# B12 Summer Plans



## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

So, I am finally going to do it. I am going to build my own B12 drag car. Yes, a B12 drag car! I know you are all full of questions and will want a write-up, so this is it.

1. no, my maroon 4-door is remaining a daily driver, not a drag car.
2. it will be a GA16DET
3. I am looking for sponsorships and other financial support

Courtesy of my friend Edward, I now have in my possession a 1989 Nissan Sentra 2-door. I did not pay anything for this car, it was free! The car itself has 160,000+ miles on it, and is completely original. It is a GA16i powerplant and automatic transmission. I currently don't have any pictures or videos of it, but as soon as I get back down to Chattanooga and tow it home, I will.

Plans:
GA16DET powerplant
- E16 connecting rods (lower compression ratio), ACL main and rod bearings, ARP head studs, aftermarket head gasket, 370cc injectors, T25 turbo (for starters), N60 Maxima MAF sensor, 3 inch exhaust (from turbo elbow exiting behind passenger-side front tire), NX1600 5-speed transmission, sleeved half-shafts, Stage 3 clutch, Walbro 255lph fuel pump, possible JWT ecu, and other goodies (I want to achieve at least 300whp with it).
- B13 brakes (I'll go NX2000 if I can get them, but otherwise SE-R)
- roll cage
- street legal drag slicks (up front of course)
- excessive weight reduction (one seat, half dash, shifter, that's about it).

I'll keep everyone posted on how everything goes. I hope to have everything close to being done by January 2010. The car itself has some minor cosmetic issues I need to fix (bumps, dents, scapes), but otherwise I have no plans on painting it or a body kit. If anyone runs their own business and wants it plastered all around the internet, feel free to sponsor me! This build will be filmed for TheSentraChannel on YouTube, so look for it in the future.


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## Spitrod (Sep 22, 2008)

Dude, that's awesome. That will raise some eyebrows at 
the track and then proceed to wipe the smirks off their 
faces. 

Good luck, man. Make sure that ga16i gets a second 
chance at life too. I'm sure there's a car out there 
somewhere that needs one.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

I haven't decided on whether to get a newer B14 GA16DE, B13 GA16DE, or just build a hybrid GA16DE out of the GA16i block. I know the 16i block is basically the same as the two aforementioned, so a twin cam head will fit. Not entirely sure about coolant passages and all that, though. I already have the cylinder head I am going to use, it has a nice port job and is in excellent condition (new valve stems, seals, and chemical dipped). I really need to tear into the GA16i first to see how bad it is; it burns oil currently and most likely has a bad oil pump. It does, however, have a brand new OEM Nissan cylinder head and head gasket installed by a friend of mine (whom I know is a good mechanic). We'll see I guess.


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## nissanrocks (Dec 13, 2004)

Hey man,
Its been a while since Ive heard from ya, glad to hear that everything is good
thanks/later/Bruce


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> I haven't decided on whether to get a newer B14 GA16DE, B13 GA16DE, or just build a hybrid GA16DE out of the GA16i block. I know the 16i block is basically the same as the two aforementioned, so a twin cam head will fit. Not entirely sure about coolant passages and all that, though. I already have the cylinder head I am going to use, it has a nice port job and is in excellent condition (new valve stems, seals, and chemical dipped). I really need to tear into the GA16i first to see how bad it is; it burns oil currently and most likely has a bad oil pump. It does, however, have a brand new OEM Nissan cylinder head and head gasket installed by a friend of mine (whom I know is a good mechanic). We'll see I guess.


go with the 16i block/rods.

better off the line power and you can run lower boost to get the same power.

you'll spool faster, hit max boost faster, and just plain be faster. also you;l have fewer issues with the turbo running lower boost.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

The only problem with the GA-series rods is they leave my CR in the 9s, and the engine won't hold the boost I want to run without popping head gaskets left and right. I figure a lower CR, around 8.5:1 or even 8:1 will allow me to run close to 20 lbs of boost on a GT28RS. The T25 I will start with is only to break in the engine to boost, once everything checks out, the GT28RS will be put on and the boost cranked up. Oh, I forgot, the car will have a FMIC and possibly methanol or water injection. Depends on which I can get cheaper. My only problem is getting the car to Clarksville! I need to buy a trailer anyway.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

yea you had better get meth inj. for 20lbs on a GT28RS...

also run a b14 block. you need newer metal. preferably a 97 or 98 with low mileage. get a cheap imported one if you can.


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## blownb310 (Jun 10, 2002)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> - B13 brakes (I'll go NX2000 if I can get them, but otherwise SE-R)


Don't bother with the huge cast iron NX2K brakes, they are way too heavy for a drag car. I had a set on my SE-R and when I took them off and put both calipers and rotors on a box, I couldn't believe how heavy the box was. I could barely lift it! For track days on road courses yes, but not for drag racing. In fact I've gone the other way for ice racing [where great brakes aren't needed]. I run B12 brakes with their non vented rotors on my B13 SE-R to save a good amount of weight. 

Mike


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

Great suggestion, blown. I really didn't want to fork over the money to find and acquire NX2000 brakes anyway. I'll probably use the SE-R front brakes (being vented and all) just to ensure my car will stop. I really don't forsee the stock B12 brakes stopping a 300whp car after an 1/8 or 1/4 mile run in any case of need (or emergency). Also, blown, do you know of any way other than a larger front sway bar to sure up the control arms of a B12? Perhaps a custom-made crossmember or something?


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> Great suggestion, blown. I really didn't want to fork over the money to find and acquire NX2000 brakes anyway. I'll probably use the SE-R front brakes (being vented and all) just to ensure my car will stop. I really don't forsee the stock B12 brakes stopping a 300whp car after an 1/8 or 1/4 mile run in any case of need (or emergency).QUOTE]
> 
> like mike said, vented discs are quite heavy. also, tracks have lots of stopping room. even at 300whp, and the end of a 1/4 you're going to be going in the 120mph-140mph range. there's lots of room to stop afterwards.
> 
> ...


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## blownb310 (Jun 10, 2002)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> I really don't forsee the stock B12 brakes stopping a 300whp car after an 1/8 or 1/4 mile run in any case of need (or emergency).


Biscuit, choose whatever brakes make you feel safe, but keep in mind that [like sonic said], most 1/4 mile strips have a ton of runoff room. Weight is the enemy in any kind of racing. Here's another example for you. I used to drag race a '78 B210 Honeybee. It wasn't as fast as you're planning to build, but I removed the front brakes completely. Rotors/calipers-everything! I teed the brake lines at the master to send everything to the rear brake shoes. Yes, those 1" wide brake shoes on the B210 were all I needed to stop. I was running 97 mph with the little pushrod A14. Last point: Larger brakes make the most difference in an endurance situation where repeated hard stops would make smaller brakes overheat. Drag racing does not overheat brakes like road racing does. They are only needed briefly.


BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> Also, blown, do you know of any way other than a larger front sway bar to sure up the control arms of a B12? Perhaps a custom-made crossmember or something?











*IF* they will fit, I would recommend *Whiteline* lower control arm caster bushings for the B13's. The solid urethane caster bushings will help the car track straighter down the track. I've got a set in my B13 SE-R and love them. They'll help stop wheel hop too as the arms won't deflect as easily as with the stock squishy bushings. More caster bushing links *HERE* and *HERE*.

The cheapest place I know of to get them is *HERE*.

Mike


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

Unfortunately, around here, most of the dragstrips are rural and outdated (at least on the circuit I am going to be running) and don't have ample stopping distance. They have enough to be safe (legally), but still give you an "oh sh*t" response as soon as you cross the finish. I'll probably get slotted rotors, and run either SE-R calipers or just stock B13 ones. You all are correct about everything in regards to brakes and drag-racing, but at some point, I might think about making this a street-legal car as well where good brakes would be necessary.

As for the chassis, I haven't decided what I am going to do. I know I want a roll-cage inside, but as for boxing the frame or anything like that, I don't know. I'm going to talk to some guys on the circuit who have been running it for a while and see what they suggest.

Thanks for the link, blown. I hope they fit, but if they don't, I'll make them. I was thinking of swapping the B12 control arms, hubs, ball-joints, and CV-axles all out for B13 ones if that is possible. The front ends look very similar, so wish me luck.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> I was thinking of swapping the B12 control arms, hubs, ball-joints, and CV-axles all out for B13 ones if that is possible. The front ends look very similar, so wish me luck.


considering axles, brakes, and strut/spring assemblies are 100% transferrable with no modification, i'd put money on the mounting points being the same. if not they'll fit with little modification.

looks like you should be snagging a b13 parts car too.


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## blownb310 (Jun 10, 2002)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> Unfortunately, around here, most of the dragstrips are rural and outdated (at least on the circuit I am going to be running) and don't have ample stopping distance.


Understood. I was lucky to have had my local track as Englishtown Raceway Park, where there was another 1/4 to stop as the place had been upgraded to one of NHRA's "super tracks" in the 80's. The shutdown area was so long, that with a 4 cylinder car you had to step back on the gas after slowing down, to get to the end to turn around.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

I am actually looking to find a B13 parts car, but haven't come across any yet. I guess trying to find one for under $500 with most parts intact is a hard thing to do around here. I have connections at the local scrapyard, so I can probably get the control arms, hubs, and a spare set of CV axles for around $50 or so without the ball-joints. I wouldn't trust scrapped ball-joints anyway.

As for the dragstrips, our local one has been the exact same since the 1970s, and really doesn't have much stopping room because it runs parallel to a dirt track. The stopping area is actually the car park for the dirt track, so it has plenty of debris on it as well such as gravel. Hence my apprehension about the stopping distance. I am told the other dragstrips on the circuit are equally as bad, if not worse.

On another note, these dragstrips haven't been resurfaced in years, and traction is always an issue. Reinforcing one's frame as well as the aforementioned bushings should help me hook up, and along with drag radials in the front, any other suggestions on how to get good traction?


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## blownb310 (Jun 10, 2002)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> any other suggestions on how to get good traction?


What you don't want with a FWD car is weight transer to the rear wheels. I stuffed my rear coil springs full of rubber spring spacers to raise the back of the car some, which adds more static weight onto the drive wheels. The other thing it does is prevent the rear from squatting on the launch, once again keeping the weight on the drive wheels.

In my experience, the best way to launch a FWD car is with lots of rpms [to keep the engine in the meat of the power band] and slipping the clutch out to keep from bogging the engine [which would otherwise kill the run, because the first 60 feet are the most important on the drag strip]. That's my technique for a normally aspirated car. A turbo car is a different animal and I have have no experience with launching one of those. 

Mike


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

My friend has a wheelie-bar from his Honda Civic drag car he is going to give to me (or so he says), so I plan on using that too. Thanks for reminding me of that, I need to go and talk to him about it. Launching turbo cars is different from NA ones, that is for sure. If I were to launch at say 3500-4000 rpms, I can only imagine what damage I would cause to my axles and drivetrain. There are several test & tune events prior to the seasons starting, so I should be able to figure out a good launch with the car once it is together.

By the way, I am going to be running in the 1600 "Modified" Class. Weight is restricted to the car weighing at least 500 lbs (no joke), and less than 3000 lbs. Also, you cannot have more than 400whp (as per dyno). Needless to say, I'll be up against a good deal of Honda Civics. This is the first time my local track has opened this class up, it used to be 2400ccs and below. I would've gotten murdered in the previous class, as horsepower was restricted to 1000whp and weight could be as much as 5000lbs!


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

its FWD. you get better traction.

heres a tip though. go on a diet yourself. im not saying your fat nate, cuz you're not. there's just too many guys out there that are drag racing that are 250+ pounds, that shouldn't weigh more than 180. weight reduction isnt just on the car. ever wonder why some chicks can roast guys in similar cars? they weigh half as much...

less uneven weight may also help your torque steer issues.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

sonicgundam said:


> its FWD. you get better traction.
> 
> heres a tip though. go on a diet yourself. im not saying your fat nate, cuz you're not. there's just too many guys out there that are drag racing that are 250+ pounds, that shouldn't weigh more than 180. weight reduction isnt just on the car. ever wonder why some chicks can roast guys in similar cars? they weigh half as much...
> 
> less uneven weight may also help your torque steer issues.


Awww... I thought for a minute you were calling me a fatty . You are very much right on that... a good deal of the people in the class are middle-aged 250+ lb guys in little Honda Civics (most pre-1990). With a 1600cc limit on displacement in the class and a 400whp cap, they have to do some serious weight reductions to get the best times. Of course, 400whp can be achieved on a B16 Honda with a little bit of nitrous and some tweaks. Too bad for them they also blow up. The person everyone is looking out for is a middle-aged woman driving a 1970s Dodge Colt. She has the 1.6 version of the Mitsubishi 4G63T, and the car is mean to say the least. I expect some stiff competition from a friend's 1987 ToyotaMR2 Supercharged (4A-GZE) also.


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## DB45 (Sep 3, 2008)

I am looking to do the same thing with my 89 2 door sentra except not drag race it i want to run about 5psi instead of 20 i know the tbi on the ga16i's is a problem but what r u going to do about air/fuel ratio on ur engine with the ga16de head and manifold just curious, and what about the timing because i have thought about the same thing and ran into a timing chain problem it doesnt seem like it would work from everything being so different (not trying to bring u down) but i would be really impressed with some pics or vids of this.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

I haven't decided whether or not to use a GA16i/DET hybrid engine, or to simply get a newer B14 GA16DE with low mileage and turbo it (as sonicgundam suggested). As for a fuel controller, I'll have to run some sort of stand-alone fuel computer (i.e. Greddy eManage, Megasquirt, etc.) or just get a JWT tuned ECU. I'm leaning much more to the latter. I'm also going to use an S-AFC 2 for additional tweaks. My fuel system will consist of a Walbro 255 lph fuel pump, 370cc injectors (possibly even 444ccs), Nissan 300ZX TT fuel filter, adjustable fuel pressure regulator, and probably a fuel cell so I can remove the stock tank. Once again, we'll see when the time comes and how much money I have in the bank.

Timing on a GA16i/DE hybrid engine should not be difficult. Turn the engine to TDC, and use the timing from a normal GA16DE engine, I would think. As for the timing components themselves, I figured I'd use the timing chain, tensioners, and guides all from the GA16DE. The blocks are identical (as far as I know), so things should just bolt right up.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

do you mean to say you're thinking of a GA16ET engine? SOHC MPFI turbo?

i would just go with a b14 for a couple reasons. you'll get more out of it if you're getting JWT cams, you'll flow better, can rev higher, and it's not a gerry rigged system.

if you're thinking a GA16DE with GA16i bottom end, well, i'm all for the GA16i bottom end. personally, its the best bottom end for a turbo 1.6 in my mind. strongest components, with higher compression for better accel before boost, but low enough to handle boost.

if you got forged 16i rods and pistons, the bottom end could probably handle almost 20psi. and 20psi at 9.4:1 is WAY moar speeds.


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## BeyondBiscuits2 (Jan 18, 2006)

Much more the latter, sonicgundam. A GA16i block with a GA16DE cylinder head and components (harness, sensors, distributor, etc.). I agree that the block should be much stronger, and plus if I don't want to swap out for the E-series rods, I have the GA16i ones to play with. Not to burst anyone's bubble, but I never even thought about a GA16ET. I'm sure someone will do it one day, but I'd just prefer to have twin cams rather than one.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> Much more the latter, sonicgundam. A GA16i block with a GA16DE cylinder head and components (harness, sensors, distributor, etc.). I agree that the block should be much stronger, and plus if I don't want to swap out for the E-series rods, I have the GA16i ones to play with.


yeah im probably gonna say this everytime the bottome end comes up but thats just cuz its my outright opinion lol, but a stock CR forged GA16i bottom end is the best IMO. you can save your turbo's life by being able to run it at lower boost this way. could probably run it at 17psi instead of 20psi. but thats my opinion.



BeyondBiscuits2 said:


> Not to burst anyone's bubble, but I never even thought about a GA16ET. I'm sure someone will do it one day, but I'd just prefer to have twin cams rather than one.


and rightly so. for a drag car, a dohc is the only choice. its capable of more power at high RPMs, and can rev higher.

however for street, autoX and short track, a GA16E or GA16ET i think is more suitable, as it has a much better midrange power/torque, while still producing a good amount of power thats close to a DOHC.


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