Jeff G 78

As much as I like modern sports cars and would buy a few new toys, I'd ALWAYS have a S30 or two. I'd find a really clean 240 and then make it perfect with some performance upgrades. It would pretty much be like any one of Guy's beautiful cars. I would also have a lot more money to race, so that's where I'd spend my time and some money.

Yep, 19 is good.

When ours fell off in the race, we stayed on the track for another 2 hours before we pitted to diagnose and fix the tick. we lost only a handful of laps pulling the valve cover, finding the problem an fixing it. There was no damage from the mishap. Once it's off, it simply lays in the head.

Is there any point of keeping this thread open??? The original topic is long dead and now it's just a pissing match.

It's possible that you weren't completely on the base circle when you set the lash and it was larger than you measured. When you put it back on, remeasure and see where it was before it fell off. Open and close that valve and make sure it isn't sticking. I had one come off my race car 4 hours into a 14 hour race and it turned out to be a weak spring. I was still using the original springs and they didn't like high RPM operation.

I saw this on the LeMons forum. Might be worth a look. http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/pts/3109050663.html

Way to go!

Very cool Chuck. I have a few, but not that many.

I have two of the Franklin Mint Z's as well. One has never been out of the box. The other one is in the box, but when I did display it, my dog knocked the table over and the rear bumper broke. My guess is that in perfect condition, they are worth about $60 each at most.

Awesome! I can't wait to see what the rover can do.

I might try to watch, but I'm in the Eastern time zone, so it will be a late night. I love space exploration and hope that we get back on track with the NASA budget. Good luck little rover!

I use an angle die grinder with a Scotchbrite roloc pad. As long as you are careful, it works great. If you don't have air, a Scotchbrite pad can be used by hand. It just takes a bit longer.

Thumbs up! FYI, the trick to protecting the hood support clip is to tape a WD-40 lid over it. The small red lid is just big enough and will give you warning that you are too close.

You want turdmobile, here you go... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1983-DATSUN-280Z-/120957465204?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item1c29a07274#ht_500wt_1182 The wiring is just as scary as the body. :sick:

I have no problem with mods and I can appreciate craftsmanship, but some mods move the car out of the Z realm for me. For example, a GTO bodied Z is no longer a Z. It's a GTO kit car. A Z with a SBC isn't to my taste, but it's still more of a Z than a GTO replica. Same goes for convertible Z cars. Once the roofline is changed, it's not really a Z to me. I do like regular body kits including front and rear fascias, wings, airdams, flairs, etc. I think many of those enhance the Z-ness of the car if don't right. This might wizz some people off, but to me, a bone-stock 2+2 S30 is barely a Z. They can look good with mods, but the stock ones are a huge compromise to what a Z is all about. Again, I think it's the roofline.

It looks great! Just a suggestion - You might want to find a different rear lifting point. Once the engine is in, that bolt is right at the firewall and will be hard to reach and remove. One of my engines was missing the factory lifting eye, so I was able to make one from some scrap steel. I think it was a Z distributor base plate, but I can't remember.

It all depends on how far rearward the damage went. My '78 was hit before I bought it and I had the whole left front corner cut off and replaced. It wasn't as bad as yours an it had already been pulled, but I decided to cut and replace. It is now straight and solid. These pics are scans from 20+ years ago, so they are a bit small an grainy. Here it is with the bent steel cut out Here is the donor inner fender, strut tower and rail And here it is after welding and painting Here is it after reassembly

I have taken a sawzall to better Z cars than that.

I use the Permatex High Tack spray-on sealer. It's not as messy as the brown stuff and comes off without too much work the next time you have the cover off. I tend to have my race motor apart fairly often, so I don't want to spend a lot of time cleaning the surfaces. The red spray stuff comes clean with a razor blade and scotch brite. I've been using it on front covers for 25 years and have never had a leak. I think the can I use has lasted about 10 years and has done 10+ Z motors. Simply lay the gaskets on cardboard and spray them with a light coating of the sticky red sealant. After a few minutes, turn them over and repeat. Give them another few minutes to dry a bit and install. http://www.permatex.com/products/Automotive/automotive_gasketing/gasket_sealants/auto_Permatex_High_Tack_Spray-A-Gasket_Sealant.htm

The "styling" means nothing. It's a Motor Trend artist's guess at what it might look like. I love the idea of a smaller AND lighter sports car. The 370 is too heavy. and expensive for big sales numbers.

Jim, did you use the poly TC bushings as they came in the set in front and back of the mount? If so, start by replacing the backs with rubber and leave the fronts poly. If you still have them, you can use old worn out ones as long as they aren't in terrible shape.

You replaced everything at once, right? I believe that the poly TC bushings are the culprit of the issues. My 280 has poly everything and, like yours, it's brutal. My 260 has poly steering rack bushings only and it has none of the kick or harshness. You might try swapping the TC parts first before you swap the rack bushings.

It's a mass damper and it's not for clunk, but rather for another NVH error state like moan. By now, it's unlikely to accomplish whatever it was designed to do. I'd be willing to bet Nissan added it at the last minute and never fixed the original issue. These are common in modern cars and can be found on almost any new car regardless of brand. They are most common on exhausts, but could be anywhere. I have a huge bar on my 260 and it still clears the mass damper. If you want to remove it or need to for clearance, go right ahead. You most likely won't feel any difference.

I like that. My Porter Cable 60 gallon compressor has the original drain valve and it's a pain to get to and operate. I might have to upgrade it to a 1/4 turn ball valve out in the open like yours.