Awesome build thread. I would love to know more info about removing the rear speaker, glove box metal hump. How hard was it , what is involved. Thanks friend.

 

The speaker frame/glove box was a pain in the ***. My cage builder told me that it was not only bolted but tack welded all over to the car. So you have to go and cut each weld. Some of the metal that it is attached to is thin so you can puncture it. Just alot of time and care is needed.

 

Yeah, the metal subframe looks like it would be a pain (more time consuming than anything), but removing its contents....plastics, etc is quite easy.

 

Damn i figured it was welded in. Spot welds aren't too bad since you can usually just drill a hold or saw between. But since you said its about 50lbs or so its definitely a worth while modification in my eyes.


Yeah, I've taken the plastics off before, but haven't even thought of removing the metal! if it really is 50 lbs, it is well worth the time. I'll most likely tackle it one day in the future.

 

Not only is the weight worth it but it looks weird just sitting there once the plastic is removed. You can drill the holes but we wanted a cleaner look. We do have some holes but most were repaired.

 

No door windows, ya?

 

Nope, they have to be down anyway on the track so they were removed. Plus the driver side nascar door bar goes all the way to the door skin.

 

Finally got the gears installed for tomorrow's event. If you are going to install a new final drive, go buy the rebuild kits from Z1 Performance. It has absolutely everything you need to make a smooth clean install. I havent driven the car yet, but Roger at the shop says it really woke up this build. Cant wait to break it in tomorrow. Video of track sessions to come tomorrow night!

 

Just got unpacked from the event today. The gears made a world of difference. I cant tell as far as actual lap time improvements since I wasnt timed today but damn does the Z come alive out of the corner. A 3.9FD is a requirement for anyone wanting to track their Z. Unfortunately, I left the roll cage mount for the camera at home so I dont have any footage of taking down the Porsches and Corvettes today

Next event is April 24th-25th at PBIR with NASA Florida.

 

Well time for an update. Car is at the shop getting prepped for this weekend. Nothing new on the car but I will be sure to have the camera working this weekend. Will be competing Sunday in time trial against 3 other cars (Panoz, GT3, and a Z06), so I got my work cut out for me. Stay tuned!

 

Wow! Should be a very interesting race for you, good luck and be sure to put the vids up ASAP.

 

Just read this entire thread for the first time. Subscribed. Great stuff!

 

Long time since any update. My GoPro HD camera films into a wierd format so I have been having issues getting the videos editted to post. Ill figure it out sooner or later.

Anyways, we recently just swapped the intake back to a stock upper w/ a spacer. We had a feeling that the Cosworth was hurting the flow on this engine. I thought we might pick up a few hp but I was surprised. Thanks to the Florida heat and humidity, we came into the experiment making about 293whp, 261tq on a mustang dyno. After swapping the manifolds and some tuning on the Haltech, we wrapped up at 312whp, 278tq. I am not sure if the Cosworth just didnt work for our engine build or if it a flawed design but there will be one in the classifieds in a few days for those that are interested. I will have dyno sheets to confirm the gains. I have to get it put on a dynojet as well to submit those numbers according to NASA rules.

Also, we are off to Sebring next weekend for some time trial action. Between the gearing, fresher tires, and the new found power, it should be a great event. Stay tuned!

 

post up the before/after charts, would love to take a look

 

I always wondered why the dyno #'s were a bit low. That's a huge power gain. Congrats on the new power and good luck on your next event.

 

curious to see your dj numbers. Nice gains. Motordyne FTW!

 

I picked up the car and dyno sheet this morning, Ill scan it up Monday morning at work! Still got to do a pad change, bleed the brakes, and tranny fluid change this week.

 

Great news Jope. Roger told me of your gains. I'm looking forward to your DJ #'s. Keep up the good work.

 

Wow, that's quite a gain. It's strange that the coswarth was robbing you of that power, because i was under the impression that full builds is where the cosworth shines through. I mean, i can only assume they developed it with there engines, and there high compression with oversized valves, and cams. The full works.

Maybe they didn't do as much homework as they should have?
Could it be that the stock manifold with a few mods is actually better than the aftermarket ones out there?

 

Really cant comment on Cosworth's engineering into the product...but it just looks like it didnt work for our build.

Here is the scanned dyno sheet...this wasnt the highest peak run(when your car has over 100 dyno runs in the computer, it can be tedious to sort through them lol), but the gains are clear.