80LS1T

I bought a 4 point roll bar from MSA(http://www.zcarparts.com) for $240 Its the SCCA type. http://www.datsun-280zx-lt1.com has more pics! Guy

I tell you what, I have always told eveyone that there is no way I will sell my car because it is the only thing that I really have left of my dad to remember. My father passed away when I was 17(I'm 21 now) at the young age of 62. I know that I say there is no way I will ever sell my car for any reason but if I had a son or daughter in your situation there is no way that Im not going to sell it if there are bills to be paid and treatments to be given. Just do whatever it takes to get your sons health back to normal and buy another Z! This time get one of those 2003 Cobra motors with the Super Charger and really give it hell! Hope it all works out man. Guy

Well heres the thing... the header has round ports. I tried to use the Dport gasket that was intended for the stock manifold but it leaked out of all of the ports. With this round one(copper) it is only leaking from one of the middle ports. Guy

Do you think I can get a header gasket at like Autozone? I was thinking the same thing about the regular gasket. I was told to use a copper one because they were supposed to work the best but so far not so good. Guy

Well I went out in the garage and tried my idea.....What I did was try to make the header surface smoother(there was a ridge from the weld) so that the gasket would seal. I did this with my 4" angle grider! Yeah I know Im crazy but I had to try somthing! Well it helped a little but I can still hear a small leak. I am going to pull it off again tommorow and see if the collector is leaking on top(where the 4 pipes come together) Im not sure if its leaking there or not but Im going to find out. I just cant imagine that its still leaking from the header gasket area . I really need to fix this so I can finish putting my interior back together and take it for a spin! Guy

Well now that I have my computer back I cant really complain about the programming yet. It seems to be running great....other than my stupid #$$@$@$ header leak(yeah Im kind P-O'd about that!) I dont think programming a chip for the HOTCAM is too difficult. I just need to fix this header leak! Guy

Just go to the junk yard and get one. It should be pretty easy to find. All you really want is the block right? Is he going to use aftermarket heads, intake, cam, etc? If so just go to the junk yard and find a old truck(70's) and it will most likely be a four bolt main. Then build off the block and junk the rest. Guy

Sure you can.....$600! (sorry had to say it! ) Guy

Man I dont know what to do about this header situation. It appears to be leaking between the gasket and the header. I have a copper gasket on there but it still isnt doing the trick. I even tried using 2 copper gaskets on that side. My LT1 stock manifold on the other side is sealed up nice but I wasnt really expecting it not to! I have an idea but Im going to try it first before I say what it is(it might be a dumb idea ) Be back later! Guy

How are you going to press them out if they are threaded in? Do you have access to a torch? That would help too. Also you werent using the rubber mallet to hit the knuckle? were you? If so try hitting it with a 5 lb hammer! That should knock it free. If not try the torch if you have one. Guy

Well I got my computer back today! I installed it an started it up and it runs great but I have a header leak on my passanger side I even have a copper gasket but I think it the actual header not the gasket that is leaking. Thats what I get for installing a cheap ass header. I am going to take it off and have a buddy TIG weld it up so that it wont leak anymore! Hopefully that will fix that problem. I still have to put my interior back together and a few other small things but now I am really motivated so maybe by this weekend I will be on the road! 8) This header thing is kinda pissing me off thats for sure! Guy

Ok I have located the problem...it has something to do with the rear wiper. Im not worried about that working anyways because when I do the body on my car ITS COMING OFF! I have a rear louver anyways so it doesnt really do much anyways. Now heres the problem...my windshield wipers are still stopping at the top! What the heck is going on here? Guy

I dont mean to change topics but DAMN "J Taylor" that is a beautiful 280Z!! I love the orange and those rims. So you got 360 ponies under the hood?! Nice very very nice! Sorry I just had to say it! Guy

zfan.....look at his signature (18 inch TSW) (Boy am I going to feel like an a$$ if those aren't the wheels on that car!) Guy

When I pulled the motor and tranny out of my 280ZX.... I pulled them as a whole unit, engine and tranny together. I also used and engine "load leveler". I would highly recommend buying one of these or renting one from Auto Zone. You may not be concerned about dinging up the paint now but when you put the new motor back in you probably will be! I attached my load leveler/engine hoist on the front of my engine where there was a braket specifically for lifting the engine(its basically a braket with a hole in it for attaching a chain/hook) and then I pulled an exhaust bolt out and attached the chain with a new hardended bolt to where the exhaust bolt was. Guy

Well I'm not sure if this will help any but here it goes...... I installed/am installing a 93 LT1/T56 out of Z28 in my 1980 280ZX. I have found that this is a very good choice for the ZX because of the lower profile intake and no distributor to deal with on the rear of the block. Now if you go LT1 I would buy a 95 because of 3 reasons...1) it has the updated optispark(distributor) and 2) it is still OBD1 so it will cost less to program and 3) you can program it yourself with software from TunerCat and a laptop! In 94 they made the compter with a reprogrammable chip until the 92(corvette)/93 engines where they still had a removable chip. So dont do what I did and buy a 93! I did update my optispark so I do have that but unless I change my harness and put on a 94-97 intake I am screwed out of reason 2 and 3! The cast heads do flow better but with a little bit of port work the alluminum ones will flow just as good and they weight 1/2 as much with for a Z is a great thing. So I would suggest buying a LT1 with alluminum heads or buy one with cast heads and buy some after market heads for it that are alluminum! Oh and I made my throttle cable with a Lokar cable. I will post some pics if you guys want? Guy

Ok call me crazy but that just looks like some long peices of sheet metal?! And I dont think cutting that cross member where the seat was, was a good idea. Couldnt you have gone under it by cutting a slit in it? Then slid that "reinforment plate" through it? Just how thick is that ? Guy

Yeah I dont think you can run a manual tranny without a pilot bearing...I think that pilot bearing is an important part of keeping that input shaft on the tranny nice and stable. You wont hurt the crank if you have it drilled out and have a pilot bearing installed. Talk to your machinist and see what he says. Im sure it wont be a problem. Guy

No dont cut anyting off that shaft! I dont think you machinist would even approve of that. I have heard of more than one guy drilling a crank for a manual tranny. Its not that big of a deal for a good machinist. Guy

No I dont have any pictures yet because I am still trying to get my car driveable! (see my story in "I'm Telling Ya") After I get all the bugs out and it drives nice, stays cool, and doesnt give me too many problems......Im going to buy the ground effects from MSA and then paint the car. Then I will be buying tires for my new rims. Unlike most guys rims are my last prority(not talking about anyone here, Im talking about ricers! ) Guy

Ok, ToplessZ did you loose all the bolts evenly? Cause if you didnt then you have a good chance that you might have warped the heads! This could also be the reason that it was so hard to get those last 2 bolts out. You should not have broken a socket unless the socket was already in horrible condition to begin with. If you did make the mistake of loosening them up one at a time then I would have them checked out to see if they are still flat. Are they cast iron or alluminum? What was the purpose of removing the heads? Guy

Well I think the LT1 crankshafts are lightend. I think you have to use lightweight components thats all. Im not 100% sure on this though. Maybe if Mudge is still around he could tell you. Guy

Well you(Tim) already know about my little problem with the computer set up I have. I would have programmed it myself but I would have had to do a lot of extra work. I still might go that route but I would like to get the 94/95 harness and computer instead of trying to get the 94/95 computer to work with the 93' harness. Basically I should have done more homework when I bought my engine! I brought this whole situation on myself! Oh well live and learn I guess. Oh but later when she called me back yesterday, she said "It will be mailed out today" and I said "are you sure because thats what you said last time and I sure dont have my computer now do I?!" and she said "Yup Im sure I put it on the shipping table myself" I swear to god if I dont have my computer by Wednesday Im going to be on the phone with them raising hell! Yeah if I would have had my computer back on wednesday I could have shown a "show-boating" LT1 Camaro whos boss today. This guy was weaving in and out of traffic like a moron and really needed to be taught a lesson! He had his kid(about 12-14 years old) in the car too, I think thats why he was driving like that! Anyways, this just gets chaulked up as another missed opportunity(sp?)!!!!!! I already know whats going to happen,,,,my car will be on the road and no one will act like this guy. I just want to show those camaros and mustangs that they dont rule the road and that they can be beat! Guy

Way to go man! Those GT's(4.6L?) aren't too slow(well their not fast though either! ) Do you have a 5 speed?My 280ZX with the straight six and 3 speed auto and only 110,000 miles on it sure couldnt keep up with a GT. The main problem with that auto is that 1st was geared so high that I didnt even pick up speed until I hit about 3500rmps, then once it hit 2nd I could hold my own! I really hated that AUTO!!! Guy

Yeah ok so I sent my LT1 computer to them 3 weeks ago to get programmed and it has been nothing but a pain the A$$!!!!! Every time I called them to ask if it was done yet all they would do is give me an excuss and say something like "well our computers are down" or "our power is out right now so I cant look it up, can I call you back?"(yeah they never called me back!!!!!) Then last Thursday I called to see if it was done yet and they say "Yup its getting sent out today" So I asked when it would be here and she says "it will be there on Tuesday or Wednesday" So yesterday I was looking forward to getting my computer back and taking it out for a spin, but guess what.......NO COMPUTER!!!!!!!! Yeah so I called them today to ask them if it was sent out, guess what .........NOPE! I said "well I was told it was sent out las Thursday and that I would have it by Wednesday(yesterday)" She then told me "well the guy who programs them wouldnt be back for about an hour, so would it be ok if I call you back to tell you whats going on?" Oh and dont even bother trying to email them because I have sent 4 emails and I have only recieved 1 answer back! So yeah I am not impressed with their service/people skills so far!!!!!! Guy