S1 to S3 -Front and rear conversion
If you have a series one or two R31 and you want to update the look of your car, here is a list of what you will need, and how to carry out the coversion.
Front end conversion[edit]
- S3 Bonnet (you can get short or long bonnets)
- S3 Headlights (standard or projectors)
- S3 Front bar skin
- S3 Front bar reinforcement (you can use the original, but you will need to cut it to make the bar sit snuggly)
- S3 Radiator extension (top and bottom)
- S3 Bonnet latch/cable (or you can opt for bonnet pins)
- S3 Filler panel (goes under the headlights, but above the front bar, that little fibreglass strip)
- S3 A/C Electric Fan (Note: Some members have been able to use the original S1/2 fan, others have needed an S3 fan, but it is worth mentioning)
- S3 Grille to suit your choice of bonnet
Full dip bonnet (long) is compatible with the GTS2, GTS import and standard S3 Half dip bonnet (short) is compatible with the Passage and Ti (honeycomb shape centre with chrome surround).
- Radiator support extensions
-Upper extension (circled in yellow), is what the bonnet latch connects to. -Lower extension (circled in blue), is what supports the under side of the upper extension.
The series 1+2 guards sit lower than the series 3 guards. The bottom of the series 1 guards slightly poke down about an inch or so. The bar will fit over series 1+2 guards, but the guards will hang down a little bit. You have a few options, you can leave it poking down, you can cut/bend the series 1-2 guards, or you can buy series 3 guards.
If you have a series 1 or 2 Skyline (or a Pintara) and you want to change the front bar only, all that is required is a S3 bumper skin. The original reinforcement can be used, but it will need to be cut down slightly to make the bar fit snugly. Alternatively, you can use the series 3 reinforcement.
This is what an early series 31 looks like with a S3 bar.
Rear conversion[edit]
- S3 tail lights
- S3 centre garnish
- Plastic bootlid strip
The sockets for the bulbs are different from S1-2 to S3. The S3 loom needs to be grafted onto the S1 loom, or you can just cut some of the 'locking tabs' off the S1 sockets to make them fit in the S3 holes. You will also need to seal the tail lights to prevent water getting into your lights/boot.
Removing The Old Lights[edit]
Next step is to take off the old lights.
Start off by popping the boot and removing the spare tyre. From there take off the carpet, then the six screws behind the existing tail light. Undo the screws along the lower garnish and unscrew the remainder. All up including the 2 lights, it's about 18 nuts. Remove the lower garnishes (from light to light all across the bottom) Pull out the globes and make sure you mark them to know which goes where).
Grab your hairdryer and start heating up the light from inside the boot. Go around the tail light in a slow circular motion and feel the sealant occasionally. As soon as it gets warm and soft, move to the outside of the car and do the same thing to the tail light. Once that becomes warm, go back the the inside of the boot and heat up. This time, push out firm, but not hard. The light should start giving outwards slightly. Keep going until you have a gap. I placed a screwdriver in between to keep the pressure up as I continued with the hairdryer.
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Once you've gone around enough and applied pressure, your lights should slowly come off. Gently push on them and they'll come off. Clean the area where the old lights sat with a rag and a non abrasive cleaning product. (I used turps) Make sure the areas is spotless to ensure the sealant will grab and hold.
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Preparing The S3 Lights[edit]
First clean the existing sealant off your tail lights.
For this you will need a hairdryer and a screwdriver.
Start by heating up the sealant bit by bit with the hairdryer. As it gets hotter it will become softer, and you will be able to slowly lift it up. As you lift, aim the hairdryer underneath to heat up the next part as you go along. Continue this until the whole strip has come off.
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To remove the rest of the sealant, heat it up again, and go around with the screwdriver and gently scrape/push the sealant off. Don't push down hard so you scratch the plastic, just guide the screwdriver around. The sealant will be warm so it'll come off easilly enough.
WIth that done, it's time to get the excess bits off. You will need a rag and some mineral turpentine. Self explanatory here, just put some turps on the rag and go around the tail light until it's nice and clean! (This part alone took me about 2 hours, so don't rush it.)
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Your tail lights are now prepared.
Preparing The Wiring[edit]
There are a couple of ways you can do this.
The good way[edit]
| S1 wires | -> | S3 wires | Function |
| Green/Yellow | -> | Green/Yellow | Brake lights |
| Green/White | -> | Brown | Park lights |
| Black | -> | Black | Earth |
| Red | -> | Red | Reverse Lights |
| Green/Black | -> | Green | Left Indicator |
| Green/Red | -> | Green | Right Indicator |
S1 plugs have only 5 wires in each plug. S3 plugs have 6. Easiest way to solve that, just join both BROWN wires from the S3 lights together, or you can choose either one and leave the other unwired up. So when you turn on your headlights, either the inside pair come on, or the outside pair depending which ones you chose, or both will come on if you connected them together.
The dodgy way[edit]
You can keep the S1 plugs as they are and file down the protruding bit. There are 3 bits sticking up on the plastic, 2 narrow nubs and one wider one. File down the wide one totally until it's smooth. From there, give the rest of the globe holder a quick filing all the way around until it's slim enough to fit snuggly in the S3 globe socket. Do this with all 8, yes 8 globes and put them all in to make sure they fit. Once you're happy with it, move onto the next step.
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Fitting The S3 tails[edit]
Once both lights are off, you're ready to put the new ones on.
Grab your new light and sit them in place to make sure they'll sit fine. After you're done staring at your new baby, wipe the drool from your chin and move to the next step.
For this you will need some windscreen sealant and a rag.
Grab the sealant and apply it to the tail light with a nice even coating. Don't be too tight with it, but don't be too generous either. Apply the sealant, grab the lower garnish (bit below the tailight) and put them in place together. You don't have to be too quick and the sealant takes a while to dry, just make sure you do it properly. Once they are seated correctly, tighen up all 6 nuts so it sits in place nice and firm. Do this for both lights and then attach the lower garnish too.
Next step is important, so do it properly. Go around the light (inside and out) and make sure you seal up any gaps with the sealant. This has to be done, otherwise your lights and boot with fill up with water on a rainy day!!!
Changing The Garnish[edit]
After thats done and you're satisfied with it, it's time for the pain in the ass job. Undo all 12 -15 nuts under the boot lid for the centre garnish (and silver strip across the top). Be patient cause some are a pain to get to.
Once you've done that, grab your new S3 centre garnish and attach the number plate first. I stuffed up and put the granish on the car, then realised I had to put the plates on first. Good waste of 20min.. Anyway attach the number plate, bolt up the centre garnish, then bolt up the black strip, replacing the silver one. Step back and admire your work, well done. :)
Smokey's Variation[edit]
I found out, after much frustration, that the easiest way to do this is to just find a bin or bucket that has as close to the same dimensions as the tail light. fill it up about 2-3 inches with a mix of 3 parts turps: 1 part water. dump the tail light face down in the bucket. fill in the inside of the lights with turps from behind - and leave it to soak for 2 hours. by the time you get back, the black glue will be mush, and then you just pry the plastic cover away and it comes off soooo easy.
You will find that with the method above of "heat a bit, screwdriver the cover off a bit, heat a bit" that if you get too impatient or too keen then you will crack the plastic cover as it is VERRRRRRRY brittle and fragile. do so at your own risk.
The only real problem with my method is that u will need about 4 litres of turps - but, you know, do one tail light, then use the turps in the bucket to clean off the excess glue, do the other tail light etc. cost you far less than the anguish of cracking a tail light cover.
The turps doesn't affect the finish or condition of the lights in anyway so don't stress. I tried doing it the slow way, and it took me 2 days to do one tail light. I got fed up and tried it with the bucket, and I finished the whole job in an afternoon.
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After: File:S3fca.jpg
Compiled by:
SleepR, Smokey, Beannie, 31Ti, SKY031, frigjam