ZR8ED

Hey Zguitar71 I visited Missoula. I had a G/F in Kalispell. Stunningly Beautiful area. No employment opportunities. Go to "Mooses" bar. Ask for the "free beer horn" hehe

Well I might as well chime in for my area. I live 20min East of Toronto (kinda the burbs unless you talk to people from Toronto) ehehe Our cities are right along the lake, and the major highway is less than 5miles away from lake Ontario. (at least in the Greater Toronto Area) Houses in My area (not a very desireable area because of the large GM factory and local suppliers) (down at the lake) are in the $175per sq/ft The town next closer to Toronto is in the $225per sq/ft. In a nice area of Downtown Toronto near the water, a 70+ yr old home will fetch in the $600per sq/ft. This is about 20min away on the freeway. (20-25miles) Oh and that will be with a one car garage and street parking. For obvious reasons, as the houses increase in square footage, the price goes up at a higher ratio. For reference, GM is the top payer of salaries. A typical union job will pay in the $27/hr, Office type work is in the $12-20/hr range, and a fresh out of university engineer grad will earn about $42K per year. Local School teachers earn $35-$70K per year. Gas is about 75-90 cents per litre (approx 4 litres/gallon) Cigarettes are about $11.00/pack Beer is about $32/case of 24 Beer in a bar will be in the $4.00-$7.00 range Car Ins for my Z is dead cheap at 600.00/year (no collision) My 2003 Altima was in the $1700.00 range (perfect record) and buying anything from the US ya need to tack on 20% for dollar exchange, and 15% for taxes/tarrifs. (so much for free trade)

Well I hope you haven't started yet. Looking at the orange peel, I'd be hesitant to sand with grit paper. You can go a long ways to improve using mild polishing compounds, and a small foam pad orbital sander. 1000 grit will take the peel out, but will leave deep scratches that will take some work to polish out OEM grade polishing compounds with a foam pad on a orbital sander, does a wonderfull job of taking out orange peel. Stay away from edges and bumps and dents in the metal. Your clear is likely less than 2 thou thick (most oem jobs are in the 2 thou range. more on the horizontals, less on the verticals.) It wont take long to burn through when sanding. 3m Have some great over the counter products that are identical to polishing compounds used at OEM mfg sites.

Check out these guys selection of Z body parts... Thought I post a link to those folks out there looking for body stuff. http://www.showcars-bodyparts.com/240z.html Enjoy.

Hey guys. Someone on this board was talking about some of the cool colours some Z have been painted. Not the usual black or red or blue, but some of those retro colours ie mustard/orange, pee green, pale blues, browns etc.. It got me really thinking of my next Z. I'd like to have a more stock looking Z that has a non modern looking paint colour. Anyone have some links to Z pages with these unusual paint colours? Thanks Scott

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=91946&highlight=bellypans http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=77038&highlight=bellypans http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=72849&highlight=bellypans Lots of discussion on this topic. I am very interested in this as well. Working on the grill opening is my next aero project. I have some ideas that I will test with this summer.

Uh I hate to sound obvious, but your 260 does have a V8 in it. does it happen to be a scarab position or a jtr position? Its a big difference, let alone the difference from your L6 240. 205's should not make the only difference. I run 235's with sticky rubber, and the car is only difficult in the parking lot. Driving with "the palm of your hand" ain't gonna happen when backing up in my 280z. If you don't find short steering knuckles or a damaged rack, you may have to just suck it up and build some bigger arm muscles.. hehe

http://ontariozcar.com/eventz/2004/tmpzfest04/index.htm Here is a link to some pics taken at my clubs (Ontario Z Car) Zfest back in August of 2004. Take a look at some Canadian influenced Z's... with no snow on them hehehe. Come on out to our next Z fest! We get visitors from as far away as Texas at our show. Scott.

Well the oil cooler is aftermarket, but the VG30ET came with them from the factory.. a rather thick one at that.. out front of the right front wheel. I didnt' want to remove it and further reduce the oil capacity. it only holds 4 litres of oil. I'm not too concerned with oil temps, I'm more concerned with no oil pressure in a high G corner. As I modify this car, it is only going to stick better. I never had that problem with my L28 and baffled pan. BTW what does a "trap door" look like in a Z style oil pan? Is there aftermarket pans, or do I just need some serious measurements and modify my stock pan? Thanks very much for the advice. This engine is gonna survive! Scott.

I'm going for the too cool to be real look. Ya know the ones from wangan midnight in the lambo's.. pull in and park and never get out..no one knows really who they are.. they have heard rummors of this car.. no one knows exactly what it is or what its "got" They are not sure how fast it is, they like to see it go, but not quite willing to risk racing it. Seems to be working to. I don't really "do" the hanging out with the street racer crowds in the parking lots at 1am on a sat night. Though sometimes I do prowl through, just to let them know that this car is "out there" hehehe I've heard all kinds of rummors about this car from friends of friends..then I realized they were talking about MY car. hehehe Its pretty funny how serious some people take that stuff...

ZR8ED’s New additions. The saga continues. Well its that time again fellow Z’rs to settle down for the winter, make plans to repair what you broke this year, and what you plan to rebuild, replace, or upgrade for the next Z season. Well that’s how it works for most. Not me. I’m a “Z aholic†My story. As some will remember, I have been driving a 2003 Altima 3.5 SE with some minor upgrades. Beautiful car, great handling, wicked acceleration and braking with traction control and heated seats it’s a comfortable winter vehicle. Great car. Not the greatest car to buy when saving for a house. So I decided to sell it to save the payments and insurance. It was a quick sell and I took the usual loss on selling such a low mileage new car. No problem I say “I’m going to have some cheap driving that will recover the cost of the car, and save me money.†(Remember the “Z aholic†part?) I figured I could maintain a Z for less money than any other car I could buy. “I have lots of spare parts†I told myself. “I have lots of knowledge and experience with Z’s too.†I really am a true Z man, and I just feel comfortable driving a Z. It just feels like “meâ€, my personality, Its what I am. So I searched for a suitable Z to drive as a daily driver, and ended up finding a nice 1982 280ZX 2+2. Dark blue, black leather, 16†TSW wheels newer engine and 5 a speed. Pretty much everything worked. It had a power steering leak at the boots, but the guy had new ones ready to install. It also had a problem with stalling. Everything else was good enough for a daily driver. So I go to get it certified. I replace the steering boots and needed some power steering stop leak to finally fix the last drip. I redid all of the brakes, the rears were seized solid, and the fronts just needed pads and rotors. I found 1 tire with belt separation; the others were ok, but “just okâ€. So I replaced all 4 with all seasons. The windshield washer bottle was missing, so I used the one for the headlight washers. The windshield wipers had the typical Verrry slowww action. I dismantled and lubed all the linkages and wire connectors, and got them working as good as new. One seat in the back needed a new seatbelt, and I got one from a friend. I traced the stalling problem to the ignition box on the side of the dizzy and replaced with one from that same friend. Everything was great, until one morning. No headlights or running lights or heater fan. More searching though the wires and I figured it was the switch, but had no time to mess with column switches. So I ran some fused wire and installed new switches and replaced one suspect fusible link. No problems. Everything works again. I’m still not sure what’s going on with them, but as long as they work, I won’t argue. It now runs well and gets me to work everyday. Almost. Except for some oil on the driveway and some mysterious antifreeze. I must also have a vacuum leak because the heater in the car doesn’t work well. A few more weeks go by when I noticed I had to top up my clutch fluid. Then again, and again, now more frequently. I find out the master cylinder is leaking. Ok. I order a new clutch master cylinder. I top up the fluid and take the car to my Z club meeting in January. The next morning I take the car after work to get the master cylinder, and notice an odd yet familiar noise. Guess what? The engine just turned 160,000km. I know this because when I checked under the hood to top up the clutch fluid before I went to the shop to replace the master cylinder, I see the fan wiggling badly, and the water pump leaking coolant. I now need a water pump. I take the car to the shop to have the master cylinder and now the water pump replaced. While it’s in the shop, the mechanic tells me he’s found a mysterious oil leak. AhHa! I now need an oil pressure sender because it is dripping oil. I should be good for a long time I hope. This “drive an inexpensive car so I can save money†isn’t as cheap as I had hoped. I’m still way better off money wise compared to driving a new car. Even though the leather is a bit cool in the winter mornings it sure turns heads as I drive around, and I hear lots of “hey man, what kind of car is that?†“nice jaguarâ€, and “hey that car is older than me!†I feel real good when driving the car, and it brings a smile to my face. Even when a flicker of rage comes over me when it gives me a new challenge to work on.

WOW. Thanks for the reply. I checked out accusump.com I think this is an awsome idea. pre oiler AND adds oil/pressure under cornering.. Under $400.00 plus some hose etc... What part #'s did you use? I didn't see an adapter for the l28...though I recall we can use the same filter as a Ford v8? so the ford adapter will likely fit. Getting an adapter on my block will be near impossible unless I go remote oil filter I run a smaller oil filter for frame clearance as it is (my VG30ET). Now this is something I can research and plan for. I may even be able to install it with some help with a friend... How did it work out for you? Thanks Again for the direction..

Well This topic has been a culmination of thoughts over the last two years, and was summed up in a conversation I had with a fellow Z'r at my last Z club meeting in January. Basics: Two summers ago, I blew up a VERY expensive VG30ET. less than 2500km's. After a track day on the way home, it started to make some kind of tapping noise at idle and light throttle. Spun a bearing and trashed the block, 1 piston, 1 rod, damaged the cyl head, and killed the crank. Fully balanced and bearing tolerances equal to the 3rd decimal point. VERY experienced Z builder. Reason for destruction? unknown. at that time.. Last year. new motor, fear of destroying another. Lots of thought, research within the Z community. Today: Talking with my friend this last week about his engine failure 3 years ago. 1987 300zxt with all my engine mods. Talking about his concerns with his new 734RWHP dyno'd engine. Concerns of repeating his engine failure 3 years ago....on his way home after a track day...cause...known...oil pressure drop in high G corner See where this is going? NEW fears. This year the club has Watkins Glenn race track rented. I'm Very excited. He and I both had stock oil systems (except I have a custom ducted oil cooler) He is currently gearing up to upgrade to a dry sump so he doesn 't run low oil pressure. He says the 300zxt is prone because of small oil capacity. Hi cornering G's make it worse. I found some kits online today. I figure $2500.00 worth of parts (cdn $) Too much for my blood for what I would consider a last minute upgrade. This is not a planned upgrade for me, and I'm not financially prepared for this project this year. I have not questioned him on his system yet. I'm now looking into other systems.. ie customize the pan and increase its size. some kind of resevoir to keep the system primed in a high G corner. "pre oilers" and the ol'e favorite.. "just looking for alternatives for keeping the engine oiled in a turn" I saw systems for both the l28 and VG30ET. Any ideas? What are you guys doing? Any advice?.. besides not going to the track event? I can't afford to blow another engine, and spending 2500.00 on parts alone is not going to happen either.. How would I modify or learn to modify my oil pan for high G's? Thanks Scott.

Thanks! When ever I open the main garage door, I get a face full of A$$, big and beautiful..."if your into that old datsun thing" hehehe two40: I don't have any problems with the exhaust scraping. Its even pretty good over speed bumps. My air dam scrapes far more than my exhaust does.. Datsunlover: Not much going on..laying low..saving money for the z project to start up again.

The stock 280zx wheels (six spoke) fit just fine with the calipers..(my friend has this setup.) The slotted wheels do not fit. As far as other wheels go, it depends on the style of the backside of the rim that is the problem... I had Epsilon 16x7's and they did not clear..I just took a grinder, and ground down the cooling fins on my calipers where they rubbed. It only took a few thou. to get the clearance I needed.

You'd be surprised how a simple NHL hockey puck can help our cars. I STILL have a hockey puck for a steering coupler. BTW if you are "a choppin" and "drillin" and "a cuttin", the hockey puck is a nice size for making smaller bushings. Heck, even Crappy Tire carries aftermarket universal sway bar endlinks, that fit our cars well. new rubber bushings are better than old cracked rubber bushings. I still have not replaced all of my control arm bushings... I'll do them as needed, or the next time the suspension is apart. Here is what is most important for your bushings. (assuming the others are not destroyed or missing) Sway bar endlinks. (universal kit comes with bolts/washers/rubber/spacers, etc..) steering rack bushings (ones holding the rack) Steering coupler. (use a hockey puck) mustash bar bushings. (can buy separately) front diff mount isolator. This will go a long way to getting the car back in shape.. BTW. I have spare NOS swaybar bushings for the 280. I don't have stock bars anymore so they are useless to me. PM again... I'm sure I have more of those types of parts.. new KVR brake pads for stock brakes... hmmm I will have to think what else I have left over from my upgrades... If your tight on your budget, only replace the bushings that need them most... most times, your control arm bushings are still ok. Oh and your top strut rubber isolators... they are either ok or not... We need to talk.. Scott.

Hi Matt. (just read your emails.. will answer) Look up Rick Scott. He is the parts manager at Brampton Nissan. He KNOWS Z's, an stocks most 1st gen parts. As far as bushings go, check Performance Improvements. They carry alot of import stuff these days, and I've got some of my bushing kits from them (G Machine etc..) You really have to dig through the catalogues with them, but they do have the stuff, and you can get it usually in a few days if not in stock. If you don't have Performance Improvements near by, check Karbelt as well. Johnson Performance Research (or is it JRP??) in the north end of Toronto carries lots of performance stuff, and they have been good to me for lots of my fuel and turbo stuff. PM me if you need help with these sources... there are lots..

I can laugh and say "never enough", but the reality is, for a mean 1st gen Z, 200-250RWHP is plenty. I recall driving well setup Z's on some of the local race tracks that my Z club rents for lapping days. The driver made all the difference in the world. I drove 200hp Z's, and majorly whooped butt on modded 300zxtt's. My own Z when it was in the 250-300 (flywheel hp) the car was an absolute rocket. I could break the tires loose if I really wanted, but generally just squated a bit, and took off like a scaulded cat! It had great street manners, it wasn't all that bad in the rain, would outstop most abs equiped cars, and out handled 90% of the cars on the road. It was plenty fast enough to scare the Bajeezers out of most sane people. It was fun on tight twisty tracks, and great on long fast tracks. It is a piece of cake now to get a decent brake and suspension package that can handle 200-250RWHP, that would take a land mine to derail the handling. In MY position, I'm looking for approx 350RWHP range. It is beyond my skill range at this time, but I was probably driving the car at 85% or better of its capability. (judged by my lap times compared to pro drivers who tested my car on the same tracks on the same days) So I doubt I can drive the car to its limits now. It is still VERY streetable, and gets me better than 20mpg combination city/highway. I have noticed that on the street, the days of just "FLOORING IT" are long gone...it would be an easy way to spin the car out. It takes more finesse to go full tilt in the car. I have not put the car on the track this year, but I'm sure I'll have fun learning the car again. I'm sure it is not going to be the same, I'll have less room for error with the throttle, and braking points entering corners. On the street, I can get on any highway on ramp with little worries about merging. Unless someone is coming up behind me full tilt, I can lane change, pass and avoid cars pretty much with few worries of "can I make it?" Good luck with your OWN decision on YOUR project! Enjoy it and becareful. Scott.

Thanks for getting it up and working! Scott.

ahhhhh can anyone help here? The file name is TNT by MIB low res at the above site... Marc?