zardoz337

I am not sure if they will work or not but I am reasonably certain they will NOT work correctly. If you do a little research you will see ECU's are not only year specific but they are specific to n/a - turbo, manual - automatic trans, california - federal build. Can you make one not specific to your year/model work? I would say more than likely. Would it be easy?..well that depends.....

Terrymac22, You said "The reason your digital dash's speedo only displays 85-mph, is because the speedo microprocessor has a speed loop in its program. The loop is simply than 85 then display 85-mph >" That is sort of what I was thinking....now to find a way to dump the processor and reload it onto an eprom...with some modifications to the "speed loop" portion of the program. Then replace the processor with the modified eprom... What do you think? (I am also thinking that a modded speedo eprom would be a big hit in the z-car community) And thank you all for your input! Lee

Hello all! I have a question that my search of posts on this subject has not yelded a satisfactory answer to. I have a 1983 280zx GL Turbo with the digital dash (and speedo) that is limited to 85mph. I see there is a mod to change to KPH reading to increase beyond the 85 MPH limit but, to me anyway this is a "cludged" solutation at best. I like my digital dash and would like to mod the speedometer to read past 85 MPH AND retain the KPH function as well (with a similar increase) It would seem to me that as the signal generated is digital there should be a way to modify the signal electronically to get an accurate speedometer reading above 85 mph and retain the stock display (or if not replace the display or the whole speedometer unit with one that LOOKS like the stock unit). I recognize this my be an extensive mod but to me at least it would be worth it. At some point I plan to do a V8 conversion so this probably will add even more complexity to the project. If anyone has any thoughts, ideas, comments or even flames(!) on how I might approach this please let me know. I understand the circut uses a wheel and light sensor to convert the analog cable motion to an electronic signal but does anyone know what component(s) in the system limit that signal to 85 MPH? I assume the wheel spinning faster than 85 MPH still will produce an accurate signal but something else in the circut does simply not register beyond 85... can anyone tell me if this is accurate? Thanks! Lee

well they have a price now its $13.595 but look what you get..... LS7 specifications: Part number: 17802397 Horsepower: 500 (373 kW) @ 6200 rpm Torque (lb.-ft.): 475 (644 Nm) @ 4800 rpm Engine type: Cam-in-block 90-degree V-8 Displacement (L/cu in): 7.0 / 427 Bore x stroke (mm/in) 104.8 x 101.6 / 4.125 x 4.00 Block: Cast aluminum with pressed-in cylinder sleeves and 6-bolt, forged steel main bearing caps Crankshaft: Forged steel Connecting rods: Forged titanium Pistons: Cast aluminum Camshaft type: Hydraulic roller, 15 mm (.591 in) lift (intake and exhaust) Cylinder heads: CNC-ported aluminum; 70-cc chamber volume Valve size (mm/in): 56 / 2.20 (titanium) intake / 41 / 1.61 (sodium-filled) exhaust Compression ratio 11.0:1 Rocker arms: 1.8:1; offset (intake only) Recommended fuel: Premium required. 91 octane minimum LS7 crate engine (P/N 17802397) includes: Intake manifold with injectors Injector wiring harness Fuel rails Throttle body Dry sump oil pan Exhaust manifolds Flywheel & clutch Harmonic dampener Water pump and pulley Coil Packs, spark plugs and wires Engine sensors LS7 crate engine does not include: Dry sump oil lines Dry sump tank Engine beauty cover Engine processor Air filter/air box Accessories or accessory drive all I can say is......drool.......

I have enjoyed reading the posts and there is some great information here! I just wanted to add a bit of information I have picked up while employed by an aftermarket fan outfit. The thinking was that a fan is functional in automotive applications, up to about 35 mph but after this point the "ram-air" effect took over and exceeded the fans cooling capacity. One of the advantages of electrical fans is that hard mounted fans take horsepower to turn. By using an electrical fan it has the ability to "cut off" above this mph sweet spot (when the ram-air effect takes over) and thus you get a little horsepower gain from it. The electrical fan in theory does not use quite as much horsepower when it is running and none at all when it shuts down. I believe that controling the fan thermostaticly is the best choice as engine temp will determine when this sweet spot is reached. Also it is my understanding that when you shut down a hot engine there is an effect called "heat-soak" the engine will heat up a bit due to the coolent not flowing and the fan being off. Many manufactures have included a circuit to help minimize this effect, where the electric fan will run a few minutes, after the car is turned off, if the temp warrents it. Any just my two cents worth, hope this helps! Zardoz337

Great posts on fiberglassing! I have not done any fiberglass work in years now, but when I was in highschool I took production plastics for half the school day and learned a lot about fiberglass (although I forgot most and what I did learn is somewhat dated now) I have done a few small projects including doing some repairs to my front air dam. One very basic rule that I have not seen is when using epoxy resin it is extreamly critical to make sure your resin is fresh. Epoxy resin has a very short shelf life and getting a batch of old resin that has set around on someones shelf too long will ruin your day. If you get your epoxy resin from someone who sells a lot of resin you will probably be in great shape, just beware of "close out" specials on old resin, fresher is always better. Fiberglass is very forgiving and actually pretty simple to work with, just follow the basic rules and experiment around a bit you will be amazed at some of the compound shapes you can produce with a little practice!

Wow...what an awsome site! I plan to spend a few weeks going over all the posts here to refine my project. I am the once owner of a fantastic 1982 2+2 280ZX that was pro built by a bodyshop owner for his personal ride. It featured a Kunumi (sp) body kit and was painted a custom red with a brand new full leather interior. It turned a lot of heads in town and when I took it to California, it always drew a crowd. I wreaked the car a few years back and have been mourning its loss ever sense. I plan to get another 280ZX 2+2 but will opt for an 1983 this time and add a few goodies. I see that my body kit no longer exists so I will eather find another or custom fab/modify one to my liking. I plan to install a turbocharged LS1 and 6 speed, so I know this site will help a lot from just what I have seen so far. I will start the project by finding a good 1983 2+2 turbo car with a manual transmission and all good options and tear it down and start from there. My question is anyone have any thoughts on a good donor car for the set up I am shooting for? Would I be better off to get a crate LS1 set up for turbo (something around 8:1 compression) or just go with a stock motor and modify it for the turbo. I am really hoping to shoehorn everything under the stock outer sheetmetal for a sleeper set up with a goal of around 500 to 600 hp. I do not have a concern for smog requirements as the project car should be exempt by the time I finnish the project, I just want a weekend driver that will look as nice as my old heartthrob and perform even better. Thank you all for the great info I have gotten already and any thoughts you may have that will help me plan this!