Pharaohabq

YEah, on our other thread we were talking about this. I had been thinking about the different type of lights we could put in. The problem is most lights these days are not flat 90 deg to the road. so fitting them into our buckets is difficult. I wanted to put in alternate lights then use those plastic bucket covers over them to preserve the Z look. That Taurus light conversion is cool, but a little more than I'd want to do. Ideally they'd fit in the stock buckets. . I'd looked at a lot of alternate bulbs and setups, just trying to make some match and get something different without ending up with the nuclear nipple look. keeping the projectors offset helps a lot. The Jeep liberty bulbs might work as they stand out a bit, but are still 7", though they're not projector and we'd still need the clear S30 bucket covers. I need to drive around with a measuring tape to see what would fit when I see one I like. Keep me apprised on what you come up with. I'd be willing to collaborate. Ideally we'd be making pyrex S30 covers that attach to whatever lights as sealed units. but that's smoke for now. Phar

so, you're saying using HF cheap paint guns for color/clear is just asking for trouble and that I should go find a decent devilbiss HVLP for color/clear. the $20 HF gun I have is only good really for primer...? thanks Phar

Pretty nice, and point taken, I will remove my windows, I haven't decided if I'm going to do the paint myself or not, but if I do then I'll be sure to vent the garage well. that and spray down the floors w/ water before hand. it looks great tho. Can I ask where you bought the paint from? Phar

Well, if you were taking I 40, I'd say I'd had a spare bedroom you could crash on for a night in albuquerque. Our Z club might even have been able to offer more assistance. But your'e taking the northern route, which is smart, we have killer vicious heat down here in the SW, you'd be much happier up north, esp w/ no AC. Going through portland is cool, but since you'll be close by you should stop off outside portland and see the Spruce Goose, it's at the evergreen museum, it's definitely something to see before you leave the west coast. It looks like you've got a plan, hopefully your 15MPG is a conservative estimate, I used to get 25 on the highway in my stock 280. If you go with the electric fans, you'll save a bit on gas since your engine won't be directly driving them. so yeah, go with the fans. the T5 would also help your mileage a lot, and make for a more comfortable drive, on the noise side. aside from that I 95 is a little less curvy than the PCH, but the view sucks... Oh, bring some hose clamps and screw drivers. a good pocket knife is always good. Spare alt/fan belt.

might be thermaltime... it's that 7th injector dealie at the front of the engine.

Awesome Doc, I might have to drive down one day and see your shop. I really want to pour some concrete in my drive and put in a shop in my back yard. I don't know crap about pouring concrete tho. Your Z's are a lot more Zerious than most I've seen around Abq. It'd be real nice to have a lift in my garage. though I'd need to rebuild the roof to put one in. I'm not afraid of framing, it's explaining what I want to do to the house to my wife that's scary. Phar

Yeah I thought about that, but that's why you put things like the clock and A/F Ratio tward the passenger side. It's just an idea tho, and nothing I've seen anyone do so far. Phar

Interresting... Wow, not registered since 99... it kinda looks like a black pearl Z tho. minus the decals ofcourse. Not enough left of it to make any difference. looks like you're doing some decent work on it though. You mind letting us know the Vin? Phar

awesome! hope the DMV lady didn't ream you too bad. I've had good luck and bad luck at the DMV as I'm sure we all have. Hopefully you won't have any trouble registering it out East, when the plates expire. I'm glad you found the 5X tranny, that'll make it a much more enjoyable trip. I hope the rest of your parts show up soon, you're getting close to the wire.

I was going to say, that's G-nose abuse! almost as bad as spilling my beer!

The "Search" link on the blue bar above... Aside from that you've about got it covered. You really should read as much as you can and LS/V8 swaps ahead of time, and then look for a good source on all that. Make sure you get not only the Engine but ALL the associated wiring/computer modules etc. Getting a conplete wreaked up donor car is the most favorable way to go. Make sure you understand everything before you take on the project. something like 80% of these swaps never get completed. Also, hopefully, you can weld, since that's pretty much required. Oh you need to look at the rear deck, hatch and tirewell area. Phar

yeah, you might right click/download the files, then you'll have them for later reference.. oh what was it, I think it was on a Toyota MR2, I say mirrors that might work today... I'll compile the list here when I get more time, Anyone see any others that look like they might work, and look decent? Phar

the Haynes manual is pretty good for the swap too in regards to timing and all that. it's really not brain surgery. be ready to buy a gasket set though, because if you do muff up your timing chain, you'll have to pull off the front covers to put it back on. especially with keeping the tensioner in place. It's a lot easier to swap, if you pull the engine from the car and put it on a stand. There's really just a few dots to line up, but becareful with your Cam, and you might as well replace all the seals while you've got it apart. If you pull the engine, then Popping out the pistons and honing the cylinders and refreshing your bearings and rings is pretty easy. not to mention it's a good time to replace the water, and maybe the oil pump. A new timing chain isn't required, but if you've got it apart it's a good idea if you've got a lot of miles. these are 30+ yr old cars. Phar

ditto, this is exactly what I was thinking. I used to love how tight my 83' RX-7 turn radius was. it would be hard to match that. Gotta love being able to turn around in a standard 24' side street with room to spare. GSLX or GSXL -13B was mine, it rocked, I never shoulda sold it. but hey it got me back into Z's... Phar

Well that sucks you guys might loose the shop, but before you do, you should try putting ads up in the local Craigs list, my brother's roofing biz was sucking ass, then he did, and now my little brother has more toys than me ... try it out... As for the Z, you can still try to get a title. it would suck if you had to give it up, but it's pretty rough as is.. 2EightTZ4Me, You're thinking of parting it right?

I'm listing mirrors sets that have both sides that appear to mount at the correct angle on the doors of cars. Most of what I've listed appear to mount at about 45 degrees. I really like those RX-7 mirrors on the S30. But I just bought a set of S2000 electric mirrors. I'll mount them up and take some picts. And now another type that would work. (AND is actually a NISSAN part) 82-83 Nissan 280ZX mirrors.

here's a multi gauge idea I drew up for another thread: Something like that can be done w/ the high density foam and some elbow grease. you might want to search on Dash Repair for the how to on dash modification. as for a needed gauge, I'd say a real oil pressure gauge, because the stock Oil pressure gauges suck butt for accuracy.. Phar

Yeah, those are okay, I wasn't real impressed with the mounting he did though. Do you know what bike he's pulled his off from? I also found Mid 2000' Honda Civic Audi TT both have mirrors that look like they might work well. Oh and if you're rich, some Bentley mirrors might work.

Yeah except for the rear strut tower being in the way. That back window is pretty easy to remove. I'm not sure how easy it would be to make it so it'll be able to roll down. not to mention you don't want to weaken what little B pillar you do have. I was going to convert my rear windows to openable ones like on the 2+2. that'll give me more airflow inside the car. that along with my series I hatch should make for quite a lot of ventilation. that Red 240 is pretty sweet btw...

hey good luck in GA. don't spend too much time, because remember you can buy another Z pretty cheap. just look at craigs list, or the papers. It depends a lot on you tho. I wouldn't want to spend anything on it until I knew I was going to be able to get the title for it.

nice!, I've often wondered about the Flat black story, since it's not so common for people just to leave things flat black. You might want to break out the wire brush and hit some of that rust on your radiator mount while you have things out. It's a good opportunity to use more of that flat black...

Well being that you're short on time it might be worth dealing with the jerks at your pick n pull. the guys at mine don't know squat. I can go put MAF's off the newer nissans, they sell them for $15 bucks, as a sensor, and I can sell them for $60 on Ebay. It works to support my Z habit. What do you think they'd want for a tranny? You might take the flywheel and clutch too, if you think it'd be any better than the one you've got. you might also grab the driveshaft, if you think it's any different than your S30 shaft, but it's probably the same. I think they're all interchangeable before 83'. A 5 speed will save you a lot on gas on your trip. not to mention it's more comfortable and a stronger tranny than the nissan 4sp. Are there any local Z clubs? someone there might have a tranny. Phar

Perhaps you could use those with an 8MM thick ABS tube. Sanded and polished a tube would make a great bezel. though you might have to size one to fit. shouldn't be hard w/ a heat gun. Oh and what B'mer are those seats from, they look pretty nice.

that Think Boost gauge rocks tho. it would be a great clock replacement for an L28ET swapped S30!

if you can find one of those old York compressors, the Jeep guys love them for OBA. YEah, okay if you're not worried about the compressor and the lube then go for it. I'd like to hear what you come up with, especially if you make the compressor be one from a 350Z... since that's the one I've got sitting on a box in my garage. Phar