SleeperZ

Man, that sucks. I can't believe it. I'd of course do your first option. 170hp to the wheels may sound nice, but it's not a turbo. And to trade a Z for a Contour . Just MHO, and you can find good turbo engines if you look. Pick-n-pulls, and of course you have the option of putting in an n/a bottom end until you are able to find a F54 (or rebuild yours leisurely).

Nice!!!! I'm looking forward to hearing how it does, that is TOOOO stealthy.

You will eventually hurt the fan by energizing both windings. They will fight each other, causing heat, and it probably will not run as fast as with just the high speed winding.

Let me add one more thing. You seem extremely concerned about the pinging. The L28ET is a very strong motor; if it was pinging and you weren't running high power, I highly doubt you hurt the motor. I posted a thread this summer about a "close call" I had running at the strip. I forgot to turn on my electric fan before staging, and my temperature rose to about 200. I was getting detonation at the top of third, and midway through fourth gear. Checked compression later and it was fine. My point is it's easy to get minor detonation if the cylinder head gets hot, and I got no (apparent) damage even running wide open.

Definitely follow the break-in for the clutch. If you get hot spots, the clutch will go bye-bye. If it's broken-in nicely, it'll work very well.

Maybe you hurt the head gasket, and it's leaking. If you go after it, make sure to check the head for flatness. I would think it's unlikely you damaged the new bottom end.

Depends on how much HP you want to make. Twin T3s will easily support 500, twin hybrids like TO4Bs will support up to 700 or so.

The only adjustment you have with a turbo distributor is the initial advance. This is the reference point for the ECU to set the advance curve. The '81 is no different from the '82-'89 in that respect. BTW, with the '81, the timing advance is set by the CAS, NOT the distributor. So the '81 is different that way.

You are right. However, I'm thinking that however you manage to get the parts together now, be sure to balance it, as it most surely will be out.

Well I'll take a shot at it. If it's an R200, it should fit ok, but the R230 will probably not be a bolt-in.

280ZX turbo

I don't know what normal operating procedure is for building a turbo, but I'm sure balance is critical for an assembly that rotates to 100,000 rpm. If there is a minor imbalance, you will probably get premature bearing wear and fast failure. If it is grossly imbalanced, you'll scrape the compressor or turbine housing as soon as it spools, and it'll be dead.

That's pretty ugly. I sure hope they'll deal with you getting your satisfaction, but if they have your money already, it's not a good bet. Even regular mechanics seldom "service what they sell", and that's why I don't let anyone work on my cars anymore.

4.9 seconds, in my 280.

That is so excellent to hear a jackass finally gets busted. I'll tell you, I daily drive the slowest car on the planet, a n/a diesel Mercedes, and I get cut off continously. I don't drive it slowly, but because I leave space in front of me...

I was going to say the same thing about the radiator. The mechanical fan was retained, so that's the only way to get flow through it.

Lag is over-rated by people that don't have turbos. The stock turbo on the L28 can easily be driven fast from a stop and from a roll. If you are rolling along at 1500 rpm, and you floor it, sure, it will take a while to spool. Just learn to be in the right gear when you want to floor it. And from a stop, it is so easy to build instant boost - slip the clutch a little with the rpm at 2500-3000. No clutch? Brake boost it. You will go like a bat out of hell - just look at the 60's people are getting on street tires. Personally I'd rather have a little bit of a challenge to driving fast than not having any boost and being slow.

Lol! Yeah, behind the radiator you just have to call it a HAI!

The GSL 392 is the right pump. Jersey is running one - it sounds like a good one, but I'm running a high pressure Bosch unit.

I put all those upgrades in my Z without any tools but a jack and stands, wrenches and a drill and vise. I still don't have any power tools, and only recently bought an engine hoist. Don't be afraid to do it yourself - the reason Bastaad's posts were pointed out is he had some bad experiences with paying a professional to do his installs. And by the way, the prices you are estimately are way high in my book. You won't find the pieces right away, but I got my engine for $150, 2 T5 trannies for $70 and $50 each...rear ends are cheap too, I've picked up many R200s for $50 and less.

Not "Bastaard525", it's "Bastaad525".

Use 1/4" barb fittings. 5/16" is just a touch too big, and the hoses were difficult to fit on the barbs.