Guest endeffect0 Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 Hello all, I'm gearing up for my summer project and I have my heart set on building a 240Z. Its worth mentioning I will be doing all of the engine work and any fabrication my self. I have been poking around this site for a month or two and i cant decide what I want to do. I have about 15k to invest and i would like to have a streetable 300whp z most of the way finished by summers end. The car will compete in hill climbs and local autox and an occasional drag run. so that means cage fuel cell and the safety systems .. I am friends with an old Z builder who has a 240z with a custom made stoker crank (not a diesel one) and custom grind cams in a 280 engine thats putting out 290hp at the wheels through a 5 speed(on a dyno print out). But he has to run at least 96 octane, by mixing race gas and 93pump. he has offered to build me a similar engine that he guarantees 300 wheel NA if I'm willing to feed it race fuel. Don't have a price quote yet though.. The 2jz swap is looking good. easy to get the motors and easy to swap, it would do 300hp all day long and be reliable on regular pump gas and plenty of room for more in the future.. But it would put me in some psycho class for autox where i have no chance to be competitive ... but it would be fun... so maybe...? A RB series swap... RB26 sexy, expensive, more difficult than the other two, most likely out of my price range.. RB25 not as sexy, still a great motor, but a better then a 2jz?? Either swap would keep me in Street mod for autox and that would be really great. any other suggestions? 3 rotor maybe... I'm not a fan of the v8 swaps but I'm pretty open mined about the rest. Now this is not so much of a technical thread as a opinion poll so forgive me if this is in the wrong place. so what would you do with 15k? keep in mind that has to cover the whole project from getting a body to at least to the point its running and on the street. I am great full for anyone who would share their opinions on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJLamberson Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 I would talk to the guys that have done these swaps, the RB and the 2jz, find out what problems they came across, how much money they spent. Well you dont even need to talk to them about it, there are plenty of build threads explaining all of this, and if you only want 300WHP there is nothing wrong with the RB25 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G.I.jonas Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 RB26 sexy, expensive, more difficult than the other two, most likely out of my price range.. RB25 not as sexy, still a great motor, but a better then a 2jz?? This statement may stir some debate / flaming here! I'm not sure why you think the rb is going to inherently be more expensive than the 2jz done right,nor is it inherently better.Better is a relative thing and is kind of a word thats frowned upon by the hybrid community,what is best is whats best to you,i personally would have the toyota in my car long before i would ever even look at an rb,but thats just me. Anywho,your title is crap as well but welcome to the forum! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest endeffect0 Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 thanks for the welcome G.I., as u can see I have been snooping around these forms for a while, reading up and saving my money. I have read countless build up threads in the last 3 or so years and I have a lot of my own opinions on whats the best swap and who's build I like best but I'm gonna keep it to my self as see what other people have to say. I'd really like to avoid controversy with the whole which engine is better thing. obviously all of these are great motors.. Rather than an argument, I would simply like opinions on what you would build and why... if that makes any sense... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PanzerAce Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 If you want 300whp, why not just build an L28et to that state? Seems like it would be a heck of alot cheaper and easier than a RB or 2jz swap. AND it might not put you into a weird auto x class, since it would still be a datsun engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJLamberson Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 If you want 300whp, why not just build an L28et to that state? Seems like it would be a heck of alot cheaper and easier than a RB or 2jz swap. AND it might not put you into a weird auto x class, since it would still be a datsun engine. and it would be completely badas$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest endeffect0 Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 If you want 300whp, why not just build an L28et to that state? Seems like it would be a heck of alot cheaper and easier than a RB or 2jz swap. AND it might not put you into a weird auto x class, since it would still be a datsun engine. Your correct any Nissan or Datsun series engine swap would put me in Street Mod where i could be very competitive, at least locally. this class would also allow any engine internals. ace: How do you like your rebello stroker? would you do it again if you had the chance. how much money did you put into your engine setup/ I am not against having a NA motor in fact i would prefer it. I am a big fan of throttle response. But the ability of the Rb or 2jz to produce 300hp all day long reliably and then go higher without major modification is quite attractive. not arguing for or against either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PanzerAce Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 I love my Rebby engine, but I wasn't the one that put it in, the PO was. If I were to build a hi horse engine for my own use, I would probably have gone with a turbo route. I love Carb NA engines, but IIRC, about 300whp is the MAX that you are going to get out of an L series engine NA, and that is with ALOT of work. Street Mod is where I am as well, I just need a new set of 205/50R15 rubber to pass technical/safety :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Challenger Posted May 4, 2008 Share Posted May 4, 2008 so what would you do with 15k? keep in mind that has to cover the whole project from getting a body to at least to the point its running and on the street. I am great full for anyone who would share their opinions on this. Buy one thats done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest endeffect0 Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 Ace: Their is no question that 300whp is the upper limits of a Na L series engine. Unfortunately by todays standards it is a rather inefficient engine, for that reason I don't think I personally would go for the turbo L series motor. If I am going turbo I think I would lean toward a modern turbo motor. Your info about your current setup and your opinions of it are just the kind of first hand information I was hoping for with this thread. Hopefully we can get more people to chime in as well. Challenger; that is always a good option, if I were to find exactly what I wanted perhaps i would, or even pick up a project half done. however I do like a challenge so I think I am going to build my own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SleeperZ31 Posted May 9, 2008 Share Posted May 9, 2008 If i had your car and 15k i'd probably just do a stroker OR like it was previously mentioned a l28et, if you want it up and running before summer that is...any other motor swap would require tons of rewiring/welding/ etc...hundreds of man hours just to get the motor properly built and in place along with the needed safety and fuel systems...then theres the issue of paint (if you care how it looks) and not to mention the braking system, sure would suck to do a hill climb only to have your brakes S**t themselves on the way down and end up a permament part of the mountainside..lol... Not tryng to rain on your parade, but ive done the whole "finished by summer" project before (with a bradley gt kit car) and unless youve got a team of friends working round the clock with you or you quit your job and do nothing but work on the Z (and even sleep,and eat in it between breaks) i would find it difficult to finish it in time, youve got around 90 days of summer this year, june 21st to sep. 20, thats 1080-1200 hours of work you could do to your car if you spent 12 hours at a time working on it for 90 days str8, and thats with 8 hours of sleep and 4 hours of breaktime for part runs, etc...best of luck friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SleeperZ31 Posted May 9, 2008 Share Posted May 9, 2008 OH and i wouldnt suggest this be the only thing you do with your summer, if all you do is work on it and spend $$$ on it, no matter how awesome the end result youll probably never want to see another wrench,welder, or Z car again cuz it'll drive you frickin insane and youll end up missin out on alot...thats what happened to me and the bradley,now just the sight and sound of a flat-4 VW motor pisses me off..lol But thats just me, ive got waves to catch and girls to chase before winter hits and they all go back to college hibernation and the water turns into a icy 40'..lol... but again, best of luck, would like to see some pics....and let me know what motor you choose! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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