Tonneau Cover

Something really minor, but got this Tonneau cover from a friend so I tossed it on, really cleans up the look with the top down, definitely a nice little addition.

Also began shaving the letters off my exterior lights, but more on that later.

330mm Momo Champion

It didn't take long after getting the Miata that I did the first mod on it.  I got this 330mm Momo Champion from a friend for free to use until I get my own wheel.  I then got the Momo 5702 hub and began the install.

Removing the old wheel was pretty straightforward, just disconnect the battery, unbolt the airbag, and remove the main nut of the steering shaft to free the steering wheel.

Now came the fun, trying to get the Momo 5702 hub to work in the Miata.  It isn't a direct plug-and-play because the wires from the clockspring get in the way of properly mounting it.  So I had to shave down the plastic connector housing off the clockspring and then drill out the hole in the hub so it would be bigger and the wires could feed through.  I also had to drill 2 new holes for the turn signal canceler since I was "clocking" the hub about 20degrees from it's intended position.  I didn't get any pictures throughout this process because I was getting frustrated with it, and just wanted to try to figure out how to get it to work.

 

At this time I also plugged in the PnP resistor I bought from a member on ClubRoadster.net which worked perfectly!  No blinking airbag light.

After modifying the hub I finally got the wheel on and took it out for a drive to see how it felt.  I read that some people were having issues with their hands hitting the turn signal and wiper controls without running a spacer on the hub but so far mine has been okay, I've only once accidentally turned on the wipers mid corner.  The steering feel all around is much better, making it much more enjoyable to drive.

I ordered my horn button over a month ago off eBay and it still hasn't come in, so I'm getting a little frustrated by that, but hopefully it'll be here soon, until then I have to touch the horn wire against metal to make it honk.

Smurf!

So back in March I finally got the Miata.  I bought a 1-way ticket to California after finding a '91 Mariner Blue Miata with only 92,000 miles on it.  It seemed to be pretty clean other than a few minor things (rear bumper scuffed, exhaust rattle, and torn rear window zipper).  After the test drive I was sold on it, but then came the bad news, the current owner didn't have a title for it so I wouldn't be able to export the car from the States.  After going to a Starbucks nearby to look over my options I went through with it.  At the Californian DMV I just had to request a new title be mailed to me.  So that's when the trip really began.  The drive back across the country was 2500 miles and it took 4 days, driving about 10 hours each day.  The states we crossed included California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and Michigan, with California and Arizona easily being the best states.

Upon arrival to Michigan I found a parking lot near the airport that seemed to have good rates for long-term parking.  Not knowing how long it would take to get my title this seemed like the best bet.  After the weekend ended I already had my title, but no bill of sale to export the car, so I had to wait some more.  Finally after about a week I had the bill of sale, meaning I could import the car.  Importing the Miata ended up being much easier than the 240sx.  I didn't get interrogated this time and I didn't have to pay any Duty or RIV fees so I was feeling pretty good about that.

A week after importing the car I went to get my safety and e-test done here in Windsor.  I passed the e-test with no problems, and after looking around for a shop that would let me pass the safety without Day-time Running Lights the car passed safety with no problems.

Now came the time to take care of some stuff, most importantly the rear window zipper so I could actually drive the car if it rained, and I didn't have to worry about parking outside.  I took it to an upholstery guy that did all the work for free; he just hand stitched it and then I laid some canvas material over top to strengthen it.

S14 Sold; Deposit made for Miata

So after a bit of thinking about what I wanted out of a car, and how much it would take the s14 to get to that point I realized it'd be easier just to start with a better platform, and I couldn't think of anything much better than an NA Mazda Miata.  So I sold the 240sx on Friday, March 11th and put a deposit down on a '91 Mariner Blue Miata with only 90,000miles.  Quite a step up from the 240 that I bought with a stripped out interior and 220,000miles that had a long list of things it needed done before it would be a reliable daily driver.

Here's the last picture of the 240sx and a little teaser of the Smurf.

Plans for Spring 2011

So while anxiously waiting for Spring to finally get here so I can finally enjoy the car, as much as it's possible to enjoy in it's current state, I've started figuring out exactly what needs to be done before it comes out of storage on May 1st.  Thankfully there isn't too much to do and it should be fairly straight forward and hopefully low-cost too.

The main thing is connecting the EGR hose to the header.  Since it isn't the greatest quality header the EGR hose doesn't line up.  While trying to fix it in the Fall, the threads of the current fitting got all chewed up so it was impossible to thread it in without doing more damage to the header and having major leaks.  Now I'm going to take the EGR system off the spare engine and install it, working backwards to make sure it all lines up.

After that it's just a few minor things:
- quiet down the exhaust a bit, maybe just with a silencer
- reseal the sunroof to stop the leaks
- e-test & safety
- trunk floor, most likely do a false floor setup, but more on that later.

I also picked up a really nice tool set that should help out with working on the car.  Probably has more than enough tools for my needs.
http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/6/Tools/Sockets/SocketSets/PRD~0589250P/Mastercraft%252BMaximum%252B250-piece%252BSocket%252BSet.jsp?locale=en

Also I'll start planning the suspension setup.  I already have my coilovers picked out and most of the suspension arms.  I'll most likely be going with FortuneAuto for almost all of my suspension.  They are a fairly new company for the S-chassis but I have only heard good things about them. Plus, you can't beat a lifetime warranty on all suspension arms.

http://www.fortune-auto.net/fortune500seriescoilovers.htm

Hopefully I'll be doing something like this to the S14 in the somewhat near future:

From this:

 To this:

To end up like this:

It'll be a lot of work, but I'm sure it'll be completely worth it.

Winter 2011

After not being able to pass the e-test I decided it was time to put the car away for the winter, take a step back and try again later.  So I got a car port to store the car in, washed & waxed it, and put it away

The plans over the winter are to redo the EGR setup to pass e-test, find a way to quiet down the exhaust, reseal the sunroof, and maybe lower the car on some Fortune Auto coilovers.

Throughout the winter I'll be relying on my brother's Mazda Protege5 to get around and hopefully bringing the 240 back out at the end of April with it running properly.

Beginning Stage 1 of the Build

Before getting too deep into modding the car I wanted to make sure it was all running properly and put together nicely so I wouldn't have any unpleasant surprises later on. The main parts of this were:

1.Engine/Transmission:
- Unable to use First or Reverse.
- If I somehow got the car in reverse, the car would move with the clutch pushed in all the way.
- Oil pan and valve cover were leaking

2. Exhaust:
- The stock exhaust was completely rusted through
- The header on the car when I bought it was meant for an S13 so the EGR didn't line up, and the poor welding job to plug the EGR blew through which made the car excessively loud.

3. Interior:
- Completely stripped, missing almost all the parts
- Minor rust started on the floor boards under the factory soundproofing

4. Suspension:
- Subframe bushings worn out
- Tie rods were worn out
- Strut mounts worn out
- Rear brakes completely worn out

I found most of the stuff I needed for the interior on son240sx.org, as well as a spare engine, transmission, and a fairly new SS exhaust system, including a header and 2.5" catback.  I also decided to go with a stock replacement clutch made by Exedy

-------------------------
So to start, since so much needed to be done to the engine and transmission I decided it would be much easier just to pull the engine and do the work outside the car.

\

 In the meantime I got the tie rods installed, started to piece together the interior and resealed the engine and transmission.

Before

Dry Ice

After

Complete

After 14 hours straight in the garage overnight I installed the new clutch, put the engine and transmission back together and got it all installed into the car.  After the car wouldn't start despite trying everything and double-checking everything over again I found that i put in the distributor 180 degrees off so the messed up timing wouldn't let me start it and just led to lots of backfire while cranking.  After getting that sorted out and the car started I noticed the oil pan was leaking even more than before, so out of frustration I called up the tow truck and had the car towed to the shop I used to work at and had them replace the oil pan gasket.

Once the leak was fixed I got the safety done but couldn't pass the e-test because my EGR wouldn't line up with the header.

First Mod: Polished Headlights

The first thing I decided to do to the car was take care of the nasty yellow headlights.  Knowing I wouldn't have the money for the European glass headlights I did the cheaper solution and wet sanded them and hit them with a polishing compound.

I worked my way up with the sandpaper, starting at 600grit moving to 1000, 1500, 2000, and then a polishing compound.

Before

Difference

Dog getting in on the fun

After

Overall it cleaned up the look of the car much more and will do until I order a set of European glass headlights with clear corner lights.

Introduction

So I've been thinking of doing a blog to keep track of the progress on my car for a while and now that I have some extra time I'll finally start it.

To start, here's a little introduction to the car.  It is a 1995 Nissan 240sx SE.  I was looking for a clean, affordable, mid-90's, RWD car that would be a fun car to drive and work on, and had a lot of potential for growth.  I had it narrowed down to either a Mazda Miata or a Nissan 240sx and was looking for which I could get the best deal on.  That's when I found this S14.

 

 It was obviously going to be a work in progress with the interior completely stripped out, and it was fairly high mileage but at the same time, the body was in amazing condition, especially compared to some of the other 240's out there.

  The car was 11 hours away, but I figured it'd be worth the drive.  When I got to the car it had no rear brakes, a cracked windshield, it was leaking oil, and it wouldn't go into first or reverse.  But despite all that I bought it anyways and limped it back to my sister's place in Ohio.  The drive that should've taken 5 hours took 11.

Trunk full of parts

Once I got the car to my sister's place I washed the car for what I'm pretty sure was the first time in 2 or 3 years

After finally getting the car into Canada and finishing up all the paperwork for importing it I could finally start the first stage of the build;  finding all the parts and putting it all back together.