RX3UTE rebirth - throwback thing build

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Finished off setting up the coilovers today. Popped them in, dropped it down and hey presto!! Perfect.

 

has 50mm of droop and compression with 55mm between the diff and chassis. Just need to finish the final weld in and the sort bump stops.

 

planning to mount a bracket off the side of the chassis for the bumps too to bolt to. 
 

not overly low, but I can’t go lower if I still want to steer.
 

forgot to take a pic of the shocks in there, my bad. 

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Decided that I wasn’t happy with how the deck was finished off.

so I redid it, ALL!!

new plan is to not use the mid hump, and stuff the fuel tank below the deck and run full length boards.

with a straight edge laid down it was apparent that the Coilover bar was about 10mm too high to just lay boards down.

so I’ll make a frame for the boards to sit on to lift them up for clearance. 
 

this will be bolted to the wellside framing, so will help strengthen it up too.

i moved 2 bars, one went back 60mm and the other went forward to just behind the diff. 
 

I cut out one of the deck cross rails and modified it fit the tank to sit in there.

perfect..

 

next step is making up the tank mounts and the remaining welds to finish. 
 

I’ve made up 2 end caps for the tubs, this will fill these in, I added in a bead roll and stepped the bottom edge to stiffen it up. Came up good.

these will be the last thing to be done once all of the welding has been done.

coming out good so far

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Questioning up other options on wheel choices. (The MS-01s were secretly destined for a long term goal). 

id like to go down to a set of 15s.

15x7 in the front and 15x8 in the back.

the choice is either black or chrome.

I’m swayed more towards chrome, it’s nostalgic for me.

thoughts?

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So this is where I’m at with the back end of the ute now.

fuel cell has been mounted below the deck on a cradle that bolts up from underneath. 
a fuel pump will be mounted to the side of the frame and a alloy bash plate /tank protector folded up and screwed to the cradle.

just have a couple of things to finish off under here before the flooring can go back in.  
 

I noticed that I tacked in one of the tub cabs back to front so that needs to be changed ffs. 
 

I pulled the seats out of it today, need to paint the doubler plates and take photos of the sheet metal etc before they go back in. 

while the seats are out I stripped them right down and will put the tan covers onto a black set I have, cos the passengers seat is full electric not just e- slider , I’ll also wire up the heated seat pads (uppers only). Cos why not. 

 

I also figured out how I will do the front driveshaft hoop, it will mount from the chassis not the cab. I’ll get this done when the exhaust is redone. 
 

then I got sidetracked and started looking at the bag stuff on the 2nd chassis. 
should really sell this one to “declutter”. 

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With moving out of the shop and starting the new job, I’ve made the tough decision to send the ute away

So long….

 

 

to Sprint RE..

gave them quite the list of things I’d like to have done, along with a few of Jason’s own ideas. 
 

that will give me a much shorter list of things to do before cert, like washer bottle hose, wiper wiring, new brake discs, wheel alignment, 15s and bumper mount brackets to the chassis. 

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Found the no run issue.

coolant seal failure , caused by minimal to none existent sealing around the J port/devcon fill area.

everything is coated in a grimey rust.

one of the oil control rings were stuck so most likely pumping oil into the housing too. 
 

Jason and I came up with a game plan.

acid dip the lot, clean everything out and inspect side seal clearances, apex groove clearances, fill the water jacket within the housing, machine in a o ring groove into the housing.

paint the plates and housings, reassemble and looking frickin sick. 
 

all bearings, plate surfaces, e shaft and housings are in great condition apart from the rusty sludge.

 

im glad it never ran, it probably saved it.

 

will likely ditch the new apex seals for Mazda seals if the groove tolerance is too high. 
 

it’s in safe hands now though. Won’t be cheap, but will be much better

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I’m going to just leave this here

 

as @RUNAMUCK would say, pissing cheese

 

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Photoless updates are pointless *sigh*
 

but she’s been at SprintRE for the last 8 weeks.

the new engine looks epic, and is ready to fire up. 
stopped by today to catch up with them.

exhaust is complete and looks so damn good.

 

looking forward to hearing it on Friday .

had many curveballs get thrown around so far, mainly with the faulty Wilwood master and the fact that StealthRide don’t seem to acknowledge emails or follow up with warranty stuff. Wankers

 

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Still no new pics.

but it runs!!

then the box got pulled out to be resealed as it was leaking from the split case joints. Doing shaft seals while theyr at it.

internals looked good.

wilwood master was sent to sterling to be sorted out. Stealth ride have been absolute homos and not even offer warranty at all. 
 

but now the brakes have pressure!!

fuel tank now has a rollover valve thing located inside the wellside side panel. 
 

not much left to do now.

 

handbrake cable will be shipped out next week, then the box will go back in.

ive ordered 15x6 rims for the front cos for some reason the drivers wheel sits at -0.3 degree of camber while the passengers is -1.5 degrees with no shims. The drivers wheel pokes by 15mm more than the left. 

very odd, so well fit a +3p 15x6 to help this. 
 

once all of that is done it will get a wheel alignment and get road tuned. 
 

then it’ll come home to get the deck floor finished off before cert. 
 

 

soooooo close now

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Got the call yesterday that the ute will be ready for pick up on Friday, woo hoo. Finally. Just over 4 months she’s been gone. Time flies.

in that time it’s had the following work carried out:

engine rebuild with machined o ring housings

carb rebuild

dizzy rebuild

gearbox strip and reseal

rear caliper rebuild

handbrake cable manufacture

fuel system work (level sender mod, tank finishing), tank breather/rollover valve.

all new ball joints and tie rod ends etc

new rotors and pads 

custom hub centric spacers

new wheels/tyres

brake master rebuild (cos stealth ride are  cocks)

diff rebuild

bump stops 

full exhaust system

electronic speedo sensor install and haltec calibration

Wheel alignment 

 

once it’s back I will need to finish off the flooring in the deck do the pre cert wof check and a couple of small things like new windscreen washer hose. 
looking forward to the day I pick it up all legal. 

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She’s back home!!!!!

16 weeks of tidying up loose ends, rebuilding the entire driveline and making some things a little betterer.

even got to take it out to Awhitu for a drive.

holy heck, it drives so nice with the 4 link and coilovers. And comfy

its happy place at cruising is around 3000rpm in 4th @80kph. Haven’t got near a 100km zone yet.

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Sorted out the last of the little jobs to finish off.

wipers - check

washers - check

swap brake and tail light feed - check

only things to do now is the bumper brackets (finally found them).

and decking. 
 

so I decided to run the gauntlet and drive to Hampton Downs, passed atleast 6 cops just along Mercer-meremere.

it drives so damn good. Smoothest ride and the 12a just hummmms along at 3000rpm @100kph.

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Be rude not to really

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Ride height can come down a bit

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Finished off the rear floor panel. Finally.

i decided to just panel it like the rest of the inner panels rather than a timber floor.

added in a boat hatch to access the fuel cell. I can also sit the premix and measuring cup in there which is a bonus. 

who knows, i may end up putting a raised flat floor in it one day if I ever decide to use it as a ute/wheelbarrow.

 

 

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I need to pick up my battery tomorrow so I can finish the front panel.

then it’s booked for a pre cert wof on Wednesday. Only thing I can see it being pulled up on other than the cert stuff, is the brake performance.

 

if it is actually terrible, I’ll just go back to a stock booster set up.

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Pre cert wof complete.

bit annoyed tbh as the non cert things it failed on should have been done at Sprint after they replaced the steering components and brakes. The master cylinder bolt is my main concern as it’s not the same bolt that I had in there. It now has one that’s not long enough and no nyloc/locking device.
 

i do have to dig out the id plate, can’t remember where i put it in the shed. 
 

It’s all easy small things to tick off though which is good. 

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Forgot to add pics of the fuel hatch set up.

so inside I plan to 3d print an insert that sits on top of the tank, this will hold a few 50ml shots of oil for premix. Should be able to put atleast 2 full tank fills worth in there. Maybe more.

ideally I don’t want to have the oil and measuring cup in behind the seats. 
 

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Managed to borrow a RX3 upper console for mocking up .

the upper section fits perfect however it’s too wide to use without the lower section.

 

and because I can’t design and print anything to save myself, I decided to design a console that replicates the RX3 unit. 
 

Made it out of balsa at the moment but will be filled, sanded and internally braced before being covered. 
 

quite like how it’s turned out so far.

 

thinking of moving the can pad down into the upper panel and putting in a double din CarPlay unit.