beermanpete

To inspect the inside of the fuel tank you can remove the sending unit for the fuel level gauge. The opening is large enough to see the bottom of the tank on the deep side. If the rust has not caused (or nearly caused) pin-holes the tank can be cleaned and reused. We have our tank cleaned at a radiator shop. They had to drill a hole or two to let the cleaning solution flow through and drain out. The holes were soldered or welded closed. It has worked OK. The only issue we had was the pick-up tube seems to have developed a leak and would only pull fuel when the tank was full. Naturally it occurred on Sunday at the race track. We had to install an new pick-up tube. There are round fuel cells available that fit in the tire well if that helps your roll-bar issue any.

The cam timing is independent from the distributor timing. The basic timing for the distributor is controlled by the oil pump installation. When the engine is at TDC for the #1 cylinder the top end of the drive slot for the distributor is supposed to be 11:25 and the slot off-set is toward the front of the engine. See the attached page from the service manual. Your oil pump is probably of a tooth or two. Remove the oil pump and re-time it. EM Engine Mechanical Page 32.pdf

EE Engine Electrical page 29.pdf Here is the illustration from the '79 service manual showing the 2 adjustment slots. Look at item 16, fixing plate. You can loosen the screw that holds this plate to the distributor and turn it a bit.

As h4nsm013m4n said, this really about the bushings. The pin is not likley to need service in and of itself. The pin is only an issue due to being difficult to remove with or without damaging it. If the current bushings are new and the type you want there is no reason to go through the process. The only reason to bother is for the purpose of replacing worn bushings or to "upgrade" to poly bushings, spherical bearings, or whatever else strikes your fancy. As for getting the pins out, I found it easy once the strut/arm assembly is out of the car. I tried to remove the pin while the strut was still in the car. That did not work due to the parts moving on the bushings. Once I remove the assembly (as you already have) it became faily easy. My problem was simply that I ruined the pins before figuring out how to get them out. Since you already have the strut assembly out you should be able to press the pins out with a hydraulidc press. If you have to, pay a shop to do it. Otherwise, place the stut assembly such that the pin is verticle and support the whole assembly by the bushings and lower arm near the bushings, leaving the pin a free path of travel. As long as the support you use is rigid enough (concrete floor) it will be easy to drive the pin through with a big hammer ( 8 pound splitting maul). If you protect the end of the pin you should be able to get it out without damaging the threads. This will require an assistant, patience, and a large vocabulary of foul language.

On the early models there are 2 adjustment slots. Only 1 is easily accessible for normal adjustments. To access the other you need to remove the distibutor to get to it. Assuming yours has both adjustments, have you used both of these to get the full range of adjustment?

How will you replace the bushings if you do not remove the spindle pin? We had a rough time removing the pins. By the time they came out they were ruined. Replacements are about $30 each from the Nissan dealer as I recall.

They look correct to me. The visible portion of the part number in your photo is correct for the o-ring.

I worked out a similar solution as OddJob but using relays and a simpler switch. I did not include the 4-way flasher. The wiring diagram for my solution is attached. This diagram is a complete re-wire for our race car so there is no heater, wipers, horn, etc. You could use only the parts for the turn-signals. The diodes are for isolating parts of the car circuitry from a tow vehicle. Simply omit them if not needed. The problem on the early models is the use of the same bulb for brake and turn-signal function. There is a separate switch contact for the left rear, right rear, and front. It is possible in the later models with separate turn-signal bulbs the switch is less complicated but I have not studied it. Large file, sorry. NEW WIRING DIAGRAM.bmp

You don't need super fancy hardware for this. The 8.8 grade hardware will be fine. Get regular hex head screw, the head is larger than the socket head cap screws. Use a length that is just long enough to get full thread engagement and still have the chain links loose enough to move around some.

I would not do it. As Joe said, the bolts will bend. Even if you don't care about the bolts, there could be damage to the block form the stess. Also, the bolts could break causing injury to you or a helper, not to mention the car. Use shorter bolts.

It is possible the batteries are still good and your charger is not able to cope with a fully discharged battery. Some chargers will not start without a small voltage present. This is a safety device. It helps prevent a spark and explosion when connecting the charger. Some chargers also have push button to get them started after connecting to a "dead" battery. To test the key-off battery drain without risking the meter, place a small 12 volt light bulb in series with the battery cable. If the drain is acceptably low the bulb will not light. If the drain is high the bulb will light a little bit. A short will light the bulb to full brightness. If you get a good result with the bulb and still want or need to measure the drain and are worried about damaging the meter connect the bulb in series with the meter and the battery. The bulb will limit the maximum current and prevent a meter burn-out. Use a bulb that has a normal operating current within the meter's current range.

Pull the insulation back (from the fusible link) and expose some of the wire. Take it with you to the part store and match it with the fusible links available. Get the closest size they have. The factory manual for 1978 280Z has a chart listing the color and wire gauge: Black 1.25 mm2 approx 16 AWG Green 0.5 mm2 approx 20 AWG Brown 0.3 mm2 approx 22 AWG The color on the replacement fusible links may not be the same as the original.

Try Porterfield. They are the only source I have found that makes race compound shoes for the rear brakes. http://porterfield-brakes.com/index.php

The electric fuel pump was added by Datsun in an attempt to solve vapor lock problems. The car should run with either pump on its own. Mine ran ok with only the mechanical pump. When that pump failed I removed it and installed an electric pump (A Holley, not the OEM type). The first thing to do is determine why the car is not running. If you believe it is not getting fuel to the carbs then check the fuel pressure and flow rate. The difficulty is that the mechanical pump is rated for its pressure and flow at 1000 RPM. At cranking speed the flow should be a series of distinct strong pulses. Pressure should be as rated (3 to 4 PSI) as long at the float bowls are already filled (i.e., no fuel flowing).

http://www.factorynissanparts.com/partlocator/index.cfm?siteid=214081

The early 240Zs do not have mounting pounts for the rear anti-sway bar. Starting in '73 they have mounts for the rear anti-sway bar which mounts forward of the rear axle. The anti-sway bar that fits behind the rear axle is aftermarket.

Did you remove the distributor cap and look for water/moisture in the distributor? I got some water in the distributor of one my cars years ago while washing it. It ran fine for a few minutes until the water started condensing on the inside top of the distributor cap. The water caused the car to run badly, like the plug wires were in the wrong order. I left the cap off for while to let it dry. After a few hours it was fine.

The "jumpers" as you call them are the fusible links. You cannot simply remove them as they feed the power to most of the electrical components in the car. The headlights, wipers, heater, etc., are all protected by these fusible links. Originally there was a plastic cover on each of the two black bases that made them look nicer. You could relocate the fusible links easily enough. Removing them by disconnection will disable much of your electrical system. Removing them by bypassing the fuses will eliminate an important protection device.

You could connect the fuel cell vent to the air box. That will not "suck out the vapor but it will contain them a bit. The fuel gauge can be used with a fuel cell. The main issue is the sending unit resistance. You will likely need to use an aftermarket gauge and sending unit to get a reaonably linear reading.

My experience of the "rebuild kit" for my 4-speed was that it came with some of the bearings and some of the gaskets and seals necessary to do a complete overhaul. I bought the rebuild kit with syncro rings from drivetrain.com. I had to buy additional parts from a dealer (factorynissanparts.com) to obtain all the parts I felt I needed. You should probably open your transmission to see what is acutally worn out. If the gears are bad it is likely easier and cheaper to buy a second transmission for parts rather than buying new gears from the dealer or a third party.

The '73 has a 4-wire tach that uses the current pulse to trigger it, no the voltage pulse from the points. The MSD ignition might not have the correct current pulse shape to properly trigger the 4-wire tach. The easiest soution is an aftermarket tach or perhaps a 3-wire tach from a later model Z. I have seen adapters available for this situation. Search on the internet for information related to Smith tachs used in the early English cars. They are also current sensing types.

I went and looked at my '73. There are 4 lines running across the firewall. From top to bottom they are: clutch, right front brake, rear brake, and vapor recovery. Tommott77's photos look exactly the same as my car (except my vapor line is not cut and crimped.) I maintain that the line Tom is concerned about is an abandoned vapor recovery line. Tom, you will need to inspect your car and verify where the line goes to to be sure, but I suspect you will find the other end near the fuel filler neck and in the same condition as the line in your photo.

It looks like the line for the vapor recovory system. My '73 has a line in the same place. It connects the fuel vapor/liquid separator tank in the rear to the crankcase or charcoal canistor (depending on year). It seems that this line has been abandoned in yout car.

If you have the 4-wire tach then the problem is likely the electronics inside the tach. My tach did the same thing as what you described. The problem seemed to be heat related. When the weather got hot it would go to full scale as soon as I turned on the key. I replaced the 2 transistors and it works fine now. I found some information on the internet about the Smith meters used in British cars in the 60s. The Datsun tach appears to be a close copy of the Smith tachs. The Smith gurus seem to think the timing capacitor is the primary problem when the tach goes full scale. Either way it is an easy fix for a capable electronics repair technician.

Start by setting the timing. Use a buzz-box, light bulb, or an ohmmeter and dead time it at 7 or 8 degrees BTDC. This should be good enough to get it to idle. Make sure the idle setting is not holding the carb open a lot. Set it so the throttle plate is not exposing the transfer circuit. It sounds like the mixture is lean. Check for vacuum leaks. Check the simple stuff first. Is the manifold gasket installed correctly? Bolts all tight? Carb base gasket and mounting bolts. Did you miss a vacuum port when installing the plugs? If you do not find anything obvious, use a can of spray can of something that burns well (carb cleaner or starting ether) and spray around the manifold gasket area. If there is a vacuum leak the fluid will seal it and enrich the mixture. The engine will start to run faster and better when you spray the leak. Be careful not to catch the engine on fire with the ether. Do this while the exhaust is cold and be quick about it. EDIT: I realized you probably do not have points so accurate dead timing is not possible.