SteveJ

Who is joining me in Birmingham?

Pro tip: Don't use RTV on the valve cover gasket! I was working on a guy's 280ZXT last year and found some idiot used RTV on the valve cover. I convinced the owner to replace the gasket since I was going to do a valve adjustment. I was delayed on the valve adjustment because I was picking off pieces of RTV from the camshaft and other places under the valve cover.

Isn't that a black/white wire in your photo with the male bullet? If it is, it should not have voltage when the battery is connected and engine on. Otherwise it could short. The white wire should be connecting to another white wire with a female bullet. I'm thinking that white wire with the female bullet is in your photo, but the insulation color is obscured by the black wrap. It feeds the brake lights/hazard lights and the horn (2 circuits).

Something isn't right with the wire colors in your description. The blue/white wire from the fuse box should connect to a blue/white wire that goes to the cigarette lighter. That is the purpose of the circuit. A black/white wire is typically a switched source that comes from the ignition switch. There is also wiring in the center stack area for it to connect to an inline fuse going to a green wire for the electric fuel pump that Nissan didn't install for the US market. (Note: There is another black/white wire that goes from the tachometer to coil positive, but we won't take that tangent right now.)

Buy a Nissan valve cover gasket. They hold up a lot better than the aftermarket ones. Here is the current part number: 13270-Y7010. You can order at your local dealer or an online dealer like https://www.nissanparts.cc/

The oil pump looks like it's about a tooth off. Maybe someone with more experience will chime in. This is how it should look: (Courtesy of a post by @siteunseenfrom 3 years ago) Also, the pickup location on the distributor does not look right. Every Pertronix install I have seen has the pickup closer to the radiator like in the photo below. Also, see the photos in this thread: You might also want to put some bright (or fluorescent) nail polish on the timing mark while you have it at TDC. That will make it easier to see with the timing light in the future.

With the car at TDC on the compression stroke, take a clear photo (preferably close in) on the pulley and timing index. Then take off the distributor and take a photo of oil pump shaft where it turns the distributor.

If you use the zip tie, don't make it tight. If it's tight, the wires will be pushing and pulling on the grommet when the mechanical advance is moving the plate back and forth. If it pushes out, that's just an opportunity for water and dirt to infiltrate.

It won't take too much slack to clear. Your other option is to route the wires to run counterclockwise from the pickup to the grommet.

You can pull some more slack wire into the distributor to clear. Also use some electrical tape to protect the wires more.

I haven't had too many issues with the 280ZX ignition. The Pertronix is one of the lower cost options, provided you have a good 240Z distributor to start with. I have only had it installed for about a year, so no reliability data on the Pertronix, yet. The reviews seem to be mixed to me on the 123. Some people love the adjustable nature of it, but some people have complained about the quality of the distributor caps. (You won't get a good spark with a bad cap.) As far as simple, it's probably easier to install a Pertronix on a distributor on the car than swap in a 280ZX distributor. With regard to the ignition modules, you can keep a couple in the car with a small screwdriver and replace one easily on the side of the road should you ever have a failure. (I only had a bad one on a rebuilt distributor.) If you go with the ZX, consider getting the bearing plate(s) a user listed here. I had a Crane (the cheaper between the two you can use on the Z) in my 240Z that I installed in 1997. It worked for 13 years and died with very little driving. I'm not sure if it was a bad module or dirty optics. I didn't have the drive to dig into the cause. Anyway, you have to mount the module somewhere. The ZX distributor and Pertronix do not require mounting a module somewhere.

The best fluid is one that meets the specifications in the FSM. You don't say if you have a manual or automatic. For the manual, it's oil that meets GL4 specifications. For the automatic it's Dexron.

I am interested.

Per @Patcon's suggestion, here is a video showing how to check the spark: When you add oil to the cylinders, make sure you don't add too much take out all of the spark plugs turn the engine over by hand if you can. Also, considering the time it sat, I hope you did drain the gas tank of the old fuel.

Not surprised about the rocker. I even mentioned having to bend it in my description of tearing down and reassembling the switch: https://fiddlingwithzcars.wordpress.com/2012/12/04/turn-signal-repair/. It's toward the end of the post. Now you have a great understanding of how the switch works. Wait until you need to dig into the headlight switch. 🙂

Not sure what you found or who might have said it. putting wires through grommets that are already in place? Not likely. You'll never get the connectors through. Tubing? Well, maybe with this:

Not really.

By the way, if you haven't done so already, go to https://www.classiczcars.com/files/ and download the factory service manual for the 260Z. Yes, your car has been modified, but the FSM will help you identify how it looked from the factory.

The capped off hard line is the return to the tank. The smaller hard line is the tank vent. In stock configuration, it would go to a carbon cannister. The plastic bottle is the vacuum reservoir for the AC. My guess is that the AC has been removed. You may want to consider re-routing the fuel line. It will pick up a lot of heat hanging out over the engine. Of course, the stock fuel rail could pick up plenty of heat from the exhaust manifold. Here's how I routed the fuel lines after I converted the carburetors into throttle bodies.

That's a good observation, @w3wilkes. @DadAndLadZ, you should probably check your fuel pressure. With not having the stock fuel rail, you lack the fuel pressure regulation afforded by the orifice in the return line.

We knew what you meant. I knew the Falkens were smaller than the Radial TAs I pulled off the wheels, and the visual did surprise me at first. However, when I'm behind the wheel with tires that grip well, I don't worry about it in the least. 🙂

I have 195/60 R14 in the Falkens. That would be close to the same size as the 205/50 R15. My car is on the left. It has stock springs and very old struts. Here is more of a side view. Last photo While the gap may seem big, the traction is very good.

I think someone on this forum made an emergency pull for the hood latch that is still accessed from below but easier than using a pry bar. Here's one thread where @beandip and @Bonzi Lon describe their emergency release: In post #11 on this thread @mjr45 describes how he fashioned an emergency release.

While the Radial TAs are available in that size, they really aren't performance tires.

I run the Falken Azenis RT615K+ in 14" on my 240Z. https://www.falkentire.com/tires/passenger-car-tires/azenis-rt615k-tire There is also the Azenis RT660. https://www.falkentire.com/tires/passenger-car-tires/azenis-rt660-tire Both are available as 205/50R15, so they are slightly smaller than your current tires. From doing a search on Tire Rack, I would say that going with a slightly smaller tire is your best option.