Phantom

Crap - the only wildlife I find in my yard is Possums & snakes. Well - I do have a bird feeder that is a continuous source of Dove for the BB gun.

It's not the Caddy motor that will break things - it's the tires you run. If you have anything remotely stock in size the tires will just melt down and protect the drivetrain. If you modify the car to allow some oversize slicks where you can really hook it then you'll be taking the chance of breaking something. So far I've broken a universal in one half-shaft with my LS1 running on street tires - due to wheel hop - which the IRS is prone toward. If you're building a serious quater mile car I'd stick in a Ford 9" and know its good.

I know what you mean Mike. I'm kind of on the reverse side of that though with a local BMW M3 Roadster guy sticking his nose in the air each time I run across him. He knows his car is quick but has yet to find out how quick the Z really is. Conversely, a local C-5 'vert driver is friendly as all get out and has given me a thumbs up in both the 280 and the Z32 'vert. It's all the individual.

I find it interesting that the photo was a Zclub.net photo which is the Zclub in England - and both the cars were left-hand drive?

Car is looking good. You've obviously been working on it for a while. It shows. Welcome to the forum!

Actually - it would be: E) All of the above - and then some.

Personnally I would find one in a salvage yard car and use it. How did you damage the one in your car?

Hawaii - great place to visit but not a good place for old Zcar drivers. Roads are too constrictive & slow and the humid environment tends to rust them away pretty fast. Been to Maui - spent two weeks there with my wife for our 30th - really enjoyed it.

Between work and personal traveling I've seen a huge amount of the US since last May. I've been in Texas - obviously - Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, South Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Massachussetts, Wisconsin and Nevada. This Thursday I'm flying out to Washington state and the Sunday I'm headed to California for a week. At some point there will be a permanent relocation but still not quite sure where.

Finally got desparate since Larry is taking his time moving this direction and washed the Z32 convertible AND the 280 last Friday. Should have done it sooner. Had a northern Pacific coast weekend with a drizzle Monday that probably dropped 3" of rain at my place. What a glorious day!

Grumpy - good information. IT also counts even when looking at the old L28. Look at the difference in the torque curves between the early L28 heads (N42, N47) and the later ones (P90). It's huge.

For a straight swap I don't think you can beat keeping the EFI on the LS1. Mine uses the original GM harness with some wires stripped out and a few added in to incorporate the Datsun sensors. I'm running two O2 sensors and a "retuned" ECM. I had it done so it cost me about $250 for the ECM retune. All the other parts came with the motor. I really like the simplicity of the install because it keeps the GM stuff GM and the Datsun stuff Datsun. It also incorporates the OBD II port for trouble-shooting - how easy is that? - and the ECM even controls the radiator fans as in the donor car. For what Lason is planning on doing, though, I'm not sure what I'd do. Once again it all comes down to the intended use of the car, available funds & parts. Since I have a daily driver I'd stick with the EFI but for a once-in-a-while very high performance driver - ?

Pop - one of the things done with my T56 was to take the stock Dasun shift lever and weld a tab on the front of it that moved it back and also leaned it back. I don't know if that will work with your TKO but I've had no trouble with mine. It sits in what I call the perfect position so that, even with the new HUrst shift kit, 5th gear does not require me to lean forward at all to hit.

FWIW - my mounts are still solid after about 25,000 miles of driving - including a few stints at Texas Motorplex, a "driver's ed" day at Texas Motor Speedway and many, many demo rides. Nothing with the drive-train appears to have shifted. For that matter - the only problems I've had with the entire install have been electrical. I had my two radiator fan relays die within a month of each other - two years ago, and a lead to the starter burned through because of it's proximity to the passenger side exhaust. I've had pictures of the JCI mounts up in my album for about a year now. They were developed off my '77 280Z which means that someone else's car could be a bit different due to OEM manufacturing tolerances. I do know, however, that my car has never been involved in an accident so the dimensions should be close. Lason - I have to laugh when the term "mild LSX motor" is used in reference to an engine that's putting out 390 flywheel HP & about 345 lb-ft of torque.

Yeah Art - I know you and I go at it all the time - NOT!!

But Vinh - there is something so cool about air conditioning!

Wheelman, Sent you a PM. Yeah - I've seen some of the stuff in Selah & Natches. Looked pretty nice. They really aren't that far away - maybe a 20 minute commute to the place I'm interviewing with. Thought the name Selah was interesting - It's Hebrew meaning to ponder or contemplate long on something.

Yeah - I just went through the MLS looking at houses I might like and most of them were just north & south of Tieton and west of 80th or up in the scenic drive area. I saw a couple that were on the east side of the river out toward the military reservation that looked ok but don't know that area. Good to know about the motorhead thing. I wonder how they'll receive my Z? I have a feeling some of them might be in for a surprise. Look at me - already assuming I'm moving there.

Let me tell you guys - Sport Z was the first and only car magazine that my wife has ever read. As a result of an article they wrote on the 350Z she got the bug for a convertible and she now drives a Z32 convertible with custom interior and top. She absolutely loves the car. First car she has ever thought of as something other than basic transportation. Just think if the mag could do that to y'alls wives & girl friends!!!

I took advantage of the break in weather last night after work and did an oil change on the 280Z and spent some time under the hood checking things out. Even figured out how to fix the bent hood latch mount (C-clamp and a big pipe wrench) and have that working much better now. After finishing, I was helping my younger son load a kitchen table into the Suburban for his apartment when a guy drivng down the street asked if Josh's car (an '83ZX) was a Z. He had been over in another part of the neighborhood looking at an '80ZX for his 16 year old son. I told him to park his car and that I was going to "make his son cry". Went into the garage and backed out the 280 and then Josh and I proceeded to extol the virtues of Z cars for about an hour in my driveway. Gave the kid a card for Cowtown Z Club and told him to come on out and we'd find a car for him. He's enrolled in an auto repair program and wants a car he can work on. Told him that was a great idea because he was young and, at some point, was sure to break it and he needed to know how to put it back together. All in all - a great Z evening.

TXZ1956, Dude - I feel for you. I've fought the expansive soil battle for 20 years in my current home and so far have managed to avoid having the foundation jacked. The good news is that a good company can take care of the problem permanently. I'm in the process now of a job hunt and hoping to get far-far away where it is cooler and dryer - well - cooler anyway. I've had interviews in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and next week in Washington. Geographically Washington is my first choice but the jobs in the other locations are all ones that I could enjoy doing. Guess I'll see who makes an offer and how good it is. Just hope I still have some trees in my yard when it comes time to put the house on the market.

My goal is to get out of Texas (the "ring of fire") and to the Northwest. I was born in LaGrande, Oregon and grew up in Boise. My first preference would be to get back to Boise but need to have a job first. That hasn't happened yet. At least in Yakima I'd be close enough for "weekenders" and could scout property to eventually build on. Just the thought of low humidity and cool nights is almost more than I can stand. The humidity here carries the heat through the night so I've been getting up at 6:00 AM to temperatures above 80°F. It's a real bummer when you have to use the AC during the morning drive to work. I don't have any real illusions at this point about Yakima. I figure it's a lot like many other NW cowtowns I've been through. The key will be to be careful to locate in the right neighborhood and identify the areas to avoid early. Right now I live in a nice area of Arlington but a mile away is a bad area of Fort Worth. I don't drive through there and my life is fine. The job I'm looking at is a big step backward. I'll be going from corporate engineering management at a 2,000 person headquarters campus to essentially a plant engineer job at an 80 person plant. When I say my talents will be under utilized I'm using classic British understatement. I just have to keep the goal in mind and remember that the pay will be as good in an area with a similar cost of living.

Evidently someone else got prety upset too. Channel Eight was not my doing. Kudo's to whomever was able to get them out!

Larry, Dude - you're a veritable chamber of commerce. I used to put out information like that about Boise. Had a high school buddy that lived in the tri-cities area for years but moved over by Seattle when his wife of 20+ years left him. Thanks for your personal insights, Bill

Dave - Outstanding! that's the same info I gave my club earlier this month and they seemed pretty ok with it. I'm looking forward to my first issue of the new Nissan Sport magazine in the next couple weeks - right?