How are you guys able to do so much...

[import_racer87]

to your cars by yourselves? It seems like all of you know SO much about cars, and nissan in particular. Did some you guys go to a school like wyotech or something like that? Or do you see something that needs to be done, then look it up on the web and then your knowledge just accumulates. And in all of these threads you see 240s on jackstands and the owners installing everthing from new exhaust piping to complete swaps. Right now im at the point where i just sold a $13,000 car and im looking to buy a brokeass 240 and do a swap. it would be in my budget to have everything professionally installed but thats zero fun. i might as well just buy an already tuned 240 if im going to do that. I guess my question is how do i get to the knowledge point where so of you are now, becasue i know you guys must have started out not knowing much but that changed greatly. how do i get there?

[KA24DESOneThree]

There's not really a ton of know-how in taking a car apart and upgrading it. A motor swap is the hardest because of the harness and some of the troubleshooting, but the physical aspect of installing it isn't all that hard. You just have to take out all the bolts to remove stuff, and make sure you don't have bolts left over when you're done. Otherwise, dropping the tranny, dropping the diff, installing suspension is all done without even needing the FSM. Maybe it's easier because I've been working on cars for two and a half years...

[AKADriver]

Troubleshooting and wiring are the only things that really take skill. Welding and bodywork, too, but you never see that around here.

Bolts come off, bolts go on. It's that easy. Assembly is the reverse of removal. Pick up a copy of the factory service manual and don't be afraid to get dirty. :rawk:

[Bryants95240sx]

like he said once youve taken somthing apart its pretty easy to put back together and you do it over and over like brakes and stuff and its just get easier. but reading never hurts if your totally stumped on somthing

[PSI240SX]

if you want to go the easy way you can buy my car.....
http://www.planb-attack.com/jay/GeneralLee/GenLee4.jpg

[that180guy]

dude, ur selling ur car again? didnt you just build that?

[mrmephistopheles]

dude, ur selling ur car again? didnt you just build that?
That's his MO.

[orion::S14]

Man...it's all nuts and bolts.

Pay attention as you take it apart, then it's easy to put back together.

Pay attention the technical aspect...how it works, what it does.

Read up on the forums...here, FreshAlloy...read and learn. It's like school, but fun.

But the best thing is just to get out there and do it. When you hit a trouble spot, consult the FSM or ask us. We'll provide assistance, get you past that issue, and you'll "live and learn".

- Brian

[S14DB]

You have to sell your soul to the car gods. At least we don't have it as bad as the rotarys and their black magic.

[Ghst 01]

just make sure you have the right tools.. and plenty of elbow greese... and also take ur time..... never rush or it will cause you more problems at the end... thats my 2cents

[import_racer87]

You have to sell your soul to the car gods. At least we don't have it as bad as the rotarys and their black magic.
lol good point.. thanks everyone for your input.

[import_racer87]

if you want to go the easy way you can buy my car.....
http://www.planb-attack.com/jay/GeneralLee/GenLee4.jpg
how much are you looking to get for that thing? just wondering.

also, are you the previous owner of the bmw green s13 in this months superstreet? I think i saw it somewhere, now its black?

[MakotoS13]

when i bought my car i didn't know how to:

-weld
-do body work
-repair polyeurethane bumpers
-paint
-replace bushings
-replace S13 hubs
-fabricate parts

now i do. i learn best by shredding things and figuring out how to get em back together when it's all in a billion pieces. the example is in my sig.

it's not about having the time or the money. it's about MAKING the time and the money.

[ThatGuy]

it's not about having the time or the money. it's about MAKING the time and the money.

Well put, Makoto. :bow:

[that180guy]

:werd:

frustration, bit of blood, sweat, ur homies, and a whole lot of cussing

[Jeff240sx]

Three words.
Trial and Error.
-Jeff

[Marty]

i learn stuff on here everyday, ive still got a way to go, but tis fun just hands on learnign with the car

[MakotoS13]

building is like racing. be ready to break stuff in the process and trying new things will sometimes lead to bad decisions.

just gotta role with that crap. that's what weeds out the posers from the people playin for keeps.

[mellojoe]

DITTO to everything above...

Also, do the basics yourself: do your own routine maintenance (oil changes, plugs and wires, grease fittings, timing belts, blah blah blah). And then help out your sisters with their cars, your friends with their cars, your old lady neighbor.

Just go get your hands dirty. Read everything you can when you can, too. But, honestly, for me it is just about getting my hands dirty. Get in there and do it. More often than not its simply a matter of just doing it. The "HOW" and "HOW TO" just sort of line up. Pay attention and label random parts with masking tape.

Just don't be afraid to get dirty, to get bruised, to bleed a little, and to sweat a lot. You can have SO MUCH FUN that way.

[S13SilviaGirl]

DITTO to everything above...

Also, do the basics yourself: do your own routine maintenance (oil changes, plugs and wires, grease fittings, timing belts, blah blah blah).


Timing belts are NOT routine maintenance for most people. I wouldn't suggest this unless you have a LOT of knowledge and the proper tools for the job.

And on a side note, 240's do not have timing belts...they have chains. :wiggle:


Uhmm I worked my ass off as a Goodyear rep for a few years and learned how to work on cars while I was there, as far as 240's go, I asked a lot of questions of my hubby and my good friends in the socal area.

[WilloW]

:werd:

frustration, bit of blood, sweat, ur homies, and a whole lot of cussing

Yup, just take your time and search before you do anything by yourself. Read the forums and get a FSM, that would help to get you started.

[projectRDM]

Intelligence and common sense is all I've ever needed to do anything. Sad thing is 90% of the people who own 240s don't have either. And never will.

[Andrew Bohan]

i've been near suicide more often than i can count.
hahahah have fun workin on your car, bro!
:bash:

[TheTimanator]

also, are you the previous owner of the bmw green s13 in this months superstreet? I think i saw it somewhere, now its black?
It was in SCC but I didn't realize that it was in Stupidstreet :rl: too. Oh, and yes that's him!

[kandyflip445]

i've been near suicide more often than i can count.
hahahah have fun workin on your car, bro!
:bash:

^^^He even tried with a camshaft...

Like said before if you pay attention you can do it. The only things I find a little challenging are tranny rebuilds, electrical troubleshooting, and body work(since I don't care, and I'll just pays someone if i ever get any done).

[import_racer87]

It was in SCC but I didn't realize that it was in Stupidstreet :rl: too. Oh, and yes that's him!
thats my bad, it was SCC

[G_Fish240]

like jeff said I learned alot from trial and error, doing that now with the corolla

[240Stilo]

You just need tools. With the ultimate tool of all...the search function. When you can't find you post up threads. It's funny to look at my old threads and see how little I knew and now my new threads that show me I haven't gotten far. :Ownedd:

[nightwalker]

how about being poor and wanting to mod your car? You are forced to learn. That's all there is to it.

[evilimport]

You just need tools. With the ultimate tool of all...the search function. When you can't find you post up threads. It's funny to look at my old threads and see how little I knew and now my new threads that show me I haven't gotten far. :Ownedd:
this is so true. there is no better feeling than doing something moderately complicated and dirty to your car and it WORK when your finished. Besides. knuckles dont need skin on them anyway....

[Andrew Bohan]

i look at injury this way: unless it's serious like losing body parts, you WILL HEAL. but the car won't maintain/repair/mod itself.

[nismo2491]

only training I've got is 3 years of electronics engineering at VOTEC. and that of course crosses over to wiring in the cars. other than that I've got 8 years or so of just haning out working on cars with friends, my cars, stuff like that and just picked up the knowledge.
yeah my 5 stitches yesterday will heal won't it, but the clutch in my best friends wife 3000gt won't replace itself, hence why I was under there less than 12 hours after getting the stitches fixing that.
KEvin

[Andrew Bohan]

i was workin on my distrubutor last night and a saw a spark, so i unplugged the coil wire from the coil and kept workin. then the coil shocked the shit outta me. i was all tingly for a few minutes. then i unhooked the battery and kept working.

ahha it's no fun without pain!

[JaeTea]

I get ALL the info I've needed to work on my car from the internet and the ol FSM.

I couldn't do probly 90% of the stuff I"ve done on my cars without using forums.

Also you won't learn shit if you don't jump in and just do it.

[aznpoopy]

eh when i started i thought the car was some incredibly complex magic machine...

actually its really simple, its just that there are so many simple things working in tandem that it gets complex. learn it part by part and it you'll see how idiotically simple a car can be. i can hardly believe my pos was worth 20k+ at some point 10 years ago.

most of the work on a car is unbolting something and replacing it with something else. it gets a little hard when you have to figure out ways to get to stuff that isn't easily accessible.

otherwise the hardest jobs, like engine rebuild or tranny rebuild... well if you can follow instructions, get a FSM and ur set. just need to keep track of all your nuts and bolts and expect to invest alot of time.

[420sx]

you just got to make youyrself do it. people are naturally lazy and dont tell me otherwise - its in our nature. you have to make yourself get out there and do stuff yourself otherwise you will never learn and be one of those dudes in the local shop looking how rednecks are puting an air intake on for you and probably laughing what a ricer the guy is.

[import_racer87]

you just got to make youyrself do it. people are naturally lazy and dont tell me otherwise - its in our nature. you have to make yourself get out there and do stuff yourself otherwise you will never learn and be one of those dudes in the local shop looking how rednecks are puting an air intake on for you and probably laughing what a ricer the guy is.
heh, the want to do it isnt an issue. if i had my choice id be working on cars 24/7, the process just seems intimidating to a beginner. I think its just getting up the confidence to know you can do it yourself. thatnks again for all of your replies, it has really helped.

and when you guys say fsm im guessing you just mean the one for the usdm models. correct?

[MakotoS13]

heh, the want to do it isnt an issue. if i had my choice id be working on cars 24/7, the process just seems intimidating to a beginner.

fear? in this life we have little time for such distractions. what's the worst that could happen? you break something? betcha you'll learn the right way next time.

if you want us to help you work up the nerve to have balls and jump off in it you came to the wrong place. if you don't work till you can't lift your arms anymore or can't see anything else or haven't bled enough to satisfy a third world country's need for plasma you are doing something wrong...

which usually equates to not enough

this life is what you make of it. you wanna know why i'm a 21 year old technician in a lucritive postition that has two cars, is on his own, and should be makin more money than he'll know what to do with in a year?

cause i wanted it bad enough. if you don't want it it won't get done and if it doesn't get done it's prolly cause you don't want it bad enough. that's why we don't bother with stupid bullcrap ricers. this is your one time get out of flame free card pep talk. use it.

[import_racer87]

fear? in this life we have little time for such distractions. what's the worst that could happen? you break something? betcha you'll learn the right way next time.

if you want us to help you work up the nerve to have balls and jump off in it you came to the wrong place. if you don't work till you can't lift your arms anymore or can't see anything else or haven't bled enough to satisfy a third world country's need for plasma you are doing something wrong...

which usually equates to not enough

this life is what you make of it. you wanna know why i'm a 21 year old technician in a lucritive postition that has two cars, is on his own, and should be makin more money than he'll know what to do with in a year?

cause i wanted it bad enough. if you don't want it it won't get done and if it doesn't get done it's prolly cause you don't want it bad enough. that's why we don't bother with stupid bullcrap ricers. this is your one time get out of flame free card pep talk. use it.
i wasnt meaning for it to sound like that. the point of this thread was to figure out how you guys know so much. what ive gathered is :

-use the forums (which i plan to do)
-get a fsm (which i did about an hour ago)
-and most of all just learn by doing (which i cant wait to do and wont give up on)


thanks to everyone for clarifying how to gain the knowledge. i appreciate it.

[Redtop_240]

Three words.
Trial and Error.
-Jeff

And thats even my name.....

[Redtop_240]

fear? in this life we have little time for such distractions. what's the worst that could happen? you break something? betcha you'll learn the right way next time.

if you want us to help you work up the nerve to have balls and jump off in it you came to the wrong place. if you don't work till you can't lift your arms anymore or can't see anything else or haven't bled enough to satisfy a third world country's need for plasma you are doing something wrong...

which usually equates to not enough

this life is what you make of it. you wanna know why i'm a 21 year old technician in a lucritive postition that has two cars, is on his own, and should be makin more money than he'll know what to do with in a year?

cause i wanted it bad enough. if you don't want it it won't get done and if it doesn't get done it's prolly cause you don't want it bad enough. that's why we don't bother with stupid bullcrap ricers. this is your one time get out of flame free card pep talk. use it.


I agree......I'm in the same boat Makoto, I live on my own, I'm a scope certified class A Nissan technichian working on my ASE's to become Master tech certified, Im in the process of opening "Midnight tuning" Doing everything from Performance to paint, (part time for now) I have a love and desire for my cars like no other and I have loyal friends and know many ppl..... But your # 1 best friend is knowing EVERYONE..... Its no secret, if you know someone that knows someone, you got every angle covered if you learn how to look at the situation the correct way......


Thats the big secret......

Work hard, Play hard, Live hard......

[fastpace]

all I do is read stuff on the net and try it out and then I start to do things alittle different to see how it comes out.