Doug71zt

Don - I assume that you are using spacers from 13mm down to 12mm or 10mm bolts. What did you use for axle shafts? Z31 SS (Shiro) shafts or a custom setup. I'm very interested. Thanks - Doug

Hey Neil - Thanks for the correction on the tooth pitch - that was off of the top of my head from last month and half the world away. I don't think that the carrier is the same as an R230 - That diff is huge and heavy with a much bigger ring gear. I'm having a problem understanding your last question there - can you add a little more detail? Thanks - Doug

Ed - If you are putting it into 5th and it's like there is no gear there - the tailshaft nut has likely backed off and spun down the threads on the shaft. This allows the driven 5th gear to slide down the shaft out of position. The rest of the tranny will likely still operate normally. If this is the case, The tail shaft is likely shot as the nut and gears, etc bang away at the threads on the shaft and wreck them, rendering the tailshaft useless. If you are having symptoms like this, take the tail housing off, check out the 5th gear situation and go from there. If the tailshaft is scrap, you are best off finding another 5spd, as the cost will be less. It seems to be a common problem on the early 5spds. Hope this helps Doug

Guys - I picked up a Z32 N/A R200 VLSD to find out for myself if the carrier can be used in the long-nose R200 diffs. The short answer - not bloody likely... 1> The Z32 VLSD has a spline count the same as an open diff or a clutch type R200. But the RH shaft has to have an extended splined portion to engage the VLSD coupling on the left hand side of the diff, under the ring gear. This is different than the Z31 VLSD (SHIRO or SS), as it has a different spline count than the standard open R200. 2> The Z32 VLSD has 13mm ring gear bolts. Therefore, the carrier is incompatible with the early 10 and 12 mm ring gears without spacers. 3> The Z32 VLSD short-nose case has an identical rear cover bolt pattern to the standard R200 cover, with the exception that it has larger bolts, Therefore the whole Z32 R200 can be installed in an early Z-car with a standard R-200 rear cover drilled for larger bolts and a custom front mount, if you are already building a driveshaft, why not. 4> The gear pitch on the ring and pinion gears is different that the long-nose housing, which results in more tooth contact. This would result in a quieter diff than the old long-nose R200. The ratio is 4.08, If I can remember 53/13. 5> The CV shafts are similar to R230 shafts, requiring a fair bit of work to get them into the early cars. They are wayyyy to long and have a splined mount on the outboard end that is installed through the hub assy. Although - has anyone measured a Z32 or 240SX hub assy for installation in the 240Z suspension stub axle hole? Granted, you will have to machine the bore out, and weld a flange to the end of the tube to bolt the hub assy to, but it would get rid of the stub axle assy and convert to 5 bolt at the same time. Hmmm.....back to the garage - too bad its 5200 miles away right now. Cheers - Doug

Joel - The Z32 box looks very similar to the RB25 box as they are the same model and internals. F5R30A I believe. Only difference is the bellhousing pattern and the overall length. I have a late 88 Z31 turbo tranny on my shop floor - looks identical to the RB 25 box. Combine that with a RB26 AWD front case - Voila instant RB25 box. Hope this random info helps out. Have you had the cover off of the shifter mech. yet? could be that you could bolt a shifter on there. Looks similar to the early F5W71C box shifter. Doug

Hey Mike - Just trying to recommend a bolt-in solution. The SX autobox probably wouldn't like sitting in there on an angle and who knows about the flexplate/Tq converter matchup. There is no adapter for the SX manual tranny - Troy is just machining the bearing bores of an L series tranny front case and sliding the guts and rear case of an SX tranny into it. You can do the same with Z31 n/a 5 spds F5W71C. I have an 88 Z31 turbo tranny - internally the same as Z32 n/a and TT and R32 skyline that I am going to do the same thing with to put it into my 71 ZT. Cheers- Doug

Pretty sure that the KA series transmission won't bolt up to an L series. Look at the Maxima - up to 1984. They had OD autoboxes with an L24. Probably pretty cheap. 4N71L is the model number (off the top of my head). Thats the one with a lock-up Tq converter. Good luck. Doug

I have 17x7 +38mm offset wheels on my 240 - with coilovers. Front - Z31 hubs (+19mm change in offset) with a 5mm spacer. I could actually go with 5-10 mm more in spacer, but would have to get longer wheel studs. Rear - custom rotor mount/bolt-on spacer. Stub axles are drilled 5-lug. Spacer is 45 mm thick, but I removed the brake drum so had to add that thickness to the spacer. Hope that this helps you a bit - Doug

As long as the 300zx diff isn't a VLSD (Viscous limited slip) from a very late Z31 - you will have no problems bolting that rear into your 280zx. As you are talking about a 3.545 Ratio, it won't be limited slip (from the factory) so you will have no problems Cheers - Doug

Hi All - I'm replacing the valve guides in my P90 head and am going with stainless steel valves. What material should I be looking for? Any sources that you guys can recommend to me? Thanks - Doug

Need a quick answer before starting work on my F54 block. With the LD28 crank and an 87 mm bore - will I have any rod/cylinder wall clearance issues? How about rod big end / engine block area? I'm using L24 rods with the group purchase Ross pistons. Norm, Rags, Anyone? Thanks - Doug

52 lb/hr in my car with SDS - good idle - lots of fuel. Doug

Cuban - Have a look at Modern Motorsports' site - I think that you may find something that suits your needs there. Ross won't steer you wrong, either - He's one of the good guys. jjohart - There's nothing wrong with a properly designed and manufactured spacer - by this I mean bolt on style- not the slip over longer studs cast aluminum piece of crap style. Porche has been using them on production cars for years. As for the wheel size - my 240 rides far better on 17" wheels with coilovers than the 15's I had on it for years - It's all a matter of suspension tuning. Doug

I ran a 13.2 at 103 with a supra IC and a stock turbo. It will get you up and running cheaper than a $600 custom unit. But I've knocked a second off of that with a hybrid turbo and a Corky bell intercooler. Oh yea, bigger injectors, 3" Dp and exhaust, 2.5" IC piping, bigger injectors....etc,etc,etc. Doug

Sounds like your air regulator isn't working. It's the disk-shaped thing with two hoses and an electrical connection on top of your intake. It has a bimetallic element in it that allows air to bypass the throttle plate when it's cold, giving a higher idle. As the bimetallic element heats up, it closes the air bleed, returning idle to normal.Check for power at the connector when the engine is running. You should be able to blow through it when it's cold, but not when it's warm. Good luck Doug

Here are a couple pics - Low buck wheels 17x7 01' Maxima wheels (+40mm offset) with Z32TT brakes peeking through. 5 lug Z31 hubs front, custom disc carriers/spacers rear,coilovers, short struts. 16x7.5 90' 300ZXTT wheels with 245/50/16 Nitto DR's I now run steelies and 26x9.5x16 Hoosier QTP

It can be done - Your ZXT has a Vehicle Speed Sensor for the cruise control that generates a pulse signal. On some ZX the VSS is attached to the back of the speedometer where the cable goes into it (analog speedo) If you have a digital dash - follow the speedo cable from the transmission to where it ends and there is the VSS. Best bet is to get a wiring diagram for the car and have a look at the digital dash or cruise control diagram. Hope this helps you to get on the right track. Good luck - Doug

Sorry Drax - Can't offer a lot of help here right now - I'm in Manila and all my Zcar stuff is in Ontario. I can't offer any comprehensive advice because I changed so many variables at once on my engine (550cc injectors, turbo, fuel pressure reg, fuel pump, rail, IC, piping, exhaust and SDS version update) I had to start from scratch with the whole fuel curve. Good thing we have Scottie as a resource.....My Z is up for the winter now - same thing next spring (ported head, ISKY cam, ss valves, 3.0L bottom end with 8.3 CR.) And a better tranny Good luck - Doug

I'm pretty happy with the 3.7 lsd but I run a 25.3" tall tire and the slicks I have are 26.0". If I ran a shorter tire I would run a 3.54.

Lockjaw - I'm in the same boat with my new head. Haven't found a source but last year I talked to Donna and she got her's from Manley. I think the cost was reasonable. I would be interested in a group buy for a set if you are interested in pursuing this. Post or PM me. I'm overseas in Manila right now so I'm not a lot of help. Donna posts here once in a while - D83ZXT is her handle I think. Cheers - Doug

szlash280z- Yes I have a mechanical oil pressure gauge - The supply is taken from the original oil pressure sender tap. It is a fitting that screws into the block and has a fitting for the turbo oil line at the top - the turbo oil line isn't visible in that picture. Doug

I drilled and tapped mine to AN 10 fittings. The thread size is very close to the metric banjo bolts. http://www.hybridz.org/phpBB2/album_pic.php?pic_id=1967 [/img]

Big thanks to Stony and Jim !!!! Now I have something to study on the flight to Manila next week. Doug

It looks like a small aircraft APU (auxiliary power unit) used to airstart a larger turbine engine. It is essentially a small single stage centrifugal turbine engine which provides airpressure to spin up a larger turbine engine. SOLAR made thousands of these in the 60's and 70's. Not too useful for anything but doing what it was designed to do - worth about $10. Amazing the junk you can find on Ebay Cheers - Doug

Linkee no workee for me - can you help us out Jim? Thanks - Doug