Okay after some lurking I'm ready, this is my 1992 Shark Nose Hatch in Cherry Red Pearl (more like was) I bought the car in mid November of 2015, and it was ugly
(this thread is mostly just for personal use and for tracking my progress but feel free to watch)


Over the course of the last 2-3 months it has had a few mods, new BC coils, Koenig Rewinds, Godspeed Toe arms, removed front lip, sleepy eye and that is about it.

Beginning of December^^
<a href="http://s1056.photobucket.com/user/cole2 ... t.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t37 ... ku2vst.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 5A8AF791-0354-4053-86B7-1B2ABE1DA0A4_zpsjsku2vst.jpg"/></a>

the next mod(s) that are happening are new clutch and flywheel, and a temporary repaint.
<a href="http://s1056.photobucket.com/user/cole2 ... j.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1056.photobucket.com/albums/t37 ... 7dyjyj.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 84454758-34F1-402D-B61A-7F8183AF219F_zpsga7dyjyj.jpg"/></a>


The car had what seemed to be roof rack clips above the window strip, and they were ugly. Right now is preparation for painting the roof and front bumper.

Old owners failed plasti dip attempt:(



mmm rust.
Next is to sand more, maybe fix rust, and then paint

Yikes! You'll want to definitely fix that rust. It really isn't bad at this point... you can probably get away with just wire brushing it off.

You have done a great job so far !

It's been a painfully slow advancement. The car was taken to many drift events and had only a few problems, like boiling coolant and overheating. over spring it was painted white, but somewhere along the line only one side of it was white


However, the KA ended up blowing up, so we decided to do an engine swap.

Welcome 1jz and a black engine bay



so currently the car sits with the engine in, but we are still waiting on a few things, like turbo and an R154 tanny mount.and wiring also needs to be done.
hopefully over the winter I can maybe get wheels and perhaps a body kit of some sort. thanks!

Nice! I like the black engine bay. It came out great.

PapaSmurf2k3 wrote:Nice! I like the black engine bay. It came out great.

thanks, I'm glad I went with black.

Ooooo I'll be watching this thread. Any particular reason why you went with the 1JZ?

Ken1222 wrote:Ooooo I'll be watching this thread. Any particular reason why you went with the 1JZ?

mostly because I've heard a lot of stories about RB engines not fitting well in S-Chassis and Toyota parts are readily available in the US and also I like the way it looks and sounds and feals, and basically everything about it. In my mind it seems like a match made in heaven, S13 Hatch + Toyota reliability and power = YES.

we are aiming to get the car done this Friday for an event. and after all the drift events are done we will make it look prettier for 2017 season.

Nice build

Thanks Lobo.

Update, the car still isn't running great, we had to use Audi coils and we are waiting for an ECU and we have a few other things to tidy up. But I have big plans for the car, I just ordered a Rocket Bunny V1 kit and I am on the search for some 18 inch 4 lug Eurolines.

here is how it sits


so hopefully by around February the car will be painted with wheels and a kit.

Any particular reason you went with Audi coils?

Well, after another 6 months, not much has changed. I have been trying to get more seat time, and I rent out a track once or twice a week to get more practice. the car has been really reliable mechanically, but the track I rent isn't the nicest track. It is narrow and has 1-2 inch drop-offs lining the track, so the car has taken on some scuffs and dents, and a whole fender full of tires. But now I finally feel comfortable drifting a car that looks nice. So here is how she sits as of now.
(crappy Iphone photos)



I used audi coils because they work and they are cheaper than jz coils

Wow isn't it interesting how much happens in 4 years, Well I figured I should give an update from where I left off in May of 2017 all the way to April 2021.

2017 I spent the rest of the year driving and didn't do anything to the car except rod knock the 1JZ at the last drift event in November
However, 2018 saw a lot of changes. First the blown 1JZ bottom end was swapped for a 2JZ bottom end. Making it now a 1.5JZ. Then I also swapped to 5 lug.






Then I decided it was time to get the interior more presentable, so I took most trim pieces out to clean them all and then I also swapped to black carpet


To match the interior I dyed the rear seats black with a spray fabric dye. It did come out a little stiff, but not a big deal because these rear seats are pretty much just for looks.



Yes the pedals are garbage. Then I took it to a drift event in Reno, NV where we had a small run in with a wall. It pushed back the core support about an Inch but I straighten it out just fine later.

It progressively gets worse, I promise that it does get better eventually.

Not yet caring about looks, I kept taking it to events and getting practice.



I drove it like this the rest of the year until the very last drift event of the season in December 2018 the Ebay turbo shredded itself and ruined my 2J block... so I guess at this rate its a yearly engine rebuild. So gone with the old block and in with a replacement 2JZ block, same 1JZ head however.

So out with the old, and in with a new Garrett turbo as I did not enjoy ruining my engine because I wanted to save money... lesson learned.


Also in this time I sold the R32 GTR and picked up this RT4WD D16Z6 6spd Wagon to daily while I waited for my Chaser to ship.


Now that everything drivetrain related was sorted, I started on all the rest. I got a front and rear bash bar to help with protecting the intercooler and general convenience when jacking up the car or mounting aero. I also had it on the 18x11 Work Rezax II for a minute.

Then I took it to my shop class, This is the first time it's been on the street in about 3 years. Its terrible to drive on the street.

Now with the hood back on, core support straightened, a new head light assembly, and rep 35mm front fenders it's starting to look like a car again


Then I managed to trade the Rezax IIs for my holy grail wheels 18x9.75F 18x10R SSR Agle Minerva. I also taped up the rep 70mm Spirit Rei style over fenders. Also pictured is the Chaser in the back... the daily.

After that I kept driving it for the rest of the 2019 season, at the last event there was a jump drift and I guess I jumped it one too many times, because at the end of the day the crank pulley popped.

2020 arrived and for the first time since the car was KA, it didn't need any engine work over the winter/spring, other than just a crank pulley. So I decided it was time to give the front end a quick and easy "refresh" before I got started on body work, and now with COVID19 quarantine I had plenty of time on my hands.


I also decided that the raw aluminum finish on the IC piping was too worn so I went with black



Then it was time to actually start making the appearance of this car nice. So I tore it apart... again.

I also picked up some Origin Labs front fenders as my 35mm ones were terrible quality and too wide for my wheels. Also took out the old shattered windshield.
Then it was time to cut up the tires rear quarters. I then decided the mid body line needed to go because of the lack of body line in the replica Spirit Rei overs


All while this was happening I was still taking it out to drift events


Now to mounting the rear overs. I don't like the look of screws/rivets because of the busy look and also the waves it puts in the fiberglass. I also didn't want to fully shave the quarters as I feared the body filler/fiberglass would crack if I ever had a tire blow up or delaminate. So I mounted them with 3M Panel Bond.

Then in August I sent it off to paint in Utah while I moved to Las Vegas.


I took it to Maaco to get painted and I'm very happy with how well it came out. It was just what I needed for an ugly old drift car.
I flew back up to Utah to assemble it after to paint and take it to one last drift event in Utah. It is Porsche PTS Irish Green




I absolutely love how it looks in this pic

I did end up bending the lip on a Minerva, lower control arm, and a tie rod but easy fix. Sad about the wheel tho

After that I brought it down to Vegas with me and I bought a house in December

Then I finally lowered it to a perfect height, and by perfect I mean the exhaust scrapes on flat ground.






Well, that brings us up to the current day. Really, the car can exist in its current state for a while now. There's still a few things that need to be sorted out which are;
Raised exhaust, R32 GTR seats, and maybe a new wiring harness if I ever get to that. But I am really happy with how the car performs and now looks. Now I just need to drive it more.

Man. Hell of an update.
HELL OF AN UPDATE!!!
I love how honest you are. "This thing sucks to drive on the street" lol. "the exhaust scrapes on flat ground" haha".
But it sounds like you're doing everything right. Going through the motions and learning as you go. I dig the green a lot! Thanks for posting the paint code.
What's up with the winky eye though?

PapaSmurf2k3 wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 11, 2021 9:13 pm

Man. Hell of an update.
HELL OF AN UPDATE!!!
I love how honest you are. "This thing sucks to drive on the street" lol. "the exhaust scrapes on flat ground" haha".
But it sounds like you're doing everything right. Going through the motions and learning as you go. I dig the green a lot! Thanks for posting the paint code.
What's up with the winky eye though?

Thanks haha, It's kind of sad because I absolutely adore this car, and I've wanted it since I was like 12 or 13. But, If I wasn't so emotionally tied to this car, I'd wish that I never owned it haha. When I replaced the driver side head light assembly, the motor is faster than the original passenger side one, so in the photos where I have the head lights half lowered (younger me would've called it sleepy eye) the driver side one moves faster so its always lower than the passenger. I probably just have to adjust it.
Also I forgot to ad that the headlight cover hasn't been painted yet. Its from Connor Croak at Barin Scratch. It will be going yellow along with the break calipers.