What sort of power do the Zs put out compared to the L motors? any clues?

Adam.

Z22s are really hard to find and the blocks on Z24s are taller than l20bs im pretty sure so i doubt they would fit in a 1200 all that well

L series all the way

my car moves along fairly well and its just got a stock l20b with twin 40s(untuned), oh and its only firing on 3 cylinders
and still handles well enough to keep up with A series vehicles of similar suspention setup

L series! but then again....... na L series!

Quote:While these are good engines, & very good choices at that, it completely ignores the statement "I don't want to run a modern engine"

Accepting that a 'modern' engine is out of the question & given that we are asked to choose between two specific engine groups, I have not an answer, but a question.

What do you plan to do with this car?

If it's just sunday cruising with the gilfriend & a little sport driving in the twisties, then a big bore A15 will serve you very well.

If it's a dedicated race car, particularly a drag car, then an L20B would be the go, perhaps with Z22 crank, rods & pistons as these use the same deck height block as the L20B.

Other applications may involve different answers as the L20B is the heaviest & would have the greatest potential to kill the handling.

It's all horses for courses.

Remember, the Sunny Excellent used the L14, but it was 40mm longer in the wheelbase [all in front of the firewall] & all of the steering & suspension components were the sturdier sized components designed for the larger L series powered cars, so the factory thought that all of the front end & steering in the 1200 was a bit light for the L series engines.
None of these steering & suspension parts share part numbers with the 1200.[I have both parts books]

L series is alot harder to do in a 1200 than a 120Y, where it all but bolts in. I can't for the life of me understand anyone playing with the little A series in 120Y's, but in the 1200 if you can't do the conversion work yourself the larger A15 is alot easier.

L series is much better for a daily driver. so much more torque you won't believe it - even the L16 is very torquey in a 1200.

From my limited knowledge and experiance I would suggest you go the A series,
I run a couple of both (L26,L28T,A10,A15T)
The A series is a simpler engine and a cheaper engine to get parts for, It also seems to handle high boost pressures than the L series, its also a hell of a lot lighter and shorter.
On the other hand as they say "there is no replacement for displacement" and you can give the L series some serious displacement (2.4 l20 with z24 crank) but they are quite alot heavier in percentage of overall weight.
I dont look forward to pullin the head on either motors but the A series so much simpler, if you drop the timing chain on the l series you have to remove the timing cover (crank pully, distributor, oil pump etc.).
The A series is an "old war horse" it can take huge turbo boost (30psi) and put out some pretty serious BHP.
The L series is a bit more `fisicated and dosesnt seem to handle big boost very well (15psi+) but the extra cubes give it a bit more torque of the line.
An An A15 running 28-30psi Should flow upto 6000cc`s.
An L20 running 14-15 psi should flow upto 4000 cc`s.
If you want to go N/A then go the L series it will take some extra work and dollars.
If you want to go turbo then (in my opinion) Go the A series.


I wonder how my A15T ( 105kw at 17 psi)would go in my 240Z (1050KG) ?

All have there ups and downs but it comes down with what suits you. Im an A-series fan even though i could easly fabricate a different engine in(fitter and turner here) But the A suits me. Its about what makes you happy really.

My other thought is id be going CA if i was going to the trouble of an L series.


Just remeber a big dollar Ca18 someone out there will still be faster.

I say don't knock the L block till you've done it yourself. The A-series (without too much money spent) is just gutless unless you rev the buggery out of it and thats no good on the street, and with those rubbery pushrods *shudder*.

The L-series is not much heavier, and the a-series isn't very close to the firewall in stock location, so with a L-series with heavier box close to the firewall and a H165 rear axle, the weight balance won't be upset too much.

Just dont cut up your car and you can put it all back the way it was, save for cutting the g/box mounts from the tunnel which can be overcome with a different gearbox crossmember and a slight massage to the tunnel depending on which box you run. My yellow sedan could go back to stock and no-one would ever know, I could do it all in a weekend if need be.

Biased as I may be, I've gone L-series along with many others and definitely won't be building a performance a-series car anytime soon, I can't part with my money on expensive a-series bits when L-series stuff is so readily available and cheap.

My 2c.

yep, its only ever the people who've never driven an L series 1200 that 'prefer' the A series

Despite loving most datsun stuff, I have to say I prefer the MIGHTY A series. I had an L20B powered B310 coupe, with SU's and extractors. More torque yes, but I like the A more.
10x easier to work on.