what's most likely to break on an s13?

[johnnyballs180]

hey guys

there was a thread recently about random car sounds, and that got me thinking last night. while driving, i'm always listening for "funny" sounds, making sure to catch problems before they get bad. after every race or run, drift or touge, i do a quick walk-around my car.

okay, here's the deal... i've owned my car since the beginning of this year, and i've fixed a lot of stuff.. i'm wondering what "things" are the most prone to breaking on an s13 (i have an sr20det).

i didn't get much info trying to research this, so i'll just put it out there. you guys wanna list anything?

things like, transmissions.. i've heard, for example, real heavy clutches are stressful on the sr20 transmission, and a lot of people break them. true or not, i dunno.. mine hasn't broken.

my power steering pump went out while racing.

basically, i'm trying to make my car bullet-proof, but jesus that takes a lot of money. i just want piece of mind, without trying to fix things that don't need to be fixed.

tell me your first-hand experienced issues.

[theother1wstolen]

fuel pump if its the oem one, ignition switch, random bushings, definitely the coolant overflow bottle, im sure im missing some other stuff, but thats what i can think of off the top of my head.

[johnnyballs180]

being on an island and surrounded by the ocean, salt gets into a lot of things.. it's bad for rust too. my fuel pump was giving me problems, so i upgraded to a sard. ignition switch, so far so good, though sometimes things flicker if i turn the key to "off" but the turbo timer's still going.. i'm not worried about it.haven't replaced bushings yet, but found some dry-rotted ones.

coolant overflow doodad; the guy before me used some kind of rubbery sealant to patch up the huge crack on the side. haha. it works.

how about on the motor? bearings, seals, things of that sort? i'm hearing a real bad squeel, getting worse and worse by the week. i'm chaning belts today to see if that's it. if not, i'm wondering about the front mail seal.

[IanS]

Timing chain guides, they wear out, and the chain can fail.

The knock sensor, and the sensor harness are a common failure. They can cause intermittent power loss, poor fuel economy, and other driveability issues.

If the coolant temp sensor fails, it can cause all sorts of odd runability and starting issues.

Keep an eye on the coilpacks, they can develop small cracks on the lower portions. These cracks allow spark to escape during high RPM driving.

Make sure the HLA's are properly bled, if they get aerated, the cams or rockers can be damaged.

Use the right oil, with a good filter. It can make all the difference, make sure you have the correct oil weight as well.

Everything else is regular maintenance stuff.

Front end partsTune upFluidswater pumpthermostatfiltersbrakes

[johnnyballs180]

YOU'RE AWESOME.

i'm trying to "bullet-proof" my car, making sure to take care of it since it does such a good job taking care of me

sometimes i really do feel bad.. i've gotten so attached to it, every time it has a "hicup," i take it personally. lol

i'm looking into everything you mentioned, comparing against sources, and i'll conclude whether or not i need to pay mind to this that or the other thing.

thanks dude.

[IanS]

YOU'RE AWESOME.

i'm trying to "bullet-proof" my car, making sure to take care of it since it does such a good job taking care of me

sometimes i really do feel bad.. i've gotten so attached to it, every time it has a "hicup," i take it personally. lol

i'm looking into everything you mentioned, comparing against sources, and i'll conclude whether or not i need to pay mind to this that or the other thing.

thanks dude.

Any time.

Some of those things cant really be bullet proofed. I keep a spare set of coils and an extra knock sensor around just in case. Ive spent enough time with my car to have a pretty good idea what breaks and what doesnt.

[Vegascorbin]

The best way to "Bullet Proof" your car is to use quality parts while following proper repair/maintance procedures.

By this I mean don't take shortcuts on fixing things. Fix it right the first time and it usualy will stay fixed for the life of the parts.

Then run the car up to but beyond it limits. Don't make the car do things it should not be doing. Don't over rev etc. Don't try to run an 8 second quarter mile if your car can only run in the 11 second range.

Treat it right and take care of it and most cars will last a long time. Even if race them once in a while.