Tank

Thanks Pharaoh, I'm looking forward to seeing your steering set up. That's going to be really convenient. I have been thinking of going with the dupli color truck armor for the underside of the car. Same thing as the rhino essentially. That is a great idea for the rear wiper, very cool!

Awesome build, looks fantastic so far.

Thanks for the tip pharaoh, I think I'll give that a shot tomorrow. After the flu, it has been ridiculously cold, like sub zero cold. So I'm really looking forward to getting back on this.

Will do astroboy, I've been laid up with the flu all week so nothing new for now. There are some great resources here on hybrid, I'll be glad to help you however I can.

Russ- I replaced both rails and floors with my car on jack stands. Did one side at a time with the trans crossmember and rear LCA/diff crossmember in place. The car was pretty well stripped and still very solid. No issues at all.

Pharaoh, I just spoke with JustDashes....and it's definitely not in the budget. At least not for the immediate future. Maybe after I take the wife on a vacation! In other news, The gas tank is being sent off for restoration tomorrow or Monday. FINALLY received my replacement body parts after a 3 month wait so body work is in full swing. Received some Z1 stuff for the engine- lightweight fly, clutch, kenetix v+ upper plenum Finally have the correct tee fitting to run the stock oil pressure sender and the pressure sender for the gauge. This little piece is very specialized and WAY overpriced. FYI- BSPT male for the block, BSPT female for stock sender, NPT female on top for gauge sender Anyone have a ring gear stopper tool for the VQ motor by chance? This keeps the flywheel from turning when tightening bolts either on the flywheel or on the crank pulley bolt. I can't bring myself to by a $220 tool that I am only going to use once or twice, but hesitant not to use it because I don't want to damage the flywheel teeth when tightening the bolts.

The dash cracked somewhere new. That's what changed my mind to do something else with it, but I've got some time to think about it. The metal driveshaft is probably what I'll end up with but I will explore how much the carbon fiber version would be. The short nose R200 is definitely a big project to take on, or expensive depending on doing it yourself or paying for the kit. I would like to see more info too. On another note, I created some brackets and gussets, had them cut out and I welded them on the front camber plates for a strut bar. I plan on cutting the factory engine cover, sort of a slot for the bar to sit in. Have you made or seen how anyone else has done this with a VQ swap? I post some pictures later.

So I made it down to Daytona for the Continental sports car race today. It was freaking awesome! Here are some cool pictures

I thought about starting all over with the new crack but came to the realization that this is over 40 years old and will keep happening. I actually have a full dash cap for it but was not happy with the way it fit so I figured I would give the repair a shot. How does your dash cap fit? The center gauge holes seem to be too small and the entire cap seems to be too short as the vent cutouts do not line up. Some manipulating was to be expected, but not as much as what I would have to do to make it fit right. I know I received the correct one because I have a 73 (9/72 production date) and I believe it is unique to that year (maybe a 260 as well). I already have a long nose R200 3.9 rebuilt and I installed the OBX helical locker in it with the RT mount used as a constant state snubber. As for axles, I have gone round and round on this one and I'm thinking of getting the Driveshaft Shop axle kit or Wolfe Creek. Leaning more towards Driveshaft shop because they are local and I am having them make my driveshaft. Speaking of driveshaft, they do make carbon fiber shafts so I'm thinking of having the stock Z33 driveshaft I have cut down to size and an adapter made to bolt to the pinion flange. Just an idea...but It may be more cost effective to have an entirely new shaft made. I haven't gotten that far yet. You may have to trim the 86 axles for the Z34 cv's/adapters to fit. But if you have to do that, you may have more money invested than it's worth. And that's exactly the type of scenario I have be going over and over. I hear you on the family, that's why I'd love to have this "finished" in the next few months, not only so I can race it this season, but we are starting a family soon.

So I was installing the new gauges in the dash and starting to prewire and I flipped the dash over so that I could get easier access and later noticed a new crack in the dash. Not sure how I did it, but that is frustrating, probably going to look at some other solutions such as a full cover or maybe getting it upholstered. I spent a lot of time getting that thing just right...but I'm glad it happened now instead of when it was back in the car.

Small update, I am finished with the gas tank. Holes drilled for the aeromotive unit and fuel level sending unit. It is ready to be sent off to be restored at this point. I also have been working on restoring the dash. It had one large crack in the center and one small on the right side. It really wasn't in that bad of shape, I have seen many that are way worse. I went with the napa bumper repair, texture, then paint method. It turned out pretty good. I hope it stays this way. I was finally able to get everything mounted and are now ready to tear the car back apart for paint. I really hope to have this thing painted in a month or two, but we know how this sort of thing goes...

Yeah, further info here. They ended up with a car that was built by a member here and copied the build.

Keith I need to do the same, I have put all my spare time into my VQ swap for the past 6 months. So I owe my wife a vacation...but I need to be finished in March for the 2015 autocross season. It's funny my wife is constantly seeing boxes being delivered and I get the look "are you done yet, is it my turn?"

Thanks Pharaoh, I've been keeping up with your build as well as all of the info you have shared. I can't wait to see your car finished. I'm about 2 weeks away from blowing the car back apart for paint. As for the clutch setup, I'm happy with the results. Plus I will be able to find replacement parts for years to come. I fitted the pedal assembly so that it is in the stock location even with the addition of the .125" plating for firewall bracing.

So worked a little on the gas tank last night. It has a long way to go as far as welding and then restoring, but i believe this will work. I had the welder too hot in a few places and had to chase it, oh well, I won't quit my day job just yet.

For the Nissan people. I am installing an '05 VQ35DE into my '73 240 for which I have had for 15 years now. This project also includes all restoration work needed as well. This is the second rebuild and 3rd engine, this time being much more in depth. I have already replaced the floor boards and frame rails with sub connectors, full suspension, steering, and brake replacement among many other things. If it's on the car, it's been touched. I won't go into too much detail as there are others that have done so very nicely, however, I will point out what I have done differently. SWAP GUTS So I have researched and researched and reread everything I could find before starting this. Hell it took me 2 years just to decide what engine to swap into it (RB, LS, LQ, L99, etc). I ended up with the '05 engine, 6 speed, engine harness, ECU, accelerator pedal, clutch pedal box, clutch master, brake booster/ master cylinder, and driveshaft. All from the same car with 59k miles on it. And for those interested, this ran me about $2500 from a local salvage yard. I used McKinney Motorsports mounts, Hoke Performance (Austin) shifter relocation and modified stock fuel rails. Which by the way, the fuel rails look great, more info on HokePerformance.com or on FB. FITMENT For those familiar with this swap, you probably already know which way I went for engine management according to the parts list, Zfever. Currently I am finishing up all fabrication on the car before taking everything back out to paint. So I will not get to the wiring and firing bit until January or February. As for the Mckinney Motorsports mounts, they work, but I have found that if you are installing this engine and trans into a 73, nothing fits easy. It is different from a 72 in the transmission tunnel and in my 73, the bracing is a U shape. In a 72, it is 2 braces, one on each side for the stock transmission mount to bolt to. I had to cut it out for the trans to go up all the way. And the K member...jeesh, I cut the hell out of it and boxed it in and used gussets. Also cut for the oil filter and oil pressure sender, both boxed in. You are limited by two things here when installing this into an S30, the firewall and the front crossmember. Then there is the hood, I have never had a stock hood on the car so I picked one up locally for 50 bucks. It too had to be modified to clear the intake manifold because of the mounts. I bought the car with a fiberglass cowl induction hood. Installed I'll get better pictures later, but ultimately I'm happy with how it sits now. I added some plates to the floor where the transmission cross member bolts up. This reinforces the area and ties this into the frame rails. They are tacked now and will be fully welded when I remove the engine/trans. Gauges I bought Speedhut Revolution gauges and modified the stock housings so they fit like stock. There have been numerous write-ups on this so I won't go into detail but here is the mockup. I am using the GPS speedometer so that I do not have to fool with speed sensors or a turk system. The coolant temp is fitted in an adapter inline on the upper radiator hose while the sensor for the electric fan will be in the upper coolant tube at the block. The oil pressure sensor is in the stock location. I also have the speedhut fuel level sensor in a modified stock tank, more on this later as this is still in the works. Other Parts I also have electric power steering. It's the kit from ZPowersteering.com. I bought one of the first NRG hub adapters for the S30 to adapt to their quick disconnect and steering wheel. AutoPower roll bar, 1 3/4" bar welded between the rear strut towers for the harness bar, Corbeau seats, dapper lighting projector headlights, oh and I've had Rota RBR 17x8.5 on the car for a few years as well as TTT camber plates, rear control arms, tension rods, GC coil overs (225/250), Tokico adjustable, ST rear sway, MSA front sway with plates. R200 with OBX helical limited slip carrier 3.9 gears, Blah blah the list goes on...as I said, if it's on the car, it's been touched. But on que for purchase are the Driveshaft Shop axles and driveshaft, and some goodies from Z1. Pedals Initially, I wanted to swap the pedal assemblies for the 350Z clutch and brake. However, the 350Z brake pedal assembly will not fit without lowering the booster and pedal because the top of the pedal assembly hits the cowl. I did manage to squeeze in the 350Z brake master cylinder and booster. I'm not sure if anyone has done this so here are some more details. This will NOT work with just any motor. For sure will not work with a carb'ed L series with stock linkage because the booster is in the way. I drilled the new bolt pattern for the booster and enlarged the opening a few mm. The 350Z booster is huge, it takes up a lot of space, including the stock clutch cylinder. It will NOT work with a stock clutch cylinder which brings me to the next part. I was able to fit the entire clutch pedal assembly from the 350Z. Since the booster covers the stock location, it is moved outward by a couple of inches. It is a very tight fit but with the way the pedal is bent, it works great. I reinforced the firewall with some plating so it doesn't flex as it is outside the stock reinforcement. Fuel Delivery I have the Aeromotive Phantom System that is all in one, bladder and pump. This is what I am currently working on, I am modifying the stock tank to fit this unit. Basically taking the tallest part of the tank, lowering a corner of it to fit the Aeromotive unit as the AN fittings on the top require this modification. Fuel is delivered through new aluminum 3/8" feed and return. Cool fuel is delivery straight to the rails via Y splitter, then run through the Aeromotive FPR. Soft lines are black nylon -6 an. This is enough for now, let me know if you have any questions that I might be able to help with!

Nice, I'm ready to do the same modification with the same fuel setup. My tank has been sitting for about 3 months. My aeromotive kit came with additional rubber pads to install on the top of the tank, however I am planning on modifying the tank just as you have. It protects the connections and makes it easy to service.

Allen, I have a 280Z 5 speed transmission I am getting ready to take out of my 240. It is in decent shape, PM me if you are interested, I am also in NC.

I have a running F54/N42 setup with SU carbs and MSD ignition that I will part with. It is currently ready to be pulled from my 240. PM if interested. Thanks, Tank

I second this, makes it much easier if you start the thread first!

After months of traveling a lot with work, I finally got the chance to take the diff out and inspect the obx unit. The shop I had change the bearings in the diff had torqued the cap bolts on the obx too much AND used red thread locker. After cleaning that up and looking at my washers, they were not all centered thus not doing their job. So i reconfigured them and reinstalled everything. It works good now, although I did hear my exhaust hitting the housing some, there was plenty of room with the R180. But at least the differential is ok now!

I have the rbryant kit installed in mine, I'm just running into some rubbing issues with the passenger side stub/pumpkin. I am going to take it out and fab a solid spacer for mine instead of washers.

What axles are you using? Also, will you post your washer stack orientation? Thanks.

I'm in Durham, we may be able to use my 240. The interior is gutted except for the dash. But I can take car of that. Let me know.

Just to rule out the obvious, I would double check the part number of the OBX unit to make sure it is correct. This is the first I have heard of this problem, I know mine lock in tight with the stock 280zx stubs. But with the halfshafts bolted to them, it scrapes the housing upon deceleration because of the play in the worm gears. The sun gears are identical but have to be oriented opposite of each other for the c clip grooves which it sounds like you did. Does you mechanic accidentally have the stubs mixed up? Is the groove clear and straight on the stock 280z stubs? I know these are obvious questions but possibly overlooked?