RebekahsZ

I'm gonna study the recommendations that JMortensen and BrandonZ provided. It wasn't anything major-I pay attention and double check things before they get to the scary point. I know what lock nuts are for, but even with a locknut if the tire scrubs it, the potential is there for it to come loose again even after tightening the lock nut. I think about potential problems and try to find ways to avoid them. Thanks, gentlemen.

Looking great! I wish you were my nextdoor neighbor. I'd bring in your paper everyday and take your trash can down for a year if you'd build me a cage that nice.

I installed adjustable TC rods that adjust by rotating the TC rod. I have been driving the car around town working bugs out of my engine swap and have not had car to alignment shop yet, so I haven't cranked down on the locking nuts on the TC rods yet, but I have already had one occasion where my TC rod length self-adjusted due to tire rub when driving around in a parking lot. I felt the tire rub, so I got out and checked my alignment visually: one front tire was pushed forward about a millimeter from the airdam and the other was pulled back from the airdam more than where I left it. After an alignment, I will be cranking down on the lock nut, but as a worrier, I was wondering if there was a simple mod that I could do to reduce the amount that my wheels turn-in - kind of like a bumpstop for my steering angle (other than the TC rod). This is domino effect of wider tires. Most of the related threads that I have found using search have been drifters trying to increase steering angle. I am trying to do just the opposite. Any suggestions?

Yeah, let's both be more careful.

Looks great. Think about changing that pre-filter before the fuel pump to a shut-off type filter; I wish I had done that. I am having a little sputter on right hand turns at a low fuel level, even though I installed a "sump" in my tank. So far, the sputter just lets me know it is time to go get more $4.07 gas. Please consider changing your Avatar ASAP. Those cheap allow wheels are killing me, and your RBRs are simply awesome.

That is going to be beautiful. I love the color of your car with those RBRs.

I'm so sorry. I hit a deer last year in my pickup that someone else had already killed. It was really dark and there was a car on the side of the road (probably the car that originally hit the deer) that I was watching because I thought they were about to do a u-turn in front of me. I was going the speed limit at 50mph. Well, I didn't see the deer until it was too late to miss it. I put it between my wheels and found the down side of driving a lowered pickup. I had deer guts from one end to the other and splattered all the way thru the engine compartment up to the hood. I found body parts as big as your fist wrapped around the frame and it stunk for a year even after I put it on a lift and cleaned it with soap and water and a brush. It is easy to come upon something that isnt where it is supposed to be. There was nothing I could do to miss it.

SUNNY, you are going to be pretty loud too with the mufflers you have selected. Some of that sound is wind noise (windows down), but I have no carpet (never will) and no interior besides door panels. Plus, the 3' straight pipes exit right under the window. The video has some sort of audio trouble, there is reverbe on my voice, but you can talk in the car easily when there is no load on the motor just cruising around. I even fixed my radio so I can listen to it. I do plan to muffle it once the R200 diff is installed. Going out in a minute to start rebuilding axles. Speedometer doesn't work. Gonna check connections and grounds, then email JCI to see how (if) they pre-configure the dip switches before they send it out. Will, the color is 1991-ish Dodge Viper coupe "banzai blue." White stripes are "wimbleton white," all PPG basecoat/clearcoat. It was painted in about 1994 and looks much better in pictures than in person - lots of chips and cracks. I've either waxed it once or never. I'm a big fan of silver or grey on a z-car. I'm serious cop-bait. Today's progress: I still don't have the Cable X working. Looks like I may have to pull the cover and try to do the "field test" that the instruction describe. If anybody has any tips, lay them on me. Finished up basic metal work for faux intake, fabricated break-away torque checking kit for R200 diffs (I have a 3.90 CLSD on hand, a 3.70 CLSD due in the mail this week, and sale is pending on a 3.54 VLSD from another forum member. Cleaned up garage and got one Z31 CV Axle in the vice, but that is all the further I got.

Your girlfriend did a good job sewing that up. Xnke, don't use this forum to pick on people.

Speedometer and Cable-X wired, but not tested. Cleaned fuel fiter screen (that was my 3rd tank after the build got running): less trash, but still a little.

Poly bushings transmit more noise. If you want to get really noisy, go to solid metal mounts. For any helicopter pilots out there, do you remember how loud a tail rotor gearbox is during coast down? Well, a tail rotor gearbox is essentially the same as a differential. The gears are just noisy - run it till it breaks.

While at hardware store all the store attendants (it is an old school hardware store) came out to see the car they have been supplying odd metric hardware for. I gave them a nice smokey line-locked 2nd gear burnout. I was a block away before I could see the storefront behind me.

Thanks. Just got back from hardware store. Bought 5mm 0.80 pitch wingnuts. Just finished tach 10 minutes ago. I am really pleased with how well the tach works. Thanks again.

Took the car to a show today. The only imports were a slammed VW and me. I'm glad I got my shift light - I was hitting the rev limiter all the time. I was doing a smokey burn out and hit 7 grand before I knew it. According to the ECM-controlled Raptor shift light, the JCI converted tach is pretty accurate; I may need to raise it in my field of view up near the base of the windshield this car winds up SO quick. Had an interesting experience with the adjustable TC rods I have installed, when the tire strikes them, it rotates them, which lengthens them and increases caster. So, I had plenty of fender clearance when I left this morning, but as I turned the cars steering all the way to the lock cruising around in the car shop parking lot, the tire would hit the TC rod and lengthen it until eventually, my tire rubbed my airdam. It was all low-speed stuff so no harm was done. I will have to fabricate some sort of steering linkage stop to keep the tire from hitting the TC rod when I turn the car to full lock. Goal today is to get some new nuts to hold in my tach, get the light bulbs back into it and wire up my speedometer. I may stay up late and tear into my Z31 axles.

Any of the L-series Nissan trannies will bolt up. I ran a 4 cyl, 5 spd Nissan truck tranny for years in my 240z with no trouble. Got it 10 years ago at a pick-n-pull for $35. No clutch parts incompatability, used my old Z clutch and pressure plate. It is now in my buddies Z and he's driving it still. If the valve cover looks like yours or is even a few cylinders shorter, most of the parts will fit and work fine. You won't be making enough horses to matter even with a turbo.

Boycott California. Roll Tide and War Eagle!

Just messaged him. I'm in no hurry - gonna wait a year before install anyway, but I want to try to stop him from coating them (if I'm not too late) until after I do the mods needed to fit a 240z, per 1tuffz's experience. Would we all just want to write off the cost of the gaskets? They cost $15-30. Not a lot to make an issue over when compared to the difficulty of making these things. I bet he's ready to get them out of his shop, anyway.

Austin Powers turtle neck or Ascott neck tie. Seriously, can't you just loosen it up a bit? Move to Alabama where you can drive around with a baby on your lap and noone will stop you, cause we's all packing heat!

I love my cheap dash cap. It took less than an hour to install and still looks good 10 years later. With dash caps available, I can't see all the effort others go to on their dash. I'd rather work on the "go" parts. KT

I always remember to try to call after 5pm - my stinking job (the one that pay for Z parts) keeps me pretty occupied. I'll try him tomorrow; I'm working a 1/2 day. Maybe 1tuffz can call on our behalf too? We kind of need a headcount of who has gotten their headers and who is waiting... Keith

You gotta keep the pipes coming thru the hood. Maybe do individual zoomies, or maybe even externalize a turbo ON TOP of the hood. Love it. We gotta take up a collection for a dash cap, either that or you gotta put a spittoon on it for your next video.

Could you have just run over a line of reflectors, some of those little ridges to wake you up, or something else in the street? Could your front tire have been rubbing your TC rod? Could your front tire have been rubbing the airdam or flare? I've had my rear axles loosen at the wheel end of the flange - check that. Check driveshaft bolts. Have you added camber or caster - I get some funny noises on low speed turns from my whacked out alignment. Has your rear swaybar link nut come off and could your swaybar be hitting your axle in turns? Is your spare tire loose in the well? Please tell us when you find/solve the problem.

Yeah, it is kind of like a handling/driving phenomenon, not necessarily always a problem. Whoever started this thread needs to go get some track time and experience understeer, oversteer, bumpsteer, trailing throttle and lift-off oversteer, left-foot braking, early apex, late apex, corner-exit understeer, corner-exit oversteer, 4-wheel drift, tail-out drift or power slide, brake fade, excess rear brake bias, dry pavement, wet pavement, dirty pavement/gravel - and all the other neat things that happen when trying to drive fast. They are all very interesting - and fun! Even "lift-off oversteer" is fun if you do it right and at the right time and place. Only when consistently happening at the wrong time and place or to an excessive amount is it really a problem that needs to be fixed. Really just one of the tools in the tool bag.

Think hard about moving your front fender opening forward as much as possible. Wide tires and lowering cause tires to rub the front of the fender and airdam. Also, johnc's recommended additional caster makes front fender/airdam rub even worse. Lots of stuff on forum about guys having trouble with front of fender - be smart and take care of it before you drill for your flares.

That picture made your car look "hellaflush!" Glad you are OK. As soon as I build a big shop, I'm going shopping for a couple of "rust-free" 240z or early 260z tubs myself, just in case... The law always looks down on the faster, more modified car, even though the last thing we want to do is destroy our labors of love. I think you should have to have some hot-rodding on your resume' before being a cop or trooper. Kind of like you should have to be a citizen or a veteran, or to have even held an employed position to be President. The world has gone crazy and the inmates are running the asylum! Bring that idiot (the one parked in the road) to Alabama and we'll show him some southern hospitality.