Ray

From the dictionary scar·ab Pronunciation Key (skrb) n. A scarabaeid beetle, especially Scarabaeus sacer, regarded as sacred by the ancient Egyptians. A representation of this beetle, such as a ceramic or stone sculpture or a cut gem, used in ancient Egypt as a talisman and a symbol of the soul. Also called scarabaeus. Now how this came to be used on a car that is the question.. If I remember correctly there were scarabs built in the fifties as a one off race car so where and why was the name ever applied to a car......there is the 25k question.... BTW I tried to find out once before and gave up....

Im with pete p51's are hard to beat... My favorite though was a Shadow Can am car I got to tech when I was a scrutineer in SF region SCCA. 500cid injected all aluminum big block chevy with full headers and no muflers... talk about shake the ground... The guys who drove these in the late 60's must have had a set that clanked when they walked.... very little aerodynamics and alot of horsepower...

I agree with the others. Make a nice safe driver first. Most of us started with stock clean Z's as drivers when we couldn't afford anything else...Now we have become older and craizer..... My first 240 Z I drove for over 100k after putting a used 2.8 in it with no problems. I started with a clean 72 240 automatic with a rod knock swaped it for a used 2.8 flattop motor out of a zx with a 78 5speed. now this coupled with the stock 3.54 rear was just right. The same wrecked zx supplied the tires and wheels. Reliable daily driver in 1988 and It cost me 1200$ including the purchase price. After a few rounds with the su's I got a great deal on a set of weber downdrafts. With this setup and a good distributor (pertronics didn't exist) I could get 25-28 mpg on the highway. Tires and parts were cheep. Now it wasn't the fastest car on the planet but it had no problem with most of the cars of the day. It looked good and I learned alot about Z cars. When I started there weren't any real sources for Z info like today. The best thing I ever did was join the SCCA and ask alot of questions of the guys who race the same kind of car you drive as a driver. They know what works and what doesn't. I met some great guys who had been playing with Z cars for years. They told me what to look for and what not to buy. I knew nothing about what motors to look for and they showed me what to look for and what it sould cost... The motor I got for my Z came out of a low milage ZX 2+2 that one of the other guys bought for the R200 and CV joins and he sold me the longblock and tires and wheels for 100$ if I came over and pulled the rest of the car apart for him.... for a college student with no money it was a great deal... Today you have a great resource in the internet I didn't have. Use it I have owned Z's for over 15 years and I learn somthing new everyday from someone in this forum or other places on the internet. Good luck Ray

Ya I have heard it all factory Hemi's in a chevelle... but have fun with them play with them and then joke about it with your friends later.... You would be supprized at what they will believe.... Just remember to thank God for stupid people without them we wouldn't have anyone to make fun of..... A little quote from Hemingway... Alcohol is so an intelligent man can associate with his fools.....

The one inch space goes in the back... BTW if you get some time you may want to make some extra money tracking down some used parts for some of us. I personally need some parts for my 97 toyota land cruizer...

Look arround there were alot of Z's and all the fenders 70-78 interchange... I was in a yard the other day and there were 3 sets of good fenders... Look arround and then be cheep you will be supprized.. BTW think about buying a donor car with the stuff you need...I have gotten several over the past 10 years and I dont think I paid more than 300 for any of them and then sold some of the difficult to get parts for what I paid for the car then the rest was mine... think about it.. Also ask arround there is usually someone in your area that is a Z nut with 2 or 4 in there back yard... Good luck...

Chasis Dyno's are a big insurance liability, you may also want to price the cost of insuring this thing once you get it into your cost's... Remember perception is reality... If they think their car is faster it is... AKA the fart pipe sindrome. It sounds faster so it is..... Good luck... I agree with th others your employees are everything....

Just wait someone will do the swap on an IS300 soon and with the smaller body and lighter weight it should be a real screamer/ sleeper (if I only had alot of money to enjoy) Toyota builds them for the Japan market with the turbo 3.0 but not for the US.....

Hey Myron give me a call or email me at work when you get a chance... Ray....

If you have driven a late model Camaro with a T56 if you dont have your foot in it when you shift out of first it will block 2nd and when you pull it will go into fourth gear. It is an emisions issue.. In order to defeat the skip shift you have to take the skip shift solenoid out and modify it... It actually exists guys....

You need to come to Houston and you will see the problem first hand.. Every time it rains the chemical companies put more crap into the air than you can beleive. When it all dries out they are still pumping crap into the air... And now they have lowered the speed limit to 55 in order to reduce polution !!! how stupid can we get, We need Bush back he had some common sense......

Zfan I totally agree... just look at what they did with the gas additives and low sulfer diesel fuel in Califorina.. Then there is the electirical crisis... After having lived in Texas for 5 years I find it almost impossible to go home. The cost of everything is crazy... My dad pays 300+ a year just to register his truck, I just paid the fees on my Land Cruiser and it was only 65$.... Califorina is pricing it's self out of the market and this is just another case of thegoverment being out for money.....

I am doing the same swap and have test fitted the turbo wheels in the back. I still have to mount some tires and double check but just test fitting the wheels they looked ok. Now I am going to test fit a 245/50/16 first to see if they will fit I have a fealing they will rub... If they dont fit then I will go with the 245/45/16... Do a search mike posted what spacers he was using to get the N/A wheels to work.. If I hadn't got a great deal on the TT wheels I was going to buy some N/A wheels just because they fit no problem..... Good luck when I get the tires mounted I will post somthing....

Hey grumpyvette what kind of tooling are you using to do the vortec heads?? I have heard there is a cutter and pilot combo out there made just for the vortec heads....I paid a friend to do mine in a head machine but was wondering for my next motor.

Look at the 95-98 chevy pickup motors.. with a cam and intake change they are good for 350-400hp... you can find them arround here for 5-600$ without the injection stuff...

Go to yahoo groups and look for JYTURBO they are a bunch of guys who build turbo setups out of the junk yards... If I remember right the powerstroke turbos are quite good and can be used on a V8 applications just go to the message board and do a search for powerstroke....

If you need a good source for a set of lines look at Chevy Subs they have a rear tank and long fuel lines and they are 3/8. ......

Anyone know anyting about these.. I know they came behind 4.6 fords but what is the input shaft and mounting face like. Also what kind of torque rating do they have.. The wrecking yards here have them in droves and will sell them cheep... just wondering if anyone has seen one adapted ????

The brake kits are 179 for steel and 199 for stainless... as for the fuel line the aluminum 1/2 kits work really good they come in 25ft lengths for less and 30$....

Where I live we just call the tire guy and pay the 20$ for a flat repair they come out and do it for 20 cash... Now granted I live in Houston but I have had 1 flat in 5 years on my personal car and that was because we hit a tailgate in the road.... dont ask.... on the company ride i get um all the time... I work for the Railroad and the roads we drive arn't the greatest....

Need to change your all our oils, motor, trans and rearend to mating oil... it is the really slick and you will gain at least a 10th in the quarter but it's really expensive... On your pipe problem you know they make a really good pipe stretcher that will cure your problem. They are very rare so you will have to buy one from me...... I am still amazed at the money the Honda guys spend???? for stupid stuff.. spoilers and wings really improve performance.... wonder how much wind drag that creates?????

I personally like the 96-98 e31 vortec motors. Pull the injection change the cam and volia 400hp....they also work great the the t5 or t56 as they have the later style block....

If you get a r230 out of a Q45 it has a 3.54 in it ... depending on which trans you are running this is a very popular gear.... the 4.08 in such a light car would be overkill with a V8....

I used to run my 240's without a rear bumper because the first time I was rear ended the bumper did more damage than the accident and if you really get hit they dont do much anyway.. As info....

I forgot to say I grew up in Califorina where photo radar is used and travel alot.. sorry for the confusion...