Project: PBR-Built Z/28

[Darren]

yeah why would you keep abs?

[MP81]

What's ABS?!?

[JoeliusZ28]

Ive tried autocrossing without the abs already. Im not considering that as an option. too much inner wheel lockup.

[Nocooler]

MWC 3channel works awesome, but it's not cheap. Don't forget you'll need a driveshaft with a 9" too. It sucks that it so expensive to replace the Achilles heal of these cars.
I've also bought parts from quick performance and they have always been good to me.

[1bad83ta]

Yeah sorry Devin, I was responding to Gary's picture in which he showed the $400 center section.

Never saw any mention of that, but a brand new stock housing is a $100 upgrade and so is their fabricated housing. Backbrace would be another $170 and internal gusseting $75. There is a guy at work running one in his turbo drag car and he seems to like it.

Edit: That looks like it was referring to that cheap center section. Upgrading to one of the other centers in the $1000 range would solve that. It looks like either with an iron center and 31 spline Truetrac or any kind of locker you would be at ~$2300.

[formula218]

Ive tried autocrossing without the abs already. Im not considering that as an option. too much inner wheel lockup.

Just need better tires. I've got CTSV Brembos and Hawk HP+ pads and i can stand on the brakes without locking them up. Brake moderation>ABS.

[JoeliusZ28]

i find that hard to believe. If youre really using the traction potential of the outer tire in a corner the inner tire is barely going to have any weight on it. You cant modulate right vs left wheel braking with only one pedal.

[formula218]

Do you have a front sway bar? Maybe my car having bigger front tires than normal makes it not a problem. I'm also not usually still on the brakes very hard by the time i'm having to turn in hard.

[landstuhltaylor]

The one time I made an autocross run without functioning ABS, I locked up the right front 315 Hoosier hard in a straight line brake zone. It was worse in the turns with the inside front always locking. This is with stock rotors/calipers and just DTC-30 pads.

[JoeliusZ28]

Do you have a front sway bar? Maybe my car having bigger front tires than normal makes it not a problem. I'm also not usually still on the brakes very hard by the time i'm having to turn in hard.

Yep Ive got a stiff front sway bar and also -1 degree alignment. So it can plant the outer tire pretty hard, even on street tires. So effectively that means the inside tire is doing less, and with a smaller contact patch than it would with a stock config.

[formula218]

Hmm, that sucks for you guys. Glad it hasn't been an issue with my setup.

[JoeliusZ28]

Bumping this up to the top. I got the car out today for the first time in well over a year. Fired right up and didn't hesitate to lay stripes. She really needs some love though, and posting this to commit myself to getting the work done amongst the million other things requiring my attention.

Before I can really trust/enjoy the car again there is a nasty pinion seal leak that MUST be dealt with, as well as the clutch fluid also MUST be replaced and bled. As soon as the fluid gets the slightest bit warm, it loses any and all feel and operating the clutch becomes a total guessing game. The coolant is also 10 years old and needs to be changed.

Those are the two absolute requirements to drive the car, however ever since I had the engine fire a few years ago the car has had some odd quirks. Because of this, as well as an itch to dig into some engine tuning, I plan to do a 24x conversion this year as well.

I'd also like a new set of wheels and tires but I'm dumping a ton of money into my garage as well as another truck im buying in a month or two, so that might get put on hold. In any case Ive missed this car and want to drive it again asap!

More soon!

[MP81]

Fantastic news. I've missed seeing this car out there over the past year...though it always meant we got to see that gorgeous truck, so I can't complain about that, either!

24x definitely sounds like your best option at this point.

I'd say the wheels can be last - I still think those look great. I'm not generally a chrome wheel guy, but for whatever reason, they look absolutely proper on that car.

[JoeliusZ28]

Yeah i do think they look good. Maybe my taste is maturing but i want something a little less flashy and more functional. I would like these wheels more if they werent so heavy (theyre reps) and had a little less positive offset.

[MP81]

Ahh, the replicas are heavier? I guess that makes sense. What if you plastidip'd part of the wheels (I don't know what part)?