1995 Nissan Hardbody 2wd Build

[petercscherer]

I got curious today, and tallied up some numbers on ride height for these Hardbodies.

 

Stock ride height, measured at the wheel arches on all 4 corners:
29.25" Front 29.75" Rear

 

Two Inch lowering blocks and Torsion bar adjustments:

28" Front 28" rear

 

Belltech 2" Drop Spindles with stock Torsion Bar setting, and Drop Leafs:
27" Front 27" Rear

 

Belltech 2" Drop Spindles and mild Torsion Bar Adjustment, and Drop Leafs:
25.75" Front 27" Rear. 

 

 

The last set up is the height you see the truck currently at. I don't bottom out on approaches and the only things that ever scrape are the front tow-hook mounts and radius-arm brackets on curb-stops. 

 

BUT! I'd like to see wheel-arch heights in 23-24" range, so for a 2" drop from where I'm at, I need to drastically change the suspension. With all that in mind, I contacted Beebani about a Complete Suspension Kit. 

Photo credit: beebanicustoms

 

So as soon as he gets them fabricated and shipped, I'll be doing a complete Coilover Suspension swap! 

 

I'll of course be documenting the whole thing here as well as on various FB groups. 

 

This summer is going to be awesome!!!!!!!!

 

~Peter

[Charlie69]

Where is the coil, over!  The last picture looks tight!
 

I got curious today, and tallied up some numbers on ride height for these Hardbodies.
 
Stock ride height, measured at the wheel arches on all 4 corners:
29.25" Front 29.75" Rear
 
Two Inch lowering blocks and Torsion bar adjustments:
28" Front 28" rear
 
Belltech 2" Drop Spindles with stock Torsion Bar setting, and Drop Leafs:
27" Front 27" Rear
 
Belltech 2" Drop Spindles and mild Torsion Bar Adjustment, and Drop Leafs:
25.75" Front 27" Rear. 
 
 
The last set up is the height you see the truck currently at. I don't bottom out on approaches and the only things that ever scrape are the front tow-hook mounts and radius-arm brackets on curb-stops. 
 
BUT! I'd like to see wheel-arch heights in 23-24" range, so for a 2" drop from where I'm at, I need to drastically change the suspension. With all that in mind, I contacted Beebani about a Complete Suspension Kit. 



Photo credit: beebanicustoms
 
So as soon as he gets them fabricated and shipped, I'll be doing a complete Coilover Suspension swap! 
 
I'll of course be documenting the whole thing here as well as on various FB groups. 
 
This summer is going to be awesome!!!!!!!!
 
~Peter

[petercscherer]

Last picture is just missing the spring, but the internal shock tube is there. I still need to order coilovers seperately of the fabricated stuff, so thst my goal over the next month

[dukerollo]

Any updates on this?

[mrbigtanker]

On 7/2/2016 at 11:09 AM, Charlie69 said:

It is always something with an old truck.  At least yours is drive-able and you are enjoying it.

 

I have had my 520 for going on 8 years and have not driven it once in that time.  I hope to drive it soon to work out mechanical bugs and then tear it down for body and paint.

 

My 520 on Jack stands.

 

And you guys give me shit for being on a trailer. At least I drive and trailer it.............

[Charlie69]

It is all in good fun Mr Tanker.  I have had 11 major surgeries in the last 7 years limiting what I can do.  I also had someone stealing parts from it during the same time.  That problem is fixed now.

[petercscherer]

On 1/23/2019 at 10:02 PM, dukerollo said:

Any updates on this?

No changes to the truck since my last post. Still driving it every day, even in the snow! ? It's on the schedule for an interior upgrade later this spring. I'm holding off on the suspension swap as I choose between Coilovers and Airbags. I have all the Beebani components, just need to decide which direction to go. I'd love to build a race-prep auto-cross/road racing variant of the D21. That's doable, but out here in West Texas, there aren't any tracks, so I can't really get too excited about corner carving. 

 

Anyways, as I mentioned on the Honda Rebel thread, just picked up a new Nissan Hardbody, and I'll be starting a thread on that one probably next week!

~Peter

[petercscherer]

 

?

 

Shit's happening.

[petercscherer]

These next few posts are my progress chronologically. 

 

So here's the plan. On May 3rd in San Antonio, is the annual Nismo Fiesta. I've always wanted to go, but haven't had the time or vehicle in recent years. So a few weeks ago, I decided to bite the bullet and lay down the gauntlet. This year, I'm going! And I'm taking the white hardbody, with full coilover suspension, new interior, and full custom exhaust!

So, step one was to push the Rebel project to the side, clean the fab area, and pull the truck in:

 

I then took studious notes of wheelbase, ride height at various points, and other dimensions:

 

Then the teardown began:

^ At this point I boxed the frame with 1/8" plate at the points where the new crossmembers would be mounting. A little extra strength never hurt anyone!

Then I pulled the rear end and got it degreased and promptly chopped everything off except for the vent cap!

 

And then fully cleaned and prepped the frame for the new suspension mock-up:

 

[petercscherer]

Fabrication time!

 

New QA1 Coilovers!

Here's the part numbers:

 

Shit, just realized I didn't take individual pics of each component getting tacked in place. I'll try and get some when I pull it apart to fully weld everything.

 

So here's what I'm left with now:

 

 

 

It all went together very well. Couple of small Hardbody-specific tweaks that I worked with Jason (Beebani) to correct, but it looks good to me and checks out as totally square!

Ride height as you see it there is as low as it will ever be. I'll be cranking the coilovers up once the bed and fuel tank get mounted. But I wanted to set it up at the lower limit to ensure optimum travel.

 

 

[petercscherer]

Next up was exhaust, since I'm ultimately going to have to sneak it around the axle and out the back again. 

I decided to go with a performance based exhaust system, so I ordered a Pacesetter Header and quickly realized that they aren't totally truthful in their advertising. I'll explain:
 

Pacesetter claims that for the Nissan KA24E 2wd Header, it has 1.5" Primaries and a 2.5" Collector. But what they actually mean is that where the 4 pipes meet is 2.5", but it immediately is reduced to 2.25" at the ball-socket, and further reduced to the factory 2.00" OD of the factory exhaust pipe. 

 

Here's a diagram I whipped together in Windows Paint, excuse the quality.

 

So in order to do a 2.5" exhaust system, I had to modify the header. Basically chopping it right at where the pipes collect and begin to taper. 

And I welded a 2.5" Steel V-Band clamp on. 

 

Let me take an aside and explain my decision for 2.5" diameter. 

I realize that this engine, in very similar tune, also came on the 240SX, and those guys have done a lot of modification and testing over the years of exhaust sizes and systems. From my research online, the common accepted belief is: 2.5" exhaust for N/A, 3.0" for Turbo. So based off of that info, and the fact that mufflers, clamps, and tubing is VERY easy to find in 2.5" diameter, I took the plunge. 

 

The header arrived in basic Pacesetter shipping black paint. I know it'll burn off immediately so I totally media-blasted and painted the header with Eastwood Hi-Temp Manifold Grey. 

 

Note at this point, I have already deleted the AIV port and the EGR inlet. They'll not be used on this build from here on out. 

 

Oh, here's a pic of the inside of the collector. It's a little turbulent in my opinion, but should still breath just fine for a stockish motor. 😉

 

Completed Header:

 

Then it was time to mock it up in the truck and begin the front half of the exhaust:

 

 

 

It's going to have V Band Clamps at about 3' intervals so the whole system can be removed if needed and also so I can install additional drone-resonators or even change mufflers if needed. 

 

The whole system will be Hi-Temp Painted inside and out for good heat insulation and a long-lasting finish.

 

I'll be finishing the rest of the exhaust once the bed is back on temporarily and get the new Fuel Tank mocked-up. 

 

 

Here's the new 16gal Tanks Inc fuel tank I picked up. I'll be mounting it behind the axle and should get it mocked up by the end of this week. Really excited to try and finish the back half of this truck and tackling the front suspension soon!

~Peter

Edited March 13, 2019 by petercscherer

[alexg89]

Loving it! will be following this

[dukerollo]

More updates please. 

[petercscherer]

Build has been progressing slowly, but I am not going to be posting new updates on this forum. I've been regularly updating my instagram account: @caprockfabshop 

 

However with the recent global crisis, I'm forced to focus on my day job more and projects like this truck will take a distant back seat for the duration. Thanks for checking in. 

 

~Peter