Back on all Fours

Well it has been a rather productive Sunday as I managed to tick a few things of those 'tiny yet painfully time consuming' things off the todo list.

First task was to shave a mounting point off the front of the block to allow more room for the exhaust downpipe. Two dremel cutting discs, a 70mm grinding wheel and some hand filing later the job was done.

Next task was to re-install the engine which is quite a lengthy, yet straight forward, affair.

As something I had been wondering about for a while now, I flipped the stock transmission-mounted clutch hose bracket and it looks like it will work perfectly for how I plan to route the clutch hose. I was very happy to find this out as the less custom bracketry I have to measure/design/explain/pay for the better.

In the image below you can see the reinforcments that were added to the sides of the left hand torque rod engine bracket. Don't mind the shoddy paint job as it is just to keep the rust away - everything will be stripped and professionally finished once everything is completed.

Next up are a couple of pics showing the alternator belt clearance and the modified ('plastic welded') timing belt cover. Once the covers are painted completely black the modified area should look factory original 

This last image shows how the stock manifold bolts up. It clears the alternator by miles but the downpipe angle isn't ideal. I have been told that although a little tight, a custom 2-1 downpipe will be no problems.

I finished the day by putting the cruddy old 4x120 knuckles (complete with shot bearings) and suspension in from HODA (who now has the new shocks, 4x100 knuckles and camber plates - hardly a fair trade) and fitting some 'jellybean' alloys on the front. I'll be putting the other two alloys on the back just for kicks as well

What's next? The alternator belt tensioning bracket (which you may have noticed was missing from the above photos) and probably the shift linkages.