luseboy
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Posts posted by luseboy
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Looking good keep it up
Thanks man!
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Well Here's an update+me being less lazy.
I painted my valve cover and cam sprocket timing cover (or whatever it's called) today. Really happy with how they look. I'm still not done with the valve cover, I'm going to sand the paint off of the "Nissan . OHC" and the lines that run the length of the top, I think that will look really good. I'll do that tomorrow or later tonight and post some pictars of it
. Anyways I've got the pictures resized. I tried to put them in the first post... but for some reason I can't edit the post anymore... really strange (mods, if you want to move the pictures besides the valve cover pictures to the original post, I'd appreciate it! You can delete what resides in these parentheses as well ). Anyways tomorrow I have no school so I'm gonna spend the day welding in new floor pan patches, hopefully I'll finish the front of the driver's side pan, that'd be awesome! I'll also grind down my ugly welds and clean everything up too. I'll have to pick up some por 15 or maybe just some plain old spray paint that matches (or sorta matches) the paint that's already there. Also the whole engine is totaly dismantled right now, and luckily, no machining will be needed. The only thing it needs is new gaskets, which are coming tomorrow. Even the bearings look fine. So happy with that. I paid $100 for a engine with no issues! So awesome. I'm going to paint the block metallic gold this week probably. I know it sounds dumb, but I'm confident that it will look good. At least it will be original . Anyways this car is gonna be so awesome, I can't wait to drive it. Pics!
here's the cam timing cover:
Valve cover:
Super cool from close-up:
Here's how the driver's floor pan looked:
How it is currently:
Look at the lack of rust under the fenders
)The rear hatch area cleaned up nicely, I did this while I had the hatch off to weld the hinge back onto the pass. side:
Really like this view for some reason...
Anyways I've also been thinking a lot about what route I'm going to go with, figuring out all the parts I want to use and what not. I've pretty much got it all figured out. The next thing I'm going to buy is a tranny. I had been planning on a zx 5 speed... But a local guy here offered me a 240sx 5 speed with L-series bellhousing for a fairly good price... It may be the route I go, still undecided. Does anyone have a 240sx tranny? I haven't searched that hard but I have yet to see a detailed install of one... all I know is that I need to get my driveshaft shortened 2 inches. Any ideas on pricing for that?
Anyways sorry I've been so lazy... I guess I've just been really busy with a lot of stuff lately and whenever I have free time, I spend it welding. One of the patches has taken me about 6 hours so far and I'm not even done... It's the big one in the center. But I probably only have another 20 minutes of welding to finish it. I just have to decide what I'm gonna do about the piece I have to weld to because it's really thin before more rusted through metal starts, which is right at the seam of the firewall and the floor pan... Anyways I'll finish it up tomorrow! Its funny how much work this takes, but its so enjoyable for me, I can't explain why, I just love it!
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This looks exactly the way im going to do it. good job.
I didn't research for a differential conversion yet.
You can get a limited slip diff out of a 300zx and if you change the rear cover and the mount for the driveshaft, it pretty much bolts right in. There's many posts about it on here and other places. Also another thing you might consider for your build is a lighter flywheel. There'd be no way for them to know it was there without taking off the tranny, and it makes your power more efficent. Personally I plan to use an arizona Z car 12 lb flywheel with an aftermarket 2+2 clutch kit. You could do an aluminum driveshaft too come to think of it, MSA sells one. I'd think if you painted it black they wouldn't be able to tell.
Also you haven't talked about carbs yet. I assume you need to use your SU's. Check out Ztherapy, apparently they do a great job of modifying SU carbs.
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Hello,
Looking to buy a 280zx 5 speed tranny to put into my 240z. I really need it, as I don't have a tranny at all! I don't really need the shifter or the shift knob, if it makes a difference in price. I can pay cash or paypal. I also have many items I would be willing to trade. Please let me know if you have a tranny. I'm located in the bay area, CA.
Contact via pm.
-Austin
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Dumb idea. It won't add any appreciable strength because the rockers are the strongest part of the chassis already. That foam is also difficult to install correctly - you must completely clean the inside of the rockers and make sure they are dirt and rust free, not just covered over with POR15 or primer. And, if you ever have to repair the rockers, you're screwed. You can't weld on any panel that has foam behind it.
very good points! I guess I see now how since the rocker panel is already the stiffest part, it wouldn't make sense to focus on stiffening it. And in thinking... not being able to repair the rocker panels means having to scrap a complete chasis should something go wrong with them. Not probable that anything would go wrong.. but you never know. And that's too much of a downside to have to possibly scrap a classic car that are becoming fairly rare... so this makes me not want to do it, just for fear of ruining a great chassis.
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Hey,
So I'm working on my 240z and today an idea popped into my head. I remember when I was way into modding my MINI, I had seen people talking about filling different chassis pieces with urethane foam to stiffen them. Apparently it makes a "noticeable" difference. Well in my research I've read that the rocker panels are what hold the chasis together front to back. Assuming this is true, what about filling them with foam? there's plenty of holes inside the car to fill them sufficently. Seems to me it would add a lot of stiffness to the car.... I have read about different other chassis stiffening methods... but they all seem too obtrusive for a street-driven car. This one would be totaly stealth once i put in an interior. My only concern is rust and if i ever have to weld anything to the panels (heard of people scrapping shells because they couldn't fix them after the foam was in there). Any other things that could pose a problem? Am I just being an idiot? seems a little too good to be true if it really does make a difference...
Anyways looking forward to what everyone thinks
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I ended up yanking the MSA roll bar. Sparco R100 seats fit great but the roll bar would not allow seats to go back far enough or to recline.
Interesting that you did that. I had been planning on getting a jegs roll bar for a while but decided against it for the time being (decided I had other priorities, like getting the car rolling). The interior looks great!
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Based off of what I have heard... the f54 block and p79 head are not ideal for a turbo application. For one, the flat-tops apparently have too much compression for use with a turbo (I'd think this would be fine). Also, the exhaust liners are known to break apart under pressure. This is no big deal if it runs through your exhaust, possibly damaging some tubing or a muffler. But it is a big deal when it takes out your turbo's exhaust turbine! You can remove the liners though, I've heard. I am not very knowledgable on turbos, but these are the things I have read. I have the same block and head and I decided to keep it NA. The choice is yours.
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Just to be clear, the diff won't affect where in the rev range the engine makes the most power. You want to match the characteristics of the cam with the driveline. I still see you saying you want good low end torque, but also want to wind it out and make good power at high revs too. On our L28s, you have to compromise - the better the engine makes power at high revs, the weaker its torque will be at low revs.
That said, I run a 4.11 diff with an 81-83 zx 5 speed and find the combination a lot of fun to drive on the street. The 4.11 means that I don't have to downshift as often as with a lower diff, and I can wind it out in 2nd gear without hitting go to jail speeds. It also spends very little time in the lower rpm range as long as I'm willing to shift. When I ran NA on the track it was great because there was always a gear where I was in the power band i.e. above 3500 rpm.
This site is a great way to get an idea of where your shift points will be with various combinations. You might compare to your Mini to get a frame of reference.
As for whether you should get an LSD, for a street driven Z I'd vote no. The LSD adds weight, cost, and makes the car push when under power, and then loosens when it unlocks from lifting the throttle. I was surprised how much of a difference it made in sweeping turns on the street. Note: this is with a CLSD. A VLSD might be less intrusive. Unless you really stiffen the rear suspension, you will probably find that you don't need it.
well the 4.11 sounds like the one. I'm not racing or planning to turbo or supercharge anytime soon, so one you liked for N/A will be the better one I'm sure.
Thats a good point about the lsd... i hadn't really thought about it that way. I think I'll just stick with the diff I have already for now, it will save me some cost for my build. Maybe I'll do an lsd conversion or some other diff later on.
Well looks like all my questions relating to this topic have been answered on this thread... once again! I love this place, best forum I've ever been on.
thanks for all the help guys!
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What's the average weight and displacement of the MINI's you're used to?
Reason I ask, is that I believe the Z will have much more displacement for the weight of the vehicle, meaning that it's going to feel much more "torquey". This is something I didn't really think about much until recently but I can go back through the history of all the cars I've driven and can definitely make the correlation in the numbers.
A 1.8 liter CRX can actually "feel" like it's got more torque, or "power off idle", than a 4.7 liter toyota tundra.
I can also say it this way. Torque is nearly meaningless without context. Torque more than anything is an indicator and should be used as such. A diesel isn't powerful off idle because it makes a crap ton of torque, it's actually because it makes so much bloody HP off idle. HP moves cars, not torque. HP puts you in your seat, not torque.
But if I say an engine has 400lbs of torque off idle (we'll assume 1k rpm) that's over 75HP, which is a boatload when it's that low in RPM. It's going to get an object MOVING.
The this is though, is that torque is directly tied to displacement in NA applications. So for comparing NA vehicles to NA vehicles, we can use displacement to weight to directly compare how they'll drive at low engine speeds, even if they behave very differently at peak HP. You're not driving at peak HP all the time, so for street driving I find the displacement/weight measurement very useful.
So that's why I ask about the mini. The Z will weigh around 2200-2400 pounds, and 2.8 liter is more than 1 liter per 1,000 pounds, which is better than many muscle cars.
My mini has a 1.6 liter supercharged engine and weighs about 2600 lbs. It is probably putting out around 175 hp. Stock is 160 hp.
I can see what your saying, and I'm glad to hear it haha. Like I said, I want something that feels fast. I'm more interested in feel and driveability than the numbers. As I understand it, with my planned mods, I will be putting close to 200 hp to the wheels. so thats 10 lbs per hp, roughly, which is awesome! The throttle will also react faster (damn drive by wire),and I will absolutley love driving this car!
So if I did that cam I talked about, and a 5 speed tranny, which diff would I want? I want a vicious lsd out of a 300z if I can find one... But an open diff would be ok too. So what size tranny would I want? A 3.9? Or would a 4.1 suit me better? Like I said I want power a little lower than most people.
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I think it'll work for your goals as long as the head is healthy and you induction system is well matched. I'd suggest playing with cam timing when it comes time to tune too.
awesome! sounds like the winner! Well I'll go with that one then
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is there any other source for lash pads? I thought rock auto sold them as well? if lash pads aren't available... then I guess I can't get a camshaft... unless by dumb luck I am able to find the right lash pads in stock...
isn't this a good selection of all the ones anyone would need?
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your car is so awesome! Definitley a different route than I plan to take my car... But I forsee our cars running together at some point
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Too bad you missed it, I was there as well!
What part of the North Bay are you in? I can let you know if I'm in the area with my Z and would have no problem coming by and taking you on a ride.
Aww well I wish I had gone!
haha I'm in san anselmo, I'd love to have a ride (in your car lol). And I'd love to check it out just to get some nice ideas for my project.
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Should have come to Mt. Diablo a few weeks ago.... I'm sure you could have gotten a ride in some Z cars.
I'll first put out there that I have very little experience with what some consider the "more agressive" stock L24. I've only ridden in 1 stock longblock 240Z and it was probably on putting around 100hp to the wheels, if that. But I've also ridden in, and driven, a few L28 equipped 240's, and it's amazing how much better they feel from a stop.
Point being ~ You can do all sorts of tricks to increase VE, but increasing it down low just seems like a backwards way to go. A 2.8 liter S30 will have ZERO issues with having enough torque to handle hills unless there's something seriously wrong. And no matter what, a L28 that's making a healthy 200hp at 6,000 rpm is going to feel way better all through the RPM range than a L28 making 170hp at 5,000, even if it's making more torque down low.
That's my .02 cents. Oh, and all that said my S30 has a L28ET... When I get it running again you can come drive it if you want to head up to vacaville sometime.
I know, I wish I would have gone! I had a friend that was going to come here that weekend, so I thought I wasn't going to be able to go. he ended up getting sick and couldn't come here. But then I went and picked up my engine that day so it was either get the project started or go see some Z cars. It was gonna be at least another week till I would have been able to get the engine so I went for getting it then.
I guess I'm used to my MINI where cams are a selection of street, semi-race, or full on race. I was under the impression that that's how all engines are. But I have realized that I am very wrong in that impression. Well I've decided to go with the one I had planned on, the web "91" grind: 260 duration.
here's the info sheet on it: http://webcamshafts.com/pages/automobile/datsun/install_data/tc_001800_001086.html
does this sound like a good cam? or should I go more aggressive?
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I'm on the peninsula and live on a big hill. Up the hill at 25-30mph in 3rd gear is fine, but I do have a 3.9 diff. No downshifts required from 5th gear commuting to Petaluma. I have plenty of torque and can take it to 6500-7000rpm although it doesn't breathe very well up there. Shifting around 6000rpm is perfect. This is with an L24 with triples and custom exhaust, everything else stock engine-wise.
If you want max torque to occur at higher rpm then you'll have to sacrifice it down low. I would recommend getting a ride in or driving a Z with a stock cam before you decide. It's hard to gauge any changes you make to the car without having a baseline, which is why I'm starting out almost stock and then progressing into upgrades.
If you're taking 101 to petaluma and you don't have to downshift... I'm impressed! That one hill on 101 in novato, I always have to downshift in my mini to hold speed. I'm excited for my Z
. Well yes, I realize there is a give and a take to it (just like everything else!). I know... I know. I keep kicking myself because I want to know what a bone stock Z drives like. But I don't really have that option because my Z is undriveable, and if I'm going to rebuild it, then I'm not gonna go back to a stock car! so unless another member from the bay area wants to go for a drive somewhere, I'm pretty much just going to have to trust that everything I did was worth it.
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I don't know about you guys, but I'm having plenty of fun with the stock cam. I'm in a hilly area as well and have absolutely no problems. Take-offs are in second gear unless I'm on a hill.
what part of the bay are you from? in marin it's really hilly, well in the part I'm in. I'm having tons of fun with my stock cam too! It sits in my engine on it's stand waiting to be used haha. I've never driven a Z before so I wouldn't know. But since I'm rebuilding the engine anyways, I figure I will try and do it right the first time!
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This car is awesome! So clean! the only issue I have with it is the rims look way too big... but that's just me, I'm into small rims. Anyways I really like your car! I plan to paint my '73 green hah. how did the por15 stuff work? and how is that roll bar? I'm looking into getting one...
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Poor typing, sorry. "Flip" was the incorrect term supplied by Android OS.
Doc510 showed me a quick way to gauge the lash pads needed.
First bottom out the adjusting thing and then turn it out about 3 threads showing.
Put in a stock lash pad and measure the gap between rocker and cam.
Add the 2 and thats what you need.
When I did this most of mine had about .020 clearance + the .120 stocks = 140 pad required.
All my wipes are perfectly centered with this quick method.
Ah that makes sense. Thanks for the explanation, I really appreciate it!
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If you are driving at 1800 rpms in a Z-Car in ANY gear other than first moving from a stoplight or rolling to a stoplight (?) you need to go back to driving school!
This isn't a Chevy, don't drive it like one! You want bottom end grunt and want to drive it like a Diesel Jetta, install a turbo.
NONE of these engines has anything below 3000 rpms, don't make it something it was never meant to be. You want an industrial refrigeration engine, install a Toyota 18R...
well I wasn't saying I wanted it to have peak power there or anything... really just saying that I want it to at least be able to move the car without stalling at that rpm... I live in a pretty hilly place so its important to have enough down low to get you moving. I would never expect to be trying to drive it quick in that rpm range. 3k is about where I want the power to come on, in thinking.
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Doc510 taught me a trick to flip the pads.
Old fart knows his ****.
haha sounds interesting... is it as straight forward as it sounds? would you be able to (PM if you want) tell me how this is done?
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L engines don'thave variable valve timing so in general, improvements at higher rpm come at the expense of losing some bottom end torque. You might want to focus on a cam with less aggressive valve timing and overlap but with higher lift to help air flow. Otherwise you may be disappointed with loss of low end torque.
now that is starting to sound more like what I want. so would the cam I mentioned be more on track with what you're saying? Its not too aggressive. I don't plan to ever race this car. I will probably do some track days and some auto-x, but no racing on the track, I'm sure. This is going to be a street Z, but I hope to make it a fun car!
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I just went through this and got "scared away" from getting the real gnarly cam I wanted to something more people-friendly.
I now wish I had gone for the nasty stupid cam instead of the sensible mid cam.
I got an Isky L490 regrind which is fine, but pretty strong mid-range.
I wanted a lumpy stupid idle and a more wild top end.
Might even replace this one soon.
No way to say what lash pads you will need until you start to assemble and see how it goes.
I had a bunch sitting around and needed to buy a few. Nearly all of mine needed a 140 or 150 which is less than I thought.
Probably because the valve seats got recut a bit deeper?
But the wipe pattern was perfect with the ones I used and so it is..
If you (or I) go with a really tall cam I suppose I might need to run my tower shims.
Isky treated me well and quickly for what its worth.
Tj
sounds like you and I are after different things... I want something for the low-end. Something that will pull from a low rpm, on up to a mid-range. Although top end is important to me too... So it needs to be a little more aggressive. I think I'll go with my gut and go for the second from mildest cam that web offers. How do I know when I have the right lash pads? Where's the best place to get lash pads?
Anyways thank you for your reply! I appreciate your input.
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Well I searched... and surprisingly didn't find anything.
I'm wondering if anyone is using a cam from Web Cams?
here's the link:
http://www.webcamshafts.com/index_blank.html?pages/vehicle_search.html
You have to search for the right cam for the L, but they're there (under automobile-datsun-Z). The price for a re-grind sounds great, and they have quite a few grinds to choose from. I've seen them mentioned in other places and they apparently hold up really well. For a street-driven N/A Z with some basic upgrades, and driven for fun, what would be the right grind? I was thinking the .450 lift, 260 duration? Seems like it would be a great street cam. I'm more interested in the "feel" than the numbers. So basically something that feels good on the street. Any insight on this? And when I replace the cam, I need new rockers and lash caps, correct? What size lash caps with this cam?
Thanks for any help in advance!
-Austin
. Anyways I've got the pictures resized. I tried to put them in the first post... but for some reason I can't edit the post anymore... really strange (mods, if you want to move the pictures besides the valve cover pictures to the original post, I'd appreciate it! You can delete what resides in these parentheses as well 
). Anyways tomorrow I have no school so I'm gonna spend the day welding in new floor pan patches, hopefully I'll finish the front of the driver's side pan, that'd be awesome! I'll also grind down my ugly welds and clean everything up too. I'll have to pick up some por 15 or maybe just some plain old spray paint that matches (or sorta matches) the paint that's already there. Also the whole engine is totaly dismantled right now, and luckily, no machining will be needed. The only thing it needs is new gaskets, which are coming tomorrow. Even the bearings look fine. So happy with that. I paid $100 for a engine with no issues! So awesome. I'm going to paint the block metallic gold this week probably. I know it sounds dumb, but I'm confident that it will look good. At least it will be original 
. Anyways this car is gonna be so awesome, I can't wait to drive it. 
Help pl 1976 280z
in S30 Series - 240z, 260z, 280z
Posted
dont put an n42 on an f54... the water ports dont match up. The f54 should only be used with a p90, p90a, or p79. I'd steer clear of the p90a, and unless you're running a turbo, don't sweat between p79 and p90. I've decided to keep my p79, it's a nice head as long as you aren't running a turbo.
But I should ask this: what block/head do you have right now? Do you have stock efi or carbs? tell us more about what you have right now, so we can steer you better. If you have carbs, consider going for triples or 4bbl(that's the route I'm going anyways). Either way you're gonna be happy with a light flywheel and free-flowing exhaust. Then you can start looking into cams. If you're really into it, you could drop the dough on a stroker set up, or spend a considerable amount on head work. Your wallet is your limit.