Well I just got a hold of a 82 280zx With T-Tops For A Steal! Fixed the electrical problems the orignal owner didnt want to hassle with and Im ready to MOD this Z. Im going with the suspension first since I come from a mustang and lightining Backround (Lots of Power, No handling). Next Im looking to mod the engine a little. Looking for advice on Any air intkae mods, Fuel Mods and suggestions for spark plug wires, cap, rotor and other ignition products. I read NGK's are the best bet on Z's and they were also on my Big Block N/A and Forced Induction Motors I used to run. Thanks for Any Advice Guys.

 

FIRST OFF TURBO OR N/A? THEN USE THE SEARCH OPTION, THIS HAS BEEN ASKED PLENTY O TIMES... AND WELCOME TO zdriver

 

Oh sorry N/A 5 speed 122k miles Runs Like a champ...So far

 

Well just to be nice first thing you can do is upgrade to a standalone system if you can afford it.

Then go with a 60mm t/b and bigger injectors. You can also get the head done with a 3 or 5 angle grind.

Port and pollish the intake, do jfairladyz's afm rebuild.

Put in a pallnet fuel rail and add headers.

you can also upgrade the coil and ignition (msd blaster 2 coil )

change out the 2 1/4 exhaust to a 2 1/2 or 3"

ohhh and add a Zdriver sticker +50hp

 

So if you would indulge me please, What kinda gains am i looking at after all that minus the Sticker???

 

springs and shocks for suspension. Replace bushings and bigger sway bars and strut bars. Make sure all suspension components are in good order as well.

 

How much power are you looking for, lets start there. Your best bet is to go turbo, unless you want to spend a rediculous amount of money.

And with a standalone there is no need for a AFM. I also wouldnt waste your time with a larger throttle body.

This is just my opinion but... You would have to spend a rediculous amount of money just to make an NA motor compete with a bone stock turbo motor.

 

i have a well built n/a, and getting over 200hp at the wheels takes some effort. the n/a's do well with the following mods for cheap:
take off head, if its solid lifter, p79,p90, then grind off .080" takes it to 10.5:1 comp ratio
install new cam kit from msa 260 dur. 1/2" lift or whatever is close
headers with msa 2.5" exhaust kit (easy install)
60mm tb
msd ignition
electric fan
new 3 core radiator
start with these for your first cheap mods, with these, your old mustangs will be left in the dust, unless they have heavy mods too, but then you can out handle them. the stock fuel system will support these, and will still get good mileage. anything more and your starting to need machine work and a new intake, custom built headers and different injectors.

 

Listen to Shady he knows all about building an N/A motor

 

Shady is yours a 3.1 stroker motor? I want to do one with my '81 later on.

 

naw no stroker, i stopped just short! maybe the next one so i can aim for 300 rwhp! right now im really focused on 250 rwhp. it will come sooner than later

 

So you are running that hp with a 2.8 modded? Wow verry nice, maybe I will go that route also. If my n/a is over 200hp, I would be happy enough. he he

 

I have found over the years that "enough" is never enough

 

DATSUNSOCAL - Here's the biggest question...

How fast do you want to spend?

Horse Power and I mean real Horse Power costs money. Outside of the forced induction crap (sorry guys I don't agree with it) You're really looking at around $20 a pony. I'm probably going to be pushing around 250HP+ out of my 3.1L stroker L28 when I'm done with it. But I have quite a bit of money in it. Tripple 45mm throttle body intake, 550cc injectors, holly 255 fuel pump, P90 head ported (not polished), F54 block bored .120" (3mm), V07 crank, MSA stage II cam (480 lift 274 duration - yes I know I'm going for low end torque), MSA 3-into-2 header, TEC3 engine management with coil packs and crank trigger...etc... yeah. I blew a lot of cash getting parts and now I need to blow even more cash getting machine work done. Of course I hit a speed bump. I had originally planned to go with an N42 head and block, but a friend of mine dropped a gem in my lap at the last minute so now of course my stainless steel valves won't work in the P90 head, but I don't care. The flow numbers in a P90 don't require larger valves and the F54 block has added webbing between the cylinder for more support and I much prefer that route. Anyhow...What kind of performance are you looking for? Not necessarily HP because newbs to the Z want to go wild with HP numbers and you really don't need that much. Give me some info and I'll give you a layout.

 

NA is indeed a pricey route to go. When I got my car it was stock, save for headers and K&N cold air intake.
When my head comes back I will have added the following:

Port/polish /w 3 way valve grind
.480lift .275 duration cam
Pallnet fuel rail
60mm TB
Rebuilt/flowbenched injectors

Approx cost: $1800

For that amount of money you could do a good job on a turbo setup and acheive more power. I am pretty muche finished modding this engine as I do not want to throw thousands more into stroking, compression mods, forged components, etc.