1988 XR4ti Family Project (Problem building boost 6/29)

[DPDISXR4Ti]

At least in your case Ian, you could just spin it around 180 degrees and call it done. Andrew has gone and made a custom inlet tube that will only work with the VAM plumbed backwards!

[aaul00]

Ahhhh well I'm back at college again (last week was spring break) but I talked to Dad and well... we're both feeling kinda dumb right about now haha. And as far as the custom stuff goes, you're right. It's not going to be a simple flip for us. That said, he's going to work on it tonight and get that flipped around. I'll post back up as to whether or not that fixes it.

And we both know which way it should go, it's just one of those cases that we put it in and probably never would have thought about it again. I'm glad I posted pics... another set of eyes made that mistake obvious really quickly.

[whitelx]

You should have enough room on the pipe that you can just cut the flange off and use a silicone coupler to attach the VAM. You may need to make new brackets, but it should be a fairly easy fix.

[aaul00]

You should have enough room on the pipe that you can just cut the flange off and use a silicone coupler to attach the VAM. You may need to make new brackets, but it should be a fairly easy fix.

Sounds just like our discussion on the phone. We'll see how it plays out tonight.

[Ray]

Out of curiosity, did you use brake line for the vacuum line for the bypass valve (and painted it)? that looks frickin amazing.

[aaul00]

Out of curiosity, did you use brake line for the vacuum line for the bypass valve (and painted it)? that looks frickin amazing.

Yep, that's it. A few minutes of bending and then powdercoated to match the piping/valve cover. That's one of the perks of Dad doing powdercoating as a hobby/side business. We wanted to keep the length of the line to a minimum so it was a solution that allowed us to go pretty much straight to the intake without it looking crappy.

Thanks, I'm glad you like it!

[aaul00]

Just got off the phone... Flipped the VAM and It fired right up!

Thanks guys for the quick responses in all this. Looks like the car will be towed to Street Lethal Performance on Thursday. They ordered the chip for it today, and we should be set to go (mechanically).

[aaul00]

More progress!

So the car came back from Street Lethal Performance last Monday after being tuned. They didn't have any issues with the car at all. They tuned it back to about 15-16lbs of boost. When all was said and done, the car made 174whp and 245ft.lbs of torque. Most importantly, it runs well

Since the car returned, the cossie headlights were installed (they burn with the brightness of 1,000 suns), the hatch was switched over (I want the bi-wing), and a short shifter was installed. I had the chance to drive it for the first time today since the accident and a few things were noted:

1. It runs significantly better than before.
2. That BPV is louder than I expected... nifty!
3. The short throw kit from BAT is incredible.

Here's a link to a video from today so you guys can take a peek for yourselves. It should be going to my uncle's for paint in the next few days or so.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX8dpj8EbHk

[xr super n00b]

looking good man. i hope to see you at carlisle. im trying to get my car done by then but theres a lot to do to it still.

[aaul00]

It's all done! I'll just leave some pictures here... see you guys at Carlisle!

[merkurdriver]

Looked great at Carlisle, well done!

[aaul00]

Thanks Mike! Unfortunately I wasn't able to get around to stopping by to say hello this weekend. Weather and our rooming situation (among other things) kind of kept my hotel socialization to a minimum. Better luck next year. Thanks again

[aaul00]

Oh my.

It's been a while - but I certainly haven't forgotten about this place. I was unfortunately forced to sell the Merkur about 5 years ago (or so). It's been a total trip reading back through this build thread and I miss my car more than ever. A lot has happened since the last time I posted on here: I've graduated college, gone through 6 or 7 cars, moved to southern California, got married... lots of stuff. And I've still never missed any single physical item as much as the XR4ti that was brought back to life (twice) and all the memories that go with it.

So where am I going with this?

5 years after selling the car, I'm still subscribed to the MCA page on Facebook. A month or two ago, while scrolling through my feed over some breakfast, I see it: My car. Turns out the guy I sold it to years ago listed it on Craigslist and someone on FB shared the link. One thing leads to another and I'm back in touch with the current owner. Sure, 2,500 miles separates us now, but that can't get in the way of a dream.

I'm getting her back.

The car has been driven less than 10k miles since I sold it. It has only ever been a weekend car that they would take to car cruises every couple of weeks during the warm months and photos reveal that it's almost exactly as it was when I said goodbye. I have been in touch with transport companies as well as friends back east and it looks like this will be taking place in the next few weeks. I don't know if anyone here even remembers me or this car (most likely from the few years I had it at Carlisle), but I'm excited to be coming back.

Updates as I have them.

[merkurdriver]

I'm getting her back.

[MarkM]

I was unfortunately forced to sell the Merkur about 5 years ago (or so)...
... I don't know if anyone here even remembers me or this car (most likely from the few years I had it at Carlisle), but I'm excited to be coming back.

Yes, I do remember you. I had no idea it had been that long. Welcome back, and congratulations on getting your car back. I look forward to hearing what you're doing with it going forward.