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I hate to be nosey, but what are you building? That's a pretty extreme setup.
I have a 1986 BMW 3 series I am dropping a 5.3L LM4 into. I want to design/fab a set of plates that will use bushings for a little dampening. Using plates vs. traditional mounts should ease some pain when trying to find headers that clear around the steering shaft.
I could buy a set of plates but I have access to a water jet and i would spend as much time modifying a set as I would designing a set from scratch.
Yup, like a drag car.
There are several companies that make them but with the modifications I want to make I believe I may be better off starting from scratch. I would like to find a cad file to get the block pattern correct and I can then draw the mounts for the car.
Originally Posted by Capthuff
You mean like a motor plate for a drag car?
Bob at AEI makes them. Others do too, but I can't think of who.
ECS made a really nice one for Jay's car. I don't think they offer them anymore.
But, like the guy above me asked, what's the application?
Through a private PM I was able to obtain a 3d model of an LS engine. From there, I was able to draw the beginnings of my plate. The picture is the first shot which I missed the dimensions on the timing chain cover. The rendering is trial #2 which I need to print.
Now that I have the motor mocked up, it's time to get the mounts in the car drawn up. I created a rough rendering of the engine bay so I could pull the dimensions I'd need for the plate.
Got the final plan completed and sent the drawings to the machine shop. Got back the motor plate the other day. Fits like a glove! Fits so well that I will need to grind a little off around the TC cover to make room for the gasket. I will also need to take a little off the driver side to clear the head. All easy stuff.
The 1/4" plate throws the alignment off on the belts so I had to play with different accessories and measurements to get everything to line up. The final assembly includes a Corvette water pump, Corvette tensioner, F-body balancer, and the trucks original alternator. I had spacers machined to fit behind the alternator and the tensioner to bring everything into line. The trucks original accessory bolts were used on the alternator and two of the shorter bolts were further shortened to use on the tensioner.
I still need to do one final test fit in the car and tack the mounts on the plate. I'll then remove the plate and finish weld the mounts followed by a sand blasting and a coat of paint.
