83turbo280zx

Cool thank you for that. I've been downloading a few different tunes that people have shared and sort of tearing them apart as well. I guess i'm more concern at what everyone else is running timing wise, even at 20 degrees timing i was experiencing some light spark knock, that is with the stock turbo, stock injectors, FMIC, and a walbro 255. I'm sure running 45psi fuel pressure and 440cc injectors will make a huge difference in atomization and being able to have enough fuel to cool the combustion chamber.

Been doing some reading here and there but haven't stumbled across anything concrete yet so I figured I'd ask here. First off, here is my setup. I will be installing 440cc supra injectors on a pallnet rail, with an Aeromotive Regulator, thinking maybe base pressure 40-45psi, and installing a a/r.60 t3/t4 garrett turbo. Here is my current engine setup F54 stock dished turbo pistons N42 head with P79 "A" cam 12x32x4 FMIC, 2.5" piping 93 octane pump gas MS2.2 16x16 tables Walbro 255 Fuel pump Glowshift Digital Wideband I'm trying to get an idea of how much boost and timing I can run safely with this setup. Sure I can just keep upping it 2psi at a time and watching my wideband and listening for knock, but I'd like to get a baseline from other's experiences. I am familiar with megasquirt, I am running a "street" tune with my Z31 T3 at 12psi on stock injectors at the moment. For now I plan to retain the stock internal wastegate as the WG flange will bolt to the back of my t3/t4 i'm going to install. Anyone have their previous experiences they'd like to share to give me an idea of what to start setting my base map at? Currently I'm running really retarded timing at 12psi on the stock injectors, close to 14 degrees at full boost from 4k rpm and up, not sure if thats going to be the same with the 440cc injectors or not.

MOMO shows the same part number for the S30/S130 Z's along with the datsun trucks and the 810 and maxima i believe. You can cheap out on a wheel and horn adapter. I would highly advise against cheaping out on a hub. I've heard from several people the cheap BOSS adapters made in china will crack upon installing them with hand tools. You DO NOT want a hub cracking or breaking while driving, i think you can figure out why lol. MOMO hubs are $80ish shipped on ebay and they are build very well. I had one on my old Z with no issues what so ever.

Need a fuel rail that will fit 440cc supra 7mgte injectors. I'm assuming that is 11mm o-ring style Prefer one with a gauge but it isn't mandatory. I prefer e-mail as I check it hourly - sk84life1122@sbcglobal.net Or PM me it just takes me longer to get back. Thanks! -Chris

if you're interested email me @ sk84life1122@sbcglobal.net

If you haven't gotten a driveshaft yet, I have a complete one, $60 + shipping if you're in the US

So i finally blew up my 2nd T5 transmission. This time locking it up solid while doing a 5th gear pull on the highway. So i figured now would be a great time to do the 240sx transmission swap I've seen from different articles. I referred alot to the following http://zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/240SX5spd/transmission.htm Unfortunately this write up is for the S30 chassis, and not the S130 chassis like I have. DISCLAIMER, This swap was done on a 83' 280zx Turbo Couple. It will be slightly different on the Non-turbo, and will definitely be different on the 2+2, but only in the aspect of different driveshaft flanges and lengths. As far as the machining and transmission build aspects of this, it is exactly the same. Where it starts to differ however is once you get the transmission bolted to the engine block. I will explain all of that here. So once you've got all of your machining work done, which I chose to machine my non-turbo Z bell housing to fit the 240sx countershaft bearing size, since a bigger bearing, better load distribution, etc. etc. etc. Of course while I had it all apart, I found the center plate bearing for the countershaft was shot, so I went ahead and replaced both the main shaft and countershaft bearings in the center plate. I got lucky for $75, it only needed 1 bearing in reality, and all of the synchros were in great shape along with all of the gears as well. Once you get it all bolted back up to the motor, here is where there are some slight differences in relation to the S30 The S30 requires some cross member modification to allow the transmission to mount to it, as it is 2" longer. However on the S130, you do not need to drill any holes anywhere. Remove the 240sx transmission mount, and bolt the 280zx transmission mount to the tailshaft housing. Now bolt the rear cross member up and let the transmission down. It lines up perfectly. Next is going to be the driveshaft With this being a turbo car, the T5 output shaft spline is bigger and completely different than the 240sx and non turbo Z output shaft spline. The other thing is the turbo R200 differential flange is different from a non-turbo R200. Now you could just swap the non-turbo R200 flange and have the non-turbo drive shaft shortened, but you still run into the issue of non-replaceable U-joints, and the diameter of the non-turbo drive shaft is smaller than the turbo drive shaft. I was in a pinch at the moment, and did not have a line on a non-turbo differential flange, nor did I want to wait to get one in. So what I ended up doing was having a completely new driveshaft built. It has HD replaceable and greaseable U-joints, and is the same diameter of the turbo driveshaft, and can be lengthened or shortened with ease at any time should I ever need it. My driveshaft guy can get brand new yokes with the proper output shaft splines, and can get the proper matching differential flange as well. So now I have a completely serviceable driveshaft. If anyone else here is interested in them, I will be marketing them for direct bolt in applications with no fabrication needed, especially if you are considering this swap, this will provide the least amount of headaches. Also with my calculations, we got the driveshaft length just right So once you have the driveshaft issue solved, you can move onto shifter clearance. As you can see, since the transmission is 2" longer, it moves the shifter back quite further. It was actually hitting the top of the transmission tunnel. It also now makes the stock shift boot insulator no longer line up, as well as the shift boot trim ring. If you put the shift boot trim ring in its proper orientation, the shifter will hit it when going into 2nd, 4th, and reverse and not allow proper gear engagement. So this has to be rotated 180 degrees. For now I was able to make it fit. It is a very tight fit, but with a little bit of ingenuity, you can get it in there without having to cut or sand down anything. So to make room for the new shifter clearance, you need to remove a 1" by 4" piece of metal from the top of the shifter hole in the transmission tunnel. I also took this time to install a short throw shifter. I just bought some off-brand from ebay, and so far with about 100 miles it has taken my abuse and not given up at all. Feels great as well! The stock shifter is VERY sloppy, and has ALOT more throw than the stock Z transmission shifters. The shifter also sits a few inches higher than the stock Z shifters do, but to me, it is not enough to be bothersome, I actually thing it's a little better being higher up. So back to the shift boot insulator issue. I cut a secondary hole in the stock shift boot insulator to compensate for the offset of the new shifter. I then sourced a shift boot insulator from a 92-02 Chevy Camaro, which seemed like it would get me close enough to what I was trying to achieve. I'm sure there are better options out there, but for my time constraints, I was able to make this work quite well. For proper fitment, this shift boot insulator will require some minor modification. First off, the shifter hole needs to be expanded just slightly. The shifter hole needs to be elongated slightly, enough so that it fits seamlessly over the expanding part of the shifter. All I had to do was remove the very top ring of rubber around the hole, and it fit perfectly. This can be done with a pair of very sharp scissors, or tin snips. The other issue you will run into is the Camaro insulator is a little wider than the Z transmission tunnel This causes the carpet to bow out on the sides, and also doesn't allow the center console to seat properly over the entire thing, it will sit about an inch above the mount holes. Not pictured, but if you flip the Camaro shift boot insulator over, you will see a ridge which is what would ride in the shifter hole on the Camaro and seal against the body. This ridge is what seals against the Z trans tunnel as well, so anything protruding past that on the left and right sides, can be trimmed down. A little bit of trimming with a saw-zall or a cutting wheel will do the trick. Just trim along the sides and the carpet will now sit in a better position, and also allow the center console to sit lower and be able to bolt it down as well. Because of the new offset, and the different size shifter, you will not be able to retain the Stock Z shift knob or shift boot. They were long overdue for replacement, so I got a leather shift boot on ebay, and got a weighted shift knob with the proper thread for the 240sx shifter. Bolt it all down and go for a test drive. It doesn't sit 100% flush like factory, but it will sit flush enough to not move, creak, or look like crap. Overall I'm pretty satisfied with the results. The 240sx transmission definitely feels ALOT better than the crap T5 that I had. It is built ALOT better than what they had in the 70's and early 80's. As I said earlier in this write-up, I will be offering completely serviceable bolt in drive shafts for all swaps. Whether you are doing a turbo, non turbo, 2+2, whatever it is, I can get it made and shipped to you for $500 anywhere in the Continental US. International orders will be a case by case basis. I also will offer to build your transmission so its ready to bolt in as soon as you get it back from me. If you source me a Z bell housing, and 240sx transmission, I will get all of the machine work done, and bolt it all together if it doesn't need any hard parts starting at $600 plus shipping costs back and forth. If you need me to source the transmission and bell housing for you, and other parts, it will be $1200. I am located in Texas should anyone be interested. I'd like to make this swap as easy and bolt in as possible, given the T5's are getting very hard to find, and the non turbo 5 speeds are laughable at best when you're putting down a decent amount of power. Hope this encourages more of you all to consider and possibly go through with this swap. I wish I'd have done this years ago.

I've got an HEI ignitor unit (BORG WARNER BRAND) lifetime warranty through O'reillys, and its already mounted on an aluminum bracket and wired, ready to swap in with the appropriate wiring diagram. $50 shipped to your door. I accept paypal @ this email address sk84life1122@sbcglobal.net Also feel free to contact me via e-mail for pictures, information, etc. as I don't get on the forums as much as my email Thanks! -Chris

frankly, I don't want to spend $600 some odd bucks on brakes frankly, I guess you don't care about your life or safety lol. 1 thing to NEVER EVER SKIMP ON, is brakes, yes there are kits out there that will work, some not as well as others, but if you want it to stop RIGHT, and PROPERLY, I wouldn't go with anything else other than a well priced BBK, arizonazcar.com has awesome kits, I have them on mine, wouldn't have it any other way compared to 300zx brakes, Toyota 4x4, or the mustang brakes.

Yea I understand where you're coming from, but I've run into a few people who have tackled the job and gotten halfway in and realized they were way in over their head, so that would be where I come in basically. I'm just here as an option in case anyone gets in trouble and can't get it figured out, or just doesn't want to deal with it.

Well that's just like anything else, I could never pay someone to work on my cars knowing what I know, but not everyone who owns a car is a mechanic, therefore pays someone like me to take care of it for them. But yea I don't expect much success from selling MS installs, main thing is getting my name out there, and now people know I can diagnose and fix MS problems as well incase they are down to a last resort and have no options left, like a few of my customers so far

Glad to see someone on here actually knows how a shop functions and how pricing works.

not hard, just time consuming, and I highly doubt your dad did it in a "couple" of hours, couple means 2. Really? two hours to run an entire engine harness, mount the computer, relay box, and then tune and get it running? If he can do ALL of that in 2 HOURS, then he needs to come work for me lol. I can make a ton of money off of a mechanic that fast lol.

sorry didn't know, just spreading the word considering a typical custom harness is 8 hours, estimate about 6 hours dialing everything in as far as crank settings, getting a map setup for timing and fuel, etc. etc., factor in shop supplies, zip ties, etc. $1399 to start is not bad at all for a custom wiring harness and a RUNNING MS setup turn key not having to do anything. You go to any performance shop in my area and their labor rate is $100+ per hour, mine is $87

Hey guys, Just to let anyone know in the DFW area if you're considering a Megasquirt ECU setup, but don't want the headache of figuring it out for yourself, running all the wiring, etc. etc. I'm doing MS installs at my shop for the older Z cars. If you supply all the pieces, or have me make you a list of what I need, I can run the harness, mount the ECU, relay box, and get you a basic tune and get you running. Basic Megasquirt installs starting @ $1399.99 NOT including any extra parts or custom pieces. This is for a smooth, stock triggered MS setup (CAS, or E-12 dizzy) ignition systems. Extra for MSD boxes, wideband setups, or anything else. Megasquirt Diagnostics and Trouble shooting starts @ $87/hr - time spent. We also do full maintenance on Z cars as well, not just MS installs. Any questions feel free to give us a call and talk to us. Ace Automotive Services Inc 3023 Howell St Arlington TX 76010 (817)-649-1138

You can use the stock ZXT wheels, but you will need about a 1" thick hub spacer. All you will need to do is clear the drop center on the inside of the wheel, then they will clear. But for the price of 4 GOOD hub spacers, you could be more than half way for a set of XXRs minus the tires lol.

^^ yes running stock distributor. Did some more digging as the problem came back as I raised the boost back to 12psi. I went to a .040" gap, but I had my dwell setting way off, reset my dwell time and have had ZERO issues.

we're you running poly bushings? if so , take them off for the strut rods and use MOOG bushings. several people have used poly bushings and snapped their strut rods with them.

Thanks buddy, here are the before/after pics Before After I have thought of it yes, but its not in the budget at the moment. I would like to eventually get his rear setup as stated above it will put the proportioning back to close factory specs. I just need to come up with another $800 lol

Yea i breifly searched for it, but didn't look that hard lol. I will repost in that later on tonight. BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp 2's (225/50/16) Eibach lowering kit, tokico blues, poly bushings and bigger sway bars. Thats it for now

If you're interested. Search for my SR20 240sx radiator swap. Real simple, they're cheap, and I have yet to have one overheating issue. I only need 1 fan

Figured I'd do a wheel show and tell on here. Got some XXR 532 flat black wheels, 16x8 +0 offset, they fit NICE! Also running BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp 2 tires. They grip VERY well, and better than their predecessor. Anywho, here is a few pics of the wheel fitment and the turbo center caps retro-fitted onto them. Before with the stock turbo swastikas After

Thanks! I'd like to see the finished product on yours as well, i bet those would look good on an old school Z No its not the cap that is the issue, the physical hub also sticks out. So even trying to half-ass shorten the cap by 2-3mm would make absolutely no difference. The only ways that I've come up with is either my way, running without center caps up front, or running at least 1" thick wheel adapters.

Ok so i bought some XXR 532's for my Z to clear my AZC big brake kit as outlined in my other write up. The specs on the wheels are 16x8 +0 offset, running BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp-2 Tires (225/50/ZR16) Love them. They are even stickier than the original GF Sports. Anywho, a common problem with Z guys and looks like 510/810 guys is the front bearing hub protrusion. This doesn't allow you to use the XXR center caps with out front spacers. The stock Turbo 280zx center caps are just a hair too big in outer diameter around the retaining tangs. I'm guessing 3-4mm in extra O.D. Just enough to not fit lol. So i found away around this to retro fit the TURBO center caps onto the XXR center caps and make them work with the aftermarket wheels. I like how these wheels have an aggressive look but also look "period correct" in a sense, aside from being 16's lol. Anywho, here are pics of what I did to retro-fit the factory center caps to these wheels. Now whether these will apply to all XXR center caps, I have no idea. I don't even know if the diameter of the center cap hole is the same on all XXR wheels. If it is then you could possibly order center caps for 532 wheels and use them on whatever other XXR wheels you have. So start off with cutting out the center section of 2 center caps. Obviously you don't have to do this to all 4 because you only have 2 protruding bearing hubs. I used a mini air saw which still took some time as the plastic melts on the blade and vibrates the **** out of your hand. Cut as close to the edge of the emblem area as you can, but not any further. As you can see, doesn't have to be perfect, just functional and to clear the bearing hub. Once you've completed this, move on to the turbo center caps. Every retaining tang needs to be removed down to the base. You can start with a flat bladed screw driver and stick it down as deep as it will go, carefully pry forward and the tang should start to tear away. Keep some safety glasses on cause some of them are hard and will fly into your face/eyes. This should allow the XXR center cap to barely protrude past the edge of the Z center cap. Approximately 1mm outward will give it perfect fitment with the 532's. However with different wheels this could be different. Try making some measurements and adjust your specs accordingly. Do this to the remaining 4 center caps and get them sized up and synced in where you want them. Now onto gluing them in. The plastic weld doesn't work as well on this as it would on others. I opted for Loctite 5 min. epoxy that you can pick up at Home Depot for about $6. Make sure you sand down the inside of the center cap with 80 grit sand paper to remove all the chrome coating and give it a rough surface area to adhere to. Do this to the outside circumference of the XXR center cap as well. Next run a bead of epoxy along the inside of the sanded area of the Z center cap. Drop in the XXR center cap and twist a little bit to distribute the epoxy. Let it settle for a few minutes and run a small bead along top to fill the remaining cracks for good measure. Now let it settle for a minimum of 12 hours. The box says 24, i was able to handle and test fit in 12 with no problems. Notice how the front center caps will not have the metal retaining ring, while the rear center caps will. The front center caps will not sink in all the way if you use the metal retaining ring. And the final product. Although they aren't the factory rims, the stock center caps still look good and help maintain a sense of originality, plus it gives some contrast to the all black appearance. Hope this helps someone in the future to decide what wheels to go with, or to help them retain the factory center caps.

I understand where you're coming from, but i've personally seen and fixed them in the field. You get a car that doesn't have rear brake actuation, it WILL indeed nose dive harder than if the rear brakes were working properly. The rears grab first so you don't get that OH shit dive, i've dealt with it numerous times on several trucks with drum brakes. Sure spring rates and everything play a factor in it, but to say that rear brakes not actuating won't cause a car to dive is false, I've SEEN it, over and over again.