Proving a point, S-Chassis cars can be built cool on a budget. TheFro's Daily S14

[bc.]

On a budget doesn't mean cheap, it just means you are trying to stay around a price point you set for your build. He set his budget for $7K, a reasonable amount, and ended up at $8k, which is not too far over.

[Mikester]

Originally Posted by mechanicalmoron

I read it just fine.

His mods, with a stock engine, make it WORSE.

How so? He did the MOST IMPORTANT THINGS you can possibly do- suspension, tires & brakes; which is PERFECT for a daily driven car with potential for more power later on (or not). You seem awful hung up on 'go'... when in actuality, there is nothing more terrifying than a car with big power; but no means to control or STOP effectively.

Originally Posted by mechanicalmoron

I just also think that's a lot of money to spend on just looks.

See above- Looks was only part of the equation.

Originally Posted by wattupbaii

i dont know how this is on a budet. 8 grand for a 240 is a lot of money

Go buy a 240 and do the very same things thins guy did- Let us all know the final tally. BTW, he paid $3500 for the 240; which is peanuts by today's standard.

Originally Posted by bc.

On a budget doesn't mean cheap, it just means you are trying to stay around a price point you set for your build. He set his budget for $7K, a reasonable amount, and ended up at $8k, which is not too far over.

^^Not too far over? Jesus Brad... If I set a 7G budget and ended up at 8, I'd feel like the king of the world haha... This guy did GREAT!

Fro obviously has a LOT of discipline; and his build definitely shows it! Props~

My original budget was $5G when I got the 180...

[jorge1190]

Originally Posted by mechanicalmoron

I read it just fine.

Who said that daily's have to be slow?

Daily or not, it's my contention that most of the money spent on a car should make it better. His mods, with a stock engine, make it WORSE.


It DOES look good, but it could be just as (moreso, without rotas) mechanically sound, and preform much better, for the same price.

Try to build a good running, reliable, fast 240 for what he spend and you will end up with nothing. Power costs a lot more money than people think.

PS: I am assuming you have not built anything that makes actual power.

Good job on the build Fro. The styling of the car is very similar to mine, Navan, simple wheels, but mine is pearl white and not as low.

[silviaks2nr]

Diggin it besides the color. I hope you don't have paint peeling issues around the door handles and washer nozzles though.

[Rich260z]

Lol I keep a running talley of everything I put into my s13, budget was $6k for a running dd and it was good....for about a year and a half. This past summer I've dropped another $6k into mods.

This guy is doing great

[DNAmotoring]

Looking good, keep it up!

[thefro526]

Was going to multi-quote a bunch of posts, but I'm lazy and on my iPad.

To the dude who was trying to bash on my car for having a stock motor, please continue to assert your flawed opinion as I find it entertaining. This car is the car I drive EVERY day, and has been driven around 15/16k miles since last October. Reliability is key, which is why I didn't swap the car - or go KA-T. I also have a 1JZ S13, so I don't need two 'fast cars'.

As far as the budget is concerned, I was trying to demonstrate how easy it is to make an S-Chassis not look like a compete POS without spending a tonne of money. Most of the dudes on here have THOUSANDS into their motor and the car still looks like a bag of dicks. Drop 2k-3k on paint and a kit, and the car will look decent. Also, FWIW, this car was built over a span of like 5 months, but had it been done over 2 or 3 years, just about anyone could afford to do this even on minimum wage.

As far as the mods are concerned, since this thread was made, I've done the following:

-Stance tension rods
-Nismo 2-way
-OEM window visors
-Custom Grip Royal Steering Wheel
-Front LCA Bushings and Ball Joints
-Poly steering rack bushings
-Poly subframe bushings
-Pads and Rotors all around
-Refinished wheel wells and rad support
-Rear sway bar from an SE S14
-LED cluster, HVAC and misc interior lights
-Clear corners and turn signals
-Carpet dyed black (was a PITA)
-Sound deadening applied to passenger cabin and trunk
-Tanabe Tension Rod Brace
-Dmax floor mats (uninstalled)
-Swift Spings 8k/6k (uninstalled)

And probably a bunch of other stuff I'm forgetting.

At the end of the day, this is a street car. It's made to be a compromise between comfort, performance and aesthetics. Yes, it's slow, but as long as the road has a corner or two in it, you'll never know. Between the suspension and the two way, the car is also halfway decent and going sideways, it's not like On/Off switch easy like it would be with a car that made about 50-100hp, but it's still fun as hell.

Any who, to those of you that complimented thanks, it's cool to see my car appreciated and stuff. To those of you that hate, please continue.

Oh and PS, for those of you hating on the 'budget'/'cheap' aspect of this build, look at my blog (link in the signature) and you'll see why I didn't feel like spending more money than I have to. (S13 with 1JZ swap, full SUSP (no rubber anywhere), $1200-$1500 in AN fittings, etc - I refuse to total the cost of this car but its gone well over the $12k mark....)

[Mikester]

^^Surprised you elected to run a 2-way on a street-driven car. Could not even imagine the 'fun' of trying to keep it straight in the winter lol!

[snow hawk]

Haters gonna hate, Potaters gonna potate.

Beautiful car man! That color looks awesome! It might have been answered earlier, and I apologize if it has, but where did you get your car sprayed? I gotta get a new spray on my coupe when I get back to the states. Much love for a new england 240! Hopefully I'll get to see this car when I come back.

[thefro526]

Originally Posted by Mikester

^^Surprised you elected to run a 2-way on a street-driven car. Could not even imagine the 'fun' of trying to keep it straight in the winter lol!

To be completely honest, this is the story of the 2-way:

Decided that I needed some sort of LSD if I was going to be driving the car everyday, especially because it likes to pick up a rear tire on the right incline and I'd gotten stuck because of it once or twice in the first few weeks of driving.

Initially, I planned on running a VLSD, so I bought a shim from the local Nissan Dealership and went over to Elite JDM in Philly to buy a Diff. Get over there, bro with Nick and Papa for a bit, then Nick and I walk into the back to grab a diff. Turns out that he didn't have any Non-LSD 6 Bolt Triangle LSD's sitting out, so we pulled one out of a subframe. To check, we did the whole 'Spin the flanges' thing, and it was locked - Cool Stuff.

Get it home, open the cover, and it's a Nismo 2-Way. (I think - or it's a 1.5, but I don't think so, judging by the cam and how it works)

But yeah, I DD-ed a welded Diff in my S13 for the first year or so that I had a driver's license. It was kind of a baptism by fire on how to not drive like a noodle in adverse conditions, to be honest. Anyway, driving the S14 with a 2-Way is a tonne better than that welded was, as long as I'm gentle with the throttle, it rarely catches me off guard, but the first rainy day or two were sketchy. In the snow it's a complete blast though, especially with snow tires - as long as I'm not going anywhere that requires driving over 40mph or so.

Originally Posted by snow hawk

Haters gonna hate, Potaters gonna potate.

Beautiful car man! That color looks awesome! It might have been answered earlier, and I apologize if it has, but where did you get your car sprayed? I gotta get a new spray on my coupe when I get back to the states. Much love for a new england 240! Hopefully I'll get to see this car when I come back.

Car was painted at a Maaco - and it's a single stage job, which is why it cost so little. (relative term) Some people confuse the car for having a 'base/clear' job, but if you look closely, it's obviously a single stage. I took the car to Maaco without any weather seals, interior door trim, bumper, lights, side skirts, etc and that saved me a solid $250 or so. Job isn't the best, but it's one color.