4DR R32 RB25DET NEO BDC SPEC BUILD

All work carried out by myself, best mate and his dad unless otherwise stated

I picked up this "lovely" looking 4DR the other day at a price too good to refuse. I've always mean't to do a build thread for previous cars but always end up just getting stuck in and forget about it but this is going to be a slow build and other than the horrific paint job and kit it's pretty stock so should make for a good build. I want to finish off my other R32 2DR first though over the coming months then get stuck into this.

1990 4DR R32 GTST
70,000kms
3 Previous UK owners
Imported 2003
It's been garaged for the last few years, I wonder why?


I like the fact the engine is untouched so I can do everything right the first time instead of spending 6 months fixing someone else's bodge jobs. The leather seats were painted black by the garage due to the fact they were actually painted the same colour as the car but the inside of the car stinks.

The plans for this car is probably to turn it into a comp car and keep my 2DR as a clean street and practice car. I'm thinking a respray in black or midnight purple, BN Sports kit or similar, dishy wheels and vented bonnet for a start once I make sure it's all mechanically sound. Probably aim for about 400bhp or there abouts.

Here's a couple pictures of my 2DR which I bought less than a year ago as a fresh import

 

I've only managed to have a quick look and it doesn't look too bad. Hopefully get underneath it properly this week at some point

 

A little update on progress so far. Me and my mate Ross finally got a unit a few weeks ago and now that we've got everything moved in and setup I could make a start too this. The car is pretty much completely stripped down expect for the engine and box which will be coming out this week. It requires a bit of welding in the usual places but it's no where as bad as i thought it would be. Hoping to have it welded and under sealed by Christmas then just buy everything I want/need at the start of the new year.









If anyone has anything on my wishlist drop me a pm. Also if anyone has any advice/pointers then i'd appreciate it. I'll try keep this updated the best I can, especially the rebuild with all the new shiny stuff. Probably missed a load as well

 

Been a while since this was last updated but gradual progress has been made

Passenger side sill and rear quarter are almost completely finished welding. The passenger side was far worse than the drivers for some reason. So this just leaves a small patch either side of the the rear drivers wheel arch and where one of the fuel tank straps mounts. All the welding is being done by my mates dad when he has free time







Also since the last update we removed the completely stock and unmolested standard RB20DET as I picked up a RB25DET NEO from down south







Hoping to have this completely undersealed and rolling by the end of January, I've removed the bushes and ball joint from the standard arms i'm keeping and we've started painting them ready for when i buy the new bushes and such over the next couple of weeks



Also got the stock front arms extended 30mm and plated by Millermods garage in Tillicoultry who done a fantastic job. I'll need to get a better photo next time im down. The exciting part of rebuilding should be starting fairly soon and i can't wait. Hoping to have the complete build down for spring time.

Does anyone know where i could pick up a BN kit for this? Cheers

 

Welding was complete today thanks to my best mates dad. One coat of under seal has been finished as well so just another coat to put on this week and then i can run the new brake and fuel lines

All the suspension arrived last week so i've started fitting the polybushes too the old arms and should be starting to build up the rear subframe by the weekend. Waiting on a modified front subframe from "HeyGlen". Hopefully soon as it rolling it'll be off to Millermods to get a custom cage fabricated and fitted.



Also got the RB25DET NEO up on the engine stand ready to get worked on when the cars away



I'll get some better photos as the cars being built back up

 

So we finished getting the car undersealed, all done by hand and generously applied







So now I can start fitting all the shitey new stuff. The rear subframe was built up and fitted along with a freshly painted fuel tank at the weekend









Feels great starting to see come back together. The modified front subframe arrived today from HeyGlen. I’ll get that built up and fitted this week as I’m eager to see how much kick the geomasters actually give. Plenty more photos to follow.

I need S15/S14 front hub bearings for the Geo’s if anyone can recommend where to buy or selling any in good nick

 

R200 as far as I’m aware

 

With the rear end built up I was eager to get a set of wheels on and see how well I could get it too sit. CS2’s are sent out at minimum height so just a case of firing wheels and hope it actually sits too low I need to raise it





Unfortunately this was not the case. So we mucked around moving the bottom spring seat down and nothing seemed to allow it to go any lower which seemed odd.

While I was under the car looking for some kind of issue I found this





I assumed when we built up the subframe that drive shafts were the same length. Clearly not. Explains why when trying to adjust the alignment on the passenger side the arms would only screw in a little bit then go mega tight. Everydays a school day I suppose





After getting pretty annoyed I’d missed this and swapped shafts it was back to find the original issue. Why it won’t go low...

Eventually I noticed that the toe arms were bottoming out on the subframe washer





I forgot to get a photo before I removed it but with it removed and ~45mm droop it’s sitting like this but subframe bolt itself is sitting very close to the toe arm now







Sitting much better now, how much droop can be run on CS2’s with out risking bottoming out the shock?

 

Built up the majority of the front end. Just need to order S14/S15 bearings, extended track rod ends and steering rack boots









I sent my subframe down to Glen at HeyGlen to get the rack moved 30mm forward and was very impressed with finished product. I will need to get steering column spindle into the rack extended ~20mm as it’s right on the limit of “safe”





Also got my front arms extended 30mm and braced by Millermods





Hopefully if I order the stuff tomorrow it’ll be here for the weekend and I’ll be able to get it rolling again. Once it’s rolling I’ll be dressing up the engine bsy and sorting the interior ready for the cage

 

The S14 wheel bearings, Garage D 1” extended track rod ends and extended steering rack covers arrived this weekend meaning we could finally get it on the ground







I was desperate to see how much lock the Geo’s gave but my 17”x9J ET35 CrKai’s were fouling on the coilovers and up right with about 1/2 - 3/4 of a turn left on the steering. This was with 15mm spacers fitted as well.

So Ross let me borrow his 17”x9J ET17 Chrome CrKai’s and with the 15mm spacers fitted also this gave me a fag papers worth of clearance. I reckon I’ll need 17x9J E0 and work from there to give sufficient clearance











I’m fairly impressed the photos don’t do it justice however. Also going to need +30mm front wings and mega camber to run decent fitment.

Now that we could roll it about I wanted to get the engine bay cleaned up so I removed completely removed the ECU and wiring loom for the old RB20DET and dressed up the rest of the engine bay. I then wire brushed all the loose stuff off, gave it a heavy coat of degreaser and worked it in with a paint brush and pressure washed it off. My good friend Ross kindly volunteered to paint it once we’d dried it off. Here’s a before and after the first coat





Need to remove the last of the interior, the doors and scrape off all the horrible sound deadening from the inside in prep for Millermods doing the cage. It’s going to be pretty slow till after then but I’ll start building the engine up soon also

 

Been pretty slow going recently. Ran all the new brake lines, ordered braided flexi’s from HEL last night so once they arrive I’ll be able to get braking system set up and complete. Fitted the power steering pipe work and such. Waiting for it to go off and get the cage so just treading water for now. Should have enough cash soon to get a kit bought and start building the engine up







Got a bit bored so I tried my mates Blitz 03’s on the 2DR



More interesting updates to follow soon, hopefully