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Haven't updated this in awhile. But, our trip to Japan is coming soon and we can't wait! I'll be meeting with Kats and taking a look at his Z432. Not sure if we have time for a hike up Fuji, but, we will be staying near the mountain for a few nights. It will be a long two weeks, but, we plan to fly into Tokyo and head SW to Kyoto for a few nights. I'll be sure to get some pics with Kats (and his car) to share on the site! Mike

So after a very skilled welder (not me) tried a few different options, what worked best was a brazed repair.

Targa time!

The 2500lbs is for a typical 280Z with some of the weight removed. The 196ft-lbs is for a tuned L28 with a cam and triples. No over-bore. I think yours will go a bit quicker too! You and the mrs. in a drag race would be a great final project video ?

High compression engine...fuel could cause the problem, carburation could cause the problem, hot spots could cause the problem, but I would look at the timing. Run-on is more often a timing problem, especially if the fuel is low octane for the high compression. Check your spark plugs also. They may be too hot?

Thank you for all the tips! We made it back without a hitch! We took all of your recommendations and carefully inspected the Z and also brought tools, spare parts and fluids with us. We were willing to have it transported like some of you mentioned if we had any doubts but it drove really well. The only things we noticed were the following (which we will get to this week hopefully): - Soft suspension - Soft brakes, have to nearly step all the way down on the pedal - The headlight/wiper switch needs to be replaced (Seller gave us back $200 to fix this)'

I'm not dead, just been too busy with other things to get much else done on the car, especially since I can drive it again. But, at least my new plates came... Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

That's brave.

FWIW, after looking at our 78, I can confirm what Captain said about the White/Red wire for the 1.25 Black Fusible Link being larger than the other 3 White/Red wires. Three of those White/Red wires were approximately 4 mm. One of them is approximately 4.5 mm, or about the same size as the White wires on the other sides of the Fusible Links (at least on this 78). Unfortunately there were no stickers left on these either. The larger White/Red wire (assuming originality) would definitely be where the 1.25 Black Fusible Link goes, and on our 78 anyway, that wire was in the front, fender side position, matching what you all have shown. So since we all know Nissan’s consistency over the years has been gray at times, and with some Z’s having been re-wired or re-harnessed, or possibly if the guy who had the car before you was ________ enough to cross things up, checking for the larger White/Red wire seems to be the best way that the average person should be able to confirm position of the 1.25 Black Fusible Link on their 77-78. Of course if they can check circuits and have a decent wiring diagram, then can confirm even farther. As a vendor, we appreciate the checks and balances. Thanks to all.

So shiny... I want to touch it with my greasy fingers too.

Ah, I found that one... thx

Mount Akagi. Sorry.. The phones autocorrect put that there, and I failed to proofread it. Anyway, the road that the Initial D series was based on. Sent from my N9130 using Tapatalk

DaveWM, again solid advice.... much appreciated. ? I agree with you and suspect the cause(s) of the running rich problem have existed for a while, hence the past smog failures. I plan on keeping this car for a while, so it's best to get it sorted out now before moving on to other issues. I'll stay on my original plan for this weekend of testing fuel pressure and distributor/ignition coil. Stay tuned for updates (bad pun not intended).

I would price out the pieces individually. I suspect you could pull it together cheaper and get paid for the time to do it. Use Rockauto for everything you can. they may even have it all

1st things 1st, check fuel pressure. rich running is a function of two things duty cycle (ECU) and fuel pressure (FPR). Best practice is to check the pressure 1st. Duty cycle is controlled by the ECU with inputs from the AFM/water temp sensor/throttle position sensor. Clearing internal fuel leaks into the intake will require leak testing of the fuel injectors. you have cleared the FPR of leaking fuel, that leaves the injectors and the cold start system. if everything checks out, the ECU itself become suspect, but that is prob the least likely to be a problem. Its solid state, lives inside the cabin so has a easy life. after rich running is resolved air leaks can be looked into, generally speaking they would allow unmetered air in a system that would account for rough idle but not rich mixtures. The split hose on the valve cover would prob make it run BETTER since its allowing air in when something else is allowing too much fuel in. Sounds like a combination of problems exist keeping the FI from ideal, so you may have some set back in performance before it all gets better. All the above being said the easiest thing to check and the most likely to be causing the issue is a defective water temp sensor. they live in a wet environment, can corrode and generally fail in a high resistance reading resulting in rich run. HOPEFULLY no one has messed with the calibration of the AFM. There is really no reason for it to become "UN" calibrated. In the electronics world we have tuned circuits that often become in operative due to "screw driver" drift... people can't seem to resist tweeking things in an attempt to resolve a problem. Tuned circuits have a very definite "peak" that can be ruined by the slightest turn. Now the AFM is not a tuned circuit like I have described but it can still be messed up I would think.

Thank you! It's going to be hard waiting to fire it up but with it being so rare to have an N/A RB fully built, I am going to wait until the tuner has it on the dyno and let him start it for the first time. I have only heard video clips of the few N/A engines and they sound incredible. Such a big difference between an engine with and without the turbo which acts as a muffler. With the enlarged throttle bodies running straight velocity stacks, stiff valve springs, big valves/cams, long stroke, big bore, lighter flywheel, equal length long tube headers up to 10k redline into aluminum or titanium full exhaust system, the sound should be something like a sport bike or Indy car. Body guy said engine bay welding is finished! Sanding begins now and I should be able to get the final bare metal shots before primer. Should be painted the first week of April which probably means last week of May..

Got a few more bits and pieces done, prepping for the engine install on Saturday. Got the transmission cover cleaned and painted. Also got the Flywheel surfaced. I finished polishing the two rear mags and got the Bridgestones mounted. Installed those on the rear. Cleaned up the clutch master cylinder and cleaned up the Brake booster. Really looking forward to getting the motor in. @jayhawk is going to drop by and help out with that. Motor should look pretty nice once in the engine bay

I wonder where Nissan was getting the red ones? They don't seem to have a part number on them. Anyway, good to be back to normal and verifiable. All links should have a Nissan part number stamped on them. The Atlanticz page still suggests that red is 069 mm^2 though, so beware. The zcarsource pictures show a 1.0 link, not 1.25. And orange 0.35. They might get theirs from Japan but not necessarily from Nissan. Plus they say that 1976 is the same as 77-78, which is not right (look at "Additional Information" on their page). I'm just reacting to all of the words and pictures that are out there about fusible links. Lots of variation and confusion. https://zcarsource.com/fusible-link-cover-set-280z-76-78-new

Just did a search and a 240z has a 1044kg (2300lb) weight. Mine will be a bit heavier with the cage and the different seats, but not a lot. I will have to weigh it when I am done.

I might be a little bit biased but I think if Nissan put the original 240z design back into production they would sell million of them. Update the suspension, brakes and electronics but leave the exterior exactly as it was.

Just saw a commercial while sitting in my hotel. Has a 280z on an add as a guys dream car for $39,995. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Prolly been mentioned before but I watched Fast Times at Ridgemont High this weekend. Damone is selling tickets in the parking lot, '76 I think, 280 parked while Forest Witaker pulls up in his Camaro Z28.

Made some nice progress this weekend. Got the front grill and bumper brackets installed. Got the differential restraining strap, differential and half shafts installed. The differential went in pretty easy with my new Costco jack. Just set the diff on the large rubber pad and lifted it into place. Also, @jayhawk stopped by to look the car over. Glad he was able to see the car in person, instead of just the pics.

Parts stripped completely. Will be having two set of headlight buckets painted, one set will have the head light lenses, one set will not. The car had been in a front fender bender I’m guessing because one of the buckets is FRP and the other is metal.

Dropped the last of the engine parts off with the machinist. And some updates on the engine bay seam welding.

Test fit a seat and it's perfect. All the way down as low as could be and it fits me perfectly.

Careful what you start Brandon......

Picked up my S13 Fortune Auto coilovers. Looking forward to getting these in. My best friend is towing the car back to his place soon to weld in the Response Type S13 front conversion kit and he will also notch out the rear frame rails. We decided to see how low the car could go with the current wheel/tire combo and it can go really low. The upper arm hit the frame rail before the tire made any contact. Bump steer spacers also arrived from Japan. Note the notches in the S13 front kit. It's really cool because you can adjust camber at the bottom and/or top which means I can bring the track width in our out to suit wheel/tire fitment. It also allows you to rotate the upper camber mount and use it for caster adjustment if you desired. Just offers up a lot of adjustability overall. I also ran into a couple of roadblocks but working through it. First off the Z32 calipers don't even come close to fitting behind these Watanabe's. Even the stock front calipers rubbed a tad which could easily be fixed but I found some floating 2 pot slim calipers from Wilwood which will work once I have brackets made. Next off, the S13 rear coilovers upper hats were too large for the Z31 towers so my friend modified them a tad. But then the angle still isn't right using the S14 subframe with the Z31 chassis so my friend is trying to come up with a spherical bearing for the upper hats of the rear coilovers which would allow articulation and correct the angle issue. Worst case, I will sell the S13 coilovers and buy Z31's from Powertrix and modify the bottom rear mounts to fit the subframe. The machinist got the old valve seats and guides out and put the Tomei beryllium copper seats and supertech guides in. Next is port and polish then combustion chamber reshaping, unshrouding of the valves. Lastly, my little helper

Yay!! 205/55 fits! I rolled the fenders and was able to set the camber much less aggressive. Tried to eye the toe close to 0 as well. Very happy with how this looks.