# 1978 Datsun 280Z **URL:** \ **Category:** Builds\ **Created:** [October 22, 2011, 9:31pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731 "2011-10-22T21:31:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![STR8\_H8N](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/str8_h8n/32/6088_2.png) [@STR8\_H8N](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/STR8_H8N)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 12:57pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/21 "2011-10-24T12:57:21Z")
![http://s3.amazonaws.com/kym-assets/photos/images/original/000/135/680/Foghorn_Leghorn2d.jpg](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/uploads/speedlife/original/3X/6/1/6138a53c1506b1ad1f73c66cfc490ef40b6b03b3.jpeg) ---------- Post added at 03:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:54 PM ---------- > [@STR8 H8N](#): > > Update 8/5/11: It seems anyone who has been interested in this car is turned off by the fact the frame rails are shot, which is so common I don’t understand why they are surprised. So I am fixing the frame rails by welding in some new ones, and as an additional sexy bonus, I am welding in some beefy jack plates, so there is never a concern on where to jack this car up from. My price is going to be less flexible after this since it won’t cheap, but it will make the car more desirable and marketable if it has solid frame rails, floor pans and strut towers. I might even have the battery tray rust patched too. ---------- Post added at 03:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:56 PM ---------- No, it hasn’t. It wasnt for sale, the car came from NJ. The guy I got it from wasnt even looking to sell it really, I just offered a trade on [z31performance.com](http://z31performance.com) and he accepted. ---
**Author:** ![cougarspeed](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/cougarspeed/32/7468_2.png) [@cougarspeed](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/cougarspeed)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 1:03pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/22 "2011-10-24T13:03:06Z")
Stop trolling this thread. Your point has been made ---
**Author:** ![robftw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6bbea6/32.png) [@robftw](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/robftw)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 1:15pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/23 "2011-10-24T13:15:31Z")
I would still cut them out completely and build your own pans with 16g ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2011, 7:35pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/24 "2011-10-31T19:35:10Z")
I had a couple of the old ass 280Z injectors die on me, so I found 6 NA Z31 injectors (same flow rate and impedence) and threw them in. ![[http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/381373\_2077918315072\_1458420451\_2279857\_52279904\_n](http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/381373_2077918315072_1458420451_2279857_52279904_n) .jpg]([http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/381373\_2077918315072\_1458420451\_2279857\_52279904\_n](http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/381373_2077918315072_1458420451_2279857_52279904_n) .jpg) ![[http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/316119\_2077918675081\_1458420451\_2279858\_1296951536](http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/316119_2077918675081_1458420451_2279858_1296951536) \_n.jpg]([http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/316119\_2077918675081\_1458420451\_2279858\_1296951536](http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/316119_2077918675081_1458420451_2279858_1296951536) \_n.jpg) [https://youtu.be/a3nnRZeq6rk](https://youtu.be/a3nnRZeq6rk) [https://youtu.be/nF1iRNF3-CA](https://youtu.be/nF1iRNF3-CA) This winter I’ll be pulling the bad dog frame rails off to make sure they were done properly, then putting them back on. Theres also a couple TINY holes in the floor to patch, but nothing major. Car is still pretty solid, rockers are niiiice. Also, eventually I’m swapping to Z31 EFI completely with the proper MAF, and I’ll be using a Z31T ECU and larger Z31 turbo injectors so I can do head work and a cam without worrying about lack of fuel. Then I’ll just pick up Nistune at some point to tune it better with. ---
**Author:** ![robftw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6bbea6/32.png) [@robftw](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/robftw)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/25 "2011-11-02T10:07:29Z")
Get an LD28 crank 300-500$ P90 280zx turbo head KA24E (E) NOT DE Forged pistons, flat tops Get 240z 9mm rods, i believe they are from the 73 car Bore it out to 3.1. You have the N47 or n42 block i assume… (i get the part numbers mixed up) So it’ll be stronger than the F54 Siamesed Albeit very slightly Do some headwork, port polish etc… it comes out to 10.5 or 12.5 CR:1 I don’t remember exactly… it has to deal with the head You should be able to get 300hp easily, some people have 500+ reliable with a turbo and lower CR pistons I would suggest a bigger cam, find one out of the 75-76 280z with the external oiling its stronger than these cwc billets that are being made. I sent mine to isky and had it re-ground for 120$ You’ll have to get some new springs if you go over .475 lift though, the springs will bind at high rpm also, you don’t have to buy new rockers… just get the resurfaced by rocker arm resurfacers in cali. Its 2-3$ per Mine was 270/270 .475 lift ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2011, 9:06pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/26 "2011-11-02T21:06:22Z")
> [@robftw](#): > > Get an LD28 crank 300-500$ > P90 280zx turbo head > KA24E (E) NOT DE Forged pistons, flat tops > Get 240z 9mm rods, i believe they are from the 73 car > Bore it out to 3.1. You have the N47 or n42 block i assume… (i get the part numbers mixed up) So it’ll be stronger than the F54 Siamesed Albeit very slightly > Do some headwork, port polish etc… > > it comes out to 10.5 or 12.5 CR:1 I don’t remember exactly… it has to deal with the head > > You should be able to get 300hp easily, some people have 500+ reliable with a turbo and lower CR pistons > > I would suggest a bigger cam, find one out of the 75-76 280z with the external oiling its stronger than these cwc billets that are being made. I sent mine to isky and had it re-ground for 120$ > > You’ll have to get some new springs if you go over .475 lift though, the springs will bind at high rpm > > also, you don’t have to buy new rockers… just get the resurfaced by rocker arm resurfacers in cali. Its 2-3$ per > > Mine was 270/270 .475 lift I know the Datsun game…LOL! If I run F54 internals (flat-top L28E pistons) with a N42 or N47 head it’ll be ~10:1 CR with a OE headgasket, or ~10.5:1 with a NISMO 0.5mm headgasket. ---
**Author:** ![Copper280z](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/copper280z/32/5464_2.png) [@Copper280z](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Copper280z)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2011, 5:04am UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/27 "2011-11-03T05:04:53Z")
A real 300hp is no joke to make on an L, it takes a VERY good head to do it, better than most are able to do in their garage with a die grinder. I don’t like the flat top+ open chamber combo, too much compression and not enough quench. A p90 milled .080 with spacers and n47 valves would be a better way to do it. A .5mm gasket would be preferred, you just need to make sure the pistons don’t poke out of the block at all with a setup like that. ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 3:52pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/28 "2011-11-04T15:52:41Z")
> [@Copper280z](#): > > A real 300hp is no joke to make on an L, it takes a VERY good head to do it, better than most are able to do in their garage with a die grinder. > > I don’t like the flat top+ open chamber combo, too much compression and not enough quench. A p90 milled .080 with spacers and n47 valves would be a better way to do it. A .5mm gasket would be preferred, you just need to make sure the pistons don’t poke out of the block at all with a setup like that. No reason to worry about the pistons poking out of the block if you’re running a F54 bottom end…that does become an issue when you get into going with a LD crank and stuff, though. ---
**Author:** ![Copper280z](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/copper280z/32/5464_2.png) [@Copper280z](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Copper280z)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/29 "2011-11-04T16:27:43Z")
I didn’t measure, but mine poked up a tiny bit with a regular F54 block. It’s been decked an unknown amount though. ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 9:21pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/30 "2011-11-04T21:21:34Z")
> [@Copper280z](#): > > I didn’t measure, but mine poked up a tiny bit with a regular F54 block. It’s been decked an unknown amount though. [http://www.xenons130.com/engines.html](http://www.xenons130.com/engines.html) Should be .07mm from poking out…LOL! Theres a cool calculator there for determining CR and such. ---
**Author:** ![Copper280z](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/copper280z/32/5464_2.png) [@Copper280z](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Copper280z)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 9:35pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/31 "2011-11-04T21:35:30Z")
.07mm is .002", even a clean up cut would put them above the deck. ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2011, 11:01pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/32 "2011-11-04T23:01:15Z")
> [@Copper280z](#): > > .07mm is .002", even a clean up cut would put them above the deck. Yup, hence the big “LOL”. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![robftw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6bbea6/32.png) [@robftw](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/robftw)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 5:28pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/33 "2011-11-06T17:28:42Z")
eh 2mm headgaskets fix that ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 2:34pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/34 "2012-06-28T14:34:08Z")
Figured I’d share my 280Z progress, too…I painted mine flat black a month or so ago using primer as a temporary solution to this: ![http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/525871_3063853042824_1437636241_n.jpg](http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/525871_3063853042824_1437636241_n.jpg) Of course its cracking and looking like shit already but… ![http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/269214_3199740359922_369878832_n.jpg](http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/269214_3199740359922_369878832_n.jpg) ![http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/543711_3199740759932_733946063_n.jpg](http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/543711_3199740759932_733946063_n.jpg) I also swapped it to SU carbs because the EFI was pissing me off. [https://youtu.be/qaNmfofCu9s](https://youtu.be/qaNmfofCu9s) ---
**Author:** ![robftw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6bbea6/32.png) [@robftw](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/robftw)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 3:13pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/35 "2012-06-28T15:13:15Z")
ive got an extra BRE style air damn if youre interested ---
**Author:** ![Copper280z](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/copper280z/32/5464_2.png) [@Copper280z](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Copper280z)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 3:23pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/36 "2012-06-28T15:23:38Z")
Boy, this car would sure be better with a turbo, wonder where you could find just about all the parts to do that in one place for not very much money… ---
**Author:** ![1QIKZ](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/1qikz/32/6112_2.png) [@1QIKZ](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/1QIKZ)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 4:58pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/37 "2012-06-28T16:58:19Z")
Isn’t there someone on here already Frankensteining another 280z? BTW, NYSpeed rule 367.6: No more than one foreign build project at a time. ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/38 "2012-06-28T17:09:08Z")
> [@robftw](#): > > ive got an extra BRE style air damn if youre interested No thanks, I don’t much like the BRE ones. I like the one I have. Need a spoiler, though. ---------- Post added at 08:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:04 PM ---------- > [@Copper280z](#): > > Boy, this car would sure be better with a turbo, wonder where you could find just about all the parts to do that in one place for not very much money… When I have the extra money man… ---------- Post added at 08:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:04 PM ---------- > [@1QIKZ](#): > > Isn’t there someone on here already Frankensteining another 280z? BTW, NYSpeed rule 367.6: No more than one foreign build project at a time. LOL! ---------- Post added at 08:09 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:05 PM ---------- Someone screwed up the “paint” on my hood…lol ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_T](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex034/user_avatar/forums.speedlife.net/mr_t/32/7454_2.png) [@Mr\_T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Mr_T)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/39 "2012-06-28T17:33:42Z")
Ive always loved these old little cars. How much do one of these weigh? ---
**Author:** ![Z31NA2T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e495f1/32.png) [@Z31NA2T](https://forums.speedlife.net/u/Z31NA2T)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731/40 "2012-06-28T17:49:40Z")
> [@Mr. T](#): > > Ive always loved these old little cars. How much do one of these weigh? idk, ~2500lbs or so, give or take… [Previous page](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731.md?page=1) [Next page](https://forums.speedlife.net/t/1978-datsun-280z/217731.md?page=3)