The Z32/BNR32 Build Thread

[TWest]

Originally Posted by Bumpkin203

Depending on the job and where he goes haha (AF as well). Nice job OP, would love to do a z32 to go with my z33 daily. Keep it up man.

Thanks! I got Open Electronics so not quite sure on my job yet. Whats yours? Any base recommendations? I'm hoping to either get Space Systems Operations or a comm job (client systems/cyber transport/rf transmissions), but we'll see once I graduate bmt

[Bumpkin203]

Originally Posted by TonyWest

Thanks! I got Open Electronics so not quite sure on my job yet. Whats yours? Any base recommendations? I'm hoping to either get Space Systems Operations or a comm job (client systems/cyber transport/rf transmissions), but we'll see once I graduate bmt

You should be fairly happy with electronics. If all else fails you can still get out and have some good experience to set you up with a good job. I am a F-16 weapons troop, basically load missiles and bombs on the jet and trouble shoot when it has weapons malfunctions. As for bases, it really depends on where you would like to go. There are a few guys on the forum that have been to Japan and say it is awesome. Im stationed at Shaw AFB in South Carolina, and I do not recommend it lol. Id like to be in FL or out west mainly for the car scene purposes. On a side note Im supprised they are bringing new guys in with all the foreshaping they just announced. Suppose to be letting go 25k personnel in the next 5 years.

[TWest]

Yeah I heard about that, that's crazy. From what I've seen there's a lot of people still in processing. At least at my recruiters office. I do know that they closed it to appointments only though, due to so many people trying to join.


To keep things on topic: About to head out to the garage to replace all gaskets/seals. There might be an update later today, but there might not, as I have a lot to do later on that might get in the way of progress today.

[TWest]

NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!



Well apparently the previous owner had fried the piston rings, so looks like it's getting a rebuild. When I bought the car it was smoking a little, was hoping it was valve seals but it wasn't the case. I should've done a compression test when I bought it but oh well, nothing I can do now. So looks like I'll be getting new rings and bearings sometime in the future, will have to wait a couple months though. So for now I'm basically stuck at a stopping point other than reassembling the rest of the engine bay and getting the bodywork done and prepped for paint. I leave for basic soon so not sure how much I'll get done by then. I'll try to post up a final update before I leave, but can't promise anything.

[fyneyoungstunna]

Yay, another z32 owner.
Jump on the other Z site. there was a guy selling pistons and rings for cheap recently.
Do yourself a favor and upgrade your injectors. It will be worth it to go to the new style injectors. If you are rebuilding, buy a set of TT heads, have them ported and youll be happy with a peppy NA engine. You can throw a turbo on an NA. dont let the "nay-sayers" fool you. Im shooting for around 300+ on an NA setup. but its expensive.
oh. Im trying to get a guy to cut copper plenum gaskets for the Z. ill let you know, if you were to want one. Also. get the Z1 1-piece driveshaft, its not worth buying the bushing and bearing again and again for no reason.

[TWest]

I'm back! Finally out of Basic Training so I have communication with the outside world now. Haha. I'll be stockpiling parts over the next 3 months, so I'll keep everyone updated on what's going on. Currently the bodywork is getting done on the rest of the car back home, so it'll be completely ready next time I see it. All I'll have to do is drop in the motor. I'll try to have him take pics of the body work/paint progress while I'm gone so I can keep you all updated. Stay tuned!

[TWest]

Small update..
Ordered the rings/bearings for the rebuild along with all the other parts for the motor I still needed (maintenance wise).

No pics of the rest of the parts yet, as they haven't came in.

In other news, I found out my first duty station is going to be Misawa, Japan. So while I'm still going to be getting parts for the Z, I won't be able to drive it for a long ass time. I will however be picking up a new Nissan ASAP once I get across the pond

Stay tuned for more updates! They'll be more frequent once I get out of tech school. Not much I can update while I'm here.

[TWest]

Another small update finally. The rest of my parts came in a while ago but I've been too busy to post lately. Finally getting ready to go home for a few weeks so I'll be able to put in some work on my car again



Once I get to Japan I plan on either picking up a R32 or a STi. Obviously I'll go for the R32 if I find a good deal on one, just need something AWD while I'm there. So I'll be adding another car to this thread eventually, but I'll still be updating with parts I get for the Z as well as progress pics from back home.

[TWest]

So.. didn't end up getting a chance to work on the Z when I was home (go figure), was busy spending time with family and friends and other stuff.

Finally made it to japan, however! I've been doing the tourist thing for the past few weeks and getting settled in. Picked up a Subaru Forester s/tb for now, figured I'd need it for the crazy snow I hear we get up here, and I got it for cheap. Currently I'm still looking for a "real" car, lol.. found a R32 GTR that I might end up getting but we'll see. Also looking at maybe a 180sx or another z32. Keeping my options open for now, until I find the right car.

Now that I'm pretty much settled in, I can start ordering parts again (if I don't break the bank on a GT-R that is..), so I'll be updating as I order/have the parts installed back home. Sucks that I can't do the work as I don't really like other people working on my cars, but it's in good hands.

Until the next update, here are some pics:

[Sileighty_85]

nice work on the Z32, always had a soft spot for them.

Always wanted to get one but never found one for the right price, not to mention not enough time with my 3 other projects going on.

If you ever pick up a R32 hit me up and I can help ya source parts, since as you have learned now the upgarage up here sucks

[TWest]

Originally Posted by Sileighty_85

nice work on the Z32, always had a soft spot for them.

Always wanted to get one but never found one for the right price, not to mention not enough time with my 3 other projects going on.

If you ever pick up a R32 hit me up and I can help ya source parts, since as you have learned now the upgarage up here sucks

Thanks! Will do. Finding a clean GT-R for sale here is a struggle so far though. Haha

[Sileighty_85]

yeah its gonna be, I highly advise finding on down south, try looking on Goo.net

[aga]

so the Z project is gonna be abandoned?

[TWest]

Originally Posted by aga

so the Z project is gonna be abandoned?

No not at all. It's just a lower priority until I get another car over here. The forester is gonna be the wife's.

[TWest]

So it's not official yet but I'm hopefully going to be getting this later this week. Just waiting on the seller to confirm.






Crossing my fingers that I get it. If not there's other opportunities. I'll update the thread once I find out!

[Sileighty_85]

DUDE! You need to get some pics of the under carriage and the inner fender wells.

its very common that they bondo the rust spots for a temp fix. eventually it will bubble and crack since they do a shitty job of prep work.

Looks good other than that

[Apex Eight]

Damn that is nice. Hope you get it man, she's beautiful

[TWest]

Well as it turns out I didn't end up getting this one but will be getting one almost identical! Should be in my possession tomorrow! Will post pics when I get a chance.

[TWest]

Got the GT-R! It seems to be in pretty good shape. It was bogging down randomly for a couple days after I bought it, but thankfully Sileighty_85 brought his scanner over and it turned out to just be a MAF issue. Took them out and sprayed them down with some MAF cleaner and it runs fine again. Anyway, on to the pics. Haven't gotten around to taking many pics yet, so these will have to do for now.

The day I bought it:



Finally gave her a bath:




Still not sure where I'm gonna go with the GT-R build, but it's going to be a struggle trying to decide which car to buy parts for half the time. But I guess that's not a bad problem to have

[aga]

Nice! how much did you pay?

[TWest]

Originally Posted by aga

Nice! how much did you pay?

Enough. Lol. Put a new shift boot and e-brake boot on because the old ones were showing a lot of wear. The shift boot keeps coming out of the bracket so I'm still trying to find a way to get it to stay. They look a whole lot better though overall. Hopefully I'll be ordering some parts for her soon. We'll see what I can find.

[TWest]

Been a long time since the last update! Been debating on whether I should make a new build thread for the GT-R or not, but I've still yet to decide. Until I do, I'll continue to update this one I guess.

So when I first got the GT-R it was completely stock other than an HKS Turbo Timer and some off brand axle-back muffler.




Started doing some maintenance and wasn't very happy with what I found.. looks like the air filter hasn't ever been changed.



Picked up some HIDs because the visibility of the factory bulbs was almost non-existent.



Went to a local track and saw a time-attack event and then went back another day to see my first drift event in Japan. Was pretty cool, but drifting was banned for all military personnel at the time so all I could do was spectate. (I've never drifted so I wouldn't be on the track anyway, but I plan on learning while I'm here, especially now that the ban has been lifted.)








Got a neat little Bride x Option towel (No pics of towel, don't know why I didn't take any)


Started stocking up on some parts because winter was coming, and winters here are rumored to be horrible. Picked up a Reinhard straight pipe off the auctions (Thanks Pat!)



Then the wife got me some Cusco front/rear strut bars from another local.


Andddd then the snow came.. I wasn't able to pick up a car cover yet so this happened..


Finally found one at Yellow Hat.. bought a tarp too to go over top of it but no pictures.


Winter is finally over, and luckily it wasn't as bad this year as it supposedly normally gets here. Would be nice to have a garage though. Felt so good to get the car out again!!


Had a little parking lot part party since spring was here. You guys might recognize one of these from another build thread on here.




Picked up a set of CST Hyper Zero's from the auctions (Again..thanks Pat!)... will be picking up the other set as well as tires after I pay road tax next month.



Once I finish buying wheels/tires I'll start ordering more stuffs.. I keep meaning to get some Z parts into the mix but the GT-R keeps taking precedence. One day!

[supersayianjim]

YOU LUCKY FUCK!!!! have you priced out how much it's going to cost to ship this back to the states?? and thank you for saving the say, I actually had a nightmare you were doing a rebuild on a n/a z32...

[Apex Eight]

Lol that is all so damn cool. Hell jealous

[TWest]

Originally Posted by supersayianjim

YOU LUCKY FUCK!!!! have you priced out how much it's going to cost to ship this back to the states?? and thank you for saving the say, I actually had a nightmare you were doing a rebuild on a n/a z32...

You get to ship one car for free on PCS orders.. so it's not going to cost me any to ship it back. And I'm still rebuilding the VG30DE, haha. It'll be fine for a daily. Might even slap a single turbo on it, who knows. Haven't bought any internals yet so I still have some room to work with.

[TWest]

Popped out the boost restrictor today, was gonna leave it out but was told that it's better to drill it out and put it back in to prevent boost spikes... so that's exactly what was done. (Photo from before it was drilled, no after pic)



Immediately noticed a difference, but can't tell exactly how much it's boosting with the factory boost gauge. Some aftermarket gauges are on the list of things to get among other things, just gotta wait until I get road tax out of the way.

[TWest]

No real updates, just some side pics of the wheels.. Some local guys said the other pic was deceiving (offset) and I agreed. Can't wait to get these on the car.


Picked up a set (2) of z32 wheels for $20.. didn't really need them but can't beat the price.. plus it's always nice to have extra wheels laying around.


Might stop by Up Garage tomorrow and see if they have anything worth buying (most likely they won't). Will post some updates if I find any goodies.

[TWest]

Not much going on since last update. Started going through and making a list of parts I still need to gather for the Z. I'm having my wiring harness shipped to me so I can finish re-wrapping/extending it. Should be 'fun'.

Couldn't sleep so went for a 4am pizza run..


Was nice outside today so decided to give the GT-R a wash/wax, hadn't been waxed since Octoberish but it was covered all winter. Still, looks a lot better than it has recently.




Road tax gets paid soon so I'll be picking up summer tires and putting on the CST Zeros finally. The rest of the rust repair should be getting done on the Z back in the states soon as well so I'll try and get some pics sent to me when it happens. Hate for work to be done on it without being there but it's in good hands. Can't wait to finally get the body painted, but not sure if I want to wait on aero or just have the aero painted when it arrives.. decisions decisions!!

[BossHogg]

ahh I never get tired of looking at stockish r32's. They are perfect. If the stock wheels were 17 or 18 they would probably be the best stock car ever created. Still my favorite wheel design wise.

[JRex]

Insanely jealous of the GT-R. One of my favorite cars ever...Why do people who live there think Up Garage sucks? Is it just overpriced or what?