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Z31/300zx ECU/MAF to 280ZXT swap guide


Afshin

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Guest donmobile

can i do this swap with a 81 28zxt with the crank angle sensor? im getting 82-83 dissy but just dont have it yet wondering if it will work with crank angle sensor

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Guest donmobile

i got to computers one from a 300zx turbo and one from i beleave is a non turbo. first off how do i tell if its a non turbo secound can the turbo one work on my 81 280 zx turbo? please help. i have maf from 300zx turbo.

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can i do this swap with a 81 28zxt with the crank angle sensor? im getting 82-83 dissy but just dont have it yet wondering if it will work with crank angle sensor

 

um... page 1 of this thread answers that:

 

Also as bastaad pointed out' date=' anyone with a 81 ZXT (crank trigger ignition)set up will need the distributor assembly from an 82-83 year. The chopper wheel from the Z31 just drops in and take 5 minutes to swap. I will take a picture later to show which side is the top of the wheel.

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can the turbo one work on my 81 280 zx turbo? please help. i have maf from 300zx turbo.

 

Dude... I suggest RE-READING the first few posts of this thread.... YES, YOU USE THE Z31 TURBO ecu. :D

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Guest donmobile

yes i read all that but i was confused. first off I read somewhere you can use a none turbo 300zx ecu im i right? and if so wont the performance not be as good none turbo ecu wont retard timing right? second i have chopper wheel but no dissy yet so for now can i use the stock crank angel sensor thats on my pulley from 1981? will car run and just not idle? what will happen.

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yes i read all that but i was confused. first off I read somewhere you can use a none turbo 300zx ecu im i right? and if so wont the performance not be as good none turbo ecu wont retard timing right? second i have chopper wheel but no dissy yet so for now can i use the stock crank angel sensor thats on my pulley from 1981? will car run and just not idle? what will happen.

 

You can use the 88-89 non-turbo ecu, or an 84-87 turbo ecu.... but, as the first few posts of this thread state, the 88-89 uses a different O2 sensor than the 280ZXT & 84-87 Z31's, and some wires are different. I assume it's not discussed in this thread, because the focus of this thread is the 1984 Z31T ecu swap.

 

I imagine the car either wouldn't start, or would idle very poorly if you still use the 81 CAS.

 

This JWT page explains a lot: http://www.jimwolftechnology.com/wolfpdf/280%20Z31%20450HP%20UPGRADE.PDF

 

 

also i have 2 ecu's i know the one is a turbo from a 84 300zx how do i tell if the other is a turbo or none turbo

 

I don't have the turbo & na ecu part#s handy, but a quick search on google might help. Or check out AZ-ZBUM's web page: http://www.az-zbum.com/faqs.shtml#basic

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Guest donmobile

thanks a bunch good info on his site. I just finished the upgrade and car runs and is more responcive but is slow under boost because of timing way retarded now. Anyways when dissy comes in im sure i will be hauling butt. also was reading about drop resistors for the injectors on some cars somewhere does anyone know if my car has them and if i need to take them out with this ecu?

 

 

just picked up a 71 240z from a lady tonight also for 300 bucks with blown tranny, car needs paint but is a no rust car. think im going to have it painted and do the turbo engine swap out of my 81zx. anyone that has a turbo engine and wants to do so type of trade with money and turbo engine for my 81 let me know i will be putting pix up soon!!!!!! 81zx is intercooled, 11 lbs boost, custom fuel rail, crome vaule cover, and a bunch of other stuff it is white and needs nothing but a dissy lol. cars paint is really good and have clear california title, car is in los angeles

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
Has anyone done this on a NA application? If used on a non_turbo, does the ZXT dizzy have to be used, or can the NA 280 dizzy work. Everything in this and other threads I've seen has been for a turbo swap.

 

 

I've never seen anyone do this on the N/A. The reason it's so easy on the turbo is because the 280zxt & all Z31's use the same ecu plugs. You just have to cut & solder several wires. You will need the entire Z31 n/a ecu wiring & run it to all the sensors for the N/A L28... or at least cut the Z31 ecu plugs & solder them onto the 280zx n/a ecu harness.... which is about 30 wires (fun!).... and don't forget all the wire tracing to match them to the Z31 ecu (more fun!).

 

You WILL need the 82-83 L28ET distributor w/ the VG30 CAS "chopper wheel" as ALL Z31 ecu's use that optical pickup.

 

I think the reason no one has done this for the 280zx n/a is because it would be too time consuming, for little benefit. If you're going to spend all that time rewiring, go megasquirt. The reason I did the Z31T ecu swap, is because it was very simple... cut n splice a couple wires & pop in the new ecu... much less time n money than swapping to Megasquirt, but with less benefit.

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I've never seen anyone do this on the N/A. The reason it's so easy on the turbo is because the 280zxt & all Z31's use the same ecu plugs. You just have to cut & solder several wires. You will need the entire Z31 n/a ecu wiring & run it to all the sensors for the N/A L28... or at least cut the Z31 ecu plugs & solder them onto the 280zx n/a ecu harness.... which is about 30 wires (fun!).... and don't forget all the wire tracing to match them to the Z31 ecu (more fun!).

 

You WILL need the 82-83 L28ET distributor w/ the VG30 CAS "chopper wheel" as ALL Z31 ecu's use that optical pickup.

 

I think the reason no one has done this for the 280zx n/a is because it would be too time consuming, for little benefit. If you're going to spend all that time rewiring, go megasquirt. The reason I did the Z31T ecu swap, is because it was very simple... cut n splice a couple wires & pop in the new ecu... much less time n money than swapping to Megasquirt, but with less benefit.

 

Actually, I don't think it would be that bad.

 

The Z31 harness would be the hardest part, but several people have used the Z31 harness with L28ETs just for the better connectors.

 

The sensors are the same, assuming it's a 280ZX motor with an O2 sensor. If not, swapping in an O2 sensor from a later car probably wouldn't be hard.

 

Also, while the 280ZXT distributor is needed, see my thread: http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=114687 on how I used it WITHOUT changing the oil pump shaft to splined. It's easy and cheap to get the distributor to work. Besides, don't you need that for Megasquirt, anyway?

 

Megasquirt is not cheap and not easy. IMO, a Z31 N/A swap would be much cheaper and easier than Megasquirt.

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BTW, for those of you with 1981 ZXT motors who want to do the 300ZX MAF swap, check out my "supplement" to Afshin's thread. It really seemed to help wannaBREz with his swap and the guys at Z31performance.com seemed to approve of it.

 

It was a lot of work and I went through and answered many questions that you guys have, so give it a read:

 

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=114687

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  • 1 month later...

I put the ecu in and the maf and the crank angle sensor are all in... but i am not getting a spark signal to the MSD. It only sparks 3 times after i turn the key off. Does the z31 ecu use the same (-) coil trigger wire as the 82 ecu? And do i need to replace the old ignition module with the z31 module?

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  • 2 months later...
Guest dwallace

I recently purchased a 280zxt with original stock engine. I have read that yo can upgrade the ecu with a 84-88 300zxt ecu and upgrade the turbo to a 300zx t3/t4 turbo. Is there any modifications I will need to do for this? Thanks. Dave.

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  • 1 month later...

Hey guys. Haven't posted here much but the guys at ZDriver are becoming retarded in trying to help me with my problem, so I am posting it here hoping that someone can help.

 

I started the Z31 ECU Upgrade to my 1982 280zxt back before Christmas, but with snow and a lack of a garage I was unable to complete it until this past weekend when it started warming back up. I double checked all of the steps from the tutorial, switched the 108 wire so it would control the Fuel Pump, added the 84 disk to my disty, and have an 84 Turbo ECU and MAF.

 

The car ran perfectly fine before the swap, but now it is acting weird. If I go out in the morning it will fire up fine, idle fine, and revv with no problems. But then, after a bit, it will just stutter and die. Sometimes it will start back up no problem, but sometimes it will not want to start back up for the rest of the day. I double-checked the wiring and everything is correct and secure.

 

Today, my friend came over and we went to work, adding a fuel stabilizer thinking the gas was just impure and when under a load was fouling up the plugs. It fired up easily after dying, but then died the same after about 5 minutes, and won't start back up. I have another project car that we took the adjustable Fuel Pressure Regulator off of, and put it on thinking there was too much fuel and it was blocking the spark. No difference. I then pulled off the fuel lines we had just installed and found that they were all still dry, both sides of the FPR, showing that there was no fuel entering the system. We are both out of ideas, so I am looking for help.

 

Like I said, if it sits for a while it will fire right up, but then dies within minutes of fuel deprivation.

 

Any suggestions will be gladly taken into consideration. Just need it running...

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