BTF/PTM

Hey everyone, I've dug high and low, and I'm pretty confident that this question hasn't been answered yet. From what I've found already, the bearings and seals are the same for all the long-nose R200's, and the driveshaft flanges can be swapped as well. And of course, the diff carrier can be swapped (open to LSD, for example). This implies that all long-nose R200 input shafts were, except for the tooth count on the pinion, dimensionally identical. My question: Are the tooth pitches of the rings and pinions also the same? For example, could you take an 11-tooth input shaft out of a 3.54:1 diff with a 39-tooth ring, and install a 10-tooth input shaft to make a 3.90:1? I realize that the question of durability would come up, having put a gear with wear pattern A against a gear with different wear pattern B, but new R200 gears aren't exactly off-the-shelf anymore.

Hi everyone, I thought I'd revive this thread with a (hopefully) relevant question. We have a z we just finished urethane bushings on, and the rear diff has not been reinstalled as we're waiting for an LSD R200 (car had an open r200 in it previously). Can we use the rear suspension crossmember (curved bar that is held in place by the vertical dogleg things) to pick the tail up enough to pull the stands out and set her back on her wheels? Otherwise we can use the seatbelt buckets as mentioned, but I thought I'd ask. Thanks!

Hi everyone, I figure this is a good place to start, I'm moving to Germany in about five weeks and when I'm settled in and have a place for the car the Z will be shipped to me from the states. I need all the info y'all are willing to give me, from the best way to import the car to the best ways to fly below the radar. PM me and I'll give you an email address. Thanks, everyone.

Hi everyone, I know this topic has been covered, I've read several posts and haven't found the following answers yet. First the specific scenario, I want to use the Modern Motorsports 280zxt CV axle adapters and also use the recommended 280z 27-spline stub axles and companion flanges to put said CV axles in my 72 240z. 1) Are the bearings and seals required for the 27-spline axles and companions the same parts as used with the stock 240z parts? I ask because, if I understand correctly, the strut into which the bearings fit is the same for the 240z and 280z so it may follow that the bearing surfaces of the stubs are also the same size. If this is incorrect, by all means someone correct me. 2) Does anyone know, and is anyone willing to list, the bearings and seals that I need to buy for the job? 3) Do I need replacement seals on the R200? If so, does anyone know and is anyone willing to share those part numbers? Thanks, everyone. Again I don't mean to beat a dead horse, I just haven't found these specific answers by searching.

I'll support avoiding the Haynes manual, both because you can download a proper FSM and because Haynes books should be used only for wheel chocks and for starting of a signal fire if you get lost. You can order an alternator bracket from Motorsport Auto, they can probably help you source power steering stuff as well. They carry the alternator you need, too, or you could go through just about any local parts store.

You raise a good question, I don't know that it needs to be changed. I do know that it should be checked, so I'll dig through the FSM to find that process and start there. And thanks for the affirmation that it's not worth paying someone else to do it, I think I already knew that answer in my head but needed to hear it from someone else. I've pulled and rebuilt engines before, there's absolutely no reason I'm not capable of adjusting cam timing on my own if it's necessary.

It's a '72 240z with a N42-head L28. I did valve lash yesterday, took a few repeats of some valves to get them all happy but it wasn't anything terribly difficult.

How much headache is this to pull off? A local shop did their best to explain it to me, showed me how to read the notches on the cam pulley and where the crank pulley timing marks are, but they warned me that it's a tricky job that can become a real pain in the arse if not done correctly. Anyone in the San Diego vicinity who's done this? I'm engine savvy and good with tools, just haven't done much in the way of timing manipulation before. Would it be worth paying the shop $100 to have it done?

Auto Zone, Worldwide and Carquest can all get a rebuilt '79 280zx distributor. I could also order one from Z Car Source or various other shippers. I've seen prices range from $105 at Auto Zone to $200+ from places that specialize in z parts. My question is, where did y'all buy your rebuilt unit, and are you happy with its performance? Is there any reason that a more expensive rebuilt from a z car place is truly a better buy than the $105 Auto Zone part? I'm talking the distributor itself, not the ignition module.

Ok, I've read all 17 pages and I still have a specific unanswered question so here it is. The preface: my '72 240z came with a healthy all-stock brake system except for a new 15/16" MC. My car has the factory option 14" alloy slotted wheels, which I think everyone calls the "peanut" or "kidney bean" wheels - these: http://hooniverse.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/IMG_6616.jpg . I like them, and until I can afford 16" Panasports, they are staying on the car. The car will not see any track time in the near future, it's not even autocross worthy yet. I am interested in doing the S12 4-piston caliper bolt-on conversion for use with the SOLID rotors. The interest lies mainly in giving the oversize MC something it can work with and improving the braking a bit for spirited street driving and just to improve the overall safety of the brake system. Figure why not upgrade a little if rebuilt stock calipers will probably cost about the same amount anyway... The question: Is there a particular set of the S12 calipers for use with stock solid rotors that will not interfere with the factory 14" mag wheels? I don't mind grinding a ridge of metal off or some other minor driveway repair, but if my only option without cutting, drilling or welding becomes using bigger wheels then I'll just downsize to the factory 240z MC and run the brakes stock until I can afford to do a real conversion along with the bigger wheels. So, can anyone tell me definitively whether one set of S12's or another that bolts up and uses the stock solid rotors fits readily inside the factory slotted 14" mags? PM's are fine as a reply in case it's deemed unnecessary to clutter the thread further. Thanks, everyone.

Thanks, I'll check for markings tomorrow. I'm so completely confused right now, I just finished reading a couple posts and articles that explained metering valves versus proportioning valves versus residual valves versus pressure switches, and I couldn't find anything that actually explained *what* the 240z uses. What is the device below the MC in the pictures I posted? I know it's got a switch that activates a trouble light in the event of line pressure loss, but does it do anything else? Does it physically limit any part of the braking system? Does it meter fluid? Does it have anything at all to do with how much fluid is sent to which brake line?

So my problem is not a missing reaction disk, much to my dismay. It's firmly planted right where it should be, and the freshly rebuilt vacuum booster held vacuum for a good 10 minutes until I disconnected it to pull the booster to check all this stuff. Now it's on to the next question that I've read about by searching various threads here. Below are a couple of pictures of my 15/16" master cylinder and proportioning valve. It would make sense that the larger reservoir (closer to the booster) feeds the front brakes, and the brake line coming out of that reservoir runs to the front half of the proportioning valve where it splits to a pair of lines that I traced to the front calipers. The smaller reservoir line runs to the rear of the proportioning valve (closer to the firewall) and I only see one line that runs down under the transmission tunnel to the rear brakes. Does that line split somewhere further down? Here are the pictures http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/z%20parts/?action=view&current=MC1.jpg http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/z%20parts/?action=view&current=MC2.jpg Thanks for the help, folks, tomorrow or thursday I'll probably do an all-corners bleed just to be sure.

Thanks everyone, I'll be pulling the booster this afternoon to see for myself. I called the shop that rebuilt it, their response was absolutely no help - they don't have much to do with booster rebuilds since they just outsource it, all they do is R&R the booster itself. They couldn't tell me anything about how the 15/16" MC operates compared to the factory 240z MC becuz they didn't know what size the factory one was in '72. I should have just taken the booster out and rebuilt it myself. This is what I get for spending too many years without a project vehicle and becoming fearful of certain jobs. Sorry for the rant, guys. One more thing - if observation serves me right, I won't need to disconnect anything from the MC when I pull it away from the booster, I just need to be gentle when bending the brake lines forward to clear it. Is this correct? I want to be ready for it if I need to disconnect brake lines and catch fluid and then prepare for bleeding the MC and brake lines if it's required.

So the 72 240z has a nice case of nose dive when braking and the whole system feels overall soft. Stock brakes - fresh pads/shoes and newly rebuilt booster - except for the oversize MC. The shop that did the booster advised me that the soft feel may be due to the larger MC preferring rear discs and/or bigger front calipers. Anyone have experience with similar symptoms? As for the nose dive, could this be a related thing?

Thank you, gentlemen. Jmortensen has put up with the same question from me on two forums now, but I promise I'll not ask again. Thanks for the link you put up, Jm, my primitive analog brain (I'm a mechanical engineer, I can't help it) isn't happy without very straight forward binary answers. That was exactly what I needed. Thanks again!! p.s. - if my car explodes in a fireball and no one's around to see it, will it still go snap-crackle-pop?

I've found phrases in several threads from several forums that indicate that it may be possible to run (in a '72 240z) a 280zx D6K8 distributor in conjunction with a MSD-6A (or equivalent) without any igniter module on the distributor. Instead the pickup coil wires can be run directly into the control box and it's all good. Has anyone done this? If this can in fact be done, I'm very interested in this method. Thanks all.

I just called napa for a quote on the E1280 igniter - does $289 sound right?? If that's accurate then I see why people say they're outrageously expensive, that's absurd. I could buy a whole MSD capacitive setup for that much.

Awesome, thanks for the help guys! Sorry about the newbie questions, I can pull and engine and rebuild it but ignition systems are new to me. So the good news is I have the distributor I want, bad news is I don't have quite what I need yet. I'll check around for the igniter unit. I just found a thread discussing how this kind of distributor can be used with no igniter unit at all when used on conjunction with an MSD box-type controller, so maybe that's what was done with the one I have. Any more feedback is welcome, thanks again! One more thing - is there some sort of readily available rebuild kit for a distributor? Can I take this one apart and refurbish it?

What does the DK68 mean? The wires don't go anywhere yet, the distributor is still attached to its engine. The picture isn't very clear, but the two wires splice to the 2-prong connector shown in the picture. Green stays green and red goes to purple. That's why I'm curious as to what it is, cuz it doesn't have any kind of external igniter on it. Is that a factory splice?

Here are a couple pictures. The guy who sold me my z (Kenji is his name here) hooked me up with a complete turbo engine (minus the turbo, it has SU's on it) and 5spd gearbox along with the car, and this distributor is on that engine. I'm looking for an electronic ignition for my 240z and I've read on the datsunzgarage site that I need a '79-'80 280zx distributor with the E12-80 igniter on it. This distributor I have doesn't have an external igniter, the wires come from the inside. Red/green turns into purple/green. I got a shot of the part number, too. Thanks, guys. http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/distributor/

Clear, concise, to the point. Someone give that man a Bud Light. Nevermind, he probably doesn't like fizzy yellow water. Finding any car that's smog exempt simply to get around smog laws will result in far more expense than you'd spend maintaining a much newer car. A z car can be made mechanically sound and reliable pretty easily, but do some research on the common z-car gremlins and problems and part failures and air leak problems and everything else and you may find that having one that's mechanically sound and reliable won't outweigh the number of things you have to put up with while driving it to make it worth while. My recommendation for a car that's dead reliable, easy & cheap to work on and that's fun to drive is to find an 88-91 Honda Civic or CRX. They aren't fast, but they handle like gokarts and they're easy to sportify and can be made fast with minimal budgets using standard toolbox tools. Perfect student cars, and great for weekend autocrossing

This method should work well enough. The diff is out of the car so spinning it is easy. Thanks =) *edit* - it's a 3.55:1, turned it by hand. For anyone who reads this later, make sure you turn BOTH axle hubs when you do this, otherwise you get the ratio of the internal spider gears instead of the axle ratio.

I wanna open my spare R180 since I've read that the gear ratio is stamped on the ring gear. I figure it may help with selling it if I can tell folks what ratio it is. Is there a gasket between the cover and diff housing? Is it as easy as removing the cover bolts and lifting the cover away? I don't wanna start opening it and find out midway through that I'm getting into a proverbial can of worms. Thanks, guys.

An update, the problem is in fact a dead vacuum booster. I had it checked at a local Z car specialist (Z Whizz Auto). They did also say that the rest of the brake system is in tip-top shape, so after a rebuild of the booster the car should be good to go as far as brakes. It will be interesting to see how well the car stops with the fresh booster - I wouldn't want to do a hard emergency stop as they were, but the car stopped safely and predictably during normal driving conditions without any boost at all.

Awesome, thanks. My car already has a R200 in it