C0llis0n's K11 SR

[C0llis0n]

So I finally found her on the 1st of February 2010, a loooooong 5months after I set about looking for a decent SR.

Went to go view her after I got a second chance offer on ebay, travelled 70 miles up to Derby and took her on the spot for £375. Personally although she has no Tax or MoT and has a few other problems I think it was a steal at that price!

Ok so the good points;
Bodywork is pretty flawless, only one or two tiny trolley dinks.
Interior is like new other then a small area of unstitching on the drivers seat.
All alloys are in good condition along with the tyres + there were 2 spare SR alloys with the car.
Starts first time and drives well (as far as the clutch would take me)
Brand new battery
No rust on the front cross member and none on the sills as of yet (I know this means its likely I will have to pay for it to be done in the near future but the way I see it atleast I can get it done well and how I'd want it, saving as much of the original paintwork as possible.)

The not-so-good points;
Very noisy timing chain! (not yet had the chance to look at it but fingers crossed its just tensioners)
Clutch barely excists (New LUK clutch ordered this afternoon)
Mileage is just over 100k which is slightly higher then I was looking for but we all know how well these engines last!
Small area of rust (bubbly paint) on the rear drivers side arch.

The Plans;
Lower by 60mm (springs and panhard rod ordered from MPH (thanks Matt) this afternooon)
14" Rota alloys or possibly some slightly wide alloys with a dish.
Possibly wide arch kit (what do you guys think of some carbon fibre arches?)
Open Mouth Grill
Nismo Spoiler to spray and fit
Maybe Badboy bonnet (what do you guys think?)
Bilstein Shocks (next months paypackage)
Fast Road full stainless steel Janspeed 4-2-1 manifold
Induction kit
Maybe Janspeed back box.

Im mainly going for visuals with this SR because I really feel that its a stunning model that can be made to look even better with a few little tweeks I also want to hold my own on the dual carriage way hense the plans for a Janspeed at some point. Theres no real deadline for completing this project apart from if possible id like her to be on the road for JAE in the summer. I think that gives me plenty of time to work on her bit by bit.

So what do you guys think? Any hints or tips you think might look good on the SR? What do people think of a carbon fibre wide arch kit? All comments good or bad are much appreciated. I look forward to starting work as soon as I can and to getting loads of help from the forum!

Thanks a lot for looking, Joe.

 

[cjford]

nice and tidy, picked up a bargain there, and what engine is it the 1.3, good little project car and 100k aint bad for a micra, jap engines go forever, proberly get a good few years out of it

 

[C0llis0n]

Thanks CJ, yep its a 1.3, cant wait to start working on it!

 

[C0llis0n]

60mm Lowering Springs

Great service from Matt Humphries! Ordered 2p.m yesterday, arrived 11am today! Thanks very much. Will make sure I get some good before and after photos!

 

[cjford]

no probs mate, and how much are the springs of matt, and can i just straight swap them for the ones on my car and use the original struts and it will lower it, my blog is on here somewhere just put cjfords k11 n should find it, i need some advice on what i could do with it, after some alloys and a backbox but cant find anything anywhere close by. and does this mean you are goin be selling your sr alloys if ya might be getting some new ones haha :L , cant wait see what you do to it.

 

[C0llis0n]

Springs were £310 posted. So quite pricey but definately worth it! Their a straight swap for the originals and yes you can use the standard struts. Ill have a look as soon as I can. Yep SR alloys will be for sale as soon as I get round to purchasing some others. Have you had a look at the Janspeed from Matt humphries? Or maybe try C&P Motorsport?

 

[Shaun]

Car looks very clean and tidy apart from the above you mentioned, Now make it shine! (Y) good luck!

 

[C0llis0n]

Thanks Sed, i'll do my best!

 

[Low Rider]

£310? Erm, I'm assuming that's a typo. Matt's the man if you want things quick, I never use anybody else for k11 parts. As for the manifolds, don't be swayed by low prices from people like Roadrunner, Micrasport or C&P, Matt's Janspeed manifolds are the best available and of superior design........they're also the only ones available in stainless if you have the cash. Also since you have a lot planned I would highly recommend a remap from Ed at Fusion once it's all together......it'll finish it off nicely and make passing the MOT a sinch

 

[C0llis0n]

Sorry £310 for 60mm springs and adjustable panhard rod, thats VAT and delivery included. Yer I was really impressed with the service! As for the manifolds Matt again was my first thought. A re-map could be a good thing for the future. I'll have to see how quickly I can acquire the other goodies first.

 

[Mailys62]

i wanna see the spring on the car

 

[C0llis0n]

Me too! Think I best concentrate on sorting the timing chain and clutch first though eh!

 

[C0llis0n]

Good news! LUK clutch arrived this afternoon. Plan on fitting it at the beggining of next week!

 

[Scouse boy]

dude this looks set to be a worthwhile blog, love the colour of this SR... had a similar colour on my first k11
keep up the good work, look forward to reading it

Craig

 

[C0llis0n]

Cheers matey. Yer me too, I think it might be a bit of a 'marmite' colour though, love it or hate it sorta thing. Lucky for me I love it!

 

[Manny]

lowering. did you get any photos ov it before and after?

 

[C0llis0n]

Springs arent fitted yet. Concentrating on sorting the timing chain and clutch for the next couple of weeks, once there done I'll fit the springs as soon as poss, Im hoping fitting them will give me a better idea of what alloys to go for.

Also small update: Scrapped the Red SR I was breaking on Monday morning. My SR's now finally in the garage/barn ready to be worked on. Took the cam cover of this evening to take a look at the timing chain, it doesnt look warn to me but its definately slack. With some good tips from Frank I should be able to find out just how slack tomorrow. Either way it's looking likely that the block will be coming out for a timing chain replacement and to fit the new clutch.

 

[C0llis0n]

Small update. Timing chain is cooked for good, started taking the block out on Thursday evening. Almost ready now just need to split the block from the gearbox.

Also found my first bit of major rust . Lower cross member has a nice big patch just above the toe-eye. With any luck I can get away with just changing the lower member for now, will save the pennies a bit!

I was planning on giving both the engine and the bay a real good clean whilst I had the room, can anybody recommend some decent chemicals or the best way too clean up an engine?
Thanks, Joe.

By c0llis0n, shot with BlackBerry 8900 at 2010-03-06

 

[Manny]

you will allways get rust there you find out when you take the bumpers off had mine patched and welded. i used engine degreasant from local motor factors was very good use a small brush with it also.

 

[C0llis0n]

No particular brand then Manny? Just industrial stuff I take it. What about Meguilars? Anybody had any experience with their degreaser?

 

[ferritboy]

i love the colour! the best degreaser i have found is 'gunk' orange can from halfrauds.... looking good so far.

 

[ferritboy]

oh forgot to add --- are they pedals in the passengers footwell? look in the first pics posted? was it an ex learner car?? Thats probably why theres no clutch.

 

[Manny]

i love the colour! the best degreaser i have found is 'gunk' orange can from halfrauds.... looking good so far.

yeah gunk all the way

 

[C0llis0n]

Gunk it is then. Seems cheap enough eh

Thanks Ferritboy. Yeah forgot about that! It was supposedley a learners car for about 6 months before it was put of the road because of the timing chain. I suppose theres good and bad points to that. Bad in that the engine would have took some added strain for a while and as you said probably what caused the clutch to go, but on the other hand its good in that its been maintaned and kept clean for that time.

As for the instructors pedals, does anybody know how theyre connected? Not had the chance to look yet.

 

[frank]

are you gonna fit new chains then joe ?

 

[C0llis0n]

Thats the plan Frank :wasntme:

Its going to be a tough and painful process no doubt, but if I dont try I'll never learn.

Plus im sure theres plenty of people who will give me some tips if I get stuck along the way eh Frank

 

[frank]

im sure theres plenty of people who will give me some tips if I get stuck along the way eh Frank

np joe :grinning: you will find it interesting, how much lash was there ? (pulley notches)

 

[C0llis0n]

Im sure I will! I didnt get the chance to count accurately due to lack of light but I can tell just from turning the crank thats its extremely slack. Im hoping to get a proper reading once the block is out. I think I read in your blog a while back that you sprayed your engine... Could I ask what you sprayed it with? Thanks.

 

[ferritboy]

All the clues pointed to it being a learner car!! I think the pedals run behind the centre dash and connect to the primary pedals some how. Easy to disconnect for u collision. And would be worth putting on ebay I rekon they are worth a couple of quid, might fit other cars....

 

[frank]

I think I read in your blog a while back that you sprayed your engine... Could I ask what you sprayed it with? Thanks.

ally spraycans joe, it looks crap till you lacquer it tho (the lacquer tones the brighness down) :grinning:

 

[C0llis0n]

Thanks Frank, think I'll get some of that in then. Your engines look spotless!

Cheers Ferrit, didnt think of that, cheers for the advice, would have just thrown them away otherwise!

 

[C0llis0n]

Beaten by a blessed Driveshaft nut!

Continued splitting the engine and gearbox this evening, sorted it all slowly to make sure I knew precisely where each bolt lived (the old cardboard cutout technique) and then I got round to the rear gearbox mountings and remembered the freaking sheet of metal that seals the two! grr

Now I have to go through the lengthy process of taking the nearside hub off just so I can pull the driveshaft out! (Ive try'd Franks method of popping the CV joint out but I just cant seem to crack it.) To add insult to injury the Socket I borrowed to undo the nut has only been returned to the owner so now I have to wait until Wednesday to carry on.

Out of interest though does anybody know the size of socket you need for the transmission fluid drain plug?

 

[C0llis0n]

Drainplug was a 13mm for any future reference

No progress this week as Ive spent all my spare time painting our new extention! Thank god thats finished now! However I have spent sometime searching out the rims that I want.

Ive decided to import some second hand SSR MK2's hopefully using 'Jesse' as the middle man. Now these wheels are very wide so theres definately a set of wide arches on the cards. Im hoping the arches will actually cover the rust on the rear arch so I'll be killing 2 birds with 1 stone

Pics below, there the same as what 'Solarice' has, however they wont be that colour.

Comments? Do you guys think its the right choice or not?

 

[ferritboy]

What colour are you thinking of having them? Same colour as the car with the chrome rim? What size are they?
Ferrit

 

[C0llis0n]

The above are 14". Not sure on colour, think I will decide once ive done a trial fitting, but Id maybe like to do something a little different with them like a black rim maybe? What dyou think?

There is the option of 13" but Im thinking that will be a tad too small.

 

[markbognor]

13's !!!!

Hope this comes off for you. SSR MKII's are possibly my favourite wheels.

This is epic, but i do think the 14's are just a little bit big.

And what sort of width are ya looking at Joe? I'm pretty sure that's rolling 7.5 and 8, it might even be 8 and 8.5, and there's no need for arches there

 

[C0llis0n]

Hes got a fair bit of camber there though hasnt he? Not sure on width, it seems to range from 6J right up to 10J! What problems am I likely to hit if I go say up to 8J?

I like the thought of 13's but I doubt id fit any larger brakes behind them which is a must at some point in the build.

Big thanks go to Mark by the way everyone! Been a big help with all my wheel queries! So thanks Mark!

 

[frank]

Hes got a fair bit of camber there though hasnt he? Not sure on width, it seems to range from 6J right up to 10J! What problems am I likely to hit if I go say up to 8J?

I like the thought of 13's but I doubt id fit any larger brakes behind them which is a must at some point in the build.

Big thanks go to Mark by the way everyone! Been a big help with all my wheel queries! So thanks Mark!

i agree with mark on the 13,s joe, and gtir front brakes fit inside this re-dished stock 13 steelie ok (now that it has a -10 offset)
http://www.micra.org.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=15079&stc=1&d=1269158869

 

[C0llis0n]

i agree with mark on the 13,s joe, and gtir front brakes fit inside this re-dished stock 13 steelie ok (now that it has a -10 offset)
http://www.micra.org.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=15079&stc=1&d=1269158869

huuum well I'll have to consider it then Frank. So I take it aslong as the offset is -10 or more then I should be fine right?

 

[C0llis0n]

Right Ive had a browse around now and this is what Ive come up with.

The Specs;

Standards FRONTサイズ FRONT Size REARサイズ REAR size
ホイールサイズ Wheel size

6.5J-13" 6.5J-13"
7J-13" 7J-13"

Offset
+18 +18
+11 +11
PCD PCD 114.3 114.3 114.3 114.3
穴数 Holes 4穴 4 holes 4穴 4 holes

I know PCD is wrong but I will have them filled and re-drilled once theyve arrived so that not a problem. Question is what problems will I have with a +18 and a +11 offset?

 

[micras69]

just to let you know ssr mkIII are 114.5x4 wheel and that silver micra has had a hub conversion. superlite make a wheel that looks almost exactly the same as them and you can have almost any offset you like and will no doubt be a fraction of the price

 

[ferritboy]

Well done on getting the 13''s i would have gone with that 2. Now you have the headache of what make, tread and size tyres to choose!!!

 

[C0llis0n]

just to let you know ssr mkIII are 114.5x4 wheel and that silver micra has had a hub conversion. superlite make a wheel that looks almost exactly the same as them and you can have almost any offset you like and will no doubt be a fraction of the price

Yep but these are SSR MKII, they come in 4x100, 4x114.3 and 4x110. Like I say it seems to be difficult to find any 4x100 set which is why im settling for these but it shouldnt be to difficult to get the holes filled and then re-drilled to 4x100.

As for superlite I like the thought of having the originals classics rather then a copy, makes it that bit rarer.

 

[C0llis0n]

Well done on getting the 13''s i would have gone with that 2. Now you have the headache of what make, tread and size tyres to choose!!!

Thanks Ferritboy but I still have to win the auction. Fingers crossed eh. Yes got all the joys of tyre possiblities to come!

 

[C0llis0n]

Out with the old. In with the new.

Progress! Cracked on with sorting the mechanics this week. Its amazing how much easier life is when the block is out of the bay!

First thing to do was to change the clutch. Simple enough. Noticed the previous clutch was also a LUK one so I take it its already been changed once in its lifetime.

Second was the timing chain, bit more complex, had a little trouble with timing the correct links up given that there was only 1 coloured link on each chain! (Not the 2 and 3 that haynes says there should be). Got there in the end with the experienced help of Frank! Soon realised what was making all the noise though, take a look at this tensioner. The chains actually started to char through the metal . I managed to find part of the pad inside the timing chain cover, fingers crossed the other part is in the bottom of the sump. All thats left to do now is to seal her up.

OLD:

NEW:

Ordered the new lower cross member on Thursday, with any luck it will be with me before next weekend. Also looking into changing all the hoses for silicone, just waiting on a quote from Ed.

No progress on the SSR MKII alloys as of yet, decided that the description on the set above was a bit vague so I ducked out of that one. Think Im going to wait for a 4x100 set to come up for sale (if that ever happens).

Next weeks job is to mainly get the engine looking as shiny as possible, re-spray all the mounts, spray the block and to paint the rocker cover (havent decided what colour yet though, I was thinking of a stainless steel effect. Any thoughts???)

 

[purple]

Black looks good, even better if you paint the NISSAN white

 

[micras69]

Yep but these are SSR MKII, they come in 4x100, 4x114.3 and 4x110. Like I say it seems to be difficult to find any 4x100 set which is why im settling for these but it shouldnt be to difficult to get the holes filled and then re-drilled to 4x100.

As for superlite I like the thought of having the originals classics rather then a copy, makes it that bit rarer.[/QUOTE]

superlite are there own company i said they look like them as there a custome 3 piece split wheel so you can choose the offset stud patturn even the color. i think they look a lot better than the mkII. as for "rarer" im still yet to see a k11 with custome 3 piece split superlites, ssr have been done before on the k11 as your doing the same?

 

[C0llis0n]

Yep but these are SSR MKII, they come in 4x100, 4x114.3 and 4x110. Like I say it seems to be difficult to find any 4x100 set which is why im settling for these but it shouldnt be to difficult to get the holes filled and then re-drilled to 4x100.

As for superlite I like the thought of having the originals classics rather then a copy, makes it that bit rarer.[/QUOTE]

superlite are there own company i said they look like them as there a custome 3 piece split wheel so you can choose the offset stud patturn even the color. i think they look a lot better than the mkII. as for "rarer" im still yet to see a k11 with custome 3 piece split superlites, ssr have been done before on the k11 as your doing the same?

True, true. Sorry didnt mean to seem like I was snubbing the idea. I'll have a look at the superlites. Not having much luck with the SSR's at the moe so cheers for the heads up (Y)

 

[C0llis0n]

Black looks good, even better if you paint the NISSAN white

I agree, think my choices would have to be black or silver...

 

[C0llis0n]

By the way Micras do you have any experience with the JUN gear? (flywheels) Im debating wether or not to get the Ultra light 3.5KG flywheel of them.

Anyone else with experience of their goods?