LAZARUS the sedan - Part 280ZX, Part 620, Part Silverado, Part Integra, ALL Lazzie!

[sedan20]

well.. that's what i did... its holding up, but i don't truly trust the JB weld for the long haul.

[Spoona_Jay21]

dude, you have no idea how much i love this pic. not too sound creepy stalkerish, but that's how i picture me and my lady in the future.

[sedan20]

dude, you have no idea how much i love this pic. not too sound creepy stalkerish, but that's how i picture me and my lady in the future.

no worries. i'm flattered. lol

[Heavy]

i need to see this car in person soon mr andy

[sedan20]

i need to see this car in person soon mr andy

look who it is... Mr Burban... we meet again

[banzai510(hainz)]

Besides the Funky exhaust, HANGS TO LOW

I like this car. It was saved and I like the patina, rack ect. very practicle car

[sedan20]

Besides the Funky exhaust, HANGS TO LOW

I like this car. It was saved and I like the patina, rack ect. very practicle car

lol... i know you don't like the exhaust... i love it... and i guess that's what matters at the end of the day. lol... thanks for the props though... brake upgrade to be finished shortly (when eBay delivers my frikken rotors+pads)

[sedan20]

AAALLLLright... i figured id share my adventure for the 280ZX brake conversion. I had to find the right donor (got all four brake assemblies + front suspension + brake master cylinder for $300 cash... a STEAL!!).

^^^ the white 280ZX

the brakes side by side (below)

i installed a big swaybar, and new links while i was under there

started dismembering and swapping needed pieces, like taking the lower spring perch, spring, and top hat from the 510 setup, and welding it onto the 280ZX setup. I also installed brand new slotted rotors, and ceramic pads that i got off eBay (all four wheels rotors, and pads = $150)

there it is... sitting in place, but not quite finished... i have two problems... ONE is that the brakes are two big for me to keep running my Minilites... so ill have to throw them on my 2dr sedan 510 and start my search for my ideal larger wheels... but the SECOND problem is that i cant seem to get the bottom bolts to line up being that the caliper is hitting the tie rod on both sides. WTF?! nobody else online seems to be having this issue... I've been told on FB Ratsun.net that getting a set of bump steer spacers will fix the problem. i don't disagree, but i wonder why this isn't an issue for other people... one way or another ill have to fix the problem. so its back to the drawing board i never seem to really leave.

[sedan20]

yeah... the brakes are gonna stop the wheels from bolting back up. I'm going to have to go with another forced upgrade of 195/50/15 tires on some painted red s13/s14 steelies... with whitewalls.... as is life.. lol

[sedan20]

ALRIGHT... so during the time the car has been down waiting for the bumpsteer spacers from ~Karnuts~ i decided it was a good time for an engine upgrade... i bought a (i was told) running L20b + matching 4 speed transmission from Carlos and D from SSauto out here in California... I started the swap, and had it buttonned up just in time as the spacers came in... after installing the spacers, i came to the dreadful conclusion that because of backspacing i will not be able to mount my teardrop wheels that i had initially intended on using as rollers till i found the 195 50 15's to mount on a set of RWD 15" 240sx steelies (<<< my ideal wheel setup for a low pro whitewalls and chrome ratrod look).... B)

 WTF?! has anybody ran into the same problem? :confused:  the wheels hit the strut tube before they fully mount... so i cant even roll the damn car from where its sitting now till i get some wheels... i think i've now entered a state of desperation :crying: ...

 

ALSO... on top of this issue, i think i fried the damn distributer AGAIN while trying to get the swap running... SOB! :mad:  if i had hair on top of my head id pull it out. I really like my Datsun, but it just keeps on trying me...

I either need a OEM matchbox distributer, OR a suitable replacement... any ideas guys?

[sedan20]

Alright, the first and most important, and nearly forgotten topic on the interwebz is that the deck height is about 3/4" taller on an L20b, which doesnt make that big of a diffrence you would think right? lol... well, yeah it does... not just for power either... on my car i had issues with getting the heater hoses to line up, and i had bigger problems with my header coming in conflict with the firewall... my exhaust is pretty beat up right now cause i took the ghetto easy way out and smashed it with a hammer... ill have to get the now open header issue fixed when it finally (after above issues ^^^) makes its way to the exhaust shop. I also made the decision to take the visibly newer 4speed transmission that CAME attached to the engine, and use that instead of my origional leaky 4speed... in order to do this i had to change tranny mount over to the 510 mount... it turns out that the 620 transmission sits a little higher off the mount than the 510 one did, so you have to run about a half inch spacer at least inbetween the mount and the body for clearance reasons... ALSO.. the transmission is longer, and needs the driveshaft shortened, i did mine 5 1/8" and it was just perfect (perfect time for new u joints, and a balance). PLUS, the shifter sits back significantly farther than the old shifter hole, so i had to relocate the shifter boot bracket by four inches... i made a template of the shape of the top of the hole, and only cut a section underneath the hole the same size as what i would eventually need to fill once this is all said and done... i realized that the L20b was NOT a direct drop in when i test fitted it the first time, and the engine wouldnt sit in the hole... i was told that i needed to change my oil pan and pickup tube to the L18/L16 pan/tube setup but i was concerned because i imagined it restricting flow through a smaller tube, or not holding enough fluid for the larger engine in the smaller pan... turns out this is a very common thing to do, and nobody else seems to notice a restriction, so neither should i. with the pan and tube switched it still wouldnt sit right, i realized i needed the 510 engine mount brackets, and not the truck ones... so those got swapped too.... and then i couldnt figure out why i couldnt ge the alternator bracket on... between my L18 and the L20 the bracket has diffrent size bolts. the L20 is larger... so to use your L18 alternator you need to drill the L18 bracket out and manipulate it to cradle your old alternator
 

for a L20b engine ONLY swap...
-swap engine mount brackets (keep 510 ones)
-swap engine oil pan/pickup tube (keep 510 ones)
-swap transmission mount (keep 510 one)
-buy 2 feet of hose the same size as your old heater hose that runs behind the head to replace the old one without kinking the sharp turns and wrap it in heat resistant material due to engine contact

-swap and drill out your old 510 alternator mount to accept larger size L20 alt mount bolt threads

and to swap in the 620 transmission...

-swap out the transmission mount (keep the 510 one)
-space the mount at least a half inch on both sides to allow drive shaft clearance

-relocate the shifter hole back four inches to allow for new positioning of the shifter

-shorten the drive shaft 5 1/8" (recommended to balance, and replace u joints while its out)

so there it is... its not as easy as i thought it would be, but MOST of the hard work is done for me... i just need a new electronic dizzy, and some rims that will clear my new 280zx big brakes before im back on the road again... pictures below

[Spoona_Jay21]

damn, never thought the L20 would be such a Pain, in my pops Black 620 it was cake. love the progress sofar though, hope too see her runnin again soon.

[sedan20]

i never saw it coming either... but thats what happens when you stick a truck engine in a car. haha

[sedan20]

found the rims i want... gotta buy them... i may need spacers... and ive gotta pay Tristen, and get this matchbox shipped... ater its all said and done... this should be pretty sweet... too bad for the headache though.

[Tristin]

Meh, its a 40yr old car... its bound to have issues. You can look through most of the build threads here and see that no ones project was a complete walk in the park. Even the guys dropping high dollars into their projects are having troubles. Thats just what you have to expect when youre dealing with classic J-tin.

[sedan20]

JUST GOT THE RIMS!! unfortunately i found out they are the wrong bolt pattern through a serious of unfortunate circumstances... 

i am going to clean/paint, and post them for sale once i have completed them... looking to get $300(finished either how i choose, or if you have suggestions, i can paint them to request) ill get specifics on the bolt pattern of these guys ^^^ and update this post when i do.

i also have a set of s13 240SX teardrop 14's that im looking to get rid of to help compensate for this purchase... asking $100 for four rims, two have tires (bad shape) and two dont... they work good for drift spares, or whatever you want em for.... dont matter to me. the teardrop wheels are 4x114.3 bolt pattern, and RWD offset also

[rusty12ver]

What is the size of those wheels and offset?

[sedan20]

those are 16x7's, and im not sure the offset, but the hub bolts up 5 inches from the inner lip.. i layed it on its back and ran a measuring tape up to it... so on a 7 inch wide rim, it has 5 inches behind it, and 2 inches in front of the hub connection... what does that make it?

[Tristin]

Well +0 is halfway between wheel width... so 3.5in of backspacing would be +0. You have 5in of backspacing or an additional 1.5in in offset (5-3.5). Offset is measured in millimeters so 1.5 X 25.4mm equals 38.1mm. So your rims are 16x7 +38

[sedan20]

thanks... ill remember that breakdown.

[Tristin]

Now you do have to make sure that when you measure wheel width (if its not labeled), that you measure from the bead to the bead and not the outside lip to the outside lip. Then to measure backspacing, you should lay a board across the back of the rim and measure perpendicular until you reach the hub mounting face. You will get a more accurate measurement. 

[Spoona_Jay21]

I either need a OEM matchbox distributer, OR a suitable replacement... any ideas guys?

 

 

don't know if your facing this problem still but instead of runnin a Matchbox, run the 78' 620 electronics, with a GM HEI control module, that how we have the electronic in our Black 73' 620 with the L20B. just a suggestion =P

[sedan20]

sounds creative... but i am waiting for a matchbox from Tristen to get here... like a little kid, i keep checking the mail everyday. lol.. i need a tracking number yo!

[Tristin]

I PMd you one yo! I like how you bumped the PM. It really made me laugh. 

[sedan20]

ALRIGHT!

GOOD NEWS - I have solved the problem of trying to find rims that will clear the nearly impossible big brake problem! AND, I purchased an entire (almost brand new) Matchbox distributor from VatoZone with a lifetime warrantee. brand new cap, and rotor too. so the car should be ready to time, and fire up first thing on the Saturday morning!

BAD NEWS - They stick out so much, and the car is so low, that i will be rolling the fenders instantly, and looking for some ZG universal fenders to bolt on... NO BUENO! yet again... till this is fixed.. i cant drive the Datsun. (grumble, grumble)
- I guess you cant have your cake and eat it too right? lol... 

Heres some shots of the goodies.

BASICALLY... I'll have to model the car after shots of this guy i found online... looking for ZG flares guys...