NewZed

What have you read? No use repeating it if it's been read already. There's at least one pretty long and somewhat informative thread on Hybridz, and two web sites with lots of swap details, part numbers, pictures, and measurements.

I would give a better description of what problem you're trying to solve. You said it wouldn't start after a radiator replacement. Your title says "won't start". But now you say it won't rev. And, apparently, it ran fine, you drove it for two hours to get it home. But them it wouldn't rev past 3500 RPM. So, which of the many problems are you asking about?

That's not a counterpoint to my point. Which was to your point about wheel cylinder "blow-outs" as a reason to switch to discs and calipers. Your statement implied that drum brakes are inherently unsafe. I was showing that they are not. You're digressing. Back to the original point about performance - I'm pretty sure that some of the guys that race their cars, or have, have pointed out that the typical front brake "upgrade" to bigger calipers and discs adds unsprung weight. Which is a suspension performance downgrade. My main point is to define clearly what you're trying to accomplish. Don't just bolt on parts that somebody on the internet said were an upgrade or that one of the aftermarket suppliers is selling as an upgrade. The advancements come from the people that think out their projects and choose the parts that do the job. The thread seems to be trending that way, so carry on.

Drum brakes have been around and dependable for many years and are still in use on brand new cars from reputable manufacturers. Worrying about a cylinder blow-out, or a spin-out just doesn't seem to have much weight. Just trying to stay on the path of solid reason.

That's what the brake pressure differential switch is for. To light up the Brake light. Caliper seals can blow out too. You're kind of giving the irrational "reason" to upgrade. Better to just admit that you want shiny brake parts. One rational reason, to me anyway, to convert the backs to disc is that they stay in fine adjustment. The drum brakes will feel different before and after a click on the adjusting wheel. The pedal will be higher after a click.

Here's a simple test that you can do to test the injector opening circuitry of the ECU, and the wring harness. It's been described by a few people over the years and you can figure it out from the first few pages of the Engine Fuel chapter. Take a jumper wire and attach one end to the negative terminal of the coil. Let the other end hang free. Turn the key on, so that the coil has power and the EFI relay is energized, and tap the loose end of the jumper wire to a good ground. This will cause the coil to spark. Every third tap should cause all six injectors to open. If you get the injectors opening then you'll know that, at least, the required circuit is intact. It won't tell you how long the injectors stay open but it's a simple confirmation. If you get coil spark but no injectors opening then you have a problem, that you can focus on. You still seem to be looking at things that are easy to reach instead of the things that might matter. But, you'll know a lot more when you're done, either way. Good luck, have fun.

This might get you close.

If spark and timing are right, you should be able to get a start with starting fluid and keep it running for a few seconds with a few extra squirts. I think that you mentioned a backfire in the other thread. Are all of the hoses to the intake system intact? Is the oil filler cap on? Is the PCV hose intact? The EFI system does not like to see any air that has not passed through the AFM. It's very important that the intake system and the crankcase are completely sealed.

Should have kept your other thread going. Now everyone has to ask the same questions over again. You got it to run for a short while using starting fluid before. Why didn't you try starting fluid again? Fuel, spark, and timing are what you need. And air. No offense, but you don't really seem to be thinking about how engines work. You have fuel and spark. And it started once. Why are you testing "power relays" and worried about the air regulator? You have fuel and spark. Have you read the Engine Fuel chapter? Nissan wrote a two-three page tutorial at the beginning on how their system works and what happens during starting. It's a primer on EFI.

I don't think that I've ever read anyone actually write down what they thought the improvement would be, for any of the various brake "upgrades". Most performance "upgrades" are done for looks, from what I've seen. If you can't describe the performance benefits in words, then you're just doing it for looks. The brake upgrade world typically involves a lot of effort and expense to create new problems. Figure out what you're trying to accomplish first.

Did you hear bubbles? How long did it run after you used the starting fluid? Seriously, it's not complicated.

Setting to stock would be the safest. Valve lash gets tighter as engines warm up, so if you go too tight you can warp/burn a valve. Setting tighter is the "racer's edge" method, with racing edge risk. Could be expensive.

None of what you wrote explains the smoke. Be careful. You have more smoke waiting to come out. I don't know what you're "brushing" your battery terminals with, or what kind of grease you're putting on, but there's a simple $2 tool made specifically for cleaning terminals using hard wire brushes, and no grease is necessary. You can get the took, called a battery terminal cleaner, at any auto parts store, or hardware store, or Harbor Freight. Clean them up, leave the grease off, and clamp them down tightly using a wrench. Check under the dash for wire ends that are brown or burnt. Wire connections get loose or corroded and generate heat. Check the back of the ammeter.

There are several sites out there that have FSM's free for download. Xenonzcar, nicoclub and classiczcars.com. The wire is small and just pulls off by hand.

Don't make it complicated. People run out of gas all the time. It might not even be your problem. Run the pump as described elsewhere and listen for bubbles n the tank. When the bubbles stop the lines are full. Then use starting fluid to get it started.

The 1976 280Z doesn't have the priming feature. It came on the later year 280ZX's. And often doesn't work, after all of these years. Take the small wire off of the solenoid and turn the key to Start. The pump will run but the engine won't turn over. It's described in the Engine Fuel chapter of the FSM.

Nissan says that if you run the tank dry you need to prime the pump. Can't remember where exactly I saw that, either the FSM or the Owners Manual. You might jack the back end of the car up to be sure the pump inlet gets a little help, getting a good fuel supply to start pumping. You can run the pump by itself by disconnecting the starter solenoid wire and turning the key to start. The aftermarket pumps don't seem to have that problem but the stock pump might.

Did it run before you bought it? Not much to work on here.

You could search the Internet for feedback on any FAST EFI application, I would think, to learn about how it works. zcardepot just put the parts list together to make it east to apply to the L6 engine. FAST has been around for many years. http://www.fuelairspark.com/

Did the axles still end up angled or did you get them back to perpendicular to the hubs?

Pretty sure that I've read a few accounts of sloppy fit for the R200 axles in the OBX diff. Something to consider. The guy that got MFactory to produce a diff apparently put a pretty good product together. Don't know if they're still available or not. Looked better than OBX though.

They fit just like the 280Z rails except for the cold start valve (CSV) extension. You can probably bend and/or cut to make it work. I've had a ZX rail on my 280Z engine but I just cut the CSV stem off (no CSV) and sealed it with a compression fitting.

+ means the alternator is supplying more power than the system is using. That's normal, and good. - means it isn't, that the battery is supplying the power. Apparently, ammeters, or the big wires that supply them, go bad sometimes. They just burn up. http://www.viczcar.com/forum/topic/15680-mysterious-burnt-out-wires-under-dash/

Many, maybe all, of the 280ZX axles are actually 25 spline. Nissan did some weird stuff. People use the 280ZX axles to convert their 240Z's to CV axles. 240Z's are 25 spline also. Better count to be sure. http://www.zhome.com/rnt/FordPower/HalfShaft.html

It's just one guy, if you look closely, escalating from a few veiled insults. He doesn't post much except to protect his perception of the past. Just ignore. There's a setting if you want to make it easy. You can ignore me or anyone else. Hover your cursor over their name and a new screen will pop up. Click "ignore" and their posts won't show up when you're signed in. I used yours for an example. Good luck with your car.