Our Budget Beast is slowly coming along, having just removed our stock engine and serviced the entire rear end, and now it’s time to turn our attention to the radiator support. As you will recall our auction S14 was damaged in front by some unknown force and subsequently we had to ditch the air conditioning condenser as well as the 240sx radiator.
Today we’ll be showing you with our DIY Guide on How to Repair a 240SX radiator support by removing the front hood support and hood latch. This job can be undertaken by anyone with welding experience at home, make sure to always wear the proper level of eye protection before starting this repair job.
Use this guide to repair your radiator support, hood latch or even convert from Zenki to Kouki. Although the kouki conversion does not NEED this front radiator support changeover, it’s recommended so that your hood and lights line up correctly.
Before you begin this guide on how to remove and replace your radiator support, make sure you have the following items:
- Electric Drill
- Replacement front radiator support
- Metal drill bits – having a few spares is a good idea
To begin removing your radiator support, make sure to remove the hood all together. Simply open your hood and prop it up to access the 12mm nuts that secure the hood in place. Remove the entire hood and set to the side, and then begin removing your hood latch.
To remove your Nissan 240SX hood latch without damaging the plastic clip or tab, look through the top of the latch to pull the cable out.
Do not pull or yank on this cable to remove, simply push it towards the vehicle to release it from the clip. This cable should not be stretched or otherwise compromised, as this can lead to inconsistent hood security. In other words, take this part slow and remove the cable without damaging it, or you’ll have this hood flipping up on you at the worst time and possibly taking out your windshield.
Unbolt the front bumper by removing the bolts that run along the side of your fenderline. Unscrew or unplug the side marker, and let it hang at this point.
Unscrew the side markers, (this corner didn’t have one from the auction house) and then you can access the 10mm nuts that hold the fender to your front headlights. Unplug or twist your headlight bulbs out of the housing in order to free the headlight assembly from the front of your Nissan 240SX.
At this stage, you should be able to reach down through your front bumper support to reach your front corner lenses. Twist the bulbs out to remove from the front of your Zenki bumper.
Remove the front bumper support by taking off the 14mm nuts shown here. These run through your front frame rail and hold the 5 mph crash support in place.
Now it’s time to unbolt your fenders and clear the way for your electric drill. You will be drilling out the spot welds that hold your 240SX Radiator support in place.
Go slowly and make sure to use a punch for guidance when needed. Always change your drill bit if you feel as though the bit has gone dull.
Take it slow because you’ve got a long road ahead, drilling out all of your spot welds is a long process and can be tedious to say the least. Once you have drilled all the way through all of the spot welds, you are ready to remove the front radiator support and move onto the next part of our 50 state legal Nissan 240SX 2JZ engine swap build.
Once you’ve pulled off your old beat up radiator support and hood latch, you are ready to move on to the next part of our Budget Beast build! Crack open a beer or 12 and enjoy a frosty reward for your hard work.
Have any questions about our how to repair 240SX radiator support guide? Leave us a comment below and let us know!