Things you notice when swapping motors

[jrmiller84]

The other day I started pulling my KAE out to put in an SR and I found some things that were broken from the previous owner that I had no idea of. What horrifying things have you found?

In my case, I found that my headers only had 6 of the 8 bolts on them and I found bare wires in my ECU wiring in the cabin. No wonder it would run rough sometimes... I'm glad I'm doing this swap now so I can do it right.

[ALEXTHESUS*PECT]

missing power steering lines, broken rack and pinion, and seized front brakes.

[HalveBlue]

Spiders.

I always find lots and lots of spiders. In the oddest places like inside the wiring loom or some sensor.

More annoying than horrifying, though.

[jrmiller84]

Spiders.

I always find lots and lots of spiders. In the oddest places like inside the wiring loom or some sensor.

More annoying than horrifying, though.

I found some spiders in the bay in some places, but not in the loom anywhere. Just be glad you didn't find one of these:
http://spiders.ucr.edu/images/Is_or_Isn't_recluse_files/Spider1.jpg
Brown Recluse

[arkive43]

my harness was being held together by a string lol....and the wiring to the led squirters was all over the place lolz.....

['90RPS13]

Snapped Bolts, Stripped Bolts, Chopped Harness, Rewired Harness, Half Ass 5Spd Swap, list goes on.

JRMILLER: Fuck some spiders. Worst fear.

[shinhed]

Duct-tape intake piping, missing brake caliper bolt, missing lower shock suspension bolt:eek:

[jrmiller84]

Duct-tape intake piping, missing brake caliper bolt, missing lower shock suspension bolt:eek:

When I was considering having my SR installed by a shop, I looked at XAT and someone somewhere on zilvia said that they got duct tape in his intake mani :eek:

[Brian]

"oh, my hand is bleeding."

[240trainee]

"oh, my hand is bleeding."

Done that before:rant:

[Kaotik25]

i found like a bucket full of sand under the carpet. I'm wondering wth the previous owner did to the car. Probably buried it as a pirate's booty. LOL

[Silverbullet]

"oh, my hand is bleeding."


:stupid: hahaha

[chibo]

Bondo, ghetto-fab SR harness, missing bolts, bolts rounded off, rat chewed body harness, breaker bar in the frame rail (lol wtf.), etc. My previous owner was a fucking retard... but I was more retarded for not looking over the car more closely.

[mRclARK1]

My friend bought a new 240 about 2 years ago... not really anything we found doing a swap, but we found an old love letter the previous owner had wrote for someone... and obviously never delivered. It was an entertaining read. :rofl:

When I did my swap I found lots of duct tape in place of electrical tape... isn't duct tape MORE $$$ than electrical tape? :wtf: haha

[Farzam]

I found a bottle of lube stuck in the dash...

Needless to say that was a weird car.

[S13SilviaGirl]

I found some spiders in the bay in some places, but not in the loom anywhere. Just be glad you didn't find one of these:
http://spiders.ucr.edu/images/Is_or_Isn't_recluse_files/Spider1.jpg
Brown Recluse


OMG I am dreading going home and getting into our cars again...I just know there are going to be black widows and hopefully none of these bastards!:confused:

[supad0rk]

Duct-tape intake piping, missing brake caliper bolt, missing lower shock suspension bolt:eek:

I had the duct taped intake hoses.

The oddest stuff i found on the front clip for the SR. JDM shampoo bottle! I think it was being used as an oil catch. Neon light... w00t! But it was broke so i cried that I couldn't use it lol. Suuuupa tight JDM stickar on the fan shround that reads "GRAND SLAM PRO".

[EvilRB]

lol i found almost $40 in change uder the seats and floormats not to mention about 4 different tampons all nasty and dirty!!! EWWWEEEE!!! And a various jewlery, mostly fake kind but i did find one diamond ring that was worth $100 gave that to a friend.

[jrmiller84]

To add to the missing exhaust mani bolts and bare wires, I found something else today. I got the KA out today (Pictures here (http://s78.photobucket.com/albums/j83/jrmiller84/Project%20240/)) and when I went to unbolt the motor mounts I was like "man, this ones really loose." I took a look at it from the side... engine wasn't even attached to the drivers side mount... it was completely seperated. :ugh: Good thing I got new Cusco mounts.

[DRavenS13]

I found a rat carcass once... But i think someone put it there on purpose. It didn't have the usual splatter, it was just posted up under the starter.

[yota man]

Um not really in a swap but when I bought the last corolla it had some old ass seat covers. I took the passenger one off and lo and behold the pirate's booty. $108 in pennies all stuck together with coke. All the people at the bank hated me that day.

[jrmiller84]

Wait, you found 10,800 pennies? How did they not notice that? That's 60 lb's worth of pennies.

Needed a bag like this to carry them
http://www.alfredstate.edu/images/alfred/Admission/money_bag.jpg

[HalveBlue]

Didn't one of our fellow Zilvians find a little scale that's just perfect for measuring small quantities of "plant material" while changing the stereo in the car?

[jrmiller84]

Didn't one of our fellow Zilvians find a little scale that's just perfect for measuring small quantities of "plant material" while changing the stereo in the car?

haha, that's awesome.

When I bought the car I'm doing the swap on, the previous owner had left a letter in the glove box that was to him and from the owner before him that said something to the effect of "I guarantee that this vehicle is safe to drive and will make the trip from a to b(can't remember the names of the cities)." I guess the previous owner had him sign something in case the car broke down he'd get his $ back or something. I found that as I was driving it home, scared the hell out of me. Luckily it didn't have any problems, but not something you want to read on your first day.

[soreballz]

I got the KA out today and when I went to unbolt the motor mounts I was like "man, this ones really loose." I took a look at it from the side... engine wasn't even attached to the drivers side mount... it was completely seperated. :ugh:
My frist S13 parts car was the same way. Everything was ghetto about that car. -
- Missing bolt on the already split passenger side motor mount.
- Each rear axle was held on by only 3 bolts instead of six.
- No engine-to-tranny braces, bellhousing shield was gone, and two missing bellhousing bolts.
- All wiring was held in place with zipties.
- Car was an '89 fastback with an S14 KA, and the ENTIRE engine harness was a total half-assed mess. I'm talking no crimping or soldering, just wires twisted together and wrapped with electrical tape.
- 3 studs were missing from the exhaust manifold, and 3 more were very loose. It was pretty much held on by two snug studs/nuts.
- Radiator was mounted with zipties, nothing else.

As much of a nightmare as that car was, I must say that it was well worth the sixty (thats right, six-zero) dollars I bought it for. lol

I didn't find too many ghetto things when pull the SOHC out of my coupe. Just normal things you find jimmy-rigged on a 17 year old car lots of miles. lol

[PBucch]

I grabbed an 89 last week for $150, Pulled the seats out monday and found a bent spoon:aw:

But the body is so damn straight, fuck it!

[theicecreamdan]

I never had anything really unexpected on any of my 240s. but the transmission on my corolla was only held to the engine by 3 bolts. When I had to replace the transmission, I only put the 3 bolts back on. It worked fine for my BEASTLY 56 rwhp.

[SkunX]

when I got my 93 coupe I was cleaning out the trunk and found a cigg celaphane full of seeds...a certain kind of seeds..lol and when I took out the stock tape deck I found ciggarete butts under it..(how?..wtf...)

and when it was in the shop getting the new KA swapped in the shop said they found atleast 15 different sockets and a shit load of bolts and various nut & washers...they kept them >.<..lol

[240trainee]

My first car, I found a small bag of weed, and a prison note written out of a page torn out of a Narcotics Anonymous book. Kinda weird

[ESone3]

I found a bucket full of empty nut shells in my air box and a rat karcus in my radiator.

[jrmiller84]

I never had anything really unexpected on any of my 240s. but the transmission on my corolla was only held to the engine by 3 bolts. When I had to replace the transmission, I only put the 3 bolts back on. It worked fine for my BEASTLY 56 rwhp.


Don't drive too fast there, turbo. :keke:

[Cam B]

Dead mouse, lots of spiders >< . And when taking off my shift boot, i found like 3 unused nismo stickers, score

[nassin31spr]

I found a fake ass 1 karat diamond earring in the steering column.

[po12nh d]

found some money and some vip business card to get into the strip club..
and a magnum condom. and i was like :eek:

[Dirty Habit]

Found a teenage mutant ninja turtle in the little cubbys on the rear quarter pannel. And then like 50 cents in corroded pennies.

Tons of shotty engine/body work. The car looked really clean too. Balls.

[rps13drift]

When i got my 240 convertible and started ripping apart the interior i found a bunch of unused condems!!! lol! I guess having a vert gets you laid!

[WagDatto]

The headers on the L18 that used to be in the BREadbox... I'll have to take a picture to show you guys what I mean, but the motor/headers used to be in my brother's airbagged Datsun 521. When you were at full 'dump' it dragged frame, and thus, dragged header. Rather than getting a new header, he had a muffler shop weld a large, flat piece of steel over the 10" long hole he had dragged in it. So rather than an O shape, it was more of a D shaped header.

I'll take pictures...

[Rnz520]

Hmm when I first got it I found almost 50 dollars in change cleaning it, a couple of stripped bolts, a small puddle under the trunk matt, and thats about it, my car was pretty clean.
Now my brothers car, wow, we found green plants in a bag, green plant seeds, the guys criminal record (assault and battery and domestic disturbance), cut up harness, 3 cylinder heads, no engine :(, rigged headlights that stay up, and some other lil stuff like tools, knives (wtf), spoons.

[Future240]

Spiders.

I always find lots and lots of spiders. In the oddest places like inside the wiring loom or some sensor.

More annoying than horrifying, though.

unless you have arachnophobia like I do. To me that would be horrying, I'd prolly drop what I was doing and run away screamin like a little girl. Well a manly little girl

[Firestorm]

i didn't swap anything, but got the car from the great motherland of JDM :keke:

first thing i found was a 1/4" 10mm socket.
next i found a 50 yen coin, decided to tie it to a string and let it hang from the rear view mirror. for good luck...and as some DIY-G-meter :D

and then i found something really awesome. a eneos cash card and some gas bills, latest was dated 4. april 2007 (i found the car on the auctions in august). dude must have been a cheapass, gas bills are only 2000 yen :D

if someone can read this, i would like to know what it says. maybe even the name of the owner, then i would consider sending it back to him if i can get a hold of his address.

pic:
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/3140/img2436ch5.jpg

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/2687/img2437fv7.jpg

[touge240monster]

i was gutting my back seats and a pipe fell out of the paneling, i just laughed and threw it away.

[EDacIouSX]

I found some spiders in the bay in some places, but not in the loom anywhere. Just be glad you didn't find one of these:
http://spiders.ucr.edu/images/Is_or_Isn't_recluse_files/Spider1.jpg
Brown Recluse

just be glad you didn't have one of those fall down your shirt. fuck that shit made me cry i was so scared and young

[shade]

Yup. They always keep popping up like crazy, the damn heat in the engine bay doesn't kill them I swear. I had a black widow crawling on my motor when I took it out. I was like WTF?! The worst thing probably about my 240 was probably the hand brush paint exterior, previous owner was too poor or something. But that doesn't count.

Spiders.

I always find lots and lots of spiders. In the oddest places like inside the wiring loom or some sensor.

More annoying than horrifying, though.

[origin_s135]

UGH! i hate spiders. hmmm, don't really remember the thing's i found in the car when i was vacuuming it for the first time, BUT i do remember i found a korean cassette in the trunk, and super hard dried up gum in the ash tray.

[90hatchie]

when i was stripping the interior out of my dads old vw gold (i dont know why) i found a bottle of oil in the dash...
nothing interesting

[murda-c]

Six or seven mini bottles of vodka under the seat cover of my old car.

[flip3d]

When I pulled the kick panel, it was stuffed with T-shirts so the ECU wouldnt move.

[ILoveMyRHS13]

I found two pennies, heads up, under my floor mats. I also found a small child's sock under my rear seat. :confused:

[longdy]

for some reason i found a $900.00 check under my steering column!!...

lol... couldn't use it though since it was written to someone else!!... lol that was pretty weird

[jibanez]

a bottle of axe and zip ties in the glove compartment

[rb25_s13*CHUKI]

I found lots and lots and lots of change... Found $2 worth of change in the cd player it came with:loco: ... In my second car... Found a boost gauge in the rear interior. A bottle of z-max fuel cleaner... Buisness cards,hair pins,pens,Tongue ring, and just found a five dollar bill under the carpet..

[JVD]

I just find tons of bad ass work from the previous owner. 3.5" exhaust, exhaust heat shield on the under body, skid plate and subframe spacers. Nice.

Way more stuff, but I was impressed with the heat shield. The exhaust is also flattened a bit at the top so it can sit really high up. Only thing that ever scrapes is my muffler.

[VAs13]

i found this under the shift boot in one of my rhd clips

http://i25.tinypic.com/35k8oc7.jpghttp://i25.tinypic.com/29nv4ev.jpg

[Sreds13]

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee212/SIPauto/DSC03214-1.jpg
I think this speaks for it self.

[YoungGun]

A womans real nail under the center console..nasty.

[iHeartTheTouge]

not from swapping a motor but i did just find three wasps nests behind the bumper. on a very clean green coupe that got traded in at work, i found a mud divers nest ON the exhaust manifold... i THINK it sat for awhile. also found some weird cards covered in japanese text and something for a cb radio under the rear seat when i bought the car.

[EDacIouSX]

i found fungus growing in my dome and cabin lights. and just recently i took off my rear bumper for the first time and i think i found a led pencil from 1995 cause it looks like one of those old 90s led pencil designs lol. other than that, nothing cool but change and more change...


wait a second, this is things yu notice when swapping motors, we went all off topic oh well

[Andrew Bohan]

i found a bunch of unused condems!!! lol! I guess having a vert gets you laid!

apparently NOT

if that were true you would have found USED condoms

having a vert does NOT get you laid. it lets you keep all of your condoms :keke:

[cgtdream]

Snapped Bolts, Stripped Bolts, Chopped Harness, Rewired Harness, Half Ass 5Spd Swap, list goes on.

JRMILLER: Fuck some spiders. Worst fear.

+1 on hacked harnesses and half ass 5spd swaps.....oh and dented and bent power steering lines....