The OMG I can't believe it! thread...

[nissan-fanatic]

Ok this thread is for everyone to post something they have done to their 240sx, 350z, etc etc, that has been a PAIN IN THE ASS!!! Post pics if u have them!

I'll go first: ok for those of you who haven't read my thread in the tech section about the problem I been having with my auto tranny... Well here's the case... I been having problems with my gears slipping yata yata getting to the point. I had to replace my torque converter. I wanted to save money so I did it myself. And its my very first time doing it... And OMG! I never knew taking out that damn automatic tranny would be a BITCH! Not only that... putting it back in was even worse! Now I'm sore as hell with my whole body aching and to finish it off... I'm not even done yet!

I'll post pics up soon!

EDIT: worst part of this job was that I got tranny fluid all on me, in my mouth, and the tranny was squeezing the heck out of my chest that now my chest kind of hurts when I take a deep breath. Smh...

[Renelovesnike]

^ shoulda used it as an excuse to go stick :D and 5 spd swap "did it all by myself" and removing automatic pilot bearing "pilot puller just slipped out an had to chizzle it out without harming crank" was probably the biggest body aches ive had thus far!!! dropping subframe with diff still intact was a pain too since my oem exhaust was seized at all disconecting points -_____-

[kaidohms]

Egr temp sensor.

[Renelovesnike]

Somethings telling me someones gonna mention STEERING RACK BUSHINGS... look like a headache with motor intact.

[I LUV MY S13]

I had problems with steering rack bushings, not too bad though. I had the engine out so it helped haha. What was a pain in the ass though was replacing the steering column bushing. Shit load of work just for a $15 circular aluminum piece..

[HyperTek]

the easy repair for the loose/stripped tension rod bracket bolts, use circular saw drill bit and put holes on the side of the frame to put nuts. It may be ugly but its the only way (you could always tack weld a nut in there and than weld the hole back up.

[nissan-fanatic]

^ shoulda used it as an excuse to go stick :D and 5 spd swap "did it all by myself" and removing automatic pilot bearing "pilot puller just slipped out an had to chizzle it out without harming crank" was probably the biggest body aches ive had thus far!!! dropping subframe with diff still intact was a pain too since my oem exhaust was seized at all disconecting points -_____-

Would've gone manual but don't have all the parts and this is my only car.

Egr temp sensor.

Oh man!

I had problems with steering rack bushings, not too bad though. I had the engine out so it helped haha. What was a pain in the ass though was replacing the steering column bushing. Shit load of work just for a $15 circular aluminum piece..

Hope to never replace that! Lol

[fliprayzin240sx]

Doing a full SR swap then finding out that the damn oil pump is shit on it, having to pull it all out again, mounting the engine on an engine stand and changing the damn oil pump is a bitch...

[KiLLeR2001]

tightening down the nuts on the turbo exhaust manifold while its on the car and everything is hooked up.

[The Dude]

Had to pull the motor out because the clutch line into the slave cylinder was only hand tight and leaking. Had to take motor out again a few weeks later because the slave went bad. This time I'm replacing the slave, clutch, and flywheel.

[Renelovesnike]

Had to pull the motor out because the clutch line into the slave cylinder was only hand tight and leaking. Had to take motor out again a few weeks later because the slave went bad. This time I'm replacing the slave, clutch, and flywheel.

What motor is this?? i dont see how youd have to pull a motor to do any of this... drop the tranny for flywheel and clutch i get, but the slave and clutch hardline could both easily be done without pulling a motor.

[The Dude]

What motor is this?? i dont see how youd have to pull a motor to do any of this... drop the tranny for flywheel and clutch i get, but the slave and clutch hardline could both easily be done without pulling a motor.
LS1. I probably could just pull the tranny out, but its just as easy to pull the whole thing. I know from experience...

[Dumped240]

i got this car completely STOCK!!!!
and slapped on an sr20det redtop t28 turbo
greddy intake manifold,hks pistons&valves,kouki front end,side&rear bumper
xxr 962 18x9.5 180sx tail lights,cf hood,
http://i769.photobucket.com/albums/xx338/ricktar12345/5Na5F45Ha3J73N73Hec1vd4c74932746e1764.jpg
http://i769.photobucket.com/albums/xx338/ricktar12345/15oikvm.jpg

[ILoveJDM]

i got this car completely STOCK!!!!
and slapped on an sr20det redtop t28 turbo
greddy intake manifold,hks pistons&valves,kouki front end,side&rear bumper
xxr 962 18x9.5 180sx tail lights,cf hood,



huh? in the pic thread you said you just bought this car.
dont take credit for other peoples work, thats greasy.

[hulkster_s13]

During my ls swap my clutch line was leaking inside my trans so I had to pull the motor to fix it. Then after putting it back in found out one of my 10an oil lines is leaking. I'm going to have to pull motor again because there isn't enough room to tighten the fitting from under the car

[The Dude]

i got this car completely STOCK!!!!
and slapped on an sr20det redtop t28 turbo
greddy intake manifold,hks pistons&valves,kouki front end,side&rear bumper
xxr 962 18x9.5 180sx tail lights,cf hood,
I guess I don't know my SR20s very well but I thought the redtop came with a t25?

[The Dude]

During my ls swap my clutch line was leaking inside my trans so I had to pull the motor to fix it. Then after putting it back in found out one of my 10an oil lines is leaking. I'm going to have to pull motor again because there isn't enough room to tighten the fitting from under the car

What oil pan are you using? There's barely enough room to tighten the fittings on mine as long as the headers are out. I'm using a fueled kit, btw.

[doomviillain]

had to put a trans back on by myself. Such a pain...

[hulkster_s13]

What oil pan are you using? There's barely enough room to tighten the fittings on mine as long as the headers are out. I'm using a fueled kit, btw.

moroso pan also.its the inner one closest to the crossmember. i cant get anything one it

[fliprayzin240sx]

tightening down the nuts on the turbo exhaust manifold while its on the car and everything is hooked up.

Way easier to just pull the whole thing out, tigheten the nuts and tack weld the bitch in place...:l101:

[The Dude]

moroso pan also.its the inner one closest to the crossmember. i cant get anything one it

Hmm. I just used and adjustable wrench. It took lots of patience but it finally got tight enough to not leak.

[nissan-fanatic]

Omg... Idk wats worse. Being so tired for only having 2.5 hrs of sleep, or my whole damn body aching from pure soreness caused by the auto tranny! I was barely able to get up!

[nissan-fanatic]

i got this car completely STOCK!!!!
and slapped on an sr20det redtop t28 turbo
greddy intake manifold,hks pistons&valves,kouki front end,side&rear bumper
xxr 962 18x9.5 180sx tail lights,cf hood,
http://i769.photobucket.com/albums/xx338/ricktar12345/5Na5F45Ha3J73N73Hec1vd4c74932746e1764.jpg
http://i769.photobucket.com/albums/xx338/ricktar12345/15oikvm.jpg

Nice bro... Wats the HP?

[ch1873857]

^ shoulda used it as an excuse to go stick :D and 5 spd swap "did it all by myself" and removing automatic pilot bearing "pilot puller just slipped out an had to chizzle it out without harming crank" was probably the biggest body aches ive had thus far!!! dropping subframe with diff still intact was a pain too since my oem exhaust was seized at all disconecting points -_____-

YEP. took mine. i was 16. did a ca swap. spent a day and a half, cutting, chiseling, and grinding down rented pulling tools from autozone.

recently had to do it again on my rb25 neo. buddy had a special tool. took all of 4.5 seconds :squint:

my latest pain in the ass was redoing my rear end. dropped subframe installed pbm subframe risers, rlca, toe, and traction rods. dual caliper brackets, and dual z32 calipers. tomei 2 way with 5 bolt axles. what i thought would take me an afternoon. took about 8 hours of straight work. i made the lower control arms longer making it so i couldnt go off stock rod lengths for initial alignment. eyeballed everything. still in the process of running brake lines..

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff310/megasquirtCA/20120120_190133.jpg
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff310/megasquirtCA/20120120_144859.jpg

gah.. glad thats over..

[nissanfreak317]

A few months ago got tired of climbing over my rad support to get in and out of my engine bay on my s13. So, I went ahead and chopped it out with my angle grinder with the hopes of making it removable. Put it back in last weekend and it was definitely not as easy as I thought it would be! But, now I have a removable rad support at least, lol.

[MrFairlady]

New start Engine - No oil pressure
Tomei Oil block with Greddy Relocation + Oil cooler setup Dry starting.

After multiple attempts to Force feed it oil/Overfill the Pump, Had to Remove Tomei Oil Block on car and Replace with OEM oil Block for 1st start up.

That was not fun.


***Also 14mm Quick Wrench Stuck on the Top side "Drift Freaq" Motor mount Nut under Intake Mani after Mount replacement.
Took 2+ hrs to Remove the Wrench due to the angle it was Stuck at.

[conrad_s13.5]

....wiring....

[Fries]

The first time you tackle any "large" project fits into this thread. Trans swaps used to be a huge deal... but now I can do it in my sleep.

Pointless thread guy.

[bussitcustoms]

240's are so easy to work on. Even the biggest bitch of a job for a 240 is cakewalk compared to a 300zx. Or any fwd v6 for that matter.

[waxball88]

Latest one was trans swap. Had to swap bellhousings (not a big deal) and then while putting it back in the fork's clip came unhooked from the ball pivot after i had already put the whole drive-shaft and everything back in and mounted up. Luckily after dropping the trans slightly and a long ass screw driver it was fixed.

[nighthawk48]

restoring a rusted 240 when you don't have a garage. that was fun....

doing what ch1873857 did with his rear but without a garage, out in the open and woops forgot to check the weather... torrential downpour and my entire rear was out. Finished it that night but man I was drenched and annoyed. Learned my lesson lol.

Engine swap - not knowing they (enjuku & frsport) sent you s13 parts by mistake for your s14 sr into s14 swap until you are in the middle of the swap. PITA to redo most of it...good times -_-... Good customer service though, can't complain

[Zenki_516]

Somethings telling me someones gonna mention STEERING RACK... look like a headache with motor intact.

^ Now that makes more sense. Bushings are really easy in case you are considering them.

Honestly had way to many headaches... first one to mind is snapping a tein coilover up top on the dampening adjustment. Rewelded, drilled, and threaded it, but wow was i pissed.

[Zenki_516]

restoring a rusted 240 when you don't have a garage. that was fun....



What's up man? Another one in NY with no garage. My current S14 was bought as a bone stock blown automatic. I did everything in my street since I have no driveway or garage and I chose the winter as a good starting time.

[ManoNegra]

Dropping an s14 SR into a 89 hatch a decade ago
and realizing the heater hoses are different sizes
before the "let me google that for you" era

stripping a tranny bracket mount hole threads
and learning about helicoils the hard way

[badbob2121]

Installing the entire ES master bushing kit is a PITA

[CantSTOP]

^^Nice! lololl edit* to ManoNegra (http://zilvia.net/f/members/manonegra.html)

Buying a used auto tranny for my s14 because my reverse went out T_T, got it in to only find out it was more fucked up than my old tranny...so I had to somehow put my old one back on. After I did that, a deal came thru for a 5 speed swap so I did that. Dang thank goodness, the 5 speeds are so light =D

[s14unimog]

Too many to list, so I'll just pick one. Doing a timing chain job on a 98 Altima. Never again!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/s14unimog/TimingChainRepair-11-01-11006.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/s14unimog/TimingChainRepair-11-01-11016.jpg

[nissan-fanatic]

restoring a rusted 240 when you don't have a garage. that was fun....

doing what ch1873857 did with his rear but without a garage, out in the open and woops forgot to check the weather... torrential downpour and my entire rear was out. Finished it that night but man I was drenched and annoyed. Learned my lesson lol.

Engine swap - not knowing they (enjuku & frsport) sent you s13 parts by mistake for your s14 sr into s14 swap until you are in the middle of the swap. PITA to redo most of it...good times -_-... Good customer service though, can't complain

Wat parts did u get wrong? I wanna know cuz i got an s14 too

[mkezzo16]

Swapping out a leaky gas tank on my hatch just to have one of the bolts that go into the chassis and hold the straps snap from rust (only rusted thinkg ive ever seen on my car)

[bigs]

Hmm, biggest pain in the ass...

That would have to be trying to sell something without uneducated people bashing your price.

[nighthawk48]

What's up man? Another one in NY with no garage. My current S14 was bought as a bone stock blown automatic. I did everything in my street since I have no driveway or garage and I chose the winter as a good starting time.

winter ouch...hate working in the snow for a long period of time. Can't wait to have a nice heated garage...


Wat parts did u get wrong? I wanna know cuz i got an s14 too

exhaust was for an s13 so it was too short, had like a 3 inch gap between the exhaust and the down pipe. the radiator was for an s13 chassis and the hoses were for an s13 sr. The coilovers were for an s13, didnt know until i dropped the car and well it DROPPED at the highest setting lol that was fun. The bushing kit i got was for an s13 so some things were different. Random stuff... Too many headaches. Sent it back and they next-day shipped the right items. I think they put in my order I had an s13 with an s13 sr or something...one digit difference, could happen to anyone.

[nissan-fanatic]

Wow thats a lot of parts bro! But yeah, one digit can make a hell of a ton difference

[Rally240sx.com]

sheared off exhaust manifold bolt, then broke off "super hard" broken bolt removal bit in the center of the broken bolt, thank god engine was already out and on a stand, had to load it up in my truck drive it to a shop and pay $50 to have a nut welded onto it and removed :)


FUN TIME!:picardfp:

[harris180]

oooh, i can play this one..

anyone with a redtop sr knows about the water line running around the back of the block that is basically against the firewall..

it was the WORST to attach the first time i did a turbo swap.. took literally like two days..

iv since done two swaps since then, and can do it in like 10 minutes now.. there is a trick to it that i wish i knew the first time.. :bowrofl:

[pacotaco345]

Broke the drivers side motor mount pulling the motor last time. Someone sometime had stripped the nut that held it on to the crossmember. Took me 4 hours to drill/chisel/hammer/drill somemore to get the damn nut to where it would turn. + I got inside-of-motormount-goo all over me.

[Flicktitty]

not really a pain in the ass, just time consuming, Pulling the radiator and fans to change the serpentine belt... (2JZ s13)

[The Dude]

240's are so easy to work on. Even the biggest bitch of a job for a 240 is cakewalk compared to a 300zx. Or any fwd v6 for that matter.

Definitely true about the 300zx. What a bitch those things are to work on.

[nissan-fanatic]

oooh, i can play this one..

anyone with a redtop sr knows about the water line running around the back of the block that is basically against the firewall..

it was the WORST to attach the first time i did a turbo swap.. took literally like two days..

iv since done two swaps since then, and can do it in like 10 minutes now.. there is a trick to it that i wish i knew the first time.. :bowrofl:

Wat trick is that? Cuz I wanna plan to get an Sr for my s14 and it will be my first turbo build.

[energ]

Had to pull the motor out because the clutch line into the slave cylinder was only hand tight and leaking. Had to take motor out again a few weeks later because the slave went bad. This time I'm replacing the slave, clutch, and flywheel.

i def did the same thing putting my LS in, went to bleed the clutch and that line was only put on by hand..

but instead of pulling the engine, i unbolted the trans and slid it back just enough to get my hand in there, then slotted a socket that fit the line (think like an o2 sensor socket) and tightened it up

felt pretty dumb when i realized i left that loose..

[nissan-fanatic]

i def did the same thing putting my LS in, went to bleed the clutch and that line was only put on by hand..

but instead of pulling the engine, i unbolted the trans and slid it back just enough to get my hand in there, then slotted a socket that fit the line (think like an o2 sensor socket) and tightened it up

felt pretty dumb when i realized i left that loose..

Dang... U must have hands small enough for that! Lol

[DoobieS13]

....wiring....
THIS I sold my old S13 mainly for this reason...fuck all the wires and remembering what goes where...my memory sucks and writing everything down takes even more time...overall just don't have hardly any patience lol

[Imarvin240]

doing a new ring and pinion on my Z...needed some help to hold the pumpkin in place to set the pinion properly...if only i had a lift at the time, that would have been a start to making it easier.....if only

[ixfxi]

I never knew taking out that damn automatic tranny would be a BITCH! Not only that... putting it back in was even worse! worst part of this job was that I got tranny fluid all on me, in my mouth, and the tranny was squeezing the heck out of my chest that now my chest kind of hurts when I take a deep breath. Smh...

haha all that work and one day you will kick yourself in the ass knowing how much easier it is to just do a manual swap. when my auto died, i ditched it and never looked back.


I had problems with steering rack bushings, not too bad though. I had the engine out so it helped haha. What was a pain in the ass though was replacing the steering column bushing. Shit load of work just for a $15 circular aluminum piece..

steering rack bushings arent too bad, but the non circular odd-shaped one is a bitch to align and clamp down. the steering bushing is CAKE if you do it greek-style from behind, assuming you have parts of your dash off so that you can remove the steering column. thats how i did it way back when.


Way easier to just pull the whole thing out, tigheten the nuts and tack weld the bitch in place...:l101:

tack weld? wire-wrap the nuts is a wiser choice. also, use stubby wrenches and be sure to use the nut retaining clips.

[DenkiMan!]

trying to remove outer tie rods without power tools is quite annoying

[ryandriftingfat]

SOUND FUCKING DEADENING.

Not the easy top layer, the shit underneath. Whoever chose the glue for our cars deserves a beat down.

[Royal13]

+1 on the ES master bushing kit. Don't want to do that again.

[amarx2002]

Bought my S14 with a knock in the SR. Found out it was a rod. Had everything machined and all new bearings. Have it all back together and it locks up solid. Pull it again and take the carnage to machine shop. My dad and I had that bastard pulled and down to a bare block in about an hour. Defective bearings from the mfg. and there were 11 shot peen bb's smashed into a rod bearing. I had no parts blasted, which says how clean they were at that machine shop. All my parts came back in bags after that, along with every other block or crank/etc that was in that shop. Finally got it all back together and drove it today 5 months after I bought it. No time since I'm away at school. It's been the biggest PITA car I've ever had, but I like it now.

[nissan-fanatic]

Bought my S14 with a knock in the SR. Found out it was a rod. Had everything machined and all new bearings. Have it all back together and it locks up solid. Pull it again and take the carnage to machine shop. My dad and I had that bastard pulled and down to a bare block in about an hour. Defective bearings from the mfg. and there were 11 shot peen bb's smashed into a rod bearing. I had no parts blasted, which says how clean they were at that machine shop. All my parts came back in bags after that, along with every other block or crank/etc that was in that shop. Finally got it all back together and drove it today 5 months after I bought it. No time since I'm away at school. It's been the biggest PITA car I've ever had, but I like it now.

U appreciate it more when u give it the tlc it required...

[nissan-fanatic]

OMG!!! Anyone in/near the Austin, tx area? I need someone to come help me. I need to pull the tranny back out! DAMN IT!!!

[pacotaco345]

OMG!!! Anyone in/near the Austin, tx area? I need someone to come help me. I need to pull the tranny back out! DAMN IT!!!

Lol come pick me up from ft worth and I'll help you. I'll have that b%^ch out in an hour

[nissan-fanatic]

Lol come pick me up from ft worth and I'll help you. I'll have that b%^ch out in an hour

Dang, I live in south Austin and that's an hour away from me... Btw the tranny is just about out. The bolts are loose on it so all I need to do is take them out and drop the tranny enough to take the torque converter back out so I can pre fill it. Then put it back together

[pacotaco345]

Dang, I live in south Austin and that's an hour away from me... Btw the tranny is just about out. The bolts are loose on it so all I need to do is take them out and drop the tranny enough to take the torque converter back out so I can pre fill it. Then put it back together

you're in south austin and an hour away from ft worth? lol, good luck with the tranny tho man, atleast you don't have to stab the clutch like you do with a manual.

[JKL1031]

was swapping another KA in. everything was great until i broke an exhaust manifold stud. Tried to use an extractor, and that Mf broke. Spent 2 days pissed and drilling at it so much that the two are now pretty much melded together. RTV is still holding it on with no problem. sometimes forget its there.

[new2240s]

Ughh I hate the tranny. Did a e to de swap and forgot to put in the rear main seal. Pull the tranny for the 2nd time after struggling to put in in for two hours. Was able to get it back in then realize I didn't set the fork properly, had to pull it again.....3rd times a charm. Had a hard time moving for a week and a chest full of bruises. Don't want to that again any time soon.

[LOUD240]

had an exhaust manifold stud pull out took all the threads with it (already a step stud)got a larger step stud an tap , drilled it right into the water jacket! Cut a piece of steal the size of the hole set it in with a rtv adhesive , set the new stud in.Been good for a year

[nissan-fanatic]

you're in south austin and an hour away from ft worth? lol, good luck with the tranny tho man, atleast you don't have to stab the clutch like you do with a manual.

well I think I'm an hour away. Idk. How far are u from stassney and 35?

[pacotaco345]

well I think I'm an hour away. Idk. How far are u from stassney and 35?

Google maps says 193 miles haha

[nissan-fanatic]

Google maps says 193 miles haha

Yeeaahh, I saw that earlier...

[nissan-fanatic]

Got my tranny back down and out... Now pre filling the torque converter. Takes a long time!

[az_240]

On a KA the heater hose behind the engine just above the trans..... WHAT A BITCH that thing is to change... Your back will hate you.

Stabbing the trans into the engine by yourself is pretty bad too IMO.

[EnemyS15]

Doing my first rhd conversion. Hind sight 20/20 f that rhd nonsense lol. Great when it's the finish product, hated every bit of the build. Lol

[shalezzz]

http://autovisuals.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/windshield_wipers.jpg
jk doing solid subframe bushings in the dark after i just gave blood by myself cause i needed my car the next day, cause my ride to work bailed.

[ixfxi]

Doing my first rhd conversion. Hind sight 20/20 f that rhd nonsense lol. Great when it's the finish product, hated every bit of the build. Lol

leave that ghey RHD conversion stuff for the froots at hot import nights. unless you deliver mail, that shit is USELESS.

[nissan-fanatic]

On a KA the heater hose behind the engine just above the trans..... WHAT A BITCH that thing is to change... Your back will hate you.

Stabbing the trans into the engine by yourself is pretty bad too IMO.

Taking the cross member completely off the tranny and raising the rear end of the trans with a jack all the way can give u more space to get those 3 bolts on the bellhousing. It's wat i just did today and didn't need to take any hoses out. Also tie the trans to a bar and through the shifter hole and use a jack to slide the trans back and forth. Makes installation easier

[nissan-fanatic]

Got the job done yesterday. Finally put everything back together. Now its time to buy tranny fluid and turn on the car and test drive. I'll post up wat happens