Datsun 280Z -77 - Build thread

peter_s

Club Member
its helps with noise and vibration, however more than that, it prevents stress points as its flexible, your diff will now be looking for the weakest part in the system.
It's not solid mounted now, it's suspended in poly bushings. It will hold up fine for this application, not worried about it. The nice thing about the T3 setup is that it will make the whole rear chassis more solid.

I've driven many cars with aluminium bushes, and the vibrations are not too bad (most have been pure track cars though). The scary part with solid mounts are the cracks that can form around the bushing mounts.... As you said, it will be looking for the weakest point
 

peter_s

Club Member
Got one control arm and dog bone in yesterday. Had very little time, so I said "just one thing"

These parts look so good!
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Here are the mustache mounting points. Just like the stock ones, but with poly bushings:
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peter_s

Club Member
Getting a little bit stressed now, first autocross of the season is on Thursday next week! Booked alignment on Friday, and then a local shop will adjust the valve clearance now after dynoing and a little breaking in.


I went to the garage with my assistant, he actually helped me hold some bolts etc. Got to start sometime!
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Got the CV axles from Z car garage mounted. Hopefully they will sort out some vibrations in the driveline I had at higher speeds.
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Rear end is basically done, only sway bar left and then I need to tighten the bolts around the bushings when they have load on them.

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Basically all the T3 parts just bolted right up, very impressed with how they have been designed to be able to accommodate variations in fitment. Almost all parts have compensation for adjustability in them.


Then I received my floor mats from Cocomats. I've been looking for some Sisal style mats, and here they are. Coco mats even sent me templates to check with the car and approve. The quality and service are outstanding!
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I can also tell you that I've brewed my first batch of beer in my life. So I did the right thing and designed a label. Drew my car and made a logo:
ZSHr1eNl.jpg
 

Rob Gaskin

Treasurer
Staff member
Site Administrator
First of all what is an Autocross in Sweden. In the UK it is racing in a field.

Well done on the beer front. My Dad worked at a brewery all his working life and we lived in a brewery house in the grounds!
 

peter_s

Club Member
First of all what is an Autocross in Sweden. In the UK it is racing in a field.

Well done on the beer front. My Dad worked at a brewery all his working life and we lived in a brewery house in the grounds!
Thanks Rob, the taste was far beyond my expectations. Not bad at all.

I go Autocrossing with a local Sports car club. There are five events that where four results are counted in the total cup. We also run two events in the winter just for fun.
The track is most often on an general aviation air field (they are cheap to rent), and if so the track is inspired by a test layout a Swedish car magazine used to test sports cars with. It's basically a slalom that wants to upset the cars a little by changing from higher speed to lower speed by tightening the distance every now and then. The track is pretty fun, very technical, but has a nice low to it.

Every now and then we rent something else, and then the track might resemble a small race track but with some cones thrown in. As you might figure, the track benefits low weight, but it's fun. Drove the M2 last year at one event, car worked surprisingly well, times were pretty competitive actually. I plan to do the full season in the Datsun if I can

Here is one I found on youtube of our "standard" track:
 

Rob Gaskin

Treasurer
Staff member
Site Administrator
Ok I think I have seen a video you posted a while ago. We would call that a Sprint. Ben240 on here is a Sprint expert in his historic Janspeed 240.
 

peter_s

Club Member
Ok I think I have seen a video you posted a while ago. We would call that a Sprint. Ben240 on here is a Sprint expert in his historic Janspeed 240.
Considering the series is called "The Sprint Cup" I probably used the wrong word :D

Glad to see another Z doing sprints!
 

peter_s

Club Member
God, I love the Cocomats. They’re not cheap but they look great.
I've been looking for ages for a cheaper alternative. I found some in Japan, but then you don't know if they will fit. The service and quality rom Cocomats made me very happy. I'm tempted in getting a set for my daily and my wifes car. Would make outstanding winter mats, I hate rubber mats.



On another note, the car is out in the wild!

I have an alignment booked today, and a sprint race next Thursday! Time for shakedown.

I can also say that the CV axles from Z Car garage seems to have solved all my vibration issues I had on the highway with higher speeds. Car seems almost perfect now in that regard.
 

peter_s

Club Member
Thanks Jon

I have no idea, I think they are fairly new to the market. They came ready to be bolted on, greased in and everything. They even put some red loctite in the bag with the bolts.

They were pricey, but these will last me a lifetime.
 

Woody928

Events Officer
Staff member
Club Member
It's been a long time since I've checked in here, however your build is absolutely Epic Peter! I really appreciate the ethos and manner behind your build, its so great to see another car being built and properly driven rather than locked away in a garage!

I thought I did quite a lot of modification to mine however you've really taken it to the next level, how are you finding the engine now its got some miles on it?

I can also say that the CV axles from Z Car garage seems to have solved all my vibration issues I had on the highway with higher speeds. Car seems almost perfect now in that regard.

I've also been following these with great interest along with their big brake upgrade, nothing cheap comes out of there however the quality and customer service seems mega and matches said price tag.

What kind of vibrations were you suffering? and have they totally disappeared? I feel like I can still get some resonance through mine on occasion and have wondered about these for when my LSD is eventually rebuilt, they certainly look like they'll take a hell of a lot of abuse!
 

peter_s

Club Member
It's been a long time since I've checked in here, however your build is absolutely Epic Peter! I really appreciate the ethos and manner behind your build, its so great to see another car being built and properly driven rather than locked away in a garage!

I thought I did quite a lot of modification to mine however you've really taken it to the next level, how are you finding the engine now its got some miles on it?
Thanks Woody, very kind of you.

I think it's important to set your goals after what you want to do with the car. It's never a good idea to you buy a lot of parts and slap them on there. I think what you have done with yours is absolutely perfect for a street driven car, a sports car that can cruise. It's the perfect recipe for the street. My suspension modifications comes with some draw backs, especially on the road/daily driving. It's now a race car, for good and bad.
However, I wanted something really exciting, and this car now feels like a race car to drive. The first sprint race is on Thursday! I plan to drive it there (it's one hour away) and home again, if the car holds up :D

If I were to use my car as a street car, I would do poly bushings all round. So if anyone here reads this and thinks about the T3 stuff, look at their offerings with bushings in them!

The engine is great. I've been driving it all weekend. I'm so impressed with Eiji and DSI. Below 4000 rpm it feels almost like a little peppier version of my stock engine, it runs great. I would expect it to be gutless and difficult to drive, but it's just so smooth considering the cam that's in it. It even idles pretty well. Then above 5000 it just opens up. I pulled against an Audi SQ8 the other day on the highway, and I kept up! Ok, I don't think my car is as fast as a SQ8, no illusions here, but it's pretty peppy. The surprised look on that driver was hilarious, got a big thumbs up. The engine just want's more and more, it's difficult behave :D

Drawbacks? It's pretty loud, and I have two large mufflers. I don't know what to do with the crank house vent, it smells in the car when you get on it, but that's not the engines fault.

I've also been following these with great interest along with their big brake upgrade, nothing cheap comes out of there however the quality and customer service seems mega and matches said price tag.

What kind of vibrations were you suffering? and have they totally disappeared? I feel like I can still get some resonance through mine on occasion and have wondered about these for when my LSD is eventually rebuilt, they certainly look like they'll take a hell of a lot of abuse!
I think what's great with their brake kit is that you can fit 15s over them. I can't due to the hand brake lever in the back.

My vibrations came at around 70 mph. More throttle gave more vibrations, and it was totally speed dependent. No resonance. I thought it was the prop shaft, but it turns out the CV axles took care of my problem. My rear bushing for the differential was shot as well, so that might have exaggerated the problem. I have a little vibration at 95+ mph now, but I think I have to wait for the race track to see if it really is anything to be bothered about. The higher speeds really makes vibrations show up. But for street driving right now, it's good!
 

SeanDezart

Well-Known Forum User
I'm happy with my 3.9 ratioed diff - good upgrade and still cruises nicely in 5th.

What size wheels and tyres have you got on ? They look huge :)

Joey - I might be interested, please, if the offer is 'open'.
 

peter_s

Club Member
If you ever want to swap the Gear ratio let me know, I have 4.1 4.3 4.6 and 4.9 all available easily.
Thanks, appreciate the offer. Just changed to the 3.9 now and had a Quaife installed. I can imagine the 4.1 would be the optimal ratio for track driving, but right now I'm liking the 3.9 as a compromise.

I'm happy with my 3.9 ratioed diff - good upgrade and still cruises nicely in 5th.

What size wheels and tyres have you got on ? They look huge :)

Joey - I might be interested, please, if the offer is 'open'.
16x8 JR wheels. 0mm offset. I have to use 16 with my brakes, the handbrake lever is the culprit.

Tires are Yokohama AD08RS in 205/55/16. Works well with the chassis. The AD08 is pretty wide, the 205s are wider than most 225 regular street tires. They have a pretty square shoulder, which few street tires have.

I'm really excited about the sprint race on Thursday. Right now it says it's going to snow, and today it's 15 deg and sun :(
 

SeanDezart

Well-Known Forum User
Cathy won't be tracking hers and I also went for 205s but 50x15s in Proxy CF2s, again - a nice 'square' tyre leaving plenty of tread on the road to cope with all weathers....but perhaps not snow :eek: !

Very satisfied how I managed to tuck up the rear silencer when so many 280Zs have theirs on show in profile.
 

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