Gollum

Well, a couple of launches he's fine. Then he has clutch cable issues that are kinda strange. It's cable, (non hydraulic) and after a hard run he can't get full engaugment for some reason. At first it's like 90% and it will only slip a little and then later at the end of bracets at the strip closer to 60% and it's slipping like crazy. Becuase of this he runs slow his first couple of runs. I don't know what the REAL issues it, but he's thinking about changing the tranny out to hydraulic anyways, since he grinds almost every gear (problem he's had with the tranny ever since we got the motor running out of japan) and probly needs to be replaced anyways. He told me that origonally he'd gotten the strongest clutch he could without going to a puck type clutch. As it is he has a hard time driving it in SF due to no torque at the bottom end, in wich case his clutch likes to slip as well. Anyways, enough with HIS problems, he's buying a RX7 FD soon anyways, so forget him. I'll just have to go and steal the motor....

So, in other words, get a strong enough clutch to match? If i'm thinking this right, it's harder on your clutch because it has to move the same amount of mass quicker thus slipping easier, wich is what causes your flywheel temp to raise. Hmm, makes sence I guess. Always something new to learn. I should tell my buddy about that fact with his 8 lb. honda fly.... His clutch slips everytime he's hard on the car.

This is a good point.... ...except for ONE thing.... ...Two cabs have a higher resonate frequency vs one single 4x12. Oh, and I guess there's a second thing. Not as many companies make good 2x12 cabs. Although I could always make them myself. Hmm, maybe I could install a tow hitch on my Z and get a little trailer.

Yea, In england I think it's about $6 USD compared to our $3 a gallon. If I had a larger tank it wouldn't bother me so much. The idea that my sister's camry will go to LA with one tank with a smaller tank, more cargo space, and more power than my car just sickens me. I dunno, maybe I should just suck it up and eat the gas price. Or just plan on putting a 4 banger in there eventually.

Ok, everyone here is gonna hate me, but honestly, I searched. I've pretty much decicded I'm going to keep my 81' ZX and use it as a daily driver until and when I get a REAL project going. BUT with gas prices..... Well, I realised the other day that I get better gas milage then 3 of the 4 other cars in front of our house. So, it's not THAT bad (19-21 around town... once got 23 by keeping the RPM under 2.5k) BUT.... that's not great. My other dilema is that I'd like more power... I know, i'm picky. I was thinking if I invest some cash into flywheel/clutch and drive shaft that could make the car much more responsive. I also kinda wich I had more cargo space so I've been considering tearing out all the rear interior and making some custom interior (sister is a A++ faberic MASTA. I'll pay her with frappachinos). Ok, so checklist 1) Use less gas 2) Get some more punch 3) More cargo/power ratio I think that's it. I'll probly have to rebuild the engine anyways, since it's STILL starting rough dispite ALL my efforts. So, I need to overhaul this puppy anyways. The OTHER option........ I was looking at maybe selling it any buying a CRX. Sure, it wouldn't have as much power, but it would have a tad more cargo space (trust me, i grew up in a CRX) and get way better gas mileage then I'd ever get out of a L28 (or am I wrong... please say I'm wrong).. BUT, no fun factor, even if it had 200HP. Also keep in mind..... I'm a guitar player, a very serious guitar player... I've been contemplating how to modify my back end to accomidate a 4x12 cab. And my first 4x12 cab purchase might revolve around this car's butt. Now, HOPEFULLY, once I've got a job... time spent will be more of an issue than money. (I've got a job lined up, the company is just SMALL and isn't sure if they want to hire just yet. but the job IS mine. Making way too much money with no commute (flex time working at home))

spoken like a true bay areaite. Well, I havn't been on the board forever, but I can't recall anyone on this board doing a 300ZX swap. BUT, if you're patient and willing to learn there are plenty of people here willing to give thier knowledge at no cost. Ok, so I'll take my swing at it. First off, you're probly going to want to put the motor as far back as possible. I don't think you'll find any mounts availble for the swap, so you'll be making your own mounts. You could probly forget the idea of lining up the mount points. Now, any swap is doable, so if you can just get your hands on a motor and start figuring out where the motor needs to go and what needs to be rearanged. (although I might sound like an idiot to some of the smarter people here. :cough: auxilary :cough:)

i don't know what it's called, but mechanics in the past have used little systems with multiple mics with magnets on them so you can stick the underneath the car so they can drive the car and listen to where the noise is coming from. They're normally used for suspension noise since you many times have to be on the road to create the noise. If it's a true drivetrain issue then skip's idea should work fine, but it's something to look into.

ahem.... the freeways here... are umm.... if you're going 65 in any lane you're getting honked at and if you're not doing at least 80 in the fast lane you've got tail gaters.

Well, if you get everything straightened out and get the car on the road, take a trip up to oakland, i'd love to see the car.

they're HUGE!!!!!!!!!! (talking about the DOHC) Have you seen one next to a 5.0? They're almost twice as wide, no joke. The heads are about as big of heads as have come on anything and the 4.6 block is wider to begin with. They're heavier too. WAY heavier. Even if you fit one (i'm sure you could) it would have a horrible weight distro compared to a 5.0. Why would you want to do it? I'm not saying you should. I love seeing any type of conversion. BUT, if you're looking for pure performance I wouldn't go with it. Newer cars are getting heavier and heavier, and the motors are sucking up to the challenge. The newer motors are heavier, and beefier, but if you can get 600+ solid HP out of a 5.0, why go with something newer? Sure, a 03 cobra can run 9's on a stock bottom end, but that doesn't mean it's a great match for a Z. Parts are more expensive too. Like i said though. If you want to do it, go for it. You'll get support from people here i'm sure (as much as we can offer over that net that is) but I just don't recomend the swap for the performance oriented. Gratefully, Gollum PS I LOVE the 03 cobra and it's nice to see the mustang back competing with the stock stangs of the 60's. And the new gt500 should SO have a SVT badge.... GRRRR

Wow.... That's some serious potential. Probly some serious doe though too.

I'd also imagine the view of the Z car might depend on where you live. Here in cali they're dime a dozen, and SBC Zs are everywhere and a actual NICE one is rare. I see more fast L28ET swaps into first gen Z cars then I do SBC swaps. Again, this is probly just a local thing. The plain and simple fact is that the people around here that COULD be making fast Z cars aren't the ones buying them, it's people that either don't have the money or the knowledge trying to make a fast car. I've seen countless Zs at street races with SBCs in them that can't get traction and I try telling them they just plain need more meat under there, the typical responce is "just wait till I have more power man." The reason "I" like Z cars is the amazingly wide pallet they offer, and thier huge base of customizers. We almost revial mustangs in percentage of prouction restored, not may cars can say that. So, maybe Zs do get some respect out there in georgia, but I'll guarentee that the ricerz out here don't care, and the muscle car people are too elite to notice.

gt40 heads can be had at a small price and make a big difference. The cobras only difference in motor was upper/lower intake, headers, and heads. Other than that they where the same engine. They were also severly underrated. We never had a chance to dyno my brother's 93 cobra before it was stolen, but I've driven plenty of 5.0 stangs and this cobra pulled like no other. I highly recomend those heads if you can find a deal on them. A GREAT alternative if you have the money is AFR heads.

Little side note about solid rear axles. Still to this day, one of the fastest platforms for mountain type racing with slow speed tight turns with unknown conditions, is the toyota AE86 platform. It's ancient (80's), but with less than 150HP those cars with the right dirver will beat almost anything. They use a 3-link type setup, but they still get plent of travel anyways. I've had the pleasure of driving on at a SCCA cone even and I love how predictable the car was to slide. Just keep it smooth and the car rewarded you. I can't really say the same about my ZX. I'd love a kit to be around when I start my Z project in the future, but that won't be anytime soon, so don't count me in on these kit buys. I'd imagine the reason this is taking so long is becuase it sounds like they're totally rebuilding the car. Now, if it gets closer to 6 months down the line, I might start to question, but as of right now, I'd say let them take thier time and work bugs out of thier system and product a valuable product. Another thing I'd like to mention... If this guy (master genius apparentlly) is working on cobras and the likes and has a waiting list of customers, we should be extremelly thankful that he's working with a Z car. From what I've found, most other car people types look down on the Z. Everyone thinks of it as a poor man's sports car (wich it is to some extent) and refuses to have anything to do with them because of it.

actually, i pulled off the pressure relieve thing-a-majige (yes i just said that... can you tell i only work on my own cars?) thinking that there might be too much pressure to back the caliper (i wish i knew the names of the parts i'm working with). I probly lost about 4 ounces or so. Today it was braking in a straight line so it seems there is equal pressure. So, if I have to bleed the lines do I need to drain both back and front and/or left and right. Well, i'm not looking foward to draining the system, but while i'm at it, are there any high performance brake fluids out there I should look for?

i don't remember there being any wiring. i'll check again. thanks for the info.

well, I get the new pads put on. Just had to rotate and it freed up fine. I hate to give the caliper a little love tap from the inside to get it far enough outward for the outside pad. But it's all in now and the it doesn't seem to be sticking at all. I'm in happy land... ....except for one thing... ...my ebrake light won't turn off when I start the car.... The handle it pushing the sensor button just fine, but the light persists. I was under the impressoin that the light's only sensor was the button under the ebrake handle. What else could be tripping the circut?

As I type, my 81 ZX is sitting in the driveway and will be there until I get these brakes fixed. I've searched for the answers to my questions but I can't find them. Ok, my rear driver's side brake won't retract. It will onlt push. A couple of weeks ago I noticed that at slow speeds there was a little bit og brake grind in the back left, so today I go to put on some new pads and there isn't any room to put new ones on. The old ones where dead (well, just the inside one, the inside pad was at about 50%). So I figure, what the hey, maybe if I press on the brakes it'll release like it should, so i'll have the room I need.... bad idea. Now it's enguaged and I can't get anything in there.... BAAA! I really hope to be able to fix this without rebuilding the caliper, so someone please help.

unless you just so happen to have a couple of those lying aroung.... By any unit of measurement he's a real oddball... we should get him on our forums!

Hmm, I don't know much from the tech side of it, so I won't comment on that. But people that do circut/drift racing don't think much of a miata's turning capability, but you also have to think about the fact that miata is so popular because it's "fun" to drive. Personally I believe a well built street/circut car needs to have a balance of these two ingrediants. The one thing to think about is how much that rear end could hold. I wonder what people who make monster miatas do with the back end of things.

Is there all that wrong with a 4 speed? IF (Big if) you have the horsepower to drive it, it can be quite nice. A friend with a 1000+hp stang runs a 2 speed on his 67'. Pretty crazy. One speed for town, and one for highway, and 2 for going down the track. I'd imagine that with a good rear end set up with lots of low end tourque a 4 speed would be fine. But now we're talking about HP numbers that would destroy these stock trannies... Personally, i've never had the honor of seeing a 5 speed Z. But I love my 5 speed ZX

So why does the stock oil system not work for the RB26DETT in a Z? Due to steering rack clearance issues? Do you think the mods you made (talking to stony) would make the engine more suseptable to drying up during hard accelleration and braking? It might not be an issue until you start hitting barelly streetable numbers though. I plan to go with a RB26DETT for my future project purelly for the wow factor. To do a 2jz would be almost as much, and your initial motor can be hard to find. Most wreaked supras around have already had the motor taken and such. There are less than 12k supras in the USA... that's not many to jump on. I have a huge smile on my face though thanks to the new lexus IS300 having the 2jz non turbo. The more blocks the merrier. V8s are cool (i'm a huge muscle car fan. favorite car always having been the A/C cobra) but the sound of a V8 coming from a Z just doesn't seem right for a road racing car (like i'm going for) and if just seems right to stay with nissan. Love all the work you've done stony in keeping it all documented. Job well done m/ o.o m/

wow, sounds like you got all the help you'll need... aren't web forums great? I hope there are plenty of people around to help me once I get around to my project.

if only i had a P90 head.... I could convert over to a turbo L28... that would be nice... too bad though. Words of encouragement: I couldn't do that stuff man... nice work.

well, the grinding isn't that bad. If I don't shift hard (like downshifting into 2nd at 40mph) that it's fine. No grind. The engine is only 28k miles, but I think the tranny might have been swapped from an older engine, seeing as the guy I bought it from had another project Z who lied about what what missing from the car. With the state they left the car in i'm possitive they didn't change the motor, not a single thing they took off they did well. Like the overflow tank being taken out and not a single hose plugged, or the steering wheel taken apart and with nothing missing... like they took it apart for jollies. I got the feeling that if the motor had been swapped none of the guages would work from lack of electrical fallow through. That being said the only explaination to the tranny grinding is VERY exessive misuse for what few miles there are, or they swapped it out to use the practically new one. Are there ANY other explainations? Low tranny fluid? This car had been sitting from QUITE some time. I don't know what that could do to a tranny. It's not a BIG problem, but something that i'll want to fix if i'm to invest much money into this motor.