So Cal Shops

[los]

I am in the process of buying a black 1993 240sx coupe, and I have a ton of questions. But rather than bomb the board all at once, I'll ask the most pressing question:

I am planning on driving the 240 as it is now, until I can get the money for a rebuild and turbo. (No SR swap. I need to keep it CA street legal). Where in Orange County (or nearby) is a good place to take the car for a check up/tune up and later rebuild/turbo?

I did a search and found a list of a bunch of shops, but many of them have closed. The rest seemed to be places to go to do stuff like SR swaps and other performance stuff, and not so much for routine maintenance.

I appreciate your help.

[pruto]

i don't believe there is a legal KA turbo kit on the market... as of yet.

[los]

Damn. Well, I'm still going to need to know a decent shop to do a rebuild, so if anyone knows of one, let me know.

[Hawd]

do your own routine maintenance it's not hard...

[justinhustle]

genki garage

[DragonReborn214]

Signal Auto

[nismo skyline]

Damn. Well, I'm still going to need to know a decent shop to do a rebuild, so if anyone knows of one, let me know.

why would u buy a car that needs a rebuild?

[los]

why would u buy a car that needs a rebuild?

Well, because, finding a decent s13 manual coupe with low miles in Southern California is damn near imposible. Especially since the 240sx has become super popular in the last year+. Hell, I called on this one within hours of it being listed and still almost lost it to some other guy.

But hey, I appreciate your help.

[holisticbeatz]

Get in the zone.. AutoZone

[los]

I know, I know, I should do my own stuff. I plan to, but first thing I want to do is have it checked out so I know how long I can wait before my rebuild. I plan on trying to do as much stuff myself as possible, but my biggest problem is lack of experience and tools.

I used to have a 200sx that I changed the alternator on, and although it it took my 5 tries to get it right (long story) I did manage to get it all working properly. The difference between then and now is, I had a friend that used to work at an autoparts store who would help me out (helping hand, tools, cheap parts). He's now in the Navy, and I'm not too sure I want to tackle some of this stuff on my own.

I also want to get kind of a plan of action for my car. I know where I want to end up with it, but I want to figure out the best route to get there.

Anyway, thanks for your responses. I'm going to check out a few places that people suggested. A couple are actually right around the corner from me.

[fastbacchris]

:bow: maintence is easy. look for write outs or ask friends.

[los]

Okay, first question on the self repair front. What is the best set of tools to do 90-100% of the jobs on the s13?

I literally have like 3 screwdrivers and a pair of plyers, so I am going to need tools.


I've had brand new cars for the past 5+ years, so I've had no reason to buy tools yet.

[justinhustle]

go to sears and buy a jack, jack stands, a 190+ piece tool set.

[brainfood]

www.gtpro.com
they make an aftermarket turbo kit that promises to be awesome as well
I think the greddy kit is carb eo legal but only for s14's

[los]

Is anyone working on a carb legal kit for the s13?

[old_s13]

Get in the zone.. AutoZone

hehe that was funny.. haha

[celerrime]

Well, because, finding a decent s13 manual coupe with low miles in Southern California is damn near imposible. Especially since the 240sx has become super popular in the last year+. Hell, I called on this one within hours of it being listed and still almost lost it to some other guy.

But hey, I appreciate your help.


If the engine needs a rebuild, then does it matter if it is lower millage? If it has had that poor of maintance/taken car of then I don't see why everything else would be fine. Just find one with a good engine and be done with it. No reason to spend very much(if you are) on something you are going to have to dump alot more into IMO.

Good luck either way.

[mk20116]

factory service manual.

i've never done anything major for my other cars, but the fsm will help you out quite a bit. as of now i'm installing coilovers on my car with the fsm for some reference. basic tools will get you by but knowing how to use them will save you more.
btw. buy a good jack and jack stands. (i've been using a scissor jack to jack up my car to change my coilovers. it's a pain.)

all this from someone who's only been able to fit on intakes and body kits.

[los]

I got the car home on Sunday and took it to DriftSpeed today. They said it looks good, but I am going to have them do a leak down test on it to see if I am good to go for a while.

I really wish there was a legal alternative to the SR swap. I'd love to have the power of the SR but I really want to keep it street legal. Oh well, guess I'll have to rock N/A style.

As for the FSM, the old owner threw it in with the car, so I am set there. I need to get some good tools, jack stands, etc. Then I plan to do as much of the modding, maintanence as I can, by myself.

[los]

Cool, I just emailed GTPro and they told me they are working on CARB approval for their s13 Turbo kit. They said don't expect approval before the end of the year though. That's pretty cool news.

[Wei240]

carb approved s13 turbo kit?

i'll believe it when i see it...
and hopefully its for the dohc...

[los]

That's what they said. Though I agree, I'll believe it when I see it. I'm just REALLY hoping I see it.

Here's the info on the kit. It's available now, but no CARB yet.

http://www.gtpro.com/katurbokit.cfm

[Wei240]

just looked at the website,
$4k for a turbo kit? don't think they'll sell too many of those, considering s13's are worth less than that these days...