K10 Queries, and to say hello, of course

[Jobe]

Hi all,
Im from Malaysia, and well, just happened across ur site and well, lemme say one thing...the info around here is awesome.

Down here we dont have too many March folks and getting a second opinion would always find you contradicting the first.

Ive come to own a K10 ST(love it bigtime!) and been doing minor 'touches' here and there since i got it, but my main restriction would be the looks on some of the workshop folks faces when the bonnet comes of. The engines compactness seem to put a fair lot of them off.

Ive got a tonne of questions like whats the diff on the coupe and 4 door k10s, when were they introduced? and the slight diffs in the K10 faces, like why some have a slightly different convexed headlight vs flat headlights on others. Stuff like that, if any of you guys know, i would love to find out

If it aint too much trouble, perhaps i could get my digicam out to my car during lunch, snap a few pics and get opinions from you seasoned folks on best mods to go with, and what to ignore.

Its kinna like an ongoing fun project for me, so rather than try n die, i guess i could get some advise to get things right

Cheers!
-e-

 

[kev_mono72]

Welcome, some pics would be very nice!

 

[Jobe]

RE: RE: K10 Queries, and to say hello, of course

Hi all,

Heres what i could get during lunch hour.

http://www.PictureTrail.com/gid7275325

Current problems im facing:

1) Clutch seems to slip, but only after 3rd gear and >4k RPM. Im assuming it slips after the turpo kicks in, but at launch past 1st and 2nd, all seems good.

2) High engine temp (about 65-80% on the standard dashboard temp gauge) but its the same in 2 other K10 STs ive tried with. Is the high temp a common thing amongst STs? Its been like this for awhile and seems to give no problems.

Other stuff id like to know is about the 2door/4door difference as well as the headlight/bonnet as well.

Feel free to comment, as im always open to new info about this car

Big thanks all!

Edited in: oops, forgot to mention i just lost the grill and the headlights slightly displaced from a recent fender-bender :blush:

-e-

 

[Arnold]

Look very nice - and different to other ST's i've seen. No bodykit or spoiler!? Anyway, Ed is your guy when it comes to ST's.. he's got two, and im sure can offer any advice.

What happened to the other ST's you mentioned?

 

[Mat.T]

nice car, thats a March turbo not an ST kit isn't it?

Ive got a tonne of questions like whats the diff on the coupe and 4 door k10s, when were they introduced? and the slight diffs in the K10 faces, like why some have a slightly different convexed headlight vs flat headlights on others. Stuff like that, if any of you guys know, i would love to find out

The 3 door k10 was introduced in 1982, the 5 was introduced in 1985 i belive, the 'convexed' head lights were fitted to the face lifted model which came out in 1989..

 

[Jobe]

nice car, thats a March turbo not an ST kit isn't it?

Yeah. The ST engine came from a half-cut i got, which had the ST Kit, but i chose to stick with the turbo kit as i liked it lots and also cos its quite unique!

What happened to the other ST's you mentioned?

One belonged to the garage owner where i get most of my fittings done, the other was one of his customers. They were both almost completely done up as well, but are now both sold off

I remember some photo albums with both those cars side-by-side in the garrage. Ill grab them and scan them in on my next trip there.

 

[quickdraw]

i thought the march turbo had digital dials
its definatly not an ST exterior, engine it is. but not exterior.

but as said i am positive the march turbo had full digital dials!!!
and also i never knew the march turbo also came with BROWN interior
no internal adjustable wingmirrors :S

hmm
have you got ne more pics please.
definatly interested on all this!!!

welcome

 

[kev_mono72]

The the March Turbo had digital dials with two little pods either side of the display...
Is it possible that that micra started out as a basic model and was just modified from bits from turbo and superturbo micras?
That looks like a superturbo dash, and is the middle pod carbon fibre? It looks really good!

 

[Mat.T]

i really like the turbo kit this is the fist time i've seen a decent picture of it. :slm:

Is it possible that that micra started out as a basic model and was just modified from bits from turbo and superturbo micras?

i've just noticed that its a 5 door, so this is very likley to be the case

 

[clyde]

very nice

looks like its all been done properly, i see dump valves a few nice gauges and a turbo timer or in car boost adjust by the looks

 

[quickdraw]

i new it !!!

lol
so others think this too!!

too many things just didnt add up for it to ber an origianl like

 

[kev_mono72]

Yeah, its nicely done now, dont get me wrong, but like you said quicky, things just didnt add up!

 

[Jobe]

Yeah, spot on guys
This was a bit of a mix n match k10.

The very core of the car was a k10, but was mixed n matched with a ST 'half-cut' (not sure if this is a common term in the UK).The dashboard was taken off the ST half-cut, so ive never seen the digital dials mentioned, and now im more interested than ever in getting a look at it if anyone has a pic of the K10 Turbo dashboard. If anyone can post the pic or where to see it, that would be awesome!

I did not switch to the k10 ST kit too, as the turbo kit appealed to me a little more(it has 'RAWR!!' written all over it). The kit will be slightly modded this weekend(if all goes well), as im removing the signal lights off the front and mounting two square spotlights there instead. The 'signal lights' role will be taken over by the 2 sidelights next to the headlamps. The headlamps will be replaced with newer ones too, as they are kinna dilapidated.

A replacement grill however, will be put off till i can find a new one...I could get a custom grill fitted, but the original one was reaaaaly nice. Original K10 Turbo kit and parts can be somewhat of an issue here in Malaysia, as there arent enough on the road.

kev_mono72, that isnt a CF middle pod...methinks thats just the non-stick pad and bad camera angles making it look like it is. It would be a nice idea tho


About my disc-slipping problem, has anyone suffered from anything like this before? Its the next major problem i need to address.

I can launch pretty well, and 2nd gear pushes with no problems, 3rd goes ok until the turbo kicks in, but after that it just slips and my RPM and engine go screaming with little power transferred to the wheels
Whats confusing me is that how come i can go second and early third with no slip, but lose it in the late 4th and 5th gears...

Not sure if i made much sense with the above paragraph...but if anyone got the gist of my prob, any comments? Ive already got my flywheel checked and changed my clutch-plates, but nothing changed...i did order a semi-racing clutch assembly for the car, which should be in soon, but am not sure if that'll fix this problem...

-e-

 

[kev_mono72]

Yeah, i see that now
You might need to just adjust your clutch cable, it can be done by twisting a knob at the gearbox, im not quite sure how to do this but if someone else can help you it might solve your slipping problem...

 

[Jobe]

You might need to just adjust your clutch cable, it can be done by twisting a knob at the gearbox, im not quite sure how to do this but if someone else can help you it might solve your slipping problem...

Hmm, it would be nice if something that simple could solve my problem, but i think i had that replaced earlier this year as the sheathing was bent at some places. The problem was there before and after that replaccement.

Just for clarification, the clutch cable you refer to would be the connecting cable from your foot pedal to the clutch assembly, correct? want to be sure as that was the cable i had replaced. If theres some other cable in the clutch assembly i missed, do let me know...i am still relatively new to the stuff under the bonnet of this car

-e-

 

[Mat.T]

i have found a pic of what i think is a MarchTurbo dash can't really see if it has digital dials or not:

 

[Mat.T]

found some more pictures: it is a turbo (although the site says it has an ST engine):
http://www.justjap.com/welcome_page.htm

the site also explains the meaning of 'half cut'

 

[Ed]

Quite a nice car that, Figaro engine basically. Id quite like to get one at some point. £2700 its for sale at (in australia!)

 

[quickdraw]

give me a mo mat

nop must have deleted it..
htink it was ED that gace me the piccie yonka ago/. see if he still has it

 

[Jobe]

Great link...so now u guys know what i mean by 'half-cuts'
Do you guys use half-cuts too? and what do you call em there if you do?

Nice pics too. That MarchT has the grill i so badly want back!! sigh*
Im so buggered about having smashed my old grill and not being able to find a replacement due to its rarity. Prolly end up getting a custom done, but i would so badly want back the original...

Prolly pass on changing to that dashboard if that the MarchT's dash...looks kinna funny

say, if any of you guys happen accross one of those grills? any idea what it would cost to buy it and ship it to Malaysia? if the cost is bareable, i dont mind paying it Let me know!

 

[kev_mono72]

Yeah thats the turbo dash, you can see the 2 pods i was talking about, and its definitly a digital speedo, you just cant see it because its off but its at the bottom-centre of the dials, their red.
I went up to a guy who had a March Turbo to get pics but he sold the thing! GRR!

 

[kev_mono72]

You said the ST half cut you got had the kit? Would you not have used the St sideskirts and arches because you dont even have the turbo skirts... they make a huge difference!

You should also see about front-mounting the intercooler, would get more cold air there than your bonnet vent is supplying at the moment.

Also, what is your steering wheel out of?

 

[Jobe]

Woop, pardon my english, not the full kit. Here we also sometimes describe kits just by the different types that are available on stocks, so mind me occasionally
I didnt get the lips and side skirts with mine...Another note, i have seen some half cuts with just half the sideskirts :laugh: in other words...they werent removed prior to cutting....They are amongst the hardest of parts to get for the march from our chop-shops here...

The sideskirts n stuff would be sweet...but then again, even finding a turbo grill here has almost killed me...locating a full kit would be very very dificult indeed.
Again, if anyone is willing to send it, ill pay if the price is right

Front mount the intercooler? wouldnt be half bad an idea, but im all into the air scoop for now
My new scoop would be added on soon, and would be a custom. much bigger than the slit i currently have there...

Will prolly be mounting the scoop when i go custom the grill, although still so very very reluctant...i want the original grill back so badly

sigh*

 

[Jobe]

uh...help!

Need help on installing an aftermarket boost gauge to my dash...the vacuuming on this engine has got me a little stumped. The hose now leeches of from the vacuum at the blow-off, but im not sure if its right or not...seems to be fair at low rpms

Currently its showing a boost of 1.2 bars (~16/17 Psi) before the supercharger LED drops off at 4K, then it drops to 0.5 and stays there no matter what my rev reaches.

Its quite a compact engine to work around, so before i try anything, thought id check in here for some tech help on this...anyone been in a situation like this before?

While im at it, how do i know if im over/under boosting at x rpm? is there a general reference i can check with, or against you guys experiences(i.e how much is too much)?

Hope i can get some help on this, if not, its off to the garage this weekend for some more help

-e-

 

[Ed]

You should see no more than around 1 bar on with that engine with the supercharger. Your safe upto about 1.2 when the turbo spools up but anything more on the standard turbo and with standard setup I would worry. The best place to take the vacume pressure from is the pipe that runs from the engine crankcase to the inlet manifold, on the side of the engine bay with belts.

 

[Jobe]

Thanks for the info Ed. Havent tried it yet, but i think its ok for now. Im pulling a boost of 1 bar of super but it drops to 0.5 for turbo. Ive ordered a new clutch so when that gets in, ill dock the car for a few days to see if theres any problem with the turbo and piping piping around it while doing the clutch...i guess its an old car and any leaks would be better found now than later.

Had an interesting thing over the weekend too...after work on Friday, while riding home, i went over a slight elevation in the road that i hadnt noticed before, which saw me landing hard on my current silvia seat and snapping it

Managed to get control of the car as i wasnt going too fast, but ouch...guess its time for a diet...Went to my friends garrage shop and tried to fix it...nope, the metal side support snapped clean off, and welding it just didnt look right...

Needed to get new seats...so off we went hunting...
After almost giving up, he decides to let me have the set of Levins from one of the drags he was building, since he was gonna change the seats soon anyways, and at a really nice price too i might add...even welded the leg mounts up for me and everything...

Anyways, just thought id put it up here, as i was quite happy with them
Also got a shot of the installed boost gauge.

Current Dash:

...and heres the new seats Basically i got them insstalled for RM400(which is about 50 pounds or so)...dunno if its a good price there, but its quite sweet here

Cheers
-e-

 

[Ed]

Thats an autogauge boost meter? If so its the same I have, terrible to see in the day but looks great at night. I dont know about yours but mine is terrible for accuracy. I discovered that when it says im running over 1.5 bar the Emanage actually reports about 1.2 - 1.3 bar.

Ed

 

[Jobe]

RE: RE: K10 Queries, and to say hello, of course

Thats an autogauge boost meter? If so its the same I have, terrible to see in the day but looks great at night. I dont know about yours but mine is terrible for accuracy. I discovered that when it says im running over 1.5 bar the Emanage actually reports about 1.2 - 1.3 bar.

Ed

Well, yeah, guess that would explain my boost, at least the meter looks good at night
Day viewability is helped by the shroud from Swoosh, tho to a limited extent.

Ure pulling 1.3 on your ST on turbo boost? sweet. Curious tho, what mods have you done to your STs and is there a thread i may have missed on that topic?

-the other ed

 

[Ed]

Sorry Ive taken so long to reply i missed this thread. I have a hybrid Hitarchi HT10/Garret T25 turbo with pulsar GTIR 440cc injectors and Ive mapped this with the Emanage. Its mapped for around 1.4-1.5 bar of boost now (I've seen the autogauge read over 1.7bar - as mental as this looks I know its nonsense) The intercooler is really really too small, I can only sustain this level of power for about 20 seconds if that (mind you your doing damn fast by that time) and I have to have a break of a few mins before I do it again whilst the intercooler has a chance to cool down again. Internals are stock and i have a Nismo clutch pressure plate with a standard ST cluch disk. Finally I have just upgraded from a 2 inch exhaust system to a full 2.5 inch exhaust system although i still ahve the restrictive downpipe from the turbo which HAS to go soon!

Ed