TheDeadZed Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 Long story short... Have Megasquirt, hate it (was installed incorrectly harness so molested at this point that its depressing), want to go OEM or as close as possible. Have: 1971 240z everything is stock 240z besides the engine. GM hei ignition 1981 280zxt engine Currently on engine: external '81 Distributor megasquirt ECU/kwik wire harness '81 280zxt injectors So... I want to remove the MS ECU and associated wire harness, Have a 1983 280zxt Engine harness/ECU/Distributor (10notch on spindle). Can i remove the MS EC/ Kwik engine harness, using it as a guide for wiring the '83 harness and retain my '81 distributor? Or do I need to modify anything and use the '83 Distributor? Thanks for any help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctc Posted September 20, 2014 Share Posted September 20, 2014 Change to the 83 distributor and follow the wiring guide in the FAQ's. This will allow you to hook it up like stock. Use stock ignition for the 83 or search for the mod to use the HEI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 I'm going to say buying a $65 harness and getting rid of your 81 CAS will solve whatever problem they were having with the MS. There is ABSOLUTELY no reason to change to an 82/83 CAS to use the latest harness, the stock harness, like any other using the 81-83 CAS is irrespective of the CAS used, they both put out EXACTLY the same signal, hook up to the EXACT same connection on the harness. But again, I would change to the 83 CAS module (you are calling it a 'distributor', it's not, it's the CAS. On the 81 it's a "Distributor" -- on the 82/83 it is the CAS)... My bet is for the cost of a new harness ($ Cheap) and putting in a functioning 83CAS all the problems they were experiencing with the MS using the 81 CAS will go away. The drivability of even a poorly calibrated MS is night and day better than any stock 81-83 ECCS System. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDeadZed Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 (edited) I believe I have the GM HEI Ignition(?) I will have to double check. I'll print out the wiring guide, but if the block is from an '81 and the CAS (Thank you for the correction) is from an '83 will i have to replace any of the internals to accept the new CAS? On a previous thread I read it said this might be the case, but i'm failing to find that specific thread again. Again, thank you for responding. Edited September 21, 2014 by TheDeadZed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 Nope, the 81 CAS on the crankshaft, is 100% compatible with the 82/83 CAS in the Dissy, the ECU doesn't care. The waveform output to MS is IDENTICAL. Trust me on this one, I was down to Oscilloscope testing of the waveforms...a case of Moosehead, and one Flying Beckman 100ms O-Scope later I came to the realisation that the 81 CAS I STARTED with was good, but FAILED once warm (probably why the car was in the JY...) and that the damned Comm Chip in my laptop was bad, and corrupting my MS files when I hooked up to it to do fueling tweaks. Fixed it by putting an 83 CAS on it, plugging it in, and using a new laptop.... since then, running FAMOUSLY! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 Signal conditioning is done at the CAS. Piling on.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDeadZed Posted September 27, 2014 Author Share Posted September 27, 2014 So... stupid question... but im confused... pictures are what I have... have a strangle feeling i have the wrong dizzy... or that im retarded... dont know which Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loy Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Pictured is the 280zxt 82-83 distributor. Did you get the 82-83 turbo distributor shaft? The one pictured is not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Correct. You can't just replace an '81 distributor with an '82-'83 distributor. You also need the distributor shaft from the '82-'83... Welcome to the wonderful world of dropping the oil pump and properly installing the shaft that drives the pump and distributor. Hint: know everything there is to know about this before you start. Installing the shaft improperly will cause you enormous headaches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 There's a useful picture on page EM-20. http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/280z/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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