Shane's 240z build

[KyleG]

This is my first post here, so ill start off with a bit of an introduction about my self and my Z. I'm in my 3rd year of engineering at university in Ontario, and Ive got a lot of spare time on my hands. A friend of mine suggested that i should get a classic car to restore in my down time. So back in December i started looking around, and seeing what options there were for local classics. I originally decided on an old Corvette, from the 70s or late 60s, and began searching for one in reasonable condition. In one of my searches on auto trader, i noticed a 240z for sale and immediately fell in love with its looks. I decided that's the car i would buy, and started doing a bit of research on it. That led me to this forum, and here i found out the things to check for when buying a Z, the typical rust in the floor ect. All the cars avaliable to me were all in the 4-5k$ range, and had the floors rusted out amongst various other problems. Then i found a 73 in amazing shape. the po had restored the floors and frame along with giving the car a new paint job. The car wasnt running, but the owner assured me it was mechanically sound so i bought it on the spot for 4500$. It needed to be towed about 200kms back to my place, but i got a good deal on that from a friend. Some how between buying the car and getting it to the garage, the rear tail light got smashed in, luckily i was able to get a replacement from z parts for not to much.

 

you can see the red tape ive put on as a temporary fix

 

 

When i finally got some time to work on it, the first thing i noticed was that the fuel pump had been disconnected, it looked as though it was rigged up ready for a pressure test, which made me suspect there was an issue with the fuel system

 

 

After reconnecting the pump, and installing a battery, i got the engine to crank with no problems, but it would not fire. I finally found that by filling the carb bowls i could get it to run. I figured if i primed the fuel system and did this and got it to run for a few mins, that everything would be fine and dandy. Sure enough, it coughed and spluttered but came to life. After idling for about 20 mins i figured it was time for a road test. The bubbles in the fuel filter should have tipped me off, but i decided to take it out for a spin. Sure enough, it died about a km down the road. After filling the bowls again and bringing it back, i still couldn't figure out what was wrong. I took the carbs off and rebuilt them, replacing all the seals. That made no difference. Eventually i got fed up and re installed every, and filled the gas tank completely to the top. I figured if that didn't solve the problem id have to take it to a pro. Sure enough filling the tank to the top got the engine to fire, but i noticed that there was a steady leak out of one of the lines, even if the car was off.

 

The line looked like someone had installed a garden hose in place of a fuel line, and it was full of hair line cracks. These cracks were letting the fuel pump suck in air and it could only move enough fuel to let the car idle. With any load it would stall. Well i didn't feel like dropping the tank so i took it to a buddy's shop and had him replace the line. it cost me $160, but it was worth it. Draining the tank in February when its below freezing isn't fun.

 

After that the car was in running order so i took it out for its first official drive, and noticed that the brakes were a bit spongy. I decided bleeding them would be the best option, but ended up snapping the bolts that let the fluid bleed out. Thats what i get for working with original parts i guess. So after replacing both wheel cylinders, it was time to order and install some rims before taking the car in to get safetyd.

 

 

and a photoshop job my buddy did

 

 

On to get it safteyed, i made a nasty discovery about my car, It either doesnt have a rev limiter or it isnt functioning. I was trying to pass a semi, so i shifted into second and floored it. I missed the shift and the revs hit about 10k rpm, and a coolant line exploded. I shut it off right away and got a buddy to help me push it back. After patching the line, the car restarted and runs, but there's a lot of blue smoke coming out the back, meaning im burning oil. It seems to me its either the piston rings or the head gasket. I planned to daily drive this car this summer, then do an rb20det engine swap next winter. I could use a little advice at this point. Im going to be putting about 10k kms or 6000 miles on the car this summer, and i dont mind topping up the oil if its not burning it too fast, but i dont want to put money into fixing an engine that ill be pulling in 6 months. So if any one could chime in on if this engine will last me 6000 miles reliably or if i should swap over to the rb20 right away, that would be great.

 

heres a pic of how much oil im burning with the engine going about 2000-2500 rpm

 

ive never dealt with an oil burning engine before so once again it appreciate any help you guys could offer on making this decision.

[T-Bone028]

Just a quick indicator, pull your dipstick and wipe it off on a clean white paper towel. If the oil looks milky, you prob blew your headgasket.

[datsun723]

Welcome to the forum! Seems like a pretty solid Z from the pictures and I like your taste in wheels

 

In that last picture, is the car at idle or are you revving it? If it that thick at idle you might have a problem. My Z burns oil but is only really noticeable when decelerating. I only go through a quart a month so it isn't the biggest deal.

 

Try driving the car for a week whilst checking the level everyday and see how fast it is burning. It could also be hazardous for other drivers depending on how thick the smoke is being laid down.

[Sparks280zt]

Welcome to the forum! Seems like a pretty solid Z from the pictures and I like your taste in wheels

 

In that last picture, is the car at idle or are you revving it? If it that thick at idle you might have a problem. My Z burns oil but is only really noticeable when decelerating. I only go through a quart a month so it isn't the biggest deal.

 

Try driving the car for a week whilst checking the level everyday and see how fast it is burning. It could also be hazardous for other drivers depending on how thick the smoke is being laid down.

 

 

"heres a pic of how much oil im burning with the engine going about 2000-2500 rpm"

[datsun723]

"heres a pic of how much oil im burning with the engine going about 2000-2500 rpm"

 

Whoops!

 

I even re-read to see if he posted something like that...darn!

[KyleG]

Welcome to the forum! Seems like a pretty solid Z from the pictures and I like your taste in wheels

 

In that last picture, is the car at idle or are you revving it? If it that thick at idle you might have a problem. My Z burns oil but is only really noticeable when decelerating. I only go through a quart a month so it isn't the biggest deal.

 

Try driving the car for a week whilst checking the level everyday and see how fast it is burning. It could also be hazardous for other drivers depending on how thick the smoke is being laid down.

 

Thanks for the quick reply's and warm welcomes, ill give driving it for a week or so a shot. Its not really putting out enough to blind the people behind me, so i suppose it will be alright.

 

I checked the dipstick as you recommended T-bone, and it didn't look milky so i guess that means Ive damaged the rings? from what im hearing though, it sounds like the car should be alright to drive for the season though, and ill scrap the motor for something new next year. Thanks again everyone,

[JSM]

I'd pull the valve cover to see if all the rockers are in place too. Before doing that I would pull the plug wires off one by one and see if you can tell if the motor drops down a little one by one when idling, then do a compression test and then pull the valve cover if either one of those two checks seem off.