Zed Head

It only takes a little bit of moisture to get in to the pump and cause rust, or a few rust particles, and jam things up. The pumping mechanism is just small roller bearings on an eccentric mechanism with tight clearances to push the low viscosity gasoline. Not much to it. I wouldn't be surprised if the pump is just jammed, from sitting. If the motor windings haven't been damaged you might be able to get it moving again with some hard taps to the body. Jack up the back, or one side and remove a wheel, check voltage, then tap it with a hammer and see what happens.

Forgot to say, at first glance the way a regulator works is kind of counter-intuitive. The fuel doesn't push the valve open from the small port in the middle, it fills the volume under the the diaphragm and pushes it up, lifting the valve open and letting the fuel out the center port. Make sure you have your ports right.

It's not really clear that fuel isn't flowing and the carbs aren't getting fuel. You said that fuel flows from the return line, but not clear if you meant from the tank or from the line after passing through the system. In other words, summarizing, it looks like you're saying that you have a gauge that reads zero and a pump that shakes like crazy. But the rest is kind of foggy. Fighting fuel from the return doesn't make sense either. Can't figure it out. Is the regulator adjustable? Could you have the lines backward at the regulator? If you plumb the inlet line from the pump to the return port on a regulator, the pump will not push any fuel. It can't push backward through the regulator.

If your garage has sturdy framing you can use a come-along and move the car, then drop the engine on to a dolly. It makes people nervous if they haven't done any woodwork though. You can spread the load with an extra beam.

Racing oil with zinc complex is still available. S30Driver posted recently about a sale on Valvoline VR-1 at NAPA. Post #48. http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/51299-zinc-additives-cam-shaft-or-rocker-wear-and-mileage-a-poll/page-3 Pennzoil has one also, GT Performance Racing oil. Post #24, same thread.

Methyl hydrate being methanol? With a little hydrogen dioxide added or straight up? I did try ethanol and it cuts through it pretty well. I think the clean rag might be one key. Seem like fabric softener or lanolin is everywhere. I've never had any luck with newspaper. Maybe paper and ink vary geographically. I took out my Home Depot carpet to see if I get a few more days or weeks per cleaning. We're hitting hot weather here so outgassing should be high.

Those are some good points. Don't forget that the system grounds through the distributor body. Coil > points > distributor body > ground to engine block. You might just have a bad ground.

One more goofy 76 switch is the "top gear switch" that actuates the vacuum advance control solenoid. It runs through the transmission switch though so you'd need to extend the wire from the switch location. Looks like they used it to power a lot of small loads, like the hazard switch light and various gauges. It's fused though.

The condenser is an important part of the points system. If it is shorted, it will cause a weak spark. Probably easiest to just get a new one, although they can be tested if you have the right meter. The ballast could also be a problem. You could try rewiring the ballast to bypass it, just to see if it fixes the problem. Put both power wires on the terminal that does not pass through the ballast. It won't hurt to run it that way for a short while.

I'm guessing sugar or something else that's not supposed to be there, in the gas tank. The common way to test fuel pump operation and check for pressure is to remove the small yellow wire from the starter solenoid, then turn the key to Start. The pump will run but the engine won't turn. Assuming that your system is stock. If you have the later 1978 style safety system, I've heard that removing the oil pressure sending unit plug will allow the pump to run with the key On. That's easier for testing pressure since you can leave the key On. A simple way to check which system you have is to look at the oil sender plug. Early only has one wire, late has two wires.

Is it just my old Z, so degraded by the sun, that is really hard to keep a clean windshield? I i get a a light haze within a couple of weeks of cleaning that is really hard to remove. For a while I thought it might duck(t) tape that I had on the seats releasing plasticizer, but it's gone now. Then I thought it was a small coolant leak, depositing antifreeze stuff, but that's fixed now. Whatever it is is difficult to remove. Windex and paper towels, Windex and shop towels, clean damp wash cloths from the house, newspapers, etc. none of the cleaning tricks work. The only thing I've found that works for a while is a new OCELO sponge, straight from the wrapper. No cleaner, just the sponge, as a last step after the bulk of the residue is removed. Even other brands of sponges won't work. Anyone have any unusual cleaning tricks. Does everyone's windshield dirty up fast or is it just mine. p.s. I also have Home Depot outdoor carpet in my back panel with might be releasing plasticizer in to the air, redepositing on the windshield. Might be time to change that out just to see, but still wondering if it's just old plastic degrading in general. p.s. 2 - I've probably cleaned the windshield on my Pathfinder twice since I bought it new in 1994. It just doesn't get dirty on the inside.

I think that it is switched on when the key is on (pretty sure it's the under hood click I hear when I turn the key on) but it switches off above 10 mph. Checking for voltage above below 10 mph is part of the testing protocol. Emission Control chapter. If your car had AC but doesn't now, the AC compressor wire is in the vicinity. They get mixed up occasionally. You might also short or bypass the amplifier in the cabin.

The term "coilovers" is commonly used to describe adjustable spring perches, and shortened struts. Shortened struts to lower the car, and spring perches for adjusting ride height. The springs used and the shock absorbers determine suspension behavior. If you're going to lower the car, and want the ability to fine tune ride height, maybe frequently, then "coilovers" would be the way to go. If you're only going to lower the car 1 - 1.5" then lowering springs and good shocks would be the inexpensive way to go. People often get the lowering part confused and end up with shocks that are at the extreme end of travel, either too compressed and bouncing off of the bump stops or shock internals, or cut the struts too much and end up topped out. Just adding some detail. Lots of ways to go wrong with "coilovers" if you don't define what you're really trying to do and have a good plan. The cars already have "coil over strut" or "coil over shock" (pick your term) suspension.

I've never raced, but it seems like a fuel pump kill switch would be a track requirement. Is this not the case everywhere or does it vary?

Just for general discussion, but have you driven a Z car? Any of them 240 to 280? Hard to see how you can decide on these things without experiencing the car. You don't have a reference point. Both Rossiz and myself bought our cars thinking that we would pull the small L28 engines, and replace them with big powerful small block chevy V8's. Neither of us did after driving the cars, and Rossi is even going backward in technology to carbs, from EFI. As for dismantling the car, why? And how far? Again, just curious. If you're going down to bare metal on a stripped body, you might consider welding in some reinforcement while it's clean. The 240 body is not as stiff as the 280 body, and there are some things that you can do while it's stripped that will be much easier than when it's together. But you'll still need a concept in mind for what the final product will be. Anyway, good luck. Hope it doesn't end up as just many boxes of parts.

Then he'll want to read this thread - http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/50208-the-ultimate-l28et-guidewhat-you-need-for-350whp/ Even trying to stay cheap, stock and NA, I easily went over $3000 spent to get mine in good running condition within about a year (I drove it anyway in bad condition for that year). The nickels and dimes just add up: master cylinders (brake and clutch), slave cylinder, wheel cylinder, calipers, booster, brake lines, tires, lug nuts, fuel pump, exhaust manifold resurface, gaskets, clutch set, injectors, more gaskets, shocks, etc. These engines are so durable that, unless the camshaft has gone flat, you can almost always get them running. If he goes out and buys a turbo engine thinking he'll drop it in and be driving, his budget's probably shot before it can even power itself out of the driveway. Edit - sorry, just feeling blunt. Nothing wrong with getting information for a plan...

Might be easiest to build your own. It will have some leverage at the junction so you'll want a good tight fit on to the existing shifter, and some thickness for rigidity. You might also be able to find a truck shifter that's longer and cut it down.

High performance cams also do this but the 274 seems like a fairly mild grind.

Hybridz would be good for you once you decide. But those guys tend to know what they want - more power, more speed, better handling - so maybe not be much help deciding. Restore here, modify extensively there. You won't find much stance or drift over there except for how to go faster low, or how to make more power for drifting. There's a thread on swapping a stock turbo n to early Z's, well read since most people have problems with it. Just saying, it's not like a transmission or diff swap. http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/38461-240z-260z-280z-turbo-swap-guide/

This is a better clue. You're saying that the idle speed fluctuates, like up-down-up-down-up-down. That's different than just idle speed decreasing. I'm not a carb expert, let alone Z carbs, but this sounds like a carb issue.

I was more concerned about driving high in nighties... Anyway. Back on topic.

Please...even though there is a Boobs thread, this is generally not that kind of forum.

Oops. I read it backwards. Or sideways. The L28ET will take a lot of money-dumping also. I'll stick with the basics then, drive the car first with whatever inexpensive engine that can be found. You just can't make an informed decision until you've driven the car. He might decide he doesn't like straight sixes at all and go V8. And you can't even find a used turbo engine these days for less than $600, probably $1200 or more. Then you have to do engine management, wiring, exhaust system, new drive shaft if he goes T5, etc. It's a big big project. That second big is not a typo.

Didn't realize you were planning to sell the car already. So the real question is "will this car be worth more with a turbo engine or with the L24 that's in it?". From what I've seen, the only modified Z cars that make a profit are those that are very well-done, by a professional shop. Otherwise, it's always just some guy trying to sell his own personal vision of what modifications he thought were worth doing. The ads always say spent lots of money so the car is worth lots of money. But they never get it. The other side of the spectrum is people who want to modify and drive their own personal vision. They like to start with an unmodified car. So, your best path to making a profit is probably to just clean up what you have, fix the PO's mistakes (his vision, like the bondo roof), make it more presentable, and sell it. Maybe get it running with as little money spent as possible. Basically, flip it quick like one of the car shows on TV. Edit - forgot to say, the "turbo swap" is nowhere near as easy to do as the internet makes it sound. After your budget gets nickel and dimed to a huge number, you'll probably have an engine that almost runs okay. The forums are full of turbo swap problems.

That plug doesn't look bad. The ground strap is getting hot and burning off deposits like it should and the center ceramic looks clean even though it has some color. Why don't you describe a typical situation where the idle starts to drop. "Stuck in traffic" doesn't have any detail. Are you driving down the road just fine, then hit a stop light, and the idle drops immediately? Or does it take 5 minutes of slow driving before the idle drops? Does the engine temperature increase as the idle starts to change,or is it steady, and the idle changes just from sitting? Tell a story about driving in to traffic and what happens, with lots of detail. Don't tell what you've done to the engine, just what the engine does from your view, inside.