joshp

Tracked down a turbo, still looking for the harness, preferably out of an 82-83 for easier compatibility with the 82 engine and 82 ecu I have. Thanks Guys/Gals! Josh

Looking for a stock turbo and wiring harness for my swap. Cant ms with my 77 here in ca. Also downpipe to the cat and any emissions goodies you may have. Will pick up around bay area or pay shipping. Josh

Just talked to the shop that my Z is at, and all I can say is that it won't be there for long. $2300 just for labor in a remove and replace with another L28e, hemmed and hawed about the turbo swap. Shame, because I really would have liked to give this particular shop my business... really nice guy, but it seems like he really doesn't want to deal with a job like this, and is simply pricing it as such. Called around a bit and found a z place that knows the swap pretty well and gave me a ballpark of about the same figure for the L28et swap. Approximately $1600 at book for R&R, best guess of half of that to pull the L28et from a donor, and $3-400 to button everything up including wiring. Have truly had a rough time tracking down a donor zx turbo in the time crunch. If I can source all of the smog equipment along with the parts I listed as well, the reman engine and parts is an option that's increased cost is slightly offset by not having the labor of pulling the engine from a donor car. If anyone's got a source for parts in the CA Bay Area, I'd sure appreciate a PM.

Just as an update.... waiting on my mechanic to give me his best guess estimate on the cost. Thanks for all the great info so far... I'll update with more info as I have it!

The engine totally seized up... I picked up this z in November-ish, and knew there were some issues with the engine. Wasn't too worried about it, since I figured I would be doing a swap at some point as well. I've thought about the junkyard engine, but that's essentially what got me to this point now. I'd rather put up the cash to get it right and move on... just trying to figure out my path. Even typing this I feel dumb, but I have to ask... what about the possibility of having the l28et installed sans turbo? cgsheen... not trying to pry, if I was to call and ask for a straight L28et swap, what's a ballpark figure for you? Am I guessing too high on the amount of labor? Josh

I found and read through Bumble Zee's swap writeup so I'm going to include the parts list he provided as a list with prices I'm seeing on them to both organize my thoughts and provide insight to those who may find this in some way helpful. Complete turbo engine - $1089 http://www.carmonkeys.com/1982-NISSAN-280ZX-Engine-Assembly-Turbo-5-Years-Warranty#product-details Turbo - I believe is included in above, email sent for verification Turbo exhaust manifold - included with engine Turbo ECU - $150 - $200 on ebay Turbo FI harness - $50 on ebay Turbo ignition harness- ? Head temp Sensor - ? Knock sensor $120 on rock auto Water Temp Sensor- $15 on rock auto Crank sensor - $50 on rock auto ignitor and coil bracket - $70 ebay oil pressure sensor- $30 emissions sensors- been searching all afternoon for a good source on what will be required by a BAR referee.. any links or help? downpipe injectors - $200 Turbo clutch - $120 kit on rockauto Turbo AFM $150 is on ebay or $200 on rockauto Turbo TPS - $33 rockauto FI relay - $40 rockauto Totals up to $2,217 before tax and shipping, missing a couple pieces of info.... hmmmm say $2500... before labor.... so $1500 difference plus the labor difference... argh.... I'm guessing at least $1000 for labor difference at 10 hours and $100/hr rate. Puts me somewhere around $4500 vs. $2000 for my best guess on straight replacement. Edit: fixed math

Yesterday was a very sad day for my 77 280z... long story short, the existing engine is toast. I've been thinking about doing the l28et swap for a couple of months, but now the decision has been thrust upon me. While I have been getting my hands dirty with some simpler mechanic work, I'm nowhere near ready to tackle the engine by myself, so work will be done at my local Datsun guy's shop. I don't have the luxury at this point of waiting to find the cheap donor car, and while I was doing some quick searches for engines, I found on lowmileageparts.com and carmonkeys.com the 280zx turbo engines available at nearly the same price as the n/a engines. I've read the turbo FAQ and lots of information while pondering the swap, and here's where I need some help. Let's just say for simplicity sake that each rebuilt engine would be $1000. (I know they can and have been found for less, but really I screwed the pooch by waiting until I blew this one up, we'll call it a dummy tax). I'm in CA so the l28et would have to be a stock swap to be bar approved. Option 1: $1000 for a refurbished 280zx non turbo engine (same L28e, correct) Labor for pulling and installing the replacement Option 2: $1000 for L28et includes intake and exhaust manifolds $150 for turbo AFM off ebay $150-200 for Turbo ECU $? turbo wiring harness $? turbo distributor $200 spark plugs Labor for engine, PLUS install the extras For a simple stock swap does it appear that I have covered all my bases? I'm needing help guessing on the labor hours for these engines. 8-10 hours for pull and replace original? Guessing 16-20 for the second option? I assuming I would stick with the 4 speed for now, and that the transmission could handle the mild factory turbo HP increase and that I could then swap it later. What would you do? Thanks for any and all info, tips, etc.

Thanks so much for pointing out your previous thread rheckz! I went ahead and ordered the kyb's so I could get the shocks and brakes done before the weekend, but I'm glad to know it wasn't a total waste. Since I have time now, I'll keep my eye out for a deal on the eibachs and throw those on here in the next few months. I'm not doing autocross or anything, just a fun driver so it sounds like that setup may work for me as well. Made my day...

Thanks for the quick replies.... I'll just go KYB's and the stock springs for now, as much as I'd like to have my Z sit a little bit lower, that will have to wait. As a follow up question though, I am under the impression that the konis are only available for the 240's, is this incorrect? Josh

Quick question, I need to replace my suspension setup asap, and on my 77 280z it seems that I'm pretty much stuck with KYB's at the moment. Since I can't get my hands on the Illumina setup right now, am I best off just running KYB's and the stock springs, or can I get away with KYB's and the eibach springs until something better is available for the shocks next year? Josh

Hey there! I'm a little over a week into my first Z extravaganza and I was in a similar situation, needing a daily driver and decided to get the z I've wanted forever instead. It can definately be done on your budget! My suggestion, based on the wisdom of many on this site is to leave your engine swap til last, and go with the L28ET. Just for referance, I bought my 77 280 z in the Bay Area for under 5k, with almost no rust. I've got the gas tank out being boiled and lined now, replaced the fuel pump and hoses, and it SHOULD be running perfectly. My interior was replaced by PO, so really I've got suspension, sound deadening, body kit to replace the bumpers, and maybe some brake work (no disk conversions for me, I fall in the 'dont think its necessary camp') . After that onto the turbo, and I can't see going much over 10k, even with the "take your best estimate and double it approach". Of course, I went with the 280z for the budget, so I'll have to smog, but the EFI for a daily driver aspect made up for that in my mind. Josh

Unfortunately an automatic transmission... ideas on cost of a 5 speed swap? Theres also another in the napa area with a 5 speed in the I have my eyes on for 5g's, although i would probably have to dump another 1-2k into it to have it at this lvl. Link for the other option: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/4122355322.html *editied to add link

Thanks for the reply! Regarding the price, coming from down south I would routinely see 240's and 260's selling in the 5-6k range, so I was hoping to save a bit with the "less desireable" 280z. That being said, I am flexible and have the ability to break out the cash for the right car. I had seen that specific listing on Craigs list, and will look into it further, but new paint is a giant red flag in my experiance... perhaps I need to let go of that fear moving forward. On with the hunt!

Hey Guys/Gals, I just moved to the Bay Area, and am in search of a new vehicle, so why not get the z car I've always wanted, right? I'm looking for a 75-78 280z (no 2+2's) that is in good running condition. I will be using this as my daily for now and working on the car as I go. I've been hunting on CL but haven't seen anything spectacular. My selection criteria, like most of yours would be, start with a straight mostly rust free body (hey wouldn't it be nice if there even WAS a totally rust free car?), good mechanicals and engine, clear title, and lastly interior. Basically, I need everything I couldn't swap out in a weekend to be on point so I can get on the road... I will also consider 240/260z's if they have a 2.8l engine swap with EFI. I strongly prefer a manual transmission. Is it reasonable to be looking in the 5k price range? Thanks, Josh