V8 radiator supports

The giant radiator I had for the V12 was so heavily modified that I decided to start fresh with a new, built for a 5.0, aluminum racing radiator. A mistake I made with the other one was that the uprights holding the rad also got in the way of shrouding the radiator. For this one I mounted it lower and farther back for improved weight distribution and I allowed lots of room for shrouding.

Here is the upper passenger side rad mount

Lower passenger side mount

And room behind the rad for dual shrouded fans.

More work on the floor and tranny mount

I put together the passenger side floor and finished up the rear of the drivers side floor. I am amazed how strong bent and riveted 1/8" aluminum is.

The floor is so strong that I am using it to support the transmission. Here you can see the steel mount I have bolted between the driver and passenger floor. To be safe, I am going to seem weld the entire floor and add some gussets.

I added a steel plate to add further strength and spread the load out a little bit. I will definitely have to keep an eye on the floor to make sure it's not buckling under the weight of the transmission.

The V8 is running

It has taken way too long to track down all the sensors, install and hook them up but I finally got it done. I also had to get oil lines made for the remote filter and weld oxygen sensor bungs into the exhaust. Here is the video of the first time I pushed the start button with the new engine. It runs a little rough because I didn't have the air charge temperature sensor plumbed into the intake system. After I took the video I just held the sensor in front of the MAF and it ran better. 
V8 first start up

New lowered drivers side floor

I started installing the new floor this week. It will be 4" lower, lighter and looks much better.

I ordered 1/8" aluminum sheet from a local supplier and had them bend the pieces for me.

And did a bunch of trimming and test fitting until the floor fit nicely. I used threaded rivets so I could bolt the floor to the frame and the transmission tunnel to the floor. At the back of the tunnel you can just see the modified driveshaft loop which now also serves as the rear mount for the tunnel.

I still have to add the vertical piece to fill in the rear of the floor, but you can see how I bolted it to the frame rail.

A test fit of the seat revealed that I will have to make an angled mount to attach the sliders, it shouldn't be that difficult.

Odds N Ends

I haven't stopped working on the car, I just haven't completed anything in a while. Here are a few things that have been started and are works in progress:

In this picture of the car in action, you can see how much airspace there is between the floor and the ground. This was a mistake on my part, I built the new floor higher than the original MGB floor and I decided to correct the mistake.

I cut out the whole floor, which was painful because so much work went into making it in the first place. The new floor will be lighter, lower and look better.

I also bolted the upper intake on and attached the wiring harness to some of the sensors/injectors.

And I am attempting to build fender flares out of aluminum. They should look pretty good when completed.

Fuel Lines

The V12 carbs used a low pressure fuel pump but the V8 uses a high pressure EFI pump. I removed the old pump and mounted this EFI pump behind the fuel cell. I would have liked to mount it lower but it would interfere with the diffuser.

And I mounted a new fuel filter along the frame rail. Notice the fancy clip-on connectors just like the factory uses. The filter is going to be around 5 inches from the exhaust pipe and I hope heat isn't going to be a problem. If it is, I'll construct a heat shield.

After the fuel filter, the lines (pressure and return line) run inside the frame rail and pop out just behind the battery.

And attach to the fuel rail and regulator.

Motor mounts and frame mod

With the 5.0, I had to flip the headers around in order to hook them up to the side pipes. This means that the frame had to be modified to clear the outlets on the headers.

Don't know why this pic uploaded sideways but here is the section on the drivers side that needed to be cut out.

And the new section is welded in, I still have to add a little front piece and weld the underside.

I debated what to do about motor mounts but finally decided to run 2" square tubing from the stock location on the block out to the frame rails. This is the passenger side.  I learned from the V12 that motor mounts sticking into the engine bay make it more difficult to remove the engine, so these ones bolt to the frame using grade 8 bolts..

 There is no cushion between the frame and the engine, they are solidly bolted at both ends