Turbo Meister Posted December 21, 2016 Share Posted December 21, 2016 As some of you know, in 2014, at the NMCA-West True Street race at the Pomona strip, the Z's brakes failed after crossing the finish line at 160 mph. I was not injured but the same could not be said about the Z. Since I did not have the funds to rebuild the car the plan was to part out what was undamaged. However, my friend Mack, owner of Mckinney Motorsports a Datsun performance and repair shop, informed me that he would rebuild the Z. He also assured me that there would be no charge for all the required welding and fabrication.....Well OK....Let the 'Resurrection' begin! Here are 2 pics of the Z before the crash. Pics of the damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neverdone Posted December 21, 2016 Share Posted December 21, 2016 Wouldn't it be less costly and time consuming to just get a new shell? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rturbo 930 Posted December 21, 2016 Share Posted December 21, 2016 Probably depends on how much damage there is, how they go about fixing it, and how much custom work it already has done on it. Looks like the damage is forward of the firewall, and the roof skin. Might be "easy" to just reskin the roof, and tube the front end. Either way, it'll be good to see this car fixed and on the road again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DREW RBZ Posted December 22, 2016 Share Posted December 22, 2016 (edited) Wow! Now that is a great friend! Looking forward to seeing this beast back in action! Merry Christmas! Edited December 22, 2016 by DREW RBZ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-Tech Posted December 22, 2016 Share Posted December 22, 2016 that is a good friend for sure. hope you get it all back to new again. do you know what caused the brakes to fail? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjp280 Posted December 22, 2016 Share Posted December 22, 2016 Glad to hear that you were not hurt and the Z is being resurrected. Impressive setup and power in your vids! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 22, 2016 Author Share Posted December 22, 2016 Wouldn't it be less costly and time consuming to just get a new shell? The Z has a 'back-halved' 4-link Ford 9" and 10 point chromolly cage that would be very expensive to duplicate in a new shell. Only the front end was damaged in the crash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 22, 2016 Author Share Posted December 22, 2016 Probably depends on how much damage there is, how they go about fixing it, and how much custom work it already has done on it. Looks like the damage is forward of the firewall, and the roof skin. Might be "easy" to just reskin the roof, and tube the front end. Either way, it'll be good to see this car fixed and on the road again. You are correct....and the roof did not need to be re-skinned. After I removed the seats, Mack got on his back on the floor and used his boots to pop out most of the dent. I don't know if that's a good sign of strength or a bad one????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 22, 2016 Author Share Posted December 22, 2016 that is a good friend for sure. hope you get it all back to new again. do you know what caused the brakes to fail? True Street competition requires 3 back to back to back runs down the strip without cool-down or adjustments. Pomona has a shorter than most shut-down distance causing me to apply the brakes harder than other strips. As a result, unbeknownst to me, the brakes had overheated and were useless. At the end of the strip I had just enough time to say "Hello Net". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 23, 2016 Author Share Posted December 23, 2016 The bad has been removed....the good remains. Dummy engine is in to allow fabrication around it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 26, 2016 Author Share Posted December 26, 2016 Heavy duty tubing is welded in to strengthen and replace cut-off front end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 30, 2016 Author Share Posted December 30, 2016 Frame rail was notched and boxed in to provide clearance for turbo down-pipe. Air to water inter-cooler pipe opening in firewall was plugged since inter-cooler would no longer be in passenger compartment. Stock 240 z cross-member was modified and reinforced to provide easier oil pan removal with Chevy engine still in car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 Mack provided the CX Racing stainless steel turbo headers and all the hot-side components. But the header collectors had to be shortened to properly line up with the desired turbo and intercooler location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted January 3, 2017 Author Share Posted January 3, 2017 Here is the CXRacing twin turbo air-to-water intercooler. Both the inlets and the outlets had to be modified for the intended application. This pic shows how the intercooler will be positioned in relation to the turbos and engine. You can see the fenders are used but they are rust-free. Preliminary placement of cold-side 3 1/2" intercooler outlet to carb. There is sufficient clearance between the carb inlet tube and Meziere electric water pump. This pic also shows the Edelbrock Victor Jr intake manifold that I modified by removing the thermostat housing. Mack, then welded 16 AN male fittings to it for coolant hoses to the radiator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Merrill Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Subscribed. Can't wait for the rebuild! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1969honda Posted January 5, 2017 Share Posted January 5, 2017 Looks nice! What turbos are you running? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted January 5, 2017 Author Share Posted January 5, 2017 Looks nice! What turbos are you running? Turbonetics 72 mm compressors with "Q" trim .81 A/R turbines. I sanded and polished the turbines and then had them ceramic-coated. Thanks for the comment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted January 6, 2017 Author Share Posted January 6, 2017 These pics show the Z in primer at Tom's, a one-man paint and body shop, recommended by Mack.Tom agreed to do the bodywork and paint for a reasonable price, so long as he could squeeze the Z in-between other paint jobs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartman Posted January 9, 2017 Share Posted January 9, 2017 Wow, glad you are okay. The Z looks like it will be better than ever! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbo Meister Posted January 9, 2017 Author Share Posted January 9, 2017 After an extended stay at Tom's paint jail the Z has returned and is at Mack's shop to have the "Motorsports Auto type 3" air-dam attached. This pic shows the un-buffed paint and the rear hatch weatherstripping warming up on the roof prior to installation. Also, a new windshield had just been installed by a "Safelite" employee prior to the pic being taken.I was pleasantly surprised to discover that these windshields are in stock and readily available at a very reasonable price. The installer came to Mack's shop and quickly replaced the windshield right where the Z was parked. 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.