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Firstly, generic. Take your budget, and double it. Shit will pop up, things might not fit, things WILL happen that you didnt expect, and it will all add up. The last thing you want is to have a useless car sitting there for months on end because you cant afford to finish it off. That shit is fucked! Lol. And worst of all, you'll get sick of it, lose interest, and sell it off unfinished, and no one wants to see that happen!
Now your has done 160,000kms, right? Not a HUGE amount really, but still quite a bit. This means that not only is the engine worn out, but so is every other part of the car. The only part that doesnt wear out all that much is chassis, as long as it hasnt been twisted/bent due to an accident. This means its recommended to replace/refresh everything you can. Check out silbeer.com for a good example! Although obviously not as insane
Right, lets get into it!
Engine: So your buying a half-cut? Always a great start. Grab everything you can from it, always useful for spares. If the half cut has less kms then your car (very likely at 160,000kms) then I'd take the brake master cylinder and brake booster to put in your car. Less wear, less chance of breaking. I'd also give the master cylinder a good freshen up with new seals. Other things that you could grab would be panels (better condition to yours, or if you have an accident), horn (some have cool aftermarket horns!) and random other shit.
With the engine itself, I'm guessing you wont be building it before it goes in? It will save you money in the long run, but DEFINATELY blow the budget in the short run. Even so, never a bad idea to throw some fresh bearings into it. What NEEDS to be done is replace every gasket, seal and hose in the engine. Removing the intake manifold and turbo manifolds are a piece of piss when its out of the car, but when its in the car, its a cunt of a thing to do. Save time and more money, and replace them all. Not too expensive from Nissan. Also replace the timing belt, water pump, crank seals, cam seals and spark plugs. Not overly hard inside the car (about 4-6 hours work) but again, much easier while you have it out. Finally, CHANGE EVERY WATER HOSE YOU POSSIBLE CAN WITH THE BEST QUALITY HOSE/LINE YOU CAN AFFORD!!!! This is a biggy. I've replaced every heater hose on an R33 before, as well as a coolant hose under the intake manifold in both a 32 and a 180, and trust me its not something I ever want to do again. My god, I've never been so frustrated before!! AAARRRGGHH!! Replace these all while the engine is out and on the stand to avoid these frustrating (and expensive) times.
Lastly, what are you putting the engine in with? Turbos and intake plenums are easier to install while its out. And trust me, standard turbos are boring
Something to keep in mind. Also, even a cheap GReddy plenum copy is pretty decent, and cleans up the engine bay a lot more then the ugly standard one.Drivetrain: Ok, so your talking about clutches. You wont know for sure what clutch you have until its out. And being NA, the chances of the stock clutch holding up are very slim. Even if they put an aftermarket clutch in it, it might not be strong enough for the turbo motor. And if it was, it could be worn out! Who knows how long it'll last until it starts slipping? My advice would be to check the condition of the clutch in the half-cut and if its decent and has enough meat on it, clean it up and use that. Otherwise, the Exedy clutch it pretty good. If you want to impress girls, get the Exedy cos its smoother. If you want to impress the guys and want a REALLY strong clutch good for skids and drifting, maybe track, but not drags, get a twin-plate. I only say this because I have a twin-plate, and people who know what it is (mainly guys) are impressed cos I can actually drive with it! Lol. Girls and the general public just think I cant drive...
Its also $3k worth, so a bit above your budget Also with the gearbox, pulling it apart for a freshen up isnt a bad idea. Syncros are knows to go on RB25 boxes, so some new syncros and bands would do it well. But arent really overly necessary. New Redline ShockProof oil is though!! Change that out definately.
Diff: I've touched on this before, but I'll do it again. Keep your standard diff housing, but the center is pretty shit. Mine has just started to open wheel when ripping nuts, and yours wouldnt be too far behind. So you have two options; replace or reshim. Replace it with either a Cusco or NISMO two way ($500-1000), which is the better idea. A mechanical diff will skip when turning at low speeds, but its completely handlable, and the drive on the road is insanely better. The next option is reshimming it. Pulling a diff apart is pretty easy, then just add a few $5 shims in to tighten the whole lot up again. Not as good as a replacement centre, but better then nothing! But as with the suspension, throw some Redline Shockproof oil in there either way you choose to go.
Brakes: Ok, so you've just about got this done. One thing you should look into (if you havent already) is some decent racing brake fluid. If you ever track your car, just a few laps will send the brake fluid temperatures through the roof! The last thing you want is for the fluid to boil and lose brakes coming down the back straight of Barbagallo. I've seen a mate do that and lose control around the corner, ALMOST smashing into a barrier along the straight facing the wrong way. Seriously funny shit afterwards, but fucken scary when it was happening!! So change your fluid!!!!
Also, 6-pot Brembos will set you back as much as your entire conversion...
Suspension: I own a car with JDM coilovers, so I know the difference they make, and its phenominal!! However, handling can be made soooo much better. Look into some front and rear strut braces, front and rear sway bars, and especially some camber arms from the rear. When you dump a Skyline, the negative camber is crazy. So fix that up for better handling, grip and tyre wear. Also, replace all your bushes with quality polyuerathane bushes, as the factory rubber ones will be quite worn out by now.
Wheels: Your G-Max wheels look good, but they arent as light or as high quality as they could be. Also, the offset could be a LOT better, and nothing looks better then wheels that sit flush, or almost flush. White car with black wheels? You cant beat that for the ULTIMATE in the JDM Street Fighter-look.
Interior: Dont buy cheap R34 GT-R copy seats, especially when East Bear make them for $500 each! They are exactly the same, come from the same factory, except they have better material. They also use Bride or East Bear rails, so fighting them really isnt that hard. Also, what are you doing with the dash? You may as well fit the GTT dash from the half-cut so you have some room for the gauges. Sorry, but I personally hate gauges sitting on the top of dashes. The wires go everywhere, and its not pretty
And if you have it there, why not????Well there you have it! A few things to think about. Projects like this arent cheap, but its sooooo worth it in the long run. I'll be joining you soon with my own car, except its removing it as far away from stock as possible... Lol.
Good luck!!!
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