240z8's '71 240z Chevy V8 Project

[240z8]

Alright, I was just wondering. I knew it was probably going to be more than just a straight swap for the z31 because I remember reading a short thread about it, but thanks anyways. And the t-top idea was just because I felt like asking, who knows, maybe someone knew what to do.

 

Anyways, how safe are wheel adapters on the rear and front? I found some at http://www.ezaccessory.com/Wheel_Adapter_4_Lug_4_5_To_5_Lug_4_5_p/4450-5450.htm that seem promising, and it is the right lug pattern for some wheels I found. Because I was thinking it might not be as safe on the front just because if they're a little loose they might break. Any answers that are helpful will be appreciated .

[240z8]

A red 240sx and a grey 240sx that was rearended with aluminum tape. They want 500 for the red one, has a twin cam ka thats got a knock headers and exhaust. oh and the shifter wasnt actually hooked up and there isnt any clutch pedal feel. it drops bottom and doesnt come back up. haha.

 

You went to American Auto Salvage too? Lol

[ModernS30]

Those wheel adapters look alright. Basically same thing as spacers which I have seen used alot. Obviously you cant afford AZZC stuff, nobody can. I have been on vacation, and I might be bringing my car down tomorrow to Portales =P To bad I cant mess with Graham. Either way. Yes, I was thinking about getting that red 240sx. 500 bucks. I bet they would take 300. Especially being how long they have had it, and thats about all they will get for it as a chunk of steel. Throw a l28e in there cause it had a blown motor, and you got a fun car. lol

[Pharaohabq]

Hey Justin, Glad to see you've actually worked on the car a little more. Sorry about the finger, I hope it's healed by now. It looks like you've got a good engine setup there hopefully it'll go in w/o a hitch. or more stitches. hehe. anyway, look on the seat thread on here to see which seats will fit. there's also threads on 5 lug conversion. on and forget the T-top idea. the roof is shapped all wrong for it, unless you're going to put a set of [ ] [ ] square headlights on it, and a giant whaletail.

 

I'll PM you about the carbs

Phar

[240z8]

So, today my dad and I went to a junkyard near us to pick up a 260z with a near perfect dash for $450; I saw absolutely no cracks the day we looked at it; and when we got there this morning with the trailer, one of the owners of the junkyard wasn't there so my dad called him and he said he was on his way, but his brother showed up and told us to call him on Monday because they didn't actually own the car and he needed to research it a bit to see if it was legal to sell a car they didn't technically own. He said we would go to the courthouse and find out if he could just sell it to us or if he would have to get a mechanics lean. Apparently his uncle had towed it there years and years ago, then his uncle died somewhere around 3 years ago, then the day we got the first 280z (about January 11, 2009) I think, we talked to a different guy that was these guy's dad, but he died in June, and the two brothers are trying to get the junkyard cleaned up and they want to do it legally so they don't get screwed down the road. But, the car has probably been there over a decade I think. It was last registered in '96 and it has parking stickers for Clovis High School on the windshield for '96. After that little escapade, we turned down a road right next to the junkyard and went about a block to a house with a 280z and a 240z with a SBF and talked to a woman who turned out to be the nurse of an elderly woman who lives there. She said come back in a half hour because the elderly woman's daughter and son-in-law would be there later. We dropped the car trailer back off at my dad's friends house and went back. When we got there, the daughter called her brother to see if he would sell them and he said he didn't own the 280z and the 240z wasn't for sale. His nephew owns the 280z or something, I'm not sure really. But hopefully the daughter can persuade her brother to get the cars off their mom's property or sell them to us. The 240z is COVERED in bondo, and the wheels are sunken in the ground, but its probably worth it for the SBF and mounts.

 

Well, on a different note, when I pulled the carbs and intake for Pharoahabq (PM me back:mrgreen:) I think I might have found out what was wrong with the 3rd cylinder. The PO told us that the 3rd cylinder had something wrong with it. heres a picture

 

 

 

Isn't it nice to find a dead cricket and tons of seeds and shredded up grain looking stuff inside the exhaust port? I thought that was a little weird lol.

 

Oh, and for Christmas I got a new crankshaft and lifters for the v8

 

 

And we finally get a tubing bender so i can get the lines in the car moved to the fender and some more fun goodies:

 

 

I know it isn't a huge update, but i just felt like posting something relevant to the project, so here ya go.

 

P.S. - The 260z wasn't wrecked , it was just towed there for storage or something like that.

[garvice]

What is the title of this thread again?

And yet you went looking at another 3 Zs?

[240z8]

What is the title of this thread again?

And yet you went looking at another 3 Zs?

 

I knoooow... Im still thinking of a new title, but these damn Zs are so addicting.

[240Z8_Dad]

And if the price is right, Who can turn that down!

[Two80z4me]

And if the price is right, Who can turn that down!

 

people who live in condo's.

[ModernS30]

And if the price is right, Who can turn that down!

 

Haha, this is true. I was in town today (not with the z) but Justin neglected looking at his phone till I was literally just on the way out. I am basically broke from my Z. I just got a ZXT alternator and I still need to get my hands on a welder to fix up the floors and my passenger quarter panel possibly. Why didn't you say anything about a crank and tools Justin? Hurry up, make it run! If the 260z is really there, that's an amazing find. was it early or late? Wondering what the dash would fit in. I think if its early it will fit in a series 2 240z? If its late a 280z up to 76? Either way, another project. As I told Justin earlier. Put a 12v strait 6 cummins in the blue car! Glad to see at least some progress, even if its little. Oh and my 8 bucks for the l24 still stands, if I can figure out getting down there again, with work and school I am pretty busy. lol

[rturbo 930]

Haha, this is true. I was in town today (not with the z) but Justin neglected looking at his phone till I was literally just on the way out. I am basically broke from my Z. I just got a ZXT alternator and I still need to get my hands on a welder to fix up the floors and my passenger quarter panel possibly. Why didn't you say anything about a crank and tools Justin? Hurry up, make it run! If the 260z is really there, that's an amazing find. was it early or late? Wondering what the dash would fit in. I think if its early it will fit in a series 2 240z? If its late a 280z up to 76? Either way, another project. As I told Justin earlier. Put a 12v strait 6 cummins in the blue car! Glad to see at least some progress, even if its little. Oh and my 8 bucks for the l24 still stands, if I can figure out getting down there again, with work and school I am pretty busy. lol

All 260Zs have 280Z style dashboards and tail lights. The dashboards should be interchangeable from 74-78.

 

Also, don't scrap that L24. It should have the early style SU carbs, E31 head, and 2400cc valve cover, all of which, I believe, are series one specific. The oil pan might be worth something as well. The guys on classiczcars.com will let you know.

[Jehannum]

All 260Zs have 280Z style dashboards and tail lights. The dashboards should be interchangeable from 74-78.

 

Also, don't scrap that L24. It should have the early style SU carbs, E31 head, and 2400cc valve cover, all of which, I believe, are series one specific. The oil pan might be worth something as well. The guys on classiczcars.com will let you know.

I have an E31 head on an early series II car. No 2400cc valve cover, though.

[ModernS30]

All 260Zs have 280Z style dashboards and tail lights. The dashboards should be interchangeable from 74-78.

 

Also, don't scrap that L24. It should have the early style SU carbs, E31 head, and 2400cc valve cover, all of which, I believe, are series one specific. The oil pan might be worth something as well. The guys on classiczcars.com will let you know.

 

9/74 260z was the 280z style 260z. Other than that it was 240z style.

[240z8]

The 260z is an early style with thin bumpers and 240z taillights I think. And the thin bumpers are really straight with only some small dents in them. And the old l24 out of my project is from a 72 and has an e88 head. Did the l24's come with different blocks too? Im just wondering. Mine has a p30 stamped in it.

[Daeron]

9/74 260z was the 280z style 260z. Other than that it was 240z style.

 

But, all 260Zs had "280-style" dashboards and taillights. All 260 and 280 dashboards (the raw core, wire harnesses changed every year, the gauges got switched around a bit and the typeface changed, but the dash itself) and taillights are interchangeable from whenever 260Zs started production through the end of the S30 after model year '78.

[240z8]

But, all 260Zs had "280-style" dashboards and taillights. All 260 and 280 dashboards (the raw core, wire harnesses changed every year, the gauges got switched around a bit and the typeface changed, but the dash itself) and taillights are interchangeable from whenever 260Zs started production through the end of the S30 after model year '78.

 

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

I got a little done this week, I cleaned my garage a bit more, there is like a foot more room width wise, but there is still like 4 more feet of stuff to get out of there, like a dresser and some cabinet thing. There is room for the Z to fit and to open a door about half way. I cleaned the v8 oil pan and belt pulley (the pulley on the front of the motor that is connected to the crank) and painted them both black. Hopefully I can get more done in the next few weeks. I think I should have made a New Year's resolution to get off my ass and do stuff. That would have been a good idea.

[ModernS30]

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

I got a little done this week, I cleaned my garage a bit more, there is like a foot more room width wise, but there is still like 4 more feet of stuff to get out of there, like a dresser and some cabinet thing. There is room for the Z to fit and to open a door about half way. I cleaned the v8 oil pan and belt pulley (the pulley on the front of the motor that is connected to the crank) and painted them both black. Hopefully I can get more done in the next few weeks. I think I should have made a New Year's resolution to get off my ass and do stuff. That would have been a good idea.

 

At least you made progress! I got the maxi fuse setup installing tomorrow! WOOT! Dude, get your car running already. Who needs paint. Wire it, install it, start it, pull it back out and paint it and make it purdy, put it back in.

[Daeron]

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

I got a little done this week, I cleaned my garage a bit more, there is like a foot more room width wise, but there is still like 4 more feet of stuff to get out of there, like a dresser and some cabinet thing. There is room for the Z to fit and to open a door about half way. I cleaned the v8 oil pan and belt pulley (the pulley on the front of the motor that is connected to the crank) and painted them both black. Hopefully I can get more done in the next few weeks. I think I should have made a New Year's resolution to get off my ass and do stuff. That would have been a good idea.

 

If you are made the right size for a Z (picture your typical adult Japanese) you oughta be able to leave the window open and just slide in in a garage.....

 

Datsuns are small cars. It took about 20 minutes of convincing, but I finally convinced my uncle to try sticking two Roadsters side-by-side in one of the bays of his shop, and he has been thanking me ever since....

[Jason Jarvis]

I know this is Hybrid Z, and I try to cut them up with the best of them, but a V8 and widebody on a solid Series I 240Z when you have two later cars sitting there, ouch..... I must be getting old.

 

Anyway, be careful, as you have found, the tranny mount is the third leg of the tripod that hods the engine and tranny in, it falling like that is normal.

 

If you are only wanting to do a 5 lug conversion with the Z31 suspension, the front hubs from a Z31 will actually bolt on a first gen. Z's used the same front wheel bearing diameters until 89. You can then use Toyota truck calipers for a brake upgrade too. The rear is a different story, you have to get more creative or spend more money at that point.

 

A friend of mine did a 280ZX t-top conversion on a first gen, it is nice, but he and the body guy said never again.

 

Good luck,

 

Jason

[240z8]

Not a huge update, but we did some more work on the v8. We pulled off the intake, pulled the rocker arms, and pulled the cam. Still need to pull of the bottom timing chain gear so we can put the gear drive on.

 

Oh, and I switched our 1 good driver's door from the blue Z to the green one. I have a question though, are the series 1 latches different in any way from series 2? The blue Z's door didn't want to latch most of the time I tried to shut it. Any ideas for that? I'm thinking I need to switch the latch from the green door because that one latched every time. And what are the plastic wedge looking things underneath the metal latch on the door?

 

We decided to not go with the widebody for now, that's gonna take way too long. We're thinking flares for now. And I have a question about that too; does anyone have any idea about Diamond Racing's custom wheels? How does that work? Do you like send them a design and a specific size and they make it, or what? And, if anyone has a source for cheap 16 inch wheels, any help would be appreciated, I went through the first 50 pages of the wheel section looking for ideas but couldn't find anything I liked or that wasn't cheap in any way. I'm thinking around the 300-600 dollar price range for the wheels. Preferably 16x9.5 with low backspacing or a negative offset. We already have some 245/50/r16 tires that came with my dad's Camaro. 2 are brand new made in 2007, the other 2 have a little wear but still have some life in them.

 

Justin