Pharaohabq

Hey Docaam, That part looks awesome. building a new bracket for it should not be too tough. There's a few points you could mount it to that should hold it much more firmly. Above it there's a closed mount point already on the wall you could reopen for a mount point. Likely you'll have to drill and put in some bolts to hold it firmly in place. Another idea is a strap that runs fully up the side to the fender mount bolts, but that may be too far. I'd just drill and use a backing plate like the steering crossmember has on each side. You'd have to make a wedge shaped adapter to make it fit properly in place. If you make it boltable on either side, they shouldn't flag the adapter. Is the law no welding on the chassis? I hope you won't give up on this project. You've come so far! I don't think the Nissan 6 speed will mount to any RB engines w/o an adapter plate.

And Illegal in the US. I'd love to have flame throwers on my car tho. Most alarms these days have an engine kill function. It would be SIMPLE to wire that through Pin 1.

The documentation is awesome, but really not worth much in other than nostalgic use. the car it rough enough that it's not going to be worth it as a full restore would go. Sure you can do it and maybe gain a little in the value for the documentation. But you'll spend a lot more restoring it than the car will be worth, so you might as well do what you will with it as though it had no extra papers. If the car was a specialty car paper might make a difference, but unless those papers have Robert Redford or Chuck Norris on them, I doubt they're worth much to anyone. Hope you didn't pay too much extra Phar

These are insured right? Got before picts right?? I certainly hope so, especially on the bottom. incorrect lifting can damage your cars.

It looks like they replaced all the injector plugs. Those wires look like they're to the injectors. The L28 system works by it Grounding each of the injectors as the engine turns completing the circuits so the injectors would fire. Who knows if they did it right or not, you'll have to look at the wiring diagrams to be sure. As for starting, Do you have Spark? Do you have Air? do you have Fuel? You need those things to make the motor go. When it cranks, do you smell gas? If you get starter fluid and spray it into the intake then crank the engine, does it try to run? These are the questions, you provide the answers, then we'll ask more.. Phar

Right, and also this is why I said to change the oil prior to trying to start the motor. WD-40 is water displacement #40, it's a penetrating oil. We sprayed it in the cylinders to penetrate around the rings and help to break them loose, being that the engine had sat unused for so long. a little corrosion would not have been a big deal, but We said to listen closely while turning the engine over manually for any grinding noise to help us diagnose the condition of the engine. How he described it, Turning with a little pop is exactly what I would have expected. Leaving the DW-40 in the engine could dilute and mess up the engine oil (not to mention the existing oil is 12 years old). I would guess he's in good shape so far as the engine itself mechanically at this point. Next will be to look at the cam, look at the fluid levels and after changing the oil he can try to crank it over using the starter. If that works, then it's time to do a compression test and see what condition the engine is really in. Again too, Don't be cheap and change the engine oil AGAIN after running for 15/20 min or so, since any rust should break loose and filter into the oil once the engine is running, especially after it's heated up. the Filter will catch a lot, but not all, and rust can be like sandpaper in an engine.

You could buy a P90 head and have it radialogically mapped so that you'd know for certain all the thicknesses and pathways for the water. It wouldn't be cheap, but then you'd know for certain what you'd have, especially since there's no proof that there were no changes in the p90 head between different production runs. Note that there are P90 heads and P90a heads...

Nice job. it sounds to me like your ignition timing may be a little advanced. you can "eyeball" the airflow on your carbs with the flat of your hand and get them close enough for decent operation. My 240z is in roughly the same shape... Good deal on the welding classes. I did that, make sure you practice on THIN sheetmetal in the lab. particularly 2mm and 3mm sheet butt welds. That will be the most important for doing body work. If you're good at that and controlling the heat, then you'll do great. Welding is a wonderful skill. Listen to your instructor and always weld in a ventilated area. The gases are really bad for you.

Hmm I don't see any wiring for the machine guns, oil slick, smoke screen, or the rocket launchers, You must not have got that far yet. :-b

Well Great, 2+2 it is then... Congratulations, making sure you're happy with your decision will help make this car a lifelong friend. Hopefully you'll be able to continue the care the previous owner had extended to the car. If you get the car, a few things you may want to check in addition to rust, just to be sure: One The cowel area, It's a pain in the ass to get open, but get in there and reseal all the seams. That's the #1 area that allows water into the passenger compartment, soaking the carpet and adding to the rust on the floor panels. Two: check the heater core, any drips, replace. MSA sells a replacement. Same reason, keeping the interior dry, not to mention not breathing antifreeze. Three: the rear hatch seal/taillight seals. If these are bad, you'll get a lot of exhaust fumes inside the car. no fun.

some people just like silicone... It's a matter of preference. If they like it and want to spend their $ that way, I'm good with it... I prefer weari... I mean using rubber [hoses].

a 2+2 to stand out from the crowd. I don't want to burst any bubbles here, but yes, the 2+2 is noteable for it's rear seats. It's a bit longer and in MY opinion it suffers in performance for it. It's one thing to stand out from the crowd for having something unique or well built. but it's another thing to stand out from the crowd for say having big ears. this is a slippery slope I know, I just want you to understand that there's more ways than one to stand out, both positive and negative. I drove a 2+2 for a couple years, I never had any other Z guys say "wow, that's cool it has a back seat". Mine stayed folded down 90% of the time. The openable rear windows are cool tho. That green one appears to be in good shape and we'd assume it runs well for that price. Green is a nice color on these, but it's cosmetic. A $3000 Coupe with a $2000 green paintjob is a lot cheaper than a $9000 S30. The extra 4G's could buy a lot of "stand out". No you may not find another 2+2. if that's what you want then go ahead. $9K is kinda the high end. You get what you put into it. Seattle is again giving very sound advice, Get a good Pre-Purchase Inspection from somewhere knowledgeable, not just in cars, but in Z's specifically. There are a few Z shops in NYC so you shouldn't have too much trouble. If you need recommendations, I'm sure people on here can point some out. Another way to look at this is that cars are just things. You should not be buying any car for the idea of what other people think of it. You should buy it, especially a classic car, because YOU like it. Not because it's going to make you look cool at school or get the girl, or keep you up with the Jones' (kardashians ;- It's YOUR enjoyment and use that matters. If you really think that back seats will benefit YOU, then go for it. If its not for YOUR enjoyment, then keep looking. Don't try to get your gf back there either, it's pretty tight, the front seat works better, trust me As for insurance, Classic insurance is MUCH cheaper and covers better than most other forms so please look into it. Phar

Call Wilwood. They'll probably have some input. Maybe there's a shim or something that's out of place.

Well Good deal. So are you leading us to infer the Z is not currently running?

ahh! I see. Well don't worry about getting exact moulded foam. it's available sure, but if you use scissors and cut the foam to generally the same shape as the stock foam you're removing, it should fit well enough not to be an issue. It's really not so hard to do even doing it yourself. You may need to buy some hog-ring pliers to help you install, but either way those covers should work fine. it mainly depends on the job you do installing them.

That should do fine for your purposes. 200+$250 install should get you back on the road and zooming along. It's not high performance, but I think you'll be quite happy with it. Later if you decide you can build up another engine to swap it all out with. Since you're going to have the engine out, you might consider replacing your clutch while you're at it. Who knows how the old clutch was holding up, but it's a lot easier while the engine is out. also check the teeth on the flywheel ring. I think you're going to be happy. More power can come later if you need it.

It was Seattle's pict, but it's certainly worth 1000 words. I know, I've typed them before I'd say keep looking unless you really want to 2+2 for some reason. You should be able to find a decent coupe that needs some TLC, or revival for under $3K or so... Lets see: http://newhaven.craigslist.org/cto/4275468468.html Found that one, it's not too far, n doesn't look bad in the picts. Figure 10% off for negotiation, and you could get it for I'd hope $3500. The thing to remember about these S30's are that they're all at least 35 years old and that alone will give them "some personality" you're not going to find one Especially on the east coast that's 100% perfect condition. but you will find one that's 100% perfect for you... So keep that in mind. Also, since I'd guess you're a little younger, you might want to call up Hagarty or your parents insurance and see if you're going to be able to insure a Z. A lot of times you'll get insurance sure, but they won't cover it for anything but Book. whereas in a classic, usually Agreed Upon Value is the best way to go, tho you'd have to have it garaged usually for that. but that may vary in NY so give them a call before you buy a car... Phar

Yes, they will fit, but you may want to buy some new foam to shape and put in your seats. You'll find most of the old seats, the foam has degraded quite a bit. A lot of upholstery shops will redo your seats with those covers really cheaply, maybe 1-2 C's per seat.

Having a good alarm system is about the best you're going to do. If the bad guys want your car they're going to take it. A decent alarm will have proximity and or incline sensors along with ignition and fuel pump lockouts. You can't rely on the ignition key to protect your car. When they stole my old 280Z, they jammed a flatblade screwdriver in, rapped it with a hammer and gave it a turn to start it right up. Easy... The doors are easy to slim-jim. so aftermarket, is really all you have to protect yourself. You could use a Rotor lock like many motorcyles, but that won't help vs a flatbed. Having an alarm to slow the bad guys down or to notify you that your car is being jacked is the best way. There are GPS units that you can install with your alarm that will assist you in locating your car, should it be taken. Talk to a REPUTABLE alarm install company, they should be able to hook you up.

Oh, if you read my post I did say " open the oil fill cap and look in there..." Cept you're right, it seems I misspelled Cap as can.. my bad. My point was if you don't have to break any seals, don't. Once you start the path of opening things up, then you're getting into work you may not need to do on an old engine. As for engines, There's a lot around. check on the FS/Wanted here, Check Craigslist, Check your local Z Car club, Check Specialty Z Parts lots. They are available, but you're right, they're not getting any less rare. I could go get another engine this afternoon if I needed one, But that's here in NM, Land of the non-rusting Z's so, you're right. It may be harder to locate a good one, but they ARE still available, so if his old engine is bad, then it may be cheaper for him to pick up a 75-83 L28, and swap it in relatively easily. *Edit** in fact a quick Craigslist search found an engine in his area for $600. http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/pts/4311073525.html

Seattle's got it right. $9K is too much for a 2+2, granted it looks like it's in great shape, but the fact is there's a LOT of 2+2's still out there that are in good shape, mainly for the fact that they're less desirable, certainly less collectable. So it's time for some slick talking. if it's in graet shape, no rust to speak of, $3K-$6K would be a good price. Since that's what you can buy other Z's in similar condition for. it's nice having the front end all rebuilt, but that doesn't mean anything. You replace part A with an identical part A, have you added any value? no. The bushings, maybe only because they can be a pain especially on the back. That car looks nice, but is it work 9K? That's something you'll need to answer. At $9K, you've probably got some time to think about it. If it was a coupe in the same condition, maybe but 2+2's are as sought after. Other questions you didn't answer, is How many miles? Garages? one owner? Full actual records?

The only reason I wouldn't be thinking you'd want to use the stock is just if there's some issue with your stock wiring. Since your car runs but gets bad mileage, I'd say he's got a good plan wiring it through your existing harness. That way too, like he said, the MS stays inside out of where it can get wet etc. The down side is that your original harness is 25 years old so you may have some iffy wires there, crusty old insulation stuff like that. You mess with it, it can go bad. That can make troubleshooting a bear. where the MS harness you know is new and wired correctly. I would buy separate injector plugs off ebay or somewhere rather than cutting your stock harness if you weren't going to use it.

Lots of good suggestions here.. But really you need to look at your car and see what it needs. I've seen fuel systems gummed up solid with old old gas, and I've seen cars that've sat for 20 year that have liquid fuel still in the lines. Gas doesn't always gum up.. I would take loose the Fuel line after the Fuel filter in the engine compartment and see if anything flows. If the fuel is solid in that line then you've got a lot of work ahead of you. If it flows then you need to just get rid of the old nasty gas ( You can actually burn this later by adding it to your tank a gallon here and a gallon there once things are running. It's just not good to try to run solely old gas.) First I would not yet open the valve cover. Fort Worth is a pretty dry climate, but if it's sat that long, there could be some good rust in the cylinders. I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just get a couple cans of WD-40 and pull the plugs, then load up the cylinders every day for a few days. DO NOT try to start the motor. Just get a big wrench and manually rock the motor crank back and forth till you can get it to turn. one you get that far, load up more WD and try to turn it around 360 degrees. if it's relatively smooth, you might have just been lucky. if you hear a lot or grinding noise, then you're probably going to need to take it apart and hone the cylinders. It would be cheaper at that point to replace the engine with something else. It really depends. If you have a borescope you can also see how they look before you go through that work. Assuming the engine turns okay, The very next thing will be to change the oil since the WD won't be good for it. Open the oil fill can and look in there to see if you can see the cam lobes and see if they're all rusty. A little surface rust is fine, but heavy rust is bad. If it's just a little surface. Then I'd not worry about it. So, assuming your fuel lines survived unclogged, and you've got the engine to turn manually and you've changed the oil. Next I'd batten up the plugs and with NEW gas in the tank, I'd give it a go. It might just start up. A lot will depend on why it was parked so long ago. You may still want to change the fuel filter too. The inside of your gas tank may be rusty. Assuming all that goes well, then next you'll really want to look at the safety items. Brakes first, then replace the seatbelts, then maybe look at shocks and bushings. The car doesn't look bad so in that at least you're lucky. You'll want to look it over for the common rust areas and figure where you want to go with those. The FSM (downloadable) can really help you if the issues are worse, such as if the gas had gummed up solid. The Haynes Manual for the 280Z (Ebay) is also pretty good. If your gas had solidified, it's not the end of the world, it's just a pain. It would mean all your fuel lines would need replaced, (easy to get) your fuel rail would need to be soaked and cleaned out, The injectors you could try to soak and clean, but would likely be easier to replace. the rubber seals would definitely need to be replaced. You fuel pump may be rebuilt (not too tough) or replaced, and of course the tank would need to be cleaned out. Once you do get it started I'd change the oil again after about an hour of running, because any rust will flow into the oil and start circulating. The filter would catch most of it, but you don't want to risk the engine after it's been revived. So don't be cheap, just change the oil/filter a 2nd time. These Engines are actually REALLY durable. So a little crud won't hurt them in the short term. Worst case, Engines are available cheap. just swap with something known good. We are here to dole out advice. In the end it's your car, you do what you think is the best course. You can ask us and we'll try to keep you from making the type of mistakes we've made, or from spending money going down a dead end. We love the Z cars and every one that we can keep on the road is a win in our book. So welcome to the S30 world. Phar **EDIT*** oh expect a lot of smoking due to the oil in the cylinders, it'll burn off relatively quickly. 15/20 min maybe.. Much more than that, you may have issues. after running a while, if you still have smoke, a Compression gauge can help you figure...

Hey hey, I'm not saying that Spirit doesn't do a good job, or that they're overpriced or anything for what you get. It's obvious from the pictures you need a new motor, but you can build your own and get close to those numbers. By playing with block/head combos you can tailor your compression ratio. (somewhere on here there's a link to an L28 Calculator that's pretty cool) But if you aim for the 9.6:1 +/- you'll be pretty happy and safe on pump gas. there's a variety of pistons you could use, but the flat top from the 81-83 should be fine. You could possibly use ones from an S13 or similar, (I think there's a list of different ones) Machining is a good idea just to make sure everything is flat and clean. A copper HG is often used, but not really required if you're staying NA. There's a lot of Cam options too. It's how much do you want to do yourself, and what your checkbook looks like. Here's a good informational FAQ on the subject: http://www.zhome.com/rnt/L28conversion/3031FAQ.html As for fuel, If it was me I'd be going with Megasquirt and EFI. It's MAP based so it's response is a little better than the stock Bosch system, but the real difference is how smooth it runs on Megasquirt. It's night and day how much better. A few more things, Since you're not looking for a really high top end, Consider swapping to a 5 speed from that Auto, and going with a slightly lower ratio in your Differential. This way you will be able to put a little more of those horses to the ground. An LSD would be even better. Under 300hp, the Subi LSD diff would be great. There's others too like the helical LSDs that aren't as common. That opens the halfshafts and axles can of worms tho. Again you need a new engine, so you're at a good point to decide where you want to put the $. Upgrading accessories like the Alt and distrib can also help your HP, but 160-200 isn't unreasonable NA.

Nice, That actually might really make this swap a lot easier. I'd been trying to figure a way around the AC pump. and a Gear like that might be just the ticket! Great find. Let me know how it works for you. I'll look around and see if there's one available locally here too. Phar