wstar's Journal

wstar · 05-19-2014, 05:42 PM

Made a video from datalogger recordings on the flywheel thing. Youtube desc copied for embed:

Quote:

Audio comparison of "normal" and "something's wrong" engine sounds from Saturday. That "something's wrong" sound slowly builds up in the data all through the second half of Saturday. I couldn't hear the difference from the cockpit with a helmet on so I had no idea about this Saturday, but the datalogger mic is up under the dash close to the firewall and you can really hear it in the video.

The 3rd clip is when things actually went crazy Sunday morning and the car died for the day. The ECU went into some kind of limp mode and started aggressively limiting revs and speeds to try to prevent damage, and may have retarded timing and whatnot as well. The RPM gauge is really nuts when it happens. I ended up killing the engine off on the side of the track and getting a tow, as I couldn't maintain more than ~10 mph and the engine was threatening to die on me constantly, and I wasn't sure if more damage was being done.

ECU had code P0335 (Crankshaft Position Sensor). That sensor reads the flywheel. During a couple short restarts in the paddock, there were some clanky sounds that could be coming from the bellhousing area, but otherwise the engine seemed to run ok at idle and low revs. Pulled the (magnetic) sensor and it had scratches and grooves on the tip of it like the flywheel (or something else) had hit it, or at least rubbed into it pretty good.

Most likely I've got a cracked/damaged flywheel and/or a loose bolt in that area, plus a damaged crankshaft sensor. The parts are pretty cheap (~$300 combined), but it means dropping the trans to diagnose and fix.

wstar · 05-22-2014, 07:59 PM

Dropped the car off at Baker North today to let them sort it out

Eagle · 05-22-2014, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wstar

TWS Recap!

I did a Red-group check-ride Saturday and got myself into Red w/ Driver's Edge. It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. I thought they'd be running me down all session and I'd have my arm hanging out the window the whole time, but I'm actually on pace with them pretty well (although certainly not in the faster half of the group). The simple corner passes I'm pretty used to now, but I can tell it will take a while to learn how the rules of "etiquette" work in a pass-everywhere group.

For example, in the "pass on straights only" groups, usually if I see a car closing on me fast in the corners but he's still not quite on my bumper, and I know he's not as fast in the straights, I'll lift for him on the straight so he doesn't get stuck behind me for a 1/3 of track in the next twisty section. It seems like the opposite social rules apply here: if they're not on your bumper coming into the straight (*and* faster than you on the straight), go ahead and stay in the throttle and pull away, because when/if they do catch you in the next twisties, you can always let them pass there as well. No point in losing laptime over trying to be pointlessly-polite.

Also, I broke my car this morning. As I laid into the throttle for a pass, the car went into some kind of limp mode and I had no real revs or power left. I coasted down through the next corner and then eventually pulled off the side of the track. Tried to restart the engine, but it was running rough and limiting at like 2K with a SES light on, so I gave up and let them tow me in :/

SES was for a faulty Crankshaft Position Sensor. Restarting it in paddock, the engine seemed to run ok at idle and very low RPM, so I doubt there's any internal damage (well, it was a little rough, but I think that's probably the limp mode's un-tuned timing and/or lack of good sensor input, etc). There was a funny rattle off and on though, and it sounded like it was coming from the bellhousing area. Jacked the car up and pulled the crankshaft sensor, and it has some physical scratches and wearmarks on the tip of it like the flywheel nicked it. With the sensor back in I was able to drive it back up into the trailer at least, with that bad rattle sound.

At this point my best guess is a cracked flywheel/flexplate, or maybe a flywheel<->torque converter bolt backed out, or both. Parts cost on the sensor and flywheel is pretty cheap, but it will be a bitch to drop the trans to install the flywheel. Next events are June 21-22 and 28-29, so I need to figure this out relatively quickly. Tomorrow I'll pull the access covers/plates and/or the starter motor so I can actually look at the edge of the flywheel or tap it with a hammer and see how it sounds or something. I may just call a Nissan place too and see what they'd do. The shorty lift in my garage doesn't have open access under the trans, so I know I can't (easily) drop it here.

I hit the track on Sunday and the car was running fine as long as the RPM's were above ~1K. So during my session i was fine as long as I didn't come to a stop, so sure enough when i finally got off the track and stopped, the car died.

If I was below 1K and in drive or reverse, the car would bog down and stall. I thought I was gonna have to have the car towed home, but I managed to get the car rolling by revving to 4k and 5k in neutral and then dropping it into gear. The momentum got the car moving, RPM's stayed high enough to prevent the car from stalling. Shifting, especially downshifting manually seemed to aggravate the transmission and would cause the "stalling" symptom to return. I was able to reproduce the problem on demand, all i had to do was drive it like a manual

Anyway, dealer has my car...says they're gonna replace the transmission under warranty. They haven't said what the problem is and I doubt they are going to diagnose it to figure it out. I want to prevent this in the future but I don't know if this is my flex plate or something else. So I'm hoping your experience might help point me in the right direction so i can spend my money wisely on this.

This is actually my second transmission, the 1st one got replaced Sept 2013. The way this is going, I'm sure it will happen again.

I pinged Megan370z and he seems to be in the same boat with the 7AT, except i think he's gonna throw in the towel on fixing it and just swap it out for a 6MT.

I called GTM about the flex plate seems it's just checmically treated to better withstand the heat, I ahve no idea if it will fix my problem or if I need their torque converter or maybe something else.

wstar · 05-22-2014, 09:51 PM

Honestly, I have no idea what's wrong with your transmission, sorry! This is the only AT I've ever owned, and I know next to nothing about the internal mechanisms of one (at least, not enough to diagnose based on symptoms like that).

My trans has been fine so far, and it's been through a lot of abuse. I basically never used the normal "D" mode even when it was a street car, and at the track it's M-mode and high revs all day long. I don't *think* my trans is currently broken, just the flexplate. Worst case, could be related issues at the pilot bushing and/or torque convertor (e.g. loose bolt), but who knows at this point. I'll know more once the guys at Baker starting looking at the car.

The only non-standard things I've done with my 7AT really is up the line pressures slightly via UpRev, and switched fluid to Motul Multi-ATF. I've done a mostly-complete fluid swap on this trans twice now with the Motul. Hot track days can really destroy fluid pretty quickly, and bad fluid could lead to all kinds of problems. There's a PDF chart from GTM somewhere about trans fluid temp vs miles-to-change...

I'll probably put a stock flexplate back in mine for now, assuming that's the main thing that's broken. As long as the first one lasted, I'm sure something bigger will break before another one does.

Eagle · 05-22-2014, 10:05 PM

Would you say the symptoms I'm experiencing are similar or are they just totally different?

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Eagle · 05-23-2014, 12:11 PM

Sorry don't mean to thread jack your journal. I called the dealer and they confirmed it was the torque convertor, they said it was actually coming apart

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wstar · 05-23-2014, 04:17 PM

Totally different, for the record

ZeN · 05-25-2014, 02:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eagle

I hit the track on Sunday and the car was running fine as long as the RPM's were above ~1K. So during my session i was fine as long as I didn't come to a stop, so sure enough when i finally got off the track and stopped, the car died.

If I was below 1K and in drive or reverse, the car would bog down and stall. I thought I was gonna have to have the car towed home, but I managed to get the car rolling by revving to 4k and 5k in neutral and then dropping it into gear. The momentum got the car moving, RPM's stayed high enough to prevent the car from stalling. Shifting, especially downshifting manually seemed to aggravate the transmission and would cause the "stalling" symptom to return. I was able to reproduce the problem on demand, all i had to do was drive it like a manual

Anyway, dealer has my car...says they're gonna replace the transmission under warranty. They haven't said what the problem is and I doubt they are going to diagnose it to figure it out. I want to prevent this in the future but I don't know if this is my flex plate or something else. So I'm hoping your experience might help point me in the right direction so i can spend my money wisely on this.

This is actually my second transmission, the 1st one got replaced Sept 2013. The way this is going, I'm sure it will happen again.

I pinged Megan370z and he seems to be in the same boat with the 7AT, except i think he's gonna throw in the towel on fixing it and just swap it out for a 6MT.

I called GTM about the flex plate seems it's just checmically treated to better withstand the heat, I ahve no idea if it will fix my problem or if I need their torque converter or maybe something else.

Heh, i had the same problem before, it's the torque converter welded itself. Try applying throttle while braking like doing a launch, you'll hear something crack. That will fix it temporarily, you still need to change your TQ converter because it will come back. You must had a good run then come to a stop suddenly.

wstar · 05-26-2014, 03:06 PM

Quote:

You must had a good run then come to a stop suddenly.

Good point to reinforce there. Warmup and Cooldown are very important if you're stressing the car. All kinds of things can go wrong if you stress a cold car, or if you shut down a very hot car. Most track sessions I warm up the car at idle on the grid *at least* enough to get the water gauge up in a normal-ish range, and then the oil comes up during the warmup lap first session of the day (or it's already pretty warm later). Then I always take a cooldown lap where I try to avoid braking, and keep the engine revs lower while the oil/water temps drop back off. Usually by the time I shut off, water's back down to ~203 and oil's back down to ~210.

wstar · 05-26-2014, 03:08 PM

Also, while the diagnostic investigation over at Baker North probably isn't complete yet, it's looking like more than just a flywheel+sensor on my car. There's a good chance there's damaged crank bearings or something along those lines. I'm not sure how sure they are yet as to cause and effect. Looks like the 7AT may have outlived the engine! I'm sure I'll know more in a couple of days.

Eagle · 05-27-2014, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wstar

Good point to reinforce there. Warmup and Cooldown are very important if you're stressing the car. All kinds of things can go wrong if you stress a cold car, or if you shut down a very hot car. Most track sessions I warm up the car at idle on the grid *at least* enough to get the water gauge up in a normal-ish range, and then the oil comes up during the warmup lap first session of the day (or it's already pretty warm later). Then I always take a cooldown lap where I try to avoid braking, and keep the engine revs lower while the oil/water temps drop back off. Usually by the time I shut off, water's back down to ~203 and oil's back down to ~210.

Definitely important! I did do an outlap/cool down lap and then I had to drop off my instructor back at registration so he could jump in his car and go pick up all the massacred cones.

After dropping him off I left the engine idling and didn't shutdown the car, probably for 5 to 10 minutes at least. I also left the hood up so it could ventilate a bit more

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wstar · 05-27-2014, 05:50 PM

So, it looks like I did spin a crank bearing (in addition to (probably as an after-effect of) having flywheel damage). Nissan won't warranty the engine, of course, but I can hardly blame them on a car like mine. Even asking was mostly a shot in the dark.

So, I've got some heavy thinking to do on options here. The factors in play are money (of course!) and time (two events I really wanted to make in the latter half of June, not blowing the rest of the schedule for the year, and in general not spending months off the track with fading skills).

The first routes that come to mind and/or are useful for comparison:

The Fast Options:

a) Have the dealership drop in a brand-new long block from Nissan at my expense. They quoted me around $11-12K plus tax for that, including swapping over my current intake/header setup, baffled oil pan, etc. The upside is the block could be here quickly, the job can get done quickly and correctly (this is Jason @ Baker, I trust his work, and he can get the whole swap done in a day or two. He's dropped the engine out of my car before, and he's the only guy who's worked on it other than me, aside from the cage welding over at Lucas Racing). It seems like a lot of money just to get back roughly where I was before the incident but with a fresher engine. It's also the kind of money I don't have laying around to blow on this problem right now, although I could probably find ways to scrounge it up by making a few unwise financial decisions in other areas.

b) Basically as above, but have them drop in a working used VQ37 block from parts search at salvage lots. The engine wouldn't be as fresh, it might only last another year for all I know. It would probably knock a bunch off the price above, but I'm not sure how much yet. They're calling around and looking into it now.
The slower options, which might leave the car down for an indefinite period of time, during which I'd have to give up the track schedule or buy a really cheap backup track car, or maybe do a reduced schedule using some kind of rental cars. All of that adds cost and lost track time (or re-learning a new car setting me back a little) to the overall picture as well:

a) Fix this engine. Tear it apart, figure out what's broken, buy parts and have a good engine guy rebuild it stronger (there are a couple around town that could do the job). Known-broken parts (crank, flywheel, etc) are going to run ~$2K for sure, plus whatever else is broken. I suspect there wasn't much secondary damage from bearing parts going all over the place - I think we had a catastrophic failure of that bearing (probably from crankshaft wobble/vibration from the failing flywheel) and immediate rev limit from the bad crank sensor input and not much else. It sounded almost healthy idling after the incident. May as well have the engine builder beef up the internals for the long haul while they're in there. Not even sure what the total cost would be, but it would probably be at least a month-long process (if not more!) when you count in parts delays, etc. Probably considerably cheaper than a new longblock from Nissan, and definitely more reliable than tossing in a random junkyard block.

b) Screw the VQ. I'm not a Nissan purist, so dropping in an LS1+T56 is an option. I know I can get a cheap running engine. There's some fab work to do on engine/trans mounts and driveshaft, unless someone's made a kit already or is willing to use me as a test customer. I'd probably want to beef up the diff at the same time (which was an eventual plan anyways) to handle the torque. I'd probably run some random custom/race ECU for the LS, ditch the stock gauge cluster, etc. Given the car is *completely* gutted and staying that way, the re-wiring and all that isn't as hard as it would normally be. This option would take multiple months for sure, especially if I do most of it myself, which I'm somewhat inclined to do if I go down this road. I'd have to plan on not having a working 370 until sometime in 2015 and then see if maybe I can surprise myself and get it done a little earlier than that.

With all the ancillary parts involved + fabrication, this is probably more expensive than a brand-new VQ37 longblock from Nissan, but I probably wouldn't feel it as bad spreading it out over several months, and the end result would be way cooler.
Sell/Part-out the Z, sell off all the Z-specific things around here, use the proceeds to buy a cheap used track car that's already running and never look back. Probably the smart choice, but could take a while as well. I'd sell the racecar to someone who wants to do one of the options above or part it out. There's a ton of value in the aftermarket bits in this car: the JRZ coilovers, AP Racing brake kit, the rare AM Performance baffled oil pan, CJM's anti-fuel-starve kit, 4 sets of wheels, all the engine bolt-ons, swaybars, upper control arms, the Sparco seats + harnesses + steering wheel, etc, etc.

There's also a fair amount of value in the package as a whole, even with the engine problem outstanding, just because all these parts are already installed and working well together, and the gutting and cage work is already done (and the cage is really top-notch). More than enough to cover a typical cheaper trackday car like a prepped 90's Miata or whatever I happen to find on the market at the time, so long as it's rear-wheel drive.
I try to convince myself that I've had a good run at an interesting hobby here with the road-racing thing, but that keeping up with this in the long run at an aggressive level isn't something I'm financially equipped for. Maybe instead of throwing good money after bad, I could write off everything I've put in so far as a pretty fair deal for a pretty awesome experience over the past few years and some new driving skills I'll carry with me for the rest of my life, and just sell out. Maybe start another hobby less demanding of my time and money, like collecting enough gold bars to pave my entire front yard and then cleaning them every day.

If I went option 4, I'd sell off the Z and/or parts as in option 3, then also sell the enclosed trailer + a bunch of tools I'll never use enough if I'm not doing this hobby anymore (including a low-rise lift), maybe even trade down the expensive diesel towtruck for something more reasonable.

sig11 · 05-27-2014, 06:21 PM

Man that's a tough spot. If it were me I would probably go with option 3. It's far cheaper to buy a built car than to build one yourself and having a car you can write off without such a big loss is nice (I wrecked my 350Z race car this weekend and still managed to smile for a photo of it in the trees since I don't have nearly as much in it as my 370.).

Option 4 might be the wisest but at least in my case I don't think I could give up racing. That Peter Egan quote - "Racing makes heroin addiction look like a vague wish for something salty" says it all.

Rusty · 05-27-2014, 06:28 PM

I would do 2A. You already have a track car that you know well, and have top shelf parts in it. You'll end up with having a bullet proof VQ motor.

Buying another track car. Who knows what you might get in to with it. It could be more $$$ then you think in the long run.

Doing the GM motor swap. Sounds good when you talk about. But it will take time and $$$ to finish it. And you could lose your feeling for the sport while doing the swap.

You will never get you money back out of it when selling your parts. And time you've put in to it also. Unless you want out of the sport all together.

You and everone else that tracks a car should know that broken parts is part of the game. You always hope that it will never happen to you. But when it does. Be prepared to bit the bullet.

VoBoy · 05-28-2014, 02:14 PM

Forgive my ignorance, but was the failure due to the AT transmission? Do the same issues exist with the 6MT? I just haven't heard of many Z's with engine failures.

I'm sure you could quickly source an engine and transmission. Nissan Unlimited usually has stock. (Near 290 and Beltway 8) So my vote is 1b. If it was my car I'd do that.

You are a better man that me if you can walk away from this sport without some kinda rehab program.

On the flip side, owning a miata is cheap

you can probably sell off your Z stuff and use a fraction of it on a built miata.

05-22-2014, 07:59 PM	#782 (permalink)
wstar A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 4,024 Drives: too slow Rep Power: 3594	Dropped the car off at Baker North today to let them sort it out __________________ 7AT Track Car! Journal thread / Car setup details

05-22-2014, 09:51 PM	#784 (permalink)
wstar A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 4,024 Drives: too slow Rep Power: 3594	Honestly, I have no idea what's wrong with your transmission, sorry! This is the only AT I've ever owned, and I know next to nothing about the internal mechanisms of one (at least, not enough to diagnose based on symptoms like that). My trans has been fine so far, and it's been through a lot of abuse. I basically never used the normal "D" mode even when it was a street car, and at the track it's M-mode and high revs all day long. I don't think my trans is currently broken, just the flexplate. Worst case, could be related issues at the pilot bushing and/or torque convertor (e.g. loose bolt), but who knows at this point. I'll know more once the guys at Baker starting looking at the car. The only non-standard things I've done with my 7AT really is up the line pressures slightly via UpRev, and switched fluid to Motul Multi-ATF. I've done a mostly-complete fluid swap on this trans twice now with the Motul. Hot track days can really destroy fluid pretty quickly, and bad fluid could lead to all kinds of problems. There's a PDF chart from GTM somewhere about trans fluid temp vs miles-to-change... I'll probably put a stock flexplate back in mine for now, assuming that's the main thing that's broken. As long as the first one lasted, I'm sure something bigger will break before another one does. __________________ 7AT Track Car! Journal thread / Car setup details

05-22-2014, 10:05 PM	#785 (permalink)
Eagle Track Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: South Orange County, CA Posts: 884 Drives: 2011 370z Red 6MT Rep Power: 10656	Would you say the symptoms I'm experiencing are similar or are they just totally different? Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk __________________ nismo\| EVO-R High Wing \| *Stillen* Gen 3 CAI \| SEIBON TS Hood \| Z1 34 Row Oil Cooler \| VMR 810 Wheels \| Endless MX72 Pads \|*Sabelt* GT-140 Seat \|Fly1Motorsports RS1 Fenders \| Hotchkis Front Sway Bar \| Berk HFC \|

05-23-2014, 12:11 PM	#786 (permalink)
Eagle Track Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: South Orange County, CA Posts: 884 Drives: 2011 370z Red 6MT Rep Power: 10656	Sorry don't mean to thread jack your journal. I called the dealer and they confirmed it was the torque convertor, they said it was actually coming apart Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk __________________ nismo\| EVO-R High Wing \| *Stillen* Gen 3 CAI \| SEIBON TS Hood \| Z1 34 Row Oil Cooler \| VMR 810 Wheels \| Endless MX72 Pads \|*Sabelt* GT-140 Seat \|Fly1Motorsports RS1 Fenders \| Hotchkis Front Sway Bar \| Berk HFC \|

05-23-2014, 04:17 PM	#787 (permalink)
wstar A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 4,024 Drives: too slow Rep Power: 3594	Totally different, for the record __________________ 7AT Track Car! Journal thread / Car setup details

05-26-2014, 03:08 PM	#790 (permalink)
wstar A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 4,024 Drives: too slow Rep Power: 3594	Also, while the diagnostic investigation over at Baker North probably isn't complete yet, it's looking like more than just a flywheel+sensor on my car. There's a good chance there's damaged crank bearings or something along those lines. I'm not sure how sure they are yet as to cause and effect. Looks like the 7AT may have outlived the engine! I'm sure I'll know more in a couple of days. Eagle likes this. __________________ 7AT Track Car! Journal thread / Car setup details

05-27-2014, 05:50 PM	#792 (permalink)
wstar A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 4,024 Drives: too slow Rep Power: 3594	So, it looks like I did spin a crank bearing (in addition to (probably as an after-effect of) having flywheel damage). Nissan won't warranty the engine, of course, but I can hardly blame them on a car like mine. Even asking was mostly a shot in the dark. So, I've got some heavy thinking to do on options here. The factors in play are money (of course!) and time (two events I really wanted to make in the latter half of June, not blowing the rest of the schedule for the year, and in general not spending months off the track with fading skills). The first routes that come to mind and/or are useful for comparison: The Fast Options: a) Have the dealership drop in a brand-new long block from Nissan at my expense. They quoted me around $11-12K plus tax for that, including swapping over my current intake/header setup, baffled oil pan, etc. The upside is the block could be here quickly, the job can get done quickly and correctly (this is Jason @ Baker, I trust his work, and he can get the whole swap done in a day or two. He's dropped the engine out of my car before, and he's the only guy who's worked on it other than me, aside from the cage welding over at Lucas Racing). It seems like a lot of money just to get back roughly where I was before the incident but with a fresher engine. It's also the kind of money I don't have laying around to blow on this problem right now, although I could probably find ways to scrounge it up by making a few unwise financial decisions in other areas. b) Basically as above, but have them drop in a working used VQ37 block from parts search at salvage lots. The engine wouldn't be as fresh, it might only last another year for all I know. It would probably knock a bunch off the price above, but I'm not sure how much yet. They're calling around and looking into it now. The slower options, which might leave the car down for an indefinite period of time, during which I'd have to give up the track schedule or buy a really cheap backup track car, or maybe do a reduced schedule using some kind of rental cars. All of that adds cost and lost track time (or re-learning a new car setting me back a little) to the overall picture as well: a) Fix this engine. Tear it apart, figure out what's broken, buy parts and have a good engine guy rebuild it stronger (there are a couple around town that could do the job). Known-broken parts (crank, flywheel, etc) are going to run ~$2K for sure, plus whatever else is broken. I suspect there wasn't much secondary damage from bearing parts going all over the place - I think we had a catastrophic failure of that bearing (probably from crankshaft wobble/vibration from the failing flywheel) and immediate rev limit from the bad crank sensor input and not much else. It sounded almost healthy idling after the incident. May as well have the engine builder beef up the internals for the long haul while they're in there. Not even sure what the total cost would be, but it would probably be at least a month-long process (if not more!) when you count in parts delays, etc. Probably considerably cheaper than a new longblock from Nissan, and definitely more reliable than tossing in a random junkyard block. b) Screw the VQ. I'm not a Nissan purist, so dropping in an LS1+T56 is an option. I know I can get a cheap running engine. There's some fab work to do on engine/trans mounts and driveshaft, unless someone's made a kit already or is willing to use me as a test customer. I'd probably want to beef up the diff at the same time (which was an eventual plan anyways) to handle the torque. I'd probably run some random custom/race ECU for the LS, ditch the stock gauge cluster, etc. Given the car is completely gutted and staying that way, the re-wiring and all that isn't as hard as it would normally be. This option would take multiple months for sure, especially if I do most of it myself, which I'm somewhat inclined to do if I go down this road. I'd have to plan on not having a working 370 until sometime in 2015 and then see if maybe I can surprise myself and get it done a little earlier than that. With all the ancillary parts involved + fabrication, this is probably more expensive than a brand-new VQ37 longblock from Nissan, but I probably wouldn't feel it as bad spreading it out over several months, and the end result would be way cooler. Sell/Part-out the Z, sell off all the Z-specific things around here, use the proceeds to buy a cheap used track car that's already running and never look back. Probably the smart choice, but could take a while as well. I'd sell the racecar to someone who wants to do one of the options above or part it out. There's a ton of value in the aftermarket bits in this car: the JRZ coilovers, AP Racing brake kit, the rare AM Performance baffled oil pan, CJM's anti-fuel-starve kit, 4 sets of wheels, all the engine bolt-ons, swaybars, upper control arms, the Sparco seats + harnesses + steering wheel, etc, etc. There's also a fair amount of value in the package as a whole, even with the engine problem outstanding, just because all these parts are already installed and working well together, and the gutting and cage work is already done (and the cage is really top-notch). More than enough to cover a typical cheaper trackday car like a prepped 90's Miata or whatever I happen to find on the market at the time, so long as it's rear-wheel drive. I try to convince myself that I've had a good run at an interesting hobby here with the road-racing thing, but that keeping up with this in the long run at an aggressive level isn't something I'm financially equipped for. Maybe instead of throwing good money after bad, I could write off everything I've put in so far as a pretty fair deal for a pretty awesome experience over the past few years and some new driving skills I'll carry with me for the rest of my life, and just sell out. Maybe start another hobby less demanding of my time and money, like collecting enough gold bars to pave my entire front yard and then cleaning them every day. If I went option 4, I'd sell off the Z and/or parts as in option 3, then also sell the enclosed trailer + a bunch of tools I'll never use enough if I'm not doing this hobby anymore (including a low-rise lift), maybe even trade down the expensive diesel towtruck for something more reasonable. Eagle likes this. __________________ 7AT Track Car! Journal thread / Car setup details Last edited by wstar; 05-27-2014 at 05:57 PM.

05-27-2014, 06:21 PM	#793 (permalink)
sig11 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Detroit Posts: 1,294 Drives: 09 370Z Red Sport-MT Rep Power: 17	Man that's a tough spot. If it were me I would probably go with option 3. It's far cheaper to buy a built car than to build one yourself and having a car you can write off without such a big loss is nice (I wrecked my 350Z race car this weekend and still managed to smile for a photo of it in the trees since I don't have nearly as much in it as my 370.). Option 4 might be the wisest but at least in my case I don't think I could give up racing. That Peter Egan quote - "Racing makes heroin addiction look like a vague wish for something salty" says it all.

05-27-2014, 06:28 PM	#794 (permalink)
Rusty Ronin Samurai - Assassin Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Fayettenam,Pennsyltucky Age: 68 Posts: 34,867 Drives: 2011 Nismo GM 6M Rep Power: 2684436	I would do 2A. You already have a track car that you know well, and have top shelf parts in it. You'll end up with having a bullet proof VQ motor. Buying another track car. Who knows what you might get in to with it. It could be more $$$ then you think in the long run. Doing the GM motor swap. Sounds good when you talk about. But it will take time and $$$ to finish it. And you could lose your feeling for the sport while doing the swap. You will never get you money back out of it when selling your parts. And time you've put in to it also. Unless you want out of the sport all together. You and everone else that tracks a car should know that broken parts is part of the game. You always hope that it will never happen to you. But when it does. Be prepared to bit the bullet. __________________ 浪人 - 殺し屋 "The Difficult Anytime, The Impossible By Appointment Only" http://www.the370z.com/members-370z-...o-journal.html

05-28-2014, 02:14 PM	#795 (permalink)
VoBoy Base Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Chicago/Houston Posts: 37 Drives: 06 350z Rep Power: 16	Forgive my ignorance, but was the failure due to the AT transmission? Do the same issues exist with the 6MT? I just haven't heard of many Z's with engine failures. I'm sure you could quickly source an engine and transmission. Nissan Unlimited usually has stock. (Near 290 and Beltway 8) So my vote is 1b. If it was my car I'd do that. You are a better man that me if you can walk away from this sport without some kinda rehab program. On the flip side, owning a miata is cheap you can probably sell off your Z stuff and use a fraction of it on a built miata.

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