mtcookson

I don't think the vibrations will be a rotor issue as he's noticing them while driving. If he only noticed vibrations when braking then that could definitely be the case.

For the fuel leak you can try some of that UV dye that you add to the fuel and use a black light to find it. Might check your pads if, when you tap the brakes, the noise goes away. Steering wheel shaking, first have your tires balanced. If that doesn't do it then you might check for bad bushings in the front suspension... but its most likely going to be the balance of the tires.

I wouldn't necessarily say that it can more power than the DOHC... but its definitely not a slacker. Electramotive made a GTP car powered by a VG30ET, stock head and block casting, making upwards of 1,200 hp (some claim 1,200, some claim 1,000... either way) with the qualifying setup and around 900 for the race. There's also a guy running a VG30ET (I think twin turbo though), running 7's in the 1/4. Cesar Febus if I remember correctly. I believe the highest power seen on a stock internal VG30ET has been 700 hp. Probably didn't last very long but I know of quite a few people making 400-500 whp, many that daily drive them as well.

Why's that? I think this one may actually be a little better than the first adapter plate that was made for the VH. What's nice about this one is no spacers. Plus, someone is actually using a similar adapter (VG tranny, modded same way) but in a 240SX that is running 9's in the 1/4. Seems good to me.

cough SOHC better cough The SOHC VG can make more power than most need and I believe is more reliable than the DOHC VG... not that I wouldn't take one... just that I'd put my money into an SOHC VG first. Cheaper, lighter, can make more than enough power, a little more reliable... what's not to love?

That I know of, there was never any 5-speed offered with the VQ30DET. It would definitely be nice as the 5-speed would match a boosted VQ a little better than the 6-speed... but, the 6-speed would be your only option unless you go with an adapter plate.

The 89-94 Maxima with the VG has a front sump oil pan. You can grab one of those as well as the sump then weld on a bung for the oil return from the turbo. I bet that would probably work out. (2nd gen Maxima also has a front sump pan) As for the intake, I'd probably use the 2nd gen Maxima intake. The S13-VG pictures I posted uses the 2nd gen intake mounted opposite of how it would be on the Maxima. That and the Pathfinder manifold would be my choices for manifolds but the Pathy manifold is pretty tall so the Maxima intake usually works pretty well.

Backfiring usually means its running rich. I'd first do a quick check on the ECU codes to see if anything comes up. If nothing there, you might then check for some more boost leaks. If its a vacuum leak it'll have some idling issues, are there any?

That would definitely be fun... but... at nearly $7,000 I'd just stick with something else.

I PM'ed you my list but I'll go ahead and post the same here in case anyone else is doing the same. As said above, definitely hang on to the diff and axles. Its a 3.54 R200V with TTZ style output flanges and therefore TTZ axles (not exactly the same, different lengths, but that's it). Definitely, definitely hang on to the wheel bearings/hubs. They're the same as the TTZ's and are needed for the axles anyways. If you end up not using them, you can generally get pretty good money out of them as well. I'd personally recommend using the Q45 differential as it would be very strong and with the lower ratio, you should see better performance with a boosted setup as well as better fuel economy. Keep the fuel pump, its a TTZ pump which are very powerful units. You may also hang on to the rear parking brake assembly with the cables, definitely don't cut the cables. I'd have to double check to be for sure but if they're the same as the Z32, which pretty much the entire suspension setup is, those cables and drum brake assemblies are pretty sought after by the Z32 guys from what I've seen. I had numerous requests for them when I was parting some Z32's I have.

Yeah, that turbo is likely way too small for what you want. A Garrett T3/T04E 50 trim matches very well to the VG30E and will flow enough for around 450-460 hp. Another very low cost option is a Holset HX35. Quite a few Z31 guys are running them now. What's nice about them is there are always a lot of them, they're cheap, and they are very efficient and can flow I believe up to about 560 hp. That should be more than enough to get your truck into the 12's.

For some reason it got confused a lot, not sure why. I know for sure the 90-93 Q's have R200's. The later models might have got an R230, but I'm not sure. I know a bare VQ30DE weighs about 180 lbs and a VQ35DE about 175. With everything minus tranny, I think its around 330 lbs from what I've heard. The VG30DETT with accessories is right over 500 lbs. from what I can find. One guy weighed his in at 550 but didn't mentioned with or without accessories, I'd say with. That's 220 lbs right there. Its amazing what those DOHC heads did to the VG30DE(TT) as far as weight goes. The VG30ET weighs in at right under 400 lbs. The VG30E(T) was, at the time it was made, claimed to be the lightest V6 in the world. Other things to consider on the weight differences between the VQ and VG are the internals. Nissan designed the VQ, especially the VQ35, to be as light weight overall as possible including internally. I know in the 35 the rods are quite small, I'm sure the VQ30's rods are smaller than the VG's as well. They also did some pretty cool stuff like hollow cams to reduce weight even more. Its funny you mention hating the timing belt. I actually kind of prefer them over timing chains... though, I'm used to the VG30E(T) timing belt setup which looks much more simple than the DE(TT)... I've not messed with one of those yet and am not sure I want to. I definitely dislike the chains though. Heavier, can't slide them off like you can a belt, and they actually say for racing/high performance engines belts are really better as they don't transmit harmful harmonics into the valve train like chains do... I've not really looked into that very much yet though. Just did some searching around and found some very interesting info... it looks like the VQ weighs around the same, possibly even less, than the SR20DET. I'm still trying to confirm though.

I knew it was over there somewhere.

The VQ30DE has been up to 500+ whp on stock internals in a Maxima, he probably could have squeezed even a little more out of it. Modified... the sky is the limit. The VQ35DE has proven to be a huge performer when heavily built being in the current fastest Nissan on the drag strip. It may be aluminum, but its not weak, which is sadly a very common misconception. So far the VQ has outperformed both the VG and RB. They put a turbo version of the VQ in the Skyline R34 race cars and it did much better than the RB versions did (lighter, lower CoG, mid-engine, able to make just as much power though I don't think they had to). I see the new VQ35HR easily being able to do even better than the current VQ35DE, which will make for some interesting Nissan's to say the least. There's actually no good reason not to replace it with a VQ. The VQ is easily 200+ lbs. lighter than the VG30DE(TT), couple that with easily being able to match a VG in output and you simply have a faster car that can now likely even handle better through the corners and everything. One of my only complaints about the VQ30 is the lack of variable valve timing. I think that really hurt its N/A performance but, with boost it won't matter near as much. Another downside to the VQ is the Z33 6-speed. It is considered relatively weak and on top of that the gear ratios aren't really good for boost IMO. They're very good for a rev happy N/A but when you start boosting it the broad torque the engine will make won't match the gears well. Not to even mention the 6th gear is a higher ratio than the 5th gear of the Z32 box. The 350Z comes with a 3.54 rear differential, which definitely helps. I would avoid going any higher than that... I'd definitely limit it to the TTZ 3.69 R230. Any higher and it'll be annoying to drive on the highway (high revs in 6th gear, poor fuel economy, gears too short to even work with, you'll constantly be shifting gears). To the original poster, differential wise I'd get that N/A diff. out of there asap and go for a 90-93 Q45 differential. Its an R200 like the stock N/A diff. so it will bolt right in but with 3.54 gears like the 350Z. You will have to use the Q45 axles (which are stronger, same as the TT axles) and you'll need to change the wheel bearings for the Q45 or TT's to match the axles. You'll get much better ratios out of the 6-speed with a stronger rear axle setup to boot.

The compressor should support around 1,000 hp or so... but the turbine would definitely be too big to get that thing to spool on an L28. As for a hybrid, I know a lot of people do an HX35/40 hybrid but I've not heard of anyone doing any HX55 hybrids, especially with an HX30. I've not heard of any HX30 hybrids at all (not that it can't be done, I've just not seen it done).

Oddly enough, from what I've seen torque ratings are higher on the 240 mm clutches than the 250 mm clutches. You would think having a bit more leverage would make for more holding capacity but all of the 250's I've seen have always been rated lower than the 240 of the same "stage".

Stock compression for the VG30E (9:1) isn't too high for boost. You can easily get 300 whp out of it, I know there are even some making upwards of 400+ on stock internals. I would also just stick with the single turbo setup on the VG30E i.e. use VG30ET parts. That would be the easiest route and it could still make tons of power. It would also have awesome low end power, perfect for the street. My vote is for the VG but I am a bit biased since its one of my favorite engines.

A guy over at NICO weighed his completely stock slick top Z32 with all fluids. I'll look for the thread because I can't remember the weight off hand. I want to say it was in the 3,200-3,300 range but I could be totally off.

Try http://www.phatg20.net. There are a bunch of Nissan FSM's on there.

For hoses, couplers, clamps, etc. this is a place I usually go to - http://www.hightempsilicone.com The silicone couplers are top quality. I've not tried any hoses from them but the viton hoses sound pretty good. Definitely go no less than the t-bolt clamps. Those will save you many, many headaches. You might be able to find better deals on ebay, but I would definitely get some silicone couplers and t-bolt clamps at the very least. Rubber couplers with standard worm gear clamps might work for a while on a stock setup but once you start turning up the boost and such, they just don't get the job done.

I'm not sure what I was thinking there. It has a VQ30 though which is pre-350Z VQ.

I actually just saw stuff about fuel coolers yesterday. You probably didn't do a before and and after but I figure I'd ask, notice any difference? Makes sense that it would, just never really heard about them being used all that often. I'll probably be giving one a try but wanted to get some opinions on them. Thanks!

Actually, the engine is probably fine. Do a compression test and that should tell you pretty quick. My guess, being a turbo Z, the turbo itself is leaking oil (seals are shot). You'd just need to rebuild the turbo or put on another turbo and you should be fine.

Are the clamps worm gear clamps? If so, I'd throw those in the trash asap and get some t-bolt clamps. Those will definitely keep the pipes from coming off.

http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbobygarrett/catelog/Turbochargers/GT12/GT1241_756068__1.htm and http://www.mjmturbos.com/images/SMALLEST.jpg http://www.mjmturbos.com/images/KKKsmallturbo.jpg Those are the ones I can think of off hand.