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With one order I should have almost everything to restore the harness on this Z. Most of the work done on the harness was purely from an aesthetic standpoint, removing tired old connectors and replacing them with clean ones. We got lucky that no one decided to hack into the wiring of this car much previously. Here’s a quick before and after The harness tape they sell is nice. OEM grade, and slightly thinner than what you can find at the auto parts store.

This past week, I went to get my Z ready to move to my new place from where it’s being stored, I knew the clutch hydraulics was having an Issue, because the last time I went to see the car the pedal had no back pressure. I assumed I got a either a leak or air in the system, so I bleed both the master and slave cylinder and it was totally unsuccessful. I had replaced both the master and the slave about 18 months ago when I first started trying to get this car road worthy. I think they are both made by Wagner? This will be the 3rd master I’ve installed. The first I got from AutoZone and that one wouldn’t fit due to the rod being the wrong length. I tried to cut it and then it was too short. No biggie it was line $23. Then I ordered one from RockAuto which is the one in there now (about the same price) , BTW, I found it to be difficult to install due to the limited space under the pedals, and having to hold the pedal, while compressing the road and holding a light all at the same time while inserting the clevis pin. I remember saying to myself, “I hope I don’t have to do this again”. Not the case...So, it appear the master is bad now, it won’t transfer pressure to the slave and when I push the pedal with the cap off I can see a small boil of liquid come out of the reservoir. Well, this weekend, I decided I was going buy the real deal and ordered the Nabco master cylinder from a Nissan Dealership locally. The lesson learned for me in this is, it’s almost always better to buy OEM, this isn’t a hard and fast rule but if I would have done it right the first time I would have saved time, money and a lot of inconvenience. The new OEN master was $67 plus $4 tax and local pickup, being cheap doesn’t always pay...and sometimes it cost more, Buy once.....cry once. Lesson learned,

How about these wagons.....😁

I like the bumper feelers. How else do you know when you're there? They don't look bad either.

Had some wiring issues that took me a while to figure out. This car had dealer installed AC, I didn't put that back on though I may change my mind when summer rolls around and I'm sweating profusely all over my armor-all'd seats. Car seems to have plenty of power and it should handle AC without making it sluggish. I had some of that wiring for the AC jacked up and the whole thing with the blower motor wire changing colors was confusing. Somehow I had something connected that energized the radio housing! Wheel Cylinders started leaking, were working fine before but I guess they didn't like sitting on a shelf for a year. Ordered rebuild kits since this is a '71 and the replacements cost around $350.....PO must have already did the conversion to the later model cylinders cause that kit definitely wouldn't work. Ignition switch is wonkey now with the key. You have to persuade the key just right to turn in on and off and now the key will come out when the car is running. Not sure what that's about but I have a new switch ready to install. Of course after I had everything put back together and the new door cards on before I realized the locks wouldn't work and the windows weren't tracking right. If I do another one of these cars I should be able to cut my time in half after all the boneheaded things I have done on this one. Should have checked all of that before installing the door cards which aren't a breeze to install with the new clips. Locking problem ended up being simply the little plastic ends that are on the rods that connect to handle to the latch were ran out too far and wouldn't let the latch return enough so the locks could engage. Sounds easy but that was a head scratcher! Worst of all is the windows. Got the Passenger side working pretty well but the left side is giving me fits. Window tips down in the frame on its way up. I've used this site to search on the adjustment and I'm sure I have all the adjustment I can to solve that problem but its still off. There is some slop in the track that the white roller bushings slide in. Best I can figure that slop is giving the window room to dip. I didn't have the roller guides on this car and now have those to install in the next day or so but I think that is more of a fix for the window leaning towards the outside. The white roller bearings/bushings are of course out of stock.

Acetone and a good amount of elbow grease.

Thank you for the input Grannyknot, and the compliment! I agonized about the color for months, if not years. Part of the reason for my ask was to find another supplier. The WHP quote was considerable but I'm sure the work is excellent. I have contact Chip and will be ordering the MFactory diff from him. Thanks again everyone! Jason

Octo = 8 So you got a sectopus... = 6 😂

Agree on both, And those overriders mess up the beautyful front and are only extra weight on the car.. euro version is also without them and much better looking. Get rid of that scaffolding on the back ! 🙄

Thanks for the info. My '78 looks stock underhood except for the header and lack of EGR. The EGR was cracked and so I put a block-off plate over the port. The only other visible mod is the rheostat on the temp sender for fuel enrichment to get the AFR right. This is all very tentative, but I should have a better idea in a week or two what my plans are. Fingers crossed....

I'd have sent you one back if I was home, but alas I was out state at the time you mentioned this. Glad you got one to measure.

Indeed! I have been calling it octopus like header all along and now that's exactly what I got.

Don't fret. The emissions regs here in Maricopa County aren't hard to meet for any decent running Z car. If you have collectors or vintage car insurance, there is no emissions test requirement to register. Most of the Datsun owners here go that route. I don't because: A. I daily drive my 260Z (specs below) B. It's stupidly easy for my Z to get through emissions. IF you don't want to go the collector insurance route you'll need to do an emissions roller test every year and it's the same test from when they first started this thing. My 1974 doesn't require a look under the hood, but my son's 1976 280Z does. They want to make sure all the emissions control stuff is there and working but most of them don't know what should or shouldn't be there in the first place so they just check you carbon canister and the vacuum hoses for the most part. My '74 does a roller test that is maintaining a 30MPH speed for the first segment and then idle. The later test is almost the same but they vary the speed during the test. The standards for HC and NOX are fairly lax here and not difficult to meet. I haven't brought an out-of-state titled vehicle into Arizona for quite some time, but AZ is fairly laid-back about such things. They don't require plumbers to be licensed by the state, it's right-to-work, any non-felon over the age of 21 can concealed carry without a CCW permit - but you can get one if you want, we have drive-thru liquor stores (something I NEVER saw growing up in Idaho...), AND the Dunkin Doughnuts no longer gets robbed once a week like they used to in the 1970's... Once you get here, check out Desert Datsuns (desertdatsuns.net) - not really a club per se, but a group of Datsun nuts here in the Phoenix area (although most of them are In the North and East Valley, a few on the West side). If you wind up in Surprise you'll want to get to know Greg Childs who lives about as far North West Valley as you can get and not be in Las Vegas. There's also the Desert Z Association in Phoenix. (Covid has affected us all regarding group activities but there are some of us still willing to get together for lunch and drives.) Definitely get that A/C working well - Kia blower and I'll let you know how to get one of Lucas Hayhurst's dash vents (I have the first one he printed - it's astounding how it changes the vent airflow). Don't worry - it's a DRY HEAT... (which doesn't actually mean a damn when it's hot-as-hell) They kept telling this Idaho boy "you'll get used to it!" - total BS... You just learn to live with it - much the same, but opposite, as living in the really frozen North - which means staying out of it as much as possible. The good news is that there's quite a bit of Datsun knowledge and experience here and some fairly nice guys to hang out with once in a while.

Yep, the NA RB Z31 is my son Brandon’s car. I can’t wait to see your finished product. These Z cars are so cool......drive it on dry days....enjoy it. What I’ve found out is the perfect restos don’t bring the really big money anyway......the original cars do. But, I don’t restore these cars for the money, just hooked on the Marque. I expect you are too. Great restoration....nice color combo!!!

That seems like an awful lot of work when you could just sell your tank and buy the correct tank, either used, or new, since there is now a company making new ones, although I don't know if they're making the ones that are exactly identical to a '76 tank since the fuel tanks changed a bit over the years from 70-76. I would also greatly prefer a full size spare over a space saver.

If you're talking about finding a replacement for the accordion-style spare that came with the '77/78 (and maybe ZX?) then I don't believe you can get those anywhere. Tires for the standard wheels can be bought off amazon for like $60 each so I'm not sure what he's talking about...

Several of us have had new aftermarket parts fail soon after install. The seals seem to get damaged because they don't clean the parts before they assemble them. We recommend taking any new aftermarket part apart, cleaning the seals and bores, and reassembling before using. I developed a trick on that clevis pin. Tie a thread through the hole in the pin, then use a wire to thread the thread through the hole in the pedal. Pull the wire through the hole, then the thread, and use the thread pull the pin up to the pedal. Then you can use one finger or a screwdriver to do the final push through the pedal. The thread is thin enough to make it through the hole beside the clevis pin. I could not get my fingers up there even though a PO had created room with what looked a hammer and vise-grips in the past.

And the english version is "penny wise, pound foolish"

A good friend of mine got one of the first 1964 GTO’s in Ohio. His Mother owned part of the local Pontiac Dealership. When word of the GTO’s reached the Dealerships, the Sales Manager ordered one for him. 2dr., Post Sedan, White with a Black Vinyl top. Perhaps the best American Car I’ve ever driven. Fastest thing on the street. Five or six months after he got it - the Service Manager ordered a “Performance Package” from Royal Oak Pontiac - made it even faster. But straight line performance wasn’t its only strong suite. It was just as much fun on long road trips, short wheel base and light weight with a stiffer than normal suspension. Very little of the usual American Car body roll. He let me drive it often over the following year - but the 65 or 66 Models came out and that time he got a 421 Catalina 2+2. If I bought a GTO - it would have be the 1964.

Pretty sure I’ve got a 83zx dizzy if you need something to mock up. Send me a pm

It was BAD! Overspray all over the place, contaminated paint spots. The finish on the hood was horrible. Nothing like Epoxy Primer all over the fresh powder coat on the crossmember I was so careful to get looking as nice as possible.