Jeff G 78

Yep, as Carl said make sure you get shank-style lugnuts that are slightly shorter than the thickness of the wheel hub. They come in three lengths ranging from about 3/8" to a little over 3/4". The 1/2" depth nuts are getting rather hard to find in M12x1.25. I have searched high and low locally for a spare set for the LeMons car and have struck out. I'll have to order them online and pay $$$.

Hey Carl, when did the mailing list finally go away (I assume it's gone)? I gave up on it in the late 1990s once ZC.C, and CZCC got established. It was simply too hard to do everything in slow motion with the mailing list. Personally, I kinda like having the three main S30 sites. ZC.C is the general, catch-all site, HZ.O is the serious-mod site and CZCC is the mature crowd/purist site. I visit all three for very different reasons. I spent most of my time on ZC.C until recently when they made a software upgrade. I hate the new look and gave up due to its shortcomings. The crowd over there is getting more and more immature as well and most of the old-timers have left for good.

Welcome! First rule here is that you have to post pics. I also race a 260, though at a slightly lower level.

Richard, here's the mustache bar I was talking about. This is what an R180 bar cut up and converted to an R200 bar looks like. Keep in mind that we did this in the middle of the night while the race was green. We took measurements of both diffs and made a drawing on a cardboard box. With drawing and R180 bar in hand, we went looking for 1/4" plate steel and a welder. Luckily, we found a guy with a mobile welding truck who was spectating at the race. It took about an hour for him to cut, weld, and drill and cost us only a bottle of Crown Royal

Richard, you seem to get the whole LeMons concept. It's not that we race cheap cars, it's that we never give up and find creative solutions to engineering problems. It's easy to throw money at a problem, but it's more fun to backyard engineer something that works just as well for very little money.

Hey Julius, welcome to the LeMons club! Been there, done that!!! Follow my LeMons Facebook link in my sig for pics of us swapping our failed R180 with an R200 mid-race. We didn't have an R200 mustache bar with us, so we made one at the track in the rain at 3am. The bar came out so nice that we decided to keep running the fabricated bar even though I have an R200 bar in my garage. Send me a PM to discuss the fun.

We did the mod on our 260Z LeMons racecar. I'm pretty sure our fuel starvation problem is due to poor tank venting. The car runs great for about 20-25 minutes and then stumbles badly under load at higher engine speeds. Several people have suggested that we we have a venting problem. Can you further explain your second mod?

If you want people to know what they are, refer to them as Dukes of Hazard, or General Lee wheels.

Your '70 is far from stock, so why not take the opportunity to upgrade it to discs? The ModernMotorsport adaptors with S13 calipers and '84 Z31 rotors would make future brake work much easier. I have drums on both of mine, but if I need any major parts, they will be replaced with discs. I hate working on drums. EDIT: Oops, I reread and see that this is your 12/71 car. I guess I don't know how stock that one is. You could always steal the brakes off the '70 and upgrade that one as I said.

I haven't seen one JY S30 in Ohio or Michigan in over ten years.

Oh boo hoo all you people in the south who can't find S30s . Try finding one in the Great Lakes area.

Free Z cars are always a gift. No matter how badly rusted, you have a parts car which will come in very handy. Strip EVERY component off the parts car including every nut, bolt, and washer. Put all the fasteners in a box for later use. Keep every last part that comes off the shell including all rubber body plugs, wiring harness, etc. Your "good" Z still needs a ton of work, but the spare parts will help quite a bit. Keep posting pics and good luck!

I'm going to have to find some good used locks for mine soon. Both door locks are worn to the point that the key will barely unlock the door. The "D" post in the pack of the lock is rounded such that the lever doesn't move far enough anymore.

I have owned 10 S30s over the past 25+ years and the ignition lock was worn out in every single one of them. Not only can you remove the key in most Z cars, but other similar keys will start the car. Toyota keys work just as well as Datsun keys. Not much good for theft protection.

That shell is better than most rust belt cars. It would last about two minutes around here.

As everybody else has said, there is no right answer. Having owned multiples of each Z year Z between '72 and '78, they each have their own personality. The '72 and earlier are elegantly light and simple, while the '75 - '78 cars are heavier and more modern while keeping the soul of the early cars. Currently, I'm liking the early cars again more than the late FI cars. My '74 race car is more fun than my '78. I love how simple it is compared to the emissions and sensors that fill the 280 engine bay. The later cars offer more crash protection, but face it, getting hit in any S30 is not going to turn out well for you or the car.

I'd run them at 32psi. There is no reason to go any higher. BTW, I am an auto engineer who has developed many tires for high performance cars.

The TC mounts are my go/no-go gauge. If they are weak, the car is scrap. That said, I'm too old to take on a rust bucket. What I used to take on and what I will currently take on are very different. I'd rather fly across the country and get a rust-free Z than deal with rust. These days, even floor rust turns me away.

Time to upgrade the avatar Sean.

Check out http://www.arizonazcar.com/manifold.html

Emblems yes, but the marker lights look right. Overall, it looks like a rather crappy paintjob.

The bracket I designed, which mgood posted, works great and was easy to make. Other than the need for a few welds, it can be made quickly. With nothing other than a die grinder, drill, vice and hammer, I made mine in a few hours.

Gotcha. I never had anything prior to a mid/late '72. That explains it.

I don't ever recall seeing a spring between the slave and clutch fork. Was that only on the really early cars?

Yep, I've been using Rockauto for several years now and they have been great. Out of dozens of orders, I've only gotten one wrong part from them (for my Toyota 4x4 DD). It was partially my fault for not calling them and asking to clarify the year range for the part I needed since it was really vague on their website. I trusted the picture which turned out to be wrong. They said the photo was supplied by Beck Arnley and that they would call them about updating the photo. They took care of the return shipping and got a new part in the mail right away. It was all I could ask for. They almost always have what I need in stock for less $ than the chain parts stores. I try to give my business to Courtesy, MSA, or BD if their prices are close, but for mundane parts like belts, hoses, etc, I usually go with Rock. While we're on the subject of good vendors, I found http://www.tooltopia.com/ a few years ago and they have some good deals. I got my KD valve spring compressor there and it was much less than anywhere else I could find it. If you are doing Z valve springs or seals, it's a great tool to own.