BTF/PTM

Awesome, thanks. I suspected screws had been used before, a couple of the tunnel holes are pulled upward a bit. Becuz of that slight warp in those holes, I thought maybe the wrong parts had been used which is why I asked. I'll try to flatten them with some nuts & washers before I put in the screws.

Picked up a new rubber shift boot from MSA, it's actually a real Nissan part. Anyway, I have the metal ring that seals the boot to the transmission tunnel but no nuts or bolts. What type of hardware holds these parts together?

Funny how the '59 Caddy immediately follows the Austin Mini. Both those lil Minis could fit into the trunk of that beast.

I got my "yall" from working in Texas where "all of y'all" takes way too long to say

Ok, so I definitely need to replace my starter - check this out. I'm pretty sure I figured out why the battery that came with the car kept dying. This even has a local Z-car specialist (Z Whizz) stumped. The starter motor seems to randomly kick on without engaging the solenoid and spins until the battery dies. I noticed it today when I went to connect the fresh battery. As soon as there was power, the starter was whirring its heart out but not engaging the flywheel. At the shop's advice I rapped the starter body with a hammer handle to see if any stuck contacts disengaged, and it fixed the problem; I could then reconnect the battery and the starter didn't kick on. Obviously I didn't leave the battery connected. What the eff would make a starter do that? In regard to a new starter, what does everyone use? Z Car Source has a new aftermarket starter for $135 plus core & shipping. MSA has their rebuilt unit for $70 plus core & shipping. I haven't gotten parts store or Nissan quotes yet. Are there recommendations for good replacements?

I went to the most obvious place I could think of to get a properly fitting battery for the frame after getting frustrated with the Parts Stores in my area - I hit up Mossy Nissan again. Imagine that, they had exactly the battery I need, and it was less than $25 more than an aftermarket unit. Definitely a no-brainer when a factory part can be had for just a few bucks more than aftermarket.

^ Thanks! What type of battery do you use? Also, the front "J" rod doesn't have a designated hole on the battery tray - does it just grab onto the lower lip that's slightly to the right of the front weld?

An update, I got the new seal installed, it was as easy as previously mentioned. I used a hammer and a drum stick to R & R the securing ring. The old seal was likely the factory part, I don't think it could even be called rubber anymore. It took longer to get the car on jack stands than it did to replace the seal. If only all repairs were that straight forward.

I got a battery frame from Mossy Nissan, it's a new-old-stock special order part which they told me is for my '72 240z. It doesn't fit the existing battery well, but I don't think the existing one is the correct unit anyway. Does this frame look like the right one? It doesn't match any of the pictures in the threads I've searched. Are the diagonally opposed cutouts at the sides for correspondingly opposed battery terminals? Thanks all. In case the image link fails, here's the link by itself: http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/battery%20frame/

I picked up the MSA 60-amp alternator & stock voltage regulator bypass, it came in the mail today. It's a Hitachi unit (or at least a Hitachi housing) rebuilt by Bosch by the look of things. I think I'll have it tested before I install it to make sure it works properly. Also, there's a warning on the alternator that says battery must be fully charged before installation. Is verifying the battery as simple as putting a multimeter across the terminals to look for 12-13 volts with the car turned off? As a side note, does anyone have experience with the MSA rebuilt units? The price is certainly good at $65ish plus a core charge.

just wanted final clarification, that's all. Thanks

Ok folks, here is a question I'm really hoping is answered in my favor, becuz if it is it will make up my mind quite well. I have been reading a few threads like the one below that say the following: One can run a 280ZX electronic distributor in a 240z WITHOUT any igniter module attached to it if running it in conjunction with an ignition control box such as the MSD-6A. I have come to the undeniable conclusion that going with the 280ZX distributor system using the E12-80 module isn't feasible. At $300 or more per module, I could have gone with something way more racy after just one failure. If this is in fact true, then I'd be very interested in pursuing the idea. I've chosen not to address many of the other options so as not to clutter up the core of the thread. Once I can get a definitive answer on this one, then I'll address other stuff http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=33374&highlight=MSD

^ thanks! I understand what you mean about either working the front of the door outward or shimming the unibody side of the hinges. Is that shim something that's purchasable, or will it be a fabricated piece? In any case it will wait until more pressing issues are dealt with, but it's good to know it's tunable.

This is another great thread on distributor stuff. http://www.zcar.com/forums/read/1/229699/229859

I'm considering the Pertronix myself as an alternative to the 280zx distributor. I'd be using either unit with an aftermarket ignition coil (something like the MSD Blaster2 or equivalent), but I don't plan on using a capacitive discharge box. All this said, my '72 is already equipped with an L28, so maybe that changes the research I've done a bit...maybe not. I'm a novice to ignition systems, so the more I can learn the better.

The weather stripping around the doors and quarter windows was replaced when the car was painted by the previous owner. I'm finding a lot of little quirks related to the reassembly after paint which tells me the owner did the reassembly himself rather than having the body shop do it. The misalignment really is very minor and I'm notorious for over thinking things. Both doors have the same slight outcrop at the rear, and they're both pretty much perfect at the front. I may tinker with it later after more of the big issues are taken care of, but it sounds like I should let it be. Thanks

If you haven't already seen this site, it may offer some insight. http://datsunzgarage.com/engine/index.htm Go to the section called "SEVENTH" and it covers distributors. I'm considering doing the same modification. The one thing to consider is that you may need to replace the factory tachometer.

I ended up pulling the whole door part today upon discovery that the door handle was quite loose and that the lock mechanism doesn't lock. The lock problem was easy to fix once I was able to wrestle the chrome window sash an window glass out of the door (holy crap what a pain). The door handle looks simple, too, I think it's just a lack of lock washers that allowed the nuts to work loose. The rubber seals on the handle were shot, one of them crumbled, so hopefully I can order replacements for those. Another thing I found was, the handle I worked on sat too close to the paint and had tapped on the door enough times to wear through the paint. Do I need to/should I put spacers in there, or was it the failed rubber seal that was allowing the handle to sit too close to the body? Thanks, guys. http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/drum%20stuff/door%20alignment/door%20handle/

So I've got the passenger-side door striker working much better than before I started messing with it, the door shuts solidly and looks like it's pushing into the weather stripping pretty well. But, as several others have posted before, the door (actually both of them are like this) is sticking out just a tad at the rear. The front looks to be aligned flush and the whole door seems to be off evenly so I don't think anything is twisted or bent, and the hinges operate without any indication of twist or damage. Now here's an observation that I thought I'd bounce off the group - it seems like, as I'm closing the door from the inside (with the panel off so I can see things) it looks ever so subtly as if the door is too far forward and maybe the front seals are being squished too hard and it's making the rear of the door do what it does. I don't want to mess with panel alignment without some help since I can foresee lots of disastrous things happening with just one pair of hands trying to align something as precarious as a door. Am I being overly picky? Can the doors be aligned perfectly? Would it be worth having a body expert do it? Thanks, guys. http://s132.photobucket.com/albums/q27/AwwsChwA/drum%20stuff/door%20alignment/

Agreed, I didn't really need to ask the question to know the safe answer. I'll be tinkering on and off with other parts of the car throughout the weekend, so the garage will stay well ventilated.

Thanks!! I ordered a pair of gaskets through Mossy Nissan, should have them mid-week. Ordered a battery hold-down, too, since the car is currently using a come-along strap. Is the car safe to drive if I keep maybe a quarter tank in it so that the fuel doesn't reach that leak? Dealership advised me of the worst-case scenario where a bad backfire could ignite fuel vapors around the tank :paranoid:

So I filled the tank full for the first time after discovering the level sender has a problem when the car ran outta fuel while still reading nearly full. Previous owner had the tank hot tanked n new lines fitted including the filler neck, but the sender seal is original. It leaks badly, it's a steady stream of fuel that I traced with a flashlight to that seal. It looks like I can replace this seal with the tank still in the car if I pull the right rear wheel - is this a fair assessment, or should I gear up for dropping the tank? Also, is this seal still available, or should I plan on making a gasket?

So it was discovered upon beginning repair of a leaking exhaust manifold gasket that my '72 has an old aftermarket header on it. It's a 6-2-1 so it's got two 3-bolt flanges where the header meets the 2-1 collector and that's where it was leaking. Neither the shop nor I have any idea what brand it is, but it has (plugged) air injection ports at the cylinder head flange end, so whatever type it is it was a legit aftermarket replacement. Anyone dare to venture a guess as to what brand it may have been or how old it is? Doesn't matter, I'm just curious.

You had to make room for your big Bon Jovi hair, didntcha?

It's character, not a problem