Mikelly

So Last night Donna and I went out and celebrates with friends over my new assignment that I start tomorrow. We partied pretty hard... And I was in bed by 11:30 PM... Started at 6 and I'm getting old so cut me some slack, Mkay? At 2Am the phone rings and it's my mom, informing us that my dad has had a heart attack and that he's being rushed from one hospital in Culpeper, Va. to the hospital at University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. So I get a shower, brush my teeth, get some coffee in me, and away we go. Since Virginia has it's new ZERO tolerance alchohal policy and the A/B ratio is like .08 to be considered dui, and I do have a very valuable clearance that can be lost with the right circumstances, DUI being one, I set the cruise control at 5MPH over the limit and put the wife on Deer scouting duty. We get to the hospital by 4AM, which is located about 4 counties away, and we find my mom and sister and then we wait... And wait. Fortunately at 5AM we're told that he is resting well, has had a heart attack, required surgery, and now is the proud owner of two stents in arteries. Some of you will remember a while back when I honestly thought my dad was done for this world, when he had other internal troubles with a bleeding ulser and stomach surgery that almost killed him... I was expecting worse this time, since we're talking a heart attack... But when we went to see him, he looked better than I did, for sure. I'm simply amazed at the miracles of modern science. I'm being told he will be allowed to come home by Tuesday, barring any complications. I'm dead tired, feel like I've been run over by a mack truck, but happy to have him around for another day! Mike

What area? Also, $500 for fuel to go well over 3K miles? I'd expect you won't get more than 10mpg with a Ryder loaded and pulling a car. Mike

Specifically what town/ City in Virginia? Mike

Pete, 90 pounds is the difference, and to me, the low tech approach wasn't even an option. Even with the loss in power, I'm still at near 450Crank HP. I know I can go bigger with different heads, but I'm ok for now with it the way it is. I'm close to sending the Z off for paint, So the money I will spend over the next 90 days will go towards that effort instead! Love-my-v8-280z, I'd expect to pay around $400 for a complete tune with dyno pulls, maybe a little less, maybe a little more. Mike

When I went to one of the SEMA shows a few years back Simpson gave an indepth talk on their product line and the use of an Anti-sub belt. The main focus of the anti-sub belt was on the driver SLIDING under the lap belt during a headon collision impact. They had a video showing crash testing using various restraints. The Anti-sub does keep tension on the shoulder straps, which coincidentally was the initial reason for the belt design. But the benefit of keeping the torsoe in the seat bottom and seatback was seen instantly. Less knee/leg/ pelvic damage occured in the same accidents duplicated with the anti-sub vs. without. The 6 point belts are an evolution from the five point and surely a much better design in keeping the driver from sliding down the front of the seat. It was quite informative and removed any doubt from my mind why these harnesses should be mandated in all motor sports events. Mike

Yup, What RC said. I'd go to a race shop and test sit some seats. Fixed back seats are best if you can find one you like. You'll get the Anti-Sub slot for the front, which is important in a frontal impact. It keeps your body from sliding UNDER the lap belt and injuring your lower extremities. Mike

Got the motor and trans bolted in today, removed the trans from the motor, then removed the clutch fork and throwout bearing, and reinstalled the trans, drilled the holes for the trans mount, and bolted it all up. If tomorrow doesn't find me in business meetings all day, I'll start working on the rear differential mount in the afternoon. I'd like to have the Q45 in the car by the end of the weekend... We'll see... After that, I plan to weld in the final metal into the front area around the radiator support, and weld in the seat rail braces, dash braces, and then finalize the wiring in the dash/ fuse panel. Pics to come! Mike

Hey John, You see that twinkle toes is in the Carribean? WTF? Ain't he got bridgeworks stacking up or brace fittings falling behind or something? Damned dentists have all the fun... Mike

That looks like Superdan's old car! Wish I'd known at the time that car was for sale... Never would have gone to Texxaaaasssss! Mike

Well that stung! $411 for the retainer (Special TKO 600 partnumber required) and the bearing kit! Damn I'd have gone the route Pete's going for sure had I DONE MORE RESEARCH! :banghead: So Let's review boys and girls: TKO600 Tranny with all the fixin's (Shifter, backup light switch, mech speedo adapter, road race gearset) - $1800 Mcleod Bellhousing - $329 PLUS shipping Clutch fork, adjustable pivot ball and dowel pin kit - $65 *(Of which I now only need the Dowels! Centerforce DF Cover/ PP - $179 Centerforce Clutch Disk - $79.00 Centerforce self centering Release Bearing - $27.00 *(which I won't be using now) Tilton #61-625 - Bearing Retainer - $135 Tilton bearing kit # 61-601 - $269+shipping for bearing and retainer Looks like this kit complete would run about $2900 including shipping on the various parts. I believe Pete's deal on the Sonic Bellhousing (Much better for ground clearance) and bearing kit would be about $475 shipped compared to the over $750 (Factoring shipping into it) I spent on the bellhousing and Tilton parts listed above. Mike

Well seeing that I just got the call that my clearances crossed over for this new position, and I'll start next week sometime, and my income will have gone back to what it "was" before the start up of our little company, I'm gonna go ahead and order the tilton bearing retainer and release bearing kit for my setup. Guess I'm done with the thought of "massaging" the tranny tunnel. Mike

Apparently not! Good find Steve! Mike

The units from "showcars" up in Canada had issues with some gaps between the hood and back edge of the nose. Also, some of the racer parts made by DIY types that I've seen have always had issues there due to shrinkage of the molds they were setup on. Mike

If your friend has a $9000 budget and wants to drive the car on the street, then he doesn't want a race car. He wants what I described above. Sorry, but if you want a car to "RACE" in a series other than solo1 and solo2 type "stuff", then it isn't going to be a livable car for the street and be safe on the track. Forget about taking it out on a date (with someone who you care about anyway!), passing state safety inspections or having the comforts of a street car. No, your friend isn't going to "race" a street car in any kind of competitive wheel to wheel action and then drive it home, not many times anyway. There are a handful of people who do race their cars on the weekend and drive them on the street during the week. But the compromise is such that the car is absolutely no fun. I know a guy who races a Corvette in T1 and he doesn't even own a truck or trailer. By his own estimate, he's one mistake away from bankruptcy. If he wrecks the car at an even, due to his or someone elses mistake, he'll be in financial ruin. Not very smart... Go find that video clip of me going off the track at 100mph (Doug Carrow posted a link in another thread) and then look how close I am to tire walls and guardrails... Not the kind of situation you want to be in without a trailer and truck to take the car home. No, your friend clearly doesn't want to road race. Mike

Ah yes, Evolution of a HybridZcar plan... We went from a 502, to potentially a 500CI to a 454, and tubing the chassis (Of a unibody car ) back to reality and the traditional SBC in five short days! Sometimes the fun is in watching you guys formulate the plans and educate yourselves along the way! Mike

All this is truly subjected to your abilities to perform the work, have the tools available, and the additional cash it will require. Things to think about are State licensing and inspections, Emissions, and other hurdles. As to if it is worth it or not... That's choice. I've had guys argue with me all day long about the virtues of a turbo over a V8. Can you make 400HP with either platform? Absolutely. Is one better than the other? Depends on the combo, the tune, and the intended use. If you have access to a machine shop, anything is possible. You can do a motor swap on just about any kind of car imaginable... It just depends on the tools/skills/money. That said, There is no kit I'm aware of to install a 350Chevy or V8 Ford into a Nissan 300ZX. There are however a few members who have done it. Run a on V8 300ZX. Mike

Yea, and one of the reasons I chimed in is because Jamie and I worked together on the ZFRacing round tube control arms I sold. Jamie Actually came up with that design, and in our various research, we found that the later arms are thicker material, and stiffer, although the dimensions are identical at each mounting point. I'm not sure if this was a change that occured on the 77-78s or if it actually took place on late 74s as they transitioned into the newer platform with FI and heavier unit body and the plus up in material of control arm was due to the added size (overall) of the vehicle package. I do know we saw a difference. Problem in documenting this "stuff" is that so many cars have been taken appart and had parts pulled from wrecks and swapped over the decades... MIke

Not to mention sticking with the rules for the class, for the racing organization you plan to race in... "Like Canyon type stuff" sounds like someone who wants to tell their friends they race, when they actually don't... They just drive "hard" (by their own estimation) on the street, which is a danger and menace to society at large. I'm not saying this is your friend's intent. I'm saying your description of what he wants to do is lacking valuable details. That said, If it were me, I'd buy a SPEC MIATA and get my license. I'd then go have the time of my life racing in an extremely FUN and extremely COMPETITIVE class with other Spec miatas in NASA or SCCA. It is A: Cheap to race in spec miata comparative to other classes, and B: more challenging because the popularity of the class provides bigger fields and provides more door to door/ wheel to wheel challenges every race. Go watch one at a track near you and you'll fully understand what I'm talking about. These guys put on as good a show as European Touring Car series I've watched on Speed. Mike

MARK, YOU SUCK. That is all. Mike and Jt1

Time out: What "type" of road racing, and does the individual have a road race license currently? Mike

Pickup points are the same BUT the later model arms (280Zs) were made a little stronger and look beefier. There is another thread on this somewhere recently. Mike

Actually I read on RENNLIST (Don't tell my wife I've been looking at Pcars ) that the Enzo and the Carrera GT both are designed to separate like that under heaving impact. The idea is to get the mass of the rear engine compartment away from the driver's "capsule". Mike

I'd recommend a crate motor from GMPP or Scoggin' Dickey. Realistically, you'd need 400 flywheel HP to make sure you'd get in the 155mph range, and getting a sub 5 second 0-60 shouldn't be an issue. On the transmission, You're going to have OVER $3000 invested by the time you buy the trans( Got my tko600 from D&D Performance for $1800), SFI Bellhousing ($300-350) Flywheel and Clutch kit (Another $400-500), Clutch Hydraulics (See my fiasco with the clutch fork and release bearing). Shipping it there from here? I have no clue, but I bet it won't be less than $500 for each component (motor/ Trans)! Mike

[quote=280Z28 Aftermarket MAF sensors are looked down on by many LS1 tuners. I'm not the least bit surprised it caused problems. :dunno: Actually my MAS was a factory 2004Z06 unit. We don't know what was wrong with it, but it simply wouldn't stabilize at all... Probably a bad electrical component. Mike