m240

I was looking for an older sports car last year and when i mentioned it to a freind of mine he told me had had 2- a 73 auto and a 71 parts car. I had owned a 76 280z about 20 years ago so I had already been bitten by the z bug. Both had been sitting for about 7 or 8 years inside and I could have them pretty cheap. I got the 73 in march and found that the auto tranny was shot so I picked up the 71 in april and put the motor and manual tranny from it into the 73. I have been working on the 73 on and off since then trying to restore it. Later today i am putting the carbs back on that I rebuilt and I hope it runs better. I live in Export and would love to get together when ever I get this car back in shape but it looks like its not going to be done until next year. Mark

Actually they replaced both floor pans, reinforced the passenger frame rail, and repaired some rusted thru areas under the battery. For $1250 I thought I got alot of work done. It needed other work done also that I thought they were a little high on but I would recommend them. I found most places wouldn't even touch this kind of work. Mark

I have to agree. The old posts are like an encyclopedia of knowledge. I try to check them first before I ask dumb questions.

Before we get together I have to get my z running. Right now I am "refreshing" the carbs. After that I have to get some paint on it and do some interior work. I'll let you know when its ready. Btw a friend of mine from monroeville has a 71. I guess there are a few z's around pittsburgh. Mark

I just had it done at Richlin Imports in Harrison City. Cost about 1200 but I had a set of floor pans from Motorsport to put in. Their phone number is 724-744-4044. Mark

Thanks for all of the replies! Since I already have the SU video I think I'm going to try either a VB or other stock jet kit( the stock jets lasted this long) and some fuel line from a cycle shop. Looks like this will be next weekends project.:classic:

I've read that to check the butterfly valve alls you have to do is shoot carb cleaner at the bushings while the car is running and if the idle slows then the bushings are bad. Will this work as well as checking them while off the car?

The mechanic who is putting new floorboards in my Z tolld me the carbs need to be rebuilt. They are 71' round tops. He wants about 600 labor and about 200 parts so I am going to try it myself. I've seen posts both for and against using the grose jets from ztherapy. Any opinions either way? I've also seen posts warning against using to wrong tubing on the float bowls. Does anyone know if the float tubing that comes with the motorsort kit is the same grade as the one from ztherapy in case I go with that one instead? I've watched the tape from ztherapy and it doesn't look to hard as long as I go step by step. any opinions or advice are greatly appreciated!!

I did find the lash pad and the other keeper. I'm going to try the fuel line in the cylinder to see if that will keep the valve up. I hope it does because after looking at the head it does not look like an easy job to swap them . It wouldn't be to bad except for all the other stuff attached to it. Before this happened the engine ran pretty smooth but wouldn't rev past about 2800rpm. Thats why I think the valve timing caused this problem. I bought the car in april and have been working on it little by little. I guees I should have checked the valve clearance and timing earlier. Thanks for the advice. Mark

I have a 71 engine that i am having problems with. Its valve timing was way off and I over revves it causing a rocker to come off on the #3 cylinder at an angle, the valve lashpad to come off, and 1 valve keeper to come off. (At first I thought I only had to replace the lash pad). I tried to put air in the cylinder to hold up the valve but it doesn't want to hold any pressure(I am using a hand pump). I try to compress the spring but when I do there isn't any room to get to the top of the valve to put the other keeper in ( and the valve goes down because the cylinder is'nt holding air pressure). Is there some trick to this? Do you think I broke the valve and that is why it won't hold air pressure? Is it time to think about swapping the head with one from my parts car? Is there any other gaskets that I need to get besides the head gasket? I would rather keep this head on the engine if I can because swapping them looks like quite the project. Thanks again for any advice! Mark

Hmmm, So this doesn't sound like the kind of job to do in the driveway. Maybe I should take it somewhere to have this done. I just hate to pay someone to do something that I think I could do myself. Thanks for the advice.

My 240 also has the dreaded floor board and frame rail rust disease. I'm thinking about weliding in some patches or even new floor boards. My car came with a set of the less expensive MSA floor boards. My question is, is there enough room under the car to weld them in if it is on jackstands or does it have to be on a lift? I've never welded before but I figure with a little practice I should be able to do it. Will the less expensive MSA floor board kit comprimise the rigidity of the frame? Thanks, Mark

I've been thinking about that. I found part of it and i hope the rest is in the oil pan. I'm going to try to stick a magnet by the timing chain to see if anything is in there. Thanks

So even if I swap heads to get it running it might be a good idea to take the head with bad rocker in for new springs and maybe seats since they are probably original. Any idea how much this would run?

If I swap the heads do I need to use a new head gasket or can I use the old one?

I am working on a 71 engine. The engine doesn't run well at all. I thought it might be the timing so I adjusted it to no avail. I pulled the valve cover thinking it might be a stretched timing chain and I found a rocker arm twisted completely off the valve spring. I found the collet next to it but no lash pad. Should I A) buy a lash pad and try to put it back togather, take the head off my 73 parts car and swap it in, C) get proffessional help? Could there be damage to the valve that I can't see? I am waiting for the valve adjusting tool from motorsport ( I gues I should have adusted the valves before trying to run the engine) so I am trying to weigh my options. Any help is truly appreciated. Mark:stupid:

I got the dash out of the 71 and just wanted to make sure that the stuff from the 73 would fit. It looks like a good winter project switching things around.Thanks!

After spending a couple of hours everyday this week I finally got the dash loose in my 71 parts car ( it was a major PITA). It is crack free and I want to put in my 73 car that has alot of cracks in the dash. Does anyone know if the wiring is the same or even close? I was thinking of swaping some of the gauges if I have to to get it to work. Has anyone tried this and was it successful? I'm starting to understand why you see so many advertisments for dashcaps. Thanks, Mark

The car moved a little when i used the remote starter( i took it out of gear after that). Now i get get nothing when i put it in gear. the master and slave cylinders came off of a 71 donor car along with the line connecting them. Maybe the slave cylinder needs adjusting somehow? I adjusted the pedal but only at the pedal bump stop. The pedal went all the way to the floor with very little resistance the first couple of tries, but now it goes down only about 3" or so with a little resistance. Does this mean anything? I'm lost. Mark

When I was working on the engine I used a remote starter and 1 time i started it in gear and the car lurched foward a bit so i think it is hooked up, but now the engine doesn't strain a bit when i start it and release the clutch in either 1st or reverse. Mark

I recently had a 71 motor and a 72 4 speed put into my 73 (that had been sitting for 7 years) that had an automatic transmission. I had some wiring problems afterward but I figured them out and got it started and running tonight. I adjusted the clutch pedal height, started the engine,put it into gear and nothing happened. The engine didn't seem to grab onto the gears at all. The first couple of times the clutch pedal went all the way to floor with very little resistance, after that it only went down about 3 " and there was a little resistance. Still no gears and the engine noise didn't change. Any ideas? Maybe bleed the clutch? I thought if there was a problem with the clutch it would be getting it to disengage to change gears not getting it to engage. I have no idea where to start. Mark

There is a yellow wire connected to 1 spade on the coil that goes through the firewall and a blue wire and a black wire on the other spade. The yellow wire might have been changed because there is no plastic cover over the connector like on the other wires. Thanks for the quick reply! Mark

I just got my 73' z back today after spending 3 1/2 months in the shop. It had an automatic transmission that gave out and a motor with flat tops on it so I had them put a motor from a 71' parts car into it and a 4 speed and clutch from a 72' into it . I guess they did the heavy work (installing the motor, tranny, etc.) and gave up on getting it running. I can get they motor to turn using a remote switch the let me borrow. I get power to the yellow wire going to the coill, but no spark at the plugs. The motor won't turn using the key (it used to). I saw in Haynes manual that the wiring for a auto has a thermo switch, thermo relay, and inhibitor switch. Do I have to eliminate any of these when converting to manual? If so where are they? When I turn the key inside to start it I hear a relay under the dash (not the starter soleniod) am I Supposed to? The last thing they worked on was the wiring for the nuetral safety switch. Could they have messed this up and this is why the key won't turn the motor? Sorry so long winded, any help is deeply appreciated, I just want to drive my Z. Mark

Ive heard of smitty built before but I can't remember where. I'll keep an eye out for it. Mark

I have a 73 240 that had a auto tranny in it that I am putting a 4 speed into. I am using a 72 4 speed. I also have a 71 parts car. The 72 tranny did not have the shift linkage attached to it so I thought I would just use the linkage from the 71 parts car. I just found out that the 71 linkage is differant than the 72. I didn't want to use the 71 tranny because I didn't want to move the shifter location. Does anyone know where I can get the proper linkage for the 72 tranny? Will some other make or model linkage interchange? Any help is appreciated because after 2.5 months of waiting the shop is finally putting it togather today. Thanks, Mark