Friend has a 240z. what to swap???

A forum for owners of S30 and S130 Datsun Z's... 240Z, 260Z, 280Z and 280ZX!
RatedR
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Sup fellas.My friend just basically has 1 question, what engine should he put into the car? Right now he's contemplating on going with a vg30dett, but I'm not sure if it'll fit or if he'll have clearance issues. I told him to go with the RB series, but he says the previous owner already swapped it in and it has a lot of miles on it. He seriously wants that VG, he's found a seller for the entire motor set for $200. (dunno how, but he's pretty good at finding deals). Let me know what you guys think.

PS-any other engines are welcome to, but he says he doenst want it to sound like a domestic

TIAR


trpower7
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Small block. Get a conversion kit from http://www.jtr.com . I've done two small block swaps into a 240Z and a 280Z. He won't care about it sounding like a domestic after about five minutes of gut wrenching torque.

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McAdam
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Get a turbo 280zx motor and drivetrain, bigger turbo and an intercooler. possibly bigger injectors. It'll be boltin, it'll fast, and anytime you get bored with it, all you have to do is turn up the boost.

McAdam

trpower7
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Fuel management will be a bizitch. Not sure if JWT has a 280Z program, and if you want to go NEAR as fast as a small block you'll need that or a standalone.

Redline240
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Don't go SBC, still with nissan power...get a RB25 or RB26!!!

Redline

trpower7
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Depends on how much money he wants to spend. Consider a built small block can run under a grand, and someone already makes a full swap kit. A built small block gets you just as much power as a stock RB25 or 26, most likely 100 or so HP more. It'll also run on piss-poor 87 octane, and parts are cheaper than piss. Seems to me like for the cost of just an engine he can have the whole small block setup done and done, with more power. I guess you could pay for idealism and individuality, but every 280, 240, and 300 that's ever dropped into my hands has been the receiver of a newly rebuilt 350, and no one has never complained (I've worked on three, seen seven or eight...)

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McAdam
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http://www.zcar.com/forums/rea...16751

do what this guy did. He runs in the 12's with a N/A straight 6 and its totally streetable. If you are going to make a smallblock las light as a L6, you'll need a whole hell of a lot more cash for parts than you would to make the 6 as fast as the 8. JWT does offer a 280zx program.

small block swap kit is gonna be $1000, plus the small block and build itself, another $1000, then a custom driveshaft, another $300, and then if yhou want to make it light as well, your gonna need aluminum heads and waterpump, at least another $1000.

get a 280zx turbo drivetrain and computer, $500, n/a transmission, about $100. then a T3/TO4E hybrid for about $300, some 370cc injectors, about $150, and a starion intercooler, about $50. figure about $300 for exhaust and intercooler piping, and your done! all for uder $1500, and it BOLTS IN. the set-up would be good for about 350RWHP, and still get decent mileage to boot.

McAdam

p.s. http://www.datsuns.com/Tech/dy...0.gif thats a dyno of a 4bbl 350. notice the nice readings of 153.3hp!?!?!?!? thats pathetic.

http://home.att.net/~jason510/dynoday.htm

this was a dynosession for datsun/nissans that someone attended. I like those numbers.

trpower7
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So if I don't care about a hundred or so pounds I get it all for $2300?? And I GAURENTEE I can make a 4bbl 350 get nearly double that power number with a good rebuild, tuning, etc. Not to mention the simplicity, oh the simplicity. I wouldn't risk the boost on a stock junkyard engine to get roughly the same if not less power than a newly rebuilt small block. And again, the parts issue.....how easy is it going to get to find parts for a three decade old engine?? If we want to get wacky, the one big-block I did was absolutely insane, 650+rwhp on the juice, wouldn't hook up to save it's life.......

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McAdam
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I dont know about the price point, I thought thats what YOU were saying, that its cheaper than building an L6 or going RB. parts are still all over the place for these motors. they did build over a million of them. The "L" series motors areactually considered tobethe small block of japan,ironically enough. the bottom ends are bulletproof.

http://www.hybridz.org/phpBB2/...ight=

thats on a stock motor. in a 1983 280zx. think what it would do in a 240Z that weighs in at 500lbs less? a rebiuld kit would not be that much on a nissan short block. probably about the same as for a "chebby" small block, if not less. All I am saying is that you can pull big numbers out of the SOHC L28, and it bolts into the 240Z body with no modification. it doesn't get much simpler than that.

McAdam

reggiegsd
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This has been THE classic argument in the Z community for the last twenty years or so. It all comes down to a matter of taste and preferences.

The L6 motor and the SBC are about a wash on weight. The slight increase in weight for the SBC (only about 40 pounds) is offset by the shorter block giving a better balance to the car than the L6. Remember, the L6 block is one heavy sucker.

The Ford small block is lighter than either of the others.

There are a number of subtle differences between the 240 motor and the 280 motor. To get good performance numbers out of the L6 motor you must be able to find exactly the right combination of parts, the right short block, the right head, the right intake, and the right ignition. Of course the same can be said for any American small block V8. The difference is a well built 280 is good for about 220hp while the same amount of money invested in a SBC will give you 300 320 hp.

You have transmission concerns also. Most SBC swaps are done with an automatic. Its just easier. You can use a manual but most kits do not support them. Swapping a 280 drive train into the 240 body involves cutting the hole for the 5-speed shifter (it sits about 2 inches further back than the 4-speed shifter). The Datsun 5-speed from the 280Z or the 280ZX is only good for about 220 lbft of torque. You also have the find the proper drive shaft and have it modified to fit the R-180 differential (some have different flanges).

No swap is easy, even swapping like for like. Notice I didn't say anything about fuel management. You can go from 2 SUs, to 3 Webers, to stock FI, to aftermarket fuel management. All it takes is money and lots of time. Do all of your research first. Before you spend your money.

reggiegsd
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I always sound negative about engine swaps for a reason. I have seen far too many of them end in failure and the swapper looses all his money.

I bought my first Z in 1975 and I have had 20 or so since then. That doesn't count the 30 or so parts cars I have had. I raced for 26 or 27 years and have done 4 V8 swaps for myself and have been involved in many others with friends.

Engine swaps are NOT EASY! Anyone who tells you they are either never did one or is setting you up. Even a relatively simple one like a 280Z and 5-speed into a 240Z body involves matching up electrical systems and fuel systems. Did you know that the 280Z ignition will not drive many 240 tachs?

I have bought many Zcars that were part way into a swap when the poor kid (its invariably a young kid) discovered he didn't have the mechanical skills, the specific knowledge of the Zcar, the right tools, or the space to complete the swap. I would get the car for a few hundred dollars, about what the kid had into the rebuilt tranny. I would part the car out for 10 times what I paid and would keep a couple of interesting parts for my garage.

Don't be a victim. Do your homework FIRST. Do you really have the skills? Can you weld and fabricate. If not, the cost of your swap just went way up. Do you have an engine crane and an engine stand? Can you measure driveshaft angles to within half of a degree? Can you afford to have your garage occupied by a 9 month project? Can you troubleshoot and solve electrical system problems?

Be honest with yourself before you start or someone like me will take away $3000 worth of your parts and a stripped down car for about $300.

SingleCamSam
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I've been looking into getting a 240z and after some research i'd say the way to go is the L28ET from an 81-82 280ZX-T. If you can find one with good compression up to 400whp has been seen on the stock block. What you want to look for is one with P90 stamped on the head. Stock fuel management will give you 250-260whp with a larger turbo. In a 2400lb car like the 240 that's 12 second slips if you do your job right. Best of all it bolts right in there!

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SR 240Z
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it all depends on what he is going for.

For drag racing: RB26dettFor Autocross or Drift: sr20detRoad Racing: Bored out l28et would be good

Its mostly all matter of preference


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