ZR8ED

I think mounting your engine will be the easy part. Exhaust and turbo on the passenger side?..thats great.. no steering linkage issues.. My turbo was in the way of my steering linkage...no way and no how was the turbo going to move...so my frame rail and steering had to! Just make sure you fab the mounts from 1/8th plate steel...to help out, I placed the driveline in the car held by chains, and positioned it just perfect.. lined it all up..measuring the whole thing EXACTLY where we wanted it to sit...There was actually lots of room, so placing it back was important, but no so far back as to make things too difficult. Anyways, we used card board to make the mounts and taped them up.. (mine are boxes..or at least box shaped) We cut panels of cardboard, and held them in place with tape, and made boxed mounts.... one other thing...if your mounting to the frame rails..(like I did) make sure you add more metal to the rails.. I used 14 guage sheet metal and boxed the frame rails 8+ inches to distribute the loads that my beast of an engine was going to throw at my motor mounts. Install was much easier than anticipated... Routing all the plumbing/wiring was more difficult, though positioning the engine took several hours of planning, and took three of us to position the motor and brace it perfectly, so measurements could be take, and the mounts fabbed up from cardboard... without moving the engine again, we then cut the steel in the shape of the cardboard bits, and then tack welded them together and did the trial fits before final seam welding the mounts.... oh and don't forget to engineer the mounts so you can get at the bolts easily... Good luck.. I"ll be watching your progress as well..

There was a guy named Russ280zx on the zcar.com board...might even be here now.. This is going a while back, but he had the misfortune of running over a large log from a logging truck??!!!! I think.. it was pretty big.. 5ft long or something.. Anyways he ran over it with his z and left him airborne for a few seconds....he changed his screen name to "Russ the log jump champ!" Maybe we should start calling you the truck tire jumping champ! Sorry for the joke, but your situation just plain sucks, and I know how much it can Pi$$ ya off when something happens to your Z! Nothing else you can do, but keep on going, and be happy you were able to keep it out of the wall.... Glad your ok! and I hope you get your z sorted out.

hmm I'm using a stock actuator with my t3/t4 hybrid. I'm unsure of the type of t4 compressor off hand though....The guys building my turbo knew my application, and we talked about performance goals and the use of the car..I trusted their expertise with turbos and Z cars...I hope I did the right thing... My stock t3 came on hard at about 3k... my new turbo is much higher..3500+.. I have not changed my exhaust system yet..People have commented that it is too small (2.5 inch mandrel press bend..not crimped..but not the smooth constant dia bends...) I just assumed it was because it was a larger turbo, and that it would just spool slower... I have no choice but to live with it for now, but I suppose I should keep an eye on it for the future..

Well if you want fast spooling, then look no further. The 1988+ 300zxt's had a T25 compressor...FULL boost around 2300rpm. In my hulking pig of fully loaded stock automatic 2+2 300zxt (1988) with cat back exhaust and k&N filter, with the boost set to 9 psi with no i/c, I ran 14.6-14.8's all day long. 0-60mph in 6 flat! 8) Car was very fast off the line...the auto made it seem like it was straining (not shifting to 3rd quick enough) and held too long, i'm sure it would run low 14's with a good 5 speed. It was excellent for hole shots, or in town rolling starts...car just went..instant boost!

Well I weighed my 1978 280z today... 2900lbs without the driver. I do recall weighing my car years ago.. 2780... but that was quite a while ago. car was stripped down a bit (min interior, creature comforts, no stereo, etc..) @2900lbs Currently with: 260 bumper with flat bar mounts (like the 240). no rear bumper. 12 point roll cage. (chromemoly steel) 14 points of additional mild/coldrolled steel bracing... some with adjustable heim joints, some welded permanent. Larger sway bars, larger lsd diff. larger tires, rims. larger brake rotors and calipers. I/C and piping/mounting brackets oil cooler and related hardware. custom driveline mounts and bracing. 1/8 steel. custom driveshaft. Custom body panels/moulding. Full stock interior. carpets and sound insulation (more deadener than stock) mild stereo system with sound enclosure box on the decking. all heater/dash controls/guages. larger dia exhaust and ss muffler. more wiring, aftermarket ign box. ground effects/bellpan, air ducting, etc.. my car has actually gained weight, but the weight is better distributed..(engine sits much lower and WAY further back) No feather weight that is for sure. I blame most of the weight on the bracing and roll cage...but then I need them...so I'll just live with it..at least I can say it is sub 3000lbs hehehehe

The parts stores listed different part #'s for the linear and progressive rate springs. BTW you only buy the front springs.. use them front and back... Um if it is still fuel injected, I think the relay for the fuel pump is under the passenger seat. As far as suspension stuff goes. go to the parts store and pick up some universal endlinks for the sway bars.. cheaper than oem units, and are a far cry better than shot bushings. May not be a big deal, but it can save you a bit.. Urethane bushing kits are avail, and are an excellent upgrade for the stock bushings.. energy suspension makes them.. A stock suspension is excellent condition actually handles very well.. most who complain of poor handling are also running around on 30 year old suspensions/bushings

Ahhh Thanks Glenn. You mean summer hockey! hehehe Not to be confused with all season hockey (road/street hockey)

Yup Chevette springs. It depends on what year of chevette is still avail.. I ended up with 1980 springs from a 4 door with air and auto tranny. Make sure they are "linear rate" springs, as they specify two types depending on model/year. I have seen threads here about cheapo mods.. not sure the forum, but I know I contributed to them... My fav that I STILL have in the car is the Regulation hockey puck for my steering coupler... much stiffer than stock, and cheaper than an MSA aftermarket one. There are lots of simple brake upgrades as well. 1984 4x4 toyota pickup.. font calipers are basically bolt on to our stock mounts and fit our stock rotors. Cut stock springs works as well. I had 4 coils or so cut from my stock springs...I enjoyed that setup for years... What all is wrong with the car since you parked it?

Hey Pete! I just weighed the Z today. It weighed 2900lbs flat! Not exactly a lightweight eh? oh well.. I'm not likely going to try and shave any of that off... Not bad for a 1978 280z all the bracing, roll cage, larger wheels, brakes, sway bars, diff, tranny, driveshaft, custom body panels, full interior, stereo and custom enclosure. Heavy duty driveline mounts and bracing, intercooler, oil cooler etc...

"spans this base" is the key word here. Most just use a piece of plate steel, or worse, mount a flange directly to the firewall... If you are going for the "welding a plate to the firewall for mounting a flange to, mounting it further outboard near that extra bracing is still better than just the sheet metal of the firewall in which the wiper motor is mounted to.. Try and flex that section with the wiper motor removed...it is not very strong at all on its own.... If you build a mount that spans this base and ties into the other two side of the triangle you end up with a very strong mount. You are certainly correct with that statement. I'm not looking at the point of the correct way of building a roll cage, as in that case, the triangulating part of the tower braces is actualy inside the car, and proper building plans for roll cages has long ago been professionally worked out. I'm commenting on the simple installation of two braces for the strut towers, and if your not going for the full cage, you may as well install them properly to work on their own. This also happens to be an excellent fix for those of us that have set back engines that don't allow to even have the hood latch mech. I still stand by my statement that most of the cages and braces I saw at the MSA show, were not installed very well... and I won't even get into the whole "bolt in cage" stuff... ya either need it or don't..

These are some older pics of my roll cage install. All chromemoly steel. A very tight install, that is barely visable from outside the car. That part of the cage is 12 points. (can't see all of the cage in the pics) I have another 16 points of bracing..some adjustable, some not.

Luckily for 280z owners, we have a sub floor in the back of our cars... just behind the seats, I installed a pair of 6x9's and mounted them flush to the wood sub floor.. You have to cut the carpet to allow for the sound to pass through, but is used the speaker covers overtop, and allows for a clean look. I never did replace the speakers under the 1/4 windows. I ran surface mounted tweeters on the dash (I didn't want to cut the dash in any way). For base, a build a custom box that angled with the hatch glass and was at the very back of the car. head unit plus 2 amps, (one for the sub and one for the 6x9's) 800watts max power... more than enough for a little car.. That was quite a few years ago now.. my system is much more mild.

Who the heck are the Marlins?.. the Yankees? What the heck are you all talking about.. Its hockey season for godsakes! No doubt aboot it!

First-year students at Med School were receiving their first anatomy class, with a real dead human body. They all gathered around the surgery table with the body covered with a white sheet. The professor started the class by telling them, "In medicine, it is necessary to have 2 important qualities as a doctor: The first is that you not be disgusted by anything involving the human body." For example, the Professor pulled back the sheet, stuck his finger in the butt of the corpse, withdrew it and stuck it in his mouth. "Go ahead and do the same thing," he told his students. The students freaked out, hesitated for several minutes. But eventually took turns sticking a finger in the butt of the dead body and sucking on it. When everyone finished, the Professor looked at them and told them, "The second most important quality is observation. I stuck in my middle finger and sucked on my index finger. Now learn to pay attention."

Becareful when you guys talk about triangulating braces. I was at the MSA show this year, and 99% of the roll cages/bars etc.. were not installed in the optimum position. When you triangulate the front bars, and you do not have a full cage that passes through the firewall, ie with caging under the dash.. ie only running strut bars.. Most bars I have seen installed were placed incorrectly. Most were mounted in/on, around the hood latch area.... WRONG... if you remove the cowl panel, you'll see that your windshield wipers are mounted on the other side, and that it is only sheet metal...ok If you look outboard about 12 inches each way, you will see a brace from the firewall backwards towards the windshield...This is where you should mount them... much stronger than the back side of the wipermotors. place some thin steel plate in that area to distribute the load, and weld on your flange to it. I noticed a difference when I ran my car on the track with and with out the strut bars, and noticed a further difference as I learned to push the car harder, when i had the roll cage installed.. no more squeaks and rattles going over rail tracks etc... On a side note, I've said this before, the front rad support is EXTREMELY important. For any who have chopped into it to pass i/c pipes through.. consider bracing this area again. even with my 12 point roll cage, when we cut that support out for access reasons when installing my engine swap, the front end could flex more than 1/2 inch depending whether the car was on the ground or on the hoist!!!! The piece we cut out, either would not fit (car on ground) or had almost 1/2 inch of play..(when car was sitting on hoist) This was with the engine/driveline OUT!!!! Just some food for thought.. I love my cage...who cares that it added some weight...

I am still running that intercooler. I ran 18psi with a stock turbo, and am currently running 12 psi with my hybrid turbo.. never had a prob. It seems to work very well...overheating has not been an issue yet. I have no idea about pressure drop.. Oh and yea it is plastic...

Back to Auxilary with the F body.. Well I drive an United auto worker built Nissan (built in Tennesse) and I drive it to work everyday to my customers manufacturing facility...GM Canada... Where they build Buick Century and Pontiac Grand Prix. hehehe I do know what you mean about the pendulum swinging too far either way... not good. BTW excellent post on the "blue marble"...now that is looking at the big picture. I studied "societal marketing" in my senior years at college. We are still a long way off from truely achieving that mindset....Its worth it though... This world is pretty small...I was talking with a buddy in Holland this morning..he was standing in the post office to send me something, when a woman behind him started chating and it came about that she knew exactly were he was sending that package more than 10000 miles away.. (a suburb of Toronto)... she was from that area.... This just happened this morning... Small world..

THOUGHT OF THE DAY > >Never hold your farts in. > >They travel up your spine, and into your brain. > >That's where you get shitty ideas from.

Hold on hold on!!! We are looking at this the wrong way. I tired to remove as much weight as possible in my car.. then I added huge wheels, larger sway bars, bigger rotors and brakes, a full roll cage, extra bracing etc.. So I thought..now how do I get more weight out? WHO CARES!! MAKE MORE HORSEPOWER!!! That will show that weight who's truely boss!! hehehe My car is as light as I'm prepared to live with, so its the "MORE HORSEPOWER" route for me!!!

Its SOOOO FAST that even a dead man will scream!!! BWahahaha Now thats funny! AHHH the front wheels are off the ground!!! Wicked quotes!

You didnt mention the trans am side vents? hehe This car was a show car at one time, and there were a lot of styling mods on the car.. the entire front end was sculpted from bondo... it looked really wicked at the time.. It was all replaced 12 years ago with fg flares, fenders, and air dam. The side vents were kept and moulded into the fg fenders, and the side mustang vents were left on, cause they were too much trouble to remove, and the previous owner liked them. As for the antenna? I've had several people tell me they don't like it, and to take them off...but if I pull them off, I'd have to fill those spaces, and it is just easier to leave them there.. besides it looks retro! hehehe I have 75% of the dash harness installed today, the rear harness is already installed. A couple of more days, and I'll have it wrapped up. hopefully.... I took some good photos of the service manual wiring diagrams, and have them blown up a bit on the computer for easier viewing. The photos turned out well enough, that I'm going to take some more pics of other diagrams, and have them saved on a disc.

Oh and here is the dash harness... Datsun used duct tape from the factory right? hehehe I think I just reduced the risk of death by fire in the car by 99.8%

Here are some recent pics... enjoy I'm heading out now to get some more work done on it! yeehaw!

Its time for another update.. My harness installation is taking a turn towards a more serious note. Let me put it this way. The wiring was so bad, I decided it was easier to start over. Every wire was removed..even all the under dash wiring! The rear harness is in place, and today was the day to prepare the dash harness. All the gauges were removed, the heater controls, glove box etc.. My newly installed seats were removed after much struggle to get them in. It seems that the nuts were just tight enough that it could not be done by hand, if you catch my meaning...needed to wrench them all the way off.... The car looks much cleaner inside with all the crap wire removed. I took a bunch of pics inside and out, and of course the mess of old wires...sitting on the floor, it kinda reminds me of a giant birds nest! hehehe So it looks like a "while I'm at it" syndrome is kicking in here... actually it just seems easier to start from scratch.... It is still fun working on the car, but as the temp drops, so does the fun level.. I have lots of new pics which I'll post hopefully tomorrow.

Man I just love these threads.. a perfect excuse for another pic... 8) Simmons 3 piece 17X11 and 17x8 wearing a set of Yokoham AVS Sports 315/35/17 and 235/40/17. Man do I love these wheels!