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So most of you probably know, but I recently bought a 1990 240sx coupe.
Having already owned an ’89 coupe, I have always LOVED coupes and S13’s in general.
I have pretty big plans for it here in the near…. or better yet whenever I have the money future.
Plans include and are not limited to:
- Coilovers (Done)
- Polyurethane/aluminum bushings all around
- 5 lug swap, and Z32 brake upgrade (all around or just front, haven’t decided yet.)
- Wheels
- Misc. suspension arms
- OEM S14 Kouki side skirts
- Swap the engine and a 1.5way LSD
- Fixed back seats
- Nardi steering wheel
- Try to find a dash that isn’t cracked to hell
- Clears
When I first got it
After an intense cleaning and a coilover install, This is how it sits now. (the pignose lip is also now repainted and back on the car.
Donor/parts car
(Demon camber caused by borrowing a few bolts lol)
So as far as the engine swap goes:
I'll be keeping it the single slammer in it for a while(For reason see thread title)
But I want to swap something that I can actually work on. I'll be the first to tell you that I don't know much about forced induction set ups. Sure I've read up on them and stuff, but when it comes down to it I would probably not know what I was doing.
So I want and engine that foremost is inexpensive to get, have and abundance of parts, mkae good and RELIABLE naturally aspirated power, and be easy to work on. Sowhat have I decided on? LM7. It's the engine out of a late 90's/early 00's Silverado, Tahoe, Sierra, etc.
The LM7 is an LS based engine, so all parts from and LS1 and other similar engines are interchangeable and can be found at any NAPA, Autozone, or junkyard for reasonably cheap. the 5.3L makes around 265hp @ 5,000rpm and 320ft/lbs of tq @ 4,000rpm. Which is pretty good for a car that doesnt weigh much at all, and will probably be all I need. The mounting points of the LM7 is the same as a LS1, so I can buy a kit from Sikky and it'll bolt right in.
Oh and I forgot to mention the best part... These engines are so abundant in junkyards and such, I can get a low mileage LM7 in good shape for around $400. The most expensive part of the swap will be the Sikky swap kit and T56 transmission.
And as far as wheels go, I haven't decided on what I want yet. I have a few favorites, I'll post up some example pictures in a few minutes. There will be stretch. There will be poke. And the coils still have some more lows in them I'm just waiting to go 5 lug and get wheels on at the same time. I think I either want some Gram Light 57D's in ceramic white or an agressive set of SSR meshies. Those are two of my favorite wheels on S13's.
So that's what my plans are, I'll try and keep this updated as I make some progress. I still need to fix a few things on it, like the speedo which is not working at the moment
Having already owned an ’89 coupe, I have always LOVED coupes and S13’s in general.
I have pretty big plans for it here in the near…. or better yet whenever I have the money future.
Plans include and are not limited to:
- Coilovers (Done)
- Polyurethane/aluminum bushings all around
- 5 lug swap, and Z32 brake upgrade (all around or just front, haven’t decided yet.)
- Wheels
- Misc. suspension arms
- OEM S14 Kouki side skirts
- Swap the engine and a 1.5way LSD
- Fixed back seats
- Nardi steering wheel
- Try to find a dash that isn’t cracked to hell
- Clears
When I first got it
After an intense cleaning and a coilover install, This is how it sits now. (the pignose lip is also now repainted and back on the car.
Donor/parts car
(Demon camber caused by borrowing a few bolts lol)So as far as the engine swap goes:
I'll be keeping it the single slammer in it for a while(For reason see thread title)
But I want to swap something that I can actually work on. I'll be the first to tell you that I don't know much about forced induction set ups. Sure I've read up on them and stuff, but when it comes down to it I would probably not know what I was doing.
So I want and engine that foremost is inexpensive to get, have and abundance of parts, mkae good and RELIABLE naturally aspirated power, and be easy to work on. Sowhat have I decided on? LM7. It's the engine out of a late 90's/early 00's Silverado, Tahoe, Sierra, etc.
The LM7 is an LS based engine, so all parts from and LS1 and other similar engines are interchangeable and can be found at any NAPA, Autozone, or junkyard for reasonably cheap. the 5.3L makes around 265hp @ 5,000rpm and 320ft/lbs of tq @ 4,000rpm. Which is pretty good for a car that doesnt weigh much at all, and will probably be all I need. The mounting points of the LM7 is the same as a LS1, so I can buy a kit from Sikky and it'll bolt right in.
Oh and I forgot to mention the best part... These engines are so abundant in junkyards and such, I can get a low mileage LM7 in good shape for around $400. The most expensive part of the swap will be the Sikky swap kit and T56 transmission.
And as far as wheels go, I haven't decided on what I want yet. I have a few favorites, I'll post up some example pictures in a few minutes. There will be stretch. There will be poke. And the coils still have some more lows in them
I'm just waiting to go 5 lug and get wheels on at the same time. I think I either want some Gram Light 57D's in ceramic white or an agressive set of SSR meshies. Those are two of my favorite wheels on S13's.So that's what my plans are, I'll try and keep this updated as I make some progress. I still need to fix a few things on it, like the speedo which is not working at the moment
I think a car looks so much cleaner without aero.
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