BLKMGK

Okay, my rear sway bar mounts are hammered, I even had to saw one in half to get it out of the car! Has anyone looked at the Heim mounts that MSA and VB sell? Worth it? Not so much over the cost of urethane mounts that it's not feasible but will it help at all? Much more noise? Since the body mounts would be urethane I figure noise wouldn't be too bad, yes? Possible to make up something myself? I'd seen something for the Mustangs that ought to be similiar but I can't recall how it was done (sigh). Advice and ideas appreciated - thanks! Will be ordering from MSA tomorrow night most likely...

Quite a bit of mine was done inside th ecar. Getting a bead around the very tip top is next to impossible IMO without burning the headliner and whatnot. Mine was painted in the car too. I'll try to get some pics of mine up if you'd like. It's 4 points in the back tied to the rear towers, bars across the top of the doors, down by my feet, across the windshield, and angled side bars that are a pain to climb over. Lemme' know if you want pics and of what exactly you'd liek to see...

No, not my limit but it's some of what's out there. Obviously if there are major improvements people will be interested but for street use it could prove too costly compared to a $100 a corner coil over plus cartridge. Including the camber plates, springs, and everything else puts it more in perspective. Will be interested to see pics of the final part and learn how well it performs on the track!

It may have been RCI that just went out of business. I know it was one of the big guns that went under but I'm not sure which one (sigh). I know the company that went under also produced safety belts, other companies were relabeling their stuff too. Getting hold of them might prove tough as a result if RCI was them (grr). I've got foam in my cell and have never noticed any probs. Then again my setup isn't as demanding either. Is it possible the tank isn't "breathing"? It needs to be able to suck in air as it uses fuel - can't seal it completely...

Better and better! Will wait to see some other articles on it. If some of the Camaro guys jump on it we'll get lot's of good info

Aw man - I was interested right up to that last part - expensive. How much is "very"? Consider that we're already popping in an added $100 per corner for coil overs now - are these WAY rude or just rude? Very just doesn't tell us enough I'm afraid....

VB sells the pins for like $29 each. If someone has a cheaper source I'm all ears as I need a pair of them NOW. If I can find a Motorsport catalog I'll be checking their price too. Bushings in the rear where the mustache mounts to the body - urethane okay back there? I seem to recall people monkeying with that to get driveshaft alignment correct so shoudl I skip the urethane or not? TIA! P.s. MSA sells the pins for $22 each. Damned locking pins are $11 and one of mine is tweaked too. Screw it, I'm going to make it right and be happy. Lot's of anti-sieze though! [This message has been edited by BLKMGK (edited December 18, 2000).]

Fuel pump... Use the stock wire with a relay. Run a hot wire of decent guage from the battery (fused!!) to the relay and use the stock wires to turn on the relay. Mustangs sometimes have trouble with the pumps not getting enough juice, I'd be surprised if the Z didn't also have some troubles. Take the load off the stock wiring with a relay, this will also give you the chance to put a killtheft switch on the fuel pump wiring

NICE RIDE! A shame Jim didn't get the first crossmember like he was supposed to. No biggie, now this guy has blazed the way I guess. The RX7 guys are going to go nuts

Screaming deal on the T56 man! Glad to hear you like it as this is what I've picked too. What rear gears do you have to turn such low Rs at speed in 6th? I hope I don't run into this - would be one of the first times I've had trouble with too LOW an RPM in top gear!

Yup, it was Super Chevy. An article on the Vortech heads too. The only thing I recall on pushrods was to use the rail rockers - since rollers would have problems without mods.

Well, today it was up to 40degrees out, time to get some work done! Spent SEVERAl hours in the garage. Looking through my Haynes manual I came to the awful realization that to pull the entire rear like I wanted I'd have to pull the ends of the lower control arms - the dreaded pins! Gee says I, how bad could it be? My rear suspension isn't all rusted up, it shouldn't be bad. Doh! Passenger side nuts zip right off, I bang on the pin and it barely moves. Long story short - I mushroomed it, bent it, but finally got it out. Do NOT use heat on the pin as it's too tight a fit, it will expand and lock into the sleeves. Passenger side swaybar bolt had to be sawzsalled off too dammit! Driver's side. Bolt zips right off, locking pin was slightly sticky. Bang on pin, it moves a bit, bang it again with a "drift" and out it comes. Swaybar bolt comes right off! Rear on the ground, out of the car! Exhaust hanger had to be sawzalled and I found a giant exhaust leak too. Previous owner did some seriously funky exhaust work here - to include TWO mufflers AND a resonator?! Next up will be removing the rear struts and starting the coilover work. I'm waiting for new seals to be put into my LSD and then I'll swap that in on my garage floor. I've got an aluminum brace so I can keep the finned cover Tips on this part much appreciated as I've not yet been able to visualize how it'll go together (shiver). This is a '72 and I've got a new mustache bar but am not yet sure I need it. We'll see - I'm feeling my way along here and would appreciate some tips. I'll put up some pics as soon as I can, camera has stopped cooperating again (grr). Naturally I forgot to measure the ride height when I started so it may take some trial and error to get the car to sit right when I'm done. Will be doing brakes while I'm at it starting with the rear. I take it that once I've pulled the struts etc. that I'll be looking at a full on alignment, yes? Will pull drum junk of tomorrow night maybe, time allowing. Need to pull out SCCA's boxes, find the instructions, and scope out what's next. I figure I'll be able to do brakes without the rest of the rear in the car - after the coilovers, yes? I'll be doing the outer poly bushings as well (shiver). I can already see that VB or Motorsport will be sending me some "toys" to replace the ones I've broken. Fun Fun! Yes, this is the first time I've pulled apart the Z rear suspension. I've changed the inner bushings to poly but that was it. This is a whole lot different than what I'm used to and I'm flying a bit blind but making progress. WooHoo! ------------------

Don't use the stock RX7TT pumps. I've got an RX7 and am considering upgrading mine as it is said to become a weak point as you surpass 300hp. I'm not sure but frankly I'd rather be safe The Paxton blue pump is what your friend has - I've got one. It's NOISY the way I've got it mounted but I have met folks using them on the street (shrug). I'll be using mine on the street and expect no problems. However it doesn't appear to have a checkvalve in it so starting you have to wait a sec for fuel pressure to build - bleah. The GN Bosch pump are supposed to be good and are certainly a known quantity on those cars. The Supra pump I don't know about but worth looking at - I'd cruise their boards to see what they think - I can give you links if you'd like.

Umm, don't do it. On a V8 the air is drawn from the top of the engine DOWN into the intake. On a Z the air is drawn sideways into the intake. When you run a V8 type carb the air is drawn DOWN, turns 90 degrees (can you say wall wetting?) and then flows sideways into the intake. Poor mixture distribution, wall wetting, and who knows what else kinds of problems ensue. Use a sidedraft carb - it's what they were made for. I'll have three Webbers available soon but they will need tuning for whatever application they are applied to and I'm NOT the guy to tune them I'm afraid.

Don't use turndowns if you can. The sound will echo from the pavement into the car - VERY loud! Turnouts maybe?

Can someone post a pic? Down th eroad I may be looking for an intercooler for a blower and.... Thanks!

Damn, good buy - congrats! As for pumps... Pick up a Mustang mag or maybe a GM performance type mag. Lot's of fuel pumps from Aeromotice, Paxton, and others. NOT cheap but they flow BIG. Th ePaxton red pump might work - I've got the blue. Be sure to mount it with some rubber - it's louder than the damned V8 in my Mustang (from inside). Mallory makes some too but I'm not sure on quality and after seeing how crappy their 5.0 Mustang fuel regulator iswas I'm not sure I trust them very far. Oh yeah, the Buick GN guys run a big external Bosch pump. Not sure what it's off of but that might also be a good OEM quality type pump. Scotty what is that thing? Worth looking at and is it self priming? Check valve in it?

Yeah, I screwed up - COMPLETELY different article! Mine showed up today - much nicer article but still some holes. Thanks for the heads up - I looked for it as soon as I saw the mag. GOOD article on VORTEC heads too!!! A concern that may have been simple mistakes in the article... No O2 voltage for data logging? Umm, what's the point? No data on frequency of logging, wish they had given us traces on the datalogger screenshot too. I'd liek to be able to choose more than those simple things for logging - how about ignition advance? No knock sensor?! The offer a wiring kit for one - I can't datalog that? I think they used the screenshot for one datalog where someone chose some data lines and figured that's all it could do - Holley can't have screwed this up so badly! Um, 8 high impedence injectors, or 4 low impedence. Gee, thanks. What happens when you get to a big blown V8? Try finding injectors in high impedence over about 40lbs in size. The pickings get slim for a reason - high impedence injectors don't react as fast as the low ones and when you get that big it's important to have fast reaction in order to idle a big injector! Grr! I DO like the ability to see the computer corrections in closed loop in a color coordinated fashion. The NOS stuff could be used as a high end retard too if you want They will be selling "retro kits" for "any single plane intake", TPIs, and LS1s. Not sure why the LT1 was left off - maybe since a bunch were MAF? So long as the connectors on the injectors and sensors worked I'd think it could still be done okay. Wonder how th euser will build the initial start maps etc. - I didn't see anything about generating them. Is it batch fire or full sequential? Would liek a MAF option (sigh). All in all a good first article considering I don't think they had an engine to test with. Combined with the other article I saw it helps. Will watch this one and see, if anyone sees demo copies of the software let me know!

Would like to know about the spacer - also any opinions as to fit with 17's vice 18s. I want a bit of rubber between the rim and road plus 18inch rubber costs WAY rude bucks My Mustang is a 1988 LX. 351W w/a ProCharger. Not currently on the road due to my lack of interest lately but it's 95% done (sigh). Motor is new, so is blower, yadda yadda. Pics at -> http://216.254.117.47/development/testweb.nsf Need to put up pics of our Impalla SS too More Mustang pics as I've got time, don't have any real good ones up there righ tnow.

Trans tunnel? Not a concern - whack it and be happy R200? Well, they aren't THAT expensive unless you want an R200 LSD. IF you want that you'll find it only in the 87.5-89 300ZX not in any 2 series Z so.... Look at the interiors, figure on a decent cage no matter what, see what fits you best. The comment about the 260 A/C hurts since I'll be trying to put A/C in my 240 (doh!). Really one is not any better than another but the emissions laws should be a BIG concern. I'd not go older than 1975 personally. Good luck, keep us posted!

I'm still leaning towards the EdelbrockPM combo. Jim Pace sells them in the $190 range in my (free) catalog, not sure on the heads as they aren't GM. I highly recommend getting a GM parts catalog and reviewing some of th estuff in it. For instance - those Vortec heads were first used in a 1996 pickup truck with the RPO L31 option. If they cost $209 new what do you figure they would cost at a wrecking yard? Possibly attached to a motor? They have other hi-flow iron heads too in the under $400 range. I still liek the aluminum though. It's lighter, can be repaired, allows higher compression, etc. etc.. Yeah, it's more expensive but imagine buying iron now and later on buying aluminum - you'll have thrown away money. As for machining the Vortecs - he may be talking about the valve guides (I think). Apparently to run a decent lift cam the springs won't fit over the seals and they musy be machined down. I think the Vortecs are a great bargain head but... I guess I feel that at a certain point of cheapness you're past the point of diminishing returns? Make sense? Try to figure out, total, what you'll be out building this motor before you get too cheap. Penny wise pound foolish could bite you on the butt! I do think a strong end with a shot of NOS is worth considering... P.S. Factory "race" blocks liek some of the GMs? You shoudl see what some fo the Ford blocks require. Finishing of the lifter bores?! Some of that stuff is WAAAY rough. A shame NOS got bit by that - $500 on a Ford block for finish machining would be a bargain (gulp).

I've been waiting to hear about this system - info I'd been given prior to it's release was that it was being designed by known players with past experience and that it would be "awesome". Unfortunatly, as usual, the car mag did a build up and didn't tell us near enough about the EFI. They need to tell us MUCH more about the tuning process for this box, it's datalogging abilities, datalogging rate, number of channels it can log, and give us some ideas as to the software's capability (IMO). I was pretty excited to see the article but it weren't enough... P.S. Hrm just to be sure, this was a big block buildup comparing carb to EFI? Ran out of injector and had to move up to 36lbs injectors? I read it in PHR, my Chevy HiPo hasn't shown up, hope it didn't lapse! I think those mags share articles but if you saw a different article PLEASE tell me - been waiting to see what this puppy's got!

Ditto. The first car I started with had some rust, it needed some paint... in the end the bodyshop bill was $5K and likely to go up once they started work. For $6K I found a car that had a MUCH nicer interior, didn't need paint (it does have some rust - next year I'll fix it!), and had a good drivetrain in it so I could enjoy the car till I was ready to pull parts. PLEASE do not make the mistake I did! Mikelly has my old car and hopefully more energy and time than I had. There's nothing worse than getting into a project liek that and not being able to finish it. Swapping in the motor and trans is enough work - don't set yourself up for the bodywork too - it'll break you.

What I've considered is getting a solid diff mount but putting a piece of rubber on either side of it before mounting it. My thought is that this might dampen the vibrations. Say cut out a piece from an old truck innertube maybe? Not thick but enough to absorb some. Hey, maybe some of those sorbothane shoe inserts? Too thick?

Luv that orange car! Didn't realize the TSW's were 18s - thank you very much for the measurements though If I run 17's in that model can I pretty much use those measurements? did you use spacers? Coil overs, yes? As for twin turbos - you looking at the Incon kit? Cast iron "headers" etc.? Those manifolds weight like 50lbs EACH and if you run GT40 heads one of the spark plugs on the passenger side backs right into the manifold. (ahem) On my car they used spacers to lift the engine up and still had to notch the frame. I've got a sneaking suspicion that the "kit" hasn't improved much except for the nicer ball bearing turbos. Yes, it made 450HP and ran great but there's lot's they don't tell you. The shop that did mine had to restrict the oil feeder lines too as otherwise I blew oil right past the seals. If you're serious about that kit get with me, I can put pics up of it on my WEB site if you'd like too. I've got a set of the Incon manifolds on the floor of my garage. I'd steer you towards a blower personally.... P.S. More pics of the orange car please!!! And I'd like to know more about what looks like a sub box in the back - how's it fit, what had to be done? Neat car Mine looks a bit like it and I might jump on a set of those wheels myself. [This message has been edited by BLKMGK (edited December 15, 2000).]