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Leigh's '81 VH SL/X Project

gtrboyy

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Thanks Immortality for cleanup.

Dude should have left that 6cyl diff in there so you could blow mofo' up first big burnout...on a private & properly supervised track ;)
 

Leigh_G

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Dude should have left that 6cyl diff in there so you could blow mofo' up first big burnout...on a private & properly supervised track ;)

Yeh I definitely should've left the salisbury in there for now.. at least I would've had one less thing to worry about in terms of getting it moving under its own power.. Never mind, it's out now so it's go time, gotta make some phone calls and twist some arms for a VL borgy.. I'm pretty set on it due to the diff ratio - I reckon it's a perfect ratio for a stocker.

Speaking of salisbury diffs, how the f*$#! are you meant to get the handbrake cable off?? I pulled the drums off and unhooked the handbrake eyelets off the brake 'hooks', but there's no way to pull the eyelets out through the housing as the cable hole is tiny, and it's a one-piece cable from end to end.. I ended up just cutting the cable in frustration :cool:

So now I've got the engine loom back here and I'm planning out where things are gonna go like the BCM, fuse/relay box etc.. First step is deciding where to run the firewall grommet - I think Darren on here (with the Red VH) mentioned running it out above the passenger chassis rail (there's a small hole there already), so I've taken a pic of where I think I'll cut the hole (about 60mm diameter I think it'll need to be) - keen to hear feedback from you lads though!

vL5VUFol.jpg
t1VOR5rl.jpg
 

Leigh_G

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Trans is also off the 5L and the engine's mounted to the stand for a bit of a freshen up.. rocker covers, sump, inspection plate, engine mounts & throttle-body went for a nice bath and are all back from my mate's workshop, spick n span. The VS memcal is also off to get VATS disabled.

Bought new front and rear main seals but then decided I might not change the rear at the moment as the current one isn't leaking and I know as soon as I pull the crank out, I'll wanna do big bearings, then small bearings, then f*ck it I'll do the rings & head gasket, nek minnit it's a full rebuild and it's December...

A new set of welch plugs are on back-order and I think I'll grab a new water pump too.

I'm currently wrestling with the VS fuel lines and a pipe bender, but I may just bin them and keep the VH ones, as I've found a guy with a VK efi fuel line... which should bolt straight in.

Back to my brother's this weekend to get the tailshaft and brake booster/reservoir, and also the remaining loom and fusebox.
 
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Sandman

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Are you keeping AC? As if not, a lot of people including myself (plan to anyway) pull the loom through the big 60mmish hole there. Apparently rare spares do a grommet that fits which I why its what I plan on doing.
 

Leigh_G

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Are you keeping AC? As if not, a lot of people including myself (plan to anyway) pull the loom through the big 60mmish hole there. Apparently rare spares do a grommet that fits which I why its what I plan on doing.

I'd like to have A/C working, so I don't wanna mess with the factory firewall connections too much. I'll probably get her running without anything hooked up and then sort it out afterwards tho.

I noticed the VKs run the grommet out above the rail, and Darren confirmed that's where he did cut his loom through in his VH SS, so I reckon I'll just commit!

Good to know about the rare spares grommet tho - that's a great alternative
 

gtrboyy

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Use vk efi line or keep stocker vh line as return & make another feed line.Stato most likely similar to wagon anyway.

Last vk I did was efi 6 so only had bend lines up to sit beside booster.

I also put loom through top of trans tunnel/aircon overlow hose.....dummy fit passenger side extractor first because need to work out battery/starter cable route as it's all tight in that little section.

Driver's side tunnel needs tap near front part of pan/trans case.

keep trimatic shift just drill hole bigger to accept 4l60e adjuster bolt thing.

For efi loom grommet can slice through it with sharp blade then move it etc...later on super glue sliced part back together & tape up again.
 

Leigh_G

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For efi loom grommet can slice through it with sharp blade then move it etc...later on super glue sliced part back together & tape up again.

Thanks for the tips gtrboyy, very helpful!

What do I do with the engine loom as it enters the firewall up near the brake booster? I unclipped the ECU and the bits that run across the back of the bay and down passenger guard, but yeah the main loom that runs up the drivers guard from the fuse box goes thru the firewall and then splits off behind the dash/cluster.. just trying to figure out what to keep and what to ditch..
 

gtrboyy

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All my cars I've dissected the looms then hidden everything....90's streetmachine influenced.

Silly amount of hours all for nice & neat looking engine bay....don't do it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Customer's cars were different story I'd use or extend 6cyl engine harness for tach,starter,water temp,oil pressure etc then use old coil wire as acessory to efi engine loom basically set it up as is from donor car.

If they're that strict over there set it all up like vs donor car like relays + main fuses on vn-s strut tower bracket...source vl-vp overflow/washer bottle for tower.

Then overlay 6cyl engine harness with vs efi engine harness...luckily for you vs efi plug is near booster just like original 6cyl harness...can either shorten then match it all up or re-route to meet up behind driver's headlight (just to get it started,even get rego'd that way but does look cluttered)

You'll need everything in there before can heads or tails of it then overlay both harness...I'll tell you what to hotwire to make it start then you can neaten it afterwards.
 

Leigh_G

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Sheesh, 10 days has passed already!
Some more bits n pieces ticked off, kframe painted up looking schmick.
Battery tray removed, the steel underneath was excellent, no rust, which is great news.
Sorted some missing bolts for my boot battery mount too.

Honestly lately I've mostly just been flogging stuff off the donor to get rid of it soon - it's pretty much picked clean now and I've made a couple hundred back over what I paid for it, so that's a nice bonus.
I've also met a couple of great blokes who've helped out with advice, leads on parts and one bloke sent me pics of his recent EFI VH setup

Excellent diagrams there gtrboyy, I'd already stumbled upon them in my travels, but it's great to have them all here for reference so thank you, my collection of links and data is getting huge lol!

Got a hole saw for the loom and will be chopping the firewall tomorrow for the grommet.

Been taking pics along the way so I'll upload a batch asap
 
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