Engineering Genesis: 1991 Nissan S13 Silvia

Auto enthusiast are an eclectic group of people. In a world of constant wear and tear masked by a standard of indifference, the enthusiast chooses to invest not only his money into a car, but also himself. Lost amidst a sea of people who have never even washed their car, the enthusiast pours his sweat and blood so deeply into a build that he can tell you not only where and how the project is scratched, but is a little annoyed that the drivers headlight sits 1/4" too far to the left of the grill. Even among the enthusiast population there are people who go above and beyond, placing effort and money into a near state of abandon in an attempt to rescue a car because of the potential they see. While these epic projects can often turn out incomplete or in pieces, for those with the vision and dedication to take the car from junk to art experience arguably the most rewarding finished projects. One person full of such vision and dedication is Brendan, an individual better known as the crazy Australian behind project silbeer. To go into detail about each modification on a Silvia this extensively tuned would take the better part of a day so from here I will let the modlist and pictures show the transformation.

SUSPENSION & DRIVELINE:
- RG JTC'N1 Damper V-Stage Coilovers
- Nismo Rear Cradle (subframe) Bushes
- Kazama Pillow Ball Tension Rod
- Kazama (rear) S13 Arm Set (upper and lower arms)
- Kazama Super Strengthened Tie Rods
- Kazama Super Tie Rod Ends
- Nismo Power Brace
- Rear Lower Tie-Rod Brace
- Do-Luck 'Style' Front Ladder Brace
- URAS Floor Reinforcement Kit (extends LH chassis rail)
- Cusco OS Front and Rear Strut Tower Braces
- Cusco Rear OST Brace (triangulates to floor)
- Zenith Tuning Rear Boot Brace
- Whiteline Front and Rear Sway bars
- Front 5-stud Hub Conversion (Just Jap)
- Rear 5-stud Hub Conversion (R33 GT-R)
- R33 GT-R Brembo Brake Calipers front and rear
- R32 GT-R N1 Brake Master Cylinder (1" BM50)
- DBA4000 Brake Rotors front and rear
- Maltech Custom (ADR Approved) Brake Lines
- Wedsport TC 105N Lightweight Alloy Wheels (18x9.5+10F, 18x10.5+12R)
- Federal 595 RS Tyres (Front 235/40ZR18, Rear 265/35ZR18)
- OS Giken STR Twin-plate Clutch
- B&M Short-shift Kit
- Skyline GT-R Diff and Half Shafts

ENGINE:
- SR20DET
- Rebuilt with Z32 Pistons and Eagle Rods
- Head Service (head previously ported in Japan)
- Apex'i 264deg 11.8mm Lift IN/EX Camshafts
- Tomei Type A Valve Springs
- Adjustable Cam gears
- Tomei RAS
- Tomei Metal head gasket
- Trust (GReddy) Sump (Genuine)
- Nissan SR20DET GTi-R Oil Pump
- Trust (GReddy) Oil Cooler Kit (thermostat incl.)
- Nismo 740cc Injectors
- Bosch Motorsport 044 Fuel Pump (in-tank)
- Tubular Manifold - we think it's HKS (ceramically coated)
- HKS GT-RS Turbocharger (turbine housing ceramically coated)
- HKS Dump Pipe (ceramically coated)
- HKS Front Pipe (ceramically coated)
- MetalCat Hi-flow Catalytic converter
- Dual N1 Cat-back Exhaust System
- Hybrid GT Intercooler Kit
- GReddy Surge Tank (Intake Plenum)
- K&N Filter
- Apexi Power FC + Commander ECU (for S15 plug)
- GReddy Oil/Air Seperator
- Nismo Engine Mounts
- Nismo Gearbox Mounts
- Lightweight Pulley Kit
- GFB Lightweight Crank Pulley (modified for GTi-R Oil Pump)
- GReddy Type-R BOV
- Hi Octane Racing Radiator Air Guide

BODY:
- Wise Sports Front and Rear Wide Body Guards
- Nissan Aero Kit (Nismo) Front Bar
- Nissan Aero Kit (Nismo) Side Skirts
- Nissan Aero Kit (Nismo) Rear Pods
- Painted in Mazda 'Velocity Red'
- Underbody painted PPC Chassiscoat 'Satin Black'
- Remove rear wing
- Remove rear badge
- East Bear Clear Front Indicators
- Ganador Mirrors
- Nissan Aero Kit (Nismo) Grill
- CA18 Boot Lock

INTERIOR:
- Nardi Deep Corn Leather Steering Wheel for Road
- Nardi Deep Corn Suede Steering Wheel for Track
- R34 GT-R Front Seats
- Re-trimmed S13 Rear Seats
- 60mm Defi-Link Meters (Oil Pressure, Oil Temp, Water Temp, Boost)
- Custom Dash Gauge Cluster (later)
- Alpine iDA-X001 Digital Media Receiver
- Alpine DLX-F177 DDLinear 6.5" Flagship Component 2-way
- Alpine SWX-1042D Type-X 10" Sub in removable Sub box
- Alpine PDX 1.1000 Mono and PDX 2.150 Digital Amplifiers
- Trust Shift Knob
- New plush pile mats
- Alarm/Immobiliser/Keypad
- Custom Spec B Badging

Alpha:


Omega:

Subtly Refined

Kennyvb's car is practically a follow up to my post about the importance of stance as well as great support for the concept of cleanliness. This car maximizes effect by taking minimum exterior alterations and focusing on each part working very well with one another. The front lip is a JDM Subaru offering, offering a subtle aggression that is continued through the stout WRX side skirts. Also from the Subaru parts book are the prismatic oversized fog lights and the limited model trunk lip. These pieces compliment the car body with out overwhelming it, allowing an extremely subtle almost wingless look that flows nicely with the smaller WRX hood scoop. Ganador provides a set of aero mirrors, adding just a bit of race style/aggression to the simplicity. Setting the whole build right are the heart stopping BBS LM wheels. Proving to be one of the most attractive wheels money can buy is no easy task, and the BBS LM certainly ranks among the top of those contenders. Without much friendliness to the Subaru offset range, these wheels are a rare sight in the community. The completed exterior leaves onlookers with a car that looks "modified" but only to the right people, and that is an extremely difficult undertaking.

Jiwung Yun's S2000

With the return of Garage Humble I wanted to pick an especially relevant topic to connect my post for the week and accordingly I have selected cleanliness. I harp on relevant balanced modification just as intensely as I focus on the importance of cleanliness in a build. To define a rather abstract idea, I will state that cleanliness is the overall fit and finish that a project exudes; the sense that nothing is modified that does not need to be and that each modification is carefully hand selected to compliment each other as well as the stock machine. Similar to taste, cleanliness can not be purchased it must be fashioned. One car that has caught my eye recently is Jiwung Yun's Honda S2000. [You can follow his build off the links from this blog] This car simply excels in the idea of cleanliness. While exposed carbon is rarely thought of as a clean look, careful matching of the grey carbon panels forming the roof, hood, and trunk are offset by the black paint and wheel color, smoothing the color transition into an idea of purpose. Power modifications are left to the superbly competent hands of Spoon, who help the car breathe and exhale easy through an appropriately non-attention grabbing exhaust system. Inside is business at its finest. The steering wheel is replaced with a lighter and smaller offering from the Mugen catalog covered in suede establishing a fantastic balance between race functionality and fashion. Dominated such small refinements are the Recaro SPA buckets, a carbon kevlar shell offering no compromise in style, lightness, strength, and cost. These mirror the approach given the exterior panels, where quality is never second with brands ranging from ASM to Powerhouse Amuse. Though the car is lightly tuned, each modifications is a successful step toward improving an area as much as possible. If only I could drive it.

Rebirth!

Is Garage Humble back from the dead? Well I certainly hope so. After ever expanding drama with Charter my internet seems to have the possibility of working now, so let's hope that this post is not followed by another week long black out. To celebrate I turn toward my favorite car, the original Nissan Skyline. This particular build embodies the principles that I use with the STi, while illustrating just how valuable they are; delicately placed simplicity abounds. The bulk of exterior modifications are left to the gorgeous wide arches filled with contrasting gunmetal Watanabe Racing wheel. Japanese, lightweight, functional, and beautiful, the wheels mirror each aspect of the car in perfect harmony. Inside are updated Recaro buckets shadowed by the much needed structural reinforcement offered by the roll cage. The motor features an updated tune and helpings of refinish detail, with occasional tricks to better fuel delivery and other performance aspects in the power band. Once all the trends have come to an end it's cars like these that fuel the joy of enthusiasm. Extremely well cared for, balanced improvements on the chassis that you loved and modified to begin with provided the greatest build satisfaction to those who really love driving.