Pharaohabq

I seem to remember mechanically they are similar to the ZX and Z31 locks, but the "ear" is different. There's a thread on here somewhere about rebuilding your worn locks. you can still get NOS locks on Ebay.

I usually aim to fit it higher than the frame rails. +/- about .5 inch. I know that's not possible in some cases, but it's a good target, since if you're going to bottom out, usually it's your rails that take the hit. In 4x4'ing we're taught to aim for rocks and bumps with your tires, it's kinda the same thing here, if something looks too tall to go under the center of your car, either avoid or try to put a wheel on it. Try not to let things go down the center of your vehicle. That is unless you think your oil pan needs an upgrade.

Wow... You're a lucky guy. The damage doesn't look too bad, but you might want to pay the $$ it takes to have it put on a frame machine, just to be sure it's straight. If it's tweaked in x,y or Z it and really affect your performance or handling. As for parts, Locally is best, but if you need parts, there's a guy here in Hybridz 1nonlyZ who has a yard and will sell you whatever parts you need, including a whole front clip if you want to go that far. Keep in mind Cost to replace vs cost to repair. Insurance?? Phar

Yeah, I agree w/ Tony, The Exhaust doesn't say much, unless it's HUGE clouds. Bright white is likely water in the oil, Bluish tint smoke is just burning oil. Either way it's possible it's temporary. Black smoke is usually too much gas. Huge clouds could mean head gasket. A gasket could fail with any misfire, so don't be suprised if that's the case. That being said, It's hard to figure your issue. One way though is to clamp that #1 cylinder fuel line shut (between rail and injector) and see what happens. If there's a big change, and the engine just lopes like it's missing a Cyl then you know that's the trouble. If it acting exactly the same, then you know your trouble is probably not injector related. From there, You might drain your oil and look for water. Or kinda milky looking rad fluid in the radiator. Personally, I don't think it's that #1 injector, I think you've got bigger issues. I'd say, first review all the repairs you made. Hoses properly connected, plugs in proper order, 1,5,3,6,2,4. The Brown injector plugs are common to have it crack or break. Mine were held on with Zip ties for nearly a year before I decided to start my swap. You can buy replacement plugs from Nissan, or off Ebay cheap. They're really easy to swap out. You can pull your spark plugs and see how they look, Oily isn't good, if it's on just one cyl, but doesn't mean too much. They should be lightly covered in brownish white dust on a good running car. Let us know what you see and we can help you diagnose from there. Pictures of the hoses and Injector and Plugs would be MUCH more helpful. Edit: Oh did you ever pull off your Valve cover? Smoke could be a torn valve seal, plugs can tell us that tho. Good luck Phar

Nice, I'm looking forward to pictures...

Thanks, Six_Shooter. That's great you're pointing out one possible issue with the Dist. I was thinking an 80's ZX distrib might work, I think it's got the same 7 points that the GM distrib has. If that still won't work, then perhaps I can frankenstein a Datsun and a GM distrib together. On my jeep, I just swapped out the distrib from a 94' for my 87' dist. Worked fine. I doubt the GM and Datsun distribs are interchangeable, but on the top end they might be moddable to make them work. That's a challenge we'd certainly have to overcome. The GM Dist actually has a plate that fits at the top that has the sensor for each. Now really I need to just see what signal the GM distrib puts out, and compare that to the signal from the 83' dist. But yeah that could be a problem, How'd you make yours work?

Good to know, That's why you're Wiki-D! How do you find stuff like that out?

Exactly, Mint condition... That's worth tons more than what the # on the dash cluster says. If you buy based solely on what the # says, you're asking to be taken... oh, uhm yeah, I've got a 70' 240Z with Ahem 5, yeah FIVE miles on it.. Uh Sure it's original! Oh you don't believe me? okay Gimmie a min.. <tinker, tinker> okay now it's got 1500 miles!! that's worth an extra $5000 right??? I'm not calling anyone a liar, but 35 years is rough on a car even if it hasn't been driven, so just watch yourself, know what you're buying, Trust your eyes and common sense, rather than what someone tells you.

My 70' 240z has only 86,000 miles, but it hasn't run in 20+ years, is rusted to hell, and looks like crap. The Title history supports the odo reading, so it's possible that car has low miles. But 35 years is a LONG time for only 20K miles so condition is everything. I would expect one with that low miles to be in immaculate conditon. What are you going to do with the car? Are you planning on not driving it? If you buy it on the percieved value of low miles, then as soon as you drive it you'd be killing that same value. If you want a nice turnkey car you don't have to do anything to, then yes, it's probably a great deal. But it's not work paying $5000.00 or more for low miles if you're going to just drive it. 5 Grand can do a hell of a lot of restoration and replacement in a mediochre car that will be just as drivable and likely more reliable. It's kinda the same argument as Why should you buy a low # vin early Zed? It's noteworthy, nothing more, Condition is everything. Certified by a lawyer... What does that mean? All a law degree is, is a license to legally lie and steal. That cert would carry as much weight if I had my Cat sign it. Technically, the seller needs to sign a paper in front of a notary, stating that the miles are true and correct. That way if they're not you could sue them for fraud. but again, what's it worth?

Right, I guess 70's Z could mean any S30. somehow I read that as 70' Z. Morbias is right, The Special edition S30's had stripes, so we need OP clarification. Based only on the OP statement: "Where the stripes on 70's Z's flat black or glossy black. Thinking of putting racing stripes on want to make it look as stock as possible." I'd infer he's not looking for info on either the Zzap or the black pearl, So that's back to the only dealer option I know which is the 240Z decal on some 240Z's. In anycase I think most anything fron that era was Matte..

Sounds to me like it's not actually as flush as you think. is it possible there's some bowing going on between the bolts? Do you have any pictures of the damage?

Wow, Thanks for the great explanation! That's a rough story. but that's customizing for ya. It hurts when you realize you have to rework something. Keep massaging until you can make it work. It's a shame about the old rear flares. They are pretty darn sexy. As I said before, if you make this a kit, I'm certain you'd sell quite a few of them. I was hesitant as first, but I really love your venting behind the wheels. Those are also going to look amazing with smoke pouring out of them when you're drifting on the track. The Karotta Wide Body kit, a little production might make it as noteworthy as the prima-donna Z, or maybe BRE kit. I can't wait to see what you do next. Phar

Nice to see Myron posting. I haven't done my fuel system yet since my engine is still out of the car (again) But I have it planned. I'm going to run a surge tank, external pump and regulator back by the fuel tank, then I'm running the stock fuel line in dead head style to the engine. I'm using the HR stock fuel rail and lines, allowing the engine to regulate itself with it's own stock regulators. the fuel line size between the two is basically the same, but if I have trouble I'll run the 280z return line as a parallel fuel line which should provide more than enough volume. I don't think it'll be an issue. I don't think you're really going to need to change the fuel rails unless you're planning on putting in larger injectors. I mean, Why would Nissan Gimp the fuel rails. Myron probably has input on this, I just haven't seen reason. I'm planning on running 55-60PSI to the rail. I fully understand not wanting the cost of going with McKinney's kit. I sure didn't. Mine may not be as pretty, but it'll do basically the same job, and when I started, Mckinney hadn't released their kit. Your Steering crossmember cutout looks good, but I'm thinking you're going to have to cut out a little more. You'll see when you get the engine in place how much you'll have to cut. My HR, I had to cut so much, that I had to bolster it with square tubing on the front side. But the engines will fit differently between the models. To get your aluminum clean on your engine, Try some aluminum wheel cleaner from autozone et al, with a mild brush you should be able to clean up all the corrosion no problem. You're working so fast. I'm really getting impressed. Which Welder do you have? Mine's a Lincoln 135, biggest 110v welder I could find. it barely manages 1/4" plate if I take my time. Thickest I'm using right now is 3/16" sheet.

Pretty darn cool that your car would be enough an eye catcher to be featured in an article. Weird they didn't tell you about it. That's today's age though, you never know where your information/picture/likeness is going to end up. It's always scary to google yourself and see where you turn up. Lucky for me I have a common name.

If you're going to go so far as replacing the springs, you might as well have the head off, and taken in to have it planed, valves ground and hardware like springs and all replaced. You'll have to adjust the valves either way. May not notice any power gain unless your head is tired. Thought that should certainly eliminate the head as a culpret. If you do, be sure to replace your headbolts. I would suggest checking the PCV valve first as they suggested above. It's MUCH cheaper to replace. The PCV valve allows pressures that leak past the piston ring seals to escape the bottom of the engine (crankcase) so that pressure doesn't build up reducing performance, or blowing your oil pan seal. The released pressure is usually piped back into the vaccuum of the intake to be recycled since it usually contains unburnt fumes gas and oil vapor. Sometimes it's vented to the atmo often in Forced Induction cars.

On some cars the A pillars were either painted, wrapped in vinyl or had screw on covers. I believe the area around the hatch may also show some body color around the trim; then the spare tire well is usually body color. It's a good place to coat anyway, since it's so near the muffler. Right off I can't think of anywhere else that wouldn't be covered by carpet or plastic.

Nice! Could you elaborate on your setup a little, or do you have a thread on it. I've been really interrested in this setup, since the hesco stuff worked so well converting my Jeep inline six.

BuffaloZ, Yeah, It's a pain to upgrade to EFI. If you were going to do so, I'd suggest you do the EFI swap to Megasquirt+spark so you can get more efficient control of your injectors/engine. You should get good power, and easier starting, but you won't see a huge difference in power over carbs. You will likely still have some fuel fumes too. Another possibility is going with the Nissan EFI system out of an 86+ 300zx, it uses a MAP sensor and an AFM. it's pretty efficient and has been done on a L28. Something I've really wanted to do is try out the 94 GM EFI system on an L28. Check out HESCO EFI conversion You won't need the full kit, just the harness, you can get a computer cheap on Ebay, and the CPS might work from the Jeep, but if not then There's a guy on here who made a bolt on timing wheel that would work. The advantage is Multi port injection, and the MAP/CPS/O2 sensor automatically tunes the emgine w/o needing an AFM or the bulky datsun flappy afm. The system worked great on my Jeep. But just it's a 4.2L, and I used a ton of junkyard parts, but I'm 100% certain it could be adapted to the L28 since the same GM computer runs both the GM 2.3L and the 4.2L inline 6 cyl engines. you can read about my EFI system on my ProjectJeep site. If you need help, I'd love to help you figure this one out. Phar

I would really recommend that you hold off buying parts till you're at a position to need them. Yes this might hold you up a little, but you'll save a lot of money when you change your mind on where you want to go with your build. Many of the builds i've seen have started off with one car one way, then decided to change directions, or even change bodies. The parts are not that hard to find, unless you're looking for something Super rare like a 432 engine, or a BRE intake. but panels and such are availible within a few weeks from the outlets listed above. When you get into your project you may find that you want an upgrade, and the parts you paid dearly for will go to waste, or be sold likely cheaper than you paid to someone else. So yeah, Wait on buying parts till you know you're going to use them soon, rather than stockpiling parts that you may never use. Conscientrate on getting the car running well with the powerplant you want and paint looking how you like. Then go project by project to style the rest to your liking. you might find you hate fender mirrors. it's your car tho, Do what you like to it. We're here because we love these cars and want to see what awesome work you're doing. Phar

The 240Z decals were matt black, white, or yellow/gold, I think... I don't think they were stock, likely dealer option. But yeah, I don't remember any stripes from the factory over the hood/roof either. BRE Racing had some nice fender stripes, but again not stock.

hehe how did I guess this was doomed to MontePython. Now the +12v source in the engine compartment could be from anywhere, but be careful because most of the system works on closing open grounds to complete circuits like fuel injectors. You should really pull the sevice manual, and look up where switched +12v is in the harness and link into that. It might be an idea to stop by a sterio shop and pick up an inline fuse 5a or 10a, just in case. When I was playing, I seem to remember there being a thick white wire with a red stripe in my engine compartment that was switched +12v. But really get a meter and test it. Meters are cheap at radio shack or harbor freight/ebay.

Looks pretty nice from the one pict. Hopefully you'll like the 5.0 engine, and that's a great price for it too. There's tons of aftermarket support for that engine, not only on the stock parts side, but for swappers, since it's a popular swap for the 4x4 community as well as performance swaps. I hope you'll post lots of picts of your 5.0L swap process. Just besure you've got everything before you rip everything apart. Note that you'll probably have to do a few body mods to fit that in there. I think Mckinney makes a swap kit for that engine too. Phar

Looking really nice, I don't imagine you'll be redoing that hood mould now that you've got the dam smoothed out. Just clean it up and paint over right? I see you've still got tons of work, but what you've got so far is seriously impressive. How're you doing on your timeline? Got the end in sight? Phar

I'm using the stock tank, with a pump, surge tank, regulator and return line at the rear of the car, and only a pressure line run to the front to feed the engine. Phar

Hey Karotta, Nice Video, You've done a ton of work since last you'd updated. I guess you decided to abandon the S30 front end and just go tube for the looks of it. Perhaps you'll add in the S30 metal after the fact for weatherproofing, but that's probably too much work. It's looking great. Can you tell us a few things, First, please tell us the specifics of the BMW parts you're using to make the front end steering pushed in front of the engine. I assume you've done that for the 240SX steering. I imaging you'll still have the tight radius. What about the S30 rear suspension made you decide to swap over the whole rear suspension? Phar