My wife gave me a 1993 300ZX TT

[DG69]

Hello there, after my father in law passed away early this year, my wife kept his 1993 300ZX TT. As I am sort of a car enthusiast, she gave it to me to see if I wanted to put it back to its original glory. I have rebuilt several cars, mostly german ones, but never had a Nissan.

The car was barely running, I have gotten the engine out and is currently being checked to see what needs to be done, the body is being fixed and repainted to the original White/Pearl color. As we continue to check it is evident that many adaptations and missing parts need to be replaced. My intention is to try to keep the car as stock as possible or with minor performance upgrades. I do not intend to make it a race the car but I do enjoy road trips with friends in other high performance vehicles. I am founding out that this forum is and incredible source of knowledge.

So far we are going through the normal rebuilt: timing chains, silicone hoses, pumps, new electrical wiring harness, ignition coils, clutch, stock suspension, etc, etc. I need a few recommendations from this forum of experts:

I need to change radiator, and replace shroud assembly. It seems that going for an aluminum radiator with double electro-fan shroud is a better set-up than the original. Any thought or recommendations here?

Similarly as the turbos are being checked or re-built, what do you think about upgrading the stock intercoolers to aluminum either dual or single front mounted option. Again any recommendations of which way to go and potentially a proven manufacturer.

What would be the top 10 upgrades to do while I have the car completely stripped down, what else should I look for in these cars.

Many thanks for the help.

[DCaff300ZX]

Welcome to Nico, we do try to be as helpful as possible with our fellow Z-Lovers and sharing our experiences so let's see what we can do!

It sounds like you are off to a great start with sound goals and a solid approach with the repairs you mentioned, however I would not go with a dual electric fan setup with a radiator upgrade, and instead make sure that the stock clutch fan is new and get some of the front airguides that will better seal the air entry area to better flow air over the radiator. You will want to replace the huge stock air box with a cone filter setup (or selin dual intake setup for best setup possible for airflow and correct MAF/ECU operation with mods) for better airflow, and NOT use a large front mounted intercooler (IC) which blocks airflow to the radiator.
I personally will soon be adding upgrade turbos to my Z and will be going with the Z1 upgraded side mount intercoolers, as they are a great deal as a new kit at $495 and do improve performance as well as ensure non-leaking IC's.

Top 10 things to do in my humble opinion...others can add their own take as well!

1. Maintenance- check/clean ALL electrical connectors and replace if necessary, do a boost leak test, 120K timing belt service, clean throttle bodies inside plenum, check/clean injectors/connectors, IACV/connectors, check/replace fuel system parts/hoses/CLAMPS, install fresh correct OEM or better spark plugs, PTU/CAS connectors serviced, cooling/vacuum hoes replaced, coolant service, replace brake fluid/pads, etc.
If an intake plenum removal is in the works (injector service), also consider deleting the unnecessary coolant piping to the throttle bodies under the plenum and any hoses that are part of that delete mod- a well-covered optional but recommended job most Z owners do if/when their plenum is off. If your Z is pre-'94, installing the new style '94+ injectors along with an upgraded fuel rail system is a very good idea.

2. Do some minor mod/deletes- injector voltage mod for '94 and under, brake booster brace added, replace stock airbox with cone filter or selin dual MAF setup, replace boost hardpipes with silicone or metal hardpipes/clamps, move PTU from front of engine to inside front end of car (lower front frame rail or headlight can/nose panel rail most popular choices)

3. Some support upgrades to prepare for more power- service/install upgraded brake system components (larger calipers and rotors, upgraded pads), inspect/service clutch/drivetrain, install upgraded lighter wheels/performance tires. Also a good time to inspect the entire drivetrain and rear subframe and repair ANY issues (trans/engine mounts, shrouds, HICAS system, alignment)

4. Minor performance mods- Upgraded smics, silicone hoses all around, larger diameter IC hardpiping, Ball bearing and/or bigger more responsive turbos, ECU chip upgraded for current mods or a tunable ECU system (Nistune, other) purchased

5. More support mods- upgraded fuel pump, upgraded clutch and clutch system (chromoly pivot, heavy duty fork, shorter (61") SS 1 piece clutch fluid line, check/replace knock sensor and O2's and other hard to test/replace sensors when engine is out

6. Suspension upgrade- coilover system with necessary support pieces installed, upgraded sway bars (NA) and solid subframe bushings installed, optional HICAS delete (TT), Big Brake system (450+ WHP)

7. Looks mods- '99 jspec bumper or favorite other installed, rear diffuser, lip spoilers, front splitter/solid undershroud pieces also available, exterior moldings refreshed/replaced, dash gauge rings, interior leather trim upgrades, seats reupholstered, custom DIN panel, gauge arrangements, stereo, etc.

8. Paint/body refresh

9. Complete interior renovation

10. Complete rebuild and/or restoration

Well, more or less ran out of things at #8, sorry...but basically this all is covered in the "Everything you need to know about your Z32" stickie at the top of the page, in the area quite away down the page titled "Destroying the world in your Z32".
The info there is very accurate and is a good step by step breakdown of the things to do and consider as you modify your Z32.
It seems also that we both have similar goals and tastes for our Z's, check out my own build for many/most of the things listed here that I have done to my Z's over the years.
Good Luck and have a blast!

[DG69]

Thank you very much for taking the time to write your answer. Very helpful indeed. And yes I already checked your project...what a journey, keep it up, you are certainly inspiring many of us.

BTW any suggestions of a couple of places to source the components, I have so far used OEM parts. I hear you mentioning Z1, any others? Once again thanks

Best regards

[DCaff300ZX]

Note- I'd also add to your cooling questions that an underdrive/overdrive pulley setup can be installed as well that will increase the fan speed for cooling.

Regarding sources, I use Z-1 and Concept Z performance for most of my parts as they are both very helpful and knowledgeable, along with a few other smaller places like SpecialtyZ for specialty stuff.
Kyle at Import Performance Parts is also a highly recommended source by many here, although I have never used them- they are an East Coast source.
https://conceptzperformance.com/Cart/li ... ype=NIS300
http://specialtyz.com/shop/default/300zx.html
http://www.importperformanceparts.net/

Here's an interesting places for some small style bits:
http://www.zthirtytwo.com/collections/z32-engine

Suspension and style parts:
https://www.powertrix.com/z32 (GREAT company and owner, HIGHLY recommended for your suspension needs)

A good source for some necessary stuff such as some innovative injector adapters, turbos, and ECU's- page down looking among the posts for mixed in Z32 parts:
http://www.jimwolftechnology.com/news.asp

[RED_DET]

Welcome aboard.... you are on the road to a huge learning curve. Been modding cars for decades and recently acquired (2) TT z's. One ran and the other one needed much attention similar to what you have on your hands. Once you learn the in and outs of the z, they are easy to work on, although difficult at times because of the lack of room in the engine bay. Since you have the engine out, replace or rebuild anything that is suspect. Do not cheap out on parts... use OEM or high quality aftermarket parts. We cater to the G/Z community and now that I have countless hours of working on not only 1 but 2 z's, we now offer parts for the z32 and offer forum discounts to members.

[DG69]

Great thank you. Looking forward to see you website fully operational with Z32 parts.

[DCaff300ZX]

Welcome aboard.... you are on the road to a huge learning curve. Been modding cars for decades and recently acquired (2) TT z's. One ran and the other one needed much attention similar to what you have on your hands. Once you learn the in and outs of the z, they are easy to work on, although difficult at times because of the lack of room in the engine bay. Since you have the engine out, replace or rebuild anything that is suspect. Do not cheap out on parts... use OEM or high quality aftermarket parts. We cater to the G/Z community and now that I have countless hours of working on not only 1 but 2 z's, we now offer parts for the z32 and offer forum discounts to members.

Hmmm, cool...I'll keep an eye on your site for when it's functional!

[RED_DET]

Adding items daily....