Zetsaz

Additional thought now that I've gotten some sleep: It literally would have been easier and faster to just pull the engine block at this point. I really need to help my folks clear out their space and organize. They've been empty nesters for a while, and now that they're both fully retired they spend more time on the ranch in Mexico than in the US. I probably use the garage and shed way more than they do, but whole batches of wheels and crusty tires are just taking up all the space haha

Managed to get the pan off tonight. Was way more work than expected since I'm running my intercooler piping underneath right now in the space between the sump and the engine crossmember, but once I had that and the turbo drain hose out it came out fairly easy. A few things: -One of the rear seals looks bone dry, but the other side looks like it was maybe leaking. Still need to remove the clutch and flywheel tomorrow to check the rear main. -The oil pan looks relatively straight, but I don't think too much oil was leaking around it actually. At least not enough to warrant the amount of oil and grime on the underside of the pan. -The front of the engine was probably even more grimy than the pan. I thought a while ago when I went to the Kameari oil pump that it was the oil pump gasket (and it at least partially was then), but now I'm suspecting that the front seal is bad, or is leaking under boost. The front cover is completely coated, but there doesn't really seem to be any leaks from the front cover gasket or the head gasket. All that said, I think some of these partially failed due to poor PCV when I first got this thing running. I think when I finish I'm going to temporarily run the system identical to how it was in a stock configuration and monitor very closely for leaks before any longer drives.

I have OEM side seals ready to go as well. I asked on the Church of L Series facebook page about the oil pan gasket and it seems most people recommended using RTV only like Ultra Black and no gasket unless you're using the MSA Nissan Comp reproduction or your pan is super straight, which I doubt mine is. The FSM says to apply sealant to the side seals and the corners of the rear bearing cap. What did you use for sealant? Same RTV as I'm planning for the oil pan? Edit for addition - I'm planning on cleaning it up a much as possible. Like yours was, mine is super grimy. The leak must have gotten worse while on my trip to Washington this summer. The entire bottom of the transmission and exhaust were just caked in grime that got caught by the hot oil slowly making its way front to back while driving for so long.

Got the spindle and hug swapped on the side that burned out. Was a bit stressed at first thinking the spacer ring and the stock rotor didn't work but it turns out the new hubs just have much tighter tolerances. Some antiseize on the inside and we were good to go. The only downside to the replacement spindle from T3 to thread right into my BCs is it seems the threaded portion is maybe an inch shorter. Not a big deal but I was worried about minimum thread engagement. I had about 80mm before and I measured roughly 65mm now. I'll consider it safe it's more than the thread diameter by about 10mm, but I think BC recommends 80 meaning I'm basically at max ride height right now. Since I'm waiting on some things to ship due to Christmas I figured I'd pull the transmission to inspect the rear main. Honestly... I'm not sure I know what I'm looking for haha. There was oil on the lower inside of the transmission bellhousing, but the back of the flywheel looked dry. The dust cover also looked dry and seemed to have a clear line where it was dry where it meets the block, and very oily below it. It's a good thing I pulled though. It looks like my throwout bearing is already worn, and i don't know how bad the wear on the pressure plate fingers is. Tomorrow I'll buy the new throwout bearing, then pull the clutch and flywheel to see if the rear main is actually the culprit. If it isn't, then it looks like most of my oil leak comes from the oil pan gasket which I have ready to go.

EZ clip do seem slightly more space efficient, but it would be a waste to just not use the lines I already bought years ago. I think for sure I'll do some hardlines to route roughly where the original ones were and then not stress too much about the rest. I guess if the crimped lines ever give me trouble or for some reason need to be replaced I'll replace with the EZ clip lines for serviceability.

Yeah, Mishimoto. He had a similar shroud already made for the Wizard cooling radiators which are a bit different. They actually have a dedicated 280z one which is taller than the early ones just like OEM. Waved design costs for me since I fronted the cost of the radiator for design which he's returning to refund me. I think all in this actually cost me the same as a cheap shroud like from zcardepot or others, but was custom designed and had the fans at same price I could get them from Summit.

The new shroud Fran at Galgo designed and made for me is done and shipped yesterday. Might not get it by Christmas but it'll hopefully arrive by next weekend at the latest. Since the brakes likely won't ship while I'm home for my break, I'm gonna focus on wiring this up and maybe finally fixing the rear main seal leak. I have new trans fluid ready to go and meant to inspect the throw out bearing among other things, so it may be time. If I'm diligent in the planning I might be able to get it done in a single day. Other than that I'm still hung up on how much I want to use hard lines for the AC. I think at a minimum I want one for a tight bend off the condenser. The original had lines coming off both sides, the new one only has them on one side. I don't want to route a thick hose across the entire length of the radiator core support - just seems like unnecessary bulk.

Get the plate. You don't want anything that's spinning like that exposed to the elements. They're cheap even new. Stainless same cost as new OEM https://zcardepot.com/products/transmission-to-engine-plate-new-stainless-240z-260z-280z?variant=48797059187000

Good update! This right here ^ is why I committed to keeping mine fully a street car and I'm glad I did, but part of me also wishes I could go race occasionally without being scared I'll ruin it haha

I appreciate it! Might take you up on it depending on how I do the lines. I have a crimper for the ends to the soft lines that I bought years ago but I'm debating how much of it I really want to do with hardlines. Vintage air has a kind of pricey kit that has lines you can cut and some fittings that don't need to be crimped, but there's also the option of the "u bend em" lines you can buy individually prebuilt. For about $100 I could probably have all the hardlines I need premade and just bend to shape. Just need to measure what sizes to buy when I'm home this weekend. I'll probably route the lines identically to the factory ones I have. The original stuff probably could have been saved - occasionally I wish I'd just replaced the compressor and and hoses to connect to the rest of the system and just kept the original condenser, drier, and core, but this then I would have also had to keep most of the original vacuum stuff and actuators in the engine bay. This will be nicer long term, but definitely has been more of a headache.

Working on a replacement bulkhead plate for the AC. I've been procrastinating the AC lines because I hate basically every solution most people have come up with for running the lines through the firewall. I didn't want to cut for a 4 way bulkhead, and some people just run the fully hoses through cheap gromets in the original holes on the 280z. Even the guide Godzilla raceworks has on youtube for their kit feels kind of hacked together when it comes to the hose routing. Earlier cars didn't have factory AC, so this would be exclusive to the 280z. I took dimensions of the original plate and the original holes in the firewall where the rubber grommet goes through and started modeling a plate that would keep the dimensions of the original, but adapt some fittings I have from Vintage Air. The plate that came with the fittings is too narrow to use on its ownc as you can see from the image where I learned how to overlay and correctly calibrate an image in Fusion Checked with a model of a random fitting with the correct thread from mcmaster carr to help visualize as well. (The hex piece on this fitting is not the same as the recessed section on the plate for the Vintage Air part that helps retain it and prevent it from spinning, disregard the fact that it doesn't seem to fit). Not shown here is the back half which has larger indents, or whatever they're correctly called, that help align it with the firewall so it doesn't move. They're the same diameter and spacing as the original holes the rubber grommet aligned with. They go past the rear face about .040" or the ga of the firewall sheet metal. I'm debating doubling that, and making a shallow recess in the other plate that I also designed hat goes on the cabin side to retain this this one. The fittings and their jam nuts will hold the plates to sandwich the firewall just like they would on the Vintage Air piece. Actually, as I'm thinking about this I think I need to double it regardless to account for the thickness of the Lizard Skin ceramic coating that was sprayed on the interior. Will for sure 3D print soon and see how well it will work

I think eventually I'll work with a friend to design a bracket for them that will also add a wilwood MC4 like the ZCG kit has, but for now the kit will be plenty good. As far as thermal mass/braking power - my biggest concerns are surprisingly not race or spirited driving. On my long drives in the summer like when I cruised up to Washington the high 90s to triple digit heat just added up after so long. When I was crossing the bridge into Washington I had to pump the brakes a couple times to get much stopping power. When you're driving that far in hot weather the heat just starts to accumulate a lot since you're never stopping into shade, and the stock front rotors aren't even vented to help a bit. The brake heat shield from skillard with some gold tape and now the turbo blanket and downpipe wrap certainly help but at some point the old brakes just can't keep up. Stopping was there, it wasn't like brake fade when you're really pushing it, but you could tell my stopping distances were just much much longer than you'd expect from what's supposed to be a sports car (i'd compare them to the stopping distances with my dad's loaded long bed GMC on the way down to Mexico) We'll see how much weight I lose/gain in each corner with these, especially coupled with the new T3 hubs up front. The back might gain a few pounds because the stock aluminum drums are just so light but we'll see when I'm done.

I ended up going with the micro bbk. After reading through a lot of forums for what the Miata guys are doing I realized the micro kit is similar or slightly larger rotors than most of the upgrades those guys go with and the calipers will be better than what a lot of them run. Considering the ZCG kit was just miata calipers on custom brackets, I think doing something similar to what those guys are doing is fine. The 280 isn't quite as small and light as the NA miata, but I think for a street car it's the right choice, and the micro kit's dust booted pistons give me just slightly more peace of mind since I do longer trips in the car when I'm around. Also had Galgo Performance start making me a custom shroud for the mishimoto radiator and some SPAL fans. Excited for the winter upgrades.

Silvermine has a similar kit if this is what you're looking for. https://www.silverminemotors.com/products/datsun-240z-260z-280z-rear-dual-caliper-wilwood-brake-upgrade-with-dedicated-cable-handbrake-caliper Personally I'm not a fan silvermine, but it looks like a nearly identical kit. They don't design anything though. I think their bracket is made by someone else.

I'll measure the hubs with a caliper when I'm home in about a month and confirm! Should be identical though (but you never know with some stuff so I'll double check) Does the regular kit really fit under the RKRs?? That's what I'm running now 15x8 -0 offset. If I ever changed wheels it would be to something bigger. I'll check those other options you messaged me about, but might be tempted to run their regular BBK if it for sure fits under the RKRs. How did you like the pedal feel? Did you upgrade the master cylinder? I'm already on the bigger booster since I'm in a 280z, but I have the stock master cylinder which is 7/8". I don't care too much about a super stiff pedal, I prefer a bit of control as long as it's not mushy.