Are you sure you can fit the fan and intercooler in the nose together? I've got a fan and oil cooler and it's already getting tight. I plan on moving the oil cooler and making sure it is protected, but haven't got as far as thinking about where. Your idea is a good one.

I had been thinking about a removeable top plate and nose reinforcement too, or some equivalent of all that. It seems it will save headaches later...

I too am realising it's an "all at once" job...

oz_tom wrote:

On another note Cam, what are you doing regarding diff and rear brakes? Im probably going to go the 323i rear discs and trailing arms unless something great crops up. I need to make a thread on general disc. because im unsure of how this will affect how my wheels will sit and if it will push them out further. Im already having rubbing issues.

Yeah. Ummm. I'm probably not the best guy to ask since my way is not at all cost effective. I still don't know what it's gonna cost.

Since it is a race car, I can get away with a hydraulic handbrake (can still be registered for road use under special motorsport rules) and am having the rear converted to discs using Nissan Skyline calipers (front and rear), and big disks. This creates its own problems - chiefly that I will need to (a) buy new wheels, and (b) they need to have lots of "q-factor", or whatever it is called that means they can fit brakes without hitting the spokes. In practice this means I need to find a reasonably flat faced 15x7" wheel with a 10-15p offset, and the Superlites won't work since it hits the spokes... I may just have to run spacers. I will be installing Turbo flares so will have more room. The whole brake upgrade cost has got way out of hand.

323i is the easiest option (except for the track change). The method making a bracket and using Golf calipers seems to be a good one too. Alternatively, I had been running 250mm e21 rear drums with Ferodo linings at the back, and widened Tii calipers, e21 vented front rotors, and Mintex pads at the front and the braking was good at the track - I just don't trust it with 200hp plus and full on racing. So if you're just planning street driving and track days, uprated standard stuff could be fine.

Quote:

The more i think about the diff the more im leaning towards a Quaife torsion based unit. With an LSD approaching $700+ by the time you get them over here, all i have to do is blow one and im up to the cost of a Quaife anyway. Shaun (Beaner7102) was quoted NZ$1695 so its about AU$1600 by the time you get it here then another $400 in parts to make it fit in the 02 casing. Its pricey for sure, but id prefer to do it once and be done with it... decisions.

Conversely I'm lucky on the diff front. A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to bring in some parts from the US by sea freight as part of a consolidated shipment. I got two of Aadvark's e21 LSDs shipped to NZ for under NZ$1000 (ie $500 each). I have had one of them modified to increase the lockup (2x clutch plates added, and the housing machined to fit it), and the ramp angle changed, plus new bearings. Total cost was maybe NZ$500 for the mods to a single diff - I am not sure as it was mixed up in a total bill for some other stuff too. After uprating the diff is pretty aggressive.

My biggest issues at the moment are:

- budget creep - on my part (upspeccing stuff) and since some of the fabricating etc for the brakes (including a pedal box and a steering rack conversion) is getting out of hand; and

- so busy at work - difficult to see when I can do stuff on my car, so I'm ending up paying for extra labour to keep things moving (my policy is to try and only pay for stuff involving fabricating/welding).

I really should learn to weld.
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2002tii race car