rturbo 930

For me, most likely an S2000 or a Cayman, as a practical replacement. A Lotus 7/Caterham as an impractical replacement. An aircooled 911 would be on that list if they hadn't gotten so damned expensive.

No way I'd spend that much on an R200 conversion, especially if you only have 200hp. A basic R200 conversion consists of a mustache bar, differential, and halfshafts from a 280z, and you'll also need to change the driveshaft. You can have one made, modified, or just play around with factory parts. When I did my conversion (early '71, series 1 car like yours) I think I used a '72 driveshaft. Also, the R200 has limited gear ratio options, and the ones it does have are expensive. That is why the Ford 8.8 is becoming popular. It's inexpensive, lightweight, and has a huge assortment of gear ratios, LSDs, and everything else. I would recommend taking the time to get yourself familiar with the search function here, and do a lot of reading before you start thinking about mods. There's a lot to learn, and the success of your project will depend on how well all your modifications work together, and how they help you to achieve your goals for the car. This site has been around for 16 years now, so a lot of the questions you have have been covered here before.

I opened this thread a few hours ago, and I see you've posted pics since then. Looks like an excellent starting point - almost too nice to modify. I think I would've left that one stock. Sounds like you already have a few projects to do on it. Since you're new to cars, maybe take the car into a shop for diagnosis on the 'cranking' noise it's making. If the sound is a single, solid sounding 'clunk' when you hit the gas, then I would guess that it's your diff mount. If it sounds like something is hitting something while spinning, it's probably something else, but I don't know what.

Been there, done that. Turns out it's not so easy, lol. Get some basic hand tools (ratchets and sockets, and a breaker bar), screw drivers, allen wrenches, a floor jack, and four good quality jack stands to start with. You'll figure out what you need as you work on the car, and as you get into bigger projects. NA L28. One of my cars came with it, and I like the sound and feel of it. And I already have it. What condition is the car in? Post some pics. Unless it's fully restored there's probably something to do on it. Start by refreshing the stock stuff on it, and get everything into good condition. With the experience you gained from doing that, you can then move onto modifying things. R200s, which came on 280Zs, are popular because they bolt in and they're pretty strong. I'm planning on swapping to a Ford 8.8 diff, but I don't know how common Fords are where you are. It's also a fairly new swap and there isn't a kit out yet to swap it in for a reasonable cost. Your English is pretty good, actually. Fixed a little spelling mistake though.

Knew what it was as soon as I saw the thumbnail. Congrats! I have an '88 IS coupe, and if I were to get another it'd be a sedan. I just hope you have better luck with yours than I did with mine. First motor was in bad shape when I got it, had a rough idle and burned a bunch of oil, ultimately it spun a bearing. Swapped in another motor, all new gaskets and seals, and it STILL idles badly, and is now making the same rod-knocking sound that it made before. Check out r3vlimited.com if you haven't yet - probably the best E30 forum out there.

Looks like it's in pretty good condition overall, shouldn't be too hard to get it all fixed. BTW, is that a damn bullet hole? Who shoots their own car?

I really can't think of a single reason why someone would want to swap in a Chevy 250. So many other better options out there, including the stock L28, which is a fine motor. Regarding length, I have both an L28 and Chevy 250 on hand to measure. Chevy 250 measures about 31" from the single row pulley on the front to the transmission mating surface on the back. Factory fan adds about 6", so that won't work. L24 measures nearly the same at about 30.5" from the front of the three row pulley to the transmission mating surface on the back. A single row pulley will drop the length to about 29".

Keep which parts metal? You listed several problem areas. The floors need to be repaired with metal. I don't know how badly your door is rusted, but I would either cut and weld the rusty metal, or buy another door that is in good condition. As for the rear bumper area, I'm guessing you mean the body work on the car, not the bumper itself. Again, cut out the rust metal, weld in new metal. IMO welding in new metal is the only acceptable way to fix rust, especially on the chassis.

I don't think they do nearly as much as a roll bar, and triangulated strut tower bars do. I believe (don't quote me) John had the Z chassis analyzed at one point and found that the chassis flexed like a hinge at the front and rear bulk heads, which are roughly at the firewall, and at the rear door jamb. I'm just a reader here, so take that with a grain of salt. Unfortunately John is no longer with us to answer these questions himself. This is my best understanding of what he has said. To answer your question, I would go with SFCs from http://baddogparts.com/ although you have a 2+2 which complicates things slightly.

300hp isn't really "high power." It's plenty in a Z, but not really that much. 500hp+ is a different story. SunnyZ and Keith both have a good deal more than 300hp. These are John Coffey's suggestions for a street car. 1. Seam Weld (every sheet metal seam overlap.) 2. Bad Dog Subframe Connectors 3. Weld-In Roll Bar. 4. Welded In Rear STB. 5. Triangulated Front STB. 6. Radiator Core Support Reinforcement. 7. Transverse Link Bracing Reinforcement. 8. RT Diff Mount. 9. Tubular Seat Mounts. 10. Box Upper Frame Horns to Firewall/Cowl. 11. Reinforce Pedal Box/Brake MC Mount. 12. Reinforce Front ARB Mount. 13. Reinforce Front Strut Tower to Frame Rail Junction. All that should be sufficient if you only plan on 300hp.

Does anyone know what John Coffey's hoods weighed? I think they were less than even Top Stage's full carbon hood. And 22lbs for a carbon hood is just embarrassing.

Yeah, I don't think your 6 puck clutch is going to be as nice to drive, but that has more to do with the clutch than the flywheel. I don't know who was saying they need to launch at 2-3k, but I'd take a guess that they have no idea how to drive, or they have something that's really only meant for race cars. My Z was not only surprisingly easy to drive compared to my expectations, but actually just easy to drive period. I didn't find that it stalled out easily.

What exactly do you want to know? My NA L28 has a 10lb flywheel, I'm guessing it's a Fidanza (came with it), and a centerforce 2 clutch. Cam is a mild Crane Cam, also has triple webers and ported/polished head, basically a mild street motor. I don't know what exactly you're concerned about, but the first time I drove it, I found it surprisingly easy to drive. Would be easier yet if my carbs were tuned right and didn't cut out under 3krpm. IMO, if you want a lightweight flywheel, just go and get one.

Yeah, I think that dude may have smoked just a little bit of crack before listing it. I don't follow prices on these things, but I think the last one I saw for sale was around $700.

I think you mean Ford 8.8 Diff swap. Anyway, I'll be following this one. I didn't care for the amount of things you have to change out to use Fritt's conversion. My plan was the following: 8.8 Diff, mounts, etc. DSS stub axles 930 CVs Custom length axle shaft And an adapter to go between the 930 CV and the factory stub axle, like you'd use to convert to Z31 CVs. Chequered Flag Joe actually makes that adapter, but only in 39 spline, I believe, and he sells it as part of a kit. I'm interested to see what you come up with. Something a little less spendy would be nice.

Got it, I don't use the classifieds much. Anyway, as for the OP I think I know what happened. Going through his previous posts, he's specifically targeting Steve Bailey. I'm guessing he was screwed by Steve on another forum, and found our site, which Steve has apparently been posting on, and decided to alert us of his practices.

I thought you had to be a donating member to sell parts here? I agree with jeffer, does seem strange.

No, he's right, and I had the exact same thought, and I fully agree with his suggestions. Just because your car seemed stiffer when you took it off the jack stands doesn't mean it's a good cage. Quite honestly, I'd remove it and start over. Have a good shop design one for you instead. 76+ Zs with strut tower mounted seat belts don't have the threaded nut in the C pillar like the earlier cars do, so he can't really do that. He can either work the cage design around the stock seat belts (which is what I plan to do) or ditch them and go with harnesses.

Lol no, that's overkill. But I would say some kind of structure that goes from the front strut towers to the rear strut towers. Mind you, I am not any kind of expert, mostly going with my gut based on all that I've read here over the years. Look into what 74 5.0L Z did on his tube frame. Again, I'm not saying you need a tube frame, but his design goes from the rear strut towers all the way to the front, but doesn't have an A pillar or roof bar, so it's still reasonably safe on the street. 800HP is a lot of power, and when unleashed all at once, that's going to really stress the chassis. Also, another thought... I'm betting you're going to need to reinforce the front diff mount, and surrounding area.

If you're planning on having 800hp, and launching it, I think you're gonna need more than what's on John's list for a street car.

http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/53266-the-primadonna-z-story-56k/page-4

So that's the missing red car? Hope it goes to a good home.

This is the one I saw: http://www.inyoregister.com/content/motorcycle-wreck-claims-one-life

Those wheels are sick. Are they one off, or available for purchase? BTW if you want to shave some weight, I might suggest removing the rear subframe reinforcement on the rear deck, and the impact bumper support structure in the front and rear if you haven't done that yet. That should all be good for at least 20lbs, probably more.

RIP John. More discussion here: http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/55338-rip-john-coffey/ Where did you see the announcement?