Digging Into Datsun Details

Sep 29, 2008 update to the Datsun 240Z project car

We have been (hopefully) perfecting our Datsun 240Z. During the last year, we have been slowly sorting a few things and breaking in our new engine. Thanks to a little more tuning, the car now runs really well and pulls strongly.

We replaced a noisy, used limited-slip differential with a new Nissan Motorsports unit. After blueprinting this diff, it has run quietly. Plus, it’s been effective in helping our newly powered Z come out of the corners better. John Williams helped us sort out this differential.

As for the rear control arm bushings, we ended up going back to stock. The Noltec Softride bushings we outlined in Issue 118 of Classic Motorsports didn‘t hold up worth a damn—we would not recommend them.

The last fix we made was on the shift lever. If you remember from Issue 132, we installed a five-speed transmission from a later Datsun 280ZX. To do this without cutting the tunnel, we needed to cut and then graft a small piece of metal to move back the shift lever. After it broke twice, we yanked it out and properly gusseted the shift lever. We anticipate no further problems in this area.