John Coffey

First I've ever heard of this failure. Probably a defective part. Carefully check the rest of the steering system to make sure this isn't a sign of a bigger problem somewhere.

That Kendon fold up trailer is brilliant! Perfect for hauling a racing 240Z around.

I'm thinking a MoTec M880 EMS with full data acquisition and telemetry, launch control, ABS, traction control, vehicle dynamic control, transmission and clutch control, electronic rear differential control, full Lamda CAN bus measurement, digital dash/HUD, and more. Probably 10 lbs of hardware and software for over $24,000. What do I win?

Konigs crack, Panasports crack, Revolutions crack. Any wheel used on a road race track needs to be inspected regularly for cracks and damage. Diamond racing steel wheels work well and are cheap. They are also not much heavier (if at all) then the Konigs.

The transverse link mounting plates get bent if there's a side hit on one of the rear wheels or one of the rear wheels runs over a really big something. These plates and the transverse link itself tend to move/bend as a unit before the front diff cross member moves. Sometimes what appears to a bent transverse link mounting plate is actually the plate twisted slightly, taking up whatever bolt hole clearance there is. Any loose fastener in this assembly will cause an alignment problem. Its pretty easy to straighten these plates once they are off the car.

If I install the adjustable aluminum/Delrin inner LCA bushings I charge about 4 to 5 hours to get the car squared, the rear tracked, and the rear toe set correctly. If I had a $35,000 Hunter laser alignment rack it would take 1/3 of that time.

Its one of those cars that's always for sale for the right price. The new owner raced it a couple times last year as reported by a couple of VARA guys.

Congratulations Greg.

You're making this much harder then it really is. 1. Lower the car to the ground and roll it back and forth a few feet and stop it on a level spot. Block the rear wheels to keep it from rolling. 2. Have a friend sit in the driver's seat. 3. Crawl under the car and torque the bolts. If you can't fit under the car, park it on two wheel ramps so you can get under it. Don't worry, it won't squish to the floor, the springs hold it up.

The correct air freshener for any S30 smells like gasoline, exhaust fumes, and moldy jute.

I've tried it a few times to repair the front bumper cover on my 350Z after track "incidents." There's a knack to it and as Steve posted above there are a lot of different plastics requiring different filler and technique. Its not hard to do, but you have to read and follow the instructions that come with the kit. Practice on scrap first. It does not leave a clean repair so finish work is required.

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=114630 http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=103860 http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=116670 http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=103767 http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=116207 http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=126789

Yes they did (do)? Jim Thompson developed new cam profiles based on simulation software specific for the N42 and P90 heads that John Knepp at Electramotive researched. Jim had direct access to that data and very detailed information about the dynamics of the L6 valve/cam train. Previous cam profiles (including the Nissan Motorsports cams) were developed from BMW profiles and were a compromise. The first engine he built using these new cam designs was the NA 3L in my old race car. The engine was good to 8,000 rpm and the valve spring seat pressures were 25% less then stock and 150% less then the typical aftermarket L6 cam.

Bryan Lampe is selling his CP 240Z racer: http://www.betamotorsports.com/benchracing/CP240ZForSale.htm

I don't have their price handy but you would have to buy a box of 50 of those size from TS and they are in stock, immediate shipment items.

McMaster does not have class 10.9 M10 1.25p bolts. Neither does Wurth or Fabory here in the US, unless things have changed since June last year. If you have a cheaper source the Tacoma for class 10.9 M10 x 1.25 pitch bolts, nuts, nylocks, etc. I would love to hear it.

I went with an adjustable 5/8" rear bar.

With a welded rear that's the style needed to get the car to turn in. Dirt tracking. That's basically why there's a setup difference between East Coast and West Coast 240Zs. East Coast guys tended to run LSDs that were setup with not a lot of preload. Us West Coast guys had no money and ran welded diffs so we needed more spring in and roll stiffness in the back to get the car to rotate. With a Quaife, which is what I switched from a welded diff, you soften the rear a lot and move roll stiffness forward.

I was able to reduce the steering kickback and bumpsteer by relocating the inner LCA mounting point and running a bumpsteer spacer. This made the car easier to drive with that much caster. It still took some effort but it worked pretty well with how my car was setup. I think in your car you were prevented by ITS rules from making the changes I did?

DOT 3/4 is fine for a street driven car.

I ran 7 to 8 on the ROD along with 1/2" wheel spacers and 275 width tires. Yeah it scrubbed a bit but I had enough horsepower to not be concerned about that. My arms looked like Popeye's! :-)

Forgot about Ackermann. You're probably right. Using toe out to fake Ackermann works until the outside front tire gets loaded and then turn-in response fades and the car tends to understeer a bit.

I honestly don't know but my guess is that the car has a lot of yaw inertia that's related to where the weight is in the car and accelerating the L6 engine mass takes a bit of time. When I went to solid engine, trans, and diff mounts in my old racing 240Z, turn-in response was increased a bunch. I have also driven a SR20DET swapped 260Z on a race track and its turn-in response was good. It may also be a feel issue that's caused by the driver sitting so close to the rear wheels.

Try Wurth in Germany. It is a bit difficult to find some specific suspension bolts in class 10.9. The M10 1.25 pitch bolts that are most commonly used under the 240Z are common in class 8.8 but hard to find in class 10.9. Tacoma Screw Products has these bolts and nuts in class 10.9: http://www.tacomascrew.com/ Probably wrong. There's a big gap between less sensible and dangerous. Without knowing the original strength of the fastener you cannot say what class of fastener is sensible or dangerous in a particular application.

You could also use more caster. Something around 5 degrees positive will help along with a small amount of toe out in front and toe in in the rear. Get the car squared up (rear properly tracking the front) and make sure the toe numbers are the same side to side. The 240Z will never have great turn in. They can be made better but they will never feel like a Miata when you start turning the wheel.