Some CAD

Some preliminary shots of the pedal box and driveshaft. im makeing my own pedal box because i am using the stock e46 m3 throttle pedal and i want to match the pivot and throw of the throttle on the brake

Differential Crossmember and Fender Flares

I finished installing the zg fender flares and modified the cross member for the sti differential that i am running. the mount for the differential is a little stiff (might be noisy at speed) but it ensures that my driveline is parallel to the car. this is important because i am running a single piece driveshaft with two rubber couplers; so it cannot tolerate much misalignment.

Also the fender flares were a major PIA. the reason is that i wanted to make them functional which required cutting and re-welding the rear fenders. i should have done this on the rotisserie but hindsight is 20/20

Suspension is Done!!!!

The suspensions is finally done. Everything worked out great. There are a few issues to work out. The main one is that fact that i need to probably make a new crossmember. I need to do this for a few reasons.

1. the camber curve isnt quite right for the suspension combo that i have
2. i am maxed out on the lca length which means i cant get more positive than -2° camber
3. i need to make a mount for the subaru forrester power steering rack that i am going to run

Engine Lift

I decided that it was necessary to fabricate an engine bracket for lifting the engine in and out of the car. I didnt want to half ass this part since i could damage my engine by using chains that werent sized for the engine. I think i did a pretty decent job for an S54 (e46 M3) engine lift. there are two problems i can see with this lift. first is the fact that it uses the transmission mounting bolts which means you need clearance in the trans tunnel to take the bracket off. Also you need some clearance around the cowl of the car since i decided to use some stiffening braces on the back mount plate. i will probably cut these down later to clear my cowl

Datsun has a new heart

Im almost finished welding up the uprights for the car. overall i think this has been worth even if i am not changing the geometry. also the Z has a new heart. i know this wasnt the engine everyone was expecting: vq35de; but this was a great deal and the inline six purists got to me. also i started to look at the engine weights. even though this is a inline and is an iron block it isnt that much heavier. the s54 is probably 70 pounds heavier the vq35de also is a v6 which im not particularly fond off despite it being strong in every other aspect. now i cant change my mind anymore :)