Hello from across the pond! Searching for a 240z

[siteunseen]

24 minutes ago, Woody928 said:

Well more news, some good and some bad. I'm definitely learning the joys of classic motoring having had my second breakdown in the car now. Enjoying some of the first sunshine we've had in months a few weeks back I completely lost the clutch on a short drive out. Fortunately being local at the time my dad got called out and the same tow rope that saved the car in Caen also towed me home this time.

 

Following investigation it turned out that the slave cylinder seals had failed and the cylinder was quite literally pissing clutch fluid all over the floor every time the clutch was being used. The pool of fluid on the lock up implied it had been leaking for a little while before the complete failure, we were just unaware. I also noticed salt attacking the new suspension from our unfortunate incident being stuck out in the Snow with Goodwood, having cleaned and oiled everything to halt any damage I've now picked up ACF50 which has been generously applied over all of the adjustable parts to attack/prevent any corrosion, and provide a layer between the parts and the road grime.

 

New OEM slave cylinder, master cylinder and slave cylinder hose ordered from the US which finally arrived last Friday in the hopes to have the car roadworthy for Doninigton. On Saturday we managed to get the new slave cylinder and hose fitted and bled the system to see if it fixed the car, the Haynes manual did us proud. While messing around I also got the BC spanners back out to mess around with the ride height to try and get the car more balanced from an aesthetics point of view. Also having the front end of the car flying in the air we got around to the long overdue task of removing the front bumper to detach the over riders before refitting the bumper, I need to get some 14mm blanking grommets however it already looks a lot smarter in my opinion.

 

A quick road test revealed the clutch was back in business and I thought we were back on track for Donington however the car was running rough and not firing on all cylinders, an oily plug cleaned up and that was resolved. Thinking we may be finally be in for a break to add insult to injury we now have a coolant leak from the front of the engine. I'm currently speculating that the water pump is on its way out however there's also some oil that's falling onto the alternator belt and being sprayed in the engine bay as well. We're therefore going to be getting some slightly more professional help with concerns over the engine.

 

While this is all being worked out and analysed I've heard last week on return from my holiday that the S14 gearbox we picked up has wear to the second gear and won't be suitable. I'm currently making various inquiries about replacement gearboxes or gear sets however no luck as of yet. The only positive news is we are running out of things to replace in the engine bay so fingers crossed it'll be all sorted for this summer!

 

A few pics, kind of forgot to take a few as I went However here's a few:

 

IMG-5935 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

Oily mess lurking below

IMG-5942 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

Out with the old and in with the new

IMG-5947 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

Low light, done for the day with the ride height adjusted and over riders removed

IMG-5967 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG-5973 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

A question to those with far more knowledge, any ideas what this bronze shiny stuff is that has appeared in the rad? Should I be concerned?

IMG-5974 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

That's bronze radiator stop leak.

https://www.google.com/search?q=bronze+radiator+stop+leak&rlz=1C1BOFA_enUS494US494&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi906et7OTaAhVvTt8KHUhDBzcQ_AUICSgA&biw=1280&bih=615&dpr=1.25

[240260280]

As Cliff has mentioned:

"Liquid Copper"

[siteunseen]

Yeah I guess it does look more like copper. 

And as for being concerned, I wouldn't want it running through my motor.

Edited May 1, 2018 by siteunseen

[240260280]

I would change all components associated with the cooling system and the head gasket to be safe. 

 

Never assume a previous owners had ability, finances, or decency to maintain or repair the car.

[Patcon]

I have used this on an S10 I own. We have put 80k on it. No real issues. FWIW

It could be a clue though to your fluid loss. Might not be a new condition...

[Woody928]

Hmmm, thanks for confirming what it is guys.

The car had a top end engine rebuild last year so the head gasket was done at that time and I know was done properly then, this was because we noticed the head gasket weeping coolant at higher rpm on the rolling road session. I was advised that the oem rad was showing signs of wear in a few places so this could all starting to add up to signs that it was having issues before my ownership.

The heater core was corroded and completely bunged up when I got the car as well, we actually flushed the system and replaced the coolant last year so the liquid copper was likely lurking in the system somewhere. The whole engine is getting checked over very soon due to the coolant/oil leak which we're speculating is waterpump or timing gasket related so it'll get a full comb over then for anything further. It coule well be that refurbing the rad will be on the cards sooner rather than later. 

Thanks for all of the input 

[240260280]

Sounds like you nailed some of the issues that caused the PO to use the band-aid solution.

If you address the rad and water pump you will have peace of mind. 

Also consider changing all rubber coolant hoses and inspect the throats where they attach (they can corrode).

[Woody928]

Well more to report still, recently its felt like one step forward and two steps backwards however I finally feel as though some progress is being made.

Quite a few weeks back now my new OS Giken single plate clutch and lightweight flywheel combo turned up from Japan which looks like a piece of art, currently placed on the shelf gathering dust for now though. I’ve also received an uprated diff mount from the US which seemed like some sensible over engineering to go in with the LSD not knowing the state of the oem hardware which I imagine is still very original.

I now have a good lead for S14 gears thanks to JP so keeping my fingers crossed on that count, my Z therapy setup is also just waiting on the polished intake manifold and then that’ll be on its way as well. In other good news the stub axels made by John Williams have just been finished so I’m finalising details to have a small batch sent across for a few of us at the same time to keep costs down.

Having further investigated my coolant issues as several of you now know it turned out to be that the water pump gasket had failed and was leaking coolant down the block onto the alternator belt and arb. Having written the car off from attending both the Donington Historic and Japfest I changed my registration on both tickets not thinking I wouldn’t be able to source and fit a replacement before the weekends shows. Having nearly given up in a last ditch attempt I gave Four ways a call on Thursday who happened to have literally one left in stock so a priority delivery later and I had a replacement on Friday morning before show day. Having got home and drained and stripped the front end it was clear that the original gasket was knackered and where the leak was coming from, having cleaned the surfaces and fitted everything back up it was apparent the gasket hadn’t seated properly so back it all came off with some more gasket sealant more generously applied to the bottom to seal the joint. Everything was going well at this point until in my tired state I over tightened the last bolt and snapped it! A job for later, the system was refilled and the leak was gone. Following a short test drive, fuelled up and loaded all the spares I could think of into the car as well as printed off my breakdown cover policy the car was ready to go at 11pm.

Having recycled the coolant following the installation more signs have been appearing to support the theory that the car had serious coolant system issues in the past before my ownership and the band aid approach was applied. Having now done the heater matrix,  head gasket, water pump and physically inspected and seen the poor state of the oem radiator it’s clear that some form of rad weld was holding the system together for a while. Plans in the short term are to remove the water pump to sort the snapped bolt and replace all bolts with new ones, completely flush the system again and look to sort the radiator. I’m still in two minds as to whether to re-core the oem radiator or to take the opportunity to drop a Mishimoto Ali rad in its place to improve the cars cooling. I’ve also been recommended a Gano filter that can be put into the system to pick up any remaining crud as well which should all massibly improve the efficiency. Fingers crossed that once this has been done everything was be in tip top condition and I won’t have any more surprises from the engine bay.   

The good news was despite the fact the engine needs a health check it made both Donington and Japfest and managed both journeys without complaint! Both shows were fantastic and allowed for some long overdue catch ups, let me put some faces to names and get plenty of ideas of things to be done. Having not been out in the car properly in months it was really nice and gave me some much needed motivation to push on with the project. The car got some fantastic attention over the weekend particularly at Japfest which was really nice, and on the home had people hanging out of windows and all sorts to get pictures and wave. I’m just keeping my fingers crossed everything slots together I can try and ambitiously get everything some before the Le Mans Classic in July.

IMG-5612 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

IMG-6011 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

When most people are cleaning their cars or chilling with a beer before show day!

IMG-6013 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

Out with the old and in with the new

IMG-6014 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

Looking fairly tired and abused

IMG-6016 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

More evidence of my band aid theory, this didn’t get back into the system

IMG-6021 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

Edited May 9, 2018 by Woody928

[Woody928]

Well time for another update, I'm getting painfully close to putting the car through its next transformation having collected parts, researched and talked about it for the past few months. The car made it to Leeds Castle again and home with no dramas despite being a little unhealthy and was a cracking day out, it was great to see a few S30's together again this year and some of the usual faces. The weather even turned up by the end of the day so awesome all in all. 

 

IMG_6097 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

So the parts are now really stacking up, with everything now sorted via the gearbox which is waiting on the local shop to get their arse in gear and take another look. Looking at radiator options having had several conversations about cooling and the state of the radiator we decided to go ahead and over engineer so we are now the proud owners of a Mishimoto Aluminium rad which should be more than man enough for any engine build we do in the future! It also comes with a lifetime warranty. Just trying to decide whether to paint it black or anodise it black to make it blend into the engine bay a bit more or not?

 

IMG_6136 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

I need to give a shout out to Toopy for kindly selling me his old rocker cover as I've been meaning to attempt to refurbish one in a wrinkle/crackle black finish having seen so many done before I've been keen to get one done and move away from the polished look as it's really not for me. Having spent several evenings this week, I managed to strip it down, degrease, paint it and finish it. It's not perfect having had to spray it in the garden at compete with the wind and flies which kept being attracted to the paint (fortunately the wrinkle finish hides most of it). With paint not really being my forte though I'm quite please with how its come out and I've learnt lessons for if I do it again. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves though. 

 

IMG_6142 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6154 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6172 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6186 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

With parts continuing to pile in I also need to give a massive shout out to Mike, Chris and Alan on here. Having missed the window on anti roll bars for my suspension work I had a rethink and was sensibly pointed in the direction of suspension technics anti roll bars on the basis that the rear bar mounts off of the diff support like the period BRE cars rather than requiring any body modifications, particularly when being an early car with no brackets to talk of. Having realised shipping would be insane with the quote coming in at $850 dollars! Mike allowed me to have them shipped to him, dropped into Chris's car to be shipped over to the UK before it was sold to Alan (who I coincidentally met at Donington and found out lives just down the road). Who in turn delivered the bits to my front door! It never ceases to amaze me the sense of community, with three members generously helping me out and getting parts several thousand miles to my front door free of charge  Having now seen them in the flesh I'm convinced these are going to go a long way towards removing hte body roll with a seriously chunky front bar and a sensible looking rear one to bolt on. At the same time I also picked up a brand new passenger grab handle as one of the Chrome pieces of trim had decided to fall to pieces, the nice thing its a Nissan nos item. I always love original parts in bags with the stickers! lol

 

IMG_6178 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6175 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

Finally my evening has been topped off with another arrival from the US, this time after months of waiting on the list ZTherapy have come through with the goods. Fantastic packaging to keep the newly refurbished carb, intake manifold, euro balance tube, heat shield, fuel rail and throttle linkage all protected. The setup looks amazing, and everything feels very slick. The only problem is that now there's loads of nicely zinc plated items, there's lots of little bits and pieces that will need to be done to match in, I'm not sure quite what I've started here! I'm still recovering from the import duties and had second thoughts over tripples however they will come at a later date long way down the road, for now these are going to be awesome and should give some decent performance and economy.  I think it's fair to say the car is going to drive like a different beast very shortly with all the parts that are being thrown at it, I'm getting super excited as fingers crossed work will begin in a couple of weeks time. 

 

Getting an idea of what things will look like shortly:

IMG_6191 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6194 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

IMG_6195 by Mark Woodrow, on Flickr

 

More to come in due course, don't go away 

[240260280]

Looks great!  Glad you got the cooling system sorted.

 

btw if you are ever in a pinch for a simple gasket, you can take the metal part and press it into the cardboard from a breakfast cereal box. Cut out the indentation with a blade and you have a gasket.  Some gasket sealer such as the molasses-like  Permatex Aviation Sealant works great (put on all FOUR surface to tack for 5 min then assemble).  Some autoparts shops also sell rubber, coated paper, and cork gasket material in A4 sized (or similar) sheets.

 

https://youtu.be/nBG9C0Py0Ks?t=50s

 

Edited May 26, 2018 by 240260280

[siteunseen]

I'd more likely have a beer box than cereal, both will work I imagine.

Macgyver, Phillip Angus.

[Woody928]

12 hours ago, 240260280 said:

Looks great!  Glad you got the cooling system sorted.

 

btw if you are ever in a pinch for a simple gasket, you can take the metal part and press it into the cardboard from a breakfast cereal box. Cut out the indentation with a blade and you have a gasket.  Some gasket sealer such as the molasses-like  Permatex Aviation Sealant works great (put on all FOUR surface to tack for 5 min then assemble).  Some autoparts shops also sell rubber, coated paper, and cork gasket material in A4 sized (or similar) sheets.

 

https://youtu.be/nBG9C0Py0Ks?t=50s

 

Cheers dude, works still to be completed but another weak link eliminated I expect. 

Thanks for the tip, that's a great little tutorial and one that I'd never thought of!