My uber rare jdm mad tyttteee 1973 240z build thread

20061 Views 100 Replies 42 Participants Last post by BURN UNIT, Feb 17, 2015

ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · Feb 17, 2012

No uber rare JDM parts will be in this thread, that was just a plot to get hipsters to make my view count come up. I am too cheap and broke to buy overpriced parts to impress someone on the internet that I probably wouldn't like anyways.

I have had a love affair with the S30 chassis for a long time and found a decent chassis with minimal rust. I had been talking about buying one for so long that when the opportunity to purchase the car arose, my future wife didnt even give me shit for buying it. I knew from the beginning that I wanted it to be powered by a Ka24de with some boost, and I wanted to set it up for some track days. Enough about my love affair, here as some pics of my limited progress....

First thing first I wanted to make the engine run in the floor of my garage. I figured if I could wire it up to run in the floor, then I could definitely make it run in the new car. It was surprisingly easy to wire and make run.

This is the car before I started to take things out

After a long day of cutting, tacking, cussing, and welding with my 8 dollars of scrap steel from clark I got the engine about where I wanted. BIG THANKS TO MIKE AT TRACK ONE FOR THE HOOKUP ON THE KA FOR CHEAP!!!!!!!!

I thought I had cleared the crossmember so my oil pan was not the lowest thing, but I then realized the corssmember was not fully bolted up......FAIL

I gave up for the day and tried again the next weekend with better results

Round 2....

I am going to run Megan S13 coilovers on this car using some ingenuity and help from Xylmer AKA Andy. Some people buy these conversion kits from a place called ZCCJDM.com but Andy and I thought that the design was not ideal and that we could do better. To adapt these coilovers to the 240z you cut off the stock strut leaving a little under 2" of post sticking up. Then weld these adapters to the LCA, that way you can thread the megan coilover onto the car. To adapt the top of the coilover you must cut out the strut tower and weld in camber plates. I got in a hurry and did not take photos of the install, but I will when I do the driver side.

I went ahead and did the mod to delete power steering and run the water pump and alternator off one belt. This is achieved by using a single cam KA alternator brackets, and running a different size belt. You also have to run the single cam KA thermostat housing to clear the now moved alternator brackets. Hopefully Ill get some time this weekend to finish some wiring and finish the drivers side suspension. I cant wait until this thing will move under its own power. I already have antique tags for it lolz!

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 17, 2012

85rx-7gsl-se said:
Sweet garage.

I can not take credit for this, The shop is Marty's Automotive in Rockvale Tn. If you ever need a general mechanic that does good honest work without breaking the bank give him a ring. I have helped him on race cars for several years and not charged him for anything so that is why he lets me take up rack space on the weekends

memphisman said:
Very nice! I also have a love affair with s30's. Have to give you props for using the ka instead of a sr or rb.

Thanks, I went to the dyno with Andy when I first started using Nistune on his Turbo KA. After we made 420HP on a stock KA with the only mod being forged pistons I knew that this was the power plant for me.

Milon said:
Nice!!! Do it big Adam!

p.s. I saw my old slicks the other day over at Chris' house... It made me miss the days of going to the track LOL...

I wont do it too big, at least not like you. I just want something that burns oil and blows off...

boostiswhatsfordinnerNWH said:
Nice. I've had two, a 74 260, and a 73 240. I miss them and had no money ortime for them. My 74 had 19k original miles. =\

This build looks promising. Andy is a good dude, and very smart.

If you need some help, I'd love to come check it out.

Andy is a very smart dude. I have had the pleasure of calling him my friend for about a decade and it is always good to have someone like him to bounce ideas off of. I swear he and I talked on the phone about 20 times before I had the machinist make my adapters. I do believe they are a much better option that the other company and are almost 1/3 of the weight. As far as coming out and working on the car, misery loves company, I should be out there tomorrow welding away on my coilover adapters. PM if you really want to come check it out.

cnpayne said:
Wow nice work! I have always loved these cars but all I find are rust buckets.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

I do not think that there is an original z that does not at least have some rust. These things are made out of the worst steel ever manufactured. Even though there is not a ton of rust, I still have my work cut out for me.

Thanks for all the kind words!

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #11 · Feb 19, 2012

rollagtsracer said:
does the machinist happen to be named larry?

To be honest I dont know the guys name. He lives in Canada so i doubt he is the fellow you are referring to. I tried several shops in town to get these things made and they all wanted too much, especially since I had done all the figuring, material, and drew them up....

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #13 · Feb 19, 2012

Noize said:
Real awesome project! Please keep updating.

I will, I would have updates from yesterday finishing my front suspension but I could not get the stock 240sx bracket that came on the megan coilover off. I spent 6 hours using, aerokroil, torches, grinders, clamps, a strap wrench, and ultrasonic cleaner, and lots and lots of disappointment. I finally got it off, from the looks of it it got something (salt is my guess) got in between the sleeve and coilover and corroded the threads. I used a thread file and cleaned all the threads and dug out the threads on the sleeve so all is well now.

Moral of the story is use anti-seize on your coilovers when you put them on your car.

skfury said:
Ive got an s14 ka24de block bored 20 over you can have if your willing to come to knoxville lol

I am always over that way to whitewater kayak. I will pm you next time I am in the area if you haven't already given it away. Thanks

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #17 · Feb 19, 2012

Ok a little more progress today....

First thing you do to put these coilovers on is sawzall straight through the lower strut.

In this pic you can see the sleeve that was stuck (after it has been cleaned and loosened). The sleeves I am using in the front of the car are actually the megan ones that come with the 240sx coilover kit, but I cut all the brackets off because they are not needed.

Here is me holding the sleeve ready to be beat on using a big hammer and a wood block (so I dont damage the threads on top). I went ahead and beveled the top of the cutoff strut and also beveled the bottom of the sleeve to help assist it to go on straight.

This is the top of the strut tower where I cut the hole so my coilover will clear and be able to slide so I can adjust the camber. You can see where some of it is cut through and some of it was just scored. I found the best method to cut the rounded sections was to score it the best I could with the cutoff wheel, then use a body saw to finish it. This method actually worked very good.

Here is the front after I got everything welded up.

Now I just have to finish the rear.....

I also almost finished running the fuel supply line and am getting close on the wiring to at least hear it run. I just want to get all the work that I need a lift for done so I do not have to drive 20 minutes every time I want to work on it. To be honest I am a little overwhelmed at how much has to be done to this car to get it where I want it.... one day.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #21 · Feb 21, 2012

rollagtsracer said:
the KA seems tiny in comparison to the z

It is, which leaves room to work on it and you can also stand in the engine bay while doing so, not to mention you lose around 200 lbs and have the same HP ( a little less torque).

skfury said:
Nice man shes looking really good

Thanks!

waldo36 said:
I looked up NisTune since I had never heard of that. If you have a lot of experience with them, you need to tell them to do a board for the Z33. they everything for just about every Nissan engine except for the VQ....wtf?! But my question is after you added the NisTune, could you have another piggy-back system on top of that like Osiris (for the Z's)? just reading through, it just seems like an ECU reflash without really tuning, is this correct?

This basically turns your factory ecu into a standalone. Depending on which ecu/chasis/several other factors, depends on just how much you can adjust. So no it is not just a reflash. I do not think matt form nistune gives two $hit$ about what I suggest to him, but I can tel andy and he might have a little more pull.....

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #22 · Feb 25, 2012

aznb_boy89 said:
Nice build man, i've always wanted to build one replicating the Devil Z lol. But if this is Adam Hopkins, im Tony Vongkhamchanh if you remember me? I went to school with Trent and drove the silver 240 with an sr and gold nismo lmgt2's back in the day. it's been a while so you might not remember me lol

Sorry I missed this earlier, I know who you are.

I have been working on my car lately, got some more work done, still tons to go....

Here is the rear lower control arm. I have obviously already cut and cleaned it up for welding.

Here are the sleeves that I had made. These are better IMO because I can thread the coilover all the way down, where as the other ones you can buy are stepped in the inside to prevent it from threading all the way down.

This is my sleeve pushed on waiting to be welded. I left about a 1/4 inch all the way around the bottom so I could weld the strut tube better.

This is the sleeve welded up for good.

I forgot to take a picture for the cutout for the camber plate on the top, so I snapped one from below. I didnt want to lower/raise the car again.... Sorry

Here are the tops of the rear after I welded and faded the into the body. It came out looking pretty good If I may say so myself.

Thanks for looking!

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #30 · Apr 15, 2012

I have been really bad about updating the build thread. But fortunately I have been pretty good about working on it when I have a free moment. New job + getting married + selling/purchasing a new home + working on z = no Tennspeed updates. Sorry. I did finally get it to a point where I can drive it on Thursday and I was pretty excited because I wanted to take it to the ZATTACK show today.

I had a good time at the meet. I saw a bunch of nice cars, got a ton of compliments from all different types of people, and got to meet several local z enthusiast that can help me source some of the hard to find parts I will need to complete my build.

Enough typing, here are a few pics Xylemer shot in his driveway. Dont be too critical of the pictures, he shot them in about 2 minutes while trying to diagnose an idling issue on my rusty junk. Enjoy!

Here is the spook spoiler that I am thinking about trying to get from Xylemer. He put it on a timer so we could hold it in place to see what it looked like. I am too fat to be laying on the ground....

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #41 · Apr 15, 2012

The wheels are.... GASP!!!!! Rota Aleicas. They are -15 offset 15x9's

They are knock offs of the "cherry blossoms" wheels that were popular in the 70's and 80's.

I think they will serve my purpose without any issues and I just didnt want to put watanabe's or panda sports on there like every other 240z that has been modified.

Thanks for all the compliments on the car, I am having a lot of fun building it.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #54 · Sep 20, 2012

Thanks for all the interest in the car!

AllGOnoSHOW said:
Love the car. I wish you wouldnt had gone with a super stretched tire though imo the z deserves a more performance oriented setup.

Love the front lip you should buy it

Did a VW guy just tell me I have too much stretch? I may need to reevaluate my tires? LOL

I just wanted that look, This is a street car that 99% of the time will be babied on the weekends. If I ever decide to push the car I will put better wheels/tires on the car. For now I am just happy it rolls.

A little progress on the car but it has been slow because of other projects. I bought a house and have been renovating the place. Plus work was wearing me out with 75+ hours a week for 3 out of 4 weeks in July. (I worked 38 hours in a weekend) House Pics:

Before

After

Now onto the reason you clicked on the thread

Made a turba' manifold. I wanted to make something nicer, like a top mount, but just decided I needed to keep it simple. Plus a log will be fine for my goals.

Here it is all fitted together nicely waiting for some tig lovin.

After said tig lovin

I hadn't welded it almost 2 years so I was extremely happy with how it turned out.

Here is the collector I made for the manifold. I still have to weld the collector to the manifold and also the wastegate, but I am holding off until I can actually bolt the stuff on the car to make sure it will fit like I want.

I also went to Clark Iron and metal and found Stainless 3 and 4 inch piping for EXTRA CHEAP!!! I have 5$ in the stainless pipe in this picture.

Imagine 5 bins full to the brim with stainless pipe mandrel bends. I made one phone call to a friend and he was up there in 20 minutes and bought every bend they had lol.

I almost have every piece for my turbo kit, and if the stars align right, tomorrow I might have some free time to go fab the stuff up. Im hoping all goes as planned...

Hopefully I have more updates in the next couple of days.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #56 · Sep 23, 2012

Got some more done on the Z...

I got the frame notched out and patched in. I need to make some brackets to hold the radiator at the correct height. I also do not know exactly how I am going to hold the top of the radiator flush with the support. I also need to find a way to make the top hose about 2 inches longer.

I finished my Manifold and got the wastegate welded in. I believe I am going to have plenty of clearance for everything and the intercooler piping should be super easy... "Should" being the key word in the last statement.

The last picture sucks, sorry.

Tomorrow if I do not get called in to work I will try to get the intercooler mounted and get the piping welded up.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #60 · Oct 1, 2012

Thanks again for all the comments, I am slowly but surely working towards having all the fab work done on the car.

More pictures of progress:

First thing I did was put the 90's on the intercooler and made mounting brackets I welded to the frame.

Chris West has been a big help welding the aluminum. I can get aluminum to stick together, but it looks like a bird shit on the welds. I let Chris do the welding because he is much better at Aluminum than myself. The fact that I dont have to grind down the welds to make it look decent, is a bonus.

I am cheap, therefore I only used straight pipe with slight angles instead of mandrel bends. Because of how straight the pipes were I honestly do not think it will ever be an issue. I am happy with how it is turning out. I lack finishing the down pipe, oil supply and drain, and installing injectors.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #62 · Oct 4, 2012

I tried to go back and look at the auction with no luck, it had expired. When I go back to work on the car I will measure and post back.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #64 · Oct 30, 2013

usafdarkhorse said:
Any updates?

Its funny you ask that. I have parked the car for a little under a year and have been slowly collecting parts. It was fun turbo but the tired ass KA I put in there devoleped a rod knock and I decided to go a different route. I think I have every piece to make this thing go again, except the drive shaft, I have the yoke, but I dont know the exact length Ill need until it gets in the car. Here is what arrived today.... IMSOFUCKINGEXCITED!!!!

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #67 · Oct 30, 2013

watts13 said:
me, you, and jared are gonna have to meet up for pictures when all ours get done.

Sounds good, there is also another z in town that is absolutely sick! It may be 20 years before in moves under its own power, but when it finally does, it will be perfect. He needs to post a build thread.... cough, Andy, cough......

FNEG said:
death box-z

If I have not killed myself on my tubro gsxr750, class V whitewater kayaking, paragliding, and the other dumb shit I have done, I will be fine.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #69 · Nov 15, 2013

It has taken a lot of time to figure out exactly what parts I needed to make my bastard combination of a motor work. 5.3 block, 5.7 heads, truck crank pulley, f body alternator bracket with spacers behind it, truck alternator, car water pump and tensioner and 3/4 inch spacers, ls1 intake, all this to bottom mount an alternator on a truck motor... I think it is turning out pretty good.

I got the old motor and driveline removed today. I got the cross member that I welded in for the ka taken out. That took quite a bit of time because I didn't want to hurt the datsun frame rails. I used a cut off wheel and tried to only cut the welds that held it on. The process took a while, but now you could never tell the car had a different cross member welded in it. Obviously this picture was taken before I got all the welds removed. I will try to take better pictures the next time I work on it.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #70 · Dec 26, 2013

I have been slowly working on this thing when I have free time. It is currently not located at my house so it is a little inconvenient to work on. I have the engine in the car and I am trying to take care of all the little details that will need to be done to make it run. No more talk, more pictures....

I am going to run dual exhaust on the car, so I have to remove the stock fuel tank and figure something out to run the exhaust out on the passenger side. Here is the best thing I could come up with... I started by cutting out the spare tire well.

I bought a giant sheet of 3/16 aluminum to make my fuel cell out of. This stuff does not exactly bend or form the easiest, but it should be plenty strong. I recently purchased a new welder for my car projects. It has turned out to be a pretty nice welder for an affordable price. It is an Everlast powerpro 256. It is a 250 amp tig /stick welder and a 60 amp plasma cutter. It has worked well for everything I have used it for so far, My only complaint is the plasma cutter doesn't seem to be a true 60 amps.

I am relocating the fuel fill to behind the license plate. The battery for the car will be in the rear of the car on the passenger side. I plan on installing a cutoff switch inside the gasoline fill door. I am happy with how the fuel cell is turning out, I cant wait to drive this thing.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #73 · Dec 26, 2013

yaaj1320 said:
good looking fuel cell..!!!

Thanks, me and a buddy are messing with it, it is my first time making one, so hopefully I didn't over look anything important.

BoostMe said:
Nice Adam! Look forward to seeing this on the road.

Me and you both, ill also be excited to see a certain white celica moving on down the road under its own power. I appreciate the kind words. I won't be taking this car to the extreme like you did with your Celica, but I do want it to be pretty nice when it is finished. Just time and money with a few tears and lots of blood is all it takes right?

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #76 · Dec 27, 2013

javajoe79 said:
Good looking cell. BEEFY! No baffles?

I haven't put any in yet. What I did was where it sump is I didn't cut the hole out, I just drilled a few holes over the front area the sump was so that fuel would be trapped in the sump under acceleration. You have any suggestions or ideas? I was hoping someone with insight like you would chime in... Also what is the standard thickness of a fuel cell? I thought 3/16 was a little over kill. Thanks for the advice in advance.

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ECUAdam

Discussion Starter · #79 · Dec 27, 2013

javajoe79 said:
Well make sure the holes into the sump are enough or big enough. With a big enough pump that could cause a restriction. In a round sump like that I would have probably sectioned it into quarters, as in 4 pie shaped segments. Then have small cutouts on the bottom edges of the baffels so fuel can pass between but not too fast.

Yeah 3/16 is overkill but nothing wrong with that, just more $. Most cells like that are made from .090 or .125. The baffles also help it not flex which leads to cracks down the road.

I am running -8 line to from the cell to the fuel rail, I might go turbo in the future so I didn't want to have to run another line if I decided to do so. That being said, I drilled 6 holes in the bottom of the pan that were the same size as a -8 so i should be good there. I might call you later today to bug you, thanks.

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