Guest Anonymous Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 hey everyone. i'm so glad i've learned about the V8 Z car swap. i hope to get me one some day. (it's so much faster than a 3,400 lb. camaro) the thing is that this swap looks to be alot more expensive thaan i had originally thought it to be. After checking out the JTR website it's clear that this swap isn't for people who have never worked on a car before (me) so, I'm going to have to pay a mechanic to do the conversion. I'm figuring that'll be around $3000. a used 240Z is about $1000. i think the JTR kit is $1000 (not sure) so far i got $5,000, for the car, kit, and labor. how much would a 250-300 hp 350 chevy and t56 tranny cost? is there anything else i need? thanks for any help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Well, im learning myself and from personal experiences as well as information gathered from the wealth of resources on this site is that a good t56 with a mild 350 (assuming it was rebuilt) generally will cost ya around $3,000. $1,000 for the tranny and 2,000(roughly) for the motor. I thought the JTR kit was around 350 or so but i could be wrong. And if you are not doing the work yourself, man, id hate to pay for all that. You're more than likely going to want to swap that R180 rear as well. Guys commonly put a R200 diff. out of later model Z's. Its alot of work and alot of time, or just plain and simple....alot of money could avoid alot of things. oh well, hope this helps. patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QWKDTSN Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 The complete JTR conversion kit is only $325 or so, and most people don't even need all of it. I'm not using the hood latch kit or the crossmember spacers at all. Don't underestimate yourself - I never really considered the significance of what I was doing until I had already jumped in. This V8 240Z is my first project car and everything is going smoothly. I'm enjoying myself immensely. Do you have a basic understanding of cars? This is all you really need - as far as work, you can learn as you go (hopefully not by your mistakes!) I, personally, would be afraid of having a shop do a conversion like this - I pretty much don't trust it unless I've done it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpyvette Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 DON,T pay some MECHANIC $3000 to do your engine swap, join a few corvette or hotrod clubs, buy some tools and LEARN HOW TO DO THE WORK YOURSELFnot only will you save SOME money, youll have the tools and knowledge to fix things when they break, look at it this way most guys that are really into hodrod cars will have little or no problem helping you for free or possiably for a exchange of labor (as in, Ill help you drop your engine in if you help me replace my rear suspension)the KEY HERE IS LEARNING as you go, building friendships, joining clubs and helping the other guys, everything you do you will learn something about even if its NEVER DO THAT AGAIN UNLESS ITS MY CAR buy these FIVE books, it will be the best money you ever spent, read them, and you will be miles ahead of the average guy. HOW TO BUILD THE SMALL BLOCK CHEVEROLET by LARRY ATHERTON&LARRY SCHREIB . HOW TO BUILD MAX PERFORMANCE CHEVY SMALL BLOCKS ON A BUDGET by DAVID VIZARD . JOHN LINGENFELTER on modifying small-block chevy engines how to build & modify CHEVROLET small-block V-8 CAMSHAFTS & VALVTRAINS BY DAVID VIZARD SMOKEY YUNICK,S POWER SECRETS look at it this way a very good welder will cost you perhaps $1000 with all the accessories http://www.weldersmall.com/cgi-bin/weldersmall/browse?workingCategoryID=4673 with that and $100 worth of books and a few semi inteligent friends that swap is just a few weekends work, theres nothing you cant make in the way of motor or transmission mounts or headers that a little knowledge a few friends and $150-$300 worth of steel won,t build you and your engine goal of 300hp can be reached for under $1800 very easily and when you through you will have marketable new skills, a welder you can sell, and the ablity to work on your own car! plus the guys on this site can answer almost any question for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 John Lingenfelter and Grumpyvette are bad ass'es! You sure you're not Lingenfelter himself, Grumpy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsumner Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 Another option is to buy a car that is already converted or a project that has stalled. Watch e-bay and the auto trader magazines for deals. I found my 280 project after someone here posted a heads up about a car on ebay. It was only 30 miles away so I want to check it out.The body was good and it had a freshly rebuilt 350 and 700r4 trans.I bought the car for a little over 2 grand,there are receipts for well over 3 grand in parts plus the body was in better shape than the car I was going to convert. deals are out there if you take your time and look for them,buy used parts from guys that are upgrading their rides or cleaning out their garage. Grumpy is right about car clubs they are a great way to meet people who can help you out. Later, Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad-ManQ45 Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 This is where I ordered my welder from: Central Welding Supply Best prices I have found. I've built engines and replaced 'em and hot-rodded 'em since the late 60's and helped my brother on a ground-up Datsun 1600 short windshield roadster. I chose to do a ground-up because I always wanted to one of my own, and wanted to learn to weld. The satisfaction of knowing that I control the state of everything in the car (and how it will turn out) is a real plus for me. If it was only about the time/money relationship, I could have waited and gotten a West Coast car (possibly already converted) and saved both. For me though, the journey and experiences along the way count a lot toward how much I will enjoy the destination. If you are mechanically inclined, then there is NOTHING that can stop you other than your own lack of commitment (and resources - and you may have hidden sources of these!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsommer Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 One additional book you should by is the JTR conversion manual, worth it's weight in gold David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jwelch Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 FrostByte, Here is a link to my car on the Wanted for Sale forum. http://www.hybridz.org/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=3;t=001337 I'm not thrilled about selling the car but I'm very interested in Super Dan's Car (1 of the gurus on this sight) I would have to sell my car to even have a chance at buying his. Feel free to email me and I can give you more pics and details if your interested. Best Regards, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsommer Posted April 4, 2002 Share Posted April 4, 2002 FrostByte, How can you gain real world experence if you don't at least try to do the swap yourself? You mention a kit car well I looked into a Cobra kit from several different companies (factory five being my favorite) and found that it takes a lot of skill and a big fat wallet to "build" a car from the ground up. Don't sell yourself short. I've owned my Z for almost 3 years now and am just starting to work on it. I pulled the rearend and am in the process of installing a R-200 (stronger rearend) What might you ask have I been doing with my Z for the past 3 years? Enjoying it!!! Driving it around town a bit and just cleaning it up. What have I been doing with my money buying tools: air compressor, air tools, welder, wrenches, building an engine, finding a tranny and now rebuilding the entire suspension. You can do the swap just start reading up on it and collecting tools. Good Luck!!!! David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denny411 Posted April 4, 2002 Share Posted April 4, 2002 I`ll second that. But then again I look for any reason to buy a new tool Tools are an investment, If you take care of them and don`t leave them under someones hood you will have them forever I went through a spell a couple years ago where everyone got a free tool when I worked on there car Luckily most were honest enough to bring them back when they found them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted April 5, 2002 Share Posted April 5, 2002 thanks for all the help guys. while i have learned a fair amount about cars, all my info is from people and books/internet. i don't have any real world experience so i won't be doing the swap myself. that will change when i build myslef a kit car, however what i'm probably going to be doing is buying a V8 Z car. jwelch i really like your car but i'm not in the market for one right now (it'll be a good 1 1/2 - 2 years before i have enough money to buy my own Z car) btw have you taken your car to the track? 1/4 miles times? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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