chancy31

Hay guys I am currently a 4th gen. max owner but when I was 15 my dad bought me an 82 max for only $20 bucks that I drove for about six months and has been parked now for about 2 1/2 years. I have been wanting to build a hot rod lately and just yesterday decided to take the motor out and put in a 350 bored .30 over and a 400 cam to make it a 383 stroker. I read in a post that you can put a small block in but nothing else. I am sure I can make it work. does anyone have any links or ideas to help me out thanks

maximase86

iTrader: (24)

I haven't personally seen it done, but it's very doable. If you want a good reference, you should do a search for 240/260/280Z owners that have done it on google. Judgeing by the engine bay size, you probably won't have too much of a problem doing this, but keeping in mind there will still probably be a bit of fab work needed (motor mounts, tranny mounts, driveshaft, etc. If you do it, that car would haul some ***. Hell, if you built the motor right, you could have yourself easily a 12-13 second car. OR, if you had the money and time to do this, you can do a RB25DET drop without too much of a problem (other than getting the motor and everything needed to go with it)! Either way, it'll be a task. Keep us posted how it goes. It's nice to see someone going in to mod a older max, it's a rare thing.

S

DA-MAX

iTrader: (10)

check over on www.hybridz.org ...mainly 280s with SB/BB and whatever other motor swap you can think of, but they could probably help

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

go Mopar

and best of luck for the success of your swap

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

Also are you looking to make it RWD then?

What kind of transmission are you thinking about? Automatic? Manual?

eitherway, with the weight and power, you could run 11's with out a problem if build up the engine

maximase86

iTrader: (24)

Ummm, dude, 1st gen's are already RWD. All you need to really do is install the tranny, build up the rear-end, and let her rip. I would stick with what most Z owners have been doing and go with a Chevy SB swap. I've seen the LT1 or LS1 seems to work pretty well. 300 whp right there with minor work. As for an auto or manual choice, it's kinda of a toss since either won't be a bad idea. If you go for a manual, a T56 seems to be the way to go. I dunno about autos though, from what I heard, it's gonna make fitment more difficult because they are wider than hell, but from what I heard from a shop guy, if you mix it with the right torque convertor, ain't nothing stopping that car.

S

MrGone

iTrader: (30)

lol, Sarin, I for some reason I was thinking it was an 85, lol.

You could go with a SBC, then use either a T56 or a TH350 or TH400 or 700r4. Get an overdrive and go wild on the rear end gears 4:10's or 4:56's
The reasons to run a T56 is 1. Its stronger, 2. 6th gear, and 3. you wont chew it up like you will a T5.

My neighbor has a 383 700r4 combo in his 67 Camaro and he runs 12.3's on street tires, 1500rpm launch, and 3:23 gears.

wylie-c

I say go for it! My buddy has a 78 280Z with a 1971 LT1 under the hood with a th350. Still using the stock gears in the rearend. It goes to beat hell!

chancy31

Thanks a lot for your info and opinions I plan on putting out around 450 ponies after everything is said in done including big cam, intake, 3" headers, high-compression pistons and a few other things, by the way I am going w/ a turbo 400 auto tranny w/ around 2800 rpm stall and shift kit

maximase86

iTrader: (24)

Werd! Are you gonna stick with the stock rear-end, or are you going to build it up? Maybe tried to see if you can get something with posi? Either way, when you do it, take lots of pics, and maybe if you have time, do a write up of what you did? Other than exhaust noise, that car is gonna be total sleeper!

S

86Wagon

Having never seen the RWD version of our cars before, do you think
that the TH400 will fit in the tranny tunnel?

On our FWD cars, the steering rack is just behind the engine/tranny, where
is it located on the RWD version? Hopefully it doesn't get in the way of the
bigger tranny.

Good luck!

Scott (Who also owns a 74 Nova w/ a 452HP 383 & one of 4,667 4-speeds)

maximase86

iTrader: (24)

Well, on the 1st gen, there maybe some modification work for the tranny tunnel. I know that Z's tend to be a little narrow, so it may also be an issue in the 1st gen. As for the 2nd gen, there is the exhaust piping in the tunnel, and the steering rack. Also you need to clear the fuel tank for a rear differential, and work out how to make the suspension work. It's possible, but it maybe more work that you want to do it. There is also the case of mounting the motor, but I think if you did get it worked out, you'll have enough room to fit a DOHC motor, like a VG30DET or a VQ. Now come to think of it, the car you can reference is the Infinit M30. Though it's a coupe, the chassis is remarkably similar to the 2nd gen. You can probably utilize the drivetrain, rear suspension and motor mounts probably.

S