Build Threads

VH41 V8 airbagged Cedric

anth — Mon, 13 May 2013 15:48:11 +0000

There’s really no introduction I can type up for this car that will do it justice, so I’m just going to give you the facts, because they’re way more impressive than anything I could muster up. Nissan/Datsun Cedric, VH41 V8 conversion, custom-made cast ITB’s with carbon velocity stacks, airbags on all 4 corners with tubular crossmembers and arms, 4 link rear end, and some of my favourite oldschool JDM rims; August Feroce’s. Oh man, I’m getting a cold sweat just thinking about it. It’s also gracing the cover of the June 2013 issue of NZ Performance Car Magazine.

Thanks to Nils for submitting, who also submitted the K20 1st Gen Civic.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lH1Qy8c0rM

CLICK HERE for the full build thread.

Electric S2000

anth — Thu, 09 May 2013 07:35:43 +0000

Error 404: F20C not found.

I was very happy to see this one pop into my inbox, not just because it’s been a while since the last electric build, but because an S2000 is a very unlikely candidate for an electric engine conversion.

Thanks to Tito for submitting. Click here for more electric builds.

CLICK HERE for the full build thread.

Forum spotlight: JDMST (pt2)

anth — Sat, 04 May 2013 06:43:04 +0000

Here’s Part 2 of my insight into some of my favourite builds from the JDM Style Tuning forums.

For Part 1, click here.

If there’s any car that truly embodies the term “JDM style tuning”, it’s this Corolla. Apart from the 4AGE 20V engine conversion, the owner spends an exceptional amount of time and effort tracking down the rarest and most obscure JDM options that were once available for the car.

- JDM AE100 Toyota Corolla

A blogger himself, Adam chronicles his automotive journey in infinite detail. After cutting his teeth on an MX5 and catching the drift bug, he makes the transition to RB Nissan powered machines. Watch as he transforms his Stagea from a family wagon to a slammed drift car.

- Nissan Stagea drift car

From dead standard, to hardparked stance hero, to turbocharged track warrior, this NA Mazda MX5 goes through continual evolution at the hands of it’s owner, Charlie, culminating in a cover shoot for Fast Fours magazine and a following the world over.

- Track-spec Mazda MX5

Meet Ryan. When it comes to his cars, Ryan has OCD. He also seems to be on a mission to try out as many different cars as possible. At last count he’s owned a KE70 Corolla, S13 180SX, Toyota Cressida, this Golf, and currently an E36 BMW. This particular build sees him buying 2 MK1 Golfs and combining the best of the two to create one exceptional little hatch.

- Rupert: MK1 Golf

Stay tuned for part 3 (and many more)

1969 AMX

anth — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 11:11:41 +0000

I don’t know if it’s just me, but I love seeing pictures of cars that are in various stages of assembly, even more than the finished item. I just love seeing that raw metal, with missing panels showing off the mechanical underpinnings, the car sitting low to the ground with an abundance of tyre tread on display due to lack of guards/fenders, and the combination of factory parts with hand-made additions. It’s that very love of tough-looking yet incomplete cars that drew me to this build, with it’s “minimal metal/maximum tyre” appearance. The builder of this AMX has actually graced these pages before, being the man behind the $5,000 budget Mustang (another great thread for those of you who’ve never seen it).

Click here for more Pro Touring builds.

CLICK HERE for the full build thread.

4 struts, 17 inches, 2 switches: MKIII Jetta

anth — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 05:34:33 +0000

I’ll admit it, when I first received a link to this thread, I thought “oh no, I can’t feature a car whose main purpose is to get as low as possible, the fans will destroy me in the comments!”, but then I dug a little deeper. As build thread aficionados, I think we all agree that the journey is more important than the destination, and this car takes one hell of a journey, regardless of it’s intended purpose. Among the many modifications, the owner/builder installs a front subframe into the rear of the car to achieve his ride height goals, and then custom fabricates a set of hydraulically controlled adjustable spring perches for his coilovers. There’s also plenty of milling, lathing, welding, general fabrication, bodywork, spray painting, lots of tool porn (I hope you like hammers!), and plenty of high quality details, like the ARP bolts being used for engine accessories. I mean, the guy even hammers out his own damn shoe-horn from a piece of 16ga stainless steel! Once the suspension is finalised, the car is torn down and it’s rebuild is currently in progress. This build has held my attention on-and-off for over a week now, and I’ve loved every page of it, plus the name of his blog is Wrinkle Red, and we all know I’m a fan of wrinkle red paint!

Submitted by one of the owners friends who wishes to remain anonymous. Click here for more MKIII builds.

CLICK HERE for the build thread. When you reach the end, CLICK HERE to head to the blog, where you’ll find the rest of the progress. You’ll have to start at the oldest date and work your way up to the present. The build is still in progress.

Forum spotlight: JDMST (pt1)

anth — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 06:16:35 +0000

I’m a member of many different forums, but I’m not much of a poster. JDM Style Tuning was one of the first forums that I really got involved in, posting regularly and attending meets. While I don’t post there much these days, I still like to read the forum almost daily and make the odd post every now and then. There are a number of great builds on the forum, so I thought I’d do a little spotlight on some of my favourites in no particular order. Please note, this is not a “best of”, it’s just the ones that tickle my fancy. There’s a few builds to get through, so I’ll split them up over a few different posts over the next couple of months in between regular build features.

This little white Honda City starts out as something I would describe as having the appearance of a ‘tooth on wheels’. It doesn’t look like this for long, though, as the owner tears into it and creates a bright orange, wide-body, D16 turbo converted bulldog.

- Honda City Turbo2

The original plan for this 1st-gen CRX was a simple restoration, but that plan soon changed into a full race-spec Mugen replica with clinical levels of cleanness.

- CRX Mugen resurection

This Nissan Ti is the owners 4th R31 Skyline. Being well-versed with the ’31 platform, he goes through a number of desirable wheel options before settling on a set of 17″ Panasports coupled with drastic lowering. Apart from the fantastic exterior appearance, it also sports a delectably 80′s interior (can you say buttoned velour and factory headphones?) and an aftermarket-turbo propelled RB25 under the bonnet.

- RB25 R31 Skyline

You know when you’re modding your car with all those budget-conscious and second-hand bits, but you really wish you could just splash out on all the best brand name parts to create the ultimate vision for your car? No? Just me? Well this RX7 is one of those lucky cars that doesn’t belong to a tightass owner like myself, it gets gifted with all the good stuff from Work, Recaro, Takata, Nardi, Tial plus a host of OEM Mazda goodies. To go along with the drool-worthy parts list, the original 13B gets tossed out and replaced with a built 20B turbo.

- 20B FC RX7

Stay tuned for more JDMST builds in the future!

Satan’s Lady Bug

anth — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 12:33:34 +0000

Residing amongst the sea of first-gen Camaro’s on the Pro Touring forum lies this very special bug, one that I’ve had my eye on for a few years. After owning an assortment of muscle cars, the owner realises his childhood dream of owning a V8-powered VW Beetle by buying one already complete. Once he takes a closer look, though, he decides the circa-1980s construction methods weren’t up to his standards, so begins the tear-down and rebuild in a more modern Pro-Touring style.

Thanks to Martijn for reminding me about it. Click here for more Beetle builds.

CLICK HERE for the full build thread. There is still more progress to come, so keep an eye on it!

Holden HR Ute – Pro Street build

anth — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 05:50:27 +0000

This next build was found via Instagram of all places. I noticed a new follower pop up in my feed, clicked on his profile and I was greeted with images of this Pro Street ute build. After a few comments back-and-forth I located the build thread online and now I want to share it with you. The car in question is a 1966 HR Holden – an Australian car manufactured under our local GM banner – being transformed to a full chassis drag car in the owners garage. By the way, there is no official Build Threads Instagram account, but feel free to tag your projects with #buildthreads to share and connect with other readers.

Click here for more ute builds.

CLICK HERE for the full build thread. Stay tuned for updates in the future.

Datnats 2013

anth — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 00:36:06 +0000

Just a few photos from the 2013 Nissan Datsun Nationals held at Phillip Island this past weekend. Sadly I couldn’t make the show and shine on Sunday, so I made my way down to the track-day on Saturday and snapped a few photos. Click on the images for a slightly larger version. Please link back to the site if you feel like sharing these elsewhere.

A very sad site. This was a $100k build, very recently completed with all of the good stuff. Hit the wall coming on to the main straight and caught on fire. Luckily the driver escaped unhurt.

Joel’s immaculate 1600, a thorough ground-up rebuild, this car is perfect from top to bottom.

Dan’s FJ20ET Skyline, very menacing.

My favourite car of the event, Datsun 120Y with a naturally aspirated SR20DE and S15 6spd gearbox. More pics of this below…

More of the 120Y. The ITB’s are Tomei items, paired with a Tomei ECU.

Leigh’s LAG510 1600, always finding ways to get more power. Note the R32 GTR wheels.

Pillarless 910 Bluebird, sadly didn’t get any more pics of this but it runs a VG30.

Turbine powered Spitfire

anth — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 04:25:03 +0000

This build is only in it’s early stages, but it is of such an extreme nature that I just had to feature it straight away. I think it’s one of those projects that will get a lot of exposure very quickly, and then I’d be all butt hurt about the fact I didn’t feature it sooner (as has happened in the past), so here it is. It’s quite simple really, the car is a Triumph Spitfire, and the engine is from a helicopter. Yep, nothing to it…

CLICK HERE for the full build thread.