Robb's 'Project Awesome' Facelift

[Robb]

Time to beat the pumps and get another K11 (winning!), goodbye thirsty Mystic :grinning:

Y reg second facelift 1.4 SE+ 62,000 miles boasting ABS with vented front discs (well spotted Frank) :laugh: stopping power is awesome, much better than my previous K11.

Some TLC:

Fitted aftermarket MAF sensor, needs a new radiator soon, A/C gas, new mid section exhaust, otherwise good working order, engine is particularly sweet and the car is rot free with little rust underneath (Y)

 

[tat2_mike]

nice mate, will look super when cleaned up.

 

[Robb]

Cheers bud, its quite the shed but future mods will hopefully mask the imperfections.

Few mods so far:

As you can see drivers door has been smacked at some point and replaced with a blue door with a not so great respray (to be touched up). The passenger door has also been sprayed at some point but the overall effect of de-bumpstripping outweighs these impurities. Also saved 2kgs w00t.

Note also the essential 'Koreisha' mark on the boot (inspired by markbognor) (Y)

 

[Robb]

Also fitted this:

Inspired by my previous Nissan:

Cos the 8 ball is just too predictable. :laugh:

 

[markbognor]

Make it live up to its name!

It's one step further than mine though - I've done the knob but haven't had time toi do anything else yet.

 

[tat2_mike]

yeah you can notice in the top pic that the door has been sprayed. bloody nightmare. i've got a black k11 and now the wear and tear is setting in i've noticed that i have a silver bonnet, green grill and 2 red wings. the paint job is pathetic. but the car cost me 400 so cant grumble.

 

[Dave_Ally]

Nice one, shame about the door but sure it's got potential. Enjoy it! Am looking forward to see what happens with this one. :grinning:

 

[Robb]

yeah you can notice in the top pic that the door has been sprayed. bloody nightmare. i've got a black k11 and now the wear and tear is setting in i've noticed that i have a silver bonnet, green grill and 2 red wings. the paint job is pathetic. but the car cost me 400 so cant grumble.

It's a sod innit :doh: once the driver's door is touched up i'll be at peace with it and let the modding continue (Y)

 

[Robb]

Put matiz rears on the fronts t'other day:

Currently on gmax 40mm primera rears, not a perfect fit or drop but will do til i get the grinder out next week. :glare:

Few mechanical jobs to do but many cosmetic mods including sorting the headlight clusters, colour coding, markbognor inspired wing mirrors, the list goes on!

 

[frank]

looking good rob (Y) how does the ride compare, with the primera rears ?

 

[Robb]

They are quite good, a good compliment to the matiz springs, the flatter end is a bit narrower so it doesnt sit perfect but if i werent selling them as a set i would lop a coil off and solve two probs in one. Hmm wonder if anyone on the NPOC wants just the fronts :glare:

 

[Robb]

Well took a few coils off the original rears, replaced the radiator and got some exhaust to fit.

No more stinkin leaky radiator

 

[Robb]

Update time, only fitted midsection in the end as the original backbox was fine and had the all important bend on the tailpipe which is necessary on a second facelift rear bumper with no cutout.

Now fully colourcoded (mudguards are staying off), blacked out headlights, lifted bonnet, prefacelift rear clusters rewired and fitted (thanks mckenziecz), sitting on re-engineered k11 rears and sporting a homemade splitter (Y)

Next job 13" steelies (thanks stokie1985), so far have ground all the loose rust and brushed hammerite over exposed areas, now waiting for it to dry proper before sanding and spraying. Cant wait to be rid of those bland alloys.

 

[NeX]

i was loving it right up until the bonnet lift and then i cried a little bit

 

[martinb]

i was loving it right up until the bonnet lift and then i cried a little bit

Nothing wrong with a bit of bonnet lift

Looking cool robb, what's your plans with steelies widen em ??

 

[John_1.0]

Steelies!? wouldnt waste the effort. I fully prepped mine etc and a few month later, rust. Id redo the alloys ina new colour tbh.

Oh and cars coming on well. (Y)

 

[C0llis0n]

Great stuff Robb. Good to have you back in the club. I was a big fan of your previous facelift and this one's looking good too! Great work on the homemade splitter too.

 

[C0llis0n]

Steelies!? wouldnt waste the effort. I fully prepped mine etc and a few month later, rust. Id redo the alloys ina new colour tbh.

Oh and cars coming on well. (Y)

If you do the job properly and fully treat the rust then theres no reason they should'nt last years with a re-spray. Are you going for the same colour scheme as your last facelift robb?

 

[markbognor]

Splitter is neat, good stuff. Those steels need a little of the Frank effect.

 

[John_1.0]

If you do the job properly and fully treat the rust then theres no reason they should'nt last years with a re-spray. Are you going for the same colour scheme as your last facelift robb?

Wut!? ive just said lol. I fully prepped mine, cleaned reguarly. nvm y0 :suspect:

 

[Shaun]

What did you use for the splitter? :wasntme:

 

[NeX]

Nothing wrong with a bit of bonnet lift

if it was anywhere else it would be called panel gap lol

 

[Dave_Ally]

Do you not want the mudguards then? I've been looking for some if you'll part with them and price?

Steelies are a different idea for one of these, hope they turn out well.

 

[Robb]

if it was anywhere else it would be called panel gap lol

:blush:

 

[Robb]

John what exactly did you do when you prepped yours? I am genuinely interested.

I'll probably do black n' chrome effect again, 'reversed' 13s would rule. Would love to put 175/60s on them now but dont have the wonga to justify changing tyres when the 155/70s have tread, and decent dunlops too :wasntme:

Shaun i cant remember what its called but it comes in long strips from b&q in the roofing materials area :blush:

Cheers for the input peeps (Y)

 

[Robb]

Belated update peeps, finished the steelies, currently tidying up the front end (futher pics to follow), clear repeaters ordered.

 

[Daniel]

Looking really good mate, those steelies look pukka (Y). Reckon you need a bit of wheel spacer action to get a bit more poke, or get them banded :wasntme:. Loving the combination of facelift styling with some pre-facelift parts, it really works. Looking forward to seeing what else you have in store for her :grinning:. Also, have you considered removing the rear wiper and washer jet just to tidy the back end up a bit more? And an SR/Super S wraparound spoiler would make a nice addition in my opinion (Y)

 

[r-reg-sr]

silver cars look bad as good can get when dark tinted:grinning:

[/QUOTE]

 

[Robb]

Cheers peeps ive considered many options for it and will have another go at removing the rear wiper (the nut is well toight). I fitted a wraparound spoiler on my previous K11 and given the work i probably wont get round to doing another but your right they are the bees.

 

[Robb]

Right on re-inspection its not the nut that is the problem on the rear wiper its the actual fixing on the spindle, its like its welded on! Any tips other than soaking the thing in penetrating fluid? Was afraid of snapping the plastic arm but just tried with all might and it wont budge.

 

[frank]

i usually lift it up and arc the end from side to side rob

 

[Daniel]

Just give it a bit of a jiggle and twist o), should unscrew then. You find they tend to be quite tight and corroded after 10 years :laugh:

 

[Robb]

Cheers chaps i'll give it more in a bit.

Got the front end tidied up a bit, basically cut out the centres of the grilles and lined the bumper mouth with vinyl, also painted the tatty rear drums so they now match the lovely glossy finish of the steelies

 

[Daniel]

Open mouth grills are awesome mate, I did the same to my K11. Really gives a better look to the front end, makes it look a lot meaner. Spot on (Y)

 

[karlj]

You should either colour code or blacken the chrome grill surround

 

[alexzaki]

Looking good mate (Y)

Cheers from Slovenia,

Alex

 

[Robb]

Well the rear wiper wont budge, short of grinding it off, which is short sigted to say the least. Have pondered over the chrome for a while now and have come to accept it.

 

[Stani1029]

It should come off, put the arm up. Still holding the arm jiggle it up and down quickly and it should release. Or when it lay down push it up and down slightly

 

[r-reg-sr]

yeh looks like a ball joint splitter could do it also (the screw type)

 

[Robb]

Ive jiggled the f#@% out of it and its like literally welded on, suprised the arm hasnt snapped off by now. :blush: Never come across anything so stubborn. A ball joint splitter would be a good idea in theory.

 

[Guy]

1 milly disc on an angle grinder between the underside of the arm and the motor base and then pull the remains of the motor off from the inside. I had to use a 1 milly angle grinder disc to remove a tie rod end, they ROCK :grinning:.

 

[Shaun]

when i took my wiper off i actually un-wound it...
don't ask me how the hell i did it i just remember turning the whole arm around in a circle. lol

 

[r-reg-sr]

when i took my wiper off i actually un-wound it...
don't ask me how the hell i did it i just remember turning the whole arm around in a circle. lol

that is over doing it :grinning:

 

[Shaun]

that is over doing it :grinning:

It worked...

 

[Robb]

'Fine tuned' the ground clearance so it sits a bit more level (depending on how much fuel is in the tank), and whilst doing so i thought id see how 'low i could go' and was suprised by how much scope there was for the more insane slammer.

On the bumpstops:

 

[Robb]

Well finally got the wiper off, or should i say frank got the wiper off :blush: and was able to use the plug i used on the ol' Mystic, with a lick of silver:

Also fitted a 'frankline' bush (Y)

 

[Robb]

Tidied up the car a wee bit today:

Repair job following a game of chicken with a kerb.

Tidied up the driver's door with #gasp# silver hammerite and a brush. See post #3 for before pic.

A thankyou.

 

[wehey]

Nice!

Belated update peeps, finished the steelies, currently tidying up the front end (futher pics to follow), clear repeaters ordered.

Hi Robb, I love what you have done here!! One of the nicest i have seen!
I have just brought my 1st Micra and its silver too!!
Are the wheels and tyres completely standard 5x13 with 155/70/13 tyres??
Any ideas how many coils i would have to cut to get the ride height similar to what you have here?
Cheers (Y)

 

[Robb]

Hi mate have seen your progress and it looks good keep it up (Y)

The whels are standard 13s with 155/70 tyres, a bit too skinny but lack of money prevents further progress

Im thinking of 3 possible ventures with the wheels:

Keep the 13s and put fresh 175/60 rubber on.

Get some 14" steelies (like on my prevoius k11), add some dish and fit 185/55 rubber.

Get some 15" steelies, add some dish and fit 195/45.

 

[wehey]

lol yeah them standard tyres are real badass!!!!

I'm in two minds as to where to go with the wheels. My sensible self wants to stick with the original plan of cheap motoring and perhaps add some 20mm wheel spacers then wider tyres when the olds need replacing.

My evil side wants 7x13 Weller rims painted as ours are now with some skinny rubber stretched over them!!

Who will win????