Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Yes, it would drop compression.

The intake ports on the newer VQ35 heads are angled different and require a VQ35 manifold. However, you could use the 2001-2004 Pathfinder VQ35 heads maybe, since they used a similar type port.

You're SC'd, so you don't need/want to drop compression, just buy cams and you're going to flow plenty of air.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Pauter rods are overkill...there are better choices for non-turbos.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Actually, it was brought up by another rod manufacturer who stated that any additonal weight/material beyond what your intended goals are is eating hp/responsiveness.

Makes sense to me, since those Pauter rods are beefy SOBs intended for serious boosted motors, ie 800-1000hp maybe?

I think Carrillo makes a perfect high rev NA or moderate boost application Pro-A beam rod that would be superior to the OEM VQ35 rods, but not bomb proof like the Pauters.

Originally Posted by MardiGrasMax

My block is ready at the machine shop

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Out of 15-20 blown motors on the 350Z board I read, there are A LOT more, 1-2 are suspect of this issue.

I'd guesstimate this is a 10% or less occurance and people are using it as an escape goat to sell their "solution to the problem". Problem really is that Nissan weakened the internals by reducing weight and when people throw TT kits that produce healthy amounts of torque at low RPM, rods bend/snap. Even Nissan knows the rod bolts can't sustain 7200+rpm, so Nismo sells rod bolts, and even after those they don't specify any higher. Then for the 2005 "300hp" Z and "290hp" G, they redesigned the COMPLETE rotating assembly. So, apparently Nissan has something in mind for the future or the 3rd gen VQ35s were near their limit at 287hp to cause a complete redesign for a minor 13hp increase.

Anyways, the CPS->ECU shielded cable is not just a "simple" black/white here is the answer to your bending rods as you made it sound.

Originally Posted by JeffesonM

I browse the 350z forums almost as much as I do here and I'd tend to agree with Ice's summary of the crank angle sensor situation... I think it's definitely something that needs to be addressed but with one or two exceptions it's not the cause of blown motors. Detonation is.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

It's the x-Honda pay someone to do the install and get a half azzed tune, that end up blowing their engine. These guys just bolt on a kit and then go run them without even checking AFR or retarding timing, which in the VQ35s is a fatal mistake.

Originally Posted by MAX2000JP

Not to be mean, but I don't think you understand the problem at hand. You say detonation is the cause the majority of the time. Please read the APS link it will explain it to you clearly. The interference is causing the timing to be advanced at the wrong time, which causes DETONATION.

Originally Posted by MAX2000JP

Did you read the link I provided on the first page? The internals are good for 500+ whp when tuned correctly. A local tuner called Genesis Racing recently tuned a APS TT kit to just that. My friend Brian, BriGuyMax on the .org, bought a APS kit and did a ton of research on it. He was told by Charles and others in the 350Z community that this was the cause of a lot of blown engines. APS provides the grounding kit stadard in their kits. You admitted detonation was the cause of many of the blown engines; APS's testing and theory seems to hold very very true when you think about it.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Not reliably, but maybe for a limited time. Yes, people here squeeze 450whp or more out of a stock VQ30, doesn't mean it's going to last very long. VQ35 rods have been shown to not handle 450whp even with perfect tuning and no signs of detonation and is considered the "limit" of the stock bottom end with FI.

APS is biased and has been selling this escape goat for months even before they released the info. Charles/Phunk tends to jump on stuff to bring a new product to market.

Again, it's most likely a problem, since Nissan had a recall on the sensors. These guys are just blowing it out of proportion to make money. Don't believe everything APS tries to sell you.

Originally Posted by MAX2000JP

Please do a little research on the "limits" before posting. You are making up numbers for the limits of the VQ35 because it isn't really known. Look back a few years ago to Maxima performance and what people were saying. Again, my friend Brian has done a ton of research on this kit including talking to Charles himself. He could have went with a number of kits including the Greddy which Charles sells. APS chose to make a kit that was as close to what a factory kit from Nissan would look like. The "fix" is inlcluded standard in their kit, so I doubt they are making a huge profit off it.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

I've done enough research to know that people who have reliably ran TT kits for 10-20K miles withOUT blowing are saying that is what the limit is. Yes, you can push 500whp or more if tuning is perfect, but it's past the being moderately safe and you'd better be prepared to drop in a new motor.

APS is using their "fix" to market their kit as superior to the Greddy and PE kits, so yes they ARE trying to justify why their kit is better and making a profit.

Originally Posted by MAX2000JP

How do they know the limits, if they haven't blow the engine due to pushing the performance envelope? It is all hearsay and estimates. As in any motor, the tuning is key. Look back a couple of years and see what people were saying the limits of the VQ30 were. People like Mardi and Hal proved them wrong. When you modify your car, you are assuming risks and I am sure people pushing 500whp are prepared for the worst.

Originally Posted by IceY2K1

Because they're the only ones still running the stock motor at 400+whp, while others have blown, one even twice?

There is ONE 500whp APS TT kit on stock internals, I can see, so time will tell. Even he knows it's a crap shoot, but he is PREPARED to put in a new motor.

Again, words of wisdom from the GUYS RUNNING, is to keep it under 450whp with good tuning and you can expect a decent long life out of the stock bottom end. Start pushing 450whp to 500whp and as long as you have your tuning/fuel system, it will handle it short term. Push over 500whp and you'd better be prepared for built internals.

Mardi/Hal haven't proved anything other then the fact that for the short term, VQ30s can handle 400whp even 500whp for limited bursts. Hal went through several motors to acheive that and Mardi was running SC'd with some N20.

Originally Posted by MAX2000JP

Again, this is all based on estimates. No one knows at what point the internals will fail due to too much power. Charles's own 350Z was daily driven for a long time at 450+RWHP while being abused. He took the car to the track quite a bit, street raced it, and had hours on the dyno tuning and tweeking it. He drove the car around as a daily driver, don't know how many miles it lasted, but I can ask Brian.

I would disagree that Mardi/Hal haven't proven anything, but that's another arguement. Look way back 3-4 years ago and see how things have changed regarding the power estimates of our engines N/A and F/I. When I first registered here, modded 4th gens could hardly break mid 14s, now with some development work they can run mid 13s.