Pop N Wood

Scottie GNZ did the infamous corvette rear swap into a Z. Do a search and you will get all the detailed expert advice you need. If the thought of spending $2k scared you then stop now. Can't imagine the corvette rear will be any cheaper. You may want to ask yourself why you feel the need to go either ford 9" or corvette rear. An R200 should be more than sufficient for even a modified LS1.

The "cheap Fram filter" is another urban legend IMO. I have read the "study" above and think most people misinterpret it. There is something to be said for evaluating a product because it "looks well made". But that is not really what I am worried about. What I worry about is how well it filters the oil, and that "study" doesn't begin to address that issue. They even say as much. What it did point out is the check valve on the low end Fram is probably not up to the task. This is particularly important with my Toyota 4 cylinder truck which has been reported to have valve train problems that are exasperated by the oil passages draining when the engine is off. For that reason I switched to the mid grade Fram filters (Tough Guard) which, incidentially, the "study" above seemed to think well of. People need to look past the advertising misinformation and learn that brand names don't necessarily equal better performance. Some times all it means is more expensive. Also the "more is better" is not always true either. Changing synthethic oil every 5000 miles on a street car probably does nothing more than waste money and further pollute our landfills. My 2 cents.

I have never seen anyone but Jiffy Lube and other disreputable oil change places recommend a 3000 mile oil change interval. Very few cars need the oil changed that often, synthetic or fossil. IMO 5000 miles with dino oil is overkill for most cars. Synthetics I don't even know about.

Looks like a Ford engine to me. Scarab used Chebys.

The mounts are quite different. They mount from underneath near the mid point of the engine. Most guys have had to (with the first gen Z's) build a new cross member. I don't know if anyone has put one in a ZX (did I mention there is no kit?) and I seem to remember someone saying the ZX did not lend itself well to such a swap. You seem to have the right attitude. With enough metal work you can fit anything in just about anything. However I am afraid you are about to get thumped for not reading the rules. Use the search tool and read through some old posts. You will find all kinds of pictures of mounts and the info on tranny's/diffs/weights you want. People on this site don't mind helping with specific issues, but they get rather inpatient answering the same question over and over. You then take the risk of some moderator setting himself on fire (so to speak)

The LS1's do not mount the same as the orignal SBC or LT1/4's. You cannot use the same mounts from an LT1 for an LS1. They are completely different. Do a search, look for posts by guys like MAS280. Also 80LT1 is absolutely correct. No one sells an LS1 swap kit for a ZX. ZX == no kit. There are no kits for a ZX. JTR sells components for an LS1 swap into a Z. Note, no X. That is because no one makes a swap kit for a ZX. John's cars sells a kit for an LS1 in a Z. Not ZX, Z. JTR and MSA both make complete kits for swapping a SBC-LT1 into a Z or ZX. But not an LS1. That is because no one makes a kit for swapping an LS1 into a ZX. If someone knows of an LS1 kit for a ZX (not Z, ZX) please post a link, phone number or address. I would be interested in knowing about it. BTW, 80LT1 is a pretty knowledgable guy. He has never posted misinformation that I have read. You would do well to pay attention to what he posts.

Sure, but direct from where? A big computer switch/router/server/whatever you want to call it. That is the choke point. If they add more subscribers, then they need to add more hardware to switch all the message traffic. If the company is cheap, they just keep adding new subscribers to the same hardware and things slow down.

I am trying to remember if it originally had the sholder belts. I know for absolutely certain there is a mounting point above and behind the rear quarter window because that is where I bolted the seat belt retractor mechanism. Big fat solid bolt hole too. Been a lot of years since I did the upgrade. To get back on topic, insurance companies do charge more if you haven't had insurance for awhile. But they also charge more if you are new to an area (like LA) anyway or are getting a policy for your own car (not your parents). so in that sense a rate increase for you son is inevitiable. Once he is out of your house he doesn't have to be on your policy anymore. In fact, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to keep him on your policy once he no longer lives with you. The insurance policy goes with the car, not the driver. If he lives at home they want you to pay more because they figure he will be driving. But if he is not living there there is no reason to pay extra. If he gets his own car he will have to get a separate policy anyway (they generally don't like you living in one state and being insured in another). When he comes home on leave you can let him drive any car you own and he will be covered. Just like loaning your car to a neighbor or a relative. Guess I would wait until he goes into the service then insure the Z without him on the policy. Sucks maybe but could be an expensive ride otherwise.

Didn't all Z cars come sholder belts? My 1970 vintage had the non-retractable type of belts, but if memory serves it did have a sholder belt. I think you have to go back to the mid 60's to find a car that had lap belts only. And you are right about getting pulled over if the cop doesn't see the sholder belt. BTW a JY is really your only option for seat belts. Racing harnesses are totally impractible for a street car and I can't believe Nissan still stocks original belts for an old Z. Expecially since they went to the retractable belts with completely different mounts after only a few years. If you are worried about the age of the belts, then you can adapt some JY belts out of a later model car for the Z. That is what I did with my 1970 in order to get retractable belts. IMO if belts are visibly in good shape and good working order then they are more than likely fine for street use. Racing rules are more aggressive because of the more intense application and greater liability potential. I honestly would not worry about belts you buy from a JY. BTW 2, when I bought the belts from the JY they practically gave them to me. Not because they were worried about selling a defective product but because they knew there is no market for them. They guys said they had no demand for used belts and thus sold them cheap. I think if I had tried the "sign you name on a piece of paper" approach I would have been told where to put that piece of paper.

You really can't tell which will be better by talking to people outside your area. From a purely technical point of view, cable has the potential for the greatest data rates. BUT Rival5 is right. All of that bandwidth has to go into the DSL/cable providers servers. If the local company has more users than servers, the service will be slow regardles of whether it is cable or DSL. Then there is service after the sale. Some companies just seem to try harder than others. If the Aholes won't answer the phone, then even minor problems can turn into major outages. Our cable provider keeps losing emails and won't admit there is a problem. Lucky we have two local cable companies so we are switching to their competitor. Hope we have better luck.

I think you are overdoing it. My wife's minivan has a single U joint in the steering column with probably 30 or more degrees of angle. Can't say I notice any issues with that.

If the seller of that car is the person who built it, then I would think they really know their stuff. Either that or they made some mechanic a rich man. Nice car, if you're into turbo in line 6's in a ZX chassis.

Yeah, that ought to about cover it.

If they are both pointing level and at different heights, then they are at different angles. Draw two imaginary lines, one straight out of the tranny shaft and the other straight out of the diff shaft. If the tranny and diff are perfectly level, at the same height and both directly in front of each other front to back, then the "two lines" will be the same line. The tranny shaft points directly into the diff shaft. This is zero drive shaft angles. If the diff and tranny are perfectly level, perfectly in line with each other front to back, BUT at different heights, then the two lines will pass over the top of each other. This is what you want. If your drive shaft is say 28 inches long, then for a 2 degree driveshaft angle you would want the two lines to be about an inch apart. (the tranny about an inch higher than the diff). Displacement side to side is the same as a differnce in height. As long as the two line are parrallel.

MSA sells service manuals also. If you've done drum brakes on Chevy's or Toyotas then you will find no suprises with the Z car drums.

Have to second the frozen parking brake or possibly wheel bearing for one wheel not turning . The method for determining rear gear ratio should work fine with one wheel frozen. I assume the driveshaft yoke turns when you spin the one good wheel. If not, just scrap the whole mess now.

My December of 1970 manufactured Z, registered as a 71, has same rear vents. Don't know that I believe the "1500 miles" on that oxidized motor. Don't know that I would go over $2500, and only then if the dash is not cracked.

Of course everyone is just joking about copying the smog sticker. No one would ever really openly discuss violating our smog laws on and open internet forum. No sireee. Just a "wouldn't it be nice if we could" discussion.

Another quite simple rear disk conversion is Modern Motorsport's 240sx kit. The MM kit has the advantage of stock type calipers and a mechanical parking brake. The Arizonia Z car rear brakes are a good match for their big front brake kit, but they might have too much braking force for anything less. Don't have links handy but do a search on 240sx rear disk or Modern Motorport and you will find one.

Use an acytelene torch.

The GTO is not the same as the Camaro LS1. The GTO has a front mounted oil sump that will unquestionably interfere with the steering rack and cross member. The gear ratios in the T56 are also slightly different (and probably not for the better) and the accessories (alternator etc) are in different locations. There is am ebay place in Bristol PA that is regularly selling very low mile GTO LS1 motor and T56 tranny's for around $6K. Actually this in not a bad article. http://www.popularhotrodding.com/enginemasters/articles/pontiac/0411pon_blown/

You can get keys made from either the VIN or the key code located either in the glove box or the passenger's side door look. Do a search, there was a thread just a few weeks ago where a resident locksmith offered to make some new keys for another member. The thought of the previous owner suddenly finding the keys is something to think about though.

24 hours maybe, but 48? 72? Brake fluid is incompressible so even a drop or two of leakage, or temperature changes, can cause the calipers to relax. I would imagine the problem is vastly compounded by stainless steel brake lines since you will no longer have the flex in the rubber lines to maintain the pressure. Line locks are good for burnouts, but IMO there are an extremely bad idea for anything else. Don't try to use them for a parking brake. Also I don't think anyone is purposely eliminating mechanical parking brakes. The problem is a number of big brake kits don't have any provisions for a parking brake.

I was being somewhat flippant in my answer, but what I think you will find is AAA and a cell phone is your best option.

In a strange way you CA guys are lucky, at least you have a place to go and find out the rules. I called the Maryland MVA trying to get engine swap info and they basically told me they don't have any. Says they do no smog testing of cars more than 25 years old so they didn't care. They don't have any type of refferee stations or any definitive source of info. They did tell me to check with the state police because they run the safety inspection process. If I try to sell the car it will need to be safety inspected, and part of that inspection is the car must have all of the smog equipment based upon the year of the vehicle. So I guess no matter what year of engine I put in all I will need is an air pump and a PCV valve, because I think that is all the 71 240's came with. The damn thing has a manual choke!