Project S13bay

August 26, 2011

2011-08-28T05:40:00.000-07:00

This past week and a half I took some time off work and thought I would try to get a lot done. Sadly, out of my ten days of vacation time I took, I got around to the car maybe two days out of that. But what was done in those days was quite time consuming for me and helped get to the point of preparing for the first item I will be purchasing from Ebay; the rear sub-frame bushings. Like with any task I try to conquer on this project, I like to study up the procedures, whether I have done it before or not because let's face it, if some dude on the forum did it this way then I can too right? Not always, therefore reading countless threads and articles in performance magazines is always a must for me.

Shortly after it was decided what bushings we were going to be using, I jumped feet first ready to go into every avenue I could find that could give me (a DIY kinda guy) a firm grasp on understanding not only the task I wanted to tackle, but the purpose of the part and what the replacement would do to increase performance. After browsing forums, youtube videos and articles I came across 240sxtechdvds.org. These guys came across as being quite helpful, and very knowledgeable about the platforms they dealt with, repairs and replacements and of course, maintenance. They have a few "teaser" videos on youtube and they give links to their site in the subject line of each of them. I decided to take a mouse click trip to it and what I found was a easy to use and understand explanation of every video, of which they have a great deal of, and a no pressure sales option. I opted for only three of the DVD's just to see if the youtube videos portrayed what the actual videos held in store. I was very pleased. The shipping was fast after a quick paypal payment and there was never any hassle or communication problems with the site owner/operator. The videos are from the eyes of the mechanic, getting close looks at hard to see places, and even an explanation of what size wrenches to use. The walk-through style videos go step by step, explaining not only the S14 chassis, but the difference from that to the S13 chassis. My suggestion to anyone wanting to start going beyond oil changes and tire rotations, go over to the site and see what they can offer you, you will not be disappointed.

Now that I have gone on with my review of that, let's get to what you really want to see and hear. Yes, I jerked the sub-frame out from under the rear-end of the car, using the DVD narrator's suggestions and walk-through. It was much easier than what your normal daily driver car would have to go through since the car does not have any drive-train, differential, or exhaust piping to remove to get access. I've also got to admit that by having the hatch off and no interior getting in the way made it so very easy to take the air wrench to the top shock bolts. Within minutes I dropped the sub-frame, and pulled it out from under the car. I got a good look at the bushings and was quite surprised that they were still in good condition. No tears or any marks showing the wear I expected to see for the cars age. Knowing that it didn't matter though, I pulled up one of the tires for a seat, light the propane torch that the DVD suggested for burning out the old bushings and got to it. After a few minutes I was relieved that I still had my mask from the painting portion because that smell was thick. After a few hours of torching and scrapping away at the bushings while they burned, a good portion was gone and I was ready to start taking a flat-head screw driver to the remaining bits still clinging to the sleeves. Let me tell you now that if you think for one second that you can do this task in one day, you have a level of patience I will never obtain. After so long of sitting on the tire, lighting one smoke after another, I was finally happy with the amount of material I got out of ONE sleeve. Yes, just one. It is very time consuming to get the material removed and made me consider switching to solid bushings with rubber washer like materials on either side, but I have to tough it out to make sure what is voted for is what gets installed. I took a few pics of the sub-frame, the burning process, and the propane torch I used to get them burned out.

August 11, 2011

2011-08-13T05:39:00.000-07:00

So Thursday was a long day day for me. After dropping one of my kids off at school I got started on some wet sanding on the passenger side. I wasn't all too happy with how it turned out afterwards, so I think painting may be better left alone for now, or at least until I got the entire sub frame dropped and cleaned up all around outside and in. I gave a good friend of mine a call and he agreed to let me borrow his trailer and help me out with welding the new fender piece in. My awesome brother (Thanks Dave!) woke up to help me load her on the trailer and I had to snap a shot of that since I had yet to get a picture of my Nissan truck towing my Nissan toy.

Then I took a shot of it after I backed it into my friends shop that we built.

We started off gauging how we would like to tackle the project, and after a few minutes at looking at the rust damaged spots:

And what I had cut from a previous donor car:

We decided on popping the OEM welds around the fender and donor piece and welding those cut parts in. Here's a shot from that donor piece cut down, as well as the fender piece(less) part we cut off the car. Forgive the fuzziness, all I had for the photo taking was my phone:

Then we prepped by placing clamps where needed to hold in place for the welds:

I didn't catch any of the welding process since we were both heavily involved in maintaining the position of the piece and keeping any flames out. We decided that since these pieces were rather thin metal we wanted to build up the welds real good and then grind them down later on when I started to prep the engine bay for paint. I am very pleased with how well the welding went and turned out. It's not too pretty right now, but after hitting it with the grinder then priming and painting the engine bay, she will look near flawless. When I got the car back to my brother's house I went ahead and hit all exposed metal and welds with a quick shot of rust inhibitor from a spray can since I don't have time just yet to grind her down. It actually seems like it didn't take long to do all this but it was very meticulous work and actually took us right around seven hours to get it right and squared. Also, I'm adding pictures of the passenger side as well as the roof that I painted. Still waiting to drop the back bumper, so don't mind the over spray on it since it's not a full on attempt to paint it just yet. Enjoy.

July 15, 2011

2011-07-16T12:34:00.001-07:00

So, I ended up getting a few hours with the car. I sanded down the passenger side and added more body filler to the line and that should be about all I need in the way of body filler outside of the fenders. I did get some sanding done on the driver side fender and also added more body filler to it, i would say maybe another two rounds of building up the body filler and it should be right at perfect. Most of my time however, was spent wet sanding the primer on the driver side prepping for the base coat. It took me nearly two hours of wet sanding with 800 grit sandpaper to get the smooth finish i was looking for. I still had that red paint from the tester fender, so I decided to go ahead and lay down the base coat. I was very surprised at how well the base coat went on, and I was able to coat the entire side three times with less than one quart of the red. I had some left over so I cleaned up the back trim piece under the tail lights and sprayed it as well. I over sprayed onto the back bumper but I really don't care since I will be removing it to sand down imperfections and repair small scratches and what not. I took a couple of pictures as well to note the progress. If you are anything like me, then the pictures is what you are looking for anyway! HAHA! So, here they are:

July 8, 2011

2011-07-09T13:42:00.000-07:00

I wasn't able to get as much done today as I had hoped. I spent a great deal of my time with the driver side body work until I was happy with what the results were. I did a very serious amount of sanding and body filler work to the passenger side but ended my day after priming the driver side and masking the rear windows. I'm, still on the fence about the fenders I scored off of a previous donor car, they can be repaired, but I am having serious thoughts about fiber-glassing the fenders and possibly even the outside door shell down the road. Not too sure. I'll edit the post shortly, and add a couple pictures I took of the driver side primed with the top line filled in, I think it turned out great.

May 27, 2011

2011-05-28T14:26:00.000-07:00

So, after finally taking the camera over to the house, I snapped some pictures of what's really going on with the body work. You'll see in the following pictures that I have filled some dents with Bondo, as well as started to fill the top line that spans from the front fender to the rear quarter panel. I was very pleased at it's outcome and started to look at the lower line that runs around the whole car. I snapped a shot of the start of filling this line in. I would like as much feedback as possible on the lower line and I'll tell you why. The lower line will take an amazing amount of time, work, and anger. Not to mention, because the bottom portion of that line protrudes more, the Bondo will not only have to cover that area, but it also needs to be spread up higher so as to refrain from getting any edges out of it. That is the best reason, for me anyway, to just use my rust removal tool on the drill and just get rid of it. I'm not too fond of the thought of having that much Bondo on there just to rid myself of that line, and to be honest I kind of like that line since it wraps the entire car.

Now onto the tools I am using. If you are just now starting to read this, then I must tell you now that I have never in my life done any sort of body work or painting, I've focused most of my attention on the mechanics of a car, but this car is my learning piece and I would like to have my hand complete as very much of this project as I can. I spend hours on end, reading forums, watching youtube videos all with the intent on learning the best way to complete the task that I will be focusing on. I first started sanding with this car by hand with a high grit sandpaper, and when my shoulder started getting soar, I figured there must be a better way, so I used the almighty Google. I ended up finding out about the sanding equipment I am using by reading forums. Everyone was saying that a good DA (Dual Action) sander is the easiest way to get the sanding time down on this type of work. A buddy of mine just so happened to have an electric one, but I also found one on Ebay that was an air tool going for a steal of a price, so I picked it right up in the last minutes of the auction. Capcityoutlet was the seller, and the shipping was a good price, since the product was used and very cheap for the auction win price of $14.50. The product was bubble wrapped to perfection and came in a box flooded with packing peanuts. This guy wanted to make sure the product got to me fast and in good shape and it did.

As for the Bondo that I started using, runs about $30 a gallon at Auto Zone, I bought it with the plastic spreaders which were about $2. I wasn't too fond of them so I bought some metal spreaders at Harbor Freight. When I get a chance to use them, I'll post up what I thought of them for use, and the ease of cleaning. I've got to admit, the spray gun was pretty cheap, Harbor Freight had them on sale for $15 and I wanted to see what $15 would get me, and as you have seen on the fender, it did quite well. They also had respirator masks, which I highly suggest for use when painting, for about $20-$22. Easy to use and the filters are interchangeable for newer ones if you want to go that route. Enough of the boring stuff, I'll let this conclude with the pictures.

May 21, 2011

2011-05-21T13:58:00.000-07:00

With the thoughts of the end of the world coming about (yeah right), I figured I'd go ahead and update the blog once again. Over the past few days I have been spending time on the bodywork. The fenders and the hood I recently got all had small dents and scratches, so I went ahead and started with some Bondo. A friend of mine helped out with the sanding of the hood since he had access to a electric sander (highly useful by the way). With the sanding, Bondo and primer applied to the top side of the hood, that job only took about 2 hours, whereas sanding by hand has been taking forever. As suggested by my brother I started to fill the lines of the doors and fenders with Bondo too to create a more seamless appearance and I must admit, I like the appearance of the top line so far since I have nearly completed the entire driver side. However, the wide gap line at the bottom portion that wraps the entire car may not turn out as good as I would like, but I'll see when I get there.

I have also been tossing around the idea of painting the car myself. I ended up going to Harbor Freight to price some guns and what not and came across some useful tools for the current work I'm doing. I ended up getting a metal mixer plate for the Bondo, some metal spreader blades (because the plastic ones take too friggin long to clean), a respirator mask for the painting and a can of paint that I have been very curious about. The paint is part of Dupli-Color's Paint Shop Finish line. This product has been reviewed on many automotive TV shows and has been spoken of highly. It is a lacquer based paint that comes pre-mixed, and is shown as a painting "step" type procedure. The can of primer is marked as step 1, the can of paint color step 2, the can of clear is step 3 or 4 depending on if you use the "metallic" clear first. With all the videos that I have seen and the thought of being a newbie wanting to try my hand at something new, I thought why not.

I went ahead and took the passenger side fender over to a friends house because he's got a massive air compressor and I haven't picked one up yet. I had nothing more to this fender than just sand it down and prime it for the test run. Slapping the first base coat down was pretty slow since I needed to tweak the gun settings the whole time to get the spray width and speed just right, but the other two coats went quick after that. I used just shy of a third of the can (which is only a 1 quart can I believe) and it came out great. I didn't use any clear since I just wanted an idea of what the paint would look like and how well I did with my first attempt at painting. Now I am sure this is the paint I will use. I don't have many pictures this time, but I've got a great view of the fender after paint. More to follow next week.

May 7, 2011

2011-05-07T20:45:00.000-07:00

Well, truth be told I've spent a lot of hours with the car, but every time until today, I would forget the darn camera at home. I finally got a chance to get some shots of some pieces I scored off of a donor car. I would have kept it longer to part it out, but city ordinance requires every vehicle parked in front of a home to have a license plate, and I was not about to get that for a donor to be parted out. Not to mention, my brothers neighborhood is very watchful for "eyesores" and the garage is full with my project, so it had to go fast.

Anyway, bought a 1990 hatch with a badly blown head gasket. It still ran and everything, but compression was very obviously effected on the two mile drive back to my brothers house with it. I was almost considering switching bodies for the S13bay project, but when I started looking close at some parts, there was some paint over-spray on a few pieces behind the driver side fender. When I took it off, it was obvious why. The fender frame was crumbled and pulled into position so as to fit a fender back into place. A couple of the headlight mounting bracket bolts were toast and some twisting in there too. I was happy to keep the shell I currently have. I ended up swapping the hatch I got earlier with the hatch from this car since the other one had a good bit of dents from what I believe to be where someone stood on it and broke the third brake light. I also scored another set of good tail lights, both headlights and mounting brackets with working motors for them, a front bumper, both fenders, and a nearly new brake master cylinder. The brake booster looked brand new too, but I didn't have the patience to take the dash items out of the way to get to it. I went ahead and snapped some shots of what I have.

You'll notice that the car is now fully primed. The past couple of weeks I had been sanding and checking all body panels for any prior damage, i.e. any body filler anywhere. I was pleased to find NONE whatsoever. I laid down a single layer of primer to protect the metal and moved on. Still waiting for a good time to get that front fender section welded in, I don't have a car hauler trailer and they are costing too much to rent here and there to scrap all these cars I've been getting, so I'm hoping somewhere down the line I can borrow one to get it over to my friends place to weld it on. On to what you really want, here are pictures of my new pieces.

April 17, 2011

2011-04-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

So I decided to let me sleep schedule get out of whack and headed over to work on the car again today. I took that new $5 drill attachment with me to decide if it will make a big enough difference in both the amount of time to get work done, and the ease of the work. Thank goodness the drill had a locking function on the trigger, because the amount of force to get that thing held down would have made the job that much more irritating. I decided to work on the highly rusted battery tray area and frame rail under it for two reasons. I wanted to see if the section there had any ability to be salvaged, and I wanted to clear off the rust and paint from the areas that would need to be clean for welding if it could not be salvaged. I was more than pleased with the results, and very pleased with the ease and speed that it got done. Here's some pictures of the work.

And for good measure, I wanted to include a pic of the shell with my truck and my brothers coupe in the background..lol!

As you can see in the pictures, the pitting from the rust was very extensive, but I believe that now that it is all cleaned up and primed, it still has quite a bit of stability and strength to be good to go. You can also see I did some work on the core support/radiator housing. It cleaned up real nice and looks good as well. I don't know if any of these pictures or previous pictures show it well enough or not, but I ended up using a sledge hammer on the forward facing portion of the headlight area of the core support. It came out looking good, but the rust is still so extensive coming off the battery tray area into the forward facing spot, that I believe I will have to cut it out and use my spare part. You can also see the amount of wear that the wheel took while doing just this small area. Looks like I will be in need of more of them in the future as I will be using this technique to do all the prepping for paint both inside and out. I hope to get over there again in the morning after work, and if so, more pictures will follow.

April 16, 2011

2011-04-17T00:05:00.000-07:00

Today I went by Wal-Mart and picked up a paint a rust removal wheel to attach to my power drill. I hope the next time I get to work on the car it will prove it to be helpful. I've been doing a lot of searching online about popular rust removal procedures online. I've learned quite a bit about electrolysis rust removal, and rust removing products. After watching a few videos on the electrolysis processes and what it requires, I've decided I don't want a large electric bill in the process and I don't even want to consider the amount of time and money I would spend building a bath for a large scale process like a car. It seems like the problem isn't big enough to trade off that amount of money and energy just to be done once.

Then I went onto forums that focus and discuss restoration projects. Now, for me it's hard to accept, but is hard to deny, that my little project here will qualify as a restoration since my goal is not to put it back on public streets, but rather the track. On the other hand, to make sure that this project will at least be able to pass tech at any event, it needs to not only appear to be safe, but actually fit that same ticket. As I was saying though, browsing these forums I came across a number of threads that swore by a product called "Safest Rust Removal." It was easy to find with links all taking you to where? None other than http://www.safestrustremover.com/. Which has a link to a restoration I never even knew was going on, the 1957 Plymouth Belvedere that was buried, brand new, in Tulsa Oklahoma in 1957 and unearthed in 2007. It's a very interesting story. I got caught up reading it, and the restorers thoughts of the product for it's restoration. Looking through the pictures the website has, it seems to use a better approach to rust removal by "showering" the item you need treated. This would give me a much more likely success with a smaller bath for the car while using a $50-$60 sump pump to recirculate the product after it falss to the bath floor.

Well, enough of the science lesson that I got myself into. That's only if the rust damage seems to be more prevalent than what it seems at this time. I will be using the rust remover wheel first and if I feel the success is hard to come by after that, I will consider this route as a very likely back up plan.

April 15, 2011

2011-04-15T20:29:00.000-07:00

This week I was able to get more time to focus some energy toward the car. I started by getting a good idea of how much surface rust was in the engine bay, then moved right on to figuring out just how much was EVERYWHERE! I climbed into the engine bay and got a couple sweeps with the sandpaper in. After realizing I wanted to show the difference I grabbed my camera to capture that. Here is what that picture looked like:

So I went hard to work, using either the 220 or 200 grit sandpaper I had with me and it started to come around:

I was able to get a large section started with the time I had available to do it. I also started to hit it with the 400 grit:

To be honest, I became quite irritated at getting a portion done, then spending a good 10 minutes washing my hands just to take a couple pictures and get right back at it again. So, I just decided there was plenty of pictures and the viewers would have a really good idea of the change. That being said, I went ahead and finished sanding, then primed the area with the black primer I bought the other day.

Now, in that last picture posted, you will see a nice brown color toward the bottom of the frame. I had went and sanded a decent portion of that but wanted to see what I was working on when I went to prime it as well. And this is what I found on the frame when I lifted it to do this:

Much more surface rust. After putting my hands into sanding for a good three hours, I decided to call it a day. I'm going to head the advice from a NICO user to slap a soft wire brush onto a drill, and get down to the bare metal. If nothing else it'll save my shoulders from that sore feeling I had this time.

April 8, 2011

2011-04-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

Really and truly, I should have posted this yesterday. I've had the car parked over in my brothers garage and, as you can tell from the pictures, it was a bit messy. I ended up spending the majority of the day cleaning out the garage of old stuff and went ahead and trashed a lot of it that was really not needed anymore. It all ended up being close to 400lbs of crap, but it's mostly all cleaned up and ready to get started. After I got that all cleaned up, I went on over to Lowe's and spent a good deal of money on some PVC pipe and a large portion of plastic on a roll. I also had some 220 and 400 grit sand paper with a spray can of primer. Hopefully I can get some of that rust cleaned up and prevent any further from accumulating. When I get a chance to get back over there and get started, I'll post up some pictures.

Almost forgot to mention the status of the polls. Not many votes for this first one, but I am sure that once the project starts getting some more progress, it will get more attention. T winner for the suspension parts was the Ebay posting for ENERGY HYPER-FLEX MASTER BUSHING KIT NISSAN 240SX 89-94. The winner for the first engine build platform was the KA24DE. I'll start searching and keeping an eye out on ebay for the KA that I will end up going with and will ensure to keep all of you all posted on that. Once it is purchased and the tear down starts, we'll start the voting on internal parts.

I'm looking further into getting a Dual Action sander, After countless videos on youtube and DIY sites, I've come to realize that it would be my best option to go ahead and knock down the old paint and prime the whole car. While I was at Lowe's getting the PVC pipe for my make shift paint booth, I took notice of a big, 220V air compressor with a five foot tall tank. I was surprised at the price, it was just under $500 and I'm really eying it as a next tool investment unless ebay has something more along those lines. The project is making slow progress but even still the head of the household is making sure I don't go overboard and start a spending spree. Thanks honey!

While I'm at it, I feel the need to send some love to the guys at 240sxtechdvds.com. I've recently received my first three dvds from them and they are great. Well narrated, the camera gets great shots of what the worker is working on and even goes as far to tell what steps are different on the two "S" chassis vehicles that they bring up. If you get a moment to watch some of their teaser videos on youtube, you can catch a glimpse of what the videos entail. If you happen to get all the way to their site and purchase the products, although a little on the steep side for amateur video, I still think it's quite a good investment. I have yet to view the tear down and build dvds I got, but if they are anything like the suspension bushing install dvd, they will be spot on and put together well for the beginner in the DIY automotive work area. Check them out when you can, and be on the lookout for more pictures.

April 5, 2011

2011-04-05T02:17:00.000-07:00

So, while I await the next purchase and just to give the viewing audience more insight, I wanted to address something that was brought to my attention from an active duty service member. He touched on a subject that matters most to the consumer; customer service. In his words "If I order off ebay, and I read [the] fine print and I abide by the terms and conditions, I expect stellar customer service." Point made man. As I am sure every reader would agree, customer service is a MUST for business survival. Customer service can make a huge impact on how the consumer will address his product with his friends and other potential buyers. I want to make this clear to everyone who wishes to follow my reviews, just as I told the guy who wrote me the email, I am writing what I believe will be the equivalent to a magazine article. The biggest difference is that I have no obligation to make some company look better because they provided a part, or paid for an advertisement. What you read will be every part of the build. From sourcing the part that will be purchased, from payment, shipping cost and shipping time frame. All the way through the install and the characteristics and behavior the car exhibits from that part. This is a review from the what YOU will experience, every step of the way. So please, if you want to know what it will be like to interact through ebay, the ease or lack thereof of the search and what not, please follow me through this build. I will give you my word that you will not be disappointed.

Test Dummy

2011-04-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

So I guess now would be a good time to go ahead and add the pictures of our test dummy. I can't, for the life of me, remember what the year is off the top of my head but I'm going to say I think it's a 1990 model. She's in rough shape with some rust in the passenger side front fender area where the battery tray would be, but that's okay, I got a piece that will be welded in to replace that. Without further adieu, ladies and gent's may I present Project S13bay.

Right when I got it back to Athens:

]

And here are further that I took earlier when I went back to the garage where it rests:

And the replacement piece for the inner fender:

April 1, 2011

2011-04-02T20:22:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day to make an investment that paid off. I picked up a shell and scored some extras like the brake booster and master cylinder, an S13 power sunroof with PERFECT glass, and I was able to get the front passenger side cut from one to replace the one that is rusted out in our test dummy. Due to time constraints and lack of having a camera better than my phone's camera, I was unable to get more pictures. Next time I go to work on it again, I'll be taking numerous pictures so as to give a great start, or "before," photo.

While I am at this, I want to make it known that whenever a part is to be considered for the project, I will be casting my vote as well. I've noticed on the past two polls there were no participants but that is understood because of the slow maturity of this blog. So that being said, if I am the only one to vote on a poll, which will be posted for one week in length, then the item that I vote for will be the item that will be used. If my vote should tie with any other items listed for the test, then the first one to receive a vote in the tie will be used, not my vote. As always, I am open to comments and suggestions and welcome anyone to follow updates as often as possible.

Just so that you all following know, if I have no sponsor for donations or financial backing, I will be depending on my own budget for this project. My budget is a hundred or so every month to either purchase an item or save for the next purchase. I will include all my results, bad or good, on any conversations with possible sponsors. Any and ALL comments and suggestions are invited and welcomed, abide by my simple requests to keep it clean though please. More to follow later.

Proposal to the ebay community of sellers

2011-04-02T20:20:00.001-07:00

In an economy in which markets get lower and Americans are more prone to hold tight of the cash that they have, businesses and consumers alike must find the best way to make their dollar stretch as far as it can. Industries all over the world are taking hit because of the current economy. Banks, businesses and even the ad agencies supporting them are going under and closing their doors. Businesses are lowering the budget on advertisements and because of that they are seeing slow declines in sales. Consumers are faced with hard decisions on spending larger amounts for something they know about, or spending less on something they feel they are taking a chance on.
My name is Michael Campbell. I am an active member of numerous automotive enthusiasts forums on the internet and have witnessed and felt the effects of the economy on that target consumer. I also have a solution for both the small businesses and this target consumer. With a recent purchase of a vehicle that is planned to spend the rest of its life on tracks of varying types, it dawned on me a way to mend the gap between these small businesses and the consumers they are targeting. I have created what I believe is the first blog dedicated to being a user controlled testing and evaluating site. The vehicle I have purchased is a very bare 1990 model of a Nissan 240sx. Every part of the interior and exterior has been removed from this vehicle and it sits ready for the users to start adding parts for a systematic review.
At http://s13bay.blogspot.com/, the consumer will be able to interact with me; the owner of the car and the person responsible for writing the reviews. Why would the readers listen to what I have to say? Because I am just like the reader. I have felt the pinch that this economy has driven upon us and I have found myself looking for the product reviews that on those things that we have been told by the news media to steer clear from. I wanted to know if the cheaper product was cheaper because it wasn’t made well. I wanted to know if the cheaper products are that price because the big name companies charge a large “name brand” fee. I’m not just the seeing it from the consumer side looking for the review, I’m looking at it from the side from the avid motor head.
What will my tests include? My tests will include everything that claims a performance factor. My tests will include the full review of every one of the human five senses that becomes aroused by the new part. My reviews will include installation of the products, any necessary cleaning for proper fitment and function and time spans and ease of use for all these. My tests will include measurements of necessary items for consumer comfort of interchangeability between like models. All of my observations will be recorded and photographed for consumer comfort.
In this world knowledge is power, and in the world of automotive performance, power is the key to success in any avenue whether it be competitive sports, leisure, or recreational driving. I am willing and able to answer any and all questions you may have after you have read through this letter. I encourage you to see the blog at http://s13bay.blogspot.com/. The blog targets the automotive sport consumer and will curtail to their very request. I leave myself open both there and here for any criticism or suggestion. Please review my requests on the next page and a list of benefits that may be open to you as a producer of fine automotive performance parts.

Interactive "Requests"

2011-04-02T20:19:00.003-07:00

I hate rules, I can't stand them really. But in order for this to work I need to set some up. In order to refrain from using such a harsh word, I will call them "requests."

1. Suggestions are to be left in the comments boxes. Once I learn how to use this a bit better, I'll see if I can create a "suggestion box" or just rename the comment area.
2. I will ALWAYS leave this site open to the public. I respect everyone and anyone who posts here should too. Any rude, cruel, or belittling remarks and bad language will be DELETED, no matter what useful information is left in them.
3. Bear in mind, I am ONLY testing a 1990 Nissan 240sx. If you are wanting a product tested, your suggestion should include the product that you want tested from the ebay store that will fit that criteria. IF your suggestion or question is about a part for any other model, find a part that works in the same general area and manner on the 240sx and it will be considered like any other suggestion.
4. This build is funded by MY money only. I am the furthest thing from rich you can get. Items will NOT be tested every day. Always check back to see if your suggestion is being tested.

Disclaimer:
I am adding this into this section so as to steer clear of any moron who seeks to make money from a family guy. All tests and evaluations are conducted by the owner of this vehicle. Results posted as findings are the results found by the individual who owns and operates this vehicle and blog spot. Results are not guaranteed to be the same results other consumers may have with identical or like products.

These Requests will be amended from time to time without notice, so please check back as often as possible. Thanks!

Introduction

2011-04-02T20:19:00.001-07:00

Hi, my name is Mike and I am an addict. Now that I have accepted it, I am able to share this with everyone else without being scared. Now, my addiction isn't what most people would consider a need to attend a support group of any kind, but I typically find my way into one, either on 240atlanta.com or Zilvia.com, or the biggest and best, Nicoclub.com. If you haven't quite caught onto it, I am addicted to cars, most especially cars badged with the Nissan emblem. My first Nissan was an Altima. A four door get me here and there and everywhere car. It just so happens to be my very first car that I paid for with my hard earned money. I've explained most of how and when I found my first 240sx so I won't waste your time with that here, but if you haven't got word about it, you can read it on my cardomain journal linked to the side. After that first one, I was hooked. I now have acquired my seventh 240sx. Including my Titan, that makes the total of nine Nissans.

The focus of this blog and my current venture will be the effects and performance of ebay purchased items. I can not even begin to explain how many times I have read "you get what you pay for," and "don't buy the cheap ebay ones" when reading posts on numerous enthusiasts sites. I soon came across one where the original poster of the thread replied to those comments with a "why, did you have a bad experience?" I became very intrigued with the response that followed, "No, but it's ebay stuff." Being the curious one for most of my life, and maybe a little bit stubborn some may end up pointing out, I have given myself a mission. It is my mission to ask the community of automotive forums what they want to know, and after I find out, it is then my mission to report my findings.

Of course this will not be easy. First of all, I can not afford every kind of car that ebay stores provide cheap parts for. It's just not in the cards for me to become that rich to not only buy the cars that I will end up taking questions about. Also, I am on a lower middle class family budget, I have five kids, I work full time and I go to school a few days out of the week. However, because I am what our modern culture would call a "Car Nut," I have plenty of experience in driving for sport. I understand, and have taken classes on, much of the mechanics on a vehicle. I have been behind the wheels of a car or truck as much as I was able to for the past 13 years. I also served in law enforcement for a long part of my career and have been able to participate in a couple Emergency Vehicle Operators Course's. I know how a car drives, I know how to make a car behave in a manner to put stress on specified parts. I know my 240sx. It is my sincere hope and number one goal, to provide accurate reports of performance from the point of view of a typical driver involved automotive sports, and leisure/recreational driving