LarZ' Black 180sx (The Ugly Duckling)

It just goes to show that some people have no respect for cars. This thing was neglected so so badly. Especially when it comes to giving a car a glimpse of its hay day, I like to have the right people do the right jobs on my cars so I got pretty much everything done professionally in this instance. And it has paid off. The car is a dream to drive.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...05355628_o.jpg

Proof that miracles do happen (when you spend enough money :p)

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...41078120_o.jpg

Now the fun starts. I picked up this a few weeks back and couldn't wait to install it. FINALLY got around to installing it last night. More pics will follow once i get to my car during daylight hours

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...59097645_o.jpg

The ride height is high. The car is far from hellaflush or stanced, nor will it ever be as far as i'm concerned. The engine is great and i've opted for a grippy setup. I love the SR20det and its ability to spin up wheels and allow you to go sideways, but this time I've opted for a setup that glues the car to the road. Grippy tyres all around make this thing a great handler now that i added some bracing and replaced some arms underneath. I've got front and rear strut braces to go in too. I'll be meeting with a guy who reckons he can paint it pretty cheap in the coming week or so. This will never be a show car. I plan to track this whenever i feel like giving it a blast, as well as drive it as a daily and enjoy it.

Here's how it stands right now:

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...77958508_o.jpg

If you fancy a read into the history just to grab some perspective on this car, here's dave's build thread: http://www.driftireland.ie/forum/sho...eeto-180/page2

And heres the for sale ad from when he sold it: http://www.driftireland.ie/forum/sho...ighlight=nardi

So as mentioned, after months of drooling and watching youtube videos I bit the bullet and bought this bad boy: The Pioneer SPH-DA120

It's such a nice device for the price. Pity it doesn't support wireless carplay but apple CarPlay itself is awesome. The lights can match to any colour so I was able to match the off light green of the a/c unit and clocks. Nice touch that.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...ads/image.jpeg

Rather than chopping wires and that, i just bought myself some harnesses to make the install easy. It retained dim functionality, electronic antenna retraction/expansion, etc.

Firstly for the antenna i bought a two prong to single antenna adapter on eBay (click image for listing):

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...kdjig60_12.jpg

Secondly, the actual nissan to ISO adapter. Plug and play, just remember to ground the black wire.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...usoswa/_12.jpg

Fantastic unit so far. Great investment and really does help the interior a lot. I'll get some pics of it in action once i have the backgrounds and themes all set up to match the car.

One thing that always annoyed me in my old drift car was that the lever to release the boot hatch didn't pop open the boot like you'd expect. I lived with that for over 2 years because feck it, it was a drift car. I wasn't surprised when this car had exactly the same issue. You pull the lever to release the boot... nothing happens. You need to pull the lever AND lift the hatch at the same time. A two man job unless you wedge something under the boot release lever.

I stripped off the rear boot carpet and had a look at the mechanism. With the boot hatch up i could hear that the mechanism was working, so i assumed that it wasn't just the cable that had let go. I started to take out the boot latch itself and realised that it could move up and down slightly once you loosened the top two 10mm bolts. Turns out that if you move the whole receiver part down about 3-4mm, the mechanism works again. Why is beyond me, but this might help out someone who has the same issue.

Anyways, that's pretty boring for you guys but i'm delighted with myself. I don't get to do much manual labour so fixing something on my car (no matter how small) is a big thing for me :p

I also fitted these original kouki rear spats:

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...47918321_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...73969639_o.jpg

Boot latch is probably due to cable stretch over the years maybe?

Cars making good progress! Some difference in a short space of time!

Spats are deadly on it. Starting to take shape alright. Call me crazy but I kinda like the rough and ready look of it, super character in the flesh.

Got the radio too after. Awesome.

The rough look is not too bad, but will never be as nice as some fresh paint. Spats are deadly on it, i love the way they complete the rear end. I fitted an oem rubber chuki front lip too so that i can rub speedbumps again. It looks great, but i really need to paint that front bumper and sort the exposed metal on the roof. I'm meeting a guy tomorrow about getting a cheap paint job done on it. People always say that a cheap paint job isn't worth doing, and that may be the case. But in this case, the car needs something. protection if anything. I'd rather have runs and slight mismatch than what i have now. If i could afford to go the whole hog paint-wise, i would.

The filters is for 90s feels and to distract from the paint.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...38281714_o.jpg

Looking good now LarZ,, like the detail your going into,,
Hope you get on Ok with the paintwork,, reading through the other lads threads there and both didn't fair out too good with the cheap paintjobs,,

Yep you're right. I've decided that a 'cheap' paint job for a 180sx just can't cost less than 1500euro. So i updated my budget a bit. Watch this space :)

So i've been quiet for the past 2 weeks. Some of you probably saw the car in the car park at UD just 12 days ago. Where do i start...

A while back I put a wanted post up on a facebook group (as i tend to do) and asked if anyone would spray this car cheap and easy, rough and ready, and as quickly as possible. I got all sorts of interested even though i specified a budget of no more that a thousand euro. Most of the people interested in doing the job were spare time, make-shift shed type of people. which is understandable at that budget. Now bear in mind that the car had dents, scratches, tiger seal and misaligned panels.

One day I got a message on facebook from a Pat Kerry Quinn, who is based in Churchfield industrial estate, Blackpool, in Cork. He didn't say much, and posted a link to this video: https://m.facebook.com/l.php?u=https...=uAQFj0uHo&s=1

I was impressed. It's not a blockbuster movie trailer but it gives a good sense of what they're about. He approached me. He knew my budget. And seemed hungry for the work. After a few back and forth communications, mainly just organising a time for him to actually see the car in the flesh so that he could give an accurate quote, I finally got to him on Friday, the 20th of November. He's a lovely guy, fairly quiet, and boy does he love what he does. He rubbed all the panels with his hands and i could practically see the cogs turning in his head. He said to me that this job needs to be a slightly more expensive job, but it will be worth it. I'll happily tell people the price if they send me a message. I just don't want to broadcast it on here. I agreed to the price and it wasn't even that much above my budget. I had another requirement though, the time-frame... "No problem", he said. I wanted it done within 2 weeks. Those of you who have been through this know what a tall ask this was, but it's my daily driver, so i need it.

"Drop it to me Monday and we'll get started straight away". I had the money luckily, so i took him up on the offer. He told me he'd send me updates whenever he made some progress and he wasn't lying. I have great photographic documentation to show the whole process. This gave me great peace of mind and a great confidence that this was going to be a good move.

Within hours i got photos of the car being stripped. I'll post those photos at a later stage. So i dropped the car to him on the Monday, 23rd of November. I picked it up on Wednesday, the 2nd of December. Yup... 9 days later. NINE!!! Amazing. And you would assume that to get it done in that time, corners would be cut and quality would suffer. But no, this paint job was amazing value. He had 3 or 4 guys working on it with him. Also bear in mind the dents, scratches, tiger seal, terrible existing paint, misaligned panels and even surface rust that 'decorated' the car. He even rolled the arches to make them smooth. He sprayed the kit separately so that i could take it off if i wanted to go for the un-kitted look that i'm oh so fond of. It really just all fell into place... In only 9 days...

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...soswa/ugly.jpg
pic by Rhys Walters

9 is the magic number it seems because I only bought this car 9 weeks ago. Delighted is an understatement. See you at Auto Heroes tomorrow :)

Sounds like you definitely found a genuine worker larz. Was going to say stick some proper pictures up but sure I'll see the car tomorrow.

Please put up pictures of the work in progress from the panel beaters! Glad to hear youre happy with the work

Fair play to the panel beater, quick turn around, I was waiting over 6 months for mine, he has a good set up by the looks a things.
Car looks class Larz, you'd never think it was the same car that it was 9 weeks ago. Keep it up man

thanks lads! Yeah it's a bit of a transformation alright :) Here are some pics that were sent to me during the 9 day paint job. As you can see, the facilities are top notch and the finish is bang on too.

Stripping it the day i dropped it off
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...09226271_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...15950628_n.jpg

Bumpers being sanded on day 1 too
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...00203138_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...63840943_n.jpg

Day 3, primer
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...21881505_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...95473987_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...27044777_n.jpg

Day 5, sanding the oven hardened primer
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...46006323_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...06959819_o.jpg

Day 6
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...70429180_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...12994964_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...26134125_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...74109751_n.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...75279179_n.jpg

It needed to harden and it got a clear coat too. Amazing work from Pat Kerry Quinn. When you contact him, tell him I sent you ;)

An ugly duckling no more :)

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...a/DSC_6168.jpg

No not anymore dude. U definitely saved this. Fair play larz

seen this yesterday looks well! now to see it in the sun be even nicer haha

Love it, needs a wangan or whatever they call it these days.
Reminds me of one I had years ago. A good drive able 180 is probably the most rewarding cars to drive out there.
Enjoy it fella

Thanks for the great feedback guys. It does drives so well. I'm weak for it lol :p Not going the route of a wangan/bomex spoiler definitely, I'm not a fan. I like the boot clean although if i found the right roof spoiler i'd consider it. Something to complement the lines of the kouki rear spats. Next on the list are:

1. front bumper lenses. I want USDM amber lenses. The styling isn't modern enough for these clear dmax style lenses.
2. Restore the wipers. they just need a lick of paint really. New blades would be nice too. They need calibration too as they're about 2 or 3 teeth out.
3. Fix the rear right spat a bit better. It keeps letting go for some reason. I don't want to tiger seal it but will try some heavier tape.
4. Dash has cracks, needs to go
5. Steering wheel is horrible. That rally style yellow centre marker makes no sense on road cars imo.
6. Replace some other interior plastics. ash tray cover, passenger side kick plate (ecu cover), gear stick leather gator
7. Straighten up the headlight brackets - the fit is ok, but not factory flush.
8. Still on the hunt for a HKS Hi Power Silent exhaust.
9. Fit my new speakers and speaker mounts
10. Source a rear wiper arm seal. Still haven't found one.
11. Fit my OEM chuki front spot lights :)

Projects never end and there's always room for improvement. I never thought i'd enjoy a car this much though. So much so that i'm on the lookout for an SR20det setup for my ps13.

Also, i updated the original post with up to date spec list.

Fair play you've really saved this!! The amber lenses will work really well! Love me some old school!!

Fair play to ya lad. Really brought it back from the brink! Wanted to buy it when Maurice had it but was lacking the money.

More Pics!!

Oh alright if you insist :)

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...44812880_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...a/DSC_6161.jpg

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Before Christmas I had put a question up on the SilviaRepublic FB page as i'd seen a few Chuki 180s with very tidy looking fog lights. I wanted to know what brand they were or if they were a factory option as they all looked similar. Here's an example:

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6197/6...9466040f_b.jpg

They look epic. I did some searching as they all looked similar and i wanted the exact model. Low and behold, they turned out to be an OEM factory option, despite almost everyone on SilviaRepublic saying they didn't exist and weren't ever offered by Nissan. This was music to my ears as i love a challenge to find some rare parts. I put out the feelers and much to my surprise, within a few hours i had sourced a pair. In ireland no less. Complete with wiring and everything. Seemed too good to be true! But it wasn't. I have them now, I just need to get some dry weather to fit them in. Here they are:

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...79045800_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...64934344_o.jpg

Can't wait to fit them.

I've also sourced some of the niggly little bits that I've been searching for. I got the boot rubber seal for the wiper arm. Also picked up the rear facing washer jet and the little handle for my passenger seat recliner function. All stupid stuff, but it's what makes a good car great.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...83912054_o.jpg

Some attention to detail in this build. Shaping up to be super clean!

Nice find on the fogs and it's the little details that's makes ya appreciate the car. Especially if it's your daily

Glad to see the car being all nice and shiny again :)
looks so good in real life also and cant wait to see them fog lights installed haha

Car just looks so right with the little details

So I got pulled for not having the front number plate on the car. He said i 'might' be getting a summons. BALLS :p Also, my turbo packed it in on Sunday. It's in the garage right now getting a replacement fitted. Staying t25 because I can't be spending loads on it right now.

Thanks for all the kind words everyone. I ordered USDM bumper lenses, can't wait for them to arrive. Still haven't fitted the speakers because of the weather. Must fit my strut braces too. Although i consider the car 'complete', It's never going to be finished :)

Love those lights I had read about them before!
It's lookin great now man, is a car ever 'finished'? Haha

Tell the garda the plate just fell off. You'll never see that summons haha
Loving the car.

Ya I wouldn't be too worried about that summons, you'd never know though! Oh and I agree that a car is never finished hahaha

My USDM lenses eventually arrived. Delighted with them to be honest. I know it's controversial but I prefer them to the oem JDM 50/50 bumper lenses and definitely much prefer fully amber lenses to the clear DMAX ones that were on it.

With the lenses i also got the bumper lens loom extensions. I couldn't find out online whether I'd be able to keep both the parking light AND indicator functionality as the USDM lenses only allow for one bulb. Or whether they'd even plug in properly at all! Another thing that i really wanted was to be able to run the parking lights without having the pop-ups on. For some reason I couldn't do that with the DMAX lenses, but the wiring was a little hacked together on them anyways, hence splashing out on the bulb wiring too. Anyways, that's enough nonsense about my OCD about how they light up. Long story short, the parking lights are good and bright and when you indicate the pulse nicely. So they'll pass NCT and all. No wiring, cutting or lens swapping involved. result.

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...30874232_o.jpg

And here's how they look on the car:

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...77547717_o.jpg

Love this car man. C&C pics lead me to the thread here. A credit too you.

Really like the amber as well larz, breaks up the all the black

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dashoonage

Love this car man. C&C pics lead me to the thread here. A credit too you.

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Deadly! Which C&C pics? The ones i put on FB? I'm presuming i know you in real life :p

Quote:

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Originally Posted by derek89

Really like the amber as well larz, breaks up the all the black

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Cheers dude! Yeah i love it myself. I love when you tell people about your plans and they're like "I dunno about that man" and then when you do it they see what you meant :) Not saying you ever doubted me :p

Like the USDM sidelights. I got the same for the MX-5 and they make such a cool subtle difference!

Cheers everyone! Wheel refurb is on the cards, but i'm in no hurry. Right now i'm still trying/struggling to get my hands on a HKS Silent Hi Power exhaust. That's my main priority really. When i find some spare time and some dry time i'll finish installing the new speakers. It also needs a good interior valet.

Also I'm picking up some front arch liners at the weekend.

Small update. Managed to track down some elusive interior bits. Some before and afters:

New handbrake sleeve
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...61689790_o.jpg

New radio surround, non smoker box and another shot of the handbrake sleeve
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...10461797_o.jpg

And last but not least, this tasty nardi. It should have the ring covering the bolts but my boss kit won't hold the horn button in place unless I leave the ring off like in the pic
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...59117107_o.jpg

And some more random shots
http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...89110513_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...42896120_o.jpg

http://i1143.photobucket.com/albums/...97531625_o.jpg

Savage work... i have loads of pics of when that handsome bastard Daly had it as well.. such a sweet car