and I have off-the-shelf options down the road if I want to refresh them. $250 for them seemed like a decent deal. As for mounting them, I have a set of Planted brackets that are made for the B3 chassis on order from Quattromog. From what I can tell, I might have to make a simple adapter plate to mount them to that. Shouldn't be too difficult. The color match looks better in person than in this picture.

 

[Pete82]

Recaros do still come up from time to time, just a pita that us spec cars are not just a 5 minute bolt in job unlike euro cars. Seats look good and they will be a good upgrade to stock seats.

 

[jbrentd]

Recaros do still come up from time to time, just a pita that us spec cars are not just a 5 minute bolt in job unlike euro cars. Seats look good and they will be a good upgrade to stock seats.
View attachment 136751

Those you have would be IDEAL!

Last weekend, I was able to get these mounted in the CQ. I think they’ll work pretty well.

They need a little adjusting on the Planted brackets and I’m not sure yet how I’m gonna attached the seat belt receivers yet since there’s a clearance issue with the B3 slider rail.

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[Pete82]

How have others got around the seat belt mounting issue?

I have thought about getting a pair of these brackets for some other recaro's I have but been looking to see what feedback people have.

 

[jbrentd]

How have others got around the seat belt mounting issue?

I have thought about getting a pair of these brackets for some other recaro's I have but been looking to see what feedback people have.

I was able to attach the stock seatbelt to that tab on the passenger side. Not sure if it helped, but I did smack it with a hammer a few times. I was prepared to notch the rail, if needed. Still have to do the drivers side.

 

[jbrentd]

So, a couple weeks ago I started to prep for firing it up by filling it up with fluids, checking the timing marks, hooking up the instrument cluster, etc. When I went to turn the key just to the accessories position to see if I was getting any power...I got nothing. It had been so long since I worked on the wiring, I forgot I never finished tying in all of the grounds.

Last time I worked on the wiring, I merged what was left of the 7A harness with the 3B harness, made the necessary connections and I left off with this. Even though all of the relays are connected, this wouldn't ultimately work because all of the wire looms are hanging down below and they need to be tucked up behind the relay panel.

So, I disconnected everything again and went for another try. Much better this time around. It's finally showing signs of life when I turn the key! So, swapped a couple relays and tricked the fuel pump to run to purge the air out of the lines. The system pressured up and I quickly found a good sized fuel leak on the line between the regulator and fuel rail. I was done for the weekend.

Fast forward to last weekend, I went to repair the fuel line. Having repaired another fuel line on this car, I figured this one might be similar. So, I cut out the section of braided line and replaced it with a new section of fuel injection hose and oetiker clamps.

After repairing the fuel line, I went back at trying to get it started. It was clear I wasn’t getting any fuel or spark, so I started doing some voltage/continuity checks. Something wasn’t right. After digging in a bit, I quickly realized I hadn’t finished a few more crucial electrical items…like putting in the fuses for the two ignition circuits. 🤦🏻‍♂️

That’s what happens when I pick up the wiring from where I left off over a year ago. After doing that, the thing started so smooth and idled very well.

So pumped right now. It’s been 3 years since I took it off the road.

 

[jbrentd]

One of the remaining items keeping me from a test drive is the brake master cylinder. It’s been on the car with the lines bled for a while, but it had a slow leak. I feared it was on the piston on this brand new MC, because I paid about $90 for it a couple years ago, but the only one’s available now are over $300 now. After bench bleeding it and letting it sit in my vice for a few days, I was able to confirm the source of a leak was at the rubber seals for the reservoir. So, I swapped the old ones on and it's been dry ever since. Let's hope it stays that way.

Was able to get some of the dash back together last weekend too.

And received this in the mail from Issam. I’m fearful my DIY drill/tap job on the stock extension is going to leak since there is very little sealing area on one side of the gasket.

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[jbrentd]

Happy to report the coupe appears to have working brakes and clutch. Got the master cylinder back on and it appears to be leak free. Also bled the system and was able to move the car at least a couple inches in the lift, to check for clutch engagement.

Put some Audi content on the shop wall too.

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[jbrentd]

Weekend recap…

Saturday was a big upgrade day for the coupe…installed a keyless entry with a switchblade key. lol

Added a keyless entry to the Audi CQ

youtube.com

Also pulled it out of the shop for a little vitamin D and quickly realized the alignment was really bad. It looks like I turned the wheel to pose for a picture, but the driver’s side wheel was perfectly straight.

Using crude front and rear measurements on the front tires told me there was a 3-3/16” difference. Adjusted the the tie rods and ended up within 1/16”. Should be good enough until I can get it to an alignment shop.

Since getting it back in the shop, it’s struggling to stay running. Pulled these with my VCDS.

00523 - Intake Air Sensor G42 - Open or Short to Positive
00513 - Engine Speed Sensor G28 - No Signal

I thought I recall that the 00513 code is one of that will pop up when the engine dies, but could be wrong. Any ideas on the 00523? Are there tests for the G42?


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[jbrentd]

I was able to confirm no continuity for the IAT sensor on the ECU plug. So, inspected the connection and found this. I think I have it soldered back. The code went away, but car is still struggling to run/idle.