Colin G.

It's been some time since I have updated my progress, and to be quite honest I don't know who is following it anymore. However, I recently put my L28ET up on Craigslist to get a feel for what offers I might get for it. The main reason being that after determining the total cost of the harness, updating the fuel system and other small bits and pieces, I realized that it was once again out of my price range. After receiving offers for trades of stock L28's and an undisclosed cash offer (undisclosed to me that is), I finally got an offer that stood out. A set of Dellorto triple carburetors with intake and linkage, a servicing kit for them and a L28/N42 shortblock. I was blown away, given that any Z enthusiast gets excited by the idea of having a throaty L-series engine powering their Zed. If everything goes according to plan, I will have the Dellortos on my L24 asap while I finish building the L28 and preparing to swap it in. Anyone familiar with the fuel delivery setup for triples? I was going to use the stock fuel filter > mech. fuel pump > carbs with no return for now, but eventually I was thinking of something along the lines of this: Fuel tank > Fuel Filter > Low Pressure electric fuel pump > stock feed line> carburetors > FPR (3.5 psi) > stock return line Let me know your thoughts if you have any. In the meantime I will continue to search the forums in hopes of stumbling across a write up.

This morning I connected the B/Y wire directly to the + terminal on the battery and got the same result, a single *click* and that's it. I believe that my issue is simply a dead battery. I also noticed that the ground I have connecting the (-) board to the firewall is weak, given that I connected the board to a bracket on the firewall. I am going to buy a new Odyssey battery from Porterfield and connect the ground directly to the firewall and hopefully that will solve my issue. Thank you guys for your feedback. I'm assuming that the starter solenoid isn't receiving enough voltage (e.g. dead battery) to pull the lever all the way, therefore this should be a simple fix. You will hear from me, success or not.

Newzed, I got the board from an electronics store called MarVac Electronics in Costa Mesa, CA. You can find their website at http://www.marvac.com/. I am out the door right now, but I will try what you suggested when I get an opportunity and let you know if it runs. -Colin

What a beautiful Z! I love everything you have done with yours, as it is what I imagined my 240z to look like after swapping in my L28et and going to paint. I think the only different between what you've done and what I'd like to do in regards to paint is to keep the hood painted the same color as the rest of the car. That and painting the interior and engine bay a coral blue. Still considering this combination, as the contrast between a bright orange and a light blue might be too extreme. However I think it may come out looking flashy, yet classy if done properly. As for everyone else who has been following this build and asking about my progress, I apologize for not updating more consistently. As of right now I have completed all of my wiring and am just trying to overcome an issue with my starter motor. Once that is completed, the car will be back on the road again where it belongs. I should also mention that I have been busy helping a friend with a project that was recently put under his control. Without any further adieu, I give you the RATSUN! Yes, that is a relatively large Garrett turbo sticking out of the hood. And just when you thought you had an absurdly wide stance. How about 12 inch drag radials in the rear and rims with a lip deep enough it'll fit a Monster energy drink can? Finishing up the wiring before running fuel lines and getting it started. Hopefully my donation of the stock injectors from my L28et will get this thing running of the stock ECU before more extreme aspirations begin (aftermarket fuel rail, 650cc injectors,NIStune engine management). Now that I've gotten your attention, here's another project I've been assisting with while my Z has sat... Here's a little teaser of the mold that is intended for a DSR motorcycle engine racecar. It is the work of Steve W, a fabricator and mentor that does fabulous work. For more information on his DSR project, please check out the link at REVelation Racing under "Composite Work: DSR Mold Buck." That's all for now folks, hope to hit you with another update once I get the electrical gremlins taken care of.

After completing the re-wiring of my 240z, the last thing that is holding me back is my starter motor. I have the positive and negative 0 gauge wires that connect from the starter motor to the battery in the right place and have the B/Y wire connected to a switched 12v (this is my toggle switch that replaced the original ignition switch). With this current setup, I was able to crank the motor over a few times, but only once. Since then, whenever I give power to the B/Y wire, all I get is a *click* before loosing all power to the board. Given my current situation, here is my question. Where does the B wire that is connected to the starter in the factory service manual need to go? Here is my starter as it sits right now with only 3 wires connected to it. Here is the board I was referring to. The board receives power from the battery and from here all accessories are powered (each with a individual circuit breaker).Please excuse/disregard the huge rat's nest of wiring, as I will clean everything up once I get the car running. Lastly a diagram of the wiring for a 1973 240z. The B wiring I am asking about is the one that is attached to a fusible link which then connects to the + wire from the battery. I know that asking for electrical help in a forum is a longshot, but I figured I'd ask about that B wire (given it is the only thing I am missing) before spending a few hours going over everything again. Any suggestions are appreciated!

Just going over this thread and couldn't help but laugh at this after a re-read. I assume you're refering to the Wangan Midnight crowd when you say "what got you into zcars." While that is indeed where I first came across the 240z, rest assured that I am not a 17 year old that intends on having a midnight blue replica. In fact I am beginning to become more and more annoyed by those who make similar comments on turbo'd Z videos, including "OooooHHHOOOoooo, ItS tHe DeViL Z!" or "nice 240z, but paint it blue already like the one from Wangan midnight." While at one point I may have been as excited and ignorant as the authors of those same comments, my intentions for this project are to create something that pays homage to the original Datsun while giving it an upgrade in certain areas (i.e. L28et, rear discs, LSD and eventually custom coilovers). More importantly this project is a journey though which I will invest a piece of me into my vehicle, which I am beginning to view as a living entity itself. All of the effort and commitment I have put in so far has resulted in a solid foundation to build upon, and while I am upset with the fact that my car is still sitting and not running, I have realized that it will pay off in the end with a classic vehicle that is unprecidented on the freeway. As far as the progress so far, the turbo motor is semi-complete (still waiting on the funds for wiring harness, AFM, distributor cap/wires, turbo wastegate actuator, et cetera). Have yet to really complete the wiring, other than mounting headlight relays to firewall and creating labels for all of the toggle switches (oh what progress ). But then again, I started my student teaching this previous week and am averaging about 9 hours of work a day without homework included, not to mention the 14 hour days on Wednesday (teaching in the morning with class in the evenings). Because of this hectic schedule I have had little time and motivation to work. But hopefully I will get some progress made over Spring break, otherwise it looks like the project is on hold until summer time rolls around.

Running out of time with still so much to do! Here is how the engine is currently looking now that it is reassembled. I still need a couple of various rubber tubes, as well as a fuel pressure gauge for my stock fuel rail as well as a fuel pressure regulator. Will update with photos of the modified stock rail once it is completed.

I cannot thank you enough for this quick, yet informative summary. I begin school next week and just finished replacing all of the gaskets in the engine and began reassembling it. It was to my dismay that after assembling the entire thing I noticed that the intake manifold was a bit crooked. Oh the joys of sharing the bottom bolts with the exhaust manifold... Anyway, I am going to correct that this weekend and then try and get some wiring done before all my time is consumed with student teaching. Already counting down the days until summertime comes and I can get this turbo Z up and running. For a run down of my project so far, check out: http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/topic/103881-wangan-zeto-an-introduction/page__p__971541#entry971541 Always nice to get feedback from Z experts

Havent checked back in to this topic in a few days after thinking it might move quickly into the archives without a response. Thank you for all of your responses, they were very informative. I will respond with which combination I end up going with in the near future, but as of right now my main priority is reassembling my L28ET. Bolted everything back on last night except for the oil pan only to realize that the intake appeared crooked when I took a step back and looked at the engine. Doh! Now that the original anger and frustration has passed, I will adjust the intake tonight after work. Thank you again for all of your feedback, as all of your comments are going into consideration for my setup. At the moment the 240z flywheel combo looks to be the best bet for right now, but I haven't given it too much thought yet.

I have browsed through a few parts interchange posts but haven't gotten a direct answer yet on my question. I am preparing to drop an L28et into my '73 240z, but still need a flywheel and clutch. For the moment I am going to stick with my original 4 speed until I can source a 5 speed. My understanding is that flywheels and clutches should be matched with the transmission being used, therefore I am curious if I can use the 240z flywheel/clutch combo that I currently have on my L28et. I am just trying to get the engine in and running without investing too much into a setup that will eventually be changed (4 speed replaced with 5 speed). What are my options or are there any blog posts that I have not come across yet that cover this topic? Your time and advice is greatly appreciated.

Seems like you went from extremely complicated and difficult (triple carbed turbo) and began to work your way back to simplicity (L24 with SU's). I envy you for trying the triple carb turbo, simply because of how bad ass it is. But im assuming it was an expensive experience given the cost of triple carbs, HKS surge tank/custom intake, turbo etc. Did you have any issues with the motor mounts switching back and forth from a 2jz and an L series? Lastly, what made you decide on switching the L28et for the L24 and do you miss not being boosted? PROGRESS Yesterday I had the joy of removing the oil pan. Never before had my wrist been so sore after removing so many bolts! After enjoying a PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon a.k.a. project fuel) while "icing" my wrist, I cleaned the pan and sprayed it with some hammered colored paint. I figured it would be overkill to go with black again and it ended up resulting in a nice balance between black and metallic coloring. While doing this I also removed the...where's my Haynes manual...ah yes, the oil strainer; rinsing out all of the little pieces of gunk that had built up in the filter and giving it a good soak in degreaser. Next I tried to do a little wiring, seeing as my car is still electrically gutted except for the radiator fan (which ironically I will have to redo anyway when I replace the current setup with a new radiator that comes with dual cooling fans). I focused mainly on the placement of the bracket that will hold my low/high beam headlight relays. I decided to use my '82 turbo ECU that will eventually be mounted to make sure that I had the ideal location for both. This is what I came up with: Has anyone else mounted their ECU on the side instead of directly on the firewall? Is this a good spot or will I run into issues when I install the wiring harness? I would figure it out for myself, except I am still saving for an engine harness (pathetic, I know, but my life as a coach results in a meager budjet). Next comes the timing issue. As mentioned before I wanted to remove the cylinder head so that I could replace the head gasket. After my last attempt, I went through again and managed to align the timing marks on the crankshaft pulley with the "0" mark on the timing plate as seen below. When this was achieved, I also noticed that the #1 dowel hole on the camshaft gear/sprocket was aligned with the mark in the camshaft thrust plate. However, the brass chain link lines up with the #2 mark on the outer periphery of the cam gear. The camshaft itself has both lobes pointing upwards on the first cylinder and the rocker arms are loose enough to be wiggled side to side, leading me to believe that the first cylinder is at TDC. So is it irrelevant that the brass link is aligned with the #2 mark of the outer periphery as long as I make sure that it is in the same position when I reinstall the head? If so, then I should be able to just remove the camshaft gear, remove the cylinder head bolts and remove the cylinder head. This is where I need your help fellow Hybridz members! Am I on the right track or am I risking offsetting my timing? If the later is the case, then should I even bother replacing the stock head gasket given that I will be running the motor as stock? Seeing as I'd hate to leave those of you kind enough to read these posts in the same suspenseful state as I currently am in, here is a look ahead of the color scheme I am thinking of going with. It is close to the original paint my car came with, therefore I find that it is both a restoration and a tribute to the cars original state that ties into my overall objective of having a Z with classic styling with modern performance enhancements.

Finished sanding the valve cover and painting the block. I think it looks great. You can never have too much black, right? Anyway, following the painting I reattached the motor mounts and the alternator. Loosely sat the valve cover on top just to get an idea of how it would look. Now just waiting anxiously for my gaskets... First off, this was how the block looked before painting: Valve cover after being sanded down, primered, painted and sanded with 100, 400 and 600 grit sand paper to polish lettering and border: Lastly, the finished product. Once I get those gaskets and I put everything back together and start getting ready to swap it in. Now back to sourcing a fuel pump, fuel pressure gauge and adjustable regulator, AFM, wiring harness, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.... Bye bye Christmas money

Alright, so as promised here are some quick photos. Here is the stock TB after removing the coolant accessories. The pocket and lines were filled with rust, causing me to worry about what the rest of the cooling system of the engine looks like. I intend to create a block off plate out of aluminum to fill that ugly void. Next is my EGR manifold with a lot of the junk removed. In the process of plugging some of those wholes and making another block off plate for where the EGR canister previously was at the back of the intake. I am leaving a few of the stock accessories, including a valve which releases pressure during shifting and a back-up valve that will open if boost exceeds ~9 PSI. The reason for keeping these items are because of the fact that I am running a stock engine without a BOV. I felt that with the small stock turbo, the lack of a BOV would reduce the turbo spooling lag in between shifts. Now on to the timing situation. Here is what I believe to be TDC on cylinder one. The main reason for my confusion earlier was the Haynes jargon, but after some observation I believe I figured it out. I have the #1 timing position on the cam gear in the center of the shiny chain link. The #1 dowel hole is aligned with the "cam thrust plate" timing notch. Am I at TDC on the first cylinder now? Here is what the cam gear looks like, just another perspective of the alignment of the timing notches. Once again, if you are familiar with setting up timing, please let me know if this appears to be TDC to you. Cam lobes in the rabbit ear position. After a visual inspection and viewing into the side of the cylinder head I believe that both valves are sealed. Today I primered and painted my valve cover and motor mounts. I also baked my exhaust manifold and intake heat shield: 30 minutes at 200 degrees, 30 minutes at 400 degrees and 45 minutes at 500 degrees. All in all I think they came out nice, but time will tell if the good looks will hold up. If I my timing is all in order, I will move on to removing the cylinder head and oil pan before cleaning and painting the block. Once the block is painted, reconstruction will begin using a full gasket set from Northern Auto. More updates will come, but in the meantime it is time to clean up and get ready for the evenings festivities. Happy New Years Hybridz Members! -Wangan Zeto

Dee: To answer your question that was the same craigslist ad. I knew it was an opportunity I had to capitalize on so I arranged to pick the motor up as soon as I contacted him. I did receive a '82 turbo ECU, but no AFM. I am still searching for an engine harness as well as the AFM and some sensors that I'm missing. I also discovered that the MSA down pipe that I intended on purchasing was only 2.5" in diameter instead of the 3" I was looking for, therefore a different aftermarket/custom down pipe is also needed. UPDATE: I am currently in the process of stripping apart the engine and replacing all of the gaskets and repainting the block, exhaust manifold, heat shields etc. I finished removing the EGR nonsense on my intake and just have a few more block off plates to fabricate. I also removed the coolant lines running to the throttle body, seeing as they were rusted out and I don't find it necessary to operate. I also decided to stick with the stock 50mm TB considering that I already have a 280zx turbo ECU. So if anyone out there has a wiring harness they would like to get rid of, I am all ears. I am currently stuck on removing the cylinder head thanks to my confusion of trying to get TDC on #1 cylinder without removing the front cover. However after further research or some assistance from Keith I shouldn't have a problem with it. Tonight I will most likely remove the oil pan and get that cleaned and painted before attempting to remove the cylinder head again. I am very optimistic about my original goals of having the engine refreshed and rebuilt before I return to school for the final stage of my teaching credential. That is when all hell brakes loose and I begin working 35+ hours a week without pay, resulting in very limited time to work on my Z. Therefore I am trying to have the engine assembled and swapped into my car before the end of January, that way I will be left with wiring the vehicle which can be done with small work intervals at a time. I will upload some more photos when I get a chance and, as always, I am grateful for any feedback, suggestions or recommendations related to getting a stock L28ET up and running. -Wangan Zeto

I am constantly searching craigslist for parts and try to make it a habit to capitalize on good opportunities. That was the case with my motor, which I managed to purchase from someone who was unfortunately going through a divorce, in need of money and desperate to sell. Just keep searching and be ready to take advantage of a deal when it presents itself. If you can't find a motor by itself, try your luck with guys parting out their 280zx's. Keep trying and you will eventually get lucky. Hope this was informative.