Sean 83ZXT Posted August 28, 2001 Share Posted August 28, 2001 Ok I got a bunch of questions of varying topics so I thought I'd pop them all into one post to keep the info in one place. 1)Why is there no poly bushing "kit" for the 280ZX? Also since there is no kit what all do I need? I wanna redo it all. My ZX darts under hard breaking and I wanna fix that b4 I add more power. Any other suspension mods you think are worth while for the ZX? I remember seeing something about modified rear lower control arms in the JCR catalog. 2)Does anyone make Front AND Rear strut bars for the ZX? 3)Does anyone sell solid motor mounts for the L28ET? Harshness is not an issue. Any thoughts? 4)What size Autometer guages would fit in the stock Speedo and Tach holes? Are they the same size as the 240Z's? 5)Using the stock Turbo rims, (15x7's?) what is the biggest width tire I can fit? Also later on down the road w/ GC Coil overs what is the max size the stock wheel well can handle? 6)What weight/amount of Redline/Amsoil tranny lube should I use in my T-5? (stock tranny) What about the R-200 Diff? (my haynes doesn't tell me) 7)I'm getting new calipers to solve my e-brake/poor braking problem. Would slotted rotors, good high perf. pads, and steel lines suffice for my goal of an 11 sec car? At what point should I be pondering Ross C's or Scca's upgrades? 8)Do '79-'81 Tailights work fine in an '82-'83 model? Please feel free to add any ideas/questions of your own. Thanx! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax240z Posted August 28, 2001 Share Posted August 28, 2001 Not a lot I can help you with... most people make their own solid mounts... same with strut tower bars. I am just making a rear one for myself today actually. (on a Z) its really not too big a deal to make if you have an angle grinder, a drill, and a welder. Even if you don't have a welder, you could get all the pieces made and have them welded elsewhere. As for brakes, I would say its one system you can't have too good! Even if you go bigger and can apply more brake torque than your tires can handle, you still benefit from increased modulation with bigger brakes in my (limited) experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Motorsports Ltd Posted August 28, 2001 Share Posted August 28, 2001 1)Why is there no poly bushing "kit" for the 280ZX? Also since there is no kit what all do I need? I wanna redo it all. >>I think theres never been enough demand for it to warrant a kit. We just have to buy it all piecemeal. wwww.energysuspension.com has it all or I can get it all for you as well. -bushings are front t/c bushings/control arm bushings, sway bar bushings, rear control arm bushings, rear sway bar bushings, should be about it... My ZX darts under hard breaking and I wanna fix that b4 I add more power. Any other suspension mods you think are worth while for the ZX? I remember seeing something about modified rear lower control arms in the JCR catalog. >>> all bushings first and be sure bearings are all snugged up etc, I've never seen modified ZX arms offered but would like some adjustment on my ZX as well. 2)Does anyone make Front AND Rear strut bars for the ZX? >>> doesn't MSA? rear can just be a simple straight piece of conduit/pipe etc if simple/plain is OK. 3)Does anyone sell solid motor mounts for the L28ET? Harshness is not an issue. Any thoughts? >>>might rattle other items loose....I noticed today I've almost sheared right thru a motor mount! (not a nissan one). Why do you want a solid engine mount? 4)What size Autometer guages would fit in the stock Speedo and Tach holes? Are they the same size as the 240Z's? >> quite different guage holes/setup than 240z unfortunately, perhaps some will fit but I'm not aware of anyone that's done this yet. I plan to do a custom centre panel with extra guages where the radio/cig. tray etc was. 5)Using the stock Turbo rims, (15x7's?) what is the biggest width tire I can fit? >>> largest for drag racing or safe daily driving? 225's are a nice fit on 7's, wider and you might roll it off or at least sacrifice lost of body roll and 'squirm' undesirable for tight handling. Also later on down the road w/ GC Coil overs what is the max size the stock wheel well can handle? >>> pete's detailed this immensely on his website off of links at initial load up of this page. 7's do fit fine in stock wheel wells with 225's with proper spacing. 6)What weight/amount of Redline/Amsoil tranny lube should I use in my T-5? (stock tranny) What about the R-200 Diff? (my haynes doesn't tell me) >>R200 likes 75W90 synthetic for longevity, if LSD then add a container of GM posi additive, do slow tight figure 8's to get the fluid in b/t the clutch plates before heating them up 7)I'm getting new calipers to solve my e-brake/poor braking problem. Would slotted rotors, good high perf. pads, and steel lines suffice for my goal of an 11 sec car? >>> I'm no fan of slotted rotors as I feel they're a lot of 'show' no go propoganda. Very few racers really run that stuff and I've seen nothing to prove it's needs. It'll decrease your surface area for creating braking force and the slots can fill up with brake dust/nothing desirable for me. SS lines are always good IMO. As far as an 11 second car, are you only running 11 second 1320's on the track where braking room abounds and you're not endangering anyone abnormally? Or are you doing serious speeds on the public streets/highways? For public I feel serious tires and brakes are one point not to fall short on. It might be the only thing keeping you around in some happenstance situations. Sounds like your ride is an enjoyable daily driver seeing lots of fun street and track miles. I'd reccomend using OEM style calipers with dust seals etc to keep it a long-lived low maintenance setup. >> At what point should I be pondering Ross C's or Scca's upgrades? when you feel you're driving well beyond 'normal' street limits IMO and stock parts can't stop you adequately in surprise scenarios (we can plan for all non-surprises.....it's the surprises that catch us...kids/deer/cops/drunks/accidents etc) 8)Do '79-'81 Tailights work fine in an '82-'83 model? >>Hmm, they should?? same connectors I'm 99% sure. Hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean 83ZXT Posted August 28, 2001 Author Share Posted August 28, 2001 I was looking again at my stack of Z catalogs and I noticed the Victoria British one has two TC rod kits. One add's this cup thing which eliminates one bushing per rod I believe, and they say it prevents darting caused by deflection of the rod. Any thoughts on this? Also what is so special about MSA's adjustable endlinks? What do they adjust? I want the mounts to be stonger, urethane being the first idea, but to my knowledge no one makes them. I believe 240Z Turbo is running solid mounts also. MSA doesn't make a rear strut bar, I basically need this for stiffening and to bolt up my harness'. Might just make one like the one randy77zt showed me in his ride. Ross I can show you a nice pic from a Jap ZX I got off overboost.com. The guy replaced his radio/ashtray/lighter section w/ some CF and added in his electronics and guages. He also did the same for his main guage cluster. I remember another ZX'er using a certain Autometer guage pod w/ minor trimming. I remember Pete's write up on the wheel wells but I recall someone saying the ZX had wider wheel wells? Do you feel the same about cross drilled? I would think they grated the pads like cheese and I never understood why there would be that much gas needing to be released. (their main selling point) Also this will be a multi-attack vehicle: drag, road racing/autocross, and street duty. I don't care about ride harshness that much (I'm only 19 ), but my main issue is safety. I don't like fast cars that leave ya poopin your pants when it comes time to brake or turn. I think what I will do is get new calipers, SS lines and some good pads first and see where to go from there. Any pads you reccomend for strength yet they don't wear out rapidly? Thank you immensly for your help, I wish some of the stuff was more readily available for our ZX's as they are for the plain ol' Z's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modern Motorsports Ltd Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 "Victoria British one has two TC rod kits. One add's this cup thing ... prevents darting caused by deflection of the rod" sounds interesting, my car became quite darty with the larger treads but I've also chalked it up to unreplaced OEM rear control arm bushings and imperfect alignment in my slightly lowered stance " Also what is so special about MSA's adjustable endlinks? What do they adjust?" -I can't quite picture them right now but they didn't offer that much adjustment AIR "I want the mounts to be stronger, urethane being the first idea, but to my knowledge no one makes them." anyone failing the OEM mounts? just curious...stronger as in stiffer isn't always better...can translate a lot of vibe into the chassis at some points (4th gen Lt1's were all shearing OEM A4 mounts, so swapping to ES tranny mounts in their 4L60E's and then having bad vibes....upgrading to LS1 tranny mounts got them back to smooth/no vibe and they weren't shearing.) Ross I can show you a nice pic from a Jap ZX I got off overboost.com. The guy replaced his radio/ashtray/lighter section w/ some CF and added in his electronics and guages. >>I'll use a sheet of stainless or aluminum and make it VERY hard for anyone to remove my CD controller (ie. nothing coming out the front), carbon fibre overlay might be cool He also did the same for his main guage cluster. I remember another ZX'er using a certain Autometer guage pod w/ minor trimming. >>I'm holding out for a euro 160mph OEM speedo I found a couple a while back being sold as a pair only but couldn't find anyone to take the other one. I remember Pete's write up on the wheel wells but I recall someone saying the ZX had wider wheel wells? >>> I must have had a brain fart and thought you were talking Z's. Still IMHO 225's are max reasonable tire for a 7" rim. -my 16x8's fit nicely up front with coilovers (perch must be above tread) and 245's, room for another 1/2-3/4's of rubber perhaps? -out back I could EASILY see 275's if not 315's in stock wheel wells, I run 245's and have lots of inner clearance and outer, I've contemplated pushing them out another 1/2-1". Out back spring perch fits easily above tire with a decent length spring (whereas up front I'm running a 7" spring with OEM upper mount that has to change/then an 8" should fit). Do you feel the same about cross drilled? I would think they grated the pads like cheese and I never understood why there would be that much gas needing to be released. (their main selling point) >>>yes I do, they never proved their was any problem with outgassing to begin with, race circuits would have been all over that if it was a serious issue. On an all out balls to the wall competition racecar I might see an advantage if the rotor was designed to have adequate surface area and was drilled for maximum cooling etc. But we're usually challenged by too little rotor mass in the first place so the system soaks up heat/fluid boils etc....drilling reduces this capacity further and contributes the potential for stress cracks. Last year at shasta a very impressive looking (ran OK on track/nothing spectactular at all) Z32TT with a lot of 4 in race mods had crossdrilled rotors with a brake upgrade. EVERY hole had cracks propogating from it. I rode in a race 510 that passed him nicely. Also this will be a multi-attack vehicle: drag, road racing/autocross, and street duty. I don't care about ride harshness that much (I'm only 19 ), but my main issue is safety. I don't like fast cars that leave ya poopin your pants when it comes time to brake or turn. I think what I will do is get new calipers, SS lines and some good pads first and see where to go from there. Any pads you reccomend for strength yet they don't wear out rapidly? >>> on calipers I have a hard time (having done this so much myself) encouraging you to replace current old stuff with OEM as that's dead dough you'll never recover & I boiled my MC every session with fresh OE components. Too bad it's not a 'budget' ZX system I have right now available. You're aware of my 13" setup I assume? I have the Z 11" setup ready in prototype for a test mule...looking for a volunteer nearby for the install, helluva a deal if anyone is nearby and interested drop me a line. Sean: for brake pads I can't say enough about KVR's 'sport' compound. I enjoyed them so much in 4 yrs on various calipers I'm finally distributing them. I know VERY few others running although Scotties enjoying them. I've literally not been able to ever fade them, boiled my MC repeatedly but no fade. Very friendly rotor wear etc and ~ same price as dealer. They're a carbon fibre weave with some metallic and I haven't found their dust to be harsh and bake on my wheels like some others have. Thank you immensly for your help, I wish some of the stuff was more readily available for our ZX's as they are for the plain ol' Z's. >>>you're welcome. I agree, I waited 4 yrs for someone to offer up a proven and sturdy brake upgrade that was same or less weight than my OEM setup that would survive no questions asked on my high mileage daily driven street/track 280ZX V8. Didn't happen so I finally got around to engineering and proving it. Their were offerings with race calipers but for my uses I really wanted something with OEM dust seals etc as I see lots of miles whether it's for work/fishing/hiking pleasure etc in all types of weather so dust and moisture are always present. I've got some 12kmiles on my 'new' brake setup and it still looks near new, more how an OEM dealer setup should after a years use. Probably only piece on my car that's worn that little in 12k If you have ideas for other unavailable parts needed drop me a line. It'd be great to be able to buy control arms or a modified crossmember allowing the adjustments we'd like. A redesign would almost be simpler in some aspects. I've seen a 510 rear susp. redesign and they're very similar to a ZX so migth try spinning that design on a ZX Xmember. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinhZXT Posted September 3, 2001 Share Posted September 3, 2001 Here is a picture of my dash with the gauges in the stock location. Http://vvu.tripod.com/zxspyder/gauge3.jpg Not that difficult to put them in the stock locations. Vinh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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