[yoeddynz]

OK. Hopefully someone can measure up the bits/engine etc and we'll see how good your guess is ;-)

 

[yoeddynz]

Oh cool- you measured it? Thanks very much. Now hopefully someone with a spare crankshaft sitting about will pop along and can tell me that flange thickness/bolt size

 

[yoeddynz]

You might get better results with a service manual. The problem is, GL15 motors so rarely need to be dismantled.

Yeah this is one of the reasons I'm excited about the prospect of having a GL1500 up the backside of my car. Apart from the sound and smooth performance its also the reliability I like the idea of.

I do have the Honda service manual but it doesn't mention the thickness of that flange anywhere because its not an item that wears etc. So I have to rely on asking others.
I have asked a question on a Ebay listing for a crankshaft and await an answer from them....

 

[yoeddynz]

Rear wheel drive? Where is the radiator going to reside? Someone with access to a machine shop should be able to handle the job.

Yeah rear engined. Radiator is up the front. Ive got the machinary (that's my trade) but need to suss these things out before I commit to an engine I've been offered.

I tried adding a link to my restoration and build thread into this thread but this forum platform wouldn't allow it?

 

[yoeddynz]

Ahhh OK cool. I'll get my thread count up...

 

[yoeddynz]

Well yesterday I picked up this ....

I was a very excited chap and quickly unwrapped it....

It handily has come with this manual...

Plus I picked up another Subaru box that might come in handy, this time from a 1600 Leone...

So tomorrow I will start the strip down and assess what I will need to modify within the goldwing engine.

One thing I have already noted is how tiny the inlet tracts are and the exhaust headers! When it comes to re-fabricating that lot I'll certainly be making it all so the engine is allowed breathe a lot easier Throw six itbs and full bespoke engine management in for the party.

I'd love to know what other 1500 owners on these forums, well the ones who have played about with the performance side of their bikes, have done with there exhausts ?

Also- out of interest at this point in time (due to money ..lack of it) are there any after market camgrinds available for these engines- ie for the cafe racer modification type folk?

Cheers
alex

 

[yoeddynz]

Yeah compared to the goldWing location I have loads of space above the engine. I'll post a pic later.

I'm not fussed about chasing big power but if I can get extra easily in my process of converting to efi and itbs then it's a bonus the extra torque and hp this engine already had over the Datsun engine I currently have fitted is going to make for lots of giggles anyway more then anything it will be the flat six sound in looking forward to most!

 

[yoeddynz]

Ahhh yes I see what you mean. Certainly not much of an advantage if I don't touch the ports /valves or cam profiles.

I've looked on the Internet and there seems to be next to no info on hotting up these engines - this I attribute to the goldwings being perfectly suited to their job already and most riders not for want of any extra power?

 

[yoeddynz]

The EFI project could lighten your wallet WERY much ! , - i vould go for the OEM GL1500 carburators .

Efi is soooooo much cheaper today. My last full standalone efi conversion job in my Vauxhall Viva cost me around say $750 NZD. That was using a $500NZD Megasquirt 2 ecu I built. This time round I'll be using a Speeduino ecu. I've started building it and if one is good at looking for deals on components you can build a working ecu for between $100-150NZD.
The most expensive one off purchase is a wideband controller for tuning, which are now available much cheaper from companies the likes of 14 point 7.
Most other parts used are just secondhand bits from various cars and bikes. I'll be on the look out for some small efi itbs to suit the tiny goldwing inlet ports. Otherwise I'll make or adapt something. Remember that this is a project I'm doing for fun with no urgency. We are now in a 4 week lockdown here in NZ so I have plenty of time in my workshop to use


AFIK, there has only been one successful EFI conversion to a gl1500, it was posted on this forum.

GL1500 EFI Conversion Project

I've been talking about this for awhile now, and finally got a chance to actually start the project last week. As I mentioned in my previous post http://www.goldwingfacts.com/forums/forum4/120779.html my goal is to avoid tearing down the bike for as long as possible so I can take advantage of...

www.goldwingfacts.com

Thanks for the link- I'll check it out. Hopefully you'll see another succesful conversion soon

Update time- the engine is now being stripped down. Already its looking neater. I'll give the outside a good clean before I strip it further. A good sign is very little buildup and muck behind the valves suggesting a healthy low mileage engine. But time will tell. (I think the previous owner had bought a crash damaged bike and that was about 20 years ago!) I had seen videos of it running just before being pulled out and it sounded great.

There is so much that wil be removed/cutoff over the coming week once stripped. I shall weigh it today and then again once its at the point I want it- just a short height crank case and heads. Lots of fabrication to do after that!

 

[yoeddynz]

Just pulling power from the crank.

 

[yoeddynz]

Well I'm doing my best to continue on with what steel/alloy and other bits I have in stock. Most places here are shut due to the lockdown so I'll just do the bits I can. Next step now that its in pieces is to machine up a hub and shrink fit it onto the crank flange, so helping the 8mm bolts there deal with torsional stress from a flywheel.

While I still had the Datsun engine removed from my imp due to it needing a new rear main seal and ring gear I took the chance to size the Goldwing engine place. It looks fantastic, sits really low and quite far forward while allowing for the subaru box...

 

[yoeddynz]

Hi there. Yeah good question and one I'll get a lot.
Goldwing engines, like most pre 2000 Honda car engines, rotate anti-clockwise(counter - cw for you stateside folk) . Originally when I looked at the idea of fitting one a couple of years ago this fact put me off. I was to use either the imp transmission or a stronger vw box.
However, by taking a longitudinal transaxle from a front wheel drive car, in this case a very common subaru box, and turning it around 180 degrees it counteracts the anticlockwise rotation of the goldwing engine

Don't worry.. I've bench tested it just to be sure.

Also and very luckily the action of the subaru gear selection rod matches the imps gearstick action perfectly due to the fact that the two cars have differently opposed pivot points on their gear sticks. It would have been an easy fix but luckily I don't have to

 

[yoeddynz]

Well, sounds like you've already addressed the rotation question, the only other thing I can think of is transaxle lube. These don't have a pump, so no issue there, but since you'll be running it "Backward" (opposite of design rotation) there is the potential of lube issues. These run on splash lube, but lube will be flung in opposite directions from design. You might consider slightly overfilling the transaxle lube to help compensate....

Good Job!

Are you talking about the Subaru transaxle? Yeah I think it should be ok because the shafts run in the oil and it'll be getting thrown up all over the place in there A neat feature of these transmissions is that they have a dip stick as well- makes for quick easy check that the axle is up to the correct level . I could also certainly overfill it through the dip stick if I felt the need to .

 

[yoeddynz]

Yeah that too crossed my mind. But I relaxed when I remembered that gearboxes do take loads in both directions. Think of a subaru towing a boat down a hill, engine braking all the way (subarus are hugely popular here in nz as capable tow cars)

Whereas this is a 750kg imp with hopefully 100bhp. so I'll risk it

 

[yoeddynz]

Its our daily. Not that we commute because we run our own little engineering business from home. So its sort of a shopping car/fun car

I could fit a 4wd subaru box and run it through to the front and make a 4wd imp...

An 'Imp 959'

 

[yoeddynz]

Ahhh yeah- funny you should mention that. We watched it yesterday.
The Imp they restore is much like my wife Hannah's first classic car , a 1974 Imp super painted in Prairie wind. A little car we enjoyed immensely and what made me always want another...

 

[yoeddynz]

Oh hey thanks so very much for the offer. However I'll be running a complete new engine management based on a Speeduino ECU. Quite possibly the latest variety so I can run the efi fully sequentially. I'll certainly post up the details as I build it because that will probably be of more interest.
I built my own efi setup for my Viva with a Mazda v6 , using megasquirt. Its a really fun part of the build process and very cheap to do as well.

 

[yoeddynz]

Hey folk. I'm still working away on this. Its going well- really thankful to have had it turn up to tinker away on while our country was in lockdown. Now things are going back to normal here I'll be doing other jobs but still work on this as much as I can. I'm currently re-fabricating the oil pipes to and from the pump, filter and engine to suit the new position of the pump , backwards and on the other side plus a new oil filter position (moved to allow room for a engine cross member)

Lots of work to do yet but I'm getting through the hardest bits now. EDIT; some of the photos loaded are out of date order. The chopping of the transmission case came before the heating and welding of the new sump flange- honest ... I'm not a magician wth a time machine

I'll be doing a proper update on the car forum thread soon- up till now you lot are the only folk who know that this is taking place
Its going to be a lot to post up! I'm really excited about how its going and honestly even if it all went pear shaped at some point its still been a fun bit of engineering so far- lots of head scratching.

Alex

 

[yoeddynz]

He he.. Yeah those are my favourite safety feet in wearing there. Barefoot through out summer and most of winter because.. Well its just nice. Its a very kiwi thing as well. Especially in our region. Beach life. My feet are pretty leathery so its very rare i get anything in them plus i sweep the floor often!
But i do wear steelcaps when lifting heavy stuff/sheets of steel.

I'd love to get a better mill in the future and it will happen but for now this little drill mill has proven to be very handy. Anyway... It takes a huge mill to be able to fit things the size of an engine block under the cutting head.