RIP260Z

I second that book Dtsnlvrs, a very worthwile book as a practical guide. Good details on stripping the carbs down and how to tune them.

Have asked my contact here in the UK for service parts to purchase now so I am ready in a few yrs time to rebuild them. He has gasket kits, nozzles and valve assemblies, he thinks, maybe needles and other misc. bits for flat tops. Will have to see what I can get. My next job is to take the old needles out and see what number they are. Cheers Ian

Thanks Mike, When I get round to it I plan to completely strip them which will help a lot. As the rebuild kits seem to be NLA, I better keep my eye for any New old stock.. Cheers Ian

Thanks Stephen, Its the same in the UK there is more interest in swapping the emmision flat tops for the su type. I would have done the same, but since I want to be standard, it defeats the object. But I thought I would ask anyway, as you never know until you ask. Why did you like them? Montezuma, thanks, but as people get rid of them like in the US, you can pick them up cheaply here. Cheers Ian

Hi, I am starting to think about my long term project, a late 260z (over here in the UK), and I am going completely standard, thus including flat top carbs. Yes, I want to use then, not bin them and put on round tops. Why, the late 260z is getting so rare here, and a standard one is even rarer. So, I am asking has anyone got any tips on using these carbs, refurbishing, tuning, things to watch out for. I have yet to ask the UK Z community, but since the US was the biggest market, someone must like using them. Cheers Ian

My UK 1978 260z was brought in 1991. Used it for a couple of years. Decided to restore while the rust was not too bad. 13 yrs later after a few problems (workshop where having car done burnt down, car not in at that time) body now restored and painted. Currently restoring the rear suspension and drive train. 3.1L engine to assemble, and all the little bits to bring the car together. Will be a clean (not garage queen) car for weekends and sunny days, as the UK winter is a bit unkind to z shells. Once finished, got another 260 to restore, this one will be totally stock. Cheers Ian

I agree with Arne. The door (and hence the glass) has to be longer so the passengers can get into the back. To add, as the roof line is different, do the door aperture has to as well. Cheers Ian

Mull, Excellent, what more can I say, except keep up the good work. Ian

I hope this will help; http://carfiche.com/fiche008/s30/index.pl?5:i:2 The shorter knuckles are down as options, and there are different part numbers for the standard length knuckles for the early cars (with a swap date of Jun/'70), as montoya_fan01 says Cheers Ian

A stone in your tire....

jmortensen, The steering knuckles here in Europe are the same length as the US ones. I have seen an original JDM Nissan/Datsun performance parts/Nismo catalogue and the shorter knuckles are listed in there as one of the many options. Also in my microfiche parts cd (US one), the short ones are listed in there as an option. I've just swapped my ones for the shorter ones. Sizes (from memory) are 115mm and 105mm. Cheers Ian

Gator, The rear insulation bush at the top of the rear suspension is taller on the later bodied zed. In theory it will lower, but I have no idea if it works (maybe someone else knows). The other thing to be aware of if putting in inserts to your existing struts, is the top lock nut is rather large and can be a bit of a pain to get undone. But have a search on previous threads on how other people have got on (I remember Gav240z had a thread on this). A tip I used when using spring compressors to help them from sliding down the coil, was to use some hefty cable ties on the spring to stop them slipping. The Tom Monroe book on How to restore your Z uses vice grips. Regards Ian

I used the method mlc240z says, with chisels. Worked easily, give it a go.

NCZ, I had a bit of trouble taking one of those clips off on mine, just not much room to work. I tried using the 90 degree tab, pulling on that, but that broke. I got it out by using an old srewdriver to lever the tops (prongs) down and once moved it enough, placed the screwdriver in the base of the prongs when that came into view from around the cable end.

I thought it was a bad idea to use silicone for engine use, as it is degraded by the oil and you can end up with bits of sealant inside the oil system? Only use RTV sealant, which is what is recommended when sealing in the rear mains to the block. Cheers Ian

I broke a 280zx up (1979) over here in England and they came with the car. I like them, very handy. Cheers Ian

I agree with both previous posters. Your are not doomed with having carbs from Alfa and Lancia. I have a set of triple Dellorto 48's (going on 3.1 ltr) that I stripped totally. These carbs were most probably from a Lotus engine (pair of carbs) and then they were put on a L series engine with another carb. The jetting when I stripped them was not even right for the 2.4 they came from to me, let alone mine. As mentioned before totally strip, make notes of numbers of the parts and do some homework. With the proper jets and setup they will run fine.

26th, Thank you for sharing what you are doing/ going to your body shell. I read this with great interest, and look forward to reading any full article/thread. Cheers Ian

HS30-H and Abas, Yes this pic came from a thread on the uk Zwebsite. I emailed the starter of the thread 2-3 months after the thread started, just to see what was happening, heres the reply "Hi Ian, Sorry for the delay in replying,just got back from holiday,As far as I am aware the guy was not intending to sell and was moving it to a friend,s garage to restore.I spoke to the owner personally,a pleasant chap, but got the feeling the car would never go for restoring. Funnily enough I passed by just before I went away on holiday and the car hadn,t moved.He did want to meet with me though but as yet I haven,t spoke to him since. Thanks Jim." As for motorsport history, hillclimbing (to what level?) was mentioned on the thread, but I get the feeling there could be a bit more. Eric Neyerlin replied to the thread, which is http://www.zclub.net/forum/showthread.php?t=2000&page=1&pp=15 and yes, it has a sunroof. Ian

If I remember rightly from my service manual, there is a "hole" on the special tool so you can attach a 1/2 inch torque wrench. The spec is up to 94lbs, but there was an equation where the length of the torque wrench was taken into consideration, so you got the required setting. Can't remembr what that is, but can look it up when I get home, or someone can look it up before I get back on here tomorrow. Ian

I just took my strut down to my local machine shop, they had a spanner to fit the gland nut size (55mm) and broke them loose for nothing. No chewed up nut.

I agree with building a replica, esp. if it still exists. To see (and hear) Big Sam doing what it was meant to do....hmmmm. You could get hold of an original Samuri 240, which were prepared by the same people who built Big Sam. Though these are rather rare now, attached is one that was found with motorsport history, been sitting 12 years, I think it a real shame just sitting there rotting away....