The 1991 Nissan 240SX S13 was purchased in February of 1991 for its sleek looks, rear-wheel-drive layout, and superb handling. This car has seen extreme duty since day one. Used as a daily transporter, the modified 240sx hatchback has also done many racetrack sessions as well as served as a serious auto-x car.
Immediately after its purchase, the black 1991 Nissan 240SX was brought out to the slalom circuit with the intent to campaign it through the entire 1991 British Columbia Region Autocross Series. Despite a steep learning curve to understand and overcome the Hicas rear steering system, Don was able to successfully race the car during its inaugural season to the second place in C Stock in the Region’s championship.
With the addition of sticky Yokohama A008R (225/50/15) tires mounted on wider than stock (15×7) Riken two-piece rims and a little help from the latest car data acquisition technology (Valentine Technology G Analyst), he was able to overcome the somewhat quirky active rear steering system that Nissan engineers had cooked up in Japan.
Don spent many weekends of hard work playing second fiddle to Roger Edgar and his potent Triumph TR8. He was finally able to use technology to his advantage and tie Roger for first place at the Canadian National Autoslalom in August of that same year. With his first-place finish, Don put PDM into a first-place tie in C Stock. He also earned $400 from Yokohama Canada for using their tires and $1000 from Nissan for being the first Nissan to win its Canadian class title.
After the black 1991 Nissan 240SX hatchback’s solo success, Don concentrated on his Nasport GT racing effort in his tube-framed Datsun 510.
The sleek Hicas-equipped SE almost met its fate on a cloudy September afternoon in 1993. When coming back from lunch, Don was suddenly looking at the front of a speeding van that had crossed the centerline and was heading straight for him.
The resulting combined head-on impact was in excess of 60 miles per hour. The force from the van moved Don’s car over two lanes of traffic, over a curb, and into a bus stop bench that was pushed six feet from its anchors.
Luckily Don swerved hard enough to his right to deflect some of the impact force and was able to walk away from this accident with only minor injuries. (His neck and head injuries did not keep him from racing the 510 at Laguna Seca that weekend. Not comfortably racing, but racing nonetheless.)
The van driver was not paying attention and looked up to see traffic stopped in from of him. Instead of turning to the right or hitting the stationary cars in front of him, he chose to steer into the oncoming lane and smear the 240SX S13. Even though the total damages exceeded $16,000 Canadian, the car was repaired – a process that lasted over three months.
With his constant need for speed and improvement, the 1991 240SX went through content upgrades. First and foremost was the suspension, with the addition of Koni Sport adjustable shocks and Eibach springs in January of 1993. After burning through five sets of sticky R compound tires in three years, Don opted for “regular” street tires and installed Michelin MXX3 Pilot tires (205/55/16 front, 225/50/16 rear) on lightweight sixteen-inch ARE rims.
Next, Don fabricated his own 2-inch mild steel custom exhaust with a Supertrapp stainless muffler and was able to knock off over sixty pounds from the stock exhaust system. This also allowed tunability of the torque curve.
After the exhaust came a Centerforce Dual Friction clutch and the infamous Nissan 300ZX four-piston aluminum calipers and beefy vented rotors. Don’s S13 was the first Nissan in Vancouver to sport this popular upgrade. He was one of the pioneers of this upgrade, thanks to the ingenuity of Andy Pearson at Specialty Engineering.
Over the next few years, the black 240SX has gone through many modification changes, including two more tire/rim combinations, different brake options, custom exhaust systems, headers, pulleys, and rear gear changes. Now, we stepped up the 240SX modifications to the black hatch by adding a turbo to a fully built race motor!
1991 Nissan 240SX Car Info
- 1991 Nissan 240SX S13 SE Hatchback, Hicas, (removed) ABS (removed) Power windows and door locks.
240SX Suspension
- Advance Design Custom Designed and Valved front and rear coil overs with GC camber plates
- Eibach ERS race springs
- Whiteline 27mm adjustable sway bar (front)
- Whiteline 22mm Heavy Duty sway bar (rear)
- Cusco adjustable TC Rods
- Whiteline Subframe Bushings
- Whiteline Front Lower Control Arm Bushings
- PDM front LCA with S14 ball joints
- Nissan S14 front spindles and hubs (5 lug)
- Rear Nissan S14 hubs (5 lug)
- Whiteline Rear Upper Hub Bushings
- Cusco Rear Upper Traction Link Arms
- Cusco Rear Upper Control Arms
- PDM Hicas eliminator bar
- Whiteline Rear Strut Tower Bar
- PDM Custom C-Pillar bar/camera mount
- 5 Zigen FN01C 17 x 10 +12 offset lightweight race rims
- Kumho V710 Race tires, 275/40/17 front, 295/40/17 rear
Brakes
- Stoptech 332mm x 32mm BIG brake upgrade
- 300ZX rear calipers
- KVR 300ZX cross drilled rear rotors
- Porterfield R4 Porsche 911 turbo Carbon race pads
- Porterfield R4 240SX Carbon race pads
- PDM Racing rear custom stainless steel brake lines
- Russell Speed Bleeders
- Motul RBF600 synthetic race fluid
- ABS + Hicas removed
240SX Driveline
- Fully Race built Specialty Engineering custom Full Race motor
- 9.5:1 JE pistons
- Carillo rods
- Race prepped, o-ringed, soft honed Specialty Engineering race block
- Special 240SX engine swap race built ported, flow benched full race head
- Inconnel exhaust valves, stainless intake valves
- Revhard ported and ceramic coated turbo manifold
- Garrett T04B turbo, .68 A/R
- PDM Tri Flow billet turbo cams
- Custom Wet Sump baffled race oil pan
- PDM Custom 304 stainless 3″ downpipe
- PDM Custom 304 stainless wastegate pipe
- PDM Racing Custom 304 stainless resonated cat replacement pipe
- Blitz Nur Spec Cat-Back Exhaust
- PDM 18 x 12 x 3 custom Garrett intercooler
- PDM custom 304 stainless 2.5″ intercooler piping
- Tial 38mm wastegate
- Greddy blow off valve
- PDM custom turbo oil and water lines
- PDM Race heat exchanger and remote oil filter system
- PDM 4 ply silicone connectors
- Fidanza Aluminum KA flywheel
- ACT Extreme Duty clutch
- Aurora 8.5mm wires
- Powdercoated valve cover
- Koyo KA high performance radiator
- Greddy Oil filler cap
- Blitz high pressure rad cap
- Dual electric fans
- Custom Genesis dry cel race battery
- Nissan Motorsports 4.6:1 Ring and Pinion Gears
- KAAZ 2 way LSD
- Aluminum driveshaft
- Nismo engine and transmission mounts
- DEI C02 intake charge cooler
- DEI C02 Intercooler sprayer
- PDM Custom water injection sprayer
240SX Body
- PDM front underspoiler
- PDM Custom Rear Deck Spoiler
- PDM Custom Side Skirts and Rear Valance
- PDM Front fiberglass hood
- 180SX Kouki rear tails with Clear Corners custom LED lights
- Nismo 180SX Kouki carbon center panel
- Clear front turn signals
- 240SX Rocket Bunny
- Extensive front and rear wide body to fit race tires
Cockpit
- Sparco Pro 2000 driver and passenger seats.
- Sparco 5 point race camlok belts
- Nismo Shift knob
- Sparco Flash 5 race wheel
- Momo Pedal Pads
- B&M Short Shifter
- Autometer Boost Gauge
- PLX Devices wide band gauge
- Autometer Dual electric EGT gauge
- Autometer oil pressure gauge
- Autometer oil temperature gauge
- Autometer water temperature gauge
- Autometer oil pressure gauge
- Interior retained for SCCA SM rules (back seat only removed)
Electronics
- Sony DCR-TRV30 Digital Camcorder
- VUZ onboard digital remote control 4-camera system
- PDM Custom ECU tune
- PLX Devices R500 Wideband computer system
- Greddy Boost Controller
1991 240SX Specs
- 2680 pounds with 1/2 tank of gas, no driver
- 55.2/44.8 F/R weight bias
- lbs right side, left side corner weighted with driver in.