BLKMGK

Easier? I'm not sure anyone has claimed it's easier - in fact it's probably harder. With the 350 you can get pre-made mounts and th eswap is better documented. You can also get a strong 6speed. With the 302 you get none of that and must make your own mounts. To get a 6speed with the Ford you'll have to buy new and get around the slave cylinder issues etc. The Ford motor IS lighter though and can be mounted up just fine if you fabricate the mounts. What year is this 302? Is it out of a Mustang? will you be rebuilding it? With 80K on the clock I'd be checking out the rings since the Ford "low tension" rings tend to lose tension more quickly than standard rings. What all does the $200 buy you?

Never seen that writeup - thanks! One of these days I'll sit down and add up all of the parts that I'd need to use to setup the LT1 computer on a regular motor. I see no reason why it wouldn't work given the correct inputs. The ignition would be the hardest part IMO since I'd not be using the optispark deal. One of these days I'll research it, MAF just makes the whole setup so much more forgiving from a tuning standpoint... P.s. Do let us know when you get pics up. I'm sure everyone would be interested, especially if you've got the LT1 all wired up

Man, that's just not fair! Wish they had an actual picture of the motor though - I HATE it when they use pics from other places like that! I seem to recall shane Racing being one of the big sellers of those motors. Been reading my RX7 book here lately, sure would be fun to have a Turbo II motor in something small like a Miata or 510...

Let us know what you think of LT1 Edit please. I'm interested in it as it could allow people to use the LT1 computers as "poor man's" DFI. Since the LT1 has a MAF and I prefer MAF it might be a better swap than the DFI even I guess it'll depend on how friendly the LT1 Edit software is. I hate their restrictions on the ECUs but I guess I can understand why they're doing that...

Hrm! $900 for the motor, transmisison is probably not too bad, some wiring which would be a PITA, and away you go? Boy, that DOES sound like an interesting swap. How hard would the mounts be though? That's the killer part IMO is figuring out all of that. Wiring might be as simple as using the stock harness standalone for the stock wiring. We need ot get folks to document things like wiring and mounts. We need more 5.0 docs for this stuff too.. I'd expect you'd have to consider using the frame instead of the crossmember but with a little welding that's not too bad. If you go forward with this please document the heck out of it as I and others would be VERY interested in it.

Okay, I've got measurements for ya' THIRTY inches wide, 24inches deep, 20inches tall w/no oil pan. Oil pan is shallow up front I'm told. WIDE but my friend says he thinks it would fit having looked at my car but we did NOT try to measure the engine bay. Headers tuck up nicely, hard to explain how they angle etc. If someone gets a chance measure up the engine bay on a Z and let us know how close it is

Doh, okay guys thanks! Makes sense now that I think about it. Hrm, maybe shorten it and then stretch it out? Replacement spring would certianly b best tho' I'm sure. As for no added resistance - Ross something's been changed, trust me! I considered snipping off the end of the solenoid which would disable the "feature" but then it would be as weak as the other gears and I'd prefer not hit Reverse at speed. I considered wiring it up to the brake pedal too and will go that way if no easy psring solution pops up. Ah well, will try to document this on my site with pics. Just haven't had time to put them up yet.

I've got a 3.7 in my Z now and a T56. I can't say I've driven it much but I've not found that the 1st gear is objectionable. Unfortunatly I've also not gotten it up to a high enough speed to check out 5th or 6th. As much as it grumbled skipping from 2nd to 4th I'll be interested to see how it performas in the higher gears. Anyway, a 3.90 isn't too far of from 3.7. I'd think it would be okay so long as the tire wasn't really short. I think the range of tires we're running may make some difference...

Just a heads up... I've pulled my reverse lockout unit and completely dissassembled it. I see how it works, why it works, and possibly how to make it more tolerable. I've taken some pics of it but have not yet had time to post them. In short - there are two springs in the unit. The solenoid acts to force the transmission shifter to press against the larger spring when it's not been activated. This larger spring looks like a darned valvespring! It has to be compressed just to be assembled. The second spring looks like somehting you'd find in a ballpoint pen - very weak. When I've posted pics it should be a little more clear how the solenoid works. I think my first mod will be to shorten the stock heavy spring such that it need not be compressed in order to assemble it. I DO want reverse to be tougher but right now it requires TWO hands! An extra push is okay but having to undo the belts to get it in reverse isn't okay I'll let everyone know how this goes. So far it's required NO special tools although pulling some of the clips without the special pliers has been a PITA.

My desires are somewhat simple I think. I want to do th edogleg flat pieces just behind th edoors inside - they're cardboard now. I want to do door panels but th ecurve at the top complicates this IMO. Lastly, th eheater panel. I'd actually liek that done much liek the stock one with a radio cutout and map light but flat where the heater controls go. I expect to put in Vintage Air eventually and would use their custom control panel instead of the stock Z setup. I often pnder a dash cover too but honestly I'm not sure how well that would work and it's a REAL complicated piece IMO. Heck, a complete console would rock too but that's also complicated IMO. If you ever decide to move forward or turn out a piece or two keep me in mind please.

I have some shots that migh thelp - up on a lift too I'll TRY to get them up tonight, otherwise bug me about it. I've also got shots of the entire exhaust removed and on the ground while the trans was being yanked out. This is on a 240Z BTW, very little clearancing needed to be done to the tunnel...

There are cheaper clutches. I belive mie is made by RAM and it sure as heck didn' cost $500. IMO for a mostly stock motor in a lighter car the OEM or aftermarket replacement clutch is fine. I'll let you know if I smoke mine

Hrm, the one with a 'Vette rear in it sounds VERY interesting. If nothing try to get some pics of how it was done for Scottie Overall the collisions and thefts wouldn't bother me so long as the car looked okay. However it sounds like the car might not be "okay" so be careful.

Hrm, folks are tossing around weights here.. I've GOT a fiberglass hood myself, one of the subtleZ units. Cost about $300 or so. Weight is 15lbs, stock hood is 30lbs. Folks, that's not all that heavy. I too wouldn't mind a CF hood but that's a bit too pricey. Kickn - you interesting in doing some CF? There's a few parts I'd like done that others might also be interested in. Some pretty simple (flat) others a little more complicated like door panels. I'd love to have a nice heater panel done in CF (sigh). If interested let me know and maybe we can work something out. IMO, post about this hood on ZCar. You might still find someone here interested in it but over there you'd almost certainly find a couple If it weren't quite so expensive (don't forget shipping!) and I didn't already have a 'glass hood I'd be interested... [ August 21, 2001: Message edited by: BLKMGK ]

Ross, isn't your setup in the SCARAB position? I went through this EXACT same HELL myself and the lower driver's side mounts I tried were a no-go inthe JTR setback. The alternator hit the motor mounts! My solution, after a TON of trial and error (including the Vette' mount BTW which I still have but hit my valve cover) was to bite the bullet and get a LONG water pump. Once did that I bought a couple of cheapo' brackets and I was done! There's also a VERY nice heim setup from March that would work but only with the LWP. SWP was just too much hassle for me. However if you've got a short alternator like Pete you can do his setup - very slick! Use the search and you'll find my agonizing over this just a couple of months ago. Should be a HUGE thred on it. w/pics........

Hrm, how well do you think they would look in brushed aluminum instead of polished chrome? Still deciding on a mirror setup for my car. Mike, how did the Miata mirrors work out?

Trust me, that's a better way to go. The more stuff is polished and chromed the more time you spend with Qtips and polishing compound. Not to mention the PITA of polishing to begin with. My car has minimal polish and if I could've found this alternator in cast aluminum I'd have done it I think brushed looks great (shrug) Red calvecover and polished carbs will look wonderful. See if you can find th etextured paint, I've forgotten what it's called. You usually see it in black but there must be a way to get it in red.If you want to polish just the raised letters on the valvecover do this: Use very fine wetdry sandpaper to sand the raised letters smooth. Don;t worry if it gets on the surrounding area but try not to scuff that too much. Once it's pretty smooth switch to soapy water and even finer grit if you can find it and then to Mother's or Wenol metal polish. Once real shiney prep the rest of the valve cover for paint but be careful not to dull the raised letters. Just before painting smear vasoline carefully and thinly over the raised letters. Spray the paint and allow to dry. Carefull wipe away th epaint stuck on the surface of the vasoline and clean the goo off. TaDa, paint didn't stick to anything but the surrounding metal. I've done htis a couple of times and it's always worked well so long as the jelly didn't get on anything but what I was protecting.

Try this - look at a 68 fastback Mustang with the scoops on the sides up high. If you're going to scoop air for th ebrakes I'd do it there or down low where earlier Mustangs had scoops. Having a single vent up high just doesn't seem like the way to go IMO (shrug).

I've got silicone valve cover gaskets now with a metal frame inside. I thnk they're still leaking though - grr! Don't think I'm willing to put more pressure on them with these aluminum heads etc. Will see how they work out when the motor is running again. This may be spooge left over form the previous gaskets and th ework done on the car. Going to have to Simple Green the entire engine bay darn it. Yick! Flat black holds oil...

Pete, I think that's the trans in the Impalla SS, yes? If so that computer had better be programmable by the end user. In the Impalla if you get off the gas in the top of first from part throttle it shifts into second VERY hard and shocks the whole car. I've been in two Impallas that have done this and have heard of others doing it too. If it did that in a Z you'd hate it - bad enough in a 3 ton Impalla! Hopefully the programming is better in that module. I've been tempted to get the LT1-Edit software just to fix this...

LOL, that's where mine pops and crackles a bit in the exhaust now Hrm, migh thave to have someone follow me one evening and see if there's anything blowing out the back. I HAVE to upgrade the fuel before Fall. Last Winter if it hit 4200 RPM and switched turbos the added power was enough to slip the clutch in higher gears! During the heat of Summer it kicks but the difference in power during the colder months is noticable. I'll pop the engine come fall if I don't do something - wish I could bump up the fuel pressure easily (sigh). Get past the trans, then the RX7 gets some attention, then the Mustang.

Heck, I just want to OWN a darned Supra let alone one of those drivetrains in a Z! I don't think the motors are likely to be very common though I'm afraid. Heck, even the Supras themselves are tough to find at decent prices. I think one of the Lexus may have th esame block etc. but has a higher compression and different ECU etc. - that's why the swap into a Lexus was as "easy" as it was. Look over on ThePartsTrader.COM and perhaps you'll find one...

Hrm, $600-$1000 for a total bolt-in isn't actually too hateful if it's bulletproof. 3.54 gears doesn't sound too bad, I thought they were deeper. Need to tinker with some numbers and see what might work best for a T56 without starting off in second Any opinions? Yeah, that's a chunk of change and more than an R200 but if it includes the diff and bolts in that's worth it not having to worry about clutches and breakage. Honestly not sure I'd want some thing that custom but it certainly does eliminate the stubs doesn't it? If there's a consensus on gear ratio maybe I'll try to hunt one up. I've got a spare moustache bar and feel somewhat familiar with the rear suspension now (lol). Give me something to tinker with and maybe between all of us we can come up with something reasonable for others.

Guys, I think one engine is closer to the foreground in that pic. I saw a recycler in a Mustang mag selling SOHC and DOHC for somewhat reasonable prices with EVERYTHING inclluded. A DOHC was a little more than what my motor is but geez it revs forever and is smooth as glass. Idlers can replace the AIR and A/C if you want - my friend did it on his monster... I'll try to lay some tape on one of these motore and also measure an engine bay. Also, long tube headers on these motors are a WASTE OF MONEY. Use the shorties. On a blown car measured increses in power with long tube vs short is oh about SIX HP. Yup, and they cost quite a bit too - think Honda prices. My friend charges as much as a grand to install them depending on who made the headers. The shorties are very compact and don't think for a moment I'm not pondering that motor for a future swap in another car

Interesting, it actually looks like my Sebring does! I do wish I'd set mine up to stick out further though. Looks really good, how does the silencer mount? I'm wondering if our pipe sizes etc. are close enough that it might fit on the Sebring too...? Mine is just a touch loud, it actually crackles a little bit Overall not bad but it WILL attract cops like nobody's business I'm sure. That kind of attention I don't need. A nice burble would be nice. Muffler guy did a super job of welding mine up - I really need to post those pics soon and maybe better organize my pictures. Maybe when I get home Sunday night I'll have time.