Almost there..

It has been months since I last updated, but a lot of progress has been made. I most certainly did not abandon the project. I am still waiting on the manifold and with that has come a lot of frustration and anger. I am trying to remain patient as that is the key piece to finishing up the car and finally being able to drive it. Who would have thought that I would have had the all wheel drive conversion complete before i could add a t3 turbo. Anyway onto the progress.....
View from the rear down the tunnel

Custom bilstien shocks

Drive shaft mount


Droop straps to keep springs seated


Fuel pressure regulator for return fuel system

Clearance with new rear mount

New rear mount




ACT 6 puc clutch and flywheel

Rear is 98% finished!

Sorry it has been so long since i last updated. Summer session wound down and i have had to do a lot more work that i originally thought, but i made it through. The hole in the rear end is closed off and dampened inside. The under portion of the car was seam sealed the undercoated for corrosion protection. It was nice to see that after all that the spare tire still fit and the trunk went back together just like it came from the factory. Let me tell you that was no easy task.

The rear suspension has been a bear to say the least. Many nights of dis-assembly and reassembly. I had to cut the lateral braces so that i had enough up and down travel in the suspension. So, that required me to cut and weld braces in for added strength. Once that was completed i then noticed that i got to excited in the lower control arms and had to cut and extend those about an inch on both sides, so that the car would track right. I then had to modify the factory spring, which required me to cut 1 coil off of it, which is about 2". This will allow the car to sit close to stock ride height. After that was completed, i then assembled the passenger side totally, which turned out great. I will just need the alignment shop to make the final adjustments. The drivers side was a different story. I am having to have a custom axle made for this side because it is about an inch too long. Fortunately the shop that is doing it is giving me a great deal on it.

I have relocated the charcoal canister to one of the pockets in the bumper as well.

For now, i am waiting on the new axle to come back to get the rear end totally buttoned up and done. All the fuel system parts or on order as well as the new cx-7 e-brake cables and the suspension limiting straps for the rear end. The modified turbo manifold did show up yesterday so i was able to get that and the turbo attached to the motor. Later this week on my days off i will be putting in the motor and transmission. I am praying that it wont give me any more unexpected trouble, but with the way this build has gone so far i almost expect some. More updates to follow at the end of this week.

Day 3....Rear end is in..

Today was a very productive day here at J&S fabrication! We aren't really a business just catchy. We we able to get the rear sub-frame mounted along with the rear pumpkin. I found that the right diff mount had to be removed because it interfered with the fuel tank. At this time i am not sure if this will be an issue or not, so i am going to explore the speed 6 diff mount as well as looking for another place to attach the right side.



The spare tire well had to be trimmed some in order to get the rear diff, and diff mount to clear. Fortunately the amount of material that had to be removed will still allow me to retain the spare. I was a little concerned about this, but Mazda left me enough room.




The rear control arms we successfully modified today as well. This required the use of the inner part of the speed 3 arm and the out portion of the cx7 arm. This was so that the car would "track" right when it is driven. Also i did discover that the stock springs at least fit. However, at this time i am unsure as to how the car will sit when on the ground.

Its been a long day and i am worn out but we are slowly making headway.Later this week i plan to box off the spare tire well and reinstall the interior pieces as well as relocate the charcoal canister. As always thanks for looking, and keep the feedback coming, i most certainly do not know it all.

Day 2....Fuel tank is in securley

Finished mount

Tank mounted in place with plenty of room for the drive shaft!

One of the new tank mounts.

Nice shot from the rear.


So today went rather well aside from breaking my old drill. I managed to get the whole rear sub-frame out of the car as well as the factory fuel tank. Did a little bit of testing on the two fuel sending units and found that at empty the ohm reading is identical and at full its only 1ohm off. That came as a huge relief to me.

The most exciting part of my day was learning that my hypothesis was correct. I had done some research and found that the Mazda 3 chassis is shared with the Ford Focus and Volvo S40. I was able to locate a fuel cell from an 06 S40 AWD. When i put it in the car it fit perfectly. I as very happy to learn it fit. I also discovered that the passenger side tank strap fit with zero modification while the drivers side however was a different story. I had to mark off holes, drill them, and weld in thread pieces to mount the tank straps with. I also did a little bit of testing on the two fuel sending units (Mazda and Volvo) and found that at empty the ohm reading is identical and at full its only 1ohm off. That came as a huge relief to me. I need to do a little more research on the Volvo fuel system, because it is much more complex than the 3's system is.

Next week i should receive the modified diff mounts and toe arms so that i can hang the new rear sub-frame. I also need to figure out a place to mount the factory charcoal canister.

Day 1 Engine is removed

Well, it has finally begun. After months of research and phone calls to various sources i have decided to begin the task of the conversion. Tonight with the assistance of a friend we removed the engine and attempted to mate the new turbo and manifold to the engine. However after running into a few issues the manifold had to be returned to the manufacture for modification. We found the compressor housing to be too large as well as the hotside was contacting one of the runners. It has been a long day for us as well as a frustrating day. Stay tuned for more to follow tomorrow.