ZHeadV8

Carl, As Alan has pointed out, this is very evidently NOT the case when you inspect the shell in person. The easiest way to add some credance to the whole "NOS" discussion is for me to take some photos and post them for all to see. I will endeavour to get over to my engineer's and take some pictures ASAP. The shell is definitley brand spanking new, definitely has never been even partially assembled into a car and definitely carries the chassis number RLS30 - 00017 stamped into the bulkhead. How Nissan sent it to Bob Sharp, whether it was pulled directly from the production line under the "penny shell" idea or sold as a full priced spare who knows ? I certainly don't, all I do know is that it is the only brand new S30 shell I have ever even heard of, let alone come across or seen with my own eyes.

Hi Folks, It seems RLS30 - 00017 has caused quite a furore and started an interesting debate. This shell as previously mentioned by Alan was originally sold by Nissan to BSR (They did not donate shells to racing teams becuase legally that conferred some degree of responsibility onto Nissan, instead they sold them for a token gesture to absolve themselves of any come back). I am unsure who bought it from BSR and who bought it on the East Coast but Geoff Jackson here in the UK tells me that he bought it from someone in New York. Geoff duly imported the shell into the UK as per Alan's explanation and after many many years of it sitting in a barn kindly agreed to sell it to me. Number 17 has had a right hand conversion but done in an easily reversible way, it is my intention to put it back to left hand drive, restoring it to how it should be, as befits such a low serial numbered shell with a little provenance. It is currently covered with light surface rust that will come off totally as part of the eventual build. Penny shell ?, White shell ?, Not sure but then those are merely semantics and terminology, the reality is that this is a NOS body shell, I suspect pulled directly from the production line for the BSR team. It has all of the factory applied sealer, unbent wire harness tags and has never had a panel hung on it. Although a 260 shell, it is to all intents and purposes the same as a 240. My main project is a seriously engineered V8 240Z so time and funds do not allow me to build two cars in parallel, however, my longer term intention is to build a BSR replica to do justice to the shell. I have contacted one current East Coast owner of a BSR car who was not prepared to discuss the topic let alone help with guidance on a replica project and have managed to track down the man who restored Brad Friselle's car. The body kit for Brad's car is available to me, however the one I would like is the same as I believe Dr Alan Robbins has on his car. My V8 has had a total ground up bare metal restoration, has been acid dipped and is now ready for zinc electroplating - I intend to acid dip and zinc plate number 17 aswell. Any help sourcing a seriously top quality BSR body kit would be greatly appreciated, particularly if anyone knows where the original moulds are. Alan is kindly helping me spec up and procure parts for a modern 3.1 stroker engine with individual throttle bodies to go into the finished car. The shell is an hour and half's drive from my house so if anyone has any specific questions please fire away and I will endeavour to get the answers for you.

Is it politically acceptable to covet they fellow Z Club member's Delores ?? She's a beauty !

40 years old, building a very fast V8 (400BHP +) ......... or rather having one built for me :-) Will be used for road mainly with track and drag racing on the odd accasion.

Hi Ghostrider, I am having an LS6 (basically an LS1 with a few upgrades) and a T56 fitted in my 240. Long way off yet but the build plan has been done so it will happen this year. The easiest and most common V8 installation is the NA old school Small Block Chevy, preferably with aluminium heads, gearbox is a preference thing but the T56 is good. Bear in mind if you make SERIOUS horsepower you may trash the gearbox because of the associated torque but a 350 - 400 BHP motor should be no problem. VERY useful site is http://www.jagsthatrun.com - they do all of the mounting kits, conversion plates, cables and headers for the old style engine, although they have just started doing block hugger headers for the LS1. Another useful site is www.johnscars.com who do the mounting kits for the LS1 I would strongly advise that you buy the manuals on offer from both sites to get a feel for the work involved and the potential issues you may run in to. Easy if planned properly, nightmare if you make it up as you go along. Fundamentally, the old style engines are cheaper, easier to fit and less agro to work on and maintain. The new LS engines require ECU fitment and mapping, however, the new engines will get 400BHP and still run 28MPG on the motorway, they are smoother, quieter and much better mannered at town speeds but still go like a b***h when you floor it. www.hybridz.com is an awesome source of information as mentioned above but they like new comers to use the search facility first then ask questions. If I can be of any assistance in pointing you at information sources I would be glad to help (assuming I have found a source to start with :-) I have done a lot of research for my project) Good Luck. Andy F :classic:

The compomotive factory is about 20 minutes away from me - their wheels are not cheap but are great. They would cost about £300 - 350 each here.. I guess with shipping, duty etc they are almost exotic over their having come half way round the world like American or Japanese wheels are here. Looking good on the car !

The tail section is in three pieces (IMHO) because the build quality of the original cars was poor. I have seen many cars where the panel fit is slightly different on the rear panel so the width is slightly different (have seen up to 1.5CM)- three pieces allows you to compansate for how big the back panel ACTUALLY is. The guy who is making mine found out to his cost that it is harder to fit a one piece than a three piece because of discrepancies in the steel panel fitment.

Not all spent yet but budgeted and in the build plan : LHD Californian 1971 240Z imported to UK $7000 Conversion to RHD and stitch weld shell $2800 Paint $8000 Suspension (Proflex) $6000 Brakes (AP) $6000 Engine (Corvette LS6) $7,500 Gearbox (T56 including clutch, bellhousing etc) $2000 Wheels (Work) $1600 Tyres (Pirelli P Zero) $1600 Seats (Cobra Misano) $2600 Custom loom (all new wires) $2000 This is assuming a 2:1 conversion rate which is actually 1.93 at the moment. Still to add, interior trim, custom exhaust, ECU, fuel pump, Lights, flares, front airdam, rubber seal kit, fuel cell, roll cage etc etc etc Ever wish you hadn't started something ?? Will be a brand new car in a 1971 bodyshell when I have finished.

Thanks for the compliment Gav ! Was merely trying to be helpful. A V8 conversion can be a cheap dirty job or a very expensive, detailed engineering project, did not want Harrison to underestimate what could happen. I am learning a huge amount from other far more experienced people on forums (you know who you are Alan et al) so am simply recycling and trying to add a little value back.

You are right BradMan - the SBC looks like it was designed to be there from the word go (we know it wasn't but hey it's fits really well !) I agree with you about the headers, particularly with the LS6 style engines but you end up with a much better handling car with the engine in the setback position - only important I guess if you are going to go round bends a lot at high speed. If you intend to do long distance cruising it is pretty academic. Here in the UK we have thousands of miles of leafy lanes to play along in the summer so the handling was paramount to me, opted for cannister race suspension and AP brakes to help out. You would REALLY notice the difference on the track.

Hi Harrison, I am having a V8 in my 1971 240. What looks and sounds easy can actually require a lot of thought and planning, like the exhaust that you have picked up already - will the headers fit ? Who will make the pipes ? Where will they be routed ? How much will they cost ? If you want one either side on a 240 you need to move the fuel tank, install a fuel cell. In my case this means moving the spare wheel well to the centre of the car, not a small feat. There are many huge benefits to a V8 conversion such as power, sound etc but also many downsides such as the loss of standard form in a classic car. As many people will try to burn you for heresy as will praise you for daring to do it - people get very protective and the whole engine transplant subject can be very emotive. Don't let anyone tell you it destroys the car's handling - it will only do that if assembled by a blind muppet with a spoon and some chewing gum, if done properly by an engineer the car's balance will be virtually identical to the original. Because I am going to use an LS6 engine the weight is about the same too give or take (but with world class race suspension, brakes and close to 500BHP) May I suggest you check out the following in addition to hybridZ listed above, they will all give you LOTS of food for thought. To shoehorn a V8 in is cheap and cheerful and you will have massive bang for your buck - to do it properly costs - you will get what you pay for here. Anyway, Good luck, have a GREAT Christmas and I hope you find the following sites of interest : www.hybridz.org www.mywebpages.comcast.net/pparaska www.jagsthatrun.com www.johnscars.com Both JTR (Jags that Run) and John's Cars provide mounting kits for V8s but also sell conversion manuals, I think the JTR one is about $30 and the John's Cars one is about $25 - money WELL spent as background reading. You really don't want to get half way through then find out you cannot afford to finish or you do not have the required skills etc etc etc. My concerns were financial as an engineer is building mine for me, this kind of background helped me map out what I would need and how much it would cost - after that I put a build plan together with rough dates and financial requirements. I know know at what point various bits will be completed and when the seemingly never ending flow of money needs more injections. It is advisable on hybridZ to read, listen, use the search facility BEFORE asking any questions you may have. People are incredibly helpful but obviously like to see people trying to help themselves Cheers Andy :bandit:

Mull very eloquently put NOT and a perfect example of how not to behave on a forum - glad you are in Sweden as that attitude would get you into big trouble elsewhere. You were given two ears and only one mouth for a reason. Hi Bambikiller - I weighed up the risks and thought it would be OK, this guy is well known on the HybridZ forum and people speak highly of his work. I have seen photos and his stuff seems to be very good, made from F1 carbon (no kevlar in the weave). It is a bit of a risk I accept but hey, we all have to trust somebody sometime and he is so well known I thought I could trust him. Time will tell whether there was any wisdom in that decision

The 260 has an L28 and some goodies under there...... Clarkson did not know :-)

Hi Guys - there is a guy on HybridZ called Vince already doing these parts, I have some on order. His game plan is to take deposits in advance, make the components and ship them, that way he can keep costs down by doing a run of 20 or 30 pieces at a time. If you are interested, search for Carbon and you will find the thread. Cheers Andy

sorry, just checked the link and it is down - showed a 195% rise in 240Z prices 9in the last ten years, more than most exotic cars. The biggest risers were old school American Muscle cars