First drive in my S13: impression/opinions/etc

[slipnfall]

Hi there, Just a quick post... too excited to babble on for too long. :-) Tonight I took the first drive in my '92 S13 coupe. I'v owned it for close to two years, and have never even heard it run. Basic stock DE rebuild, new OEM-like clutch, Redline M/T fluid. Only thing I'v done is remove all air resonators, and clutch damper.

What can I say, but WOW. It felt more like a MACHINE than a vehicle! That's good in my book BTW. My previously owned vehicles(all stock) include an '87 Dodge Omni(aww yeah), '94 Grand Am, '90 Accord, bought the S13, and my current daily is a shared '04 Accord. When I first started my 240 I absolutely loved the sound of it, it was quite intoxicating. With the resonators removed you could really hear it pulling through the gears. I love it.

The only M/T I'v semi-owned is the '04 Accord, and while the engagement isn't as smooth, it's a welcome change from the cushy-feely/wishy-washy feel of the Accord. Flame away for saying this, but I sorta felt like I was driving my Dad's older Toyota Tucoma truck, based on the feel of the clutch, sound of the exhaust, and the 'looseness' in the body trim(it's only fair to note that the under-dash and center console were removed in the 240). FWIW, I'v never had a quieter/squeek-free dash/interior than my 90 Accord.

The pop-ups are cool, I thought they would be distracting, but I didn't notice them once.

Anyways it drove great at first, then it started getting a little wierd. My dash light were out so I didn't notice the temp gauge towards the top untill I returned to my driveway. About 5mins before that it started bogging really really bad in 2nd gear, around 1.5-2.5k. The car would jerk violently no matter how much gas I gave it, untill I depressed the clutch. 1st gear was fine. Brakes need some attention: pad engagement wasn't untill about 1/3 down on the pedal. I bleed the crap outa them, maybe I just need to adjust the pedal.

Wish I had more to elaborate on, but I was more worried about making sure everything was operating OK.

Thanks for reading!+1 Happy 240 Driver

Slip