s13 - Turbo LS build

[Malik]

looking good thanks for sharing.

[91 240]

I've been out and away from the car for the past few months, but finally had some time to do some work over the weekend.

I started working on my new manifold set up. all 1.75" 304SS. I was able to get 3 of the 4 driver's side manifold cut, fit and tacked in place. I hope to finish the last runner next weekend and get it all tigged up shortly after that.



Also, i recently got one of my last shipment of materials in for the exhaust. All 304SS as well. Stepping up to 3.5" from the 3" i had on the last setup. I'm going to make a clone of my Trust DD catback, which was 3" to dual 2.5" that opened up to dual 3.5" tips. This time, i'm going 3.5" to dual 3" to dual 3.5" tips.

Here's what i've got:
7' of 3.5" straight polished (4' not pictured, on back order)
5' of 3.5" oval tubing
(4) 3" 90* bends
4' of 3" straight tubing
Vibrant 3.5" race muffler
3.5" stainless flex section
2.5" stainless flex section
(3) 3.5" stainless vband kits
(2) 3" > 3.5" transitions



hopefully more to come in the next few weeks

[91 240]

Man, i have not updated this in a while

I have been able to make some progress just recently on the fabrication of new manifolds. Right now i only have the driver side in the works. I've changed the layout from one of my previous posts. Runners are fully welded, just need to do the collectors and then weld the runners to the head flange. FIrst big SS TIG project, so far so good.









while i continue to work on the new manifolds i need to address cooling issues i've been having.

I posted a fiberglass vented hood last year but had several modifications that needed to be done in order for it work.

with my previous setup, mainly the Taurus fan, i had to cut out my radiator core support and move the radiator forward 4+ inches. This time around, i wanted the support back in place so it didn't look so hacked. I welded in the replacement core support and worked on making new mounts for the radiator to tuck up under the support.

To do this, i started by making a alum shroud and used a Volvo 850 e-fan, pretty much the same motor as the Taurus fan but 3" thinner which allowed me to move it back towards the engine.


made some new mounts as well. lower mounts not pictured.






With the fan mounted, wanted to make some coolant hard pipes to get rid of cut up radiator hoses. silicon couplers and 1.75" aluminum tubing.









After that, i prepped the engine bay to paint the newly installed core support and welded a few bolt holes shut



Along with battling the high coolant temps, i was consistently having 250* oil temps, 40* over coolant temps just from daily driving. I decided to add an oil cooler setup and a new power steering cooler.

B&M 23 row super cooler 70273
Derale 180* oil thermostat
Derale powersteering cooler
Mishimoto oil cooler adapter for the Pontiac GTO oil pan (Improved Racing didn't have the GTO adapter available any longer)
assortment of Jegs -10an fittings and nylon braided line







mounted the thermostat on the fender well side of the driver frame rail. Plenty of wheel/tire clearance, plus will be protected when the fender liner goes back in.



then i fabbed up a bracket to mount the cooler. cut a piece of 1.5 x 1.5 x .125 aluminum angle. going to brace a little more though. Mounting it right below the driver headlight behind the lower vent below the turn signal on the 91-94 bumper.







I'm currently working on the lines right now, but need a few extra fittings and hope to have this buttoned up in the next couple weeks.

More to come!

[Smartone]

I would come check out the updates you have made but I moved across the country.

What welder are you using? Looking to pick one up myself that I can use in my garage.

[ka-titties]

good work man.

are you using a gas lens on your TIG for those stainless welds? if not, I highly suggest one. check out the Furick cup

[91 240]

Originally Posted by Smartone

I would come check out the updates you have made but I moved across the country.

What welder are you using? Looking to pick one up myself that I can use in my garage.

Hey man, where did you end up? i'm guessing you moved this summer? after graduation?

Originally Posted by ka-titties

good work man.

are you using a gas lens on your TIG for those stainless welds? if not, I highly suggest one. check out the Furick cup

Thanks man! yeah i have an assortment of gas lenses. i know my stainless welds are a little hot, just haven't been able to find the sweet spot yet. currently i'm at 35-40 amps and 25cfh with .035 308 filler rod on those welds. by the time i finish the other manifold, crossover, and exhaust, i might have it down.....

[Smartone]

Graduated and now I am now in Seattle! Building another 300ZX LS car but this time building it for Road Race.

[91 240]

Damn I've been away for a while. I lot has happened since my last update. Moved from a house to an apartment and finally to our new house back in September.

I've actually done a lot lately, but i dont have too much to show for it. Some out of necessity and other self inflicted. Oh well

I'll start with more self inflicted first, as that's more fun to talk about.

Starting simple. I saw a shift knob I fell in love with years ago but found out it had been discontinued. I had asked if they could do a one off but they no longer had the prints for it, so I said what the hell I'll get it anyway. Turns out they sell blank shift pattern discs and I found a local engraving company to copy the pattern. It's a MGW Gripper knob to go with my MGW short shifter. Here's the original MGW piece


Here's the new one with the piece i had made locally....pretty damn good!!!!


Next i got a set of JDM 180sx Chuki side skirts. I've been eyeing these for a while but finally pulled the trigger when a friend decided to sell his set locally.

Not a great pic.....


Upgraded from the stock 78mm throttle body to a 92mm


My previous Suspension Techniques sway bar was actually rubbing on my GTO oil pan ever so slightly, so i ordered a GK Tech sway bar for almost 3" of more clearance


after much thought, i decided to swap out my MasterPower T76 turbo for an On3 Perforance Billet 7675. Better flowing than the MP76, very comparable to the Precision 7675 at half the price, and the LS and Mustang guys have been giving props




I bumped up from my 80lb injectors to a set of 95lb/1000cc injectors. I'm planning to convert to E85/Flex Fuel later in the year and took the plunge now:


Now for things that needed to be done.....
1. redoing the turbo setup for the new hood
2. cooling issues....this thing still gets hotter than i am comfortable with

Ended up cutting the new hood for Aerocatch latches Sad day getting it towed from the old house to the apartment


New hotside ended up being modified LS truck manifolds due to timing, i just wanted to get it running while i continued to work on my tubular manifolds. Welded some stainless tubing and vbands to the cast iron manifolds. Had them coated and wrapped the stainless portion


2.5" 304SS crossover with flex section and used a exhaust cutout as the 2>1 merge



Used a Turboflanges.com 2.5" round to T4 304SS flange


Added a VS Racing 44mm wastegate and dump tube



Made a 3.5" downpipe that transitioned to 3.5" oval for ground clearance. It's only complete to the transmission for now. Plans will be to copy my Greddy DD layout and go from 3.5" > dual 3" > 3.5" tips (Greddy DD was 3" > dual 2.5" > 3.5" tips)




Shitty cell phone vid at idle


Next i went on to fluid cooling, in addition to the oil cooler i added earlier

Derale 4 row powersteering cooler mounted to upper radiator support


And finally on to radiator/cooling which is still in the works
for now the same Griffin 24x16x3 (19x15.5x2.5 core) radiator but with a 16" Spal Extreme fan (2500cfm)


Converted an Ebay aluminum overflow tank to a custom surge tank. Actually modifying this for more capacity and to be self bleeding.


Made a couple of block off plates to fill the gaps around the radiator and lower core support




I also have a LRB undertray to help with airflow while driving

http://lrbspeed.com/product/s13-undertray/

Cooling at idle is still an issue, so i'm making a fiberglass shroud for the Spal fan as a last ditch effor before i splurge for a slightly bigger radiator.
made a form based on the dimensions of the core and the fan


wrapped in a $5 Wal Mart polyester blanket


then a couple layers of fiberglass fabric and resin


Need to trim, prep, and paint after it's fully cured to see how it really works.

Cooling has been the thorn in my side for the last 2+ years. I have a pair of N1 style ducts that i have available but i want to keep that as a last resort. I'm seriously considering an Origin Stream or VS racing front bumper so i'd like to have cooling down before having to modify the new bumper.

Hopefully i have more promising updates soon!

[91 240]

So yet again another long gap between updates. This is going to have a few changes over the past 2 years.

I ditched my entire cooling setup and started over, however looking back i might have actually ended up being a dead Optima battery. It would hold a charge but as it heated up it would slowing start dropping. Oh well, new battery and these changes have been good so far.

Ended up with a slightly large Griffin Dual Pass radiator with Derale dual fans. I had to notch about 1/2" out of one of the end tanks to get it to fit within the frame rails.





I had to push the radiator as far forward as i could, which meant relocating the headlight motors using the Auto-Collect Storm brackets



With the larger radiator/fan combo, i had to redo my turbo setup. I had to pull it in about 2" closer to the motor to clear the fan shroud. Stuck with the same 2.5" stainless





Ditched my old ebay FMIC for a Treadstone TR1245 31x12.5x4.5



Then made some new IC piping. Got some good practice on my aluminum welding.










From there I wanted to finish my exhaust. I used my Trust DD and made a jig to step up the piping size.

Trust DD is 3" > two 2.5" > two 3.5" tips.
My exhaust is 3.5" > two 3" > two 3.5 > tips using a Vibrant Race Muffler






Little idle clip
https://youtu.be/lyLGZJe_ceA

I did a little suspension work. Finally added the SPL mono bearings i've had sitting for a while. Z32 uprights, lower shock bearings as well as all 3 rear arm bearings.

Little cleaning, before and after



Got some new rear wheels and tires, same style just went 17x10.5 +27 with 275/40's to 18x10 +40 with 285/35's. The 17's were too wide and didn't want to try pulling the fenders that much. With the 18's I ended up only having to do a mild roll/pull...maybe 1/2". Gained almost 1.5" of suspension travel

Before


During


After


I just finished up my turbo intake piping. Needed to get creative with some pie cuts to get it where i needed it. This took about 6 hours of welding





I should be finishing up my front suspension this weekend. Koni yellows to replace the KYB AGX's i had with the Ground Control coilovers. Adding T3 camber plates and their upper spring hats




Got a new bumper that's going to need some work to fit. VIS Racing knock off of the Version Select V4



Pretty much how it sits right now.



I have a few more little things to wrap up before i'm ready to have it tuned again. Hopefully something in the next couple of months.

[91 240]

Just wanted to drop an update here.

I'd been working with PCM of NC with some remote tuning sessions trying to get the car dialed in for better drivability as i haven't been able to find anyone local to tune my setup (HP Tuners, 3bar OS, No MAF, etc.)

I got a couple vids while driving around getting logs. Below was still partial throttle and shifting early...transmission was starting to misbehave.

https://youtu.be/YH0bNRSQY90

Shortly after, the stock 98 T56 gave up. I sent it off to get a Level 2 rebuild at Texas Drivetrain Performance. Few weeks later got a call that it had some significant damage and would be ~$2400. It was either a rebuild or a brand new Tremec Magnum F for $3400. TDP gave me $500 in exchange for my core T56.




While waiting on the transmission I got a set of 370 Akebono brakes and Concept Z brackets to replace my CTSV fronts and z32 rears.





While I was at it, i got some new wheels. SSR GTX01 18x9.5 +22 up front and 18x10.5 +22 in back. Rears are a bit too wide for stock quarters even with a mild pull. I'm going to look at getting flares or overfenders next year. Until then, I got a pair of wheels for drag radials. Superspeed RF05RR 18x9.5 +38





Been driving it a while when i can. Have to take it easy for the first 500 miles to break in the transmission. 100* temps here in TX makes for a miserable ride in an all black, no a/c, turbo v8 car in the middle of summer.

Good news though...coolant temps have not gone past 200* after 45 minutes of stop and go driving. Before it would hit 230+ after 15 mins even in <60* temps.

[TollieLifted]

sheeesh. Nice work!

[shaggyjake]

This is a sick ride! Don't know if you're still looking for a tuner, but Texas Speed Performance is in Georgetown, TX, not far from Austin. I'm sure they could recommend some tuners to you.

Do those akebono brakes still allow for the use of the z32 drum parking brake?

[91 240]

Originally Posted by shaggyjake

This is a sick ride! Don't know if you're still looking for a tuner, but Texas Speed Performance is in Georgetown, TX, not far from Austin. I'm sure they could recommend some tuners to you.

Do those akebono brakes still allow for the use of the z32 drum parking brake?

Thanks man!

I've talked to TSP (i'm in Round Rock now and 15 minutes from them) and they recommended 2 places - Aikman Performance in Cedar Park and SWG Performance in Temple but neither will tune my setup. Because of this i'm actually in the process of getting the last parts to switch to the Holley HP. Main harness has been backordered for 3 months.

As for the Akebono's, yes they work with the z32 parking brake.

[91 240]

I haven't had an update in a while but have been very busy. From my last post, i was working my tuning with HP tuners while also breaking in my new transmission. I became frustrated with the lack of tuning options on my setup and decided to make a switch to a Holley HP EFI setup instead.

After several months of back ordered parts, I finally had everything i needed to get started.



HP ECU
Main Power Harness
LS1 Engine Harness
Injector Harness
Input/Output harness
CAN I/O Module with harness
Wideband o2
New OEM coil harnesses
LS3 MAP adapter
7" digital dash
3D Racing Solutions Cluster for digital dash
I/O harness for the dash
GPS Speedo
Dual boost solenoids

Since i had to rewire the new harness, i decided to rewire pretty much the entire car while I was at it which had a lot to do with how long this update has taken.

I made a new electrical panel for the HP, CAN I/O module, fuse box, relays, etc.


Dash with the 3D Racing Solutions Cluster




But after watching the following vid, i've decided to try my hand at making my own background. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iD6G...index=1&t=611s

I found this layout that i want to modify. This was from the ProTune digital dash. I'll mess around with Photoshop and try to make something similar.



After a few weeks of getting a good base tune working, I was finally able to drive around to get the final ~250 miles to finish my transmission break in. This weekend I changed all the fluids to get ready to have it tuned again.

Yesterday I took it to get tuned.

Best pull of the day was 672whp and 640wtrq at ~12psi on pump gas.

Numbers don't tell the full story.

Fuel pressure looked good until peak torque then started falling off fast. The Single Bosch 044 is maxed out. Tune was VERY conservative as it barely had 10* of timing. More timing and more fuel at the same boost could have been closer to ~720/700.

Good news is that I already have a pair of 450lph Walbros (possibly a third to come) and a Radium Engineering Triple Pump Hanger. Bad news...years ago i cut out the hatch floor area and put in a fuel cell which i now regret. I have another stock floor from a donor car and 3 stock gas tanks to choose from. Now I just need to cut up the car again to get it BACK to a stock tank



while i'm at it, i'm going to set it up for Flex Fuel. I picked up this Motion Raceworks billet dual channel in line flex fuel mount and sensor



Here's a vid a put together from some of the runs. They weren't very good but at least it's something

https://youtu.be/jINjHmCKFxI

[tuzzio]

Good update. How do you like the 3D Racing solutions cluster as far as fit and finish? I was considering one for some time.

[91 240]

Originally Posted by tuzzio

Good update. How do you like the 3D Racing solutions cluster as far as fit and finish? I was considering one for some time.

fit and finish is awesome. no issues with the cluster itself. the only thing i had to do, had more to do with the Holley Dash, not sure if any other other dashes would have similar "issues". I wouldn't call it issues, though, just minor trimming.

I had to cut out a small section of the inner structure of the stock dash plastic. Also had to use shorter steering column mount bolts.

[91 240]

I messed around with Photoshop over the weekend made a custom background for my digital dash

I started with this I found online



From there I removed a lot of things I didn't want/need, created my own data points to monitor and came up with this.



Not much different, but cleaned up a lot.

Then I took some time to configure all the values I wanted it to display. Bad pic in the car



And here's a little video of it in action

https://youtu.be/4Ye-pOMFWzc.

I'm still going to play with the font type and size and adjust some of the colors a bit more, but i'm pretty damn stoked with how it turned out.

[91 240]

Almost 2 years later, and I finally have another update.

During my last tune, my single Bosch 044 pump was out of juice. I had already planned ahead and had a pair of Walbro 450 E85 pumps and a Radium Engineering Triple pump hanger to go with the spare stock tank I had. I was getting frustrated with the Summit Racing plastic fuel cell so I decided to go ahead and tear into the car again for some upgrades.

This was no small feat, as going back to the stock tank meant meant cutting out the floor in the hatch and welding that back in, as the spare tire well serves as the top support of the tank. About 10 years ago when I was first working on this swap, i noticed my car was rear ended so I cut it all out and put a flat floor in to go with the fuel cell. Now I've come full circle haha.

Also, with all the power in the car, I decided to throw more attention at the chassis and suspension while I was at it. I didn't get too many pics of all the suspension/bracing work but can if needed.

Here's a list of all the parts that were added while everything was apart.

FUEL
Radium Engineering Fuel Pump Hanger
Radium Engineering Fuel Filter
Frenchy?s Performance Garage Replacement Fuel Level Sensor
2 Walbro 450LPH E85 Pumps (267)
Bosch 210lb injectors

CHASSIS/SUSPENSION
Parts Shop Max Pro Coilovers
ISR Pro Arms (RUCA, Toe, Traction, and Tension)
Ultra Racing Front Strut Brace
Ultra Racing Fender Braces
Ultra Racing Front Lower Brace (still need to cut for oil pan clearance)
P2M C Pillar Brace
P2M Trunk Brace
P2M Rear Toe Arm Brace
GK Tech Rear Subframe Weld-In Braces
GK Tech Anti-squat relocation
GK Tech Misalignment Tie Rod Ends
GK Tech Front LCA with Ball Joints (didn?t end up using, too much front camber for stock fenders)
GK Tech Rear LCA Weld In Braces
GK Tech Rear LCA Spherical Bearings
GK Tech Front LCA Spherical Bearings
Custom Front LCA Weld In Braces
OEM z32 TT rear wheel bearings (just because)


Here's what the underside of the previous floor for the fuel cell


Cutting out everything


Stock spare tire/floor and working on templates for the surrounding areas I need to make


Trim pieces all cut out of 20g sheet


Floor all welded in


Then I had to weld in the taillight panel


Prepping for Lizard Skin Sound Control and Ceramic Insulation





Time for the tank and pumps.





Stock tank was cleaned inside and out, repainted outside and added some KillMat as insulation to keep the tank from rubbing on the spare tire well



From there it was putting it all back together to get running for another date with the dyno.

While I was at it, I added a set of Bosch 210 injectors to support E85

A few weeks ago I took it over to Biddle Motorsports for a retune and more boost.

When all was said and done, we were maxed out at 14psi and couldn't make any more boost. I'm running boost through the Holley with 2 3-port MAC valves using the turbo compressor as the pressure source. i think it worked out just fine though...at 14psi it made 850whp and 850wtrq on about 73% E. If we could have hit 20psi we could have made over 1000, but 850 in this car is a handful. Here are a couple of pulls from the end of the tune

https://youtu.be/6R-6KErfh8M

[projectsupra]

Awesome job getting the stock tank and sheet metal back in, car looks fantastic!

[nick_d_240sx]

850 hp/tq has to be sketchy in a 3000lb car!? How does the rear end, axles, and everything around it, handle the torque?

Congrat's! What a beauty! Awesome Fabrication & Welding!

[91 240]

Originally Posted by projectsupra

Awesome job getting the stock tank and sheet metal back in, car looks fantastic!

Thanks! It wasn't easy taking sheet metal from one car and putting on mine, especially since mine was in some sort of an accident before i bought it. 1mm here and 2mm there all add up to make a big difference. That part took me months with a LOT of measuring/cutting and refitting. I needed about 100 Cleco clamps to keep it consistently in place.

Originally Posted by nick_d_240sx

850 hp/tq has to be sketchy in a 3000lb car!? How does the rear end, axles, and everything around it, handle the torque?

Congrat's! What a beauty! Awesome Fabrication & Welding!

It was actually pretty manageable at the 670hp range with the last tune, but the extract 200hp/tq is on another level.....sketchy doesn't come close to it haha. It's flat out scary.

Stock Q45 diff and stock axles seem to be doing alright. I haven't done any clutch dumps or anything because traction is such an issue. If i had a stickier tire i'd be more concerned.

I do have a few other things i'm working on to help make it a little more manageable.

1. Tires - i'm currently on a set of 275/40/18 NT05's. I've got a set of 18x10.5 wheels that I'm gonna get some 305/40 NT555R2's. But, the offset is too wide for the stock quarters. I have a set of 30mm overfenders I need to install, but that's a bigger project.

2. Boost Control - Currently the Holley is controlling the boost. In the Tune it's full send. I'd rather not have to load individual tunes each time I want a different boost. I've hooked up an AEM 12 pos switch that I can map into the Holley to have 1 setting pull 2psi, another pull 4psi, etc based on the voltage position in the switch. I just need to play around with the tune more

3. Traction Control - This is the one i'm most excited about. I've got parts coming in to add front wheel speed sensor and compare to the rear wheel speed. In the Holley I can pull timing in different ranges based on rear wheel slip compared to front. This one is going to take a bit of trial and error but should be awesome in the end.

[91 240]

I've got all my parts in for the traction control upgrade. Now it's just a matter of cleaning the parts up, installing, wiring up the inputs/outputs in the Holley, then testing.

Got a set of S14 ABS knuckles and hubs. I already have a set of Non ABS so this easy swap.



The sensors that came with them were rusted in place and broke when trying to remove. The S14 ABS sensors are discontinued or are stupid expensive. I found a set of 97-99 Maxima rear sensors that fit (actually it was Fred Allan Burge on YT that found them)




They line up just fine



Since i'm using a Holley GPS Speedo, i'm going to use the VSS from the T56 to calculate my rear wheel speed.

It's just a matter of me getting off my ass and getting it done....it's just so damn hot down here in TX

[roadbuster]

Nice work & power numbers man! Are you doing the traction control through the Holley?

There's a local autocross/GridLife S13 that uses a Bosch e46 MK60 ABS module from an M3 for improved braking with ABS, but it can also provide Dynamic Stability Control to help control the traction. A lot of club racers are using these modules lately in cars that didn't have ABS at all or had less modern ABS.

[91 240]

Hey Brandon, long time!!

Yeah I'm going run it through the Holley for now to see how it works. we'll see.

I got around to getting everything installed, however the Holley HP doesn't work with the OE sensors that are VR (variable reluctance)....sensor worked just fine but the Holley couldn't read it. Apparently on the Dominator can read VR sensors.

So i ended up picking up a hall effect sensor and made a bracket to read off the ABS ring.




It's got a built in test light to help make sure everythings working
https://youtube.com/shorts/nm-acHhoILQ

Took it out for a drive and everything is reading correctly. Hopefully I can do some testing later this weekend if the weather holds up.