Projects Page

This page details several projects which I have done to my car, which you might be interested in doing with your S12. 

Fan Replacement (engine-driven fan to dual electric fans)

I highly recommend this mod for both V6 and four-cylinder S12's, or any other RWD car for that matter.  Originally, the car had a conventional belt-driven radiator fan with a secondary electric fan directly in front of it.  Both to reduce the drag on the engine and to improve cooling, I have removed the stock assembly and replaced it with dual side-by-side electric fans that came out of a 1991 Nissan Stanza.

I got the fans at a local junkyard, I paid $50 for the whole assembly.  The first thing I did was to test the motors and determine how the wiring worked.  I then designed the control circuits, and did the necessary wiring on the fans themselves before I started installing them in the car.  While doing this I discovered that the new fans had 3 available speeds.  I had previously mounted a switch in my dash to control the stock secondary electric fan, so I decided to continue using that, and also install a thermostatic control switch on a separate circuit.  I designed the circuits so that when either the dash switch or the temp switch, but not the other, is closed (on), the fans run at medium speed.  When both switches are closed, the fans run at their highest speed.  Once they were ready to go in, I removed the factory fan shroud, engine fan and clutch, and the secondary electric fan and its mounting.  Sorry, no pics of that, but it's not difficult.

The new fans ready to go in. I had to cut and grind quite a bit of material off the shroud assembly to get them to fit, and to clear the battery, radiator inlet, and the A/C lines in the S12.	The backside of the fan assembly. Each circuit is color-coded.	The assembly in place. I ended up securing it with a combinatin of screws and zip-ties. Nothing fancy, but it's rock-solid and not going anywhere.	Wiring visible deep in the engine bay, ready to be spliced into the correct circuits.	Fans wired up. The wiring isn't pretty, but it works, and it's secure.
By the right fender is the thermo switch, and the red wires bolted to the bay wall for ground. The wires along the firewall run to the dash switch.	The thermostatic switch, from Advance Auto. It uses a metal probe that is mounted to the back of the radiator. It's adjustable by turning the knob. Just to the left of the switch are the grounding points for the fans. Good thing I had removed the airbox, or I would have had to find another place for this.	A nighttime pic of the illuminated orange toggle switch I installed on the dash. The indicator LED is also visible on the right edge of the clock trim ring.	Pic of the engine bay after everything is done. I installed some plastic tubing to cover the wiring where I could.	A wiring diagram of the electric fan setup.

This project ended up taking about 9 hours total.  Now that it's done, the engine is running much cooler in the summertime.  Removing the clutch fan probably freed up about 2 HP from the engine.  Also with the stock fan assembly gone there is a lot more room to work in the front of the engine bay.

Shifter Knob and Boot Replacement

I purchased a new shifter knob and boot from Ichibahn (www.ichibahn.com).  I decided to go with an orange theme to complement the cars gauges and dash markings.  Ichibahn are the only ones I know making accessories in orange.

The most difficult part was getting the shift boot on.  It was made of much thicker leather than the original one, and had elastic at the bottom.  It could not be attached to the trim ring as the old one had.  I ended up figuring out I could secure the four corners of the boot under the four bolts which hold on the lower metal ring which surrounds the rubber inner boot.  I had to cut 4 slits in the new boot to go around the bolts, but the results were worth it.

The Ichibahn Shifter knob I used also was "Universal Fit" so it required some work to get it on tight with no play.  I used rubber washers in the top of the knob to allow it to take up some slack there, a rubber O-ring inside the knob, and the fuzzy side of a piece of Velcro tape wrapped around the shifter shaft to fill the space between the shaft and the knob at the bottom.

The original shifter. You can also see the newly-installed CB radio.	The shifter knob is removed by unsrewing it from the lever. Mine was glued somehow, I had to practically cut the knob off.	To remove the plastic trim ring around the shifter, which holds the boot, pry it up from the back side with a flathead screwdriver.	These retaining clips hold the leather boot onto the trim ring. It's also glued, so remove it carefully if you don't want to rip it.	Boot secured beneath the bolts which hold on the metal inner boot ring.
The Ichibahn boot and "Racer" series knob installed. I ended up returning this knob, I just did not like the way it felt and it made the throw longer	Final result: An Ichibahn "Grip" Series billet aluminum knob, with Carbon Fiber insert.

Repainting Trim Around Rear Window

The black trim around the rear window had peeled and the metal underneath had started to acquire some surface rust.  It looked terrible.  I used a paint-stripper wheel on a power drill to remove the peeling black paint and rust, then repainted the trim will flat black spray enamel.

Before - the peeling paint and rust really looked awful.	The right edge was as bad as the back.	Looking from directly behind before work begins.	After sanding off the paint and rust. Already a big improvement!	Sanding continues on the side...be careful not to damage the glass or weatherstripping
The old paint was a thick, rubbery kind, difficult to remove.	All masked off and the first coat is on!	I used several coats of flat black	I was really pleased with the outcome...why didn't I do it sooner?	Proper masking is the key to preventing overspray
OBX is from the Outer Banks of North Carolina in case you were wondering	What an improvement....elapsed time approx. 1 hour

Polishing trim between taillights

On 1987-88 200SX hatchbacks, there is a plastic trim piece which resides above the license plate between the taillights and is patterned to mimic the design of the taillights.  When I got my 200 this plastic piece had a white film on it.  I don't know what caused it, but it would not wash off.

The way I finally got the piece looking nice was to sand it with 1000 grit "wetordry" type sandpaper in order to remove the top layer of plastic.  I then used a heavy duty buffing compound and manually buffed the plastic to return the shine.

As you can see from the left edge of the trim, it looked really bad before!	1000 grit wetordry removed the white film, heavy-duty rubbing compound brought out the shine.	Close-up view...What a difference!

Dash-mounted ECU monitor

This is a really cool and easy project.  Anyone who has ever pulled the ECU on their S12 knows that it features two LED's, red and green, to output codes, monitor fuel/air mixture, etc.  There is also a screw on the ECU that you turn to change modes.  What we have done here is to mount red & green LED's right on the dash, with a button to change the diagnostic mode.  Now you can monitor your ECU in any mode as you drive, anytime you want!  I tapped mine into the check connector on the passenger side of the car.  It requires a lot more wire to get over there, but it seems safer than tapping directly into the ECU harness.

Thanks to  Whipaway for posting the wiring schematic on the Classic 200SX Yahoo! group.

I used side-tap connectors to tap into the leads on the diagnostic check connector, which is located underneath the glovebox.	The backside of the monitor panel, which would have housed the cruise control switch if my car was so equipped. It made for a convenient mounting.	The finished ECU monitor panel. The mode selection button is painted orange to match the rest of the dash.	The panel installed. It's position low on the dash beside the door makes it easy to watch while not being too obtrusive or distracting.	This is the wiring diagram for the ECU Monitor to be wired into the check connector, which is where a garage would plug in a diagnostic computer.

Rust Removal from Tail Light Area

The only rust anywhere on my S12 since I've had it was two spots on the back, along the bottom of the tail lights.  I'm happy to say that rust is no more.

The first thing you have to do is remove the rear inner trim pieces from the hatch, giving you access to the nuts & bolts that hold on the taillights and rear body panels.	Yuck! Two rust spots on the left side. That little dent has been there since I got the car, but I painted that area later this same day, and now you can barely see the dent at all.	Seemed like the whole back end of the car was laying on the pavement. There was also a smaller area if rust under the right tail light, so I took that one off, too.	The left-side body panel after I sanded the rust away. Ready for priming and painting.	The back of the same panel. This was a pain, I got the sander in there as best I could to get the rust out, then hit it with rust-eating primer.
Several 87-88 S12 owners have asked how the center tail light piece is held on, and what it is attached to. Well here it is guys, it just attaches over top of the license plate housing assembly.

Well I don't really have any "after" photos from this project, but suffice to say I got rid of the rust, and my S12 can now be called rust-free.

 If you have pictures of any projects you have done to your S12 (especially SE V6!) and you'd like to see them here let me know.