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RB26DETT into 240Z Beginner Progress


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Am I a complete idiot?  

32 members have voted

  1. 1. Am I a complete idiot?

    • Yes, either that or completely insane.
    • No, props to you!


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I'm not sure who was saying that the dodge isolators work well for the infinity mounts, but testing their theory cost me an extra two days rental on the cherry picker plus whatever I would have saved if I had known ahead of time to buy the supra isolators at a good price. The idea was that the engine would sit more comfortably in a lower or farther back position, but it can't work, at least not on a 240z with a 200zr pan, and here's why.

 

First of all, even if they would work, the engine sits TOO low: almost the entire hump in the pan is below the crossmember. I tried the isolators in different positions, because they are offset and wasn't quite sure which way others were suggesting they be positioned. I found that with them pointing forward, the studs are too close together to mate with the original crossmember holes. If the isolators are rotated to face completely outward, they may meet the holes (with a hell of a lot of finesse and probably drilling the holes way out or slotting them) but the engine will sit so low that the pan will hit the steering rack before sinking both studs. I went back and forth with the engine in and out over and over trying different angles (the isolators are next to impossible to tighten once in the bay) but no dice. The method I found to work best was to tighten the left isolator first because it couldn't be reached in the bay, and leave the other loose to be able to work them in the holes: ie. they can't both be tight going in because the approach angle changes as you work them into place.

 

Anyway, I got to the point where it looked like I might be able to theoretically get both studs in, where the right stud was set and the left was just barely in the whole, but the pan was already sitting on the rack (and this is before the engine would likely lean forward some in final setting). Basically I discovered that even if it was possible to find a configuration of the isolators that got them to mate with the crossmember and spent enough time actually making it happen, the engine would hit an obstacle before getting to that point. I think this is due to the fact that the dodge isolators are much thinner than the supra ones so that even though they are offset and can be rotated to the right angle, you can't have both the necessary vertical clearance and the right separation combined.

 

In the following pictures you will see the closest I got to making these isolators work, with the pan on the rack and the left isolator still floating, and if anything, still too far away horizontally as well.

 

dodgemount1.jpg

 

dodgemount2.jpg

 

dodgemount3.jpg

 

 

The supra mounts are coming tomorrow, and it might be close, but my theory is that because they are inline and more than twice as thick, they will have the right clearance and separation necessary. Also, it will be easier to coax them into place because their thickness will make them capable of flexing and they can fudge a little...Hopefully. We'll both know tomorrow if I'm paying another 150 bucks for a reason or not. The only alternative would seem to be to block up the crossmember mounts so that they stick out farther. These engine mounts get you the right angle, it's just not close enough, so blocking the crossmember would close the gap in vertical clearance and the distance between both sides a little--in which case perhaps either type of isolator would work, but the supra ones would be ideal for their durability and the direct shot rather than supporting the engine at an angle more like a wedge.

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I don't know if anyone still reads my banter, but I'm looking for a few quick answers...

 

So now I have to address the fact that the previous owner was all but gentle on the set and I need to repair or replace the spedo sender. I'm going to keep searching the forums for a topic on the spedo, but it seems like many of you just go without one? I might be able to do one of two things. Either fix it so that it is electronic, or cut off the end, weld on the end of my old sender, etc. to make it cable driven to fit my speedo with a calibration box or something (it would also have to be reversed I believe), rather than buying a new digital guage and whatnot. Of course I first have to figure out if this thing is cast aluminum or pot metal, because it's really hard to tell.

 

speedo.jpg

 

Before I do that, I was wondering if anyone knows whether or not the lead from the ecu to the speed sensor is necessary? If so, I might as well keep the speedo original so I can plug it into the ecu. If not, I'll just eliminate that wire.

 

But wait, there's more. Do I also need to plug in the neutral switch (not shown in picture)? It seems kind of strange that there would be one on a manual trans rather than a switch on the clutch itself. I'm not sure how the switch would function if it's purpose is to keep the engine from starting unless it's in neutral. I would guess that it could just be grounded if necessary.

 

trans.jpg

 

Also on the topic of wires, what are you guys doing for the exhaust gas sensor? Do I need to incorporate an o2 sensor in my exhaust line to feed to the ecu, or just eliminate that as well?

 

It's still up in the air whether the engine ecu actually needs either of these feeds to run properly. Your thoughts?

 

 

On an unrelated topic, I think I'll be making a little aluminum vacuum bottle for the brakes and run it to the intake plenum or aac somewhere.

 

Also, I took off a rear panel from inside the car and cut out the evaporator tank along with about 47 lines going to the gas tank. I can just plug most of the ports on the gas tank and it will still fill fine because I'm going to reroute one of the lines at the highest point into the filler tube. The other on the opposite end I think I'll incorporate into a fuel return line, since the original return line is tiny.

 

gastank.jpg

 

 

 

 

Buying: heater hose, clutch hydraulic line, and a new shift boot (any interchangeable ones or just generic?)

 

Installing: radiator (piece of cake) with an angle bracket on each side, welding on cast aluminum tight 90s onto the intercooler after cutting off the original ports so it will fit nicely.

 

Making: a trans mount (also pretty easy) -- then taking my old drive shaft and the new yoke to a shop to have one made (wondering if they will be able to match the receiving flange to the yoke or if I have to buy a z32 shaft and cut the end off)

 

I'm starting to feel a sense of progress ;)

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Most people end up replacing the speedo with an aftermarket one when it comes to using an RB, Although I'm sure someone has successfully gotten the stock Z speedo to work with some tinkering.

 

As for the neutral switch all it does is stop the starter from allowing the motor to turn over :P. Im thinking you might be able to get away with not plugging it in. if things dont work out though you'll probably need to hook it back up.

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I was thinking that it would have to stop the starter because to cut ignition but allow it to crank would defeat the purpose, but it doesn't look like the starter is hooked up to the ecu...Is there a component I've overlooked, or was the neutral switch intended to connect directly to the starter itself?

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radfront.jpg

 

radmount.jpg

 

radbottom.jpg

 

Piece of cake. I took the horns off, and yes, all four bolt heads broke half way out. It's a little low as I foreknew. About halfway between the core support and the crossmember. It should be okay, but I might make some sort of skidplate in the future.

 

The font valiance always hits coming out of driveways anyway. It's taken quite a beating--I don't think I can go back to the original style now because you might then be able to see the radiator hanging out the bottom.

 

Some sort of duct or cowling would also be nice to get the most even air possible, but I haven't had any good ideas yet and there isn't much room on the engine side for a cowl. Splash guards would help trap in some of the air, did the s30 originally have one?

 

Due to the shape of the core, one large fan will trump two smaller ones, unless perhaps if I can find them as a single unit staggered so that they are really close together and get more total surface area.

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my question is the problem with the 200ZR pan...from what i have heard on here that the crank baffle on the first three cylinders of the RB26 wont fit in the pan, and the engine wont start/work properly without them in...i dont know if the above is true or not, but if it is, what modifications did you do to get the front baffles to fit

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my question is the problem with the 200ZR pan...from what i have heard on here that the crank baffle on the first three cylinders of the RB26 wont fit in the pan, and the engine wont start/work properly without them in...i dont know if the above is true or not, but if it is, what modifications did you do to get the front baffles to fit

 

 

I should hope the engine will run fine without them, because I took mine out. There's no way an engine wouldn't start without baffles but it would theoretically not lubricate as well, ie. run like crap. But in this case the reason the baffle plates wont fit in the pan is because the pan already comes with built in baffles! You don't need two sets of baffles--I removed both front and rear plates as I don't think either fit actually, but that might depend on the way you put in the new sump pickup tube. The way I did it, using the 200zr pickup, seemed like a relatively easy method.

 

This may seem like a no-brainer, but fyi, don't paint the inside of the pan like I did--no matter what the can says, it doesn't stick well enough and I ended up taking it right off with chemtool.

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Okay, so the speedo housing is in fact pot metal. I got a kit coming that supposed to make it possible to weld that crap (basically soldering the two pieces together). Note that the top piece is from my old mechanical speedo and the bottom is the broken electronic one that came with the trans. I'm trying to convert it to cable drive if I haven't mentioned that already. I also had two halves of the pinion rod brazed together and lathed smooth, but no picture yet.

 

speedsensor2.jpg

 

speedsensor1.jpg

 

 

The $0 scrap metal trans mount. It's in the category of what my friends and I refer to as "thick dick." My dad's design. It bolts to the underbelly straight under the trans (with oem rubber) unlike any others I've seen. I'm not thinking it's necessary but it can't hurt, and I didn't want to be picky or anything. As if in an attempt to confuse everyone, I took the picture of it upside down.

 

transmount.jpg

 

 

 

The reverse and neutral switches in. I had to use one of my old ones because the new one was ironically in worse shape. Both had to be cleaned significantly to get an accurate reading. Note that they work opposite of each other even though they look identical, so they should be marked and tested. I put heat-shrink on both but soldered the wires on the front one at a right angle and just put a bunch of rubber paint on it because it was a tighter fit.

 

switches.jpg

 

 

 

Small parts:

 

Datsun clutch hose

 

clutchhose.jpg

 

Datsun heater hose--one can be cut and go straight in, the other is too short so I still need to get a 90 degree 5/8" hose and couple them.

 

heaterhose.jpg

 

12" long aluminum tube--I only need 2" pieces for each side of the intercooler to weld onto the elbows for ease of mounting.

 

ictube.jpg

 

A little generic vent that I jb welded into the trans vent hole to replace the smashed tube.

 

transvent.jpg

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Thanks for the encouragement! I'm one to reply to EVERYTHING I read, so when no one responds I think perhaps it's because I'm bantering again.

 

I can't remember the brand, but it's nothing too special. Two row aluminum double pass. The inlet and outlet are both pretty close to the engine's that way. The one downside is that the core itself isn't quite wide enough for the hole and hangs down a little. The actual flow area is almost square in shape.

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DSC06417.jpg

 

From my website...

 

So I went to ebay and bought myself a brand new speed sensor (aftermarket). I think the AC Delco part number is "SC78", which is the same as Nissan "25911-40P10" (From a Z32 TT).

 

It was only $38+$5 shipping compared to Nissan which was about $150, and Kragen Online $148.

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How was your aem install by the way? Did it prove challenging? Also, Your fog lights look good but I couldn't find a picture of them at night. Gimme gimme!

 

I will have to get a few pictures of the fogs at night, I just did a H4 conversion on the headlights this weekend too.

 

The AEM install was pretty straight forward, I had the car running on MAF and stock ECU at first, then got the AEM running on basemaps and MAF, then once that was working ok, I then went to MAP on the AEM, once that was running good, I went through an thinned out the wiring harness (for the second time) removing the MAF wires, O2 wires and other items that no longer needed to be connected. I did leave the idle switch and one other wire as I figured someday they may provide some sort of useful input to something.

 

I have the AEM controlling my radiator fan, which previously was on a on/off switch, it also controls the Aeromotive A1000 fuel pump (which also previously was on a switch) and works good. I am running only slightly modified base maps, I have only messed with the fuel table mainly to compensate for the higher boost I am planning on running and the RC 1000 injectors, I have not looked at ignition yet. This week I have been getting back into messing with the car and have been working on getting the stock skyline boost solenoid controlling boost. At first it will just be set to 14.7psi but eventually I pay do it based on load, RPM or TPS.

 

I really like the AEM a lot, and highly recommend it!

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I have more pictures coming, but I've been camera lazy so bear with me.

 

Can anyone tell me what radiator fans they are using and what is sufficient, like actual cfm numbers? A 16" puller will cover most of my radiator, but I can't decide on which to buy. Most of the ones on ebay seem to claim pretty high numbers for such thin fans. Any problem getting a $50 straight blade fan that claims 2500cfm or should I throw an extra 100 at a 4" thick s-shaped fan that pulls in excess of 3000? TOO many options, so little money. :ugg:

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I bought a fan from summit for like 70 bux.... With the thick aluminum radiator you have really any decent fan will cool very well.

 

Mine never got above the thermostat setting on the dyno the last time i was there. fan would click on for about 30 seconds then go off !!!

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Wow I am looking at that right now. There's a buff aluminum open fan that pulls 3000 for $100 but all the regular looking plastic type are only 1000 or so except for a few that are over $200. Was yours a 14" perhaps? They say the same rating but are generally cheaper, strange... The one thing I like about the aluminum rat rod looking fan is that it just has 4 adjustable tangs that would make it pretty darn easy to mount without using those pins that the generic kits have you shove through the core fins. An aluminum shroud will be fun to make though...

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ictestfit.jpg

 

icmounts.jpg

 

ictestfit2.jpg

 

icclearance.jpg

 

That's what you call snug.

 

 

speedoweld.jpg

speedoweld.jpg

It took a little trial and error with the pot metal kit. It's much like soldering, only the rod doesn't go on smooth and is much thicker. It was easy to get it on without it sticking properly, but in the end it seems to be on there pretty darn good. It was a fun experiment anyway for less than buying a new unit and an electronic gauge.

 

speedodone.jpgspeedodone.jpg

 

A little epoxy all around to make sure it's sealed up and add a little integrity just in case.

 

speedoin.jpg

 

 

Up next: The old drive shaft and new yoke are at the shop. The fuel pump and filter are in with lines to follow.

 

driveshaftmeasure.jpg

 

 

23" from u-joint center to flange with roughly 1" of yoke play.

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