• vizlvr
  • vizlvr
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  • From: San Mateo, CA
  • Registered: 2009-11-21
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Topic: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Just wanted to throw out another thank you for a fun time at Thunderhill despite our early failure- though we did still crack the top 100 (99 to be exact).
Our Poorvette themed 240sx showed it's true drifter abused colors with lots of smoke on downshifts and in the cockpit by 1pm or so Saturday. Combined with the tranny leak we'd been chasing and sheer mental exhaustion from race prep it was decided to declare it dead for this race. I think pretty much the entire team still had a great time and are completely hooked (including myself-the wife/pit crew).
Thanks to all who stopped by our pit to check out the car and for offers of help etc. 
We did get a good laugh out of all the looks and attention we attracted driving back- including at least one person taking photos of the car on the trailer heading down the 101. 

We'll definitely be back... The question is will it be with a repaired KA24, a VQ from, say, a Maxima or perhaps a V8 from the Q45...

Import Alloy Racing
The Little Red Poorvette
  • Registered: 2009-10-25
  • Posts: 1,993

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Cool car.....you'll be back.......a Q45 V8 would rock.....OR how about a 928 V8....I have one I'd sell for a Lemons worthy price.....  Think about it 4.5L 16V low compression engine that should be good for 200whp-230 torque and far more with ghetto charging....  I wonder if it will fit?

German V8
japanese car
Poorvette theme

what could possibly go wrong?

Richard Doty
1984 Porsche 928 "Estate"
Porsche- "there is A substitute" Racing
Dirt Poorsche Racing #2
  • From: San Diego, CA
  • Registered: 2010-02-11
  • Posts: 156

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Maxima V6 would be difficult to find a transmission mate for.

But, a VG30DETT (or just DE) from one of the RWD early 90s Nissans/Infinitis would be excellent.

OR

SBC.  What could possibly go wrong?

  • cbr
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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

the VQ motor in the late 90's mates up cleanly with any VQ trans... unfortunately that means only the ones in the 2001+ Pathfinder, 350z, and G35 if you want a manual... none of which are exactly LeMon-y cost wise.

We were also debating going back a bit further and going for a VG30 but they have significantly less power.

That VH45 just sounds like a sweet spot, Q45's sell for $600-$800 regularly on Craigslist, figure sell of some parts, pick-up a trans (z32), and get the wiring working and we've got ourselves a racecar! smile

  • From: San Diego, CA
  • Registered: 2010-02-11
  • Posts: 156

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Ah, didn't know the FWD VQs shared bellhousing patterns...

  • From: Choctaw, Oklahoma
  • Registered: 2009-11-12
  • Posts: 2,145

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

The VH45DE came from the factory with tuned-length intake runners, equal length headers, and a factory H-pipe. It bolts up to a Z32 tranny, and a Z32 rearend bolts into a 240SX. Now you know what I'd do.

  • From: Tampa, Florida
  • Registered: 2009-05-05
  • Posts: 121

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

cbr wrote:

...We were also debating going back a bit further and going for a VG30 but they have significantly less power....

A VG30 with a small snail attached to the intake wil deliver plenty of power for a Lemons racer.

8 Reply by vizlvr (edited by vizlvr 2010-08-11 07:19 AM)

  • vizlvr
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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

EriktheAwful wrote:

The VH45DE came from the factory with tuned-length intake runners, equal length headers, and a factory H-pipe. It bolts up to a Z32 tranny, and a Z32 rearend bolts into a 240SX. Now you know what I'd do.

We might be checking out a $500 Q45 later today.... smile

How much trouble is this swap likely to get us into in BS anyway?  (assuming we successfully complete it)

Import Alloy Racing
The Little Red Poorvette

9 Reply by cbr (edited by cbr 2010-08-11 09:03 AM)

  • cbr
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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

EriktheAwful wrote:

The VH45DE came from the factory with tuned-length intake runners, equal length headers, and a factory H-pipe. It bolts up to a Z32 tranny, and a Z32 rearend bolts into a 240SX. Now you know what I'd do.

Yes, yes it does... convenient that smile

and I'm definitely looking at that car later today.  Now if someone has a lead on a 90-95 300zx for cheap...

Question on the adapter plate, required?  Relatively easy to fab?

Also do you happen to know of the S13 axles bolt up to the z32 rear end?

10 Reply by cbr

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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

BlackSheep1 wrote:
cbr wrote:

...We were also debating going back a bit further and going for a VG30 but they have significantly less power....

A VG30 with a small snail attached to the intake wil deliver plenty of power for a Lemons racer.

True but the cost of that snail done reasonably right is probably higher than the an entire Q45 donor.  And by reasonably I mean not going to puke it's innards all over the track 3-4 hours in.  Been there, done that, would like to skip it next time...

  • From: Tampa, Florida
  • Registered: 2009-05-05
  • Posts: 121

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

cbr wrote:
BlackSheep1 wrote:
cbr wrote:

...We were also debating going back a bit further and going for a VG30 but they have significantly less power....

A VG30 with a small snail attached to the intake wil deliver plenty of power for a Lemons racer.

True but the cost of that snail done reasonably right is probably higher than the an entire Q45 donor.  And by reasonably I mean not going to puke it's innards all over the track 3-4 hours in.  Been there, done that, would like to skip it next time...

We have a junkyard na motor with a stock T3 running ~6 to 7 lbs of boost and we have run 4 events (between the two series), several autoXs, driven to and from events up to 90 miles away, and a couple of drift events without any problems.

We also set fastest lap at the last two events we went to and have never finished out of the top 10 on either day.

Reliability and power, on the cheap, in a boosted VG, is not a problem.

12 Reply by RThodal (edited by RThodal 2010-08-11 12:51 PM)

  • Registered: 2010-02-08
  • Posts: 85

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Another vote for widening your search beyond just nissan engines.

Our team ran a 84' 300zx with the vg30e in our first race and we hated that engine. We decided to do an engine swap and we were looking at the same options you are, vq's, vg30de, vh45. All good engines but kinda boring.

In the end we decided if we were going to do an engine swap it might as well be unique and absurd so we put in a B234R from a Saab 9000. It was a lot of work, but worth it. Its been 100% reliable thus far and pretty quick (runs 1.08 bar or about 16psi of boost).

I second the 928 v8.

Team Rust in The Wind #301
1987 Nissan 300zx 2.3L Saab Turbo
https://www.facebook.com/RustinTheWind24HOL
  • Registered: 2009-10-25
  • Posts: 1,993

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Okay lets sweeten this deal......................while the 928 V8 is fairly heavy and moderately powerful for its weight....so I would make a mid engine....

If you want the engine....its yours for $100.....

Richard Doty
1984 Porsche 928 "Estate"
Porsche- "there is A substitute" Racing
Dirt Poorsche Racing #2
  • vizlvr
  • vizlvr
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  • Registered: 2009-11-21
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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Please no!  I just talked him out of trying to put in a midship motorcycle engine!!!  You don't even want to HEAR about the other theme we dreamed up for a Volvo 240 wagon....

Besides, I like the idea of a Japanese car dressed up like a 'Vette with a Japanese V8 in it. Goes nice with our team name too (Import Alloy Racing).

Import Alloy Racing
The Little Red Poorvette

15 Reply by cbr

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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

icemang17 wrote:

Okay lets sweeten this deal......................while the 928 V8 is fairly heavy and moderately powerful for its weight....so I would make a mid engine....

If you want the engine....its yours for $100.....

Hmm... sounds interesting, very interesting... But I'd rather not sleep in the dog house for the next several months. big_smile

  • From: Livermore, CA
  • Registered: 2009-11-06
  • Posts: 61

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

vizlvr wrote:

How much trouble is this swap likely to get us into in BS anyway?  (assuming we successfully complete it)

If you all show up in purple jumpsuits and do a dance routine to 'little red corvette' i think you could get away with just about anything...   Especially if you find a front end to graft on as artistically as you did the rear! 

Nice job on the body work and paint btw, top notch.

Darren Rogers - The CannonBall Bandits
http://www.cannonballbandits.com/
http://www.doctorsgivingback.org/
http://www.sonriseequestrianfoundation.org/

drogers's Website

  • vizlvr
  • vizlvr
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Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

drogers wrote:

If you all show up in purple jumpsuits and do a dance routine to 'little red corvette' i think you could get away with just about anything...   Especially if you find a front end to graft on as artistically as you did the rear! 

Nice job on the body work and paint btw, top notch.

We had '80s attire and a soundtrack this time but it wasn't even noticed.  Perhaps we'll step it up next time.

We'll work on the front for sure smile

Import Alloy Racing
The Little Red Poorvette

18 Reply by EriktheAwful (edited by EriktheAwful 2010-08-12 03:52 AM)

  • From: Choctaw, Oklahoma
  • Registered: 2009-11-12
  • Posts: 2,145

Re: Thanks also from another failure-Little Red Poorvette

Also do you happen to know of the S13 axles bolt up to the z32 rear end?

AFAIK the whole rear suspension cradle swaps in place, but I've never done it. My Nissan instructor crewed a 240SX with the rear end swap, and I last saw the car about 10 years ago, so I might be wrong about it being a bolt-in.

Question on the adapter plate, required?

According to a Nissan guru I work with, the VH45 and the Z32 transmission have the same bellhousing. So again, I may be talking out my @$$, but I think it wouldn't be too difficult to mate them up.