BLKMGK

Okay guys - I'm real confused now. Rear of my car is bone stock righ tnow. I intend to goto coil-overs from MikeFoto and these will likely be 8inch springs as I understand it. I'm going to be going to 5lugs and most likely 17inch wheels. Width I hadn't intended to go past 8inches becasue I didn't think a 9 would fit without flares. I'm looking at TSW wheels - the Trophy and a couple of others. I've not a clue as to how to modify the rear struts - I'd like to not section them. I understand that the coil-over sleeve slides over the tube and has a bottom bead welded to keep it from sliding all the way down. From the JTR book I understand that there are some spring clearance issues. What I'm not clear on is how to support the top of the spring and what measurements I need to take to keep the lower perch (?) from rubbing anywhere. Can someone who's got something liek this setup snap a pic? The JTR book has a decent one and they even highlighted it by putting some white carboard behind the assembly but I'm not sure how what we're discussing here differs from that. Can someone snap a pic of the upper perch too? Mike, I'm not sure exactly when my 5lug conversion and wheel swap will be done. However, if you're willing to assist me with it I can probably get my hands on an R wheel pretty easily. I can buy the coil-overs from Mike or GC whenever - I've nto already done it because I've got other fish to fry but I can move this up the list if I've got assitance avbailable. My original intent was to use my wheels on the Mustang as an interim test solution. These are 17X7 5lugs from a 94-95 GT. If you want a guinea pig to learn with and measure just let me know - I'm pretty confused right now and a bit intimidated by the whole thought of tearing my entire rear suspension out for a rebuildupgrade... Psst - we can make a tech article out of it too. Hope to have the hood in the paint shop Friday so I can work on that as well...

I believe that the TBI injectors CAN be upgraded. I've seen directions for doing so out there but it's been a loong time and I've lost track of the soource. The DIYEFI guys would be a VERY good source to ask about this IMO. Hacking a GM ECU actually doesn't sound that bad to me if you can find software to do it that's easy enough to operate. I don't know about you but staring at HEX dumps trying to tweak on a motor that cost me a month's pay is a bit scary! I HAVE seen, and posses, some nice GUI software for tuning GN ECUs so perhaps something exists for regular GM stuff - if so I'm all ears - post an URL! Scotty - do you want the software I've got for your GN? Frankly older GM ECUs were pretty crude - pretty much like the older DFI setups. If you can figure out the wiring and the EPROM stuff doesn't bother you by all means go for it. I'll follow your lead P.S. Some tuners use a device in place of the EPROM to allow on the fly tuning. When the final program is reached that gets dumped to an EPROM. I wonder if this might be feasible?

Demons - Mike Kelly has one. I've heard good and bad about them. They're close enough to Holly's that there was a lawsuit Apparently one of the outcomes is that hardware to hook them up is unique to their carbs - so I've been told. So don't expect for a Holly fuel log to hook up and the Demon stuff isn't cheap. If I'm wrong here someone please holler. Billet construction and porous free castings should make a difference but I'm not the best source - carbs are foreign to me and will only be on my car for shakedown stuff. I hope to switch to some sort of injection just as soon as posisble! I'm likely going to use a Holley unless a Demon falls from th esky at my feet or someone who knows carbs backwards and forwards sells me on one and helps me tune it. Hey Mike - that could be you buddy!

Okay - now I'm REAL interested! 84 300ZX mirrors? That would be cool especially if it's the same setup as the MotorSport catalog has. I like their setup but the cost has always turned me off - I figure it's factory something and maybe the 84ZX is it? These allow adjustment from inside the car? Hrm, waitasec - I'd have to fill the holes I've got now and paint the mounting area - doh! Currently my present mirrors look like crap. I need to come up with something nicer as these have turned flat black and a bit chalky. This is the previous owner's setup and while it's not as bad as say the stock stainless mirrors it could use some improvement. What works well, looks decent, and can coveruse the stock holes? I seem to recall Mike Kelly having a neat set of mirrors - Mike where did you get them? I might try having mine painted but I think I could do better. The "Rally" stuff at Pep Boys is kinda' what I'm trying to avoid

Welll... seems to me that perhaps a few more seconds of video tape might just show the scoreboard.. As for staging with the rear tires - yup I'm a member of that club! Came out of the bleach box a touch hard, was real nervous, and saw the right lights on the tree - ready to roll right? D-Oh! Everybody gets nervous at the line, hell how do you even know if it was the regular driver in the car? Cut him some slack - car still ran real nice but I think there was a bit of wasted motion off th eline (shrug). Z's squat - we'll live

My vote? Go with a hotter thermostat - Pete is right on. Yes, th eINTAKE charge needs to be cool so that you get dense air and more oxygen but the ENGINE will make more power with a hotter shortblock. As for things liek Watter Wetter and 40 Below - this is easy, those chemicals break down surface tension and allow a better heat transfer to take place. I've used Water Wetter - it does exactly what it says it will do - lower temps. This is simply because it cools the engine more effeciently and draws the heat out. Mike on your setup the fresh air will keep intake temps cool once you get moving but at an idle the temps will be higher - no biggie and yes I've instrumented this with my Mustang. Even with turbos a WOT blast would see ambient temps in the intake with 10lbs of boost - very nice GM and others didn't just bump engine temps up for emissions. If you floor a cold car and smell gas it's running rich. If you could keep it at that temp all the time and tune th ecarb fo rthat you wouldn't smell gas - but it owuld run like crap too. Not to mention the wear on the components from the cold oil - piston scuff anyone? check out some of Smokey's stuff - I'm pretty sure he advocated a hotter engine temp for more power. Evans cooling sounds really cool - but mucho' expensive. Pullies, pumps, radiators, and special coolant. Engine will run much hotter temp-wise but the coolant will prevent local hotspots and detonation if memory serves - very nice but too pricey for me. P.S. The stuff you put in your dishwasher to stop spots also breaks down surface tension ala 40 Below. I've been told it works great in a cooling system too but I've always worried about water pump wear. Straight water cools better than anti-freeze too if anyone didn't already know that. Anti-freeze raises boiling temps at the expense of heat transfer. If you doubt this try running straight anti-freeze but don't drive far -)

FWIW - I believe the Edelbrock carbs are pretty much just liek th eQjets so I'm puzzled that he thinks they're better. Tuning rods and all - sort of liek Demons and Holly's I think. BTW - Edelbrock has a nice looking dual quad intake. A pair of 500CFM carbs on that would be interesting. Progressive linkage and 1000CFM of carb when it's all done! Pricey but if you're hooked on carbs.... P.S. Spoke to a guy tonight who's running a Procharger blower through a Demon carb. He's having a HELL of a time tuning it but it's running a nice 10lb of boost. Very clean early fastback Mustang with big brakes, Torque Thrust wheels, fresh paint etc etc - it was sweet.

Check Misc. Tech - I've already got a thread going on over there. Stick to 3inch wide for both NHRA and SCCA approvals. I'm going with camlocks that will be mounted on the rear roll bar. Go with the individual harness not the Y else it won't be passed by SCCA. All of this is in the other thread....

Cost was $129 from Summit. I ordered their "trunk kit" and it did nearly the whole car! Actually, I've got a bit left over. I bought some of the spray stuff in cans too - not sure it's worth it. Do consider maybe doing it differently. Price out the Dynamat "Extreme" seems to be the best stuff - it's foil coated and super sticky. If you've got bad noise problems that stuff ought to really fix it! Don't buy their roller - goto the local home store and buy a wodden roller for wallpaper It should be about $6 cheaper. Use a heatgun - this is nearly a must to get it down well. Clean the surfaces very well too - I went ahead and ran over soem crud and it still works great so don't go nuts. The heat insulation in Summit and Jegs is probably better than what I used but I spent only abut $12 at Home Depot on mine The only real noise I'm getting now is in the rear a bit. I've still got panels to put back so that may fix it. I'm holding off on the panels as I'm going to try and wire the running light to blink as a turn signal in conjunction with the rear signal. A little pink Corning is going to go in there too.

Okay, a couple of things. First, I don't think anyone here has done a 300Z yet. First issue will be - does the motor fit? It ought to be much like a 280ZX swap but the hood may be a bit lower. Does anyone know if th e300ZX motor from those years fits in an earlier Z? I think it does. So - motor mounting will probably be like a 280ZX swap ala Scarab. IF that's true Hooker makes the mounts you can use. Don't know about hood clearance. Don't know about trans tunnel but a hammer will work. Don;t know if it will clear the rack or not or how you'll use the power steering. IF you've never done a swap before, and this sounds liek the case, consider doing a swap that's well documented. If you do the 300ZX you'll be pioneering new ground. How do you know a pioneer? He's the one with arrows in his back! In other words, you'll probably find problems and have to engineer solutions unless you can find someone who's already done this. You might be better off finding an easier swap.. As for the rear. We use LSD diffs from those years in the older cars. As such you should be able to swap on a 280ZX R200 flange mount and use the Neapco driveshaft adapter that "we" all use. The rear isn't likely to be your problem... Oh yeah - have you considered emissions laws in your state? I chose a 1972 240 for my swap so I wouldn't have to worry about emissions. An 84-89 300ZX is likely to have all sorts of emissions worries. Unless this is race only be sure to research this BEFORE you buy ANYTHING. Don't throw your money away if you can help it.... Good luck, keep us posted, we'll try to help - but you're doing a swap that I don't think anyone here has done.

Cool, thanks! I'm going to have to think about long tubes some more - really appreciate the measurements! BTW - Aiken? My grandmother taught school in Graniteville and helped run the rec center over there. if you grew up in that area you might have even known her! I spent many a Summer at the Rec center until it got so commercial. Grandparents lived in a neat old house (100++ years old) at the corner of Canal street, understand it's being turned into a B&B. If you're ever over that way I'd love to hear how it looks - it's just across the raod from the railroad tracks and the marching band field. House was sold for a song and vandalized after they moved out before the sale (sigh). Don't know if I'll ever get back there but it was a neat town Small world.....

BTW - shop around Holly's WEB site. It sux but they DO have a Projection unit that appears to be "new". I have no idea what it's pricing is and their close up shot of it is 404 but it might be worth asking about...

I have to wonder - and maybe this is stupid - but has anyone ever wrapped the ceramic coated headers? I'd think the embrittlement owuld be less likely to happen at least...

Thanks guys! Looks liek this project is on hold until my Phantom guages show up - yeah I'm going with the Phantoms! Sounds liek I need to disconnect the cables at the far ends and then pull th eunit out with cable attached - then unhook those - yes? How hard is it to mix up cables? Should I be labelling as I go? Don't expect to be using the vent controls much but whiel it's apart I'll be sure to oil and grease everything! P.S. Will I need to do this for tach and speedo or can those be removed from underneath that portion of the dash? From what I'm seeing that looks to be the case but I want to be sure so I don't do this twice. I've not ordered th etach and won't order the speedo until the revise them with the LCD displays this Fall...

Okay - silly question... What's wrong with the current car that couldn't be tamed down to make it into a more daily driver? IMO it would be cheaper to simply tame what you've got and not hassle with selling it and then buying another car - only to turn around and modify it too... Just a thought!

Your estimates look close to me. Shop around for an ECU and wiring used (duh) and I'd not use a fuel pump that's as expensive as that. How much HP are you trying to hold? Is this an in-tank pump? Sources for in-tank pumps should include Walbro and Bosche. Look at some of the HPs of other cars to see if one is close to yours that you could pirate. Many of the Hi-Po Mustang pumps come from things like little Dodge turbos (doh!). Where do the Buick racers source their pumps? What about a Malory, Essex, or Paxton pump? I've got a Paxton pump on the Mustang - loud as heck but it's not yet rubber mounted. Big as a coffee can too but it'll flow 650hp without breaking a sweat. Also FWIW - I'm told that Coast High Performance and Keith Craft will both build Spyder or Victor Jr intakes as EFI if you ask them. Not sure on cost though but I'm going to check into it Maybe adapt a Ford throttle body or pair of them for an air door? I've seen 90degree adapters with them mounted on there. That would save a good $200 right there.

Okay, what's the trick to removing a 240 Heater panel? How do you get all those cables off - I can barely see them much less get a screwdriver back there! Previous owner hacked my panel up a good bit and I've managed to get a decent one off of E-Bay so... I wish to swap the sucker but boy is it tight in there! While I'm at it - is this the time to be replacing the three guages up top? I can somewhat reach them but I really don't see any better time or easier way to get at them - yes?

Headliner and hatch are the only areas I really didn't do. Was the headliner worth that much? I've got a cage now so pulling it would be a bear but I'm curious. Previous owner used silicone to put the rear hatch trim on so that may wait awhile

Thanks! as to the shift forks - I wonder if it's even worth upgrading. On the T5s there were issues with bent forks from people powershifting and overtravelling the stops. Better shifters with lock bolts stopped this problem. If the Viper has stronger forks becasue of this I'd think a better shifter would be the easier fix (shrug). Does the Viper have different ratios? A taller 1st gear would increase the torque capacity as the multiplication wouldn't be as strong. This is partly what the T5 did to increase it's strength. For us a taller 1st wouldn't be bad I'll worry about it if I ever manage to break the box or if my used unit turns out to need rebuilding (shiver)...

Mike - is the starter in the car mounted etc? Nose of the starter have a support? I'm looking at the F-Body starter myself but if there's a better option I'm all ears. I'll be running the standard flywheel made for the one piece oil seals. FWIw - I spoke to someone who knew folks at a local starter shop who built and customized starters. Apparently the big thing is to use starter motors out of Japanese cars and juggle the reduction etc. Apparently those folks make some pretty heavy duty torquey motors. It's no surprise that you're seeing a Nippon or maybe even a Hitachi motor in your aftermarket unit. Heh, wonder what it sounds like turning the motor over. I can usually tell a Windsor Ford turning over just by hearing th esound

Clint - those are just the maps - NOT the actual software. Looks to be a damned informative site though! I think I DL'ed their maps awhile back to try and learn something about the DFI after I'd given up on mine. Owen, that TPIS manifold is SCHWEET looking! Geez, convert a single plane intake or hunt down one of those - tough decision. Gonna' have to think about this awhile. No room to run the inlet over the radiator ala 'Vette? Bummer. If TBI is an option check out these guys - they've been doing single and dual TBI systems for awhile now -> http://www.turbocity.com/EfiMainPage.htm They've been around awhile and specialize in turbos etc. Oddly enough they don't seem to do any TPI work. Here's a link to some injector bungs. $70 some odd dollars - cool! That's cheap IMO. Then you just have to do the rails, I'll try to find details on doing that - the hole requires a stepped shoulder of some sort and maybe a bushing. http://members.aol.com/bigturbo1/misc.html As a side note - White Racing offers an interface box to stock wiring harnesses that looks EXACTLY like the box I got for my Mustang from Duttweiler - black tape and all. Hrm! No conversion kits I can find for carb'ed cars though but I'm still looking [This message has been edited by BLKMGK (edited September 19, 2000).]

Vipers do have an upgrade or two - the one I'm most aware of has something to do with the shift forks being stronger. Looking through one of my latest Chevy geared mags I spotted much the same question with regards to the T56. The response back from the editor was that they knew of at least one T56 in an aplication that was WAY above it's rated torque and HP. The T56 isn't indestructable for sure but it's likely to be a damned sight stronger than the U-joints in a Datsun rear at least. Remember the lighter weight of our cars too. These transmissions are designed for heavier cars - our lighter weight helps them live under even more strenuous loads. I can't say for sure that the more race oriented transmissions wouldn't hold up better, in fact I'm pretty sure they would. Howver they've got a higher price tag on them, race oriented gear ratios, fitment issues, and shift quality issues. That's alot of issues! Take a look at one of those long shifters with arms everywhere and then look at your trans tunnel - yikes! I'm putting a T56 behind a 383 SBC that's supposed to make 450+hp and I'm honestly not worried about the trans. Heh, for that matter I'll be running the old clutch that came with the trans until it dies FWIW hi-po Mustang guys are starting to look in to the T56 now, the shop I deal with has installed at least three of them with no failures - yet. You've got time so wait and see how the rest of us fare and I'll keep an eye on the Mustang guys to see if they run into issues. P.S. %%$!! please delete th epost above this one - I can't! [This message has been edited by BLKMGK (edited September 19, 2000).]

Mike, I know you and some of the other folks have been interested in top end speed. Check out the November chevy Hi-Po issue. They talk a good bit about what it takes to get some of the GM stuff up in to the 200mph range. They talk about spoilers front and rear and how it effects the handling and whatnot. If you guys are seriously going to go 150+ then this is important - even the new GM stuff starts to get squirrly at those speeds... One of the other Hot Rod type mags had an article on this too but it's not handy and was mostly drag strip stuff. These cars had all sorts of interesting quirks just running down the 1/4mile track. Deforming noses, hoods, even doors popping loose! Good stuff to be aware of...

Hrm, WhiteRacing isn't coming up. However (*ahem*) I've got a copy of the software here somewhere... Cable has a potted box midway down it - not sure what's in it but it's not straight through. http://force-efi.com/parts.htm them some mighty purty air doors! I like the purple one - a shame it's too big As for fuel rails - buy the stock and make them. OEM stuff will have fittings already on them and in this case you won't know spacing for the holes until AFTER the injectors have been mounted. It's a custom job I'm afraid but several places sell the stuff in 6ft lengths and I don't think it costs too much - but drilling them may be a precision job. Drilling the intake for injectors shouldn't be too bad. You need a press and you need to be using the right size drill but overall it's not bad. I've seen articles on it and they used epoxy to hold them in and a grinder to remove the excess bung through the port. surely somewhere on the 'net there's an article on it...

Oh yeah! I just test drove the 240 with the full DynaMatinsulation done. I've nto quite got it 100% put back together but from the spin up the block I'd say it's MUCH quieter. No more road rumble, not much of anything in the way of noise except the exhaust out the back. I'm now wondering if I can get some damping on the rear hatch My advice, if you're going to be puling the interior anyway, is to do it! Added maybe 15lbs to the car but made it much more quiet. I've got the stuff in the doors, rear quarters, all over the floor etc. etc. But the DynaMat trunk kit, get a wallpaper wodden roller, use a heatgun to heat it up, and go nuts. I believe you'll be most happy with the results I am! Oh yeah, still getting some exhaust fumes but I think 99% of that is from the old stock gas filler I've yet to plug. That and the hole going under the car to the old tank which has been replaced with a cell. If plugging those and venting the cell properly doesn't solve the exhaust smell I'm going to be having fun tracking down the source of the leak...