johnc

For a couple years I owned Ernie's (RacerX) 810 and I even autocrossed it a few times.

That's one way of tuning the S30 chassis. Here's my opinion on where that setup came from and why: The 240Z, even heavily modified, is a car that does not turn in well compared to other race cars of its day (RX2/3, 911, 914, etc.). Add to that the fact that most CP racers of the 1970s (and most ITS racers of today) ran a welded rear diff which induces a lot of understeer on trailing throttle (corner entry) and you have a car that doesn't want to rotate into a corner. To counter that a lot of the CP and ITS racers ran (run) more roll stiffness in the rear to loosen up the back. That additonal roll stiffness combined with a little bit of trail braking gets the car to turn in reasonably well and keeps it neutral mid corner (keeps the understeer away). With a welded diff corner exit speed is not affected by inside rear wheel lift or a little bit of slide as long as the driver can balance the car with the throttle. Its a setup that's worked well for decades given the technology available during the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. It still works well today on tighter, bumpier tracks With a greater avialablity of clutch pack, Torsen, and Quiafe LSDs and more sopisticated shocks, some racers started experimenting with reducing rear roll siffness (smaller rear bar and springs, bigger front bar and springs). This can allow earlier throttle application in a corner and faster corner exit speeds. It took some devleopment time for those setups to start working but by the early 2000 it became the fast tune for ITS 240Zs. Chet Whittle proved that with a couple wins at the ARRC running a clutch pack LSD, Shock Tec double adjustable shocks, and a 200hp Sunbelt L24.

For your next 53' race trailer... http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Catalog/equipmentdatasheet.aspx?p=12139

Happy Birthday Dan.

My comment was related to your mechanic's resistance to letting people know how to do this gear swap. Since you didn't bring any tech to this post, I thought I would remind people with my post that swapping out 5th gear on these Nissan trannies is a common thing and they can find the informaiton in many other places. I'll even copy one of my posts from a long time ago that actually gives part numbers and gear ratios: A "Thank You" would be nice, but I doubt I'll get it...

For the typical 240Z installation using BZ3099, BZ3015, and/or BZ3016 the maximum spring rate the rebound valving was designed to control is 250 to 275 lb. in. per three different Tokico engineers that I've talked with. Maybe you folks are using a different shock part number?

This isn't any kind of big secret. SCCA EP racers have been building low buck close ratio transmissions for years using the late ZX NA 5 speed and a truck .86 5th gear. Its been posted here on HybridZ and other other sites for at least 5 years.

I would call Sunbelt and talk with Chet or Jim about what cams, valves, and valve springs you need for your engine based on what you intend to do with your car.

I never said which end... Around this time of year Frank280ZX flys in from the Netherlands and, with the help of Tony D, loads up on S30 and S130 parts (sometimes complete cars) and ships a container or two back home. With the West Coast Z Nationals next weekend its a perfect time to scrounge parts and cars.

http://www.betamotorsports.com/products/Tokico%20-%20Datsun%20S130.html Rear HP shocks for the S130 are $49.48 each. The Illumina/HP/Spring kit mentioned above is: $458.25.

Yes. You may have some ride height issues because the 280Z springs are a little taller and slightly stiffer then the 240 springs.

Go back in there with some sanding rolls and smooth out the cuts. Any kind of sharp edge from your porting work will be a stress riser. Over time, through the hundereds of heat cycles that manifold will go through, a crack will start.

Shipping costs have risen a lot over the past year. A 30 lb. box to NSW is $140 via USPS Priority mail, I just sent one earlier this week. A 65 lb. box to Perth is over $400. There's a lot of fuel being burned going to the other end of the world.

Clean, clean, clean the sheet metal. Use whatever you've got, but get all the dirt and undercoating off the seams. The spot welds should be pretty obvious then.

What upper collar? Do you mean the upper spring perch?

Well, since i sell the Tokicos - hell yes, dump the KYBs! Since Tokico no longer makes the Illuminas for the rear of the 280ZX you have to run the HPs. I put together a kit for the 280ZX guys that includes the Illuminas up front, HPs in back, and the Tokico sport springs. Its not something Tokico has in their catalog, I just buy the individual parts and put it together myself. I've sold 8 of those kits and everyone has been really happy.

Never chose a tax deduction over cash. A tax deduction, at best, gets you 1/3 of the value of the same item sold for cash - and that's assuming you're in the top tax bracket. Event if you got a $2,000 tax deduction for a $1,000 item, you lost out on $333. EDIT: As my tax guy always tells me, tax implications are a secondary consideration in all business and personal financial consideraitons. Make a sound financial decision and worry about how to handle the tax side later.

Yes. They are similar to an Illumina on a setting between 2 and 3, depending on the specific application.

FYI... Andy Gleasman, son of Vernon Gleasman who developed and patented the Gleasen/Torsen, is a principal at TorVec. They are in development and will soon be releasing a new version of the Torsen (Iso Torque) and their first test vehicle was (is) a Nissan 350Z. That means they already have a R200 applicaiton. A couple SCCA T2 racers I know have run the diff and were very impressed. Unfortunately they had to give the diffs back to TorVec. I've been talking with Andy and he should have something to release this summer. http://www.torvec.com/products_isotorque.html

Never liked the idea of the fuel filler/cap sitting at the back of the car. A good rear impact can damage the filler tube and cap and cause a fuel leak. Nothing like stepping out of your car after getting hit a a light and realizing you're standing in a puddle of fuel. Even the NASCAR hillbillies recognized this decades ago and put the fuel filler on the side of the car.

16 year old Ford Epxlorers and 35 year old Datsun 240Zs most likely have brake adjusters that don't work properly. Any time rear brake shoes are repalced they need manual adjusting.

Trumpet shapes in sheet metal are usually formed via spinning. A proper sized circle is cut out ot he sheet metal and mounted in a special kind of lathe. The sheet is spin up and then pushed into a form that has the shape you're trying to make.

I would first adjust the rear drum brakes manually per the procedure in the FSM. Yanking on the e-brake only tightens up the rear brake adjustment. If the rear brakes are too tight already, they need to be manually adjusted.

Instead of being angry with local busy-bodies, share their concerns and show them the safety precaustions you're taking (fire extinguishers, welding blankets, arc shielding, etc.) If you act like an ass they can very easily get your activity stopped. If you share their concerns and show how seriously you take shop and welding safety, maybe you'll pick up a couple allies on the townhome committee.

That diff looks like it has the threaded buttons installed. Try bolting in your stock side shafts (stub axles).