Jenson

iTrader: (32)

Looks like my dreeam setup!!! How are you planning to attack the oil starvation issues the ls1 seems to have in road racing? Especially with the rev's you are planning. Is the GTO pan better for this type of racing or is that just for swap purposes? I read alot of those guys use an oil accumolater but Im not to found of those.

mattmartindrift

it might JUST get by on a stock motor, but i'm running E85 fuel and it requires about 30+% more than gasoline under a load.

The walbro 255lph bolts in and costs around $80

mattmartindrift

I have a huge oil capacity with the added oil to water cooler, however I think for cheap insurance I am just going to run an extra quart or so. I might build a winged oil pan with trap door similar to the aftermarket pans that are offered for the SR20 (2.0 liter turbo nissan motor).

The GTO pan is really only used to clear the rear-mounted steering rack and cross member.


SR20 pan (in the plastic you can see the trap doors that screw on):

Nine Ball

iTrader: (38)

Welcome to the site Matt. Seems like more and more of our beloved LSX engines are finding their way into imports, lol.

I have a question for you drifters, why not just pick up a used $6000 running LS1 f-body and use those for a drift car instead? Seems like they could be made into drift cars pretty easily, we have a long history of doing donuts in parking lots!

mattmartindrift

welllll, my car was already built by me. SO as much of a lifeless piece of metal that it is; I still have put a lot of myself into the car, so I suppose there is a psychological connection.

Other factors include:

- my car weighs in at around 2375lbs w/o me

- HUGE aftermarket for parts designed FOR drifting. (look at the factory GTO drift car, it takes a multi-million dollar budget to stay competitive with 1980s nissans)

- my car has already been caged, stitch welded and prepped for drifting per the rule books (the whole "blood sweat and tears" deal.)


I've seen a Fbodies out at events, and i'm not sure if it's the driver or the car, or both; however, i've never seen them fair exceptionally well. I've never had the chance to drive one, but my guess is the mushier suspension, large weight, and that GM designed them knowing they'd do more going straight than around turns or going sideways. Not saying that this can't be remedied by a couple well-selected aftermarket suspension goodies and some tweaking.





I think most people do it because they love the car but aren't fond of the power plant. Same reason people get their wives breast implants, or put wheels on their car. It's just part of their car with which they're not happy.

I mean just because I don't like my 15x7 stock wheels doesn't mean I should go buy another car with wheels I like.

Cars are cars, american, swedish, japanese, german, doesn't matter, it's a bunch of nuts, bolts and wires, they're all the same.

kirtondog23

Nice, Super cool

cnichols

iTrader: (23)

Not to mention I'd rather cut my left ******** off than try to work on an LS1 in an F-body. There's actually more room to work in a Nissan S-chassis, plus the weight issue like he stated...

I can get to every bolt, every spark plug, even the MAP sensor and oil pressure sending unit on the back of the block w/out doing anything besides reaching back there.





Then, there's also the other problem...



One last thing. Taking the easy way out by just going out and buying it doesn't make it unique. To many, myself included, having something on the road that truly is one of a kind means A LOT! Not to mention the challenge of the swap and making it look better than it did from the factory, then being able to say.."I did this."

Juiced

iTrader: (2)

This is so going in my sig!

Good Job on the build. Are you planning on keeping the R180/R200 or you going to go to the R230?

mattmartindrift

haha, thanks.

The R200 is staying for now, i've got a GREAT 2 way clutch differential in there now. That diff held up to 450hp w/ a constant kicking of the twin plate clutch in front of it..

I see no reason why it shouldn't hold up to a smoother powerband of about the same peak #s.

Nine Ball

iTrader: (38)

There is also a huge aftermarket for f-body suspension pieces. Don't forget that several of them are found on road race tracks as well as the dragstrip. I understand the sentimental connection, just wondering why more guys that are into drifting just do not start with a running driving LS1 powered car that is already cheap. You can get these cars well under 2700 lbs when they are gutted also. Change out the glass for lexan and use fiberglass hatch, hood, etc... and they drop down even more. I know that drift cars use extreme turning angles up front, so that is one thing that would have to be figured out for an f-body.

Working on them isn't bad at all once all the emissions crap and A/C box is out of the car. They actually have pretty large/accessible engine bays once all that junk on top of the engine is gone. Look for a few underhood shots of f-body racecars for examples. You can even cut the cowl above the engine all the way back to the windshield if you do not plan on using windshield wipers. That opens them up a lot.

Example:

Jenson

iTrader: (32)

Got ya. I have not really found anything for the LS1 in the oil pan market, Im sure they are out there somewhere with all the road race ls1's.

Nine Ball, Im with ya. I'll be drifting mine soon and dont know why more people dont choose the f-body. I think it has alot to do with who drifitng is marketed to.

natedawg

nice work i can't wait to have mine done

natedawg

btw i got my t56 off ebay for 900 bux which i thought was a pretty good deal 2002 with 35k on it.

the.erinyes

iTrader: (3)

Matt, thanks for the information. I will be using a LS2 intake so I will have to use an LS2 90 mm TB. I think my neighbor did some stuff with ma-motorsports. Did they used to be in the Parkville area? Ken.

cnichols

iTrader: (23)

Doubtful. I'm going with the fact that it was started in Japan using imports that are lightweight, nimble, good handling cars from the factory. Marketing has only been a factor in the last couple of years. Before, it was more of a low-key, underground thing.

I've driven an F-body, but have you ever driven an S-chassis Nissan? All I can say is that I'd never switch.


Below is an article that tries to explain why the S-chassis has such great steering feel and handling...

"Throw a 240SX into a drift and you barely have to hold the steering wheel. The Dave Point and the contact patch do most of the work; all you have to do is make little corrections and stay on top of the throttle."

http://www.sportcompactcarweb.com/ed...hno/index.html

kansaschity

iTrader: (1)

o snap! I've always loved your car
have you let the secret out on zilvia yet? haha

mattmartindrift

not yet, I'm not on zilvia much..


That's exactly where they used to be, they've got a much bigger (9000 ft^2) shop now and many more fab toys.

suburbanlife866

iTrader: (9)

Haha no way...my buddy has that bumper in his basement. Said he bought it from a crashed car when he was there two years ago. Small world!

robbinthehood

your cars insane. I saw your part out thread and wanted to swap out my sr20 for your ka setup. Ls1 is definately better though.

Your a great driver, I remember seeing a clip of you drifting with CRAZY smoke.

Subscribed to this thread.

Ted J

iTrader: (4)

You are correct, adding steering angle is one thing that is a battle for that of getting a LS1 f-body to be driftable. I looked around long and hard to try to find a rack with more travel so that making the steering knuckles shorter, which is sometimes done to increase steering angle, wouldn't have to be done and add a lot of added stress onto the steering system but that turned out to not be as easy as I figured it would be. There's also the power steering system and what needs to be done so that it can handle the added stress. That was the one thing that when my brother and I were talking to Rhys Millen that he WOULD NOT talk about and it's understandable. He said RMR put a lot of time and money into getting it right and if you'd like to buy it from him we could but he wasn't going to give the info out free. That clued me in on how he eventually figured out a way to make it so the power steering system wasn't boiling the fluid so to speak but it took him and his team a while to figure it out.

You are correct in people getting the cars down to 2700 lbs and that was my plan. I wanted to go past that by cutting out metal not needed. You are correct on that part and with even more work I wonder if the 2500 to 2600 ballpark could be reached by doing some major cutting and other things like that. Some 240's with LS1 swaps (remember, the LS1/T56 weighs 100 lbs more than that KA24 and 5 speed combo) weigh in around 2700 after the swap and still having some things in the interior. I haven't finished mine to the point where I can weigh it but the stripping of the interior and stuff like that I'm hoping to be in the 2300 to 2400 range and that's without a cage and no fiberglass panels and all stock glass. Got to see how I like the car before I go into taking a lot more weight out for I haven't even driven the car yet!

The biggest reason I didn't start with a LS1 powered f-body but yet one day hope to get to that level and that's suspension set up. There's no one place to just go and buy parts that other drifters have arleady used to drift with. I wanted to use the 240SX platform to get a car set up and learn to drift on so that I can apply it over to f-bodies. Kind of the learn from the research and development that others have done and apply it over type thing.

In the end I also wanted to do something a little different but honestly, I'd really wish I could just go and buy a set of headers to bolt up instead of having to fab up my own long tube set but I also didn't want to have to spend a lot of time and money getting shocks revalved and trying to tweak the setup for drifting when there would be the factor of not knowing fully what to do to make it better and also maybe having to change suspension geometry to get the result you want. When Vaugh Gitten Jr. had them set up the mustang for him to drift he told them he wanted it to be like a 240 and how it drifts. In speaking with Rhys Millen racing about how much work they've done on the GTO to get it to drift they, as a race team mind you, have spent a lot of time tweaking and getting that car set up the way Rhys wants it. I have a TV show I watched way in the begining back when Rhys got the car and they were having issues with the car not wanting to drift right, they were switching out spindles trying to make it drive the way he wanted it to and this is a ralley car driver that has a lot of experience and there he was spinning the car out sometimes.

To sum it up, at Road Atlanta when I was talking with Rhys when the non seated drivers were practicing, he pointed out how most of the people out there was fighting the set up of the cars. A lot of them were 240's and the such and it just goes to show that even when given the correct shoulders to stand on that there is still going to be some 'black art' to car set up that comes into play and that's even with some of the things already tried out and proven to work. It gives a lot better starting point for somebody who doesn't have the ability to start with an f-body and try to figure out what works best.