Motor Conversion

[Tommo560]

hi guys/gals,

I been looking around lately at what sort of motor conversions people do to the zeds and i have found that they tend to put in an rb25/30 :disappoin . i was wondering if there was a specific reason for this besides the fact that it is a nissan motor? also i was thinking about whether or not a toyota 2gzgte would fit in one of these things . by the looks of it it should but i was wanting to know if anyone has done this.

a motor conversion is something i would defiantly look into doing later down the track (probably when i get out of school, then uni, and then have a job) because for now the donk it has is more than sufficiant!!!!!!!

cheers,

Tom.

[240ZX]

Hi Tom,

The answers to your questions can best be answered if you visit the HYBRIDZ site. They are very much into engine conversions. This sites focus however does not lend itself to these issues......as a matter of fact, some on this site will poo poo on you for even thinking about changing out the L6 motor for another. We have a wealth of knowledge available on this site about the early Z cars.....but be advised, "engine conversion" can be a dirty word around here....at least to some! I have to confess, when I started in with my rebuild of my 1970 (s/n HLS3002126) I had plans to transplant a Ford 302 into my Z. I wanted a car that would remind me of my highschool days....I had a 1965 Mustang that was fairly peppy. My best time at the drags was 14.00 @ 100.3 mph...not bad for a mildly modified Mustang with an automatic trans. Anyway, back to the Z car, I decided, due to the amount of $$$ I was pumping into the Z, to dress up the L6 motor since it only had about 40,000 miles on it and put it in until such time came to do the 302. Well, let's put it this way........the L6 is still in the car and I don't believe it will ever be changed out for another motor. Why you may ask, it has to do with the original personality of the Z, the sweet sound of the inline 6 cylinder, and I know myself too well.....if I had big HP in my Z I would defenitely use it, which translates into tickets that I don't need. Currently I have a 2800cc L6 motor from a 280Z (N42) with the original intakes and SU carbs. With the minor mods I've done I estimate I have about 160 HP at the flywheel.....plenty of power to have loads of fun with. I did however, do extensive modifications to the suspension and brakes so it would stick like glue through corners. Like I tell people who ask about how much I like my toy...."It's so much fun to drive, it should be regarded as illegal". Anyway, give HYBRIDZ a try. Good luck Tom!

Another Z car nut,

Tom (240ZX)

[Tommo560]

thanks for the info.

i have been thinking about the feasablitiy of such an upgrade but i have decided that for now i will leave the l26 in there.

it is not as if the engine does not have any power, it has performance cams and triple webers and all the other good stuff and i think after some consideration that i doubt i will do the conversion. the l26 was the standard motor and it belongs in the car (historic cars with standard running gear) and so i think thats the way it will stay. it just seems weird, i suppose, to have a classic historic with a latest jap donk in it.

Tom.

[Murph]

You'll want to talk to san_maru_zed. He was going to do the 1JZ swap into his zed. The 1JZ swap has been done before, not sure about the 2J though. Just remember that doing any of these swaps will not be cheap.

[MickieB]

I'm looking at doing an RB26DETT, hehe, good way for me to waste the bucks. I guess it's just that i want a twin turbo with a bit of speed, without having to do mods. Cause if i keep the mods to the minimum hopefully i can keep the reliabillity up.

[Mr Camouflage]

I'm looking at doing an RB26DETT, hehe, good way for me to waste the bucks. I guess it's just that i want a twin turbo with a bit of speed, without having to do mods. Cause if i keep the mods to the minimum hopefully i can keep the reliabillity up.

If you aren't going to mod the engine, you may as well save some bucks and put in RB25DET. They are both are supposed to be around the 208kW in stock form arent they?. The RB26DETT has stronger internals for modding and will be more durable when you start modding it, but as you say, you are not going to mod it. Also since the 26 is a 4wd motor you have to do some extra work to convert it to 2wd.

But its your $$$$, waste it any way you like.

[MickieB]

I'm just very attracted to twin turbo's. Call me dumb, but yeah. And i probably will mod it eventually cause i'll get bored And like i said, won't mod it MUCH, prob do a bit straight out e.g. intercooler, maybe bigger turbos, BOV, a few bits and peices.

On the note of it being a 4WD engine, i don't know anything about this, but if i got a half cut, would it be possible, or finacially smart to try to use the parts to make it 4WD? Been done before?

[Murph]

You can make plenty of power with an RB26 without having to do any major mods. Have you seen my mate Garys R32 GT-R getting around, silver, black wheels, plates "GTR R32"? That was making 280rwkw @ 1.2 bar on an unopened motor, stock turbos. Backed it up with an 11.6 @ 118mph. All the mods are external, eg huge FMIC, exhaust, intake, power fc etc.

That gives you an idea of what they're capable of without going silly. Making a zed AWD would be far more hastle than it's worth....and you cost a small fortune. The hastle with it being a "4WD motor" is that there's a drive shaft going straight through the sump. I suppose you'd need to change or modify the sump on any RB to get it into a zed anyway.

[drunkenmaster]

You will just need a custom sump and rb25 or rb20 gearbox to make the motor rwd.

[MickieB]

I like the sounds of it all! Is there any 6-speed gearbox i could fit in? Just out of curiosity

[Murph]

Not unless you wanna shell out for the R34 getrag = $$$.

With the sort of powerband the RBs have, I really don't think it's even worth thinking about a six speed.

[mrcheeze36]

Hi MickieB,

Check out HybridZ.org. In their 6 Cylinder Tech Board, there is a Sticky on how to swap an RB motor into a Z. The author gives his take on how each motor performs (RB20DET, RB25DET, RB26DETT).

Also, I believe they use an RB20 oil pan and a R33 GTS-T 5 speed tranny when doing an RB26DETT swap. Check it out for more info.