SecretSquirrel's Build Up *56k Ouch*

So heres my build up, I'm not done yet and I won't be done for a while but heres what I have from the small things to the big things.

to start off its a 90 RHS13 with a 91+ front bumper... I found this out when I finally got to see the registration car and checked the VIN.

some of the things included here are z32/r32 brakes, 95 mustang gt wheels, atc st wheel, bubble knob, diamond cut headlights, chuki bumper lights, kouki tails, project silvia brake line conversion kit, solid subframe bushings, hks hiper-d coilovers, ichiba 5-lug conversion, z32 rear 5-lug conversion, cheap mr gasket wheel spacers, wrx wheel studs... and more to come later

this is how she was when I bought her... I was in Guam when my pops and my brother picked her up for $2600, new paint, cherry engine.


and the build:
we started off with small things that my younger brother could do...
steering wheel (I kept the momo horn), chuki lights, diamond cut headlights, bubble knob, and cutting the brown wire to make her extra sleepy...








Next was paint day...
I cleaned the r32 brakes with CRC brake cleaner yes everything, but i didnt rebuild them because when i disassembled them from the r32 crap the pistons still moved freely and there were no leaks, I painted them Gold I used, one can of dupli color gold, it was a small can... and i clear coated them with some left over duplicolor. then we painted the kouki center pieces I used a gloss black for the center garnish and a ford red engine paint also dupli color... the paint matches seemlessly. later I sanded the "NISSAN" on the brakes and clear coated to prevent rust.




Time to go kouki tails!
the wiring just needs to be cut and spliced for the kouki tail light connectors, the trunk lock and key part i simple pop and swap. oh and watch our for gooey sticky rubber sealant... i used color back to get it off...






raise her up and loose the shoes baby...







front hub removal went fairly easy i forgot what size the nut was because my pops removed it ... but you just have to remove the cover-cotter pin- and nut... the hub comes right off... and so does the old dust cover. be careful when putting the new 5 lug hubs on, if you pull it off, then the bearing cover stays on the spindle... use grease.









HKS HIPER D Coilovers ! woooo

my rotors were resurfaced by Rich you can find him on craigslist san jose... he did all four for $30.

check for wheel fitment... I ended up using mr gasket wheel spacers, ugly but cheap... only for the front... oh and you can see the project silvia brake lines... which DO NOT require the hardlines from the calipers like other kits...


me changing the z32 ebrake cables to r33 cables, they are longer but still do not reach the factory s13s ebrake handle cable... i never got to putting the r33 handle cable in ... will do 2 weeks from now.


HELLO SUBFRAME YOU BIG Son Of a Bitch.
surprising dropping the subrame was easy... ONCE I CUT MY EXHAUST... one of the previous owners replaced the cat... and had the headers cut and had the cat welded all the way back to the exhaust... only way to get the subframe down... cut the damn nasty piping.










my solid subframe bushings...say no to metal! i got these off ebay for $75

the factory bushings werent in bad shape, they were just squishy... so fuck them... i used to a hack saw to cut, alcohol to burn, and hack saw to cut again and pound them out from the top with a big pry bar and 3 pound sledge hammer

and with the solids in ...

rear hubs next ... 36mm axle nut sockets are not free, it helps to have a friend with one ... THANKS PAT... this all comes off with ease... pretty easy, i think the hardest part here is to get the ebrake big bolt in to the s13 upright.


























wheels back on everything tightened down and then comes brake bleeding.. i let my pops and bro do that
check underside one more time for everything.


drop her










and thats the pulley $47 on ebay, i had to buy a belt to replace the smallest one. i think it was an inch bigger than the bigger belt... I didnt take pics because I forgot, I also left my fan shroud off because it was a PITA to take off...

Problems I ran into, the rear coilovers were blown, so it was nice and low but extremely bumpy. I ended up putting the stock blown suspension back in.

the ichiba fronts suck, I had to test drive with only 4 lug nuts and it stripped the spline for the wheel studs ... so i used WRX wheel studs and impacted them in... they work great!

this took a span of 4 days, i didnt want to rush and i worked slow and sometimes i was missing parts or tools. within this time i also rewired the whole stereo, figured out that reclining seats in an s13 = expensive bride mo seat rails... (auto rnd in milpitas can suck a dick for being rude that day I came by to ask about seat rails),
well thats it for now...
i want to say thanks to the guys on this forum who helped me with my technical questions before i started this project.

I look forward to getting sideways!



++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
August 10
Added Bride MO seat rails for reclining seats
and Recaro SRD seats from EVO III
I didn't have the money to buy the two seat brackets at once so I ordered them two different times from FRsport.com
They have really good service and are very friendly ... thank you Cat and Lien at FRSport...
AutoRnD in Milpitas told me I was shit out of luck when I was lookng for seat rails... they can eat that statement right back up ...
oh yea im about 5ft 4 inches... the seats really dont sit that much higher unless you sit realllllly close to the wheel which i dont, I sit comfortably but not gangsta leaned back or anything like that ... I have seen where some seats ride reallllly high and thats weird... but the Bride MOs arent bad... the door also touches the seat because they are really wide... I have seen those new recaro "sport" seats in person and the shoulder supports arent as wide as mine ...

here they are...


















another thing... not even one week on base and the stupid PFCs are the gates are bothering me about not having a front plate... i hate to go to dmv to get one... and put it on ... weaksauce...





August 14, 2007
Today I put in my KYB GR-2s with S techs, the HKS Hiper Ds went back to Japan and I also installed a front power brace, and a rear lower arm bar. the chassis feels pretty good and getting stiffer, the kybs and teins are awesome too the ride is amazing for the price. I do not hear too much vibration from the subframe through my solid poly subframe bushings. i wouldve also installed my front ladder bar, i just forgot how it was supposed to go on... but here are some pics
You can also see my silver power pulley






More to come...