johnc

Coolant temperature shouldn't be a problem and oil temperature is never an issue on street cars. The F54 block does have a temperature "problem" when it comes to the cylinder bores. Because of the siamesed cylinders, as the block heats up the bores go ever so slightly out of round. Its not a big deal and only affects ring seal. It can be mostly eliminated during the boring and honing process if the block is heated to operating temperature as metal is cut.

So, I just do 100 BS posts in the Test/Area 51 forum and I'm ready to go.

Do some research and find out who actually owns the apartment building (county records). Politely document all the troubles you've been having and send that person a letter. You'll get a response and some action quickly. Years ago I did that and got an apology, a new management company, new carpet, new paint, and one month's free rent for my trouble.

Regarding the HTP Invertig 201, I use a Lincoln Invertig 205 every day to weld steel, stainless, and aluminum. I've very happy with its performance and I assume the HTP 201 is comparable. On AC you'll get at most 160A which is fine for almost all AL welding you'll be doing on cars. Bigger AL parts (structures, trailers, etc.) will require pre-heating and patience.

$2,600 for the Miller 251 and a spool gun is not much of a deal. I'm in the process of buying a 250 sized MIG welder and I've been quoted ~$1,700 for either the Miller 251 or the Lincoln 255, both with digital controls. A spool gun should run about $500 max. I'm probably going with the HTP 2400 MIG welder with two regular guns, one 10' with a teflon liner for welding aluminum and one 15' with a regular liner for welding steel. If you use .035 5336 aluminum wire you should be able to weld aluminum just fine using a standard MIG gun that has a teflon liner. HTP quoted me $1,300 for the welder plus I'm getting another $300 worth of stuff (upgraded regulator, extra parts, wire, extra gun, etc.).

The John Coffey new paint care method: 1. Pick up the freshly painted hood and hatch the day before the race. 2. Drill holes for hood pins and mount hatch glass. 3. Put stickers on. 4. Race the next day and cover newly painted hood and hatch with dirt and grass after going off the track. 5. Blow off dirt and grass with air hose. 6. Park car in trailer.

I've used a trunk mounted rack on the back of a 240Z before. The legs go on top of the rear bumper and against the hatch glass with the straps going to the top of the hatch and under the rear bumper. Worked great holding two mountain bikes, although you can't open the hatch with the rack installed.

Those are called Gland Packing Nuts and I think MSA has them.

Not true. Cheapest is not the sole criteria for OEM engine deisgn with the Domestics. Same as engineering tour-de-force is not the sole criteria for OEM engine design with the German manufacturers. Look at the Pontiac OHC Sprint 6 clylinder as an example: SOHC 3.8L, 10.5 to 1 CR, Quadrajet 4 barrel, 215 hp at 5,200 rpm and 255 ft. lbs. at 3,800 rpm.

http://www.betamotorsports.com/products/index.html Go to 240Z Composite Body Parts.

What's on my car: Front tow hook attached to the driver's side front bumper bracket. You can also use the factory front tow hook moutning holes. Rear tow hook uses the rear bumper mounting points.

No. To make a mold so that I can make these hoods it will cost me about $1,000. Then, at the margin I'm selling them at (about $100 over my cost) I would have to sell 10 hoods to pay for the mold. I would make a profit on hood #11. From the discussion on this thread it looks like there's not a market for cowl induction hoods for the early Z.

http://www.texastransams.com/ parts/fiberglass.htm Scroll down, 3rd image on the left. Wow Tim! That car is beautiful! What an amazing paint job! FYI... the real race L88 hoods have the slot in the front of the scoop cut open on the backside to exhaust air from behind the radiator. The street L88 hoods had that area closed off.

Search... All these questions have been answered many times before.

Ignore that rule of thumb, a car lowered 3" would have that pivot floating in air above the crossmember. Each car and crossmember are a little different, so look at moving the pivot point up 3/4 to 15/16". You'll have to check your own car to make sure the LCA doesn't hit the crossmember at full bump.

As Jon mentioned, bumpsteer spacers are misnamed. They are of some value and I run them on my 240Z. With 275/45-16 tires that are 25.2" tall I have to run the 1" spacers to get the LCA's level at a 6" ride height. When I race 225/50-15 tires and a 5" ride height I didn't need the spacers to get the LCAs level. Move the LCA pivot point up is the better option.

Actually, the only cowl induction hood that was designed to draw air out of the engine compartment was the L88 hood. It had openings at the front that were supposed to help the radiator exhaust air on the Corvettes. The rear of the cowl induction hood is designed to draw air into a sealed carb box using the high pressure area at the base of the windshield.

I've had a few people ask me if I can make a carbon fiber cowl induction hood for the 240/260/280Z. I talked with Stan the Carbon Fiber Man and we figured the best way would be to use the existing 240Z hood mold and then blend in a cowl induction hood scoop. That brings up a few questions: 1. We will have to retain the stock hood's center bulge to clear the L6 'cuz its already in the mold. Is that an issue for you folks? 2. How much of an opening do you folks need under the hood scoop? 3. Which cowl induction scoop: L88, Z28, SS? 4. Any need for mounting tabs at the back of the scoop for ducting? Alternatively, I can have a mold built from scratch, but that's over $1,000 and I would need some assurance that I could sell 10 to break even.

Thanks for all the responses. I've checked and adjusted the TPS, but I didn't check it the way Rick said, so I'll try that first. The air flap seems fine. I can get part of my hand and a probe in there and I feel a pretty steady, smooth movement as it goes through its range of motion - but that's with the car cold. The temp sensor I replaced is the one that goes to the computer, which is not the thermotime switch. I might just go back and replace the thermotime switch but its $60, so I was trying other, cheaper solutions. I had not thought of the problem as being ignition, but it might be a vacume advance thing as mentioned. I'll pull the distributor and inspect it. The car is CA emisisons car with a catalytic converter and does have the altitude switch. I have a new cat in the car. Hopefully I get some time this week to tinker with it some more. Thanks again for the advice.

And who's going to pay to get this done?

Looks interesting. Might be worth buying a 2.5lb. spool and trying it on sheet metal. I would be a bit concerned about welding something more structural with it until I did some testing.

I've noticed that in today's media argument has degraded into name calling and hyperbole. Watch Hanity and Combs or any of the other Sunday morning talking head shows for perfect examples. Logic and thoughtfullness are missing. That's why I liked what Pete had to say as opposed to the shrill temper tantrum of the opposing view.

The rear hatch I sell (built by Benchmark Composites) has a full inner frame whether its made from CF or fiberglass. I'm running a pretty good sized aluminum spoiler (as seen in the pitcures) on the CF hatch and I've had no issue. My car still has the rubber gasket around the hatch opening and that's what the hatch is pressing down on. I don't know how well a hatch skin will stand up to some downforce, but we are looking at maybe 200lbs max even with the most effective rear spoiler. Now, if you were runnign a wing... A CF or Fiberglass hood can be made to look rear nice under paint. You do have some surface texture with CF or fiberglass, but a light skim coat of spot putty and a couple good primer coats can get rid of that. On my web side, the picture I have that implies a fiberglass hood is really my CF hood painted. It cost me $600 to have my hatch and hood painted. FYI... the guy that I take my car to for paint is Mitch Lanzini - the guy that paints all the cars on the Overhaulin' TV show (http://Http://www.lanzinibodyworks.com).

Weight and strength. Actually, there's no such thing as "cheap" carbon fiber - prices have started to increase again for some types. What's "cheap" is how some CF parts are made. Ignoring fiberglass hoods that have a layer of CF over a fberglass core (I don't consider these CF hoods), making a hood out of two or three layers of CF cloth does create a very light hood. But they also tend to be fragile and can warp or move over time. Adding some kind of honeycomb core and reinforced mounting points makes a hood considerably stronger without adding much weight. It also adds to the time it takes to make the hood and requires bagging and 24 to 30 hours of curing time. Now, the big question is usage. Does it make sense for someone racing a $5,000 240Z to spend 10%+ of the vehicle's worth on a CF hood? Probably not. A fiberglass hood will work just fine for that application and give the racer 80% of the benefits. Also, if a racer does a lot of wheel-to-wheel in a series that turns a blind eye to contact on the track, fiberglass parts are probably a better solution. CF hoods are strong, but they still lose to a 2,000 lb steel vehicle. Also, CF and fiberglass hoods can be a pain for maintenance. Pinned on hoods need to be put somewhere when you're working on the car. They also tend to "fly" with any kind of good breeze if you set them down in a windy spot. A hood with the inner frame let's you avoid this but using the stock attachment hardware adds back some of the weight you're trying to eliminate. But, CF hoods they are pretty damn cool and you think that every time you pick it up to put it back on the car. And taking weight out of the top of the car helps it transition better.

I'm always a bit out there... weight, weight, weight. Try using .059 4130 steel sheet. There isn't a 1/8" thick fabricated anything on my car.