Grog

Chris >>> could you post the part number of the mounts you found? I can then go to Autozone and pick up a set. Thanks for doing the legwork on this. Grog

Chris, Sure, I will be happy to provide you the skinny on the shaker mount. I will take a picture of the adapter plate and post it on my website this week with commentary. Grog

There are alot of options available as to which transmission you wish to use behind the Pontiac. Ultimately, it is financial considerations and personal taste that dictate which one to use. I had onced considered using the M22 but finding one at a reasonable price was the show stopper. On another note, I have updated my website with additional pictures and commentary that will be useful. Cheers. Grog

Chris, I run a T-350, which will be just fine for a streetable 400-455 cu.in. motor. Depending on what mods you perform on the engine, this tranny is plenty strong and can be rebuilt with stronger internals. The T-400 is WAY to large for an unaltered transmission tunnel, but if you want one installed then prepare to do some serious cutting and welding. You can also put a BOP 200-R4 behind the Pontiac V-8; it will bolt right up. You will need to slightly enlarge the torque converter bolt holes in the T-350 flexplate and use a 200-R4 torque converter. A 4th gear lock-up switch will have to be installed, and can be ordered right from Summit Racing. There are a few minor installation issues that will need to be accomplished, but they are minor. If you doubt the strength of this transmission, behold -- it is good enough to handle the power of the Buick GNX and Regal T-Types. I plan to put one behind my Z when I find a good one (anyone have a spare?) so I have the added benefit of a highway gear when out on a joy ride. Grog

Chris, The mount is a solid type; in between the motor mount and the cross member is a 0.50 inch aluminum spacer. The motor mounts themselves are the 3-bolt style. The front mounting boss on my block is not drilled and tapped. You can pick up this type of mount from Year One at ~$35.00. I am looking for a rubber isolator to in between the two that is not more than 0.75 inches in thickness and similar in dimensions with a bolt pass-through. The car vibrates a bit but I am more concerned about tortional stressing. The car is not completely finished as I can't keep myself from modifying this and that. The car has had countless modifications done to it. Grog.

Thanks everyone for the laudatory comments. The Pontiac engine is very versatile unlike other engines, primarily in that there are few restrictions on what engine parts are interchangable between the small and big block. The crankshaft sizes are an obvious restriction but the heads, intakes, rods, and a few other parts can cross the cubic inch border. I am unaware about stuffing certain Chevy internal into the Pontiac, but you can readily obtain a nice set of Eagle con rods for the same price as having the stock Pontiac rods reconditioned. Plus the Eagle rods are MUCH stronger. You can bolt on a set of Edelbrock heads for ~1700 dollars, or go for a worked set of Wenzler heads for roughly the same price. Or if you choose to go over the top, get a set of Big Chief heads and go scare yourself. But its a good kind of scared. There are a number of option available including purchasing an aftermarket Pontiac block for radical engines. I could ramble on but the choice and level of creativity is up to the builder. Again, thanks for the comments and don't hesitate to drop me a line if you nedd information or wish to pass smoe along. Grog

For those interested, I have put together a preliminary website with some details surrounding the shoe-horning of a Pontiac V-8 into my 1975 280Z. Please forgive the basicness of the website; it is still under development. I will post new pictures and commentary as the days pass but for now I hope what is on the website is beneficial to those who are considering this swap. I will be checking this forum for feedback untill I get my website email worked out. I welcome all comments and suggestions. Thanks! Dirty Grog's Pontiac Powered V-8 Z

Tom is absolutely correct about the motor mounts. The rubber mount isolators and crossmember location in a Pontiac and Chevy are one thing, but the motor mounts themselves are two different animals. When I fabricated my motor mounts for my Pontiac swap, I did it in such a way to utilize the rubber mount isolators per the JTR book. I was unhappy with this for several reason, but to name a few they were 1) raised the installed engine height by three inches) the foward of the engine was at a 10 +/- 1 degree incline relative to the ground. This precluded the use of a flexfan and affect the functioning of my carb when launching (it would stall) because the float bowls wouldn't fill properly, and 3) couldn't close the hood when using a full size air cleaner with a T/A shaker scoop installed on top. Needless to say I re-invented the wheel once again and refabbed the mounts where all three of the previously identified problems were solved. If I could figure out how to include images in these posts I would post a few pics but my garage skills are much better than my internet skills are.

BTW, the motor mounts on a Pontiac are not interchangeble with chevy, as well as the intake, ross, heads, etc.... Thats why a Pontiac is a Pontiac, and a Chevy is a Chevy.

Chris, I have gotten a large volume of requests for info on the Ponch swap. This has prompted me to my knowledge and pics of the swap on a webpage. I am in the process of posting this information on the website. I will let you know immediately when itis up, which should be within the week. It will be crude since this is my first attempt at web publishing, so please be forgiving.

VertexZ, could you provide more info on you p/s set up? I would love to see more pics and details if posssible. Thanks. Grog

Go to your local junk yard and pull the radiator from a 77-78 Pontiac Grand Prix. The only diference between this radiator and that out of the Camaro V-6 radiator is that it has brass tanks and fins. I got mine for 50 bucks at a junk yard and bolted it in my Z. Plus, they are easier to find and cheaper than the Camaro radiator.

Before you consider performing a head swap on a Poncho -- do your homework. Not all the heads are interchangeable depending on year and engine displacement. Also, swapping out large chambered head in favor of some of the smaller chamber heads could result in TOO muchcompression and make the motor undrivable (or cause serious damage). Generally, Ram Air heads and some earlier castings from the 350 and 400 engines have small chambers at approx. 72cc's. Swapping these on a later model or non-Ram Air engine could cause problems so, as a minimum, you must do the math and calculate your final compression ratio and measure valve to piston clearance. The best thing is to find a cheap set of 6X heads off the 350. They have 91cc chambers as opposed to the 6X heads off the 400 which are 98cc. The 6X heads are the best of the D-ports, and with mild port work flow better than any of the Ram Air heads. Plus, you wouldn't have to use Ram-Air exhaust manifolds-- which as I mentioned before will not work in a Z. You could use the Edelbrock heads but the only real benefit is a weight savings. Remember, on a Pontiac engine that every 0.006 inches milled off the heads is equivalent to shaving off 1cc. For mminimal expense, take a set of 6X heads to your local performance shop and have them mill 0.012" off the deck and that will give you the chamber volume you need and still keep the motor streetable. I am still getting the pics together, and at Lone's request, will post them on the site. Cheers, Grog

Anyone with experience or advice on converting the manual steering on the 280Z to the power steering common on the 280ZX (others)? I am considering doing this if it is feasible. Any assistance is deeply appreciated.

Chris, You will have to obtain motor mounts for the 69 block. These can be acquired from Year One (http://www.yearone.com), a Pontiac restoration store that offers new mounts for ~35 USD. Friendly and knowledgable folks staff the customer service desk. I will take a few digital pictures of my mounts since they will be identical to the ones you will need to fabricate, along with a diagram of what you will need to modify to make the mounts work and other pictures that will be beneficial to putting a tiger under the hood. Word of caution -- the Pontiac block is VERY wide. This is noticably evident once you put the engine in and get a good look at how the exhaust will interfer with the steering shaft. If you can't afford to fabricate a very expensive set of custom headers to overcome the problem, then you must modify the steering shaft to accomodate the stock exhaust manifolds. I did this with minor effort and use stock center dump cast iron manifolds available from your local junkyard. Ram air manifolds will not work. Also bear in mind the Pontiac designed their engines using the same tooling to produce the 350-455 engines. the only major difference between these engines is bore and stroke. Therefore, once you make the mods to accomodate a P-400, they apply to the 350, 428, and 455 engines. Talk about versatility! Give me a day or so to get the pictures and diagram together and I will email them to you.

Chris, First, what year is the engine block? Second, regardless of year, you will need the original motor mounts that attach TO the block. Third, plan to do some welding. From there, I can give you the specfications on modifying the mounts to attach to the stock crossmember. Depending on your preference, you can use mounting isolators or go with a solid spacer in between the mount and crossmember. I have had my Poncho in my Z for 2 years now with no problems. The motor mount modification is VERY simple. On a related note, I strongly recommend not using the T400 transmission unless you plan to gut the transmission tunnel. The B.O.P. T350 works equally well (I use it) and requires no additional modifications. You just need to use the appropriate flexplate and the transmission will bolt right up. Also, the 200R4 tranny will bolt up as well. Some folks might say it's weak, but it is tough enough to handle the abuse from the Buick GN's and Regal T-Types. I have info for this swap as well. If you need any advice on performing the Pontiac swap, let me know.

I use the radiator out of a 77-78 Pontiac Grand Prix. These were V-8 cars (400 ci I think)and are identical to the lightweight Camaro radiators. The only difference is that the entire radiator is brass construction, natrually weighing a little more than the Camaro. I retrieved mine from a junk yard for $50 bucks and it was in near perfect condition. Pontiac's are a dime a dozen and finding this radiator should be very easy. It even has an integral AT cooler. I use a 18" flex fan and the shroud of another Pontiac that will fit the radiator. There are two styles, on is deeper and the other is short, but the shroud width is the same. Use the short style. my Z stays nice and cool

Thanks for the info. I have a VB catalogue, but wanted to know if this modification actually worked in someone's Z before I buy one. BTW, a shaved decklid would look cool and help prevent rust inside the lid once it is properly treated.

Anyone have any recommendations and experience on installing an alternate A/C system in a 280Z? I have a 350ci Pontiac V-8 in my Z and I do not want to put the old A/C compressor, drier, etc... back on. Aside for installing a Vintige Air system, anyone use something else out of a different vehicle?

Anyone by chance rig their rear decklid latch/lock to open automatically with some type of solenoid? Any suggestions on how and what parts to use are appreciated.

Buick built some real powerhouses, for instance, the 455 GSX Stage 1. There are some companies that build Buick V-8 turn-key engines, and even a few parts suppliers like Summit Racing offer aftermarket performance products for these engines. Overall, one must respect the performance utility of these engines, and the fact that they are so light, might make the option of a Buick V-8 swap into a Datsun attractive. Also, a lighter vehicle equates into horsepower gained! :->

I have found an alternate radiator to use for V-8 powered Z's for anyone who has difficulty finding the JTR prescribed Camaro radiator. The 77-78 V-8 powered Pontiac Grand Prix's use the same size radiator, sans plastic side coolant tanks and aluminum body, and the inlet and outlet necks are on the same side as the Chevy. It is set-up for AT coolant lines as well. There are two different fan shrouds available, but only one is small enough to fit under the hood and I can't remember which model of Pontiac I took mine from. I paid $50 bucks for my radiator, and it was in near perfect condition. Pontiacs are plentiful and offer a healty source of parts. BTW, if anyone is interested in swapping in a Pontiac V-8, I am happy to help since my 75 280Z is powered by one. Dirty_Grog@yahoo.com