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MY 240 RB Build - almost complete!


dat240z

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So I thought since im almost at the end of my build Id share some pictures and experiences over the last year and a half. I found this site and hybridz so helpful and decided to join and have loved the site since. I hope this can assist others attempting a similar build and or installing the same parts.. Ill tidy wording and add more as I have time.

 

I bought the car when I was 19 in 2003. Id always hoped id be lucky enough to own a 240z one day. It was clean and had been freshly resprayed (in acrylic yellow :o). Had the 17" 's, stock mechanicals and was prett well priced at 7.5k, After driving it for almost 3 years straight as a daily, the rattles and "oldness" started to get to me. I decided t park it up and wait until a "suitable" time to invest some cash into her. So in July 2011 I bit the bullet and started buying some gear, booked my mechanic, downloaded as much as I could from here and Hybrid z, and got to it....

 

Parts bought for the swap include:

- r200 3.9 diff, r200 moustace bar, r200 traverse link, semi solid diff mount, 4 pot wilwoods allround, AZC coilovers + adj camber plates, r33 series II halfcut, intercooler/radiator+fan+shroud/eng + box mounts/ tailshaft (custom), new poly bush kit, new clock + ashtray, carbon mirrors, 15/16 MC + R33 brake booster,  100K km service kit (water pump/belt/gaket/leads,  new shift boot, new front and rear inner and outer bearings + seals,  new balls joints, 200zr oil sump + pickup/1.5L surge tank/ 3/8 lines, boshe 044, electric lifter pump, thermostat controller, temp+oil sender units, BOV, Sparco seats/rails/3 point harnesses, quick release wheel + hub, 2 x dynamat packs, 4L bitumen brushed, new scuff plates, dome light, map light, Autometre speedo+tach / white face with red painted needles for stock guages, GPS speedo unit, new heater tap+core, Rota RB 17x7.5 +4, new h4 headlights + wiring harness upgrade, new window washer kit, porsche style CV kit, push button start, complete MSA weatherstripping kit, RH+LH window regulators + bailey channels, new plates.

 

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The plan was to build a solid street orientated but track optioned fast z with modern upgrades. I guess I was after an aggresively styled z with a blend of speed, handling, modernizing + updating and good looks. Nothing too over the top or crazy.. I bought the Wilwood 4 Pot front and rears + prop valve, 15/16 mc and used the r33 skyline booster from a series 2 rb25det halfcut I purchased. Supposedly 85xxxkm ::) I also bought the coilovers and camber plates from AZC - good shop, hardcore gear.

 

I also bought the Rb engine and mount set from Mckinney Motorsports, along with race 4 core radiator + fan + shroud, large intercooler, exhaust components, rb to r200 tailshaft. It was all pretty good stuff and arrived quickly. Was lucky to get a 200zr rear sump which needed modifying as it sat so low. We then started stripping out the old L series and prepped the engine bay for new paint and the install...

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Along with buying endless parts for the swap, I picked up poly bush kit (complete), r200 3.9 diff, r200 moustace bar + traverse link. We scrapped the diff strap and went for a solid race mount from SW Motorsport. It was then off with some front end panels, and all drivetrain gear to prep engine bay/underside of panels and floor for bitumen spray and rest prevention. Luckily to my relief there was no rust anywhere in the car. No battery, floor, engine bay. There werent even any major dings or dents underneath or in the engine bay, suggesting the car has never been involved in a crash or prang. Everything was perfectly straight and solid. In hindsight stripping the car totally and working up would have been smarter, but my gamble paid off...

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We replaced all bushes (which were red in colour), sprayed components such as cross member, control arms, diff, moustache bar silver and it was all coming along nicely and looking good. The engine bay and underside came out pretty neat so I was happy. I think from start of stripping car to this stage was about three weeks of after hours work.

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The above shot also shows camber plates cut and welded in before spraying. They almost look factory, and have good functionality. The suspesion is three way adjustmentable; camber, stiffness, height (has a large range aswell). Theyre designed basically for track and race along with the brakes, but I believe if your going to mod a car and especially increase the HP, then this is the first and most important area to upgrade - brakes and suspension.

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Finished in black and clear. Underneath is a matt style finsih thats had a protective layer to prevent rust and makes it easy to clean also. Brakes also went in no probs. Rears had to use Woz spot caliper kit for the handbrake, so massive thanks to him.  Before installing the driveline all new fluids were added, a timing belt, water pump, leads and a full service was done.

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The brakes again from AZC are overkill but work so well and im my opinion worth the money. I just wanted a brand new "bolt on set" rather than using old nissan or toyota caliper and rotors etc. The downfall is lack of handbrake, but Woz's kit was adequate to satisfy my engineer and ACT registration inspectors at the pits. The larger MC and booster are required for this to work properly as well as install a proportioning valve to help decrease rear lockups as they bite hard with no weight in the rear end. After adjustment they dont lock up at all..

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Next went in the engine and box, diff and tailshaft. As the r200 diff has a bulge on one side compared to the r180, we shortened a stub axle on the drivers side to give it a little more room to move, otherwise it was almost fully compressed and susceptable to breaking and without shortening will pull to the right under hard acceleration. Ive also got a CV uprade kit ready to go when needed. The build was coming along really well, with no hiccups or dramas halting progress. I thank the info on this site again for making it so smooth. And as they saying goes "if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail" This is especially important when your paying someone to build the car for you. The easier to follow and more info you can throw their way when doing work like converisons etc will save you heaps in labour...

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The Mckinney mount kit sat the engine about 4 cm off the firewall and low enough to give plenty of room between the bonnet and top of RB. The 200zr sump needed to be cut down and revolumed so about 5 cm was trimmed from the bowl and added to make it wider. The only bummer was the trans mount which allowed the rb25 box to sit in almost the position as the L series box was too close to the trans tunnel, making getting a speedo drive cable in next to impossible. A GPS speedo was aquired instead running straight off the autometre tacho + digital speedo. Other than that everything lined up nicely, the R33 pedal and cable from the half cut were used. The car had already been taken to the exhaust shop for a 3" mandle bent (with legal muffler for rego/engineering) to be fitted and have its cooler piping completed....  The cooler and radiator were also installed, once again the bolt on stuff designed for this swap making life easier from the start..

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Next was wiring and trying to fire it up. Always a nervous moment, especially with wiring fires, half cut engines and anything else that can suprise you. There is a good wiring guide on hybrid z by Chris Hummel and its 10odd pages were pretty useful. Most things went smoothly, the tacho and speedo were replaced with digital units. The tacho instead of gear driven runs off pulses in the engine and works well. Both white autometers match the white face z binacles well...

 

I was hoping to drop the standard rb in with stock ecu, cancel non required items and sensors and modify once all was running well and I was happy with everything else.  Basically a bare bones RB running the car and no other systems like ABS,  pollution, traction control etc. We mounted the ECU up under the glove box. Suprisingly all guages worked right away and were compatible with the RB stuff, like oil sender unit, water temp sender etc, 

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For the fuel system, all lines were replaced and upgraded. 3/8 lines were installed from engine to tank and back aswell as surge tank (1.5L) and electric lifter pump and bosch 044. Theyre mounted up behind diff near wheel arch. I orginally went a mechanical carter black lifter pump, but it was just too loud. The car fired up first time, and we took it for a spin around the block. It ran pretty well, I was stoked after about 5 months of building and waiting...ten years of ownership of the vehicle and almost 20 years of dreaming of doing this to a z.

 

The only hassle really was it was struggling to hold idle after accelater was lifted and it hesitated a little when the turbo came on. This was apparently due to piping from the turbo to AFM not being long enough, so the pipe was extended as far as possible and problem solved. The aftermaket air filted makes the car sound like a missle under load, and a turbosmart BOV was added to the piping. 38mm from memory..

 

So basically was now running RB25DET engine/box. R200 diff,new custom tailshaft, AZC coilovers + wilwood discs/calipers all round, front mount, new radiator, bushes. Essentially it felt like a new car. The suspension was harsh, but with adjustment softened it up to a comfortable yet firm level. It handles like a go kart when stiff though. The brakes were crazily good. And the best part was I doubled my HP while also bettering my fuel consumption. Went from 150HP to almost 300HP (with exh+fmc) and from 200miles per tank to now almost 300miles. The weight has gone from 1040kg to 1120kg (but that included bitumed inside, underneath and 2 packs of dynamat sound deading throughtout) - will post more about this later.

 

Will add more to this later on, am stuffed now. 

 

 

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Well researched, well planned, sensible use of off-the-shelf items and well executed, an excellent result, congratulations.

Thanks Pete.

 

So Mechanically the car was sound, it was time to do something about the interior. Everything was stripped, including the dodgey old sound deadening. The hope was to continue the street/track theme with a set of Sparcos, 3 point harnesses, Sparco detachable wheel, new black carpets, carbon vinyl tunnel trim and rear wheen housing, plus respray all interor panels black and do the roof lining. I prepped the inside of the cabin with 4L of brush on bitumen (the spray can gives a neater yet much thinner finish,  and since it was being covered in dynamat + carpet, wanted the most effective sound deadening). Then picked up 2, 36sq metre packs of dynamat online (much cheaper)  and covered everything I could. Firewall, floors, rear end, wheel well, roof - everything inside except for doors. It came up well and definatley decreased road noise.

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I ended up buying a stack of parts off Ebay USA for the styling and interior. NEW OEM stuff like dome lights, map light surround, new console face panel/ knobs/ heater core etc all were sourced from there. Highly reccomended. An order through MSA of a push botton start and weatherstrip kit was also place along with some carbon bits for the exterior.

 

 

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As the rear strut towers provide access to the camber plates and adjustment I didnt want to fully seal this off incase I neeed  to change settings. We instead made a cover to sit over the tower and look flush. When required it pops off and alterations can be made. Once all carpet was laid, it really really quietened things down inside.

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Great work.  ;)  With the weld-in camber plates, how much harsher to drive on the street or do you think it's more spring rate/shock setting?

 

Thanks Roberto. It was harsh with the hardest spring setting. Great cornering and response but bumps etc were not great on the road. Tolerable, but not enjoyable. We softened up to about "halfway" in settings and its significantly more comfortable. Dave at AZC sells 3 types of spring rates to go, I got the softest at 220lb, which is avised. I also run 17x7.5 245's so the ride loses a little comfort with that also.

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I purchased a set of Rota Rb 17x7.5, new rubber, a carbon rear tailight surround, carbon side mirrors to start prepping for paint. I think Ive decided on a pretty in your face green, which may not be to everyones taste, but im never planning on selling her so meh.... Next was fiddling a few little items to keep engineer (J Wilson) happy. I needed to plug up a few firewall holes (clark rubber has 1000's and good sizes + cheap), get my washer bottle working (bought a new kit off ebay), cover ecu from site in cabin. We did the brake tests and he was astounded to how good the brakes work. got it weighted at the bridge, and I provided engine # etc for his report.

 

$1600 later the 240Z was fully engineered documenting everything thats been modified.  And ready for rego

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Wow is all i can say. Flawless and i can only dream that mine turns out half as good. Interior is shmick as.

 

Well done. :)

 

Thanks Retro, interior is clean now! and no smells from 40yr carpet... trust me I wish I could made everything cleaner - have stripped the engine and everything before putting in. A fresh RB/box/diff would have been great but super steep also.... A rottiserie and paint before would have been good also, but I was confident in no rust and the paints OK, so I thought ill get it A1 mechanically so that paint is the last thing on list - no mechanic scratches etc from working after painted (hopefully!!!) Ill add more details and pics, and heres a colour of what im thinking. I photoshopped a few colours in (with old wheels).

 

So I took the car over the pits on 24/12/12. Thought id have a chance to catch them in a good mood the day before xmas. They all seemed relaxed and all had a good look and asked a stack of questions about it. About 45mins later, I was failed on rear window tint too dark..... thats it. It flew through everything else without a hitch! Even the handbrake tests with the dodgey little spot calipers was successful. So an arvo of steaming off tint, cleaning left over glue and rebooking for 28 December was done that arvo.

 

When I went back the second time he just looked at window, took a copy of my engineers report, stamped my rego and congatulated me. 5 mins - done. 

 

I was on cloud 9! I knew the car was safe and had been built properly, but I was still nervous and apprehensive. So in my state of euphoria, I went into the government shop front to update rego details (print new rego sticker with new engine # etc) and in my excitedness bout some custom plates ( MY - 240 ). $550 but I was happy and it was my xmas gift to myself!!

 

So Id say it took about 6 months of afterhours work, and a lot of time researching and planning before hand.  Since the build Ive put 1500miles on the car and touch wood - nothing has failed or broken down once. Its actually way more reliable and solid than when it was stock :-*

 

 

Shannons insured it for 20k during the build and now @ 30k with all paperwork and legalities done. After paint I aiming for 40K which is about my investment into the car (not including buying 240z).

 

If anyone needs help, advice or tips for anything related to this type of build or parts used, PM and ill help where I can.

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Great and read and great outcome, you must be wrapped!!!!

 

Can I ask what sort of $ premium from Shannons for the both the build stage and now?

 

Well before commencing the build, I got the car up and running, and put 12 months historic rego on it so I could drive it to and from shops in between working on it at home. I had it insured with Vigil for 15k when I first bought the car, let it laps, when it was parked up and stored. Shannons wanted $450 per annum for $20k value on normal rego, or $176 per annum on club/historic rego for $20k value.

 

$20K for what was essentially a rust free, registered and drivable stock 240z.  The guys at Shannons also acknowledged the money and time spent for parts/labour and other items of the conversion and said it wont be an issue to increase value once done. The premium jumped by $65 per annum after we discussed the new value upon commencement of the build. So now 30k value @ $515 per annum, with no restrictions and everything detailed and legal... and hopefully a bit more once Dingo Dave on here sprays it...

 

 

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  • 3 months later...

Long time since update - due to the fact ive been saving up for paint/panel. Dingo Dave from here has a speed shop in Braidwood and is doing all the work. We met last week and bought paint/primers/thinners/hardener.  $1107 all up. Its a PPG Ford Focus RS Green Colour. Im dropping the Z out on Sunday and hopefully 2 months later have a fully completed and modernized 240z.... Then its time for some more Kw's:) Ill upload pictures of tear down, preps and and paint being applied + finished product...

 

Looking for some advice though.. Where do most ppl relocate their antennae to? I think mines in the stock position (opposite side to fuel door) sloping down near left side of hatch? Id like to move it aswell as the Z circular emblems in the rear quarters. Im happy to fiill in where the Z's were, but where to put the antennae? Or just piss it off all together? I have an alpine media player (no cd - AZC suspension too brutal for poor cds) which plays off the net or my phone, but don't mind listening to footy etc everynow and then..... Suggestions......?

 

 

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