It will not run that well on the last tune.

The cam degrees has also changed a fair bit. The LSJ has cams better suited to the supercharger.

It will be completely out of wack. Im sure it will idle fine since its dependent on the injector constant and that hasn't changed since your using the same injectors. But the timing and fueling will be a fair bit different.

Also remember if you hear ball bearings in a can sound back off ASAP!! That is your motor detonating.

yeah good point..i forgot about the cams! and yeah Ill be really easy on her. not only am I breaking in a clutch but Im relying on a proper tune so until I know things are good, Im going to take her easy. I just want to get her out of the garage soon and let her breath some fresh air since Spring!


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

well I think I figured out why my header and dp were not joining very well when fully tightened..i had the fastener fully down to the bottom of the threads but the springs were probably not doing any work...they were shot.
I bought new hardware to replace the 3.5" bolts and nut (not shown in the picture) at Lowes then went to Advanced Auto (first place near by) and bought some exhaust manifold springs (had to buy the stupid kit for $6 each). It all installed great.

I got the M8x1.25x30 allen bolts and they fit perfect. I did also have M8x1.25x25 which worked too, but I bought both sizes incase the longer ones were too long. With some threadlock and after cleaning out the head a little, they were a snug easy fit.

Header and dp done. Going to do the timing tomorrow (later lol) to verify the mark is as close as I can get it and we're set for the tune. I also have to get some brass fittings for the h/e. They are 1/2" but the ones I have are straight, I need 90's. The plastic fittings were supposed to be temporary and I think they have been the root cause of my leaks. So that can finally be fixed without running out of water and running my pump dry.

The oil pan seems to be leak free. The exhaust cam block off plate still leaks a tiny bit but Matts plate is on its way and hopefully I can seal it up good once and for all. Mine wasn't a bad job so maybe a thicker metal is the key.





Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Tuesday, October 15, 2013 12:43 AM

04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

I had that exact problem with my turbo manifold. I went with the exact Allen bolts that you have.
I love that polished s/c!

Don't you just hate the little things at the very end?!




Did you say my car looks slow??

Yeah its the little things that are keeping me from being able to move it from its hibernation spot since May lol.
I think the exhaust leak issue is resolved. I ran it for a few minutes off and on and it seemed to show no signs of smoke or anything coming out now.
Engine heats up fairly quickly (high idle) but it remains at 195 and doesn't seem to over heat. I didn't notice the header getting red hot this time, just really hot (as normal).
I should be able to resolve the exhaust cam block off plate leak tomorrow (later today). Matts plate looks identical to mine but it might be a slightly thicker sheet of aluminum. Mine seemed fine but perhaps its my gasket application that's bad...

The banjo bolt by the upper radiator hose on an LSJ bleeds or over flows to the 'option b' tank and back into the system. On our cars, the heat exchanger fluid and radiator are separate. This means I don't want coolant overflowing into my h/e set up. constantly removing fluid from one and filling the other is no bueno. I need to find a nozzle I can screw in (M10 bolt) that's like the L61 (M6 or M8) for that hose to the radiator overflow tank. Problem solved. Because just to run the car to test it I had an M10 bolt in that hole..it didn't like that and started to leak out pretty quickly through the threads....I was like (NOOOOOOO!!!!! another leak?!) then realized it was just that purge/pressure relief valve lol

My tuner said he'll try to come out tomorrow (today) after he's off work. So hopefully we can make some progress on how she runs. Currently it idles around 1200-1500 (was set to about 1100) and I have an odd ticking noise that seems like its coming from the upper engine area. Keep in mind i do have aftermarket ZZP valve springs..hopefully theres not an issue with how they were installed by the previous owner (i believe they were not used after installed in the head). I have a mechanics stethoscope that Ill use tomorrow to locate the noise.

I made a rough video of it starting up and running but photobucket has been giving me issues...lets see if it plays properly.
Ill make a much better video soon.

[video][/video]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edited Wednesday, October 16, 2013 10:42 PM

04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Oh and just a few more progress pics.

You can see the old and new springs for the exhaust bolts and the alen bolts in action.

Oh..and whats that I spot on my kitchen island?!








04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Brad would be proud LOL. Glad you're getting these small issues resolved. Can't wait to hear how tuning goes!



"In Oldskool we trust"

Use some Seafoam. You can use it to clear up vacuum lines, intake systems including throttle bodies, fuel systems including injectors, and oil components. Put it in your oil and it should free up your valve(s). That ticking is most likely a sticky valve.

The last thing anyone needs is a sticky valve jammed into a piston. >:o




Did you say my car looks slow??

yeah ill give it a shot. once its tuned and Im able to actually move the car in and out of the garage I can try to seafoam at least the crankcase and fix any of the oiled up parts that might be sticking. The engine sat for a long time and even though ive turned it over, I don't recall if the head I put on was rebuilt. I think it was with its original low mileage valves and cams, but new zzp springs. ive heard good and bad about seafoam but I think its dependent on where you actually pour it (vacuum, oil, etc).


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Well back in high school, my shop teacher showed me where and how to use it. There was a tick in the engine, sticky valve, and within a few minutes of it running it quit. Even on cold startups. Anyways, letting it sit don't do it any good either. Hope it helps bro.




Did you say my car looks slow??

Meth cleans the valves and intake ports too, just saying

As for seafoam, I ran it in my gas once, didn't really notice a difference. People say to run it in the crankcase but I gotta be honest, nothing goes in there but oil for me. Just my humble opinion and I know many will disagree but too bad



"In Oldskool we trust"

well we got the base tune on it. he's still going to tweak it tomorrow or this weekend when he has time.
I got all leaks fixed.
got the front wheels on.
Its still a bit lean with throttle and so we're going to wait to drive it right now. But man it sounds so good at idle. I do need to fix the butterfly in the Vortec tb because it surges with the hole. But we plugged it temporarily with tape just to get a feel and it idled PERFECT. She looks and sounds great.

Also, it is throwing this weird P0300 misfire code though. But according to the data logs in HPTuners, its flawless..nearly perfect actually. There are ZERO hiccups or signs in HPTuners that it has any issues.
I even double and triple checked the placement and timing of the trigger wheel. No vacuum leaks and the header/exhaust leaks appears to be gone now.

If anyone that's done an LSJ swap and messed with the P0300 misfire code, feel free to chime in. Like I said it basically flashes, then goes steady. Even if we clear it it'll come back pretty quick. But the data and the idle/revving shows zero signs theres a misfire. Its a phantom code...

Oh and the TPS code I was getting (P0122) was due to some broken wires from the original splice job (thank Austin! ) haha. But we spliced in new wiring and she's good on that bit now.


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

What plugs are you running?

Why haven't you driven the car yet? I don't understand.



FU Tuning

its leaning out when applying throttle for a short bit. we're going to take another stab at it after he's done some configuring since last night. I haven't heard from him today but he said he's going to get back to me soon (today, tomorrow'ish).

Im just stoked there seem to be no more leaks..plus I don't know how the clutch is going to handle yet..it feels light but that's comparing the GMPP upgrade clutch (stock for LNF I think) to a stage2+ 6 puck clutch that was a bit stiffer. Ive yet to engage the transmission. I might do that here in a bit. But I need to be careful with the axle's very slow leak as I don't run it dry. I don't think I can properly gauge the level of the transaxle fluid so ill just have to drain and see how much Ive lost.


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

okay..so we drove it last night for the first time. We got the idle and a/f's to a safe range to where we weren't leaning it out at all and just drove. the car isn't currently tuned for wot but it feels great. even the little bit of boost it hit it pulls pretty hard but theres still hesitation between low throttle and full wide open throttle. she handles very well and sounds awesome! I can definitely tell a difference between the motors and with that exhaust it sounds great. but...my tuner wont start tuning for performance and playing with fuel trims until we can figure out why Im getting a Phantom P0300 misfire. Based on the data in HPTuners, she's running perfect. She even drives pretty good just casual driving..not perfect but good for a good drivable tune (as stated, no romping on it or hard acceleration at this point).

we thought maybe my CKS cable I made was the culprit, its a much larger gauge wire than the original, its all I had at the time (or so I thought). Then we also noticed I was running it up the front by the radiator, resting on the alternator, and under the blower along the head down the back to the sensor.

last night I made a whole new wire with proper gauge to match (even yellow to yellow and dark blue to purple cause I didn't have purple). I got blisters on my finger I twisted so much wire lol. Now Ive run it up and around the engine bay and down to the sensor so theres no chance of interference. However, I erased the code and it came back after about 10-20 seconds of idling. it flashes then goes solid and stays on.

So I pulled my plugs and they just seem a little dark from lots of fuel but we're running it rich right now. I thought perhaps the gapping of the plugs might be causing it, but the suggested gap is so random depending on who you talk to and where you live I don't know whats best. I think they are the stock gap at about .033 or .034. They're the one step colder iridium NGKs. BK7REIX or whatever.

So just sitting idle the misfire comes on within seconds or less than a minute if you erase it. The cars data doesn't show a BLIP of misfire as we watched it like a hawk.

What do you guys think I could check? He isn't willing to do any further tuning until I can locate the culprit. He's worried if he starts getting more aggressive on the tune and there is something causing it it'll be in his hands because he 'ignored' the CEL. I don't blame him for that. But im stuck. Is it possible the CKS sensor wire is just too long? Maybe the CKS isn't hitting the trigger wheel properly? But then why is it reading absolutely perfect under idle and still tripping the P0300 random misfire code?


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

another thing to keep in mind is this is an LSJ now, not my L61. I don't have my intake plugged in yet, just open throttle body. So would not having a line to the vapor canister purge solenoid or whatever it is affect it? should the FPR have a vacuum line going to it like I did before or can I get rid of that line and just leave it vented? Then I can just run one to the boost gauge and im set without needing the "T".

I was reading that a vacuum leak could cause random misfire across all cylinders and trip the P0300 code. I do know that at idle according to my gauge its only at about -8 to -10. Shouldn't that be higher? (well..lower like -20)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Saturday, October 19, 2013 2:11 PM

04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

So what are your afr's at idle? And cruising?



FU Tuning

the AFRs look great. Between 14.5 - 15.4 or so like before. Even cruising it looks great. At WOT it might blip lean for a fraction of a second but it goes full or nearly full rich. Like I said though, we're only doing the drivability tune right now but the code is bothering him.

Also, I have a lot of noise (rattling) in my exhaust. There is a lot of debris in there from when the piston went and its in the cat and muffler I believe. Would debris in the cat or muffler cause a misfire code?


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

could a bad/clogged fuel filter cause a misfire like that? the car doesn't seem to hiccup or blip at all under a constant throttle..youd think fuel pressure issues would be noticeable. And I wouldn't think it would detect it that quick witin a minute or less at start up.

I pulled my plugs and they are good. gapped stock at .033.

I did notice though I just went to drive it up the street and back a few times, the idle AFRs are now 10.9 - 11.5 or so...so its idling richer now. But I think he put that tune back on last night before leaving so I could at least move it. but revving and holding a constant, they look good.


04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Your vac should be in the -17-24 range. But its the same as before so maybe its just your setup reading wonky. A vac leak could cause a misfire issue, so could being too rich, bad injectors, low fuel pressure and the list goes on lol.

Clogged cat can cause a misfire as well. Clean that stuff out!

problem with the exhaust is its all welded. from the dp/ball socket back the whole thing is solid. So Ill have to have an exhaust shop cut it and dump anything out or replace the resonator and muffler. Either way I opened it up a bit and there is still a rattle in there somewhere so it wont be cleaned out by blowing it out..its gotta be opened up

but yeah, my vac has never been proper according to my gauge. I think I even used a different mechanical gauge one time from AZ and it was identical..so the gauge is fine. I need to figure out if I should just run a line from the nipple on the intake manifold directly to the boost gauge/sensor and eliminate the line to the fuel pressure regulator, capping it or just leaving it to vent. I unplugged the vac line to the FPR and checked my boost gauge and it dropped the vac reading to like -3 or -5. Then plugging it in it goes back to -8/-9 again. But again, this is how that was on the L61 so no difference there.

All my fluids still seem good, I think I finally got the exhaust leak sound gone (tightened the ball socket bolts a little more..not much though), and I still don't have any leaks (oil, coolant, etc).
so..the tune and the phantom P0300 misfire are my current issues...and one wont happen until I figure out the other :/




04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Edited 3 time(s). Last edited Saturday, October 19, 2013 7:03 PM

04 Cav. 2dr. 5spd. My DD. 'Nuff said.

Def running way rich.

Id look at getting that closer to 14.7 during idle.

But looks good. I was skeptical to be honest so to see and hear it running...way to go!

You need the vacuum line on the fpr, it reduces pressure for idle. Being too rich can cause misfires. That may be why it happens at idle?



"In Oldskool we trust"