ZHeadV8

Thanks Pop N Wood - not managed to find one on the web yet though - the LS6 seems to come in around $7,250 give or take depending on where you go. Are you saying the NEW LS7 is a small block then ? If so it should fit where an LS6 goes. Where would I find one ? used several search engines and have turned up a blank. Fo the relatively small extra cost the LS7 would be a much better lump - would probably have a lot nicer manners @ 500BHP than a tuned old style engine.

According to the Scoggin Dickey site the LS7 is a big block, so I think I would be better with the LS6........... ? Am I barking up the right tree here guys ?

WOW ! The engine looks awesome - will investigate and see where I can get an LS7 from if anywhere. Thinking about it, it is probably a stroked SBC to make it 7 litres. That is a cheap cheap deal on that LS6 Mike but I would prefer brand new - EVERYTHING front to back is brand new including a custom loom so in effect it is a new car with a 1971 body shell. Do you guys recommend standard ECU units with these engines or aftermarket much more programmable ones ? My engineer has suggested a fully programmable ECU that you can plug a laptop into - he has suggested I can have an economy map for journeys, a track map for racing and a drag map to play straight lines with, essentially swapping at will. I will make enquiries to the companies you have linked me to. Thank you very very much for your help - I will definitely be using an LS6 or 7 now. Any gotcha's to watch out for with the LS engines ? The JTR manual only covers the straight forward SBC.

Is this the engine you are referring to ? http://www.sdpc2000.com/cart.asp?action=catalog_start&catid=3449 Forgive my ignorance but is it not a big block engine ? doesn't that give installation problems ?

OK, will check for LS6 and LS7's as crates - am now convinced, where is the best place to get GM crate engines in the US ? I can have it conveniently dropped into a friend's container saving me lots of import duty and tax. I have spoken to the engineer who would actually prefer to install a FI, ECU controlled engine to a NA !! He says it is more his home turf and definitely a better way to go. Thanks for your guidance. Now the gearbox - I read on Pete Paraska's site that one of his mistakes was to buy a Tremec box and I wanted 6 speed so opted for the T56. As I will now go for an LS6 or LS7 engine if I can get one, which would be the best box to go for ? My requirements are as little effort to fit as possible, preferably six gears, smooth, strong, close ratio for good acceleration, must fit through the stock opening in the floor pan. Thanks for your help, you have just saved me making an expensive mistake.

Thanks guys, I know it is a fairly naive question to say "which engine" but I simply have nothing over here to look at and play with to make the decision. Ok, so I am two thirds convinced that the extra effort will be worth it in terms of street manners and fuel economy but there are obviously different LS engines, Mike you say I would want an LS6, what is the difference please ? Rather than out and out horsepower, I am looking for a well mannered but brutally torquey engine >400ftlbs, preferably nearer 500. You see Japanese cars running 1000BHP but they never seem to perform as I would expect, there is no substitute for brute force, massive torque and CCs in my book. This car has a $60K budget so I want to get it absolutely right - everything else is sorted, I just have these engine questions left. I take it there are kits available to mate an LS1/2/6 with a T56 gearbox ? Will search for more info on this. Is there a particular recommendation for the "ultimate" ? I personally am not particularly good at mechanics, fabrication etc, the car is being built by an engineer who worked as part of Team Toyota in their World Rally Championship Team - he is exceptionally good and will be able to easily cope with anything thrown at him in terms of complexity.

Hi Mike, you are obviously running an LS1, would be grateful for your views : http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=97574 There is precious little over here to look at and compare. Cheers Andy

Hi Guys, My project Z is underway, the plans have all been sorted, the suspension, brakes, etc etc etc have all been gone through with a fine toothed comb (Proflex suspension, AP brakes) and I ordered the wheels today from R&D Motorsports (cheaper for me in the UK to order Work Wheels from the States than direct from Japan). Now the question, borne out of V8 ignorance as we do not have many American V8s here in England : All the way down the line, I have been referring to the JTR V8 swap bible, tons of useful info and have been planning on an Edelbrock Performer RPM engine and T56 gearbox, both brand new from the UK's Edelbrock distributor. They will be purchased at the last possible minute to save the warranty frittering away with the engine still in the crate. Although the old school SBC is tried and tested and the kits and experience are available to fit them, I have been wondering about the LS1. Not knowing one from my a$$ end because they are none too common here, I take it they are aluminium, ECU controlled and probably smoother. How much extra effort is involved with the LS1 swap and more importantly what would be the benefits of doing one ? The standard SBC is by now relatively straight forward as a transplant, the LS1 would be much more complex but would it be worth it ? Would I gain much ? Many Thanks for your views and replies.

Excellent -

Fascinating stuff Magnum, Am in the process of having an Edelbrock Performer SBC put into a 1971 240Z and have been advised to go for the 420BHP option potentially with nitrous as opposed to a stroked 500BHP option without. The guys that seem to know are telling me 500BHP all the time will be too much in a 2300lb car ....... Can't see why but they have built and run these things before so I trust their experience and judgement. Do you have any views on nitrous and V8s ? Cheers Andy

Hi Randy - thanks for your offer of help. The car actually came from a place I believe in the desert somewhere that was moving premises - that's all I know as it was imported for me, the brief was simply go and find me a rust free Californian 240Z. I am going to get the VIN number and post it up as well, see if that helps. It is a 1971 240Z (I think in the US you would call it a series 1 as the diff is mounted in the earlier forward position), now grey, originally looks like it could have been silver. The tell tale give away will be the louvres on the bonnet, someone went to a great deal of trouble to press them actually into the original bonnet itself. Two rows of the louvres are on the central bulge, one row either side. If I could find the post pic button anywhere on this board I would put a pic of the bonnet up CHeers Andy F

Hi Guys, I have imported a structurally solid 1971 240Z from California to the UK to have the firewall replaced with a RHD one and a TOTAL bare shell resto. The car will have an Edelbrock Performer SBC installed running 420BHP with nice goodies on order from Vince (Carbon Fibre and a STUNNING bonnet badge - sorry ......... hood emblem). My question is a plea for history .......... Does any know of this car or remember it ? Has anyone owned it ? I would love to be able to track it from the dealership through each and every owner to myself - the intention is to document everything for a complete resto history and rebuild. The budget for the rsto is over half as much again as a new 350Z so I really do want to collect every last detail I can. Fingers Crossed... Many Thanks Andy F

Pyro, I would be incredibly grateful if there is any way you could record a sound bite of your single exhaust and post it - ticking over and being revved hard. The dual sound is a known quantity - would use carbon back boxes and stainless pipes like TVR but a single ............. ???? It's a bit much to ask so I understand if it is not possible but it would be interesting. Cheers Andy F

Great replies guys thanks, I am WELL impressed with the 10.7 and an R200 3.9 - I have a NISMO 3.9 Limited SLip DIff, will hopefully work well. Thanks for the advice on the cell and flowmasters, we do not have those here in the UK I don't think but hey hell there's always UPS

Does anybody have soundbites of single pipe systems please ? I am convinced I want dual exhausts but am intrigued now - I expect it to sound like a nice neat executive saloon but I am wondering if it barks like a standard Z exhaust does (I know it will be different going from straight 6 to V8 but I am talking about a sound - how do you describe that exactly?)

Hi, Not what I expected to hear but a very valid and thought provoking view - when you say a single exhaust I presume you literally mean one pipe with a tail box as opposed to twin pipes down the car merging into one tail box at the back ? This is the way nice executive saloon cars are built. They are very quiet, smooth and polite - how did it sound in the Z ? (very very hard to describe a sound I know) If you check out darius240z.com and look at the videos you can hear his car with dual exhausts but both coming out of one side - surely it just sound the same but spacially seperated when you put one either side ? What I would like is a deep, crisp aggressive tone - it should pick revs up quickly because of the nature of the engine. Like a TVR Cerbera for example running a stainless exhaust. (we have loads of those here in England, don't know if you get them much in the US)

Hi Guys, I have looked through the results of my search for endless hours and have not found what I am looking for so would be grateful for and advice or experience anyone can share please. My 240 is having a 420BHP Edelbrock Performer SBC fitted which will have a 100BHP nitrous shot for the odd straight line - all info courtesy of JTR and this forum, many sincere and heartfelt thanks, I have looked, listened, kept my mouth shut and learned a great deal ! The challenge is that I specifically want one exhaust either side of the car but rather inconsiderately Nissan / Datsun put the fuel tank in the way. The plan is to remove the fuel tank, relocate the wheel well to the centre of the car and install a fuel cell with an aero aluminium filler cap half way up the rear quarter, leaving room for the exhausts. This in itself sounds simple but there has to be something waiting to bite me in the a$$ if I get it wrong. ANy advice or views please ? Also, the only place left for a spare wheel is in the boot space on display, held in place with a three pointed spinner - again, any views or advice anyone can share please ? Many Thanks Andy Farrant

Lots of money and hard work have gone into this car............. What a waste

Technically that should not be TOOOO difficult for a software engineer but might involve some nifty boolean logic and cute code. Way beyond my ability.

Hi Guys, Check the post count.... Newbie here. First off I am 40 and a professional so am not likely to spout off about my dad or use "bling" language but having just read the previous thread thought I might stick my 2p worth in. (We don't use cents in England). This forum is an awesome resource for people like myself who are transplanting big, expensive engines for the first time into a Z. On that front that's for letting me into your party Mike, I appreciate it. I am spending as much money on my car as some people spend on an appartment here so every little detail is very valuable to me. Thanks one and all for the experience and advice that gets shared here. Whilst I would like to think I know how to behave on the forum, it can be quite difficult as a newcomer to distill information as there is so much of it (not a complaint). I have used search many times and normally found what I wanted but there are so many replies with 6/7/8/9/10 page threads that it sometimes take work to get where you want to be. No pain no gain. Makes the results that much sweeter. The club I am part of in the UK also has this problem of spurious rubbish, threads being hijacked, flame wars etc so you or should I say we as I am now a member of HBZ are not alone. What to do Mike, agree totally, zero tolerance for flames, language and offensive behaviour - Newbie thread questions .... maybe a period of joining in but not starting threads would not help, people would simply hijack by asking off topic questions. I realise the Moderators have enough to do without babysitting as well but perhaps any thread posted by someone with less than say three months membership could be "approved" by a mod ? The UK forum for example will not post a single picture without moderator approval. Big ball ache but ensures no unsuitable material is posted. That way, the mods could post the first reply advising search or giving a link to an "explanatory" page of why the thread might not get through to the live site citing reason a / b / c etc. Whilst this is onerous and maybe seen as overkill, it would teach newbie posters how to structure a sensible thread.... what is acceptable, what isn't and what will get them booted, that way the newbies become value add contributors who have had to earn the right by merit to post. Once stripes have to be earned, people become much more self policing and try to stay within the bounds. Soap box stowed safely away, back to learning stuff again