chris51881 Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 finally got my LS1. came out of an 01 trans am WS6. it has a t56 6 speed trans and an LS6 intake. i plan on a new clutch and a big cam. i started to mark where we're going to cut the firewall (thanks for the pictures from dts300z). i tried to remove the matting on the inside of the firewall and the floor panels. turned out i had to chisel out the matting with a hammer and screwdriver. looks like the driver's side floor needs a whole new panel. i'll deal with that shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fogged306 Posted June 14, 2009 Author Share Posted June 14, 2009 A little note to someone doing a swap like this: You don't have to remove the engine harness from the engine. If you disconnect the main plug from the ECU and the only other plug attached to that harness inside the vehicle, and feed them through the harness's grommet through the firewall, the entire harness will come out with the engine. That would probably have saved quite a bit of time had I done it that way, but I didn't realize it until it was too late, so I'll pass the info along so someone else doesn't make the same mistake. We got the firewall rough cut today and are planning to mock the engine in the bay tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zangiefisgod Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Speaking of the wiring harness, what are you guys using for the LS1? The Painless kit seems to be very popular... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fogged306 Posted June 15, 2009 Author Share Posted June 15, 2009 I have a pin-out diagram for the LS1 ECU and we have the service manual for the 300zx so I'm just going to mate them together myself. We aren't at that point yet so I'm not even thinking about it, but when I get there I'll be sure to post some pics and info on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 so we cut out the trans tunnel. about 17-18 inches wide. the t56 is 16 inches wide so we'll have some breathing room. we made sure not to cut too close to the gas pedal so we would have enough foot room when we were done. i was going to keep the stock radiator mount that has the hood latch on it but it saved a ton of trouble cutting it right off. it freed up plenty of room for the transmission to go through when we were putting the motor back in so we didn't have to raise it too high. also, the radiator, fan, and intake will have extra room when we get there. as we started pushing the motor in we realized that oil pan is no where near clearing the rack so we pulled the motor back out and removed the oil pan. we got a little creative and bolted a garbage bag in where the oil pan was to keep dirt out. without the oil pan on the bottom we had enough room to move around. it seems like maybe the way to go will be to get and aftermarket pan and bolt it up there after we get the motor settled in. the GTO might work too. we'll see after we get the mounts done. we planned on mocking up the motor mounts and wondered if the stock LS1 mounts would work. after we got the engine back in, it was up just a couple inches too high but the arms on the mounts are 2 1/2 inches high. cutting the arms off and welding the top of the mount directly to the bottom might work. i'm feeling pretty good about that. we'll get to it next time. with the motor where it was it seems like the shifter is going to come up right where the stock one was. that will be great. i'll have more pics when we find out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 note: putting an LS1 w/ t56 transmission from 2001 trans am WS6 into a 1990 300zx 2+2 auto. 1.) what are some suggestions for the clutch pedal and slave cylinder? the car was originally automatic so i don't have either stock but i can get them on ebay. if i did get them, how would i connect them to the t56? also, the LS1 i got came with pedals and slave cylinder. if i used them, how much effort would be needed to fit it? 2.) what are some suggestions on the driveshaft? the stock 2+2 has 2 joints. should we make it just 1 long section or leave it that way? also, how accurate does the t56 have to line up with the drive shaft? will we be able to get away with a little play in it? 3.) what are the dimensions of the 1995 240SX engine bay compared to the 1990 300ZX engine bay? i ask because my buddy put an LS1 in a 240 and he got a header kit that fit nicely. i was hoping i could use the same kit. 4.) there is a sensor on the power steering line and if i delete it will it cause any problems? 5.) does anyone know what each of the 5 computers under the passenger foot panel are? i found the cruise control and auto trans computers in the service manual but the other 3 are a mystery. also, what is the computer to the right of the steering wheel? any input would help. thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoov100 Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 note: putting an LS1 w/ t56 transmission from 2001 trans am WS6 into a 1990 300zx 2+2 auto. 1.) what are some suggestions for the clutch pedal and slave cylinder? the car was originally automatic so i don't have either stock but i can get them on ebay. if i did get them, how would i connect them to the t56? also, the LS1 i got came with pedals and slave cylinder. if i used them, how much effort would be needed to fit it? 2.) what are some suggestions on the driveshaft? the stock 2+2 has 2 joints. should we make it just 1 long section or leave it that way? also, how accurate does the t56 have to line up with the drive shaft? will we be able to get away with a little play in it? 3.) what are the dimensions of the 1995 240SX engine bay compared to the 1990 300ZX engine bay? i ask because my buddy put an LS1 in a 240 and he got a header kit that fit nicely. i was hoping i could use the same kit. 4.) there is a sensor on the power steering line and if i delete it will it cause any problems? 5.) does anyone know what each of the 5 computers under the passenger foot panel are? i found the cruise control and auto trans computers in the service manual but the other 3 are a mystery. also, what is the computer to the right of the steering wheel? any input would help. thanks. 1. you could do either, but if you are already building part of the firewall building a section to mount pedals too shouldn't be hard, the only problem i would foresee with using either the GM pedal setup or a wilwood or tilton setup would be the bracket that connects the steering column to the firewall. 2. 1 piece driveshaft will cause less issues down the road and will make your life easy. as for lining up the diff to the trans, so long as the ujoints dont bind while going through there range of motion you should be ok, just get it as close as you possibly can to lining up. 3.the headers from an ls1 trans am/camaro/GTO should fit no problem, as there is alot LESS space under those hoods then an ls1 in a z32, the problem i could see being is ground clearance and steering shaft clearance. 4.thats a good question, i dont think you would need it, as the system is mechanically controlled and electronically monitored. 5.another good question! trace the wires back as far as you can and i guess go from their, i think they might be for the alarm? I'm sure someone can correct something in my post though, so let them make some posts on your questions before coming to your conclusion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dts300z Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 note: putting an LS1 w/ t56 transmission from 2001 trans am WS6 into a 1990 300zx 2+2 auto. 1.) what are some suggestions for the clutch pedal and slave cylinder? the car was originally automatic so i don't have either stock but i can get them on ebay. if i did get them, how would i connect them to the t56? also, the LS1 i got came with pedals and slave cylinder. if i used them, how much effort would be needed to fit it? I would suggest getting the z32 clutch pedal assembly and adapt a tilton clutch master cylinder to fit. They have quite a selection. 2.) what are some suggestions on the driveshaft? the stock 2+2 has 2 joints. should we make it just 1 long section or leave it that way? also, how accurate does the t56 have to line up with the drive shaft? will we be able to get away with a little play in it? Just as hoov100 said a 1 piece driveshaft all the way. There are some guidelines for aligning a driveshaft that should be followed... here is a good article to get you started http://www.carcraft.com/howto/91758/index.html . Also you need to be sure you give the correct measurements to the driveshaft shop, they will tell you what they need. Usually all they need is from the face of the companion flange on the differential to the tail shaft of the T56. Let them know that you have a fixed differential / IRS. 3.) what are the dimensions of the 1995 240SX engine bay compared to the 1990 300ZX engine bay? i ask because my buddy put an LS1 in a 240 and he got a header kit that fit nicely. i was hoping i could use the same kit. From what I remember the 240 has a little more length and width so be careful here. I hate to say it but unless you can get in contact with one of the other LS1 Z32 guys it might be trial and error. BRAAP has a good thread here on manifold selection http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=144469&page=4 . Do you have a link to the kit your friend used? 4.) there is a sensor on the power steering line and if i delete it will it cause any problems? I would trace the wires back and see how it ties in. Look in the Service manual here http://300zx-twinturbo.com/cgi-bin/manual.cgi?list=st&dir=&config=&refresh=&direction=forward&scale=0&cycle=off&slide=29&design=default&total=98 there is the schematic. 5.) does anyone know what each of the 5 computers under the passenger foot panel are? i found the cruise control and auto trans computers in the service manual but the other 3 are a mystery. also, what is the computer to the right of the steering wheel? any input would help. thanks. The one to the right of the steering wheel is the auto air computer. You should have the ECCS, possibly powersteering control unit, alarm computer, ASCD (cruise control), AT control unit and I think some relays etc... The swap is looking good... I used the same width on the transmission tunnel (18") this did require tweaking the gas pedal a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fogged306 Posted June 19, 2009 Author Share Posted June 19, 2009 Do you have a link to the kit your friend used? He went with a sikky kit and I believe these were the headers. http://www.thermalnator.com/products/swap_parts/headers He seems to think the engine bays are identical by looking at them, but I'm not sure. I think we'll measure up his engine bay the best we can with his engine in there and see what we come up with. I'd rather not go with manifolds if we can avoid them. If no other option, worst case we can use the f-body manifolds that came with the engine because they fit with tons of room to spare. We do have a guy who makes headers locally (and for a decent price) and hopefully can track him down and see what he can do if we can't fit any pre-mans. I did call a local driveshaft company yesterday and I think we're all set in that department... hopefully. Other than that, I appreciate the replies guys, I was thinking the same thing on the clutch pedals, I was just hoping you could give us some insight into adapting the master in. By the way, what kind of tweaking did you have to do with your gas pedal dts300z? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dts300z Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 By the way, what kind of tweaking did you have to do with your gas pedal dts300z? I just removed the pedal and bent it slightly to move it closer to the brake pedal. I bent it in 2 places so it would stay straight up and down so it wasn't sitting at an angle. As far as the clutch master goes I will measure the spread and the angle of the mounting ears so you know what to look for. I would say your going to need at least a 7/8" bore clutch master. There are tons of brands and you might be able to even go to NAPA and have them look up the specs and pull a few and compare them. I did see some universal clutch master and pedal setups from summit you might look into. It might be pretty simple to just get a universal firewall mount setup but you would need to take some measurements to be sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 see if this makes sense. (note: the front and the rear of the car are both on jackstands so the whole car is not level.) i got the trans centered and back about as far as it'll go. i measured down from the center of where the driveshaft goes in (see picture) down to the that flat part under it (about 2 and 1/2 inches) and then did the same at the pinion. i tied a straight bar along that line (2 and 1/2 below the center of the driveshaft). i found a factory driveshaft mount point (see picture) that should be perpendicular to the factory driveshaft and got a level on it (see picture). the bar i tied up looks to be level with that mount point. so.... my question is... is this a good way to determine if my driveshaft will be where it ought to be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted June 23, 2009 Share Posted June 23, 2009 so i cut more of the firewall out including the bottom of the wiper tray. there's plenty extra down there to cut off. i also took a little more off the drivers side near the pedal. i used the idea we got here to put a piece of angle iron on the front of the block to help center it. we found 2 bolts on either side of the crank that worked. i cut around the bottom so it would fit over the top of the crank. we went to the hardware store and picked up 2 long bolts with the same thread as the factory. we should have gotten longer ones. if the iron was in front of the crank it would have worked much easier. next we took a torch to the factory LS1 mounts and cut the top off that goes around the bushing. i ground it down most of the way. now we can use that to weld the new mount to. so as it sits, we seem to have enough room everywhere. its going to be kind of a tight squeeze to get the hood to set down. its pretty close to the throttle body. there is just over 2 inches underneath to fit the oil pan. Autokraft has a pan kit for $400 i think i'll go with (unless i can find a used one). http://www.autokraft.org/products/ they told me that it was 1and3/4 inches deep in the shallow end and 5and1/2 inches deep in the sump. also, 11 inches wide at the base of the sump and 9 inches from the front of the sump to the back. hopefully we'll get the mounts started today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators BRAAP Posted June 23, 2009 Administrators Share Posted June 23, 2009 Looking good! Thanks for the updates... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dts300z Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 see if this makes sense. (note: the front and the rear of the car are both on jackstands so the whole car is not level.) i got the trans centered and back about as far as it'll go. i measured down from the center of where the driveshaft goes in (see picture) down to the that flat part under it (about 2 and 1/2 inches) and then did the same at the pinion. i tied a straight bar along that line (2 and 1/2 below the center of the driveshaft). i found a factory driveshaft mount point (see picture) that should be perpendicular to the factory driveshaft and got a level on it (see picture). the bar i tied up looks to be level with that mount point. so.... my question is... is this a good way to determine if my driveshaft will be where it ought to be? Be sure you still have some sort of pinion angle in there so you don't have a high speed vibration (they can be tough to get rid of). The links I provided should give you a rough pinion angle to work with or a goal so to speak. The main thing is to get your engine and trans as level as possible as this will aid in the drive shaft angles. This will keep your companion flange on the differential parallel with the face of the output shaft on the transmission. What this does is give you the same angle at both ends of the drive shaft which is what you want. Looking good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dts300z Posted June 24, 2009 Share Posted June 24, 2009 so i cut more of the firewall out including the bottom of the wiper tray. there's plenty extra down there to cut off. i also took a little more off the drivers side near the pedal. i used the idea we got here to put a piece of angle iron on the front of the block to help center it. we found 2 bolts on either side of the crank that worked. i cut around the bottom so it would fit over the top of the crank. we went to the hardware store and picked up 2 long bolts with the same thread as the factory. we should have gotten longer ones. if the iron was in front of the crank it would have worked much easier. next we took a torch to the factory LS1 mounts and cut the top off that goes around the bushing. i ground it down most of the way. now we can use that to weld the new mount to. so as it sits, we seem to have enough room everywhere. its going to be kind of a tight squeeze to get the hood to set down. its pretty close to the throttle body. there is just over 2 inches underneath to fit the oil pan. Autokraft has a pan kit for $400 i think i'll go with (unless i can find a used one). http://www.autokraft.org/products/ they told me that it was 1and3/4 inches deep in the shallow end and 5and1/2 inches deep in the sump. also, 11 inches wide at the base of the sump and 9 inches from the front of the sump to the back. hopefully we'll get the mounts started today. Man I was worried about how I explained the process of centering the engine was going to get lost in translation... I was wrong and that is exactly what I was saying. Great job and the best of luck to you!!! Dan BTW you are doing a great job documenting the build! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zangiefisgod Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I can't wait to see the rest!! Great job!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 ok, so we got the motor apart and im going to do some work. im trying to decide whether to go with the patriot head package or a CNC port job. anybody had an experience with either? https://www.patriot-performance.com/xcart/home.php?cat=12 also, after we get all the head internals sorted out im going with a bigger cam. does anyone have any suggestions on a good cam company? im looking to push 400+ which shouldnt be any problem. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 so i got my oil pan today. Autokraft LSx pan kit: http://www.autokraft.org/products/ came with the pick-up and billet oil filter adapter. looks good and fits well. you will need to get a new gasket as it doesnt come with one. i posted the dimensions before but here are the pics of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators BRAAP Posted July 10, 2009 Administrators Share Posted July 10, 2009 Sah-weeet! Looks like like an ideal Z-32 LSx oil pan! Love the Autokraft steel pans! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris51881 Posted July 16, 2009 Share Posted July 16, 2009 so i finally found some junk yard pedals (clutch and brake because im going from auto to manual) and put them in tonight. they look good. $130 says they dont look THAT good but they look good enough. i did have to pry off a panel that covered the holes for the clutch pedal and master cylinder. no big deal. im going to call Tilton tomorrow to see what they have me in the line of a clutch thatll fit with the t56 fitting on the end. i put in a Walbro 255lph fuel pump also. i got it from TREperformance.com and they had about the same price as everyone else but they also have ebay and i like paypal so i went with them. the pump is pretty easy to get to, theres a door under the spare tire. make sure you blow all the crap/rust off the top before you open up the tank. the Walbro pump is significantly smaller than the OEM pump so i had to get creative. (see pics) i drilled a hole in each side of the bracket that held the old pump in and bent them in so they touched the new pump. then i ran a zip tie around it. the kit i got didnt seem to have any way to hold the pump in place so it would have just been swinging around the tank. other than that it went smooth (surprisingly). but when they say "work in a well ventilated area" apparently garage door open doesnt cut it. id suggest having the car outside. as far as the motor goes, i ordered Patriot heads and a SPEC stage 3+ clutch. ill have links for those after i get some pics of them on here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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