LeonV

My Z is very easy to drive with the 10lb Fidanza, requiring only a bit more finesse than stock when taking off. Stock is around 22lb as site mentioned, so it's a 12lb difference plus/minus a pound. The difference is noticeable but it does not become a pain to drive in traffic at all.

Absolutely. If you're not making way more power than stock, there is no need to spend 4-5x over a perfectly good stock clutch.

Get a big cam and run the triples, you will not regret it. Call and talk to your cam grinder to figure out what profile fits your needs. Regarding compression, I ended up at nearly 11:1 on CA pump 91 and didn't realize my CR was so high until I re-ran the calcs. I haven't noticed any pinging but I'll admit I haven't had a chance to do a whole lot of tuning yet...

Alright, good work Steve! FWIW, I prime fresh motors with the valve cover off (internally oiled cam). Last time I did it, I primed with the rockers removed as to not run them dry. Oil everything up and spin the motor until oil starts flowing from the lobes. It takes longer than you may think.

Take a propane torch to the diff cover, fill plug should come out easy once that Aluminum is nice and hot.

Can you post a good photo of the lobe in question and it's rocker arm?

No problemo!

I believe the N42 head got the new bar, so 75-76 280Z would be the most common application.

Strange... Good work finding the issue.

Why do your carbs have so much varnish in them? What fuel do you use?

I'd guess the loose manifold bolts had opened up an air leak. Glad you got it fixed!

You can also test your clogged jet theory by fully closing each idle mixture screw one-by-one and seeing if it affects the engine.

Vacuum leak is the first thought that came to mind. Vac leaks are most apparent at idle, less so at part-throttle, and essentially unnoticeable at full throttle unless it's a huge leak. I set my floats according to the top-down method, I don't pay attention to how they're actually angled as long as they're all relatively similar.

Both sizes half slim choices for tires. You can get either okay-but-not-great summer tires or aggressive street/track tires. I'd go for the latter but it depends on what you use your Z for...

Wish I were in the market, I'd seriously consider it. GLWS

I had Blues all around as well. Agreed, ride quality is definitely subjective. Bushings are tuned to the rest of the suspension and the desired handling performance of the car. If you stiffen the suspension and want to make the car corner better than originally designed for, the rubber bushings are no longer a match (too soft). For someone looking to cruise around, they're just fine.

I'll do you one better...

Dampers are one of the most critical aspects of ride quality. I've had the Eibach/Tokico combo in the past and thought they rode poorly. It seemed to be due to a combination of too stiff compression damping in the Tokicos and the fact that the springs put the struts almost on the bump stops, especially up front. I'm running Bilsteins with coilovers on 250/275 springs and they ride fantastic.

Most definitely.

'77-78 got a vented hood.

Here's my setup, 16X7 wheels with 225/50-16 Bridgestone RE-11A:

FYI, that tire's diameter is 2" smaller than stock.

Wheel diameter doesn't matter, it's tire size that will cause rubbing. For stock bodywork and zero offset wheels, 205/55-16 seems to be a sure thing. I run 16X7 0-offset Panasports with 225/50-16 Bridgestone RE11-A rubber but my front valence and rear fender lips are trimmed. I ran 16X7 +6 Panasports on my previous Z with 225/50-16s with no rubbing issues, although I was running an aftermarket air dam. Also keep in mind that tire width can vary wildly between makes and models of tires, Tirerack is a good resource for more true-to-life numbers as they actually measure the tires so that you can compare apples-to-apples. Here are some common tire sizes that match OEM diameter and should fit the wheels wells. It succinctly describes the current situation of running smaller wheels than 16". Using Tirerack to evaluate availability: 14": 195/70-14 - No performance tire options 15": 205/60-15 - One tire, Yokohama A048 (R-compound, not for cold weather or standing water) 205/50-15 - Lots of great options but a much smaller tire diameter than stock 16": 205/55-16 and 225/50-16 - TONS of great options In short, are there tires available in the proper sizes for 14" and 15" rims? Yes. But if you want anything else besides cheapo econo-car tires or truck rubber, you need to go to 16" or run a non-factory rolling diameter tire.

Because they're owned by Renault?