2ManyZs

Guess I better get their video. I would have learned something. Glad all of mine are 4 screw, I won't mess up anything. Yeah, right.

I don't believe there is any difference in the carbs internally. One is just as good as the other. Why did they change from 3 to 4? Good question. Maybe no reason other than someone thought 4 screws would prevent it from being warped due to overtightening, I don't think I've ever seen a reason for it in print.

Sorry, forgot about that one. Yes, it just pulls off. Just be careful that you don't twist it, it sometimes can be tough to pull off as rust sometimes forms under it at the weld joint it is covering. I usually use a putty knife, once you get a small section up use the putty knife to pull it up. I have had some cars where you could pull it off with no problem so if it hasn't been off for a while just take your time. When you put it back on you can just use a small rubber hammer to tap it down.

The trim around the windshield and rear window does pull out quite easily, but you have to be careful not to bend it. It is also a major PITA to put back in. :mad: Especially if you put new gaskets in, not so bad when you leave the old gaskets in because they have more flex but the old gaskets may tear. You will have to decide on that. I would do the quarter windows and door window frame as they are, unless you are taking out the quarter windows to replace the gaskets.

I found an old Tweeks catalog in my drawer yesterday. They had the books from Road and Track and also Car and Driver that were old road tests of all Z models. Now for the bad news, I checked their web-site, www.tweeks.com, and it seems they are only into Porsche parts now. They used to be in Indianapolis but they are now in Effingham, Illinois. I guess you could e-mail them to find out if they are still in the Z parts business, I think this catalog is at least 5 years old if not older. Just in case, the numbers for the books were: BK110048 for the Car and Driver BK 101501 for the Road and Track. 70-83 BK 115526 for the Road and Track 84-89 So since this is only up to 89 it's likely this catalog is 10 years old. At one time they had as many parts as MSA, shame they changed over to that "other" brand!

If you are running the 280 electronic ignition it is possible it is the ignition control unit in the distributor, I had a 200SX that did the same thing, when it was cold it ran fine, then it just quit until it had cooled down. It was the ICU in the distributor, and they are not cheap, that is why a lot of people converted over to the GM HEI unit. Just another thought....Since you say you have an L28 in it you might check to see if it still has the electronic distributor in it as well.

Max, Look in the web-links for Too Intense Restorations, they have they taillights and the front clear lenses. Strictlyz has taillights for 260-280, you might check to see if they have the 240 taillights.

Check out the web links, I think I saw them perhaps on strictlyz or zparts.com, I know I have seen them advertised somewhere besides MSA. Try Victoria British and Tweeks, I'm kinda surprised MSA didn't have them, are they just out of stock or no longer available, I was planning on getting a pair when I finish painting my car.

If it leaks, well, you'll just have to do it again. I usually just use blue RTV silicone to help seal it up, don't use too much as you don't want any pieces of that floating around in there, just put some on your finger and give it a light coating, it shouldn't leak.

Whatever it is he isn't getting it over the counter!!

Take a look at their web-site. www.eastwoodcompany.com They've got different models(hp ratings) and all the accesories you need to do your own. If you buy their kit, they send a video to show you how it's done. Like I said, I've got the kit, just haven't got my car to the point where I can have some fun with it. Once I get the car painted then I can start polishing the aluminum. The have buffers you can use with drills etc. too so you don't really have to buy the kit with the stand an all. Hopefully one of these days I'm going to get the time to actually use everything I have bought from them, although I have used the blasting cabinet a lot. If you like working on cars and like having the tools to do it, they probably have it.

For a lot less than what he's asking you could buy a complete buffing outfit from Eastwoods and do your own! Then you could do other people's parts and make enough money to pay for the kit and the rest is pocket money!! I've got one I haven't had a chance to use yet, I wonder how much I could charge??

If you are trying to separate the bellhousing or the rear tail section it should come apart if you use a hard rubber mallet to "persuade them". If that still does not work you could try using a stiff ( the stiffer the better) putty knife and tap it into the crease between the cases, they may have gotten corroded over time and that will make it more difficult than one with a newer gasket or silicone. Try not to use a chisel if possible as this will probably gouge the cases, that's why I have a very stiff 1 1/2 inch wide putty knife, besides the blade is thin enough to cut into whatever is holding them together without trying to separate it all at once, just keep using it every couple of inches around the whole case and it should come loose.

I agree with John, even though I never heard the myth of the "secret high horse intakes" when I was racing in ITS. Maybe because it was just a lot of BS. I doubt you could find much difference in the manifolds without doing a sectional cutaway and measuring them with a micrometer to begin with. They are all basically the same design, with very minor modifications during the course of the L series engines. I also believe that a good port matching does more for an L series motor than anything else you can do in an afternoon in the garage. Although I will say this, I have read that Extrude Honing may not be the best thing on a Z motor as the intakes need some of the roughness to create a disturbance to properly mix the fuel and air mixture. I'm not sure but I think this may have been discussed on the Datsun Garage web-site. I believe it has something to do with the short intake runner length. A slight smoothing of the roughness instead of a polishing is better. (?)

According to my 71 shop manual, it is 14-19 ft-lbs. Which isn't much, if you don't have a torque wrench that goes that low, just use a 3/8 wratchet until it's snug. For such a thin book, I'm surprised it was even listed.

You probably should also check the starter relay, as well as the fusible link at the starter. It is even possible it burned out the relay and the ignition switch I suppose. Depending on how long the starter ran it could have gotten the wiring hot enough to fry a couple things. I would start at the starter and work back the fuse panel and then to the switch. Sorry, can't tell you much more without seeing the car, in which case if you think something is questionable, replace it. Only then can you start ruling out possibilities.

I believe they are all the same. There should be a number and Japan cast into the manifold on number one and number six intake runner as mounted on the engine. Mounted on the engine it should be on top where it is easy to see. At least that's the way I think they all are here on US models.

Sounds like you have bent a roll pin on the shift fork, usually they snap off and you will either be locked in one gear only or have a choice of two gears. That would be the first place I would look. You should upgrade them to a larger pin or it is possible I think to double pin them. If you haven't got a roll pin problem you may have bent the shift fork (usually the pins go first). It is a very common problem, happens all the time at the track. They don't like too much abuse, and they let you know when it is time to be a little easier grabbing gears. It is a shame to have to pull a trans. for the proverbial 50 cent part but I think that is quite possibly what has happened.

I would do the springs/struts and the bushing upgrade first. No sense in tearing the suspension apart twice, you may as well do the bushings when you do the rest. Personally I prefer the poly bushings over the rubber. The next thing would be your tire and wheel size and choice of tire brand. I would do the sway bars after that, reason being you will be changing the handling characteristics of the car over stock, but how will be up to your spring/strut combo and the tire and wheel width and brand of tire. Until you know if the car is going to understeer, oversteer (not too likely) there is no sense in putting bars on that will make the condition more pronounced. Z's usually understeer, so depending on your spring/strut combo, choosing the right size bar will depend on how much closer to neutral you want the car to handle. In fact in some case it might be better to leave the bars alone, it all depends on what you have already done and how you want your car to handle. If I can make a suggestion, you might consider using the progrssive rate springs if you want an all around car that can be taken to an autocross once in a while. It doesn't take much in terms of spring rate change to make your Z turn into a kidney buster as a daily driver. If your preference is more toward racing the car then go with the heavier, single rate springs.

Or how about, "Can I have your flashlight for a minute? I'd like to show you a great place to put that!"

Just one small thing, when you get done modifying the suspension to improve your performance remember you are riding around with 30 year old brake technology. The brakes are good, don't get me wrong, but they are not up to the standards of even a mid-priced family sedan nowadays. I have raced on those brakes, believe me, when they reach their threshold be ready for some scary moments, there is no sicker feeling than going into a turn and having the pedal go all the way to the floor!! 50 mph or 100mph, it isn't fun. At the very least you should upgrade to some really good aftermarket pads and shoes, or possibly do a four piston caliper swap in the front. With what you can do to improve the already good suspension, and the tires that are on the market now, you need to pay attention to the brakes too. Just thought I would add that...

Phred, I only see one thing wrong with your stand. Not everyone has THAT much room in their garage!! Let's see, if I add a second story, knock out the back wall.........hmmm.......

I will add a couple more ideas to the ones you have gotten so far. 1. Decide exactly what you want to do with the car. 2. Decide where you can locate the parts necessary to do the job. 3. Decide how much of the work you will do yourself, or who will do it for you. 4. Get more than one estimate for any work you aren't doing yourself. 5. Are you willing to sacrifice the time and money it will take to FINISH the job? Not just start it and lose interest in when it gets to be more than you bargained for. (Been there, done that) 6. Are you taking the chassis somewhere to be painted? If so, remember, the more you take off the car, and the more you can do to make the job easier(fixing the little things) will save you a pile of money! 7. Anything you take off the car, TAG IT, AND BAG IT!! You will save yourself a lot of aggravation if you do this, you won't know how hard it is to find that one missing screw or clip, until you spend hours trying to find the right one. 8. Don't get frustrated! This is the one thing that has kept a lot of cars from being finished, and being sold in pieces to someone looking for a good deal. 9. Once you decide on what you want to do stick to it, changing your mind about something in the middle of the job is wasting time and money, most of us don't mind wasting time, but who likes wasting money? 10. Enjoy yourself, it's not a j-o-b! P.S. I have been working on the same car for over a year and it still isn't ready to paint. So think about how it will look when it is finished, not what it looks like now.

I'm not sure but it seems to me I've seen cars with the original tachs hooked up to the ZX electronic ignition. I may be wrong, and I haven't tried it yet, so do some research. I know that MSD's and a lot of the other aftermarket ignition systems aren't compatible or you need to buy an adapter (MSD anyway) so do some checking. As a side note, I have a car with the MSD and an aftermarket tach ( race car) that the tach works just fine. This was after everyone told the guy that owned it he had to have the MSD trigger to hook up the tach. So a little experimentation might pay off!

Boy, am I an idiot!! I passed up a chance to buy a one owner silver 72 with a red interior, it needed so much work I said no way. Now I see your car and I am kicking myself. I know the red interior is kinda rare in the early cars, and seeing one as nice as yours really hurts. Great car! Breaks my heart though.