PaulR

Pads were new, aftermarket (KVR), and for the truck. Rotors were used and had been turned once by me to true them up. I'm not sure if they had been turned prior to that , but they were well within the spec limit. I am going to be using different rotors soon, going from 4 lug to 5. (I've ordered the spacers from Mike) If I encounter any problems I'll let everyone know. Here is another pic showing the caliper installed on the 4-lug rotor.

Maybe this will help. These are the calipers I've been using with 300ZX vented rotors on my 240Z. They are from an 86 or 87 Toyota 4WD Truck which also uses vented rotors. The gap where the scale is is about 7/8" The caliper is stamped "S12+8"

I'm running KVR carbon/metallics (KVR Web Page) on my Toyota calipers w/ 300ZX vented rotors on my 240Z. They work good when cold and showed no signs of fading during hard use at the track (Seattle International Raceway). A good pad for street and occasional track use IMHO. Paul

quote: Originally posted by johnc: Are you folks raising the spring perch and running short springs? I'm using 10 inch springs in the rear which gets the spring perch above the tire. This allows me to run 5.5" backspacing. Paul

I think the 300ZX wheels have quite a bit of offset (+40mm ?) That might contribute to the steering pulling hard when you hit a bump. As for spring rates, I think the stock 240Z is around 110 lb/in. I would think 150/170 would be OK for a atreet car. Competitve autocrossers are in the 250 range.

quote: Originally posted by pparaska: Paul I agree. This is exactly why I have 300 lb/in springs in the rear. To fit my wheels and tires under stock fenders, an 8" spring was needed. And the guy at Carerra suggested going to at least a 275 lb/in spring to keep it from coil binding on bumps. Ouch! My kidneys are aching just thinking about it I rode in a local autocrosser's 280Z BSP that had 250 lb/in all around... too stiff for daily driving for my tastes, especially with all the potholes around here. Sure did handle well on the autocross course though.

I was wondering if an 8" spring would have enough travel. 200lb/in Eibach's have 5.3 in travel while the same rate in 10" has 6.4 I was thinking of switching my rears from 10 to 8 to get the additional clearance. Ross, thats a good comment about coil bind vs strut bottoming though. Anyways, I'll do some measuring tonite. Paul

On the rears, you can simply space a shorter collar up from the cast base by using a section exhaust pipe (2 1/2 i think). I did that with my set-up and was glad I did since I wound up a little long and needed to cut off another 1.5 inch off the spacer... much harder to do once its welded up. The front tubes have a bracket for the brake line welded to it, which makes using a "spacer" unlikely.

Tim, that is pretty much what I am running: A points-style distributor with a Pertronics Ignitor which is triggering a MSD-6AL ignition module firing an Accell Super-Coil. When I made up my JTR set-back plates, I added an additional .5 inch offset, which offsets the mounts by 4.0 inch (vs 3.5 for the JTR plates). Like Pete says, its not a big difference and I certainly wouldn't go thru all the trouble to change an existing set-up... but if you're starting from scratch... why not? quote: Originally posted by Tim240Z: Omar, I was debating this exact subject and decided this: I have an HEI with standard coil & module. I also have a factory points/condensor type distributor which I have converted to solid state with the Pertronix 'Ignitor' module. Since the later is smaller and allows the further setback of the engine, I'm using that one. Since I would want to buy the upgraded coil & module for the HEI anyway, I'll just buy a high output coil for the Pertronix unit. I don't think the engine can be too far back (within reason). BTW, Pertronix now has a 'mark II' version of the 'ignitor', but I'm not sure what the upgrade is. Tim

Thanks Tom, its just your basic 2.5 inch coil-over components that allowed me to get more backspacing. I've added a couple of more pictures to the link: Cobra Wheels Install That show how I checked for clearance with a cardboard template before I actually had the spacers machined. This was done with the bottom spring perch lowered all the way. I run them a bit higher which gives more clearance.

Interesting V8 Turbo information here: toohighpsi I like the "Budget TT 351" article!

quote: Originally posted by z ya: Do you have to fiberglass those things in to look like his? Or do they just bolt up???? You have to rivet/bond, fill, sand, paint, etc. Definitely only a job for someone with good body-working skills. The inner fender has to be cut and fiberglassed to the new flares as well.

OK, found my MSA catalog... Yes, these are the "Sreet Flares" p/n 50-1552 They cost about $100 per pair when I bought them 3 years ago. Paul

Here are several pictures I took of the bottom of my Z when it was up on a rack. Thanks to Duane Bender of Motorworks Ltd. in Bellevue, WA for allowing our Z-Club members free access to his shop for a day (had to get that plug in) Bottom Side

Hi Paul, glad you found the HybridZ site. I saw Paul's ride at Port Townsend and it is really nice. SBC set up for high speed rally's. I took some pictures at the meet and will post them when I get back from vacation... BTW, NWZ and ZCCW are having a combined drive to Mt. St. Helens. Checkout the web site at:ZCCW for details. The other "paul" Paul R quote: Originally posted by Paul Z: I'm new to the site and from the Portland area. The best way to get together is to come the the next North West Z-club meeting. They don't have an "attitude" about V8 power, they just want to have a good time. You can view their schedule at www.norhtwestz.org. I met a couple of the members at the Meeting of the Mindz in Port Townsend, WA last week end. Good Guys.

Thanks for all the help in trying to get these links viewable. I did some research and its true, geocities wont let you link to files from another non-geocities site, but you can link to a page. So, sorry for the confusion. If you still want to see the pictures, i put them on this page: Rear Wheels

I finally got my new rear wheels installed and would like to share them with you Click to See Pictures These are Cobra "R" copies from Performance Wheel Outlet Performance Wheel Outlet But... the reason I went for these rather than OEM Ford is that they are available in 10.5 inch wide! I wanted to get as much tire as possible under the rear and these fit the bill. They are 10.5 x 17 and I have 275-40-17 tires mounted. In order to get these to fit I had to use coil-overs which allow me to use about 5.5 inch backspacing. These wheels are +28mm offset, so I am using a 1.25 inch bolt on spacer to achieve the right spacing. I am also using flares from Motorsports Auto and I had to re-drill the hubs for 5-lugs. Now I have to do the fronts! Paul [ August 16, 2001: Message edited by: Paul R ]

I have some 10 inch wide by 15 inch wheels for sale. Check out my ad on the Buy/Sell Forum. Paul

Pete's right, the behaviour you describe is normal. Thats how mine has been working for years. As for the indicator light... I've hooked mine up to a piezo "buzzer" as well as an indicator lamp. Lets me know right away if I throw a fan belt... which was happening frenquently untill I installed a Moroso deep-groove crank pully. It doesn't take long for thing to get real hot if the water-pump stops turning (same belt) Paul

I'm in the process of re-drilling my rear stub axles for a 5-lug conversion and I have a question. The rear stub axles on my 240Z have a formed sheet metal plate that is retained by the heads of the wheel studs after they are pressed in. Is there any reason to try and keep this piece when doing the 4 to 5 lug conversion? Its not obvious to me what it is for and I doubt I can redrill it anyways. What has everyone else done? Thanks for the help.

I did some quick "back of the napkin" calculations and figured that removing a .5 inch dia cast iron slug, at a radius of 2.25 inch (half the bolt circle dia) would be balanced by adding a .05 ounce wheel weight at a radius of 7.5 inches (ie, a 15 inch wheel). I don't honestly know what wheels are typically balanced to, but I bet they don't get anywhere close to 5 hundreths of a ounce. So I would say the imbalanced caused by redrilling 4 to 5 lugs would be insignificant.

Like Pete said, you should modify a closed-end wrench. Here is what the one I use on Z half-shafts and drive-shafts looks like. The one on the right is a standard Craftsman wrench. The one on the left is a cheapie that has been ground down around the perimeter and necked down at the base. I keep it in a drawer in my tool box with a bunch of other "special" tools. [ April 29, 2001: Message edited by: Paul R ]

I was doing a search for spacers (adapters) awhile back and found this site: Performance Wheel They are $50 each for the 1 inch thick.

The shape of the pan is the easiest way to tell the TH350 from 700R4. Try this link for pictures: http://www.nastyz28.com/transid.html

Here's a good start: http://kmhafer.homestead.com/files/wheelFAQ.htm#The%20Wheel%20Chart Its a list of wheels that fit the Datsun 510, which we all know has the same (4 on 4.5) bolt pattern. I used the 15" 200SX wheel centers and had 10" wide rims welded on as a low $$ alternative 'till I get my 5-lug conversion done.