Zed Head

Looks like a 1981 turbo engine damper. Might even be an L28 in that 240Z. The wheel is there but where's the sensor? See picture. Nissan used the crankshaft mounted wheel for one model year then went to a distributor based system. But there are a few aftermarket systems out there.

Did a Google for giggles. I'm tempted now. Need that shaded upper edge. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pkc-400046793/applications

The edges of my pedal box are mangled by a PO who had that same problem, trying to make more space with a pair of pliers. I still had problems with that pin. I ended up tying a thread through the hole in the pin, then using a thin wire to fish the thread through the holes, eventually pulling the pin up to the holes by the thread, getting it to "stand up", and pushing it through the holes with a screwdriver. Overall, an intricate operation. More planning than doing, in the end.

The details that JSM asks for would help. Plus a bunch of others, like how long have you had the car, did it run before, why did you rebuild it, etc. But, your finding that the coil neg needs to go to Pin 1 puts you ahead of many (no offense to many). The wire to the ECU should already be there, in the engine bay. There is no need at all to remove it. It's blue. It's also connected to your tach. Don't overlook that the injector power is on its own circuit. The ECU doesn't "signal" the injectors, it just provides a ground so that the power can pass through them. Here's another link to the book JSM tried to.

I edited my confusing posts above... Probably more confusing now.

Darn it. I got your diff confused with your transmission. Diff fluid is easy. GL-5 is fine, just make sure it's for differentials. This is for your transmission: (Edit - I wrote all of this because I'm using a GL-5 in my transmission and it's been fine. Swepco 201). But that's a whole other story) There is a ton of stuff out on the internet about "GL-5" and "yellow metals" and mass destruction. Probably all derived from one guy whose transmission had problems after he changed transmission fluids. I've only seen one story from the person who actually had problems, and he was in the middle of a race. I think that the real bad actors are the extreme pressure (EP) additives used in differential fluids. The GL-5 spec. is just a specification and tells nothing about what's in the fluid. It's a red herring. Just get this MT-90. It's the one everyone uses. It's GL-4 and it works great. https://www.redlineoil.com/mt-90-75w90-gl-4-gear-oil https://www.amazon.com/Red-Line-50304-Transmission-Transaxle/dp/B000CPCBEQ

Yes, the N42 block was used up to mid-1980 I think, through 1979 for sure. The heads changed to N47 heads sometime in 77. That might be the confusion. N42 heads were used in 75 and 76 cars. But, my 76 has a 78 engine in it. Because I put it there. And I have an 81 engine in the garage for if that one fails. Engine swaps are easy, and that car has seen some work done on it.

Not sure where you got that picture, but that's not the spec for an old 280Z or 280ZX 5 speed. The MT90 will work great, the Synchromesh probably will too. Here's the 1983 280ZX spec.

That actually looks like a 77 or 78 280Z. The metal trim piece on the back is a clue. 75 and 76 had rubber. So, if it is, the door parts should fit your car. The door handles, for instance. They break, and they're hard to find. The trim pieces on the door card. The rear view mirror inside. Did anyone mention the half-shafts? From the diff to the wheels? They're pretty easy to remove and if the joints aren't dried out they can be regreased and will last another 50,000 miles probably. Actually cheaper than buying new parts store u-joints. 4 joints x $20 each = $80. I have a bunch of halfshafts in the garage, greased up and ready to swap if a u-joint goes bad. I think that the used Nissan joints are actually tighter than new Precision joints. They're shimmed to perfection. Even the main propeller shaft would be worth getting, since it's not a 75. 75 has an odd unique diff bolt pattern. They didn't use it again until the 300ZX's. The 280Z's don't have replaceable u-joints so a spare propeller shaft is nice to have. They're small too.

Early on when we became aware of the 123 there was discussion about whether or not it was "high energy". High energy systems typically have current-limiting technology in the module, which the latest version does. It doesn't require ballast either. It looks equivalent to the GM HEI module, or any 280Z system after 1978. I think that the early 123 systems weren't current limiting systems. The Hi-6 is a multiple spark system at low RPM. So it might give better idle performance than just a single spark system. Probably depends a lot on what type of engine you're using. Carbs and cam would benefit, EFI maybe not so much.

Both of those cars are somebody else's uncompleted project. The first guy is just getting out of the Z world and selling all of his parts, the second guy is trying to get back the money he spent. The first guy was trying to get back money spent also. That's why you might be better off just finding an old original Z. Then you can start spending more money than you can sell it for when you're done. And as pddenno implies, what are your plans? Many of us like to work on our cars (some have never driven theirs), some have completed cars for driving and showing. Are you looking for a project, a daily driver, or a race car? But if you don't know how to drive stick you might want to learn that first. It's not too hard but learning on a car you're thinking of buying isn't a good idea.

Go to the transmission end, remove it and see what's going on. It sounds like it might be loose on the trans end.

The consoles crack and break and get ratty. Maybe he just threw his away. I thought you were selling, not buying. You didn't make it clear that you were just copying the seller's ad in to your post. The mods on that car are not complex. You could buy any Z car and make it look like that. I would never buy a car without first driving it and examining in person. Good luck. It looks like a common modified old Z car. Remove the bumpers, put some wheels on it, tint the windows. The front air dam looks different though.

Sounds like your timing might be off. Maybe the vacuum advance got stuck advanced, for example. If you're a novice it might kind of difficult to figure out. You can take the distributor cap off and move the breaker plate by hand. IT should move a few degrees toward the vacuum canister then spring back. You can approximate your timing by putting the damper pulley mark on about 10 degrees and seeing if the points are about to open or just opening. Stuff like that. You can figure out a lot just by looking if you know what you're looking at. There's not much to go on in your video. I wouldn't even say that it started. I just heard a crank and a muffled pop.

I'm going to say $3000 - $4000, depending on how it runs and drives. And how that "bigger" gas tank is mounted. Do you have a picture of the new tank? Is it from a 280Z or some other model of car? I've seen some funky gas tank replacements. Who is the upside down guy in your avatar picture?

I was thinking this one might be enough.

People like the early intake manifolds too. The AFM might be worth getting. Distributor if it's in good shape. The whole engine if you have space for it. Rear struts. TC rods (you might break one some day). EFI/fuel pump combined relay (by the hood latch, inside, they're hard to find and do go bad).

It's in the 1983 MT chapter. Word.

Nobody wants to look at the picture? It's a big one. Or just set their meter up to beep and put the transmission in reverse? Just curious what's going on here. Am I missing something?

The red and green wires go to the pickup coil in the distributor, not the ignition coil. You won't be using the red and green wires at all. You'll only be using the L and the BW wires. Blue, and Black with White Stripe.

They can be very difficult to remove. Nissan used a good gasket and maybe some sealer. They tend to be glued on super-tight. I would soak the gasket seam with some PB Blaster or something similar, maybe some carb cleaner to start. Anything to soak into the paper of the gasket to loosen it up. I recall having to find the right piece of wood and maneuver it just right to get a good shot at knocking it loose. I think I might have used the clutch fork pivot ball somehow. Be careful, it's only aluminum. Edit - actually yours is steel I think so you might not have as big a worry. You might be able to remove the fork pivot ball and run a bolt in the threaded hole to push it off. Can't remember what exactly is behind the hole though. In short - yes it can be very difficult to break free.

You learn the most when the weird things happen. Forces you to focus on the basics of how things work.

It's just two wires, and a DC motor. Can't really screw that up beyond accidentally shorting the power wire and blowing a fuse, or connecting the wires backward. Those are, really, about the only two things that can go wrong. Sorry. Keep it simple. You might have accidentally bumped some other wires or discovered an already existing problem.

The new eyelets show that it's possible that you have it wired backward. If you look very closely I think that you'll find a + and a - molded in to the ceramic (or plastic. Whatever the white material is) where the wire terminal studs are. The green wire goes to +.

There's no second.