My 1974 coupe 4 speed Federal edition had the dual pickup distributor with the water switch actuated timing advance, but no EGR. No signs that my car was not completely factory stock. It's either a leftover piece, like an appendix, or it serves some unknown purpose. Either way, all it does it advance the timing 6 degrees for the short time that it takes the engine to warm up.

Described on Page EE-26 in the 1976 FSM. It's in Engine Electrical so does not appear to be an Emissions device, unlike the top gear vacuum advance switch which is described in the Emissions section. From what I can tell, the California cars with EGR don't have it, they have the single pickup in the distributor.

It's a weird thing. A lot of hardware to advance the timing 6 degrees for the 5 to 10 minutes it takes the engine to warm up. It seems to me most like a patch to keep the idle up between the time the AAR closes and the engine gets warm. That's my best guess.

My 1974 coupe 4 speed Federal edition had the dual pickup distributor with the water switch actuated timing advance, but no EGR. No signs that my car was not completely factory stock. It's either a leftover piece, like an appendix, or it serves some unknown purpose. Either way, all it does it advance the timing 6 degrees for the short time that it takes the engine to warm up.

Zed Head, I'm really sorry, but your post is confusing the crap out of me... You're saying that you've got a 74 260Z stock from the factory without EGR? What did they do to cap the EGR port on the balance tube?

And it's a manual, but it has a dual pickup distributor? I thought only the autos got the dual pickups in 74?

Someone hacked my post!

Actually it's a typo. Should say 1976. I just repeated what I said in Post #7, with a few more details.

Whew! I've got a 74 260 and I've been all over the water temp switch circuitry for that year and I thought I had it all figured out. Then you go and throw that spanner in the works. :eek:

Anyway... Cool. All is right with the world.

I agree with you in that for the cars without EGR, it sure is a lot of complexity just to add six degrees of advance until the water temp comes up. I guess those are the kind of hoops you have to jump through to meet ever tightening emissions standards?