Dave WM

which 5 speed?

You need to figure out the rear end ratio 1st before deciding anything else. It can be figured by counting turns on the input to the output.

if you want to go along for the ride on my adventures in swap on a 280

240 guy have to chime in on fitment, something may need to be trimmed to fit on the tunnel. Also getting the right shifter matters, On mine I used a ZX style and had to had an extender part to make it not sit so low. Also there maybe some issues on the drive shaft as far as the mounting flanges on the rear. I like my 81 IIRC ZX with a 3.54 has a .75 od so I can go 80 at 3k. But I don't even get in to it until 70. It maybe a bit more complicated than its worth on a 240 imho (trimming/diff swap/driveshaft swap). on the 280 it was bolt on affair, do it in a day. Also you "may" have to remove the exhaust down pipe for clearance, I did on my 280. that is a bit of a PITA if the bolts are rust welded to the manifold, I ended up breaking 2 of the 3 so off came the exhaust manifolds, replacing gaskets, fixing broken manifold bolts... just understand things can go wrong making more work. Is it all worth it, that's up to just how badly you want that OD.

I presume you want a 5 speed for better hiway speeds? if so the late years 280zx close ratio has a very tall OD .75, depending on the rear end that can make for a 5th that is use less until near 70mph. If you just want more gears and be able to use 5th you would want to make sure the final gear ration in the diff is more like a 3.7 or 3.9. So 1st thing you should find out is what kind of diff to you have? is it a 180 or 200 and what is the ratio. then you can better decide what your needs are as far as transmissions considering the end goal. The engine makes a lot of torque so lots of gears are not really needed to stay in the power band.

CO, do you have a spare camshaft that you can install? just want to know if there is ANY binding that you can detect.

you will get no help here in support for NOT getting it. Make a deal she can get a new couch if you get the car. I use that one a lot. Some how the couch deal never happens though.

so now I have to get a spare camshaft for my spare head for my spare engine....Paranoia is a difficult thing to overcome. better still, Camshaft phobia..

I am sure CO is going to do a post mortem with detailed looks at the fracture, its his nature.

I still think its the AFM that needs adjusting.

might as well... :) in all seriousness the might as well does happen, so you really have to assess your willingness to leave with a small leak. Just remember its a old car and the might as wells can really add up, including the follow up can or worms (broken studs etc....). So are you a leave it be, enjoy driving more that fixing, or a drop of oil is going to make you nutz. OK to be either but you need to decide. Also you will find that doing the work yourself is not just to save money but to make sure its done right unless you have a mechanic that really knows what they are doing and how to work on old cars. I find the biggest issue is not breaking bolts. Technique helps but eventually you are going to break one in a hard to get at location that can up the work factor a lot. You are going to have to do the clutch eventually anyway, it will chatter and slip etc... That is a good time to force you to fix other leaks. Just don't be surprised if you end up making some work for yourself along the way to fixing something easy (like breaking a bolt on the t stat housing when replacing a t stat...). I like my induction bolt heater, pricey but comes in handy.

were the cam towers ever removed and replaced?

If leaks bother you, the correct fix would be to pull the trans get all the seals replaced (front/back/speed/shift striker rod), while there replace the throw out bearing/clutch/rear main/and rear main bearing cap seal and pan gasket. Bottom line is its going to leak unless those seals have been replaced since new. if that sounds like too much, then clean the area real well with brake cleaner, get it dry, then drive a little and get up real close to narrow down the problem. could be one of the above or several.

leaks tend to start one place and then seek the lowest point. It could be a transmission leak or and oil leak from the engine working back. Transmissions often leak around the speedo drive. Could also be coming from the top of the trans where the shift lever stabs in. O rings and seals fix both. the speedo is easy to get at, the top transmission leak not so much. IF its engine oil just getting blown back and then leaking its prob from a rear main seal. Is there ANY oil dripping right at the front of the trans bell housing/rear of engine area?

found an O ring that solved the seal fit a the neck, have a leak around the T stat housing, guess my homemade gasket aint making it. will get a proper gasket and some sealer and try again when I get in that new 160f stat.

You know that was the next thing I was going to try, actually tried it, but my decades old Gates rad pump would not seal, the darn rubber plug as so old it did not compress on the rad neck. So will have to buy a new one.

I grabbed the injectors already. Roger on the MN47. Not sure what I want to do with it at this time, mainly give me something to practice on. I like to try stuff out on my spare before diving in on my runner. will pack it up and stow for now. think I will pull the two rockers on the depressed valves and wire tie them to the right spot, I don't like the idea of long term storage with the springs depressed (or the valves hanging down for that matter). I am still on the fence about if the spare has a HG leak, my runner did not change the fluid color at all, the spare seemed change to a lighter shade of blue. has me worried.

Yea, could not pass it up, figured it would in up in a crusher and I wanted something to play with. The head turn out to be in very good looking condition, pistons crowns all looked about same (no evidence of head leak) camshaft looks good, valves all looked good. will post up a video of it. Had a lot of fun at the JY, looked like pig pen by the time I was done. Frankly I was shocked at how easy it was to pull after all the horror stories I have read on some others. I got the exhaust manifold as well, it has a place for an O2 sensor that may come in handy. I was not sure if the block was worth getting, huge heavy, and 2400cc (maxima) Same with the crankshaft, maybe that is worth getting. Just seems to be waste to see them go to the crusher, this yard does not leave things for long.

This was my 1st cylinder head removal from an L engine. the bolts came out quite easy, about 1/4 turn and then they came out with very little effort. I left the manifolds attached (someone had cut off the down pipe right before the connection to a cat I presume). used a JY hoist and an old seat belt rigged up to pull the head out. With it exposed I was able to get at the hard to reach 12mm manifold bolts. They all released easy but I did have the two broken end bolts (big surprise there). The head came right off, no drama at all, the crane made it so easy. I am now more tempted to remove my test stand engine head to inspect the gasket and water passages for blockage. I have done some research that a N47 head on a N42 block will work but may raise the compression ratio to high. I understand it has to do with the type of pistons used. It would be fun to try it out though with the test stand setup...

I looked at the manual, seemed like it was one of the holes near the center of the head, but my JK pull maxima N47 seemed more like a small hole near the cam chain (looking at the bottom of the cylinder head. I wanted to try to send some oil up that way to see if I could lubricate the cam shaft bearing journals.

I found another leaking injector (at the junction of the steel body to the plastic part with the connecter). I was also trying to see if I could further isolate the slight miss I still hear. I did the power test and while each cylinder would cause a slight drop in RPM when disabled, I noted the #2 also seemed to stop the miss as well as drop the idle. It happens to be the one that is leaking as well so will replace that one. On the head gasket issue, I did the chem test on my 75 and it did not change the intensity of the blue color at all. While with this engine I could get a slightly lighter shade of blue (but never turned yellow). So I am unsure about the status based on the test. I have a 160f thermostat coming and plan to replace the one I have in there now. I used the 160 on my 75 and seems to work well. Will try it again when I have replaced the injector and the stat.

The green injectors are the correct ones, assuming they are in good working order, maybe a bad assumption. The power balance test should at least let you know if they are all about the same. You should also check you ign timing with a timing light to make sure the advance is correct. Check the distributer for proper vacuum operation as well.

Does the engine have a mis fire? you could try a power balance test

what color are the injectors? have you verified the operation of the TVS You did say you checked all the resistance readings AT the 36 pin connector correct? again what are the MPG numbers, and what are the Sparkplugs you are running?

Gas smell could be leaking fuel lines, leaking injectors, leaks at the pump and tank connections, On a car this old you must replace ALL lines and check for leaks after done. Also ALWAYS carry a fire extinguisher with you and have it ready to use. Make sure you use FI hose after the pump. Ok to use regular fuel line on the returns. Gas smell or exhaust smell both are bad, but if exhaust a common problem as seals and grommets dry up and allow fumes into the cabin. Gas mileage will very, lead foot 14mpg hypermilager 24mpg city vs highway also matter. lead foot city driving 14mpg or worse. where are the black spots? are they deposits from the exhaust? What are the plugs you are using? The confusion on this being a recent problem was from the word "lately" in the opening of the thread. If its been a problem from the beginning the diagnostics have to include the possibility that something is just installed incorrectly or has been modified, much harder to diagnose (as in my ign problem).