Phantom

I let my older son borrow the 280Z28 once. He was at a stoplight when a well riced Civic pulled along side and started revving his squirrel. Eric ran the LS1 up to about 4K and let it do a slow rumble down. The Civic guy dropped his eyes & stared straight ahead. Both of them left the light very normally. One of the best 'kills' Eric ever got.

Hrod382, To quote from "The Waterboy" - "You can do it!" On the question about wiring into the dash. Use the Datsun senders for the water temp and oil pressure and install them in the LT1 system. That simplifies that. The tachometer can be modified to take a V8 signal. The speedometer is a different story - depending on the transmission you use. Some have mechanical outputs which will be fairly straight forward to use your stock speedometer. If it's an electronic output then you'll either need to get an electronic speedometer or use a CableX converter to convert the tranny electronic output into a mechanical drive for the speedo. If you stick with your stock fuel tank then the fuel gauge is no problem. If you go to a fuel cell then it becomes more complicated. The fact that the Gen1 dashes have two compound gauges in them really complicates the decision as there are no aftermarket compound gauges available. Keep the Datsun or find other places to mount the aftermarket gauges in addition to the dash. More research.

I just read an article on a study that links being around stupid people with heart attacks & strokes. Bottom line, the really stupid ones can kill you just by being themselves. I'm considering getting myself a portable defibrillator. It may be my only chance for survival.

Wow John - a new bride AND published in Sport Z Magazine! You've been a busy boy!

I run Mobil 1 and just change both the oil & filter at 5,000 miles. I'm more concerned about acid build-up from blow-by, etc. damaging the engine than particulate build-up or viscosity changes. The new GM's and some other cars tell you when to change the oil based on the type of driving the computer registers and even hydrocarbon based oils often end up getting changed out well over 7,500 miles. then again, GM is in the business of selling vehicles, not oil. Hmmmm.

I have played around with several C-5's with considrerable success. Only one Z06 though. I always kept myself in an 'advantaged' position where he could never get me. Got him so frustrated he quit entirely and disappeared.

GAZRNR, Where did you physically locate your APR? I have a similar set-up but still have the OEM proportioning valve.

There is always the flagrant extremist - and usually they can neither spell nor create a truly cohesive thought. I have seen many posts that I just don't bother to read or waste my time replying because the language is so mutilated It makes it hard for me to understand, much less try to properly reply. This is not a ricer only thing although they seem to do it more than the average. Must be some kind of ghetto tough guy image thing. I have a lot of respect for the craftsmanship of the cars I see in the DFW area both cosmetically and drivetrain wise, though. The last time I was at Ennis there was a Honda Civic that ran a 10.6 or 10.8 quarter mile. Heck of a lot faster than any of the Z's out there that night. It's too bad there are so many loud mouth idiots that continually draw lightning strikes. They give the others a really bad name.

My car is my daily driver. It's what I drive to work nearly every day. I've put about 16,000 miles on it since the conversoin and the drive-train has been bullet-proof. I'm running a 3.70:1 LSD R200 out of a turbo Z31. It handles the load fine. Any R200 should hold up pretty well for you but you can break anything on a car if you drive it hard enough. You will have to edit the PCM because your engine won't be set up identically to a stock unit. You want to get a donor car and pull the engine, PCM, wiring harness, transmission, driveshaft, and radiator fan assembly. Personnally I'd get the engine and transmission mounts for sure to get the engine set in a good position and then go from there. My car was the prototype for the broken kitty items so I know they work. You're going to have a bunch of decisions to make on the fuel system and the gages. If you get a 280Z - already set-up for fuel injection it could be a bit simpler - plus you'll have a structurally stronger (and heavier) car. You need to do a bunch of searching using LS1 and T56 on this forum. I know I have about 40 posts I put up on mine plus there are dozens more by other members here who have done the LS1 conversion. There is no absolutely right way to do the conversion because your personal preferences - and budget - will greatly affect what you do. Do the research and make the tough decisions up front before you start.

Get on the Procharger website. They sell an intercooled centrifugal supercharger that is a bolt-on that can get you to 700 HP. You'll have to change injectors and a few other things to get there but it doesn't require internal work. At that level, though, I'd be seriously considering it.

Go to http://www.brokenkitty.com and look at the "components" they offer for an LS1 conversion in a gen 1 Z. With the independent rear suspension and fairly small wheel wells you're going to be traction challenged in a Z unless you do some suspension modifications along with the drive train - depending on how quick you really want to be. With basically no modifications you can get into the 12's, maybe even the 11's, but then you'll need to start working on it for 10's or beter.

The seller of the ZX claims 83,000 miles on the car but the photo of the speedometer shows '000258'. Wonder what else isn't quite right about the 'no title' car?

I'm running 365 flywheel hp with T-6 & 3.70:1 R200. Car is extremely streetable but 1st gear is only necessary when in a really big hurry.

That's what the vanity tag on the back of a Black C-5 Corvette with racing yellow wheels, rear panel, and a huge wing declared when I came up on him on SH 360 in the DFW area today. Anyone ever seen this guy? I got close enough for him to read my vanity tag but wasn't able to do anything else as I was on top of my exit when I caught him.

Jody, I'll look around and see if I have something. I have an external pump mounted in the original stock pump location on my '77 using the stock '77 tank. Bill

Oldest Z Guy - they are probably NOT 5-spd's. The 5-spd became an option in 1977 and appeared on some 77 & 78 models. It was more prevalent in 79 on the new ZX and then became a standard item in '80. Check out any manual and it will give you ways to identify which yours is - or you could just run the lever "thru the gears". Here Comes Trouble - excellent run down on the tranny's and years offered. I remember my only regret when I installed a 5-spd and 3.90:1 R200 out of an 83ZX in my 77 was that I hadn't done it five years earlier. It really perked the car up.

et2473, Contact Jags That Run in California and Johns Cars, http://www.brokenkitty.com, in Dallas. They both make LS1/2/6 install kits that will get you started. Everything I've read indicates that these engines should be interchangeable if a car is set up for one of them. With the GTO & C6 both running the engine - and I think the SSR Pickup too - the LS2 blockis going to froliferate more 7 more. Since its a 6.0 vs essentially a 5.6 - and "their's no replacement for displacement" - we're looking at the future LS conversion resources.

Do you still have the chinpan on the underside of the motor? Those get removed a lot and that often results in overheating problems. The cin pan keeps air from coming up under the car instead of being forced thorugh the radiator. Also, I assume you have the heat shield between the exhaust & intake manifolds. That will go a long way with reducing vapor lock. I drove my L28 here in Texas for nearly 10 years and 100,000 miles and never had a serious vapor lock. I had the occaisional times when I'd have a rough idle inititally but that would disappear within about 30-45 seconds and it would then be fine.

WOW - a JSR graduate! Congrats man!

My 1977 280Z weighed 2800 lbs even with 3/4 tank of gas when it was completely stock except for an '83 T-5. It was 1400 lbs on each end. After the LS1/T56 conversion it was 2830 lbs - with the extra 30 lbs on the rear. I have not yet had it back on the scale since I aded the roll bar, strut tower braces, the custom interior, and the brake upgrade. Guess I need to figure out where I am now. My totally stock 1983 280ZX weighed 1430 on the nose and 1450 on the tail for 2880 lbs total. - with 3/4 tank of fuel.

Yeah - you'll definitely want to disable the skip-shift mode. I generally roll in 2nd and then go 3rd and then 5th or just straight to 5th from 2nd - unless I'm in a hurry or just playing around.

Jody, With what you've said I would tend toward the Hurst shifter. My current T56 location has the shift lever about 1/2" forward (toward the firewall) from the stock 280Z location. My original datsun shift lever has been modified with a tab on it that allows it to bolt to the back of the stock lever and come off at an angle that moves it back even further - long legs and short arms.

Looking at after-market shift kits for the T56 in my 280Z. Several out there including ones by Hurst and B&M. Anyone with first-hand experience that can input on pro's & con's of any particular kit?

Awww - I'll just put teflon pads on the front and then crank down on the proportioning valve in the back. Might up the pedal pressure a bit though. Seriously though - thanks for all the help guys. If anyone else has any thoughts I'm staying open and thinking this through some more.

I guess the simplest way to figure out where I am currently is to first remove the innards of the stock proportioning valve and then find out what happens. If the car stays front biased then I should start with stickier pads on the rear. If it goes to rear biased then I should put the APR in the rear line and adjust. Does this sound right to everyone?