My 92 Z34

[pocket-rocket]

Started to disconnect stuff from the engine while waiting on high rpm rod and main bearings, crank scraper, ARP rod bolts and some gaskets and seals today. Did a makeshift mock-up of how my 96 intake with 3" tb arm and 75mm Northstar tb are going to sit. Bought the arm and tb from jmgtp last winter and today leads me to believe his car didn't have ABS... I can't say for certain yet since nothing was bolted tight, but the plastic cam that the throttle cable hooks to hit the bleeder screws on the ABS unit that sits on the side of the master cylinder. Not a huge problem, nor am I worried about it since it was a temp trial mock-up, but something I may have to address in the near future. Still happy to be doing something to that car, finally.

Edit to avoid post whoring: Ordered a 24" 3an line for my cluch hydraulics. I'll finally be able to use my "door prize" 3an to pin-lock adapers from the last 60v6 meet.

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[pocket-rocket]

New look, not so shiny but it's all for the better in the end. Also I took pics of the mockup of the new top end.

Side note, no wonder the bottom of the engine was so wet...

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[pocket-rocket]

Small update. Got my conversion gasket set, timing belt, dist. o ring (delco), axle seals, stainless braid clutch hose, clevite 77 rod and main bearings, crank scraper, arp rod bolts, KYB struts for all 4 corners, new coil over sleeves and nuts for the rear suspension and digital bore gauge.

Considering my goals and not wanting to pull this thing apart once the exterior is done I'm considering ditching my current plan on going N/A and doing a forged engine/rotary muffler combo. As long as it's been since I've since the car I'm comfortable with not driving it this spring and taking my time with the build up. Besides, in theory I should get better results taking my time.

Things left to do, finish fine sanding the clear and buff, remove headliner and refinish it and sun visors, strip patchwork job of sound deadener and install new deadener covering pretty much all metal inside (if you are going to do it, may as well do it right...), clean and repaint engine bay, reloom engine bay harness, install battery relocation kit, and figure out what direction I want to go with this engine before i move on with it and head out to South Bend Clutch to talk with them about rebuilding my clutch and massaging it a bit.

No, Ben, if I do a forged build, I will not be using this crate engine as my core. I was wanting to use the engine from the 91 since it's well seasoned, but I imagine the engine that came out of this car should be as well with 120k on it, except it hasn't gone through heat up and cool down cycles in the winter. I don't think that will have any impact on anything, though. I also don't want to pull this thing outside in pieces and leave it out there just to get the 91 in here to pull it apart.

Edit: More parts to be on the way... Just got the rear drivers suspension disassembled and the upper mount is shot. The sleeve that the strut shaft goes through had separated from the rubber. I guess it's time for round 2 ordering parts from Rock Auto. No wonder the rear end was noisy... :/

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[pocket-rocket]

Wow. I didn't really believe the listing on ebay when it said that bore gauge was good up to .00005", but it really is. Most of them said .0001" or .0005". I didn't want one that did .0005 for checking stuff for critical tolerances because that's barely better than .001" and I wanted accuracy. Shockingly this thing arrived to my door after buying it Tuesday or Wednesday morning and it really does read .00005" and I only paid $90 shipped ($75+15 shipping). I thought for sure the .00005 was a typo online since everywhere I checked said the same thing. It's no Starrett, Sunnen, Mitutoyo or Fowler, but I think I got a steal since the going price online is $320+!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/170892109958?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

[robertisaar]

rotary muffler.

[TGP37]

The thorough insulation job sounds nice. Are you going for sound insulation from engine/road or climate insulation for clean, ice cold ac? or both.

I've always considered having a well sealed, filtered (or airwashed) cabin. Coupled with a nice a/c that can get real cool and a dual electric/coolant powered heater. Electric for the cold start ups in the early winter mornings....I like heat in seconds versus minutes with just coolant heat. I live in the NE, I like my a/c but jeese oh man we need instant heat 5 am when it's 12F outside which seems like half the year. Maybe retrofit a home electric heater if you have those boxes for 120v power. Weld a frame and work it into the blower. Illuminated on/off button on the dash, yeah.

I believe in building as big as one can dream, and pay for. And I believe you can build a nice ride so go for it!

[TGP37]

Wow. I didn't really believe the listing on ebay when it said that bore gauge was good up to .00005", but it really is. Most of them said .0001" or .0005". I didn't want one that did .0005 for checking stuff for critical tolerances because that's barely better than .001" and I wanted accuracy. Shockingly this thing arrived to my door after buying it Tuesday or Wednesday morning and it really does read .00005" and I only paid $90 shipped ($75+15 shipping). I thought for sure the .00005 was a typo online since everywhere I checked said the same thing. It's no Starrett, Sunnen, Mitutoyo or Fowler, but I think I got a steal since the going price online is $320+!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/170892109958...84.m1439.l2649

Just read this after my run on post. That's cool, I can appreciate the ability to measure so precisely. At such a great price too.

[pocket-rocket]

The thorough insulation job sounds nice. Are you going for sound insulation from engine/road or climate insulation for clean, ice cold ac? or both.

I've always considered having a well sealed, filtered (or airwashed) cabin. Coupled with a nice a/c that can get real cool and a dual electric/coolant powered heater. Electric for the cold start ups in the early winter mornings....I like heat in seconds versus minutes with just coolant heat. I live in the NE, I like my a/c but jeese oh man we need instant heat 5 am when it's 12F outside which seems like half the year. Maybe retrofit a home electric heater if you have those boxes for 120v power. Weld a frame and work it into the blower. Illuminated on/off button on the dash, yeah.

I believe in building as big as one can dream, and pay for. And I believe you can build a nice ride so go for it!

Both, really. I never really had a nice stereo setup. I want to do a somewhat pro grade job on what will go in this spring. I'm looking at 2 JL 12w6 subs and a large amp to power them. I figure I want the car as a driver's kind of car, you know? Enough creature comforts like a good stereo, a/c yet if I want quiet I just roll up the windows yet still haul balls if I put the pedal down and spool a Holset.. I want to do it mostly for the sound quality and the insulation factor will be a bonus since the the car is black.

One day when I drive it last year I left the windows up all the way up on a hot day at work. When I came out it was probably easily 115 degrees+ inside the car. When I opened the door a heat wave blasted me in the face as I sat down. As it cooled off in seconds I watched a small rock chip in the windshield grow to about 9". By the time I got home it was probably about 15"... So yeah, helping keep the heat out will be nice. I'm also planning on getting a nice 2 way pager Viper alarm with remote start to help with temperature control, lol.

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[robertisaar]

solar powered ventilation? works for the prius.

[pocket-rocket]

solar powered ventilation? works for the prius.

Neat idea... I might have to look into that since it's probably twice as dark of a black as it used to be. I could vent it through the opening between the front of the doors and the body or through the trunk somewhere.

I was going to get a window module for the alarm system I could open, close and crack windows remotely, so no promises on a solar powered ventilation system, lol.

Edit, there were 18 left, so I bought one...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009SUEYA/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

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[TGP37]

Both, really. Is never really had a nice stereo setup. I want to do a somewhat pro grade job on what will go in this spring. I'm looking at 2 JL 12w6 subs and a large amp to power them. I figure I want the car as a driver's kind of car, you know? Enough creature comforts like a good stereo, a/c yet if I want quiet I just roll up the windows yet still haul balls if I put the pedal down and spool a Holset.. I want to do it mostly for the sound quality and the insulation factor will be a bonus since the the car is black.

One day when I drive out last year I left the windows up all the way up on a hot day at work. When I came out it was probably easily 115 degrees+ inside the car. When I opened the door a heart wave blasted me in the face as I sat down. As it cooled off in seconds I watched a small rock chip in the windshield grow to about 9". By the time I got home it was probably about 15"... So yeah, helping keep the heat out will be nice. I'm also planning on getting a nice 2 way pager Viper alarm with remote start to help with temperature control, lol.

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I have the same views on creature comforts.

Right now I'm sitting in the hospital again. But this time it's for a good reason, my Wife is in labor.....my 3rd Son is on his way. But this stuff can take time, just sitting here staring at the wall when I realized I had the laptop and a free wireless hotspot.

[pocket-rocket]

I have the same views on creature comforts.

Right now I'm sitting in the hospital again. But this time it's for a good reason, my Wife is in labor.....my 3rd Son is on his way. But this stuff can take time, just sitting here staring at the wall when I realized I had the laptop and a free wireless hotspot.

That has to be the best reason to visit a hospital, congrats!

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[pocket-rocket]

Small update.

In the middle of changing struts. Got new rear upper mounts locally for $10 more than what rock auto wants. Got one rear strut coil over assembled and had moved to doing the front since Dale was here doing some 2000 grit sanding and did a buff and polish job on the trunk lid just to tease me.

Well, working on the front struts has turned into spending the last 3 hours trying to get just the drivers side apart. It seems when you use those rubber bellows to keep stuff off of strut shafts in order for them to stay good longer from dirt not tearing up the seals, you are doing yourself a disservice for your next strut service on w bodies at least.

My theory is those bellows are holding water inside between the retaining nut that holds the top of the strut at the top of the knuckle/strut tube and that tube itself. I've heated the whole thing up hot enough the strut shaft extended on it's own and I can't even keep my hand on that tube 5-6" lower down (using MAPP gas in my torch). I've used the weight of the car to hold the knuckle still with a pipe wrench on the nut and stood on it and no dice. I've cut the top of the nut off in hopes of removing the strut and cutting the nut up from the inside and no dice (retaining section is too thick). I've cut the top of the tube off down to the top of the threads to get a better grip on the nut with a pipe wrench and no dice, so I think I might have to get another knuckle and take the two to a welder and have the caliper mounting bracket cut off the old knuckle and welded onto the new knuckle because of the Corvette brake setup (reason I can't just swap a stock one on).

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[TGP37]

The trunk, that looks real nice. A proper paint job is a fine art. Like the new yellow coils too, I need to do suspension work next year after the interior cabin is done.

Once our cars are done were gonna have to attend a 60v6 meet someday to show them off.

Your Z34 is gonna look so freaking bad ass with that high sheen paint job. I bet waxing becomes a new hobby next year, lol.

[pocket-rocket]

Lol. I'm open to suggestions on wax. I've been using Turtlewax Emerald Series for a long time. It does a nice job and if you miss some it still comes off a week later.

As far as hitting the next meet, it's a deal... if we even get one going next year. I've attended every one (I think) except the first one. The last one I rode with Ben and didn't even have my car with me, lol. Meets aren't all about showing off your car (although there is always some drooling going on somewhere), it's about hanging out with fellow gear heads and hanging out and stuff. It's an awesome time, even without a car. >.> <.<

I had edited this post with my phone to give progress update, plans and a pic, but my phone deleted half of my post....

Anyways, Dale said the car didn't have to be outside to buff and polish (obviously, it's still on stands and the trunk has been done) so I moved off of the suspension that was really aggravating me to the engine bay. Plans are to clean and wipe down the bay really well (Dale has some nice BASF 541-5 silicone/tar remover that does a really good job of cleaning surfaces), prime, paint and possibly clear just to make it pop a little more. Then I'm planning on using some sound deadener that is meant for heat rejection on the firewall. I've gotten all A/C components out, subframe and steering rack out, engine wiring harness, heater hoses/tubes and the fake firewall out. I also have to look around and see what parts I'm going to get as far as engine internals and save/buy them, get the engine down to the block and get it to the machine shop to have it cleaned and checked out to see if it's going to need boring so I know what size pistons to get, then when I have internals gathered take them to the machine shop to have them balanced. I also still need to do some CFM figuring to see which Holset is going to suit my needs. This project is getting expensive, but I'm not looking back