Scottie-GNZ

For those of you have who converted to a GM alt or considering it, here is an option for you. Mike (Misred - the GN-powered RX7 and owner of turbobuicks.com) is selling a 200-amp replacement for the alt used on the 86-87 Turbo Regals and Pontiac TTAs. He also sell an upgrade kit. I do not know enough about this to answer any questions, but if it interests you, go to http://www.turbobuicks.com and go to the Store. Once you read that, then you can forward any questions to mike@turbobuicks.com

My car originally had a SCCA-approved bolt-in 4-pt rollbar and I converted that to a welded-in 6-pt cage. I drive with the seat as far back as the cage will allow and I can tell you I would not have been able to get in/out of the car, at least not w/o hurting or embarressing myself w/o the swingout (I am 6' and 220lbs). As part of the conversion, I added a S&W swingout. Sometimes I regret putting the pivot point at the back, but I can tell you, if the attachment point was reversed, it would be very difficult to reach back and put in or remove the retaining pin once I am strapped in. The drawback to putting the pivot point at the back is that the door has be opened a little wider to get the swingout to swing out. Keep that in mind if you decide to do one.

17x8.5 all around for the street 15x3.5 & 16x8 for the strip.

Rick, if there is a restriction in the cooler passage, then you end up with back pressure and with the pump generating the same pressure/volume, the fluid has to go somewhere. They said to make sure I check the vent hose.

Guys, thanks for referral to the Bowtie guys. For the first time I feel like I have something solid to help diagnose the problem. They do not think it is the pump but a possible restriction of the flow through the cooler and cooler lines. I have .25" id lines and they recommend no smaller than 5/16". They recommend I disconnect the return line to the tranny and at idle it should flow 1.5 GPM. Since I planned to eliminate the Q-Ds, I will just go ahead and pull the cooler, have it checked for resistance, upgrade the lines to 5/16" and then check the flow rate. They also recommend doing a runout check on the flex plate to make sure it had nothing to do with the pump going out in the 1st place. Should not exceed .040. Thanks again for the referral.

MikeKZ, BITE YOUR TONGUE!!! Shane, there are no vacuum lines going to the tranny as it is electronically controlled. I wish it was somthing that simple.

Thanks for the responses guys and very good ones too. Freaky, I had all intentions of using the UV dye but after a pass the fluid is sprayed everywhere because there is a slight bit of turbelence under the car at 130+mph Not sure I could tell where it originated. As for doing it in the garage, there is no way in hell I am going to put almost 550 lb/ft of torque through my driveline sitting up on jack stands :D Rick, good suggestion. I can see the vent tube on top but not sure if it leaking there or not. It could be leaking there and running down the side. Ironically, the evidience of tranny fluid on the aluminum case quickly disappears. I plan to call the bowtie guys today and regardless, eliminate the Q-Ds and put a rubber line over the vent hose and have the hose someplace where it will be evident if it is leaking from there. Unfortunately that means the tranny has to come out again....AAAAARRGGH!.

For what it is worth, here is the problem. Couple of months ago the car broke down on the way to a show in Gainesville. I was convinced the problem was a brand new 9.5" 3200 stall converter. I sent the converter back and it checked out OK. I then took the tranny to a local shop and discovered the front pump was shot and had it and the shaft replaced. From a functional standpoint, the tranny performed perfect (AND STILL DOES)! but it developed a leak. The leak is at the right-front corner of the pan in the vicinity of the dipstick tube, cooler line fittings and TV cable. It looked like the pan gasket so I changed it. Same problem. TMALSS, I have changed the gasket 4 times including a different pan, checked the TV cable, checked the cooler line fittings and swapped out the dipstick tube grommet and it still leaks. It only leaks under WOT and only in that spot. After dropping the tranny twice and dropping the pan 4 times laying on my back, I am at my wits end and am tired of taking ATF shampoos. Since it only leaks at WOT I am suspecting the leak is related to built up pressure forcing the fluid out whatever seal it can. There is one other change I made when I did the pump repair. I use .25" id Parker Push-Lok hoses for my tranny lines and inserted some quick-disconnects in the line bcause the cooler line fittings are difficult to get off. I am speculating that the Q-Ds might have introduced a restriction in the tranny cooler lines and is causing pressure build-up and thus the leak. That is easy enough to fix but anyone know if that theory is valid? Last resort is to pull the tranny again and have the shop recheck the pump but I really do not want to pull it. Could the leak be related to something done when the pump was replaced? :evil: Folks, please do not take this the wrong way, but I am looking for feedback based on real knowledge and experience not speculation. I really want to fix this thing!! You can imagine the mess under the car and after 3 or 4 passes at the track, the entire back panel of the car is coated with fluid. Would not be surprised if I am not putting a little on the slicks too. :evil: BTW, the most obvious is that the the tranny is overfilled. It is not. Thanks for listening.

I need to get some opinions/advice on a problem I am having with my TH2004R and need someone who is REALLY an expert on auto trannies and the 200 in prticular.

I know we are not supposed to talk anyone out of their ideas or goals and I am not trying to do that. However, folks need to know that not all 350s are born equal. Just because it is a V-8 does not mean you will have stunning performance. Chances are, unless the luck of every god is with you, $400 is going to get you a run-of-the-mill V-8 and the rest will be spent on the swap. $1200 will get you a complete L28ET swap with enough mods to easily match or outperform a run-of-the-mill 350 everytime. However, I understand the fascination of a V-8 under the hood. All of that opinion aside, the main point of my post is to say do not forget suspension and brakes. Even a R-O-T-M 350 will have enough power AND torque to overwhelm the chassis and brakes of a stock 240Z.

Is this a hoax? a 1000hp TT-V8 road-racing 240Z will be undriveable. Today's ultimate road racing machine, the Audi R8 is also a TT-V8 and when running maxed is at the limit of adhesion and aerodynamics and it is putting out maybe 650hp. If you want to know what it is like to drive a 1000hp raod racing machine, go to the library and read up on Mark Donahue and the CanAm Porsche 917. When you are done, ask yourself how a 240Z might compare to the 917 in chassis, suspension and brakes. If you want to get closer to home, read up on the Electromotive turbo Z car. What class could you possibly run that car in? If I was a sanctioning body, there is no way I would allow such a car to compete.

Brilliant. I bet they sell a SH*T load of those things I just do not have the vision to come up with such brialliant ideas and gall to try and sell it.

Surgeons Five surgeons are discussing who makes the best patients to operate on. The first surgeon says, "I like to see accountants on my operating table, because when you open them up, everything inside is numbered," The second responds, "Yeah, but you should try electricians. Everything inside them is color-coded," The third surgeon says, "No, I really think librarians are the best; everything inside them is in alphabetical order." The fourth surgeon chimes in: "You know, I like construction workers. They always understand when you have a few parts left over at the end and when the job takes longer than you said it would." But the fifth surgeon, Dr. Morris Fishbein, shuts them all up when he observes: "The French are the easiest to operate on. There's no guts, no heart, no balls and no spine. Plus the head and ass are interchangeable."

That car is quick! Apparently some folks missed the fact that the car went low-13s at 98mph. You do not run 98mph in a turbo car with a low-13 and 1.6x 60' unless you got out of it and he said he did. He is doing a couple of things wrong with his setup that is hurting the performance and when he gets rid of the NA mindset, that car will do well.

That is the Z that has been the center of another zcar.com pissing contest.

If the reference to a member running 10.36 is me, my car actually weighs in at 2,750lbs. I can understand a 600hp FWD running 11s if I see a MPH to validate the claimed HP. I give you an example. A well setup RWD that can launch properly will run mid-9s @ 140+. The turbo Civics that run in the Pro-import classes also run mid-9s but the really strong running ones are trapping at or close to 160mph. A 2400lb car with 625hp at the wheels that only runs 11.01 SHOULD trap at 160+ if it truly has that much HP. Does not matter how badly you mess up the 60', if you have the HP you will still register a huge MPH number. Draw your own conclusions.

Oops, my bad. Forgot about your custom arms. AFAIK, the highest ratio available for the R230 is 3.54:1. I imagine NISMO might have a 3.3x or a 3.0x but like the R200 series, it is going to be rare and VERY expensive. Also, like the R200, there will be a variance in the R&Ps because I am sure not all the cars using the R230 use the same physical case. Perfect example is the difference in the R200 cases used in the Zs and the 240SX.

WHOA, don't start making any trades yet! I said I am going to redo the clutch pack and bearings then decide what to do next. If the next step is going to cost a ton, then I would consider selling it to offset the cost. I keep slapping myself and saying "low-10s, be satisfied" (oh wait, its the wife that keeps saying that) but I know I have not yet tapped the full potential of the engine and it is like unfinished business. Mike, if I have to I will certainly let you know, but I will definitely shed a tear. I hope this does not comes across as being egotistical, but I swelled with pride more than ever when I took it apart the other night. OH YEAH, that statement just jacked the price up a couple hundred :D Mike, if the ratios were available I would probably have the setup you do with the coilovers and Illuminas for extra adjustable but it would still not have the camber, toe and bumpsteer adjustment or lighter weight. OK, thats enough selling

Well, I pulled the diff tonight and expected to have gear chunks come falling out. SURPRISE, SURPRISE, not a damn thing wrong with the gears, even the spider gears. I am not able to see every single teeth on the spider gears but from what I can see, they are OK. Only thing left are the clutch packs. Cannot imagine that the loud banging sound I first heard when I made a turn was coming from the clutch packs. It sounded like a u-joint had broken and the axle was banging around back there. That sound eventually subsided and was replaced by a loud squeal when I make turns. Only conclusion I can draw is that the clutch packs came apart and eventually fused together or are binding : : So whats next? Was this just a case of a 19-yr old part that had seen better days and I finished it off? I will probably just rebuild this clutch pack and put a cap on making the car go faster or even backing off a tad while I decide the next step. I just cannot get myself to ante up 4-figures for a DANA44. Given that choice I would rather sell the current setup and go to a solid setup, big slicks, little more power out of the engine, lift the front wheels and run mid-9s. Intriguinely, since the power would be coming from a mild cam and more boost, the driveability and economy would not be hurt one bit. Hmmm. Somebody, Stop ME! :D

Did you have the newer tires and bumpers when he pulled you over?

Yes, I run the "small" DANA36 but keep in mind that my car is probably 650-750lbs lighter. See my comment about the DANA44 above. My car weighs in at 2,750 w/me and the HP is 485rwhp based on the timeslip in the only formula I use. There are other formulas that register higher but the closest is the one on Prestage: http://www.prestage.com/carmath/calc_etmph.asp This is the only formula that I use as I want consistency in the measurment. However, realize that this is more of an average through a 1/4-mile and so the number will be lower than a dyno where you measure the highest peak HP. A turbo car will be putting out a little less HP in the lower gears because of the gear multiplication, not being under extreme load like on the top-end and you are accelerating from rest. Hard to say what it would be on a dyno as there is such a variance in how dynos calculate HP. I tried putting the car on a dyno once and it was a nightmare. The way the operator wanted me to bring the revs up and he applying the load did not sit well with my chip. Once the load was applied, the engine bogged down slightly and took the chip out of full-power mode. Not sure I will ever see a dyno as I feel I am doing fine tuning it on the track. I am able to go quicker with less HP because I am able to put the power down immediately and more effectively. 2 primary reasons are how well my suspension setup works (and we won't get into a squat discussion again) and I focus on optimizing the 1st 1/8-mile not the top-end. I run the big P-trim turbine wheel but with the tiny .63 housing for quicker spoolup. When I ran the big .82 housing the top-end was phenominal but the 60' was high-1.60s. Guess which combo produced the quickest ETs? The huge turbo(s) and injs that are great for the top-end hurt you at the line and the front-end of the 1/4-mile. I run the 1/8-mile in 6.62 and the 2nd 1/8-mile in 3.74 and the 60' time affects the ET by a factor of 1.5. So, where is there more opportunity for improvement? That is why I am experimenting with improving the 1/8-mile and you do that by leaning out the fuel as much as possible. I can get away with that because even though I am running 24.5psi all through the 1/4, the engine is under less load and demands less fuel. The trick is knowing when the fuel demands increases at the top-end and richening the mixture accordingly. No way to simulate and tune for that on a dyno. The key is caution, patience to take baby steps over several passes and effective use of the datalogger. Yikes, I am rambling again.

Therein lies the problem. BAD comparison. By my calculations, I am willing to bet a 300hp SR20DET (mild mods) has more than twice the torque of that Honda N/A!

The best 1/4-mile IS 10.36 @ 131.7 and that was at the last Z meet and with only a 1.49 60'. What I mean is if you want to speculate and say the 60' was 1.45, it could have gone 10.30. Won't know how bad itis until I pull the diff but pretty much everything I would need is available. A DANA44 to replace it would be sweet, but the DANA44 with a 3.07 is not common and folks are commanding 4-figures for a DANA44 chunk It hits hard with the t-brake but with the 5-pt harness tight and the helmet on the headrest, it is not a big shock to the body BUT you had better be focused! Ironically, looking at the video, it does not look like it. Tough to lift the front wheels on an IRS but the front-end is fully extended. With real slicks and a 18psi launch it should do it

This is a classic case where size IS NOT everything. How many "bigger displacement" street-driven Zs on this forum can match the performance of that SR20-powered 3rd-gen RX-7 (11.1 @ 126)? You only need one hand to count and you will have a couple of fingers left over. And, that RX-7 is heavier than an early 240Z would be with the SR20. Granted such a setup requires a different driving technique than a V-8, but lag is what you make it and unfortunately, too many unknowingly pick the wrong combo and end up with lag and compaints about turbo setups. A well setup SR20 in a lightweight 240Z will perform well and surprise you of the driveability and torque. Any well setup turbo engine will have the torque to melt tires and break things. Sigh! OK, I have to go now. I need to pull my broken diff

I currently run 26x9x16 QTPs on Z-28 16x8 wheels and was looking at getting a tire that hooked better when these wear out (close). I was thinking of switching to 15s if they cleared my brakes, because the 16s have limited or no choice of other tire sizes. 5-lug 15x8 Welds w/5.5" BS are fairly easy to find especially on the Mustang boards. I have to run 15psi in the tires because anything less and the car gets nervous on the top-end. Launching with more than 12psi boost makes the car come out so hard, it simply annihilates the tires. I started experimenting with my chip (limited programmability) to run the leanest setting to get the quickest 1/8-mile. That, of course, would be too lean for the top-end so I installed a nitrous fuel solenoid as a 7th with a very small jet and intend to turn it on about 1-2 secs after 3rd-gear LU (7-8 secs into the pass). The LU and solenoid will both be controlled with home-made electronics, thanks to Rick Bowers (SPEEDER). Well, the experiment seems to be working because a 12psi launch last night simply destroyed the tires and even backing off a tad made little difference up to the 330' mark when I got out of it completely. Our local track does minimal prep for T&T nights but normally I get little or no wheelspin at all. When I made the U-turn for the return road, it sounded like all hell had broken loose back there. I took a quick glance expecting to see the halfshafts hanging but they were connected solid. I jacked it up and the u-joints and halfshafts are fine so I am sure it is the diff. At first it made loud metallic sounds like a broken driveshaft or axle flopping around, but only in a turn. That noise then went away and now I get a LOUD, heavy squeal when I turn in either direction. I think I broke the spider gears and the LSD. Drives perfectly normally going straight and I made it home with no problems. Ironically, the car has cut several 1.40s with several 1.45s, so wanting to go quicker might be a little greedy, but I know the car can do it because the 1.40s seemed so effortless with 10-12psi launches. Looks like I will be down for a while, but I guess I have to expect that trying to run the way I do with a street setup