Jasonisa Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 Hi guys My name is Jason, I live in Alice Springs in Central Australia I have come to this forum seeking information and advice, you see i am interested in purchasing a 280zx from a guy that live down the street from me, its in fairly good condition and runs and drives. A few months ago though i purchased from adelaide a 1983 Nissan Skyline MR30 sedan that had a L24e in it with the turbo setup from the l20et running a nice 10 pounds boost with an intercooler, long story short the skylines body was rubbish and so now i have a shell R30 with the L24e motor sitting at a mates place and the rest of the Turbo gear sitting at my house gathering dust. Im thinking about buying the 280zx from here and turboing it, my dilema is I am not sure weather I would be better off putting the turbo kit on the l28e that is already in the car or would i be better off just putting the turbo gear back on the l24 from my skyline and dropping the l24 in the 280zx as i already know the condition of that motor and that it is capable of running 10 pound boost with no issues. I would apreciate some oppinions and ideas from anyone willing to give them Cheers Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linton Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 turbo the 280 if it blows up you have a spare l24, either way you will still have to plumb it in and its less work just my 2c Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Thats a good theory thanks Linton, Only promblem is the shell with th l24 motor cant sit at my mates indefinatly, and i have no where to store the motor at my place.... but i can always try and sort something out, the thing i was worried about with the l28 is wether or not it can handle boost, i have done some searching on here and hybrid z's and there are conflicting oppinions concerning wether the setup is intercooled or not some say yes good idea others say no no no get a p90 head, now bearing in mind i only plan to run 10 or 12 pund boost and this time with an aftermarket ecu instead (still have to buy), as i dont even know how the last setup was running on the n/a l24 Stock ECU, do i really need to get the p90 head or am i better off just getting an already turboed motor like the l28et, in which case i wuld save myself money by just using the l24 in the first place, this is why it is such a dilema. BTW this is a list of the bits the l24 was running with Stock ECU RB26 Injectors on standard rail Fuel Pressure Reg RB20 turbo on l20et manifold Truck spec intercooler with cheap custom pipping manual boost controller set to 10 psi If i simply swap the injectors over to the 280zx along with the manifold and turbo and then get a decently plumbed intercooler, and run on an aftermarket ECU im assuming i should avoid any issues eg. detonation, as long as i go to adelaide and get it tuned by the z shop, or should i be looking at doing something more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 also for those interested this is the 280zx and my R30 Skyline when i got it all looks stripped now though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDSM Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Welcome, Jason! Below is a thread (there is another also) containing feedback re mating L20ET gear to an L28E. I'd imagine it didn't run too great: http://www.viczcar.com/forum/index.php/topic,10279.40/wap2.html You are on the right path looking at aftermarket ECUs. I'm half way through a turbo conversion myself and I'm tossing up between blowing all my money on a Haltech that'd probably do everything I'd ever want or getting a Z31 ECU with Nisstune and going down that path. There's a great deal documented re the latter over at hybridz.org, if you were interested. Good luck, Jamie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Actually jamie that was the funny thing in ran really well and was a very responsive setup, that confused me as so many people told me it should have been running like a hairy goat with the factory L24e ECU Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators gav240z Posted March 28, 2014 Administrators Share Posted March 28, 2014 Check the L28 compression and see how it runs first. If it is a solid motor and running about 8:1 compression then you should be fine if you tune within correct parameters. Definitely get a modern ECU. I would intercool it as they are cheap and you live in a hot climate. If no intercooler go for mechanical water injection. P90 is good for its chamber design being good for knock resistance but you only need that if your going for bigger power. P90s are hard to find in Australia these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators PB260Z Posted March 28, 2014 Moderators Share Posted March 28, 2014 Welcome Jason. I can't really comment on your L28 plans as I am still learning about them myself Gav does make a very good point about the intercooler though. We had a sizeable cooler on a Mitsu Starion that we took to darwin back in the no speed limit days and it ran far better then a previous trip when it didn't have the big cooler. Look forward to watching your progress. Cheers Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Well I planned to get a bigger front mount intercooler for it anyway, as the truck spec one i have is a bit beyond its uses now, im not going for massive power only thinking i would likely get the most of 200kw which is plenty for a street car anyway, and i was really hoping i didnt have to get a p90 head i heard the are rather expensive, and thanks gavin I will give it a compression test when i get it. Cheers Everyone who has helped so far Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted March 30, 2014 Author Share Posted March 30, 2014 I have had a recomendation from a friend to use a EMS Stinger as my ECU as he uses it on his r31 skyline and says it is a good ECU for older Cars with afetrmarket turbo setups. anyone on here used one of these with an L28et before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted July 26, 2014 Author Share Posted July 26, 2014 Hey guys here is an update The Z is mine now, I successfully negotiated with its owner and got it for what i believe is a fair price for a 5spd manual example, I will post up some pics tonight when I get home, I have been hard at work trying to chase up some interior parts for it as she is in dire need of some TLC, the turbo plans will have to be put on the backburner for now, but rest assured I still plan to do it, I will be trolling the forums for a while looking for almost every piece of a burgundy interior bar the door trims as they are the only item in good condition, unfortunately all the red panels such as the spare wheel cover and strut top covers have all been reproduced in fibreglass at some point in the cars life and coated with what i can only describe as a thick layer of house paint, you will see in the pictures to follow, the engine is in good nick with good compression through every cylinder, i have done a basic service and she runs sweet as a nut, also to my delight i found the original receipt of sale from 1981 and the service log which was documented for the first 35,000km as being serviced at a licenced nissan dealer every 5,000km, so at least the car was looked after for the first part of its life, and I plan to look after it for the next part, Aside from turbo the plan for the car are to keep a fairly stock appearance, the original wheels will be refurbished, the paint will be redone in the factory colour, and hopefully i can find all the right bits to completely restore the interior back to its awsome red glory. I took the car for a rego inspection the other day surprised to find that after sitting in a yard for ten years the only thing wrong was that the front left tyre was worn on the inside and that the exhaust looked like rusty swiss cheese toward the rear muffler, the tyre is easy but the exhaust, rather than replacing the factory item i opped to get a custom 2 1/2 inch mild steel exhaust from the cat back to exit on the left rather than the right into a free flowing muffler with a discreet downward facing pipe from a local exhaust shop, hopefully this should give the car a nice roar and help for when it finally gets a turbo, both these things will be done next week providing I am financial enough, Thanks for reading please follow my thread if you are interested i will try to keep you all up to date as best I can, and I will put forward some visual satisfaction tonight when I get home Cheers Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators gav240z Posted July 26, 2014 Administrators Share Posted July 26, 2014 Hey that isn't bad for a car sitting so long. I guess the dry weather doesn't destroy the bodywork on cars like it can in other areas of the country. Be sure to upload the interior photos. Could use a good laugh. I had a laugh the other day when I discovered someone had tried to repair the door trim on my 240z using cardboard. I do wonder how long they thought it would hold up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamo240 Posted July 26, 2014 Share Posted July 26, 2014 Hey Jason. I turbod an L28 and ran it for many years on 16psi boost. I still have the engine actually. It has an F54 block and N42 head, with L24 rods and RB30 pistons. ECU is a Motec M48. It has no detonation problems and has lasted very well. Makes heaps of torque and about 240rwkw too. At 10psi I wouldn't get too fussy. Just make sure it's a solid engine and Bobs your uncle. If you can inter cool so much the better. Good luck. Jamo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted July 27, 2014 Author Share Posted July 27, 2014 Hey Jason. I turbod an L28 and ran it for many years on 16psi boost. I still have the engine actually. It has an F54 block and N42 head, with L24 rods and RB30 pistons. ECU is a Motec M48. It has no detonation problems and has lasted very well. Makes heaps of torque and about 240rwkw too. At 10psi I wouldn't get too fussy. Just make sure it's a solid engine and Bobs your uncle. If you can inter cool so much the better. Good luck. Jamo Who Tuned it for you and what size turbo were you running Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted July 27, 2014 Author Share Posted July 27, 2014 Certainly not what I want to write tonight, but the car wasnt starting then when i finally got it running it would keep shutting off after about a minute or sometimes less, we checked and there is good fuel flow both ways, spark seems to be all good aswell, I read on line its a possibility that the fuel pump could be cut off after start if the oil presure sender was faulty so just as i was about to try disconnecting the sender i thought maybe there was actually no oil pressure so i wnt to check the dipstick, and to my supprise the oil that was black a couple days ago is now brown and seems to be milky, i imeadiatley thought head gasket and so checked the rad seems that there is no oil in the water as yet, im def leaning towards a head gasket being the problem but in the early stages however any other suggestions would be great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted August 18, 2014 Author Share Posted August 18, 2014 Hey guys had somewhat of a hiccough It would appear that the reason my z blew a head gasket in first place is because the n42 head was warped When we were preparing the head to be put back on we put a straight edge across it and could see a gap near number three which was where the gasket blew.. We then took out all the rockers and put the cam back in it would turn freely for most of a revolution but felt stiff for about half a turn... I was then told by the Boss mechanic at my mates work that the head was stuffed... I have saved the cam out of it and the rockers but I have thrown the head away to them for scrap. What I want to know is I have the other l24e motor that was turboed sitting at my mates still could I pull the e88 head off that and use it on my 280zx's f54 block.... Or do I have to look at getting another n42 head? Cheers in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators gav240z Posted August 18, 2014 Administrators Share Posted August 18, 2014 Best to source another N42 for an L28 block. The E88 off your other motor probably has smaller valves. Saw this recently. http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/ringwood/engine-engine-parts-transmission/nissan-datsun-n42-cylinder-head-240z-260z-280z/1054512194 For $100 it's a bargain - provided it's not scrap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted August 19, 2014 Author Share Posted August 19, 2014 Just spoke to the guy about this particular head.... It seems to be ok although he said something about it having bad valves.... But the head itself should be ok and he will check it for me tonight I believe that at $100 it would be worth taking the risk and worse case scenario I suppose would be the requirement of new valves... Can anyone tell me if this is a good deal and if I should go for it... Btw I forgot to mention he hasn't had it crack tested but said he was originally going to use it on an engine build and bought it off another guy who said it was ok. Cheers Jason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators gav240z Posted August 19, 2014 Administrators Share Posted August 19, 2014 $100 is a bargain in my opinion. N42's and L28s in Japan are fetching way more money than what they do over here. I picked up another N42 last week and F54 bottom end for $100 - which I thought was a bargain. (My other N42 had a crack in it and was missing valvetrain components etc..) I routinely see N42s sell for $300-$400 in Japan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators gav240z Posted August 19, 2014 Administrators Share Posted August 19, 2014 As an FYI also, in Japan the N42 seems to be the more desirable head than the coveted P90 head. A P90 went on eBay AU recently for around $420, there has been 1 sitting on Yahoo! Auctions at around $200 AU for a couple of months now. However every time I see N42's they don't hang around. Different strokes for different folks I guess. Of course importing a P90 is where they get expensive (they are quite heavy and shipping is expensive). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 ok guys i have started looking for an n42 with varying degrees of luck, however i have decided that at this stage with having to pay for a 'new" head and other bills i have on my plate and my growing need for a reliable mode of transport im am simply going to run the car N/A for now and worry about the turbo conversion later on, do not take this as an I give Up and I dont want to put in the effort, take it as, as much as I would like to do this i dont have the time and money at the moment, so with that i am making the descission to stay N/A for a while, and bearing that in mind if i get enough interest in my turbo exhaust manifold i MAY think of selling and just keeping the cars N/A heritage, but if that is the case i would still like to do a few things to the zed to liven her up a bit, To get rego i needed a new exhaust so i will still get an exhaust made up at my local shop, can anyone tell me who in australia makes a set of extractors for the 280zx or would it be ok to get a second hand set.... Im deeply sorry if i have dissapointed those who were interested in the turbo build but until i get better engine managment, I just dont feel it is worth doing Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dat2kman Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 As an FYI also, in Japan the N42 seems to be the more desirable head than the coveted P90 head. A P90 went on eBay AU recently for around $420, there has been 1 sitting on Yahoo! Auctions at around $200 AU for a couple of months now. However every time I see N42's they don't hang around. Different strokes for different folks I guess. Of course importing a P90 is where they get expensive (they are quite heavy and shipping is expensive). Thats cos the P90 was a USA market head, for the turbo, and their crap fuel. The Japs just dont play with them. Kameari do a bit of valvetrain stuff for the P90, but that is aimed at their USA distributor and that market. Bucket loads more N42 and earlier model heads were manufactured for the other 6 Cylinder cars, sedans, and 4wd's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyk_79 Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 can anyone tell me who in australia makes a set of extractors for the 280zx or would it be ok to get a second hand set.... I'll have a Genie/Pacemaker set of extractors available in a couple of weeks. Off a 240Z but from memory the stud patterns are the same across the L series engines so all the manifolds are interchangable (please correct me if I'm wrong experts!! ). In terms of new ones if I'm right about the interchangability when you google for them a few options come up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 Hi andy how much would you be looking for the extractors and can u pm me some pics cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonisa Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 So I will keep looking for an n42 but worse case scenario to get my car back on the road could i use the E88 off my l24e, yes i know it may have smaller valves but perhaps i can put that head on for now and then get a nice n42 port n polish n a cam later on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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