Marty Rogan

Hi Mark, I found it on ZCar.com. I picked up an 83 motor and trans from a guy in Rockford. They come up once in a while around here, but not very often. You don't see any Z's in wrecking yard around here either. Just keep looking. Marty

I just put an '83 5 spd in my early '71. Wish I would have known you wanted to get rid of a racing tranny, as I am going the opposite direction, and building a track car! Oh, well. Anyway, I used the stock 240Z drive shaft. Fits in with no problems. What you do with the rear end depends on which diff you go with. If you have an R200, you will need a 280Z moustache bar and the bowed out cross link bar that holds up the rear swing arms. If you stay with the stock R180, you don't have to change anything. Also, if you have not done so already, you will need to trim the front of the shifter hole in the tunnel and install the later style inner rubber shift boot. Hope that helps. Marty

Got my order in to the dealer. should be here Tues-Wed. A local buddy of mine had a ring, so I am all set. Thanks! Marty

Yep, that would be the one! I'll have to find a ring somewhere, as I was told they are NLA from Nissan. Anyone out there have one they could part with??? Thanks Webdog! Marty

I have been looking on the CD and can find the P/N for the early shift boot, but I can't seem to find the P/N for the 72-78. I am looking for the rubber boot that covers the tunnel, screws into the tunnel and lets the shifter extend through the middle of it. Anybody happen to know that P/N?? TIA, Marty

That's a good point. I'll have to try that. However, I had a '78 5 spd in there perviously and it popped out of gear while decellerating in 3rd and reverse wouldn't stay in unless you held it. That one was supposed to have been recently rebuilt too, with a receipt to prove it. But, it is still possible that both could have problems. Thanks for the suggestions guys! Marty

I installed an '83 ZX 5 spd in my '71 240Z, along with the L28. I was not crazy about the idea of cutting the sheet metal in the shifter area, so I had the shift lever cut and welded to come out further to the back of the pivot point. I also bent the sheet metal upward at the front of the shifter hole to create more clearance. It seems like that may not have been enough to avoid interference problems. I think the rubber boot is bunching up at the front and putting enough pressure on the shift lever to pop it out of gear. Either that, or the new shift boot rubber is so stiff that it pulls the shifter out of gear. For those of you that have cut into the tunnel, what have you done to seal the area, so that watter does not get in? If you have any other ideas on how to correct this, I would love to hear them. TIA, Marty

Any body seen these, or have any experieince with them? http://www.zcar.com/classifieds/index.php?method=showdetails&list=advertisement&rollid=33180&fromfromlist=classifiedscategory&fromfrommethod=showhtmllist&fromfromid=37& They look nice and have a very atractive price. $480, shipped. Just don't know about quality,etc. Marty

While starting my '71 the other day, I heard a loud pop, saw a puff of smoke over the intake area. I also smelled burnt wiring. Looked all over, but could not find any burnt wires. My MSD coild was making a really weird noise, even after I had disconnected the battery. I figured the coil must have fried, so I replaced it, and the new coil is making a buzzing noise too. Also, when you rev the car above 3k, the tach momentarily drops to zero, then bounces back. I am sure that is related to what is going on in the coil. I am using a Pertronix. Everything else is stock '71. Any ideas on where to look into this? TIA, Marty

That is good info to know! $900 on an exhaust! That's pretty much overkill for me. I ended up ordering a Delta Force Race muffler and a Dynomax race bullet muffler to place in the trans tunnel. I will then get some custom 2 1/2" pipes bent for it. I'll let you know how it turns out. http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?autofilter=1&part=FLO%2D325108&N=115&autoview=sku http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?autofilter=1&part=WLK%2D24215&N=115&autoview=sku Thanks to all that contributed their opinions. Marty

I got the MSA springs. I believe they were rated something like 129 Front and 182 in the rear. The car has a 1" bar in the front and I think a 5/8" bar in the back (maybe 3/4", I don't remeber exactly). I am very happy with the handling of this set up. I would ABSOLUTELY go with the Illuminas. They are a little more expensive, but they give you a whole lot more choices in set up. Besides, how often do you really buy shocks? Marty

Sorry it took so long to get back to you. Funny thing is that I really like the ride. It is very controlled and a nice comfortable ride to boot. the Euro springs really helped the handling. I still get a fair amount of body roll, because I went with stock rubber bushings. this is more of a cruising and show car. I have a track car with PU bushings, stiff springs and Illuminas for the high performance. By the way, the Illuminas don't raise the car up and are adjustable. If I had known this before, I would have put the Illuminas on the Blue Z too. How did yours turn out with the rears installed? Marty

Thanks Al, Sure it helps! I had not heard of them before. How well does it fit in the stock muffler location. I am hearing that it should not be longer than about 16 1/2" back there. Marty

I am in the hunt for a performance exhaust system to go with my Pace-Setter, Jet-Hot coated header. I wanted a Dynomax turbo muffler and 2 1/2" pipes. Unfortunately, my preferred shop burned down. The runner-up shop carries Magnaflow and Excellerator. Anybody have experieince with either of these? I have not run accross a shop that handles Dynomax yet. I thought Dynomax was fairly common. Is that a mail order only brand? Thanks, Marty

If the engine is available, then they must have won the race? since it's over, how about some details about the engine. People would be more inclined to buy tickets if they knew what they were getting. Marty

YES YOU NEED THE KEY!! I would guess that it would only be available from the dealer, or possibly MSA, but I have never tried to buy one. Good luck, Marty

Thanks for clearing that up for me Chris. "It's a cable thing". I don't get cable, so that makes sense. I would rather spend money on my Z, than cable, ! If they lose, it would be pretty tough to follow through on their raffle commitment. I would think the winner would want the engine too! Marty

It might help if they gave a fuller explanation of who they are and what they are trying to accomplish, along withthe refund thing. I for one have never heard of Pinks Z. Plus, we are being asked to give money for a complete unknown engine? How would we know if these guys know what they are doing? Marty

Steve, I used the original wire when possible. I have also used a coat hanger wire as a substitute. If you are lucky enought to have some sun when you are doing the job, let the seat covers sit out in the sun for a bit and do the jon outside. It helps you to stretch the covers oever the frames easier. Good luck, Marty

Dave, I am putting an electric fuel pump into my early '71 (1/71) as well . Wiring has to be my worst skill. I need to step through this one step at a time. Let me see if I have this right. 1) Mount the fuel pump near the tank and ground the pump to the frame nearby. 2) Connect the power wire from the pump to the green wire in the wiring harness near the tank with a spade connector. 3) At the connector near the right hand side of the radio, connect a power lead to the green wire witha spade connector. 4) Connect the power wire from the green wire to one wire on the inertia switch. 5) The second wire from the inertia switch is routed into the engine bay and connected to 1 of three lead on the oil pressure cut-off switch. 6) This is where I get a little blurry on the details. One connection from the pressure switch goes to the solenoid. The 3rd wire goes to the battery (with an in-line fuse) for power? Or is that wired into the ignitions switch somehow? Where did you get your oil pressure cut-off switch from? What pressure is used for cut-off? did you use any relays? TIA, Marty Schools for the wiring impaired.

How much oil pressure does the engine make while cranking during start up? If the float bowls are empty, will I have a hard time strting the car? TIA, Marty

The metal fan will only be used WAAAaaaaaaaaay down the road when this baby is retired from racing and gets a well desired restoration. Marty

Thanks Arne. I'll have to have a look under there this weeken. Marty

Gary, Any idea if an early '71 has the wiring for an electric pump built in? I need to get mine isntalled real soon. Marty

Can you give us some details on what had to be done to get them to fit? Thanks, Marty