ZR8ED

Get some plastic drop sheets and use them to protect the garage/keep dust down. spray paint the car. You have a compressor. Buy a simple spray gun from harbor frieght etc. Pick a good primer sealer, and then choose your colour in an acrylic enamel. Its cheap durable, no clearcoat needed. Go to your local autobody supply store. TALK to the guys behind the counter. They can explain your options, and get you everything you need. Lots of directions on the net on "how to's" Including this site. Roller/spray. Same prep is still required. Spray looks way better.

Awwww. I was originally thinking a yellow 240, a red 240, a green 240, a black 240 etc etc. Ok I'll play 1 Daily. 370z roadster 2 all corners R34 Skyline 3 Highspead heaven Ferrari California 4 mid/rear GT40 5 off the beaten trail Hummer H1 6 Track time Panoz Esperante GTR1 7 wild car an all titanium/carbon fibre VG30ET widebody 280Z. (Hmm I'm almost there with this one! hehe)

It has been many years, so I can't talk part numbers with you, but I have used Chevette springs on all 4 corners on the street/track, and have been impressed with the bang for your buck. Street manners are just fine, though I do run a tokico shock. I know of and have driven two other modded 280's with the same suspension setup as mine, and they too run well on the track. We all did these mods back in the day when coil overs if developed for our cars, were worth more than our cars, and just not practical for the street. In my current setup, I no longer have the chevette springs up front. I am using a cut stock rear spring from a 280. (this is due to the midship configuration of my VG and reduced weight on the front end) The chevette springs caused the front to be too stiff after the engine swap, and it plowed badly on sharp turns. Scott.

I am in a similar boat. It is not so much that life is getting in the way, but that there is more to life than just Z's (Yea I said it!) I too have been extremely active in years/(decades past), but your level of interest/activities varies over the years, and that is just a normal thing in life, so don't sweat it. (I have made the decision to sell.) Here is my advice. Sell it. Letting it sit under a cover and rotting, the next thing you know you are storing stuff on it, kids bikes leaning on it, etc is not going to help the value. Sell the car. Don't worry about losing money on your investment. Look at the $ spent on it from the point of view of cost of driving it and take your total $ and divide against the years of ownership, and it won't seem all that bad. I have a ton of money into my z and I can't get anywhere near what I have in it. It is still just a Z car afterall. Lots of Z's around. But when I divide what I have spent on it against my 21 years of Z ownership, it makes it much easier to see the real value of the car. Like I said. There are lots of Z's around, and you can pick one up again anytime. Just my .02 cents. Scott.

There are other forums?!!! oh I see.. you mean other Hybridz.org sites from alternate universes..then uhmm. Yup I'm on them too!

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=154640 I just redid my entire floors and frame rails. Car is for sale too! (shameless plug I know) Head to the fabrication forum. More threads in there regarding all sorts of metal type work. Scott.

VinhZXT thoughts about the convertable just made me think of a miata. Build the Z car as a convertable (for strength, windshield and door window planning, but not the trunk lid mod) Then build a top that looks like our cars roofline, but as a "Bubble top" removable hard top like the older miatas. The "hard top" could be a two piece to give that targa look, or leave it as a one piece removable hardtop.. Everybody wins! Not sure I explained that all that well, but just think of the removable hard top option that older miatas had.

I'm still around, though I don't post much on zcar.com....unless someone is looking for me/my car. Been a long time. Started posting there back about 1995 or so, and migrated here not long after the v8 flame wars. I can think of a half dozen or so that still post here sometimes. Scott.

Ok here are the pics. Please excuse the mess of wires. I never got shots before all the seam sealer/paint either, but you get the idea. I still had the drivers side seat mounted from driving the car home, but you can see most of the passenger side floor. Note that the stock seat mounts were retained.

Finally a partial update. Kinda busy with family this past week. Ok the deal is completed. Labour 1000.00 Floors and rails were about 300.00. I stripped out the interior, and I will have to put it back in, but I don't think I could get a better deal with anyone that I'd trust with my car. Ok so I have not uploaded the pics yet, but the floors look really good. I need to get some rubber floor plugs, then I can start to put all the carpets and console back in. Overall I'm very pleased with the results. It is all tied in with the cage and the rest of the car. There is no way these floors are coming out anytime soon. Cheers! pics to come on my next day off.

Decision is made. http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?p=1105744#post1105744 Time to move on to the next big project. (more on that later)

Well I did find the spare time, and managed to sneak into the shop just as he was closing for the day. He had run out of mig gas, so was calling it a day. A new bottle could not be delivered in time, so it will come in today. Job looks about 85% completed. Both floors are in. Passenger side is fully complete, with extra extensions and bracing per my discussion with him. I asked to have the rail reinforced in the area where it would get put on a hoist. This area is in good condition, but I wanted a good strong transition to the Zedd Findings floors/and rails. I have also asked to extend the rails further back and to wrap up towards the sway bar mounting area. The floor kit supplied by Charlie looks very good, and fits nicely in its new home. I asked for the additional reinforcements for...well you get the idea. It was a bit tricky to tie the floor into the front part of the roll cage and into the firewall, but it looks really good now. Floors will get 3M seamsealer (I checked this stuff out, and it is the same stuff we use in OEM) All the metal inside and out will get primed/painted/clearcoated. 3M undercoating is then going to get put on the exterior. I'm very pleased with the results so far. Car will be finished today, and I can pick it up on the 23rd. I'm into this for well over a grand including the floor kit so far but it is money WELL spent. I will report with a final dollar breakdown and some pics soon. Thanks for following along!

Joker72z. PM sent with specifics I have a bit of time today, and will try and stop by the shop for a little inspection. The suspense is killing me. I missed the car so much, I spent the weekend detailing my two daily cars (since the garage was empty) and then spent the rest of the time in the garage cleaning and organizing for its return. I also cleaned the interior so it will be ready to reinstall. The carpet and centre console/radio will be a joy to put all back together. No big hurry with the heat on in the garage. Time to clean up a few items, and try to neaten up other stuff, touchup paint etc. Scott.

Wow its been this long!? The weather this fall has been sooo great, I've been putting off the work, while I get in "another drive" in before the snow. Well its been more than few "get in another drive". The temps have finally plummeted, and we have had a bit of snow, so its off to the shop. I dropped it off two days ago, and word is it should be ready just before xmas. We'll see. I made it quite clear, that this was to be a thorough job, as the car may be "for sale" Yup I said that. More on that later. So we came to an understanding of how it will be completed, seat mounting, roll cage reinforcement etc. I trust this shop, as he did my original install of the widebody, which was a tremedous undertaking and lots of custom fabricating. I'm extremely busy at work, so I may not get down there to get some pics, so you may all have to wait until I pick up the car. (hopefully the roads will be clear) The plan is to keep the seat mounts as close to stock as possible, so whatever seat I may switch to, can work using the stock rails. I don't plan on putting it actually under the tree when it comes back, but this is pretty much my xmas present for the next year or two. hehehe.

Well if you had a nickle from everyone that did a t top conversion on an S30 chassis, you would I think (20 years of Z foolery experience talking) have approx 5 cents to your name. In all my years I think I have seen ONE s30 converted to t tops. On a scale of 1-10 of difficulty, it would definately be a 12 or higher. As for "bolting on" a z31 5 lug supension. There are no "stock" ways of bolting that up. There are 5 lug conversion kits available for the S30. Again. You would be forging into mostly unknown territory. I am not saying that you can't do it, but simply taking "X" year/model Z car 5 lug suspension and bolting it into your z is not possible. Great build just the same. Don't let me dampen your enthusiasim, but you are much better off spending effort and money elsewhere in your project. Scott.

I think those flaps in front of the wheels are a good idea on a streetcar (when you are trying to improve your cars aero. Like John says. The splitter/bellypan can be much lower on a race car. The flaps are intended to act like an air dam that is lower, yet it is closer to the wheels to reduce the chance of scraping on speed bumps, steep driveways etc. I've noticed them on several different mfg's cars/SUV's etc. I have thought of using them on my belly pan, and even thought of making them springloaded hinged, to allow them to bend rearward to protect against forceful damage incase of severe speedbumps, steep driveways etc. The types I have seen on factory equipped vehicles are fixed, and a part of the moulded front fascia. If they hit anything, they will likely break off/or damage the fascia/moulding etc. You could even angle them slightly rearward on the outermost end, to direct air to the outside edge of the vehicle, instead of facing straight forward like a wall. You would only need a slight angle, and you could bend metal/aluminum in such a way, as to still maintain a forward facing hinge as I have described above to still protect in cases of it hitting the ground. I think I could fab up a bristolboard mock up for a picture to describe a bit better of what I mean. If you plan your splitter/pan properly, you should be able to add it on afterwards, or remove it later on if you don't like it. On a practical note, determining its effectiveness I think is pretty much impossible for a street Z, but it would look cool, and make you at least believe that it "helps" I'm not trying to be sarcasitic here, but just consider that you may not be able to "feel" any difference. I have not been able to notice any difference what so ever in my redesigned air dam and extended bellypan. I can only say with certainty that it did not degrade the handling/feel/stability of the car, though I "believe" that it was a worth while improvement. Scott.

I know of a couple of guys (they don't post here) that have bought parts from them. They claimed it was not the easiest of processes, but they got their parts. Please note, we are considered "local" to this guy, so trips the actual shop was how the process was done. I have not dealt with this guy, but he is not that far from me. I may have to pay a visit and see what kind of luck I have. (no I am not going up there on anyone's behalf) But if I do end up checking it out, I will report my findings.

I'm definitely in the "go to the local paint supply shop" They can talk you through quite a bit, and make sure you are getting the proper "system" for painting/protecting your car. Don't just trust the first shop you find either. Different supply shops carry different brands, and have different levels of expertise. I would stay away from isocyanates if possible. There are products that are isocyanate free. As an FYI, many auto mfg's use paints that are isocyanate free due to tougher regulations, and safety concerns.

A cylinder head is not a performance enhancing weight saving removal idea. Though removal DOES make the car lighter. J/K

Hmm anyone got a spare 40K? I didn't think so. The only way I keep the Z in any senario is for said extra car to be in the under 10's. Performance of said Porsche/Ferrari is basically not important. If I want to go fast, I would keep my Z. It already is fast. This would be our weekend fun car (just as my z is now) I did find an awsome 77 turbo with some nice upgrades, 20K with 90K on it in Florida. My fav retro colour too! (light blue) Very nice/clean looking, but I'm right back at selling the Z. (still an option, though that 77 will be long gone before I could sell my Z.) Just thinking back to when I first picked up my Simmons wheels, and I got a "reasonable" blank check offer on the car. Doh! Seriously though. Saw a ton of early-mid 70's Carrera's (wife insists a targa) in the 5-8k range. That is where the thought of keeping the Z came from. As soon as I get back to 20K+ the Z must go. Scott.

I have never heard of that kit before, but from experience, the chances of it "bolting" on and looking, clean, with minimal and even panel gaps is remote. Some degree of trial fitting, and some degree of minor trimming, and adding some fibreglass to make the gaps (seams) all even and relatively tight fitting is going to be required. They do not come painted, so this type of work can be done fairly quickly with minimal tools. If it is not fibreglass, then the difficulty level will increase. Some tools like sand paper, straight edge, putty knives, dremel or equivalant, and obviously fibreglass materials would be your minimum requirements. This is by no means a comprehensive list. Sometimes extra brackets may be required to help holt the air dam to shape. ie the part may be slightly crooked in its relaxed state, and may need these supports to keep it straight and even once bolted to your car, that is 20+ years old, and may not be a straight as it came from the factory. Not trying to scare you, but this is a LONG weekend job for someone with a tiny bit of bodywork experience. Paint/prep is not included in my time estimate, and I am assuming a reasonable work area and tools. Goodluck.

Wow. Lots of things to go over! I swear this aint a lie. The weather here (Southern Ontario) is still very nice (considering the usual snowfall for this area, and we have had NONE) As soon as I got home last night, I fired up the Z, didn't even let it warm up. Just drove it (gently though) Hopped on the 401, and headed east to reaquaint myself with the car. Nothing remotely crazy, but I was in the left lane more than any other lane if you catch the meaning. The car felt very good, though the lsd needs to be refreshed (I have a spare) and this one is "whining". Boost is a stable 14psi, but the car does get up and go pretty good despite the "detuned" setup. Drove for a good 40 min 1 way. Got on and off a few on ramps that are nice and short to make sure it really is boosting to 14. I have not sent the car to the bodyshop as you can guess. The weather has been too nice to pack up for the winter. I'll take it next week or so. (new floors/rails and seats "while I'm at it") Spent the rest of the evening on the net (with the wife) researching 308's. Yasin. You must have read my wife's mind, cause she asked me to follow up on a "cute" 911, as I was scrolling through pages of adds. Found some for some reasonable $$ for early-late 70's 911 non turbos. At those prices, I don't need to sell the Z! She would even be so gracious as to drive it work in the summer to keep it from seizing up. She even thought a summer roadtrip back from CA with a "new to us" 911 would be exciting! (She is one great catch of a woman) It is a bit of a turn of events, but this option lets me get to keep the "sinister looking" Z (as described by some) Bit of a win win I think. Now to the next hurdle. Whats an older 911 like? They are usually in my rearview when I have encountered them in the past. I have heard that the pedal setup is "uncommon". How about short drivers? My wife is following the thread as well, and thanks you for your insight to help us. Scott.

As the title states. I have an inside connection to purchase a used ferrari 308. 56,000miles, with an asking price of 22K. It is a friend of a relative type deal, that I could get a decent price with no middle man. I have not seen the car in person, but only know that it is very clean, well maintained, not so much as a drop of snow on it or near it. It is a CA car so I would have to pick it up. One serious problem. It passed half of the wife test. The other half....well lets just say my sig picture on this site would need to change. Can't have both. ( I am nowhere near rich) I've always wanted one as a kid, and I know it can't out perform my Z in its current state, but this has zero to do with performance. BUT it is a Ferrari after all. It would just be a fair weather cruiser just like my Z has become. Are these cars failure prone? I can imagine they are expensive to fix. I have not given it too much thought, as I thought for sure my wife would either laugh or kill me for asking for another toy. It's a pretty huge leap, and I am in no hurry. Would I get banned from this site? Crazy talk? Thoughts?

So much for assumptions. My 280 has the MS ECU mounted in the glove box. Easy to get at, easy to hook up the laptop. Who really uses a glovebox anyways? My second choice would be to mount it somehow in the compartment behind the seats..may need a small cooling fan since it will get covered up, but it may keep it cooler than under the windshield. The only problem with mounting it in the rear, is the length and routing of the wires, and making sure it is accessable enough to plug in your laptop to it. (I am assuming a MS style setup) The size of the ecu will be your ultimate guide, and if the engine bay is empty enough, and if the ecu is water/heat proof enough, it could go up there (thinking of ls1 swaps) Good luck. Not many other places to put it.

Ah man. You made me go up and look for it! Freaky! Post it on the Coast To Coast website for George Norry to see!