NewZed

1978 has a fuel pump relay that requires either voltage from the alternator or a closed circuit at the oil pump pressure switch, to keep the fuel pump powered. The relay is overrode during starting. That is one of many possible sources for your current symptom. Just an example. You need to start with the basics of fuel and spark and see which one is missing. There are many ways to do that, like listening to the fuel pump, attaching a voltmeter to the fuel pump leads, watching a spare plug for spark, watching the tachometer while it runs and dies (the tach counts sparks from the coil), attaching a fuel pressure gauge, supplying supplemental power to the fuel pump, etc. Pick a few and break the problem down until you're looking at the part that needs fixing. The Factory Service Manual chapters, Engine Fuel, and Engine Electrical, have many procedures and diagrams that will help. http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/280z/

You have several different questions all together, and some of them are pretty esoteric. Looks like a big mess to get involved. - Warm up enrichment (WUE) at 100% after autotune. - Lost sync. - Injector dead time. Apparently the table of voltages can be used to calculate dead time? You're asking someone to do the calculation or asking for the formula? - ASE taper time. What's that? From what I've seen, many people don't even use Autotune. It changes things that you might not really want changed. Most start with a basic known tune, then use the datalogs to make manual changes. Autotune is for the end when you're almost done tuning. You'd probably do better by listing the specs. of your engine and components, and the specs. of your Megasquirt system, then using one of the tunes that people have provided on the forum, to get started. Just offering an outside opinion. I don't have MS so can't even look at the three files you attached. If you have Windows you can use the Snipping Tool in Accessories to capture a screen shot. Might be easier than creating zip files.

Checking float levels would be a lot easier. You might be focusing on what you're comfortable with instead of what needs to be done.

Interesting transmissions. 5th gear is direct, super low 1st, and the later models comes with triple cone synchronizers in 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Must be super smooth. Looks like they used about a 3.54 diff drive also.

Pretty sure that your stock 76 distributor will work. Locking the distributor advance mechanisms would allow MS to fully control timing based on intake manifold pressure and RPM. The VR wheel in the distributor is no different than a VR or HAll effect trigger on the crank, aside from higher accuracy at high RPM. You're getting closer to the point where you won't need to follow someone else's instructions. The DIY site has many incomplete writeups and broken links. For example, the one below. They're grown too fast. You just need to sift through the information and figure out what the fundamentals are for each of the various writeups and just figure out how to supply the board and software with what they need to work right. Many people try to do more than they need to do from the start. Like COP with a crank trigger. Not needed for ignition control, but it's pretty cool if you can get it done. https://www.diyautotune.com/tech_articles/megasquirt_ignition_control.htm#fuelsparkdizzy (Missing links and text that says "this page will be continued" but it never has).

This guy has a ton of parts, not all listed. Easy phone call. http://www.datsunstore.com/

EE-29 and -45 show some possibilities.

Power comes from the fuel. No fuel, no power. You actually start going lean at 3500 RPM, and it's a straight line up and leaner. Pretty dramatic. There are two tests for the mechanical pump in the FSM. Pressure and capacity. You can do the same with an electric pump.

Looks nice. I was just being blunt to make a point. I think that you have your S and L backward though. A disconnected L would have stopped the alt from charging at all, unless you revved the engine first. A disconnected S, that would have caused your symptoms. You don't need a bulb or resistor on S. And the bulb's main purpose on L is to indicate what the voltage regulator is doing. Just saying, S is for sensing voltage so it can be controlled, which is what your problem was. For future readers...

Yes, it increases injector open duration based on temperature. The CSV has nothing to do with the ECU's fuel program. The CSV is only opened when the starter is spinning. White is not stock. Yes, it's described in the Megamanual. Here's a couple of starts, you'll have to dig around. The GM HEI is a different way to create spark, but MS doesn't need to know how the coil is controlled. http://www.megamanual.com/v22manual/mfuel.htm#ignition where the above came from - http://www.megamanual.com/mtabcon.htm

You've probably already figured out much of this since you're using the tons of information that's out on the web. I added some comments above. Should be pretty easy for you to use a single pickup from your stock distributor to trigger MS and get going. But if you fix the coolant temp. circuit you'll have more time to plan. Although the performance cam will, from what people have said, make the engine run a little rougher with the stock EFI. The stock EFI ECU is tuned to a specific set of engine hardware. The cam might be the real reason to go MS.

Parts store rebuilt alternators have a reputation for poor quality. My junk yard Nissan factory stock alternator has lasted three times as long as my parts store unit did. A year and a half or more, versus six months. I have a "new" replacement parts store unit on the shelf in the box from the lifetime guarantee that I will probably never use. No matter how you wire it, the same parts will be loaded in the alternator, so the time to failure will be the same. You have a 76, did you convert to an internal regulator?

Insult is in mind of the beholder. Or something like that. I gave you a perspective on your position in this forum's community of people who tear down, rebuild, and modify complete cars, engines, and transmissions. You're way down at the bottom. I'm not far above myself. It's not clear that you've done much at all. Sorry about the plug comment. I got you confused with another guy who's having simple problems like yours. Your comment about avoiding removing a valve cover sent me there. You would have to remove the plugs to check cylinder pressure. Although, you didn't give any cylinder pressure numbers so you might be judging "great compression" by sound. Who knows. Good luck.

The very first item in the Tune Up chapter is adjust valve lash. It has a big effect. If you're going to swap engines to avoid adjusting lash, there's little point in continuing this thread. Swap that 2jz in there. Seriously. I'm going to guess that you haven't even removed a spark plug yet. Many people enjoy these engines because it's easy to get in and get your hands dirty. They're not like today's 100,000 miles between tuneups engines.

You can download and install all three with no conflicts. Try them all. You can even have them all open at the same time. The only downside is in saving bookmarks. I think that Chrome and Firefox will convert IE's bookmarks, but IE pretends the others don't exist. Once you switch, you can't go back easily. Google is a dominant player these days though so odds are IE will add that feature eventually. I ended up with Chrome. IE was bad for a while, slow and error-prone, so I switched to Firefox. Then Firefox had a bad patch so I switched to Chrome. I used to avoid Chrome for the privacy concerns (on principle, not perviness) but it turns out that they all collect and sell/use browsing data anyway.

Gapping plugs wider won't affect the popping. L6's used the small gap up until 1978. You might be too focused on the small stuff. How does the engine run when you're driving the car? The idle air screw really only affects idle mixture. Popping at idle could be cross-fire between bad plug wires, an imbalance between injector flows, bad valve settings, etc. You can try to isolate it to one cylinder by removing the injector connectors one at a time. You didn't say if the popping is at idle only or when revving or when driving. Intake popping could be an overall lean mixture or a cylinder with bad valve action, either a worn exhaust lobe or bad lash setting. Intake popping when driving is a common sign of an AFM with lean spots. Just some random thoughts...

How do the plugs look? Did you pull one when you tested spark? The "cammy" sound is what they do when they're running rich. You might just be flooded. The ECU's and their connections flood the engine sometimes when they fail. But, you need to get an actual number for fuel pressure if you do find flooding. Flow doesn't tell pressure. " Only getting fuel pressure when motor is trying to crank over... I removed outlet line from filter and observed fuel flowing when cranking but not in "on" position." The troubleshooting methods in the FSM and the EFI Guidebooks will save you a lot of time and money in the long run.

Are the injectors firing? The fuel,pump is not supposed to run when the key is ''On". Some cars have a 5 second prime, but it often doesn't work right. But otherwise the pump only runs when the engine does. Yellow-orange sounds like a weak spark. A squirt of starting fluid will tell you if the ignition system is working correctly. If it runs then dies, you have a fuel problem. If it keeps running, but only re-starts with starting fluid, you might have a weak spark problem. If it won't start with starting fluid, you might have a timing problem. Many possibilities but the fluid will help you break the problem down.

Hard to tell what you're dealing with. There is no "alternator voltage relay", for example. You should really only have to deal with the EFI harness and ignition system. As far as research, somebody wrote up a decent procedure for what you're doing. http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/38461-240z-260z-280z-turbo-swap-guide/

You're talking about spending $5,000 and you're not even sure what you're working with. Not good.

A higher numerical rear drive ratio will make the gears feel closer, and shorten the top end. You could probably get what you want with a different gear set in the back. You'll have to figure out what you have now first though. The ZX trans has closer low gears but a taller 5th. So you'd still need new gears in the back for the last shift. How do you get 357 HP, 300 ft-lbs torque, out of a non-turbo L28? That's some kind of "built".

Are they stock or "upgraded"? If you pump the pedal do they start to work? Air in the system. Does the check brakes light come on? Imbalance between front and back pressures. Watch the reservoirs when someone presses the pedal, or use a mirror. If large quantities of fluid leave and come back there is air in the system. Bleed screws must be at the top of the calipers. Adjust the play in the mechanical parts. Try to be more descriptive than "don't work".

There's a switch in the AFM for 75 and 76 that can be used to switch a relay. Just like the factory did it. They drew pictures of what they did and wrote up how it worked in a book that they used to give to the mechanics. The alternator wan't used to switch a relay until 1978.

There's not much to the hatch lock. I think it just rotates a metal piece over that blocks the plunger from moving. Could be that someone swapped hatches or locks in the past. You probably have the wrong key.

There are some pictures and test descriptions here - http://www.nicoclub.com/nissan-service-manuals and here - http://www.nicoclub.com/datsun-service-manuals depending on what car and alternator you're working with. You can even check that you don't have S and L reversed. And no need to hack-job it with stray bulbs and resistors. Your car probably has a charge lamp circuit that will do the job.