stilettoman

It has always amazed me that maybe 1% of women and 5% of men seem to know what a Stiletto is. It was the weapon of choice for Italian, and particularly Sicilian, assassins since the time of Machiavelli in the late 1400s. When the Italian shoe designer made the first shoe with a very thin spike heel in about 1950, someone said it looks like a stiletto, and the rest is history. When people have asked me about my email address, I always say I am a hit man in my spare time. You should have noticed that I incorporated an image of a stiletto in my logo. The name just came to me when I realized I had designed something that had a sharp point at one end. Thanks for the comments - I think my tuner just wanted me to verify the coils were all good, and hopefully he can tune out the dwell issue. We are all very proud of the fact the cam sensor works so well - we set a cup of coffee on the motor and it doesn't even make waves when it is running - pretty much like a stock RB20. We will make another video and post more photos when it is finished - the wiring is a rats nest, but I don't want to tape anything up until I am sure we are through making changes.

Some of you may recall my RB20 powered 48 Studebaker, which I described here in some detail, and my RB20 powered RX-7. Both of these cars are running and driving very well. My Stiletto three wheeler was also running well until one day I had a wiring meltdown, cause unknown, that included melting the plastic box with all the relays and fuses. This is a 1984 Kawasaki Z1300 , one of the very first motorcycle engines with electronic fuel injection, and NOTHING was tuneable or adjustable except the idle speed. We discussed some of the aftermarket fuel injection systems. But we kept coming back to the fact that we had accumulated a lot of RB20 spare parts – ECU, ignition module, cam sensor, throttle sensor, MAF and a wire harness. The Kawasaki is a straight six, twin cams, same firing order – why not make it a research project ? The Kawasaki had a crank sensor only, with a lost spark system meaning it fired the plugs every revolution. My machinist made an adapter to drive the RB20 cam sensor off the exhaust cam, and the rest was pretty straight forward, not to say it was simple. I am using a Z32 instrument cluster - figuring out how to drive the electronic speedo may be a challenge. We built a custom intake plenum, used the RB20 injectors, coil packs, throttle body and TPS from an Infiniti J30 (Nissan Leopard), stock Kawasaki fuel pump (36 psi) and a custom made fuel rail, air box and air filter setup. We sent the ECU to ConceptZ to get the Nistune board installed, and my tuner guy wasted about a hour to figure out they had installed the wrong map. Once he downloaded the correct map he had it starting, idling and running smoothly in just a few minutes. We got a Code 21 fault, and I checked the coils – they all have the same primary resistance, and I don't know what else to check. It seems to run just fine. Any suggestions what else to check? The Youtube video shows the Stiletto running and driving with the original Kawasaki system – drove it for about 5 years with very few problems. http://stilettoman.info/2014/09/the-stiletto-project/

The only overheat problems I ever had were in the 5.0 Ford powered RX-7 I built, and after trying several different solutions, I ended up with the stock RX-7 plastic fan, which seems to have excellent aerodynamic design, running without a clutch. Of course it never revved very high driving on the street with an automatic, so I don't think the fan was eating much horsepower. My RB20 powered RX-7 runs very cool with the stock Skyline radiator and clutch fan, even in 100 degree F weather. Of course I realize the 2.0 liter motor does not generate much heat in normal street driving. When we recently did the RB20 swap into the 48 Studebaker, we tried to make it fit with the clutch fan, but it was just too crowded, so we installed an electric fan - it is fairly quiet and really moves a lot of air. I think the latest designs of electrics must compare favorably with an engine driven clutch fan - they get smarter all the time, just like the guys designing the turbos. http://www.summitracing.com/parts/flx-398/overview/

R32Pal - Don't know if you looked at my web site, but the FFP on the RX-7 required about 10 hours work, is shown in this thread in "Forced Induction" post number 24: http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/428716-rb20det-forward-facing-plenum/page-2?hl=%2Bstilettoman#entry6934997 The FFP we built for the Studebaker is much more interesting, required a lot more work of course, shown here in Post number 20: http://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/433066-skyline-drivetrain-and-suspension-in-1948-studebaker/page-1 Ben

I tried that before, but this time it worked - thanks. There is already a build thread for the Studebaker on this forum. Details of all my recent builds are shown on my website: stilettoman.info Ben

I have no idea what "FFP" is. If you have not seen it, you may want to look at my website, which gives details of the build on the RX-7 and also on the RB20 powered Studebaker. The external spring on the wastegate controller was installed on both cars, and the RX-7 now boosts to 12 - 13 psi. After some tinkering, both cars are now running really well. stilettoman.info

I originally listed my RB20 powered RX-7, which shows in my profile. I now have two RB20 powered cars, the other being a 48 Studebaker. I tried to add this by editing my profile, and I typed well within the box provided, and repeatedly got the message "data exceeds limits" or words to that effect. There seems to be a defect in your software.

I do not know if there is any functional advantage to either of the venting arrangements shown above. I modified mine for purely cosmetic reasons as I thought the original R32 engine was a cluttered mess. I put the main vent tubes on the sides of the cam covers, but above the baffle plates. The equalizer tube can be seen below the perforated cover. As for all the bright colors, I prefer something with more of a factory look. The custom made intake plenum was also done just for appearance, seems to work very well.

Some of you may have seen my RB20 powered RX-7 or my RB20 powered 48 Studebaker, shown elsewhere here. If not, you can see the build details on my website stilettoman.info in the automotive section I have been plagued with electrical / engine management gremlins in the RX-7, finally bit the bullet and bought a Wiring Specialties harness. That solved many of the problems, but it would still cut out momentarily at random times. I got the analysis software from Concept Z, and it showed that the MAF signal was going away when the engine cut out. I was told that "you cannot repair a MAF, just buy a new one". After consuming some "brain enhancer medication" (bourbon) I decided to find out what this mysterious device looks like on the inside. I started by removing the connector plug, which pulled out fairly easily. The solder connections came off very easily and I noticed that one of the connections left no trace of solder on the copper contact. My immediate reaction was that this was my problem. I cleaned everything, reassembled it and resoldered the connections. The car now runs flawlessly. I realize this may be a very rare occurrence, but just thought I should pass this on in case any of you Wizards of Oz like to spend your money on medication rather than car parts.

The Studebaker has been running very well, excellent brakes and steering, can't say much about the handling until I get some bucket seats - cornering on this very soft bench seat feels like sitting on a beach ball. The RB20 has been only going to 8-9 psi boost, so we investigated and found some boost leaks. With all that sorted I was still getting 9 psi max boost. I have read in several places that 12-13 psi is a safe limit for this ceramic turbine wheel. I hate paying money to buy something I can easily make in my shop, so I decided to jack up the boost pressure myself. It is obviously not possible to take the wastegate actuator apart and shim the spring, so I just added an external spring, with a clamp on the actuator rod which is adjustable. We set it up on the bench using a spare turbo and adjusted the spring so it opens the wastegate at about 12 psi. We installed it on the car and it goes up smoothly to 12 psi boost and is stable there. I can't measure the power increase, but it definitely has more power and I am now quite happy with the performance. This is so simple I assume others have done this ????

With the headliner in, we were able to install the windscreen and rear windows. These are all installed from the inside, and the rear glass is very tight, not an easy job. I made some terminal strips to facilitate the wiring, ran wires to the rear, lights on the left side and fuel tank on the right side. I made rubber gaskets for the headlights and tail lights, and those are now installed. All the lights work perfectly, hope that bodes well for the fuel injection wiring. The ECU and fuse panel are inside the glove box door. I spent many hours adapting the Skyline instruments into the Studebaker instrument cases. The custom made rear valance panel is installed, so we could then weld on the exhaust tips to fit the cutouts in the valance panel. More photos of all this are now shown on my web site. http://stilettoman.info/ I will be keeping that up to date, then post here when the car is running, hopefully in a few weeks. I hope to get my airplane projects and some airshow photos on the site in the next few months.

After months of body work, many coats of primer and hours of block sanding, I finally was ready and took the car to my painter friend. I have painted all my project cars, airplanes, motorcycles etc since 1958, but I never sprayed a pearl paint and I never spent so much time prepping a car for paint. This is as close as I will ever get to a show quality paint job. Installing the headliner was not much fun, now it is ready for the window and windscreen install. I have been working on the dash, built my own heater using a couple of Skyline heater boxes, some ABS plastic, and the controls from a Mazda RX-7. The Skyline pedal assemlies are installed, used the round pedal pads from the studebaker to maintain some semblance of the original look. The Skyline key switch was adapted to the dash. My fabricator, Sean , has been finishing the fuel, brake, clutch and power steering plumbing and wiring. The fuel tank is installed, and the filler connected. I painted the engine covers, power steering reservoir and few other bits, and now the engine compartment is complete.

Can someone please tell me the year of manufacture of this Skyline? It is a R34 front clip with a rb25NEO motor, currently for sale locally. Total mileage is 95,396 KILOMETERS ( 59,276 MILES)

For the past few weeks, Sean has been dividing his time between the Studebaker project and doing some upgrades on a 1968 Mustang convertible that belongs to a friend of mine. We started with the idea of just buying and installing some of the disc brake and power rack kits that are available for the early Mustangs from various sources. But as we looked at the options on line, we kept thinking that they are not cheap, and the quality is certainly no better than the Nissan parts we are using on the Studebaker. Not entirely Skyline related, but some of you might like to see what we have done with a few used Nissan parts - this will be a truly unique Mustang: www.pro-touring.com/threads/111428-68-Mustang-Convertible-Some-Unique-Upgrades Sean has finished the turbo/intercooler plumbing and has been modifying the bumpers for the Studebaker. A lower valance panel was fabricated for the rear end and the bumper was moved in tighter to the body. Both bumpers were reshaped somewhat, and studs were welded inside for the mounting brackets, so there will be no bolt heads visible. The Infiniti J30 (Nissan Leopard) fuel tank is installed in the trunk, below the rear package shelf. Because of the inevitable effects of gravity, there was only one choice for the fuel filler location. I used a filler cap from a motorcycle. We also converted the hood to a front hinge arrangement to provide better access to the engine compartment. (Don't be confused by what you have been told by those guys who live on that big island off the coast of France - a boot is a type of shoe invented by that famous shoe salesman Wellington, and a bonnet is a type of hat that some ladies wear to keep the sun off.)

"An RB25 would have been better for cruising." Well, when I am cruising down the highway on a trip, I would rather have the fuel mileage. Of course there are occasions when another 75 horsepower would be advantageous. I have often said that stoplight drag racing is childish and immature --- but if a guy pulls up next to you in a BMW, well you just do what you have to do . My local JDM source just got in stock an R34 front clip, with an RB25DET NEO and a 5 speed. The price is $4000, and I was very tempted. But there are two things putting me off: 1. The R32 front clip I am using cost me $2000 and has 57,000 km on it. 2. The NEO motors are rare here - none of the local tuners has ever worked on one to my knowledge, much less done a swap. I am sticking with Plan A. We have been so focused on getting this thing put together that we failed to notice something unexpected - there seems to be no adjustments to the caster and camber of the R32 front suspension. What are we missing? Do you just have to buy aftermarket parts? With our fabrication skills, we can easily make the tension rods adjustable, but the funky angle of the upper control arm complicates the camber issue.

I think some of the people on this forum might like to see the details of how we built our intake plenum. We wanted something that seemed appropriate for the classic period of this car, and preferably, something different from what everyone else does. Sean suggested using an old style cast aluminum V8 valve cover, as it would be the right size and have about the right volume. I immediately discovered that I could get one with the Studebaker name cast in. Reading on some of the blogs, I found that the Big Boys, building the very high power super cars, and some of the more sophisticated after market suppliers, are using velocity stacks inside the plenums of their turbo systems. The designers say the purpose of the tubes is to get the intake up off the floor of the plenum for improved flow, and they recommend staggering the tube length so they are not all drawing from the same level in the plenum. Well, you can buy velocity stacks, but they are not cheap, and not necessarily the right size. In my materials rack I have aluminum extrusions and tubes that I have had since before most of you were born, and I found a piece of very soft aluminum tubing with the inside diameter EXACTLY the same as the runners in the lower manifold of the RB20. I am pretty sure it was for 707 fuel line, complete with a Boeing part number and early 70s date. Sean made some dies in the lathe and I pressed the flares and trimmed them to length. The bottom plate is heavy aluminum, because Sean has tapped holes for the idle air controller, the cold start valve, and several vacuum fittings which are mounted under the plenum to get them out of sight and clean up the overall apperarance. The throttle body flange was cut off the original plenum and welded to the forward end of the Studebaker valve cover. The cover was then welded to the bottom plate. I have painted it with body color, and eventually the cam covers and brake booster will also be the same color. I just looks like maroon in normal lighting, but it really has a dazzling sparkle when the sunlight hits it. The manufacturer calls it "Sparkling Merlot Pearl", which is a good description.

As you can see from the previous posts, we decided at the beginning to do all the fabrication and welding before we started stripping and refinishing the body and components. I think it will look pretty respectable when we are finished. When we started, it seemed the bottom of the body had superficial rust, but when we got it clean, we found that we were mostly looking at red oxide primer put on by the factory. The only rust was the trunk floor, and we just fabricated a new floor, rolled in a few beads for stiffening and added some hat section stiffeners. The entire body underside, wheel wells, trunk interior and firewall were cleaned and coated with epoxy primer. The firewall and engine bay were painted with a silver grey urethane paint and clear coat. The underbody and wheel wells were coated with a clear textured urethane bedliner material, tinted with the same silver grey paint to match. The chassis was rolled into place and the rubber/fabric shims were fitted between the body and chassis. The forward end of the frame rails bolt up to matching plates welded to the Skyline lower frame rails just ahead of the firewall. The front suspension and steering rack were installed and we had the car back on its wheels after a long time sitting on blocks.

Stopped working on the Studebaker and spent several months getting everyone else's projects finished and out of my shop. Now the Studebaker is completely disassembled and I am working on the body - a few rust patches and lots of little dents and dings to smooth out , hope to be painting by the end of August. Meanwhile, my fabricator Sean has been working on the chassis. We got the frame and a few other pieces powdercoated, but the rear suspension subframe and most of the links had rubber bushings that would not tolerate the heat, so they were just blasted and I painted them. The frame was placed upside down for assembly of the rear suspension. The photos show the chassis with the rear suspension and exhaust. This is a stock R33 rear suspension except for the coilover shocks/springs.

The Skyline 5 speed is several inches longer than the original Studebaker trans, and the shifter comes up under the bench seat. I ended up moving the seat back 3 inches from the original seat track mounting, but I have to allow for about 4 inches of travel forward if someone shorter wants to drive it. Consequently, I modified the seat frame and built an offset shift lever. I drilled out some spot welds and removed a panel from the Skyline floor tunnel that provided mounting for the rubber boot on the shifter. A little reforming and that panel fits perfectly. I will sew up a leather or vinyl piece for the shifter boot. I am also working on the Skyline steering column, trying to make it look more suitable for this old car. The photos shows the steering column, a Mazda Cosmo steering wheel, a small stainless bowl , a stainless thermos bottle and the original Studebaker column shift lever. You can probably see where I am going with those parts. I am looking at various turn signal/light switches before I put it all together.

"I see an auto box. If its the Nissan one that came with the cut you will need the controller in the right kick panel as that runs the box." I have no idea what you are referring to, never heard of anything called an auto box. We have the complete front clip and we plan to use almost all of the wiring except for items we don't have in the car - electric windows, mirrors, door locks, etc. There is a small metal electronic module that is apparently called a "body control module", which seems to be connected to many things in the car, mostly stuff we don't plan to use. We don't plan to make any changes to the engine wiring harness, except as necessary to connect with the Studebaker wiring. We removed the ignition switch from the steering column and will mount it in the dash as per original Studebaker. The original starter switch was on the floor, operated by pushing the clutch pedal all the way down. As for the value of the Studebaker, I have said all along that the top price I would get if I ever sold it would most likely be from a Nissan enthusiast rather than a Studebaker guy, but I could be wrong about that. If it is not worth al least four times what the stock Studebaker was worth, I would be very disappointed. Speaking of valuable Studebakers, one is being built in California that will be worth a lot more than mine:

The Studebaker firewall is not designed to carry the loads from hanging pedals, so we reinforced it with a piece of 1/8 inch plate, tied to the firewall diagonal brace. The steering shaft was lengthened about thee inches, and the 240 rack just bolted in. A friend gave me the exhaust system from an almost new Audi S4 turbo, all stainless with dual path silencers. The control valves were computer controlled and vacuum operated. I will control the valves with a cable. The presilencer is neatly dished out to fit under the driveshaft. We used the Infiniti J30 rear sway bar because it has the double hunps for dual exhaust. We had some stainless tubing from previous jobs, so all I had to buy was a cat and two chrome tips. Sean always uses a cat on street systems, as he says it gives the most effective silencing with the least back pressure. After the supports were installed, we had too much side-to-side movement, so we installed a lateral strut, sort of a Panhard bar for the exhaust. The only thing I had handy that was the right length was an old RX-7 hatch strut. There is a rule at my shop - every project must use a few RX-7 parts or I will never get rid of all this junk. I have seen Sean build some difficult exhausts, and a couple that were impossible. This one was easy. The last photo shows a large-tube header he made for a Chevelle with a big block.

I agree the car looks great, very neat engine install. Lots of 240/280Z here in the states, but I don't see many that are as nice as this one. I bought a wrecked 240z in 1982, been rolled over and the roof was smashed, so I built a convertible - my first custom car. It was mechanically stock- wish I had the RB20 back in those days. I really like my RB20DET in my RX-7 and I agree the 20 has plenty of power for street driving.

We are indeed using a 240SX rack. The J30 rack is too wide, and uses different style hydraulic fittings. I am sure there is a logical reason for that - Nissan, like all automobile companies, has too many engineers with not enough to do. The 240 rack just bolts in, requires lenghtening the steering shaft about 2 inches. We are using the Skyline steering column, required moving the tilt mechanism and mount bracket forward to fit the Studebaker dash. I am using a steering wheel from a 1978 Mazda Cosmo coupe, fits right onto the Skyline shaft splines. This is a 15 inch wheel. The Studebaker wheel is 17 inches, seems a bit much with the power steering. The J30 fuel tank quantity sensor has nominal resistance values of about 5 ohms full and 80 ohms empty. Can someone tell me what the comparable values are for the R32 ? I am thinking of doing surgery on the Skyline instrument cluster and possibly adapting the tachometer movement into the case of the Studebaker clock. There is a small window at the bottom of the Skyline tach, but no writing in the window. What is that for ?

Week 2 - Removed the original engine and trans, pressure washed the front end of the car. The R32 front clip was trimmed approximately to size, then mounted and leveled on a rolling table with ride height adjusted to the table top (same procedure used on the rear suspension). The body was raised to the appropriate matching height, and a whole day was spent trimming the clip to fit the body. The clip was welded to the firewall, with bolted plates attaching the Skyline frame rails to the Studebaker frame. This allows the frame to be removed from the firewall back. Filler pieces were fabricated and welded on the outside, and similarly on the inside of the engine compartment. To ensure adequate strength and stiffness, the engineering was done using the TLAR method (That Looks About Right). The engine and tranny were installed and a rear trans mount was fabricated. The fenders (wings, mud guards? Never can decide if I am speaking American, English or Australian) were installed and front end parts trimmed and fitted. The Skyline inner structure and lower frame rails were shortened, Skyline radiator and intercooler were mounted. The intercooler just fits into the protruding center portion of the grille. The 47-49 Champions have very short front end, but weigh only 2700 pounds. The Commander version has a longer nose, but is several hundred pounds heavier.

After 30 years as a rotorhead, I have finally seen the light and am now a Skyline believer. Of course there are almost no Skylines here in Seattle, but a few engine conversions, mostly RB25. Some of you may have seen photos of my 1984 RX-7/RB20DET conversion, which is detailed here: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3936025/1984-mazda-rx-7/ I have purchased a second R32 front clip, this one with 57,000 km on it, a 1990 model, also with RB20DET and 5 speed. I also purchased a pretty nice 1948 Studebaker Champion Starlight coupe, which is the one with the unique wraparound rear window. Stock motor is a 170 cu inch straight six flathead, 80 hp, straight rear axle, dual A-frames with transverse leaf spring in the front and Might-as-well-drag-your-foot drum brakes. The dash and interior are really nicely redone, body and paint presentable, and I plan to replace EVERYTHING ELSE. Week 1 - started 16 September, built a steel bulkhead behind the seats, thinking it would be more fire resistant than the cardboard, and installed an Infiniti J30 (Nissan Leopard) fuel tank in the trunk. This has the appropriate immersed fuel pump for the fuel injection. The old fuel tank and rear axle/leaf springs were removed, superficial rust removed from the body underside and a R33 rear suspension was installed. The ride height is 1 inch lower than the stock Studebaker. During this week we also stripped the front end of the car and stripped all the parts from the R32 front clip.