smg1404

From my past experience.... Modifying your car for autocrossing is a double edge sword... Youcan certainly improve the performance of your car, but then they put you into a class with the formula fordsd and open wheel racers. You can be very fast , but they are still hard to beat with a car that out weighs them by at least two to one. I having a good time is your goal modify away. I f winning is your goal study the rules first. you can improve the performance while remaining leagally stock by balancing and fine tuning. Of course this is ,, like all speed not cheap. I am split between the two. I would love to get into racing, but I also love the cheap thrill of a car with a light flywheel, hot cam, and all the illeagle stuff I can afford. Unfortunately when I do this I have to compete almost always have to compete with someone that has a lot more money than I do. So while I have a ball trying, I don't have a chance in Hell of winning. Think before you spend. Do you really think the 12 cyl would fit I could sit in the rear hatch..... Just kidding,,, Maybe

I found a nice engine..... Now to fit it in somewhere..

I get mixed results, depending on the location. Some NAPA stores seem OK others stink. Same with Azone, or Pep Boys. I think the real issue is who is managing the store. Not which chain it is in. Locally some of the independant stores, ie mom & pop shops are better at having what I am looking for.

You should be able to get much more than a chirp, I can. But it is very bad for your clutch etc. So I would recomend not doing it very often. Also look around first, for the police, they dont like that stuff.

It's just idle speculation... I can barely afford to put fuel in my car most of the time. More like an engineering puzzle than a real plan. Nothing to get excited about. I am fairly happy with my 150 hp. But what if........ you got this jet engine and.........

Thanks for the long answer... I may have to look into finding one for my car. The question will then be which ratio to go for. Do I want lots of acceleration, or more top end. I will have to think about this for a while. Steve

Brief, .. to the point. No additional info? I wonder, everyone seems to want a LSD for their car. Is there really that much improvement? I know that for drag racing it helps you get off the line. But what about other conditions? Is there a time when it may work as a disadvantage? I know that I have driven other vehicles with LSD's in the snow, or on ice they had better traction to get you going, but made turns more dificult. It could make a difference autocrossing, I suppost during hard corners, you might be able to put more power to the road without spinning the wheels. What do you think? Is it worth the trouble to buy and install an LSD.

While I love the way the 240 engine runs... I have wondered about putting a late model v6 in a 240 also. It is a compelling idea. The v6 is no doubt lighter, perhaps a one or two hundred pounds or so (just a guess). It is bigger 3 litre without modifying. If you ran the injection and a stock turbo setup 300 HP ,, 2200 lb car Hmmmmmm ... Could be a fun combination.. I wish there was more in the line of engine mods for the late engines. I like naturally aspirated engines. A v6 with three Webers would be a lot of fun , if you could get the right cams and compression. Probably cost a fortune,, but Still it is an idea worth thinking about.. If you were going to do it get one of the new engines from an Altima or Maxima... 3.5 litre..

Those videos are fantastic.... This only makes me want to get into racing more.. Somehow I just have to get into some kind of racing.

I put my smog pump in the trash can the day I got home with the car.

Great!! Nothing is more satisfying than a car running at it's best.

How much would you want for an E88 head. If you have a good one?

I have no problem believing this.... I am not a meticulous car maintenance person... I change the oil at least one=ce or twice a year, or when ever I cannot remember when I did it last. I drive the car like I want to blow it up and I have gotten over 250,000 miles on my last three cars, and they were still running years after I sold them to other people. My last Z amazed me one day when it started to slow down and lose power. It was sounding odd, nthe exhause note went strangely lower. I checked my gagues and the only thing I noticed was there was no water temp. It was pegged cold... When the car stopped I heard a very disturbing sound. I t sounded like someone was frying fish or fries... The oil in my oil pan was boiling!! I felt sick snd stupid all at once. The delima was I was about 5 miles from any help.... I let the car set a few minutes (5 or 10), and thought .... If it is destroyed, the damage is already done. So , I started it back up,. It seemed to run OK so I slowly drove to the next service station. I kept the engine running and started pouring in water. It boiled out three big cans of water before it held any in. After I filled it I drove on to my destination, without any trouble. I drove this car for 5 more years without even looking to see if there was a problem. It ran as if it never happened. These are very tough cars... Nothing amazes me about the reliability of a Z..

Zvoiture gets more interesting every day.... I think I like this guy... He might be as nutty as me.. maybe

The hardest part is lifting the transmission back into place. and getting the shaft through the clutch. Even after using an alignment tool it can sometimes be a pain in the arse. I usually use a floor jack to lower and raise the transmission. The job usually takes from 2 to 4 hours, depending on my enthusiasm. and the temp in the garage.. and beer supply hotter = slower colder = faster... more = slower less = faster

I have only worked on SU's a few times... I wonder if when you spray carb cleaner in and on the carbs ... you are washing the lubrication off of the piston, or slide , or whatever that thing is called. Perhaps it is now binding... Just a thought. I would agree about the webers, but get the DCOE's they are a piece of cake to work on and once you get the hang of not really hard to tune.

If your lights and gauge shows everything OK at above 1000 rpm. I think you are OK as is. I wouldn't worry about the lights being dim at idle. That is normal for most vehicles. Especially older ones.

Sounds loke a lot of fun... Really. Each time you work on it for some time to come, you are going to find out more about your car, and it's history. The payback is in the successes, and ultimately driving the car. Keep us posted on your progress. Have fun.

I did not reinstall mine when I was replacing the wheel bearings, so i will not have to trim anything. I hope they are not needed. I couldn't think of any reason to put them back on and they weighed a pound or so...... SO no plates.

A totally valid ide, that I am sure is againt one or more laws. I won't tell, go for it. But I wouldn't advertise it too much.

I'm probably not the expert on this, but that is what I think happens. Evidently the Toyota brakes are made by the same vendor as the Datsun brakes. They appear to be enhanced versions of the same caliper.

Of course I no longer need to look. I should be getting a set in the near future.... I'm excited, I get some real stopping power. I wonder do I need to change anything else, ie master cylinder etc.??

I used to run the aluminum offset bushings. I loved them. I used to run with the top of the wheel set 1/8" to 1/4 " further in than the bottom. This did make my tires wear faster in the middle, but I cornered very well, which was my greatest concern.

sounds logical.... However I still think this guy is full of it. He is probably just legal enough to stay out of jail.

I think they should have built an updated version of the original. It could have better aerodynamics, and brakes. They could build it out of carbon fiber, and aluminum. Bring the weight in at about 1800lbs, and hp at around 300hp. Sounds about right to me. Give a fuel effecient six or eight all aluminum mill that can turn up to about 9gs. Sorry ..... sometimes I get carried away about these things.