maichor

I must have watched it 20 times over. Turn the volume all the way up and listen to the crowd when the times are posted. It was also fun listening to the guys talking about the motor.

Tim is right and gives good advice here as always. You won't know until asking for quotes. Here are some factors to consider. 1) Insurance for any new driver will be high, especially male. You are in the highest risk group. 2) You want a sports car. That will also raise the rate. 3) You don't have any modern safety equipment like air bags etc. Some carriers give discounts for those things. 4) This part is positive and negative . . . Z's are valued low in Kelly Blue Book, etc. So, rates will be lower for that reason. But when wrecked, don't expect insurance to pay much. All in all, I think it would be cheaper to insure than say a $10000 newer used car.

Well, for what it is worth, the MSD box on my brothers truck got fried and was working intermittently. He sent it in to get it checked/replaced. They told him that they thought his alarm, ignition cutoff caused the failure. He got rid of the cutoff and got a new MSD and has been ok. He is pretty tough on that truck though, I'm sure that a "waterproof" and "shockproof" MSD does have limits, maybe it wasn't the alarm. Get out a volt meter when it is not working and start checking wires from the ignition.

I agree with here comes trouble and Wagz. Side pipes make it look less classic Italian and more muscle car, which I like. It all depends on your taste. I am not going for authentic, but decided against side pipes because of clearance issues. It can definitely be done, but you will have to do some work as here comes trouble said. Plus, I love the exhaust out the back! Here is a pic of mine with ovals out the back. By the way, John also maintains http://www.ztrix.com which is the same site but you don't have to go through the extra page.

FYI I had my axles custom made from Moser Engineering. I measured and orderd. I had them made for the Q45 diff and they worked fine switching to the R230. The 230 is maybe 3/8" wider than the 200 if even that much.(Edit: read Q45 r200 since the S13/S14 R200 is smaller still). Hopefully Ross has built in more than 3/16" of play in the axles. If so, you are good to go with his.

I would start with the simple stuff first as it sounds like you already have. I have "fixed" several cars that "just quit" by popping the hood, finding the coil wire hanging loose and connecting it. I have a friend who is particulary challenged when it comes to all things mechanical. I got a good laugh when he pushed his truck home 3 blocks and called me over to check it out. "What would you give me if I could fix it in about 2 seconds without any tools?" That one was fun. I'm sure you have done this, or some of it, but I would check the coil wire for good contacts on both ends and your MSD as well. Check to make sure that everything is grounded very well. Since, you blew a fuse, I would be thinking short, something hot to ground. However, ghosts in the electronics do occur, especially when hot (i.e. computer freezing up.) Good luck, I hate electrical Gremlins.

I'm using a Wilwood 7/8" master and it is plenty enough. Do you know about the roll pin connector mod on the slave side of the line? GM uses a roll pin connector on both ends, I don't know how you made your clutch line, but if you still have the stock roll pin connector on the slave side, you can get more flow by carefully pounding the roll pin out, removing the line and then drilling the hole slightly larger. I think I got info on how to do this at LS1tech.com. I did it before the motor install because lots of F-body guys do it and I figured I might need it. My clutch effort is very light and I have not had any problems. What bore is your master? If it is bigger than 3/4, I would think you would be fine. That is an untested opinion though.

Sorry, I don't have experience with that welder. But, consider how much you think you will use it. If it is once in a blue moon and one car project, maybe you could get a cheapo. But, most likely, you will enjoy fabricating and a welder is something you will have for many years. I have a Lincoln 135 from ebay and I have gotten my money's worth already. Once you have a welder, it opens up a lot of possibilites.

Yep, it was a good one. My wife doesn't like to watch that one because she hates the overly dramatic narrative of the 90210 dude. I agree with you about reality car shows. I don't like the ones that are more about shop dynamics than cars. Now . . . that car was amazing. I like Jay and respect his philosophy of letting a car be what the designer intended, but with that much power, I would have slapped some bigger tires on that thing. They said that was a prototype motor and it sounded suspiciously like the new LS7 and then they twin turboed the thing. WOW!

Mike C- The BMW is not listed in your sig. WOW! The only question I have for you is, how big is your garage?

Thanks for the input guys. I'll be ordering soon.

Oh, boy. This one has been discussed a few times. You should be able to dig up a few threads by searching. Basically, I think most would recommend strut bars front and rear for any V8 swap. Your sig says Serious project car. If that means something above 400ft/lbs I would say do subframe connectors while the motor is out and before you start the swap. If it is a mild V8 you can get away with strut bars and perhaps a roll bar in a 260, provided that it is not a rusted out shell.

Sorry you had a bad experience. Yes, I agree, they are pricey. They are not for the everday hotrodder. They cater to the show car crowd. However, their service and support has been very good for me. They worked with me on headers for my LS1 swap through the mail when nobody else wanted to do it. And, those custom headers cost me $435 ceramic coated with collectors gaskets bolts etc. This was way before John's Cars, JTR, and Sanderson. If you had bought parts from them, they would have fixed any problems you had. By the way Superchargers go well with the LQ4, that would mean you don't have to swap heads, but it is also more money. But, $500 is a good deal. I sold some LQ4 heads on ebay for $250.

You guys dreamin' about LS1 swaps are doing the right thing. Keep watching ebay for that killer deal. Don't be afraid to look at complete cars though. It may be cheeper. And, if you are still a year or so away, the '05 LS2's are going to start showing up. LS1 prices going to get very reasonable!

The url for Street and Performance is: http://www.hotrodlane.cc Who knows why. I think the also have http://www.tunedport.com

I made mine out of a mud flap from a big rig. I used the JTR lower support and cut of the the tabs front and back. It worked fine. I then covered the top with some aluminum angle from home depot. You can see it here under newes pics I think it was. http://photos.yahoo.com/maichor75104

How much HP from a stock V8? Just got a rusted out 240Z, can the chassis handle a V8?

They look to have good feedback. I am thinking about getting the fronts only because mine are shot. That seems to be a good deal for all four corners. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7956639390&category=33590

This site IS the conversion manual! Where else can you find so much info on the LS1 swap into an early Z? There are some general swap manuals for different configurations on mounting the LS1, fuel setup etc. Go to Barnes and Noble and search you should find a few good books, but they are not specific to Z cars. Also, Street an Performance- http://www.hotrodlane.cc -has done many LS1 swaps and has tips and articles on their site about solutions to different problems such as clutch master cylinder, fuel, wiring, etc. That is all good reading. They also have some videos you can buy, but the articles are free, so check them out. Good luck!

Please be aware that the late model Holden is probably an LS1, and mounting will be different if you choose that motor. Right? Anybody know for sure? I'm no expert on Aussie cars, but any SBC before '98 will work with JTR mounts.

Congrats, good to hear. But, the other guys are right, it is just too fun to fire it up with open headers and shake the earth! I couldn't resist. My first two rides were sans exhuast!

I had everything out of the car and did a deadlift, one end at a time. Rested the car on my leg to put the bolts in on the front. Had to have the wife put in the bolts while I held up the rear. It is doable but I would advise getting some more helpers.

Yes, great post Mike. Amen brother. If you notice, I have a relatively low post count for how long I have lurked here, usually several times a day. I had read tons of old posts before I started my project and used the info to do my swap, and I have even done some things that others haven't based on all of the info here. Then I started to post a little more. I don't think I evenposted before I mocked up the motor with my custom mounts. But, we can make the info more available. On FAQ, I was looking at LS1tech.com and their FAQ section on the nitrous forum covered everything I could want to know, including track times with which kit, etc, etc. Here are a few topics I think we could include. V8 Swap, kits, parts suppliers, etc. Spring rates for track and street. We have some great threads with discussion about this. Wheel and tire options Five lug conversions Brake Conversions Body kit parts suppliers with some pics AND, what I think would be cool is if a lot of you track guys would give some track driving tips, maybe in a non-tech section!

I agree with the two posts above, and as has been mentioned before, we should really get a FAQ section for the q's like "What will it take to put a V8 . . .?!" What tires fit, brake upgrades etc, etc. I wouldn't expect one person to answer all the frequently asked questions, just designate a thread. This is the V8 swap thread, someone can write the intro and let all of those with experience answer the question once.

If you are serious about a tubular chassis,you can do on step better than plans. JEGS sells one that is weld together and set up for a solid rear, but it would be a good platform for an IRS as well.