"Thrust issues" build log

BaioX86

BaioX86

I present to you "Thrust Issues"! My very own project car!

I know nothing about cars and just bought a pre facelift k11 with severall problems.
This car was kind of a impulse buy, the price was right and wanted a project car for years now. I've been in this forum for a while, lurking, after I decided that I want to work in a micra.

I was looking for a rev happy , japanese, manual car that is easy to work on and that i could take to my local track and b roads. My local market ended up being civics or micras. I didn't want to go for a civic without vtec , but those are way more expensive than the micra, which I fell in love with because its just a little kart.
I have 0 performance expectations so it isn't going to disapoint me.
I'm not chasing performance, i just want to work every aspect of the car to learn more.

The car is a 1.3L k11 with a 5 speed manual and 114k km on the tach (70k miles for my non metric friends!). Everything works inside the car, even the AC. The outside of the car has some rust, that can be fixed by some sanding and paiting.
I will take some better pics of the car to document the current state of it.
Screenshot_5.png


The problems started when I took a closer look under the hood. I did clean what i was sure was fine to clean with soapy water, a brush and some paper towels.

  1. 95ede15d-36eb-4ee7-8f8a-de0a248c433c.jpg
  2. 38582f33-b248-4806-9106-7de993814742.jpg

Heres what i found, in order of "what worries me less" to "that sounds expensive and I have no idea what it could be":

  • The blinker fluid reservoir isn't present. Everything seems to work when i put water in the pipe, that is plugged with a wine bottle cork ! Don't care at all about this. Is an easy fix that I can do.
  • Screenshot_3.png
  • This is broken. I looked for what it is and it seems to be the rocker cover breather. As I understand, it makes the engine not become a pressure cooker and shoot out the dipstick. It-s there in case the exhaust gases get past the pistons rings, but this doenst seem like it is supposed to happen. Maybe it is? I found some oil on the air filter/box, so i cleaned the air box and will check again if it keeps happening. I might hotglue this back to the airbox. Have to understand this system better.
  • Screenshot_4.png
  • According to the previous owner, the car's temperature on the tach is broken, being pinned on the top. The car is kitted with a state of the art temperature gauge! Its super generic and I dont thrust hacks made by someone else. This worries me, but according to the previous owner it never overheats. I ran the car for a while and tried to check the radiator for hotness. Top hose is hot, not a single part of the radiator is even warm. I'd suppose this means that the water pump is working, because hot water is on top. Maybe the radiator wasnt warm because the car wasnt warmed up enough. I dont thrust the gauge, and it's the inspiration for the name of the project. I need to study how a cooling system works. This is very high on my priority list but the pipes dont seem to have a lot of pressure build up, it might not be clogged so I'm not so worried about it exploding, need to fix the following problem first.
  • Screenshot_2.png
There's a metalic clicking noise. I have no idea what it could be. This worries me a lot. Could it be the timing chaing not being tight enough and is clicking? It's not loud at all, I cant understand if it changes rythm with RPM or if its a static ticking (less worrying). I don't have the skills and tools to work on this. Very scared.

Taking it for a 1 mile test i found the revs to go a bit low when i lift the throtle and put it in neutral (or clutch) in a red light. This might be supposed to happen but I didnt find anything that suggests this. I would think the idle should be the lowest revs the car would do if the clutch is engaged or the car is in neutral.

I'll keep this updated as i work on it and find more issues.
 
I recorded a video to send my partner when i got the car (warm) and could't hear the noise then.
Could it be something I ****ed up when cleaning? The brush could have lost some strands (was a plastic brush) but I don't think it caused the clicking noise. Also inside the car is really difficult to hear this, the mic could just not have picked it up.
 
So after research I learned the noise might come from lack of oil so, as one does, I checked.
oleo1.jpg
oleo2.jpg


Seems OK on quantity, but not ok in colour. I saw some posts here indicating that you use with Castrol's 10w40 GTX so thats where im going to go.
Im going to order an oil filter and do the change myself. There's plenty of resources online that teach me to do this so will see if it fixes the noise.

When I started the engine again the noise was gone! I didnt't drive it, but today, the noise was back. We will see...

I also checked if the coolant was flowing and it was!
I don't know if this is supposed to happen but didnt "feel" wrong. I feel the water flowing.


I do have to top up the coolant though :)
nivel da agua.jpg
 
Last edited:
Good stuff
With regards to the tacho in the cluster being from another car, I was thinking some 1.3s did have them as standard my lx used to years ago

The noise could be tensioner but I don't think they should rattle at 70k miles



Sent from my SM-F926B using Micra Sports Club mobile app
 
Chie said:
Good stuff
With regards to the tacho in the cluster being from another car, I was thinking some 1.3s did have them as standard my lx used to years ago

The noise could be tensioner but I don't think they should rattle at 70k miles



Sent from my SM-F926B using Micra Sports Club mobile app
Click to expand...
It could be the tensioner, thanks for the tip.
According to this thread it should stop making noise when it heats up and builds oil pressure, so I took it for a ride and sure enough the noise was gone. I hope its just a loose screw in the tensioner (like this). will update later today if a couple turns on the screw solves the rattle.
 
I'm gonna write about the stuff I learn along the way and I don't think theres a better place to start than engine oil!

So, engine oil gets rated according to it's viscosity. I'm gonna take 15w40 as an example (recommended for the micra).
The W stands for winter, which means that in cold temperatures the oil has a viscosity rating of 15 and with warmer temperatures it has a viscosity rating of 40.
As an engine gets older it starts to comsume oil and its mainly for 3 reasons:
  1. As the intake valve opens and closes, the oil lubricating it eventually drips down to the combustion chamber and it burns.
  2. As pressure builds up on the inside of the engine its expelled through the positive crankcase ventilation (aka rocker cover breather), some of the oily vapors go back into the intake and burn there (I confirm this because of the oil i found in the air filter).
  3. In the cylinder walls, when the lubricated piston puts friction on the cyl. walls, burning it.
We should replace oil every X miles, because it loses some of it's properties.

So, frequent oil changes are good but why should I buy expensive oil when theres options for less than half the price?
Oil could be two types, mineral or syntetic. Mineral is the most basic and also the cheapest, usually with a single viscosity rating, while syntetic oil is, well, syntethic and has a bunch of additives that make it work on a wide temperature range and last longer on molecular level. Theres also a mix of mineral and synthetic, which sit in the middle of the two in terms of properties and pricing.
The difference between cheap and expensive synth. oil is said additives, which are the most expensive part of the oil formula.
  1. Antioxidants: they reduce oxydation as the name implies and protect against degradation.
  2. Anti-wear: like zync, they create a "barrier" to reduce the friction therefore lessen the mechanical wear.
  3. Detergents: they prevent corrosion from the harsh chemicals and also prevent sludge which is basicly car cholesterol.
  4. Dispersants: They suspend contaminants allowing them to flow through the engine, hopefuly being filtered in the oil filter
  5. Viscosity Modifiers: they allow oils to be multi-grade. They expand with heat allowing the viscosity to increase or decrease with temperature.
  6. Pour point depressants:
    Poor point depressants (Thank you for the correction LordJunk )
  7. they improve low temp. flow, reducing wear when cold.
  8. Foam inhibitors: they reduce air/oil bubbles, that prevent proper lubrification.
So, expensive oils do their job better and last longer. Why should I use a higher viscosity and not a thinner oil that flows better?
Well, oil also seals leaks. It needs to be thick enough to seal those "natural" leaks while lubricating enough to reduce wear. Today I learned I should always go with the manufacturer specified viscosity.
 
Last edited:
BaioX86 said:
I'm gonna write about the stuff I learn along the way and I don't think theres a better place to start than engine oil!

So, engine oil gets rated according to it's viscosity. I'm gonna take 15w40 as an example (recommended for the micra).
The W stands for winter, which means that in cold temperatures the oil has a viscosity rating of 15 and with warmer temperatures it has a viscosity rating of 40.
As an engine gets older it starts to comsume oil and its mainly for 3 reasons:
  1. As the intake valve opens and closes, the oil lubricating it eventually drips down to the combustion chamber and it burns.
  2. As pressure builds up on the inside of the engine its expelled through the positive crankcase ventilation (aka rocker cover breather), some of the oily vapors go back into the intake and burn there (I confirm this because of the oil i found in the air filter).
  3. In the cylinder walls, when the lubricated piston puts friction on the cyl. walls, burning it.
We should replace oil every X miles, because it loses some of it's properties.

So, frequent oil changes are good but why should I buy expensive oil when theres options for less than half the price?
Oil could be two types, mineral or syntetic. Mineral is the most basic and also the cheapest, usually with a single viscosity rating, while syntetic oil is, well, syntethic and has a bunch of additives that make it work on a wide temperature range and last longer on molecular level. Theres also a mix of mineral and synthetic, which sit in the middle of the two in terms of properties and pricing.
The difference between cheap and expensive synth. oil is said additives, which are the most expensive part of the oil formula.
  1. Antioxidants: they reduce oxydation as the name implies and protect against degradation.
  2. Anti-wear: like zync, they create a "barrier" to reduce the friction therefore lessen the mechanical wear.
  3. Detergents: they prevent corrosion from the harsh chemicals and also prevent sludge which is basicly car cholesterol.
  4. Dispersants: They suspend contaminants allowing them to flow through the engine, hopefuly being filtered in the oil filter
  5. Viscosity Modifiers: they allow oils to be multi-grade. They expand with heat allowing the viscosity to increase or decrease with temperature.
  6. Poor point depressants: they improve low temp. flow, reducing wear when cold.
  7. Foam inhibitors: they reduce air/oil bubbles, that prevent proper lubrification.
So, expensive oils do their job better and last longer. Why should I use a higher viscosity and not a thinner oil that flows better?
Well, oil also seals leaks. It needs to be thick enough to seal those "natural" leaks while lubricating enough to reduce wear. Today I learned I should always go with the manufacturer specified viscosity.
Click to expand...
I don't know what happened with the list order, still new to this forum thing.
433a57a66dd26284f4901cac78e7c021.jpg


Enviado do meu SM-G960F através do Tapatalk
 
BaioX86 said:
I'm gonna write about the stuff I learn along the way and I don't think theres a better place to start than engine oil!

So, engine oil gets rated according to it's viscosity. I'm gonna take 15w40 as an example (recommended for the micra).
The W stands for winter, which means that in cold temperatures the oil has a viscosity rating of 15 and with warmer temperatures it has a viscosity rating of 40.
As an engine gets older it starts to comsume oil and its mainly for 3 reasons:
  1. As the intake valve opens and closes, the oil lubricating it eventually drips down to the combustion chamber and it burns.
  2. As pressure builds up on the inside of the engine its expelled through the positive crankcase ventilation (aka rocker cover breather), some of the oily vapors go back into the intake and burn there (I confirm this because of the oil i found in the air filter).
  3. In the cylinder walls, when the lubricated piston puts friction on the cyl. walls, burning it.
We should replace oil every X miles, because it loses some of it's properties.

So, frequent oil changes are good but why should I buy expensive oil when theres options for less than half the price?
Oil could be two types, mineral or syntetic. Mineral is the most basic and also the cheapest, usually with a single viscosity rating, while syntetic oil is, well, syntethic and has a bunch of additives that make it work on a wide temperature range and last longer on molecular level. Theres also a mix of mineral and synthetic, which sit in the middle of the two in terms of properties and pricing.
The difference between cheap and expensive synth. oil is said additives, which are the most expensive part of the oil formula.
  1. Antioxidants: they reduce oxydation as the name implies and protect against degradation.
  2. Anti-wear: like zync, they create a "barrier" to reduce the friction therefore lessen the mechanical wear.
  3. Detergents: they prevent corrosion from the harsh chemicals and also prevent sludge which is basicly car cholesterol.
  4. Dispersants: They suspend contaminants allowing them to flow through the engine, hopefuly being filtered in the oil filter
  5. Viscosity Modifiers: they allow oils to be multi-grade. They expand with heat allowing the viscosity to increase or decrease with temperature.
  6. Poor point depressants: they improve low temp. flow, reducing wear when cold.
  7. Foam inhibitors: they reduce air/oil bubbles, that prevent proper lubrification.
So, expensive oils do their job better and last longer. Why should I use a higher viscosity and not a thinner oil that flows better?
Well, oil also seals leaks. It needs to be thick enough to seal those "natural" leaks while lubricating enough to reduce wear. Today I learned I should always go with the manufacturer specified viscosity.
Click to expand...
To add something to your already fantastic summary, manufacturers usually give a range of viscosities according to the ambient temp range, but none is better than the other. I use 5W40 as I have no oil consumption at all after 30 years, but know many people that chose 10W40 and get some consumption. In my parents Golf IV GTI we started using 5W40 but it drank quite a lot, we changed to 10W40 and the problem has solved itself, now requiring close to no refillings inbetween oil changes.

Engine health and car use are the other factor to take into account when picking the viscosity from the manufacturer options.
 
FoxtrotF said:
To add something to your already fantastic summary, manufacturers usually give a range of viscosities according to the ambient temp range, but none is better than the other. I use 5W40 as I have no oil consumption at all after 30 years, but know many people that chose 10W40 and get some consumption. In my parents Golf IV GTI we started using 5W40 but it drank quite a lot, we changed to 10W40 and the problem has solved itself, now requiring close to no refillings inbetween oil changes.

Engine health and car use are the other factor to take into account when picking the viscosity from the manufacturer options.
Click to expand...
Thanks you for the feedback. Yes, I didn't state which temperature was the ambient temperature. From what I read it's at 30C (212F) for ambient and -35C (-31F) for winter.
 
As i'm waiting for oil and parts to arrive to do some basic maintenance. For the first time I fixed a big rusty spot. Had to file a bit, pull some metal then applied a very generous ammount of filler just to be sure it was enough. Then i just applied some spray paint to seal the primer and make sure it doesnt rust again. Will take care of the silver colour when I paint the car. Im thinking Honda's championship white.
1665451385488.png

1665451683495.png


I also experimented with painting the spare wheel a colour i thought would be good. Still not sure but I need to mount it in the car to fully assess. Excuse the ****ty job, this was just to see if I like the colour.
Screenshot_7.png
 
somebody is doing his homework (y)
BaioX86 said:
Poor point depressants:
Click to expand...
it's pourpoint. Not poor, like broke. ;)

Timing chains like good oils an frequent changes.

under normal european conditions a 5W30 is good enough for a micra, as longs as your not racing. And it helps a little bit with fuel consumption over "thicker" oils.

As for Specifications, i couldn't find a specific one for the old NIssans. The old Standard would be ACEA A3/B4 to go with. These are common and cheap to get either.
you could take the more modern A5/B5 too, if you want a more modern formula.
 
So much has happened since I last posted. My confortable, warm, 2016 family car was parked for a month while I daily the Micra!
AC compressor makes no noise and the brakes need to be replaced, otherwise a great little package.

1674649189437.png
1674649398555.jpeg


The car was tall and ugly so i wanted to do something about it.
Got myself some nicer lowering springs from vogtland and some help to install them on stock shocks.
1674649498429.jpeg


The back ones were an easy swap, the front ones though were quite the nightmare. If removing the bottom bolts and nuts being a two man job was not enough the shock's spigot kept turning when unscrewing the top nut and was a massive pain the rear to remove the original springs.
While my cousing was doing the hard part, I cleaned the steelies a bit a did a no prep paint job using the cheapest black paint i could find. I didnt even sand it as I'm waiting for my bmw bottlecap wheels.
1674650185369.jpeg
1674650212831.png

This might be a terrible paint job, but in comparision they're mint!

1674650383774.jpeg

I think this is low enough for me and the steelies don't look half bad!

My review of the vogtland lowering springs kit:

  • Sufficiently eliminated the body roll, car feels way more planted
  • Comfort was affected positively! Was expecting a less comfortable ride but this kit improved comfort, maybe because the old springs where almost turning 30 (1994 car)
  • I do think it improved every metric and think it was a worthwhile upgrade.
 
Also replaced the air filter with and almera one sourced from a local scrappie (and some paint)
1674651852169.jpeg


I didn't like just not having the breather disconnected so I bought a small filter.

After a long talk with the almera air box i convinced it to coexist with the breather filter. Perfect fit :)
1674652031103.jpeg
1674652077802.jpeg


Here's how it looks with the airbox and filter (plus a painted heat shield)
1674652148321.jpeg
 

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