Thanks for the replies to my earlier post (ugh engine knock) I will try to again to diagnose the noise tomorrow. If it is rod knock other serious problems, whats the best replacement for my motor? A remanufactured motor ($,$$$ and what company?) or a used motor (may have been abused)? And finally would my general mechanic be able to put in an '84-'88 300ZX motor and manual tranny or should I stick with another Maxima motor and keep my auto tranny?

Reliability is my top consideration, I don't want to go the turbo route if its going to be guess work for my mechanic. But if everything drops right in, what the hell? Maybe I could go ahead and have a manual tranny put in now by one shop, and put in the 300zx motor in another shop after mine blows. Less money all at once and that way I don't overwhelm one mechanic with my absurdity!

Sorry for the excessively long post,
NOlan