The Quest for more power

2010-05-10T11:38:00.000-07:00

After a few more track days i decided i wanted more form the car and decided to take it off the road and have a go at building a building a drift car.
A new engine was top of my shopping list and decided the sound of a straight six was too good to pass up.
With the CA18DET and running gear up for sale at a little more than market value it was soon sold and on its way to an Irish Mag for their very own budget build drift car.
With the help of the lads in P.D. Garage in south Dublin the old heart was pulled out and on it way.
Around the same time i was unlucky enough to lose the job that was going to pay for all my plans so things have slowed down some what.
When a friend was breaking her own S13 after a rather bizarre accident when traveling to an event in Portugal i jump at the chance to take her 7 point rollcage that was more than up the spec i wanted/needed but it was going cheap and staying within the shoestring budget idea of te car it couldn't be passed up

When you buy a car to have as much cheap fun in accidents are going to happen body work was next on the list to be looked after while waiting to find a job and buying an engine.

The quick and cowboy way to sort it all was

After a few swings of a hammer and a lick of primer it didn't turn out too bad for a firts ever attempt at body work repairs

Shoestring first look

2010-05-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

Like most Nissan 200sx in the world these days this one has been bough very late into it live to be used and abused in the world of drifting.
When i first told friends i had bought a S13 a lot reacted the same way: Please tell me its not a CA18DET.
It was but i had faith in the engine and believed if it was looked after and treated to a regular service the bottom end would forget all about its chocolate like ways and be nice to me in return. I was right, Of all the parts that have failed on the car and needed replacing the engine was not one of them!

When i collected the car it had a pretty good spec to jump straight into trackdays and enjoy the car.

Rebuilt CA18DET
Colder plugs
Exedy clutch
xspower FMIC
Apexi cone filter (custom vent in headlight cover to feed it)
Cusco 2way diff
Nismo shocks and springs with adjustable top mounts
Full kakimoto exhaust from downpipe back (cat and midbox baffles removed)
Raceland drivers bucket seat with unbranded harness

Soon after it was on to my local www.driftireland.com to find out when the next track day was, Turned out it wasn't to far away and was up in Nutts corner.
A quick search and i had found myself some extra wheels with brand new tyres on them at a very good price too.
My first ever drift day was eventful with getting lost and ended up being 3 hours late, And my first run of the day was the scoring session of the day. As i thought i would have i suck on track and really didn't have a clue what i was doing but still thoroughly enjoyed the day.

With a few pointers from a friend the shopping began to make the car better and more track friendly.

Soon i picked up a 19 row oil cooler just to that little bit nicer on the engine and a "spin button" for the hand break to stop it staying locked on track.

shoestring motorsport

The Quest for more power

Shoestring first look