jmortensen

I didn't think that was correct. Did a google on it and this is what I found: www.fiscalpolicy.org/FPI%202005%20NYC%20Budget%20Briefing.doc There is a whole lot more transit budget info in that doc file if you care.

Funding for highways needs to come from somewhere, and the original interstate highway buildup in the 50s wouldn't have happened if there hadn't been a governmental agenda to make it happen. It would eventually have happened, but how long it took and what we ended up with might have been a lot different. Whether that is for the better or worse now is impossible to say. I don't think tolls is necessarily the place to get funds for roads, although I'm sure it would work. Gas taxes work in this case. The gas you buy is almost entirely used on the roads; dirt bikes and lawn mowers are about the only exception and while I have no figures to back me up I think we can all agree that they make up a TINY fraction of a percent of the gas sold. Tolls don't seem like a good way to gather money because they require you stop to pay the toll for one, and then the amount of money that would have to be charged would need to be calculated to be correct for that road in order for the toll to be "accurate". Otherwise we'd be bitching about toll gouging.

Glad you agree with my assessment of cities Tom, but I don't think I agree with your boycott oil for a week strategy. It might affect you or me if we had to skip a paycheck, but I don't think the oil companies are living hand to mouth. The one other factor that I haven't seen mentioned is the WILD SPECULATION on the commodities markets. How many idiot day traders are out there driving the price up hoping to get rich quick? I think this has a big effect, and I've been hearing more and more (even OPEC said it) that the cost of a barrel of oil doesn't reflect the reality of oil supply and demand. I think the Gordon Gekkos out there deserve their fair share of the blame.

Do you know who pays for your mass transit? You do. THREE times. I did some checking because I generally don't like mass transit in principle, and here in Seattle it's been reported that we have "some of the best in the country." Turns out your $1.50 bus fare isn't even close to keeping the busses running, so it's gasoline and car registration taxes that pay for all that crap. Then you pay the fare when you get on the bus. And here in King County my own subsidizing of the bus system, the light rail system, and all the rest doesn't even touch the $1500 I've now PERSONALLY paid towards the defunct/brainless emotionally motivated but practically useless monorail project here in Seattle. My opinion is that the only way mass transit should exist is if it pays for itself. If you can't make enough money to pay for the busses and buy the fuel with the bus fares, then it shouldn't exist. The opinion of people in Seattle seems to be that we should make gas and cars very expensive so that people will ride the bus. They don't like seeing one person driving a car all by himself, like peng155. I guess I'm not a "punitive environmentalist". I gotta get out of the city. It's been my experience that the bigger the city the more miserable the people, and the more they turn to the government to make life easier. The government will institute a program which it runs by taxing the people, which makes them more miserable, which makes them turn to the government for help. And on and on and on. Whereever there are millions of people living right on top of each other there is misery and oppression.

The 80 has closer ratio 5th, better for racing. The 81 has taller 5th, better for gas mileage.

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=110881

No, that combo sounds fine. You might want to go with the less extreme pressure plate. I'm putting out ~240 whp according to the drag racing calculators, and I'm using the lighter pressure ACT clutch with a stock disk, and it holds the power down just fine. On the cam to truly get the full benefit of the triples I'd go with something in the .500/300 range. You will have issues with coil bind so you'll have to get some different springs, and also you will need different valve stem seals. If you search on hybridz there is a thread where a user name speeder found a Ford V6 seal that is Viton which is a better material and will allow for .600+ lift and fits right on. Last thing to be careful of is valve/piston interference. If you go really huge on the cam you might have to have the pistons fly cut.

MSA stage 2 cam is way too small IMO. Stage 4 is more like it, but bigger than stage 4 would be better. Do a search you can find various other threads about the subject, but that stage 2 is really too small for triples. Might want to consider something other than a Schneider cam too. Search on that one as well...

I was about to cut the back of mine apart to mount a fuel cell. It would probably be a PITA finding a box big enough to sent the whole rear floor in, but I might be able to cut it in half or something like that. Then you could have it welded in. PM me if you want it and we'll work out a deal.

Well the fact that the carb opening is smaller than the manifold is preferable when compared to the manifold opening being smaller than the carb opening. It should work just fine. I'd be surprised if you couldn't find that bushing readily available, but if you did have to have it made it should be really easy for any machine shop to make you one. Looks like a nice manifold all in all!

Sounds like something that would be easy to replicate with a lathe. Maybe an oiled bronze bushing instead of plastic. 42mm... Weber makes a 42mm carb I think, but it's kind of an oddball. You could port the manifold out to fit 44's or 45's.

Damn it. Add another item to my while I'm at it list.

Don't forget Beta Motorsports: http://www.betamotorsports.com/products/index.html Didn't mean to flame you, but you either didn't look very hard or you don't know what you're looking for or both.

Here is an example of a Z that has had the alternator moved: http://www.fototime.com/ftweb/bin/ft.dll/pictures?userid={7DC317B0-8EDB-4B2E-A837-F708D07C9769}&inv=9C67398D46D99D9&userid={7DC317B0-8EDB-4B2E-A837-F708D07C9769}&AlbumId={ACD7F504-3968-4A55-9D99-F970E078AEAB}&inv=9C67398D46D99D9&GroupId={753E274A-6CEC-4A7B-9D47-27AA7961B1AF}

Why the radiator in back? I'm guessing it's to move weight rearward, but by the time you run tubes back and forth aren't you adding a bunch more weight? Maybe you're underweight and it doesn't matter. Anyway, just curious...

I don't know where you're getting your info R&D, but you're extremely wrong. There's plenty of coilover suppliers right here in the US. There's quite a few camber plate suppliers, in fact there's even several choices for tubular control arms, big brakes, flares, pretty much anything you want. Try google sometime. Or search here or one of the other Z boards.

Sectioning struts, coilovers, camber plates. Then you have to start worrying about weird crap like this: http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=110536

It's so CUTE! Looks good. Plenty strong for the 20 lbs of gas you'll get in there. Moving the muffler is not a bad idea...

They use a different pinion, but the carrier is the same. The 240SX unit that replaces the OPEN carrier has 12mm ring gear bolts, but you can use a spacer if you're worried about that, but it isn't absolutely necessary. The 240SX unit to replace a VLSD has the wrong spline count on the side gears, so it can't be used.

I talked to a guy who did THAT back in the 50's I think he said. They were motorcycle carbs. Said it worked great, but it was a real PITA to synch all the carbs, and making the linkage was pretty involved. He had an Austin Healey running 6 carbs. I figure Mikunis or Webers gives you the same thing, but is about 8000% easier. If you're after "custom work" and "one of a kind", then I TRULY have the answer for you: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Replica-Kit-Makes-GMC-GMC-CHEVY-CORVETTE-TRUCK-WITH-A-TOUCH-OF-LAMBROGINI-WOW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ7251QQitemZ4634614926QQrdZ1 For some reason, that doesn't leave me "wondering how to get on that list" if you know what I'm saying. Either does the SU's, because Mikunis do it better.

The Mikuni uses a 10mm rod that the linkage attaches to. I think the Cannon uses a 3/8" rod. Of course, the Mikuni usually has a giant MIKUNI cast into it and the Cannon says Cannon on one of the runners...

I've been answering this thread on hybridz. The problem is that he's doing it exactly as shown in the How to Rebuild book and it doesn't run. The answer is to change the position of the gear, but he's hung up on the fact that it isn't exactly as the book shows it. My response to that is: Who cares what the book says? Did it occur to you that the book might be wrong? If it doesn't run the way the book shows it, then maybe it is wrong. Make it run by moving the distributor shaft, and then it will be "right" and better yet, you'll be able to drive it.

Should be fine.

Idle. Then check it again at 3000 if you have access to an adjustable timing light. If you don't have the advancing timing light just set it at idle, because if you try at 3000 you'll be so far off the scale on the balancer that it will be hard to see where you're really at.