xTomCatt

Thats what ill do if i go through with it. I will be documenting everything and using OEM nissan parts. Plus ill be keeping everything i change. I have no intention on selling the car, but i never know what kind of roads my life will take me down.

xTomCatt

No man, i havent shipped the car yet. Im active duty military stationed out here with a few months left on my contract. Once im done, it will be shipped back to PA.

xTomCatt

Thanks for the compliments bro. Im honestly to this day torn on what i want to do with it. Its too good of condition to do anything to it.

Maxstyle

Couldn't agree more. The CA18 is a great motor and will be less of a pain in the ass to deal with. The Power Steering plumbing will not have to be changed like it will be if you do a SR20. Even the Factory radiator will work if you don't want to buy an aftermarket one at this point. Upgrade to a S15 Spec R turbo and enjoy. The CA18 is a true cam over and will not have rocker arm issues. Iron block. It pretty much a 4cylinder RB engine. The SR was introduced in order to cut costs in manufacturing. Making the CA was not much less them making an RB25 in Nissan's eyes.

dizzariot

Replied to your PMs. You're military? Me too. Like I said man you've got help over here if you need it. I fully support the stuff you're talking about. Let me know when you need help.

...so if someone wanted to build their CA18DE...where would one start

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Flicktitty

Coming from someone who did this a few years ago (89 Coupe XE 5spd, HUD,etc) with just over 19k miles. I JZ Swapped it, did a silvia front end, brakes, full suspension and the list goes on and on. I kick myself daily for not leaving the car stock and just buying an average car to do the build to.

Like they say, it's only original once.

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2JZ-GTE Swapped S13 Coupe - 1994 Supra Turbo

xTomCatt

Im gonna be really honest guys, and a lot of you aren't going to like what Im gonna say, but I've finally really came to the conclusion that I'M just going to SR/5 speed swap the car. A decent set of period correct wheels, coilovers, and brake upgrade. Don't worry, It's going to stay a two-tone. I'd never ruin that aspect of the car. Everything is going to be done correctly and it isn't going to be half assed. Hopefully some of you can forgive me and tolerate what I have planned for the car.

CrimsonRockett

At the end of the day, it's your car.

You do as you please with it. Enjoy it for what it is.

Cars are meant to be driven.

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-Jspec-
Instagram/CrimsonRockett

xTomCatt

Thanks man, I appreciate it!

lunchmeat

Approved!

mechanicalmoron

What should I do with my unicorn?

Obviously, hack it up 'cleanly', and swap a little turd of an unservicable orphaned overseas motor with 600cc less displacement

*edit* oh, you're just going to swap the little orphaned overseas turd with 400cc less displacement, I guess that's better....

xTomCatt

Like I said, hopefully you guys can forgive me. I can't please everybody.

dizzariot

Dude if this is your plan then don't listen to anyone else. You're already solid.


What are you suggesting?

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Kingtal0n

i would never swap a 240 with less than 120k.

its got much more value the way it is now, original. Once you pull the engine the value will drop, regardless of what you install next or how much money you pour into it, you will only be decreasing the cars value.

dizzariot

You (of all people) should know that I value these cars as 'OEM as possible' to a fault...but seriously man the 'Onevia' is hideous and the SOHC KA isn't fun by any stretch of the imagination.

What the hell? He wants to essentially make it into the Japanese equivalent. I thought I was harsh.

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Malik

your car, do what you want to do.

Bnr32gtr

pull that fucking slow ass ka out and smack a sr in that bitch I would not u care if it had 20k on it. That don't change the fact it 20 + years old. And I have never herd someone one say man I really wish it had a ka in it. Come on guys lol. we just pulled the boxer out of my boys frs for a lsx. You have a good plan sir now get to it say focus

Bnr32gtr

And for the people who says it's only original once. Stock any thing is lame af. Never roll stock! Tastefull mod never go out of style

dizzariot

LSX in an FRS, huh? Yeah man makes way more sense than a Greddy turbo kit.

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Bnr32gtr

Yeah... Way more reliable sti ringland failure around 400 and that has a stouter boxer motor in it. Nothing cool & fast is cheep. U might be able to get one of the two on the low but not both.

d9m13n

Super solid plan and it's the way I personally would go. If it's within budget source a super clean sr and get a reputable shop to do the swap so you'll have invoices and receipts. Keep the paint as clean as possible and just enjoy the car since that's what it's for at the end of the day. No matter how much we want them to stock low mile s chassis will never pull crazy auction numbers like some other Japanese classics have. 5-10 years down the road, put it up on bring a trailer and chances are it'll still be one of the lowest mile s13s on the market, but without the single jingle auto someone will actually want to buy it. Hate to admit it, but these will never be very sought after stock or super desirable classics. Keeping an s chassis stashed away in hopes of getting some marginal appreciation after some absurd amount of time is only a little better than turning it into a clapped out drift slut in my book. Look after it and enjoy the hell out of it

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Bnr32gtr

^i stand my this message. Op lock this bitch up and start a build thead

dizzariot

Considering the 180SX here is already going up in price it seems like you're not doing a lot of research, dude. The Midnight Purple TypeX I bought was fairly pricey considering what they went for a year or so ago. If you're talking about USDM ones you're half right: no one wants a stock S-chassis car...

...but the Japanese ones will definitely be sought after. They were a sports car here, not economy cars. There was a 1989 TypeX CONVERSION at the auctions last month. Started life as an automatic NA and ended up manual SR20DET with TypeX aero. Went for close to $13k and it's not even a VIN plate TypeX.

My point? Making a USDM two-tone into (essentially) a JDM two-tone will be worth more money one day.

Bnr32gtr - I can't afford to get into another argument about the FRS/BRZ so we'll just have to agree to disagree, dude.

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lunchmeat

I wouldn't consider them economy cars. They were sporty coupes mainly driven by middle aged folks. It was Nissan's miata with an engine that should have never came in the car.

d9m13n

Yeah I was pretty much exclusively referencing usdm spec cars, of course the truly rare sport oriented specs offered in other markets will see appreciation.
On a side note, experiencing the Japanese market firsthand how high do you think prices for truly exceptional s13s will go? How active is the market in Japan for the insanely priced r34 nur spec/nsx type r/etc. and are they actually changing hands for anywhere near asking? Obviously I'm referencing crazy s chassis prices in proportion to these, not comparing them directly.

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Standard

I disagree with some of the statements made

I would agree that almost no one wants to drive a S-chassis bone stock or keep it in a oe state long term, however there's no doubt that an unmolested example in factory shape is sought after by many, myself included. As the years pass, a clean car in stock form will increase in value, many buyers prefer a blank canvas to make their oun. The price for any S-chassis will continue to go up, and they will be sought after "collector cars" in the future, no doubt in my mind.

I don't care what my s13 will be worth years from now, I'm just an enthusiast with a passion for these cars and these are my opinions.

OP: Nice car, enjoy it!

dizzariot

Prices for low mileage, VIN plate TypeX cars are easily over $10k. Higher mile ones won't go south of $8k unless they're beat to shit.

NSXs are slightly MORE over here and it's bumming me out because that was going to be my departure from S-Chassis cars for a bit.

R34s are selling for over $50k and people like CW_Unit are buying them and bringing them back to their country of residence.

The point to be made here is that the people (non-Japanese, mostly) are making the prices go up because, yes, they are selling at these prices.

This is exactly me lately. My '88 Q's is (obviously) non-turbo. It's 100% stock and kind of want to keep it that way and get a TypeX to mess around with.

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xTomCatt

Alright guys, locking down the thread. It's gonna be a little while till I start the build thread as I still need to get back to Pennsylvania with the car to actually start doing something with it. But once I get the ball rolling, I will definitely be starting one.

sackofrice

But muh turbo!