Beginner, searching for advice.

[Robstar]

G'day! Started my quest recently to get into the 240 scene. (Haven't found one yet..)

 

First and foremost, 240z is a sexy car.

 

2. Is putting an RB20 into 240z a viable option? Is it as cheap and effective as an SR20DET?

 

3. I heard that even if I fixed up an old 240z as much as possible, it would still have troubles getting licensed through the pits, apparently they don't want old cars on the road (They find things wrong, stupid things). Anyone had trouble with the pits in this aspect?

 

4. My purpose for my 240z, is a daily driver! But I want to have a balance of it being fun, but also want to take it to outings and stuff. I'm not big on breaking the law and speeding down the highway like a retard, so would 200 - 300hp be enough to enjoy, espically on tracks.

 

5. If I ended up getting a rust-bucket of a Z, what should I be looking for when purchasing the car? Anything in particular that could make or break the deal? I've heard one with a good dash is one thing.

 

6. Any advice in general, I'm serious, think of me as a sponge.

 

7. Anyone selling an old 240z in the West Australian region or anywhere in Aus for that matter. How much would cost to transport a old bomb wreck car from the eastern states to Perth, any recommendations for a shipping company?

 

The list could probably go on, but I'm sure you guys don't mind too much! Looking forward to some responses from Veterans.

 

- Rob

 

[Toecutter]

Welcome Robstar,

 

There's already quite abit on the forums re what to look for when buying a 240z on these forums. Try doing a search and you'll find a bit of info.

There's quite a few RB20 240/260's out there. Might be easiest to just buy one as they come up every now and then. There was a nice RB30 260 2 seater for sale in WA on this forum just recently.

From the jist of your questions it sounds to me like you want to save some pennies and build up a car. I reckon unless you can do the installation your self and do all the body work it would be false economy to think you could buy a rusted out 240 fix it up and do an RB install for less than what many sell for.

Anyhow keep an eye out on the forums and classified here as they come up every so often.

 

You could try PMing member GAV240z as he might be selling his car soon to fund holiday he's on!

 

Good Luck,

Sulio

[Robstar]

Thanks Sulio!

 

I've been reading over a majority of the topics, slowly but surely I'm starting to understand some of it! I'll be honest, it would be my first time (if attempted) overhauling an old car, although I don't mind the idea of spending a little bit more~ Something about the learning process as I go along felt worth it as well.

 

But perhaps buying an already good conditioned car would be the way to go in the end. Nonetheless! I'll keep focused and I'll give GAV240z a message.

[modular9]

hello Robstar

 

I too am/was/still am a beginner to all things zed. I was going to do the rb25 head on rb30 block thing. I even bought the correct rb30 block and everything ... then i saw what it would cost for compliance ( I am in anal retentive queensland where even putting a cold air box on twin su setup is a mod ! ), And the fabrication needed and ... sold the rb30.

 

I now have a set of triple delortos , holley blue pump - which just exploded my old rubber fuel lines - and exhaust to come etc. I would seriously consider getting the power out of the normal engine first and go from there. If you hop onto hybridz.org and see some of the posts in the L6 forum with what they are doing with efi + turbo you dont really need a rb/sr to make some serious figures...

 

But damn wouldnt it be nice to have a rb powered ZED! hahahah 

 

Welcome to Viczcar and welcome to the unholy and slippery slope of zed modding!

[gav240z]

You could try PMing member GAV240z as he might be selling his car soon to fund holiday he's on!

 

Good Luck,

Sulio

 

No Sulio the Zeds not for sale. I'd sell my Mikuni's or LD28 crank, L14 rods or spare 240z SU's before selling the car.

 

I am working and holidaying so hopefully I won't be selling the Z anytime soon. I think I'd rather bring her over here than sell her .

 

Besides what kind of webmaster of viczcar.com would I be if I didn't have a Z anymore? Gotta keep the passion.

[gav240z]

Robstar, Sulio is correct however engine swaps are quite expensive and its all the little things that add up.

I'd try find a nice 240z / 260z with minial rust for around $10k. Something very straight and just a little tired. Dashboards can be reskineed for $300 so its not too expensive. Its the bodywork that will break the bank.

 

As for engine mods, sensible through thought will allow you to make some mods to the original engine that will make it a whole lot more fun. Rb20's are ok but pesonally I'd consider an SR20 or RB25 or Rb30 / 25 combo.

 

There are some nice Z's that come up from time to time for sale but sometimes there is a long drought.

 

A 260z 2 seater can have all the appeal of an early 240z but can be considerably cheaper. Good luck!

[NZeder]

wow only $300 for the dash reskin - I am on the wrong side of the tasman here in NZ you are looking at $750 for a reskin from http://www.dashboardrestorations.co.nz/contact.shtml

 

Re the repower thing - I too have been thinking about a RB30/26 DE conversion and I have all the parts for the job (apart from the custom forged pistons I will have made) - however not sure if I will do it just yet might be a project for later just get the car back on the road would be a start.

 

If you are not too fussy about a 260z 2 seater vs 240z then a 260z 2 seater might be the way to go as they do appear to be cheaper (less made but cheaper). If you like the 240z tail light look just pickup some 240z tail lights and installed these into the 260z - this has been done by many people over years and is/was popular in Japan. If you do want to do the RB conversion thing I would defiantly get a 260z 2 seater that is 75+ as it will have the stronger chassis, suspension/stub axles and if a factory manual it will already have a R200 in the rear. If you get a 240z and do the RB conversion thing you will want a R200, 260z stub axles etc so save some time and get a 260z from the get go.

 

If however you want to build a race car I would get a 240z the earlier the better = lighter shell (not as stong but if it will be a race car you will install a full cage = strengthen the chassis up anyway). But then if you are going to be racing hard you will want the R200, 260z stubs etc + extra weight etc. Horses for courses.

 

As you have stated you want it to be a daily driver so I would go for a 260z 2 seater as it will have intermittent wipers, slightly more refined ie more modern door lock system etc. This is why I have a 260z 2 seater that is getting built as the daily/road car and the 240z as the race/club car.

 

Hope this helps. 

 

 

[zedevan]

I think my dash was reskinned for just under $500 around 10 years ago, so i have no idea what a current price is, probably depends alot on how good a job they do too. If ur not to fussed you could always get a fibreglass dash or fill up a cracked dash yourself and paint it with either bedliner or that fake suede stuff like what some rally cars have over their fibreglass dashes.

 

I think an rb20 swap would be cheaper and easier than an sr20 since you can buy the mounts and the halfcuts are generally less. there's ppl who put sr20's into skylines and other who put rb20's into silvias, so each has its tradeoffs, mayb drive an r32 and a silvia and see which engine you prefer the characteristics of

 

Regarding the hybrid rb25/30 engines, i remember there being a pdf someone had regarding a rough price of doing this along with tips, does anyone have a link? i've been searching for it through the site but with no luck so far

 

*edit - i think this is it

http://www.geocities.com/rb30_twincam/index.html

[HELLFIRE!]

One thing you may want to consider is choosing a Z that is all ready registered/"roadworthy". I'm not sure what the rules are for this in WA but here in Vic, so long as you pay your registration fees each year, your Z is considered roadworthy. So theoretically you could have a registered death trap that you could drive to various tool shops for work to be carried out. Also getting a roadworthy certificate for a 30+ car can be very difficult. This however is all irrelevant if you are going to do a total strip down restoration on your own property.

 

As for 240 v 260 (2 seater) it really depends on where you want to spend your money. I would go the 260 so you could free your budget up for other fun mod stuff.

 

Good luck with the search and be patient

[Robstar]

Thanks for the replies!

 

It seems that the 260z 2 seater option and change the tail lights is a good way to go! Isn't that what Sulio (toecutter) did? Or maybe I just read some of his threads wrong haha.

 

To be honest, I though about the rb 25/30 way, thankfully though I'm studying Mech Engineering and everyone that I know who has done it longer than I have reckons that although it's a good option, they think the RB20 was a masterpiece within itself, apparently it's 'Crank can withstand upto 800 HP', I honestly have my doubts about that.. But I'm sure someone here could clarify what exactly was the appeal with the RB20 when they stated some of those claims. (Most likely after thousands of dollars in aftermarket mods to the engine and everything else but the crank is forged)

 

If I'm looking at 10k or so for a good conditioned Z, well it looks like I'll still be saving up a bit longer, but I guess like Hellfire said, I'll be patient as soon as I do get it though, I'll be definitely making a thread of my own in the builds thread.

 

 

[gav240z]

wow only $300 for the dash reskin - I am on the wrong side of the tasman here in NZ you are looking at $750 for a reskin from http://www.dashboardrestorations.co.nz/contact.shtml

 

Sorry I may be a bit out of touch. You could ask these guys in Oz for a quote before buying a Z with a cracked up dash.

http://www.dashboardrestorations.com.au/contacts.htm#aus

[Toecutter]

Robster yer thats what I did, 240 rear taillights in my 2 seater 260.

 

Just Geeing you up about the sale of the car Gav, but hey dude if you get stuck in a situation with some crazy Irish carni folk and need quick cash call me and I'll do you a really good deal on the car! 

 

Re dash's the last one I had done about a year and a hlf ago was with dashboard doctor on Sydney Road Coburg in Victoria and he charged me $400.00, (the dash was in pretty bad shape and he said he would of made it $350 but it needed extra TLC).

 

Sulio

[zedevan]

i think alot of the rb20 bashing, if u'd go as far as calling it that, comes from america and hybridz as you can make an l28et produce the same amount of power quite easily and since an rb isn't very common there, its really not worth the money and the hassle, where as they got sr20's in some fwd form over there so they can atleast get some parts?

 

it doesn't make sense to me for nissan to put an sr, if its an better engine, into their cheaper car.

 

my thoughts are just dont do something you'll regret just to save a bit of money now, as when you get a fulltime job u'll hopefully have more than enough of that! and if you ever go to rebuild an rb you may as well build up an rb30

 

gav's selling his car???

[gav240z]

You could try PMing member GAV240z as he might be selling his car soon to fund holiday he's on!

 

Good Luck,

Sulio

 

No Sulio the Zeds not for sale. I'd sell my Mikuni's or LD28 crank, L14 rods or spare 240z SU's before selling the car.

 

I am working and holidaying so hopefully I won't be selling the Z anytime soon. I think I'd rather bring her over here than sell her .

 

Besides what kind of webmaster of viczcar.com would I be if I didn't have a Z anymore? Gotta keep the passion.

gav's selling his car???

 

Now either you didn't read above or your Geeing me up like Sulio. Either way someone is bound to send me a PM about my car asking if its for sale and how much. So to clarify no it isn't and I never had any intention to sell it. As stated above I'd sell some of my ultra rare parts first .

 

If anything I'd buy a second Z.

[gav240z]

I did hear Sulio was looking to do a quick swap.

 

His Z for a set of Hurricane rims. He's really into those Duke's of Hazard style wheels and wants to stick a set on his new project. A Leyland P76 with custom pink paint.

[dalee]

My old super P76 Super V8, 3 speed collum change was a great car (cough, cough), handled like a boat and accelerated (just).

 

But you could fit a 44 gallon drum in the back, don't know why u would want to.

[Mr Camouflage]

My old super P76 Super V8, 3 speed collum change was a great car (cough, cough), handled like a boat and accelerated (just).

 

But you could fit a 44 gallon drum in the back, don't know why u would want to.

 

That was very forward thinking on the part of  Leyland.  See, now you can get a 44 gallon drum of used chip oil from the local fish & chip shop and throw it in the boot, take it home, boil up some bio-diesel, put it back in the boot, connect up a line to the engine (just have to stick a diesel engine in it) and, there you go. Free fuel.

 

I know a guy that wants to swap his z31 300zx turbo for a P76. 

[lightmaster240z]

Time to play nice now boys ??

 

we all know that you can get two 44 galon drums inthe back just like i have.

[JP240z]

LMAO!!

the pink would definately bring out the colour in his eyes....

[dazzed]

hi robster, forget the rb20 motor even in turbo form , they are just to small in engine capacity, sr20det is becoming a popular flavour for a conversion but can get pricey, for a everyday driver you have 2 choices by a vehicle in need of restoration or buy a restored vehicle either way your gonna end up spending 20k plus,  there has been quite a few top condition fully restored 240zeds in n.s.w of recent around 16k  if you buy a restored 240z you would expect to see a photo album of the progress standard of work ,, buying a un restored car requires a thourough investigation from front to rear , floors sills firewall spare wheel well rear hatch bezel , then interior , unless you want a customized car it would be more viable to by a recent restoration and do a few performance mods to the original running gear,. cheers dazzed

[Robstar]

Thanks for the advice Dazzed, but I've decided to get a 260z and I've already secured it and should have it on the Feb 12th by a local perthy, the owner seems quite reliable and a fellow Z enthusiast, so I trust what he's said about the the car itself, good history, rust isn't bad etc..

 

After contemplating nonstop for a couple months on what engine I was going to convert into the car and almost deciding on a RB26DETT, I scrapped the idea completely. I'll be fitting a VH45DE in instead and instead of being a daily driver, it'll be used whenever I'm not driving to and from work, just for track, showing off on hill-climbs with mates (that should be fun, since they all drive honda's and toyota's) and the occasional relaxing drive.. kekeke *evil-grin*.

 

I'll be spending that extra buck on making the interior as comfortable and top-notch as the inside of a BMW, along with a chromed roll-cage. This year shall be an exciting and long one for me.