Guest juliangall Posted February 25, 2002 Share Posted February 25, 2002 I have an opportunity to buy a low milage 1983 Zx turbo engine and 5 speed trans.I have a 1977 280z that has no engine and trans, and I was thinking about swapping the 1983 turbo engine into this car. I live in California, so I have to be very concerned about the smog issues. If I have all of the factory parts still on the turbo engine, and it is a stock engine, do I have to worry about anything relative to the conversion? Do I have to put cats on the car that are for the 1983 engine? Lastly, is this an easy swap to do, or am I looking for trouble? My options are to do this swap, do a v8 swap, or put in a standard 280z engine. All comments would be appreciated. Thanks Julian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted February 27, 2002 Share Posted February 27, 2002 Julian, The '77 car will be legal with the '83 engine since it is considered an upgrade by the State of CA--engine has to be same year as the car or newer. If your '77 has a catalytic converter, you are stuck with one. If, however, it does not have one, you will not need to install one. Why? The State looks at cats as part of the chassis, not then engine. If your chassis does not have one, installing a new one could be hazardous in that the heat from the cat could start a fire inside the car since your chassis has no heat shield for it. The State looks out for us there at least. Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest juliangall Posted February 27, 2002 Share Posted February 27, 2002 Guys, thanks for your response. I appreciate the advise very much. Julian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottyMIz Posted February 28, 2002 Share Posted February 28, 2002 hey julian i put an 81 zxt motor in my 76 and it was easy the engine just drops right in and then you just have to wire in the zxt harness.It took me about two days on and off working on it to get it done.If you have questions feel free to email me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest juliangall Posted February 28, 2002 Share Posted February 28, 2002 Scotty I am really happy to hear that it might not be as difficult as I thought. I may take you up on your offer to e-mail you if I have any questions. Thanks again Julian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 28, 2002 Share Posted February 28, 2002 Hey juliangall, I too live in Cali and have a 77' and am planning to swap to a turbo motor (when I get money...ok, if I get money Let me know how the swap info hunt goes. nbucholz@imageworksarch.com Nic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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