Zerocell5688

Ok ladies and gentlemen of ZDriver! You fine group of individuals seem to be some of the brightest minds and most innovative thinkers of all the Z and Nissan Forums i've been on so far. So with that said and done i'll get onto ma questionz!!

K So me and my dad have this good ole 77' 280Z she's got some pretty hardcore rust and crunch damage to the bottom of the chassis, she's old and rotted rubber the clutch is pretty much fried and i've ran my front tires completely bald so given the common circumstances i've figured she's due for a little face lift and some reinforcements in some areas the first and most important thing thats killin me now are ma Tires and Wheel setup. I'm runnin the old skool steelies with the rim covers and the 195/70-14 wheels which no one supports anymore really lol so i was thinkin i'd go ahead and start here first but where to start? I've seen people with the "Shelby" style rims that are reminisant of the old Mustang rims of the late 60's early 70's that would look real nice, maybe get them a half inch to an inch wider if possible. I like her stance and ride generally i just wanna stabilize and accentuate her natural behaviour and feel with some modern looks and the ability to mount modern more high speed rubber

Any one who owns and S30 knows they're light, fast, incredible little rockets on wheels. mine will do 120 at 4000 in 5th not breaking a sweat with bald tires, a trashed clutch, no suspension and all rotted bushings on the bottom so i know this is a bad *** angry little car, i just wanna get her with a few more modern amenitiese such as Disc brakes all around (perhaps a newer style caliper) with Braided lines, a good suspension thats close to stock height and feel, and modernize the Intake Mani (I red the sticky on cleaning it up 10+ points on that!)

So any ideas for me? i figure we'll just start with wheels and tires and work up from there i say thanks!
~J

KasbeKZ

you usually want to add more than an inch or a half to the wheels. try 2-3 for good well rounded performance. also, for an amazing look that i really like, go with 17 inch wheels and cut the fenders and put zg flares on them.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...8CadyZ_S30.JPG

very nice. check out rota wheels. i believe you can still contact them about the group buy on rbr's 17x9.5's with -12 offset i think they were. don't quote me on those measurements though. they had a good deal on them and they won't be around for ever. very nice wheels. that's just my suggestion for a wheel upgrade.

your brake solutions: https://www.zdriver.com/forums/240z-280zxt-s30-s130-tech-tips-275/drum-disc-brake-conversion-20081/

260zturbo

have the rbr on my z. i love them and happy that i bought them also depends on what size tire you really want. i have 275/40/17 in the rear with 255/40/17 up front.

theramz

You really should put it up on a rack and investigage the extent of the rust before you start.

Zerocell5688

I just got ma front tires done this morning at Discount They set me up with some Kumho KR21's i guess my tires are different from the stock ones even though they're steelies with Z Covers on them (LOL!!!! STEELIES!!!) They were 195/75-14's and the Kumho's were the only ones they had in that size and for $45 a piece it wasn't bad. And considering my old fronts were down to the steel belts i figured anything besides balders are good tires especially cause i drive like 60+ miles to work every day and most of that is around 90-120 lol. They're pretty good i guess rated at T so thats 123 mph the guy said. I really liek them they ride smooth sure and quiet the difference from my fronts and my rears now is astronomical! i love the smoothness and the grip as well as the quiet ride its good biziness so far at least till i can get some more coin to invest in some rubber. Maybe some Pirrelli's or Falkens or something what do ya'll think?
~J

280zx2by2

welcome to ZDriver im getting my s30 probly next week and i am looking at some of the same exact issues as you

i run 205 60 14 flaken ziex512's on my stock ZX size enkies, you might could have got those tires to fit on your steelies...

Zerocell5688

Yea i seen some falken something or anothers for them they were like $66 a piece so its pretty good deal but i'm just broke fool right now lol! i was debating buying another set of steelies for the back that are an inch wider but i don't think they sell them lol. I gotta replace my clutch like ASAP that ****ers slippin and stinkin and causin me all kinda heartache too i found a replacement OEM for like a bill and it seems like a good deal just cause i'm poor bastard anyone else got any good ideas for a cheap good clutch?
~J

BoulderZ

Just my $0.02: I agree with theramz, you really want to find out how bad that rust is. It's always worse than it looks at first. No rust is truly terminal, given enough money and time, but you have to decide for yourself where your limit is on what's worth fixing. Otherwise, you'll just be making repairs and upgrades on a car you don't end up keeping (good money after bad).
If you decide to keep it and fix it up:
For a clutch, even with a mildly modified motor, I've been happy with a quality stock-style clutch. I got a LUK at my local independent auto parts house (good, knowledgeable counter staff). The key is to go with a new, *not* remanufactured, brand-name clutch. It should be pretty close in price anyway, so no need for false economy. It should also come with a new pilot bushing and throwout bearing. Finally, be sure to get your flywheel turned when you do the clutch (a lot of shops do this for free or cheap if you buy the clutch from them, anyway).
For wheels and tires, I don't personally like the big-rim look or ride quality on the S30's. Not saying it's wrong or bad, just not what I wanted. I went with old-style slot-type wheels, reissued in modern polished aluminum, in 15x7, and then went with plus-sized Kumho Ecsta ASX's, so the speedo calibration is unchanged. Gave me enough room for the four-piston vented brakes up front, and the disc conversion in back. Not a lot of room, but enough.
good luck,
Dave

Zerocell5688

lol indeed that disc conversion is coming but so far i've just been doing light tune ups and mild upgrades (New Tires, new vacuum lines, new plugs and she's running much better) i had the water pump **** out on me not 2 days ago but thats ok it switched out and she's running like a top now. My next concern is while i was replacing the water pump i noticed a little spool of wires melted and the wires ran from the Dizzy to this control module my dad purchased a while back thats supposed to help with lowering the idle when she's stationary. I'm wondering if that is contributing to my high idle. I know enough to know that melted wires are never good at all so thats gotta be replaced soon but yea how mission critical is that at this point? i'll try to post pictures up later but yea anyways! the rust on her isn'y that bad but i def need new rails on the bottom of my car and new floor pans on my passenger side cause its about had it lol i put a jack under that side to lift it and the whole rail sunk in so yea that sucks i need a roll cage or something of the like would 1x1 steel work? oe 1x2 or something?
~J