Look what followed me home (My Kouki Build thread)

[eidk]

Nice find Seth! I wish i had a set of sexy wheels in my basement for a rainy day haha.

And for which direction to go. I may have to say staggered

[Dano]

I have 6 wheels total.. 4 9.5" and 2 8.5" so I can set it up either way.

It would actually cost me more money to go staggered because i'd have to find some tires for the fronts.. I'm thinking the 4 245 tires would look strange on 2 9.5" and 2 8.5" wide wheels...??

Well shoot! I didn't know you had 6, i'd definately run the same all around, then you can rotate front to back, woo! +1 for 9.5 all around.

[krash]

DUDE, you were supposed to get another vert!!!

haha, Kouki looks super clean though!

[Eikon]

So I got two of the tires mounted on two of the 18x9.5 rims.

I test fit them on the front and they just barely rub.. top of the tire on the bottom of the stock strut (the cradle where the spring sits). Just barely... I found a set of 245/40 tires locally for dirt cheap, so I think i'm going to pick those up.. that 5mm of extra space should be enough I think.

Here's a couple pictures of the 18x9.5 on the rear...





I know.. it's too much tire.. a 35 or even 40 series would be much nicer. But again, I'm not really spending any money on this, just using stuff I already have in my basement.

I did buy a set of lowering springs however.. 1.2" front and 1" rear drop.. should be just about perfect.. for me at least... I'm already worried about those being too low.

[biggie]

You are going to want some stiffer shocks on those springs, might as well do it at the same time, instead of doing mulitple swaps/alignments. Just some Tokico Blues or something to save money (they've been good on my Vert).

Looks like you'll have to have more camber and/or roll/pull on that rear fender after springs. May even hit at stock height on bumps right now.

[Ender_Zero]

Looks nice man! I echo the sentiment of getting some better struts that are accustomed to having drop springs on them. I have tein S techs/ tokico blues on my Z and love it for DD

(oh, and stick with the 9.5's all around...HAWTNESS)

[superman29]

Nice find! very clean

[Eikon]

Update on the wheel fitment:

From my last post, I've been trying to figure out wheel/tire fitment using the GramLights from my basement, and the tires from my basement. I got a pair of the 245/45 tires mounted, and they fit fine on the back, but were just a hair too much rubber for the front.

So I've been watching craigslist... found a set of 245/40/18 Michelin Pilots with decent tread left on them for $80 total. Score!

I got two of the 40 series tires mounted on my other two 18x9.5 wheels and test fit them: Close fit huh?

They only rub a hair on the fender liner plastic when turned sharp... not a big deal!

So I threw all the wheels and tires on and now my Kouki has new shoes!












Future modifications include: Lowering springs (and probably struts as well), brakes, exhaust (you should see the ridiculous patch job someone did on the stock muffler... i'll post that pic another time.)
Total mod money spent so far: $150 ($80 for the set of 4 used tires and $70 for mount/balance at the local tire shop)

[Dano]

Very nice Seth, I love it!

[mattblancarte]

You cleared the wheels with little to no rub! I bet that feels nice.

Can't wait to see more. :fistpumping:

[E7-S14]

Car looks Great!
bet your glad you kept those wheels huh!

[Dano]

Seth, since you mentioned it... do you even have brakes behind those bigger wheels now? I can't seem to find them.

[Ty P]

nice looks awesome got to love rainy day wheels

[Eikon]

The patch job on the muffler on this car is unbelievable!!! Check this out:






Yes, that was insulation sticking out (pink stuff).. what a rediculous piece of work!


So I replaced it with this: Megan Racing Type 2 exhaust. 3" throughout (yes 2.5" is best for the KA motor, but it won't always be KA.. I'm just planning ahead).





The fitment is nice.. not perfect, but very adequate. I have a little sound in the rear if I hit big bumps.. not sure if that's due to the exhaust bumping on something or the rear wheels rubbing on something.. I'll investigate that another day.


Next project: Front pillow ball TC rods

[Silvia-Tom]

pictures don't work for me. they used to work back on page one but now they're all gone.

[Eikon]

I've completed my collection of Z32 brake conversion parts. I will probably start install next weekend (after final exams which are next week).



Painted the calipers blue with the raised NISSAN lettering in silver.

[badbob2121]

nice, clean exhaust, this is coming along very cean

[s14derrick]

very nice. what is the offset on those wheels?

[biggie]

Looks good Seth.

Sell that patch work exhaust on ebay as 'custom'.

[Eikon]

very nice. what is the offset on those wheels?

18x9.5 +22

[Eikon]

I've been preparing for my brake swap, but found a nice deal on some KYB AGX shocks. They were cheap, but used and quite dirty. I wanted to take some time to get them cleaned up and worthy of install on my car so that I could do the suspension and brakes at the same time..

Here's a picture after cleaning with a pneumatic wire brush.. still nasty!


I sprayed them with a sparkly gunmetal wheel paint.


I cut out the old dust boots that were tattered, and put in some new ones. Then I installed the Espelier springs that I had picked up a month or so ago.
They look pretty sharp put back together.. ready to go in the car!


I cleaned up all the spacers and shims and hardware from the calipers and I plan to assemble the calipers with pads, etc... this evening or tomorrow AM.
Then I can finally put the car up up on jacks and start working on it. I'll be doing a bunch of work at once.
1.) Z32 brakes.. complete on all 4 wheels with Z32 rear hubs, ebrakes, drilled/slotted rotors, stainless lines, etc..
2.) New suspension - KYB AGX struts and Espelier spring combo.
3.) Megan Racing TC rods
4.) Roll my rear fenders a bit
5.) Cleaning off the dirt and grime as I go.

I'll keep updating with pictures as I go.
See more detail and more pictures in my brakes specific thread in the brakes forum - looking-for-experienced-advice-with-bra ... 89626.html

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Lookin good man!

[Hoffman5982]

Those wheels look great, but with that kind of fitment shocks/struts dont do it justice. Once you get coilovers its going to be sick

[SketchyRollin564]

wow.. you already have one of the nicer looking 240s on this forum lol

for some reason none of the pictures on the first post will show for me... i really wanna see the interior lol

please tell me you have a 5 speed swap in mind soon?

[Eikon]

Those wheels look great, but with that kind of fitment shocks/struts dont do it justice. Once you get coilovers its going to be sick

Thanks! Someday I'll do coils.. for now $200 on shocks and $100 on struts was about right for me.

wow.. you already have one of the nicer looking 240s on this forum lol

for some reason none of the pictures on the first post will show for me... i really wanna see the interior lol

please tell me you have a 5 speed swap in mind soon?

Thanks for the compliment.

No pictures in the first post... STRANGE... must have been a software glitch... Somehow all the pics went bye-bye.
I edited the post and threw a bunch of pictures back on there, so now you can see the originals. I love the interior so much.. other than the dirty driver floor mat, the rest is just immaculate.

I'm tossed on the 5 speed swap. I mean.. yes, without question, it will eventually have a manual transmission. But, the transmission I have in mind is a T56. So I'm wondering if it's worth the money and energy to swap a 240 5 speed in there. I should have my MBA next may... Since I'm in school now I can't really justify spending much money on this car.. hence the cheap used struts, etc.. I really spent more on the brakes than I should have.. Anyhow, when I graduate next summer, hopefully I'll land a nice job, then I can do my V8 and T56. Until then, I'll probably leave this motor pretty stock and just work on brakes, suspension, a front lip, a new rear bumper, basically just keep it clean...

[SketchyRollin564]

t56.... sounds like some chevrolet s*** lol

then i read V8... i like

[numbnuts240]

what e-brake cables are those? if they're z32 cables, they won't work.

[Eikon]

You're probably right.

those cables are from a z32 2+2 at least, so they are longer than standard z32 cables.
I've read contrasting stories about making those 2+2 cables work. I'll get them in the car and see what happens. Maybe I can get creative and figure out a way to make a bracket for it or something.

[numbnuts240]

i know the 2+2 cables are a direct fit for s13's, and r33 cables are a direct fit for s14's. i used the r33 cables, and everything was perfect. hopefully you can get those to work, otherwise it's another $100+some for r33 cables.

[biggie]

Yep, Seth you'll need the R33 cables for the S14.