Project Nissan Sunny : 1989

[Biggie07]

Hi folks,

I've owned a 1989 Nissan Sunny since it was purchased by my Dad from the showroom in 1989, Islamabad.
The car has gone through several good and bad periods with my family, in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi over the years. It has served us well in every city we lived in - and was sometimes our only car or our 2nd and 3rd car.

There were also periods where it was parked for a few months as we were overseas.

Now, we were debating whether to keep it or sell it and decided to keep the car, and fix it up a bit - hopefully adding more years to its life, as we dont want to let it go - it has lots of memories.

So the first thing we did was to look for a good engine for the car, as it originally came with the 1000 litre engine which was underpowered yet reliable as it put on a good 175000kms on the car, before we finally swapped the engine a few days back.

I looked at various options for engines, and finally found a GA15E series engine 1.5 litre 5 speed manual. The engine was in excellent shape, imported and came with the full unit - i.e gearbox, ECU, wiring etc.

So I went with the swap - here are some details on the engine:

The GA15E is an 1.5 litre (1,497 cc) multi point fuel injected SOHC engine. It produces 97 hp (72 kW) and 128 N?m (94 lb?ft).

The engine is in the car and was bolt on. Only had to change the mounting brackets. I also bought a new radiator and hose pipe for the GA15E, the new radiator cost around 7k plus a new thermostat which cost 800.

Did a synthetic oil change and put on a new filter and have been testing the car for the last few days. She runs perfectly, the new engine is very smooth and packs a lot of power for this kind of chassis, no vibrations, no jerks and is very responsive on the manual stick. Its 5 speed which is also nice since the old engine was a 4 speed gearbox.

Also, ended up swapping rims.....I bought a set of 14 inch Nissan OEM rims and put on new Dunlop SP Sport tyres 185/14s which have made the ride even better - lots of grip.

Today, I am on the way to Shershah for new seats, and am looking for power windows, and rpm meters, plus a few other goodies. Will post pics soon.

[Biggie07]

Here's a pic of the GA15E

[Biggie07]

Update:

Unfortunately due to the law and order issues Shershah is still closed so didnt end up going - hopefully will try again tomorrow if the market opens.

In the meantime, sharing some pics of the car with the engine mounted. The engine bay is pretty filthy but Im waiting to finish all my work before taking the car for a full wash.

Still has to go through tuning as it stalls on idle once in a while -and I may also change the plugs etc while Im at it - I called around a few shops for EFI Scanning and hopefully will drop by to one of them either tomorrow or day after - and need to refill the AC and take it for a service/wash - I was hoping to get the seats and windoes aken care of today but guess will need to wait for Karachi to sort itself out a bit before I can grab the stuff I need.

[SER_GTR]

I Can See Inline HVLP Cheap Fuel Pump.....Never Recommended....Can Cost You A Car......Its No Joke

Its Efi Car So Need Someone Who Can Wire It Up Nicely Else It Will never Run As It Should Have...

On CNG It Performs Like Just Another Engine....!

Get Rid of This Fuel Pump And Get Intank Fuel Pump Installed.....!

[Biggie07]

I Can See Inline HVLP Cheap Fuel Pump.....Never Recommended....Can Cost You A Car......Its No Joke

Its Efi Car So Need Someone Who Can Wire It Up Nicely Else It Will never Run As It Should Have...

On CNG It Performs Like Just Another Engine....!

Get Rid of This Fuel Pump And Get Intank Fuel Pump Installed.....!

Thanks. I plan on going to Khan Motors or Yazdani tomorrow and have them check ething out - will ask them about the fuel pump business as well - whether they can install it and for how much.

I dont care about the CNG bit though - as I never install CNG on any of my cars.

I dont plan on going back to the folks who installed the engine cos they are too damn far and things arent the greatest in that area these days, in terms of safety./

[SER_GTR]

Beware As Khan Motors And The Others Are Just BIG Mouths Need Big Money But Do Normal Avg Work....!

Rip Offs In My Terms Simple As That.....!

That Requires Fuel Tank Removal And Need To Make Place For Fuel Pump Along With New Fuel Line........!

Electrical Stuff Also need Quiet A Good Work Experience Who Know NISSAN's

[Biggie07]

Beware As Khan Motors And The Others Are Just BIG Mouths Need Big Money But Do Normal Avg Work....!

Rip Offs In My Terms Simple As That.....!

That Requires Fuel Tank Removal And Need To Make Place For Fuel Pump Along With New Fuel Line........!

Electrical Stuff Also need Quiet A Good Work Experience Who Know NISSAN's

Trouble is there arent many mechanics with the right tools in DHA/Clifton - my mechanic close to my house is a good guy but he doesent have any engine tools, hes primarily good for stuff like exhaust, brakes, etc - not electrical or engine related stuff.

On the fuel pump issue - I will look into what you mentioned with a few different mechanics - however I've noticed a lot of EFI converted cars still using the inline pump - maybe a better quality one that the one I have installed.

[spectra]

That looks like a fuel filter to me which came originally with these engines.. EFI cannot work with an inline pump.

[IsbCap]

Brother, Good decision to keep it, rather than let it go at a cheaper price. How much did the whole swap cost?

[born_2b_wild]

gud job..

[AACOOL_S]

This is twin cam engine so its dohc not sohc & its GA-15DE

[TheFaceMan]

great work - that engine is good for your ride. You'v kept the car in good condition - post interior pix too.

btw where can you guys see the inline pump? all i c is the fuel filter....it must have an intank fuel pump otherwise the car wouldnt start

[SER_GTR]

My Bad As I Thought Its An Inline Small Fuel PUmp...Inline Pumps Do Exist And Can Even Be Used Like These......

HVLP Can't Start Cars But There Are High Pressure Inline Pumps.....!

If Car Is Using In tank Fuel Pump ..Its Fine....What I See Is Banjo Type Fuel Filters In Many Cars.....Never Seen Nissan WITH Filter Hanging Like That.......maybe Its Not Placed Where It Should...Anyways If Its Intank Setup ....Its Fine

For Wiring...Just Find The Right Person As NISSAN's Are Different Than TOYOTA Wirings....Need A Right Pinout In order To Connect All Sensors With ECU

[Biggie07]

@ all

Thanks. Had the car checked out just to be sure and it does have an intank system so we're good on that front.

Yesterday was a pretty productive day - went to Shershah and was able to buy my new seats, along with OEM power steering assembly for the car - alongwith some other goodies, i.e rear lights, seat belts etc.

Couldnt find the power windows and rpm meter yet so will try again in a few days.

Today, I am planning on installing the new seats, after they are washed and also installing the power steering.

@ SER

Wiring is definately something I am thinking about - Im looking around for a qualified Nissan expert so he can not only check the existing wiring but also help me install the other goodies, ie rpm meter, power windows etc.

[TheFaceMan]

@ all

Thanks. Had the car checked out just to be sure and it does have an intank system so we're good on that front.

Yesterday was a pretty productive day - went to Shershah and was able to buy my new seats, along with OEM power steering assembly for the car - alongwith some other goodies, i.e rear lights, seat belts etc.

Couldnt find the power windows and rpm meter yet so will try again in a few days.

Today, I am planning on installing the new seats, after they are washed and also installing the power steering.

Bro, power windows for that car are gonna b hard to find. I tried myself for our own sunny sometime back and they had nissan motors but old ones no reliability.

best to keep it as is or buy new motors maybe try toyota motors - the ones they put in converted xlis

also how much did the seats cost?

[star2]

original kabli seats is a rare find, do post up pictures, i am interested to see them....

for engine wiring, you'll have to do it yourself somehow.... if you have manual and original wiring diagrams...

[Biggie07]

Seats cost 4k - after giving them my old seats. My old seats were torn and had been repaired twice already so decided to pick up these instead. We just finished installing them, had to do a few alterations. Will try to get better pix tomorrow. They feel way better than the stock seats that had been worn out big time. These are harder and comfortable. You can also see the steering assembly removed as we were also installing the power steering. My mechanic did a great job with the install - and the power steering feels awesome. No sounds when turning, no rpm drops - pretty smooth all the way through. Have to do an alignment tomorrow though - along with a scan/tune up and then a long interior/exterior wash. While the hood was up - I took a few pics of this wire thats sticking out near the plugs - I have no clue what this is for - posting the last 2 pics with the wire - anyone know what this is for? For the power windows - will take another trip to plaza and shershah in a few days - Im not in a rush so I can wait for the right set - I want to spend the next few days taking care of the alignment, scanning, tune up, car wash, and setting up my stereo system (not neccesarily in that order, though)

[SER_GTR]

Good Going....!

Wiring Part All Fine It Will Run Like Charm

[star2]

Oh, these are not original sunny seats.... its of Lancer i think or corolla maybe...anyways... congrats...

[star2]

that jack seems to be of radiator, which you are holding in your hand, although I am not so sure.... but its surely not of engine. It belongs to something in the engine bay.