First start

I'm feeling pretty good- the engine (2002 ls1) started and ran after only a few seconds. It's running smoothly but I expected some teething problems and have them.
The power steering pushed back a lot and spun the wheel. I shut it off and the fluid was very aerated. So, I let it sit till it cleared up. Turned the wheel to both stops with the engine off then refilled. The engine idles at about 2200 so I looked for a vacuum leak and didn't find one. Started it again and turned the wheel with it running. It dumped all the ps fluid on the floor with no apparent line blown off. I'm not stumped (yet) but any experience with either problem would be welcome. Did I hook up the lines wrong? High pressure to top of steering rack. Is there a possible vacuum leak that is hard to see? The tach reading wrong? I did nothing but hook up to green and white wire at the red 4 pin dme plug.
Thoughts?

I "think" the high idle is the IAC. Not sure whether it will clear up. I removed it and it had some black gunk on the seal. I cleaned it, cleaned the sealing surface and extended it. It started and idled at about 700 rpm for a bit then increased to 1600 and stayed there.
The leak on the PS was from the drivers boot. So, I assume the rack seal is bad? I drove it for about 4000 mi with no issues after I bought the car. Its been idle since June but it doesn't make sense to me that the seal is now bad unless something about the instl of the motor affected the PS rack seals- they certainly drooped to the max limit. Is that a problem?
The next issue seems more serious. Water is dripping from the exhaust pipe on the passenger side. Its not a huge amount but seems real. I expected to add water to the system as it "burped" but I'm adding more than expected. No water seems to be in the oil. Head gasket or crack? I hope nothing but I'm concerned at this point.
Anyway, I love the exhaust note with dual exhaust Magnaflux X-crossover and muffler. And I have started it multiple times now with no issues other than I've described.

water in the exhaust- might be condensation, similar to steam from pipes on a cold morning,as water IS a byproduct of combustion. (as odd as that seems).
if you strike a wooden match, at the tip would be water droplets...

some muffler setups from the factory have a "weep hole" to allow excess water to drain out.
often times, only one pipe will throw water/steam, especially if the pipes are not allowed to reach "operating temp", the water builds up.

keep an eye on the coolant level (after purging the air from system) or a radiator pressure tester will also tell you if there is a problem in the system.
head gaskets can leak externally, or internally-(over pressurizing the cooling system), showing a rise in expansion/overflow tank. i have also traced a head gasket failure by the use of a "smog machine sniffer" testing the vapors rising from the radiator neck& overflow tank.

suboptimalfit wrote:i have also traced a head gasket failure by the use of a "smog machine sniffer" testing the vapors rising from the radiator neck& overflow tank.

Interesting! I've never had access to a sniffer, Thank God, but I've never considered it a troubleshooting tool before.

I've always stuck the overflow hose in a bottle of water to see if it bubbled like a fish tank.

was the idle fixed ?

Not really, The motor idles smoothly at about 1600. It returns there after a throttle blip and stabilizes pretty quickly. Since I know that the idle dropped to about 700-800 after I extended the IAC to seal the hole I'm pretty certain that's the increased idle. Not sure whether the old one just wont drive into a good position to seal or whether the computer isn't sending a signal to do so. New ones are a little pricy to just try and see if it works so I thought Id finish the other issues and see if it got better (how many of us have seen problems heal themselves- even at work, if you don't fix someone's problem it often magically goes away- another topic....). Some things are looking up. I've bled the brakes and clutch and everything seems to work- no leaks on the new brake flares. All the electrical accessories except the lights are working as expected. The lights cycle down and stay down. Ive disconnected them at the motor and may have indexed them wrong when I reinstalled the motor. Not 100% sure why they wouldn't cycle up and stay up if that was the only problem........
The motor seems to have stabilized in water level and I no longer see water dripping from an exhaust connection. Which brings me to the embarrassing problem. I hooked up the PS rack backwards which resulted in wild steering fluctuations and all the steering fluid on the floor. I knew how to do it and have incremental pics of having routed the hoses correctly but during the engine install I must have connected them backwards. Not sure whether that ruins the seals or whether they will seat properly again. In any case, even if I need another rack I feel good to have identified the problem.
After all this if the idle doesn't come down I guess I'll try a new IAC unless anyone has a better idea.
It sure feels good that after dozens, perhaps hundreds of little decisions during the conversion that only a couple aren't working well the first time. And then there is the air conditioning......but its fall and I can delay for awhile I guess.

dsrracer,

Glad to hear its going. Don't worry about misdirected lines here and there. We all do that stuff. Easy fixes are the best even if its your own error.

When it comes to the idle do you have a scan tool or code reader?
I would see what the computer sees and or is telling you if at all possible.
If not I would try the IAC
Are you planning on getting a tune?
If so they may be able to address it at that time....

just my $.02

Nice to have another one going!!!!

Thanks for the encouragement!
I don't have a scan tool but thought I might get one- any suggestions are welcome. It's not driving yet but close- the rack will RIP. I corrected the plumbing and the steering feels smooth now but I clearly blew out the seals as I kept pumping fluid out the seals this morning. I have a rebuilt on order - expect by Wed.
I am really happy with the exhaust sound. I attached a pic but will take more.

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thought on the "high" idle- might be in a "warm up" cold start rpm setting. (like a fast idle on a carb choke circuit).

Who did your exhaust? Looks great!
Post pics of the rest of it.

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These were pics as I developed the route. Its done now and I can take more if interested. Its all SS tube with magna flow crossover and muffler. I welded it with a MIG and 308 wire. It was my first time welding SS and I got better as I went. I think the flux is important if you use a MIG.