SteelToad Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 I'm making room for a 350 Chevy in my '80 ZX. The old stuff is out of the way (Anybody need an engine and 5-Speed). Anyway, the firewall is still a mess and I want to clean it up. I'm going with a whole new electrical system and VintageAire for the AC, so I'm not worried about keeping those leftovers. So, is there anything numbered that I shouldnt remove, or anything not numbered that I could ? Any advice would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LS1 240Z Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 if you are going with a 350, rip everything out except for the steering and the brake booster and only put back what you need (which probably wont be any of that stuff, i dont even know what that stuff is) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr_hunt Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 I agree, start clean and go clutter from there. You probably won't need much. What kind of 350 are you planning on putting in, Carb'd, EFI, turbo'd, blown? What HP level? What trans? What other upgrades are you planning? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelToad Posted August 18, 2006 Author Share Posted August 18, 2006 Thanx, I was pretty sure all of it could go, nice to get some confirmation. It's getting a carb'd 350 and 350 trans and R200LSD. Of course If I stumble over a pile of cash than it'll be an LS2 As for the other modifications, check the link in the sig. It's not the most attractive site, but it's just there to hold the pictures. The body shop guys normally just work on big iron, but they're starting to adopt mine as the shop pet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80LS1T Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 You'll want 11, 12, 2(if your going to keep the stock coolant overflow bottle), 3 is the headlamp relay I beleive, you will need some of the stuff in 4 and 10. Thats what mine looks like(also an 80'). I moved all my body electronics to the inside of the passenger wheelwell and routed everything through the frame rails. I wish I had a pic from above the engine bay to show how clean it looks without all the wiring harnesses and relay boxes.... Guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LS1 240Z Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 you can purchase chevy truck 5.3s and 6.0s with transmissions for under $2000 you will spend that if not more on putting a rebuilt small block in it, and the 5.3 and 6.0 will behave like LSx motors for the most part Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paz8 Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Number 6 in your pics is the heater & a/c vacuum tank, if your going to connect a heater back up you will need this. #7 is the a/c dryer, remove it. #9 is the cruise control actuator, remove it. #11 is the windshield wiper motor, leave it alone. #13 is the ign. coil, remove it. Don't just chop all the wiring off, disconnect it and mark it, you will need to reuse some of it and modify some of it. You can remove some of the stuff one part at a time and paint under it and bolt it back together, I guess it depends on how much work you want to do, how much money you want to spend, and to what degree you want the finished car to look like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Keep in mind truck engines will require new accessories, oil pans and I believe intakes. Not a show stopper, but the cost can add up. You simply don't find many F body LS parts in salvage yards. That leaves ebay and GM direct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingnutthehutt Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 With all due respect, do NOT paint your car Chameleon. Please. It's a difficult paint to get right, is more costly than pretty much everything else, and tends to make good cars look cheap IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LS1 240Z Posted August 18, 2006 Share Posted August 18, 2006 Keep in mind truck engines will require new accessories, oil pans and I believe intakes. Not a show stopper, but the cost can add up. You simply don't find many F body LS parts in salvage yards. That leaves ebay and GM direct. this is true. you need a diffrent oil pan. you could probably get away with the truck intake under the hood, but if you went to an LS1 intake you would need to also switch water pumps. all you really need is an alt anyways, you can either make one buy one (would be pretty cheap) i did forget about those parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelToad Posted August 21, 2006 Author Share Posted August 21, 2006 Thanx for all the advice, it sounds like I can get rid of, or at least move just about everything. The brake booster can go because a new one will be taking it's place, and the steering box can come off for some cleaning, and painting. I'm going to be making a custom dash, so I'll see if I can move a lot of it to the inside of the firewall, or hide it somewhere else out of the way. 80LT1: what stuff in 4 and 10 might I still need ? WingNut: I was looking at using an electric blue basecoat for the chameleon, so the purple would just be a highlight. My other choice was white pearl.... Well I got a "quick" glimpse of some Italian sports car this weekend in an arctic white, and it looked AWESOME. So I think that may be the new choice, plus, I already kinda liked it in white As for the engine. A local reputable engine guy has one he built for himself. He's got a monsterous blown corvette, but he built a 350HP motor he could put in his car for passing inspection. It's only got 2K miles on it. I cant pass up the deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingnutthehutt Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 WingNut: I was looking at using an electric blue basecoat for the chameleon' date=' so the purple would just be a highlight. My other choice was white pearl.... Well I got a "quick" glimpse of some Italian sports car this weekend in an arctic white, and it looked AWESOME. So I think that may be the new choice, plus, I already kinda liked it in white [/quote'] Haha, ok. White passes my approval. You could throw a pearl in the clear, either blue or purple and it would shift in the sun a bit. I put House of Kolor Purple Iridescent Pearl in one coat of clear on my old racebike. It was black with PPG Perfect White number plates. The number plates looked SWEET from the right angle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paz8 Posted August 21, 2006 Share Posted August 21, 2006 #4 is the relay box, has about five relays that control various things like starting the engine in neutral, behind door #10 is the horn relay and the EFI relay. There is alot of wiring in a ZX, unless your rewiring the entire car ( costly if you can"t do it yourself) why remove them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelToad Posted August 21, 2006 Author Share Posted August 21, 2006 Rewiring the whole car is actually in the plans. It's one of the few things I can do myself in this wretched beast. Between changing the engine, and the taillight wiring, and going from efi to carb, I figure new wires is probably the way to go. Besides, the new dashboard was going to require some significant changes anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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