Chasing Chuki

Text by: Ben Photos by: Ben

We don’t always get what we want. It’s a fact of life. When Sean decided to upgrade from a Toyota Vios a few years back, he was aiming at getting himself his dream car – a BNR34. Sadly, the Skyline R34 is a rare and expensive car here, and none were for sale at the time. When his car hunt brought him across a 200SX, he went for it. While it might not have 4WD, nor the presence of Godzilla, Sean had a feeling this popular FR lady would still give him one heck of a good time.

With his black S13 Chuki parked outside his place, Sean started flipping car mags and scouring the web to find what exactly he would do to his ride. Sean is someone who likes to take the less travelled road to make his car go faster. Backed up by his engineering background, he will think up ideas that no one or only few people have done before, applying the mods to his car and prove that he is right.

He started off altering the outer looks of his Chuki with an Extreme Dimensions Duraflex Vader 2 front bumper and side skirts and Extreme Dimensions V-Speed rear bumper adorning distinctive D-Max Chrome Euro Style tail lights.

Wider fenders from Origin Labs widen the car by 40mm and 50mm at the front and rear respectively give this S13 a poised and mean look. These made room for the 18 inch Rays Engineering GTC rims, with the Face 1 variant in front and Face 2 at the rear.

The outer design package is completed by an FRP vented hood reminiscent of the Seibon TT-Style that was on the car when Sean bought it, and Ganador Super Mirror side mirrors.

Behind the gold and chrome wheels sit 4 pot/2 pot (front & rear) Brembo brakes taken from the R34 GTR V Spec II, with Steel Braided Teflon brake lines. Sean did manage to get something from his dream car in his 200SX! With the wheels shod in Continental Sports Contact 3, this black Nissan is sure to have all the grip it needs at all times.

To further enhance the handling of his Chuki, Sean upgraded to Tein Super Drift suspensions with EDFC. The Electronic Damping Force Controller allows for quick adjustment of the dampers without the need of a wrench, perfect to fiddle with the suspension settings on the go from the driver’s seat. He also added Tanabe chromoly anti roll bars and Cusco Sway bars to refine the control of his car even further.

Inside the 200SX, Sean has kept things simple with a Nardi Classic 340mm wheel, a Nismo GT titanium shift knob mounted on a Comrade C's short shifter, and Räzo pedals. Défi water and oil temps, fuel and oil pressures and boost gauges let him keep an eye on the engine’s vitals. 

The gauges are complemented by a Blitz Power meter i-D III for power and speed readings, and an HKS EVC V Boost Controller to fine-tune the engine on the fly, if needed. Finally, a Greddy Full Auto Turbo Timer ensures the engine cools down properly after use.

To keep him held tight behind the wheel, Sean opted for a Bride Zeta 3 bucket seat.

Behind his seat and the passenger stock S15 seat, the Do-Luck rear cross bar shines and catches the eye.

Mirroring the rear cross bar is a black Moonface Racing roof support bar. These are some of the reinforcements Sean has added to hold the old chassis more firmly together.

In the boot a Cuzco rear strut bar holds the rear tight. In front of it sits a Sard 2L surge tank in which is housed a Walbro fuel pump to keep the engine consistently fed with gas. Sean has also relocated the battery in the boot to keep it away from the heat and free up the engine bay. The Steel Braided Teflon fuel lines disappear in the boot and run all the way to the engine bay where they feed the upgraded fuel rail and the thirsty Sard Top Feed 1,000cc/min injectors.

The engine received its fair share of love, starting with a Blitz SUS C1 Power Core air filter. Under the ported and polished engine head sit Tomei 87mm pistons, Poncam 256° camshafts, conrods, phosphor bronze alloy valve guides and rocker arm stoppers. Sean finished the engine internal package with Naprec big valves. 

After combustion, the expelled burn gases are routed to spin the turbine of the Garrett GT2871R turbo before roaring out the Blitz Nur Spec-RX stainless steel exhaust. The compressed air sucked in by the turbo is then cooled through an HKS Type S intercooler before reaching the combustion chamber. 

A Blitz Type ZS radiator ensures the engine stays within reasonable operating temperatures, even under heavy load.

The upgraded engine is all managed by a Motec M800 ECU, which is tuned to extract a very healthy 394.4bhp and 487Nm of torque. Delivering the power to the rear wheels is an Ogura ORC709D Twin Plate clutch and a Nismo 2 Way GT Pro LSD.

These numbers wholly satisfy Sean, and this build goes to show that while he did not get the BNR34 he wanted, he surely made the best out of his 200SX!

  

Specs
Make	Nissan
Model	1990 200SX
Engine	2.0L Turbocharged SR20DET
Transmission	Manual
Drive Layout	FR
Max Power	394.4bhp / 487Nm of torque
Modifications
Exterior
Body-kit	Extreme Dimensions Vader 2 front bumper and side skirts, Extreme Dimensions V-Speed rear bumper, Origin Labs wide body fenders +40mm front & +50mm rear
Other	Vented hood, D-Max Chrome Euro Style tail lights, Ganador Super Mirror
Interior
Seats	Bride Zeta 3 (driver), S15 stock passenger seat
Steering Wheel	Nardi Classic 340mm
Gear Knob	Nismo GT titanium, Comrade C's short shifter
Gauges	Défi Gauges: Water and Oil Temps, Fuel and oil Pressures, Boost
Other	Blitz Power meter i-D III, HKS EVC V Boost Controller, Räzo pedals
Engine
Intake	Blitz SUS C1 Power Core air filter
Internals	Tomei 87mm pistons, Poncam 256° camshafts, conrods, phosphor bronze alloy valve guides, rocker arm stoppers, Naprec big valves
Cooling Systems	Blitz ZX radiator, HKS Type S Intercooler
Turbocharger	Garrett GT2871R A/R 0.64
Drive Line	Ogura ORC709D Twin Plate clutch, Nismo 2 Way GT Pro LSD
ECU	Motec M800 ECU
Fuelling	Walbro fuel pump, Sard 2L surge tank, fuel rail, Sard Top Feed 1,000cc/min injectors, Steel Braided Teflon brake lines
Exhaust	Blitz Nur Spec RX
Other	Ported and polished engine head
Handling
Suspension	Tein Super Drift with EDFC
Wheels	Rays Engineering GTC 18”x9" Offset +11 (front) Offset -14 (rear)
Tyres	Continental Sports Contact 3 225/40/18
Brakes	R34 GTR V Spec II Brembo 4 pot front, 2pot rear, Steel Braided Teflon brake lines
Bars	Do-Luck rear cross bar, Cusco side pillar, Tanabe chromoly anti-roll bars, Cusco Sway bars, Cuzco rear strut bar, Moonface Racing roof support bar

Special Thanks:

“The one love that’s more important than my car or anything - my wonderful darling wife for understanding my obsession with my car and always willing to hear me talk about cars, modifications and ravings about idiotic drivers in Singapore.

Perfect Power Performance, especially Mark Ng for being constantly coerced into helping me with my modifications/ideas and putting up with my perfectionist attitude when it involves my car (everything must be done perfectly and nicely).”