bjhines

LOL... I swear I cleaned and beveled the ends.. I wiped it down with acetone too... nice fit... I didnt sand the middle where I tied into the sheet metal... But the sheet metal.. MY GOD!!!... What a pain in the ass.... Im getting better though... I started with a bead on the tubing at high current... It got penetration... then I followed along that bead with the current setting on LOW to stick it to the thin sheet metal.. the outside looks messy I know... but the inside is where I really spent my time laying down a nice bead...

I am sick and tired of having Z cars that don't have properly functioning heater/vent controls... I started with a rusty ol' crusty ol' system... nasty... It smelled like burning hair and sounded like I had rattlesnakes in my glovebox... the core blew out years ago and had not been recently hooked up... If you went over 100MPH with the vent set on the controls... you would get bug parts, leaves, and various other debris in your face... I completely dissaembled every screw... sand blasted and repainted everything inside and out... I gave the blower housing the same treatment... and I purchased a late model Honda civic blower motor for $25... It is a direct replacement except for the electrical connector... Notice the controls are cleaned and reinstalled without gumming everything up with paint... I managed to save the blower housing flapper pads... the others will be replaced with cut up mouse-pads... Honda motor It has a little more clearance inside than the original 240Z blower ...

New progress... Im back at the front end of the car.... Front strut tower reinforcement!!! ....

Can anyone post a pic of what they did with the rocker braces...???

HS30-H.... You have been a good source for these WORKS team photos... There are several things I would like to see on those cars... It is very hard to find pictures of the cars' internals... Considering Nissan went to the trouble to include quite a few factory design changes to accomodate homologation rules... It might be nice to make use of those points with current designs... obviously Nissan made the car.. they knew best how to reinforce it... I would love to see how they tied the front rocker tips to upper supports... supposedly there was a diagonal in there somewhere... or was that a private team that did that...???

I have been wondering what these weld nuts in the sides of the car near the back edge of the door jamb are for... I originally thought they were from some sort of fixture used to assemble the unibody at the factory... but LOOK WHAT I FOUND!!!!! The Works' cage uses these as side supports... very interesting... although I have pushed and pulled on this area and found it to be very weak... the metal is too thin to provide any real support... it looks like they were using these to jam the hoop against the wheel well... similar to the design used by the AutoPower cages that mount on the wheel wells...

OK.. I have been gathering info to mount a Ford EDIS-8 on a Chevy SB engine... Everything seems fairly cheap and easy to source... EDIS-8 module Coilpacks and wires reluctor wheel sensor MegaJolt/ MJLiteJR controller MAP sensor Coolant sensor associated plugs and harness pigtails The big question is...??? where do I get a reluctor wheel to fit a chevy application?? especially with a small diameter aftermarket damper...???

This might help... I run a moderately prepared 1972 240Z on track days and in time trials... I am chasing a friend of mine's BMW E-30.... We have both made gradual changes to our cars... at nearly the same times... We have run neck and neck.. My 240Z can pull away from him on a long straight.. but he corners and brakes better with more consistency... This video was taken at Virginia International Raceway... North Course... Our cars and my buddy Mark... He has taken his a few steps further with coilovers and high$$$ struts...

Ohhh cmon guys... that is a perfectly legitimate upgrade... You won't likely notice an improvement unless the rest of the suspension is well sorted out... I mean repaired and/or properly assembled... as far as ranking in some order of modifications... ======================================================= Wheel alignment will get you big changes in handling characteristics... You can have it aligned to reduce push(front toe OUT)... That will make a big difference on track... but it will wear tires badly in a straight line... You can change toe on the rear wheels with some simple modifications... but again you sacrifice tire wear... You can do a little cutting on the upper mounts and their mounting holes... or buy a set of camber plates... to increase negative camber... again you sacrifice tire wear AND drivability... It will hunt around on just about any road... it is called trammeling... and it reallly makes the car a handful in street traffic... ======================================================= Race tires can be one of the biggest improvements short of a V-8 engine swap... but you can't use them on the street if they are not DOT legal... and even the DOT slicks have a wear rating of less than 50 (most street tires are around 400)... They will chunk if they get hot with tread on them... so again you really have to shave them to no more than 5/32" depth and carefully heat cycle them to avoid early wear problems on track... they will last only a few weeks for street use with full tread anyway... So race tires are OUT for street cars... obviously... unless you are made of money... ======================================================= Assuming you have a brand new stock suspension(new stock springs too).. and you align it for a track day(assuming you knew what it needed already)... you would find that Racing tires with track alignment would put stresses on the car that it simply was not set up to deal with...it would have sloppy turn in and too much body roll and pitch... The list of fixes for this condition would be... Weight reduction, stiffer-lowering springs, track valved struts, sway bars, chassis stiffening, and corner balance... Weight reduction is something that many people forget about... think about it... it increases your power to weight ratio AND it makes you brake and turn better too... of course it can get expensive... ex. A smaller group 24 battery in a gel cell form would cost around $140 plus you need new mounting brackets... but it could drop 20lbs from the front end where it needs to loose the most weight anyway... Relocating that lightweight battery to the rear would move 20 lbs to the rear further improving balance... but it would cost around $100 to add all that cable and securely mount it... There is a long list of things that you can remove to lighten the car... but what can you do without???... how much stuff do you need to stay legal on the road??? The stereos in many cars add 20+lbs with the head unit, amp, and the speakers... that should go in the trash at the first opportunity... wear an MP3 player.. it's a lot lighter... but not a good idea while driving... ======================================================= once you get your track/street prepared suspension worked out you will start to realize that stock brakes are not up to the task of track use... Racing brake pads, cool air ducting, and high temp fluid... will transform your factory brakes... but there is still room for spending thousands of dollars on racing brakes.... you will have to switch pad materials for track and street use... or your wheels(rust dust) and rotors(wear) will be ruined... ======================================================= If you end up going with a coilover set up you may find that you have the ability to really slam the car(asuming you cut the struts down)... Lowering the car by more than 1.5" will start to introduce all kinds of other alignment and handling issues... this is where relocating suspension parts and major frame modifications come into play... There are many parts available to address these issues... but unfortunately the problem has to be addressed as a whole... you will need to plan exactly how to get the results you are looking for... ======================================================= LAST BUT NOT LEAST!!!! Engine improvements... There is a reason why this is last... It is the most attractive to people who do not really know how to drive a car... it seems like the logical thing to do.... but if you want to drive your car on track... it is the absolute least important modification... Maintain a reliable stock engine... keep it simple and trust that nissan built it to survive... Don't blow you wad on things like cold air intakes, fancy spark plugs, hotter coils, etc... they don't help... in fact... Poorly designed/installed CAIs tend to cause more leaks and ingest more debris and water than a properly maintained factory intake system... Our engines will actually perform worse with many of the fancy-new-bling plugs... old engine + new style plugs = not too good... The best thing to do is tune it up and take it to the DYNO... get a good reading on what your HP and torque curves look like... and check AF ratio over RPMs... that will tell you if there really are any problems you should fix FIRST!!! ======================================================= I am sure I left a few things out.. short of building a race car...

JM I hope you are rehosting those pictures.. if not.. they will eventually dissapear as I reuse hosting space... I would not want the thread to show red "x"s in the future...

JM... you are welcome to take all of these pics.. I have more of these 2 projects... you should covert this into a FAQ and recondense this info after it has matured in a few weeks... I would add that the location of the differential was changed from 1971 on... The curved rearmost crossmember is the most common now... there are VERY FEW of the straight versions out there...

Here are some pics of the R200 NISMO CLSD... LOM59 is the PART NUMBER for lookup... 4 pinion spider cross... This is only HALF of the clutchpack in the NISMO unit... Another big difference in the design of the ZX LSD units and the NISMO design is that the NISMO unit has static carrier gear lash under all conditions due to this spacer... The stock LSD allows the side gears to move apart under loads... This could cause galling and shearing of the internals... it may also place extra grating force on the clutchpack tabs and splines...

Here are the pics from the snap in to bolt in conversion for the R180 and KR180... the only reason to do this is that there are still some brand new units available from late cars.... AND the subaru R160 units have the same spline count and can be converted this way too... obviously you cannot do this with VLSD units... but there is likely clearance in the CLSD units.. It would take confirmation... Here is the unmodified snap in style KR180 carrier... Chuck the seal protector spacer and the snap rings in the trash... Late style on the left and early style on the right... The button is already installed into the late style spider gear... it just pops out of the old gear in and into the new... You cannot swap gears because the carrier and all of the gears are different... Late model KR180 with bolt in stubs.. This may seem like a lot of trouble to get bolt in style axles on a late model R180 or R160... but it is a ZERO COST conversion to replace a worn out R180 on your Z car... You can use your old axles... there are no parts to order...the goal here is only to swap the bolt in buttons from the old side gears into the newer unit to allow you to use your bolt in 240Z axles... No set up or measurement is required.. no new parts except maybe the rear cover gasket, or the side flange seals if yours is used... you simply remove and dissassemble the carrier completely... and then reassemble it... it is a very simple task for people who do not know how to rebuild and set up clearances in a differential...

Do they fit a Z??? It seems to me that the real trick is getting them with 4x4.5" lug spacing, proper offset, and 7" or wider... Do these meet the criteria???

Wow.. I can't believe I missed the christening... you guys really should call me for once in a lifetime events like this... That is fantastic.... Tom will have years of fun with that beast... I would love to get some more pics.. I am nearing completion of my own project... though it will not have the fit and finish quality that Mark, Roddy, and Tom are famous for..... Those guys have put together some fantastic cars... they are all impressive in both looks and performance... You know that the builders are in the know when you see the professional execution of every detail....

I went with putting the tops of the rear flares 3.75" up from the original lips... I hope this works out fine for 2" shorter struts with 16x10" wheels... I fit the fronts similarly... though they do not seem to need as much cutting I added a few more pics... ... ...

When you are in the wrong... obviously respect and humility will help you in the end... BUT... I am a total ******* when I am being harassed.. I have always done it and I have always come out ahead... They can ask all of the questions they want.. you do not have to answer specifics about your car.. or what you are doing... the second point has come up in court recently... there are some states that force you to answer all of the questions the officer may ask... but the same law greatly limits what they can ask you without reasonable cause for arrest... it is a double edged sword for them... the validity of your answers is not legally binding... you can respond in a non-informative manner... for instance.. when an officer asked you if the intake was a modification.. you can simply answer i don't know anything about engines... It is the responsibility of all Americans to resist harassment... complying with illegal actions from law enforcement officers is morally wrong... we all have rights.. and we must stand up for them in all cases...

My wife's best friend is a DA... It's called harassment... It is illeagal for them to do it... A judge will hand them their ass for doing it... This tends to happen to younger people... but you have rights... If the police officer has any real reason to give you a ticket... you will know it... There are a lot of reasons they pick on younger people... but the primary reason is that you are inexperienced and an easy mark for coersion and harassment... They don't pull that crap on older guys because they know damn well that older men have the funds and experience to knock them down a few notches in court... They can take a decibel reading of your car... but unless the officer has been trained in the use of the instrument... it is still subjective and unlikely to stand up in court... If they impound your car without reason you are entitled to damages... you may have to hassle through the system.. but the officer who hassled you can get in a great deal of trouble... In many cases you do not have to fight impoundment in court.. If you know your car complies with state regulations then your insurance policy will pay for a rental car for the duration of the impoundment( if you have top shelf coverage)... If your car is damaged in impoundment then again.. insurance will pay for it... the kicker here is... your insurance company will also file for damages.. no skin off your back.. just pick up your check... the officer will be out of a job after a few incidences like that.. The fact is... unless he is going to write a ticket.. he cannot impound your car... and if it does not stand up in court the officer will rue the day he harassed you... When I was younger I was harrassed by several officers.. they have asked me how much I had to drink when I was sober 0% BAC... they have asked to search my car... they have asked to search me.. but there is a relatively short time limit that they can detain you... 20 minutes here in NC... I told all of them the same thing... Either arrest me of leave me alone.. and I made it clear to them I knew my rights... and I told them I absolutely would report them regardless of what they did to me... Keep your language clean.. make no physical or illegal threats... and tell him to get his little pen busy or get the hell out of the way...

When I mocked up the R-160 with my R-180 stub shafts... they fit in fine... right number of splines... but they are too long.. It seems that they would work.. the flanges dont come close to the sides of the case though.. the dust seals are more exposed...

Hey.. what did you find that was inaccurate.??? I butted heads here with my R-200 Nismo CLSD... it turns out that there are more variations in these things than you might think... Even torque specs for bolts differ from source to source in published industry notes... I used reccomended fastener specs rather than the info I found in the Factory service manuals... I had smaller ring gear bolts than the factory info was referring to...

They are 8" wide and the centers hit the Toyota vented calipers... I never mounted them... they do fit stock brakes though...

I have a set of these wild things... MRT fiber reinforced delrin...

I have run into pictures of that car before... It is nice... but It would need to be really well sorted out with all of those components functioning perfectly... fit and finish would have to be impeccable...(why is the front airdam mounted with the upper corner OUTSIDE the headlight bucket?) Every detail of the engine installation would need to be aircraft quality... if someone like me opens the hood and sees retrofitted factory fittings, poor wiring work, or improper(unreliable) hose and line routing... the price drops considerably... A 30k car will have race car/aircraft quality workmanship and fittings...

I think that the horsepower of the current 350Z engine is too high... Don't get me wrong.. I am building a ZZ4 powered 240Z track car right now... But the higher horsepower means that the entire drivetrain would weigh more... much more... It would probably need to get a 4 cylinder engine to make it viable... even an L-6 would make it more complex and more expensive.. If we want another 240Z we are probably going to have to accept a 4 cylinder engine... The hoodline would have to be much lower to meet modern aerodynamic standards... it is unlikely that we could really get a car that looks a lot like a 240Z... windshield angle would have to be much lower... the roofline would need to be higher for rollover proteciton... the rear sails and the rear hatch would also have to change considerably... the sides of the car would probably end up more vertical... they could not be tucked in at the bottom the way the classic 240Z sides do.... In all honesty... I don't really need the new car to look like a 240Z... as long as it is light, quick, and cheap... If they come up with something like that... A personal sports coupe... I would be the first in line to pre-order from the dealer...

I hear you... I am absoutely sure that a car like that would be a big seller... No one thought the 240Z would be a success when it was introduced... but they made it anyway... The market conditions were almost the same as they are today... people were buying bigger, heavier, INCREDIBLY HIGH HORSEPOWER cars in the early 1970s... most of the cars offered were getting more and more options on base models, etc, etc, etc... The conditions today are ripe for a cheap, high performance car... People are looking to smaller cars that offer better gas mileage and are fun to drive... The general public is getting weary of the GIANT SUVs... I for one would be open to purchasing a spartan but fast sports car that is in the same price range as a Hoda Civic, or FIT.... Nissan needs to open their eyes... they have a famous brand that they are NOT making use of... No one really sees the 350Z(X) as a Z.... it is just another ZX... Nissan needs to reintroduce a 240Z for the 21st century... keep it under 2300lbs and give it no more than 200HP... give it a modern suspension bolted firmly to the stiff chassis, modern brakes and drivetrain... but keep it light... It does not need to be low slung.. it does not need to be particulary stylish... it does not need a 6 cylinder engine (but it would be nice)... and the real kicker.. it needs to be less than $25,000.... ABSOLUTLEY DO NOT give it power windows or power locks... it does not need to be quiet inside... keep the wheel size small and cheap... I am not so sure it needs airbags.. but that may be mandated now... If it must have power equipment... hten only do it in the passenger side door... leave the drivers side clean and light... this would help with weight distribution if they MUST have power accessories...