hkn_s14
New Member
Welcome to the build thread of my 1999 Nissan 200SX S14a (Kouki) with the SR20DET engine!
Quick facts about me:
22 years old from Norway
Currently studying IT for the 2nd year.
Over average interested in keeping cars clean and do some detailing work on the side
Also work a part-time job as a salesman in a book store
Backstory: (Don't blame you if you skip this)
I've always wanted a S14a since I started looking for my next car while I still had my first one (Red Ford Puma 1.7). I was looking for a car that stood out from the rest, was rear wheel drive, had decent power and had a manual gearbox. Within the price point I was looking at, the s14a stood out the most and I've wanted one ever since. They were a bit too much for me at the time, so I ended up getting a MX-5 NB 1.8 first that I had for a year. Pics here for those interested: Was a blast, but I was ready to move on and finally try and get my dream car.
I looked at several images of the car and found out about the different models & trims, so I knew exactly what I wanted. First of all it had to be the facelift (S14a Kouki), then it had to be red as I missed having a red car and thought that was the best factory color for the S14a. The others made it look more bland than red did. I also wanted it to have all the factory aero bits & styling instead of some janky bodykit. On the interior side I just wanted black leather interior and no sunroof to have a stiffer chassis, less weight and no chance of leaks. Other than that, just find one that was well maintained and looked after, not abused by some boy racer like myself
First I found was a 290whp s15 engine with tein coilovers and some basic work wheels. The "only" thing apperantly wrong was the paint where the clear coat had failed all over. Was a legit setup with a bunch of good parts, but was due for a MOT soon. Had the owner do one before I would consider buying it and came back with a few faults. He first only stated some issues with the lights and rear left brake pads. That suddenly became even more lights that either didnt work or was out of adjustment. Also now needed brake pads and discs both sides at the back. Finally got him to send the entire sheet from the MOT with the faults right after I had already booked a train ticket for the next day. Turned out they also took him for illegal modification to the engine and a few more minor stuff. Once again tried to downplay the problems, but I wasnt going for it.
Some time passes and I eventually put out a post that Im looking for a red S14a. One person contacts me that I've seen post in the group a few times. He had a nearly fully stock one that only had H&R Coilovers, open air filter, HKS Boost Gauge, 3" decat and custom 3" catback. Had all the factory styling with the Z-edition lip added and a carbon replica kouki spoiler. It was just what I was looking for! Ended up talking him down quite a bit in price due to it being almost winter and agreeing that he could keep some misc parts that I wouldnt need anyways. Overall only 144 000km on the clock and for the price that wasnt bad at all.
Went and looked at the car and tried it out. Was a few minor things here and there, but nothing that made me afraid to get it. It had previously had some rust, but had been sorted. However he had used fiberglass to patch holes as the car was undersealed and no shop would weld in new metal because of it. Thats the only part I disliked, so the plan is to eventually remove all the undersealing and do a proper repair job. Other than that the rear brakes possibly needed a service and the clutch was very aggressive, but probably an upgraded unit. Also the shifter was as sloppy it could get, so a short shifter was high on the list. The RPM Gauge doesnt work either, or it works but is super sloooow... Previous owner tried to fix it by re-soldering it, but I will have to give it another go or maybe check wires/connectors/sensors etc. Possibly just get a new tach.
(The owner kept the carbon cooling panel and intake cover, but plan to get a cooling panel at least)
I drive it straight home about an 8 hour trip and continue to drive it for a week, before having to put it into storage. Car had no issues what so ever and I was very happy with the purchase! The car was very clean and couldnt find a single dent in it! The paint was also in good condition with only a few swirls. Has been repainted at least once according to previous owner. Also going through the paperwork that came with the car, seems as all the gaskets have been replaced a few years ago along with the rod bearings. Not sure if thats because of a rebuild of the engine or just preventive maintenace.
The previous owner had tinted all the lights with some cheap ebay tint that didnt look that good with wrinkles everywhere. Was also coming off a few spots. Removed it and the car looked 10 times better if you ask me! He had also put some carbon tape on the grill, hood prop and strutbar. Overlapping everywhere and you could see the lines. That was also removed along with a few stickers he had on the car. It was officially mine.
During storage I fitted a GKTECH shortshifter which was a massive improvement! Went with Gktech as it was very affordable in relation to other namebrand shifters, but shouldnt have as much vibration noise as other shifters. I havent tried anything else, but no annoying vibration noise from the Gktech unit at least. Goes smooth into gear and isnt all to notchy. Also not too short, but just enough for me at least.
During winter I manage to accquire a Tomei Titanium Ti Expreme Catback! Always wanted this exhaust due to it being the lighest for the S14 and gives the exhaust note a nicer sound versus the one I had that was just plain 3" drone. Also is much louder which makes my inner ricer happy. Was bought brand new this summer and only used on the car during that time, so basiclly brand new and I got it for a steal!
Finally winter is coming to an end & I found some new summer rims to replace the boring curbed 18s that came with the car. Wanted some very light rims and wanted to get 17s as I think it looks a bit too high with 18s unless you stance the crap out of it. Ended up finding a set of RAYS Volk Racing CE28N's for sale! They were 17x9,5 ET15 all around, so perfect for the car! Also only weighing 7,6kgs per wheel! They had a few minor issues where some paint was cracking due to removal of tires, but overall they looked good. Had barely been used at all, just a few laps around a track. Here I am test fitting them for the first time.
The time comes for the dreaded MOT, the only concern I had was the exhaust volume. I had to buy a new cat as one didnt come with the car, so emissions was no concern thankfully. Anyways it fails on 3 whole other different things. The front right wheel bearing, rusty rear brake discs and rear fog light not working. Instantly tried changing fog light bulb, but no luck. We had plans of fitting the Tomei catback right after the MOT and since it passed all the exhaust related stuff, we decided to proceed with it! So drove straight out to my friends workshop and ripped the cat & catback off. The old catback would bang around and didnt fit quite right, but the Tomei fitted straight up with no issues and sat snug. Probably partly due to the lower weight, but also shows the quality difference you get with proper parts I suppose. Turns out my car came with a 3" Greddy downpipe fitted too, nice suprise! First test drive and Im completely blown away. You get turbo wistle at low rpm, while cruising you get pops and burbles, get it up in the rpms and the thing absolutely screams into life! Completely deafening in tunnels! You even get the odd proper bang with some heat in the exhaust. My friend also spotted some flames during our drive later that night. Couldnt be any happier with it! You can check out some sound clips on my instagram highlights @hkn_s14
Also got rid of the rear wiper and installed a Kill All Wiper plug kit! Looks much cleaner! (See pictures further down)
After a few days, I get a new wheel bearing in. I break a tool trying to get the hub bolt off, but finally get it off with a ratchet & exhaust pipe as leverage. Easy enough.
For the rear brakes I decided to first just try and grease the sliding pins. Start taking everything apart and the pads disintegrate. So there goes that... Also turns out the sliding pins were completely rusted and seized. That explains the rusty discs. Car has to sit for a few weeks while I wait for new pads and I also had to return to my study place.
Quick facts about me:
22 years old from Norway
Currently studying IT for the 2nd year.
Over average interested in keeping cars clean and do some detailing work on the side
Also work a part-time job as a salesman in a book store
Backstory: (Don't blame you if you skip this)
I've always wanted a S14a since I started looking for my next car while I still had my first one (Red Ford Puma 1.7). I was looking for a car that stood out from the rest, was rear wheel drive, had decent power and had a manual gearbox. Within the price point I was looking at, the s14a stood out the most and I've wanted one ever since. They were a bit too much for me at the time, so I ended up getting a MX-5 NB 1.8 first that I had for a year. Pics here for those interested: Was a blast, but I was ready to move on and finally try and get my dream car.
I looked at several images of the car and found out about the different models & trims, so I knew exactly what I wanted. First of all it had to be the facelift (S14a Kouki), then it had to be red as I missed having a red car and thought that was the best factory color for the S14a. The others made it look more bland than red did. I also wanted it to have all the factory aero bits & styling instead of some janky bodykit. On the interior side I just wanted black leather interior and no sunroof to have a stiffer chassis, less weight and no chance of leaks. Other than that, just find one that was well maintained and looked after, not abused by some boy racer like myself
First I found was a 290whp s15 engine with tein coilovers and some basic work wheels. The "only" thing apperantly wrong was the paint where the clear coat had failed all over. Was a legit setup with a bunch of good parts, but was due for a MOT soon. Had the owner do one before I would consider buying it and came back with a few faults. He first only stated some issues with the lights and rear left brake pads. That suddenly became even more lights that either didnt work or was out of adjustment. Also now needed brake pads and discs both sides at the back. Finally got him to send the entire sheet from the MOT with the faults right after I had already booked a train ticket for the next day. Turned out they also took him for illegal modification to the engine and a few more minor stuff. Once again tried to downplay the problems, but I wasnt going for it.
Some time passes and I eventually put out a post that Im looking for a red S14a. One person contacts me that I've seen post in the group a few times. He had a nearly fully stock one that only had H&R Coilovers, open air filter, HKS Boost Gauge, 3" decat and custom 3" catback. Had all the factory styling with the Z-edition lip added and a carbon replica kouki spoiler. It was just what I was looking for! Ended up talking him down quite a bit in price due to it being almost winter and agreeing that he could keep some misc parts that I wouldnt need anyways. Overall only 144 000km on the clock and for the price that wasnt bad at all.
Went and looked at the car and tried it out. Was a few minor things here and there, but nothing that made me afraid to get it. It had previously had some rust, but had been sorted. However he had used fiberglass to patch holes as the car was undersealed and no shop would weld in new metal because of it. Thats the only part I disliked, so the plan is to eventually remove all the undersealing and do a proper repair job. Other than that the rear brakes possibly needed a service and the clutch was very aggressive, but probably an upgraded unit. Also the shifter was as sloppy it could get, so a short shifter was high on the list. The RPM Gauge doesnt work either, or it works but is super sloooow... Previous owner tried to fix it by re-soldering it, but I will have to give it another go or maybe check wires/connectors/sensors etc. Possibly just get a new tach.
(The owner kept the carbon cooling panel and intake cover, but plan to get a cooling panel at least)
I drive it straight home about an 8 hour trip and continue to drive it for a week, before having to put it into storage. Car had no issues what so ever and I was very happy with the purchase! The car was very clean and couldnt find a single dent in it! The paint was also in good condition with only a few swirls. Has been repainted at least once according to previous owner. Also going through the paperwork that came with the car, seems as all the gaskets have been replaced a few years ago along with the rod bearings. Not sure if thats because of a rebuild of the engine or just preventive maintenace.
The previous owner had tinted all the lights with some cheap ebay tint that didnt look that good with wrinkles everywhere. Was also coming off a few spots. Removed it and the car looked 10 times better if you ask me! He had also put some carbon tape on the grill, hood prop and strutbar. Overlapping everywhere and you could see the lines. That was also removed along with a few stickers he had on the car. It was officially mine.
During storage I fitted a GKTECH shortshifter which was a massive improvement! Went with Gktech as it was very affordable in relation to other namebrand shifters, but shouldnt have as much vibration noise as other shifters. I havent tried anything else, but no annoying vibration noise from the Gktech unit at least. Goes smooth into gear and isnt all to notchy. Also not too short, but just enough for me at least.
During winter I manage to accquire a Tomei Titanium Ti Expreme Catback! Always wanted this exhaust due to it being the lighest for the S14 and gives the exhaust note a nicer sound versus the one I had that was just plain 3" drone. Also is much louder which makes my inner ricer happy. Was bought brand new this summer and only used on the car during that time, so basiclly brand new and I got it for a steal!
Finally winter is coming to an end & I found some new summer rims to replace the boring curbed 18s that came with the car. Wanted some very light rims and wanted to get 17s as I think it looks a bit too high with 18s unless you stance the crap out of it. Ended up finding a set of RAYS Volk Racing CE28N's for sale! They were 17x9,5 ET15 all around, so perfect for the car! Also only weighing 7,6kgs per wheel! They had a few minor issues where some paint was cracking due to removal of tires, but overall they looked good. Had barely been used at all, just a few laps around a track. Here I am test fitting them for the first time.
The time comes for the dreaded MOT, the only concern I had was the exhaust volume. I had to buy a new cat as one didnt come with the car, so emissions was no concern thankfully. Anyways it fails on 3 whole other different things. The front right wheel bearing, rusty rear brake discs and rear fog light not working. Instantly tried changing fog light bulb, but no luck. We had plans of fitting the Tomei catback right after the MOT and since it passed all the exhaust related stuff, we decided to proceed with it! So drove straight out to my friends workshop and ripped the cat & catback off. The old catback would bang around and didnt fit quite right, but the Tomei fitted straight up with no issues and sat snug. Probably partly due to the lower weight, but also shows the quality difference you get with proper parts I suppose. Turns out my car came with a 3" Greddy downpipe fitted too, nice suprise! First test drive and Im completely blown away. You get turbo wistle at low rpm, while cruising you get pops and burbles, get it up in the rpms and the thing absolutely screams into life! Completely deafening in tunnels! You even get the odd proper bang with some heat in the exhaust. My friend also spotted some flames during our drive later that night. Couldnt be any happier with it! You can check out some sound clips on my instagram highlights @hkn_s14
Also got rid of the rear wiper and installed a Kill All Wiper plug kit! Looks much cleaner! (See pictures further down)
After a few days, I get a new wheel bearing in. I break a tool trying to get the hub bolt off, but finally get it off with a ratchet & exhaust pipe as leverage. Easy enough.
For the rear brakes I decided to first just try and grease the sliding pins. Start taking everything apart and the pads disintegrate. So there goes that... Also turns out the sliding pins were completely rusted and seized. That explains the rusty discs. Car has to sit for a few weeks while I wait for new pads and I also had to return to my study place.
Actually tried lowering it the other day, but need to get the specific H&R spanners. Had some universal one that didnt work. 
