trippintl0

By the way, I can highly recommend buying from Pallnet directly. His stuff is great. But I'm not sure if you understood my post clearly - this IS an O-ring rail. The barbed fittings are where the fuel in and fuel out lines are hooked up to. The injectors it uses are O-Ring supra 440cc injectors. HERE is an EXAMPLE PIC: This is just like what it looks like, except it is for the L28 of course. (photo stolen from Pallnet's website!)

I have a Pallnet smooth fuel rail you can purchase. It has the fuel pressure gauge built in. It has straight barbed fittings on both ends (for 5/16" hose I believe); the fittings are JB-welded in so not easily removed. It fits with the O-ring Toyota Supra 440cc injectors. I am no longer using it. I noticed the fuel pressure gauge was reading approx 10 pounds of pressure even when disconnected. When I was at a stock 40 psi it was reading 50psi. It's still a useful tool, but obviously not accurate. Price $90.00. Price with 6 toyota Supra 440cc injectors (used) $150. I would need to check shipping cost since it's a little long but I would estimate it at 15 dollars.

Make sure your exhaust manifold is not warped. Mine was, and I got the exhaust and intake resurfaced together (since they use the same gasket), combined with a Nissan OEM manifold gasket plus a Pallnet stud kit for a proper seal. Although in my case dealer had to re-order the gasket like 3 times before we got the correct one...(kept getting the non-turbo one) with a one week shipping time on each order.

$20 angle grinder from harbor freight. Seriously though, I've never done it, but those grinders will cut through anything on a Z pretty quick. Get a face shield to block sparks and metal shavings.

I paid approx $60 to have 2 custom flexible hoses with flared ends on them, about 3 years ago, to run from the compressor to the condenser.

Just FYI, you can rent a fuel pressure test kit at AutoZone from their Loan-A-Tool program. It contains a "tee" with hoses and hose clamps to attach the gauge into the fuel line. You pay like $150 deposit, and they refund 100% when you return it (must return it within 90 days).

Just so you know, most of those R-12 to R-134a adapters require that you remove the Schrader valve stem out of the original fitting before screwing on the adapter. They usually come with a valve stem remover. If it doesn't come with it you can get them cheap, the ones for tires usually fit the A/C valve stems as well. If you try to screw on the adaptors before removing the old valve stem it usually won't go on correctly or it will hold the valve open or something weird.

"and use teflon tape on all the fitting." Depends on which type of fittings you are referring to: Flare fittings seal from the flare, not the threads. O-Ring fittings seal from the O-Rings, not the threads. If you are talking about the little adaptors that allow the R134a quick-connect hoses to be attached, then yes I agree, I believe those are supposed to have some kind of thread sealant on them. I would recommend putting A/C oil on any O-Rings to lubricate them prior to installation. And if your flare fittings are leaking, unfortunately you must cut if off and re-flare it. I don't know of any connections on the A/C system that use threads to seal,, unless it is some kind of pressure switch on the drier or something or the aforementioned adaptors. I suppose if your system leaks and you don't have to time or $$ to try to fix it properly, teflon tape on the threads may also slow down a potential leak.

Since the system is already flat, pull the evaporator and clean it really good and replace the weatherstripping around it. Clean & degrease the condenser coil (or replace it). Since R134a runs higher pressures for same temp as R12, keeping the condenser clean and possibly adding an extra fan will help keep the high-side pressure from being too high. Since you're disconnecting everything, replace any O-Rings. If you really want to try to make it leak free, replace those old A/C hoses with some fresh hoses designed for R134a. Finally replace the drier before you evacuate and recharge it. As far as retro-fits go, I always heard to drain the R12 mineral oil and use Ester oil. Although Ester oil is not as good a lubricant as PAG oil, I think you only use PAG oil on a completely clean system - there cannot be any trace of other refrigerant oil..but this is just from my memory, may not be accurate..

in this last picture it reminds me of the guy who tried to pull his car out of the ditch with a chain wrapped around his hands!

AutoZone part number 31-1003. Remanufactured 1982 280zx Turbo distributor with lifetime warranty. $227.99? There's an option for you!

sorry to have to do this to ya, but... quote from Rules: 4. There is no Best! No best tires. No best engine. No best shock. No best big chrome foot gas pedal. Every car builder and driver is in a different situation. What's good for one might suck for another. The decision on what is "best" for you and your car is completely up to you. As with any decision time, effort, and research is needed by the decision maker - you! Instead of asking what is "best", do some research, explain your situation in excruciating detail, and describe what alternatives you're considering in your decision. Posting a thread with "What's the best..." in the title it is a sure way to get that post tossed into the Tool Shed.

Why don't you watch this video tutorial. I found this a few months back.

I really like that white color on the 280zx. Nice looking car!

The distributor has little weights inside of it. As the distributor turns faster and faster, the weights slide out towards the edge. The design of the mechanism causes this to advance the timing more than the base timing. Base timing (or initial timing) is what you set the distributor at by loosening the mounting bolts (that bolt the distributor to the engine) and rotating it. Centrifugal advance (or mechanical advance) is determined by the tension on the springs that hold the weights in and the length of the groove for them to slide in. Typically people will use 10-20 degrees base timing, and 32-36 degrees total timing (on the L series engines). Changing spring tensions will cause mechanical advance to activate quicker or slower. There are many modifications possible but most likely you'll be better off to research more, or just set total timing at 36 and forget about it.

Notice later in the post he says, "so any technical details of exactly HOW this particular engine ended up in my Datsun are lost. What I do know is that this is a one-of-a-kind car."

There's actually a much easier way that an old school guy told me when I was attempting to buy the die for the shifter: Cut the shifter, and weld an M8x1.25 bolt upside down to the end of it. Totally simple, then just grind down the edges of the bolt so the shifter can slide over it. I had only a little bit of welding experience, and I was able to accomplish the entire task in about 15 minutes with a MIG welder and a bench grinder. [edit] (of course i'm assuming you have access to a welder!!) [/edit] Also you can do like I did and use an M10 x (?forgot?) so you can use the 300zx shift knob!

It would help if you put the word "Datsun" in the Craigslist listing. Usually when I search, I just type Datsun and see what comes up.

Found this at www.justanswer.com: "Locate the IMRC solenoid, mounted at the top front of the intake manifold (It should be the vacuum solenoid that is the closest to the throttle body of the 2 solenoids in that area). Verify manifold vacuum to the solenoid whenever the engine is running. Verify battery voltage to the Green/Orange wire at the solenoid whenever the key is on. Locate the IMRC actuator below the throttle body. Check the vacuum line that runs from the IMRC solenoid to the actuator for leaks or restrictions. Verify that the IMRC actuator holds vacuum, and pulls the actuator rod in as vacuum is applied. Verify 5 volt reference voltage to the Black/Blue wire at the IMRC monitor (which is part of the actuator) with the key on, and ground on the Green/Blue wire. If OK, monitor the White/Red wire with the key on and the actuator electrical connector plugged in. The White/Red wire should have 5 volts when there is no vacuum to the actuator, and should drop to less than 0.2 volts when vacuum is applied and the actuator pulls in. If all OK, start the engine, and check to see if the PCM grounds the Black/Red wire at the IMRC vacuum solenoid when the engine is idling. Verify that when the Black/Red wire is grounded, the IMRC solenoid supplies vacuum to the IMRC actuator, the IMRC monitor voltage on the White/Red wire drops to less than 0.2 volts, and the actuator rod pulls in. Then unplug the electrical connector from the IMRC solenoid, and verify that the vacuum to the actuator releases, the voltage on the White/Red wire goes back up to 5 volts, and the actuator rod extends back out."

A quick search on google showed those codes to be related to the intake manifold runner control. I found this on http://www.ford-trucks.com: "The Intake Manifold Runner Control (IMRC) is a system which uses dual intake runners to supply air to each cylinder. The secondary runners are normally closed, but the PCM opens them under high rpm conditions when the driver is demanding additional power from the engine. The IMRC system can be actuated using a single electric motor or dual vacuum motors. The IMRC system is functionally checked by monitoring the runner control plates using switches. If the actual position of the runner control plates does not match the commanded position, a malfunction of the IMRC system is indicated." and this: "Within each of the intake manifold's four runners is a butterfly valve that restricts the air passage at low speeds. This improves low-speed efficiency through inducing a "tumble" or turbulence by accelerating the air/fuel mixture into the combustion chambers. At higher speeds, the butterfly valves open fully to meet the engine's requirement for airflow. At these higher flow rates, the port shape itself ensures proper "tumble" of the air/fuel mixture for best combustion and improved power"

You got me there. I don't know the answer, but my bet would be a glitch in MegaTune. You may want to check on the MSEFI forums for more info.

The Warmup Wizard allows you to richen up the mixture based on the temperature of the coolant. The ASE provides a short period of enrichment after starting the engine, regardless of temperature. If you start up the engine and it is cold, then the ASE will be ADDED to the enrichment done by the Warmup Wizard. If you start up the engine hot, Warmup Wizard should not come into play, but yet you will still have the Afterstart Enrichment. - EDIT - sorry I didn't realize you are talking MSII. I have no idea why the MegaTune is set like that, that seems strange, unless that is a 3rd extra enrichment used by the Warmup Wizard only?? - / EDIT -

$373 isn't bad for that car, especially from a dealership. Plugs alone are probably over $50. I found this on a quick Google search: "You will need to remove the wiper arms and the tray assembly under the arms to give you more room. Then from there you will need a a magnetic spark plug socket with a good 3/8 air ratchet and a assortment of swivels and extensions. Not a real easy job. As far as a repair manual that will tell you exactly how to do it, I don't think you will find one. " Looks like the front 3 are easy and back 3 are tough. Other people suggested loosening motor mounts and rotating engine forward to access rear plugs. Of course then again random misfires can be attributed to a lot more than spark plugs, for example incorrect fuel pressure, vacuum leaks, MAF sensor dirty, intermittent crank pos sens., etc. Although since it's COP you don't really have plug wires to worry about, that's a plus. You may want to verify that there aren't any other check engine codes on before you decide what to replace; however, usually it never hurts to change the spark plugs anyways, assuming you use the correct plugs and gap them properly.

Just follow the FSM's recommendation - use a soldering iron to burn right through the old hose, then you can peel it off fairly easily. New fuel-injection hose will slide on (after some force) and seal, although some people still put hose clamps on the injector.

It's easy to drop the oil pump. Unbolt the two sway bar mounts from sway bar to frame rail. Then you can move bar enough to slide oil pump out. 4 bolts, and out it comes. It's good idea to mark where rotor points on the dizzy, that way it's easy to align it back up with the mark when you reinstall pump. I always pack the pump full of vasoline. I read that somewhere, and it always worked good for me, picking up oil pressure quickly. Also I read you said it doesn't matter where rotor points on cap, because you can just move the wires around. That's usually true, but you have to make sure of one thing. If your rotor is pointing right at the edge of the contact on the distributor cap, then when you start driving and your dizzy advances 20-30 degrees, it might jump over to the next contact point! I actually had that happen to me once.