Mark Maras

If you don't anticipate removing the pan soon, I'd use both.

Welcome You don't say if the car has been driven or was in hibernation for a while. As far as fumes, tail light gaskets & the hatch seal are likely culprits. IMO, fix the steering & suspension before you go looking for more HP. Suspension upgrades such as shocks, springs, heavier sway bars, new bushings etc. will give you more driving pleasure than more HP. When you do start tweaking the HP, a good handling car will make it more fun & safer.

I love a good mystery. How long did it take to go from the first symptom to dying? Was a compression check done prior to the failure? What is the source of the strange puffing sound when cranking the engine? I'm looking for another piece to the puzzle.

I've rebuilt calipers with no problems (well maybe one) in the far past. The hardest part was getting the pistons out. I didn't have a compressor at the time so I took the calipers to the gas station to blow out the pistons. The first piston popped right out but the second piston remained due to escaping air out of the first cylinder. My first (and worst) idea was to block the escaping air with my hand. The second piston did come out. With a loud bang, it blew into the back of my hand. I had to finish the brake job the next day. I would suggest if any pistons won't come out with air, find a shop with a pneumatic grease gun. That will push them out.

The easiest way of testing for valve leakage after lapping is to install the springs, tip the head so the ports are up and pour solvent into the ports. Then watcht the combustion chamber for leaks. Works great!

A few years ago my son bought an 81 RX 7 with no title. The car could be returned if we couldn't title it. Originally a Washington car that needed an Oregon title. Started in Oregon DMV. They wouldn't issue a title until we had a Wash. title. To get that, we had to find the last owner and get a notarized release or he had to go to DMV and fill out the proper forms. We got lucky and found an envelope, under the seat, with a name on it. That person remembered a friend from the past that had an RX 7. Got a name. Eventually found the owner in Richland, Wash. Sent him a few dollars to offset the misery of a DMV trip. Voila. In no time at all (four months) we purchased a new Wash. title and immediately surrendered it to Oregon so we could purchase an Oregon title. Titling that car was a major PITA and a bit more money than anticipated. Put ALL your efforts into getting a title first.

Fantastic idea. Whenever I have set float levels, I have never been absolutely sure that they were right. Love the simplicity of it. Red Green would be proud.

Thanks for the Z pics fix. Beautiful cars, great music and ending that brought an instant smile.

Cheap u-joints and or excess clearance can affect the balance. If you installed quality u-joints, the problem is probably lateral movement as described by EuroDat in #2. In my experience, driveline vibrations have occured at higher speeds, 80 mph + and the front joint has been the cause. With the car on stands, grab the front of the shaft and try to move it horiz. and vert while watching the u-joint. There should be NO visible movement other than rotational. I've not encountered a balance problem with OEM or a quality brand. Spicer has been my choice and was recommended by our local primo drive line shop.

Automatic or not, That appears to be an excellent 280. It likely has seen little rain (Az.car) and judging by the dashboard, it has seen little sun. IMO you won't get hurt trading it for your Impala. Even if the Impala is worth a little more today, (questionable) in a very short time a good Z is going to be worth a lot more. If driving the automatic sucks, convert it to a stick & save all the parts. The next owner, should there be one, will have his or her choice of trannys. A positive selling point.

My 71 had 175/70 14". The speedo was very accurate with that tire size. It was 2 years old and had Bridgestone tires on it when I bought it. I think they were the original tires.

You bring up an interesting point. The finish will change the appearance of the color. I wonder if the original blue paint was satin or matte finish. That could explain the difficulty matching the color. I don't remember a gloss finish on my original Zs' engine, but it was 2 years old when I got it.

I had a 71 Datsun PU with a rough distributor cam that used to scrub material off of the cam follower on the points set that narrowed the gap. Worse yet, it was a dual point dist. I was adjusting points about every 3 months. I dab of grease on the cam may help if it is dry.

Interesting. When I bought my first Z in 1973 (a used 71), it came with a crunchy trans. No bearing noise, just crunchy shifts. Drove it about a year before tearing it down to replace the synchros and bearings. When I got it apart everything was pristine.??? Synchros looked new. Having new parts on hand (OEM) I reassembled the trans. using the new parts. Problem solved. I have never known what was wrong with the original synchros. Now I suspect it could have been a change of gear oil (different brand?) that cured the crunchy shifts. I drove the car another 20 years and never had synchro problems again. I did refresh the trans, years later for bearings. I'm curious, was there a great difference in gear oil back then? I likely used Kendall gear oil as the replacement.

I believe they fall into the "Coat of Arms" category. Middle ages till now, they are still in use.

Great advice from the members. Personally, I would try to buy the car at a reduced price. One has to assume the engine is toast & won't turn over or is making a horrible noise. If it truly is a COMPLETE CAR & IN GOOD SHAPE, the engine wouldn't be a deal breaker for me. In fact, it might be a deal maker. There are plenty of good used engines still avail.

Virtual exhaust notes! Good Grief. So next I can upgrade my audio in my 4 cyl. daily driver to sound like a big block V8. Or maybe a 12 cyl. Ferrari, Yeah that's it. Oh yeah and some big a$$ speakers so everyone around me can hear it too. Good Grief.

Concerning the hot start issue. Has anyone tried spraying the injectors, lines, etc. with something cold such as pressurized propane or CO2(better option) to condense the fuel? In theory it seems as if this would be a good way to get going without the wait.

Fuel tank, lines & filters!!!

"He and I have discussed mechanized ways to vibrate the pot but haven't implemented anything yet." Suggestions anyone?

Good job. It's always a great feeling when one figures "it" out. "The thrill of victory".

Dennis, I remember being buffeted around sideways on I-5 but nothing that pushed me more than 2-3 ft. Wind socks on the freeway? That must be a tough stretch of road. I haven't seen the weather improving the last few years so the socks are probably in use or blown away. Cliff, Yes they do lift at high speed. In the past instead of replacing the arms, I squeezed the clip (hog ring) that anchors the bottom of the spring. I have also seen small wind deflectors(think venetian blind) that mount on the blades.

Normal oil level, both carbs. Do the pistons drop at the same rate? If not try swapping either the pistons or the chambers & try again. If you need to really get into the details of matching the carbs,(no they aren't identical) get the ZTherapy DVD "Just SUs". Best money you can spend this side of a Uni-syn.

At WOT under a load, when it craps out, pull the choke a bit (richen the mixture) & see if it improves. If it does, you have enough of fuel in the bowls. If it doesn't, I would say it is fuel starvation. This is assuming the float level (critical) is correct.

I can confirm the 120+. Bone stock, early 71 Z on the PIR track. Speedo read 124mph. Probably off by a little but the speedo was accurate at 60mph. At that speed it felt like air resistance was the limiting factor, not the engine. I also remember how the front would try to lift if you were driving into the wind. No air dam or spoiler on the car. Lots of fun until it lifted going into a high speed corner. The fun turned into an agricultural racing "Big Moment". In retrospect that made it even more fun.