First Engine pull and Tear Down

[sparticus13]

Hi I'm new at all this. I am not a mechanic, I am an IT engineer but am very confident and can learn just fine.

 

I have a Z31 1987 300ZX Turbo Auto GLL with Digital Gauges. I am planning a lot of mods for this car. I have spent the last month or so in research and am now ordering parts and tools. I just finished building my work bench. In the next month or so I will be ready to work on the car.

 

I am planing on turning it into a show room race car. I will be having a shop do the body and paint.

 

I will be doing the mechanical work. As part of the project I would like to pull the engine out and do a rebuild. New gaskets and what not. I also have a brand new EFI and Engine bay wire harness. I will be replacing the old damaged ones with.

 

I am looking for any advise on tools, procedures, etc. I know the main tools and equipment I will need but recommendations on tools, brands, and types would be great. Also the best order and general steps to remove the engine.

 

Thanks

Chris

[steeto_burrito]

You should look into getting a factory service manual, they are 1000 times better than a chiltons. They cost a bit more, but worth every penny. I don't know what I would do without mine. I found one on e-bay here is the link.

 

As far as tools it really depends on how much use they are going to get, sure you can go out and order 5k worth of Snap-On tools, but really are you going to get 5k worth of use out of them. I generaly use Craftsman, but thats just my personal preference. On any tools I will use 1-2 times I will usually go to Harbor Freight and pick up a cheap one. It may break after 3-4 uses, but if I only needed it once, it served its purpose and cost a lot less than the same tool from a big name tool company.

 

I took apart my engine using 99% metric sockets with a 3/8 drive ratchet.

For reassembly just follow the instructions and get a GOOD set of torque wrenches, again I use Crafstman. Its just one of those things you don't want to go cheap on.

 

Good luck with your project!

[sparticus13]

Thanks for the info. I was think of using Harbor Freight for some stuff.

 

Any other suggestions/info is welcome.

[DeleriousZ]

Don't pay a dime for the FSM. It can be found in the link below

 

http://www.xenonz31.com/reference

 

The fsm is prettymuch the only guide you'll need. As for tools, and brand will work. I've got crappy princess auto (harbor freight) stuff and for the most part it works just fine. One thing you'll love yourself for buying is some form of impact gun. Whether it's electric or air powered, you'll love it to bits when pulling apart bolts that haven't been moved in 20 years.

 

I agree on the high quality torque wrenches, that's the one tool I didn't skimp on either. I found that buying a set of allen key-in-socket tools was quite helpful. If you're going to be pulling the heads, you'll need a 10mm allen key, which I suggest you try and find a key in socket that's at least 3-4" long.. This will allow you to loosen the bolts without removing the lifter housing.

[sparticus13]

Great info. The FSM is very nice. I have a haynes as well but can't compare to the FSM.

 

So far I have a mix of tools from Harbor Freight and Lowes. I plan on getting the engine hoist and stand, trans jack stand and what not at HF to save some money. It sounds like a lot of peeps have used the china cheap stuff for project like this. I don't plan on doing much auto work after this car. Some of the hand tools that I felt I wanted quality in I got at Lowes. I did get a set of metric allen keys that are set in a socket for a ratchet as well as a standard set of L keys.

 

I will have to get an impact gun.

 

I guess the part I am most worried about is the wiring. Right now the current engine bay and efi harness have damage. Car runs ok but there are some broken connectors, spliced stuff, and missing connectors, as well as some dangling ones. Since I am going for show room quality I purchased a new EFI and engine bay harness. I work with computer builds all the time and it looks like a giant ATX PSU set of wires Just allot more. I think the task that is most daunting to me is the total replacement of the harness and getting it all reconnected when I'm done. So any info on harness tips would be great.

 

Thanks

[sparticus13]

Also I will be replacing all the vac hoses. I am considering this kit

http://www.hiperformancestore.com/HoseKits.htm

 

They have one for z31 turbo. Anyone have any info or comments on this kit or know of a good one. Price is not a concern for me, but quality and color option is. I would like either Red or Orange.

 

And on that note I am thinking about CoolFlex for the rad and heater hoses.

http://www.coolflex.com/cfm/welcome.cfm

 

Again any info or know of other kits for this car.

 

Thanks

[blue72]

Some of the cheaper tools will work just fine (I have a Harbor Freight chain hoist and blast cabinet myself), but I personally like having the peace of mind that comes from a lifetime guarantee in case I break any of them. Believe me, I have broken and will continue to break some tools even if I am using them properly.

Oh, and be sure to buy a breaker bar. You don't want to remove very stubborn bolts with a ratchet because you could eventually weaken and break the ratchet teeth.

[steeto_burrito]

As far as I am aware of most of the vacuum hose is the same, im sure there are some different thicknesses but I think the mfg material are all the similar, but thats just my .02

 

As far as the radiator hose I have never been a huge fan of the flex tubing. I usually run welded pipes for hoses, as there is no chance of blowing one out. I think it looks cleaner, and of course you can have it powdercoated to whatever color you like. Again just my .02

 

Overall though I think the kits you are looking at are good choices, I cant find much around the net about either, but sometimes its best that way. Most of the time when someone says something about a product online its because of a negative experience, If you want to make sure they are good try and call up the companies and ask for a sample, or just get enough to do 1 hose, and see if you like it. Just go from there.

 

As far as the wiring, dont worry too much its a daunting task when you look at the whole thing at once, but if you can break it down into sub sections its really not that bad, I started modifying my z31 wiring harness, but found a S30 I decided to focus on for the time being. Just start out with your goal, Lets say you want to do a wiring tuck/cleanup, run all your fuses and relays to the dash area, make sure that works correctly, then go on from there.

 

Its easier to troubleshoot a section of a wiring harness instead of the whole thing. I would suggest geting a used harness from someone on here one thats complete without cuts or connectors missing, then modify it to meet your needs.

 

+1 on blue72s comment about the breaker bar. Its a must have tool.

[DeleriousZ]

The wiring in the z31 engine bay is actually incredibly simple, it just looks daunting because of the rats nest of the poorly laid out connectors. Right now I have no emissions or idle equipment on my car and I have wires for the 6 injectors, tps, a few grounds, the CHTS and CAS, and that's it. It's quite clean if you remove all the stock looming and redo it all yourself. The fsm has Great diagrams for wiring so if you get stuck you can troubleshoot it easily.

 

As for the vacuum hoses, check out the following link.

 

http://www.thumper300zx.com/z31/vacuum/vacuum.htm

[sparticus13]

Anyone have any comments about pistons and rods. I have been reading allot on redz31.net and learned that the VG30E engines already have forged rods and pistons and do very well. I plan on porting and polishings the heads. Is there any service work or replacements for pistons or rods that would be recommended.

 

Thanks

[sparticus13]

Looking again I realize that only the rods are forged. The pistons are cast and can be the weak spot at very high HP and extra boost.

 

On that note anyone know if forged pistons are being made for the VG30ET. I can find various comps making them for the VG30DE and TT but nothing so far for VG30ET.

 

It seems I could use these pistons for the VG30DE but would they require z32 Rods or Pins or could they be installed on the Z31 Rods and Pins.

 

I am looking at these pistons but would prefer a VG30ET forged set.

http://atomicspeedware.com/nissanvg30.aspx

 

Thanks

[DeleriousZ]

Changing over to the DE stuff will open up your options quite a bit for forged slugs, but you can contact BRC and get them to make you a set, last I heard it ran between 6/700 bones. If you are going z32 stuff, I'd suggest weisco, I've heard of a few people using them with no issues.

 

Be aware that you'll lose approx 1 unit of compression ratio using the z32 pistons, due to the different combustion chamber volumes between the ET and DETT heads.

 

Depending on how much cash you have to burn, you can get the crank knife edged and blueprinted, as well as balance the entire rotating assembly.

 

For clutches, people have said great things about DXD stuff, available from southbend clutches VIA z31parts.com.

[sparticus13]

Right now I have no emissions or idle equipment on my car and I have wires for the 6 injectors, tps, a few grounds, the CHTS and CAS, and that's it.

 

 

Is there anything that needs to be done to the ECU when you remove all that emissions and idle equipment/sensors? I was hoping to do away with it as well. I know with a lot of modern cars if certain sensors/equipment fail/disconnect the car will not run well. Fuel maps are altered/retarded, etc. Also does it cause a check engine or other dash light to come on?

 

Thanks

Chris

[DeleriousZ]

Nope, there's nothing adverse that happens. The car will be a bit of a bugger when it's cold out until it warms up though. You have to set the idle via the throttle body, it takes a bit of tweaking to get it right.

 

If you don't mind the clutter, keeping the stock idle equipment will make your life easier. I like the clean look and can deal with the funky cold starts.

 

The z31's ecu is anything but modern, lol.