Mark Maras

It's amazing how much time one can spend on a panel trying to get it "just right". Good job. Some people would have just troweled on a bunch of Bondo and sculpted it.

The first time I tried it, I couldn't get the engine over the rad. support. No choice but to pull the wheels and put it on a jack. Next time was the most primitive. Hung the engine from the garage rafters with a 1 ton cable jack and rolled the car forward as I dropped the engine into the bay and forward a little bit more as it aligned with the trans. input shaft. Put a few bolts in the bellhousing, Then it went up on four jackstands to finish the job. My point is there is no wrong way to do it. Even if you run into problems there are many options available. When you boil it down either the engine has to go down and back or the car has to come up and forward. I like the sling for the trans rear. I've used a small floor jack on a creeper to support the rear when dropping and sliding the engine and trans. into position. Makes it easy to lift it into place and hold it.

I usually put the rear up on jack stands. Ramps should work well too. The front I put on a floor jack, no tires, raise it up and put it on jack stands when the engine is in place or when you need to crawl underneath. When the engine was close to the proper position, I jacked up the front of the car instead of lowering the engine all the way down

That would be my guess. Are you missing any heat shields? What changed during the build to cause vapor lock now and not before?

Possibly a little water in the gas?

No top damage. PO must have lived near Mt. Flatten and found the upsidaisium.

The car may have had flat top SUs on at one time but you don't want those even if they were original. They were a P.O.S. as far as tunability and driveability were concerned. Pull the air cleaner housing off and take a few pics as well as counting the screws in the dome. Looking forward to pics. Ztherapy.com has lots of info on the differences between the different models of SUs.. While you're there order the DVD. LET THE HAPPY DANCE CONTINUE.

Go buy a Lottery Ticket. It appears to me that you have the carbs you want and need. I can't quite tell from the pics. but they appear to be the early SUs. (Hitachis) The 4 screws refers to the number of screws that hold the dome down. You're good to go.

I don't think those missing screws were hidden. It's possible they fell out because they were never tightened properly.

Happy Birthday "One of the Jims." Looks like the guests want cake.

I'd put in a new set of plugs and see what difference it makes. I've had plugs misfire at high RPMs that "looked" good. New engine may be running clean but it isn't sealed up quite yet. Also check the resistance in the plug wires and connections. If that makes no difference, I'd finish the tuneup. That will need to be done to eliminate the usual culprits.

What is your build date? If it came into existence June 1972 or after, it probably had flat top SUs. (according to info at Ztherapy) That may explain the previous mechanic's decision to change the carbs. Very few "orig" Zs that had flat tops still run them. BTW, it was a good decision depending on what you ended up with. I'm still curious. TZ's carb set-up above looks to be correct for pre-June 72s back to mid 71 and as complete as most people want them. You'll notice the balance tube between the carbs has a few plugs and unused bolt holes. Virtually everything that is missing is non critical and was emissions related. Those are, I believe, the ones the Cap'n are describing. Probably a bit more coolant plumbing than the early 4-screw carbs but good carbs none the less. If you're going back to SUs I (we) highly recommend getting the DVD "Just SUs" from Ztherapy. You'll never trust your carbs to a mechanic again and you'll have more knowledge about SUs than most "experts". Anyone want to correct or add any additional info?

Wouldn't the "local Datsun guy with a good rep" have noticed that and done SOMETHING about it at the time? Seems like it would have been obvious.

Hi Kira I'm curious what is wrong with your SUs? I'm assuming they're 3 screw, round tops or do you have something else on it? DGV Webers?

Glad you had someone look at it. Always good to get another opinion. Chas to the rescue. Great advice, Specs. AND homemade tools. Perfect.

I was replacing the bearings, so I used a hammer, assorted punches and other useful implements of destruction to remove them. Crude but effective.

The exploded view does make it look daunting but it's little more than sliding each pc. off the shaft, one at a time. The most important part of the process (the most difficult for me) is to maintain the orientation and order of the parts as you clean and inspect them. Keep it all straight and assembly is easy.

IMO, Your skills have gotten you this far and if you have the bucks for parts, you can tear the main shaft down. Organization, simple tools with a clean workspace. Lay everything in order and the same direction as you disassemble it. Clean and inspect it one part at a time (It's a good idea NOT to have help in this step) and remember to set each part down in the same order, exactly the way it was. It's a good learning experience and an accomplishment you'll be proud of. You'll likely never have to deal with it again.

Yup. What Zed Head said. That is an abused trans. It looks like someone tried to repeatedly stuff it into reverse with a bad clutch cyl. Even if I left the gears in it, I'd break it down (it's not difficult) and replace the synchro assys. and all new bearings. The chips and pcs. from the gear can do damage before they settle to the bottom. Also, the teeth on the synchros don't tell the whole story. The inside surface of the brass rings is a friction surface. It can show wear even when the teeth look OK.

Ah, the memories of that snap ring and the many snap ring pliers I broke. Small screwdrivers poked into the gaps you see (under or behind) will grant you a small victory while you regroup for your second assault on it.

Found one. I thought for a sec that you were going to get another cigar. The pic of the lobe with the "chip" in it. The next lobe over has an oiler hole.

Here in Portland, even in the early days of Zs, A used Z was about the same price as a new one. The plus side of buying a used one was you didn't have to wait for six months to take it home. Paid $3750.00 for my 71 in 73. Not too far off from the new car price.

All excellent descriptions. I was sinking to a lower levels with mine. I clicked on prohibited. That'll fix his wagon!

It's the eternal optimist in me. I just wanted to believe it. Probably will go for 4-5K if one of the bodies is good. Still not a bad deal. Having a parts car is like Manna from Heaven.

I hope a member or friend takes advantage of this one. C.L. Seattle. 75 and 76, car and parts car. Looks like more than enough there to finish one and sell what's left to finance the refresh. $999.00 takes it all.