RebekahsZ

When you get over here to buy your car, you need to spit (expectorate) a lot and say "dang!" a lot. A case of beer goes a long way. A frequent "Roll Tide!!" and you've all but closed the deal. Outside a very small market, the Z is a rusty, neglected marque owned by nare-do-wells, drunks and guys on unemployment. If I see a Z coming down the street, I pretty much assume the driver is an alcoholic and I get out of the way. If an American (USA) owns a Z, outside this hybridZ community, 9 times out of 10 they are a low-life. Combine that with Craigslist and you are dealing with a segment of the population that we all would be better without. On April 15th I sent them all a check, so they should all be in a good mood, half way through some wicked reefer (always glad to help out). EVERY CL experience I have had was a scam. I have a 76 MT 2+2 that I will GIVE you. It is so rusty that there is NO PLACE where you can put a jack much less your elbow; I snitched the 3.36 R200 and you can have the rest. To get it, I made countless phone calls and took my trailer 2 hours each way 4 times over the course of a year. Crazy lady listed it on eBay, and got all excited when she got calls from Australia and "Newww York City", so she kept turning away a real person with money and a trailer. What's left of it is all original, half disassembled but of course it's a re-paint so you probably don't want it. I could probably send all the useable parts to you in a stamped envelope. Good luck. I paid $300.

1tuffz- please let me know how the ST-43s compare to the HP+. I have ST-43 that I put one hard track day on. They worked great, but Im not experienced on a road course, so anything might have felt great to me. Lots of pad left. I will put them back on (with a dedicated set of rotors) for ZCon. You will hear me coming!-very noisy pad on my car. But I had brakes for a change, so it was worth every squeal. I bet Upstate NY is BEAUTIFUL right now.

Randomcow-glad to know Im not the only guy doing Z work at "0-dark-thirty!" Your car looks GREAT. LOVE that trans mount. Have you put many miles on the swap?

And here's where I leave her for the night (1:30am).

Truck is under control so I spent the second part of today on the Z. Cleaned and applied first coat of silicone to the delinquent 2-piece wheel that wont hold air. Gonna let it cure for a couple of days before applying a second coat. that silicone was a bitch to get off. Finished the electrical safety switches; it starts and stops like it is supposed to now. You can kill it from the key, a master kill switch by the driver, a master switch at the rear bumper (if I had a bumper), and an inertia kill switch kills the fuel pump. Battery relocation is all NHRA legit now. Driver footwell fire system is completed, pics tomorrow in the daylight. I'm afraid to pull the safety cotter pin-it seems like it is under tension, but the big cable is installed and adjusted properly, so I'm probably just chicken. I just don't need any more problems. I will get the safety steward to pull it on race day, then it is his fault if I fill my car with foam. Plus he probably knows what the pin is supposed to feel like. Garage is clean and car is vacuumed. Going to install seats. Stopping point tonight is to have it on jackstands ready to pull tranny tomorrow. Wife is letting me have both sides of garage this week.

He's gonna hate those spindle pins in 40 years.

1) rent "The Karate Kid." It's a movie. Ask your parents. Skip the sequels. 2) start hanging out at the local hot rod cruise-in or drag strip. 3) figure out who is the real deal and is kind and likes teaching others. Look for the retired guy with gray hair and a wife who likes to bake cookies. Steer clear of the guys who are super intense or the really popular guys-"the cool set". 4) just hang around the old guy's shop all the time and be helpful and patient. 5) be willing to do shitty jobs with a good attitude. 6) stay away from "professionals." Unless you want to learn how to make a living by cutting corners, lying or cheating people. Yes, I'm bitter right now.

Dang, they are all over the Internet-$50US. Now to pick the right water pump spacer kit. I wonder if you will need an LS1 idler pulley, too? You don't have to buy all this stuff new, might find all that you need for cheaper on eBay. You'll just have to price out all the parts combinations.

I noticed that you had to trim the alternator a lot. I was rummaging around in the alternator room at the local junkyard when I did my build and found a truck alternator that had a much less fancy rear plastic cover. I have no idea what it came off, but I bought it , had it rebuilt (bearings were aweful) and all the mounting holes and pulley lined up with my 2006 GTO LS2, which must have same accessory spacing as an LS1. I was at the parts store the other day and a guy came in to get an alternator for a 2004 Silverado. He pulled it from the box and I would swear that was the same alternator. Check that item at your parts store and that might fix your rear clearance issues. I'm gonna google and see what I can find for LS3 water pump spacers...I bet it spaces at the block side, not a pulley spacer(?). Damn, Im coveting your lift. Bout to go drop a tranny on my back with jackstands.

While fixing the battery relocation installation on the truck and replacing the battery, I noticed a big puddle of antifreeze on the ground. Not the hoses this time. But rather the cheap radiator overflow tank has cracked AGAIN! #%}{€*+#<!!!!!! Gonna swap that cheap POS with an identical cheap POS to get thru the race weekend then it is time for an aluminum overflow tank so I don't have to fix it a third time. Will try to find pre-formed hose to take tension off the milk-jug plastic tank nipple ( where it keeps cracking). The work around the Radiator overflow let me find the problem with my AC-melted wiring. I guess that crap is too close to the header. Big money for a pro swap and now I have a cooked section in the harness within a couple months. #%%^*+#}{}#><>!!!!!! Gonna reroute that to prevent further damage and try to get to work on the Z.

Mistafosta- what's the source for those water pump spacers? I got a hybridz buddy in Canada fighting this same issue (I'm in Alabama).

Part of the "world wide web!"

It either rubs or it doesn't. Mounting wheels on the car should be something you can do yourself. Then you know for sure and can source spacers yourself. Not something to argue over with a paid mechanic if he has proven helpful on other, more complicated issues.

Yup.

I dunno. Engine builder won't tell me. I won't use him again-that kind of attitude is BS.

To avoid fire, delete the air filter. It will sound better too!

You win the lottery? I remember the plastic tent you did your last build in. I don't remember a fancy driveway and good grass (in the yard).

87-89 300zx turbo. If you stay auto it may hold up. If you slam and jam a stick, you will break axles.

Keep the T350, run bias ply slicks, weld the rear diff and keep it on the track. If you weld the diff you will break axles on the street. If you leave the diff open, you will wear out the cross shaft in the burn out pit, then break an axle when it cocks and locks the diff. Of course a LSD will solve this dilemna and I know a guy who will sell one for $500+ shipping.

It was like: "my Z is on jackstands-am I gonna let this opportunity pass me by?" Always be ready to race (legally). I'll race wheelbarrows if that is all I have available! Had to pee, so I went into the Porsche dealer showroom, and what did I find in a reverent frame on the wall in the john (a room in my home where I keep all my priceless works of art)? Even Porsche dealers wish they had a Datsun!

Reconsider the hot cam if this is a daily driver-valve overlap has made my truck really stinky. My stock cammed LS Z doesn't smell at all.

That's cool! Hybrid truck = Porsche killer.

Ever notice what a flat ass Suzanne Summers had on Three's Company? She had a Z back in the day.

That's cool!

I got a buddy to shoot a cell phone video that I will put on YouTube sometime. But honestly, the video looks very slow. Only on the straight do you get an appreciation of the speed. I took some passengers and the universal response was "I had no idea you were going this fast!" And I was braking early due to my Autozone pads and zero rear bias. The course was really a braking exercise more than anything else. I keep my ABS inactivated via removing the fuse because with the trailer in the rain that ABS is scary! It has almost killed me a couple of times. Much better without it. Autocross only looks exciting only if you are screwing it up-which I did a fair bit. I got some oversteer at one point where there weren't many cones and I got far enough around to say "screw it" and I just hammered down into a smoky 360 and continued on course. Lotta noise and a lotta smoke. I thought they might throw me out after that, but they let me stay! It truly was the best way to get back on course. AeroZ-I sent an email to the registration guy for a results sheet but I haven't heard back.