Can anyone estimate how much is would cost to build my fantasy car? I’d like to take a Nissan 280ZX, and have a Chevy 350 crate motor put in it. I assume I’ll also need a Chevy transmission.
Many thousands.
You may have noticed a lack of responses. I submit that this is because it’s impossible to estimate. It’ll be entirely dependent on the engine you choose, the drivetrain you choose, the suspension setup you choose, the reinforcement subframe you choose, the cooling system you choose, the condition of the car to begin with, how much labor you have to subcontract out, how “finished” you want the end product to be, and about 1000 other variables.
I suspect this has been done before,so you may want to do a search for kits to do this conversion. And start from there. It won’t be just a direct engine swap. Far from it.
Mountainbike is exactly right. It could get expensive even if you do a lot of the work yourself since everything will have to be fabricated.
The crate motor will be the biggest expense.
It’s also a very doable deal. We’ve got a guy here who runs a 260Z at the drag strip and it has a supercharged 454 Chevy in it. It’s a blast to watch this thing take off. It lunges more than anything else while pulling the wheels a couple of feet off the ground.