ZSaint

I too have built lots of engines. Some I built the old fashioned... I kept breaking them until I figured out how to make the last. I guess we learned from the school of hard knocks. I am wondering if you have one of the "long" 1st gear 5-speeds with the stock 3.36 diff. That will make the Z bog down in a hurry. I guess you can use the old method of counting wheel turns and drive shaft turns to get your ratio. 10 turns of the D/S = ?? turns of the wheel. If you do have a 4.11, your wheel should turn 4 times while the D/S turns 10. Now if the wheel only turns 3 1/3 revolutions, then you have a 3.36. I think the wheel rate is doubled if you have one wheel on the ground. (ring gear/spider gears) It's been a long time since I did a diff like this but I think I have the info you need. We will be curious when you know the ratio. If you do have a 4.11, I haven't got a clue what the problem is.

Did you say you cannot get your 'Z' off the line with a 4.11 diff? That thing should be a tire smoker!

Did you really say you wanted 190 hp to the "Rear Wheels"? Wow, I have dyno'd a couple of cars and you will be looking at crank HP rating of 220-225 hp. Doubt if you can get that out of a "stock" 240 no matter how many mods you make. You are stymied be the exhaust manifold, the SU's and port size. How about just putting a rebuilt 240 engine in your car and being satisfied. Think how smooth that baby will run!

If you want HP, you will need to spend money. By placing a 260/280 crank with rods in your 240 block, you will have a bit more then 10 hp. You will also be increasing you CR by nearly 1 point. With a bigger cam and some head mods you could be looking at 20-25 hp. When you say you want 175-180 hp w/o spending any money and using the 240 engine, we have a problem. I don't think you can have it both ways. I would just rebuild your 240 engine and put it in as a new stocker. IMHO, You cannot get any better then that.

I just got home and read your post. I know it is important to some restorers to keep the numbers correct. I know the value of these cars will be greater if you have the original engine in the car. Here is what I would do. Take you engine out and buy yourself a 260 engine long block. If you install the 260 crank and rods and bore the 240 block .060 over with a new set of standard pistons, you will have 2658 cc's with about 10:1 compression. (Or, install the stock 260 pistons with new rings. CR will be 9.6 and you will still have 2565 cc's) It will essentially be a 260 engine in your 240 block. Do a head rebuild, take .010 off and bolt on your 240 head. 280 valves are another option) It will have a lot of torque and be fun to drive. Your stock SU's and exhaust manifold will work fine with a mild cam. It will perform and look stock for the "purists". Just an idea from the old racer!

I would have to add up the cost of the kit and get a few bucks for my time. I will check it out.

I have a tire shop that does all of my balancing. The guy always puts the weights on the inner rim. It makes the wheels look great. If I was going for a LSR or driving over 100 mph, I would ask him to put the weights evenly on both inner and outer lips. At 75, my cars are smooth as glass. No fighting weights on the outside. With the tires and wheels on modern cars, their tolerances are very tight. I have not had more than 1/2 oz on any tire for years. If you have more weight required, change tires!

I am guessing this engine is like the Supra engines we have. They get 750+ out of these turbo engines. Similar engines and results.

Panasports... DUH! How stupid of me. Well I thought Panasports and typed 'sonics. That's what having a stroke will do for you. Gawd I hate getting old!

So this is a RB25. I have also heard about the RB26. What do these engines come in? What hp do they run, 25 and 26?

I agree with you. I want my Z to be stock appearing. I have added the early front spook and a rear spoiler because this things were on the early rally and race cars. I do not like the aerodynamic stuff everyone is putting on their Z's trying to make them look updated. I like the classic look! Nice car and wheels. I tried to buy some of the these and gave up. I have a set of Panasports with the grey centers. I like the look!

I copied this article for my records. I have seen a similar piece done on filters. The only part of this I do not comprehend is the Viscosity Index. (VI) I do not understand what this means. (The hgiher the number the better) Can any one give me a simple explanation?

Lets see If I can figure this situation out... If you seal (plug the brake line hole) the caliper after filling it with fluid, when you press in on one puck it will hydraulic the other puck forcing it out. How does this sound? It's the only answer I can come up with. Is that what you had in mind?

I agree with Honeycutt. When synthetics first came out, oil viscosity was a concern. They were thin, thin, thin. Now we have everything from 5# to 50#. If you have an older car or a high-mileage engine use the 20-40 or 20-50 wt. Just like using oil... You would not put 10# in a car with 100K. The same holds true for synthetics. You gain so much in oil temps, bearing drag and cold starting, it's no contest!

No one wants to tell me what they would pay for this 10.2:1 compression 280Z motor? I think you answered my question... No sale! I guess I will rebuild it for a spare motor. It will be kinda fun to build a new motor.

If you valve cover leaks, it is not the problem with the Mobil 1, et al. I think they have very similar charactoristics, now, and do not know of any leakage problem. +++++++++ I would let the tranny drain for a day or over night. If you are serious, I would take the back cover off the diff to make certain it drains completely. If not, just drain out what you can and fill 'er up. Your gears will be very happy!

Soaked into the concrete... Very interesting premise. Maybe that's what happened. I am relieved! On the guy wanting to know about viscosity... I think the 10-40 oil is best for all uses. If you are simply driving it on the street and never turn it over 4500, go with the 10-30. If you plan on working the engine, use the higher viscosity. IMHO

This is the one. I have it saved! You guys know and have everything! Thank you Steven!

I have a new computer. I saved most of my stuff but I lost the web site for the L6 engine specs. It had several options for building the L6. Head, block, rod, piston, etc. It would instantly tell you what size the engine was, compression ratio, bore ratio, etc. It was very good info. Can you please give me this site? I need to put it back on my "favorites". It may have been an Australian web site??? :surprised

One think I noted about the synthetic gear oil... I had the diff leak out of the top vent when I had it tipped up on the rotisserie. It made a spot on the concrete floor. Before I could clean it up, it EVAPORATED! Hmmm? (took a week to dry up) I was shocked! I guess we need to check our fluid levels more frequently when you are using synthetics. Anyone read anything about the loss of fluids when using synthetics? I rarely check the transmissions and diffs because I drive them so few miles each year.

I used Red Line back in the 70's to get my oil temp down. It dropped 30` by changing from 40# to Red Line. It was much easier to keep the car running on cold mornings, as well. My C5 comes from the factory with Mobil 1. These guys know what they are doing. I use synthetics in all of my drivers, engine, tranny and diffs.

This is the number one reason that GM is losing ground. They used to have a heater motor, interior mirror, radiator, etc designed for every model they built. Instead of using a supplier that has an existing part, they paid an engineer, designer, graphics and fabricator to develop a new part. They had so much money for so many years they got away with it. With competition now, they no longer can do whatever they want. They have huge production costs that they must get rid of to be competitive. Using common parts is one type of savings they have finally discovered. The Japanese discovered this phenomenon years ago!