So My zeds engine died on the weekend, I've had nothing but hassle from the vg30's. that car has been through 2 already. I was thinking of replacing it with a good, reliable carbie'd v8 and a 5spd. So far I know I will have to mod the trans tunnel to fit the 5spd, would it make a difference with auto? Also, custom engine mounts, exhaust manifolds and sump will have to be fabricated, what else am I looking at?
im doing a ls1 conversion but not cause of the reliability issue. i have a TT daily aswell with 250rwkw and i hammer it....... the vg30dett is really reliable but just needs to be maintained. you are looking at 10k+ for conversion and then you have to worry about engineering and 5 gas test then taking it accross the pits.
My understanding is that you will need to meet the emission standards of teh year of the car or the motor, what ever is newer. In the case of a zed, they have a fair bit of pollution gear, will be difficult to get through without that stuff.
this is true i would personally reccomend putting the money into doing all the maintnance things on a vg30dett then doing an engine conversion. there is ALOT to it.
Damn :/ I'll just fork out for a new engine. Again. I'll get a brand new one this time. What are they going for on eBay? 2.5k roughly? Minus turbos
Not a brand new engine obviously, one out of a wreck seems to be around that. Get one rebuilt properly if you want reliability, chucking an engine in with an unkown history may just give you more headaches. And dont put in a POS carbie.. please...
My engine has unknown history :S 120k of unknown history.... So there are no engines that are new just rebuilt ones?
You can get a new one... Looking at about 8k landed if they are still around... Rebuilt is almost as good as... And a hellava lot cheaper!
You honestly think you'l get a BRAND NEW engine from nissan for 2.5k? Definitely not, as chilledpain said they are availible but for a bit more then that, if you want reliability get it rebuilt properly, or buy new, but will likely work out more expensive.
If you are a handy sort of person, you can put a small block chev in there for under $5000 easily and meet emmisions with a carb. Use a L04 or Vortec 350, pull the injection and put a carb on top, standard VL commodore quadrajet carb will meet emmisions with out issue. Items you need to fit it to the car. 82-87 camaro exhaust manifolds Chevy Nova sump, needs minor mods to clear steering rack Aftermarket electronic distributor Short water pump and pulley set Passenger high mount alternator bracket Chev 12 3/4 inch flywheel, machined to take nissan ring gear Adaptor plate to mate engine to Factory nissan gearbox Chev S10 350 conversion mounts or fab your own I am in the middle of doing this now, no bonnet mods, no firewall mods, no tunnel mods, keeping a/c, power steer and an iron small block chev is still 25kg lighter than the vg30dett. I will post up a thread once it is done outlining how to diy. Give me 3 weeks and you will have all the answers you need.
That is awesome mate. Some stuff I won't be able to do but this is a project I'm going to start next year. Will probs fab my own mounts, see how I go.
Engine shopping isn't something I do regularly, forgive my ignorance. My knowledge is like Swiss cheese, I am only young
Seriously though, would it be cheaper and a better idea to just maintain it a little better? I am pretty sure the VG30 will handle a lot of abuse, so long as you keep it happy with fluids and 100K service, plenum pull etc. Just an idea, not a criticism, but if that's the problem, no matter what you put in there, if you abuse it constantly, it will go bang.
In the trade with your contacts, under 5k may be possible but for Joe citizen no way, there's a thousand bucks worth of emission testing alone for those in W.A
Stick with a VG30DETT. It's part of what gives the Zed its character! If you want to go V8, a mate in Springfield, Oregon (United States) dropped a VH45 into his Zed about 7 years ago. They're only slightly heavier (about 10 pounds? according to the tuning shop where the work was done) than a VG30 'cause of the alloy block. There is more torque. I think a few people in the US drop them into Silvias too. For me, if you put in a reliable, well maintained VG30DETT, you'll know what it's really like to own a 300ZX. Part of the fun is the rush on boost. Good luck with it.
In Auss a Holden V8 or replacement TT engine better bang for buck option. In Auss a Holden V8 or replacement TT engine better bang for buck option than the VH45... due to this being a Holden V8 country and VH45 are not as common as in the USA.
I've spent more time under the bonnet than behind the wheel 10fold. :/ This is something I won't be starting until early next year. So I'm basically just looking at my options.
