Dan Juday

I'm not an expert in this area, (great start ha?). But, I picked up an aluminum Corvette shaft at the bone yard cheap and had it cut and balanced for $130. This was cheaper than having a new one made, and had the advantage of having a dampener on the trany yoke. The drive line guy who did it used to make the drive shafts for Scarab in the '70's, and knows about V8 Z's. He said this is the best set-up.

Mine came out of a '92 Taurus 3.8. They say to get it out of a car with A/C. How many '92 Taurus' didn't have A/C? Get the top radiator mount out of the Camaro, it works great. The top mount I got came out of the same car as the engine. It is the bigger one but I just cut it down with a power chop saw, carbide blade. Trim the bits and pieces off that the Camaro fans mount to. It looks factory!

I haven’t got my rad in yet, but I bought the smaller Camaro one and the Taurus fan. You won't believe the fit, it's almost perfect. Hard to believe one was made by Chevy and the other part by Ford. The nice thing about the JTR manual is that Mike Knell has been scrounging bone yards for 20 years. I should have this thing running in about a month or so, I'm in the middle of the electrical, ('91 305 TPI). Then I can let you know how well it works.

Thanks guys, I'll definitely be biding on the factory manual. How many other people out there are doing/did the GM stock tpi swap? I could sure use some tips not included in the JTR manual. The wiring issue is coming up soon and I'm nervous.

Hey randy 77zt, you are right on about the Taurus fan. I picked one up from the wrecker yesterday off a '92. I was shocked at how well it fits the Camaro radiator. Actually, here is another little tip. I couldn't find the small Camaro radiator in my area. I did find an almost identical one that came from an '86 V6 Chevy Van. The only difference is that the van one has a petcock on the driver side. It is slightly wider at the bottom because of this. I had to shave off a few of the plastic fins on one tank to make it fit. I have the JTR kit with the lower radiator mount. I will have to modify it a little too to attach to the bottom of the frame rails instead of the top. More work than a petcock is worth, but I just couldn't find that Camaro radiator. Just wanted to throw that in if anyone else is having the same problem.

I need to know guys. What is the best Datsun manual for a '73 240? Specifically, electrical diagrams. As soon as the paint is dry in the engine bay I'll be wedging the 305tpi in. The previous owner really hacked up the wires in this car, too many stereo and alarm transplants I presume. Also, JTR highly recommends the Helm manuals when doing a tpi swap. Can I get a witness?

I can attest to the inflation factor $!$!$! And I'm not building an engine, just a one piece junkyard mill. All that little stuff adds up though. But, if you bought the JTR book, you were warned.

Is anybody running an aluminum driveshaft? The wrecking yard I got my motor from,(305tpi out of a '91 Firebird) gave me one from a Corvette in the package. I thought, "this is cool, better parts for free". Then I read some posts here that worry me. Mikelly heard about them failing in cop cars. Another guy had clearance problems between the hand brake and u-joints. The aluminum shaft is larger, 3" dia. If anybody knows about them let me know before I pay to have it sectioned and balanced. Dan

I think Lone is right. I've done 6 or 8 clutch jobs and it seems I always run into that. Just when I'm about to give up the splines line up, and it all goes together. Did you by a cheap alignment tool? A good one will fit very tight and not wiggle (much). A clue would be to measure the length the input shaft goes into the bearing/bushing. If it is the same as the gap from bellhousing to block, then it's likely the pilot is not engaging. Get out the calipers and measure the id and od. Good luck! Dan

Found one! Thanks for you help, John.

You can also try a book store in Pleasanton CA called Car Buffs. 925-484-9434 I know for certain they have the JTR TPI/TBI book,$29.95. They have strange hours though. If you get a machine leave a message, they do call back.

Hey John, e-mail me directly and I'll give you a number to fax to. danjuday@allera.net Really appreciate it! What tranny are you going to use? I tore the car apart today. Tomorrow the L24 comes out! Dan

Thanks John, How about scanning and attaching to an e-mail? Cheaper than a long distance call. danjuday@allera.net I bought a '91 305 TPI today. 68k miles, out of a GTA Firebird. Got it from a wrecking yard that came highly recommended. I told him what I was doing. I got everything, computer, wiring harness, delivered for$1200. He said if I find anything missing that I need I could come back and take it off the car no charge. I was hoping to have the book before I bought a motor but you know how it goes. So, will this one work?

JTR is back ordered on the TPI/TBI convertion manual. Does anyone have one they want to sell me? I'm going out to look at motor/trannys today. It would be nice to have a manual to tell me what to look for/avoid. I want a TPI & T5. I know I want an '88 or later for the "World Class" T5. And I know what starters to look for from the JTR V8 manual, but that's it. Can you help me guys? PS ordered my JTR kit, should be here next week.

I'm looking for an air dam for a 240 that fills in the indentations for the bumper for that "bumperless look". Does this exist or do I have to get sticky and itchy again?

Picked up my donor car today, YEAH a'73 240. I plan on hanging a lot of fiberglass on it. I love the rear fenders from the 280YZ (http://www.reactionresearch.com/280yzgallery.html) but not the nose. I want a bumperless frontend with about 2" wider front fenders and integrated air dam. The SubtleZ is nice but the fenders don't match the 280YZ rears. The California Z fronts might work, but I haven't seen any good photos, just drawings with rectangular lights, (I prefer the round ones). Can anybody help?

Hey Jim, I live about 90 min. north of you. I'm one step behind and one step ahead of you. I have definitely decided to build a V8Z, but don't have a car yet. Finally found a good donor but the seller got very sick this weekend. Said call on monday. I bought the JTR manual, you should too. Even if you decide to use someone else's kit or fab your own, this book is worth several times its cost.

Thanks Ross, found it. $1k min. order? I'll have to look into that. Do you know anything about the quality? Is the company reputable?

Does anyone know about a fiberglass kit for the hatch that converts it to a tunnelled-in rear, (vertical window, flat horizontal deck)? I saw one while surfing late one night but didn't bookmark it. I looked cool except for the detail around the window, I bet I could improve on that.

Hi. I'm brand new. I had decided to stuff a V8 into a tiny car. Considered several possibilities then found you guys and JTR. Praise God! I didn't really want to re-invent the wheel. So, help please. I'm currently looking at a few donor cars, (240's & 260's), pre '75 to avoid California smog concerns. Other than a good straight rust free car, should I look for a particular year?