aarang

Thats why I call and talk to people at these companies. Email never seems to get the answers to my questions! Aaron

Ya, all the specialty oils such as Redline, Royal Purple, etc. still have the additives. Strangely from the info I have gathered, Amsoil does not. Aaron

Hey guys, Just an FYI, I've found that most of the diesel oils are going away from putting Zinc and Phosphorous ( ZDDP) in the mix for emissions reasons. If you look at the class on the bottle, "CI-4" is what you want. If you see "CJ -4" or "FJ-4" it does not have the ZDDP to protect our L cams. On another note, after doing some research and contacting STP directly over the phone, the STP four cylinder oil treatment (in the red bottle) has more than the required amount in PPM of ZDDP when mixed with five qts. of oil. It will bring the level of ZDDP at least to where it was back when our engines were new. So using any oil and putting in one bottle of the STP four cylinder treatment should be enough to prevent excessive cam wear. Hope that is helpfull! Aaron

Also on another note, Delta recommended to me that I use any diesel engine oil with this type of cam. I know there are a few threads that discuss this with the Zinc issue in newer oils. They brought this up without me even mentioning it! I am using Chevron DELO 15W- 40 now with no problems so far. Aaron

Sorry to hear of your cam failure. I had a Schnieder cam take a dump on me a few years back. MSA would not warranty it then, saying I installed it wrong. I checked wipe patterns, and did all the normal stuff. I ended up going the Delta Cam regrind route. Not only is it less than half the price of the Schnieder kit when you source all the parts, you are using a Nissan cam core for the regrind which we all know is tough as nails. I wish I would have never wasted my money with the Schneider. Also, I dissasembled the bottom end after the failure and just like has been mentioned, the oil pump was scored up and there was metal in the pan. I just started over with a different short block. Aaron

You can leave it off, but you may want to turn your idle up some. I left mine off and the A/C works OK, but it would pull the idle down to 600 rpm. You still need the main vacuum source for the A/C, but you probably knew that. Aaron

Search for a member here and on ZDriver named Bleach. He did the turbo swap with the recirc ball steering if I remember correctly. Aaron

Here is my 1980 ZX last summer after rebuilding the suspension. I bought it from the original owner, bone stock with original paint, perfect black interior, etc. It's an odd one as it is a base model with no power options, but has A/C. Currently it has no drive train and is getting a turbo motor swap. I've had many 280zx turbo's, but this car is by far my favorite and is a keeper. Aaron

The knock sensor screws into a boss right behind the oil filter on the F54. I think they were mistaking a CAS sensor on the front cover for an 81 turbo for the knock sensor. Honestly, I really wouldn't worry about the knock sensor too much.

Red ZX interior can look pretty good if you change a few pieces to black, like the steering wheel, shift knob, ctr console lid, headliner, carpet. Just so it isn't ALL red!!

You can put the head temp sensor in the thermostat housing. I think your car has one there, anyway. It will work the same as long as it senses the temp increase. The knock sensor IMO is useless, especially on a higher compression turbo motor. You just have to be more carefull with the timing. Aaron

I think you will be fine with stock boost and no I/C as long as you set your initial timing lower than stock and bump up the fuel pressure. Also, running 100 octane wouldn't hurt either. I had a setup that was F54 flat top/ P90 with N/A 'A' cam, stock ECCS, stock turbo, no I/C , etc .. Ran great. The low end torque of that motor would DESTROY the tires!!

If you want to put your PCV valve in the stock location of the N42 manifold, you can go to the hardware store and get a brass 1/4 NPT 90 deg elbow. I did this and aimed the PCV valve at the valve cover. The PCV valve to manifold is hooked to the valve cover, and the block breather is hooked before the turbo. I still was getting some oil in the intake, so I put a catch can in between the block breather and the tube before the turbo. If you don't want to use the elbow above the turbo, you can drill and tap the heat shield boss that is right in front of the stock PCV location to 1/4 NPT and put it there. I had my PCV valve there at one time, but now I use that as the vacuum source for my BOV. Hope that helps!! Aaron

I know you guys will laugh, but I have been using a Fram G15 inline filter for years with no problems. This is an inline filter with barbed ends 3/8" inlet and outlet for CARBED applications. It is relatively compact which is why I use it, and it only costs $4.99!! I have put 70psi through this thing with no problems. Just for grins, I pressure tested the thing with nitrogen to see when it would pop. It held 100psi for a week and was fine. To see when it would burst, I kept ramping up the pressure. It finally popped at about 150-160psi. As far as flow, I don't have any ideas, but I have pushed alot of fuel through this thing with my turbo Z. I cut it open to see if the element would collapse at higher flow rates, but it was just fine. It works great for me!! Aaron

P82 came on 1980 Cali 280ZX's.

You say you don't want any part of a 280ZXT, but you use a P90 head from a 280ZXT????

Is the distributor vacuum advance hooked to ported vacuum? You can't run it directly to the manifold. Depending on what throttle body you have, you can run a vacuum line directly from the distributor to one of the small vacuum ports on the bottom of the throttle body. The distributor should see no vacuum at idle, only when you move the throttle should anything be happening. Also, be sure to bypass the thermal valve in the thermostat housing. Aaron

Ya , I guess with the stock regulator, you are kind of limited with the flaring option. If you're going to go through the trouble and expense of using AN lines, it might be wise to get a different regulator. I run my Aeromotive 13301 dead-ended like you to the rail, and I don't need a "T" in between, as the regulator has four pressure ports and one return on the bottom. It is also adjustable. I think I paid about $125 through Summit a few years back for it. It looks cool ( important!!) and it works great. Well worth the money. Aaron

I can't remember what size fuel lines are in the S30, but in the 280ZXT the lines are 5/16", which is an AN 5, not an AN 6. If you want to plumb into the stock lines, you can get flare nuts and sleeves for an AN 5 to use on the stock lines. You will need a 37 degree flare tool. After flaring the stock lines, get an AN 5 to AN 6 adapter and run the AN 6 lines as needed. Summit sells everything you need. A flared tubing connection is alot better than the compression fittings IMO, especially for fuel lines!! Aaron

Just a thought, After installing a Walbro pump in my ZX, when my tank was full the pump was quiet. After the fuel level dropped, the pump got louder and louder. Obviously the pump was cavitating as the fuel level dropped. I had to lower the pump on the bracket to bring it just lower than the bottom of the tank. I also drilled the pump inlet fitting hole ( barb fitting in my case) to 1/4" as it seems to me the fittings that come with the pump have too small I/D. I think the hole was 3/16" originally. I never did have the fuel pressure problems like you have. Also, I think someone else mentioned the ethanol in the gas issue. I wonder if these pumps are compatible? Ethanol is definetly not a good pump lubricant!! I don't know if 10% ethanol would be an issue, though. Aaron

Ya, the yellow and white wires for the temp sensors are not needed at all to run the ECU.

The yellow is for the temp gauge as previously stated, and the white goes to the injector cooling fan relay. Unless your running the injector fan, you don't need the white one. Aaron

Can't seem to get your link to work..... Also, in my experience, I fried a few of the trigger transistors when using an MSD coil without the proper resistor inline. I ordered the proper MSD ballast resistor and all was well. If you stick with a coil that has roughly the same resistance, I think you should be alright. Aaron

Aircraft mechanic. I work mainly on Beech turbo props, Lear Jets, and large piston twins ( Cessna & Piper). I like my job, always something new to figure out!! Aaron

Just take the bumpers off and see. They are really easy to do, even by yourself. Yes they are heavier than 240 bumpers, but once you remove them they really are not as heavy as most think. I've taken my front bumper off probably about at least ten times in one day to properly fit my airdam. The car looks odd with them off. Aaron