So the Latest Work at Nismo Omori Factory... (Part 1)...Mostly Cosmetic?

As I mentioned in my last post, I had dropped off my car at Nismo Omori Factory for some additional work. This time, I decided I would take the train and walk there from the nearest station, which is Namamugi Station on the Keikyu train line.　If you ever choose to do this, just make sure you have enough battery charge on your phone for Google Maps to guide you, although essentially it is a left out of the station onto the main road, then a right turn onto the large street that takes you all the way to Nismo, which you will see on your left after about a leisurely 20 minute walk in a very industrial, and dirty, party of Yokohama. Sad but true.

First, as many of you may recall during the car's long stay at Omori Factory we found that the OEM cigarette lighter wiring had been completely hacked out and the mechanics didn't have time to restore it.   So this time around the guys had to create a new cigarette lighter lead and wire it into the main harness. 

Not the original clip but it works

To show me it was working, Ochiai-san sent me this video:

That was the big one (I need to mount and charge my phone somehow!), but there were also a few other details that had to also be perfected. For example - a minor point but the valve stems of the aftermarket tire pressure sensors (post coming soon?) were silver and detracted from the overall look of the wheel. So I asked them to paint them all flat black to match the wheels.

Before:

From a past post - http://www.r33gt-r.com/2020/07/next-steps-at-nismo-omori-factory.html

...and after:

Looks much better, right? The RAYS caps look good too!

Speaking of wheels, for some reason even though they had done some wheel repair on the left side wheels, they had forgotten to apply the RAYS/VOLKS stickers. Oops - no way I could offer the car for a photo shoot, if I was lucky enough to be offered one, with such an important detail missing!

Before:

During the excess wiring removal project

After, close up of front left wheel:

But I also had some additional things I wanted to discuss, and hopefully have remedied. For example, while I was fixing the mess caused by Worx, restoring the stereo to the OEM cassette deck and adding a modern DSP amp, I realized certain areas of the interior could be improved.

For example - take a look at this, which I posted last time: 

While I was able to find both covers for the rear tracks of the front seats, for some reason I couldn't make the inboard ones fit properly, as I mentioned last time.

Somehow they got them to fit properly...thanks!

One thing that Ochiai-san recommended was to replace the door strikers with new ones - the old ones still worked, but were somewhat ugly from 24 years of use.  I forgot to take a photo of the old ones, but they were ugly, with the thin layer of plastic peeling off.

After:

Yeah, I have to remove that leftover oil change sticker residue there...

Finally, the trunk - when I finished wiring up the amp in the trunk, for some reason the interior trunk liners just did not seem to fit properly.  

I had noticed they were "off" when I took them out, and at the time I wasn't really paying attention but when I put it all together they were still off, and just didn't seem right to me that Nissan would sell a car with such messy trunk liners. 

Well this turned out to be an easy fix - those flaps that stick out from the side trunk liners, get tucked INSIDE the black reinforcement frame. Doh!

Much cleaner, but...

So much better, but the green arrows point to imperfections. On top, the flap on the center liner that attaches by velcro to the top of the left liner, is torn; and for some reason the left liner is cut? So now I will have to find OEM replacements...

Unfortunately, there were also a few mechanical issues that were NOT fixed - one was this weird sound that I could hear when the ignition was in ACC mode (excuse my breathing)... 

...which I traced to the servo that changes the direction of the air blowing into the cabin. After tracing all the wiring, I got the sound to stop by disconnecting the temperature sensor.  However, when I asked them to look into this, I had forgotten to mention that I had disconnected the temperature sensor. As a result, when they tested it, the whirring sound could not be replicated.  We agree it's probably just a faulty temperature sensor. Next time!

So is that it? Did I really just blog about a visit to Nismo where they did mostly cosmetic repairs, drop a hint about a future repair, and not even talk about sexy stuff like carbon parts or parts not normally found in the Nismo catalog?  Well, tune in for Part 2 tomorrow then...

Another Update From NISMO Omori Factory

So last Friday afternoon I got the following update from Ochiai-san...turns out that even though the crap alarm keeps interfering with the starter motor (so I guess the immobilizer works..., in a way... ha ha) work is progressing on other parts of the car.

One item that I had asked to be replaced with new...turns out it HAD been on the last go around. I forgot to check, Ochiai-san forgot to tell me... oops.

Forgot to ask them to replace the brake cooling duct with new...
maybe it can be refurbished, we shall see...

I also got an update of sorts on the new headlight bulbs.  If you recall from this past post, one of the Phillips HID bulbs had failed, and in order to pass Shaken the techs at  Nismo Omori Factory hurriedly installed an aftermarket bulb sold by Sphere Light.

Shaken approved and 1 year warranty. 

The company website claims OEM Quality... we shall see...

So here is a photo comparing the two:

New bulb on right side (left side in photo) appears slightly more blue?
And yes I like the Star Wars Landspeeder effect!

But strangely I did not get sent a photo of both installed. Either they did the install and Ochiai-san simply forgot to take an "after" photo or they are saving me a few yen by letting me install the passenger side one myself (frankly, it's the easier one to do as the back of that headlight is more easily accessible as you can remove the airbox to get clear access to it).  Either way is ok with me!

Finally, it looks like they installed the Ohlins DFV as I mentioned last time and have installed the newly refurbished (and of course, glass coated) wheels - note they haven't yet applied the Rays stickers yet - with the new tires mounted.  In addition to the requisite alignment they will also be lowering the car to the bare minimum allowed under the Shaken rules... so a few more cm for sure.

Meanwhile I'm also happy to report that Ochiai-san has found an alarm shop that is willing to help out with the alarm removal. It's not the same shop that I went to many years ago in Tokyo (where I will go again to get another alarm installed) but one that is an authorized installer of the same alarm system that WORX Autoalarm "installed." Hopefully Nakamura wasn't too clever and they can sort out the mess.

So hopefully by next week the car will be ready... keeping fingers crossed...

Next Steps at NISMO Omori Factory

So as I hinted in my previous post, Nismo Omori Factory technicians have now begun focusing their attention to the outside of the car - among other things, the wheels and tires!

And that's why the car has been on "borrowed" wheels and tires for the last few weeks. Although I have to admit, those NISMO LMGT4s look VERY nice on the car...

So I wonder what suspension the car was on while the Ohlins were being serviced...

The Ohlins DFVs, from what I understand, were removed from the car almost immediately after I dropped it off, and sent to Labo Carrozzeria to be rebuilt with the same specs as before.  A few years ago they let me tour their factory and I did a blog post to show how they do a rebuild!

So the coilovers came back quickly, in about a week... what took time were the TE37 wheels that were being refinished, fixing up some minor curb rash and the usual scrapes that come when you actually drive your car.

Damn. Gorgeous! And yes, a glass coating has been applied - both outside AND inside...

You may also have spotted the odd looking/colored valve stem. That's because they are a non-Nissan/Nismo part that Nismo Omori Factory actually agree to install - an aftermarket Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).   In fact they had an aftermarket one (made by Orange Electronic) designated a "sports model" (to allow for high inner tire temperatures) in a box when I visited, and were even kind enough to open it up for me to show me how it worked.  Unfortunately the screen display was a bit large and I've already got enough stuff (Blitz exhaust valve, Do-Luck DTM-2, ETC card reader, boost controller, heads up display controls) in the car already so I wanted something stealth.

So a few internet searches later I stumbled on this - a TPMS where the display is an app you download to your smart phone (either iPhone or Android).  I've actually already used an aftermarket one on my Lexus, but this displayed its output on a small screen that had to be installed in a blank switch location.

Of course, I have no idea if these work yet. Of course once I test them out, I will post the results! Fingers crossed...

Back to the wheels and tires... I was surprised when Ochiai-san sent me the following photo.  I had always thought that Nismo Omori Factory had tire changing equipment on premises, but for whatever reason they outsource to this guy who arrives with all of his equipment on a truck!

Look closely and you can see my name on the tire...

I know mobile tire fitters aren't a new thing (and in fact I need to find one to do the tires on my Lexus...) but I wonder how Nismo does the tires on their racing cars? And yeah, I ended up going with the Michelins, the price was TOO GOOD to pass up...

And talk about attention to detail! Or maybe they know me a bit too well...

Yep, blackened wheel weights so they don't stand out.

Oh and yes that missing ashtray? A long time ago I think I broke it like this when I tried to drill a hole in the back... I was experimenting with LED lighting of the ashtray and tried to get it to light up via the LED I had attached to the cigarette lighter ring. This was during my pre-Dremel days.  Buy the right tools, people!!

But guess what - new stock still exists for this part! So a new pristine one on the way! Cannot wait to get back into a car with an "OEM" look dash!

So what next? There is one more item I asked them to take care of but I haven't received any photos or messages on that yet. I'm also curious about whether we can get an alarm shop out to Nismo to help remove that crap alarm.  I'll keep you all posted of course...

(Temporarily) Back on the S-Tunes! My Impressions...

So as I mentioned in my last post, I had my old NISMO S-Tunes shock absorbers temporarily re-installed by Ninomiya-san at BeAmbitious onto my car while the Ohlins DFVs usually on the car are being re-built at Labo Carrozzeria, the Ohlins distributor/service factory here in Japan.

The Ohlins Japan service factory. From: http://ohlins.czj.jp/service/

When I went to pick up the car after Ninomiya-san had gotten the GT-R successfully registered for another 2 years, the first thing I noticed was that the front of the car seemed lower than before. But, as he had told me that the car did not pass shaken until he put the S-Tunes on, I assumed that the ground clearance was better with the NISMOs than with the Ohlins.

Anyway, on my short drive home, I immediately could tell the difference - after driving around for a while on the stiffer sprung Ohlins (which were probably more stiff than usual because it was long overdue for a rebuild), the S-Tunes felt amazingly smooth and supple. Still very sporty, and in fact, they responded very well to the dips and bumps in the road.  In short, the car feels very close to OEM, in that most people might be satisfied with level of firmness combined with good ride comfort.

Although these S-Tunes are sporty enough that I went to several track days such as at Fuji Speedway, as you can see in the photo below (sorry for the low-def), hard braking meant that the car would literally scrape the front lip. So, one impetus for switching to the DFVs was a higher (stiffer) spring rate. Although, as I mentioned in my previous post, the DFV technology also results in a very smooth ride.

As you can see from this old photo, at full braking my front lip was scraping the ground!
http://www.r33gt-r.com/2008/07/photos-from-sunako-juku-last-lesson-at.html

Then, pulling into the garage, the front lip scraped... meaning that in fact, the car WAS lower than before.  So I don't quite understand how the car could pass the shaken rules with the S-Tunes when it was lower than the Ohlins, but oh well.  When I called Ninomiya-san about it, he thinks it might be due to the Do-Luck Roll Center Adjusters, and while that makes sense about the height, I'm still a bit confused about how it could pass Shaken...

You can see how close to the fender the tire/wheel is.

In any case, the car needs a proper alignment so I'm not driving it until I get the Ohlins re-installed and the alignment done.  Of course meanwhile I will simply have to have other projects to keep me busy, although I expect the Ohlins to be rebuilt and ready to go fairly soon. I'm really looking forward to experiencing the DFVs when as good as new!

Weird Things Happen... and Finding Stuff in One's Garage

During my trip on April 5th to Chiba Prefecture to visit Worx Auto Alarm with my friend Dino,  a slight sprinkling of rain hit the car on the way over.  While I was pleased to see how well the Echelon 1043 Nano-Fil paint protection I had gotten applied during its full detail at Rapt was holding up, by the time I got home, I was too busy and tired to properly wash the salt spray (from the ocean) and dirt (in general) off the car.

So last weekend, I spent about an hour washing the car. Compared to previous car wash sessions where I would have to carve out a few hours time to ensure I would have time to give the car a quick once over after the wash to apply some Zaino using my Porter Cable orbital buffer, this time the wash was a strictly water and car wash (Zaino Z7) solution, because the Echelon coating is supposed to last a few years (and I don't want to scratch unnecessarily, right?)

Unfortunately, right as I began washing, I spotted this:

WTF? When did that happen?

So yes was not happy. I thought about if there had been any vandalism to the car, but since this was really the first time I had driven a long distance since getting the car professionally detailed, I was confused as to how this could have happened.  Luckily, it's only a sticker, and so I will have it replaced with a new one soon.

Meanwhile, once I calmed down I continued to finish cleaning the car. After I dried it, I found this in my garage:

So this water repellant (i.e. Rain-X copy) product, called Clean View Glass Coat X2 Strong, made by Ichinen Chemicals, claims to last twice as long, and become effective at 38kph. It also claims to have 2 ingredients, fluoride as well as silicon. I almost don't think it's worth it, because one of Dino's questions when he drove my car was, "what did Kabe-san at Rapt put on the windshield?" pointing to how the rain rolled off the windshield.  At the same time, I noticed for some reason that the rain did not fly off the rear window thus suggesting that other than a quick polish of the glass surface, nothing special was applied (there is an Echelon product for glass that is supposedly amazing but I don't recall paying for that...)

In any case, I figured I had nothing to lose, especially if I applied this to the rear glass.  Application is simple, just like Rain-X. The liquid seeps though the large circular sponge attached to the end, and then you apply, let dry, and buff off. Presto!

close-up as it dries.

Now I'm not recommending this product, it was something I just found in my garage and further, because I rarely take the car out in the rain, I doubt I will be able to experience it in action. Until, at least, I next wash the car and then I will report...although based on the mediocre feedback on the Minkara Japanese language car blog, I'm not that optimistic.

In the meantime, I have a few real mods and some restore work coming to my car very soon. Stay tuned!

Ok So I'm a Brand W**re

I'm not a very good photographer, nor have I ever claimed to be even half good.  But, once in a while the subject looks good and the lighting is perfect.

Like this, taken with my iPhone 6 last Sunday. Enjoy!