A&Q about 350Z
Q:
I agree that if you want big power from a weak engine and dont know a whole lot then a properly designed nitrous system is great.
thats the problem.
with nitrous, all you have to do to get more power is put the biggest jet they give you in, and wham. 50hp.
with a 50 shot on an engine that only makes 98-115 hp, you are talking about a lot of power.
at those levels, you shouldnt heep the juice on for more than 5-7 seconds.
you need an interupt switch that wont let you use nitrous if there is anything abnormal going on. without proper gauges, it is hard to stay safe, unless you stay coservative with your power. easier said than done...
A:
if i were you, i'd stick to getting the exterior and interior of the car to your liking. spend the time until then researching and learning as much as you can about engines and cars in general. hang out in AF and i GUARANTEE you will learn something each day... i sure did.
once you have the car looking good, it will be easier for you to make the decision to start upgrading the engine. start with the exhaust. that is usually good for 10 hp or so.
turbos are hard becuase you need to work them into the exhaust system and everything. you could either go with a centrifugal supercharger (good) or nitrous (well, thats your choice... not mine). that will get you a big gain.
if you end up going w/ a supercharger, you may look into injectors (also relatively cheap and easy if you know how).
either way, it will be a fun project and you will learn a LOT.
A:
true, i guess it's more of a problem of self control than anything. i know i'd have problems with it but i'd keep myself away from those higher jets. the problem with nitrous is that people know it's easy but they don't do anything other than install the kit and wham, they've got power. well they've also got a dead engine in a few weeks, if that, because they didn't upgrade their water pump and radiator to cope with the increased temps, they didn't upgrade their ignition system to cope with the faster burn, and the cardinal sin, they didn't upgrade their fuel system or didn't add enough fuel with a wet system. but if he gets his engine running like new, enough so he can run a turbo system, then he should have no problem running a nitrous system and it'll cost him less, provided he doesn't use it all that much.
by the way, how much would a refill for nitrous cost? i don't know what tank he'd go for so let's just give a list for all tank sizes.
A:
not sure really, but i'm sure it depends greatly on where you go, and who you know. freind of mine (the one i talked about earlier) got it for free because the garage he worked at did refills, and he got the closing shift every friday night...
i'd guess around $150 depending on the size of the tank.
A:
i thought it was alot cheaper than that, i remember seeing something like $60 for a tank, don't remember how big it was though.
A:
then you are probly right. i was just guessing. (BIG tank lol)
A:
you could always just stick a propane tank filled with nitrous in your trunk, that way you could go from ottawa to montreal (about a 3hr drive) on nitrous lol.
A:
i was just thinking about that...
actually propane can be used in an engine much like nitrous, except that it works on the fuel side of the equation... meaning that it atomizes COMPLETELY and has a lot more power per whatever than gasoline.
you see it a lot in diesel engines.
A:
10 lb tank is about $40 to fill.
NOS is good for two things. Dyno queens and 1/4 mile track cars. 10 lb's will get you about 40-60 seconds of use, depending on the size of your shot. I don't know about everyone else, but $40 per 60 seconds, and requiring at the least, a change of tanks to continue, is not worth the trouble. I'd rather have it on tap at all times.
I won't even go into how violent NOS is to an engine. You would need, at the very least, to carry spare spark plugs on hand at all times, because NOS eats them like candy. Many cars (the 2.2/2.5 ain't them of course) plugs are a major pain to do on the side of the road.
Boost is your friend.
A:
Man Im slackin on my thread. Everyone thanks for the input, Im really learning alot of Nitrous and what I should prep for. But again, my plans for the reborn shadow are out the window...I think. Im gonna guess and say that the 95' Eagle Talon that Im getting probably a better car than my shadow, Im probably going to switch gears towards that. My shadow runs so Ill just drive it while I take the engine out of the Talon and rebuild that. As far as my knowledge goes, the talon engine only has some valve trouble. What other things can come from broken valves? I know that when replacing them that its key to be perfect. I figure I rebuild my engine, save for a turbocharger and possibly nitrous and hope that its all finished by spring. I dont need to spend much on the exterior, except a body kit. The tires and rims are basically new and fairly expense, so I hear. Still waiting to go see this car again to find more out about it (its at my grandparents so it wont be long).
edit: Oh yeah, also this may be a broad question, but roughly how much should I spend on just the engine, replacing parts (broken or not) that should be replaced with performace parts? Thank again guys.
A:
it depends on what you want to do with it. i'm guessing since you said you want to save for a turbo that this isn't the turbo version. i believe the engine was pretty good for boost, someone correct me if i'm wrong, and can handle alot of it, when it runs of course. i don't think you would need to replace alot of things, other than the stuff that's broken or in bad condition. i'd get it rebuild if you're planning on getting alot of performance since it's an old car and you don't know how well it's been maintained.
again, don't take this as fact, it's just stuff i think i remember people saying so someone either back me up or correct me on it. i'd go for either turbo or nitrous since it's alot for an engine to take both, and you'd want both to be really well set up because the chances of something going wrong increases alot when you're running two power adders. with the talon there's a big enough aftermarket for a turbocharger and alot of knowledge available out there for them so i'd suggest going with a turbo on this. it'll be more expensive but there's alot of info out there that you should be able to build a really good setup.
you'll want to go over the whole car though, make sure everything's in good running order. you'll want to upgrade the breaks at the very least because with added power, you'll probably have to stop pretty well, i'd also suggest getting a good coilover suspension so you don't just have a drag car but something that can do well in the twisties.
BTW is it all wheel drive or is it front wheel drive? i'm pretty sure they offered both right?
A:
yeah, they offered an AWD version, which can made to go extremely fast.
there is a guy out there who goes 7.27 at ~185 in the 1/4 mile... YIKES.
a good rule of thumb is that you dont want to spend more than %50 of what it costs to get a new motor.
you are going for performance, so you can spend a little more, but i (personally) would be looking at about $1000 as the upper limit. at least until you find that you need something.
(the 1000 i said did not include parts for turbo/intercooler/nitrous/whatever)
A:
Yeah Ive heard that %50 rule before from other places and $1000 is right around where I was thinking. I still gotta do my research on Talons so Ill probably have more questions soon.
A:
Ok some bad news. Im not completely understanding of what Im getting myself into but I know the history of the cars death (the talon's). Ok anyone ever hear of somone dumping water in the cars oil and then driving the already overheated car? This wasnt my cousins doing (gotta protect the family rep) it was his darling girlfriend that was the idiot. The engine block isnt cracked but I believe the pistons may be stuck....
. How bad is this?
A:
HAHAHA.
what stupidity.
um, yeah, your pistons are probably 'stuck' for good.
of course it depends on the amount of water and how long it was driven. most important thing is how long it sat without being drained and fixed.