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HybridZ

Solid Rear-end


DRTY260Z

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Hey guys can any of you help me with finding out who makes a solid rear end for my 260?

The set-up i'm going with will consist of sbc 350 with 450hp at flywheel with a 100 shot of go-juice. I don't know if the r200 will hold up. so i'm trying to see if going with a solid rear end will hold. thanks

 

sam

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The IRS ( independent rear suspension ) of the Z models are one of the best points for building great little pocket rockets! My 260 will damn near slap the rear quarters on the ground when I flash launch at 3000rpm w/400hp To think of changing it to a straight axle makes me cringe unless you just want to tub it out for big slicks and kiss all the fast corners goodbye... I've seen plenty of guys slap 400-600 horses through readily available parts that will cost less and be alot more fun than a tube-n-tub job...Ask any of these guys running big blocks building mucho torque and they'll tell ya... I'm still learning, but so far so good!

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I don't think there is any kit that you can buy to directly fit a live rear axle into the Z. There are several people here (myself included) who are installing solid axle rears into the Z, but it requires a lot of custom work. Of course, deviating from the stock suspension will also require you to design a new suspension for the car... which can be tricky. You can just slap a new suspension under there and hope it works... but more than likely it will not be optimal.

 

Ledphoot,

You can design a solid axle rear to handle very well. Additionally, they can be set up to reduce squat to give better traction on acceleration (you don't want your quarters dragging!).

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Out of all the threads for "solid rear" and "which is better IRS or solid" ect, ect...

No one mentions the obvious and that is the IRS unbolts and seperates from the chassis in one unit and a solid rear depending on how you have it set up, either with ladder bars or jegster S/S bars or the like, just takes 4 bolts to remove.

 

If you want to go dragracing one weekend and do Autocross the next. You could have the rear changed in under an hour start to finish.

 

Mark

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I look at this guys project as a first timer with limited budget. I know some of you guys can pump cash out hand over fist but I look at everything from a " what is the max for the money on limited funds approach" Sure , you can throw enough cash at it to make it outgrip an Ferrari, but I didn't get the feel that that was his question. I just said that 400hp was no reason to dump money where he didnt need it..

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Hey guys thanks for all the feedback. Ledphoot is right this is my first project on a Z, but not on a budget.. What I meant was that the car is only going to see the track and not a daily driver. It will be seeing alot of hard launches and abuse in the track. I'm used to working on mustangs, camaros, etc. which have solid rear axles and work great, just thought that the small (stock r180) irs wouldn't handle all the abuse it's going to see in the near future. And as far as hp goes I might go with a twin turbo set-up for some serious abuse.

 

SAM

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I didn't mean to come down on the IRS. You're right that the R200 can take a fair bit of abuse. I just wanted to point out that a live axle rear design isn't necessarily worse. It all depends on the design of the suspension, be it IRS or a live axle.

 

Sam, you mention track use and hard launches. Am I correct that this is primarily going to be a drag car?

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Oh yeah! If your gonne go live axle 9" ford is the way to go. Even with junkyard parts your gonna be able to do more than an 8.8 stock and the aftermarket and used market. on 9' is infinite... well worth the additional weight and since it is rear unsprung weight it helps traction. Originally you were talking 450 hp but if you go twin turbos and No2 you'll be well over 600hp and solid with a 9'er... I would opt for a well built powerglide tranny as well. One gearchange and real consistant if you can gear it to keep the turbos spooled...

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