80LS1T

I had a teacher in school show us just how easy it is to break the stock wheel lock mechanism. All he had to do was turn the wheel really hard and it broke. It was a late model Chevy of some sort(I cant remember what model though). So the wheel lock is hardly an anti theft device. It would be pretty hard to drive though with out a stick to shift with! That with a quick release steering wheel would be great! Guy

Insurance should cover that.......kind of like hitting a deer right?! Guy

I know what you are going threw. When I started my project 3 years ago(man has it been that long! ), I thought ok pull old motor...put new one in...and bam Im done....Yeah right! Now having spent $20K+ on a car that isnt drivable right now seems silly but I honestly dont know what else I would have spent that money on. Sure there are other things I like to do but there is nothing else that I love to do more that to work on my Z! My parents like yours thought I was crazy for spending all that time and money on my car. Just now they are realizing that I could have been doing a lot worse. I dont drink(atleast not a lot, just a few times a year), I dont smoke, never done drugs, and I got an education after high school(yeah Im an auto tech for dodge, so I work on cars pretty much 24/7...some might say Im obsessed!LOL). I think getting my Z car was probably the most important thing to happen to me in my life so far(Im only 23). It's what got me interested in modding cars and its pretty much the reason I decieded that fixing cars was what I wanted to do(I was in school for Computer Programming but I couldnt stand the thought of sitting at a desk every day). Now I am doing what I love every day. The woman that I have been with the past 6 years has been with me through all of it. From the first day I started the swap till now she has understood my passion. She would never ever ask me to sell my car or quit my hobby of fixing/modding cars. Its like asking the pastor of your church to stop preaching....it aint gonna happen! If she cant understand that you love your Z and working on it, maybe shes not the one for you? Ask her if she would give up something(hobby) she loves for you. My guess is she answer with "well thats not the same" or "yeah but..." Its always different when it comes to the stuff they like/love to do. Guy

Good Luck! Guy

Im not a professional engine builder but I say just install the cam the way it was intened, be it straight up or a few degrees advanced. I really doubt there is any large perfomance gain to be had by having an adjustable cam gear on a SBC. I say just buy a nice dual roller timing set and be done with it. There are better ways to gain HP than this. Guy

Man all you guys with these LS1 powered Z's are killing me! I so want one! LOL Nice to hear another conversion on the road! Guy

There was a guy that I used to work with(he got canned for being a hack(autotech)) had a Cutlas with a 427 BBC. He had one of those timing sets but he called it variable timing. Apperently when the engine reved up higher in the RPMs it would advance the cam a few degrees. Apperently it wasn't enough because I smoked him bad(8-10 car lengths easy). He blew that motor up because he was shooting too much Nitrous at it and dropped a valve! Now hes running a 502 and still only getting 12.1-.3 on motor and like a 11.00 on Nitrous. The guy was a tool who talked a lot of smack but couldnt back it up. Point is I dont really know that he actually had that "Variable cam timing" set up or not. He clams he bought it from the guy who invented it.. I think you should just install your cam as it was intended and buy better more bang for the buck go fast parts. But to each his own! Guy

Man what a clean install! I have also heard that if you run both speeds at the same time it will burn the fan up. Guy

Whats the issue? I have never had a problem with my rear brakes on my ZX? Guy

Now I know this doesnt really apply to your Z but when I ever I replace the front brakes on caravans at work I have to take the van out an do a few hard stops because otherwise the brakes feel like mooshy poo! Only after the brakes have heated up and cooled down a few times will they feel like normal. Now this is not true with all the brakes we do though. Just seems like its the Caravan front brakes? I say if the brakes feel normal on the first test drive, dont worry about it. If they feel a little soft then, do a few hard stops and then let them cool down and repeat again. This will probably seat the pads and your normal brake pedal will return. Guy

I would buy one for sure! Guy

I have my LT1 mounted with the MSA mounts and my T56 (6 speed) comes up in the front of my original hole in my tunnel(I had a 3 speed auto originally). I did trim the hole in the tunnel slightly though to get better clearance(man that sounded bad! LOL) Guy

I thought that was pretty funny! Just shows you what kind of tools are on that site! Guy

I guess he didnt double check all his nuts and bolts for proper torque! Guy

Did you put new spark plug wires on? If not try that but before you do check to make sure your wires are on the cap right and routed to the correct cylinder. Backfiring often means timing is off or wires are no going to the correct cylinder. This would also cause black smoke due to the cylinder not getting a spark at the right time to burn the fuel/air mixture. Guy

Well if you've got t-tops, they tent to get a lot of stress at the pillar right behind the door and before that side window(b-pillar). It tends to crack paint right there. Mine hasnt done that yet but I havent had my V8ZX on the road very long(and its not being driven right now either). I have a 4 point rollbar but I dont know yet if thats enough to solve this isssue. I also have a set of front strut bars that I made for the front. Guy

A great way of getting brake line fittings loose is to heat with a torch(not too much though, the calipers have those rubber seals in them after all!), then pour water over them. This shocks the rust thats built up and works almost every time! Guy

Another thing worth mentioning is that you will find these cans of R134a refrigiant at parts stores that contain "sealer/stop leak". I cant stress it enough that these sealers are not a good idea. Once the sealer comes into contact with air it hardens. Well sure it seams like a great idea.....but what happens when you say blow a line? Guess what, where ever that sealer is in the system at that time...its going to turn hard as rock and now the only real way of fixing your A/C is to replace everything. Not to mention if the shop you take you car to has a "seal identify" system, they will not service your a/c because it will damange their a/c machine. So when buying R134a, just get the plain R134a. Guy

Here's a video you guys might appreciate! Dukes of Hazards "These Boots are Made for Walk'n" (its a big file 41 MB) Guy

If I turned my car on its side I wouldnt be jumping around all happy! It was sure funny to watch though! Guy

If you cant find them you might have to pull them out of the intermediate shaft and just take them into a parts store and match them up. Most people just replace the whole shaft because working with those tiny u-joints is a PITA. Some one like SPICER has to make them. Guy

I know why the front sits so high(no engine) but why does the rear of the car look so high? It looks like it has a lift kit or something! No to mention that little hood scoop is kind of tacky, IMHO. Guy

When Darius had his old supercharge kit for sale, I remember asking him if he was including the piping and he said no because it was all custom anyways and probably wouldnt kit my car anyways(I have a 280ZX). So I would have to say its not going to matter what kit you get your still going to have to fabricate your own piping for it. Guy

You mean all 4 u-joints are loose? I can see installing one improperly but not all 4? Is it possible that they installed the wrong u-joints? Guy

Well as Grumpy says..."you may not notice any thing right away but chances are you will down the road," I still dont recommend installing with a hammer.