DavyZ

Sounds like a really good plan. You can completely set up the car for the swap--not much to do really if you are upgrading everything performance wise anyway. Good luck with your project! And again, get the JTR book--most V8 swappers here give our 100% recommendation!! David

Sean, if you are talking about Mike Kelly's article, the site is not down from here anyway--you tried the Tech Section on the black home page of the Forum? Try it again and post back--I'll look for you if it's still down. David

Why don't you look at the Technical Info on the Forum's black page when you log in? Mike Kelly has done a superb job of documenting the T56 install. Assuming you have purchased and read the JTR manual cover to cover, there won't be any firewall mods per se if you use a Chevrolet engine. The JTR kit is about $350, alum. radiator $180, hoses and such $50, driveshaft mods $150-$250, etc. You are asking an open ended question that requires a long answer; sorry to not put all the costs down, but $$$ spent totally depends on if you buy new or used parts, the type of quality of parts, etc. Figure you will spend at least $500-$1000 to get from where you are to finish, maybe more maybe less. HTH. David

Well no, not if you use a motor that's a 1976 V8 or newer and keep the emissions equipment intact. There is a link to JTR on the Forum's main page. The book will tell you everything you need to know about the swap. Then again, maybe not quite everything--so this is why we have a forum David

I'm game if you are! David

I took a look at the MSA catalog, but they don't seem to list if the cams are "emissions legal" or not. My advice would be to call Crane Cams and speak with a tech about that. Invest in a "cam oiler" to preserve the camshaft, bearings, etc. You could have your head shaved (from the car) to boost the compression a little, and install a larger, performance cat-back exhaust system. If you have the $$$, you can also put in a freer flowing catalytic converter and a performance throttle body. A K&N air filter is a good idea and so is a cold-air induction system. By the time you are through making a fast N/A L6, you could have had a V8!!! HTH, David

I feel your pain! This has been on my mind for over 10 years--but I'm making good progress!!! David

Best bet is to hook up with the local Z clubs or the Indy Z club--they could steer you in the right direction. As far as paint is concerned, talk with the local insurance companies and find out who they suggest do the work, then check them out personally. A 6-speed tranny can run from as little as $800 (I personally know this from one of the members) all the way to $2000+ (which I also know from talking with some of the members). A wrecking yard that specializes in GM product is a good start. HTH, David

quote: Originally posted by lonehdrider: ...the drawers fill just thinking about it... whoa... That's quite a visual, Lone...thanks for sharing... David

I know the Lexus swap has been done--there is a picture in the JTR manual. The Q45 motor is outstanding though. I really enjoy it and it has very good power. Plus, if you want to keep the car "all Nissan" then the Q45 V8 is the way to go. This is totally my opinion BTW. David

I have heard of a "dyno-tune" where they put the car on a dyno and tune the carb etc to get everything to top performance, then you're good to go. This is what you had done wasn't it Dave? I have heard that these type of tuning sessions are bux. If my car were finished and I was not happy with the performance, I'd try it. David

Maybe you should rev the car to about 4000rpm with the stick in 1st gear and your foot down on the clutch, then dump the clutch and mash the throttle at the same time. Try that.

Hrm, maybe you and I should catch a race sometime, eh Lone? I think they have dirt races at Altamont, but I'm not sure and I'll have to think about that. What tracks are in Sac? David

Welcome to the forum, Jim! There are drive-line/drive-shaft specialty places in the Bay Area. I'm sure by looking in the phone book or even in DRIVE! magazine you'll find places in SSF, Concord, Oakland, Fremont, not to mention SJ. Use this forum's "search" feature to find the information you need. As far as the Z28 is concerned--sounds like a deal and a very good start. The radiator should fit--but just measure the bottom of it and the Z to see if it fits. It'll have the proper cooling capacity, no problem. Sorry I can't help you with parts right now, but check out the Diablo Dealer, Bay Classifieds, PennySaver, etc. for parting out cars--there is always something in those. Take care! David

Kevin, I currently have a 350, but since I have been posting on this board, I have come up with every engine combo and have considered what would be "ideal" for a Z. I first thought a 383 would be the hot ticket since the prices for 383 cranks have come down to very reasonable levels and 350 blocks are soooo easy to come by. But there are 383 combos that are better than others, like the 6 inch rod--that would be the best one IMO from the research I have done. I then considered a destroked 400: down to 377 with a 350 crank or even to 350 ci with a 327 crank. But finding a good 400 sbc is getting much harder nowadays. This type of engine would rev, give you decent torque, and have very sweet compression with pump gas. Plus the factor is greater when they realize what the motor really is. After considering all of these and the relative costs. After reading one of David Vizard's books, the 355 can be made to give an incredible amount of hp and torque for the cubes--and rev really well for a decent price. I figure with a lightened Scat crank and some decent heads, etc., 450 hp is really nothing for the motor... A "simple" build that included lots of torque w/o throwing too much cash in the motor would be a near stock 400 or a 383. The 355 has decent torque although not as much (do we need more torque?). Each engine has slightly different characteristics--it just depends on money and what you want your car to do. I am totally convinced there is not a "wrong" choice in the bunch. Bigger is not always better, but neither is too small. Just my $.02. David

Well, the 1000rpm idle is close enough for now--looks like you have bigger problems with fried wires and such. Hope some of the guys that run the same set-up can chime in. I don't want to say "take it to a Nissan mechanic" if you do all your own work, but an auto electrical place or FI place might be a good place to have it checked out if you cannot fix it. David

Mike, you could send your head (on the engine) out to be ported/polished and shaved. Shaving the head is good for a higher compression ratio. I'm not sure of the shops in your area, but up north here is Scott Performance in Santa Clara (nothing but Z's) and Dandos Performance in Fremont. I don't know of the url's if they have any, but Andy at Dandos is a great guy and very good at hopping up Z engines. Give a call to information... David

Nice specs on the racing cam. Knowing you, you'll put together and engine to stay in one piece at 7000rpm. I'm sure your car will see that if you're going for 200mph...I would love to hear this motor fire up! All the best in the build-up, Mike David

No offense, but sometimes no one knows or the people that do are not posting at the time. I am more familiar with V8s and find them easier to work on than a Datsun. I find it rather curious that the idle will not go down further than 1000 rpm, even after adjustment. Does the car still have an overheating problem since you did your cooling adjustments? David

Mark, isn't Chico north of Sacto? I heard of Chico when I was at UCD, but never went there for a game or anything.

Don't feel bad; electrical makes my head hurt sometimes too.

Dave, I'm not pretending to be an expert on carbs, but the jets don't seem too small for the amount of hp you are running. The results at the dyno kind of puzzled me, but at least you are over 200 rwhp. Hopefully someone else will chime in too. David

I watched the video clip (Got power) of the Supra on the dyno that Essinem4130 posted on the turbo topics--it was short blasts and "poop" it was over. I have never seen a dyno run before, but I figured it was longer in duration. So, for those who know, what is a dyno run like? How long is it? Seconds, minutes, what???? I am ignorant of the subject, so educate me please... Dave Booth, are you listening? David [ June 07, 2001: Message edited by: DavyZ ]

Horsepower galore! Call me ignorant, but I thought dyno pulls were longer in duration than just a quick blast like that. I guess I was wrong! David Dave Booth--what were the dyno pulls like on your ride? Short blasts like that?

Email Zpeed and ask him. He's located in Melbourne Australia. Use the search function and find his post, then punch his email and go from there. Also if you read around a bit, you'll find a few other Aussies as well. Zdriver.com has a feature for "Webmaster's pick of the month" which is Simon (Z-build). His email should be on that feature somewhere. Keep looking and you'll get it. If they sent those engines to Canada, perhaps one of our Canadian friends can help you. This forum is over-run with them David