Steve's 75 260z 2 seater

[kobes]

Installing amps is kinda my speciality if i have one, the one bit of advise i will give you that nobody has mentioned yet is make sure you run your RCA cables away from you main power lead. It will cut down on alot of feedback noise / interferance. Atleast run your RCA leads down middle of car and power down side.

[stevo_gj]

Installed the amp but haven't attached the +12v to the battery or put a fuse in it.

 

Amp located behind seat, not in final position so don't worry about the lean:

 

This shows how the wires were run, the signal wire is the one that tells the amp to turn on when the head unit does:

 

Due to the nature of the seats I had to run the leads within 5" of each other in this location. I don't see it being a huge issue:

 

Here you can see the battery terminal and fuse holder:

 

Here was where I ran the +12V wire in the engine bay:

 

Just proving that you can't see any of the cables when everything was put back:

 

..except where they go into the amp:

 

Also I think I might have removed the earth for the head unit by accident when I attached the amp earth wire to the same location. As such I haven't got a working head unit atm so I need to find time to take the centre console out again and see what's up. To test how good the earth location was I got my trusty multimeter out and found the voltage drop to exactly the same number between the +ve terminal and the -ve terminal as it was between the +ve terminal and the bolt under the centre console.

 

Any comments or questions?

[garvice]

Question.

Why is the positive cable coming from the front of the car (looks like it runs all the way from the radiator support or there abouts)?

How did you connect the lug on the battery cable? If you need a C crimper I have one here.

 

Suggestion.

The sill is hollow and I know mine has punched holes all the way along so if you need a way to bypass the seat mounts that is another option, or since there is room between the seat and the rails, you can run them along the side of the sill and over the seat mounts. You will notice that the drivers side has all the rear taillight wires run this way.

 

Information.

Voltage does not drop down a wire without current flowing through the wire. When you measure the voltage with your meter you are only using a very small current (mA) as a reference for the meter. If you want to know how good your connections (and size of cable are) you want to measure the voltage at the battery and then at your amplifier whilst under load (turn the music up). That will give you an idea of how much power is being wasted in the cable.

 

EDIT: Oh yeah, good to see a mechanical engineer put some effort into trying to make a neat electrical job (doesn't happen much in the real world). Are you a real gingerbeer yet?

[stevo_gj]

Question.

Why is the positive cable coming from the front of the car (looks like it runs all the way from the radiator support or there abouts)?

How did you connect the lug on the battery cable? If you need a C crimper I have one here.

 

The +ve cable is coming from the front of the car because as an alternative to drilling a hole in my firewall (which is apparently illegal but always overlooked) I realised that I could run the +ve cable through the air vent which takes air from the front of the engine bay to the passenger footwell. Also I don't own a decent drill or any drill bits that are suitable!

 

I used a set of pliers on the lug to crimp it, it seems to be on pretty tightly.

 

Suggestion.

The sill is hollow and I know mine has punched holes all the way along so if you need a way to bypass the seat mounts that is another option, or since there is room between the seat and the rails, you can run them along the side of the sill and over the seat mounts. You will notice that the drivers side has all the rear taillight wires run this way.

 

That was an option I toyed with but I wasn't really feeling up to it. Surely it's not going to be an issue?

 

Oh yeah, good to see a mechanical engineer put some effort into trying to make a neat electrical job (doesn't happen much in the real world). Are you a real gingerbeer yet?

 

I worked for an electrician for a few months between school and uni so I remember a couple of his lessons about wiring. I graduate in December. I just wrote the 14 thousandth word in my thesis today..

[kobes]

Looks like you did a sweet job:)

 

but the most important thing is how did it sound!

 

you have listed ( and pictures show)  your ground and signal wire comming from the head? I sometimes find you can also get some interference if you have run your negitive all the way back to the head and often I  will earth it to a strong earth point close to the amp! altho the signal wire is good to wire back to head if you not have a power antenna.

 

Love the way you have made an effort to make it tidy as you go, makes such a difference to final result.

 

 

[mtopxsecret6]

You may get signal interefernce from the power cable and audio cables being to close, realy would be better running them down either side of the footwells, if you cant do that run a signal choke on the audio cable before it enters the amp. Also, if you  have grounded the amp to the head unit, you will creat a ground loop, which means lots of whine and hiss that you wont get rid off. Bot should be grounded seperately. Looks like a good job though.

[stevo_gj]

You may get signal interefernce from the power cable and audio cables being to close, realy would be better running them down either side of the footwells, if you cant do that run a signal choke on the audio cable before it enters the amp. Also, if you  have grounded the amp to the head unit, you will creat a ground loop, which means lots of whine and hiss that you wont get rid off. Bot should be grounded seperately. Looks like a good job though.

 

I'll test the signal interference when I install the speakers and if necessary I'll run the RCA leads under the carpet around the door. If I run it down the other footwell then I'm going to have to show too much wiring as it 'jumps' between the footwells, which isn't ideal.

 

Shaun seemed to think that earthing both head unit and amp to the same location should improve sound quality, which is the opposite of what you are saying? Both earth wires are bolted to the transmission tunnel.

 

Looks like you did a sweet job:)

 

but the most important thing is how did it sound!

 

you have listed ( and pictures show)  your ground and signal wire comming from the head? I sometimes find you can also get some interference if you have run your negitive all the way back to the head and often I  will earth it to a strong earth point close to the amp! altho the signal wire is good to wire back to head if you not have a power antenna.

 

Love the way you have made an effort to make it tidy as you go, makes such a difference to final result.

 

Thanks kobes. The interference is almost exclusively a result of the RCA and power leads being too close right? Since I have kept them as separate as possible I think it should be OK. When Shaun and I get a chance to put the speakers in I'll see if it makes a difference earthing it elsewhere.

[sexual_sushi]

Shaun seemed to think that earthing both head unit and amp to the same location should improve sound quality

Never mentioned earthing to the head unit improving sound quality, was saying that having a solid earth for the amp would be ideal, either grounded to the neg battery terminal or to the starter motor like garvice said. If that wasn't possible, then grounding to the chassis and if not then grounding to a grounding point under the dash, in that order.

[stevo_gj]

Speakers and electric aerial are in place. What a difference! The sound quality is 10x better than it used to be. I'm not getting quite as much bass as I'd expected, but I haven't played around with the amp bass gain setting yet. Here are some pics:

 

Head Unit:

 

Amp:

 

Speakers:

[stevo_gj]

In other news, I'm buying an L28 finally!

 

I'm putting a deposit on the one in Perth with triples and a bit of work done to it. Seller is confident it will put out 170 RWHP which is plenty for me!

 

Here are some pics of the engine:

 

 

Here is a summary of its specs:

3x 45 DCOEWebers

Extractors with shortened secondaries

E88 head port matched

Datrally cam with lash pads and heavy duty valve springs.

Hyper-eutectic flat top pistons, 020 thou, fly cut, approx 10.5-1 comp.

Vernier Cam Gear

Balanced, flywheel doweled to crank.

BMW harmonic balancer.

RPM pressure plate with strengthened straps.

Button clutch with springs

 

I'm planning on getting my ugly old engine bay painted red and removing a lot of the unnecessary brackets and clutter:

 

Greg is going to assist with the engine removal and stripping. I'm planning to electroplate all the metal parts that I can (while the engine bay gets painted) and replace quite a few others with things from eBay and MSA to make everything look as new as possible. I'm also intending to purchase a bench grinder and get a buffing wheel to bring out the best shine possible in the valve cover. I'm also planning to either get the rusty headers cleaned up and HPC coated, or to buy a set of HPC ones new from the guys in Woolongong. Has anyone ever HPC coated an inlet manifold? It seems simpler than polishing it. I also plan on getting a dremel to polish the carbys.

 

I have a couple questions for you guys:

 

Will the manifold still have the vacuum line to connect to the brake booster?

 

I'm planning on getting shipping quotes from E-Go and Pack and Send, can anyone recommend any other shipping companies? It's located in Bunbury WA.

 

I'd like to keep my aircon system in place, does anyone have any tips on how to improve its look? Perhaps a place where I can buy new hoses for it?

 

I'd like to remove the last remnants of the solenoids that used to operate the heater vents. Has anyone ever converted such a setup to use a cable? I only want to be able to switch between the main air vents and the demister - which i currently am unable to do.

 

What are my options regarding fuel lines? Does anyone have examples from engine's they own/have seen?

[mtopxsecret6]

try trans direct for the courier work. They might do it. I had a set of 4 wheels sent from sydney to here for 38 smakos.

[Scando]

Sweet!  That should liven the old girl up a bit.

[RB30X]

Will the manifold still have the vacuum line to connect to the brake booster?

 

What are my options regarding fuel lines? Does anyone have examples from engine's they own/have seen?

 

Yes there should be a hose tail to slide your existing booster hose over on the DCOE manifold. You should be able to see one on the rear of the manifold in my pics below which are also my answer to your second question.

 

 

[stevo_gj]

How much did that setup cost? It looks good. Thanks for that

[PZG302]

I'd like to keep my aircon system in place, does anyone have any tips on how to improve its look? Perhaps a place where I can buy new hoses for it?

 

 

get rid of the aircon, it will only clutter up the engine bay and take away from the porn of the triples!!!!!

 

Air con is for girls anyway Steve, so about time you manned up!!!!

 

next you'll want power steering and then fast glass and then cruise control......

 

The new motor should be plenty quick, and then you'll have to bring out on a track day.

[RB30X]

How much did that setup cost? It looks good. Thanks for that

I think it was about $300 but I've since found a cheaper supplier of those fittings so it would be cheaper than that.

[stevo_gj]

I think it was about $300 but I've since found a cheaper supplier of those fittings so it would be cheaper than that.

 

Do they only come in red and blue, or can I get them without the colours?

 

I have just been sussing out transport options.

 

Based on these dimensions: mass = 180kg, length = 120 cm width = 50cm height = 100cm with it already being strapped to a pallet I got the following quotes:

 

Transdirect : $618 with a crane to help unload at house

E-Go: $577 from sellers house or $216 but seller would have to drive 2 hours to Perth to drop it off there

Toll-Ipec quoted the seller $420.

Still waiting on Pack & Send's estimate.

 

I'll get in touch with Tyson (seller) and see if it cant be brought to Perth somehow.

 

Edit: Just realised that I sit near the logistics department of the company I work for, I might be able to organise cheap shipping through them if I am lucky. Fingers crossed anyway.

 

[RB30X]

Yeah through an existing companies account is the cheapest way. Pack and send are usually the dearest. Speedflow fittings are available in black or chrome and some others colours.

[stevo_gj]

Aussie Packers (company I accessed through where I work) quoted $430 from Bunbury or $305 from Perth.

Pack and Send quoted $560 from their Bunbury depot.

 

Tyson is going to see what local options are available to Perth and then I might just pick the $216 E-Go quote from there.

 

So back to my earlier question on HPC coating: From what I understand it is an excellent thermal insulator and reduces the amount of polishing you have to do. With that in mind would it be worth HPC coating all the bits that usually needs lots of polishing, like inlet manifold and valve cover? Or is that going to be crazy expensive? I wouldn't mind hearing what other people have done to minimise the amount of work it takes to get their engine bay gleaming.

[.]

So back to my earlier question on HPC coating: From what I understand it is an excellent thermal insulator and reduces the amount of polishing you have to do. With that in mind would it be worth HPC coating all the bits that usually needs lots of polishing, like inlet manifold and valve cover? Or is that going to be crazy expensive? I wouldn't mind hearing what other people have done to minimise the amount of work it takes to get their engine bay gleaming.

 

 

Remove the oil from your engine

[sexual_sushi]

Buy a trailer to get it from a to b? 

 

If you can afford to hpc everything then go for it, that's what Simon did with his yellow car and it looks sweet. BUT you still have to clean and polish regularly. At Warrick last year he said he spent hours polishing everything before the show, and he doesn't even drive the car every day, or every weekend from what I can gather! You've got to find that balance of a car that you can use and a show pony! I don't think either end of the scale is a bad thing, you just need to find the balance that's right for you.

 

Have a go at polishing your own stuff Steve, it isn't that hard, just time consuming. I know a guy in Gladstone who polishes stuff and it's so cheap that I wouldn't be bothered doing it myself! It definitely faster if you have the right gear.

[Z]

Dropped in and spoke to a Paul at http://www.thermaledgecoating.com.au/ for HPC coating of my exhaust manifold in Virginia. He seems a good fella if you want a quote. From what I've heard HPC is good for components that you want to keep the heat inside of - don't mind me, I just do/pay for what I'm told!

[stevo_gj]

Dropped in and spoke to a Paul at http://www.thermaledgecoating.com.au/ for HPC coating of my exhaust manifold in Virginia. He seems a good fella if you want a quote. From what I've heard HPC is good for components that you want to keep the heat inside of - don't mind me, I just do/pay for what I'm told!

 

Thermal Edge coating quoted the following rough estimates for HPC coating over the phone:

 

Valve Cover - $120 to $150

Extractors - $300

Inlet Manifold - $150

 

So yeah $600 or so to get those three things done. I could buy a lot of polishing equipment with that money, but then again the extractors will have to be done regardless. I'll think about what you said Shaun.

[.]

HPC on the exhaust manifold is a good thing. That is certainly where you want to keep heat in. But keep in mind that keeping heat in your inlet manifold and rocker cover may not be such a great thing. In those areas you want the heat to dissipate. But you could install an oil cooler to compensate for the rocker cover. Not much you can do to compensate for extra heat in an inlet manifold.

 

I have a spare rocker cover if you want one to use while you get yours coated.

 

Polishing the items yourself will work but the upkeep is a lot more effort. HPC would only need a light rub each time to bring back the shine.

[garvice]

What about some powdercoating?

Or even coloured powdercoating, that way you don't have to polish it so much.