Just saw this place on Google, looked in and decided to join. I own two Nissan Sentra B12 station wagons: First one is a rare 1989 wagon I rescued from the wrecker's. Bought with 191K miles, the original GA16i engine was blown. The auto transmission was removed as well, and now the car is powered by a '96 Sentra GA16DE twin-cam engine backed up by a 5-speed from an '89 coupe. Since the GA16i transaxle is geared taller, 5th gear is essentially a 6th gear for the high-revving engine. The car has been upgraded with a GXE interior, tach cluster (also rare), extra cooling fan, arctic-spec block heater and rear disc brakes. 45,000 miles later, she still does me proud, with no complaints or breakdowns...and gets 40+ mpg on the highway. Second one I just bought tonight, another rare one: 1987 wagon with single-range 4-wheel drive and 5-speed. To my delight it has throttle-body injection and is all-original, 98% complete. It needs a battery, 2 engine belts and a water-pump pulley. It runs, but not perfectly, it's destined for a full factory-spec restoration. The driver's door is getting replaced, it's too badly damaged and the hinges are bad. The interior is surprisingly good. I'll get pix as soon as I can, thanks for the site!
Hi, wagonmaster, and thanks for the welcome! All the SR20DEs here are claimed, plus their oiling systems are too weak and the hydraulic tappets tend to stick anyway. There's plenty of GA16DEs here, they make 30-55% more power than the stock B12 engines (GA16i and E16i, respectively) and get better mileage, too. Plus, the twin-cam was a drop-in installation. '89s and '90s tend to take the conversion better than '87s and '88s because they have the correct mounts, radiator, power steering gear, fuel pump and exhaust already mounted. I agree, the SR20DE version would be a shredder. I'll have pix here on Wednesday when I bring the 4x4 home...or more like hobble it home.
Those little 200SXes are fun, too! Basically they're 2-door Sentras from '95-'99. My GA and harness/brain box came out of a '96 200SX, which makes my car a Superwagon, a.k.a. "The Corporate Jet". The conversion really improved the confidence and mileage noticeably, it was a big surprise.
to the wagon train, sojo. VERY interesting stuff. I'm not sure we have many of those wagons here or people with your experience with them. I'm dying to hear more and can't wait to see pix of your stuff! I hope you will stick around and share your knowledge with our wagon family.
Thanks, silverfox. My knowledge of wagons isn't too extensive, so I'm here to read and learn. Wagons have always had an allure for me because they're not only rather utilitarian but possess a certain grace in spite of it. In short, they're a lot of fun, more so than a 2-door or 4-door. To date I've owned/brought back to life 25 Sentras and 3 Pulsars, my previous toy was an '87 Pulsar twin-cam with Sportbak hatch. Wagon-like....but not quite the same. In spite of the fact that the Pulsar spoils its driver rotten, there was still that matter of usefulness...so I sold it to someone who is currently doing a ground-up restore on her. What I do know or come across I'm definitely willing to share here. If it's things specifically of a Sentra nature, be it stock or custom, many things can be found under my nick in the GA16 forums at SR20nation.com and I'll link them accordingly. Again, thanks for the welcome. Looking forward to great things here!
to the forum...glad your galaxy far far away met up with our world . Sounds like you'll fit in just fine hear even though most of what you said was alien to me.
Here's a couple pix, for your consideration: Car has just under 165,000 miles, which averages just over 6,850 miles per year! The car has a head gasket leak between two adjacent cylinders, not using coolant or oil, no coolant in the oil or vice-versa. In spite of this, I drove this car 60 miles home. On level ground, it got to 35 mph; uphill was 15-20 mph, downhill got to 50. We took 4 breaks along the way, it never overheated once. Here's the checklist: Drivetrain Engine: runs on two cylinders. Very serviceable, will be rebuilt. Throttle-body injected, not carbureted. Clutch: tired. Transaxle: all 5 gears work without noise or pop-out, no difficulty shifting. Axles: excellent, no clicking around turns, boots are intact. Brakes: very good. Tires: 80% tread, excellent condition. Struts: excellent. 4-wheel-drive gear: works, relays click, 4WD light atop column out. Electrical Exterior lights: all work normally, none broken or damaged whatsoever, 3 corner lights out, one license plate light out. Interior lights: all work normally. Devices: all work normally. Wiring: no cuts or splices anywhere, stereo is gone, stereo harness plugs intact (!!!). Body & paint Paint: faded and cracked in places, clear coat intact. Trim: two pieces removed for being loose. Dents: large dent in driver's door, small dent in front passenger door, very tiny mall-ding near right taillight. Otherwise, exceptionally straight. Rust: aside from the dents, no surface or penetrating rust. Glass: all intact and working normally, windshield has small star chip in dead center, one small circle chip on left center. Interior Seats: all cloth, very clean, straight, zero holes, rips or burns. Carpet: lots of pine needles and some loose dirt, no holes, discoloration or wear, factory mats intact. Plastic trim: all present, no breaks or notable damage, light scuffing of console. Console is very unique from typical Sentra console for the series. Headliner: a couple gouges. Door panels: stock flat, exceptionally clean, no rips, no burns, remarkable condition. Small cracks in vinyl handgrabs. Plastic map pockets. Dash and bezels: immaculate, undamaged. Engine compartment Typical dust and grunge, less errant oil than I expected. Air cleaner and air injection intake drum a bit rusty but functional. Exhaust heat collector rusted beyond help. Battery tray in excellent condition. Moderate oxidation on head and block. Cables and hoses intact and functional. Wiring undamaged. Lots of cobwebs and pine needles, oh well. Overflow fitting on radiator neck broken off. Modifications intended Upgrade to GXE-specifications (deluxe door panels, door ajar light, tachometer cluster, 2 door-light switches in rear doors), factory AM/FM/cassette deck, variable intermittent wipers, second radiator cooling fan, block heater. Prognosis This car will require $500 to get into good running order. Items include parts to rebuild engine, new oxygen sensor, new catalytic converter. The driver's door will be replaced with a better unit as the current one is too damaged. In time this car will require comparatively little money to accomplish a ground-up restore, which I intend to do in 3-5 years.
Wow, in 8 months, there's been changes... The 4x4 Sentra is now in the hands of a friend, I was forced to sell due to family emergency. He was forced to replace the engine as the 2 dead cylinders were from a blown passage between combustion chambers and consequent erosion of the corresponding spot in the block. He got a core engine and we're building it up. He also replaced the damaged driver's door with a perfect match from another Sentra. My Sentra...oy. In late June the head gasket finally gave way, compliments of my son's abuse of the car. While apart, I rehoned the cylinders, replaced the rings and put in new rod bearings for cheap insurance (that and there was coolant in the oil), shaved the head and put a new head gasket in. Made it just in time to go see Rush at The Gorge! In early August, I got to 50,002 miles...and was involved in an accident. The front left corner slid under a Toyota 4x4 truck. Casualties involved hood, hood hinges, left fender, headlight, corner light, battery, air cleaner box, radiator, and the radiator/inner fender/strut tower sheetmetal. The longitudinal channel was untouched (YAY!). So...what to do? The car was too old for comp/collision insurance (they denied me), so I did the tough thing: scraped $300, went to the wrecking yard, cut a chunk of steel off a donor Sentra, got home, cut out all the bad metal, mounted/aligned/welded the new piece in, mounted new parts and was back on the road in just under 7 days. It was worth it all, learned a lot, too! How dat for love? In the meantime, she got her rear lap-belts replaced with 3-point seat/shoulder harnesses and very nice factory heavy-cloth seats throughout. Next project will be to replace the front AD18V (180mm) front brakes with AD22VF (220mm) units. The rear disc brakes are doing great, BTW! Oh...and new tires. Definitely.
Gotta love a guy that loves his car! Glad you chose to reconstruct it, sojo. Now you will appreciate it even more!
