Zed Head

Should be okay as long it doesn't stick advanced. I'd pull the vacuum hose and leave it disconnected, then make sure that static timing is right. You'll just lose some low PRM pep and mileage will be down somewhat. Can't remember though if those bearings also keep the breaker plate level and stable. I think that they do, so if the bearings come out one side only, the plate might ****, which could mess up the gap between the steel teeth. I ran a 280Z distributor with no bearings for a little while, just smoothed the plastic cage remnants and lubed it up. Action was slow compared to bearings, but it worked. Short term, you could just make sure the teeth don't, remove the vacuum advance hose, and check timing. Run with no vacuum advance, the carb guys do it all day long. Edit - the plate might "get cocked", not ****. Second edit - recommendation: Do not Google "****" if you're looking for a quick definition to post in a thread. Third edit - apparently, **** can be pasted from other web sites without the filter catching it. Verb - cock verbDefinition of ****intransitive verb1: strut, swagger2: to turn, tip, or stick up3: to position the hammer of a firearm for firing

Consider getting up under the glove box and replacing the inside heater hoses, since everything's drained. If you have the stringy hose in the engine bay it's almost certainly the 30+ year old hose inside. I had a piece split out of nowhere, one of the engine bay pieces. Way past design life.

I don't mean to put a downer on your trip. Just saying that there's not much to see in that part of the country. I was driving in the winter when it was cold and wet. Summertime when you can stop and hear the silence will be a different story. Just had my battery crap out (it was old) - check your battery!

I took highway 50 just to see what was there. It cuts across the little hills, with miles of flat mud in between. Each little hill was just Nevada tricking me into thinking the mud was over. Just more mud on the other side. Here's the view for S30's route - https://www.google.com/maps/@41.648043,-114.819495,3a,75y,158.64h,79.38t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s8YBxh1s7eZcpu0M4Cd2fDA!2e0?hl=en

Core plug. From the casting process. Anyway, no real need to remove the drain plug. I wouldn't, too much trouble. I wouldn't even remove the heater lines unless you plan to replace them because they're old. On the other hand if you plan to flush the block or something then removing the drain plug might be a good idea. I removed one from an engine on a stand, using a long handled wrench. Not terrible, just requires lots of leverage. I used a 7/8" wrench, but I think it's actually 22 mm. Hex head bolt style, not the funky square ones. How do you plan to remove the core plug?

Don't know about the other years but my 76 has a ground wire from the harness for the alternator. To the E post. It's branched to several others on the the way to where ever it's attached. Considering the years, maybe corrosion affects its ability to function also. An added wire from post E to the engine block might be good insurance.

The fan clutch looks like the worrisome piece now. Do you have the "stoppers" on your motor mounts? Might save some damage in a hard stop or bumper bender.

Consider bending east to Salt Lake City and coming down through Utah to Vegas. That stretch of upper Nevada is desolation. On the other hand it will make you intensely grateful for civilization afterward.

That's a 280ZX or 80's Maxima or truck lever (ZX style I know, not so sure on the Maxima or truck. That's a guess based on year). The two tan plastic bushings give it away. The bushing is spring-loaded, the lever can be pressed down against the spring. Not really sure why they did that, maybe to change the action, or make it more comfortable. Could be a different 71B transmission than the one that came with the car if the shift lever came with it. Better gear ratio spread if it's from an 80-83 ZX, but works best with a 3.9 ratio diff.

Have you looked at the transmission? Could be a 71C swap. A look through the shifter hole would tell.

I had thought this same thing but I had a "half-power" ignition module I've posted about it before, recently. I damaged it by running the engine with two plug wires off. Not sure exactly what caused the damage. It showed a weak orange spark and would start and run with starting fluid, but not without the fluid. And this was on a warm engine (note - starting fluid in a warm engine will cause detonation. I only started it a couple of times and it knocked loudly as it started). What is this "no-points" system you have now? My problem was with a GM HEI module.

Nice find. Yes, that is the switch I was talking about and it should only affect ignition timing by about 6 degrees. When it's disconnected, like yours, timing just stays where it would be when warm anyway. Many people don't use that feature anymore, it's only there for cold engine emissions. It never even gets tested. Notice the two sensors with the two prong, injector style, connectors. The big one on the left is the thermotime switch, and the other, with the white connector, is the coolant sensor. But without knowing which wire is which, you can't really tell if they've been switched by accident, without going to the ECU connector. Hard to tell if you're flooded or lean, but knowing that the coolant sensor is right is very important. It's the most important sensor on the engine, besides the AFM. I would at least take that one measurement at the ECU connector. If you have some starting fluid you might see if it will start that way. If it starts, runs for a few seconds, then dies, that's a clue. Also, try to add lots of detail to the problem description. "Tries to start" could mean it runs for ten seconds then dies, or pops just once. Totally different causes for those two things. CO - I finally realized why that extra EFI/Pump relay was in the car. I had thought it was a typical mis-diagnosis by a PO. Not the case. There were signs of heat in the cover, brown spatter marks from vaporized insulation, I assume. I got a lot of miles out of it though before it crapped out again.

The connector with the brown plug behind your ginger might be the coolant temperature sensor. CO, I'm not sure that that is the thermotime switch. The thermotime has an EV1 connection like the coolant sensor. That's why they get mixed up. There is a temperature switch for the second ignition circuit in the ignition module on the Federal models though, that uses wires like those, that typically get work hardened and flexed off. If you can see both EV1 connectors, the one with the bigger wrench flats, like that broken wire one in your picture, is the thermotime switch. The coolant sensor is smaller. On my relay picture - I think you're right and it wasn't corroded connections. I dinked around with it some more after I posted that, with a 9 volt battery and a meter, and the EFI coil opened up to super high resistance and quit working. Out of nowhere, just like the problem in the car. When I had the problem in the car, I removed a spark plug and it was dry, even though I have a second switch to run my pump independently. No injectors opening. Blink, you should really get a meter and go to that ECU connector. The ECU connectors get corroded also, so just removing it to think about it would be worth doing.

Still no beer sales on Sunday? What kind of football town does that? Something's fishy on the Schuylkill...

Because when it's all over you know you've accomplished something and you feel a lot better. But you never want to do it again. Just spent a couple of hours replacing my EFI - Pump relay because it seemed to be sticking, Then found that it was probably just a corroded connection. But I re-remembered a bunch of stuff and diagrammed the EFI pins. And cleaned up the old one so it would look shiny on my desk.

Got a camera? Many people get their sensors mixed up and spend time working on the wrong stuff. All of the wires up there are white.

It was the late 90's. The microbrews were happening but I don't remember Conshohocken having a retail beer although I do seem to remember a place across the Schuylkill (yes folks, all of these names are real), that had a microbrewery inside. I think they were only house beers then, maybe. That was back when you could only buy beer from those big drive-through beer warehouses, a case at a time. Always felt like I was talking to mob people when I went there. The Philly area has many unique attributes. Like a "normal" pizza is just crust and cheese. What do you want all of that other stuff on there for?

Can't hurt to try Rockauto. Shouldn't cost much to ship just the module back if they'll take it. You have a pretty good case since the old one worked and the new one didn't. If the math works out, it works out. Those modules alone are spendy. Although, it's possible that the old one just works with a screwed up system, and the new one requires everything to be right. I think it has something to do with floating logic states due to no power to the terminals (SteveJ or Captain Obvious would know). The old one might be more robust to problems. Ignition modules are odd things. I had one, a GM HEI module, that showed spark with a plug out an on a wire but the spark wasn't hot enough to start the engine. I injured the module by leaving two plug wires off by accident and running the engine. That extra terminal does the same thing as the extra set of points or pickups on the earlier distributors. Just advances spark when the engine is cold. For emissions, I believe. You could delete that function and replace the module with a GM HEI module, if you want to save some money in the future.

The Fuel Injection Guidebook makes it easy to check much of the EFI system right from the ECU connector, where it matters. A meter, the guidebook, pen and paper, and you can confirm that most of the system is either right or wrong. Worth doing at least once just so you know. The 1975 book will have almost everything you need, but the 1980 book covers all years and will be exact. http://www.xenons130.com/reference.html Stuff like this. So comforting...

If you do do the swap, you'll need to be aware of the brake check warning lamp relay. It can wait though. Get rid of the Haynes manual and get the 1976 FSM. You can find it in the link in SteveJ's sig, or at the link below. Also download the Fuel Injection Guidebook. Pretty sure that the parts stores can check your VR also. It's under the relay shelf in front of the battery. Described in the Engine Electrical chapter of the FSM. You'll want to check that too. Many of those shoddy connections are stock from the factory. They're not as bad as they look, but they should be covered. http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/280z/ (files open directly, no unzipping needed)

Just realized that old fuel filters have some pretty nice hose fittings of the proper size. Hard to find in the hardware stores.

The first thing sounds like the fairly typical lean spot in the AFM. A potentiometer in the coolant temperature circuit might help that. The second one could be sticky linkage, as noted, or stuck dashpot (the little thing with the "Sorry" game piece on top - not a vacuum fitting), or loose throttle return spring, or gummed up throttle blade/body. My 76 had all four of those problems. The third one sounds like either an ignition module gone bad, or an ECU, or ECU connection, going bad. If you have good spark it might be the second, if not, the first. Check for spark, and check the ECU connection. Could also be the coolant temperature sensor connection. It would run well cold, the flood when it got hot. Check plug quality, check for spark. If they're clean and you have it, try starting fluid. Watch the tach needle, if it jumps all over the place, that might be a module problem.

Back to square one, the disconnected tachometer that started it all - is it possible that something is screwed up in those connections? Have you measured voltage at the coil? While running?

That's a good example of the load problem. I was probably off on the bad battery as the cause since the current has to go somewhere. The fact that the battery showed as fully charged would mean that current output dropped (assuming that's what the tester measures). Could be that the bad regulator boiled the battery, leading to the test results. That happened to me with a 74 Dart Sport. The battery survived but the ignition module didn't. I don't really like the "one wire" setups. I assume that your ammeter doesn't work? Since it's unconnected. No indication of problems until it's too late.

Could have been a 73 build 74 260Z. 260Z was the introduction of the transistorized ignition in the states. As I understand things.