Timing Chain and Water Pump Replaced

Ecotec LE-5's are really stout little motors (e.g., with forged internals, oiler jets, all aluminum, etc.), but they do have an Achilles Heel, which is their timing chains. Many motors will go 200K miles, but enough of them have timing chain guide failures around 60-80K miles, that it was prudent to replace the chain and guides. And while the motor was open, we also replaced the water pump, oil pan gasket, and a handful of other seals. We're also resurfacing the flywheel while everything is apart (though the clutch itself looks almost brand new, so we're not replacing it.) Here's the assembled motor with new timing chain pieces installed:

Rotisserie Frog

The car has been stripped down and put on the rotisserie. The sandblast guy comes tomorrow. Then Joe has lots of welding lined up to finish up the frame. Then a shot of paint ot keep it from rusting again. Woot.

Stripping Things Down

Things continue to come off the car. Note the new small shelf "lip" for the boot area to keep duffel bags contained.

Feels like 1 step forward, 10 steps back...

The engine was pulled and readied it for timing chain replacement. Thee tailhousing was also removed off transmission to clean out junk that got inside. Pulled all the front end components and started cleaning, stripping, final welding, painting.... Feels a little like one step forward, a few backward....

Getting the Engine Ready for Removal

Next up is stripping all the ancillary/auxiliary equipment off the engine before removing it from the car. The plan is to replace the timing chain & guides (the primary weak spot on this otherwise stout engine), water pump (because we'll be into the engine and why not?), and probably clutch (again, because it's easy to do once the engine is out). And once the engine is out, the plan is to sandblast and paint the engine compartment (and probably underside of the car, too...) The engine looks kinda naked without all the radiator/intake/turbo/intercooler/alternator/steering/yada-yada on and around it:

Another thing finished this week was the installation of a rear battery disconnect switch. This switch interrupts the primary ground cable to the batter). It's kinda of an unusual location (that some racing classes around these parts require). And, no, that's not my actual license plate; it's just an old one lying around Joe's shope that was used for mockup.