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4+ months later, it's finally back!

3K views 28 replies 20 participants last post by  98intrigue 
#1 · (Edited)
I traded in my single turbo 40th Anniversary 370Z in April for a 2006 SRT-10 Coupe in April.

The first weekend I had the car, I installed a K&N intake. A day before what I'm about to say, I installed some KW V2 coilovers, changed the diff/transmission fluid for some Mobil 1 synthetic, and had the car aligned. In June (just 1,200 miles later), my motor spun 2 rod bearings. After a longgg wait, I was finally able to pick up the car last Friday! The motor was built by Nelson Competition. I just did an OEM rebuild, but with a few tweaks (their mod for extra lubrication to the crank, ARP head studs, Clevite main/rod bearings, cosmetic headgasket). With the money I saved over doing a full heads/cam build, I ended up buying some Modulare Forged wheels (19"/20") and Belanger headers during the build. I also upgraded to the Woodhouse motor/transmission mounts, new battery, new OEM clutch, had the flywheel resurfaced, and added some black Viper decals to the calipers.

I've put about 400 miles on it so far and have kept the RPMS under 3500. I'm going to put a couple hundred more miles on it before I decide to open it up.

The only problem I had during the install was having the Belanger headers installed. I bought the car with cat deletes, Mopar mufflers, but with the OEM rear crossover piping :mad: Whomever did the work did some welding, so the headers will not mate up to the exhaust. I'm taking it to my exhaust guy as soon as posisble to get the headers on and get rid of the OEM crossover piping. I'd like to tune the car afterwards and then finally enjoy it

Here are some pictures that were taken last weekend during the Reeves Motorsports meet in Tampa.






 
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#10 ·
2 weeks and 600 miles later, the motor spun another rod bearing last night. All my aftermarket parts (KWs, wheels/tires, K&N intake, Belanger headers) will be up for sale soon if anyone is interested.

The last picutre (and only picture) I took of the car since I got it back...Friday night.

 
#13 ·
They said no warranty, but I will be contacting them tomorrow. As big of a reputation Nelson Competition has, I surely hope they cover all the expenses.
how was it broken in ?
I put 600 miles on the motor with keeping the revs under 3000-3500 rpms. The shop used Valvoline 20w50 VR1 oil and said I could just use my drive home (60 miles) as a breakin. I didn't agree with that, so I put on another 500 miles to be safe.

Friday night, I changed the oil with Mobil 10w30 synthetic (shop recommendation). Went to Cars & Coffee yesterday and redlined the car for the first time. It saw a total of maybe 5 pulls to redline throughout the day yesterday. Driving the speed limit last night, the rear tires locked up for a split of a second. I had no idea what happened...then about 10 seconds later the noise that has haunted me since June happened again.
 
#16 ·
No. I've never had a problem with any lines leaking and my oil temps have always been safe. I've only put 1800 miles on the car since I got it in April and this is the 2nd time this has happened. I'm fixing the motor and selling the car...this is obviously not the car for me.
 
#20 ·
Beautiful car, but terrible luck. If it's the same bearing that went, I would chalk it up to a misaligned main or similar problem. No reason a naturally aspirated motor should spit two bearings like that, especially if they're on the same journal.

Wishing you the best to get the problem fixed!
 
#22 ·
This is interesting... The shop just admitted to only putting in 9qts of Valvoline 20w50 VR1, but isn't the oil capacity 10.4qts? And to add to the irony, only 7qts were drained after only 600 miles. The car never smoked and there were no leaks.

As of now, it seems like both Nelson Competition and Elite Automotive are willing to cooperate. Nelson Comp said they would tear down the motor and diagnose. Elite Auto said they'd pull he motor if need be. I just need to get it all in writing to cover my ass...I don't think I should pay another penny.
 
#29 ·
Obviously $175 is nothing compared to the overall bill I paid, but it was never mentioned to me. I've never had to deal with a rebuild, so the oil cooler didn't cross my mind when the motor was being rebuilt. This should have been something the shop brought to my attention.
Nice car!!!

You only need the gen 4 hood!!!

Enjoy it!!!
I've been talking with someone on a Gen 4 hood for a couple of months. With the unknown downtime, I'll probably have the hood before my car is ready to drive again.
Man that must really suck! I'd have them cover ALL costs. Did you ever check the oil level or anything?


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I truly hate our dipstick. I can never get a consistent reading on it...but yes, I checked the level and it was in the safe zone. When I changed the oil the night before the spun bearing(s) happened, only 7qts were drained though.
Hope everything works out for you.

The Viper looks very good.
Thank you.
Man, that blows... I can feel your pain as I've had a similar situation happen. The worst part of the whole deal is not having your car while it's getting the motor work done....AGAIN. Then the concerns about blowing your motor once you get it back will creep into your mind. I'm guessing you'll be selling it once you get it back?

Your car looks sick. GL w/ getting it sorted out.
Thank you. AGAIN is right. The car was down for 4 months before...it sat in my garage for 1 month before I decided what to do with it and then it sat in a shop for 3 months. Now it's been sitting in my garage for 1 week and no progress has been made. I 'm very frustrated that I've already had to wait a week with no resolution... I'll be disputing my credit card charge and getting my lawyer involved tomorrow if there isn't any progress.

The thought of blowing the motor will always be in the back of my mind now. When it happened for the 2nd time, I immediately said I was going to sell it. The fact is I've had my dream car for over 7 months and haven't really gotten to drive it. With all the money I've spent on maintenance/upgrades, I'd like to enjoy it.
 
#28 ·
Man, that blows... I can feel your pain as I've had a similar situation happen. The worst part of the whole deal is not having your car while it's getting the motor work done....AGAIN. Then the concerns about blowing your motor once you get it back will creep into your mind. I'm guessing you'll be selling it once you get it back?

Your car looks sick. GL w/ getting it sorted out.
 
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