Mikelly

Her is the issue that may cause you trouble in fitting OEM seats in your car: The early models came with a wider seat area and narrower trans tunnel. Later models added the bulg in the seatwell for the catalyst. Pete P., Chris C. and I all noticed that some OEM seats will fit, but not necessarily optimally. However, the aftermarket race seats work. They are narrow framed, and much M-U-C-H lighter. I agree Lone, the money is pricey, but I think the proper fit of a seat should be likened to the proper fit of a shoe. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

That's actually not a bad price when you consider what you get. Add up the price of the rail stock, injectors, getting the Bungs welded into the intake, finding the appropriate TB, all wiring and harness, computer and software, and all sensors... Not to bad at all. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I recommend looking at the Corbeau line of seats. Pete P is using the seat that I first found a few months back. You can get the A4 shipped to you for $320 plus shipping and they offer adjustable Lumbar for an additional $60. They also sell sliders for the seat as well. For the headache and aggrevation of trying to fit factory seats, I'd look at the aftermarket for nice quality seats! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

DRAX, You must use what is termed "Structural Grade Tubing" and schedule 40 black pipe is not considered such and will not bend well, or weld well. I highly recommend against using it. I asked S&W abou this when I ordered 40ft. of tubing direct from them, but wanted to ask first, because I had a bunch of venders locally who had tons of the schedule 40 stuff available... 40FT shipped to me in 8 foot lengths, to my door was $130 total. I also recommend you buy a nice 8ton hydraulic tubing bender like the unit I got from Northern Toolonline. It was only $89 onsale, and makes perfect bends, although the manufacturer claims it not to be a good unit for bending rollcage tubing... I had been told by a guy who does a bunch of cages in West Va. that thing I bought was exactly what they use in his pro stock chassis shop! Call S&W as they are a wealth of info! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

If you look at this months Popular Hot Rodding, there is a Grey Viper in the issue and ithas a chin splitter with adjustable rods on it. That is an excellent example. Also, the Red Viper on the Front of Road & Track shows another good example of a functional Chin splitter.. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Yea, the Arizona Speed and Marine Stock looks perfect. When I swap my Victor Jr. over to FI, I'll be getting their injector bungs and rail stock. Nice stuff at a very nice price. Gee, now if I could only fall into some injectors, find and air door and pick a computer/ software package... I'd be most of the way there! My plan for next year is to pull the motor over next winter (2001) and go through the rings and bearings, have the lower end balanced, and then swap her over to FI... By then I should be done with everything else and I should know exaclty what I need! I'll be acquiring parts as I go! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Not sure about an Lt1, because I didn't do one, but I have seen complete drivetrains from F-bodied 93-98 cars sell complete with wiring harness and all accessories for about $3000. So if you take that into account, realistically you should have about 8K in it when you are done, if you include brakes, wheels and tires, suspension... If you want to do a bone stock kinda swap, you could get by for about $5000, but the car won't handle well, and the brakes will not be up to the task. Remember, when you do one of these things, not much will swap over...you have to buy all your accesseries, JTR kit alone runs about $350, and the drive shaft... thats another $200-300... All these little things add up! I have a BUNCH of reciepts and probably hit the $25,000 mark, but I also offset everything by selling parts I pulled off the car.. I have made $3500 in parts sales this year. And Jim, I advised against buying that particular car. I wouldn't have given $900 for the whole car in the shape you bought it in. Not knocking Jim, but we can all use his mistake as a lesson. Do not get to excited and settle for something substandard to build you project on. That 72 240 would make a great bargain for someone who can fabricate, so selling it to someone who has the time and talent to bring it back to life, that would be perfect. But Jim doesn't have a welder and Jim doesn't have the ability to do much of the body work himself.... That drives the price through the roof. Search and find the ideal candidate for your specific abilities. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited February 28, 2001).]

I suspect that removing the factory sheetmetal and front bumper, you should see about 100# loss, losing the bumper struts and all support brackets... Now a bad little trade off really... My concern is being able to attach the fiberglass front bumper, fender flares, and airdam on the front of the car. If I can't get the ground clearance, I'll be DZEUS fastening the unit down and cutting the hood out of the unit, But I'm pretty sure I can get this thing to work! I'm still looking at a chin splitter design with adjustable rods incorporated as well... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I have the CFDF and it works well, but $516 is a bit steep in my opinion for any clutch. I was stuck, remember I've had mine in my car since 1998, so little info and almost no parts were available. What I can tell you about the CFDF unit is that it hooks with no slip. My gates on the shifter are real close and it is real hard to tell when you are in 3rd vs. 1st and I've pulled out in 3rd with no trouble at all, no smelling and smoking of the clutch. That said... I'd investigate some of the others like Mcleode and others... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Dan, FYI...that wheel is a Drag race only wheel... Don't plan to hammer the curves or an autocross event with them... Check with Weld before you buy any of their wheels, as they have wheels that are more suited for different applications... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Welcome Jason. Glad you found us. Search the archives and you will find just about everything covered you may have questions for. If you don't find a topic covered after doing your search, ask away and you will usually get an answer within 24 hours. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Use the 153 tooth unit and the camaro starter. I'd also recommend making your own line and having it done with the -3 or -4 ends, and tapping the body of the slave cylinder. I'd also look for the steel bodied unit if you can find it. You also have to use the Tilton master cylinder... 7/8th bore. Mike Kelly ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited February 27, 2001).]

Sean, My newly rebuilt 350 that is in the truck is smoking on start up or when sitting idle for a few minutes... Truck has less than 1500 miles on it. It is supposed to do that from what I'm told... However, my truck isn't eating oil or antifreeze. Just the rings still sealing up. I know from experience that it takes a few thousand miles for the motor to seal up completely, and I've been told that up to 5000 miles isn't unheard of. If you don't see a milk shake and aren't using a bunch of oil (which also doesn't mean anything, as oil consumption is normal on break-in as well) I wouldn't have panicked! However, since you have the heads off, might as well presure check the heads and their surfaces. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I have ideas, but I need it in house 1st. I'm confident I can make it work. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

My springs are 12 inches as well... I might look into 8 inch springs down the road, but I'm gonna try this for now... the fit with the 7/8inch back spacing just looks awesome, so I'll see what happens... However, I don't want guys buying these wheels without knowing the issues they will have to deal with. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'm not to sure that is the exact unit. I am however, gonna modify mine to accept my fiberglass front bumper, spoiler, and some fender flares. Making it fit my personal needs! Stay tuned... these guys don't have a web site or a catalog. I'll send info as soon as I can. I was told the weight of the front end is sub-40#, and a factory hood is at least that much, so add in the weight of the fenders and headlight buckets.... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Well after fighting with the stub axles and finally getting the holes drilled out properly, I now have a five lug setup and the cobra Rs on the car. For the rear I recommend buying some aluminum wheel spacers, as you will need them. A half in spacer puts the wheel way close to the strut coil over adjuster (Within less than 1/8th inch) so I got a series of billet spacers and moved the wheels outboard 7/8th of an inch and I have plenty of room. Bottom line is if you don't want to use a wheel spacer, plan to buy wheels with no more than 5.25 inches of back spacing. The wheel & Tire combo really does look awesome on the car though, and I have less than $1200 in the wheels and the RE730 Bridgestones mounted and ready to roll! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

MAS Fiberglass products makes a one-piece tilting front end for the early Zcar. The price is $460 plus an additional $70 for the hinges. They estimate on $80-100 fee for shipping. I ordered one of their front ends on Friday, and they had it in stock and ready to ship. Should be here by Friday. I'll post pics as soon as I can! MAS can be contacted @ 651-644-6811 and they are located in Minnisotta Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'd recommend setting the toe at zero. I think your wonder problem will go away. Also wou;dn't hurt to put a wider foot print under the front. WELCOME To HYBRIDZ! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I owned a 318 that was in a dodge ram charger, and had it out and rebuilt it once. Nothing wrong with those. We put 360 heads and an intake and a "Purple" cam in it and the thing would tear up the woods...and it was a two wheel drive version. The motor will fit, and I don't think there is tyo much of a weight hit on them, but I do think they are a few pounds heavier than the SBC. However, I know of noone who has done it. Document everything when you do it, and get the JTR manual and kit and see what you can modify on it to use with the mopar... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

The ParkLok is exactly the route I chose. I have never in 18 years of driving used the E-brake in an emergancy situation. I don't think it is necessary for the small amount of mileage we Zv8ers will be driving our cars, and the only good use for the darned thing is to lock the wheels down when it isn't being driven, to ease the weight of the car resting on the trans and motor. The spot calipers are a "Nice to have" but why bother if you are like me and have never used an e-brake for an "E"? Just food for thought... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Well right now it looks like this: Rotors: $120 (Shipping included is what Mike SCCA Charged me) Calipers: $180 (Plus shipping) Pads: $35 (Est. Plus shipping) Spots: $110 (Plus shipping) Bracket: ???Unknown Mike?SCCA can better ball park this, and shipping would go down if he was packaging it all up for you. Assume about $500 plus the unknown on the bracket... Still not bad for way superior brakes, appearance and Performance... Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'm currently running straight 02 and it is throwing more crap than weld and I tested the footer of a door bar I welded in that looked like it had good penetration.... Broke clean off and the weld.. I'm absolutely gonna get this sorted out...Got distracted last night buying some work clothes and a drill press, which is too small for most of my work, but for $90 on sale.... Oh well! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

The wilwoods are also stainless pistons with billet housings. Nice stuff for the money. Also, not sure if mine will clear the rear without flares, but Im pretty sure they will clear the fronts. I'm gonna have to cut the outer 1/3rd of the round "Seat" for the coil assembly for the rears to fit, even with a 1/4 inch wheel spacer! I'm also running 275-40s out back, so the flares really should be used, but you could run 255/40s all the way around and it would look sweet! Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Yup, I'm gonna do a 75/25 mix for the cage tubing, but I'm gonna get a second bottle for a 50/25/25 of Argon/02/ and something else I heard of for thin sheet metal welding. I also need a good gage/ regulator! I think I'm using .024 wire though... feeds better... Mine is a Lincoln SP125. Mike ------------------ http://hometown.aol.com/dat74z/myhomepage/auto.html "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk