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Thread: I'm back, I think...

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    I'm back, I think...

    Way back in the mists of time, when the SXOC forums looked... exactly like this, I was a 200SX owner.

    It was 2005-6, I was in my early 20s, fresh from university, and borrowing money was easy and cheap. The combination of all these factors led me to buying a fabulous S14a which my paltry salary barely allowed me to run. After seeing a pair of them 'drifting' on Mad Friday at Le Mans in 2005, I was smitten bordering on obsessed.

    After a year or so of wonderful experiences and meeting some lovely folks from here via the old Reading Jap Meet and beyond, I decided that I couldn't really justify the expense of running it (insurance was almost 10% of my post-tax salary!) and sold it.

    I couldn't resurrect my old account (email address is long gone), but here's the triumphant first post of my old car.
    https://www.sxoc.com/vbb/showthread....My-Car-Finally!!!

    Lots has happened in the intervening years, and various cars followed (including a dreadful S13 that kept breaking), but the S14a was like my childhood sweetheart. It's the one car that always comes to mind when I'm considering a change.

    These days I'm older and rounder, and I now live in inner London (SW Zone 2). I have a hybrid BMW and a supercharged Mini track car. As is customary, I'm dealing with the 18-month itch and have decided that I'm going to swap out the Mini for something more fun.

    This brings me back to the reason for this post, rather than it just being a long, irrelevant ramble. I want my old car back. Or rather, I want that experience back. So, I'm looking for a good S14a all over again.

    Ideally I think want something that's been sensibly modified (Stage 1a, maybe 2), but not tracked/thrashed, and is rust-free. Budget is pretty flexible up to £9-10k, and a little dig leads me to believe that prices haven't really changed that much in the past 15 years (I paid 7k for my 1999 stage 1 in 2005).

    I'm pretty sure that anyone I'd remember (or who'd remember me) has long since departed. But hope springs eternal...

  2. #2
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    I remember you - well, the forum you anyway, I don't think we ever met

    Good luck with the search. If you've got that kind of moolah in the locker, is it worth looking for an S15 instead? Essentially a better looking S14 with chassis on steroids.

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    Blimey. Didn't expect a positive ID so promptly! Good to hear from you.

    My hunting suggests I'm on the cusp of a good S15 at my budget, and I also wonder whether it would have the same nost***ia factor.

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    You had me gripped until I read rust free....then I realised your delusional

    Good luck with the search used to love mine but out of the game for so time now.

    I m now an advocate for Westfield kit cars.....you do realise your budget will get you a nice one of those.

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    And parking one on the street in SW London would undoubtedly be a royal pain. All of this ignores the fact that I plain don't fit in them either. Too long, too girthy.

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    Welcome back, I think I remember your username as well.

    £9-£10k will get you a very good one. But you don't need to go that high. We are still not at the £10k S14 yet. £8k is the going rate IMO for a good and straight running car.

    Would strongly reccomend treating any UK modified car with caution. The scene has been flooded with low quality parts and a "give a fcuk" attitude with modifications in the last 5 years, so much so that there are some real horror shows out there.

    I would say consider importing at that money, but you would have to check the Yen as I know the £ took a beating against the USD but I don't know how the Asian markets are doing in comparison.

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    Thanks piman. Your username rings a bell too.

    I'm optimistic that I won't need to go to the hassle of importing something and dealing with the many unknowns, but do you know of any good specialists for it?

    The classifieds here appear to be pretty slow, with occasional potentials coming up. Perhaps it's just a case of biding my time and being flexible.

    Now that Apex are no longer a thing, who are the go-to specialists/modifiers for S-Bodies? Ideally someone in the SE, if possible. My Mini mechanic is in the NW, and it's a royal pain shipping the car back and forth!

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    I think Apex are still going but no longer specialise in 200's - they moved into Evo's and the like a while back. Nowadays I think they're just a UK Supplier of Choice for BC Racing / K-Sport and a couple of others.

    Places specific to the 200? Not many these days - but Jez is still about: https://h-dev.co.uk/

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    Quote Originally Posted by arry View Post
    I think Apex are still going but no longer specialise in 200's - they moved into Evo's and the like a while back. Nowadays I think they're just a UK Supplier of Choice for BC Racing / K-Sport and a couple of others.

    Places specific to the 200? Not many these days - but Jez is still about: https://h-dev.co.uk/
    I remember Jez. His Stage 1 chip transformed my S14a into a much smoother and more potent weapon. Looks as good a place as any to source some parts.

    So in terms of getting someone to do any work on the car, I presume it's into the lap of the gods and looking for small specialists?

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    Yeah I can't really think of anyone. The market is small these days because there's not that many of them still going and, as Piman said earlier, the 'scene' turned into 'drift it feck it bodge it' and all of those tight ****ers wouldn't spend a dime on maintaining anything other than their image.

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    That's a real shame. Is there a repository of 'trusted garages' anywhere on here?

    That could be a deal-breaker for me, as the trips to Chester are killing my enthusiasm for the Mini right now.

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    Quote Originally Posted by arry
    as Piman said earlier, the 'scene' turned into 'drift it feck it bodge it' and all of those tight ****ers wouldn't spend a dime on maintaining anything other than their image
    And it's all the worse for it. I took the tail lights out of my project yesterday. The weather seals were missing. So rather than spend £8 on new ones, the owner hot glued the right side in and used some sort of non curing bitumen paste on the left side. Marvelous.

    For you in London, I'd be venturing out to Abbey Motorsport. They still look after some decent S bodies. Jez was my tuner of choice after I went my separate ways with an MK based facility, but he is a little drive from you. That said, he's brilliant and well worth it. Once built, my new one will go there.

    Good importers are still around. JDM Garage, JM Imports. Be wary of all the pop ups, they're usually lads importing one at a time. But there are a few UK cars out there that look tidy and honest at less than your money for now.

    Good parts are easy to find as well, but are pricier because most of what we get over here is dog sh1t. Part Shop Max, GK Tech, Mazworx, Driftworks all make stuff that's good. FR Sport, RHD Japan and Nengun are still great ways to get branded parts in. Dealers still can get plenty of spares, if you can't I have a good chap in Washington State who delivers world wide. There's also a really nice guy in Nottingham called John Pearson who breaks SX's regularly and keeps a big inventory of used parts and posts countrywide.

    Instagram is a good place to find parts companies too I'm finding. Tho there is a site called NissanParts.cc that has a big following for OEM and New Old Stock but is useless for the UK as they won't deliver here. I tried 5 times to get in touch with them to spend about £480 and when I reached out in a picture comment to complain, they blocked me

    Avoid Japspeed at all costs. And eBay is hit and miss.

    Essay over. I love S14s.

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    Quote Originally Posted by piman2k View Post
    And it's all the worse for it. I took the tail lights out of my project yesterday. The weather seals were missing. So rather than spend £8 on new ones, the owner hot glued the right side in and used some sort of non curing bitumen paste on the left side. Marvelous.

    For you in London, I'd be venturing out to Abbey Motorsport. They still look after some decent S bodies. Jez was my tuner of choice after I went my separate ways with an MK based facility, but he is a little drive from you. That said, he's brilliant and well worth it. Once built, my new one will go there.

    Good importers are still around. JDM Garage, JM Imports. Be wary of all the pop ups, they're usually lads importing one at a time. But there are a few UK cars out there that look tidy and honest at less than your money for now.

    Good parts are easy to find as well, but are pricier because most of what we get over here is dog sh1t. Part Shop Max, GK Tech, Mazworx, Driftworks all make stuff that's good. FR Sport, RHD Japan and Nengun are still great ways to get branded parts in. Dealers still can get plenty of spares, if you can't I have a good chap in Washington State who delivers world wide. There's also a really nice guy in Nottingham called John Pearson who breaks SX's regularly and keeps a big inventory of used parts and posts countrywide.

    Instagram is a good place to find parts companies too I'm finding. Tho there is a site called NissanParts.cc that has a big following for OEM and New Old Stock but is useless for the UK as they won't deliver here. I tried 5 times to get in touch with them to spend about £480 and when I reached out in a picture comment to complain, they blocked me

    Avoid Japspeed at all costs. And eBay is hit and miss.

    Essay over. I love S14s.
    Really appreciate the input. Perhaps the situation isn't as dire as it first sounded.

    If I do manage to get hold of the car, I'm going to need someone to look after it as I don't have the time or tools/facilities to do work myself.

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    Maybe a local member would help you out fixing something for you?

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    That's an option. I used John200 (probably long-departed from here) when I lived in Reading, but would be glad to use a specialist if I could find one.

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    I'd stick to a garage, that way you always have the backing of being a customer and not a mate. Abbey are at RH8 9HJ, see if that works for your place. Tbh, a Stage 1/1a car (if you do such a thing) won't be complicated, you could take it to anywhere.

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    Quote Originally Posted by piman2k View Post
    I'd stick to a garage, that way you always have the backing of being a customer and not a mate. Abbey are at RH8 9HJ, see if that works for your place. Tbh, a Stage 1/1a car (if you do such a thing) won't be complicated, you could take it to anywhere.
    I was thinking that. There's little work that can't be done by any decent mechanic in a garage anywhere. Rebuilding engine / looking after prone rust spots maybe aside.

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    Fair enough.

    I've put some feelers out on a couple of the Facebook groups, and had quite a few messages back. A mix of chancers (one bloke wanted "£12k firm" without telling me what engine work had been done) and some decent cars have been offered already.

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    Quote Originally Posted by davep v2 View Post
    That's a real shame. Is there a repository of 'trusted garages' anywhere on here?

    That could be a deal-breaker for me, as the trips to Chester are killing my enthusiasm for the Mini right now.
    I would take it to Dal, been working on 200's for years, been using him for 10+yrs myself now and he is currently doing a mega stoopid project for me that i cant complain about. He is between Gravesend/Chatham these days if thats not too far from you.

    https://www.facebook.com/d.a.lperformance1/

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    Quote Originally Posted by MEL View Post
    I would take it to Dal, been working on 200's for years, been using him for 10+yrs myself now and he is currently doing a mega stoopid project for me that i cant complain about. He is between Gravesend/Chatham these days if thats not too far from you.

    https://www.facebook.com/d.a.lperformance1/
    Dal actually rebuilt the bottom end and gearbox on my shitty S13 over a decade ago, so I have quite fond memories of him (and probably him of me too). Good to know he's still chugging along, and definitely an option.

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