dhayes5

I recently went to a local muffler shop to inquire about a 2-1/2 inch exhaust system. They said they could only replace it from where the two collector tubes connect back -- no so good since this is currently about a 1-1/2 inch pipe. They said I would have to purchase the collector pipe elsewhere. Where can I get the piece that goes from the stock manifold to a 2-1/2 inch collector? If I buy the kit from MSA, does this include pipe from the manifold or just the collector?

My rear thunks on acceleration or just going from reverse to forward. I don't drive this car roughly either. I have replaced all the bushings in the car with poly. I have new u-joints. Have taken the half shafts apart and cleaned and re-lubed the splines etc. I have a new differential mount. New shocks/springs. Every thing is new and tight except the differential itself and the strap that goes over the top. I think the Z just clunks. Good luck.

My rear thunks on acceleration or just going from reverse to forward. I don't drive this car roughly either. I have replaced all the bushings in the car with poly. I have new u-joints. Have taken the half shafts apart and cleaned and re-lubed the splines etc. I have a new differential mount. New shocks/springs. Every thing is new and tight except the differential itself and the strap that goes over the top. I think the Z just clunks. Good luck.

I need a little advice from someone who has actually done this. I have a '72 240 (bone stock) and I have recently acquired a '83 ZXb 5-speed, a '76 280Z Mustache Bar and now have access to a 280ZX R200 3.90 and Stub Axles. My car has a curved cross member already. What else (besides a clutch) do I need to complete this conversion. Can I use my propeller shaft or do I need one from a 280Z (have read both ways)? Can I use my half shafts with the 280ZX Output shafts? If not can I use the half-shafts from a 280ZX? I really don't want to take this car apart just to find out I need another part. It has not been easy finding the parts I have (I live in Raleigh, NC). Seems parts are more plentiful on the west coast. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I need a little advice from someone who has actually done this. I have a '72 240 (bone stock) and I have recently acquired a '83 ZXb 5-speed, a '76 280Z Mustache Bar and now have access to a 280ZX R200 3.90 and Stub Axles. My car has a curved cross member already. What else (besides a clutch) do I need to complete this conversion. Can I use my propeller shaft or do I need one from a 280Z (have read both ways)? Can I use my half shafts with the 280ZX Output shafts? If not can I use the half-shafts from a 280ZX? I really don't want to take this car apart just to find out I need another part. It has not been easy finding the parts I have (I live in Raleigh, NC). Seems parts are more plentiful on the west coast. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Anyone know what the gear ratio is for a 1984 Maxima 5-speed? The not so local bone yard has an R200 from one but before I ride 1-1/2 hours to see it I would like to know the ratio. I am looking for a reasonable R200 either 3.90 or 4.11 to put into my '72 240. I am in Raleigh NC if anyone in the area has one they wish to part with.

I am getting ready to put an '83 5-speed into my '72. I stuck the 4-speed shifter into the five speed (on the work bench and not in the car) and it seemed to shift ok but I don't think the gears were fully engaged at each shift (looks like the distance from the pivito to the ball on the 4-speed shifter is a little longer than that on the 5-speed). I need a "bent" shifter like the stock one in the '72 but that will fit into the '83 tranny. Where can I get something like this -- or will I have to have it fabricated?

I have a '72 and have replaced every bushing, bearing, cylinder, caliper, nut/bolt, strut cartridge, spring (Eibachs) etc. When I bought the car I had a friend who owns a body shop check it over and he said it had never been hit as far as he could tell. Though I guess a previous owner could have hit a serious pot hole. It is also a rust free car. The problem is that when having an alignment done after doing all this work, it turned out that the front right caster was off quite a bit (I ended up trimming one of the radius rod bushings to take care of this but have not had it checked since) and my rear toe is out (alignment shop said both wheels are pointing slightly left). When I drive the car it goes straight as an arrow. The other thing is that I noticed when I hit really rough pavement the car wants to "drive itself" (i.e. I have to fight it through the ruts in the road). I understand that this could be related to caster problems or bump steer. When I put the Eibachs on I did not put in bump steer spacers. None of the suspension components seemed bent damaged and most everything is new (with the exception of trailing arms etc). Any suggestions as to where to go from here? Anyone else with a similar experience? I though about a fram shop to let them do some tweaking but I really hate to do that.

I am running 16x7 Panasports with 205/55/16's and the car has been lowered around 1" with Eibach springs (actually the rear of the car stayed the same height as the old rear springs were sagging). I had to trim the rear fender lips about 3/16" because the edge of the rear LH tire was catching on high speed bumps.

Dave, Is your 4.11 an R200 or R180? What vehicle is it out of? Why did you go with this vs. a 3.90 -- is there that much difference in acceleration? I have an '83 five speed that I am rebuilding to go into my '72 and am in a quandry as to what to use for a rear end. Ther R200 requires a new tranny mount (unfortunately I just replaced my stock R180 mount last year) and a different mustache bar). Finding an R180 with 3.90 or 4.11 gears is tough also plus you have to do some ugly work to convert the CV joints to work with the '72 half shafts. What is a good price to pay for a good used rear end? Arizona Z car wants $175 for a 3.90 R200 plus shipping to NC. Adding in the mustache bar and tranny mount, this starts getting expensive. Though the expense may save some installation headaches. Any thoughts?

I have a '72 240 with 70,000 miles that runs like a top. I am not really interested (at least for now) in changing the motor to an L28. How much horsepower can one reasonably expect to gain from doing the following: 1) A "mild street cam" Motorsport calls this the 2000 to 6000 rpm cam with good idle. 2) A '74 N36 260Z intake manifold. 3) '72 carbs with SM needles and grosse jets 4) A header and 2-1/2 inch exhaust (probably a super trapp) Would this setup benefit noticably from a ported/polished/flow tested head? I also have an '83 5-speed that I plan to couple to a 3.90 or 4.11 rearend. I understand that this will "wake up" the car as well. Has anyone done anything similar? What was your experience?

I also went with the Toyota 4-pistion calipers only. I replaced the s-shaped steel brake lines with new ones -- this helped because I found that the stock ones needed to be a little longer to accomodate the 4-pistion calipers. I got my calipers from a 1980 Toyota 4x4 (actually got them from Advance Auto parts). You will have to trim the splash plate as well. Other than that, they were a direct bolt in and work great -- even with the stock rotors. Good Luck.

I am running Kuhmo 205/55/16's on 16x7 Panasports. I put them on about a month ago and have not really been able to evaluate since my left rear rubs the fender well (so I have not been driving it). This is due to a sagging spring. I will be installing Eibachs tomorrow and am hoping that this will solve the problem. Is anyone else running this tire size and if so did you have to roll the fender lip. I was hoping by going with 205's instead of 215's or 225's that I would not have to roll the lip. Also, are the bump steer spacers necessary when using Eibachs?

Does this engine share the same block with the L6? Will it bolt up to the Z transmission? How many horsepower does each of these engines have?

I noticed that one member in the photo galleries section had an RB25DE motor. A couple of questions come to mind: 1) Is this the Skyline GTR Motor? 2) Does this use the same block as the L6 (i.e. is this a direct bolt in for a 240Z)? If that is the Skyline motor, from what I read it has many many ponies.

Well I had ordered the Euro Stage I's two weeks ago but NISMO hosed me -- took them two weeks to let me know the fronts were no longer in stock so I am back to square 1. They still have the rear's but I want the same all around (maybe that's silly). I will probably buy the Eibachs (what I wanted in the first place) but I have a concern. With the sagging springs I have now, my left rear tire scrubbed (slightly) on high speed dips and sharp left turns. I was concerned that the Eibachs lowering the car would make this worse. I just put Kuhmo 205/55/16's on 7" panasports. I was running 195/70/14's before so there is only a slight increase in tread width and the diameter is virtually the same. But, I never scrubbed with the 195's. I went with the 205's because I thought 215's or 225's would be too wide. I do not want to roll the lip or cut it out. These tires are not the widest tires being run on a 240 by a long shot! I thought I was being fairly conservative. Is anyone running 205/55/16's with the Eibach or Tokico springs and if so did you have to roll the fender lip?

I agree with you. Three weeks after I got my '72 it got all new suspension components, new brake hoses, new wheel cylinders and toyota 4x4 calipers up front. Now the handling is like new and the brakes will throw you through the windshield!!!!!! Now it's time to "go fast".

When I find my 5-speed I want the 81-83ZX (ZXb) transmission. How do I tell if I have the right one if it is out of the car? Does anyone know what the identifying marks or numbers are they for this tranny? Also, how hard (and expensive) is it to get parts (bearings, synchros and gears etc.) for these transmissions?

Marty, I do have the same shocks you do, the Tokico non-adjustable (blue) gas shocks. With my current setup I did not notice as big a difference in ride harshness as I did in tighter suspension and better handling. My stock springs are dead though (see my post asking about stock ride height). I have ordered the stage i euro springs as well because I did not want to lower the car. Also, when I went from 195/70/14's to 205/55/16's my ride quality actually got smoother rather than harder -- not what I though would happen going to a lower profile tire. The panasport rims weigh less than the previous '70s mags. Maybe the lower unsprung weight helped. Check your alignment after you put the PU bushings in. My RF caster was way out and my camber was out on all four corners. I hope the springs will help this. I think it will since all four corners of the car are at different heights. If you have not done it already, the 4-piston upgrade is an easy upgrade and big imrovement to the stock brakes. I got mine from a local parts house ('80 Toyota 4x4 Truck). The only mod I had to make besides cutting the dust shields (very easy) was to get new rigid brake lines (also not too hard or expensive). What do you have for exhaust? 2ManyZ's I would love to see that article. If you can let me know what magazine etc. I might be able to get a copy at the liberary.

Thanks for the input! There was a web site I ran across a while back that showed what diff. came from what car. I remember the r180 being in the front of early '80s 4x4's and for a 6month period of 240sx production. I probably need to find that site.

I am looking at putting an '83 non-turbo (ZXB) 5-speed into my '72 240. Everything I read says to go with a 3.90 / R200 rear end with this tranny. However, I have found an R180 3.90 (seems to be rare) which would be a direct bolt in with no need to change the mustache bar etc. I do not plan to do anything radical to this car and think the R180 would be sufficient for the stock engine. Is $250 (includes shipping from California to NC) too much to pay for this? I know I can get an R200 for $100 but then I have to locate the mustache from a 280Z etc. etc. so by the time I get all the parts I may have $200 in it anyway. Is the R200 that much better for my application? Also, is the R200 any quieter than an R180?

Whose header do you have. Motorsport sells the "Motorsport Header" and the "Three into Two header". I have been looking at the "Twice-Pipes" and am interested to see how that and the header fit into the car (in other words, do they fit out of the box or do you have to do some tweaking). Also, when the header went in, what did you do about the heat shield where the throttle linkage springs attach -- did it still fit? Details would be great.

How is the ride quality with the Stage I's compared to stock? I am planning on using s BRE type spook as well. I like to keep the looks of the car period correct.

I have the Z-Therapy video's and they are pretty good. Another Item that I recently purchased is a colortune (can get them from Eastwood ~$60). This thing temporarily replaces a sparkplug and allows you to see the color of the flame in the combustion chamber. Takes the art out of setting your fuel mixture. You change the mixture until the flame is a bunsen blue. Works great!! Between this device and a Unisyn, carb tuning is very easy. Good Luck

OK - A little clarification here. When I posted the original message above I had just put the Panasports on but had not driven the car. The left rear tire scrubs when I hit a high speed bump. The left rear wheel well is also about 1/2 inch lower than the right. The point -- I now think I do not want the car lower at all but rather returned to whatever the stock height is supposed to be. I contacted Motorsport And they told me the stock ride height as measured from the top of the bumper is: Front: 479mm (18.9") and Rear: 516 (20.3") My car measures: Front 20" and Rear: 19 7/8" so I am an inch too high in the front and 1/2 inch too low in the rear. Front and Rear struts are brand new Tokico (Blue) non-adjustable. The springs are stock (even have the stock undercoating on them). I am now thinking of going to the european springs instead of the Eibach's as they do not seem to lower the car. The Service manual says (and this makes sense) that "Vehicle level is adjusted by changing the springs". However, as a kid in the early 80's I had a '77 Toyota Celica in which I installed Bilstein gas shocks and the front end lifted. That is why I wonder if the Tokico's lifted the front end. If they did, than new springs will not help. My gut says to change the springs (they are 30 years old and have 70,000miles). Nismo sells two types of euro springs, A Stage I that has 101F/112R lb./inch and a Stage II that has 122F/140R lb./inch. Stock is 83F/103.6R lb./in. Based on your statement that the fronts should be stiffer than the rear, what are your thoughts on going with 122F/112R combo? By the way, watch out for those poly bushing kits, my caster was way off on the right side front after installing these. I had to trim 3/8" from the front radius rod bushing and put it on the back side to get the caster back. Also, my rear toe alignment is out a bit, not sure how I am going to address this yet.