My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed Nov 11, 2015 11:01 pm

Who did you use to source the stainless lines from? I definitely think that's the route for running the lines inside the car. I've tried probably 6 times to bend just a small section of piping and I keep fucking it up. hahaa I'll try more later this week but I'm definately looking to order some lines to get this done.

jdm86gtz
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 307
Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2013 10:13 pm
Location: Ireland

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby jdm86gtz » Thu Nov 12, 2015 2:41 pm

It's AN-3 hose and Goodridge connections, I got them from a local rally parts shop.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Fri Nov 13, 2015 1:23 am

Thanks, I'll probably order them online. I can't decide if I want to mount the proportioning valve and then measure the length of the lines I need for each one or just order a spool of it and fittings and just make them all. Either way, after countless tries I finally bent the small amount of hardline and flared the ends with the fittings on it properly. Huge pain in the wiener.
Here's the double flare for the clutch master:
Image

Hardline bent to shape:
Image

This is the completed piece with the -3 AN fitting installed:
Image

Installed to the master and bulkhead fitting:
Image

I also put these adapters on the proportioning valve to convert the connections to -3 AN:
Image

Tomorrow I'm hoping to get the bulkhead fittings for the brake master installed and maybe some hard lines bent. We'll see.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Nov 22, 2015 3:43 pm

Made a little more progress over the week. Nothing major. Proportioning valve is bolted to the firewall, the bulkhead fittings are mounted to the firewall and brake lines are bent for the master cylinder.
Image
Image
Image

I'm about to buy the battle garage haltech ECU with patch harness and then be broke for a while but I feel like it is the last piece to the puzzle here. Short and sweet update.

trigun402
Club4AG Enthusiast
Posts: 98
Joined: Thu Dec 12, 2013 5:53 pm
Location: Nebraska

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby trigun402 » Thu Dec 17, 2015 6:26 pm

Need to see more. It's looking good.

Elvin Wes
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 305
Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2013 6:24 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby Elvin Wes » Mon Jan 04, 2016 7:58 am

Interesting to see the proportioning valve on the opposite side of the firewall, not that it matters where it really goes.
Big up for being different. :D

YellowZenki
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 6:37 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby YellowZenki » Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:03 am

Any progress over the new year? I'll be following yours, in the process of mine as well

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed Jan 13, 2016 7:17 pm

Thanks guys, the proportioning valve is just inside so I can make the bay as clean as possible. I have just been collecting parts mostly. The key part that I now have on hand is the Haltech sprint ecu from BGRS, so now that I have it, I am trying to finish what I'd need to get the motor in. The only thing I don't have yet is the fuel system fittings and such figured out but I just ordered everything I think I need for it. I also need to research how to wire the COPs up to the Haltech but I don't believe that that is going to be difficult, I just have to figure out which COPs I bought a few years ago. I would expect a big update sometime next week when I get all the fuel fittings and hoses I ordered from Summitt racing! I did wire up my bumper lights recently for a blinking fender light and now I think I'm going to switch them to the Japenese OE design where the clear lens lights up when the signal is on. I wrote a write up on it in the DIY section you can check out.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sat Jan 16, 2016 7:20 pm

Made a little bit of progress over the last post. A lot of little things but I'll try to cover it all. Most recently, I received these parts:
Image

10 Ft of Russell proclassic 2 nylon braided fuel hose
Assorted -6 AN fittings for the fuel line connections
A Russell in-line fuel filter
And Haltech ECU with Patch harness from BGRS

Before I could cut the fuel lines to size I had to drop the motor in temporarily.
Image

Turns out my fuel lines are 5/16, not 3/8 so I had to order two other fittings that should be here wednesday. I'm planning on going from the tank, through the factory hard line to an inline fuel filter. From the fuel filter, I'm going to the fuel rail through a banjo bolt, out of the fuel rail to the Tomei FPR, then finally back to the factory return line to the tank. The fittings I need are compression fittings that will convert the hard lines to -6 AN. Since I don't have those, I can't make 2 of the 3 lines but I did get the line from the fuel rail to the FPR done.
Image

Here's the right angle fitting I used with the fuel rail adapter:
Image

I temp mounted the FPR where I wanted it on the firewall:
Image

Once those fittings come in I'll be finishing up the fuel connections and then hopefully getting the motor back in the car and the wires re ran for the different plugs I want to move. I also just finished wiring my clear lenses up to come on whenever the turn signals flash. It's part of the write up I did in the DIY forum if you're interested in how to do it.
To prevent my shift boot from sliding down away from the JSP shift knob, I notched the shift lever and then put a locking clip on it.

Hopefully another update wednesday night!
Last edited by shagymc on Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.

YellowZenki
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2016 6:37 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby YellowZenki » Sat Jan 16, 2016 8:14 pm

Nice progress man! Good call on the c clip! I'm defiantly gonna have to steal that idea.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Mon Jan 25, 2016 9:12 pm

So I got some more fittings in today from summit racing. This is the female to female -3AN for the clutch line to the bulkhead fitting. Image

Also got my 1/4 compression fitting for the return line to the tank. I now have all fuel hoses made and ran to the appropriate places. You can kind of see the tank vent that I put a breather valve on. The tank will still be vented but it will prevent gas from leaking out if there's a rollover however unlikely.
Image

Here's the FPR temp mounted on the firewall again. I can't tell if I want it angled so I can read the fuel pressure on the gauge or if I want it straight so it looks proper. I wish these Tomei FPRs had more mounting options or I could swap the inlet and the gauge.
Image

Other things done are I have the fan relay and wideband O2 wired up to the Haltech so once I get everything buttoned up, I should be able to finally fire the 20v back up. In a complete act of randomness I ripped the dash out and removed the 3 gauges from where I had them. I intend on filling those holes again and then reupholstering the dash. I think I'm going to put the gauges in the glovebox and then flock the whole thing but I'm still just brainstorming that. Fittings have taken most of my money though so the funds need to build back up

jdm86gtz
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 307
Joined: Fri Jan 11, 2013 10:13 pm
Location: Ireland

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby jdm86gtz » Tue Jan 26, 2016 1:43 pm

The fuel feed hard pipe is 8mm or 5/16" and the return hard pipe is 7mm or whatever that is in imperial nonsense :lol:
That's on efi equipped AE86s anyway

Edit oh I guess the 1/4 fitting you used that I didn't bother reading worked ok. :oops:

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed Jan 27, 2016 7:46 pm

Yea, I learned how not to be an idiot when it came to ordering fittings the hard way. Everything is looking good now, I just need to get the motor back on the stand and then make sure everything is torqued up and then I'll be trying to get it in the car and actually running. I'm hoping that this can happen over the weekend but time will tell.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Mon Feb 01, 2016 8:27 pm

Got the motor in the car finally! It looks great too!
Image

You can see the FPR mounted on the firewall and vacuum line ran. The fuel lines are also ran and hooked up again. The FPR bracket had to be modified to make the gauge facing forward under the ITB.
Image
Image

Don't mind the holes in the firewall, I'm getting all of the unused holes filled when the car is painted in spring. I eyeballed the FPR mount without the motor being in and you can see I did an aweful job of it haa. Looks better now. Tonight, I also pulled the tweaked engine harness through the firewall and I'm separating it so that the plugs can be re ran to where I've relocated the igniter and coil as well as the dizzy plug to the back of the motor. Image

I'm waiting on a base map from BGRS. I bought some crap windows laptop on the cheap for the Haltech software too. Hoping this things running by the weekend!!!
Last edited by shagymc on Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Thu Feb 04, 2016 8:30 pm

Tonight I kind of just started working on random wiring tasks in preperation for getting the car started. I needed to get the Ignitor and coil mounted somewhere, the MAF sensor somewhere, run the sensor wires for the gauges, and just make sure everything is as clean as can be.
My sensor wires were run through the grommets and just kind of chilling on the floor so since I decided to put the gauges in the glove box instead of on the dash I zippy tied a lot and then labeled each plug for future reference. Tape and a sharpie can cut so much time off of wiring if you label everything from the get go.

After the wires were tied up together I had a lot of excess so I had to tuck it as well as the factory narrowband O2 sensor plug and the extra wire from the dizzy plug. What I have now is a bundle of those together and then the actual twerked harness. When everything is ran to where it needs to go I'm going to try and C clamp the bundles to the firewall or somewhere clean and as out of sight as possible. Also, you can see the engine bay fuse box and driver kick fuse boxes are in their new locations too.
Image

My Ignitor and coil found a new home on the corner of my relay and fuse panel behind the radio and climate control panel. It fit almost to perfect. Everything is really cleaning up, though, I think I need to ground the bracket they're mounted to.
Image

This is the tweaked harness with the oil pressure and temp sensor wires ran with it. I used a lot of zip ties for this tonight.
Image
Image

And finally, finished the ALT wiring.
Image

Overall, made some decent progress tonight. Tomorrow night I'm going to get power, gnd, and parking light to the glove box area for the 3 gauges. I have a base map from BGRS as well so once my Mishimoto coolant hoses show up and I can put some coolant in the radiator, we're good.
Last edited by shagymc on Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
grappletech
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 344
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2013 12:13 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby grappletech » Tue Feb 09, 2016 6:29 pm

looking good!
87 GTS Coupe stock and Super Duper Clean
87 GTS Coupe Beams 3sge (under construction cuz I'm slow and lazy and broke-FML)
87 SR5 Coupe Shell. (Sold)
86 SR5 Hatch Shell
86 GT-SR5 Coupe 20v Swap

User avatar
grappletech
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 344
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2013 12:13 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby grappletech » Tue Feb 09, 2016 6:30 pm

looking good!
87 GTS Coupe stock and Super Duper Clean
87 GTS Coupe Beams 3sge (under construction cuz I'm slow and lazy and broke-FML)
87 SR5 Coupe Shell. (Sold)
86 SR5 Hatch Shell
86 GT-SR5 Coupe 20v Swap

User avatar
grappletech
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 344
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2013 12:13 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby grappletech » Tue Feb 09, 2016 6:30 pm

looking good!
87 GTS Coupe stock and Super Duper Clean
87 GTS Coupe Beams 3sge (under construction cuz I'm slow and lazy and broke-FML)
87 SR5 Coupe Shell. (Sold)
86 SR5 Hatch Shell
86 GT-SR5 Coupe 20v Swap

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed Feb 17, 2016 7:58 pm

Thanks Grapple!
The coolant hoses are done and mounted and the system is filled. Per the install guide, I tried to sync the timing of the car with the Haltech. I couldn't get a consistent spark when cranking and I thought maybe it was a weak signal or a shitty timing light. I got it to what I thought was close to 20 BTDC. Then, after double and triple checking all connections, I gave it a turn and all she did was crank. I tried a few times, checked my fuel pressure, checked all my connections again, and still nothing but cranking. So I pulled the #1 plug and and tested the spark. Erratic is the best way to describe it. So I proceeded down the list per the service manual of what to check.
I disconnected the coil to dizzy wire at the dizzy and then checked spark to ground. Again, weak and erratic.
I checked the coil for IGN. Good
I checked the signal generator pin resistance. Good
I checked for continuity from plugs to ecu plug. All were good.
I checked resistances for all spark plug cables. All good.
I was stumped. I didn't know what else to check, so I emailed BGRS and they said to try the stock ecu. The following night, I plugged it up and tried to start and she fired right up. It was such a great feeling because this motor re build put me way out of my comfort zone but I learned more about the car then I have in the past 5 years.
Fuel pressure was solid at about 30, so I raised it to 40. No leaks. She's running really rich since I don't have the factory O2 plugged in. I didn't run it for long. Grant is checking the base map for issues and I'm eagerly awaiting getting it fired up on the Haltech. I also, finished wiring up the gauges and they were reading good when she was running. I'll have more pictures this weekend of everything up to this point.
Last edited by shagymc on Wed Feb 17, 2016 8:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Mar 06, 2016 6:26 pm

Well we (Grant and I) found that the reason that we weren't getting it to turn over was the tooth angle and offset. It takes a few tries for it to start but I think that is just a tuning issue. I'm also getting a consistent 12.1 AFR which is pretty rich so I definitely need to get my map tuned properly. I've been corresponding back and forth with BGRS about it and they're customer service is amazing. The Haltech software allows me to record clips of what is going on and then email them over, where they can analyze what's happening with all the inputs to the ecu.
I cleaned up some bumper light wiring in the interim too. Just really the hack job that was done by PO.

I hated the backplate on my fan so I flipped it and added some tor parts sticker love to it:
Image

There was a lot of confusion on which markings on the T3 crank pulley to use. There's a half moon notch and a V notch. Since noone gave me a straight answer, I took the timing belt cover off and set it for top dead center. Found the Half Moon shape was the one I needed to use. This was important for syncing the Haltech timing with the actual timing. Here's a video of what it looked like after locking the timing and adjusting for 20 degrees BTDC.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ndW70772Iw

Once that was set up, I checked most of the sensor inputs. I need to re-calibrate the temp sensor because it doesn't lineup with my innovate water temp gauge at all. The rest might need tweaked but everything was working. Here's a video of her running, a shot of the FPR on the firewall and then some revs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAvUb7Pbwd4

Now I need to save some money up and research the connections I need to finish the brake and clutch lines then looking forward to paint in spring!
Last edited by shagymc on Sun Oct 29, 2017 11:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Thu Mar 10, 2016 10:21 pm

Brake parts came in today and my god is this stuff expensive! I don't have everything but It'll get me close. I got 50 ft of stainless braided hose and assorted fittings and adapters that I thought I'd need to get this done.
Image

The brake and clutch master cylinders had m10 to -3AN adapters put in then right angle fittings to the hose. I chopped my fingers up pretty good putting the hose ends on but I like them way better than the hardline install I tried earlier.
Image
Image

From there, I ran into the factory grommet and then with the wire bundles over to the proportioning valve that is bolted up behind the glove box. The bulk head fitting down to the left goes out to the clutch slave stainless line. The major harness bundles will be in front of the valve and both are high enough I don't think that they'll get kicked or anything.
Image
Image

Tomorrow I'm going to look and see how I can run the two front brake wires from the prop valve and also the line out to the rear hardline. That'll finish up the brake and clutch systems once that's done!

notnilc20
Club4AG Pro
Posts: 575
Joined: Sun Dec 27, 2015 7:56 pm
Location: Memphis

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby notnilc20 » Fri Mar 11, 2016 8:12 am

very nice indeed. :)

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Mar 13, 2016 8:19 pm

I gotta give credit where credit is due: JDM86GTZ was spot on in going with the stainless braided lines earlier in this build. This has been an easy and gratifying project after switching to braided hose instead of hardline. I couldn't sleep last night so I finished up the rest of the lines with the exception of the rear brake hard line. I'm waiting on a few more parts that were on back order. Since the bay needs to be shaved, I went into the wheel well through the cabin and then put a rubber grommet in to protect the hose.
Driver side:
Image

Passenger side:
Image

And here's the prop valve with everything hooked up:
Image

mashi2choco

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby mashi2choco » Fri Mar 18, 2016 10:39 am

Damn your craftsmanship is good.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Mar 27, 2016 8:07 pm

Thanks for the words man!
Last edited by shagymc on Mon Mar 28, 2016 7:43 am, edited 3 times in total.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Mar 27, 2016 8:07 pm

Well the compression fitting I got for 3/16" line turned out to not be for hard pipe so I had to brake out my 37 degree flaring tool and put on a tube nut and sleeve for -3 AN. It was kind of a pain working under the car but I got it.
Image

I had to get a male end on the other side of the hard line so I installed a -3 AN male to male union then cut a hose to length and installed the right angle and straight end fittings.Then I just connected the proportioning valve to the rear hard line.
Image
Image

You can kind of see the line running above the fuel line in that last pic. From there I bolted the T3 booster delete up (before it was just temporarily mounted). I had to drop the steering column to get to the bolts easier too.
Image
Image

After that I bolted the master up and then filled and bled the system. I took the jack stands out and now she's sitting on all fours. I didn't take pictures but I also soldered new wires to the radiator fan that I'll be running to the fan relay again. There's a few rogue wires that I want to re run or replace but realistically I should be able to drive this week!

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sun Apr 10, 2016 7:14 pm

These past few weeks I finished wiring up the fan relay, fixed a leak in my clutch line and then fired this pig up for a test drive. Noticed some issues some minor, some a little less minor but it does drive and stop and all that. The brakes are interesting without the booster, but I think I'll grow to like them. The coolant temp sensor and air temp sensor need some minor calibration but that shouldn't be difficult. I do need to figure out why when I accelerate, the car will sometimes shudder like it's starved for fuel. I have a wideband and I'm going to get the car tuned soon so hopefully it's just a map issue. I want to make sure the map sensor is calibrated so if anyone has any suggestions that would be great. I reinstalled my carbon cooling cover and threw a couple stickers on it but I'm pretty sure I'm going to get rid of it. I'm also going to talk to apowder coater down here and se if I can get the T3 tri strut bar in all gloss black.
Image

I also started sueding the rest of the other panels that needed it on the driver side. Image

I also sent the dash out to an actual upholstery shop to get recovered. Since I'm putting the gauges in the glove box now, I need the holes covered and then I need to assemble the interior so I can make the panel. I'm thinking of having them angled at the driver and then also having a pocket for the coilover wrenches and the lug nut socket.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Sat Apr 23, 2016 10:34 pm

Pretty big weekend for me, I got my dash back from upholstery and it looks incredible. I paid a lot to get it done but it was worth every penny to me. I new there was going to have to be seams on it and I discussed in detail with the guy where the best place would be. I also wanted a triple stitch or french seam wherever it was going to be so that it looked good.
Image
Image
Image

I gave them the clock bezel to use for fitment when wrapping and it snaps in with effort but It wasn't meeting up with the clock very well. To solve this I had to space the clock out about an 1/8th of an inch. I used some small rubber grommets I had and it solved my issue.
Image
Image

I started bolting things up slowly so as not to knick the vinyl. I had to climb under the dash and re run a few wires, zip tie a few harnesses but she's coming together. The fitment is stellar.
Image
Image
Image
Image
Image

Tomorrow I'm hoping to get the few remaining connectors hooked up and then have the entire center console and glove box pieces back in. I'm contemplating flocking the driver underdash and the glovebox plastics but I'm not sure if I want to go that route yet.
Last edited by shagymc on Sun Apr 24, 2016 12:26 am, edited 1 time in total.

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed May 11, 2016 8:56 pm

Had some major updates the past few weeks. For starters, finished getting the center console and iPad dash as well as the glove box and plastics back in.
Image

I also finished sueding the top trim pieces for the headliner and the driver side B and C pillars. All I have left is to get the sun visors wrapped in suede for the headliner and plastics to be complete. I'm very happy with how it's turned out.
Image
Image

I bought some re-upholstered rear seats from a member in Jersey too. The flash makes them look grey but they're more of a dark charcoal color. They look great too!
Image
Image
Image

Once that was done, I finally had time to take it to the shop to get tuned. The numbers aren't very impressive but it is practically a stock BT 20V so I wasn't expecting much. What I did hope to gain was drivability and a smooth throttle response instead of the bogging I was getting whenever I opened up the throttle even a small amount. Here's the final numbers compared to stock. The dotted line is with the stock ECU. We saw great gains on both curves all the way up to 8200 RPM.
Image

Here's video of a couple of the WOT pulls:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k261X8QPro

The car feels amazing now all the way up, the difference between the stock ECU and Haltech is night and day. I also noticed that the boosterless brake set up wasn't bad at all. I thought I was going to hate it but I adjusted quickly and had no problems!
Next up is to bolt the seats back in, build the glove box panel for the gauges, and then figure out the door panels!

shagymc
Club4AG Expert
Posts: 353
Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2013 9:43 pm

Re: My recap and ongoing final stretch of building my Hatch

Postby shagymc » Wed May 18, 2016 6:31 pm

Spent much of this week trying to get the interior back together. This meant I had to get the gauges off the floor. After throwing around a bunch of ideas; including making a panel behind the glove box, mounting them in the glove box, or even redesigning the ac panel bezel to mold the gauges in there; I decided building a panel in the glove box was my favorite option. So I set to work cutting a small piece of wood and molding it to the edges of the glove box so it fit tight. Had to do a couple bondo sessions with sanding in between to get all the edges right.
Image
Image

I had to take the glove box in and out of the car a few times too to get it right but I made a line that looked straight then drilled my holes for the gauges. I also didn't want to have to remove the glove box every time I needed to access the ECU, so I ordered a USB mount and plugged the ECU USB in to it. The small hole on the bottom left is for that mount.
Image

Covered in suede:
Image

Threw it all in the glove box and then cut a square in the back to route the wires. While I was wiring up the gauges I also tucked the D/A converter and the RCAs for that so now the floor under the glove box is clear too. The end result is something I like a lot. If I want to see the gauges, I just pop the door open and then for any other times I can just close the glove box and the interior is clean and stock looking. There's also enough room for my coilover wrenches and lug nut socket.
Image
Image
Image

I know I've been putting it off , but the door panels are going to get made for sure. I have a pretty killer idea I think will work well I just need to try it out and see what happens. It will involve magnets though