bschiltz

The S30s (240-260-280Zs) were made from 1970 to 1978. Which one is best? That depends on how much you are going to change. If you are interested in a higher power engine swap look for a car with a r200 diff. I'm not sure what years they came on the S30s... '74 and up, maybe? Other than that, just look for a car with as little rust as you can find.

A MR2, like a toyota? These any good? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Toyota-MR2-T-Top-Weatherstrips-Brand-New-85-89_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6755QQihZ016QQitemZ260057070793QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

Hahaha, sweet! Max you've got some work to do!

Wow, that's just beyond words...

Last saturday was warm enough that I got to paint my oil pan. Ted Nugent style! The paint was old and crappy so I shot black over it again. When we get another warm-ish day I'm going to do it again with better paint.

Dude, Wolfmother kicks ass! These guys are awesom, too. Kind of bad sound on this vid tho: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hoc37ZUk2Fc one more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BobPjaGwXrM Another good band from Finland, called Lordi. They won Eurovision ("American Idol" for all the european countries) earlier this year. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqQhPcCzV60

I don't know if the '79s came with the power steering box... I thought those didn't come untill ~83? Mine just has rack and pinion (no assist).

Welcome to hybridZ and congrats on the new Z! I have a 79 ZX, too but am going much smaller(305 and 700r4) Is the car going to be used for crusing and daily driving? If so you may want to look into overdrive transmissions (700r4, 2004r, 4l80e) as they will save you quite a bit on gas. Try looking at BowTie Overdirves.

Tell you son good job! What's oryx taste like?

Oh... Dude, my side hurts. That is too funny!

Nice car man! Thats crazy how many RPMs and how much power you can crank out of that motor. A TT and AWD set-up would be sick...

Thanks guys!

Sweet pic, Max. I love the Hot Wheels repro cars!

Speedway Motors is based here in Lincoln and they have a museum with a bunch of one off motors and cars. One of them is a custom V16 made from two chevy blocks welded together (I forget the CID). It's really cool, you can't even see the weld bead because the two guys who did it ground it flush and dimpled it with a punch.

Does any one have thoughts on this one? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/95-97-CAMARO-LT1-FIREBIRD-STARTER-BRAND-NEW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33576QQihZ007QQitemZ170052406093QQrdZ1 Cheap crap or a good deal?

Happy turkey day to all!

Great thread, guys! I agree whole heartedly with the points made here, but I have to say there's a huge psychological factor as well. I'm only 17 but am in progress in a SBC swap in my 79 ZX. I NEVER would have expected that I'd be doing an engine swap now, or ever in my life to be honest. That said, it's been a hard road to where I am now. No one in my family has much automotive experience beyond basic upkeep and I'm working out of a single stall garage that's also storage for my family. I don't have any tools beyond a socket set and wrenches. I don't know how many times someone has asked how much money I have in the car and when I respond $2500-$3000 and still spending, the say "You could have bought a nice car for that much" The one HUGE help I've found is one of the auto-shop teachers at my school. He has a 510 that he's set up for auto-x and rally and knows datsuns pretty well. I guess I'm rambling now but I guess if there's one point I'd like to make, it is this; Take it slow, talk to everyone you can, READ READ READ, plan ahead and when you feel down just walk away for a while and remind your self that it's all worth it in the end.

Wow, that's cool looking! The front end of the car looks cool, or at least what I can see.

Thanks Mike, I've read the instructions for you kit many times and own one for my '79 ZX. I'm not trying to be an arrogant teenager here, but I was under the impression that Brad-Man was saying the JTR ZX kit didn't work for the ZX, which is wrong... correct? I guess I'm missing his point?

Alright guys, thanks. I think I'll be able to get everything sorted.

Have you guys tried looking at Radio Shack for LEDs? Last time I checked they sold single ones for like $0.75-$1.00.

I just tugged and tried not to break anything. I think you have to remove the steering wheel, at least I did. Make sure you have all the screws out, too. Once you have the cluster out there's a PCB that has all the lights and gauges in it that you'll have to take apart.

What do you mean by this? The JTR mounts for the ZX allow you to adjust the motor several inches forward to back, as well as up and down.

When you say the large wire plug are you talking about #2 in the pic below? Two of the green wires go into the EFI harness and one goes to the relay, then into the into the harness. Also, which red wire is used for the electric choke? Is it the one that comes out of the ignition box at #4? There's a blue and red wire that come out of the box (#3), then the blue goes to the EFI relay (#1) and the red wire turns into the yellow wire that goes into the relay (in pic two). There's also a red wire, white/red, white/black, and two heavy gauge white wires that form a harness that goes into the fender hole.

Thanks Sven! Like I said, they got scratched up when I was putting the engine on the stand. I might just touch up the scratches or strip it all, who knows... Sorry to hijack the thread, but I just finished my ZX sign. A friend of mine cut it out on the plasma CAM at school.