Modding a NA Z

Hello Everyone, um I'm new around here. I am currently thinking about getting a Z, I kind of fell for them when I first saw one on the road. Um, I'm 17 right now and drive an 83 toyota supra (pretty fun lil' car :) )

I want to get a NA Z for a few different reasons first off being Insurance (TT would just drain the old bank account) second being that I am only 17 and need something to look forward to in my future (read: TT). I'll probably end up getting a nice lower mileage 92-93 z. The thing I am wondering about is performance mods for the 91-96 NA 300zx's.

I know about the following performance type parts for the newer NA z's and have a few questions about them.

1. Exhaust system- which brands do some of you guys recomend? I know of the stillen systems, I would think that they are fairly high quality. About how much extra HP could I expect out of a new exhaust system?

2. Various intake upgrades: K&N filters and the POP Filter thing's. Im kind of in the dark as far as these things go. I read that I could expect about 5hp from an upgrade in this area. Any thoughts/insights here?

3. ECU upgrades: I know of the Jim Wolf ECU and the Stillen products. Which do people prefer and what are the benefits of this upgrade?

I'm sure that there are others that I am unaware of and would appreciate it if you would share what you know :) I kind of have a goal of around 300hp in the future, as It will take some time to pay off the car, let me get "aquainted" with the beautiful Z before I do any major mods.

I've read of the "60,000 mile maintnance" and am wondering what types of maintnence this includes.

Thanks for any insight or thoughts or whatever you might share with me.

One last question is to the guys who own a 92-93 NA 300zx, how old are you and how does your insurance cost you? This car wont be in my name most likely but I kind of want a general idea of how much it will cost me.

-Chris

Hey,

Nice to see another Z enthusiast...but next time you should really read the threads that we have going...like at least the first 3 pages and then ask your question...b/c your question is like on the same page as another guy's...

Just to let you know...

Exhaust system....I would go GReddy...I have the GReddy's and love them and swear by them since I also had them on my S14 240SX. Good gains...around 20hp they say

Intake...JWT or Stillen..they are different but its up to you which is good for you...I think Stillen is the one to go w/...gains around 5-10hp

ECU...the only one to go w/is JWT...I think the Stillen's is 100 bux more and it's the same thing...retard if you ask me

Check the other posts about NA Z mods..."Couple questions buying a Z"

Thanks for the reply-

I actually did read through about the first 5 pages and did a search on NA Z's. Somehow I managed to miss those threads that I now see- I felt kind of stupid after posting my thread then finding those ;) sorry-

At least you were friendly about this unlike some forums who eat new people alive for things like this.

Thanks for the info, I am in the "gathering large amounts of money" stage of my purchase right now. Hopefully spring of next year I will make my purchase.

-Chris

NP and anytime...Nissan's rule

Hey to let you know about insurance, i have a 91 Z NA in jersey and i pay 422every 3 months, not bad. im 21 in july , soo thats pretty good for jersey if you wask me. as far as thte other things, im looking into that also, i have 99k on mine, got it with 87k and well lets just say im pissed at the guy i got it from, he was supposed to be a friend, well co worker. anyway so far ive gotten a alternator,valvecover gasket,oil pressure switch,timing belt,water pump, starter, im working on actually getting engine and trans mounts cause it shakes a little when starting off. just have some extra cash just incase.
ps-i chose NA for the reason of no one around here able to fix turbos, turbo Z would prob blow on me, and i have it auto casue im sure the trans would go soo thats my reason. haha ok good luck
mark

If you are really dead set on having a modded, fast Z then may I just suggest buying a TT? For what you will probably end up spending on the mods you could get a nice TT and they are quicker stock then just about any NA except some with a huge amout of money put into them. I didn't really check into to this so correct me if I'm wrong but I have been told that the insurance on a TT isn't that much worse than an NA.

And be really picky about the Z you buy because like just like Stealth, you can be burned bad. Z32s are very high performance machines and need alot of maintainence. When it doesn't get done, well, things start blowing up. TTs especially because they get run so hard. And as some one looking right now for one, I can tell you that you don't want to try and find a VG30DE, much less a TT motor. Its also good to remember that these weren't very high production cars (something like 80k total state side I think) and they are nearing a decade old even for the newest ones so parts are becoming harder to find *cough* engine *cough*. Easiest to buy a nice Z and when it starts having some problems, off load it and get another. Like dump the NA in a few years and get the TT you know. :)

I have to agree with broke as **** on the part of them being rare and maintenance being expected. I knew what i was getting into but not aware of how bad. Jus tpick carefully. like he also said they are high performance. This means YOU CAN NOT slack on up keep, if you do, then dont get one. you can not miss so much as an oil change.

Broke: I like the idea of dumping a Z for another. I was thinking that cause like everyone else with an NA ive looked for TT engines and they all have high mileage and are expensive. i have found a site or 2 that specialize in Z's and was thinking of getting one. The thing is, well, i dont know if you saw the list but i have had these done:
-Alternator
-Starter
-Timing belt and water pump
-valve cover gasket
-oil pressure switch
With al this said, what do i do? do i cont. with the mods or what? it has 99.7k miles on it. i may need engine and trans mounts which isnt hard. other than that can i start, after a year and only a few actually driving months, on mods? i want to but is it worth it?

Any time you change a car from stock you run the risk of breaking all manner of things. When I pulled the heads off the engine that was in my car, not only did it stink like hell but the pistons were blasted clean and burnt black to go with some badly scored cylinder walls. The previous owner had the boost upped to 16 psi and didn't do alot to build the engine up even under almost double stock psi. Thing must have been detonating all over the place. And checking the vin on the block and the car it turns out that wasn't even the original engine (car shows 137K on the odo even though the paint and leather could pass for 37). Easy to imagine why decent VGs are hard to come by.

Frankly I wouldn't sink too much money into an engine with 100k on it. But then again mine just blew up so I'm kind of biased. Depending on how much money you have and what you want to do with the car, it may or may not be worth it to alot of money on an engine rebuild with forged whirly bits. You can probably do all the mods you want barring crazy stupid boost increases , aka 16 psi, and be fine. But if you want big, big power with reliablity then engine building in your future.

sounds good man. Yeah I have a good guy that works on it and doesnt mess around. He also says my engine may be a replacement so I dont know if thats good or bad. He says that cause a lot of things were loose or missing. K later

U know sometimes it seems like a good idea to sell my na z and get a tt one, but to me keeping it and doing the swap has more positives than negatives; such as: i will have the na diffrentials which means better acceleration low end, wider wheel base (2+2), a super clean na that looks bad a$$, jl audio subs/amp, carbonfiber hood, wings west body kit, new rims, and suspension. In my case i think i'll be better off doing the swap instead of buying a tt. Just my 2 cents.

Well then why even bother swapping? NA Z still plenty powerful enough to reach 'get-thee-to-jail' speeds and since it is already what you want, why change it? When you really decide to get that next step up in horsepower then you can sell the NA and find yourself a TT. Bring cash.


Lots of it.

Guys.... how old is this thread? C'mon!

do you think a na z with headers, ecu, exhaust, intake, pulleys, clutch and a short throw shifter will be able to do a 0-60 run in the 5's?

With an average driver: No


With a good driver: No


For all cost of all those mods you could buy a TT. And those can run 0-60 in less than 6.

As for this thread well...looking at the post dates, seems it was started and died back in sept 02 but then Z32 dragged it to the top again...and we've all been adding on to that.

a friend of mine has greddy exhaust, stillen headers, JWT ecu and pop charger, short throw, full suspension, AF regulator, act 6 puck clutch and a fidanza flywheel. (I think thats all the performance parts that make a difference). And with the rear part of the car stripped, mainly spare tire and plastic and no passenger seat he has run 14.6 1/4. Not sure on 0-60 so i wont say. But he also has clogged cats which are being replaced when the turbo motor is dropped in during the nesxt two weeks. He also dynos at 215 WHP. He goes to UTI car school so he knows his stuff. Not to bad for an NA but after al lteh money he spent and still is not as fast as my 350 he has opted to go ahead and get a turbo front clip out of japan. looks like i gotta get greddy turbos for me now.