DavyZ

Awesome deal! Hope it's in good shape and all the parts are there! Davy

Dan, it's just like BLKMGK said: it's mostly about gearing--that includes the tranny and the rear end...and even the diameter of the tires!! The combination of these things usually determines the top speed of a V8Z. If your car runs really fast 0-60 mph, it may only top out at 100 mph with low gearing. That's not totally bad since a Z is not very aerodynamic and gets scary (squirrely) at speeds over 125 mph anyway. Davy

Dan, at least get the JTR book and read it over, especially if you have not done so already--the price is a drop in the bucket to how much you have spent already in just your carb. You can order the setback plates and spacers from them, or have them made. I would the way that saves you the most amount to money. It pains me to hear about the troubles you have with the car (one thing after another)especially since you just want to enjoy the car. Hope things start to look up and continue from there. Davy

The lower rear valence is just sweet! And the integration of the flares with the quarters and spoiler looks very well done. The wheels are a perfect compliment to that ride--very brutal looking. Davy

Aspen, I would check with www.autoloc.com for suicide hinge systems. They produce a lot of electronic components for street rods like solenoids for shaved door handles, etc. Keep in mind they are not cheap--starting at $299! Note: the suicide hinge systems are NOT listed on their site, but they do carry them and advertise them in magazines like Rod and Custom. HTH Davy [ September 23, 2001: Message edited by: DavyZ ]

I'm a little undecided about them. I don't think they look bad at all, but the effect will be much better with the actual 16" or 17" rim on there with a lowered chassis--not that I can see, especially with a black Z (the Bullitt Z). I will eventually go with a 5 lug conversion and big brakes, but I'll stick to the Cobra rims at first. Those tuner rims get waaay up there in $$$$, especially with tires... Davy

Very cool Thank you! Davy

Adam, I have a 190 degree thermostat (I think that's what it was..) and I expect the engine about 10 degrees hotter when the thermostat is fully open. With the Taurus fan and Camaro radiator, I seriously doubt I'll have cooling problems, and I could even go with a higher thermostat, but why? I don't need to scrounge the umpteenth amount of power out of the motor anyway. Davy

Mike, were you using the Painless harness, or is your system pretty much sucky stock? Davy

Yes, it is possible--especially a slalom car. There was one guy in the SCCA here is the Bay Area that used to run a 240Z with a 4 cyl engine--it allowed him to run in a different class and slaughter the competition. That was about 10 years ago and I'm just not into SCCA anymore, sorry, so I can't tell you what's up there. If you are interested, log onto their website and look at their different classes--you may be able to meet the requirements of a particular class and be very competitive. BTW--if you look on the screen at the top of the page, you'll notice the logo with the words "Ultra-High Performance Cars." Davy

The L series motors all have the same mounting points to the tranny in the Z. There wasa company (years ago) that specialized in putting high performance 4 cylinder engines in the Z cars...they went out of business. Although you may get help here and suggestions on your swap, this website is dedicated to "ultra-high performance" cars. I'm afraid that a 4-cylinder is kinda going backwards as far as the intent of this website. Good luck on your swap, though. Perhaps if you had some specific questions, after buying and reading "How to Hotrod and Race your Datsun" we can help. Davy

All of the guages and lights in my 260Z when wacko on the freeway and the car just died completely--turned out it was the ignition module--many fuses were burned out, the fusable links were burned, and nearly all the lights blew out. You'd swear the car had been hit by a lightning bolt or something. Davy

The tunnel ram should stick out quite a bit--not hiding the carb or carbs! You'll probably get the top 1/3 of the runners sticking out along with the upper plenum and both carbs (or one depending on application) with the velocity stack and 3 inch K&N filters with wing nut....shoot, vision is going to be a pita, but man, will it look absolutely menacing... Davy

Need to know: did you use a special tubing bender or did you roll the dice and used your thumb and forefinger? Davy

Alec, since no one else has answered you, Victoria British sells them, and so does Smoothline (I believe). I have never had a problem with MSA and am surprised this has come about. A cancelled check or a Visa statement would be all it would take to get them to ship it--you do have that to fax them or mail them, yes? Davy

RPMS, I didn't realize that the paint became chalky after a while--bummer! The things i have to learn the hard way... Owen, polyurethane paint is really tough, but it's also hard to rub out. I think that here in CA, most, if not all, of what you'll find is polyurethane or good old enamel. After reading some about this topic, it looks like polyurethane for me anyway. Davy

Mike, not sure if you bought them or not already, but you can go to MSA, Ross Corrigan, or scca Mike Gibson. Davy

Can't pull up the video; Nimda virus? Anyway, Shane, take a pic of your timeslip and send it to Andrew Bayley to be included in the 1/4 time sheet. I've never seen an N/A I6 go 11's before--it sure is a first for me! Davy

Ghetto laquer?!? Ha ha! That's really good--you're too funny, Lone! BTW, have you seen that two part black paint--1st part with no clear looks like black primer, but is more durable, has a slight satin finish and is used on a lot of "rat rods?" Pretty cool if you ask me. I saw a Chevy V8 powered TR7 with a custom smoothed "wide body" that sported that paint job--looked very menacing. Davy

You could go with a cowl-type hood that would help lower the underhood temps, especially at speed, and use the K&N as well. I guess it really comes down to aesthetics more than anything else--but 1% per degree really adds up in a hurry, even with 300 or more horsepower. Davy

Shane, do you need an adjustable cam gear if your car is really pulling 11 second quarters on 6 cylinders? 1/8 mile or 1/4 mile? If that's a 1/4 mile time, I'd love to see some pictures. Davy

Nion, I am not using the charcoal cannister with my swap, but since you are, try looking in a Haynes or Chilton manual---all the connections are routed to the carb I believe. JTR does not say exactly how to mount it, but I know you could make an easy bracket to hold it inside the front wheelwell. The lines apparently go through a hole you drill...but be sure to put a rubber grommit (sp?) in the hole to finish it off. Good luck, man. Davy

James, paint is "relative" territory. You could end up spending anywhere from $1000 on up to Pete Para$ka Seriously, what you'll be happy with and how much it will cost does not have a definite answer. Sorry, but I don't think anyone except a body shop can answer your question, especially when you go into detail with them about what you want done and how it will look in the end. I'm a firm believer in "you get what you pay for." I think this applies to paint jobs in general. To make a car look brand new, with no body work involved, around here that runs about $4000 to $6000. The dealership had to fix paint flaws on some cars by fully painting the exteriors, and that's about what the bill was I believe. Davy

If you blow up the picture, you'll notice a bit of primer and the fact that the motor is way over the crossmember. Weight will be an issue it looks like...oh well, just go for some power steering and aluminum heads Davy

Thanks for posting the pic! You're the Man! Davy