Page 1 of 1

280zx Drift/street build

Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2017 1:48 am
by duhnow
So I recently just bought a 1979 280zx. I live in Seattle Washington and I was wondering what is the cheapest engine swap I could do with a balance of power and reliability. I'm looking for around 400-600 hp for less then 10k

Re: 280zx Drift/street build

Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2017 10:02 am
by DRIVEN
Probably a 5.3 with a single turbo is the best bang for the buck.

Re: 280zx Drift/street build

Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2017 1:20 pm
by Laecaon
Under 10, I agree, any small block/LT/LS. Cost is HP increase/ weight loss. I friend got a LQ4 from a Tahoe for about $1500. Another friend bought a running driving 96 firebird for $1200, yanked the motor/transmission, sold the car for $1000.

Any aluminum block chevy V8 will probably be about the same weight as your L28, maybe even lighter. And the weight sits further back, or I guess wherever you end up placing the motor (remember, its 4.5 cylinders long, not 6)

Re: 280zx Drift/street build

Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2017 8:03 pm
by HRH
Go L series turbo. Like a boss. :cha:

Re: 280zx Drift/street build

Posted: Thu Dec 28, 2017 6:16 am
by DRIVEN
Sure. You'll only need 3 of them to get to the 400hp goal :D .