Chris Duncan

I'm showing a bunch of them on ebay.uk, they are all in the USA, but many show free postage. I searched 280z "brake booster" http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=280z%20%22brake%20booster%22&ssPageName=GSTL There's also a couple at rockauto.com and a few at car-part.com The V12 is heavier than the L engines but it sure does look pretty.

It's a Chumpcar racecar so it's very constrained by cost, both by the cost rules and real world racecar costs. The J30a1 (sub 100k miles) can be had in this area for $250 from the wrecking yards. After I engineer all the swap details it will be considerably less $ than building a L28 to 200hp. In addition the Chumpcar rules practically prohibit building an L28 to that number. Also wondering what the interest would be in a affordable swap ($1500 to $2000 total) that had 270 hp, more reliable, better emissions and economy, doesn't increase total weight, and better weight distribution. Just might start making a kit. Plus it's just the difficulty and the fact no one has done it that's attractive. But thanks for your input anyway. Just found out from j32a.com that you can flip the lower intake and it allows the whole intake to be flipped 180deg without any drilling. The EGR will have to be plumbed but it would anyway.

Looking at a Honda V6 J series swap into a S30. I've worked on all the Japanese brands and have recently looked at all the Aluminum block V6's that are available in the '95 to '05 range. Of the big three Japanese brands, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, the Honda is the lightest, smallest, and most affordable. The J series goes from 3 to 3.5 liter and from 200hp to 270 hp, most with the same trans mounting and flywheel configuration. So if you can configure one swap it will work for several engines. Narrowed it down to a three year range. From '00 to '02 Accord. This is with coil on plug and cable Tbody. The previous years had a distributor and after this they went to DBW. Going with the J30a1 which has 200hp, it's a better fit for the series the car is being raced in. I bought a 90K mile engine from the wrecker to get started. Going to eventually buy a complete wrecked car off CL to get all the harnesses, ECU, and stuff needed for the swap. Here's what I have so far. It looks like the intake plenum can be turned 180 deg so the Tbody points forward. The intake ports are symmetrical so they match up. None of the bolt holes match up but it looks like they can all be redrilled/tapped or brackets made. The EGR passage will need some separate tubing if it's hooked up at all. You could weld a Tbody flange onto the back of the plenum but the flow wouldn't be optimum. It looks like this plenum is well tuned from the factory due to the irregular spacing of all the ports where they run toward the intake manifold. The oil filter will need a bypass because the filter hits the steering rack, the Trans-dapt 1458 looks like it will work. A '90 to '02 4 cyl Accord flywheel bolts up to the V6 crank and fits inside the 280Z bellhousing. Don't know what clutch disc will work, it has to fit the 280Z trans input spline and fit the dimensions of the Honda clutch friction surfaces. The Honda V6 speed dual mass flywheel looks just too heavy and expensive. There's only one problem with using a 4cyl flywheel and that is the starter ring gear. All ring gear teeth are tapered on one side to assist starter engagement. The 4cyl turns the opposite direction so the tooth taper is on the wrong side of the tooth for CW rotation. So your either going to need to flip the ring gear and grind the taper into each tooth or swap out a ring gear from a V6 flywheel. This also means the 4cyl starter wont' work, it's going to have to be a V6 starter. The starter is going to have to mount on the trans side of the flywheel. The stock Z starter is on the engine side. There will have to be a hole in the Z bell housing and a bulge in the trans tunnel to fit, maybe with a removable panel. The rad hose engine inlet/outlet point towards the firewall also, the thermostat housing is the worst of the two and looks like it may swap with a W0133-1773260 which points directly sideways, but don't know if this one bolts up. The motor mounts don't look too difficult. Adapters bolted to the (FWD) pass axle mount holes on one side and the A/C compressor brkt holes on the other. The trans to engine adapter plate will be 5/8" thick 2024 or 6061. When both the trans and engine are aligned horizontally/vertically none of the bolt holes overlap which is good. None of them line up exactly which would make it easier but a partial overlap would definitely cause problems. Disappointingly the L28 and the J30A1 weigh almost exactly the same at 350 lbs, so there's really no weight savings, which is surprising considering the L28 is a cast iron straight 6. There may be a better front/rear weight distribution considering the J engine is entirely behind the front axle centerline. The stock 280Z weight distribution is 52% fr, 48% rear on this racecar so it's a little nose heavy. With just a rough approximation of engine location it looks like, with the oil pan bottom at the same height as stock (flush with cross member bottom), there's about 2" of hood clearance. This is with the Z trans in the stock location so the drive shaft doesn't have to be changed. The oil pan sump is to the front with the J engine in the RWD longitudinal position. This may cause oil pickup issues in which case the sump could be extended rearwards so a pickup could be run to the back. This would also increase sump capacity. The electrical is going to be the biggest hurdle. Making the A/T ECU work with a non-electric M/T. That and the elimination of emission systems like the evap. It's been done before but never with a car this old. A standalone ECU would be optimum but doesn't fit within the rules of the race series. There's going to be permanent codes but hopefully it can be kept out of limp mode. Would appreciate any thoughts, ideas, opinions.

The chassis is almost done. The rear subframe mounts and clearances are almost all done, with the location raised up 1" in the chassis to lower the car without changing the geometry as much. There's really not much cutting on the Z chassis in the rear. This was achieved by cutting off the front upper link inner mount off the subframe and putting it directly on the Z chassis, and also by pounding the chassis in about 3" where the front diff mount runs by the underside of the two storage compartments (behind the seats). This pounded bulge is totally hidden inside the two compartments. This may sound sort of like butchery at first but if you look at the stock Z chassis in this area it is very wrinkled from the manufacturing stamping process. And you aren't cutting or introducing weld heat so it may be better overall. The subframe is solid mounted with eight 12x1.25 bolts, two in each corner. R32 coilovers are being used front and rear. The rear coilover strut upper mount location is close but not exactly the same. The rear upper mounts will be lowered and moved a little forward, so the strut tower area in the chassis will have to be opened up somewhat forwards. The front R32 clip is grafted onto the Z right behind the front strut towers. It is also raised up 1" to lower the car like the rear. The stock R32 ground clearance is 5.5 inches which is a little high for a track car. I found out that almost all aftermarket coilovers start out 1" shorter than stock. Most of them have adjustable length but none start out the same length as stock. This means the top of the strut tower can be lowered which may help with fender hood clearance where it runs over the strut tower because it is very close in this area. The R32 frame rails are 2" wider over all and .5" wider individually from the Z. The transition from the R32 rails to the Z rails is achieved with tapered rails in the front floorboard area. The R32 rails are way stronger than the Z rails and kick up over the front CV axles. Plus they incorporate all the R32 front subframe mounts. I was going to section the front of the R32 clip to move the radiator support backwards the required 5" but just decided to cut it completely off and build a tube frame front. The only thing utilized off the stock support is the bottom square section that has the bottom rad mounts. The cage is all cut, fit and tacked into place. Just a standard 6 point SCCA cage. Tweaked the door bar X's just a little to move the center of the X a little forward to make it easier to get in and out. After about 6 months work this thing is going back on the back burner. Need to get the racecar ready for the upcoming Chumpcar season.

depends if the guy has money or not. Sue a skunk and all you get is smell. They'll confiscate the car for evidence and depending on it's status and the state laws you might not get it back.

What did you do for a trans and trans adapter? What did you do for a starter?

On Craigslist in my area (Seattle). Shipping might be an issue http://seattle.craigslist.org/oly/pts/5230240552.html another http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/pts/5219081804.html

I would want it in the center console, the whole point of having one is for easy adjustability. You can adjust bias with different pad compounds and that's something that might mess you up down the road also if you don't have easy adjustability. And what are you doing with the car? You may want adjustability if you go from full to empty on the gas tank. When you say stock location above the diff that is just a T fitting. Also be aware of going from drums to discs. The stock splitter valve on a 240z (the one on the firewall) is setup for drums, if you swap it for a 280Z valve it has a delay function (as opposed to a proportioning function). Assuming you are swapping masters because there's a difference there also in the residual pressure valve for the rear.

Check out what would happen legally, and if it benefits you then go that way. But if you are just going to lose the car and your money (if it's stolen) then it's a no brainer to just keep it. It still has value as a 280Z and you could build it to look like a 240Z and sell it as long as you disclose what it really is. It's really the same car from a basic generational standpoint and it's easy to make it look like a 240 from the exterior.

I think as long as neither car is stolen you are ok. You might not be technically legally ok, but if you are keeping the car anyway it's not really going to matter as long as you can get it registered. Assuming the firewall vin and all the plate vins match the DMV is not going to know what a 280z floorboard or rad support look like. And if the entire firewall of the early Z was used then it's just another clip job, at worst a salvage title if that even applies to something this old. I know historic cars have been "restored" starting with not much more than a Vin plate, it's not uncommon.

You do realize that's a 2+2 so it's a little different from the Rotsun Also if you go 350 Chevy it's going to be heavier so you way want to upgrade brakes and suspension. You might look at aluminum heads before you go turbo. Some AFR's would give you added HP and get you back to stock weight.

The S30 was pretty much sorted right from the start. The later cars got heavier and slower due to increasing regulations. I wouldn't buy a Z as an investment, much more fun to modify and drive. Take a later 280 and strip some weight out of it, bigger brakes and cam, suspension mods. Or an LS1 if you want to get crazy

If you roll the fender lip you can fit a 15 x 8 wheel and 225-45 R15 tire but you have to get the backspace right. Never tried a 245 so can't say there. A 225-45-15 gives a smaller diameter than stock, a 245-60-15 is probably larger diameter than stock so your ratio is going to be taller and the car will sit higher. The Rota's are nice, so are the Varstoen, both lighter than an XXR. Lot's of budget wheels on Ebay, or step up to a Enkei, best bang for the buck.

This is a question that's going to be answered as an opinion, there's probably no cut and dried answer. Stock is probably easier to restore/build but not as powerful unless you spend more money. V8 will be faster but heavier, in a car that's already nose heavy, unless you spend more money for aluminum heads. If it's close to running I would just restore everything else first and drive it to see if you like it.

Ebay Motors frequently has used Z headers But this one is a little high on the bid already, I've usually paid around $100 http://www.ebay.com/itm/Datsun-240z-260z-280z-Square-Head-Used-Full-Exhaust-Header-Removed-From-72-240-/171926452373?hash=item28079d7895&vxp=mtr

I would import a Z from New Mexico or Arizona and move the fiber glass panels over to it. That chassis is too far gone, and that's coming from someone that has done a lot of rust repair. If you hound Craigslist you can probably get one for $1500, don't know what shipping would be though.

Tire sizes are also different between brands, a 225-45-R15 G-force Rival might not be exactly the same as a 225-45-R15 Toyo Proxes. When I order wheels it's always just one at first with the stipulation it can be returned if it doesn't fit. Not talking mounting the tire, just caliper and strut clearance. You can also construct a wheel / tire cross section profile from cardboard and set it up in the wheel well to see how close it is.

soda blast or sand blast, don't acid dip. Z's have too many seams that fill up with acid and then weep out for eternity. How bad is the rust? It's going to be difficult to remove the FRP panels. Unless the rust has got between the metal and FRP I wouldn't remove them if the metal is salvageable. Blasting isn't going to hurt the FRP.

Rust penetrant to help the rust break loose, spray it on the front side too, let it sit for a while. Then just put it in a vise and smack it with a heavy brass hammer from the back side. Or lacking a big brass hammer, set a scrap piece of aluminum on it, to avoid hammer dings, and hit it with a regular hammer.

The chassis is coming along nicely. Using the front Skyline clip is working out because the Z clip was very rusted in the front and the Skyline is near immaculate, so that saved a lot of rust repair. The front Skyline clip is a necessity for this swap for 2 reasons. The frame rails are wider and curve over the front CV axles, and the strut towers and suspension mounts are way different from the Z, it would be a lot of complex fabrication to make these mounts from scratch. Compared to the Z the firewall on the Skyline is 5" forward in relation to the axle centerline, also the radiator support is 5" further forward from the axle centerline. The firewall distance is no problem since the section is between the firewall and the towers. But in front of the towers there will have to be another section to move the rad support back 5". So in summary the engine compartments are the same length, the difference is the axle location is 5" forward in the Skyline. The other issue is fender mounting. The front of the Skyline clip, forward of the towers is too wide to fit under the fenders, it's getting cut off and probably will put in a tubing front frame using just the bottom of the rad support. The fenders, headlight buckets and hood hinge mounts will all bolt to this tube frame.

The only known common failure issue with the EFI is the connectors get dry rot, and this would need to be fixed regardless of the control system. You can get a set of connectors on Ebay for $60 if they are bad. I don't think the MS gets any better mileage, it does have trouble codes and is customizable for high performance The stock 280 bumpers give good crash protection, the 240 bumpers do not but they look better and are much lighter. If you wanted to budget you could find some 240 stock metal ones that needed chrome and paint them black or body color. The FRP 240 bumpers are even lighter than stock but cost more. The stock Z brakes are good unless used very hard, like a track day and then they will get overheated. All cars now have vented front rotors, so a solid rotor on the front is definitely antique.

I think you're on the right track. And you're way ahead of the game with the condition the car is in. I don't see a problem with the stock EFI, it's pretty reliable, we've been running the racecar with it and haven't had any problems.

I've never done the FRP bumpers, so I don't know the best source, but it's what I would do in this case. The racecar has nerf bars and the GTRZ is probably not going to have bumpers. The panasports are nice, Konig makes an affordable copy seen on Ebay. The used hurricanes are dated, painted black might be nice, but that's just personal preference. Megasquirt is better if the engine is built more than a moderate amount, but for just a mild cam/air intake/headers it's not necessary.

No restoration involved with that thing, it's cherry... must have been garaged. Whatever you do, if you take stock parts off save them. I would convert to 240Z fiberglass bumpers, that's a big weight difference and part of the better looks of the 240. That air dam isn't going to work very well with the 280 bumper anyway. The stock fuel injection is pretty good, you have to do a lot to the engine mechanicals to surpass it. Headers, air intake, mild cam you should be fine. I would put some 215 to 225-45-R15 tires on it and some different wheels. Those wheels aren't venting the brakes very well.

It's worth it for the triple carbs alone, although you haven't said how much she's asking.