Zed Head

I wonder if the concours guys know. Seems like they should. Maybe it's been overlooked over the years and awards will need to be returned for improper bushing orientation.

My inner troublemaker can't resist posting this picture. I remember having this conversation before and can't remember where it ended up. I could go look at my car to see how I did mine, since I have also looked at old crusty apparently factory-installed bushings and made a determination. The rubber in the drawing also doesn't have the rounded look of the replacement bushings. I really don't know what's right or wrong, and the driver probably can't tell anyway, I'd think. I think the groove is there to allow the bushing to flex without side-loading the rod end, and it comes in to play either way. I'll just leave the picture from FA chapter, to ponder.

Not uncommon for the old EFI systems to run lean. A "few miles" implies that it's the first time you let the engine get fully warmed up. The mixture gets leaner as things get warmer. You might be disappointed if you drop the tank and don't find much rust. Easier ways to diagnose a problem. Just saying. The FPR is the most common cause of pressure leak-down. It's just a flat steel tube end sitting on a flat piece of steel. Any small particles or rust pits allow leak-down. I can't recall anyone actually finding a leaking CSV. It's a mystery part that takes a lot of blame, but rarely causes a real problem. The simple test for fuel system leakage is to remove the small wire from the starter solenoid and turn the key to Start. That will power the pump. No need to block the hole in the manifold, just pop the CSV out enough to see the squirting end, and run the pump.

The end of one of mine broke off (PU on both sides) and I lost the washers and the nut. Heard them hit the pavement as I was driving but I was on a bumpy city street and thought I had just run over something. Steering was loose all the way home, about 4 miles, while I pondered what that metallic clank really had been. I found a scrape mark on the front of my wheel well from where the tire had moved up and hit it after I bumped the curb when parallel parking, that gave it the coupe de grace.

The eBay link is the early two part assembly. Not positive but I think that Nissan might have went to the one piece part that covers the injector body to combat the "heat soak" problem. Or they were just cheaper to make, although they could have left them open with a one-piece design too. Something to consider. A Rebello might not be using stock injectors anyway. If you're using an aluminum fuel rail with o-ring injectors you don't need the hold-downs. The rail locates and clamps the injectors.

Check Pin 1 for connection to the coil's negative terminal. That's what the ECU monitors to know when to open the injectors. Might be worthwhile to go through the tests in the EFI book. Your fluctuations could just be the coil changing the voltage drop when it sparks.

I've thought that a person might be able to make a simple comparative manometer using a shop vac and clear hose in a u-shape. Fill the hose with water and set up a Bernoulli type system to pull the water up. Make marks and you can compare each set of ports and runners. No numbers just seeing if they pull the same. A good vacuum gauge might be precise enough to get some good readings also. Or a pressure gauge on the inlet side of a blower, instead of a shop vac. Won't show flow but would allow one to one comparisons.

There's a ton on the internet. But many of these old engines have been worked on and made to run with the distributor off a tooth or two. The best thing to do is to set the timing mark on the damper pulley to zero, on the compression stroke of cylinder #1, then set plug wire #1 in the cap to wherever the rotor under the distributor cap is pointed. Then plug in the rest of the wires in a counterclockwise direction,in the order I showed. People have wasted hours and days of time setting their wires the way the factory did, only to find that their distributor wasn't the way it was when it left the factory. If you want specific help post some pictures after you set the timing mark to zero.

153624 CCW

Are you going to measure flow when you're done? At least to balance the six, maybe not actual CFM numbers. A mismatch in flow could make tuning difficult since the ECU (CU?) assumes equal flow.

The ECCS came around in 1981 with the Turbo 280ZX's. They did call it E.C.C.S. and it stands for what you're showing. But Nissan called the 280Z EFI control systems just "E.F.I" and actually just called the control unit the "control unit". You can see a good comparison in the 1982 or '83 FSM's. I think people just added "electronic" to control unit because ECU is commonly what they're called for most brands. And Nissan still calls the box a control unit, for the ECCS. Anyway, the first few pages of the FSM's are like school books. There's a member here, cgsheen, who recommends the later 90's era ECCS if you're going to go to Nistune. It's more advanced than the 80's 300ZX systems, but not too complex like the 00's and 10's systems. The key is modifying a distributor to use the CAS wheel. The real answer to the OP's first question is probably "keep the Miata". The old EFI systems aren't known for dependability, after all these years. There will be downtime.

Not clear if you're replying to me or the OP. We both have 280Z's. Shims are the key on the Z. I accidentally threw them away on mu Pathfinder though and haven't had a problem, over a couple of new pad sets and about 200,000 miles, on the original rotors (the whole car is now a longevity experiment). Must come from the design.

But you're hoping it's the pan gasket. So, the connecting rod was #1? If #1 was at TDC it would be up and out of the way, right? Just collecting those puzzle pieces for when I have to do the same.

It's almost impossible to get the Z's disc brakes to be squeal free without the shims. They sit behind the pads. Many pad manufacturers claim to have their own shims but the Nissan shims work best. Looks like they might be hard to find though. MSA says NLA. Seems like a simple shape that some enterprising Z parts business person could have laser or water-jet cut for a reasonable cost. A handy person could probably cut their own using hand tools (of course). http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/24-5451 Part #15 - http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsun/Z-1969-1978/brake/front-brake

The dash pot might need adjustment. It has what looks like a game piece or vacuum fitting on the top. Screw it in toward the throttle linkage to slow down the action. When my engine was running rich I found that the idle speed would drop lower when the the pedal was lifted. Sounds more like a minor tuning problem than a loss of coil power. You can use the dashpot adjustment to bandaid it while you fine-tune the rest. Also, advancing the timing caused my idle sped to drop more on throttle lift. Lots of little things can add up. Good that you're in to the small details now though. Check the roll pins in the shift fork if you get it that far apart. Also the wear pads on the shift fork. And the coupling sleeve. And the bearing, and the nut on the end of the shaft. Check the drain plug magnet for metal "clues" and the fluid for plastic or brass clues.

Can you smell the extra fuel? What are your mileage numbers? Just looking for something concrete to work with.

This looks more like you've just noticed something that has always been happening. Your tail pipe is probably in a different position and the new position allows the residue to deposit. It's not looking like something that happened during the installation. Cars without catalytic converters have dirtier exhaust fumes than those with. These cars will spit black water when they're cold.

I thought the guy handling the R200 application only did group buys over on Hybridz. Is Mfactory selling them independently now? Easier for everyone. http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/121007-mfactory-r200-lsd/page-4 http://www.teammfactory.com/

Actually, you've thought it out just about right. I wish I had before I changed my bushings the first time. Turns out that you can remove the TC rod and bushings while the car is on the ground, very easily. Turn the wheel one way or the other and you can get to the front bolts/nuts. The back nut can be reached from the top or the bottom. Trying to do it with the wheel hanging is almost impossible.

I found a secondary mention of John Coffey using Swepco, but it was for the diff. Also found one of the old threads about using it in the transmissions. Not trying to argue, I just have one of those weird long-term memories also. Boon and bane. Plus he responded right after one of my posts so it stuck in my brain. #14 here - http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/112152-super-duper-slick-as-snot-trans-fluid/ #2 here - http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/51945-torsen-lsd/

We wish...

Actually, John Coffey is the one who said Swepco destroyed his synchros. He only tried it once. JMortensen is the one who often recommended it. I've been using it for at least 20,000 miles with no signs of problems. Heat is very effective at loosening up whatever sealant Nissan used on those plugs. A torch or a heat gun. Makes a huge difference, but can be nervy if things are oily under there. Heat gun better for that situation. I used the same filling method except I just moved real fast when I saw fluid leaking from the fill hole, and cleaned up the area and catch pan so that I could re-use the overflow. Overall, it's on par with the spindle pin replacement in potential problems. I have a 300ZX front case that had a drain plug that would not budge at all, no matter what. Probably why I got the tranmsission for $20.

High RPM grinding when trying to make a quick shift at high RPM, like shifting up through the gears for acceleration, and notchy shifting aren't the same thing. Don't get them confused. To add some detail to my 3rd gear situation - mine made a short "buzz" that I knew was a synchro problem. Kind of like rubbing 10 teeth on a comb against a desk edge. It only happened when trying to shift quickly at ~5000 RPM or higher. The AC Delco might do the job, I'm just saying that I had what sounds like the exact same problem with the same model of 5 speed, and MT90 fixed it. Details for clarity. I use a different blend of fluids in my transmission today because I had a mid-range notchy/grindy problem that Redline wouldn't fix. Swepco 201 and ATF. I'll probably just keep using that for all future transmissions because it works so well. But Swpeco is hard to find and you have to blend it and not many people use it and somebody's transmission ruined the synchros (probably coincidentally to the fact that they were in the middle of a race) when they used it. So it's controversial. JMortensen recommended it. He's also done some comparisons of the various fluids out there, I think. Maybe he'll comment. @jmortensen

I had a high RPM 3rd gear grind with a 1978 5 speed. Changed to Redline MT90 from Valvoline 80/90W and it went away. The AC/Delco product is probably good also. You might check to be sure that the fluid level is right first. Or just go ahead and switch to a better fluid. Make sure you remove the filler plug before the drain plug. Heat, PB blaster, breaker bar.

I think that there's only one for the circuit he's talking about. Brakes are on their own circuit, as are headlights and turn signals. Edit - just noticed that turn signals are shown as 4th down, but the fuse box cover shows that as fuel gauge. Nissan maybe ran out of space? Shown in the wiring diagram though. FSM weirdness.