# building a b12 autocross car



## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

howdy all, new here, last winter i picked up a '90 sentra coupe from a copart auction for $75, runs good drives good, 5spd car blah blah blah, anyways i dont really need the car so i am thinking about doing a budget autocross car maybe even a couple track days for the hell of it.
So far i have put a set of BBS RA's and new nitto neogen's from my old helios vw jetta on it, cleaned it up inside and tuned it up.

My plans are:

engine,
stay with the stock ga16i and get a cheap header, euro cam, 2" exhaust
or leave it stock for now and just try to find a wrecked sentra with a ga16de.

havent really decided yet but probably best to go with the ga16de i would guess for future mods and possibly turbo. any sugestions?


suspension:
try to find a used set of b12-b13 springs something stiff and low, it probably wont see much if any street use so comfort is not a concern

i haven't looked to see whats available as far as dampers go but something adjustable would be nice, i ran KYB agx's on my old Toyota starlet autox car and liked them but ill have to check and see if they are available for the sentra.

camber plates(i am assumimg b13 plates would work on the b12?)

strut bars, not sure whats available. or maybe fab my own

strut bars, probably go with junkyard pulsar stuff until i can find better.

brakes will be SER stuff

also was thinking about pulling the front and rear control arms and welding plates to strengthen and stiffen them up (something we used to do to our 510's definitely helps)

and i will put the car on a diet and see how light i can get it, any body know what the stock weight is roughly?

any suggestion's would be greatly appreciated and if any body has any parts for sale that i might need i would like to hear about them

i will post pics of the car and also update as it moves along.


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## sheepwolf (Aug 22, 2006)

This was done with a B13, but may give you some good ideas none the less. 

B13 Nissan Sentra Autocross - Mr. Wellwood


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

sheepwolf said:


> This was done with a B13, but may give you some good ideas none the less.
> 
> B13 Nissan Sentra Autocross - Mr. Wellwood


awesome, lots of good info in there thanks.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

b12's and b13's are virtually identical in everything. especially suspension. only thing you can't use is a rear swaybar. you can take one from a pulsar SE, as it has the same rear setup as b12's. as far as springs go. road magnet is your best bet for cheap, good b12 springs. 235 shipped brand new. and they're the second best springs available. the name brands are shit.

as for struts, b13 AGX struts will do you fine.

strut bars, get some cusco's from the same place you get the eurocam (Mynismo.com) and save on some shipping.

prothane motor mount inserts are a good idea.

relocate your battery to the rear for some better weight distribution, the put the car of a fat ass diet. take off everything thats not needed.

this, with an ebay header and 2.25" exhaust and a eurocam, and you're set.


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

hmm i will definitely check those springs out, any experience with the ground control kit? $399 but not sure if that is for the front and back or just one side, it would be nice to be able to adjust ride height but not sure if its worth the extra coin, i can also pick my spring rates with them.


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

where did you find them for $235 shipped? the roadmagnet site is showing $270.


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

pillowpants said:


> where did you find them for $235 shipped? the roadmagnet site is showing $270.


go to sr20forum.com and you can get them for $235 (special for forum members only).

as for the ground controls, its$399 for all for corners. but they're just the sleeves/spring/tophat assembly. you still need struts for them.


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

here is a couple pics of what it looks like now






























it had some damage to the passenger rear quarter panel, i just banged it out real quick, i do body and paint for a living so i will clean it up and probably put a quick datsun BRE style paint on it, but it will be the #85 color scheme as the #46 john morton car has been done over and over lol.


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

and just for fun here is a pic of my old 1982 starlet autoX/daily driver,

before it was painted, it was an ugly teal green 










and after



























and a couple of the datsun 510's ive owned or atleast the two that i still have pictures of,


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## pillowpants (Mar 12, 2009)

well i got a pair o front agx's so far and working on a set of road magnet v2's, as far as the front swaybar goes would i be better off with a pulsar se bar or a b13 SER front bar until i can get a aftermarket? which one would be better?


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## sonicgundam (Aug 15, 2007)

best aftermarket front sway is the Progress suspension adjustable front sway bar. doesn't bind like others.

as for the pulsar vs. SE-R i think they're pretty similar. either or is fine, but the progress is the best. the nissan OE bars are hollow, where as the Progress bar is solid.


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