jeromio

Can't let the typo thread lapse... Yesterday I put the motor back in and confirmed that indeed, the reason there are 2 different FBody trans members (auto/M6) is because each trans has a different mounting point. So, my lovely trans member is now merely a small metal sculpture. I got as far as mocking up a replacement and bolting it in place. I didn't have enough time left to haul the welder out to the garage to weld in the gussets. This time I made it such that the flat part is lower so I can have some room for adjustment. I imagine I'll end up just putting spacers on it and the trans will end up in the same place anyway, but, at least adjustment is possible. I also spent waaaay too much time constructing a bracket for the ECM. It's pretty zippy with a nice clamp and such. But I really didn't need to waste that 4 hours thusly. I'll be putting the bracket in the lower right of the passenger footwell. It's a pretty short run from the harness to this location, but it turns out that I have just enough harness for the 2 plugs to reach the ECM in this location. Had to make a big hole in the firewall to get them suckers thru too. Looking at the exhaust again - I really should have gone with 2 1/4 from the manifolds instead of 2 1/2. I guess I can crush it a bit to clear the starter/frame rail. There's lots more room in the tunnel now though - and no shifter in the way. That damn CAG solenoid is pretty close though. I don't think I can remove it without dropping the trans though. Plus I'd have to cap off the hole. BTW, an engine tilter makes the chore of pulling/inserting the engine/trans in and out of the car SOOO much easier. Especially with an impact wrench doing the adjusting - zip zip and the motor's tilted in place. I only wish that I'd made mine specifically for the V8 rather than for the L6 - it's pretty long and tends to interfere with the hoist at severe angles.

Well, you know - I gots me them coilovers an' so.....

Go here: http://240z.jeromio.com/faq

Yeah, it's the KenanFlagler (UNC) Evening MBA program. Two years total. We do get holidays. But, thus far I am getting much less sleep (it's 3:30AM here). Having lots of misc. house projects to finish up is not helping either. BTW, the orientation team building thing wasn't nearly as bad as I had feared. Low expectations probably helped.

You know, I was looking at that SuperCar Shootout thing on CarAndDriver.com the other day and it got me thinking. I mean, the top 2-3 cars are really outstanding. But ALL of those cars they tested were $50K plus. Maybe $100K average. That is ALOT of dough. Now if you look at the actual performance numbers that cash gets you, well, it's really disappointing. I'm not very impressed by 13sec 1/4 mile. Handling and braking are a critical consideration as well as drivability and these are reflected in the rankings. Now if you look at an early Z, and you had a clear Plan as Mike suggests, what could you do with $25K as a number out of the air? What I would do would be to find a rust free shell and be willing to pay for it - say $3K to ensure a really good starting point. Strip it all down and cage it. You could create an excellent foundation for less than $5K. Then buy brake and suspension kits and bolt them on - what's that, another $3K including labor? (I think only one of those "Supercars" had adjustable suspension bits.) Tires are a problem with the Z. Fronts are not a problem, but rears - I think you'd need flares - add $1K. Wheels/tires - $3K (Some blingage is called for here). Gauges and a dash cap, harnesses and some Sparco seats, add another $3K. Radiator, brake lines, hoses, exhaust, misc. add $2K. Add another $1K for various spoiler, body aero stuff. Where am I - $18K? Not too bad. Now you have a T56 for $1.5k and the JTR kit for $500 and you have $5K left for a SBC crate. With all of this I think you could seriously challenge those "supercars". I don't think you can approach a Lingefelter TT C5, but having spent about $60K less, you'd be in really good shape. Obviously my own project comes no where near approaching this level of planning or resource deployment. But man, if you could source several early Z shells from someplace, I really think you could set up shop. All you need is a couple articles in key magazines, notably Car And Driver and MotorTrend. I strongly believe that teenage boys sell the cars in this supercar segment. Not sure exactly how (maybe the nephews of rich ointment salesment convince their uncles to buy these expensive cars?), but any marketing plan for such a vehicle should appeal to this segment. And I think Darius is already helping you out here. That video is famous - kids all over are downloading that thing and talking about the "amazing superblown 9 million HP Z Car". With some expertise and time spent refining the package and the supplies, you could establish a nice profit margin building a car for somewhere around $25K and selling it for somewhere around $30K. And if a big chunk of that $25K was your own labor cost, you'd be making a living with a hobby! Anyway, I am poor, I have no money or time. But if anyone had the desire to do something like this, maybe I could use it as my 2nd year business plan study case.... On another, not very related note, Someone needs to enter a HybridZ in next year's OpenTrackChallenge (or even the OneLap of No Sleep on the East Coast.)

I'm using the camaro driveshaft. How long depends on where your motor is mounted. I think I told the driveline shop 24.5 inches (but I have a bad memory). Whatever I told them, it's about 1/2 too short. JTR sells the Neapco adapter. It's suppsedly a widely available part, but JTR has them in stock and the price is fair. The adapter doesn't work with the smaller pinion flange. I am using the one that came with the 200SX R200 that I am running. Not sure what other cars this flange came on. You also have to use an adapter Ujoint. I took the 2 parts (flange adapter and camaro DS) to the parts counter and he matched up a special Ujoint. I forget the part number, but I think it's been mentioned on hybridz before - possibly by me.

Used engines are available now. They put that VQ in pretty much every car and truck they sell . Oh, and 340Z doesn't make sense. 240Z -> 2.4L 260Z -> 2.6L 280Z/ZX-> 2.8L 300ZX -> 3.0L 350Z -> 3.5L

I don't think it looks anything like a mustang. It does however look very much like a larger Cavalier. If it weren't for my experience with GM build quality, I'd be interested in one. Great engines at GM, they just can't construct a door panel, headliner, dashboard, etc to save their lives. Bob Lutz is pretty much the major force behind this project. The reason the FBodies were cancelled was lack of profit. Yes, they sold quite a few, but made very little on each one as compared to say a Yukon or the current cash cow, the hideous transportation appliance Impala. They won't make all that much money on these cars, but it'll stir up interest in the brand. It's a shame there's not a real market for a 4 door variant. I think I could be persuaded to get in one of those - build quality problems or no. Also, Bob is determined to eliminate the ridiculous plastic body cladding that Pontiac has become famous for. Three cheers for Bob.

So, now that we are hitting a valuable experience curve situation with this R230 swap, my interest is picquing. The lowest numerical ratio for this diff is 3.54, correct? And are all of the various R230 diffs VLSD? There ain't no 3.36 R230? It is looking good, but still seems a bit dollar intensive - parts are always on the high end for me here in NC. I'd guess around $450-500 for the complete diff, 4 shafts and then a driveshaft. That'd be after extensive negotiations. These adapters are what, $200? Shaft shortnin', another $200? DS mods, likely around $100. I think I could manage the fab on the mustache and the lower bar. I think buying a mount or at least buying plans for one would be key since that measurement can eat up lots of time. Do you have anything in mind Tim? Maybe sell a Xeroxed pamphlet on the R230 swap with measured drawings for $30 or so? Thass around $1K. Oi. I dunno. I can't be using this 4.11 open R200 for too long (although the freaking car is still up on jacks currently ). I need a 3.36, but a 3.54 is okay. I think 3.7 is too high. I like Gary's (3.36 R200) 13 sec. 1/4 time balanced against some nice highway usability. I'm not so worried about breaking an R200 - I'm just after a low (numerical) ratio. I'll prolly end up just paying $250 for a 3.54 open R200...

I went a similar route with my trans mount - up in the tunnel and out of the way vs. the JTR method which has that flat piece of steel all over and in the floor. There's pics on my site. I basically just bent up a piece of 1/8 inch steel bar, trial and erroring it up into the tunnel. When I had a good shape that put a mount point under the trans mount, I welded the re-enforcements in. Then I re-enforced the tunnle where the mount bolts to. Then I drilled holes thru both (4 in all) and then welded some nuts on the outside (passenger compartment) of the tunnel holes. It's not super easy to install, since I sort of made it an exact fit - the holes have to be lined up so that the bolts can thread which is a pain. At this point, I have switched from auto to T56 and I have yet to put it back in the car. I'm pretty worried that the mount point will not match up. The FBody has different trans cross members for auto vs T56 My other remaining puzzle is the ECM mounting.

Dammit! About 2 months too late for me. That's a nice offer though. Would've made my swap much easier. I think for an undoc'd swap (Such as the LS1), this would be a very key tool.

Bored 'n stroked 350 is my guess. It's possible that it's a 400 though. Although it'd be odd to put a TH350 behind a BB or even a 400....

I think a 6.2 is a very viable motor to stick in a Z or any other car for that matter. Very similar size to a 350 and fairly light (about half the weight of them giant IH Powerstroke diesels. There's lots of aftermarket for these motors and you could put down 300hp pretty easy. The available mods do obviously focus more on truck apps - high pulling torque, low hp, low RPMs. I'd give you bonus points for uniqueness. The car would definately be fast, and I think your 40mpg extimate is probably pretty close.

I don't really want to highly modify anything. If I could afford $500 for a new set of electronic VDO guages, I would. I agree, there's lots of ways to tackle each of the problems associated with the LS1 in a Z. My perspective is one of expediency and lack of funds .

Most auto parts stores I've been in lately have a section of the new freaky lines for "repairing" GM fuel lines (and trans lines and also Ford and Chrysler stuff). Their not so cheap, but it makes it really easy to plumb everything together. As to the speedo converter, that thing, IMO, is just a really expensive cluge. You have an electrical signal from the trans, that then connects to a signal processor that in turn drives a motor that spins a cable that attaches to a speedo that turns the spinning into a mechanical oscillation. And it's like $250 for that module. I mean, if you have them dollars, you could buy an electic speedo for like $150. I was joking about LS1Edit - I cannot afford it. It would make everything so much easier, including guages. I will be buying one of the various OBDII interface cables that are available though. This one, http://www.obd-2.com/ , comes with some nifty software which allows you to display ALL the data from each sender (fuel level, tach, speed, FP, OP, temp, etc.) in guage form on a laptop screen. Very cool and not too expensive either. Should allow me to easily remap my hybrid speedo. Can also reset error codes and perform lots of diagnostics. Actually, the fuel guage could likely be used as is with the camaro sender and some resistors. I just figured I'd do all the guages the same way.

Looking over the pic Scottie has of his car in his sig, that Satin Finish (okay, primer, gel coat, what have you) on the cowl is really starting to grow on me. I don't have Photoshop on this PC or else I'd post a pic with the whole car satinized. I think it's something worth considering. I've seen a few street rods with a satin finish and the looked very smooth, very distinctive, yet low key. Don't know much (well, nothing really) about paint, but would not a satin finish be less expensive and easier to apply? Plus, scratches and such would be less noticeable.

I've posted this elsewhere, but my plan is to use the camaro guages, but stick the actualguage mechanism in the datsun housing. In other words, I will rip apart the camaro pod ($60 offa guy on LS1tech.com) and separate out all the individual "turny parts" (my hi tech term). So, the datsun fuel guage will be dissembled, and the new turny part will be glued on there and the needle re-installed. Same for all the other guages. For the odo, I will glue the LED unit to the back of the speedo face, modding the rectangular hole as needed. The actual face will likely not correlate to the speedo action. So, here I may just paste a new set of markings on. Or, I could buy LS1 Edit and reprogram the speedo to match. I am leaning towards that since LS1 Edit will really simplify other problems I am having. That's $550 though....... yeah, paste is much cheaper.

There's really alot of information on this specific subject both in this forum (L6) and the Turbo forum. I would suggest doing a search on Turbo, EFI, L28T, etc.

Gots to wake up at around 6am (unusual for me). Whole weekend is blocked out for orientation stuff. Wife is supposed ot join me Saturday Night- dinner, etc. Then Sunday we both go off for "Team Building" crap (friend who went thru this told me that I would hate it especially much: "What does this rope represent to you?" Ugh.). School (MBA Program) for real starts Monday night. But more importantly, this was to be my milestone. Kept saying "School starts Aug 16 - gotta be done by then". Idiot. Got a friend coming up for Labor day and he was all set for a ride! Complications exascerbated by extra house remodel/repair work and so forth. DAMN. I fell like I'm sooooo close at this point too. And I really really extra alot was planning (still planning?!) on going to the Mikelly/ZFRacing thing in VA in Sept. Can't go sans Z though. Gotta find more hours in the day.....

That is highly cool. The guy I bought my motor from started it before we loaded it up on the trailer. It was just sitting on his shop floor with all the components wired up and a camaro gas tank. Pretty strange to see it jump when it first kicked over. I will be using the JTR recommended radiator. I actually bought the cheaper, brass versrion. http://240z.jeromio.com/camaroradiator.html If I had to do it over again, I would've spent the extra $50 or so dollars and gotten the aluminum Griffin radiator. Hoses? Cut and paste. Or in this case, cut and hose clamp. When I set this radiator up with the L28, I was able to find hoses by taking some measuerements and then just combing thru the hose aisle at the autoparts store. You can also just buy those universal flexi hoses.

What's the date on that article you quoted? Last I read, the Cien was shelved, mostly due to the cost of developing that engine (among other costly parts). They did emphasize "shelved" and not killed off though. It's part of the new Bob Lutz GM culture. All projects must be able to show profit (which only makes sense). But stuff can be held until a business case makes sense. The current economy just doesn't support the effort. There was some european super car that was slated to use that engine and they were forced to look elsewhere.

I would post this question on the LS1Tech.com conversions board, or possibly the External Engine board (conversions is pretty low traffic). Those guys will have much more detailed info on the specific requirements of the LS1 and the parts available. I think the main problem is finding a setup that will work with the PCM. And it's not just a pump you'll need (I posted a reply in the "mountiong" thread, so this is all rehash). You need an FPR and an FP sender. You also need a way to keep fuel in that high presure pump's syphon - either weld baffles and a sump in your stock tank or add an additional feeder tank which would require an additional pump. I also recommend against re-using the stock lines, although it doesn't seem like Gary's having any problems with his.

The problem with the Datsun mfuel system is you have to totally redo it. The tank has no baffles and no sump. The only way to make it work is to use 2 pumps, one feeding a small tank that has a high pressure pump. You also need a Fuel pressure regulator and a fuel pressure sending unit. All of these (expensive) parts must be patched into the wiring harness and made to communicate with the PCM. Also, it's probably not a good idea to re-use the stock Datsun lines. They're sorta small, and mine were pretty gummed up. Anyway, this is why I decided to use the FBody tank - $60 from my local salvage yard and it included the whole works.

Well, I always have trouble getting the trans back in - lining up the input shaft with the clutch. Everytime I do a clutch, I swear I'll invest in a tranny jack "next time". And then I never do. Could prolly cut it down to like 4 hours with a tranny jack to line things up rather than the bench press grunt method. For what it's worth, the sadistic designers of the LS1 clutch system decided to create a whole new kind of slave cylinder that lives inside the bell housing. SO, when the lsave goes, you DO have to drop the trans. Wanna adjust the slave action? Ha HA! You can't You gotta pull the clutch and flywheel, put it on a press and then fiddle with some spring/lever mechanism.

Not sure why you would need the Datsun wiring diagram. In fact, I gutted all the crappy old wiring forward of the firewall. Needed to be redone with relays anyway. I bought the CD Shop manuals for a 75Z (since I got the HVAC from a 75) from idealZ.com (which is now defunct? Changed to something else?) As to the Camaro wiring, you can get just the wiring diagrams from http://helminc.com . Or, you may as well get the full manual. I bought a set of CDs that contain the complete GM service information 95 thru 99 offa guy on ebay. It was way cheap, like $50 - seemed a little too cheap. Prolly copies, although the actual CDs looked legit. Unfortunately the whole thing has to be installed on the HD and it sucks up 2.5gig. Very nice though. Everything is indexed, nice big images of parts and diagrams. Anyway, I guess that's a long, drawn out way of suggesting you check ebay. Also comb thru the classifieds at ls1.com and ls1tech.com since people often sell used Helms manuals there. You can also check the Sponsor/GP sections of those boards to check for special prices.