jeromio

Yeah, I guess I left out the background. I do have coil overs and I bought these GTI carts with the intent of sectioning my strut tubes. I noted the various washers that came with the carts. There are 2 different diameters, both of which are too large to fit in the 240 gland nut. (The allen head of the shaft is for keeping the shaft from rotating when tightening the huge lock not since there's no flat spot to lock the shaft in place. This will be impossible to do in the Z since the isolator is too deep to use a wrench on the nut. Some kind of pricey specialty tool would have to be used.) I'm thinking that I got the wrong carts. Perhaps I'll go for the MR2 carts? Here's a list of the various possibilities: -------------------------------------------- HZ1073 Front 80-83 Volkswagen Cabriolet 80-84 Volkswagen Jetta 75-84 Volkswagen Rabbit 75-84 Volkswagen Rabbit, GTI $67.40 (these are wrong apparently) HZ3099 Rear 87-89 Toyota MR2 $67.40 HZ1085 Front 85-86 Toyota MR2 87-89 Toyota MR2 $62.52 HZ1086 Rear 85-86 Toyota MR2 $62.52 HU2769 Rear 90-93 Volkswagen Corrado, Excludes SEALED STRUT AND VR6 85-92 Volkswagen Golf 85-92 Volkswagen Golf, GTI 93-98 Volkswagen Golf $69.84 HU2645 Rear 80-83 Volkswagen Cabriolet 80-84 Volkswagen Jetta 75-84 Volkswagen Rabbit 75-84 Volkswagen Rabbit, GTI $69.84 HZ1093 Front 90-93 Volkswagen Corrado, Excludes SEALED STRUT AND VR6 85-92 Volkswagen Golf, GTI 85-92 Volkswagen Golf 85-92 Volkswagen Jetta, GLI $67.40 -------------------------------------------- Now, I got the 1073s because they were the only fronts for a Rabbit. But maybe the correct part is from the Golf GTI? For the MR2, which year, and is it the fronts? Also, presumably whichever combo I end up with (and I really hope someone can help with info on the specific part), I will have to use the gland nut that came with the front tokicos in the front. That leaves me with nothing for the rear. Is there someplace I can order just a gland nut for use in the rear (with the front carts)?

Okay, so long ago, when there were plentiful CarParts.com coupons, I ordered a set of Rabbit GTI strut cartridges, Part number HZ1073. Well, these just aren't going to work. They are way short - about 2 1/4 inches shorter than stock 240Z. And much more importantly, they have a completely different top. It won't fit into the gland nut. And the gland nut it came with is some strange, inside threaded thing (opposite of the Z). Even the top of the shaft is different - completely round (No flat spot), with an allen wrench top and a much larger diameter than the Z. So, now I am faced with - having to convince Carparts to exchange them (even though it's been Way longer than 30 days). - Trying to figure out what I should order instead - Going without a car for the likely 3-6 weeks it will take to sort all of this out! Ugh. So, does anyone have any idea what the correct, 1 1/2 inch shorter cartridges are?

I'm no expert, but that looks pretty low to me. What size wheels are those? If they're 14" then I'd guess your car is around 3 inches lower than stock. My car has 14" wheels and is (I think) only 1 inch lower than stock in front (Ground Controls with thread tube 4 1/2 inches from strut bottom and collar set right in the middle): Yours looks good though. Really like those Panasports. [This message has been edited by jeromio (edited December 27, 2000).]

I was gonna do the turbo CV shaft swap, but I guess I can't justify spending 10 times more money on them versus rebuilding the stock shafts. The local parts shops have the Neapco solid Us for $14.99. They couldn't tell me over the phone whether that was the price for a pair or for each piece. I guess I'll find out. My actual question is, I have a set of 75 280Z shafts - can I rebuild these and bolt them in to my 71 240Z, or would I also need the 280 stubs? The more work I can do before taking my daily driven project off the road the better. I'll be hitting the salvage yard for the 280 diff mount, so, I could pick up the stubs if I need to. BTW, I'll be attempting to reproduce Simon's fancy diff mount. I'll let everyone know how it goes as well as (hopefully) post the various part numbers for the American equvialent rubbers, etc.

I have 150lbs in front and have ordered 175lbs for the rear. I went with 175 for the rear only because that seemed like the thing to do - most people have stiffer springs in the rear vs front. The 150 in the front is plenty stiff. I'm actually slightly worried about 175 being too hard in the rear. But, the beauty of coil overs is that the springs are fairly cheap and easy to swap.

I own that "How to restore your Z" book - just can't seem to find it. My 5 yr old is the natural suspect. Anyblank, I guess what I need to do is order any and all rubber parts associated with this area, since I'm pretty sure it's causing some kind of leak. I'm thinking that either the seal around the fresh air intake is bad or perhaps the seal between the firewall and the front of the inner cowl lip - or both. Also, my car has these tiny - maybe 1/8" - fittings coming out of the firewall right up there (engine compartment side). There's 2 of them with some dried up, cracked clear tubing and some plastic fittings attached - but they don't join up or really go anyplace. Very odd. Like maybe some bizarre portion of a windshield washer system or some such.

Seems to me the guy who's had the most success with the NA L28 is Norm 12sec Dual SU over at zcar.com (which you obviously already know about). Seems to me he mostly recommends a high CR L28 without the expensive LD crank, although that's what he currently runs (along with an N42 head I think - I'm sure a quick search at zcar would reveal his exact specs). He apparently "machined" the tops of his pistons using sand paper and a flat floor! So, maybe config #2 and shave the dish off of the pistons? As far as welding metal on top of the pistons, man, that just sounds way scarier than some tower shims.

Evan, why did you need a spacer for the Monsoons? They're available in both 20 and 40mm center offset - wouldn't a 17X8 with 20mm offset fit a Z? I'm asking b/c I have no idea. I'd love to get Monsoons - I especially like the extra 4 lug holes. I like 5 spokes, but something about 4 lugs on a 5 spoke looks wacky to me. 8 is better. Anywayz, them are too 'spensive for me anyway (DiscountTire). I'm looking at the Caffeine -which is very affordable, but would require a spacer. I also like the Diva which is pricey (for impoverished me) and has a 32mm offset in a 17X7.5 which may not fit anyway. I pretty much can't afford anything right now, but my 14" tires are virtually bald and it'd be foolish to replace them. If you've seen my car, the rims are just wrong. They rub the fender lips front and rear. They are zero offset and 8" wide (215/60 tires). From the link that Danno sent out long ago(http://www.tolan-hoechst.com/cars/tirecalc.htm), it looks like the 20mm offset 8 inch rims will fit. But I could be horribly wrong. (BTW, I have coilovers) [This message has been edited by jeromio (edited December 21, 2000).]

Looking for clarity on this whole wheel fitment thing: Pete's statement doesn't make sense to me. If a drum is used instead of the special disk brake hat, wouldn't that mean that less wheel offset sould be required? IE, for 1/2" less "hub", you would then need 1/2" (12mm) less offset for a net of 10mm wheel offset, or else a 10mm spacer. Not trying to be difficult, I'm just very confused (took about an hour of contemplation to understand backspace vs. offset) and I need to understand the wheel fitment requirements for the 240.

Anyone have any experience with Konig wheels? They have some pretty nice looking rims and they're pretty cheap - less than $1K for a new set of 17s with tires. They do seem to cater to the all show/no go crowd though. Are they heavy? Made well? Also, has anyone found a newer car that has similar sizing requirements (bolt pattern, backspacing) as an old Z? None of the salespeople and certainly none of the websites seem to want to sell wheels for a 30 year old car.

Like many old 240Zs, mine likes to fill up the footwells with water when it rains. Recently I did some investigation. Obviously the corner of the windshield leaks - despite my silicone efforts. But, that's more of a drip. Both sides leak, but only the passenger side forms puddles. What I noticed was a steady trail of water from the firewall. What this suggests to me is that the fresh air intake is some how leaking. So, How do I remove that cowl/valence piece (the sheetmetal in front of the windshield and behind the hood) without wrecking my paint?

Not sure how similar MikeSCCA's coilover kit is to GroundControl. I used the latter for my front and I put the collars smack in the center of the threaded tubes. I have small, 14" rims but large tires and that worked out nicely (pics at http://240z.jeromio.com/suspension2.html). Does anyone have a part number or at least a universally agreed upon name/description for this ornery pin? I'm just going to order a set so that I have them when I attack my suspension (hopefully next week).

Blocks are the same. The 82-83 turbo blocks have some differences internally, but everything else is the same. As far as I know (and been told), all the flywheels, clutches, etc. are interchangeable, except perhaps the T5. I bolted a 71 4speed, flywheel and corresponding clutch to a 83 NA motor. (I also bolted up the dual SU intake - pretty cool how the late model head has both sets of threaded bolt holes)

I'll bite. I don't know what the current exchange AUS to US$ works out to, but I'd guess it's pretty close - especially since you are saying that the result of your L28 rebuild will redline at 9000 (!) and make 250hp. That trans rebuild seems outrageously expensive though. At any rate, if you have that much dough, I'd suggest: Turbo EFI L28 Any of the 24 valve Nissan L6s (we can't get them here) 350 Chevy Any one of those will make more power. And although I don't know how much the RBs go for there, the L28t and the 350 will likely be cheaper than the NA L28. As to drivability, no way is a 250hp NA L28 going to be civil as a daily driver. I have a very mild NA L28 in my car and even that's on the tempermental side. Also, if you have a NA L28 built to make 250hp, it's going to have much too high a compression ratio for a turbo or SC.

So it's the outers (near the wheel) that are mean - the inners (near the diff) are not hard to do? But Suspension Restoration only sells them all as a set. Hrm. I'm thinking of going for it. This diff mount stuff is troubling. $50 for a replacement rubber mount? Bummer. The 280z parts car I got the mustache bar and rear control arm bar from also had a wierd, large, heavy layered, sort of L-shaped block of steel bolted to the bottom of the front lower diff mount. Seems like it was there as just a weight. Any ideas? I also, because I am a dumbass, neglected to take the front diff member off the parts car. But, I needed for it to still be rollable for ease of hauling away. Which is why I left the control arms, stub axles, struts etc. on there too. Would've been nice to have those. Then again, it's nice to not have that ugly hulk in my driveway anymore too. I guess I'll have to go to the yard and pay for parts from a car that I gave them. Ugh. Pete, I'd be interested in seeing that info on Ron Tyler's diff mount mods. I currently have an L6 though - would it still apply? As a postscript, I was going to use my susp. $$ to scoop up a cheap, low miles L28turbo, but that R180 has started making some tasty noises - not much life left in it. That and I drove behind my car (wife driving it) and saw how comical it looks bouncing severely up and down over bumps. Feels bad when you're in it, but it just looks ridiculous as a bystander.

I think MikeSCCA sells the individual components, and without the springs, it comes to about $50 per corner. http://www.fonebooth.com/suspension.html

I'm about to order new poly bushings for the rear. But, I have read several posts on zcar.com stating that the rear arms are so impossibly difficult to remove that it may not be worthwhile. So, should I order the $52 rear bush kit and try it myself anyway? Or save the money and a headache? I hate to tear everything apart and not be able to replace all the wear items. At least one poster mentioned just ordering new pins and then tearing the crap out of the old ones to get them out. How pricey are those pins? Do Mikelly et al have a rough idea of cost for the adjustable heim jointed rear arms. And a timeline? Those joints by themselves are probably over $30/each (times 4, right?) so it's probably out of my price range anyway. Also, on a related subject, http://www.suspension.com/nissancars.htm show a mustache bar bushing set, but no diff mount bushing. Doesn't the front of the diff rest on a piece of rubber that needs to be replaced? (My diff currently SLAMS into the frame when I downshift - scares the hell out of everyone who rides in the car - including me.) If so, anyone have a source for this part?

Here's my thinking on the sectioning. With a lowered car, you lose susp. travel (duh). With larger wheels (17" for instance), you gain ground clearance. So, I think it balances out nicely. I'm sectioning mine. I bought the GTI cartridges for the front. I'll post pictures when I do it.

Just by way of an update - the car has been running fine. It has started to gag twice in the past month. Both times I just got ill with it and ran it at high RPMs for 5 or so minutes. Cleared up. I have a spare set of plugs in the rear "tool chest" and haven't had to use them yet. So, my theory is that there was still some residual crap in the tank or the lines or where ever. And now it has finally (hopefully?) burned itself out. It runs great. I'm still leaning towards delaying my rear suspension parts purchase/rebuild and buying the L28turbo. The bouncy crunchy is sucky, but it'd be a great project rebuilding the taht motor for transplant in the spring. Anyone have any estimates for cost outlay on parts for a mild L28 turbo rebuild (bearings, seals, headwork?)? They want $400 for the complete engine minus the ECU. There's a guy on zcar.com who has turbo ecus for $80 - is that fair? Plus I should be able to get some money for the currnet engine at some point...

If cast iron is high in carbon, why isn't it called cast steel? By definition, steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. Anyway, several years ago, I welded a cracked up a cast iron manifold for a friend. It was a pain in the ass because it was in three pieces, but the actual welding was pretty easy. I screwed the pieces to a block of wood and got negligible warpage. I'm looking forward to making a tubular manifold whenever I manage to get an L28T. Maybe Simon will share dimension and radius measurements on his.....

Still trying to wrap up my 280Z A/C into early 240Z dash project. This is mostly a rant, but could also serve as a warning to anyone with a MiG welder and an aluminum project. I've been making a center console piece from aluminum. I bought some 0.30 aluminum wire. I tried several times to feed it into my 0.30 liner. Kept binding. Then I switched to the old flux core liner which is 0.35. I have CO2 - the instructions that came with the wire state 100% argon. Well, it's the weekend and all theshops are closed, so, I went for it anyway. For whatever chemical reason, apparently the hot aluminum reacts with the CO2. It mostly just makes lots of little black aluminum balls. But, with some persistence, it's possible to get burn in. Obviously the welds look like crap - worse than crap. But, apart from the difficulty of trying to join metal with this flawed process, the damn wire keeps binding. It is the most frustrating experience. The most I've gotten is about 5 minutes of welding. The worst is a full dozen shots of loading the wire, getting one split second arc and then having to sort out a kinky wad of wire. This wire is really, really soft. My basement floor is littered with tangles of aluminum wire. So, I think instead of springing for the tank of argon, I'm just gonna take the remaining pieces to a professional.

Yeah, it's not just that I wouldn't be able to do the CV shafts. I have $400 more stuff to buy for the rear-end tear down: bushings, coilovers and CVs (I need to rebuild the shafts and figured I may as well spend those dollars on the CV swap). I have the R200 (4.11) and the strut inserts, but have been saving up for the rest. I redid my front end this past summer, but the car is still riding on the original rear stuff - bounce thump thud. I really have to get a 5spd at the same time too since the 4.11 with my 4spd will definately wind out the rpms on the highway. Last time I checked around for motors was when my L24 burned out. It took me 2 months to find just a plain L28 and that cost me $450. Yards wanted anywhere from $600 to $800 for them and I felt lucky to get what I got. That's why this $400 Turbo motor has my veins throbbing. Hard to pass up. I'm gonna be in LA in 3 weeks. I told the friend I'm visiting that I wanted to go peruse a couple of yards while I'm there. Which sounds really dorky and will most likely just be torturous anyway. I don't think a trans would fit in my suitcase...

No such rear. See the drivetrain forum for Mikelly's travails in trying to locate/build a 4.11 LSD.

I've been calling around the local yards looking for the turbo half shafts. I'm hoping to have all the parts together by Christmas so that I can rebuild the back-end of my 240 over the holidays. Well, no luck with the shafts, but I inadvertently found an 82 L28T with only 69K miles for $400 (w/out ECU, which they didn't have). So, now I am presented with the painful decision of using my little pile of rear-end money to buy this motor, and consequently delay my rebuild by 3-4 months - Or pretend I never found this motor and continue to hold out hopes that I'll be able to find one next summer when I plan on doing the engine transplant. In the mid-atlantic area (NC in particular) that these engines (or junker 280zxt cars) are pretty rare. At least that's been my experience. I certainly see alot of people posting here and on ZCar.com about plentiful supplies of turbo engines and cars in Texas, Cali, Fla, etc. Very jealous-making. Arghh. It sure sucks bouncing around on these old springs and shocks. But it would also suck having to either wait forever to do the turbo swap, or have to cough up $800 for the motor - or both. I can't find a 5spd for less than $300 either. Are you sick of hearing me complain yet? I am....

Oh, so that's the RB26DETT then? Thanks.