air pump, octane, oil...

[sahunt66]

I have a '71 240Z that I've recently aquired. I'm new to these cars and are full of goofy questions:

1) The air pump belt is missing. If the air pump is not running will that effect how the car runs?

2) What octane rating should the gas be?

3) What brand of motor oil and filter should I use or does it matter?

4) In my repair manual it shows a flow meter for setting the carbs. Who sells flow meters? In general, what are some good parts companies, catalogs, web sites, ...?

Thanks

[Dtsnlvrs]

ditch the air pump, and all of its related smog equip, properly plug all holes opened up by removal of said non-essential equp.

Castrol 10W30, and factory nissan filter, and nothing else

Use at least 91 octane

www.zcarparts.com

[texasz]

For Z cars the names to know for parts are as follows:

Victoria British (commonly know as VB) - www.victoriabritish.com

Motorsport (commonly know as MSA) - www.zcarparts.com

Zed Findings (great for floorboards among other things) - www.datsunzparts.com

Midwest Z - www.midwestz.com

Z Parts - www.zparts.com

Z Therapy (THE place for rebuilt and performance carbs, etc) - www.ztherapy.com

Z Barn - http://zbarn.com

Among many, many others who's links are located in the 'LINKS' section of this site. The ones I have listed are probably the most popular from what I can remember at the moment (if anyone is missing please do not be offended I'm working from memory only).

Welcome to the group and enjoy your Z!! This is the nicest most helpful Z site I have found yet!

[kmack]

4) In my repair manual it shows a flow meter for setting the carbs. Who sells flow meters?

What you are looking for is called a "Uni-sync" and it is used to measure/calibrate the amount of air flow into one carb vs. the other carb. I found mine at a local VW shop (one that specialized in older air-cooled models). You can sometimes find them in autoparts stores, too. MSA and VB both sell this item. It's definitely a good thing to have if you plan to tune the car yourself.

[thefastestz]

congrats on your purchase and welcome!!

[sahunt66]

Thanks everyone for the great advice!

[owenk]

I would remove the air pump but do not throw it away or other air injection items. The day may come in some states that orignal smog equipment may be required and your items will be worth $$$