These days it's hard to be original and stand out from the crowd. With the import culture moving toward the drift scene, more rear-wheel-drive cars are being custom built, like the Nissan 240SX or the Toyota Corolla GT-S. So, how do you get your car to stand out from the rest of the group? Simple: Get one delivered from Japan. That's what Ming Hang Ng did with his Nissan Silvia S15. The body style of the S15 is rare, since Nissan stopped producing the American version (240SX) in 1998. With this in mind, Ming had a great platform to create something original that the Midwest had never seen before.
It isn't foreign for Ming to have rare cars-his previous sled was a fully built Top Secret WRX GC8 that had JDM parts slapped all over it. About a year after completion he sold the car for his new project, the Silvia. With his connections he was able to get one shipped stateside. What rolled out of the shipping container was an orgasmic pearl white Nissan Silvia Spec-R. Every tuner's dream is to have a car drop shipped from Japan. The combination of right-hand drive, 250hp SR20, six-speed, helical limited-slip differential and HICAS (High Capacity Actively Controlled Steering) is something that us "mere" Americans will probably never have.
Ming's previous car was a showstopper with its fancy paint job and a wild D0-Luck body kit. For his next feat he wanted something more streamlined and clean. He called up his contact once again and had them ship him a full Vertex aero kit and a Nismo wing diffuser. With a more aggressive look, the car appeared to be moving when it was actually standing still. Adding to the exterior modifications, Ming replaced the stock taillights with Origin LED taillights and swapped out the heavy stock hood for a more practical and lightweight carbon-fiber one that he painted to match the car. Everything that was replaced or added gave the car a push toward his goal of having a one of a kind Silvia.
Adding to the uniqueness of the car, Ming picked up a set of Gram Lights 57S-Pro wheels with an aurora-colored titanium lip. With crazy offset in the rear, Ming had to pull the fender and adjust the camber to fit the 18x10 wheels with 255/35-18 Bridgestone SO2. Helping the car tuck the wheels, he opted for a set of HKS Hypermax coilovers. Not only did it help tuck the wheels but it also gave him a much more customizable setting on his suspension by corner weighting each side of his car.
With the exterior set up the way he wanted, Ming moved his focus toward the interior. Sponsored by Rockford Fosgate, the interior has everything from new replacement speakers to custom 6-inch woofers in the rear deck. Ming replaced the JDM radio because he couldn't pick up any Japanese stations here in the U.S. He decided to salvage some parts from his old car that he didn't sell but did replace the stock seats with a pair of tight-fitting Bride seats-complete with the signature gradient Bride logo. The door panels were reupholstered with Bride cloth giving the car a nice two-tone look inside with the red accents. Ming didn't stop there, he also swapped out the old headliner with suede. To put the icing on the cake, he added a pair of Takata harness belts for his occasional shenanigans and drifting.
Even though Ming replaced a majority of the cockpit, he picked out a lot of subtle colors to help blend the new with the old. Looking for a place to put his new Defi gauges, he selected a custom gauge pod to place on the dash. After rethinking this idea, he decided to skip the pods and make a custom holder inside the glovebox, where he put a Blitz boost controller right next to the gauges.
With the exterior and interior complete Ming's final task was the engine bay. He didn't want to go crazy with horsepower numbers since he was looking to drive the Silvia around town. After researching some rare parts and figuring out how much power he wanted to pump out on the SR20DET, Ming once again called on his connection to hook him up with exactly what he wanted. Sure enough, after a few e-mails and phone calls, a crate of hard goods was delivered to Ming's house. A large container of parts, from ARC to Nismo, was delivered and within two weeks Ming had the engine set up and ready to run. Baseline horsepower was now bumped to 350 hp thanks to the upgraded GReddy turbo that helped move plenty of air into the HKS front-mount intercooler. To help clear the exhaust from the motor, a GReddy downpipe and Espelir exhaust system was installed. With the help of the Mine's ECU and the Blitz boost controller, the car can now achieve Ming's planned goal safely. With the excess amount of torque now being thrown at the transmission, a Nismo clutch was needed to help transfer power to the rear wheels. As a final touch, Ming dressed up the engine with a few ARC hard goods.
Although just a few months from delivery, Ming has taken an already rare car and made it almost one of a kind. Ming isn't done just yet, he's still missing a few parts that didn't come in the last shipment. As for now he's satisfied with the outcome, but surely he's already sourcing out more rare parts-like custom Project Mu calipers for his big brake kit. Ming offers thanks to those who helped him build this one of a kind Silvia in just a few months.
Nissan Silvia S15
Power Output: 350 HP
Exterior
Full Vertex body kit
JDM Nismo wing
Origin LED taillights
VIS carbon-fiber hood (painted)
Interior
Bride Brix II seats
Bride seat rail
Full Bride rear seat
Bride wrapped door panels
Takata four-point harness
Suede-wrapped roof
Defi BF oil temperature gauge
Defi BF boost gauge
Defi BF exhaust gauge
Defi Link Control Unit II
Blitz SBC i-Color boost controller
Engine
10cm GReddy Turbo T517Z
Mine's ECU
HKS front-mount intercooler kit
ARC blow-off valve
ARC titanium gradation spark plug cover
Espelir cat-back exhaust
GReddy downpipe
GReddy hotpipe
Nismo oil cap
Nismo radiator cap
Powdercoated valve cover
Nismo clutch
Nismo LSD
Wheels & Tires
Gram light 57S-Pro titanium color
Front 18x9.5
Rear 18x10
Bridgestone S02 225/40-18
Bridgestone S02 255/35-18
Suspension
HKS Hypermax coilovers
Cusco rear camber kit
I.C.E.
Rockford Fosgate head unit
Rockford Fosgate amp
Rockford Fosgate subs
Rockford Fosgate speakers
Rockford Fosgate tweeters