Mike Mileski

I recently bought a 1971 240Z that spent a lot of its early years as a race car here in AZ. Nothing major, just amateur local stuff. The guy I bought it from gave me the piece shown below and said he got it when he bought the car and was told it was a Datsun factory racing rear sway bar. Does anyone know if this is true or what it might actually be? Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

One thing that you might be concerned about is the torque rating for the 350Z trans vs. the torque of the LS motor you're planning on installing. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

The side vents on the rear portion of the front fenders are functional. Each vent has its own small high powered fan that you can turn on with a switch that will pull additional air out of the engine compartment if you feel the need to. I have custom front and rear lower control arms that I designed and made on the other car I'm working on (see pictures) that I may switch to this car down the road. I'll just have to wait and see. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

It has an Autopower roll bar inside for a little bit of roll over protection. The stiff floor pans and underside bracing you can see in one of the pictures makes it a super stiff chassis. It feels like it has zero flex. I have no idea how long it will take me to finish my other car (is it ever really finished?), so I have no idea when It'll be time to part with one of them. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I don't believe it's the same car. If this one has been outside of AZ, it's only been to NM or CA. My plans are to keep this car until my other one is done and then I'll decide which one to sell. There's no way I'd keep both. It wouldn't make any sense. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

As a few of you might know, I am in the middle of installing a GM 480hp LS3 crate engine in my 1971 Z that previously had a ZZ4 motor in it. I just installed the JCI mounts in it about a week ago and should be dropping in the motor in the next week or so. I know a guy locally that did this same conversion on his 1971 about three years ago. I went over to his place last Saturday to ask him some questions and look at his car before I started installing the wire harness on mine. When I got there he told me he was planning on selling his car to help finance some property he's looking at. Long story short, it was a great deal on an absolutely killer car that I just couldn't pass up. Besides the LS480/376 engine, it has a Tremec T-56 Magnum trans, Aviaid dry sump oil system, Subtle Z body kit, AZ Z Car Wilwood brakes, fuel cell and tons of other stuff. This car was raced in AZ for many years before he bought it. It had a straight body and was rust free but it had some pretty beat up floor pans. He totally replaced the floor pans with heavy gauge material and reinforced it with low profile rectangular tubing. It's a combination track/street car and it's a beast. Check out some of the pictures I've attached. This guy is a certified aircraft mechanic and his work is super meticulous and impressive. I plan on driving this until I finish mine and will then have to decide which one to get rid of. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I'm in the process of installing the John's Cars motor mount kit in my 1971 240Z using an LS3 crate engine. In his instructions for the right hand side plate that bolts to the block, he states to cut off the tab on the block that prevents the mount from laying flat. He then says it's soft, so just use a hacksaw. It may be soft aluminum but it's about a 1' X 3/4" protrusion that is in the most inconvenient place to even begin to saw. I started using a small hand held saw and it seems like it would take forever. I was even thinking of notching his motor mount plate so it clears the protrusion. Any shortcuts or suggestions on what anyone else has done? I tried searching but was unsuccessful. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I'm keeping the stock tank for now with an external Mallory EFI pump. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

The headers that JTR sells that fit the JCI mounts are made with 1.75" tubing. That's what I have. I'm using a TKO600 with an Autoworks shifter extension because the TKO600 shift lever is only 19.75" back from the front face of the transmission, which is way too short of the shifter hole in the tunnel. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

One thing NOT to try is mixing the CX Racing mounts with the Sanderson LS headers that fit the John's Cars mounts. I thought this might work, ordered the mounts and headers and failed miserably. There's no way to fit the passenger header with the CX Racing mount. I tried shortening the mounting plates on the CX Racing mounts and flipping them from side-to-side but there was no way to make them work. I'm posting this in case anyone else thought about trying this combination. In a word, DON'T! My John's Cars mounts are arriving via UPS today. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

Pac_Man, I did some cross checking and it looks like that unit will work on a 240Z. Thanks a bunch. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

Is anyone aware of another oil pressure sending unit from another vehicle that is smaller than the stock Datsun unit but still gives an equal signal that will work with the stock oil pressure gauge? I am putting in an LS motor and need to tap into the LS oil system for a sending unit and I sure would like to use something a little smaller than the large stock one, even if it's a different thread size. I do not want to convert to different gauges at this point. Any help would be appreciated. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I should be putting in my LS3 using the CX Racing mounts by the end of this month. I also bought the Sanderson/JTR block hugger headers, so as soon as I have the engine in, I can see how easy (I hope) the headers go on. I will report back as soon as I get that far. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

In a frontal collision, it's your seat belt and shoulder harness that would hold you in place, not your seat. Even if your seat came loose (like you said, very unlikely), it would only add a little more mass to your much greater existing body mass. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

Or, you could use the Wilwood equivalent, part no. 260-10374, and make it look even slicker by adding their little aluminum reservoir. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

http://www.zcarsource.com/window-regulators-240z-260z-280z_8_77897.html Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

Actually, a 9" wide wheel with zero offset has more than 4.5" of backspace. The wheel width is the dimension between the inside the lips of the rim. Backspace is measured from the hub mounting surface to the outside of the wheel lip. So, backspace for a 9" wide wheel is 4.5" plus the thickness of the rim, which in some cases, might be another 10 mm or even a little more. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

It doesn't really matter if the hub is further in from stock or out further. As long as you pick the correct wheel offset, you can place the tire exactly where you want it in the wheel well. Mike Mileski Tucson

The Pilot Sport PS2s have been great so far. They are a good all season performance tire. Not the greatest wear factor but I don't drive that many miles. I have the rear camber set at only about a quarter degree negative, more for tire wear than ultimate handling. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I have Enkei PF01 wheels. Fronts are 17x8 with a 45mm offset and 10mm spacers. Rears are 17x9 with a 48mm offset. Tires are Michelin Pilot Sport PS2s, 245/40ZR-17 front and 265/40ZR-17 rear. I have Modern Motorsports Z31 5 lug aluminum front hubs and a Techno Toy Tuning rear setup for an R230 with 5 lug Z23 turbo hubs and axles. I have custom made adjustable control arms front and rear so this may have moved the wheel mounting face from the stock location. Wheel wells and fender lips are stock. See picture for one view on how it looks. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ

I have 245/40X17s on the front of my car and 265/40X17s on the rear with stock fender wells and no rubbing. I have coil overs, Z31 front hubs and a TTT rear setup. I didn't need to roll my fender lips either. Mike Mileski Tucson, AZ