mom'sZ

please please please use the search function. This just got discussed like two days ago, the thread is like 8 or ten down the page from your's. here's a link http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=105755 It's a great thread, with links, and discusses all the possibilities.

Thank you John and Jon and Keith and 2manyZs for all your help and experience. This forum and you guys are a great resource and asset.

excellent article You got a deal man!!

The R200 it is then. I had read that little jewel of info in one of your posts on IT.com perfect Thanks Katman, I had been waiting for you to weight in on this subject and I appreciate the help

I worked at a Chrysler dealership and there were a few real pinheads in the service dept. The oil change guy tried to pick up the tow truck (1 ton dodge sling truck) with one of the lifts (a two post) and got er about four or five feet up and the floor cracked. The whole lift tipped over and tow truck came to rest on another car, what a train wreck. Nobody was hurt, but if the guy who did it had been, it would have been Darwin award material. Anyhow, it took a few weeks for them to figure out how to get it down and it sat there like that. It was right up front were customers could see when they came in and most were impressed! (giggling just thinking about it)

Hello... huge V8.... DUHHhhhhh people can be so dorky. But what you said about your cage goes a long way toward why I want a shop with ITS experience to do the cage. ITS cage is a very highly specailized animal. If your intentions were anything other then ITS, the cage would not be built the same. I've built NHRA cage before (from kit), this is different. BTW, I love those windshield gussets, they are cool!

Thanks for the link Mike, I checked out your pictures, that is a nice car! It looks a lot like mine. No I haven't contacted Mr Thomas directly, I think he is in a state of semi-retirerment. When I saw he posted to this thread yesterday, I was really hoping he'd check out my thread about R180s in the drivetrain forum (you remember it, you posted to it) I am aware that there are a few race shops in the Atlanta area. I'm also aware of the fact that the z is still quite popular in ITS. The bimmer is the car to have right now, but you know.... it's just not a Z!!! To me the fact that our thirty year old cars still can be competative is testimony to what a truly great design they were!!! OK... now I'm gushing... god I love my car!!!!

Disassembly of the engine, careful reassembly as per normal engine building techniques including a new set of bearings (not expensive on a relative scale) and maybe a little machine work for the crank. Ever built an engine before? If you have then you should know what is involved.

Thanks Mike. Yeah I know I can find guys in florida capable of doing the fabrication (I'm pretty damn good with a welder myself), but I want a shop that specializes in cage fabrication and has vast experience in SCCA ITS cages and hopefully Zcars specifically. The rules have change some in the past couple years as to what is legal in ITS, and it looks like more changes could be in store for 06, so I really want somebody who is a scca race shop.

Mike: is this the shop that did your cage? (address , number ?) I'm all the way down in florida, I see you are in Va., but would not consider that to far to go for a really good SCCA style cage pro built. Anybody else? I'm pretty sure there are some guys in the Atlanta area that have good reputations. For ITS, a cage built from the right min. size material is really going to effect the center of gravity. It's proper design also will greatly effect chassis stiffness. To me this is something worth spending what ever it takes to be done well.

I've used 3M weld thru coating and it works good. I believe it is just sprayable zinc coating. Shake really well before use (it's probably been on the shelf for months) Turn can upside down after each use and clear the nozzle (puff can 101)

I did a lot of body work, mostly heavy collision and resto. You can use a drill, a grinder or an air chisel. Any of em' will work but here's some suggestions. First off, the best tool for the job is all three! Usually a combination of all these items ( and then a few... like a whiz wheel) is needed to seperate panels. Rule one is try not to mutilate the panels to badly. I've removed panels on antiques that were so rusted out I had to drill and use a cold chisel by hand because the air hammer would have destroyed them and they were the only thing I had to use for a template to make the new part. They make a spot weld removal bit for air hammers. It looks like a flat chisel with a notch in the middle. It works so so, perfect in some places, useless in others. Like you said, with an air chisel you need access from a lot of different angles. My favorite air chisel bit was just a plain flat one. But for the price of an air chisel bit you could find a used drill... two words PAWN SHOP! The last one I bought from the pawn shop was ten bucks. If your going to use a drill, have a little cup of oil (any kind, old motor oil or whatever) to dip the bit in between holes. This will keep it cool and not burn up or get dull. And drill smaller pilot holes first (about an eighth inch). Two drill motors are nice for this. If you drill, it is better if the holes in the panel can be used as spot welds later. If you grind, often with a good grinder, you can see the first layer of metal begin to glow orange around the spot weld. Sometimes you can seperate the layers a little with the air chisel, and then grind. Be careful, go slow.

AH ha ha ha.... that smiley is outragously funny (banging his head) I can't type I'm giggling so hard. THAT is what spindle pins are all about. That should be the answer in a suspension FAQ for how hard is it to pull out the spindle pin!

DaleMX: excellent link!!!! very cool little device

Thanks 2ManyZs for sharing your experiences with me. I am trying to prep the car as a legal ITS car. But my driving abilities will keep this effort from being anything more then a 'for fun' outing.

Very interesting read John, about the halfshafts. I would have to assume (rule book on computer at home) that modifying the half shaft to alleviate the problem would be illegal in IT. Anyhow, from your reply, it sounds as if you think it would be legal to use the R180?

yeah, I was aware some guys weld them. I don't think I want to go that route. I know the ZX 5-speed is illegal, so that's out. If the R200 came with all manuals, then the R180 may be out as well. Ive read and reread the rules, hard to tell. Anybody know for sure?

OK, I'm going to throw this out there and see what you think folks. Please help me if I'm wrong about any of this. I'm thinking that for my car, which I'm trying to prep for SCCA ITS (78 280 Z manuf. date 6/77), there may be a slight advantage to using a R180 differentail instead of the R200 because of it's lighter weight. Also, (I could be wrong) but aren't the half shafts and u-joints slightly smaller (lighter) which would be less reciprocating weight and some amount less unsprung weight. (since at least some of the half shaft and the outer u-joint should be considered unsprung) Because the diff weights less, the weight can be placed somewhere else with greater advantage. (like on the pass. side floorboard - ha) Did the 78 5-speed car come with a R180? What determined which diff came in this model, was the R200 an optional item? I've searched the rules and found nothing wrong with this rules wise. Also, the R180 never came with a factory LSD did it? So if I went that way I'd have to go with an aftermarket limited slip right? That's ok, I was considering the Quaffe. One last question. I'm quite mechanical, but have never set up a differential. Could one conceivable buy 1 Quaffe and swap ring and pinions for different tracks or to have the capability to quickly change final drive ratio, would one have to have mutiple housings with multiple guts? Just trying to figure where this fits into the budget. Hey and while I'm at it, since the gears are exactly the same in the 4-speed is there any advatange it might have for tracks where the extra gear of a 5-speed provides no advantage?

ok this is a very basic test, but want I've always done is pump the brakes rapidly several times until they build pressure, then just stand on the pedel. press it down as hard as you can and hold it. If there is a leak, as you are holding it, you will feel it slowly leaking down.

AAHHhhhhh..... you must be a racer (laughing)

A few years back, Honda ran their F1 cars with active suspension in F1. They kicked butt and by the following year all the top teams had to follow suite. The FIA promptly made it illegal. By then it was to late, the genie was out of the bottle. Using what they had learned, the teams were able to make their regular spring and damper suspensions act more active... ish. Anyhow, I don't think the mechanical part of the system is that hard to create, it's the black box where the magic is created. Can't remember the driver's name, but a favorite quote when asked what would happen at the start of the race in those days, "if our software is better then their software, we'll make it to the first corner first".

Now I am laughing my @$$ off... you guys are TOO MUCH!!!!!!!!! I'm dying here. The second I read that, my eyes shot over to the join date (asian accent) grasshopper catch on fast I just want to say... I know some of you guys have spent countless hours researching things, discussing things on this forum and when someone asks a question and it's obvious they haven't lifted a finger to try to find the answer before posting, it makes you feel like that time you spent is wasted, or at least not being fully benefited from. You've beaten it to death and you don't feel like going over it again. Fine... let somebody else answer the newbie's question. (and I know thumper isn't a newbie, that's why it was so funny) Sometimes (like when I'm at work) when I'm board, I wish there were more posts, even if they were stupid questions. (those are usually the only ones I can answer) Now the search is great. But it takes some getting used to. Sometimes there are so many reasults and even thogh they contain your search word, they had nothing to do with what I wanted to know. You have to learn to use the advanced search and booleans and I'm good with a computer. (pro IT guy) Maybe a search FAQ??? but anyhow, I've search for hours, couldn't find what I needed to know, posted a question... AND FLAT GOT MY HEAD BIT OFF!!!! And yes, like thumper, they were many threads on what I was asking, but none specificly about what I needed to know. And maybe somebody who never posted about it will read it and decide to post. That what it's all about to me. (hope no one is offended)

Arc welding isn't going to work on sheet metal. flux core wire weld I've never personally tried. Some on this forum say it's OK, most pooh pooh it. Small mig may be in your future.

NOW that sounds like a fun project... bra ha ha ha.... (andy's evel twin runs off wringing his hands)

No kidding... I even heard of vette restorations where they thought the body work was to straight (they were pretty wavy from the factory)