thanks lifegrddude

 

Exactly!

That is why just a few hours ago I easily outran a 2000 Oldsmobile Intrigue. It is my aunt's car. It doesn't matter who's car it is though, I still outran it. She said her governer is at 109mph and that was nothing for my car to leave behind. So now I can say my car will go at least 110.

 

I've been to 110 on a local road, that was at 3500rpm in fifth gear, I had plenty left but,the can began to shake so, I'd prefer to update the suspension/tires/clutch/ and rearend fluid before I take it that high again, these cars will smoke a 4.0V6 Ranger 5-speed easy, I can vouche for that.

EDIT: It's not all about HP and TQ, A big part of speed is the power to weight ratio, our cars weigh 2700ish stock, mine is a 2 seater, no p/s, no p/w, no p/L and has a completely stripped interior, no jack, no spare tire, and various other things were stripped off of it, sometime in the future all of the a/c components will be removed to lower the weight even more

 

Don't forget aero. An all important element in the top speed game. You can make up power deficency with good aerodynamics, something alot of cars of that time and earlier just didn't have. Drag is a Bitch.

 

I Got One Of Those Car Bra Things On The Front End. It Has Like Two Bug Deflectors On Each Side That Are About Eight Inches Long And About Two Inches High. Would That Sacrifice Speed Enough To Make A Difference If I Took It Off?

 

No, not unless you planned on going 190mph. A good spoiler help aerodynamics by reducing drag, unlike a wing, which actually uses drag to create downforce. Headlight cover reduce drag on these cars too, but again, you'd have to be going pretty fast before these made a difference in your top speed. Lowering the car is probably the single most effective mod available to the Z that will increase aero and reduce drag. Having the rear just slightly higher than the front will also create downforce to keep your car glued for those who aren't fans of spoilers or wings.

 

Where Could I Get A Kit To Lower The Car? How Much? Would It Be Worth It?

 

Definitely worth it. You're car will handle much better at both low and high speeds with a lowering set. Just make sure you get a quality set of springs. You can get lowering springs from MSA and Victoria British. Modern Motorsports makes a full coilover kit as does Ground Control for the 280zx. The springs are much less expensive, but you lose the adustabilitly of a coilover kit. Prices for just the springs range from less than $200 to a few buck over $300 for a set of Eibachs. I'll check out prices on the coilovers and post em here when I get em.

 

Ok, I couldn't find the Ground Control coilovers. I had the page saved to my favorites on my old computer before it crashed. I had stumbled upon it by accident, but now I can't find it. The Modern Motorsports coilovers are $625 for the rear pair. They don't have the fronts listed on their site, but they emailed me a while back and assured me they do have fronts. They can send you a quote. They also make custom hubs and brake kits.
You can also get a full Tokico performance lowering kit (shocks and springs) for a little over $500.

 

A little off topic, but still relavent. What are your oppinions on my 280zx 2+2 NA completely stock except an aftermarket intake, against a completely stock 2001 stock 6 cylinder Mustang, think I could take it? I got a $200 bet going on this, plus side bets. the race goes down in 1 month. ( not illegally, I have a buddy that owns a local race track, with a drag strip, that's why it's not for a month.)

 

Down the 1/4...probably pretty even. You might out torque him off the line. If you do, don't forget about your shift points. If you do, you're dead...trust me.

Back to the high speed thing. I went on a drive with a Porsche GT2 a few months ago and he let me lead 'cause I wanted to know how fast I could go. We were heading slightly downhill and my rpm's were in the 6k range in 5th gear. My car is a stock n/a btw... He pulled beside me and showed me with his fingers a 1 a 4 and 5...then took off like a rocket...bastard! So...top speed is all relative.

 

Use this month to practice your reaction time and launches.

Does he have an auto or a stick?

Most close drag races are decided at the 60 foot line.

 

Both cars are auto.

 

I know that with the Auto, trans. ZX, such as mine, the mid range power is the strongest, so I talked him into using a 1/2 mile strip of the race track instead of the 1/4 mile drag strip. My buddy has portable home-made drag trees. Should I work over-time this month and get another power adder, just incase? Now you guys got me worried, I'll try to find a 6 cyl. stang at a stop light and test it that way.

 

Do you think I should manually shift my auto for this race? just for RPM's and all. I know for a fact that he wont do this, because he's a dumbass that did it before and wanted to be a bad ***, so when he went to slam the shifter into drive, he went all the way up to REVERSE! Then his rich daddy bought him the Mustang.

 

What redline did you use?

6500 is about all you'll get out of these cars in top gear.

 

Where are the shift points on the car now?

 

You might be pushing your luck on this one. While you've got the weight(2+2 weighs more than the coupe) advantage, and your tranny should be better for accelerating(you've got one less shift), he's got more power, an overdrive, and unless you've upgraded your tires, better traction. But I'm pretty that hes got a govenor in ihis car, especially as an automatic, so his top speed is going to be limited, and a half mile is a pretty good distance to get up to speed. For the race just put in some high octane fuel(most tracks/airports sell it) and advance the **** out of your timing. Work on your launches, you need the jump on him, cause you might have some ground to make up. Know your transmissions shift points and your stall speed.

And oh my GAWD, did someone just say 145 or should I wake up now. NA no less. It makes we want to go out and give it gas until I hit the redline in top gear just so I can have a ticket that says 145 in 65. (No I'm not stupid enough to do it.

 

IF you feel up to it enough trying preparing all of your car for this race. Take out the passenger seat, spare tire, jack, any interior panels that you feel like removing. If your air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, plug wires, cap, rotor, etc, is extremely old go ahead and replace it. rotate your tires making sure to have the front tires put in the back so that you'll have the tires with the most tread where you need it. over inflate your front tires a little and if you car does spin the rear tires a lot when you stomp it deflate the rear tires a little. don't eat too much the day of the race and try to take a big **** early on.

 

That's really good advice, especially the last part ;p Spoken like someone whos done this a few times. The air pressure will play a huge part on how well your car hooks up. Too much and you'll have wheelspin, too little and you can bog out your engine and create unneccesary drag going down the track. Play with it until you get it just how you want it. Even if you think you got it right, make sure you mess with it some more at the track. Different surfaces heed different results, tracks are usually stickier than the street, so you might not need as low a tire pressure as you thought.

 

3000 out of 1st and 2nd if I just put it in drive.

 

It's really not neccessary to shift it yourself. It should hold each gear as long as you got your foot planted. If it's shifting too early, then you can go ahead and shift it yourself. The real point in shifting an automatic is to keep your car at a lower speed down a grade, or to keep in a constant gear when climbing a steep hill so it's not jumping between gears, not to make it go faster.

Note: I've never driven an automatic Z before so what I say is not to be taken completely to heart. This is just a general bit of information. The only reason these things came with automatics in the first place is A:keep boost up between shifts(americans can't drive in their eyes) to make the car easier/smoother to drive, and B:POV are ****. That second one is kinda unofficial.

 

First off, how do I advance the timing? I've asked this a few times and have never gotten a response.
second, I'm pullin the back seat, rear interior panels, and spare tire, jack,etc.
Third, I no longer think I have anything to worry about...About 45 min. ago I pulled up next to a Dodge Dakota R/T with the 5.9 I believe, and started messin with him at the line. he replyed, and when the light turned green, I put the throttle down about 3/4 of the way to the floor, then floored it once I hit about 25mph(didn't want my trans to start slippin under the torque), when we hit 75 my nose was about a foot in front of his, same as when we started! At the next light he pulled up to me again with his window down and asked what kind of car it was and if I knew anyone trying to sell one! 280ZX BABY!

sorry bout the rambling, but I'm ****in happy guys!

 

To advance the timing, get a timing light(you can do it without one, but I don't recommend it unless your going to full advance), loosen the screw holding the dist. in place, and rotate (can't remember which direction) until you acheive the timing you want.
If you can't get your dist. to advance as far as you'd like, you can take the dist. out and then adjust the dist. housing to it's base for even more adjustibility.

At one point my Z was retarded like 30 degrees(it's not turbo). Which explained why it was so sluggish and the idle had to be set so high. I set it stock, and picked up alot of power, I then just advanced it a few degrees and used feel to tell if it felt better. Once you start losing power, it's time to back it off. Make sure you run premium fuel when you do this other wise you'll run into detonation.

Nice story. It's always good to hear succesful war stories.

 

PS. you can safely run about 10-12 degrees timing without upgrading you fuel, after that, I recommend upping your octane points. Hell, I reccomend upgrading your fuel if you advance at all.

Oh, and you can raise your idle speed too, which will help you get a smoother start off the line without bogging.

And scratch what I said above, get a timing lite, you should have one anyways.