Unable to escape the lure of the 240, but searching for the
front clip unique to the 1997 and 1998 model years, Davies found
the 1998, 240sx he desired in California. The modifications
started innocently enough soon after Davies and his girlfriend
arrived home after flying to California and driving the car
back to Winnipeg. The rims, tires, body kit and paintjob upgrades
Davies launched into could all be considered average upgrades
for any daily driver on the street being driven by a prideful
owner.
In reality, it was just chumming the waters, setting the
stage for a fresh track attack. "At first, I just wanted
to put a turbo on it and I guess I went a little bit overkill."
The resulting two years of "overkill," a combination
of bolt on parts and self-performed custom hand fabrication,
resulted in a truly one-of-a-kind vehicle that produced 511
horsepower at the rear wheels and 446 ft lbs of torque with
29 psi of boost on its first dyno run last fall.
The path to becoming a one-of-a-kind vehicle started not
by swapping something out but by actually keeping something
in, the KA 24 DET engine that came with the vehicle from the
factory. "When Nissan launched the car in North America
they took the sports car turbo engine out of it and just through
in a basic truck engine," Davies said, "I kept the
truck engine. That is what is rare about it. Most of the guys
in North America grab the motor from Japan and put it in,
whereas I stuck with the truck motor. For a bit more torque."
The oddity was completed when Davies paired the engine with
a Ford automatic transmission, rated for 1,000hp with a lifetime
warranty. "It's definitely the first of its kind in North
America," he said. "But that motor is only available
in North America so it's the first KA motor with a Ford back
transmission in the world."
Davies devised the idea after discovering the lessons learned
by auto enthusiasts in Australia. "They're racing high
horsepower cars with automatic domestic transmissions for
the reliability and power handling."
Despite its world-class uniqueness, Davies has not finished
answering the call of the track. Immediate plans for a new
camshaft, roll cage and a 50 shot of nitrous has him poised
to produce 35psi of boost and 600hp when he takes the track
in the spring, producing an estimated quarter mile time in
the low 10-second range.
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