260DET

Relevant comment on the front X member Matt, my race experience with the 280ZX 2+0 is that it's stock bolt system which is similar to a S30's comes loose, the nuts specifically. Because of that I have made some fore/aft supports hence my earlier comment, their weight is insignificant. I have bigger brakes so the loads involved when braking particularly are significant.

Looks good to me, perhaps a fore/aft brace to the chassis too?

As far as a seat goes, the key is to mount it as low as possible. What I did was measure the amount of usable floor space available and then check the base sizes of seats I was interested in plus of course the internal bum/hip width. I'd start by checking out the Sparco range.

18x10 wheels all round should be OK with those guards but that will make it a tight fit on the trailer's width. Have been trying to think of some sort of video or mirror setup to see where the R front tyre is from the driver's seat in relation to the trailer when loading.

Finally, bit the bullet and have a set of front and rear guards as used on the '79 Newman Sharp 280ZX on the way. What never crossed my mind in the past is fitting the Z on the trailer with wide enough wheels to fill the more extreme wider guards. Anyway the beauty of these guards is that they don't have that tacked on flare look, the guards are just wider. Pic of the Newman Sharp Z.

Check with a few freighters if wrapping them in bubble wrap or similar would be OK otherwise it will have to be cartons, see above post.

The Bend should be a big attraction, looks to be a great track.

The BMW Supra has a straight six but Nissan has plenty of V8 experience not that I'm a fan of DOHC V engines, too bulky and un-necessarily heavy.

What with the current Corvette and Mustang offerings it's hard to see that any new Zed would be competitive in the US if what Nissan have been offering Zed wise during the last 20 years is any guide. The Murricans have finally discovered handling and braking so their offerings are now beyond the drag strip.

My first Zed was a rusty 260Z which was fixed up, engine fitted was a FJ20ET, a lighter SR20 would be a good choice.

You are going to need new BRAKE pads sometime so why not pull the pads as HKSZ suggested and check them in a DBA cattledog? Pads may not be available, who knows.

My S30 used to run ~2*, under heavy braking you don't want the wheels to move to toe out so it depends a bit on how solid the rear end is.

Did you look at Cracker's post?

Looks like that Ferrari engine would require an aftermarket ECU plus a gearbox, if one could be adapted. That would cost a bomb, cheaper to fit a 370Z engine with gearbox.

Will that rust buff right out?