Project Well Rounded - 89 Two Tone Coupe Daily/Grip build

[tb13]

This project sprouted from missing my Z32 and wanting a car that could give me a shit eating grin everytime I drive it. I picked up my 89 coupe 8 months ago with a single slammer and fell in love with the chassis, but the KA wasn't in good running condition. I started thinking about what direction I wanted to go with the car and decided, why not make a car that can do it all, something that will be "Well Rounded". It wasn't much to look at when I got it. Nearly stock with 95k miles on the clock and a set of coilovers. The car has nearly flawless frame rails, pinch welds and virgin, unrolled/pulled fenders. It was perfect.



First thing I did was get rid of the steelies and throw a set of 17x7 and 17x8 FN01R-C's on it along with 5 lug swapping it and tossing Z32 brakes up front. The wider tires really bought the car to life, it was a ton of fun to hoon around in, even if a Prius could kill me in a race



The single jingle in the car ran, but wasn't great. I always felt it was down on power and eventually decided to pull it. I didn't want to throw any more money at it at the time. This was probably the worst decision I could have made, after the motor came out, the car sat for 7 months collecting dust while I tried to figure out what motor I wanted to swap into it.





A few weeks ago I made a big decision to sell the RB25 NEO swap I had been piecing together for the car. Somewhat of a double edged sword, I sold a motor that would have made the car a rocket ship, but I ended up with the cash to get the car back onto the road. Its not going to look like this for much longer.



With cash burning a hole in my pocket I got to spending. The old FN's got trade off for a set of 17x9 +15's with garbage tires. I shopped around a bit and decided on Sumitomo HTR ZIII's. A 255/40r17 to wrap my 17x9 +15 FN's. Not the widest, but the car won't be making huge power so they'll be just fine.




I hadn't really thought about how they were going to fit... The fenders aren't going to be unpulled for long. I'm going to throw a few degrees of camber up front and a degree or so in the rear to help fit them and hopefully give me some better cornering grip. They look great on the car, the deep center and meaty tires give the exact look I was going for.








Wanted to address the seats in the car, Arizona sun and head had basically destroyed them. The drivers seat had a nice metal bar that would stab you while driving that drive me insane, but fortunately I was able to score a clean set of S14 seats. A friend of mine posted them up for sale and I jumped on them, insane difference from the garbage S13 seats. Plus the look way nicer.




This car won't be a drift car. This car won't be some scene stance camber gang car. I've never really been super interested in drifting or having a car that I can't drive. I am about function and that is what I want out of this car. With my tire and wheel setup, I needed suspension to back it up.

First order of business was to order everything, here is a list of everything suspension related that will be going on the car:

Front suspension/steering:

Voodoo13 tension rods
ES lower control arm bushings
Mevotech ball joints
Mevotech outer tie rods
ES steering rack bushings
Mevotech sway bar endlinks

Rear Suspension:

Voodoo13 rear upper control arms
Voodoo13 toe rods
Voodoo13 traction rods
Voodoo13 eccentric lockout
Voodoo13 solid subframe bushings
Moog ball joints
Moog sway bar endlinks
ES lower control arm bushings
ES knuckle bushings

No corners cut is what I am going for. Dropped the subframe out a few days ago and brought it home with me. The bushings don't look all the bad, due to the low mileage, but again Arizona heat for 27 years kills anything rubber.





Now that its at my house I am in the process of installing my S15 Helical LSD. Since the car isn't going to be a drift car, the S15 Helical LSD seemed like the best option, ended up getting it from Japan for around $300 shipped Adios open diff, no more one tire fires!





While the subframe is out, I figured I'd throw my Z32 rear brakes on too. Bought new rotors and pads and I have the ebrake setup to bolt on with a set of Z32 rear hubs. Going to stick with the stock iron knuckles for now because I don't have cash for new coils, but I might swap them out eventually. I also have a 1 1/16 Z32 master and a B13 brake booster to round off the whole brake setup.




And finally the star of the show. A "New" Single Slammer! Picked up a full swap, radiator to driveshaft swap for $340. Not going to make the car a rocket ship, but its a strong motor so the car should be a ton of fun without the chance of me getting tickets or killing myself Bought a set of Nismo motor mounts, Nismo trans mount, ebay 4-2-1 header, catco cat and an HKS Hi-Power catback. Fingers crossed it doesn't sound like shit...




Tons of parts are on their way to me right now so there will be more pictures coming daily!

[tb13]

Can I get a mod to update the thread name??

Haven't done a whole lot lately. Some of my parts are taking forever to get here so I decided to address my front suspension. Got it all torn off the other day.




The bushings, ball joints and outer tie rods all looked like hell, good thing the wonderful FedEx guy and the USPS guy brought me all my new suspension parts!





Got my new differential bearings and output shaft seals. Smacked it all on the diff, was ready to reinstall it into the housing and realized I have no locktite for the ring gear bolts Decided to move onto something else.





Broke my subframe down. Got the rear lowers off and the ball joints out. Popped the front ball joints out too while I was having fun with my BFH.



Ended up having to get a new pair for front lca's. I couldn't figure out why a socket woudn't fit over the tension rod bolt, but once I got the lca off I noticed it was bend all to hell. No clue what someone had to hit to do this, but I found a new set so its whatever.



Ball joints will be pressed in over the weekend and hopefully I'll get the rest of my parts so I can finish all this suspension stuff up and get the car on the ground.

[rawgarage]

Scrub or blast those LCAS and throw a coat of paint on em...

[tb13]

PROGRESS!

Decided to get some shit done yesterday. I had been struggling with the subframe bushings for quite some time, they refused to go in or would go in sideways, It was driving me nuts. I found a flap sanding wheel, ran it thought all the holes, then beat the living hell out of them until they finally went in. It wasn't fun, but it was worth.



Then I got to work on all the arms, super straight forward here. Really like the Voodoo13 eccentric lockout kit and the arms were super easy to install and get adjusted.




I got to work on the rear coliovers next. They looked to be in horrible shape, but they really aren't that bad just chipping paint and surface rust. Took me quite a bit of time to get them apart and the lower sleeves refused to come off, but it doesn't really matter though because the front Tanabe's are not height adjustable.



Front coilovers were SUPER easy to get apart, other than having a shit ton of preload which was annoying. Pretty happy to say all 4 coils are still in great shape and will last me until I can get a new set.



Got to work on my Z32 brake setup, took me forever to get the Z knuckles stripped down thanks to bolts that were frozen... Finally got it all off and on the subframe though. Didn't put the brakes all on yet though, I have no idea if I have 2+2 or 2+0 e brake cables so I need to make sure they are right before I reinstall the ebrake hardware. If anyone knows how long 2+2 cables are, let me know!




I had to let the lower mounts for the rear coils sit on rust remover over night. Got up this morning and got to work on them. Took some heat and pb blaster, but they both freed up without too much effort. Threw some black pain on them to make sure they don't rust anymore.





Got to work reassembling the coils, I was going to clean them up, but decided it was just a waste of time. Shot them with some brake cleaner and called it good. Anti-seized the bodies and threaded the collars back on.



Boom, they still look like crap, but I can adjust preload and a bit of rear height so I am happy.




Lastly I put my HLSD together. Just have to toss the rear cover back on and stick it in the subframe. Its SUPER tight, really excited to see how it performs.

[TheZ31Guy]

Looks promising so far! Stay motivated haha

[tb13]

Originally Posted by TheZ31Guy

Looks promising so far! Stay motivated haha

Thanks, trying to stay motivated. The car is about a 30min drive from my house and I recently got a new job so I'm limited on the time that I can work on it... Hoping to get all the suspension back on the car tomorrow and get it back on the ground. The motor is already back in the car so I'm getting close to being able to drive it again!

[supersayianjim]

I like this thread, actually functional mods and no dorifto crap!

[tb13]

Originally Posted by supersayianjim

I like this thread, actually functional mods and no dorifto crap!

I've never been a huge fan of drifting. I sent my Z32 over a curb when I was 17 thinking I was on the set of Tokyo Drift down the street from my house. Ripped a lower control arm OUT of the subframe, destroyed my front suspension and killed a set of wheels. Honestly I am glad it happened.





I brought the car back to life, but had changed my mindset from before the accident. Decided that I preferred to have grip which really made me love the car and has molded every car I have owned since. When I sold the Z I felt lost and needed a worthy replacement, thats where this S13 project started.

[tb13]

MOOOORRRRREEEEE PROGRESS

Sooo I got off my ass and went out to work on my car. First up was getting my front suspension back on. Got my ES FLCA bushings in then started throwing parts back on. New tension rods, ball joints, outer tie rods and sway bar endlinks. This thing is going to handle so well once I get it all aligned.





Didn't take pictures while I was doing the rear, it was a complete pain in my ass. I did it without a diff which made it really hard to keep the subframe level. After a ton of cussing and kicking shit it finally went back up to where it belongs and I got everything bolted back on.



Left it on jack stands because my wheels still don't fit, I'll deal with that next time I go out. Felt good to get all the suspension back on though.



Got a little sad seeing my dash though, its really bad now... It wasn't nearly as horrible when I left the car



Also noticed something I though was really cool. The pervious owner of the car had told me the windshield was replaced before I bought the car. Noticed a little Nissan logo when I was looking at the dash... Wiped away some of the dust to realize it is an OEM Nissan HUD windshield I have no idea how he managed to get it, when I looked for one over a year ago I couldn't find one any where.




Hopefully I will get back to it in the next few days, but worst case scenario it will be back on the road by Sunday

[CamberWear]

Looks like a solid build so far! subd

[rawgarage]

Fender roller and heat gun away from being back on the street

[tb13]

Originally Posted by CamberWear

Looks like a solid build so far! subd

Thanks! More to come very soon!

Originally Posted by rawgarage

Fender roller and heat gun away from being back on the street

Pretty much, this car has 100% virgin sheet metal, I'm going to change that reeeaalll soon

[tuzzio]

Originally Posted by tb13

Pretty much, this car has 100% virgin sheet metal, I'm going to change that reeeaalll soon

molest sheet metal. Don't turn to fiberglass.

[tb13]

Originally Posted by tuzzio

molest sheet metal. Don't turn to fiberglass.

With some molestation that sheet metal will give me exactly what I want, no need for fiberglass... Yet... This is only the first phase of my build

[Cortius017]

Subscribed! I enjoy the two tones car alot, probably my favorite s chassis look out there. My friend has a sefoam two tone and I would trade my s13 vert and s14 for it and he wouldnt let it go haha. Love the progress so far and the fact its a grip build, we need more of these types of builds on this forum even though I love drifting. Please keep the exterior clean and oem paint, I love originallity thats just my two cents.

[tb13]

Originally Posted by Cortius017

Subscribed! I enjoy the two tones car alot, probably my favorite s chassis look out there. My friend has a sefoam two tone and I would trade my s13 vert and s14 for it and he wouldnt let it go haha. Love the progress so far and the fact its a grip build, we need more of these types of builds on this forum even though I love drifting. Please keep the exterior clean and oem paint, I love originallity thats just my two cents.

Thanks man, I love the two tones aswell. I hate when I see someone ruin an original two tone by painting it a solid color. The car will stay two tone as long as I own it, one of the things I want to do it have it repainted with the original colors, the paint is mostly there still, just not in the greatest shape.

[tb13]

Okay, so I spent some time with her this weekend.

First thing I address was ALL of my rear suspension/drivetrain. finally got my Helical into the subframe, installed my axles, installed my Z32 rear brakes and got my arms adjusted so I can drive the car once I finish everything else.



Got to rolling my front fenders, but with my coilovers the fender roller I have doesn't work so I moved onto the rear. Rolled the rear fenders until the quarters began to buckle, kind of sad they popped in, but I think I will be able to pull them back out.

With that roll of the fenders, my wheel and tire setup now fits!







My JIC's are half seized in the rear so I can't adjust the height, but I am pretty okay with the ride height. Its a functional low and should settle a bit more once I actually get the drive the car.

Ended up just ripping off my front fenders, I'll be able to get my alignment and roll the fenders later. I an going to move my harness above the fender while they are off too.



Even though I left it looking like a heaping pile of shit, its getting close. Still have to secure my ebrake cables, install my driveshaft and hookup the engine harness. Hopefully I can make it out to finish it up before the weekend, sat in it today again and I am so excited to drive it again!

[silverarrow27]

Great build thread so far, almost giving me motivation to work on mine before it starts getting too hot.

[tb13]

Originally Posted by silverarrow27

Great build thread so far, almost giving me motivation to work on mine before it starts getting too hot.

Its starting to warm up around here and I really want this as close to done before its over 100*F every day. I hate sweating my ass off working on cars...

[zombiewolf513]

you have from about 6-am to 930 before it gets that hot lol. If you need any help this week let me know and I'll give you a hand

[tb13]

Originally Posted by zombiewolf513

you have from about 6-am to 930 before it gets that hot lol. If you need any help this week let me know and I'll give you a hand

Pretty much, the car is actually in a covered area so it makes it less awful to work on. Hoping to have it wrapped up by this weekend, I keep saying that, but its actually close now so I think I can do it. Where in the Valley do you live?

[tuzzio]

Since the fenders are off the car you can lay it on a soft material (like a bed) and use a rubber mallet to roll them. Pretty easy actually and the soft material should give them enough play not to pull/bend.

[tb13]

Originally Posted by tuzzio

Since the fenders are off the car you can lay it on a soft material (like a bed) and use a rubber mallet to roll them. Pretty easy actually and the soft material should give them enough play not to pull/bend.

I was able to get them rolled, I just can't pull them at all. The top of the fender roller smashes into everything. I am going to borrow a friends stock struts and pull them.

[tb13]

Spent some time in the in the blistering AZ heat trying to get the car buttoned up over the last two days.

Holy shit was it worth it! Seeing the car on the ground shot my motivation through the roof. It is everything I wanted and more.







After I dropped it down, I got to work on getting the motor buttoned up. Being a single cam it was pretty straight forward, but I did hit some speed bumps. The header was so poorly made that the O2 sensor placement landed the sensor right where the steering shaft was suppose to go. Chopped the bung off an moved it, problem solved. Oh, and the starter is fucked so I wasn't able to start it. Oh well, for another day I guess.



Also manged to get the original HUD cluster that I sold back. The person I sold the old single cam to never installed the cluster and hit me up when I posted that I needed a single cam cluster. Lucked out getting it back, so happy to have a working HUD again!



Should be back on the road super soon, I am going to spend a few days this week buttoning everything up

[Lees_Garage]

Looks great!

[tb13]

Originally Posted by Lees_Garage

Looks great!

Thanks man!

Phase 2 will be under way soon

[tb13]

Hit the road today!

Got the car started days ago, but it ran like poop so I walked away before I started hitting and kicking shit. Went back with a level head today, swapped the ECU, BOOOM, runs great. Threw some little coolant hoses on and filled it up with coolant.

I hopped in it and took a tip to the gas station, it ran great. Needs an alignment really bad, but drives well regardless. Forgot how gutless single cam's are

Ran a little lap around to make sure it wasn't going to overheat or blow up, then headed home. Got me home, over 15 miles, no problem. Need to address some little things, but overall I am super happy with it! Alignment will be done tomorrow then I will be ready to beat on the single slammer until the new motor set comes in

Here are a few pictures of how she looks, ignore the bumper fitment, the front end is all mashed up and I let a friend "try" to put the bumper back on




All I need to do to make it completely road worthy after the alignment is:

-Install 1 1/16 master and Sentra booster
-Bleed brakes
-Install Z32 E-Brake assembly
-Replace PS pump
-Figure out what is clunking in the front end

Getting so close!!!

[rawgarage]

Congrats my G!!!

[SoundEfx]

I would say 'just in time for summer', but you're in AZ. It's always summer there....lol

Congrats pimp.

[tb13]

Originally Posted by rawgarage

Congrats my G!!!

Thanks man!

Originally Posted by SoundEfx

I would say 'just in time for summer', but you're in AZ. It's always summer there....lol

Congrats pimp.

We have 2 seasons, hotter than shit or "cold" (cold to us is 60*f). Personally, I don't mind the heat. Its actually in the low 100's right now, but the damn humidity is up for no apparent reason so it feels like its 120* outside Its basically going to be driven to the 2 weekly car meets I go to and sit until late October when its not blistering hot outside.