Hey Cary, thank you for the great words of advice! To respond to your original question... why the 280? So, when I was first introduced into the mechanical world of wrenching, motors and cars, my dad had a 1978 280z 2+2. He showed me the basics of body work and engine work. We started restoring the z and he kinda let me take the reigns and keep going on all the work. One day, I came home from school, and it was gone! I asked him, "pop, what happened to the z?!" He said he sold it to a junk yard! I was so mad and devastated! Now I'm 35, making really good money in a solid career on the east coast ports and I wanted to start my first restoration. I couldn't let it be anything other than what my childhood memory of that 280z.
In terms of the build I'm doing, I would like to make this MY build. I don't want to do what everyone else is doing and throw a LS in there. I want to keep somewhat of originality with this thing. I'm not doubting that they're easy to configure, work on, tune and enjoy. I love the classic sound that the L28 gives off and it was a very iconic motor of that time. It's definitely gonna have that cool factor regardless. I mean, it's the original Z body style! I very rarely see any of them on the road anymore. At least not around here. I've seen countless videos and read numerous forums about the stock specs of these motors and I want to add performance without risk losing longevity or strength. I'm not in any hurry to finish this build at all. I'm being extremely thorough with this. I've got it stripped down to a rolling shell and plan to start cutting out any and all rust holes/spots, replacing them with new metal. She's gonna go on a rotisserie next month and the fun shall commence!
Again, I greatly appreciate your knowledge and advice you've given and I will make the appropriate accommodations to make this build one of many masterpieces to come. Thank you Cary!
