Ownership Verified: Hemiheads WD21, 1990 Nissan Terrano. (Which turned out to be a 1989)

Hemiheads WD21, 1990 Nissan Terrano. (Which turned out to be a 1989)

A lot of the LPG kits altered fueling by emulating the ECTS/CHTS. Perhaps the removed kit is what was doing that - might want to check for a piggyback ECU for said kit under the seat.
 
Nothing much going on here, changed a brake line and waiting for parts from the US of A. Also debugging the electrical system which is a deluxe hack-and-bodge job. Found a lot of disconnected stuff such as the lambda sensor and different temperature sensors. The engine runs much better now but there is still a long way to go.
 
Guess who feels like a proper ass? Me. Apparently, my engine have the newer setup where both the sensors sits in the coolant neck. This just keep getting stranger and stranger, everything under the hood seems like a mix of parts that is just crazy.

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That's not an unheard-of retrofit over here - after all, the neck just bolts on.
 
After fiddling around with the engine I finally got it to run good enough for one of the happenings that was planned for this year, the post-apocalyptic LARP Blodsband. It's situated in the old mining area of Str?ssa here in Sweden which means miles and miles of sandy dunes, slag piles and other stuff to tear up. Think Mad Max with airsoft rifles and you get a pretty good idea of what is going on during 4 days. Some parts of the car was stripped, a makeshift armour made from scrap was added in a way that it didn't leave any permanent marks, a platform was added to the roof (to support cargo and a machinegun at times) and out in the dunes I went! All in all, had a wonderful time and learned quite a bit about driving around the shifting terrain.

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Action shot! Kicking up sand is way too fun. :D

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CraigB said:
:lol: That looks like a heck of a fun time!
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I had a blast! The grip in the sand from the tires was quite impressive and when they lost grip they caused just as impressive roostertails. 4WD Low was used in the worst hills and on piles of fist-sized rocks, 2WD and 4k RPM worked everywhere else.
 
I just talked to a guy that has two of these, well, the pickup version.

One's his dedicated snow plow. The bodywork is all rotted to hell, so he's planning to rip it off and replace it with a body from a Mercedes W115.

The other is his fire engine and irrigation pump. He took the bed off and bolted a water pump to the frame. He then replaced the prop shaft with a power take off shaft which connects to either the pump or the rear diff. Apparently it pumps like a motherfucker in 2nd gear without any throttle. :lol:

I swear, Nissan people.
 
So... I stowed away the Terrano in a machine hall for tractors over the winter, today I went there to connect the battery and fire it up and saw that mice have eaten my brand new spark plug wires... See if i can cobble together a fitting set from a bunch of universal plugwires. A new O2-sensor is ordered from USA and will arrive next week. However, I know the shopping list will grow longer because the rear control arm bushings are toast among other things.
 
Hemiheads WD21, 1990 Nissan Terrano. (Which turned out to be a 1989)

The rear control arm bushings are kind of annoying to change. I would suggest you find a set of all four arms from a dead Pathfinder/Terrano (make sure they're not bent) and remove the bushings ahead of time as they're usually cheap. Best choice for replacement bushings are these: https://www.calmini.com/detail.php?b=1&m=3&t=2&p=628&n=

Next best option are the Energy Suspension ones. I wouldn't go any lower than that or put factory bushings back in.

Did you ever replace the front compression rod bushings? I can't recall.
 
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Spectre said:
The rear control arm bushings are kind of annoying to change. I would suggest you find a set of all four arms from a dead Pathfinder/Terrano (make sure they're not bent) and remove the bushings ahead of time as they're usually cheap. Best choice for replacement bushings are these: https://www.calmini.com/detail.php?b=1&m=3&t=2&p=628&n=

Next best option are the Energy Suspension ones. I wouldn't go any lower than that or put factory bushings back in.

Did you ever replace the front compression rod bushings? I can't recall.
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No bushings were changed last year due to time and monetary reasons. They are in the pipeline this spring though because I need to do a bit of work on the front suspension.
 
Got the car running 30 minutes ago and noticed two things.

1: There is a misfire on low rpm and light throttle. Have to check every plugwire again tomorrow when it's light outside.

2: The Mud Terrains SUCK on frosty/snowy roads.
 
So. The misfire. It's located to cylinder no 3. Plug was 75% covered in black soot, even though the plug and plugwire are new i'm replacing them just to rule out that. A compression test cold shows 11,9:1 on that cylinder, gonna make another one when the engine is hot as soon as parts arrive.
 
On the surface, everything seems calm.

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However... The engine is done for. When it gets warm it loses compression and the blow-by gets... really interesting. It lasted 276.389 km with a VERY spotty service record but now it's on it's last legs. And looking to the age and condition of the car, there is really just one sensible thing to do.

Yep, a VG30E with a low-mileage gearbox arrives this autumn. It's from a King Cab/Hardbody pickup which will also donate the engine harness and the ECU. All i need now is a place to be, preferrably inside.
 
LPG conversions usually wears the engine more, especially so with spotty service history and probably valve adjustment neglected. But 276tkm is nothing to scoff at. :)
 
Came out to this today. Yep, someone has broken into the car.

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So far, things stolen are:

* Shifter knob for the 4WD.
* 2 spare H4 bulbs I had in the center console.
* One pack of AA batteries.
* Door lock knobs.

Things broken are:

* Both door lock cylinders.
* Both interior door handles.
* Glove box lock (even though it was unlocked).
* Indicator stalk.
* Center console lid.

Luckily there is a parts car not far away but the stupidity of the thieves are making me furious. So much destroyed for so little gain. Bleh...
 
That reads less like thieves and more like vandals, honestly. Still sucks either way; good luck with repairs.
 
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Picked up most of the interior parts from a rusted out King Cab/Hardbody today. All the plastic parts are so brittle though. It's like handling an old Ming vase.
 
Hemihead said:
Picked up most of the interior parts from a rusted out King Cab/Hardbody today. All the plastic parts are so brittle though. It's like handling an old Ming vase.
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You can use various stuff to restore the plasticizers in the plastic to return flexibility to them.
 
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