Lardel S13 - update and touchdown.
I’ve wanted to make this car a bigger part of the Lardel business for years now. Some early followers might even remember the old S13 circle logo hoodie I released a few years back. But the car has never really been presentable other than when it was more or less completely stock from a marketing point of view. But that is due to change very soon.
Starting from the beginning the S13 has been my dream car since 2014, when an old lady drove past me in her bone stock 240sx. I later got in contact with the owner and got to take it for a spin which got me even more hooked on the chassi.
Many many hours were spent on stuner.net and countless S13’s were built. But pretty fast I decided that a Type-X on some 17’s was what i wanted and the dream stayed that way for a good while.
(This was made mid 2015, when big wings and battle aero was the shit…)
In July of 2018 I decided that the time had come for me to pick up an S13, which perfectly timed the sales ad of this 200sx S13 that had been sitting for 20 years. I called the owner within 2 minutes after the sales ad was published, sent him some money and me and Dennis took a short drive and took a look at it the next day. The car was overall in a very good condition compared to the expectations you would have of an old japanese car that had been sitting for so long. The interior was complete other than a stereo, exterior looked good with minimal rust spots and mechanically it didn’t need all too much to get running. And the price was very fair with the ever growing price of S-chassis.
The car was picked up and I proceeded to spend the next year learning how to work on cars and together with some friends got it running. I had just started the Yonaka page and was deep into the 90’s japanese scene, and picked up a set of 16” Compomotive CX600 from a friend of mine which basically completed the first phase of this car. Small bits and pieces were changed throughout the next 2 years.
Early 2020, after getting hooked on the Final Bout scene in the US thanks to Eletor, I realized that I wanted a more aggressive and lower bodykit than the OEM Type-X aero.
Some digging was made and I found Ito’s old 180sx setup from 2001. His car still featured the OEM bumper with an aftermarket lip, GP Sports G Sonic Type R sideskirts and a Hot Road rear lip. It was also around this time that I accepted the fact that 17”/18” setups looked the best on S13’s instead of 17’s all around.
I thought his setup was perfect for what I was now looking for and started collecting the parts that were needed to complete this look.
Three years have now passed and most of the parts are collected for the second phase of this car.
The rear subframe has all new arms and bushings, 5 lug swap, interior has been done up etc, so it’s not only the exterior that has been focused on.
And after 2 years on jackstands it’s finally time to put the car back on the ground.
There are still things that needs to be done, obviously. But the car will be done and ready for the 2024 season.
(A thicker spacer and more camber up front is much needed.)
A Hot Road rear valence has been added to the 180sx rear bumper. I ran Type-X rear valences a while back but was not satisfied with the way the rear valence ligned up with the lower side skirts.
Between the rear lip and the very dirty GP Sports G Sonic side skirts you will find some 18x9.5 +22 Rays Gram Lights 57DR wrapped in 235/40 Valino Pergea 08C matching the 17x9 +22 57DR’s wrapped in 215/45 up front.
A big thanks to my friend Reino who happened to have these Eastbear mirrors laying around from his R32 GT-R days. These are one of the details I like the most about the car.
The Type-X rear tail lights have been paired with a RPS13 kevlar garnish. The matching under panel is still on the shopping list.
Got a pair of red Sparco Sprints and wrapped the door cards and glove box to match. Still need to put a rubber gasket around the edges to stretch the material out. The Luisi steering wheel got a long as hub spacer because tall people problems. The current shift knob is a prototype-hint at what’s to come for the 2024 season. Behind the rear seats you will find an uncompleted trunk setup that will feature some fun 2000’s styling.
See you on the roads 2024.
Follow the build at @yvng.chuki