260DET

All coilover struts should have a thrust bearing at the top just like OE. The monoballs commonly used are good for aligning the tops with the strut but should not be solely relied on to take the vertical load for several reasons.

For the project race car, the fuel cell has been located directly under and up against the rear floor so the filler hose has to come in through the rear quarter panel above the floor into the top of the cell. Is there any simple way to clad it, as far as I know there is no suitable off the shelf clad hose available. For venting I'm assuming that braided stainless fuel line will be OK. There is a good reason for mounting the cell up against the floor, that's not going to be changed. So, solution?

Doing it on the car makes a lot of sense as far as fitment goes, 2.5 hours must be some sort of record too.

Oh my, treasure time.

Like the jack, guess that they fit under the sill of a lowered car? And, wheredoyougetthem? Front splash guard is a nice piece of work and a good idea.

That gumtree one Jason listed is gone, I think that you are more likely to get a mobile body repairer to give a quote, the established businesses are more likely to think that the car is not worth the cost of repair and their time quoting. Fixing frame rails won't be cheap, they are more complicated than S30 ones.

First recorded in the '60's as Jay and the Americans, like our Zeds and some of us still going strong.

Have ordered an Altronics Shift kit http://www.altronicsinc.com/electronic-push-button-paddle-shifter-1.html

Moving right along from the chit chat, one side of the rear suspension is all bolted up and best of all looks like it will be a goer. By that I mean that the various specs like toe, camber, ride height and track look to be within adjustment and axle range which is a hell of a relief with a suspension dimensioned using tools like a tape, ruler, level and so on found in your average diy workshop. Pics should be self explanatory, note cool green coilovers with yellow King springs, the 10" wide wheels fit in easy as, about flush with the outer guard. Could fit 11" wides in there but with 275 wide semis the widest available there is no point. EDIT: Six rod ends each side, total of 12 including one at the bottom of each coilover which was converted from rubber bush type. All cro-mo, not that expensive if you shop around.

Oh and Lurch/Chook, I was once young and smart arse too, now I'm still a smart arse but one who knows more.

lol coincidentally I was thinking that a can would look better but they are/were all full, as in full of liquid and full strength.

Rust and body damage sound like the big problems, see if you can find a mobile body repairer to give you a quote, I'd do that before anything else because the body is everything. At this stage you do have alternatives including moving it on and starting again, once you start spending money then you are committed financially and emotionally, we don't want this to turn into a bad experience for you.

Not sure where those who want a S30 race car are going to go with today's prices, the priority is a good body and that's what costs so there is no cheap way out there. Alternatives I considered before commiting to the Z31 were a race 370Z for $35 or else a Toyota 86. The 370Z was/is a very well built car so good value for the dolla. But, like others here, a project has a lot of attractions if it can sit in the shed with no pressure to do anything.

Koya 18x10 wheels arrived, nondescript black but it's a pleasant change to get something that bolts straight on without requiring any attention.

Depends a lot on the individual's situation. The biggest mistake often involves a young bloke wanting to get into a Zed as his daily, no other car to fall back on. Like all of us he starts out keen but often without a lot of cash or ability, he needs a car to drive but the bloody Zed is taking forever to fix and is costing too much anyway. So many other problems can arise too eg as a result of moving house, loosing a job, personal problems and so on. It can be a rocky road unless it's a manageable project with no finish by date backed by a stable financial and personal situation.

You are not going to fix the rust yourself? It's expensive to outsource, paying others to fix the car generally can quickly send costs out of control.

Consideri Could not agree more, particularly given the price good cars are bringing which means that more rust buckets will be viable to repair which in turn will push demand and prices up and supply down. And who is going to part out a half decent car? It's a niche business and just difficult enough to make it not worth doing for your average quick dollar dealer.

In case it hasn't been considered, importing large but relatively light items like spoilers by air is expensive but I have no idea of any demand that can't be satisfied locally. On the subject of importing whole cars for parts, can this be done in such a way that car import approval can be avoided?

Bloody hell, that's cheap.

Wonder what changed from hating to loving? Anyway, a hot S30 used to be a sensible and competitive alternative in many ways but given S30 prices now I wonder if that is still the situation.

It's hard to believe but after all the calculating, all the design work, all the fabrication it looks like the diff and suspension is ready to be fitted permanently, except that the springs have not arrived yet. So the diff has been mounted including a last minute addition, a torque arm. Two reasons for that, firstly to help accomodate the extra load from two lateral suspension arm pivot brackets, secondly to take load off the diff cover which can crack. Pic shows pretty well everything except the front bearing lube mod which is hidden inside the front diff mount.

Is there a 'fastest through the Kink' trophy?

Yeh I looked at that Master Shift but the creatively named Shift system from Altronics (US) might be the one I go with, it has more relevant features and is much cheaper.

It's funny how a genuine attempt to discuss circuit driving which was prompted by the TCM crash turns into a wank fest. Where is any mention here of how great/fast/wonderful I am? There isn't, my name is not Jason. All I'm interested in is constructive comment and as usual learning is the main aim eg the Kink at Bathurst. If people are not interested in that then raise something of interest to you, otherwise piss off and don't clutter up the thread with childish wannabe smartarse comment.

Apparently there is little interest in electronics here but I thought it might be useful to someone to know of one source for learner electronics, Jaycar. They have a couple of books plus a clever multi purpose learner kit, the book looks good the kit is on it's way.