Saur, very good question...why wouldn't I just buy a complete 280ZX Turbo automobile? A biggie is because these things are know as "rust buckets." My car is a "California car" and I've owned it since I was 21...lessee, that makes it 15-years now. My car is in very good shape and I may have jumped the gun anyway because my car is due to be out of a body shop any day. I'm having a rusted panel replaced under the gas intake and the front hood is being replaced due to a few bubbles appearing at the leading edge. The guy pulled all the trim off and is supposed to be doing a pretty good paint job with "extra" prep and a two-stage paint job to match the original color (the silver you see in the pic...which is about a 5-yr old pic.) At first I was thinking new paint and then modified exhaust back of the cat with 2.5" pipe. Then of course I get all embroiled in this thing and I started getting interested in engine mod's. Now I've decided I want to dump a 280ZX Turbo with a few extra bells and whistles into my car (I guess you can easily achieve 250Hp from the stock 180HP turbo engine.) 10-15-years ago I looked into this mod and no one was really doing it but it sounds very common and the engine just fits right in except for a few differences in the wiring and some fuel pumps and some other small things. Once I have the engine in, I think then I'll match the differential/gears to the HP. A lot of people are saying the non-turbo 5-speed tranny is good and can handle this HP and is actually preferred to the turbo tranny (not sure why.) The turbo L28s were only made 1981-1983 and so there weren't a lot made. The first 240Z was built 1969 (1970 model year) which people are putting L28 Turbos into and so you have basically 13-years of Z's trying to claim 3-years worth of turbo engines and it sounds a little like they are getting hard to find. So basically, my next step is to find someone who has done this type of swap and talk with him about working on mine. Then I have to find an engine and then the games begin. I know I probably should have dropped an engine before body work, but at that point, I wasn't planning on this. Surprise!
(When I was 21-years old, I totalled my first 280ZX [it actually caught air in a spin out] and a few months later wiped out on a motorcycle and both those incidents really calmed me down regarding vehicles. I think I'm older and wiser now [and have more money] and I think I can handle some extra power again.)
Basically, my car is in good shape and all I need now is a good shape L28T engine to drop into it. I doubt I'll do anything before Sept, I really want to research this well. I've also heard a few problems with CA emissions going with an older engine into a newer car, so I need a 82 or 83 turbo engine.
