Leon

Thanks, Jim! Undercarriage is very clean, it's just how I like my Zs: rust-less! You're on my wavelength here, nice lead in... It has coilovers with Tokico HPs so I may swap the dampers out if I don't like how they pair with the springs. The PO said it was a really nice autoX setup. It also has poly bushings, 1" Front - 3/4" rear ARBs, and a completely rebuilt stock brake system. It's essentially the perfect setup for me so I'm leaving the suspension as-is for now. For gearing, I got the stock 4-speed and a mystery 5-speed along with it, plus I've got another pair of 5-speeds sitting in the garage so there are plenty of transmissions to go around! My plan is to pair up a late-ZX 5-speed with a 3.9 ratio STi R180 CLSD along with Coffey's axle adapters. The car has an open R180 in it, but I haven't checked whether it's a 3.36 or 3.54. I do have a 4.375 R200 CLSD laying around, but that is slated to go into the orange Z. There is no engine or trans installed currently, as you can see, so I can weigh my engine options here. The plan is an L28 with either the Rebello E31 head that came with the car, build one of the E88s I have sitting around, or find a P90 to shave. Throw in an Isky reground cam, lightweight flywheel, 6-1 header, triples and I'm ready to go! Not sure yet what I plan to do for ignition, I might just stick with a ZX distributor as I'm not eager to run Megajolt on this one. Speaking of triples, I just picked up another set (thanks to Hung for the tip)! At this point, I need to figure out which head and block I want to use and send them to a machine shop (any recommendations besides Rebello, SF Bay Area folks?). Then, besides the cam, I have everything else ready to go. The vision for it is a nice driver that's somewhat quiet and comfortable, yet still be at home carving up backroads and killing cones. The goal is to have it done for my wedding in August, but hopefully a lot sooner. But let's be honest here, we all know how that goes... "Go to bed, we're getting married tomorrow!!!" "Ok-ok-ok, I'm almost done, just gotta tighten a few bolts!"

I finally have a few minutes to sit down and start a log for the "new" 260Z. It all started with JCCS last September... I took a trip from the Bay Area to Long Beach in the orange 260Z in September. My fiancee came along and we made a vacation out of it, staying in San Luis Obispo for the weekend and driving to Long Beach and back on Saturday for JCCS. I tried to contact one of my favorite professors from college in order to meet up with him while we were in town, but unfortunately he got the email too late. He was my Ground Vehicle Dynamics professor as well as the adviser for our FSAE engine development senior project. During the early stages of the project, while discussed ideas with my teammates and browsing an old ICE textbook, a picture of SU carbs popped up and I exclaimed, "hey, those are the same carbs as my Z!" At the time, I still had my (first) blue 240Z and the red shell. My professor overheard this and it all began. As an aside, he's worked for Dan Gurney's All-American Racers and the Benetton-Renault F1 team, pretty damn awesome! Back to the present... In one of his emails, he mentioned that he was thinking of getting rid of his Z in order to make space for a new race car - an F2000 open-wheeler. Of course, my interest was piqued! He was the second owner and had owned the Z for 24 years, and it had gone through many moves, across the country, and even to the UK and back with him when he went to work for Benetton-Renault. It had also gone through a few colors: originally gold, "baby sh*t brown or depending on who you talk to 'caramel'", BMW BRG, and finally Jaguar BRG. He had the paint done at a high-end hot rod shop, a 2 stage base/clear job. While the paint was being done, so was the body repair, welding in new metal in the fender and rocker, and rust-proofing everything. It has an essentially brand-new interior, including a new Nissan dash (!), new weatherstripping, new brake and fuel hard-lines, new wheel bearings, rebuilt braking system, new or re-chromed bumpers, coilovers, fat front and rear ARBs, and on-and-on. Of course, it came with some extras including: ITS L24 with Rebello-prepped E31, Tilton flywheel, coated MSA 6-1 header with mandrel-bent exhaust, 260Z Euro tail lights, a copy of the '73 FSM, binders filled with records, etc. Clearly, it was tough for him to make the decision to sell it, but it's nice to keep it "in the family" so to say. Needless to say, I'm quite happy to have this Z! Before leaving SLO, we had to hit the Pismo Dunes so we rented a pair of ATVs. I haven't had fun like that in a while! I had to make sure to represent (yes, I am wearing a pink helmet ): I rented a U-haul auto transport and borrowed my future in-laws' 4Runner to be the tow vehicle. Our fears were confirmed however, as by loading the Z ass-end first too much weight was placed on the trailer tongue. We unloaded the car and repositioned the trailer. The Z rolled out of the garage and into the street, probably the first time it has seen sun in years, if not close to a decade. The most important job of all went to Melissa. We were all just hoping we wouldn't pull one of these: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH3i1Y0yXIg In the end, we prevailed! Getting some lunch at one of our favorite spots in SLO, Jaffa Cafe, before heading back home... Oooh, nice engine bay! Damnit, who's the a-hole tailgating me! And she followed me all the way home. Can we keep her mom, please can we? And a nice sunset over South San Jose It was a successful trip and now she lies, waiting in the garage. More to come!

Not sure why you're still arguing, the point has been made: sound is subjective. I'd surely care (and I'm sure many others that prefer function over form, or sound in this case) if a system makes 2X the power, no matter what it sounds like. Effective muffling can be achieved without plugging the exhaust up. If you want to cork your exhaust for a "better" and quieter sound, then more power to you. Nobody's stopping you, please feel free. However, keep in mind that your definition of what "works" is likely different from someone else's. Yes, tuning is done mainly at the extractor and collector, as-in 99.9% of it. I don't want to further muddy-up this good thread. Sorry inline6, can't wait to see how the 3"-er turns out!

I was speaking of performance, sound is a subjective matter. Plugging the exhaust pipe off with plates isn't quite ideal. Might as well stick a banana in the tailpipe. Their claim of tunability is BS as well. If you followed the linked thread, exhaust tuning is done mainly at the extractor and collector, not the pipe at the back. Those are my qualms with the "Supercrapp". Let's not even discuss the "Flowdisaster"... "Slowmaster"? I like that.

http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/engine-drivetrain-s30/46186-installing-timing-chain-when-rebuilding-motor-stand.html

I have brand-new Illimunas for sale here: http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/110977-new-240z-tokico-illuminas-adjustable-dampers/

Thanks! I'm planning to build an L28. Not sure if I'm going to use the E31 I got with it or prep another head. I'll try to start a thread on the new car today!

http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/81941-exhaust-tube-sizing-i-did-your-arithmetic-for-you/ Draw your own conclusions...

I'd never run a Supercrapp if performance mattered to me, in any sense.

What's your location? Please be more specific that "United States".

Ooh, shiny!!!

Well put, and saved me the trouble of more typing.

It's not a huge deal, just enjoy your car! 240Zs are dead simple, no seatbelt interlock crap or anything like that. Finish it up already!

That's some serious equipment.

And FWIW, the PO previously weighed the car on truck scales and it came out to 2414lb for a complete, essentially stock, early 260Z with fluids.

Damnit, look what you did Nathan! It's not a huge deal, but it has beefier control arms and apparently a slightly stiffened frame (although I'm not sure by how much), but still weighs in at about 2400lb. There are a few other nice features that were first introduced on the 260Z as well, such as a nicer interior (e.g. 280Z-style dash and console), stock rear ARB, electronic ignition, etc. Yet, the wiring is not much more involved than a 240Z. I've been a 260Z fan since buying my first one, but honestly, as long as you have a good body, any S30 will do.

Don't worry Clive, pics will be coming. Are you getting another 260Z? I though you had that white one, and sold another one. I've been really busy, but I'll attach a few more teasers. I'm not even sure when I'll have time to wash it... Sssshhhh! Don't let the secret out. No worries, I'll be sure to link the new thread here.

Damn, that looks fantastic!

Yeah, sold it a few weeks ago and it's now resting in the LA area! Thanks Clive! Too much going on to start a new build thread on it right now, but it is essentially 90% restored (all new hardlines, hardware, interior, weatherstripping, nice paint, no rust, etc.) and came with a bunch of nice parts as well (including an ITS L24 with Rebello-prepped E31).

Got a garage-mate today! More to come later...

I'm seeing a trend here...

Aluminum exhaust piping? How about Inconel: http://www.primarydesigns.co.uk/index.php/standard/exhausts

Nice! That long taper is what gives you the nice, flat torque curve.

Sounds like your airbox is undersized.

We contemplated doing the same on our FSAE car at the time but ended up keeping a fixed length and tuning the intake and exhaust to the desired RPMs. Our engine didn't really have the RPM range to require movable trumpets. I would have loved to see that FSAE car!