grndfx

Mastersmechanic, I am impressed that you had the 'stones' to undertake this. I have been in the automotive restyling business for many years and have made all kind of molds - using fiberglass, epoxy and modern RTV silicons. To take on such an extensive project with little or no experience has to be commended - if your going to try something, then go big! I like that. There are all number of mold releases and waxes available to the tooling industry, but I think in your situation had you first applied a coating of PVA - polyvinyl alcohol(Partall Film #10) and then used a few coats of mold release, your mold would have come away clean. PVA is widely available and your fiberglass material supplier probably carries it as well. It came be sprayed on or even brushed on, and when dry creates a thin protective film over the surface you are trying to mold. It is not effected by polyester resin and when you demold, the film washes away with water. I know this is too late for you Mastersmechanic, but for anyone else thinking of doing a similar thing consider using PVA first, especially if its your first go. Steve.

Thanks for the response. I understand that as a long term member of the site you must see the same questions being asked over and over, but you help is appreciated and your input was useful. Although I had searched the topic before I posted the thread, I had not come across the relevant info I needed. Your reference to combustion chamber size gave me the direction to find what I needed. I now know that the N42 head uses the same valves as the P90 head but has a combustion chamber of 53.6cc compared to 44.6cc on the N42. I had previously thought that the lower compression in the turbo motor came from the dished pistons, but I now see why the P90 head would not be a suitable swap for the N42. This link was very helpful in acquiring the various specs for the L series engines ... Z Engine Specs Maybe this thread will be read in a future search by someone, and the answer will not need to be asked again.

Currently a friend is running a standard '79 280ZX EFI with automatic trans. He has recently acquired an old '76 280Z that someone had put a turbo motor in but without the turbo - F54 block and P90 head. The P90 head needs rebuilding, but is it worth using it on the 280ZX ? Has anyone just put the P90 on a L28 with EFI and was it worth it. With an auto trans would you see any real benefit. At this point in time they're not looking to a load of major engine building work with the 280ZX, and the 280Z needs a fair amount of general work before its ready to drive. So at this point in time is it worth swapping the P90 to the ZX while the Z is worked upon. I know there's lots of opinion on how best to use the P90 - turbo, triples, SU's, etc; but as a straight swap does it realize any drivable gain? And with the auto trans would it just be a waste of effort. Done some searching on the forum and read the various post about using the P90 head, which was very informative, but would like to hear from anyone that has actually done this and whether they saw any real difference. Thanks for your time, and I look forward to peoples input. Steve.

PM answered. Hood Vents are in stock and we will continue to offer them to HybridZ members for the special price of $100 for the remainder of the year.

Gr8White brings up several good points regarding the installation of our hood vents, but its not quite as dramatic as he may have said (but thanks for your input, Gr8White). When we designed our vents we used the factory hood openings as the basis for the overall shape and fitment. We wanted to create a replacement that would be as easy to install as taking the factory one out and putting our one in. But we have installed these vents on a regular Z hood with no openings, and I know of another member of the forum that has installed them on a fiberglass Z hood. His install was documented here ..... http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=121612 To get hold of a later 280Z hood would be one option. The stamped recess and mount holes would make it a snap to install our vents But if you feel confident about cutting sheet metal and are careful, you could put these in a regular hood. We initially put them in our 240Z and had to do exactly that. All that you really need to do is cut a hole that will allow the vents to sit down flush with the surface. Positioning that hole will need to be worked out (watch out for the underhood structure - you dont want to have to cut that) but its no too hard ... if your familiar with this kind of work! If your a total novice who hasn't done any bodywork, you may want to take it to your local body & paint shop for them to do. If it helps, here are the dimensional specs ... Thank you for asking this question, Pomorza. And to Gr8White for your help. Steve.

Thanks to everyone that ordered a set of vents and posted on the site about how happy they were with their purchase. Although we worked hard to get a high quality part produced , it is ultimately how they are received by the public that matters. And we are pleased to say that the response has been great. We've sold quite a few sets now to members of the forum, even some going overseas. We are currently arranging to have the hood vents available through Motorsport Auto again, but we will continue the special offer to HybridZ members for one more week. Any PM requests for vents received and responded to with a Paypal invoice by Midnight Sunday 20th September, will get the special discount rate of $100 plus shipping. After that, vents will still be available but at the regular price of $125. Thanks again Steve.

As misterZ explained. the grill material could easily be swapped out for something different. The vents are supplied with 1/16 (.063') aluminum perf (1/4" holes on 5/16 centers - giving 58% openness). We played with various mesh materials before settling on this on - its firm and rugged to withstand life on the cars exterior, wont rust, and allows for plenty of airflow. We liked the look of a thinner honeycomb mesh that could be manipulated into a more 3D shape, but felt it was much to soft to withstand the rigors of life on a car. The grill material supplied was chosen for its ability to withstand life out in all the elements, but the vents can accomdate any material up to 1/16 thinkness. And just to update everyone - we've already shipped out a half dozen hood vent sets, but we've still got more available so dont panic if you haven't ordered yet.

Good News !! We have finally got our production process sorted out and all the gremlins have been dealt with. Product is now on the shelf and orders are being taken. Yeah! Now if everybody can form an orderly line, and please ... no pushing or shoving. ........................................... As promised, HybridZ members are being offered the new Hood Vents first, and at a initial special discounted price. We plan to retail these vents at the same $125 price that the old ones sold for (costings work out about the same, even when produced in house). But as a way of thanking members for their patience, we will initially offer them to HybridZ members for the special introductory price of only $100 (plus shipping) We are going to try and make this a simple as possible. If you want to get a set, send me a PM with your shipping zip code (or country) and a suitable email address that I can send a Paypal invoice to. Please don't post in this thread saying you want a set, send me a PM. To obtain the special discounted price, requests for vents must come through HybridZ as a PM. We currently have several sets boxed and ready to ship, and are producing more on a daily basis. The vents come complete with grill material and hardware for installation. I'm sure there will be questions, and those will be addressed within the thread. This has been a long journey of discovery for us - new materials and production processes to learn, and their problems and issues to overcome - but its been worth it. We are happy with the results and feel we can once again offer the Z community a quality product at a reasonable price. I'd like to personally thank everyone for their support and continued interest throughout this endeavor. Steve.

A lot of progress has been made recently actually. Completely new tooling had to be made, which we just got our hands on, and we have begun test runs with various samples of material. We are currently making a de-gassing chamber to eliminate air from the material prior to pouring into the molds. (the vigorous mixing of the 2 parts of the material, create hundreds of tiny air bubbles that effect the finish of the final part) Once we get the air out of the material and get a good pour, parts should start to roll out the molds soon after that. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel ..........

The vents that MisterZ installed on his car are our design and a lot of effort, time & money went into getting them into production. They are a quality injected urethane part that is simple to install and made to exacting standards. With the high level of interest that has been expressed recently regarding their availability, we are currently working on getting these back on the market as soon as possible. The suggestion of a 'group buy' to help get the project get going will not be necessary, but we do intend on initially offering members of HybridZ a special discounted rate once them become available, as a way of saying thank you for your patience. Offers to 'copy' or 'reproduce' a set for people, I find a little disturbing. Although the vents are not 'copyrighted', I am a member of the Z community and drive a 240Z on a daily basis. The vents were an idea I had for my personal car that I thought could also be enjoyed by others. Prototypes were created and expensive tooling made. Production runs were invested in and initially everything was going well. Then we lost our supplier and replacement production houses could not seem to achieve the quality standards we demanded. A decision was made to halt production until a suitable replacement could be found. With the current surge in interest, we are working hard on getting the vents made again. I understand peoples frustration - I think I would be the same. One again, your patience is ask for. Once we have figured out a new production method, then we plan on having the vents available again for a long time to come. We did actullay play around with creating the vents in CF and we may well follow up the idea when production is resumed. Initial results looked promising. Thanks again Steve. (This is what inspires me to do what I do ...

I'm not 100%, but I think the all aluminum rover V8 is lighter than the L6. Allways thought it would make for an great swap.

In the Sixties, the great Colin Chapman played around with the 'new' concept of wings and downforce with the Lotus 49. Downforce and the control of airflow over the vehical is key to many forms of motorsport - just look at modern F1 cars

The switch actually acts to ground either the high or low beam circuits. Power is fed to the lights first and then back to the switch, which then grounds the circuit for continuity. This is why you only get continuity between the black and either wire. The switch does not supply power to the lights, but rather the ground for them. Hope this helps.

As the topic of our Hood Vents has become quite active again, I thought I'd respond with some info. We have not yet managed to procure a new supplier for the vents, and are currently looking into an alternative production process that we will be able to do 'in-house'. A few members of the forum had PM'd us recently, inquiring about availability, and we offered them the option of purchasing a set of blemished vents at a discounted price. The few sets of 'blems' we had have now all been sold, so we currently have nothing available. For a while we were not sure what sort of demand there might still be for the vents, but it appears that there is still quite a lot of interest in them. We do intend on having these available again, and hopefully we can do something sooner than later. For those interested in obtaining a set, we appreciate your patience, and as soon as we have the vents in production again we shall post the news here on the forum. Thanks again for everyone's support. Steve.

As the topic of our Hood Vents has become quite active again, I thought I'd respond with some info. We have not yet managed to procure a new supplier for the vents, and are currently looking into an alternative production process that we will be able to do 'in-house'. A few members of the forum had PM'd us recently, inquiring about availability, and we offered them the option of purchasing a set of blemished vents at a discounted price. The few sets of 'blems' we had have now all been sold, so we currently have nothing available. For a while we were not sure what sort of demand there might still be for the vents, but it appears that there is still quite a lot of interest in them. We do intend on having these available again, and hopefully we can do something sooner than later. For those interested in obtaining a set, we appreciate your patience, and as soon as we have the vents in production again we shall post the news here on the forum. Thanks again for everyone's support. Steve.

We are the suppliers of these vents and unfortunately they are currently out of production (due to QC issues from our current supplier). MSA is our only outlet for the vents and as soon as we have re-established production we will once again have them available through MSA. Steve.

I'm sorry, but we dont make a 'one piece'. The CF panels are replacements for the 2 factory trim panels.

As you guys have resurrected this thread, I just wanted to let you all know that I haven't gone under - the 240Z CF panels are still being made and are currently available through Motorsport and they are selling very well, thank you. I shall be going to their show at the end of the month and hope to see a few cars there with panels installed. Personally, the 240Z CF panels I produce are a side of my business that has to be profitable like anything else - its not just about putting a bit of money in my pocket (its not a hobby). There are overheads to cover. CF production is costly and time consuming, and you have very little in the way of 'repair' if anything goes wrong - fiberglass can be patched in if there are defects during manufacture. CF has to come out the mold perfect first time, and as such any failures can be costly due to the high material costs and labor. It's one thing to make a piece for yourself or a buddy - your not really concerned about what its costing and how hard it will be to repeat again & again if you had to. But when you decide to sell something to the public, its a whole different thing. I see it happen all the time - someone decides to make some stuff and sell them, thinking it going to be easy. But then reality steps in - orders are taken (perhaps even money is accepted), but production starts to get behind or it starts to become 'too much trouble', and they give up. Meanwhile everyone is left wondering what's going on - some may even be out of pocket. Its relatively easy to knock out a mold of something and bang out some parts if you not too bothered about quality or fitment and unfortunately the aftermarket car styling industry (not just Z stuff) is full of this stuff. Everyone knows the stuff I'm talking about - the 'direct fit' parts that need hours of work at the bodyshop before they can even be painted, and some just don't even warrant the effort as their quality is just so bad. But we have only ourselves to blame - the reason this stuff is out their is because we aren't prepared to pay a realistic price for quality product. Everyone was looking for the cheapest stuff, saying that the other stuff seems 'too high' ..... ...... we get what we pay for! I only meant to say a few words, but have ranted a little bit - my apologies. Anyway, hope to see some of you at the Motorsport Show Steve.