Zed Head

Thanks HAL. Ironically honestly.

Has the head been shaved? Maybe the guy overdid it. You can get an idea by looking at the head ID casting. N42, N47, E31, etc. The edge will be close to the the symbols. This one looks uncut. Holy moly on that price. https://jdm-car-parts.com/products/e31-head-for-datsun-240z-series-1-nos?srsltid=AfmBOooSCQQdZA1flBbQstx-oCBt4adJYn9eX779z2gKvZTRaaYCqXZE

So, there's a contradiction here. The top wire, the green one, has to have power for the alternator to work. There's hope. SteveJ will get you there.

I don't think that it's a ZX alternator. Pretty sure SteveJ has ID'ed it as a Frontier alternator.

Here's the pinout from the ZCD site.

I thought Green was connected to White with Black in your picture. I think that I'd take the alternator to a parts store and have it tested before doing much more.

It does look like a bad alternator, if you're sure that connector is making good connection. Did you unplug it to check for voltage? Looks like you have everything you need, don't know why it would not charge. Is that connector fully seated in the alternator? I don't know the pinout on that connector. Maybe SteveJ does. You have the top one connected to Lamp and the bottom connected to Sense. You didn't use the yellow wire, but it would cause you problems anyway since it's connected to the brake lamp check relay. All it should need is L and ground and spinning to charge.

I just looked at your picture. You have it set up in "one wire" fashion (maybe, I need to know where the white with black goes to). Why? You didn't say where you're measuring at. The B+ terminal or the battery. Can't tell where your wires are going. Could still be a wiring problem.

Also measure resistance from the alternator body to the negative terminal with the engine off. It needs a good ground in addition to power at those pins. And, this happens, sometimes the connectors inside the T connector are loose. Make sure you have a tight connection there.

Measure voltage at B+ on the back of the alternator with the engine running. It should be charging if it has power on the two pins and the alternator pulley is spinning. Rev the engine while you're measuring.

That should be your next test. You can also check for voltage at the two pins in the T connector with the key on, engine off. They should both have voltage.

How about Revance? Revance and Advance. https://www.etymonline.com/word/re- https://www.etymonline.com/word/ad-

Is this for me? I got the ZX alternator from a salvage yard off of a ZX. Looked like original equipment, probably had 80,000 miles on it, guessing. Did not have it checked. The aftermarket alternator was from OReilly Auto. I took it back and exchanged it for another aftermarket alternator which I put on the shelf for future use. It never got used.

Are you using a meter or guessing from the dash gauge? Measure at the battery as you increase engine RPM. That will tell you if the wiring is correct. Voltage will increase with RPM. 12.7 is an odd number on a running engine because there is a draw from the ignition system. Even a fully charged battery would probably show less than 12.6 on a running engine with no charging from the alternator. 12.7 implies that there is charging, which would mean the wires are correct. If the wiring is correct then you might just have a weak alternator. I swapped a new aftermarket unit for a used 280ZX alternator and idle RPM voltage increased substantially. The aftermarket alternator was just weak at the speed the 280Z pulleys gave it at idle.

I've been surprised at how vaguely Nissan described the ignition timing marks and how to use them. It's confusing. Like the R and the A on the base of the distributor is not described anywhere that I've seen. And the wording in the FSM is difficult to be sure of. "Inspector's side"? If the inspector is on the "side" the marks run up and down not left and right. Probably means from the front. Translation problem. I think that you're probably correct on everything except that I would set the distributor at the center mark between R and A to begin. Pretty sure that R stands for Retard and A for Advance. So, the center should be zero, or the desired starting point to Retard and Advance from. I don't think that you want to start at R though.

Looks great. Did they use dry ice or their own inert gas or some other method? Did they pressure check it? Looks like you got some free rubber plugs. Portland does have some old school shops still around. It's not a huge city so they're easy to get to. McGuire Bearing is a great place for bearings and seals. https://maps.app.goo.gl/m947oF4LikhPFMYq7 https://mcguirebearing.com/

The ZX engines came with flat tops, so that might save you some effort and money. Pistons don't seem to be readily available anymore, I don't know where people get them and the overbore sizes are limited, I think. So much of what you find on the internet might not be possible anymore. Might not be able to decide until you get the head off. 20 years is a long time. There's a couple of good threads on Hybridz about head work. Good luck. https://forums.hybridz.org/forum/90-l-series/

4 barrel 1971 automatic project in California. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-datsun-240z-355/

Edit - I see ZX in the title now so I'd guess it's one of the ZX's. Does it run now? Is it EFI? Have you had an engine apart before? The carburetors are a bolt on but the cam and the heads and the pistons will require complete disassembly, spending lots of money, and reassembly. What kind of Z are you working with?

Let's see if we can a start a fire and burn it down. Have you confirmed that you still have spark? The other half of the coil circuit is the ground side. The points are grounded through the distributor body. Maybe you knocked a wire loose or broke that ground circuit. If you get the rotor in the right place you can twist it to open and close the points, to see if you have spark. You'll see a spark between the points and one from the coil each time they open, with the key on.

Edit: short version - I think a roll pin fell out. The video is informative. If a person just accepts that something could break inside the transmission at first start after sitting for a short while it opens up possibilities. My best guess is that the transmission is stuck in a gear, probably 3rd or 4th, and that's why you get movement when the shift lever is in the neutral position, and why you don't get movement when you actually shift in to 1st or 2nd. Because then the transmission is in two gears at the same time. It feels like you're shifting in to different gears with the lever on 3,4, and 5, but it's probably all the same gear. The driveshaft speed seems the same for all "gears" that move. One thing that's known to happen is a retaining pin (roll pin) in a clutch fork can come out or break. So the fork becomes loose on the shift rod and doesn't move the sleeve. It's an easy fix once you get the transmission apart, just put a new pin in. Just a guess but it looks like you'll need to pull the transmission and take it apart. You might find the roll pin in the oil or near the drain hole, before pulling it, just to confirm. Or it might be stuck in the side of the fork. Part #7. Not sure where you'd get one but roll pins are pretty basic things. Probably take one to a hardware store and find a match. Datsun Z Transmission Control Lever & Fork (5 Speed-FS5W7...

10 bids. No sale. Many watchers. The comments are entertaining.

Here's one ending today. #633, being sold by a consignment guy apparently. Doesn't seem to know what people look for, several fill-ins in the comments. All of the undercarriage pictures are with the car on the ground. And all of the grime and oil collected over the years remains. Always surprising to see people pick someone who doesn't know the market to sell their car. Not just Z's, other brands too. Seems like they don't even browse past listings, they just toss it on BaT, get it sold, and get paid. Kind of a shame, seems like money left on the table. But, maybe a good buy for somebody. Some odd comments about the engine number even though it matches the ID plate. Still interesting. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1970-datsun-240z-143/

Probably have to contact them to be sure. I put one in the cart and went to checkout. Says it's shipped from Europe. If it was here it seems like it would show that. And, if it's in Europe I'd guess that tariffs will apply to get it in to the States. Also, sales tax in certain states. Not sure where CIC is. 6.5% in WA. Just researching to get a full picture. Cart totals Subtotal US$665 Shipment Flat rate: US$165 Shipping to United States (US). Change address Total US$830

I wonder what the bigger swirl pot looks like. They talk about it but didn't include the pictures. Apparently they deleted the filter sock also. https://shop.s30.world/product/07-77-till-12-78-datsun-280z-fairlady-z-fuel-tank-vapor "As seen in the pictures we deleted the internal filter and made a bigger swirl pot with a big baffle. The tank need to be operated with an external fuel filter." Total cost $830.