Edge's Z10 Ice Cube

[DEdgeMac]

Right where to start? A quick introduction I spose…

I’m Dave and have been a member on various car forums over the years, I’ve owned an eclectic mix of cars (mainly Japanese) ranging from 2JZ twin turbo’s to 6G72 twin turbo’s and a few Vags and Saab turbo’s thrown in between.

I’ve always owned performance cars but I wanted something different this time for my future daily- had to be 90's, relatively cheap to purchase so I wasn't too fussed about throwing the kids in and doing stuff that I've never done to a car before (which may end up looking ****) and importantly now I'm getting older and more boring- cheap to run.

Anyway this came up

Z10 Cube

JDM import and very rarely seen over here, has 4 doors, which is ideal for me. Apart from the usual it also has ABS, electric windows, electric mirrors r/cl, A/C and oem wind deflectors so pretty decent for a late 90's hatch- something which I've always been accustomed to with owning Japanese cars- they were way ahead of their time.

The Work VS wheels were pretty cool and very rare in these sizes but with them needing a refurb and only being 14's I was wanted 15's and a 1 piece colour coded wheel for a cleaner look.

Have also sourced some later spec HID headlights - I actually now have 2 sets so will be "robo" modding them- that's what they were called when I owned a GTO tt, it's basically a halo conversion with black background. Definitely updates a 90's light but that's for another day, will be just fitting an original set in the near future whilst I find the time to get it done.


I bought a Micra turbo off here and another Cube for some choice upgrades, also included jobs done and parts fitted as I do a long;

Nismo Panhard
Nismo front ARB
Cusco rear brace
Cusco front body brace
Tanabe front upper brace
Cusco coilovers with pillow ball top mounts
Cam cover gaskets and s/s bolts
Tie rods and track rods
Endless pads
Thicker discs and bigger JDM 1 pots
ATE Type200 Performance brake fluid and system flush and bleed
HKS turbo kit with SR20 injectors, Greddy e-manage, fmic, HKS manifold, custom downpipe, Kakimoto Kakimoto GT Hyper Sports back box
Walbro 255lph pump
Return inlet sump
JDM Bridgestone Down Hill Special Alloys

Like I’ve said this is going to be my new daily once my insurance runs out on my Pajero so I don’t want to go crazy just some choice mods for an OEM+ clean look and around 130bhp will do me fine so I’m not undermining reliability or negating the MPG figures too much.

I haven’t even given it a wash yet as spare time regarding cars has been spent stripping the Micra and other Cube, which was well worth doing considering the parts I managed to get hold of but now I’m going to be focusing on going through all the niggles and getting the parts fitted.

Will update tomorrow with pics and coilover/brake install...

 

[DEdgeMac]

Here's the difference between the newer JDM 1 pots and the older ones (which I'm assuming are the same size as Micra ones?). Disc shield needed trimming to allow for the size difference.

Endless pads are well worth considering if you're look for a higher end pad.

Will be fitting the coilovers and rear brake shoes (hopefully the wider ones fit!) hopefully with the Bridgestone's tomorrow evening.

 

[DEdgeMac]

Right weather has stopped play today but I did get a fair bit done yesterday.

Fitted-

Cusco coilovers- Top quality suspension with pillow ball top mounts made specifically for the Micra/Cube- I'm not slamming it with it being my daily and carrying the kids but it gives me the option when going to shows etc, they haven't done many miles at all, just fitted them without adjusting for the time being but I'll have a play at some point.

JDM Kakimoto Hyper GT stainless back box with HKS exhaust hangers- Been a long while since I've owned a small engine car so it's not what I'm used to (2-3ltr tt's) but sounds nice under throttle lol, pretty much stock at idle, which is a good thing for me.

Rear brakes shoes and drum clean- The 5mm larger N15/B13 shoes do fit as I thought, so gives a lot more options to March import owners. Will be getting some new drums to fit in the future as these aren't in the best shape aesthetically but they'll do for now.

ATE Typ200 high performance brake fluid flush and bleed- Makes a big difference to pedal feel with good quality fluid.

Tanabe Sustec front upper strut brace- Will need a polish at a later date but engine detailing will be done further down the line, probably after the turbo install.

Clear side repeaters- Stock amber repeaters can look good in place but on most cars clear always gives a nicer look in my opinion.

OEM Clear rear lights- These are the updated revision lights

Bridgestone DHS's in white- Fitted with blue JDM tuner nuts and wrapped in Bridgestone Potenza RE11 tyres- Really suit the white Cube, more so than the black and red SSR Indy 500 specials, the Bridgestones are performance road tyres, never used them before but they're good quality so I'm hoping with the braces and coilovers I can get some good grip down.

More pics to follow...

 

[DEdgeMac]

Next jobs are-

Fit the Nismo panhard rod- it states on the leaflet that it's "special" steel- well it's certainly not stainless because the silver paint has flaked badly and there's rust so this will need stripping back and painting.

Tracking- since fitting the coilover's, the steering doesn't feel right obviously, so want to get it set up correctly.

Nismo front ARB fitted

Diagnose slight grinding from the rear- I thought changing the worn rear shoes would rectify this but it's still apparent. I believe it to be the actual drum as it's not completely smooth and when free spinning has slight resistance in certain parts of the drum. I'm hoping once the rear shoes have bedded in more it will even this out, if not I'll need to install both rear drums. Has anyone had this issue before?

Then it's ready for daily use and I'll be working on it as I go a long, which probably means that it's not going to be a turbo Cube until next spring but we'll see how it goes.

 

[DEdgeMac]

Been using this as my daily, brilliant little car and economical too.

Got a few more jobs done on it that I'll go into more detail at some point.

Modded my front door cards to accept some top quality audiophile OZ Audio superman's- some of the best subs you could buy a few years back and very hard to find, sounds really nice and that will be enough regarding audio upgrades, didn't want subs/amps etc just a bit of base and clarity with good quality components.

Still got to fit my rear Cusco brace and will be customising my HID rev2 headlights in the coming weeks.

I've decided to sell my turbo kit as it's ideal for what I need, I may change my mind as it would be such a cool little turbo car but does what I need and I don't feel the need for more power, as a nippy town blaster it does it's job very well.