rayaapp2

Of course there is such a thing as too big. I do not have an open header. I have a full length 2.5" exhaust system on the car. The exhaust isnt tuned for this engine at all. Not to drag this on, I will agree its not the issue, but its almost certainly to big for a mostly stock L24. I would guess this engine would be much happier with a 2-2 1/8" system with a nice 'turbo' style muffler at full length and a stock RPM range. Between velocity drop off/lack of scavenging and skin effect in the tubing this exhaust does not match up well with the mostly stock L24 I have. Unless you want to tell me that Hondas with 3 and 4" exhaust systems on stock motors are suddenly making gobs of power. If I had more access to neat tools like a dyno and a lot of time I could make the 2.5" work and well. Between the volume in the pipe mostly because of its length there is no way Im scavenging anything during the valve events and the mass of air stagnet to the pipes surface is most likely a huge restriction to flow. Id bet if I cut it off within 1' of the collector Id pickup a significant amount of power. Id also expect the same thing from a smaller tube diameter full length, but it would be a trial of test fitting sizes with mufflers to get it correct. I dont have dyno results to back it up, but I have played with exhaust systems on a few L series. I will say this, Id love to be wrong. I like the sound it makes. BTW Plugs look good with good tanning, but not overly rich. I built the engine. The timing chain assembly was installed by me. I installed the cam straight up using the stock timing marks not with a degree wheel on the rocker and that may be my issue. The marks were dead on for once and I verified it after 4 rotations of the crank the first time and Ive checked it multiple times since then. I do not have a cam card for this cam. I wonder if its cut to be setup retarded. I will give it a shot when I have some free time to find out. That is DEFINATELY a possibility I completely looked over. I believe the blaster 2 coil is setup correctly for the pertronix ignition, but Ill double check. It hasnt been an issue and Ive driven the car for several years before this with this ignition setup. Thanks guys

I was pulling that number off the top of my head. Here is the specs I pulled off this distributor: Idle @ 750rpm 12° 1350 still 12° 1500 17° 1700 22° 2000 27° 2300 33° 2600 37° above that it stays around 37° but gets occasional flux above Those were my guesses as well, but after I could find nothing wrong with the timing cam or ignition I moved on the fuel. So now Im back to timing. LOL I guess I will pull the valve cover off again and check the cam timing. I cant conceive I looked at it that many times and somehow got it that wrong. If it were the cam timing I would suspect it to be off by less than a link but still a good bit for this much performance robbing. Im not great with setting up cams as I have only basic knowledge of cams. My guess was the cam was retarded, but I guess advanced makes more sense in this case now that I think about it. Worse comes to worse I guess I could retard the cam and see what that gets me. And cylinder compression is even all across and cam lobs are in good shape. Another bit of information I will throw out there just to muddy the water here. I started with a "C" cam in this car and it was doing the same thing with the "C" cam after the rebuild. I suspected a cam issue and went as far as trying a different cam I had around. All that changed was a bit of low end torque or so says my uncalibrated butt dyno. I cannot find the common link for some reason unless Im installing cams wrong all of a sudden.

I have a basically stock L24, SU's, and a 6-1 header. The exhaust is to big at 2.5". I have a Delta mild cam in the engine as well set straight up with a new timing chain and timing components. I would not normally have issues finding a problem with something like this, but you know how it is when youve smashed your head against a problem for too long and your 'fuzzy' headed. Please give me an outsiders perspective on this. I have a pertronix pointless ignition with an MSD blaster2 coil. My fuel system consists of the OE style lift pump and a Mallory 110 electric fuel pump set at 4psi. The SU's are in good shape, but without a exhaust gas analysis I do not have a concept of were I am with my AFR's. Ive checked the float bowls and Im good with where the level is set at and with 4psi of fuel pressure Im sure the fuel volume is more than adequate for the engine. The timing is set at 12*btdc. The car exhibits good low end torque but a total lack of power beyond 2K rpm. Its just flat and slow. It sounds great driving down the road but just does not pull at all. I mean it revs out and I end up having to keep it in a lower gear just to stay moving. I tried adjusting my main jet nozzles to sort out any lean/rich issues and I have hit both rich and lean walls. Ive changed the spark plugs out as well to try and get some reaction out of the engine and nothing. Its almost as if Im not getting any advance though I know I am as I can see the timing go up to 28* or the cam was retarded even though I have more than quadruple checked the cam timing. This engine was recently rebuilt and I did not have an issue with the old components. The new components are basic things like timing chain kit, gaskets, etc. so Im baffled. There has to be something very simple that Ive overlooked and am now blind to. Without just replacing a bunch of components Id like to come up with a strategy to diagnose this engine issue. Im pretty stuck on it being some kind of timing issue as Ive all but eliminated the fuel system from the equation.

I run a 170F in mine with a iffy original radiator. Drilling a small bleeder hole IF the T-stat did not have one is a good idea. Its small enough that it will not affect warmup and will prevent an air pocket in the cylinder head. A good T-stat will have one already. Im with Tony on the heat range. Learned that one long ago, but he drives in a warmer area than I. Ray

Neither of the bolts around the water jacket at the timing cover go into water passages. The 8mm bolt that holds the water pump to the timing cover does, but that should not be the bolt in question here. Id say you have a gasket failure at that top bolt. Eventually it might seep into the oil pan. bolt it back together and pressure test the system. See if it holds pressure over a few hours. If it does then Id say your okay, but if it leaks down and you do not have any other leak sources its time to pull the timing cover and replace the gasket again and check the surfaces at the timing cover and block for issues. Ray

The L20e I have is the same as the rest of the L series. I doubt that is it either. Well the L20e I have until tomorrow when Tony finally takes possession of it. LoL

The RB pan pattern will almost bolt up to an L series. How ever it does not look like the RB pattern The 2 humps in the rear would make it impossible to bolt it over the main cap rib and the pattern in front doesnt look like a RB oil pump would fit it. Post some pics of the inside of the pan please.

On that old of a car, 1977, you have smog to deal with still, but as long as it is after the catalyst you should be fine. As far as noise I would bet with the catalyst in place it would quite enough to pass a sound check. They only hickup you may face is the BPT for the EGR. If you dont have enough back pressure in the system the EGR will not function and constitute a failure. The way that system is checked on your car though, it will pass an emissions functional check as all they do is connect vacuum to the it and cover the exhaust to simulate back pressure. In short it will still pass. As for the header you will need one that is Ca legal. The Catalyst has to remain on the vehicle within 3" of its original location. Other than that I do not see why you would have an issue. Technically speaking its illegal. The law is written to the tune of any modification from the beginning of the emissions system to the end that is not approved is illegal. That said the loop hole is that you cannot purchase an original OE cat back exhaust system for the car. So who is to say you cannot replace the exhaust pipe and muffler with something else. This would ONLY be an issue if you were sent to a Ca ref though. A smog station is not gonna flinch over it as long as the header has CARB or EO numbers and the catalyst is in place.

Well the first accident is now taken care of. Im now battling it out with Infinity over the second insurance. They have an extreme lack of communications. Since Feb they have contacted me 2 times. I have been the one in contact with them to push them. They sent someone out to look at the car without me present for a second estimate. They assessed the damages incorrectly. They dont have a clue what has been put into the car. They are now at a standstill awaiting total loss paperwork apparently. They dont want to give me more than $3500 for a stock 260Z. They are ignoring their first estimate that notes that their is $6800 in damages to repair the vehicle to stock and it is noted that it would be considerately more because the vehicle is custom and custom parts were damaged. So the insurance commissioner is now involved. Im seriously close to retaining an attorney on the matter. They have not seen my receipts or looked at my build book. If they think they are gonna total the car out and try and force that down my throat they are in for a rude awakening. If I have to strip the car down to a bare shell I would still not come out on top but that is all I would hand over to whomever thought they were picking up the car for a total loss. 'Sorry thats all you paid for oh and i cut the frame rails off the car'. Im already $4500 out of pocket for the loss for alternative transportation that I cannot get back from these a-holes. Would it be wrong to use what ever check they send me to get revenge? I mean insure my big ass truck through them and then hunt down their building in Sacramento and just run into every car in the parking lot? Maybe I need a shrink...It sure would be satisfying.

Look into the 2011/2012 FINAL Smog Update courses Tony. Specifically what is in store for the smog program to be in full swing by Jan 1 2013. Check out the new Star Program that replaces the current Gold Shield/directed vehicle programs and what it means for the state technicians. Star has been implemented as of Jan 1 2012, but its running in a test mode gathering data from test sites so it can be fully implemented the first quarter of 2013. Its a nightmare for technicians and the beginning of the end for Test Only with a restructuring of smog licenses as of Aug 2012. Wait for the system to collapses around itself as consumers wait in lines at the remaining smog stations. All in the name of catching a few bozos clean piping. Im waiting for the day when its required to have a specialty license much like cosmetology has to just to be a technician in the field. Its coming.

HEY LOOK FARTS doesn't get censored but S>N>A>TC>H does?!! WTF So: I went to the auto parts store and farted in the muffler isle. vs. Im going to the auto parts store to ****** a great deal on a muffler. Lets just censor all the words and we wont offend anyone's feelings. LORD ALMIGHTY WE HAVE ISSUES

I hope every aspect of my being offends someone out there. If not Im doing something wrong. Sometimes I think we are really headed towards something like that episode of Family Guy where the FCC comes in and takes over only not so funny. Obama's FCC Gestapo will come in and censor my internet, then my farts, and eventually my thoughts. But that is a tangent for sure.

Play around with different mufflers and glass pack designs under the car and eventually you can get that crisp sound your looking for and muffle out the high rpm drone you dont want. They key is to doing it without adversely affecting any performance. My glass packs are obnoxiously loud now. Early 90's 4cyl camry SS center muffler is straight through and the same pipe diameter. I found one so far. Im going to find another and install them in the trans tunnel and see if that takes the drone out since that seems like what it is designed for. Since Im not harmonic expert Im just trying what I have access to. And that's just one example. Many of todays modern cars have 'pre-mufflers' or what ever you may want to call it. I try and ****** up the SS stuff for longevity. Newer Lexus' and Toyotas have a wide range of these in different lengths and diameters, but pretty much any manufacture out there is going to have something. Its just a matter of fitment on your car and if it 'works' for you. EDIT: REALLY? S>N>A>T>C>H as in to grasp or seize hastily, eagerly, or suddenly. is blocked!!!? Its not like Im actually referring to womens anatomy here. Seriously? How infantile.

I have purchased 3 engines second hand that came from Venus. All three were never ran since purchased. 2 got as far as installing a new timing belt incorrectly and the 3rd was bought as a core from venus after it had been dropped during shipment. After dis-assembling all three I found that all three had wasted bearings. Down way past the babbet into the copper surface. All three engines sat at/near port or in the rain for an extended time that allowed massive buildup of water in the cylinder head plug valley and all other exposed aluminum parts. I believe he is currently sourcing his engines out of Hong Kong. Other than that it has been my experience when digging through his 'piles' that many of the missing parts are on the floor. He gets most those swaps as front clips and they are just ripped apart to get the engine out. Ron can be a nice guy or he could be in well a bad mood. Once he knows you he is usually nice unless he feels like your taking advantage of him. In most cases if you are local he will work with you on returns or missing parts. With the engines I have pulled apart from there I would not trust that the engines being sourced were well cared for. Not that that is Venus/Ron's fault. Just a fact. There is an extensive thread on the subject somewhere. My personal favorite place WAS Jhot Imports. Unfortunately JHot's supplier went under and they decided to close up shop.

That looks okay to me. Unless you have a kink in the inlet hose or your BOV is not recirculated correctly I dont see an issue. Is your PCV system also hooked up in there? What do you have to watch lambda? No point in guessing around unless you know you have an air/fuel issue if you cannot sample the actual lambda. Otherwise you will be chasing your tail here. Id suspect a coil issue still with a miss like that. The exhaust will load up with partially/unburned fuel and light it off when you let off for the shift. Or if you are excessively rich/lean the same thing will happen. The ONLY upside to that is that its kinda cool to see the tail pipe light up your rear view mirrors at night. But the downside is the miss and possible engine damage. The fuel delivery system in the Z even modified isnt really adequate for EFI. Some will contest that statement, but what I found is that the tank needs a sump, the lines are to small, and the stock FI for the RB has a modulator unit for the fuel pump that almost no one integrates into their swap. So no matter how you cut it you will end up with tune issues of some sort. An adjustable FPR helps, larger lines of at least 8mm are needed(I went with 3/8"), a proper tank or surge tank with lift pump, and a tunable ECU or piggy back will all help. You can get away without some of that though and its been done, but that is my recommendation even for a stock RB swap. The volume delivered through 8mm lines with a proper sump pickup and an adjustable FPR were just barely adequate for my stock RB on a dyno. My stock setup went lean on the dyno after 4000 rpms. I used a SAFC II to correct and then found issues with my coils and plugs. It all boils down to our Zs having a completely different fuel system than the donor cars for which the engine was designed to work with. Even a 280z fuel system would have issues as I found out. Its a matter of fuel volume at pressure that you are trying to match. That should give you some to think on. If you do not have a current way to monitor your lambda that should be your very next step. Either a calibrated wide band or dyno run. OR if you know a local smog tech that will let you sample your car in a manual testing mode you could do a five gas calculation to find lambda and get a general idea. I would say get your engine heat soaked after that. A hard run down the freeway aught to do it. Do this at night. Pull over in a dark place and have a spray bottle handy. Lightly mist your coils and see if any of them arc to ground during your idle miss. I know you mentioned you tried this once. The arc is hard to see, but you should at least able hear it arc. Its important to try and simulate a loaded situation with the heat soak and mist though. If its not hot it may not try and arc and you will still have an issue that you cant find. There shouldnt be any arcing anywhere near the coil. If there is any its done and time to replace. Ray

Dont gap platinum tips either. Gapping them will loosen their platinum tip from their seats and they will FALL out and float around in the chamber until they are spit out or embed their hot bodies into something unpleasant like a valve seat or piston(and they can burn their way all the way through a piston). Even if it spits out the tip... its headed to the turbo turbine. Either way chances are your bound to have a really bad day. Just in case you were not privy to that info. Something fowl is going on with #1. Here is where I would start to suspect something mechanical. See how its fowled up on one side... Thats usually indicative of intake charge blasting the plug with oil. Its possible something else is occurring, but in most cases I would suspect valve stem seals. The discolor of #2 looks slightly wet like fuel fowl. That may be your mis-fire. Let us know how your diagnosis comes along. Ray A.

I was going to mention to check the timing with the inductive light you have there as well, but its looks like you got that covered. Try pulling injector connectors not ignition coil connectors. It almost sounds in the video as if your lighting unburnt fuel off in the exhaust system. That may just be the audio quality, but its probably a better place to start than the coils to determine the cylinder. My personal advice is to ditch all iridium or platinum plugs. Dont waste your time with them. If they are not causing an issue now they WILL be an issue under boost. The same reason why you would not use bosch quad tips or E3 plugs. Some people swear by these. 'MY PERSONAL OPINION' is that no forced induction vehicle should use any of these plugs. You either do not have enough surface area to work with or far to much. Neither in again my opinion is good. This is my opinion because I have seen the results on a dyno. I have not tested every forced induction motor ever made so there may be some out there to prove me wrong, but I can tell you I have seen this on several RB power plants. Go buy the plain nothing special copper core spark plugs. It doesnt matter if its the bottom shelf brand. For the RB I special order(because no one carries them in stock) NGK copper cores. Not V power or what ever, just plain copper cores. For stock boost gap those plain copper cores around .035-.036". I went a step colder than stock, but Im sure the stock heat range will be fine for a stock engine like yours. If your not lighting fuel off in the exhaust Id think you have a clogged injector thats way to lean on one cylinder. Once youve sorted everything out as far as the timing and spark plugs do a 'power balance test" which is basically pulling injector clips one at a time and noting the drop in rpm for each cylinder. Once you find the cylinder with the least drop you have your culprit cylinder. Then insure you have power and ground at the injector. Consult a wiring diagram here and see what gets switched power or ground and test them. I believe you should have solid power and switched ground, but check to be sure as I work on a lot of cars and who knows what Im remembering. With the car running you can use a multimeter to check for switch ground(if the case may be as I suspect) and solid power. Or if you have switched power all you need to do is verify ground and use a test light and watch for it to blink at you. Once you have eliminated that part you should be able to move onto the injector itself. Swap that injector with another one. See if the miss follows that injector. If it does you can try and back flush it, but Id just replace it. That doesnt sound like the typical coil pack missfire, but I guess as a last ditch effort you can move onto the coils and try swapping that cylinder coil with another one and again using the injectors cut fuel and see if the miss follows the coil. IF you get your spark plugs changed and youve eliminated the fuel and spark then its mechanical... The only thing Ive missed here is random misfire. If its a random misfire then your gonna have get a bit more involved with your diagnosis. Hopefully that helps Bonk Good luck! Ray

This was my daily driver, but I was just about to purchase a 10 year old 5 series BMW so the Datsun could be driven for more or less fun rather than commuting. I need to contact my insurance and see what I can do to have the car insured properly through them. Id have a psychotic breakdown if they totaled my car for $5K. Lets just say Im getting a lot more from that second insurance claim without totaling the car out. It would not have worked out so well if it were my own insurance under collision though. It would be a huge loss if the car was totaled for anything under $20K. That's about what I have into the car, however I could not build the car for that price a second time so the car would not be replaced at that cost. The problem with the first quote I got was that they quickly looked over the car for like 10-15min and took pictures then attempted to put a estimate together. Because no attention was paid to the rest of the car it was assigned an automatic value and was a total loss for $3000. So the current insurance dealing with that one has to send out a special adjuster to value the vehicle and asses the damages again. I guess if this was a stock 260z Id have given up and let them total it out, but I just have so much of my time and money into it that Id never get back.

Looks like the second accident is going to settle out a price of my liking for damages rather than pursue this longer and try to total out the car. That is great news! So in a few weeks I will likely be able to start to tare into the car so it can be sent off to the body shop! The home owners insurance is also working with me for the first accident so Ill be getting a check from them as well! Things are finally looking up and working out. Guess karma works itself out after all. Ray

Car was hit again on the 13th of Feb. 88 Mustang hit my parked 260Z Check out the album for more 2/13/12 second accident So the next step for this project is here. The big turbo kit in my garage is going on. Im going straight after a set of reaction research 280YZ flares and air dam and a nice set of 18" CCW wheels. Im going to try and get something similar to Bill Coffey's 240Z. Delete the hood scoop, rally stripes, and Im going to have a flat black centers forgings for those wheels. The color blue is very similar to what Im after too with this I think. Still in the air on color, but I know its gonna be a blue. Insurance is finally working with me with both of these accidents. The car will not be totaled after an independent special adjuster was hired by the insurance company to come out and get a proper estimate. He returned back to the insurance with a scary answer for them. Roughly ' Here is my assessment of the vehicle and price to repair this vehicle to stock, however there are a lot of custom fabricated parts that are damaged on this vehicle.' The insurance knows at that point that its gonna be expensive real fast when someone like me has all the receipts and could potentially drag this out. So rather than send the car off to a shop for taredown and supplement payments for anything they find beyond the initial stock components, they are seriously considering just paying me their cap and having me sign a release for them. Their cap will cover my repair costs for sure and then some. Looks like I will be detailing these mods as well and setting aside monies from the insurance payment to have the car appraised when its finished. I am also going to have a pow wow with my insurance about the costs of full coverage on my Datsun now and with the appraisal. Good time to snuff this problem from ever becoming a point of stress again.

looks like you are going to need a new front clip in the least and probably some bad dog Z/findings parts. You had a nice car. I recently had 2 similar experiences. You should be able to get some kind of value assigned to that car that will help you out. The key would be to find a place that would be willing to repair the car for less than the damage threshold of the insurance company. You will have to have that discussion with your insurance and it can be a tricky one as they have several options to play that will reduce their total payout. Good luck and hope you get her back on the road! Ray

It appears that the first accident will not be covered under uninsured motorist. Im going to have them put that in writing though. If thats the case then I will be going after the kids parents home owners insurance or small claims. Sounds like fun. The total is $3,061 in damage. The rough incomplete estimate for the second accident is $6700 but will be closer to 8-10K once they get into it and have to replace things like shortened modified struts, tokico shocks, energy suspension bushings, optima red top, turbo, etc. The price was just for a stock 260z. So no I have to get a special appraiser out to see the damages and asses the cars value and get the damage threshold. I have a long fight ahead. Ray

A bit more bad news. The second insurance company has started an investigation regarding the driver which was not listed on the insurance. They are trying to claim that the guy driving the car is at fault and that the insurance doesnt have to cover it. REALLY? I havent heard from them in the allotted time given to me and now I get a hold of them and they are pursuing an investigation that is completely bogus. They insure the vehicle primary and the driver second. They are liable for compensating me irrelevant of the investigation that by their own admission will take 2+ weeks. Stall tactics? Why? They said that if they did not cover the driver they did not have to be held liable and would cover nothing and that at that point I would contact my insurance and claim uninsured motorist... So I called my insurance and let know what the other insurance is trying to pull at this point. I have pretty good insurance, Im sure Ive said that at some point in time. They are on the ball on this one. They will be contacting the other insurance tomorrow and straightening out the facts here with the who covers what BS when a car hits hits another car. They are now sending out a claims adjust to look at the car on Monday. Thats going to be fun explaining how a "Datsun" is worth more than $17,000 and would cost something like $50K(by my estimates) for a legitimate shop to duplicate. I should really call Rob Fuller in San Jose and ask him for a quote to build my car over again... I bet he charges more than my 50K estimate. Matter of fact, I might try and email him next. As for my insurance with the uninsured motorist claim(first accident) I heard from them today finally. I spoke with the claims adjuster. He called up the collision center and got a handle on the delay. Apparently the gal that assessed my first accident damage went on a week long vacation and never turned in the assessment report. I will have that tomorrow. And I will have an idea of how much money I will get for that incident. The claims adjuster in this case was hella cool. He was totally a Z lover! Ray

I have kept photos of the car since day one. I have documented almost all my mods and posted a lot of them here. I keep every receipt to the point of OCD. I have oil change reciepts for the oil and filters since I bought the car. I never kept this stuff for this reason. I did it because that is how I keep track of when my last oil change was, what oil I used, what spark plugs,(I mark mileage in sharpy in the engine bay), what aftermarket parts I have used(example nissan 240sx 1991 CTS for the gauge was used to replace the RB gauge sensor so that it works with the stock Z gauge). So the only thing I have missed here is the appraisal. For which I have this to say. The moment this is all said and done here and Ive got my car back on the road to recovery I will start that process. Lets just hope this ends up down that road. I have not heard from either insurance company this week. I have not had time to call them either. But I suspect that I will have to have my hundreds... hehehe yes hundreds of pictures assessed. That has been the un-official suggestion from my insurance company as well. Ray

Something I forgot to mention I think. After my buddy showed up with a trailer I tried to drive the car onto the winch-less trailer. I got the car lined up and suddenly I have a really odd and kinda scary noise coming from the engine bay. I popped the hood and it seems that something has happened to the turbo. Id lay money on the guess that the turbine is either damaged or broken off and floating in its housing... My muffler was jarred good in the rear, but not really damaged. My exhaust though is pretty ridged being thick stainless. I cannot conceive that this is related to the accident, but I have a feeling it is since I just put this turbo on in like Oct or something so its been less than 6 months. I have several other stock turbos and a knockoff gt35 though so its not a huge deal. I think I paid $200+70 for the rebuild kit. I guess when I get around to pulling the engine back out for body work Ill check it out further. Lets just hope the compressor side is intact as its the nylon version. I was able to get the car up in the air and check out the rear strut. Its toast. I need to section another 240z strut, transfer my hopefully good outer stubs, get a new illumina shock, and re-install my coil overs(which I think are still good). The A-arm is warped pretty bad as well. Luckily the CV shaft, and mounts for all those parts are just fine. My inner fender well is deformed and shows just how hard I was hit. Ill have to get some pictures. Ray