Z supension swaps

Has anyone out there ever tried to swap rear suspension from a S130-chassis into a S30 chassis? I have a '77 280Z that I'm restoring and suping up, and just bought a buddy's 82 280zx for $100. I was wondering if anyone thinks the rear knuckles w/ disc brakes will bolt onto my car. I already know I would have to change out the diff and axles, but since the ZX has the 3.9 diff (as opposed to my 3.54) I planned to at least swap the ring & pinion anyways. So, is the knuckle bolt pattern the same as the S30, or would they require modification?

I'm sure it can be done pretty easily... I mean c'mon: You got these guys dropping Ford Engines with Ford 9 inch rear-ends... I'm almost positive the 280zx/S130 rear-end along with everything else back there will swap into a 240Z-260Z/S30 chassis...

Which reminds me; Is there anyone else out there who thinks that putting a carbureted, pushrod pumping iron lump into a Z is kind of a step backwards? I mean, straight sixes are awesome motors, smooth running with big, fat powerbands.

Now, i'm not hatin', because I have respect for anyone who makes major mods to a car in the name of performance, but, in my opinion (key word opinion), the nissan straight six is an awesome engine. But then, I'm a road racer and autocrosser, not a drag racer. The car's powerband and balance are more important to me than brute power.

I'd love to hear anyone elses opinions, even if you disagree. But please try to validate your POV. I don't wanna hear, "V8's is tha shit, and y'all can take yer little fuel injeck-shun thingies an go to hell!" Talking smack does not constitute a valid argument.

This is the way I see it... if you are not gonna stick with the traditional Nissan Straight Sixes (L24, L28, etc) why go domestic V8? Sure parts are a-plenty and cheap as some you V8 lovers will argue. Need more power or better Power Curves? Why not a newer Nissan Straight Six? Rb25 and Rb26 are becoming popular over on this side of the pond and many manufacturers are carrying parts for these engines... hell even a 4-banger Sr20 is so popular with parts everywhere and it a power-house. These engines can be tuned for anything: Drag or Circut. 500HP to 1200HP.

I would just rather have someone put a Nissan engine in a Nissan vehicle... and if you can get better results with a Nissan engine (plus all the interchang-ability of many parts) why use a domestic?

well beings that you are not a drag racer and you are really into auto-cross and other types of racing...the balance of the car is more important than the power. im sure the chevy V8's are much heavier than any of the Nissan engines except for the VG which they are probably about the same. just a guess...

the way i see it...if your going for auto-cross your gonna screw up teh weight balance of the car. my suggestion is an RB20DET. more power still heavy enough to keep the weight balance right on target if not better than with the L series. the SR could possibly be too light causing the weight balance to get screwy....

but i say, there are so many motors out there...you must choose something for your application. and for the early Z's...it doesnt get much better than the RB20DET. its inexpensive in comparison to other motors of its class...it isnt a 600lb brick. it makes unbelievable power for a 2.0L once modified...and the best part is. its probably the easiest motor that didnt come in the early Z's to swap in besides a carbeuarted V8, only because you dont have to deal with the wires in it.

I couldn't care less where the engine came from. There are only two things that I could care about, and thats the torque curve and the weight. If the LS1 makes more torque than the VG30DETT at all rpms then I'm going to choose the LS1. Swapping in a carburetted pushrod V8 would be a stupid idea IF AND ONLY IF there was a better alternative in terms of torque and weight. SR20DET, RB20DET and the L series are powerful motors, but have absolutely nothing on a big V8 in torque.

The flatter the torque curve, the more usable the power that the engine produces. This is the attraction of big V8s in these cars. Any rpm, any speed, you put your foot down and you've got instant torque. We can argue about the horsepower of these engines till our faces turn blue, but you can't escape the torque curve argument. Now I'm not saying that the bigger V8s are the best choice in every engine swap, because every driver has his or her own personal preferences in the engine. Personally I would prefer a supercharged 3L V6 in my car than a big V8, and thats what I'm doing.

I'm just sick of hearing morons argue about 'domestic engines don't belong in the Z' and bullshit like that because any true racer/tuner knows that the only things that make any difference to anything are the torque curve and the weight.

-Mike

I'm just sick of hearing morons argue about 'domestic engines don't belong in the Z' and bullshit like that because any true racer/tuner knows that the only things that make any difference to anything are the torque curve and the weight.

-Mike

who said "domestic engines dont belong in the Z" in this particular post...i personally have never said anythign like that and i think it would be a good idea for a particular type of racing. in ths post i simply gave him an alternative to swapping in a V8, i personally dont give a flying f*** what eh does with his car. i think an LS1 is still a little expensive to swap into an older Z unless you hvae money to do it. an LS1 would be a different story because it is fairly light engine compared to iron block motors and it wouldnt destroy the weight balance of the car for auto-cross racing. but most people choose to swap in older 350ci or of the such motors because they are cheap and easy,...but heavy. this will not be good for someone who desires to auto-cross.


i couldn't care less where the engine came from. There are only two things that I could care about, and thats the torque curve and the weight. If the LS1 makes more torque than the VG30DETT at all rpms then I'm going to choose the LS1. Swapping in a carburetted pushrod V8 would be a stupid idea IF AND ONLY IF there was a better alternative in terms of torque and weight. SR20DET, RB20DET and the L series are powerful motors, but have absolutely nothing on a big V8 in torque.
for arguments sake, at what point does the LS1 give more torque than the Nissan motors. after fully modified??? i really dont know how much you can get a LS1 motor with a transmission and all the hardware that is needed...but i do know you can get RB25DET front clips fairly inexpensive and it can be modified to 450rwhp and equal torque with a few inexpensive bolt ons. torque is good but at what expense....a well built turbocharged car will hold its own against any V8 pushing the same HP and TQ.


throwing an LS1 in a car that was sold for $100 would be asinine, as would throwing in a heavier iron block V8, with the want to compete in auto-cross. one is too expensive and the other is too heavy. if he were drag racing the weight balance of the car can be sacrficed in the need for alot more power. not so much with auto-cross...it would be alot better to have perfect weight balance and a better suspension than a front heavy, nose-diving car that has alot of un-useable power

in this particular case there is a happy medium and neither motor is that. pick your motor with car btu if you want to autocross i would personally go with a less powerful but cheaper and lighter motor in comparison to an iron block V8. if you can afford the LS1 and all of its components this could be a good or better option also.

i do not understand why someone elses car matters so much to everyone and this partiular discussion always ends up with a debate. i personally dont care what you put in your car...i am just trying to give you the best option possible.

I didn't realize I would lighting a fire with that simple question. The reason it came up is that, as something of a purist, I'm not particularly fond of Iron-block V8's in Z's. But, I respect the people who do, because anyone willing to perform that level of modification in the name of performance deserves at least a little respect.

As a side note, I think the LS-1 is an awesome engine, with an aluminum block and TPI, it's light, responsive, and makes tons of power across the board. I'm not a V-8 hater. I just wouldn't want one in MY z.

It was kind of funny, I thought, when I was in school at Wyotech, One kid in my Hi-po and Chassis fab class had a nice turbo mkIII supra, with a strong running 7M-GTE. But his project in that class was he wanted to strip that motor out and drop a small-block ford in it. Now, THAT's misguided! :)

LoL

I have to say I agree with you word-for-word, Driftertank...

That being said: Are you sticking with the L28? Have you figured out your original question?

The buddy I bought the 280ZX parts car from says that the rings are bad in his engine, so I'm gonna pull the motor, tear it down, and build it. He says It's already bored 1mm (.040 for you CID folks) over, so I sent a quote request to JE pistons for a set of 90mm 10:1 pistons. I plan to run a stage 3 cam kit from MSA, so it should pull pretty good.

Should be a nice lil' engine!

Yep, and with the five speed and the 3.9 rear end, it should haul ...you know what. I already did the calculations, and with the 225/50-16 tires i plan to run, and the estimated redline on the new motor, it should run a low 14 - something, and top out right around 170 mph. And I'm aiming for a hair over 1.0g on the skidpad. overall, it should be a pretty quick, well-balanced little machine. And good-looking. I think the 1st gen z's have the sexiest lines.

Oh, crap, I hope I didn't just start another debate! :)

LoL

First comes Z32, then S30 chassis....