350Z pedals in an S14

[TunanS14]

So, this is something I've always wanted to do ever since I saw it in Broadfield's S13 but have never seen done in an S14. I decided to take on the project and to show the process of the "swap" to help my S-chassis family. Although its nothing too crazy, I do think it's a huge improvement to the outdated 240sx OE setup while still maintaining a classy look.

First and foremost - the 350z pedals. I purchased from West Covina Nissan via eBay as a complete set (sorry no pics). The set included a dead pedal or footrest for the Z but is completely unusable for the 240sx. The clutch and brake pedal covers, however, are a direct fit. The accelerator pedal is also not a direct fit and the 240sx's pedal assembly needs to be modified in order for this to work.

I removed the 240's accelerator pedal assembly and slipped the OEM plastic cover off. Next, I milled the pedal's metal plate down so that only the rod remained.



Left with only the accelerator rod, I drilled and tapped the end of the rod using a 10-24 tap. The 350z accelerator is L shaped so, to replicate this, I turned down a piece of steel in our lathe at work to slip in the plastic sleeve provided with the Z gas pedal. I then milled a flat and drilled a "through-hole" so that this could be bolted to the end of the 240sx accelerator rod.




Now, the 240sx's pedal is centered on the rod but slanted, and the rod itself is bent to offset the pedal to the right, as you can seen in the above photo. The 350z's pedal, however, is not centered, but sits to the right of the center of the accelerator rod. Upon trial and error, when I test fit the, now modified 240sx accelerator into the S14, it sat all the way against the transmission tunnel. The 240's accelerator rod has to be straightend for the pedal to be in a comfortable position for the driver.



So, once again, I test fit the accelerator and 350z pedal and made sure I was satisfied with the position. I then removed the assembly and welded the little piece that I had previously made and bolted to the end of the accelerator rod and gave it a fresh coat of black paint.



The installed 350z pedal on the modified 240sx accelerator assembly..



The 240's accelerator rod has a slightly smaller diameter than the 350z's so once plastic clip went on, there was a slight bit of play on the shaft. I drilled a small hole into the clip and used a short screw to act as a set screw and put pressure against the rod, therefore, eliminating all free play



As I stated earlier, the 350z's dead pedal, or footrest is completely useless in this install. I scrounged up a scrap piece of billet aluminum plate we had laying around the shop and cut it to the same specs as the Z's dead pedal. I then replicated the hole pattern and chamfering on the Z's pedals so that it all looked uniform.



Once that was finished, I rounded the corners, and all the edges. Then, I clamped the piece in the vise and gave it a brushed aluminum finish to match the pedals. Once that was complete, I took a piece of 1/16 steel shim, painted it black and used it as a backing plate to give the pedal a finished look. I, then attached the pedal to the 240sx's stock plastic dead pedal using stainless bolts (aesthetics only).



And next to the OEM 350z gas pedal



And so, with it all bolted up, the finished product and I couldn't be happier with the results!