Gollum

The fan shroud usually gets in my way, so I pull that off real quick and then the belts go over the fan just fine. Then just fallow warren's advice. Loosen the tensioners and get em' on. Make sure to start with the furthest back belt on the crank pully.

This is just me talking about my experience with the nissan headlight switch, and semi-complaining. I'm not in need of help, just adding to information so feel free to skip this thread. Anyway, my 75' 280 was having issues with my light switch. It was the first click, the tail lights, front corners, dash gauge lights, etc. Found a bad solder point, so I resoldered it on. Still nothing.... hmmm. So I take the switch apart, and the plastic nipple that moves the rocker inside the switch (sits ontop of a spring) was destroyed. Lame. So I bought a 20 amp toggle switch from kragen. Wired it up, works like a charm now. Then I had two switches in two different places, not the least confusing situation, but not that big of a deal. . . . Then last night, I go to leave my parent's house (where I'd been playing the new Super Smash Bro's Brawl with my brother...) and the headlights aren't comming on. Damn. So while it's pitch black outside, and the streetlights work as good as business cards you never hand out, I proceeded to cut my wires, put ends on them, and wire them into the new switch. Now, another side note, is that I'd put one of my 280ZX headlights in one of the headlights when I got the car because it had a shattered bulb. Since then the old one had been super bright, while the new one was pretty mellow. So I get the switch wired up, didn't want to work at first. I think my switch is kinda cheap, and likes to not connect temporarly if you breathe on it wrong. I get out to make sure the lights are ok, and they're magically on. So somewhere in there the switch turned on. Ok, time to go home. Well the GF noted that both headlights were about as equal brightness as she could tell now, just that the 280ZX one was a little more yellow. Ok, so not only was the switch sucking at switching, but it was also causing poor current flow or something to that effect. I think I'm gonna replace the switch with something a bit higher amperage, and with a light too, so that I know when it's on. Then it'll get mounted to something, probably where the radio is supposed to go. ...now i'm just waiting for that turn signal switch to go out on me...

It's not just about the size of the engine, nor power output, hence why you can stall a ferarri... Engine inertia, clutch strength, car weight, tire compound, road surface all have an influence on how you need to treat the initial 1st gear pull away. A motor with no rotating mass nees more RPM to get the weight of the car rolling, and a strong clutch is gonna mean you'll need to feather the clutch even more. And if the engine's rotating mass is extremely light and you have a super sensetive clutch then you usually end up either with a dead engine or wheel spin. Learning in a ferarri would probably require no fear of sliding the tires to get going. Without the basic feel of what driving a manual is like the reaction of the clutch would be very intimidating. I've driven more manuals than I can remember but there's no way the ferarri wouldn't scare me.

My rear defrost isn't working either, and i'm gonna be testing it soon with a meter to check for breaks. I was kinda wondering if there's some conductive spray I could spray over the lines to give them new life. Seems like it'd be easy if I could just find something to spray thats conductive. Something tells me that copper gasket stuff isn't really copper...

There were these diffs in the S130 cars: R200 3.364 3.545 3.7 3.9 R180 3.364 3.545 All 81-83 manual cars had the 3.9. I'm pretty darn positive of it too. The auto cars had a 3.545 R180 in those years. Only in 79 and 80 were there different 2 seater vs 4 seater diffs. http://www.geocities.com/z_design_studio/

Isn't the SRT4 MAP based, thus negating any worry about richness off boost? Though I believe the STI is map based as well. As far as I know ALL the L series TPS "sensors" are switches. So that combined with the high fuel cut you should be able to see why I'd suggest a recirc type for this particular application. Sorry if I ever seemed to be making general statements. If we were talking about a different motor, or even an L series running a MAP based megasquirt my advice would probably have been different.

Manny - Did your car come as a manual car, or did you convert it? I ask because all 81-83 manual 280ZX cars came with a 3.9 R200 diff.

The nissan ECU only cuts above 2500, and needs a full 100% throttle cut in order to work. There will be times that you're feathering throttle so fast that draining that air to atmoshere is just plain a waste of time. Leaving the air going into the engine will give you a more quicker throttle responce as the mixture gets in range faster, and the intake is already charged with air and isn't creating as intense of a vacuume. For a street driven car either works imo, but if you're going to be doing any type of racing with turns in it I think you're better off not chancing it. Just do it right the first time. I think there's a reason why pretty much all OEM turbo cars use a recirculating type BOV, even the brand new and redesigned STIs and EVOs.

Ok, here's a good one for you... Dynos (you know, those things that measure the HP of an engine of a car) don't measure HP... at all. They measure torque. Torque is actual power, HP is how much work can get done with that power. So 200 torque at 2000RPM is 76HP but 200 torque at 4000RPM is 152HP. The basic calculation is Torque multiplied by RPM, divided by 5252 (5252 is the RPM at wich the calculation comes out identical, which is why you'll always seen HP and torque touch/cross at this RPM on a dyno graph) It looks like this in math terms: Tq * RPM / 5252 So torque is the given power, but you can't get HP until you know what RPM that torque number is at. Again, HP is how much work actually gets done. The reason torquless motors feel powerless is because they don't have HP in the lower RPM when you're getting the car off the line, which is why they need higher gearing, to make better use of the higher RPM. So if you give me ANY engine spec as far as Peak HP and Torque and told me at what RPMS both those numbers occured I could give you a rough estimate what kind of power curve that motor is going to have. A low torque number and a high HP number tells me right off the bat that PEAK power comes above 5252rpm, where a peak torque HAS to be lower than HP. In a motor where peak torque comes in low, and the HP peak is a good 3krpm higher, than I can tell you it's going to have a very broad HP curve and a torque curve that starts falling off by 4k or so. It's basic math because they're related and/or the same thing depending on how you look at it. Torque doesn't make power. RPMs don't make power. The two combined make power.

My way of checking baseline AFM setting: Pull off the cover to the AFM. You'll see a little arm that spins with airflow that you can rotate easily. Start the car. Test how much rotational play at idle you have in this unit until the engine starts choking. You should have about an equal length of play in each direction. There's also the idle air/fuel bolt that can be pulled out to allow more/less air to bypass the flapper. More air is lean of course, because it's unmetered air. Generally you can set the idle air mixture to about halfway, then adjust the AFM to idle right in the middle of running rich/lean, and then you'll have a decent fuel curve providing you don't have any problems or modifications to the fuel system. If you're injectors were bad/mis sized and the previous owner had been screwing with the AFM this could very easily be the source of your problem. If the system is completely 100% stock and has not been touched, then the AFM should be fine. Hope you find the problem.

I'm almost 100% positive my does NOT have a 3.36. At 3k going down the freeway I'm getting passed by the fast driving BMW pricks like I'm not moving. I have to be at 2750 or higher just to keep up with the flow. I'm pretty sure I have the 5 speed with the closer ratio 5th, not either of the ZX 5 speeds.

Wow.... you didn't read my post earlier at all... Thanks. I'll say it again, if you had 1 bagillion million (as you put it) HP and only 10 torque it would be at the realm of billions of RPM. 300hp is 300hp, no matter how much torque you have, PERIOD. Now, HP CURVE is another story. Turbo cars have less off the line HP because of lack of low RPM Torque. Please learn what torque really means before telling us how much you want. I tried to teach you something but you flat out ignored it. If it didn't make sense, let me know, I'll be glad to find you some analogies.

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/car/604882513.html http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/car/600134805.html http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/car/601126410.html I'll be editing this post shortly, come back often. 1st Edit: San diego area http://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/car/604478650.html http://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/car/604345023.html http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/car/600312626.html http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/car/601970784.html Inland Empire http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/car/597183026.html http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/car/585565706.html http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/car/581907322.html http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/mcy/596794758.html Need more options than that?

I wouldn't pay more than a cent over 3k for that. He's done some nice work to it, but it's an 81' so it's an auto, making it less desirable. That car if it were stock would go for around 1k or less on craigslist I bet. Maybe 1.5k if the seller found a buyer who was in a hurry.

Though this is true, OS Geiken not having any (that we know of), I've heard from a semi-trusted source that will remain nameless that OS Geiken does have the blueprints to the head still, but refuses to release them. I personally don't really care, I don't find the OS Geiken that special from an engineering standpoint. There are MUCH better OEM heads out there. I'm also in complete agreement with Tony about the leadership factor. If it's gonna happen someon has to run with it, that's just the nature of any pioneering. I'd much rather help than hurt, but I still just have to ask why? Why put all this work into the L series? Seems like you're paying a lot of money solely for the wow factor. That being said... if someone had an aluminium block and DOHC head L motor in a catalog... I'd consider plunking down 4-6k for it. Maybe... There's an aweful lot of other motors I like plenty.

If a company like dart can get away with charging 6k for a 302 block, I'm sure we'd be looking to spend at LEAST that per block even with a huge pool of people interested. But it won't be class legal for most racing groups and thus cuts out most of the people who'd spend that kind of money on a block alone. I myself would much sooner pay 6-10k to have a custom KA24 head w/ port work and custom cams made. Though I'm not sure I'd even do that. If I was spending that kind of money on an engine it'd be an aluminium small block ford. But that's just me.

Judging by his signature I think he has a 280Z, so he'd need closer to 420hp for that time according to that calculator, though if the car is on any sort of a diet that number changes quite a bit. But that's still not even close to the numbers he's talking about...

Well I finally get to say it. I was right all along. Nissan made 8 different driveshafts for the S130 cars.... EIGHT!!! Here's the list: Manual 2 seater NA Manual 2+2 NA Auto 2 seater NA Auto 2+2 NA Manual 2 seater Turbo Manual 2+2 Turbo Auto 2 seater Turbo Auto 2+2 Turbo The car I went and look at yesterday was an auto. The auto tranny was a completely different length than the manual, and also had a different sleave on it, but it WAS the right spline count, so I think the first shaft I bought must have been an NA shaft, and the guy thought he had a turbo tranny... doesn't know how to reconize a T5? So I'm back to square one. If I want to get this car running I'll probably have to swap the tranny out for the NA tranny. Though now that I've got a daily driver I might just spend my time throwing out all the spare crap I've got and just wait for another turbo car to pop up.

I honestly can't say, because I just don't have experience with the Z32 stuff, and I havn't spent the time researching, but the diff itself is definately the short nose. If someone who knows more than me wants to chime in, sweet. I think for $1k you shouldn't pass it up if you're gonna do the engine swap. You might be able to make half of that back in interior and other misc part on ebay. Maybe even more.

That's a pretty early production 280Z then, though I think it's quite obvious that's what it is. His VIN - HLS30-158581 My VIN - HLS30-201541 My car is stamped December/74 in the door.

It's a Z32, so basically nothing... The R200 is a short nose, which won't fit without serious work, and I personally think you're better off with the long nose anyways. Though I personally think that the NA motor from the Z32, the VG30DE, would be a pretty sweet swap if you're fine with less than 300hp. Low weight, sits far back and low down. Parts are readily availible if you break something. Just most people opt for the turbo (or twin turbo in this case) swap which has a hard time fitting with minimal fabrication.

Yea, I looked that up later yesterday, I thought they were zero offset. Either way, the S130 has plenty of room for more meat under there, so don't fret. I'd bet you could even go to a -10 offset with a 6 inch rim, though I obviously havn't done it so take it for what it's worth.

^ And that's comming from a guy with a RB25... You should heed his advice. I wouldn't call 550lbs of torque weak, nor would i call an RB weak. But now I have to go off on my torque vs hp rant, so you can just ignore me if you've heard me do this before... Torque, and HP are the same thing. You can take a torque number, and as long as you know the RPM you know how much HP there is. When someone wants a "torque monster" what they want is a motor with low rpm HP. I turbo motor can make huge torque, it just won't be in the lower rev range. If you want a turbo motor to have a nice flat torque curve then you need a turbo that will spool faster, which usually means less peak HP. No, if you have a 4 cylinder that only has half as much peak torque as HP (not all that uncommen, IE F20C) then you need higher gearing than a comparable HP low rev motor (which will produce more torque in case you didn't figure that one out yet). I'd even say this: Two 400hp motors, both naturally aspirated, both with completely flat torque curves, one that makes peak power at 9krpm, and one that makes peak power at 3k will both put down the same exact quarter mile times in the same chassis, with optimal gearing for their rev range. Does that make sense? Don't hunt for torque or HP levels/goals. Shoot for torque/hp curve. It's by far the most important factor for what you're looking for. It's also a huge factor in how streetable the motor is. Turbo cars under extreme levels of boost dyno like on/off buttons, which go down the quarter mile extremely fast because they can stay on the entire time. NA motors make much more "wide use" power curves, but can be expensive to build if you're not willing to add lots of displacement. So my conclusion: If you're really trying to stay away from american motors (which to me it seems obvious you are) I'd say find the largest disacement japanses motor you can find within your price range. And if you can swallow your pride, put a V8 in it. If you really want to beat STOCK american muscle, you won't really need much more than 300hp to beat most out there. Closer to 500 and you've got pretty much anyone beat. So based out of a basic assumption that most motors can get around 80-100hp per liter NA with a bit of work you can calculate that you want a motor between 5-6.25 liters to smoke everyone out there and have a nice huge torque curve still. Motors that would get to over the 350hp mark that fit in a Z (just off the top of my head, there's probably hundreds honestly) Small/Big Block Chevy Small Block Ford (someone's done a BBF before right?) Small/Big Block Mopar LSX VH45 VK56 1UZFE Ford Mod Motor As I said, the list could go on. Here's a small list of turbo motors that can make over 350hp with relatively large torque curves. RB25ET RB30ETT 1JZ 2JZ SR20ET L28ET KA24ET (never turbo'ed stock obviously) VG30ET VG30DETT Ford Essex V6 Buick V6 The list here could go on quite a ways as well.

Ok, so I definately know which rims are the swatiska rims are... which are the snow flakes? Are those these: Or these?:

I don't know a ton about them either, but I know they're becoming quite the collector car. They've been on my list of cars to look out for as a potential GRM/LeMons candidate, but they're simply too expensive of a base, and when you do fine one for cheap it's truly a heap of bolts.