Modern Motorsports Ltd

"Well I have the wheels on there now, they're stock. I'm just seeing how much room I have to play with for widening ..." If they're on their now...depending on your ride height you can crawl under without jacking it up at all and take all the measurements you need very easily. Most work you may have to do is back it up on some planks to raise it up and gain measurement clearance. On Sunday I just stuck a tape measure on top of my tire and measured form outside edge of tread to nearest point on strut, then width of tread itself. Difference was room I could go inward with more rim/tire. It was ~2" on my setup but I have custom spacers, coilovers, 16x8's and 5lug outback so yours will be different. I'm 99% sure 315's would clear just fine out back on my ride ........I just wish they were available in 16's or that the tire cost of 17's would drop considerably . It's not rim costs that typically bother me, it's the consumables PS if you find a local shop that'll widen them fill us in on costs.....if you want wider rims you may find another route more desirable $ wise and sizewise (tire choices in 16"+ are v. good). Resale on your wheels is typically pretty good with Z owners or dimers. [ October 30, 2001: Message edited by: Ross C ]

Their are shops that will widen aluminum wheels, I'd have my 16x8 RX7TT's widened but noone offers decent treads I could run streetwise . Those 15x6's would fit fine. If you're not sure just measure how they fit now...if you have 2.25" room to your strut/springs inboard then you have room for a 2" widening. I'd push it out a bit if I could for improved handling but that's my bias. You committed to those wheels? Some supra 14 (or 15?) x7's might be cheaper, some mods to inner wheel ID needed I believe to clear some Z hubs centrebore....or you may even find costwise bolt on adaptors cheaper if you come across cheap honda type setups in your area or other more common/wider rims, just options. (not sure what cost is to widen an aluminum alloy rim)

If you like the susp. as it is now your 'static' ride with V8 will be fine as well. V8 install depending on how it's done can add little to nothing on front axle. Largest change in suspension 'feel' IMO is the new torque god acting on your rear wheels inducing more squat than you've seen with same setup and milder motor. Nothing wrong with what you have so may as well see how it responds...enough other things to enjoy changing

ahh, the classic 400hp sbc I want to be quiet and decently freeflowing....I've wrestled with this a few times now...my 'next' plan off my 2.5" Y pipe to single 3" pipe is a race type muffler or 'resonator' (dynamax makes an ultraflow round ~24" long 5.5" diameter one WITHOUT fibreglass I'm leaning towards) and a decent flowing muffler out back (normal 'turbo' mufflers just don't take enough out for me My father has the above setup, dynomax central 'red devil?' and dynomax turbo muffler out back....I love it's stealthiness, quiet at idle (truly quiet, not annoying to condo neighbours etc at all, not a giveaway at the lights) and even at WOT it's not annoying. I'm NOT a flowmaster fan, just annoying to me but I've got a ringing in my ears already from some nasty drug tx that saved my ass so quiet is my preference. Downside is that central 'resonator' can reduce ground clearance significantly. PS what doesn't work is a single 3" with turbo muffler (too loud), single 2.5" with turbo muffler (too loud), single 2.5" with resonator and muffler (quiet but damned restrictive), all relative to my sound tolerances/opinion of course. I've greatly enjoyed 'stealthy' tires (more $$$ they're quieter on slip/shredding;^) and want the exhaust to pair up for my daily comfort and cloaking

Are they a 4 bolt or 5 bolt rim? If 4 bolt then you can definitely bolt them on with an appropriate set of spacers. If they're 5lug then you require a more involved conversion including brakes etc.....I don't know of anyone running 17's on a 280ZX, I'm sure their is though...no reason it can't be done....16x7's fit easy on a 280ZX, I can have a set of spacers easily made to mount those up on your car, see pics on my website, all billet 6061/metric 10.9 studs etc. 225/50/16 was a nice fit on a 16*7 rim, not sure what profile you'd like for your 17's depending on if you want your speedo to remain accurate or not and the soft/stiffness of your desired ride.

Always many ways to skin the cat as this board is proof of. I got all my JTR mounts done by a fabricator for a bottle of his favourite hooch, cheaper than buying a grinding disc/tap/and drill bit....if you're asking I'll assume you don't have metal working tools....it won't cost more buying parts elswhere but if you want it simplified his offering is fair. I don't know what items you think you can 'skip' from JTR, in one form or another they're all pretty much needed for a sbc install (except LS1 for which mounts would differ....and trans can be done a number of ways).

"I'm still concerned, though, that the wheels should't be bottoming like that in the first place. Is that normal? 215 really isn't that wide but being a 70 I'm sure doesn't help" stock 240? stock suspension? by now springs and shots are shot with 99% certainty. Does it drop an inch alone when you get in it? 215's on what width/offset rim? If zero offset they're going up quite high in your wheelwell and you're quite low IMO. 215's on a proper offset wheel may not IMO require rolling...225's will rub somewhat but right on the outer edge on a 16x7 zero offset. Naturally the actual widths vary b/t tire models by up to an inch b/t same spec'd sizes.

quote: Originally posted by FAIRLADY 327: does that mean i use the 300zx hub seal or the 240 seal? 300ZX

"HI ROSS. NOW I'M REALLY CONFUSED. I PULLED THE LARGE REAR CALIPERS OFF OF A 79 280ZX" Ahh, you meant physically larger. I was referring to pad size. Later ones have 25% larger pads which is a worthwhile gain IMO, as worthwhile as stepping to the 11-3/8's rotors. Early calipers work fine while in good shape as Mike says, I ran them for a few years without hassle once my current ones were refreshed. The ebrake cams in those seem to get bound up over time. They mount with a rather simple bracket, drop me a line personally if you want the detail. Your ebrake geometry and halfshaft clearance isn't ideal with that setup, as long as you know the pros/cons. I didn't notice you're right in Delta the first time. I was over their yesterday , I have all parts but the actual bracket at my place if you're interested in seeing pad size, rotor size, caliper variations, & that detail I mentioned.

'guards' can be welded on the bottom of your crossmember to protect collectors or oilpans from debris/rocks at speed...does nothing for very slow speeds (ie. speedbumps/curbs) but then I don't think a heavy plated pan will save the day at low speed if you high centre anyhow. A piece of HSS cut on an angle and welded in line with lower points (ie. collectors) make great guards from objects at speed. Crossmember isn't a bad thing to bump compared to engine IMO. That canton was very beefy....not sure if it was aluminum or steel? finish made it hard to know...I guess I haven't had the desire to drop my car too much and neither has my dad. 16" and larger rims fill it out nicely without going so low. Granted the 'low' ones look great but I know I couldn't drive them thru the speedbumps/roads/traintrack bumps I encounter locally. Now if I lived in N. California (roads seemed gret to me) or Oregon I might build a real groundslammer My dad's ride can't go lower simply due to his exhaust clearance of about 3-3.5" and he's not 'slammed' by any means.

" I WANT TO DO THE PRE 82 280 ZX CONVERSION WITH THE LARGE CALIPERS." FWIW, early 280ZX calipers are the smaller ones. Noone is offering brackets for those AFAIK, as a result of their being no bolt on solutions easily available I've pursued production of some CNC brackets. You can read their pros and info on 280zx on my web. (hopefully prototype pair is made this coming week!)

Kickass wheels and rims Ron! Those are damn sweet! Are they honda bolt pattern or just honda offset? Either way, drop me a line when you want to get the goods to fit 'em up I've got some honda adaptors on the shelf with pics of them on my web. Some meaty 2" camaro ones as well What type of wheel/style are those? Are those AVS Sports wrapped on them? I'm enjoying my sports. [ October 27, 2001: Message edited by: Ross C ]

"So put a set of raised dome pistons in your existing setup and secure a taller stall converter. I think you would be mildly surprised at what just these two things would do for overall performance." Just a suggestion, I'd put a more normal cam in their first....might be great for you. Something with lobe sep/lift/duration to suit your comp. ratio. My stump puller 325hp cammed 327 was wild and yet it was a 'mild' motor, would squall all through 1st and light up 2-3 etc. Cam changes are relatively easy and can be done in an afternoon if you want. Cheap and simple/lo cost test before spending much bigger bucks and time. Just an option. We're not all knocking on 10's like Kim and his Z army plus trailered Z's (that's a green with envy comment Kim . PS have you been thru a dyno session with A/F data logged, what's your full timing curve look like?

I've got lots of pics of the pan. The detriment in my install was not kickout width (although a consideration) but the depth of the pan itself. In a 70-78 Z where it's not as tight to the Xmember it might be a non-issue. 4th gen fbodies have a crossover pipe so they only end up passing the kickouts on one side. Starter access must be tighter. Sure a thing of beauty inside...I didn't take near as many pics of my aluminum heads. Somehow that gold irridite (or whatever) finish had me transfixed I measured the bottom profile and passed it on to Pete as well AIR (he might be able to find it faster than me )

"http://www.diy-efi.org/gmecm/ Those guys know the systems inside and out but read the archives before posting or they'll bite your head off" You've been their too eh;^) If I was an EE it might be easier but it's 99.9% hebrew to me over their. "The older systems work well though and they're pretty well known. You could have a lifetime of fun tinkering with them for cheap" I recall one can build a setup such that you can flash to update/program a TPI type setup but it takes a little more legwork initially.

manifold or carb shouldn't matter as long as both are vaccuum sources which would be obvious. All PVC's I've seen could only be setup one way, I assume yours is similar (ie. it is happily allowing crankcase pressure to pass thru.....and it's not in reverse). I recall over a hundred PN's for PCV's, I just picked a camaro high hp 60's one for myself and it's been fine AFAIK. I can't comment on what's different b/t the different PVC's, perhaps different " pressure opening points/heavier balls....?

BLKMGK, I understand what you want to achieve and it doesn't sound so hard for an ee guy to quickly tell you whether it's easily achievable or not. I suggest hopping on the DIYEFI list where the ee brainpower is astounding IMO. At least one their understands opti as it was discussed a while back AIR. I'd be suprised if a crank trigger generating signals conditioned and sent thru to LT1ECU couldn't generate what you want, although the opti is tied directly to the cam who's rotation is not geared same as crank but I still think it could be done without waking up Einstein. a quick search for diy-efi etc should pop it up quick. Be as technical as you can listing all hard data you have as they really appreciate those that do their homework. And then naturally pass it on to us in plain English [ October 26, 2001: Message edited by: Ross C ]

PVC is hooked up to a main carb vaccuum port? (ie. can it take the pressure relief) Sounds like excess pressure for either the PVC internally (ie. wrong PVC) or air is blowing off externally creating the squeal. Maybe you could sell it to a honda owner for big $ At least you have a PVC, I swapped valve covers after a cam/head changed once and new ones only had one breather installed....blew the dipstick twice in a row and then clued in...bought an external breather/pvc setup just to get it home (it was a stat holiday/I had to drive it 200km's home) and drove home with big smoke clouds as external piece 'dripped' down to exhaust...slightly nerve racking (& stinky)for my wife following behind in the blue cloud

I'd talk to Canton, they make a top notch piece IMO. Has dynoed a direct 25ft-lb torque gain by a local anal eng. builder just by switching pans. He's not a fan of any others. Sorry I don't have contact info for them but I do have an eastcoast friend with good pricing. I had one but never got to installing it as it had less clearance to my xmember than a stock pan (Lt1 pan I tried). Roadracers like'em.

Thanks sure it was a bronco eh Ross (needs some humour today) C

"What I found was an inconsistancy in acceleration and throttle response anywhere below 2000 RPMs... Cruising at 65mph in 6th saw 1650 RPms and it would surge." Mike, not to rehash your carbie experience; but did you confirm it was the camshaft directly responsible? ie. not lean at that rpm, not fuel dropout in intake at that rpm etc? Just curious....I recall thinking cam was too big at that rpm but I'm not so convinced now(not that it's your duty to convince me ), surging at cruise at that rpm just strikes me as a bit odd, I know it's larger lift/duration but cruising is such minimal load on the engine....perhaps with MPFI and ability to tickle timing it would've been quite different?

"As to the possibility of gaining back travel on a lowered car by using uncut strut tubes and a shorter cartridge: If you lower the car 2 inches, and find a cart whose fully extended length is 2 inches less than the standard one, then you've only lost 1 inch in travel vs. 2 with the standard unit (assuming 1 inch shorter body plus 1 inch shorter rod). So, you lose "droop" (overall) travel but gain "bump" (effective) travel." Disagreed, just installing the cartridge that's 1" shorter in extended length lost you 1" in bump with an uncut tube. Frame of reference is still top of strut tube to top of strut housing which wasn't improved, regardless of insert body length or extended length, no bump gained IMO unless that cartridge is more suited in that range of travel but still no effective bump/length gains IMHO. I've been curious how close an MR2 or rabbit cartridge is to the Z designed cartridges (tokico). Be interesting to see compression/rebound test comparisons.

OK, I'll bite, how can you increase bump travel for SAME height setup by ONLY changing strut cartridges and not altering strut tubes? Without altering top plates or tubes etc even if 'new' cartridge as 5" extra stroke you'll only gain 'droop' travel assuming swaybards allow that range which isn't of interest to anyone here AFAIK (I don't know anyone with a lorider/hirider on hydraulics). You'd have to have compressed the 'new' strut to same remaining 'bottoming' travel to achieve same ride height correct??? Or am in left field here? Jeromio wrote: "For instance, you could gain back some travel by only changing the cart and not cutting the strut tube at all!"

"Does the cold air intake create a noticable difference?" Cold air, opened up exhaust from horizontal leg of OEM manifold will help. Opening up OEM AFM helps a bit along with richening it(2 notches was my optimum) and about 14 degrees initial timing was my experience...that and the highest numerical rear gears (up to 4.11's)you can find which was 3.9's back in 94/95 when I had OEM powertrain. (I had 3.36's OEM, you'd have 3.7's or 3.9's likely). PS if budget is very tight just swapping in a 280ZXT filter housing can be an 'upgrade', that's all I did at the time for air housing mods, much taller filter and larger inlet. I had to 'open up' the inlet hose opening on my drivers front headlamp bucket or v. close to that to fit the turbo hose FWIW.

"These look bitchin!!!....will they work without too much fabbing?" Comes down to rotor diameter/thickness and caliper mounting arrangement. Aftermarket Viper kits I've seen ranged from 12.7" to 15" rotors but I don't know what stock rotor thickness or diameter is for those calipers shown. By eye I'm just guessing those rotors are b/t 1-1.2" thick for which my own Brembo's might suit up fine at 13" diameter. The Viper's 6x114.3 would be a meass to redrill so different rotors would be needed. As well those mounting ears are quite close to the pads, I assume they're tapped bosses, if not that's an extra degree of work required as well. PS those pads just don't 'look' that large, be curious to know their dimensions. PSS be ready to open up your wallet for any complete brembo setup with their calipers & 2pc floating rotors (mike's etc is solid mounted 2 pc rotors). Knowing Brembo owns AP explains AP pricing . True hardcore damned rigid calipers with inner and outer wiper seals, 2-3x's+ as much in cost as the wilwoods etc. [ October 24, 2001: Message edited by: Ross C ] [ October 24, 2001: Message edited by: Ross C ]