Comprehensive S14a refurb

[Petrol]

Hi Pete,

Have you ever done a BMC refurb? I have a 300zx one that needs rebuilding and wondered what it entails...

Thanks,
Graham.

Hi Graham

Done loads, pretty easy really. Piston is usually held in with a circlip. It’s just a case of removing it and pulling out the piston. Lubricate the new seals with brake fluid. Just make sure the seals & spring are on the right way round

I would say once you have disturbed everything and taken it to bits anyways... elbow/turbo/manifold (except metal one)/exhaust gaskets are pretty cheap, and chances are if you put it back together and run it they'll go in the near future, and with it in bits, it's a cheap job that is a bit of a pain once everything is in situ, that's all im thinking

I wouldn’t have thought taking the engine out would cause any of the gaskets to fail soon after. Got me thinking about doing the turbo gaskets though. What mileage / age do they tend to fail?

Cheers

[Chris]

I wouldn’t have thought taking the engine out would cause any of the gaskets to fail soon after. Got me thinking about doing the turbo gaskets though. What mileage / age do they tend to fail?

Cheers

Just after you have dropped the engine back in and made the job 100 times harder

[CrazySx]

I would advise doing the turbo gaskets whilst the engine is out. Mine is at 91k now and there are signs that the gaskets are going to go.. although not gone yet.

As others have said, it will be a royal pain in the back side to do the gaskets once the lump is back in.

[JackaL]

I wouldn’t have thought taking the engine out would cause any of the gaskets to fail soon after. Got me thinking about doing the turbo gaskets though. What mileage / age do they tend to fail?

Cheers

Turbo gaskets, properly fitted and left alone will last 50-70k. Maybe more. If they're badly disturbed, or fitted incorrectly, maybe 6-8 weeks

[Gray]

Hi Graham

Done loads, pretty easy really. Piston is usually held in with a circlip. It’s just a case of removing it and pulling out the piston. Lubricate the new seals with brake fluid. Just make sure the seals & spring are on the right way round

Pete,
you got any pictures? You must have surely....
I can't even see where the piston is..
The resevoir doesn't look like it comes off either!

Cheers,
Gray.

[Chris]

I would advise doing the turbo gaskets whilst the engine is out. Mine is at 91k now and there are signs that the gaskets are going to go.. although not gone yet.

As others have said, it will be a royal pain in the back side to do the gaskets once the lump is back in.

Mines on 86k and if the gaskets do go I'll pull the engine out rather than do the gaskets in situ

[CrazySx]

Pull the engine out to do the gaskets Thats a bit of overkill ain't it??

I would only pull the lump of if i was going to do some serious internal work. The gaskets aren't really that much of a pig, its more of a time issue. Lokk at the guide on here

[Pete C]

Pull the engine out to do the gaskets Thats a bit of overkill ain't it??

Not when you have easy access to an engine crane and a ramp and you've pulled the engine out loads of times before. Removing the engine is easy compared to a lot of jobs you could do with it in the bay!

[Petrol]

Pete,
you got any pictures? You must have surely....
I can't even see where the piston is..
The resevoir doesn't look like it comes off either!

Cheers,
Gray.

Sorry no pics but this will help you. The piston is not held in with a circlip on the SX, it's held in with a stopper cap which needs to be replaced if removed. I would also leave the reservoir tank on



I will do the turbo gaskets whilst the engine is out. Just waiting for the stand to arrive.

The door handles were pretty badly corroded




Cleaned up






Thanks for the feedback on the turbo gaskets

[Evilchap]

while the manifold is off you'll be able to clean underneath it and behind it

[Chris]

Pull the engine out to do the gaskets Thats a bit of overkill ain't it??

I would only pull the lump of if i was going to do some serious internal work. The gaskets aren't really that much of a pig, its more of a time issue. Lokk at the guide on here

Look at the guide I could have written the bloody thing if my hands weren't mashed from working on the hundreds of cars that I have done over the years

[Petrol]

With everything removed from the engine bay like that it would be very easy to just whip the engine out...

Good bit of advice that The plan is to try to get everything looking like new.

I think I have got everything sorted to lift the engine and box out but have a couple of questions. I don’t want to chip any of the paint or damage anything in the engine bay. I assume the best idea is to wind a rope around the engine and lift it out of the engine mounts. This will cause the engine and gearbox to tilt enabling the crane to be pulled forwards slightly. Then it’s just a case raising and pulling the crane forwards until there’s enough clearance to remove it. I also intend to lift it without the car jacked up. Is there a possibility of the back of the gearbox hitting the floor with such little clearance? Sorry to be a pain with all the questions but if you know what to expect it’s so much easier.

[Actual_Ben_Taylor]

Good bit of advice that The plan is to try to get everything looking like new.

I think I have got everything sorted to lift the engine and box out but have a couple of questions. I don’t want to chip any of the paint or damage anything in the engine bay. I assume the best idea is to wind a rope around the engine and lift it out of the engine mounts. This will cause the engine and gearbox to tilt enabling the crane to be pulled forwards slightly. Then it’s just a case raising and pulling the crane forwards until there’s enough clearance to remove it. I also intend to lift it without the car jacked up. Is there a possibility of the back of the gearbox hitting the floor with such little clearance? Sorry to be a pain with all the questions but if you know what to expect it’s so much easier.

Yeah, that's pretty much it

In my experience rope isn't an ideal choice (especially those nasty yellow tow ropes) as it stretches too much, if you're just using a standard cheapy engine crane you'll want as small a gap as possible between the arm and the engine. Seat belts, proper straps or chains are better. If you know what you're doing then 2 people can easily get the engine out without damaging any of the paintwork. Stick a trolley jack under the back of the gearbox and then you can drop it when you're ready.

[Gizmo GTI-R]

Yer right. Thought I would scrape off some of the stonechip and seam sealer just to check behind. Looks like there has been no rustproofing whatsoever from the factory and it’s corroded behind the sealer.




N/S seam at back of arch



O/S






Well it looked intact, good job I decided to scrape the sealant off and have a look.

There's also this where the fuel filler neck goes through

When i saw these pictures i had to double take as they look like the inner arch seams on my pulsar although you caught yours in time. I think mr nissan must have pi$sed off his anti corrosion department at some point lol

This is how they looked after i scraped off the underseal





This is how it looks after i cut out all the rust and patched it



Your car and the work you've done on it is ace! keep up the good work and the good tips. deox and zinc plating yourself brilliant youve really done a top job!

[Petrol]

Thanks Ben I might have some webbing they use for strapping stuff on wagons. That would be ideal

Nice bit of welding there Gizmo What year is the pulsar? I am not really surprised that Nissans rot, they have used the same basic design of floorpan across the range. The seams are all in the same places, often in vulnerable areas, couple that with open cell (spongy) seam sealer and lack of protection they were never designed to cope with British weather. We have a 1999 Almera that we use as a beater and that’s rusting away underneath.

I stopped driving the S14 in the wet about 3 years ago and I am glad I did, once metal starts to corrode it soon perforates. I don’t think this car will ever be washed again. If it does get any dirt on it I will clean it with quick detailer and a long pile microfibre cloth.

[Gizmo GTI-R]

its a 94 m and checking the chassis number againsed the build dates it was one of the very last! so just think what the oldest ones are like now I have to let you know that im holding you personally responsible for my new found enthusiasm to re shell my car as after further investigation, in places it too far gone to rapair. but hey theres lots of helpful tips on here to help me and you've proved tat it can be done without a garage

[Petrol]

I have to let you know that im holding you personally responsible for my new found enthusiasm to re shell my car as after further investigation, in places it too far gone to repair. but hey theres lots of helpful tips on here to help me and you've proved that it can be done without a garage

The best piece of advice I could give is don’t bother trying to do anything in winter. I’m on a real go-slo at the moment The best I could manage today was unplug all the connectors from the plenum

I could do to get the engine and gearbox out in the next week or so. I can then sort this out in the comfort of my office. Yes I have budgeted for a new carpet next year The engine stand has arrived but it looks like I am going to need some long bolts to attach the engine.





Anyone know what diameter the bolts are that fasten the bellhousing to the engine?

Thanks

[Nis]

They are 10mm i believe mate. You might be able to use the ones from the gearbox/starter motor.

Ivan

BTW - looking good!

[purplepower]

I forget the size but MAKE SURE you get high tensile! Admittedly an RB is heavier, but I managed to snap a bolt in the block as it was poor grade

[purplepower]

They are 10mm i believe mate. You might be able to use the ones from the gearbox/starter motor.

Ivan

BTW - looking good!

IIRC they will be too small as the spacer on the engine stand is quite deep