The Restoration of a Monster: our V8 240Z

Hey there!

 

Over the past few weeks and next few months my father, my mother and I have and will be working on restoring our latest toy (bare with me). For the past 8 months we have had our eye on a 73 model 240z that has had a ding and is a dirty pink. This Z has been owned by a family friend for the past 20 years and has had a wonderful life (until said ding occurred). The family friends who were the previous owners (As it is now ours) bought the car with a dead engine, the old straight six had run its course and blown up, figuratively, so they had a choice.. refurbish the engine, or drop a different engine in. So the best decision at the time was to put in a Holden 308 that had been worked and tuned for a jet boat (cam, piston, intake etc) and attach this to a supra 5 speed manual gearbox and the diff out of what looks like a small truck.. then he crashed it. So now we have this beautiful machine, with its lumpy idle and its dirty pink coat of paint (we will be changing it, i promise) and the rarity to match, and we will be restoring her, painting her, and registering her to create the ultimate sleeper/ cruiser and enjoy life in general.

When you get it running you will have to join up with the Bathurst Light Car Club and give it a good squirt. They like V8 z's (or mine anyway).

 

Welcome, great story, and it may just be the hair dresser in me or God knows what else (Yes Simon you may launch your barrage at will now) but I like the color.

 

Cheers

 

John

SO!

 

Last week my parents drove their car down to Wauchope, NSW to pick up the Monster. With nothing but a car trailer and a few pieces of rope they made the journey home to Bathurst at 80km/h averaging 16L per 100k (sometimes 22 up hills) which is a fair difference from the norm (usually averages around 9.5l/100 on the highway - 2010 manual SS). All went well and everything arrived safely with no damage to either car (other than an overworked fuel pump  ).

 

Since then my mum has made contact with a gentleman from Richmond, NSW, who is apparently known as the "Z Man" (if you are on this forum then make yourself known) and yesterday travelled there to pick up a bonnet, some badges and some front panels as replacements for the ones that had been damaged prior to us owning it.

 

I got home yesterday from my 2 week holiday in NZ and this morning my father and I removed the radiator, the front panels and the engine so that we can start getting ready to sand, prime and paint (once the panels are all off). While this is happening we will service the engine and check all of the anchor points.

 

In the previous photo, the Monster has a big duck-tail wing. We have removed said wing and front splitter in favour of the original panels.

 

For clarification, when the 308 went in, the previous owner did not cut any part of the body and reused the engine mounts as well as the alternator, this allows us to leave all of the original wiring unchanged and (hopefully) problems will be avoided. A few things that have created a bit of concern are the battery placement, the original spot would be fine, but the engine creates too much heat and destroys the battery after a short drive. the previous owner had the battery way out in front of the radiator though we think that this would impair turn-in and balance and have decided that moving the battery to the cargo area would be best. Does anybody have any thoughts in this? is it common? we know how to do it and in our minds it makes sense though I figure if I ask then we will know for sure.

 

Here are some photos 

 

P.S. I'd say we will join the BLCC ffor sure  if can be careful enough not to stack it.

As I understand it the car is now out of registration (?). If it's over by more than 3 months you may need to check with the RTA if there are any issues you need to address to get it re-registered. You may have to produce the original engineer's report (V8, etc) when to go to the registry.

 

There is a lot to be said about buying a finished modified car - my V8 Zed project is just about to celebrate its sixth anniversary and it's not even halfway done. I'm envious.

 

Re: Battery placement. I know many of the competition Zed relocate it to the boot but i am very very concerned about having sparks anywhere near a fuel tank, e.g. rear collision. There are many V8 conversions in the USA (see HybridZ) but I've never heard about issues with the engine bay temperature and battery performance.

welcome !! great build coming up 

what year, month & number is she ?

 

hehe pls remove the rear wing / dining table to avoid silly comments  ;D  

As I understand it the car is now out of registration (?). If it's over by more than 3 months you may need to check with the RTA if there are any issues you need to address to get it re-registered. You may have to produce the original engineer's report (V8, etc) when to go to the registry.

 

We had thought about this, it is around 7 years out of registration, however we do have all of the old rego slips as well as the original engineers certificate so all should be good

 

what year, month & number is she ?

 

hehe pls remove the rear wing / dining table to avoid silly comments  ;D  

 

The year is 1973 (my bad i thought it was a 72), built in January and the number is 100644 I think that's the right info.. it's what's on the compliance plate.

 

hehe pls remove the rear wing / dining table to avoid silly comments  ;D  

 

Already done

Moving along nicely....

 

Re: Battery relocation to the rear is fine as long as your considering a suitable holding frame, a battery box, terminal pads and battery blue sprayed on your connections.... a modification Ive done many times on my own vehicles, works well....

I think to pass an inspection, if the battery is an acid type, the battery box needs to be able to vent to the exterior due to it being in the cabin, as apposed to in the boot etc.

True RBX30 and valid point

 

Im assuming he would use a Gel battery in his application.....

Speaking of 'those' batteries, anyone have any tips for a good one?

I usually buy the century ones from auto stores that go flat while they sit for weeks at a time.

I want one that will hold its charge for ages and keep the cranking power etc.

Ive been running V8 for 20 years with battery in std position and never had problem with heat on battery

 

Mick

Carlos was your parts guy, he is not really on here. Leave the battery where it is, if necessary build a insulating box, or alternatively get your exhaust manifolds HPC coated. I just did mine and there is a fair difference, they still get hot but temperatures seem much more controllable.

I too must admit I don't mind the colour.

If you need anything fabbed maybe I can put you in touch with my mate (lives in Barry)

The previous owner stated that he had trouble turning it over after short drives and found that the battery was boiling and failing due to excess heat from the engine. He had the battery moved to in front of the radiator and since then had zero issues with it, we just don't like the idea of a battery being so far out in front and will probably look into either moving it to the standard position of the back with a large Lithium or gel battery depending on budget. As for being worried about a rear end collision and sparks near the petrol tank, I'm not too worried about that because if we do it correctly then it should not be an issue. BMW's, and even the VE Commodores have their battery located in the rear to open up the front with more room and have a better weight balance between front and rear, and with the 308 up front the car is about 30kg more heavy in the nose than stock, so if we move the battery to the rear it "should" even that out.

 

 

On a side note, the car has a full Peder's tuned suspension setup at all four corners that have been designed with the engine in mind..

 

And yes I found out that it was Carlos Casmiri and his fantastic family that helped us out massively, they are all super helpful and helped us find some awesome parts (the steering wheel being our favourite).

 

Question! - What is a good power output and torque output for the 240Z to be making? We are not sure of exact performance of this engine and the stock power is around the 180kw - 400NM mark. This has then been played with as I mentioned prior with a mild cam, flat top race pistons, standard carby (we assume - it is only four barrel, I originally thought that it was bigger but now I'm not so sure) and standard exhaust manifold - Not real way to tell from that but does anybody have any idea on what the 308's generally make after mods?

way to many unknowns to guess what the engine is making. compression ratio plays a big part, as does head work, manifold etc. even the cam will shift the power all over the place. a rebuilt 308 will be great fun in a zed regardless. aussiev8.com.au forum is a good place for 308 help.

Everyone has 12 inches when talking numbers on motors. Honestly if you have 250hp at the rear wheels you are gonna be beside yourself. Not being rude but you look like a younger fella, the power to weight of this car will surprise you, your old man and your mates. A tough clutch and you will still be smoking the rears at 3rd.

 

Oh and a good set of extractors looks like it should be high on your list. they will probably have to be made to suit. Mine were big pipes through to twin 3 inch (massive overkill for your motor) but tip to tip it cost me 2500 at Windsor exhaust (no one in Bathurst or Orange was interested).

They would give you a fair gain if your motor is specked as mentioned.

Not being rude but you look like a younger fella, the power to weight of this car will surprise you, your old man and your mates.

Yeah I know what you mean, I am 21 and am used to power to weight of cars like the SS (270kw - 530NM ~ 1750kg) and my SV6 (195kw - 340NM ~ 1720kg) and I do not really know what to expect from this car/ engine because I have never driven an older V8 and don't know how they go.

Oh and a good set of extractors looks like it should be high on your list. they will probably have to be made to suit. Mine were big pipes through to twin 3 inch (massive overkill for your motor) but tip to tip it cost me 2500 at Windsor exhaust (no one in Bathurst or Orange was interested).

They would give you a fair gain if your motor is specked as mentioned.

 

We have been looking into Pacemaker extractors, though are not overly worried about mods until the car has been painted and registered, then we will look into things like CAI, exhaust, etc.

 

Did Bathurst Muffler, and Hi Tek both turn you away?

 

Question. The car has an open differential. Should this be fixed by putting an LSD in? Do you guys think that an LSD is necessary? I don't like the idea of all that torque and lack of weight being run through one rear wheel..

For your set-up, I'd go an LSD for sure 

Yeah I know what you mean, I am 21 and am used to power to weight of cars like the SS (270kw - 530NM ~ 1750kg) and my SV6 (195kw - 340NM ~ 1720kg) and I do not really know what to expect from this car/ engine because I have never driven an older V8 and don't know how they go.

 

Are you quoting factory specs at the engine there, or have you had your V6 on a dyno?

 

The reality is the V6 probably makes more power than your old V8 does at the moment, whilst using half the amount of petrol. Get an exhaust done and tune the thing as best you can and appreciate that its not in a heavy car so it should still be fun. Dont waste your money trying to get more power out of the 308.

the plain old 5L efi engines in vn commodores etc were 165fwkw from factory. even though the 5L may have less power and torque on paper, they make a heap of torque at lower rpms. this will make the zed feel awesome!

 

I don't like the idea of all that torque and lack of weight being run through one rear wheel..

doesnt sound like you know how a diff works lol. all the power will be transmitted through both wheels equally, until one looses traction. in an open diff, all the power then gets 'sent' to this single wheel. in an LSD, a portion of the power would get sent to the other wheel as well. v8 commodores used to come with open centres, not much of a drama. mine has a spool, a lot more fun.

If the motor is a built motor with flat tops etc it should have at least 9.5-1 allowing for the age, wasn't till all these alloy motors and computers made it reasonable for 11-1. Sure there were motors built with 10.5-11.5 in the old 308's but they were expensive or hand grenades.

As mentioned above the 308's had heaps more low down punch but generally ran out of puff at 5000rpm.

Everyone said no to my exhaust, oh maybe ring back in a few weeks. I was aware of the price and work, and willing to leave the car for a couple of weeks even.

Be careful with getting a off the shelf exhaust, you need to make sure everything fits. Those standard log manifolds would probably be robbing 20hp at least if the motor is built as said.

As for your diff, my suggestion would be to wled it up, makes it a pig in carparks but excellent for power delivery. Just don't weld it until you have it past for rego.

There are a few here (me included) that run LS1 engines, don't be put off by us saying that a 308 makes no power, if you can get it registered again happy days. You don't need 600hp, as I said 250hp in a one tonne car, that equates to 450hp in your commodore.

Apparently Adam Cope over at Bathurst is pretty good playing with carb stuff, and has a dyno to check it all.

I run a exhaust shop and i can tell you now you will not buy off shelf extractors to suit this engine car combination need to get custom set made if you dont want to run std manifolds

having had 2 different V8s in my 240z i would be looking at moving your motor as far back as u can as per the Jags that runs system for 350 chevs installs they have the dizzy half inch off the firewall it would make lot bigger difference than moving battery 

 

mick         

doesn't sound like you know how a diff works lol. all the power will be transmitted through both wheels equally, until one looses traction. in an open diff, all the power then gets 'sent' to this single wheel. in an LSD, a portion of the power would get sent to the other wheel as well. v8 commodores used to come with open centres, not much of a drama. mine has a spool, a lot more fun.

 

Hey, sorry I should have been more explicit in my statement. I understand how diff's work, I meant that the rear only has as much grip as the tyre with the least amount of grip. My SV6 came with an open diff and I put an LSD in from an SS.

 

Are you quoting factory specs at the engine there, or have you had your V6 on a dyno?

 

I am quoting factory specs. My 08 Model SV6 is said to produce 195KW at the flywheel at 6500rpm.

 

Apparently Adam Cope over at Bathurst is pretty good playing with carb stuff, and has a dyno to check it all.

 

Ah I have met Adam a few times in regards to tuning the SS and the SV6 (deciding t0 spend the money on the 240 instead).

 

Thank you everybody for the fantastic information. My father and I have acquired all but one or two of the parts needed to restore the body of the Monster, and now it is only a matter of time (sanding, priming and painting) and then we will put the engine back in and get her a blue slip.

 

After this I will be interested getting a dyno to see power output and then fiddling with custom exhaust and CAI. We are thinking a twin exhaust system (maybe duel 2.25") but this all depends on the research that we do and the people that we talk too.

 

Question. What are your opinions on strut bracing, front and back. There is room with the v8 as the intake sits behind the strut tower. Is it necessary? I would think that an old car would have less chassis strength than it did new..