Everything posted by Jeff G 78
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New engine
Looking great Guy. Keep the pics coming.
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steering rack moves
Could the rack have been changed?
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steering rack moves
How hard were they to install? The correct bushings are a pain in the arse to seat. If the driver's side bushing went in easy, then I agree with the above posts and you have a 240 kit. I've never had any rack movement after installing new bushings.
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cam tower question
No pics, sorry. Make sure you have the '78 FSM and read the engine mechanical section over and over before you begin. Once you understand it, follow it to the letter. If you simply do that, you should be fine. Everything you need to know is in that manual.
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cam tower question
Yes. Turn the engine to #1 TDC before you take the old head off and then wedge the chain. You can buy a wedge or make one. I made one from a scrap of wood 25 years ago and I've used it dozens of times. The dimensions are in the FSM if you want to get fancy. Once it's wedged, do not turn the crank at all or you will lose everything and be forced to pull the front cover.
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Cant remove driveshaft
With the right wrenches, you can do it very easily, but with the wrong wrench and/or an aftermarket stabilizer bar, it won't work. I use a Snap-On double box 12/14 wrench and I can have the driveshaft off in less than 2 minutes. If you remove the bolts and drop the stabilizer bar at the pivots, you will have plenty of space, but that is not needed with the right wrench.
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When Did They Switch to the Internally Oiled Cam?
Has the "new" N47 been swapped to a spray bar setup? The N47 I have is the only one I have ever seen with a factory spray bar.
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When Did They Switch to the Internally Oiled Cam?
What head are you switching to? If it's an older head, it won't be machined for injectors. You can see the notches above the intake ports. I have no idea if the notches can easily be added. I've never put a carb head on a FI engine.
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When Did They Switch to the Internally Oiled Cam?
If you are swapping the whole head, it's pretty straight forward. I would suggest having the new head fully measured. The last thing you need is to install a warped head or one that has been shaved beyond the limits. DAMHIK.
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When Did They Switch to the Internally Oiled Cam?
It's easy to go from a spray bar to an internally oiled cam, but to go the other way, you'd need to swap towers. Personally, I wouldn't try that. Chances are high that you'd struggle to get them aligned.
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Which head is best..
I let this one slide because it was obvious he was trying to do research an asked a follow-up question. Most noobs try to answer zombie posts.
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Which head is best..
The N47 is fine. It was thought that the liners restricted flow, but that has been debunked for the most part.
- Timming chain
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12 Volt switch source
Not sure if it's on the '76, but on the '78, there is an unused blade connector on the RH kick panel above the fusebox. I went through the same search and someone on the forum pointed me to that source.
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rocker arms fell off
Define "slight scar". How about a picture? If the damage is significant, and your car is a '78, then you could swap the cam from the N47. It will need to be internally oiled like your '78 cam, so the E88 cams won't work. If you swap the cam, swap the rockers and lash pads at the same time and keep them all in the same order and orientation.
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What Octane fuel do you feed your Z?
On the track, all is fine until I slow down. I have big issues at anything below 20mph. I plan to ditch the steel fuel rail. I think the heat from the head is being conducted through the rail brackets into the fuel. I'll also install a fan to keep air moving across the carbs and I'll cut a hole in the hood above the carbs similar to the later vented hood. If those things don't help, I'll have to try to run only premium fuel even though my low compression motor doesn't need it.
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What Octane fuel do you feed your Z?
True Wade, but the big thing that makes E10 bad for us is that ethanol is much more prone to vapor locking. High pressure fuel systems keep this in check for the most part, but low pressure carbed applications really suffer. I laugh when I see E85 at the local stations for ~10% less per gallon than regular 87. E85 will deliver close to 30% worse economy for the modest 10% price break.
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What Octane fuel do you feed your Z?
I'm sure that all of the issues I had with my race car were due to ethanol. In endurance racing, we are stuck with whatever gas the local station sells or paying huge money for high octane track gas. In a 25+ hour long race, we burned over 150 gallons of gas. What really sucks is the EPA's new ruling to allow E15. There is no way a carbed car will run on that crap.
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Oil Thrower?
If the cover is already on, leave it alone. I didn't realize you had it together. already.
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Oil Thrower?
I'd install it. It won't hurt anything and it only robs a small amount of power during high RPM operation.
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Oil Thrower?
I've raced the same engine with and without it and didn't notice any difference. I'll probably leave it off the next time I have the motor apart.
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280Z Restoration Candidate down in Phoenix -- claims no rust. $2900
Sounds high for what he describes. I'd guess it's a $1500 car at most unless he's overstating the flaws.
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E85
This has nothing to do with the OP's question, but Tim Zwicky was running E85 in his Tec III FI turbo 280Z. The last I talked to him, he was around 700 RWHP. He did it to run more spark.
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'72 SU Float Level
I bought the VHS tape back in the 90's when Scott ran the business and it's barely viewable anymore even though I've only watched it a few times. With enough tries, I can usually get the tracking in line so I have some sort of picture and sound.
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Pilot bushing '72 Z
The pilot bearing goes into the crankshaft and has nothing to do with the flywheel.