[Timing Chain Alignment]

The bright links are there to set the cam timing on assembly. As soon as the engine turns over, they no longer mean anything. The important thing is that the crank timing marks and cam timing marks are correct and you have the correct number of links between them.

 

Sam

 

 

Bingo.

[Engine Bay photos]

Stcicky and TurboHLS30,

 

Take it off line.

[what are these??]

Pic #1= coolant drain.

Pic #2= knock sensor.

[WTB or trade for a Z Oregon]

Just got a call from a friend... His '77 280 is available in Sandy, and I think you could grab it up very inexpensively (probably under $500). PM me if you're interested.

[Wiring help please...]

Yeah, we're a worthless bunch. Keep in mind many people here are quite busy. Don't expect everyone to drop what they're doing and answer all your questions the moment you ask them. Have some patience.

 

Do you have a service manual and wiring schematic?

[Engine Bay photos]

Frank, Here in the states, we don't get the 'real' M motor in our E36 M3's. Our Motorsport motors are pretty much the iron M52 with 3.2L displacement, hotter cams, and a few minor nuggets. No ITB's though. The late M Roadsters and E46's come equipped with ITB's (and 325-338 hp).

[rt260, BMW M Powered]

Hi Thomas, Ive been wondering what you've been up to. Great to hear you are moving forward!

 

 

Hey Ron I just picked up a Getrag 217 out of a 2007 Z4 3.0si. It's only got 14k miles on it and it has very similar gearing to the standard ZF 5 speed, except that it has 6th gear with a .85:1.

 

 

The .85 would surely be welcome. Cannot deny that. I know Katokid had some thoughts on the 6 speed... looking forward to his feedback.

 

 

I still need to get the clutch and wheel for it, but considering that I won't be using it for a while because I'm horrendously slow about working on my car, if you wanted to try it out I wouldn't mine...especially considering you'd need to fab up custom mounts and probably a completely different drive shaft for it too Ya know, minor stuff.

 

 

I smell what you're stepping in Thank you for the offer, I'll give it some thought.

 

 

That may be helpful.

 

 

Very! I wasn't aware there were that many derivatives.

 

 

I could go find ya one if you'd make me some engine mounts I'd throw in a beer too!

 

 

I've had a few requests for mounts. I'm kicking around the idea of a small run. Naturally, beer inspires me , but I want to address my fuel system before I get too side tracked.

 

Speaking of which, I wasn't planning on posting anything until I had it fully wrapped it up, but we're here so...

 

I've had this Paxton pump sitting on my shelf since '98 or '99. I was tempted to implement The Beast, but I needed to make sure it was still serviceable. I lubed it generously and fired it up... no go. Motor spun at a snails pace. Because I'm still twelve at heart, I decided it was of dire importance to dismantle. Lying on the bench in many piece's (beer in hand), it dawned on me that the housing was very usable as a surge tank. Without the motor and pump, it was still a fully sealed and maintenance friendly part. Slightly heavy, but... um.... free (I think ). A little machining and a trip to Oil Filter Service of Portland, and...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's tough to see in the last picture, but the plate at the bottom, is not actually the bottom. The large central hole drops down into another cavity about 1 1/2" tall.

 

Internal volume is approx. 1.25 pints. A Datsun pump will feed the 'Paxton' surge tank and a Bosch 044 pump will pull from the surge tank and pass the fuel to a C5 filter/regulator at 4 bar.

[Kawasaki Z750S]

Nice!

[260z? Yes or no?]

A 260 is an S30.

[Need new ignition method]

It's rather interesting that this is the way it was explained to me (perhaps I'm ignorant and didn't pick up the "whole" gist) by the guys at DIY AutoTune. They're the ones tuning my car - and explaining this to me and showing me the scope output. Jesus - I just don't know who to believe anymore.

 

 

In general, I trust Matt and Jerry. It's probably a simple misunderstanding.

[Need new ignition method]

The variable reluctor generates its own voltage. There is no +/- 5 being turned on and off.

 

 

Exactly. A VR is not a digital sensor.

[Need new ignition method]

...the scope output gets higher and lower in amplitude based on how close the wheel is to the sensor.

 

VR's are supposed to do that. It's normal.

 

When the signal is running over a tooth, it should be a perfect square wave.

 

Not with a VR. It should resemble a sine wave.

 

 

How well is the sensor shielded?

[Does anybody know what today is?]

[Engine Bay photos]

Is this an engine bay thread or an L6 engine bay thread?

[Engine Bay photos]

[Superbowl Rant (Why the NFL and MBA's suck]

What's a superbowl? Can I get one at Tacobell?

[Mustache bar bushing tip- a short story.]

[rt260, BMW M Powered]

Hopefully I can reciprocate with something nearly as interesting!

 

Tease!

 

Did you settle on something or are you still fishing?

[rt260, BMW M Powered]

Awesome Ron, just awesome. I've driven lots of Z's, and lots of M's, and without even driving it I can imagine how great a match this is. Good on ya for tackling this one!

 

 

You're going to drive it in July

[rt260, BMW M Powered]

How's the ZF 5 speed feel, is it a nice box with the remote shifter?

 

It's a very easy transmission to get along with. It shifts easily with two fingers, the gates are easy to find, and its just as happy shifting at 7K PRM as it is at 2K.

 

I have three complaints...

 

1) The throws are long. Measuring at the top of my shift knob there is about 5" of throw front to back. There are short shift kits floating around. They move the lower pivot downward, closer to the driveshaft. I remember checking the clearance while assembling, but I don't recall how much room there is or if there is enough for a short shifter kit. I will probably just lower the shift knob about 2" and call it done.

 

2) In the shift lever itself there is a large spongy bit of rubber. I don't care for the way it feels. I'll remove it at the same time I lower the knob.

 

3) The overall gearing is short. 5th is 1:1, not an overdrive. I'm using a 3.36 diff which helps, but short tires (~22") so I'm seeing 2980RPM at 60MPH. It's not horrible, but could be better.

[rt260, BMW M Powered]

Finally wrapped up the exhaust. I added one more Magnaflow (2.5") in the stock location. This helped greatly with the resonances, but it's still too loud for my tastes. Great for a track car, but a little extreme for a daily driver. Excuse the filthy car. I'm guessing it's been over 2 years since it's been washed ...

 

 

 

 

 

I took the car out for its first lengthy trip, 70 miles, highway and city, mountainous and flat. Not a single hiccup or fuss...

 

First stop was the weigh station. I took it to the same location as before. The car is complete (complete as in fully assembled in like fashion as before, not done ). There is a gas station about 3 blocks from the scales. In both cases I refueled before weighing and removed all non-relevant items (tools, fire extinguisher, coats, etc). The car is now 20 to 30 lbs LIGHTER than it was with the L6. 2420lbs dry. Double the power and less weight. I can live with that

 

Also on my list was to get the car out, stretch it's legs, and look for driveline vibrations. Backing up a bit, I've driven a LOT of S30's, in all sorts of configurations, and none of them have been silky smooth. I've tried many different things and made improvements, but I have never been totally successful with squelching them. Since this car has no U-joints (in the driveshaft) and I spent a good deal of time on alignment, I have been hoping to put the vibes to rest. We'll, I think I did. This is the smoothest Z I've driven. Certainly FAR smoother than it was prior to the swap. I'm gonna check that nuisance off my list, finally. I would still like to swap out the half shafts for CV's. That should finish off the package nicely.

 

Got a lot of tuning out of the way as well. It's beginning to run as expected. Of course it's all the fine tuning that takes forever. I really need to upgrade the fuel system before I spend too much time on it, though.

 

Lastly, Brian of Z Car Customs sent me one of his early ZG-R CF rear spoilers. It was a blem and priced accordingly, but it still looks pretty decent as-is. I'm not a huge fan of raw CF appendages on street cars, so the plan has always been to paint it. I'm very pleased with what I got. Thanks Brian!

 

 

 

 

 

[Why did you decide to stay with the Datsun L6 motor?]

The only reason i want to stay with the L6 is because of the sound of the motor.

 

There are plenty of other straight-six choices... Nissan, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, and more. They can all sound 'the same' and most of them make gobs more power (stock for stock).

 

If this is too far off topic for you, let me know and I'll delete my comments.

[adding some neg camber to back end]

Years ago MSA use to sell offset Delrin/aluminum bushings for the rear. I don't know if they still do or not. I wouldn't expect that method to help your rubbing problem though... it adds track width.

[Ls1 - t56 master cyl options]

I ran a 1" MC on my '95 T56 for a good while. Didn't mind it one bit. Do you need it? No, plenty of people use smaller. If you want a little quicker engagement and don't mind the extra effort, it works.

 

Now for my plug... I've still got the Tilton 1" I bought for my M conversion. Removed it a week after I installed it... definitely too big for that drivetrain. It has zero miles on it. You can have it for $50.00 shipped.

[Is it possible to cut off spring perch and welding lower to lower the car?]

im not too worried about the travel.

 

Maybe you should be. It's a performance oriented car and this is a performance oriented forum. Your car will handle better at stock height with the stock springs.