NZeder 260z RB26 powered, triple DCOE throttle bodied NA project

[limezed]

Garages are supose to be messy - that keeps the wife away.

 

I'm in Albany. My one is due a full rebuild. But the last reto job is still lurking unfinished in a corner of the garage, 11 years and $20k over budget - oh well these things take time.

 

Cheers,

Karl

[NZeder]

Now that's funny never seen your zed and yet you are just around the corner really I am in Dairy Flat and this build is like yours 11 years and $20K over for sure. Fixed the rust 13 years ago in 3 months after the strip then the car sat for 10+ years in the back of the brother old workshop been home about 6 months now so about time I finished it.

[NZeder]

wow over 3 months - and no update from me Sad well not a lot has happened. I have tidied the garage to make more room and stacked stuff on shelves (no longer in the car) and mapped out my wiring diagram - long story but the short version is I could not find a diagram that was an exact match to my factory loom = I have traced the whole thing out and created some diagrams for my modified loom.

 

So this week some new weather proof plugs arrived from the US so I will be starting on the engine loom this weekend. I also hope to remove my rear suspension and install the new springs - decided to change rates - like this whole project - scope keeps changing.

 

Anyway while sorting things out in the garage I found my window frames - well the part the mounts to the glass and then to regulator had picked up some rust during there 13+ years in storage. So after some new metal was added to replace the bits no longer there Sad and some good coats of paint they should last another 30 years.

 

Given I am getting home from work late and when I finish dinner I don't have the motivation to get out the garage + weekends is time with the family this project has stalled again some what. So I plan to take some time off work in August and get stuck in and get all the mechanicals sorted. Then I will get a cert engineering to check over this side of the project and then start working on the interior and back on the road before the end of the year - I hope.

 

I will get some pics up in the weekend maybe.

[NZeder]

Very long time no post. Well car has not progressed too far. Had the engineer around - so some parts were sent out to the fabricator for extra welds and while I was at it had them make some other parts for me.

 

So here are some pics of my radiator. This was original purchase from MSA a few year back when I was planning to stick with a L6. However as I am now doing a RB something needed to be done about the pipe locations. I had the fabricator laser cut and make the fan mounting plate. I did ask they just make a pipe go from the top left tank over to the right. But the guys thought that would not look good - so they converted the single pass cross flow tank into a double pass cross flow for me and move the inlet so both (inlet and outlet) are now on the right.

 

Also here is my handbrake cable bracket - made from a stock Nissan EXA handbrake cable holder and a 4mm laser cut plate tig welded to the stock plate. These are perfect for my hybrid rear brake setup.

[bryan3976]

wow amazing cant wait to see a you tube vid

[NZeder]

ok some more custom stuff - who want to see more of these?

[bryan3976]

me

[luvemfast]

Looking good, how far off are we?

Well, at least, whats left to get her on the road?

[NZeder]

Looking good, how far off are we?

Well, at least, whats left to get her on the road?

I have pulled the heater completely to bits and I am giving that a birthday so I need to complete that - then start to put this kit set together. However with NZ Targa just around the corner and the new race season now underway weekends will be limited. #3 child is due in November......hmm well that is all other weekends gone....so just as well we are in Daylight saving time now - so I see some late nights in the shed coming my way.

 

Now here is what that little green Z is on. They might not be everyone cuppa tea but I like them

[limezed]

Mike,

You need to prioritise. Summers on the way - there is no need for a heater!

 

And if you had have spent more time in the shed working on the Zed you wouldn't find yourself in this third child predicament. Good luck with the arrival of the third one.

[acf321]

Hey Mike.

 

Those seats look fantastic, and will make for a very rewarding drive. The reason I went for multi-point harnesses in the Hornet, was to stop me sliding all over the place .. something your very cool and very unique seats will do in spades.

 

Well done mate .. keep the photos and info coming.

 

Cheers

 

Adam

[NZeder]

been a while I know - not a lot to report - thought I had finished up the engine loom when I noticed I forget the IAT sensor wiring - so had to unwrap the loom. Not a big deal mind you as I have decided to now cover with Flexo-PET I will get some pics up as soon as the engine loom is finished - then I will complete the engine bay loom with Flexo-PET also.

 

Sorted the hand/park brake on the hybrid setup I have - again will post pics later - works perfectly and I am happy with the result - simple in the end - did try and take the hard road to begin with but realised the errors or my ways and when back to a more stock leaver/linkage setup in the end. So much so that this solution could work for others doing other sorts of rear brake conversions. The basic out come was stock linkage setup with just one new bracket under the car to terminate the new S14/S15 hand/park brake cables - again a picture will help - need to get my A in G and post/host some more pics on my website

 

I am helping a mate out this weekend with his race car at the track so again not much time in the shed planned. But I did pick up a few things from the local fabricator will show all later  - dropped it back today to get a new mount bracket added to finish up this new addition to the car.

 

Again I have taken some time off over Xmas so lets see if that pans out to time in the shed or time with the kids - I hope both and I hope to achieve a lot during this time off - again time will tell.

 

Cheers

Mike

 

PS will get some pics posted very very soon

[KatoKid]

Very keen to see your brake set up Mike......hasten the A into G!

[NZeder]

Very keen to see your brake set up Mike......hasten the A into G!

Here you go then

 

First this was the first plan. I modified the leaver and I was going to connect the front cable from a Skyline/S14/S15 - but this meant I needed to drill some holes in the floor and make a new bracket to mount rear of this cable setup

 

So the next plan - I was looking at the cable termination and the stock setup and moved one to another idea but first the rear cable holder (some of these pics posted before) these were made from some EXA parkbrake holders and a new bit of steel added to place in the correct location. This bolts to the top of the stock rear strut housing were the hardline/softline bracket mounts.

 

Now version 2 - this was simple in the end - I removed the cable from the stock S14/S15 front cable leaving the rear cable holder. The centre pivot hole was not large enough so this was increased (a simple drill was used for this task) the stock M6 rod from the standard setup was removed and this was found to be too short. So a longer M6 bolt was used and the head was filed down to match the size and shape of the stock rod. Simple in the end and these pics will tell the story.

 

The new bracket mounts to the stock cable holders on the floor works very very well

 

[garvice]

What is the flex0-pet made of mate?

Quick google search has it looking like the plastic type expandable sleeve?

 

I've used these two before and had good results.

http://buyheatshrink.com/braidedsleeving/fiberglass-sleeving.htm

http://buyheatshrink.com/braidedsleeving/saturated-fiberglass-sleeving.htm

[benny]

ive just used flexo-pet to do my loom!! great stuff!! not cheap though

[NZeder]

ive just used flexo-pet to do my loom!! great stuff!! not cheap though

no that exy either - I have enough for the engine bay for under, a long way under, $100 including heat shrink that is 3:1 ie 9mm down to 3mm, 21mm down to 7mm. The heat shrink was almost twice as much as the Flexo-PET per meter for sim sizing.

 

The stuff that is rated to 650 degrees is very $$ so I only picked up 1m for the O2 sensor loom.

[garvice]

If it is high temp rated then that is great, thought it was the plastic stuff that melts when any mild heat gets to it.

I buy my heat shrink from the place that I listed for the tubing. It is far cheaper then anywhere in australia. They have 4:1 adhesive lined heatshrink for a couple of dollars for 4'.

http://buyheatshrink.com/heatshrinktubing/4to1adhesive.htm#B

They also do heavy wall adhesive lined heat shrink for where you want a bit more protection (less flexible though)

http://buyheatshrink.com/heatshrinktubing/3-1-heavy-wall-polyolefin.htm#B

 

When I went to buy similar gear at the electrical wholesaler in australia they wanted to charge me $80 for 4'. Thieves.

[NZeder]

The high temp stuff I got is Insultherm

 

"Insultherm is braided from fiberglass yarns and saturated with high temperature resins that improve the product's stability and minimize irritating fiberglass dusting during cutting and installation. The sleeving is tough and durable, maintaining its tight structure under extreme vibration, abrasion, mechanical stress and temperature variations."

 

Then Flexo-PET for the other part of the loom that will not see high temps - Flexo-PET is like heat shrink rating - "-75 to 125 degrees C"

[NZeder]

Long time no update - again. Don't get much time in the shed with a growing family, but good things take time.

 

So over the Xmas/New Years started to think more about the fuel system and what I needed to do for my carb to EFI conversion. I already had a surge tank and external pumps.....but. As I started to look under the car and surf'n the net for pics of other installs I came to the conclusion that there is not a lot of room.

 

After spending some hours looking over hybridz as all the different solutions around I decided I would have my tank modified to have a swirl pot/baffles installed inside and use just one in-tank pump. So I popped into the fabricators shop to discuss the modification to my tank. We talked and he showed me his custom tank in his race car. He had these 2 cool little Goss low pressure lift pumps that pump gas from the main tank into another surge tank then his main pump from that. My plan at that point was to still baffle the tank and run one internally.

 

That night I got on-line and looked up the Goss pumps he was using (thinking about a mate race car and his surge issues, I was looking for the specs on the pumps), I found a catalogue online in PDF format. I looked over this as it was very good - explaining the difference between the types of pumps etc. There was a section that was dedicated retro fit installations (if there is a copy right issue I will remove this section but for those that want to see the whole pdf here is the link http://www.noelsautoparts.com.au/Goss%20Catalogue.pdf)

 

Retro fit systems

When replacing a carburetted engine with a fuel injected engine, consideration must be given to the location and type of fuel pump system

to be used. Unless there is a fuel tank and/or fuel system available from a fuel injected version of the vehicle, an alternative system must be

installed. In order of effectiveness, the alternative choices are:

1. In-tank module

Advantages: compact; latest quieter, moderate contaminant-tolerant, long lasting pump types; excellent fuel supply and vapour

separation; no extra tank baffling required; incorporates fuel gauge level sender.

Disadvantages: may be difficult to fit; relatively high initial cost.

2. In-tank high pressure pump

Advantages: compact; latest pump types available; excellent vapour separation capability; can generally incorporate fuel gauge level

sender.

Disadvantages: may be difficult to fit; relatively high initial cost; requires swirl pot which may be difficult to fit; may require improved tank

baffling.

3. Two pump system (in-tank low pressure pump)

Advantages: effective fuel supply and vapour separation; may incorporate fuel gauge level sender.

Disadvantages: ‘older generation’, noisier, contaminant-susceptible pumps; relatively complicated; relatively expensive (two pumps,

brackets, etc); in-tank pump requires swirl pot which may be difficult to fit; may require extra tank baffling; may require pulse damper.

4. Two pump system (external low pressure pump)

Advantages: effective fuel supply and vapour separation.

Disadvantages: ‘older generation’ pumps; complicated; expensive; requires fabricated external swirl pot; may be difficult to fit (space);

may require pulse damper.

5. Single external (in-line) pump

Advantages: wide choice of ‘older generation’ pump styles (but only one type); relatively inexpensive; uncomplicated; easy to fi t.

Disadvantages: ‘older generation’ pumps; no vapour separation capability; tank-to-pump inlet should be upsized; may require pulse

damper.

In reverse order, the above is indicative of the evolution of common original equipment EFI systems, e.g.

5 = VK Commodore

3 = VL, early VN Commodore; XE, XF Falcon (wagon)

2 = late VN, VP, VR, VS Commodore; XE, XF Falcon (sedan); EA, EB, ED, EF, EL Falcon (all – metal bracket); AU Falcon (sedan – plastic

bracket)

1 = VT, VX, VY, VZ, VE Commodore; AU Falcon (wagon, utility); BA, BF Falcon (all)

The missing “4” has been used in the past (in modified form) on road-going vehicles, and is now the most widely used system on competition

vehicles where a factor not normally associated with road-going vehicles, e.g. fuel surge prevention, is of major importance, whereas space

saving is not.

As with most projects, the greater the initial effort; the greater the long term results.

EFI fuel pumps for modified engines

NOTE: Because all EFI fuel pumps are both ‘voltage-sensitive’, i.e. the lower the supply voltage, the lower the pump fl ow, and

‘pressure-sensitive’, i.e. the higher the vehicle system pressure the lower the pump flow, it is vitally important that these

two factors are known and taken into account in the pump selection process.

 

To determine the required effective fuel flow for most modified engines, a conservative rule of thumb is:

Multiply the maximum developed power of the engine in kilowatts by 0.48 to find the required effective fuel flow in litres per hour at pump

supply voltage and maximum system pressure. (Alternatively, multiply a known effective pump flow rate in litres per hour by 2.0833 to

determine the applicable maximum engine power in kilowatts.)

Note that the power of the engine measured at the engine is used for this calculation (horsepower x 0.7457 = kilowatts).

 

So looking at that - I thought a module base system might be the best solution. If I was going to get my tank modified why not have a standard and common module installed. That led me to the BA/BF or VX fuel modules. Should be common in this part of the world and using the catalogue and the flow rates I could see they would flow more than enough for my setup

 

The next thing to work out was which one to use. Looking at the catalogue and web for pics....well that took some time. But I came across a guys Mustang project showing how he installed the BA fuel module and I noticed it bolted down directly with 6 bolts. So cool that looked simple not like the commodore setup which used a twist lock setup = I would have to get a tank too so I could get the whole seat/lock setup. The issue is fuel tanks these days are plastic so that meant the GM donor was out. The next thing to find out was the height of the unit. A visit to a local Ford wrecker resulted in me having a lighter wallet and holding a BA/BF Falcon Wagon Fuel Module. Now the bonus for me is that this unit also includes a fuel lever sender that operates in the more normal 230-40ohm range which is the default calibration for my aftermarket gauge nice.

 

So why the BA/BF Wagon and not the sedan. Well as stated above it comes with the level sender which the sedan does not. But over all height was the key decider. The wagon unit is the same overall height as the 260z fuel tank at approximately 340mm (FYI the Commodore units are 340mm also). This height was to the top of the fittings. So the tank was going to have to be lowered so the hoses etc so they don't hit the floor etc. The other thing I found once I got hold of the fuel module is that swirl pot on the bottom was spring loaded so it can be compressed by about 25-30mm. This gave the fabricator some room to move. They installed it lower than it needed to be but that is good thing as this does give me more room to work with dash/AN fittings etc.

 

I guess the other good thing about this setup is if the flow is not enough (if other follow my lead) the Walbro GSS340 255lb/h upgrade kits can be installed into the module - so that would be good for 550HP in boosted and 650HP in Atmo.

 

I have to get some tank sealer on to the welded parts of the tank as fuel/oxygen/steel = rust unless a fuel/petrol tank sealer is used to stop this from happening. As the module also has the level sender I had the original removed, original outlet, returned closed off and the stock vent also removed as the module has a vent pressure value built into the top. 

 

Anyway pic time I guess

[FLEXZED]

 

Great work mate looks great and very informative

 

Loui

[KatoKid]

Mike.

 

As usual, creative, innovative and practical.

 

Top stuff.

[NZeder]

Ok so tonight I did a little bit more work on the zed.

 

Some might have seen post on this forum or hybridz about Electric Power Assist Columns those of you with a keen eye would have seen that have purchased one of the JDM conversion items - I did this when the NZD to JEN was good so it did not hurt the pocket as much.

 

Last year when I had the certifying engine over to check over the project before I started putting it back together (to make any changes he required now) we discussed the steering column. He pointed out that non factory welds will not pass so if mating shafts together they have to be splined and bolted/pinned or at the uni-joints. So that put me off installing this unit - for a few months. So I painted up the stock column and installed that.

 

Well I started to look at this again about 3 weeks ago. I decided I could do the install without welding or spline of shafts. I only have to sort out the mounting of the column/switch gear now but I have a plan for that now too after tonights efforts

 

Anyway more info will follow once I get this sorted but I had a spare 260z column - so this has been cut up and will be used on this conversion - again more pics in a few weeks once it is all sorted.

 

But this is what I have done to get the lower part of the suzuki column to mate to the 260z rack.

 

In the pic attached you will see the Suzuki item at the top. Then the 260z collapsible shaft removed from the housing (which is next item down in the pic) and last is another old shaft I had which is the 240z column shaft removed from the housing you can see how the collapsible part is different to the 260z item - but that is not important and just here for reference.

 

Anyway I contacted a local driveline/CV shop as they said that can replace crosses in steering shafts. Short version is one suzuki lower shaft has its cross replaced and rather than joining the other end of the suzuki uni it was substituted for the 260z coupler unit end.

 

I still have to source some bearing to hold this new suzuki shaft in the lower part of the 260z column housing but once that is done more pics then  

[NZeder]

Update time.

 

Last time the car was on the road with the camber setup I was running the stock tie rod ends were a little too close to the end of the rack end for my liking. So after some experimenting I have ended up with the following setup.

 

2 x Datsun 510 tie rod ends and a custom adapter

 

This will allow a more solid = more threads on the rack end, install. I went with this setup over others that have been done due to my suspension setup which has next to no droop. The 510 tie rods were the same tapper etc as the zed steering arm and as you can see the angle is perfect for my setup.

 

As you may recall I have decided to use the Suzuki EAPS (Electric Assist Power Steering) column in my zed. So this means I can't use the Nissan Comp' Wheel I have as I am sticking with the Suzuki shafts (this is easier for engineering and getting the conversion done).

 

So I purchased this the other day off Evilbay and 4 days later it showed up it is a 350mm leather NRG 3" dish rim. When installed on the lowish profile of the Suzuki boss (good Japanese Boss from Works Bell) and placed next to the stock 240z/260z wheel it is a total of 5-8mm (maybe 10mm tops) closer to driver vs the stock wheel. So I am very happy with the new purchase. Now I just need one of those "DATSUN" or "Z" horn buttons to replace the NRG item and it would be all good. I should have the lower 1/2 of the EAPS mounting complete next week so the new column will be getting installed very very soon - then in with the engine and finish up the wiring and then start to assemble the rest of the car.

[KatoKid]

Good to see youre back on the horse Mike....too long between posts on your car!