TDSAutoMag

In our last update the guys were pushing hard to have the car assembled for the upcoming Williams Industries International Race Meet. They were faced with a series of challenges which were absolutely necessary to execute. With the motor in place, that rounded out the easy work and the real challenges would now begin. The guys were now at a crucial stage in the build, where the fuel, brake, clutch and associated cylinder lines needed to be ran. The interior still required some fabrication and on the exterior a host of parts needed to be fitted. And along with this, they also had to get cracking on the wiring systems as several areas of monitoring will be necessary. All of which needed to be completed within a very narrow time window.

I made sure to be around to capture some of this content while the work was in progress. We’ll also be taking a look at some of the key pieces to the build that arrived.

 

For those who may be viewing this build for the first time, I’ve provided the link to the previous posts below:-

Sol’s EK9 Circuit Build… Introduction 

Sol’s EK9 Circuit Build… Part 1

Sol’s EK9 Circuit Build… Part 2

 

A look at the motor and gearbox assembly in place along with a few Skunk2 goodies; Ultra Series intake manifold and fuel rail with a 70mm throttle body…

Close up on the Hasport Performance motor mounts which have been fitted with an upgraded durometer bushing to minimize movement from the motor…

With the application in mind for this particular build and not wanting to leave any power on the table, Sol reached out to Advance Street Performance and had them provide a header suitable for the engine setup…

The work executed on the second portion of the header, with their 4-1 merge collector megaphone design was exceptional…

And thankfully I was able to grab these amazing shots before it was fitted to the car…

As a dedicated race car the use of a fuel cell was a given and when it was time to run the fuel lines the guys opted to do so internally. A close up of the -8 and -6 AN bulkhead in place for the feed and return lines respectively…

Stamp of approval from the guys over at Drag Cartel Industries…

With no intentions to run this build on the street, the AC compressor and power steering pump were removed and a K-Tuned EP3 idler pulley and short belt fitted…

To aid with the ease in fitment on the lower radiator hose, a K-Tuned swivel thermostat housing was chosen in favor over the OEM unit…

 

Meanwhile on the interior…

The guys were in the process of test fitting the pedal assembly and floor plate…

A block off plate was fabricated to cover a few holes in the tunnel and also served as a mounting guide for the K-Tuned race spec shifter cables…

A view of where the cables exit the firewall through the K-Tuned shifter grommet to the billet bracket and onto the shifter mechanism…

The guys wasted no time fitting the bay with the necessary components, starting with the WireWorx engine harness…

Next up was mounting the Speed Factory Racing tucked radiator and bolting on the custom made crash bar…

A quick look at the routing of the engine harness…

A view of how the radiator is mounted from the other side with the upper -16 AN line fitted to the K-Tuned upper coolant neck housing…

Another shot of this beauty…

With the timeline rapidly approaching the guys were busy both in the engine bay and the interior…

A first look at the Personal steering wheel with the AEM digital display and the custom composite dash test fitted…

After reviewing other display options, Sol went with a AEM CD-7 full color digital display. At the time it was a no brainer as the AEM CD-7 unit blew everyone out the water with their widely customizable display. Which was designed from the practicality of a racer’s standpoint to display the necessary feedback required at any given time. The dash also features a host of built in alerts, which will notify the driver at varying programmable levels, with each alert more significant to capture the driver’s attention. And with its CAN network connectivity, receiving and analyzing data is seamless.

An ASR billet aluminum steering spacer in an anodized black finish was selected and mated to the ididit Inc steering column though a quick release hub…

A view of the installed ididit Inc steering column with AEM dash mount and quick release hub…

Race prep in progress; a side shot of the interior showing the dash and steering column mounted in place with the K Tuned shifter assembly and Wilwood staging brake…

A look at the partially completed custom electrical system that will be used for the build…

A partial front end shot of the Speed Factory Racing radiator mounted in place along with the custom built crash bar…

Many of you who would have been following any of Sol’s previous builds, would be aware that he is very meticulous when it comes to fitment. With the car torn apart for paint Sol went ahead and made a huge OEM parts order for various seals, clips, mouldings and strips. This was to ensure once reassembled, there will be no fitment issues or botched appearance throughout the car…

Aside from the OEM special order, a few more items that were necessary to complete the build arrived…

The one piece Hardrace lower control arm that will be fitted to the EK9…

The use of hood pins were necessary as the factory hood latch and pull were removed…

There was absolutely no reason to retain the usage of the the factory headlights. Having come to this realization, a few goodies were purchased from Password JDM. Sol went with the headlight ram air duct and block off, bumper ducts, aero grille and to close out, he finished up with their cooling plate all of which were in a dry carbon finish…

A close up on the riveted tag, where the weave patten on the headlight duct is clearly visible…

A few angles on the ram air headlight duct…

Not finished in the carbon department a pair of Spoon style carbon mirrors were purchased…

Sol is currently in the process of building a few cars at the same time and decided to pick up not one but three of these wide angle rear view mirrors…

Back on the interior, it was time to start work on running the fuel lines…

As previously mentioned, Sol will be using a -8 feed line and a -6 return line for the fuel system. A teflon core AN hose was selected over the standard rubber nitrile stainless braided hose. This makes the hose not only lighter and more durable but also gives the option to run any fuel mixture desired…

The Aeromotive fuel cell and Radium Engineering fuel filter after they were plumbed…

In the bay, the lines are met at the bulk head and make their way through a Radium Engineering fuel pressure regulator…

After leaving the FPR, the fuel is fed into the Skunk2 Ultra composite rail. Sol went ahead and had the Drag Cartel Industries valve cover fitted with K-Tuned’s billet, oil cap and dip stick…

Here’s a better angle of the K-Tuned upper coolant neck housing…

A full view of the bay after the fuel and brake lines have been completed…

After tidying up the majority of the engine bay, the guys put some effort in getting the exterior to look the part…

Front end shot with the Password JDM carbon pieces fitted…

The carbon headlight and bumper ducts fitted…

A better look at the headlight duct which will be drafting air directly into the intake…

And likewise some close ups on the bumper duct which may very well be routed to aid with the cooling of the brakes…

As stated earlier in the post, Sol is very detail oriented when it comes to his builds. And even though the car wont see any street driving, to add that touch of a complete car Sol made sure to have the fender turn signal fitted…

Not going half way with this build Sol opted to swap out the glass in the doors for a much lighter polycarbonate alternative…

A built in window slider option was selected for the driver’s side…

In the rear he was able to add an option for the fuel cell filler with cap…

Similar to the front passenger side, the right rear quarter resembled an OEM spec version… 

A view of the rear windshield which was also changed to a polycarbonate unit; and a close up on the EK9 factory spoiler that will be used…

Having finished up the window install the guys checked it off the list and quickly moved onto something else…

A view of how the car sat while the the guys were fitting the remaining pieces to the puzzle…

Next up was to run the lines for the power steering setup that will be used for this build…

A look at how the -6 high pressure and -8 return AN lines were adapted to work with the OEM steering rack…

The goal in mind was to be able to retain power steering without putting any extra load on the motor. The particular system chosen comes from a Peugeot and was the easiest option available to be mated to the OEM steering rack. This unit checked all the boxes being extremely simple and reliable to boot, which is ideal for a race car. In no time the guys had it retrofitted and in perfect working order…

The power steering reservoir bottle and bracket that was fabricated to be mounted on the shock tower for easy access…

Not wanting to reuse much of anything aside from the body, Sol went with a K-Tuned throttle cable…

Side view of the bay as it started to take shape and neared completion…

 

I’ll leave you guys with one final shot to close out today’s update on Sol’s EK9 Circuit build. I hope you guys are enjoying this build series and stay tuned for more to come…