spiderwebfx

He's said he'll pull rocker cover off for me. I never though of doing that. I'm taking some basic tools with me to go look, so pulling the bottom off will be an option.

Buying a S14 SR20DET tomorrow. Motor is out of the car and has been on a shelf for 6 months. Anyone know what to look out for? I've been around Silvia's and SR's for a while, but don't know what you can check if anything, without being able to do a compression test. I am getting a start-up guarantee and I can compression test it once I get it home and pull the old motor out of the car. I just don't have the bits to do it first. I've been told it has been stored with oil in it, but that's most likely only the standard amount. I'm open to any suggestions on what to check.

Hmm, please let me know as I would ideally prefer that kit as it covers all basis.

Hey, just want to know if these are certifiable in NZ: http://www.gktech.com/index.php/high-misalignment-64-degrees-tie-rod-ends-12mm-14mm.html

Drive-shaft safety loops 2.5( A front-engine, rear-wheel drive low volume vehicle that has undergone an engine conversion, or has had its factory-fitted engine significantly modified, such that a significant increase in power or torque has resulted, must be fitted with an effective 360-degree front drive-shaft loop, mounted within 150 mm rearward of each front drive-shaft universal. So one hoop per piece, within 150mm of the front universal on that piece.

I'd just double check the use of aluminium spacers with steel wheels. They generally don't go together too well. This may not matter, but just a thought.

I'm wondering the same thing to be honest.

This. Stuff. Is. The. Best. Have used it multiple times. It's expensive, but I wouldn't consider anything else now.

I was meaning from a selling perspective. I sold a few sets because they were able to be used on slightly wider rims than other brands. My tyres and rims on the S12 are proper, but I don't really like the stretched tyre look so never went for it.

Just a follow up on the Falken tyre thing. OTR are a distributor yes, however, I've just had the Falken pattern digest show up with the approved rims inside of it. The book is produced by Sumitomo Rubber Industries, in Japan, OTR are only playing the messenger. (Sumitomo produces Falken.) 215/40R17 FK452 is now only valid up to 8.5" rim. 195/45R14 ZE912 is now only valid up to a 7.5" rim. This sucks.

I've run Michelin Pilot Sport 3's before and have to say they've been the best road tyre that I've driven on. You may be able to pick those up for around $1000. (I know I could sell them for that) I currently have T1Rs on the s12 but I haven't had a chance to test them properly.

Non-turbo RWD SR's have a dizzy on them. S13 SR and S14 SR 's have different head designs. S14/S15 uses a low port manifold and S13 uses a high port manifold. Intake manifolds are not cross compatible, so I don't think the manifold you've got will bolt on. I doubt VCT will work very well with a carb conversion, but you can unplug it and it won't do anything (nor effect it's standard performance)

Add lube. If they have no lube, this will make a huuuuggggeeee difference. Don't use dish washing liquid either, it'll cause issues further down the track.

Can't do the lynx/hair spray thing with tubes. It'll blow the tube to pieces. Has it got any bead lube on it? That'll make a huge difference. I'm also wondering if the tubes are at a point where they won't stretch sideways anymore without blowing to pieces. You may also find that being 185's, they may not be able to stretch any further.

You want to use chalk powder (unsure if that's the same as tel powder?). Best way to apply it is to put the powder on the tube and then rub it around to give it a nice even coat, having too much inside the tyre will have a negative effect. All you're trying to do is decrease the friction between tube and tyre/wheel to help it with seating. Before you fit them, check for any tags inside the tyre, and make sure you peel the plastic layer off them if they have them. Some tyres do, some tyres don't, but if they're there, they will wear through the tube. When you're inflating, you need to pump them up, then let them down and pump them up again, this will help the tube distribute evenly inside the tyre. I am interested in these widespread tubes, any chance you can find out what the size is? I've never heard of them before.

Yeah that's true. If you get a tape measure, you can guesstimate the height of it. The 175/50's sidewall will be about 85mm high and the 175/60 will be about 105mm high.

The 175/60R13's are definitely available. I've got a customer running them on a mini-sprint stock car. I believe they are rated up to 6" rims as well.

You should be able to buy 175/50R13 Yokohama A539's for around $140-$170 each including fitting. As far as I can tell, they're are in stock. I didn't get a chance to look into the Nankang's.

A tyre's sidewall has a shit tonne less stress on it when they're angled inwards then when they're angled outwards. When they're in, you've got available movement both ways on a horizontal axis. When they're stretched out, the only available movement is inwards which means your two sidewalls are actually fighting each other. (When one sidewall goes in, the other needs to go out, which it can't do properly.) The LVVTA guidelines actually do a good job of covering the basic guidelines of what the MANUFACTURER's have said are safe, not what they've made up themselves. Just one example we got through work is 245/35R19 Achilles ATR Sport's. They're only supposed to go up to a 9.5" wheel. I have one customer who had a set put on by another tyre shop on some 10" wide rims (tyre shop said they'd be fine). After three weeks, all four of them were pulled off because of cracking on the inside sidewalls. Oh and no warranties because they were fitted to rim's outside of manufacturers spec. As much as these rules do suck, they are there for a reason.

In New Zealand there isn't a legal option. I've looked into 245/40R15 Avon's before, but they are stupidly priced as they aren't stocked here and have to be air freighted. They're suitable for 8.0-10.0" wheels. I got quoted $480 each last time I enquired. As far as I know it's the only road legal tyre you can get thats suitable while still being low profile. You can also get 225/45R15 but I've only seen them spec'd up to 8.5". I'm going to pop into work shortly and do a few quick checks on some tyre sizes and their availability.

Just a quick look:

Hmm. Just having a quick go through it now, it's border line a waste of time apart from the sizes the LVVTA chart is missing. (This is looking mainly at 13's, 14's 15's) The only real exceptions to the rules are the FK452 and ZE912 Falkens.

So obviously there are a lot of questions regarding tyre size to rim size and the legality. Obviously we have the LVVTA list, but what about where the brand specification can override them? I'm looking at creating a list of the most popular size/brands/tread patterns that people use so that one can refer to it to see what tyre options they have for where the LVVTA list does not have the size, or the brand has better data. So I need the sizes and brands that you guys want to see on this list. Obviously I'm not going to put a 175/70R13 on it. I'm more looking for the lower stuff, 185/55R14, 175/50R13, 225/45R16 etc etc. I will include anything you ask for, if it's available and I can find data for it. Right this instant, I have access to these lists; LVVTA, FK452, ZE912, T1R, T1S, global Yokohama (all patterns), Michelin and I have a tonne more at work. (I do specialise in Michelin/BFGoodrich/Continental tyres so some specs will be harder to obtain than others) I suppose I should also ask the question, is a list such as this, worth doing? It will take a bit of time, but with the contacts I have through work, I should be able to source near on any brand for data. If I do this, I will NOT be including your rubbish brands, Triangle, Jinyu, Evergreen, Westlake, Enduro, Kellyetc etc can all go eat a fat one. If I have the time, I will also find out what, of these sizes are available in NZ in what patterns.

It will for a short period of time. Standard tubes are designed to go up round to suit the likes of a 185R14C commercial tyre. When you start forcing them into an oval shape (such as a 185/55R14) you can't sections that are more stretched than others and because some of the rubber is thin, they will end up going flat. You also can't have anything that the tube can get into and cause a puncture, If you live near the ocean, you will also get corrosion on the inside of the wheel as it will be exposed to salt water vapor through the valve stem hole. (albeit this will be slow)

What are your ones?