CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

meh, less ADD, more what was best at the time.

As far as the Maxima -> Civic -> WRX -> Maxima thing..

Maxima was having suspension issues mid 2009 and i couldn't afford the downtime of fixing it since i HAD to have a car b/c my job depended on driving to sites and meeting SLA's.

So i go the civic cuz that's the only thing my poor credit would allow me to get for less than $1000 down. Civic started having issues summer '10 (vtec actuator failed, CEL would not go off b/c of it.

So i parked it, and got the truck to drive temporarily but it had issues of its own (radiator leak.. broken clutch)

My credit was much better by that point tho, so i got the WRX as a daily driver in Jan '11, trading in the civic and absorbing negative equity into the WRX loan since the civic was traded as a running-but-not-inspectable car.

Then after i had enough money to cover the upside down loan on the WRX (neg equity from civic, and loan interest) I sold it to NC90GXE for his Maxima plus the rest in cash, to pick up where I left off with 3rd gens.





And with the Z honestly it was a matter of buying the best one i could find at the time i of purchase..
got the 85 in aug 2009 for $300 intended to be a quick engine swap and get it on the road. but got delayed due to moving, and the undercarriage wasn't all that great.
got the 86 nonturbo in april 2010 cuz the 86 has widebody fenders and fits wider tires but the appearance of it is awful and there is no a/c
then the 86 turbo cuz it's that, plus a turbo, with no funky aesthetic issues, and a complete a/c system

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

I like the 87 on up body style.

Hectic

iTrader: (20)

You should have just fixed your Maxima and been done with it. Unless your 10k posts are full of BS, someone such as yourself should have no problem replacing the entire suspension in a day or two. I'm sure the car still drove anyway.. Seems to me you probably looked at the Civic as an upgrade, now making excuses because the vtak blew up.

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

He said he didn't have time and needed something he could rely on. I could knock out the suspension on a Maxima in a couple hours but there have been times in my life where all I've had was a gravel parking lot, a screw driver and some vice grips. Hell even now I have a shop worth more than most peoples houses and I've been meaning to change my oil/transmission filter/t-case flush on my BMW for the better part of a month. I have a box with $1200 worth of Yamaha parts to rebuild the fork on my motorcycle that has been sitting in my garage for the better part of 4 months, and I've have been accumulating a couple 3rd gens worth in parts for my Mustang on the shelf over a year now.

Heck there was nothing wrong with my Maxima when I sold it, but I was beyond burnt out working on it/tired of it, and I didn't want two extra cars around while I was in college. The guy I sold it to got one heck of a solid car, I got a good price, everyone was happy. I loved the car but it got to the point in my life where it made more sense to sell it.

I don't see what the problem is, he is back into a Maxipad and he's done quite a bit of work on his other Nissan projects, and now he has a better idea for what he likes and doesn't like and quite a bit more experience.

Darkwing48

iTrader: (1)

Geez Man. I know that we Californians have less rust issues but I'm jealous that you guys can pick up cars to cheap. I've never saw a 3rd gen under $1K

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

i ******* hate those taillights.. that's why i specifically like the 86 cuz it's the only pre-facelift model year with widebody fenders.

it wasn't about any individual task, i could (and can) do anything on a 3rd gen that there is to do. But as a field service tech, i had a contractual obligation to be able to reach any part of NC within 4 hours regardless of the time of day or day of the week, or else my company (and i) got in big trouble with the customer. and 'car trouble' was no excuse for missing that deadline. and as often as i had "car trouble" with my original Maxima, i knew i couldn't count on it to keep me my job, whether i fixed the suspension that weekend or not.

The car still drove at low speeds with the bushings popped out but the right rear tire was chattering sideways across the ground cuz the toe angle was totally variable especially when braking. My brother had already gotten his 6th gen by then so he let me drive his Camry for a couple months until he found a buyer for it that was picking it up in 2 weeks. That put me into a frantic gotta-buy-a-car-now search. I tried getting a loan on SEVERAL other cars first, but all of them had either too much mileage for my bank to finance, or required a larger down payment than I could afford at the time, so the only 2 cars I got a "yes" on were an audi a4 1.8t wagon and the Civic. The day I got the civic, i test drove it, told the dealer "no thanks" (only partially due to the slipping clutch) and went in search of other cars, but when those 3 or 4 cars got me "no we can't finance that", i begrudgingly went back to the dealer with the Civic and told them i'd take it as long as they replaced the clutch first

So trust me, the Civic was never thought of as an "upgrade" in any way other than MPG and reliability, though ultimately it proved to be somewhat unreliable as well, just not in such a way as to strand me. It was a truly loathsome thing to drive.. it had problems that i didn't notice during the testdrive and first week i owned it due to the loud exhaust drowning out other concerning noises that the car was making, such as grinding/popping sound in the transmission.

And being unfamiliar with Hondas (and with the FSM being pretty crappy) i was unconfident in my ability to fix whatever was wrong with VTEC without getting in over my head in engine work, in addition to the 2 other CEL codes for throttle position sensor and intake air temp sensor. So i got the truck (which i needed anyways) to get me by until i could trade the civic in for something better, though the WRX still wasn't what i wanted. Yeah i could have fixed it after i had the truck as a second vehicle, since i switched jobs earlier that year, but it wasn't worth it for a car i hated, in addition to also needing a tranny rebuild.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

timing belt was blown (interference engine of course) so it was a non-running car, that's why it was so cheap

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

I can usually find 3rd gens in good condition for +/- $500 4th gen $800. You see every other car is a Maxima around these here parts. Even the Z's are cheap.

ColombianMax

iTrader: (7)

Hey welcome back (a little late) I've actually been distant from the org myself with my new career and all but I still own my 3rd gen, 95, and 97. I saw a fairly cheap $750 black on black VE5 on cl and contemplated picking it up but no time to fix, ISB or TOB had issues plus it had some rust so not worth my time. I hope to one day find a nice southern 4rd gen with 0 rust.

maximo018

iTrader: (6)

Wow! The other day I wondered what happened to you. U want a southern 4th gen? Come get one. Theres a crap load of them for sale down here. Even some nice SELs.

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

Spray it down with moisturizer...keep it soft.

I luv it just as much as you hate it, so you know that's some strong ****.

shiloh51933

iTrader: (5)

My father bought an '86 Z with turbo brand new back then. I remember him using it to go to work sometimes in Flushing. My older brother eventually got her in '88 or '89 I believe. She was beautiful( a dark metallic silver color IIRC) but he didn't appreciate her really cause she was a ricer mobil to him and his crew. Back then American Muscle was the only thing we appreciated. It wasn't until the Twin Turbo Z model came that the fairlady got respect from the factory. His girlfriend at the time had a ;87 Grand National and use to kill him in quarter mile runs.

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

I got a nice VE from a 94se with harness and ECU...I'm pretty sure the oil pan from the Z is a direct bolt on, I would just have to rework the oil pickup. Shouldn't be any fitment issues, since the VG and the VE sits equally well in the 3rd gen engine compartment. So that would make it the first Z31 sporting the formidable VE30de .

Gunther

Don't ya read the org? Someone did that already! I forget who... from texas I think.

maximo018

iTrader: (6)

Actually it was Brad, but he put his in a z32.

Gunther

my bad lol

maximo018

iTrader: (6)

Its kool man. lol

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

He did it before he moved to Texas.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

problem is that the intake would then point straight at the firewall... i'm planning on using a 2nd gen intake flipped backward on the Z, so that the TB sits right above the timing belt cover.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

yea the z31 turbo is slower than the z32 na, but when you ditch the stock microturbo and actually intercool it, you can get some good power out of it. And if you use the 9:1cr n/a motor instead of the 7.8:1 turbo motor, you don't have to sacrifice response for power. So i'm looking at a GT3582R .63 a/r turbo to put on the Z, relocated to front mount instead of manifold mount to make charge pipe routing not require me to ditch the a/c. That will be coupled with the 9:1cr w-block motor that I got from Goon9 (spent 20k miles in my maxima) and Z-spec cams (252/252 rather than 248/248)

zcarmaniac

Use Lexol to soften up the leather.Not the cheap **** that you get at the parts store,but the good stuff that you get at the local saddle/tack shop.It works great on steering wheel covers if you let it soak in.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

i still prefer cloth, in general the only time i would deliberately buy leather is on a car where you can't get cloth, such as bmw/audi/infiniti

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

updated 'reserved for pics' post with pics from the work I did today.. on the shifter.

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

Hmm, that's a really good idea. I ended up fully encasing that stock rubber piece in urethane but this seems like a better/easier method.

Though how does that shift factoring in engine movement? Would this ideally need to be done in addition to urethane engine mounts?

maximo018

iTrader: (6)

I would like to know as well.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

as far as engine movement causing issues due to the solid crossbar? the rubber bushing that attaches to the plate on the tranny is still there tho, so i don't really forsee the rigidity of the crossbar causing any issues. tho i have metal straps on my mounts (bad idea btw, they slip after a while)so it's kinda hard to say for sure if an engine with stock mounts would move enough to cause issues with it.

sadly i forgot to take the opportunity to compensate for the natural right-hand lean of the shifter, so i'll have to remedy that at a later date.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

a less extreme idea is to take a piece of flatbar (1/2" x 1/8") and weld that to either side of the stock sleeve, then encasing that with urethane and finding a way to attach it. the flat bar would have SOME give to it, and so would the urethane around it, but still much better than the stock POS.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

so, i got the car partially torn apart at the moment for the following work:

switching from intrax to eibach
replacing strut mounts/bearings and spring seats
replacing rear parallel link bushings
replacing tie rod bellows and outer tie rods
replacing driver side front wheel bearing
replacing both axles/seals
switching from fidanza back to stock flywheel
replacing power brake booster
swapping 89-92 style middle intake plate for 93-94 style to match my 93-94 style fuel rail/injectors
casting custom polyurethane motor/trans mounts
replacing crossmember insulator bushings

working on slanted driveway ftmfl



fidanza that i'm taking off

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

Gonna change the wheels?

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

yes. I have a leftover set of 17x8 Cobras. Originally bought them for my 85 Z (narrowbody), but i now have an 86 Z (widebody) which i later bought some 179 Cobra-R's for instead, so my 17x8's remained without a home.



Cobra 17x8 (for Maxima) on left, Cobra-R 17x9 (for Z) on right

Grimmrezx

usually the case

Maximan190

iTrader: (8)

why?

Gunther

stock is heavier, more inertia, easier driving.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

because i'm a lazy driver. i really hate lightweight flywheels, as a concept. nothing wrong with the one i've got, just not something i'd want on any car/engine.

and frankly on a VG, all the fidanza does is help you leave the powerband faster, and makes launching more difficult. I miss being able to take off without using the gas.

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

I've heard you say this before but I guess I've never experienced the phenomenon. I drive my Fidanza'd blue VE and my stock flywheel'd VE exactly the same.

I mean, I notice a difference in that the Fidanza will rev up easier and faster but I find myself expending absolutely no extra effort or attention to the Fidanza

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

VE != VG. You're always gonna have to rev a little bit on a VE to get the car going, but I'm used to how my first VG5 would launch like a breeze at 800rpm all day every day. With the fizanda it's just alot twitchier and more eager to stall out if you make too sudden of an adjustment (or if your motor mounts suck). Also i find that the RPM actually falls too fast when i'm upshifting, so i have to drag the RPM back up again before i let off the clutch to keep the car from diving due to the sudden engine brake effect.

BenStoked

iTrader: (7)

yeah, I've experienced it, too. not on a vg, but an h22. before the Fidanza, barely had to give it any gas. After Fidanza, had to force to keep the revs up at takeoff.
Didn't have any problems slamming gears, though.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

no that's just a problem with my particular car. i assume it's in the mounts/xmember but the axles/wheelbearing might be contributors as well.

Augustus Maximus

iTrader: (6)

Got any pics of the Z .

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

So what exactly is the deal with not wanting to give it any gas at take-off though?

I mean, okay - you don't have to give it gas to initially take off, but then don't you just have to immediately give it gas to accelerate? I guess it just seems somewhat trivial to me because it seems to only "save" you a split second of "work"

Though I do get what you guys mean by "twitchier", I have definitely noticed that. IMHO I think, if anything, the lightened flywheel forces you to become more "skilled" (for lack of a better word) with working the clutch though. For example, my buddy who came from his first stick shift being an '04 Mustang GT, the dude had the hardest time trying to drive a "normal" car that didn't have so much torque. He couldn't hardly drive his Civic when he bought it because he was so used to all the torque making up for his inattentive/inexperienced working of the clutch and gas. He couldn't even hardly drive my stock VE 5's over the years. He'd either completely kill it at takeoff each time, or ride the **** out of the clutch.

I definitely nowadays understand why. Because him learning on the Mustang gave him the sense of being better at it than he really was since he was able to INSTANTLY drive his GT without ANY previous experience - but that was only because the torque advantage never forced him to learn the nuances of working the clutch/gas together.

Anyway, I'm rambling