crackhouse

MTennZ, I think I know your sister. I live in the 'Boro too and I'm working on a 280Z with a VG30DETT. We need to hook up sometime and check out each other's projects. I'll get your number from your sister or her boyfriend.

Oh, by the way, I used the 28 year old stock 280Z trans mount to mount the 300ZX 5 speed to. It bolts right up (and that's the other reason why the engine is so far forward, although it's still behind the strut tower). As for the shifting issues: I have a 350Z and can't shift the thing when it's cold out. The synchros for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th aren't worth anything when the transmission is cold. I got my transmission for dirt cheap, so I won't mind trying to weld the 300ZX bell housing flange to the 350Z trans. I have two spare 300ZX TT 5 speeds if it doesn't work out.

I wish it would go back farther. The engine/trans is so long that I had to mount it there to make the shifter end up where I wanted it. I could have modified the shifter extension on the back of the tranny, but didn't think about it until after I had welded in the mounts. If I had been thinking about it, I would have removed all the shifter stuff, pushed the engine to the firewall, and tried to find a way to put a normal shifter in it that comes out of the top plate on the tranny. Oh well. It does keep me from having to make a tight radius turn out of the turbos for my downpipe. I'm looking at mounting a 350Z 6 speed to the VG30 now.

I am attempting to do the swap. I've posted some pictures on image station, but I don't know if you'll be able to see them. Here's a link anyway. If you can't veiw them, I'll have to find somewhere to post them. You can do the swap without notching the frame rails. It's a tight fit, but it will work (the waste gate on the driver side is 3 mm from the rail). The biggest issue is the steering, which I have yet to tackle, but I think it could be easily done with a couple of U-joints, some 4130 rod, and a welder. http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2129655111&code=14937001&mode=invite&DCMP=isc-email-AlbumInvite

I've had great results with Por-Strip made by POR-15. It's $31.00/gal, but worth every penny. You spray it on with the included spray bottle and the paint literally falls off. Only thicker paints will you have to scrape and reapply the stripper. http://www.por15.com/product.asp?productid=188 . You have to be patient though. I sprayed it on and five minutes later didn't see anything. Sprayed some more on and came back in 15 minutes and there wasn't any paint left where I had sprayed the stuff!

I did a search, but didn't come up with anything. My rear panel is in very bad shape. I'm planning on cutting it out and building a new one out of sheet metal, but I wanted to see if anyone else has done this and how they did it. My plan was to cut a piece of sheet metal out the length and width I needed, then cut templates out for the curve you see when you're looking at the car from the side and tack those on to give the panel it's curved shape. I've tried bending the panel and I can't get the right bend to save my life. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks for the help guys. I've had the car stripped down since July, but the undercoating is the only thing left. I'm trying to build a VG30DETT car (the engine/trans has already been test fitted) but the dang body work is holding me back. If I didn't have to do the body work, I would have been finished last month! Body work sucks!

I'm working on a '77 280Z. I have the vehicle completely torn down. There is not a single bolt left on the thing. I have all the exterior paint stripped off and I'm beginning to do the body work to get ready for paint. While I have the paint off, I'm going to stitch weld the seams of the entire car, but I have an issue with the rubberized coatings everywhere. What is the easiest way to get this junk off? I want all coatings/paints off the car so I can stitch weld it and then reseal the whole car with POR-15 before painting. The putty knife method has gotten old.