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Snow weekend in Texas. Too cold to do brake work. Did put new wheels in the back and tested the drum brake e-brake. It works, I didn’t mess it up too bad rebuilding them.

Shake down drive: Choke cables need to be adjusted. Alternator not charging battery. (Going to adjust tension to see if that is the problem. Also spare alternator is available.) Still some leaking from the tank, but it looks like vent hoses are the culprit. I'll have to drive it to drop the fuel level to where I can drain it and drop the tank to inspect. Turn signal cancellation needs to be cleaned up. Oil pressure is great. Water temp is normal. Hard starting after fueling up. I had to hold the gas pedal down while cranking for a while. Choke cable misadjustment? Ran like a scalded dog when it was up to temp. The 5 speed truck transmission (installed by a previous owner) leaves a LOT to be desired aside from dropping RPMs at cruise.

Hi Keith , Mr.Uekubo is a very passionate about Z cars , but not so interested in showing his work. But he had been taking pictures step by step , and they became into a big photo album . I was so amazed by it . Now I have got my another blue on blue , I may not be able to do like Mr. Uekubo , but trying to do myself as much as I can . First , cleaning inside , found some coins and tickets. Maybe someone thinks me I am idiot smiling about these fatale broken seats . But for me , they are an early “ thick padding “ seat backs which has so beautiful shape .And they are blue ! For me This is for the first time ever seeing blue original seat actually . My previous blue car already lost blue seats when I purchased, so I was waiting for this opportunity since 2000 . I am so excited . Kats

Two good threads. I, personally, don't buy into the paint coating claim. But the finish is smooth and not very bright. I did this valve cover for 26th-Z. I polished the living daylights out of the surface before I sprayed it wrinkle. I wanted all the casting marks removed and that took a lot of work. It turned out pretty good.

So I added tension to the alternator belt, and the alternator still wasn't charging. Time to load the parts cannon! I fired the cannon and tested with a new alternator. Still no charging. Now it's time to diagnose properly. I checked the sense voltage. It's good. I check the lamp voltage. It's not good. I checked on the positive side of the diode. Nope. I inspected the connector with the jumpers. Some time in the past I moved the jumper to the wrong place. I moved it back, fired up the engine, and saw 14.6 on the voltmeter. So let this be a lesson, kiddies. DON'T use the parts cannon before you make an effort to diagnose thoroughly.

I believe those are where the tank vent lines go down through the floor from the vent tank

Lawks, what a mess. The valve covers on these engines were not manufactured by 'Aitoku Co. Ltd', and they never supplied replacement covers either. They were simply a reconditioned engine supplier, hence the sticker advising that there's no oil inside (the engines could not be shipped with oil pre-filled) and to check drain plug and 'filter cap' (sic) tightening before starting. That's simply a valve cover taken off a recon engine. The valve (cam) covers were manufactured by Nissan using the High Pressure Die Casting method. The casting dies were polished, and the outer surface of the covers came out of the process with a fine-grained, dense outer surface finish that did not require painting.

I think the ZX distributors are pretty much re-build your old one since the cores are pretty much gone. The OP said he has a 78 distributor, so he can make that work just fine with an HEI module.

Have to add my 2 1/2 cents to this thread, as the lucky new owner of this beautiful automobile. cw240Z72 is not only a master craftsman but a great guy, having had the pleasure to meet him at his home/workshop this week. Who but a mechanical engineer could do computer based drawings and 3D printer recreations of hard to source parts?! Too nice to drive.....but too bad! This car is going out on the road, and down to the local cars and coffee in the near future. Then "date night" with a girl I've known for a (long) while. Eagerly await delivery..decided I'd better not drive it home during the winter months. And thanks to all who posted here along the way.

I put about 80 miles on the new Z today. New to me, of course. What a blast. This is the best therapy there is.

Yes. Easier to just plug them to block fumes and leave them for someone down the line who might go resto on the car. Plus, they're good ports for electrical wires in the future.

8D-420: This is only the second picture I've ever seen of this specific car, so I know very little about it. Visually and appointment-wise, it shares much with the other 1971 Monte Carlo cars, including the center console switchgear layout. That said, it's missing a few components as well that were installed on the cars that actually rallied. Just based on my limited knowledge, I'd venture to say that I think the same as you: that this was a 1970 test mule the Works team used to try things out, and it probably never actually competed. Perhaps Alan knows a bit more about it. I wonder what happened to 8D-420. I can also only dream as you do, that it was saved from the crusher, and ended up safely tucked away in a warehouse somewhere.

Actually I should have said AAR, aux air regulator. It sits on top of a heating plate with 2 coolant lines going to it and speeds up the idle when the motor is cold.

There are many possibilities, but one thing I would do is connect a vacuum gauge and see what that is doing after cold start vs warm up. As the motor gets heat in it, thing tend to expand and seal up better. I don't think the problem is with the afm or tps. The IAC functionality and throttle body cleanliness and others I would investigate.

Thanks to all for your response. I'll stew on it for awhile and post update when I decide. Warmest regards.

The valve assembly looks great, and it looks fantastic for having been renewed for less than $100. Yeah, as for the fuel tank, don't forget, time I have, money not so much. 😅 The reality is, I love doing this kind of work, and I've learned over the years that I can absolutely trust my work. Since I have no profit motive, I can work and rework until I am quite happy. Besides, it gives me great reasons to buy more tools! Now I just need a place to put them.

The Zx distributor I put in my '77 bearing cage came apart I suppose, steel balls were stuck to the sides and the performance was a little sluggish. Then not a month ago a guy 3D printed some new parts that look good for $25 I think? I'm going that route when it warms up down here.

I like the black on mine too. It's such a good contrast off the aluminum carbs and intakes.

The front lights have dual filament bulbs. One filament has a lower light level than the other. If you look in the BE section, you'll see the original bulb spec. It's 1034. I was just looking at some original dual filament bulbs last night. When you look at the wiring diagrams, you'll see two loops in the bulb where you have a dual filament. There's also a dual filament bulb on each side of the rear panel.

Hi Kats, Just this week I received a box set of 'Fairlady Z Story & History' Vols 1 & 2, kindly sent to me by editor Morita san as a gift. He said the photo printing production in the new edition was improved (maybe colour contrast is better?) and indeed it is beautifully produced. I was proud to have made a small contribution for the section which covered the race & rally cars. There are many never-seen-before photos in there. Recommended!

not in your area, but welcome. You have come to the right place for sure! More info here that is humanly imaginable.