Well I had fun today at my local Pick & Pull today. I pulled a F54/P79 engine and 5spd out of an 10/80 280ZX 2+2 licensed as an 81 and got the whole thing for $289. I have never pulled an engine before but it was kinda fun. 6 bolts and some hose and wire cutting. Done in 2hrs and that was taking my time.

My plans for it are a mild build up with head and intake manifold port matching, stage 1 or 2 cam and a header. Engine rotates fine and seems to have good compression when turning it via the crank pully bolt. My guess is that it is a running engine since the demise of the car was an impact to the left front quarter panel which bent the unibody and frame rail pretty badly. ODO said 183K miles.

Supposedly the 2+2 got a stronger clutch setup, and is the same as the turbo models, consisting of a different flywheel with a 240mm friction area vs the standard 225mm, and stronger pressure plate with 775lbs? clamping force vs. 550lbs? or something like that. Please feel free to correct these numbers. They are from long term memory and can't find a reference to the figures anywhere.

Now that I have a late FS5C71B, I'll think I need to get back and grab an 3.9 R200, and the moustach bar and half-shafts from a 280Z. I found a 73' that has a swapped R200 so it probably has the bar and shafts I'm looking for. I hope it's there when I go back.

I have a FS5C71A now with a the stock 3.364 R180. My understanding is that the FS5C71AB is geared too high for use with the 3.364 R180. Will someone please confirm or deny this?

That's a great find! A ZX 5 speed with a 3.9 diffy is a sweet combination for a daily driver. In my case I'm running a 4.11, but I'm at altitude so need all the torque help I can get. And mine is a weekend toy car.

http://www.geocities.com/z_design_studio/transmission.html

Use this site to figure your cruising rpm and max speed in each gear, and compare that to what you have now. It was the most helpful site I found when planning my swap. I would suggest you decide now what the max RPM of your new engine is going to be. The more agressive you go on the cam, the more agressive (higher number) you'll want to be with your diffy.

Ok I finally got around to performing a compression test on the F54/P79 motor I got from the JY and here's the results.

#1 - 195

#2 - 195

#3 - 190

#4 - 200

#5 - 195

#6 - 190

I assume these numbers are good based on other numbers I have seen posted on the site, however I have been unable to find the stock specifications to compare them to. If anyone knows what they are or where they are listed, please post them here if you would be so kind.

I was planning on doing a rebuild on the motor, but I may just stick it in the car if these numbers are high enough. The cam lobes I can see through the oil filler hole look almost new. I suspect that this motor may have been rebuilt not too long ago, although it has an awful lot of oil and dirt build up on the block.

I also recently grabbed a 3.9 R200 from the same 81 280ZX car I pulled the motor from, and obtained the diff, half-shafts and moustache bar from a 73 that someone had already done an R200 conversion on. This included the correct R200 moustach bar and the 280Z half-shafts. I ended up returning the R200 diff from the 73' which had 3.54 gearing. So now I just have to clean it all up, paint it and get it all back together.

Those numbers sound real good. From the top of my head if your in the 190's thats good compression. I would put the engine in you car the way it is. Assuming that the ZX did not have the look of a burning oil exhaust.

The 3:90 diff is suposed to be better all around. It sucks that the US and Canada models didn't get the 3:90 5 Speed combination like other countries did.

It sucks that the US and Canada models didn't get the 3:90 5 Speed combination like other countries did.

What are you referring to here, 240Zs? The reason I ask is that I pulled both the the 3.9 diff and 5spd out of the same US based 280ZX 2+2. Both were listed as stock components on the plaque in the engine compartment(R39 & FS5C71AB).

Ya I am refering to the 240Z. The 280zx had the 5 speed with a 3:90 diff stock.

Now that I have a late FS5C71B, I'll think I need to get back and grab an 3.9 R200, and the moustach bar and half-shafts from a 280Z. I found a 73' that has a swapped R200 so it probably has the bar and shafts I'm looking for. I hope it's there when I go back.

I have a FS5C71A now with a the stock 3.364 R180. My understanding is that the FS5C71AB is geared too high for use with the 3.364 R180. Will someone please confirm or deny this?

Someone PM'd me with a question as to where I obtained my "FS5C71A" tranny, and I realized that I had inadvertently used a "C" in place of the "W" in all references to the FS5W71 trannies in my possession. In addition to that, I mistakenly referred to the early (77-79) wide ratio FS5W71B that I have in the car now as FS5C71A. Originally I thought that this was the "A" version of the FS5W71 but I know now that I was misinformed. It must have been late when I originally typed this.

I believe the FS5C71A was available in some of the 2000 Roadsters and the non-US spec 240Z. It is desirable due to the use of Porsche style steel syncros.

That sounds like a great JY deal. And those numbers are real good. I need to go with flat top pistons someday or go with a turbo.

Saw this on eBay this morning:

http://tinyurl.com/2rl7ox