jonbill

the relief valve is only active if the oil filter is clogged. I'd leave it. don't you need to take the oil pan off to confirm there's not an air leak in the oil pickup to block?

or just buy a cheap impact driver.

make a washer with a D shape hole and bond/weld it in to the top of the top mount.

cut flats high up on either side of the strut shaft and hold it with an open spanner.

that sounds like a car starting fairly normally. maybe there's a bit of fan belt squeal when you rev it. Is this representative of the problem? I'd assumed the car wasn't starting.

I took the remains of one off recently, and I'm sure it was between the ring and the neck.

my guess is starter. solenoid not engaging correctly so you're just hearing the motor spin. a fully charged battery might make the difference. a recording would confirm.

maybe the mechanical pump is for looks along with the carbs. does it have an electric pump as well?

FWIW, the 'AM' in the part number shows they're aluminium, which doesn't have a great reputation (although eventually, they'll be all there is).

The yellow stuff might be the stuff used to bond the baffle into the cam cover. what does the inside of the cam cover look like?

There should be either: a) a single mark on the damper and an array on the timing cover, or b) a single pointer on the timing cover and an array on the damper. You've got a mix of both and I don't think you can trust it to tell you where TDC is. Nor can you trust the MS2 - it only knows what it was told by whoever tuned it. you need something like this to find TDC : https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/331342952716 and then make your own marks to show where TDC is. I'd replace the serated doofer on the timing cover with a pointer that points at the last of those marks on the damper at TDC.

you'll have to take the timing cover off. if you're lucky, there'll be enough sticking out of the block to get a tool on and unscrew. if not, drill and tap it. did you use a torque wrench? it's only m6, so it can't take much. 5 ft lb or so.

I guess the focus here is the std distributor/single coil setup? multiple coils of course allows longer dwell per coil and stronger sparks.

sounds like the map needs more work to me.

no need to drain the oil. sender is above the level.

you'll need a new clutch release collar to match the clutch (assuming your old clutch is 225mm) might be better off getting a 240mm flywheel too.

what was the clutch sold as for? I have a XTD RB25 clutch and flywheel in my Z and the bolts and dowels only line up in one position. (i. e. no rotational symmetry).

Here's my old r200 open diff. You can see the end of the shaft that carries the spider gears and its a bit chewed from the roll pin breaking and the shaft rattling around.

open diff? sounds like the roll pin that holds the spider gears failed.

ah makes sense. it can be too rich at idle and lean elsewhere. also worth checking ignition timing.

whats the carb setup? triples or twin SU? for 3&4 to be richer than the rest is unusual on twin SU. maybe the problem isnt 3&4 but 1,2,5,6 being lean. I'd start with working out why all the cylinders aren't the same.

looks pretty normal to me. temperature looks high tho!

did you check the new thermostat before installing it? new ones can be bad. Also, is the valve central in the thermostat or offset to one side? if offset, I think its possible to install it so it can't open fully. (one side of the thermostat housing is shallower)

you could fit a wideband o2 and gauge and then you'd know if it was a fuel problem. I've had problems like this with a couple of pertronix igniters. So I'd mainly try to get/borrow a 280zx distributor and see what that does for it.

if you've got plain water in it, then I think the saying is: if it ain't broke, it will be soon.