Mikelly

I ran 10:1 compression on a L6 2.8 motor and 12 degrees of advance at idle for 3 years without trouble on 92-93 octane. You should be able to just fine with 9.5:1! I agree with Glen, as you need to pick up a timing light to find out what the deal is. Interesting problem... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'd look at the distributor... Sounds like you a re a took or two off... you could always play with the plug wire rotation and see if that solves it, and that would confirm being a tooth or so off... However, are you noticing any high tempuratures when this happens? You might have an internal problem somewhere in that motor... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'd take a serious look at the Bridsgestone RE730. It has one of the best bang for the buck ratings in the performance tire industry right now. Super soft, yet good tread wear rating for a Z rated tire. I hear NOTHING but good about this tire and will consider it when I swap to 17s... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Jason, You are thinking of a torque tube kinda design except mounted between the front and rear suspension? Interesting... Never thought about that. I had looked at a torque tube running from the trans back to the differential, but it is tight in the trans tunnel and I'm not sure any value would be gained... OK Guys, lets kick this one around a bit... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Scottie Nailed a bunch of things perfectly. As with any project, you should design it for the intended use. I think Scottie made a bunch of comments that are exactly why some of these guys are suffering from rear failures. I also think that the 200R is strong enough with the 280 Stub axles and CV axle shafts. That will be my next move before shelling out serious bucks for custom axles. Myron, My pump is mounted beind the rear bumper on the inside of the rear tail light panel. However, when those axles go, they tend to swipe the reasr brake line and that bothers me much more, because I have a oil presure cut off switch in the event that the pump were taken out, which would eventually cause the motor to starve for fuel and stall. But if you got no brakes half way down the 1320, you are in deep poop. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Mine came with foam. I got water/ contaminated fuel in it and chucked the foam when I had the cell shotpeened where it was apparently damaged in shipping. One fitting would not seal up on the sump, so it was shotpeened and the problem went away! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I used dryer duct from Lowe's. It is four inches in diameter and it works well. I also used their elbows to funnel the air from the spoiler duct to my brakes, because the stuff is heavy enough but easy to form and pop rivett into the right sizes. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Scottie, Don't get a poly tank. I saw two this summer at car shows that had collapsed and bowed inward from the top. Both were Summit brang, which might make a differnece, maybe not. I have an aluminum cell and I am currently suffering from cell Aeration... My fuel guage will rice and fall during idle at a stop light. I called Summit and Art Morrison both to get pointers. Art Morrison was a big help and told me that those cells really need foam in them to help with that problem. If you get an aluminum cell, make sure you get foam in it. I'm selling mine over the winter and am gonna go with the Summit Cell that has a safe and all the extras for circle track. I'm gonna modify the pickup so it pulls from the center, and then I'm gonna make the bail dump out behind the license plate. You are more than welcome to my cell. I'm selling it with all fittings and a vent roll over valve for $150 plus shipping (All fittings and the cell ran me $250-270). Has about 2000 miles of use on it but it doesn't have foam in it, which runs about $50. Mike Kelly ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Jim, I draw my conclusions about the LSD Vs. Live axle from what I saw back in 1996-98 in dealing with someone who had a 327 in a 280z with a lot of Nitros and a Turbo 350. That car was running 6s in the 1/8th and he was always having trouble, and with comments posted on this board. It just seems to me, and I could be wrong, but it "SEEMS" to me that the auto trans guys are dealing with more failures to U-joints and axles on a more regular basis. I don't mean to put anyone off or offend anyone. I'm only saying this based on what I noticed at the track and what has been posted here. Why they seem to be breaking more with Autos? Maybe it is just the fact that more guys are drag racing with auto trans than manuals. That could very well be the case. My car has been driven hard, but the u-joints have held up fine so far. Will I have problems? Sure, I broke a few when I was pushing a 250HP 6 cylinder... I damn sure plan a few failures with the current configuration. I'm gonna look into getting some CV axles or custom axle shafts made when I re-address this in the spring. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

This thread has been edited by Mike Kelly... Any non-rear axle related discussion should be taken to another category or off line. Thank you The HybridZ Staff ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I have a strong IRS that has been abuse for a long time. I have a well setup rear suspension... is it great? no. It works. If it starts to fail, as Mryon's axle shafts have, then I might swap to something different. Are they strong? yes. Will they last in a 400RWHP car? depends... If you drag race a lot, my guess would be maybe not. Add an automatic trans and again, I say maybe not. I've seen any number of well set up live axle cars rip up a road course, so I would have to agree with a previous poster, they work when done properly... Mike Kelly ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited October 19, 2000).]

Yup, as I explained to Chris the other night, I took a fender and headlight bucket and slathered the aircraft striper on it some years back.. I went for a 1-2 hour bike ride and came back.... Hosed off the stuff with my high presure water hose and the paint was gone.. down side, or upside depending on the repair work you plan, is that is takes all the body filler out as well... The key to aircraft striper is to let it sit and do its job, so just be patient with it and it will do wonders... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

And tonight I'll clean up the digital images and send them over to Crhis' e-mail account so he can post those as well as the pics of his rotisary with car mounted on it! Sorry to be dragging my feet Chris... you know what I've been going through.... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

This is why I love this website... lots of smart people with lots of good information! Pete, I don't know what my timing is at 1600rpms, but I will check it. I have one medium spring and one light spring in the distributor now. Before I started playing with the timing I had two heavy springs in it and only about 11 degrees timing advance. I might get rid of the light spring and put another medium one in and see how that works, we'll have to see. I popped in the 195 degree thermostat last night and I'm gonna take it for a spin this evening and see what happens. I know in some configurations it is important to get coolant temps way down, but I swear guys, the car was running SO MUCH better with the temps right at 200 degrees. I suspect my combo of parts is just plain happy operating in that zone. As for using the mechanical distributor, I heard pros and cons before I bought it, and I spoke with several guys who were using it on the street. All said once it was dialed in, it worked great. So I'm inclined to just continue playing with it, like the carb, until I get it right! Keep the flow of info coming! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

THat is correct, you should be ab'e to section the hoop easily without loosing structural integrity. Fitting cages in tight cockpits like the Z is a touch challenge. Chris hhas his whole interior out, so well add a fell bars through the firewall and back to the back 3rd of the car, and maybe do a few extra tricks I want to try. My time will start freeing up by early November and We'll be able to move his project along a bit quicker, so we'll let you know how it goes. Pete, Chris and I could come up and give yopu a hand on a Saturday when you are ready to fit the cage in... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I have an MSD Billet Mechanical distributor. I was told that it was a much better way to go and very tunable. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Thanks for the offer Pete, but I don't have a vacuum advance on my distributor. I also suspect that my carb is in better target tune, basedon what I noticed this weekend. I think the temps are playing a direct role in my lean/ rich issue. I've got the carb tuned to a better baseline now and hope to keep it there! We'll see. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I'm not sure, but one thing I noticed when the temps were high on the open road with no obstructions and cool air coming in, the car was making stable HP enough to pull at 1500RPM in 6th gear. I think what is happening here is an issue with aluminum heads and compression/ combustion maybe? All I know is that my car will not pull 6th gear at less than 1900RPMS when the motor is at 190 degrees coolant temp or less. But when it is at 200 degrees or more, car loaps along at 1500RPM in 6th gear... What I think is happening is less gas is going into the headers and exhaust, less loading up in 6th gear. My plugs always look light brown, so I'm not sure, but I think the car is running well overall, but would benefit from higher temps... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

OK Guys, I know I'm not going crazy now... I have a Hayden adjustable electric fan switch I cranked up so the fan wouldn't come on until it wouldn't come on before 210 degrees. I was in traffic yesterday after warming the car up, and I noticed the throttle was a bit cripser with the temp gage houvering at 200 degrees. I also noticed that the car was running great at 1500RPMS in 6th gear. Car pulled strong in every gear, and ran perfect. Then I get out on the highway, and after I get moving out on the open road, no cars or stoplights, the temps drop to around 170-180. Car starts running worse.. won't pull 6th gear at less than 1900RPMS... My hypothesis: I'm dropping a 195 degree temp thermostat in the car today. I was floored at how well the car ran and how much more horsepower the car made when it was running a bit warmer... 15-20 degrees rise in temp made a HUGE difference.. See the post in "I'm Telling You" about yesterdays battle with a WS6 Firebird while the temps were in the 200 degree range... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

You won't be able to fit those calipers over the 300zx rotor... the caliper doesn't compensate for the thicker rotor size. I tried to make them work, which was how I came to own one set of each model caliper, but my advice is to buy a set of the ribbed calipers. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

THats off my tech article.. The upper unit is the V6 Truck 4x4 unit. The lower unit is a 4 cylinder 4Runner caliper. The V6 unit is about half inch wider, and obviously longer. The pistons are larger diameter. You have to use a 15inch or larger wheel with the upper unit. I also ground a little bit off the outter fin to clear my wheel. Mike Kelly ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited October 13, 2000).]

I have used the camber bushings on different applications and they work OK at best. I currently have heim joints on my front lower control arms and I plan to do the same on the rears. I agree with SCCA about camber plates for the rear... they do make things a bit nicer. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Sorry Mike, My bad. I misread the post... YOu are absolutely correct on the swap from non vented to vented rotors. If you can't get a vented rotor under that wheel, don't bother looking at the caliper! Mike kelly ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Actually that isn't correct. Mine came out of the Toyota V6 4x4 TRUCK which is larger in size than the 4 cylinder unit. Had both in my hands with pads and you could notice a big difference. I think I have a picture of all of the pads laid out on my creaper... I'll check and see if I can post them here... Mike Kelly ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

2+2's are a bit longer. However, you would have to get a custom length drive shaft anyway, regardless of which body style you choose. Is it worth it? I like to think of it like this... after years of building L26 and L 28 motors and being disapointed with the results, you simply can't afford doing something else in that engine bay... At a bare minimum turbo it! My preference of course would be to have you throw a ford motor in it, document and patent the kit and get everything on the market by the time I get the convertible ready for the motor... I'm selfish... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk