spork

Hey guys, I've searched through a lot of info in the archives and now I've got some questions. I've got an 83 280zxt that I need to build a new motor for. I currently have a t3/t04e hybrid pushing 23psi, intercooler, cold air intake, 3 inch exhaust, 370cc injectors, water/methanol injection and so on. I plan on using forged pistons (not sure which ones yet), I've prepped the block casting material per the how to modify your datsun book. I'm polishing all my rods and then balancing them to withing .1 gram of each other. I'll be doing the same with the pistons. I've already got arp head studs and figured I'd go with arp rod bolts, but are the arp mains neccissary? And if not, just buy new nissan ones, right? I figure I'll have the rods and crank shotpeened too. (do I need to have the pistons done?) Is it worth having the piston tops jet coated or something similar? What else should I do to this motor while I'm building it. I figure I'm a little over 300hp to the ground now, and I'd like to see this car around the 400hp mark with this engine eventually. I've got plenty of time and lots of tools to do most of the work myself so let me hear the ideas. Money as usual is an issue, but if I need to do something, I'm willing to wait that much longer till I get the car back on the road. Thanks, Oh, forgot to mention, I'm port matching my manifolds and head and polishing the combustions chambers. I've also been thinking about having my exhaust manifold treat with jet hot to help keep temps down under the hood. Should the intake manifold be done too? Also, this car will be driven on the street, but I go to the track about 10 times a year. I can live with quarks if it means the car will perform better at the track. Last of all, how much nitrous could a guy safely run on a setup like this? I figure I'd go with a wet setup if I even do it, but I've got a high 11 second honda that I'm going after and he's going down! James

Skip the compression test and go straight for the leakdown test. It'll tell you much more about the engine, and its much more accurate. I've had great compression numbers (2 motors now) but when I went to do a leak down, the numbers were awful. Pulled them apart and one of them had grooves almost worn through the cylinder wall, put the compression was good. You put a soid amount of air to it for a little bit and you'll see the truth!

Hi, I've got an 83 280zxt with a T3/TO4E hybrid thats been on the car for about 6000 miles. I've got a turboxs RFL blow-off valve, and I noticed oil on the horn of it so I investigated further. I pulled the outlet pipe off the turbo and it's got oil all over on the inside. I pulled the hose between the AFM and the turbo inlet and it's spotless clean and the turbo doesn't have any shaft play. The oil lines are mounted perfectly verticle so there shouldn't be an issue with oil pressure building up and not draining properly. What else could cause this problem, or could it have possibly been a problem with assembly. The car ran great the first time I took it to the track and the next 4 times my MPH has been 4-6 mph slower than it should've been and I've noticed oil on the plugs, but never thought it could've been the turbo because it was new. Please help, I don't want to have the turbo rebuilt and then experience the same problem again. James Roraback

Yes, you want the spacer. You want to get that compressor side away from the exhuast manifold as far as possible. I think I used a 1/2 spacer on mine. If you want, you can even try to fabricate a better shield to fit in there too. You'll need longer exhaust studs by the way. I got mine from napa (they were an on the shelf item). James

If I were his dad..I'd keep him low on boost until he gets used to the car a little bit. A budy of mine has a 94 hatch that we put a Ls b18 in with a turbo kit. He's only curently running 12lbs of boost due to a guy selling him injectors that weren't as big as he claimed. Anyways, hes been to the track twice and the best so far is 12.4@115. The car has a much lower 12 in it with a little better traction. To me...this is a lot of power for a kid that hasn't slowly worked up to this kind of thing. If you start out low on boost, you can always go up a little. If you start out too high, it'll be hard to turn that knob back down. To me, 8lbs would be the limit on the street. But then again, my buddy is turning his up to 18 when he gets his new tranny (4th one he broke) and his new injectors, and this is his DAILY DRIVER. It'll turn an 11 in a heartbeat.

How do you correct for sea level, is there a formula somplace that you would pass on to me? Or maybe an on-line calc. that does it for you? James

I replaced the stock headgasket on mine with another one from nissan. the original one had 167,xxx miles on it and it only blew when I toasted an injector. I'm running 20psi out of my hybrid and haven't had any problems. James

I'm running the turboxs RFL which vents to atmosphere on my 83 280zxt w/ the stock fuel setup. The RFL vents really fast but it still runs a little rich between shifts...but who cares...I haven't noticed any thing thats made my car run any worse. By the way, when they say its RFL....damn...they mean it. It took some getting used to. James

I too would like pics of everyones side pipes. datsun280zxt@sbcglobal.net thanks, James

wow, I haven't heard that complaint before...most people want the deepest glossiest looking paint they can get. As far as imron 5000, I've never had any problems polishing out scuffs or scrapes. What are you using to atempt to remove the blemishes? Just compound, or are you wetsanding first (on a solid color)? I've been painting trucks with imron 5000 and 6000 for a while now (I work for a kenworth dealership). They use imron 5&6000 from the factory and overall it's a pretty decent paint. It will last for a long ti me, and very little car is needed since its meant for a commercial use. Personally, I prefer the 6000 line becuase o the protective clear coat. It doesn't tend to oxidize near as bad as a single stage and easier to polish out imperfections, and its a little easier to get a better paint job when doing metallics as you can't wet sand a singlestage to get that super smooth glass look.

well, I swapped the 3.54's back into the car last night and took it out for a run, The car feels like it's back to normal. I toasted a newer transam and a brand new roush (sp?) stage 2 mustang. James

I'm just using the borg warner t-5 that came in the car. I haven't had any problems with it yet. (170,xxx miles on it too.)

maybe there's a need for the upgrade, maybe not. I do believe in upgrading a part if you're already replacing it, but I've had no problems as of yet with my factory driveshaft in my 83-280zxt. I'm running a slick thats just over 9 inches wide and come off the line hard (20psi of boost and no wheelspin). Well, what ever you end up doing, let us know. James

my rpm is right about 6000...maybe just a hair over. It's not worth switching to 5th gear or I loose both time and mph if I do. I've typically been shifting at just over 6000 rpm also, I've found that with my set up, it yields both the best mph and et.

the best 60fts I had with the 3.90's was a 1.9...but most were 2.0's and that was street tires, vs slicks I'm using with the 3.9's. I never had a chance to try the slicks with the 3.54's. And actually, it seemed like third gear is where I lost out. First and second were absolutely amazing (I think that was mostly due to the slicks) but third gear it wouldn't run real hard, picked up in fourth all the way to red line where I cross the finish line. As far as full boost in the lower gears...couldn't tell you, I went through them quick...but I had a hard enough time keeping the car going straight let alone enough time to look at my boost gauge until about the top of 3rd gear. I would try taller tires, but with the amount of squat I get...and having nine inch rims in the back (for the slicks only) I can't go real tall or they'll rub on my launch.

Well, I've got an 83 280zxt with bwt5 tranny and had 3.54 gears in the back. I swapped in a set of 3.90 welded gears that I had lying around and my MPH dropped. I had been running 106-107mph, and I've been to the track 3 ties now on the 3.9 and the best I've seen is 102mph. To me this doesn't makes sense. My et's by the way are off as well (though I'm pulling 1.8 60fts now). I guess I'm going to swap the old gears back in but I was wondering if someone could explain what happened. I heard someone mention once about when swapping gears on a turbo motor you have to be careful because the turbo won't have anything to work against and you'll make less power. Anyways, any input is appreciated.

well, you can also try to check the function of the actuator if you have an air compressor w/a regulator on it. Dial the regulator down andhook it up to the vaccum line that goes to the actuator. Apply air. If the actuator moves back and forth smoothly and you don't hear any hisses then you're actuator is good. If you've got a hiss, then the diaphram in the actuator is most likely the culprit, and you'll have to get a new actuator. As far as testing your blow-off valve for leaks, it all depends on how yours is constructed. I tested a buddies 1G talon bov by hooking a hose up to the vented portand run it into the car and then hit boost. if it leaks you'll get air coming out of the hose. Be careful with this tho and make sure you have someone helping you, that hose can get out of control when you lift the throttle or if it's failing and letting boost vent. As far as checking your piping you'll want to find 2 pvc pipe plugs that will fit into the coupler from the turbo and one that fits in the coupler that hooks to the throttle body. Drill and tap one plug and thread in a air chuck and clamp the plug into place. Make sure you get the plug in tight, or it will shoot out when you apply air. Plug the other end of your pipes with the other plug and apply air w/ an air compressor and check for leaks. Let us know how it turns out. James

I'd guess that either one of 2 things is happening. The most likely is that you've got a leak somewhere in your piping (or bov) and its venting boost. I've pushed over 20psi out of the stock turbo...running through a starion intercooler. If I had 20 psi in the intake I'm sure I was atleast 25psi coming out of the turbo because that intercooler is restrictive as hell, and my boost was always very steady with no fade or drop. The second option is you've got boost controller problems. What method of controlling boost are you using? James

check this out http://www.thedodgegarage.com/video/reliant_connecting_rod_bbq.mpg my understanding was this car was on its way to make even more power than the 444 horse last registered on the dyno before the blow.

you interested in selling one of your electric ones? I've got one at work and I'm getting tired of hauling it home evertime I need it and wouldn't mind getting one I can keep at my house.

now this is might be a long shot for you, and it only works for one line. I too had that problem and I took a funnel and cut off the spout and slid it over the line and at the same time I slid the connector on. you then have to cut the funnel spout off the line with tin snips or something. We only had to do one line, and had the problems you did, so we just started expirimenting. Abviously, theres gotta be a better way

if you have an autozone nearby you, go there, and look up injectors for the svo. Listed in there system they will have lots of different oem part numbers the injectors. You want the later yeared svo injectors as they were the higher output ones. I'm not positive, but I've been told that the earlier ones weren't brown tops. So you should be safe if you have the brown ones, but go to autozone and check for yourself

metal finishing is begining to be a lost art also. I've done quite a bit of it...but it takes a lot more time than a simple rough in and a coat of glaze which definetely does make it cost prohibitive. As far as using lead goes, I'd stay away from it, the health issues that go along with it are let alone enough to keep me away from it, not to mention the potential for paint problems down the line if you don't know what you're doing. Also, when talking about fillers, like it was mentioned above, when used properly, you'll never know they're there...even 20 years down the line. James Roraback bodyshop manager

the zx's cig lighter isn't hot wired tho...sucks too...I just need to get around to changing that.

I guess it all depends on your definition of light. Anything in the 3000 range up is getting heavy. To me light is my buddies civic hatch that weighs 2010. But regardless, those spirits can kick some serous ass!