Z-Fever builds VQ35 powered 71 Datsun 240Z

z-fever · March 26, 2012

My Name is Doug and I build Z's in Tampa, FL USA. We have been in the biz for 23 years now. I thought I would introduce myself and just show you guys some of our work. My goal is to get your opinions and see what you think. I am a true enthusiast! I started this company and still LOVE what I do!!!!!

I hope you guys enjoy our work. I will add a few builds here and there to get your feedback.

We just finished the build on a 1971 Datsun 240Z. The customer dropped the car off here the week before he was scheduled to be deployed to Korea for a year. He wanted us to build this car using a VQ35DE engine swap. Since we are a Nissan and Infiniti specialist that have been building Nissan cars for over 23 years now AND......considered by many to be the leaders in this AND........we are the owners of VQ35swap.com it is a natural fit.

We started with a basic 240Z that had been sitting for many years......

We pulled the engine and transmission

then stripped the engine bay fully and re-painted it to the color the customer wanted, an 2011 Corvette slate grey...

Then we acquired a COMPLETE VQ35DE motorset including trans, harness, ECU, and all accessories...

Then we acquired a set of Mckinney Motorsports VQ mounts for the 240Z. Be careful here because they are NOT perfect! They require some manipulation to get the fitment just right. They are designed to have a new X-Member welded onto the factory frame rails. This X-member is what the engine mounts will rest on and bolt to..........It takes some time to get it set just right. We also had to cut the exsisting factory 240Z X-member and we had to weld on support pieces to make sure it would not flex after cutting away about half of it. Otherwise the front sump engine's oil pan would hit the stock X-member.......

Here is a good look from underneath that shows the x-member, engine mounts, and front x-member after we did everything....... You can clearly see where we cut away the old X-member and the alignment to the oil pan

Then we made the custom driveshaft and fully installed the rear trans mount. We also made a custom shifter bracket that lengthened the shifter to align with the opening in the transmission tunnel......

Then we re-wired the OEM 350Z EFI harness and added the OBD-II connector as well as the accelerator pedal from the 350Z. This way the drive-by-wire system will function correctly and be controlled by the ECU. We also tuned the ECU and reconfigured it to work without the BCM, ignition key, RM module, and IPDM.....

Then we installed the radiator, made the custom aluminum intake pipe, installed the wiring harness, installed the pedal, added a fuse box to supply enough power to the ECU, made the custom aluminum radiator hoses, and installed the electric fan........

Then we made the custom 3" stainless mandrel exhaust system from front to back. We used a 3" single inlet muffler with dual 2.5" exits and added nice double wall stainless tips to give it that nice old school Z finish........