CONTINUED...
BRAKES:
i used stock brakes (solid rotors front, and 7" drums rear) with quality semi-metallic pads... they will be OK for MOST daily driving and lighter racing (i manage to overheat them a couple of times on some pretty wicked banzai runs....) for heavy duty use, i would recommend upgrading to high temp pads/shoes AT THE LEAST... for serious racing i would recommend the NISMO vented disc fronts with the 8" rear drums...
BRAKE NOTES: If anyone knows what the B11 vented fronts from NISMO are from (i'm sure they're off of a production vehicle...), please post... i'm sure you could save us a lot of money...
WEIGHT REDUCTION:
pretty simple on mine...
1) remove the trunk-dressing crap (carpet, wood floor, etc... if you drive on the street, i would recommend leaving the spare and jack...).
2) remove the trunk and hood "cross bracing" and hood hinges. four hood pins will hold the hood down nicely. the interior is largely useless.... remove it. you shouldn't have much trouble gutting a B11 down to 1600 lbs if you're serious about it... otherwise, leave it alone. at 1936 lbs, wet, it's already pretty damn light.
3) use front bumper and bumper supports from later (85-86) B11... they get rid of the large plastic cover and heavy/bulky shock absorbers... (i never bothered to weigh the newer composite headlight system (late '84-'86) vs. the older sealed-beam setup ('82-early '84) to see which is lighter, although i have both... if anyone is REALLY interested, lemmee kno, and i might check for ya....)
WHEELS/TIRES:
LOTS OF OPTIONS... you can all thank the ricers for that... oddly enough however (and worth noting...) FWD datsun 310s, B11 sentras, and N12 pulsars all use wheels with RWD offsets!! make sure your offset is similar, or your steering effort wil become silly-hard...
-I personally like the unbelievable lightness of the stock steel wheels. they are feather-weights compared to most aluminum wheels. HOWEVER, they are pretty flimsy, and if you race, and you are not limited to stock diameter wheels in your racing class, i recommend upgrading. (incidentally, if you are looking to "restore" your stock wheels, Testor's (yeah, the model paint...) MIST GREY METALLIC is a nearly identical match for the original...)
for "racing" i used the 14" aluminum wheels off of a '78 dodge challenger (not an american car, really, imported for chrysler...), they are MAD strong, although heavy (i've been through a couple of wrecks that destroyed suspension components and the wheels were totally unharmed...)
NOTE: The ultra-light 14" wheels off of a B12 sentra coupe, although formidable, DO NOT have the right bolt pattern to fit a B11...
If any one needs amy more info on budget B11s, feel free to ask...
peace out,
LaZ