240z SCCA vintage race car, restoration

[AydinZ71]

Done re-sectioning the struts! I added as much tube length as I could, but still only ended up with a 1.65” and 1.7” spacer in the bottom of the tubes. If I need to add anymore, il have to Bush the camber plate mounting to the tower. Should be much better than before though!

[JMortensen]

Looks a lot better!

[Noll]

Looking good! If you find you still don't have the desired height, if you happening to be running T3 camber plates, they make 1" riser blocks that drop right in:

 

https://technotoytuning.com/nissan/240z/riser-blocks-camber-plates

[AydinZ71]

Thanks all!!! I have the ground control bolt-in units. I can rig something up if I need .25-.5” more droop  Probably weld-on some custom cut fender washers into the plate and get longer bolts, but for now I’m happy  

[AydinZ71]

Primer and epoxy coated (white) the rear strut mount so I don’t paint over the bolts when the coat the whole interior.
 

Moved back to the cab in the meantime. OEM fresh air intake is old and brittle, so I created a new flange from 4” steel thin wall tube. Worked out pretty well. Now I can mount ducting to the driver when the car is nearly complete. The white stuff is weld-through primer, and deeper in the air box is 2k epoxy sealer. 

[AydinZ71]

Chatting back and forth with Greg Ira. He recommended the Tilton pedal box which is designed with two independent masters (one for front, one for rear) and a balance bar between them. He prefers this approach over the hydraulic proportioning valve. I already have the whole area apart and still doing metal fab so this very much doable for me. Also in my budget since the pedal assembly + cylinders is about $400. 

 

My OEM pedal box is rusted pretty bad, and it weighs 8lbs. The Tilton unit is 4lbs. 

 

Him and I also discussed flywheels/clutches. He has a design assembly with Quartermaster for ~1k which mounts to a flexplate and a crank adapter. He calls my 10lb "lightweight" steel flywheel and Exedy clutch super heavy. Il speak more with him and see if I grasp the full scope.   
 

also added some pics and vids of updates on the car from the weekend. 

 

Edited May 12, 2021 by AydinZ71

[grannyknot]

1 hour ago, AydinZ71 said:

He calls my 10lb "lightweight" steel flywheel and Exedy clutch super heavy. Il speak more with him and see if I grasp the full scope.  

A super light flywheel is great for fast take offs and certain types of racing but can be problematic for street driving.  The engine will back down quickly when your off the gas.

[AydinZ71]

2 hours ago, grannyknot said:

A super light flywheel is great for fast take offs and certain types of racing but can be problematic for street driving.  The engine will back down quickly when your off the gas.

 

Agreed. This is for a road racing application. This is also my first experience with a lightweight application. My experience has been mostly OEM, and double pressure plate with a 6-puck unsprung for the turbo car. 

[clarkspeed]

If you can get a solid pedal box, I can show you how to convert it to a bias bar adjustable dual MC setup using the stock pedal.  A fabricators "special".  Tilton (or other) is also a good option if you dont mind fabbing a way to mount it.

 

Greg is THE source for EP builds.  Many of my earlier quotes are based on my experiences crewing for him. EP is a very specific class and very difficult to run at national level. 

[AydinZ71]

1 hour ago, clarkspeed said:

If you can get a solid pedal box, I can show you how to convert it to a bias bar adjustable dual MC setup using the stock pedal.  A fabricators "special".  Tilton (or other) is also a good option if you dont mind fabbing a way to mount it.

 

Greg is THE source for EP builds.  Many of my earlier quotes are based on my experiences crewing for him. EP is a very specific class and very difficult to run at national level. 

Hey thanks! Do you go by Clark? 
 

Since the tilton box by itself is only $300, I don’t mind fabing up the mount. I actually prefer it, since my cowl box/plenum/chimney is a rusted nightmare, and I was anxious about how I was going to rebuild the OEM pedal box mounting points. The last $100 is for MC’s which I would need anyways. He runs a 7/8” up front and 1” for rear. I’m most anxious about getting used to no brake booster. 
 

Yeah Greg has been super generous with his time. I text back and forth with him to get his opinions on ideas I have. I don’t ever see myself getting into EP on the national level (kids, job, money) Il be lucky if I enter regionally. Still need to get my novice license at Willow Springs after I get the car finished. Il save $500 just by running my own car in the class vs. theirs. No need buying the fire bottle and harness till she is closer to track days, but the existing fire bottle apparatus is in working shape. 
 

I picked EP since the car was already built for SCCA vintage before me, and by coincidence (or design) she already meets the GRC’s for EP. I like that the rules seem very clear and thorough. 
 

you, and everyone else responding to my thread have all been super helpful! Always open for more feedback! I’m certainly green/amateur. 
 

 

Edited May 12, 2021 by AydinZ71

[clarkspeed]

Well the fact that you are serious and seem to be a decent fabricator, most others will be generous with help.  The dual MC's are only require slightly more pedal effort.  And they are much easier to modulate.

Clark 

[AydinZ71]

7 minutes ago, clarkspeed said:

Well the fact that you are serious and seem to be a decent fabricator, most others will be generous with help.  The dual MC's are only require slightly more pedal effort.  And they are much easier to modulate.

Clark 

Well thanks Clark! I thought myself to MIG weld over the past 6 months so novice is certainly the word that comes to mind. I appreciate everyone’s patience as I become more accustomed to the terms and techniques. Greg told me he “ran sep MC’s”. Took me several web searches before I caught on 😂 Tilton’s website was a big help. 
 

There are so many ways to skin the damn cat. I mean, as soon as you think you found “the” solution, you catch onto something that is more sophisticated. I suppose that’s how we end up with performance parts for sale over time. 
 

He was intrigued with my fresh air intake flange and engine bay vent idea, so it encourages one to keep exploring new solutions. 

[JMortensen]

Modded factory box.

[AydinZ71]

2 hours ago, JMortensen said:

Modded factory box.

nice! Doesn’t look awfully difficult. I’m going to go with the Tilton box but that looks like an elegant solution! 
 

previous owner hacked off the front of the pedal box so he could mount the steering column lower (using the cage as support). 
 

Jon, did you lower your steering column to account for the lower (I’m presuming) seat mount location? 
 

Previous owner mounted the seat directly to the floor. I don’t like that, so I will do the same thing on the drivers side as I did on the passenger side. New seat crossmember with mounting surface 1.5” above floor pan. 

[JMortensen]

My seat mount is about the same height as yours and I didn't feel any need to lower the wheel. It would be easy to raise/lower with a full race 3/4" column, just use jam nuts on either side of the rod end and move up and down. On mine I could shim down the wheel from the pedal box if I wanted to move it. I have a bunch of stuff on the to do list, that one has not come up. Related though, I did move the seat 1.5" to the right. Have thought of moving the column to the right to compensate, really don't notice when you're driving, but I still know it's wrong.

[AydinZ71]

1 hour ago, JMortensen said:

My seat mount is about the same height as yours and I didn't feel any need to lower the wheel. It would be easy to raise/lower with a full race 3/4" column, just use jam nuts on either side of the rod end and move up and down. On mine I could shim down the wheel from the pedal box if I wanted to move it. I have a bunch of stuff on the to do list, that one has not come up. Related though, I did move the seat 1.5" to the right. Have thought of moving the column to the right to compensate, really don't notice when you're driving, but I still know it's wrong.

ahh! If you were to go with an A/M vendor for a steering column, who would you go with? It seems the adaptation would not be awfully difficult. It’s not like it rotating at speed so an adapter coupling would not need to be very precise. 
 

I gotta say, the OEM steering column is a beast! Very heavy, and mine is not in the best condition. I also don’t like how the firewall transition is at a fixed angle. I would replace this interface with a spherical bearing if I fab’d my own. 
 

Interesting that you had the room to move your seat laterally by a whole 1.5”! My used carbeu seats fit with only MM’s of clearance on each side. 

[JMortensen]

I had to move the seat for helmet clearance on the halo bar. 

 

The steering stuff is pretty common. I buy most of my stuff from www.colemanracing.com, speedwaymotors.com, jegs.com, or behrents.com. Betting they all have everything you need. 

[clarkspeed]

In the tube car I am running a used Sweet column I got off eBay. I'm not sure it is that much lighter than stock. But it is adjustable and mounted with sphericals.

 

Do the fit checks with the actual seat you will use. Usually end up as far back and as far to the center as possible. Then it's a matter of getting the rake to your liking. You can drop the steering wheel down but taller drivers will then bitch. But be careful of blocking yourself from getting in and out of car. One thing I did after moving the seat to the right was add some spacers under the flange at the bulkhead and slot the u-bolt more to kick the steering wheel toward the right. That always felt better to me than not having it centered.

[AydinZ71]

Clark, I looked online and saw some of those “sweet” units. They looked like the most sophisticated units at a reasonable price on the vendor sites Jon mentioned. Il have to take more time on this topic.

 

Purchased the Tilton pedal box and two tilton master cylinders + reservoirs for $400. Probably a month away from tackling that yet. 
 

continuing to add metal to the cowl area. Trying to make the existing surfaces rigid before closing the gap. Don’t want this section to warp since the hood and cowl sit here. 

Edited May 14, 2021 by AydinZ71

[AydinZ71]

Adding back new sheet metal to the cowl are firewall areas. 18 gauge for the firewall and 20 for the rest. Also got my tilton pedal assembly and MC’s. Many thanks to Greg Ira for all the pointers.