Intro -

After more than 15 years of ownership, many great meets, road trips, and track days, my Fairlady is going through a full top to bottom rebuild. During many of the meets I discussed building the ultimate NA with Slick Pete as we shared the love of high revving NA motors. Almost everyone recommends going TT conversion or LS swap as the easy way to high power but I wanted something unique. So after securing some workspace with NickZ32 the tear down began. Its been slow going but continues to move forward. 

Will provide updates as I pull together photos and details 

 

Edited July 5, 20241 yr by madmarco
redundent

Great to see another project on its journey, look forward to reading up on whats done.

Sounds great Marco - I look forward to hearing of your progress...!!

Just a few pics covering the tear down plus the last pic I have of me driving the Z from Oct 2017. Engine looked OK when mounted but pretty worn as it was exposed. Bearings showed some wear after over 200K miles but not bad considering how hard I pushed at track days.

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Edited February 4Feb 4 by madmarco

Big day today, Z has left the lock up for the first time in over two years. Off to the welder to sort out the rust before heading to full respray. Rust at rear sills is the worst but a few areas need attention. Hopefully after all is resolved she will be good to go for another 30 years!

 

Posting those pictures of rust was a bit depressing! How about a preview of a shiny new motor and predicted HP model? Looks like 300bhp+ is well within reach.

I bet a 300+hp NA would be an absolute blast to drive! 💪

Looks like this is going to be a very unique and cool build to watch come together.

Rust repair underway, really happy with the quality.

 

 

How’s the engine build going? Really interested to see the outcome of this one. 

Engine is home now, just need to add the fuel rails, new injectors, upper plenum, throttle bodies, and then the belts, alternator, etc... Everything should be good to go once the body comes back from paint. Will compile a full build sheet soon. Here's a pic of the motor on my new rolling stand whipped up from spare lumber I had left over from various projects.

Repair work is looking good Marco 👌

Body repairs were delayed due to my body guy needing an Op but the Sills have finally been completed. A lot more work was required than I imagined, and the complexity of the sill construction was the highest the welder had ever seen in a non-convertable, Did you know there are 5 layers of metal in the sill? A few more small jobs and should be ready for paint!

Thats great sill work - Can I ask who you used?

SR Custom Fabrication in Winchester. His work is immaculate. He takes on one project at a time because he has a steady stream of MOT fails that pay the bills. So it takes a bit longer to get the big jobs done. I think is worth the wait, the prices are reasonable, and he is absolutely dedicated to quality work.

About time I provide another update! Complete strip down revealed more rust near the rear hatch hinges and seal. Back to the welder for repair... Engine bay cleared of all wiring and hoses, glass out, and fully hoovered. Went off to paint Monday and should be back in the lock up by Thursday. Then the fun begins with reassembly. 

Black Sunshine Z32 NA build sheet -

Cylinder Bore - 87.5mm 

Crank Stroke - 83mm

Cubic Capacity - 2995cc

Static Compression Ratio – 12.1

Pistons – Wiesco WD-15481

Rods - Eagle Type CRS6071N3D

Rod bolts – ARP

Main studs – ARP

Head studs – ARP

Cam belt – Gates RPM

Ross Performance Gold series harmonic balancer with integrated 36T 

Ross Performance VG30 Crank / Cam Trigger Kit

GT101 Hall Effect Sensor

Polar Engineering Z32 Billet Fuel Rail Fittings: Factory 5/16

DeatschWerks matched set Fuel injectors 550cc EV14S

JWT 500 Series Race Cams, RM5 Solid Lifter Cams AZ32 -TORM5

JWT solid Lifters

Supertech Valves +0.5mm

JWT HD Single Coil Valve Spring Kit 

Cylinder head porting

BDE VTC Pulleys adjustable

BDE 3RD Element for adjustable VTCs

BDE Late Style VTC Front Covers - Nissan 300ZX 94-96 Z32

BDE BULLSEYE Adjustable Exhaust Pulleys

BDE SS Exhaust Pulley to Camshaft Bolt kit

Z1 EGR Plates & Gaskets

Z1 Throttle Body linkage Spacers and Shims

AMS Motorsports 300ZX Transparent Timing Cover Clear

OEM 300ZX (Z32) Timing Cover Bolt Washer

Z1 Motorsports 300ZX (Z32) Urethane Motor Mounts

Nissan OEM 300ZX Crank Key Z32, Z33, R35

AMS Motorsports 4 Piece Underdrive Pulley Kit - Nissan 300ZX 90-93 Z32

Gates Belt - Power Steering w/ 4pc UR V1 Pulley Set Z32

Clutch - Z1 Performance Street Clutch Kit with 6 Puck Ceramic disc

Flywheel - Z1 Forged 4140 Steel Light Weight Flywheel

Timing kit – Nissan

Water pump – Nissan

Gaskets and seals - Nissan

 

Haltech Elite 2500

Haltech Plug 'n' Play Adaptor Harness Kit

Z1 300ZX Alternator / Transmission Harness

Z1 Motorsports EFI Engine Wiring Harness 300ZX 5 Speed Manual 1990-95

 

Going to be a very cool build

Back in the lock up with a fresh coat of 732

Oh my! That looks fantastic, can’t wait to see the Black Sunshine in the metal! 😎

Quick update, she is slowly coming back together. Installed the Quaife dif and half shafts from Kaiju (James Time Attack Z). Removed the  ABS system and ran all new, greatly simplified brake lines. Sanded the tint off the rear taillights, polished them and installed. Both doors fully reassembled. Roll bar installed. Pulled the fuel pump hanger and ordered a new walbro 255 pump kit. Wiring loom prepped and ready for install. Next up is dash rebuild and then prepping the motor for install.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 4Feb 4 by madmarco

New brake line layout. Front straight to a T and then using the ABS sensor holes to reach the braided line coupling. One line running to rear into a T near the right rear wheel and then following the standard clamps to the left rear.

Edited February 10Feb 10 by madmarco

The ABS layout does really overcomplicate the braking system on these cars. I’m not sure id want to do away with it on a car predominantly for the road but I understand your choice.

2 hours ago, Stephen said:

The ABS layout does really overcomplicate the braking system on these cars. I’m not sure id want to do away with it on a car predominantly for the road but I understand your choice.

After installing R32 Brembos the ABS system was triggering too early. I pulled the fuse and drove without ABS on the road and track for many years without issue. In fact being able to brake at the limit allowed my NA to humble many more powerful cars. Removing at least 4 meters of plumbing can only be better!

On 23/02/2025 at 09:35, madmarco said:

After installing R32 Brembos the ABS system was triggering too early. I pulled the fuse and drove without ABS on the road and track for many years without issue. In fact being able to brake at the limit allowed my NA to humble many more powerful cars. Removing at least 4 meters of plumbing can only be better!

I had the same, with the Evo brakes mine has up front, just too much front bias. I changed the rears as well to the same and it resolved the problem. If you are comfortable with it then that’s great, it’s your car after all.

Thanks Stephen, I hear you. I have Brembos on the rear also but it didn’t help.