dano

Thanks rayaap2! Glad to hear I'm not the only one building something like this . From everything I've read here I am going to go ahead with the E88/F54 combo. I will double-check the cam, but am 99% sure it's the original 260 cam. I'm only the second owner and the previous owner wouldn't have done a cam swap. Thanks for the tip on the Nismo gasket but yeah I can't justify it right now. So I'm going to go 1mm felpro for some cheap compression. I'm going to get quotes for cleaning up the head. Does $200-$300 sound reasonable? I'd have them hot tank it, change the valve guides and seats, and do a valve job.

Thanks Guys! Yes, I am planning to at least do the valve stem seals on the E88 if I go that route. I'll also get a quote on cleaning up the E88 (new seats, hot tank). So far sounding like it will work better than what I've currently got in there . As far as modifying the P90 I'm considering it, but will be done later. Any other advice for an eager novice?

Hi folks, I'd like to get some input regarding a decision I have to make about the engine in my Z. I've searched through the archives, but haven't found anyone running the exact combo that I'm thinking about. I can infer things based on what I've read, but really want to make sure that I'm understanding it all correctly. First some background information. I've got a freshly rebuilt L28ET (minus the E and T parts) in my carb'ed Z. Exact combo is: P90a head with hydraulic adjusters and F54 block with stock "turbo" dished pistons. As you can probably guess, it runs HORRIBLY. I now understand this is a result of extremely low (7.3:1) compression and a cam grind that doesn't work so well with carbs. I've also got an intact but well-worn L26 on the side. I believe it has the late-model E88 head based on the build date of the car (11/74). At this point I just want to get the car back on the road without spending too much money. If possible I'd like to use part (or all) of the L28. From reading and researching I think I have two options: 1. Reinstall L26 engine (it's old but still ran when I removed it last year). 2. Put the E88 head onto the F54 block. I'd like if at all possible to do option 2 because it's a lot less work and I wouldn't have to get the L26 clutch redone. Plus I'd get to make use of the balancing job the machine shop did on the bottom end of the L28. For a variety of reasons adding the E and T parts isn't an option right now. I used the awesome Z engine calculator at http://www.ozdat.com/ozdatonline/enginedesign/ to calculate compression ratios for the two engine configurations. The L26 has a compression ratio of about 8.2:1 (I used the "L26" preset in the calculator for this). This is based on the calculator above and this post: http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/topic/90777-l26-with-mn47-head/page__view__findpost__p__860272 The E88/F54 combination would, according to the calculator, also have a compression ratio of about 8.2:1. For this value I used the L28ET preset and changed the head to "L6:L26:E88". Would the E88/F54 combination give comparable performance to the original L26? Or am I missing something? Thanks in advance! -Dan

I'm in the market for 2-4 hydro lifters (lash adjusters) for a p90a cyl head. Thanks!

Update: I was able to open the valve in question without incident. What I ended up doing was pushing down with the end of the rocker arm while I pushed down with the valve spring compressor tool. Also I found that instead of pushing all the way down in one step, I would do the "two steps forward, one step back thing". So push down some, let off a bit, push down some, lift off a bit. I make no promises that any of this is valid or safe. All I can say is that in this particular instance, on my particular engine it worked.

Thanks Tony! I will double-check the piston is down and out of the way. Assuming that it is down, is there anything else I can try to test for bent valves?

*edited to be clearer on valve numbering terminology* Hi Folks, Long time lurker first-ish time poster. I do apologize in advance if this has been covered elsewhere. I tried searching but honestly don't know which search terms to use. I'm going through the headache that is dirty hydro lifters on a P90a and was hoping you folks could help me out with a few issues I'm having. First of all I'm doing this with the head still on the motor. Not sure if it matters or not but this is a freshly build motor (~35mi on it). I'm using the KD 3087 valve spring compressor to help with rocker arm removal and installation. The first few valves that I worked on (specifically #6 intake) went just fine. Then I got to #3 exhaust and #4 exhaust and am having issues. Basically when I compress the valve spring with the KD tool, the valve only opens a bit and seems to get stuck. The retainer and springs compress. I noticed it at first when the lash pad would not go down with the spring retainer ring. I've compressed the spring several times and the valve is still doing the same thing. I've checked to make sure the valve wasn't touching the piston. I'm really concerned that I'm going to drop a valve at this rate. Any advice or ideas? Thank you very much! -Dan

holy resurrected thread Batman! I'm going through the headache that is dirty hydro lifters and was hoping you folks could help me out with a few issues I'm having. First of all I'm doing this with the head still on the motor. Not sure if it matters or not but this is a freshly build motor (~35mi on it). I'm using the KD 3087 valve spring compressor to help with rocker arm removal and installation. The first few valves (specifically #11) went just fine. Then I got to #6 and #7 and am having issues. Basically when I compress the valve spring with the KD tool, the valve only opens a bit and seems to get stuck. I noticed it at first when the lash pad would not go down with the spring retainer ring. I've compressed the spring several times and the valve is still doing the same thing. I've checked to make sure the valve wasn't touching the piston. I'm really concerned that I'm going to drop a valve at this rate. Any advice or ideas? Thanks in advance! -Dan P.S. Thanks a TON to cygnusx1 for pointing me to the KD 3087. It's made all the difference.

Wow thanks Xnke for posting this. I had the exact same question a few days ago. I'm now planning on upgrading to the zx sender so I can use the cutoff functionality for my elect fuel pump. One of the arguments I heard in favor of using a cutoff sensor is that in the event of a bad accident you don't want the pump to continue sending fuel into the hot engine bay and potentially having it spread everywhere. Now I have no ideas if this is a likely scenario. At the same time though it's not a tricky mod and it could save your life. Which is why it's high on my to do list. YMMV. Dano

Zmanco, thank you for the information!!! i need to upgrade my badly under-cooled Z and this thread came along just in time. I'm going to order 2 of those fans from the seller mentioned in the thread and (if you don't mind) try and replicate your install method and include a shroud. I actually have the same rad you do. sorry m1g i don't mean to threadjack. actually i owe you one too for posting this thread in the first place thanks all, I'll try and post up pics when done

*bump* Thanks to the guys who've already replied! Any more opinions on this one?

Greetings all, Long time reader, first time poster. I've recently started the task of swaping a chevy v8 into a 74.5 260z. I'd really appreciate your opinions on a possible deal I've got going here for a vlsd + axles. Here are the specs: 300zx (90-93 z32) r200 na vlsd with 28000 miles on it comes with axles. all cv boots in good shape no rips at all. $400 So watcha guys think? Please keep in mind that I'm in Hawaii so shipping from the other 49 states is pretty expensive. Thanks so much in advance! -Dan