Meatwad Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 (edited) Hey guys, I have been lurking around here for awhile and gathering information during the very early stages of my build. In early April, I purchased this late 1977 280z. The cars is a pretty solid car. I have not found any rust holes in it yet. The car was originally from California so it has the "FLOOR TEMP" light (which I think is pretty neat). I purchased the car for $1750. The car came pretty complete and even came with a poly bushing replacement kit that has yet to be installed on the car. The original color is a gold color, but at some point in its life, it was painted the brown that you see in the pictures. I am looking at painting this car Deep Impact Blue in the future. The late 1977 280z has a unique luggage area where the floor goes up at a 45 degree angle towards the back near the tail lights. Later that week, the engine and 5 speed transmission were pulled and sold the next day for $250. I parked the 280z next to my bird for a couple of days and was quite surprised on the size difference between the two. I acquired a 76mm Master Power Turbo 1.0 A/R from a buddy. A couple of days ago, I purchased a 2003 LQ4 with 120k miles on it. The engine lived most of its life in Detroit so it was in rough shape externally. Surface rust, peeling paint, and aluminum corrosion covered the outside of the engine. There were 0 metallic flakes in the oil which led me to believe that there are no spun bearing. The spark plugs were not covered in oil or anything either. When looking at the exhaust valves through the exit of the head, the valves look pretty clean also. There isn't sludge build up in the engine either. I am pretty surprised how clean the engine internally is for 120k miles. I eventually plan on removing the heads and getting them cleaned up, getting the valves reseated and everything. I am contemplating on getting them ported and polished while the heads are at the machine shop, but i have plenty of time to decide whether or not to P&P. I also want to run an LS6 intake with these 317 heads. Today, I have been working on removing old peeling paint and loose rust. I have most of the loose stuff off and a descaler will be used to remove some of the other stuff off and then a wire brush attachment on the end of a grinder. Rust converter will then be used on whatever surface rust is left so i can paint the block. The rust and peeling paint has been removed from the block and was painted black. Also i just ordered an F-body oil pan, oil pickup, and windage tray. Decided since i don't need my power steering and i can't use the truck Ac bracket, I am just going to use F-body harmonic balancer and water pump for the extra space. Edited June 28, 2014 by Meatwad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mapleridge Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 nice work. great find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Looks great! May I please have your trailer and three-car garage? You have all the tools for success! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Domzs Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 Looking forward to your build . Nice find . . Lots of pics , please . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted June 28, 2014 Author Share Posted June 28, 2014 Believe me, there will be lots of pics! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattd428 Posted June 29, 2014 Share Posted June 29, 2014 Ready.......set.......GO!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sq_creations Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 I look forward to another turbo lsZ build. Keep the pictures coming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slow78z Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Looks like a clean platform to start with. Can't wait to see how yours turns out. I love seeing all the different ways to turbo a V8 Z car on this site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alainburon Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Can't wait to see your car all put together. It looks like you have a solid car to start with which is a big plus as rust means a lot of $$$$$$ to fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 Car parts Santa delivered my fbody oil pan, oil pick up, and windage tray today! Small update, I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUNNY Z Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 If you plan on lowering the car, you might seriously consider an LS3 pan. I picked up almost an inch of ground clearance. Also, the baffling is improved over the F Body pan. F Body will get the job done though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 SunnyZ-I'm thinking about changing pans next time motor is out (for ground clearance). Is there only one LS3 pan, or is it from a specific chassis? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUNNY Z Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 SunnyZ-I'm thinking about changing pans next time motor is out (for ground clearance). Is there only one LS3 pan, or is it from a specific chassis? Not sure. The corvette pan would be the one to get, but I'm pretty sure they are all the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 (edited) If you plan on lowering the car, you might seriously consider an LS3 pan. I picked up almost an inch of ground clearance. Also, the baffling is improved over the F Body pan. F Body will get the job done though! I was looking at those, an pretty much any other oil pan for the LS engine and the fbody seemed to be one of the more shallow ones coming in at only 5-1/2" deep. I plan on lowering it, but not very much. Edited July 8, 2014 by Meatwad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted July 8, 2014 Author Share Posted July 8, 2014 Oh and to answer you guy's question. The ls3 oil pan from the camaro is over 6.5" deep while the corvette ls3 pan is just under 5" deep. So be careful on which ls3 pan you get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zfan1 Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 I am running the LS2 Corvette pan, great clearance now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted July 15, 2014 Author Share Posted July 15, 2014 Put the windage tray and pickup tube on. I also have the oil pan bolted on snugly with two bolts temporarily because it needs to come off for oil feed and return line in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Domzs Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 C5 , C6 , Fbody oil pans are the only ones with low clearance , don't know about AM pans . C6 ( LS3 ) offers a little more than Fbody . I wouldn't use C5 pan . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meatwad Posted August 1, 2014 Author Share Posted August 1, 2014 Oil pan is just temporarily held on with two bolts. Also obtained an ls6 intake for $50! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akira Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Wow, nice score on the ls6 intake. Looks like someone did you a favor of grinding down the ribs on the bottom of the intake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.