240z Alternator upgrade to 70amp 280zx Alternator

The first steps are to purchase a 79-83 280zx or a non-turbo or 81-83 turbo alternator. The non-turbo alternators are 60amps and the turbo model is 70 amps.

Purchase the part above from motorsport auto. Cost about 30 bucks. This parts allows the new alternator to perform right. Remove the External regualtor and plug this unit in.

They are the same size, thus the larger amp/internally regulated alternator will fit. Bolt the new alterntor in and adjust the belt, and your set.

1982 280zx TURBO 2+2 Automatic -Swap engine into the 240z

I picked this bad boy up for $850 off craigslist.com. Didn't run very well when I picked it up, but now most of the kinks are worked out. The plan is to swap the turbo engine into the smog exempt Z. It will be capable of about 220hp stock. That is about 100 horespower increase, then I'll add some more goodies and be looking around 320hp which will be good for 12second quarter mile runs.

New master cylinder and braided brake lines

I have a used brake master cylinder off my other Z that needs to be swapped. In conjunction I will change all the brake hoses to the Earls steel braided lines. She should stop much better and not pull to the left under hard pedal pressure.

Motorsport Auto sway bars

Here is a comparison of the factory front 240z sway bar to the MSA 1" upgrade. It stiffened up the front end quite a bit. With addition of the energy suspension sway bar bushings, it's really stiff.

The 240z never came with a rear sway bar. To intall the rear one must drill into the body to mount the hardware. I'm going to try and get the rear finished sometime next week. The rear bar is 7/8".

Centerforce stage II clutch installed

I installed the clutch last Friday and it is much better than before. When I first installed the 5spd transmission out of the 81' 280zx non-turbo last month, the wrong throwought bearing was paired with the wrong pressure plate. Now the correct parts are paired up, just need to break in the clutch and it's ready to smash on.

My new clutch and other parts

Centerforce II, new slave cylinder, throwout bearing, stainless steal clutch hose, and pilot bushing. Car is going to drive awesome. Will install this weekend.

New clutch parts on order

I just ordered the Centerforce II clutch kit, throwout bearing, pilot bushing, and slave cylinder to fix the clutch problem. A grand total of $371.01.

I lowered her about an inch

After
Before

Urethane bushings, tokico 5way struts, eibach springs

I installed all the parts listed and the car handles a bit better. The sway bars are still on back order, so once those come in, that will be the real test. Although most of it went smooth, the rear strust don't seem right to me. I put a question on zcar.com about the rear strut replacement.

Things to do will be the stainless brake lines and sway bars.

Installing suspension, have strut bars so far

Front
Rear

More body work

Sanded and filled all dents and holes for a clean quarter panel. Need to sand one more time with a 2000 grit and it's ready for paint.

Engine Bay Clean Up

Below is the engine bay the day I bought the car.
I used some Purple Power cleaner. This took me about 10 hours total to clean it up this nice.

Performance suspension parts on order

I have the following parts on order through Motorsport Auto:
Front Strut Bar
Rear Strut Bar
Msa Sway Bars
Eibach Springs
Tokico 5way adjust shocks
&
Steal braided brake lines,

Should all arrive on Monday. Will have post that show installation and explain performance increases.

Removed soft throttle valve

There is a valve that allow the throttle to slowly close. I removed it so that the throttle action will be more precise.

Intalled new vacuum advance

Purchased a new vacuum advance from Kragen Auto Parts for $42.99. Now the z runs great. I can adjust the timing so it pulls all the way to 6000 rpm. Now it's time to make more power. But safety first. I'm going to order steel braided brakes lines, and install all the Engery Supsension bushings I have. It will handle and stop better.

New carpet in rear cargo area

I was going to purchase the carpet kit from MSA, but I'm not ready for the full kit yet. I need to paint it and get new weather stripping first. I purchased a piece of black carpet and used 3m spray adhesive and attached it the the sound deadening material. Is that a word(deadening)? Check out the pic, it looks great for a temp fix.

Replaced another clutch slave cylinder

The 280zx slave cylinder I installed failed like I expected. Went down to Kragen and bought another one for 29.99 and installed it. Now the car shifs great. At first I thought the syncros were going out. This is a better, easier, cheap fix than I could hope for.

Removed coolant through intake manifold

Removed and pluged the coolant lines that passed through the intake manifold. This will decrease the intake temperatures by a few degrees added a bit of power. Probably not even a 1/2 horse, but it's better than nothing.

Rear bumper clean up and removal

Old bumper, I removed the rubber and the horizontal crash peice.
The picture is fuzzy, but the bumper looks better this way.

Smog pump and California Emissions removed

Today I removed the smog pump and all the other smog related parts. The car runs great, just a bit more exhaust smell than before. The car was bad enough as it was, so I'm a bit bummed out.

240z Four piston brake upgrade

Finished product.
Four piston caliper off a 79-84 Toyota pickup 4wd front straight axle onlly is a direct bolt on. The only modification is you must cut the dust shield, and bend the hose that attaches to the caliper.

Factory two piston brake. The new pads cover 20% more area.

Bad vacuumn advance

I just tested the vacumn advance and realized it was bad. The seal is blown. That's why there wasn't a lot of pull after about 5000rpm. Need to buy one and then the car is good to go.

Wheels painted on car..

Finally got a garage for her

Finally got a garage for the beast. It's a large single car, but for only $40 a month. It's nice to keep the car out of the elements.

Began the repaint of my XXR wheels

I think they look good. I stripped the paint of with Jasco Paint remover, and then repainted them aluminum.
The Jasco removal process. Took about two hours. Then it started raining.

This what they originally looked like. Not bad, just dont care for the red.