tlorber

Good for you, for rebuilding it. I was always intimidated (due to the exploded diagrams) and then about 3 years ago I rebuilt the same tranny (bearings were shot). You may as well use everything that came with the kit. I bought mine from the same place. Seals, baulk rings and bearings all go out given enough mileage. 2 tips if I might; 1) use wooden dowels to place the gears and ring on so that they all stay in the same order; 2) the kit did NOT come with a new O ring that goes on the sleeve that the shift lever goes into so I just used the old one. I get a slight bit of oil seepage past this ring.

Well, here is what the rear of my '73 looks like. I don't know if these mounting points are different from the earlier ones, but perhaps someone has a pic for comparison?

I definitely concur with the leak down test. This should tell whether you are leaking past rings vs. valves. I had once had a car that burned oil only on startup, and it turned out to be the valve guide seals. However is sounds as if you have already replaced them. While the threads may be seeping oil (in which case I'd think you would hear exhaust gas escaping on compression) that still would not explain how oil is getting INTO the combustion chamber. Please keep us informed.

I don't believe there is any difference between the "73 REAR bumpers vs. the earlier ones. I welded my 3 piece bumper together, filled the holes and had it replated.

A Datsun Roadster regulator may be the same one-especially for your '70 since that was the last year of the roadster and Datsun was using some of the same parts. I used one on my '73 that worked until I installed an internally regulated alternator. Scroll down and search on this site for "Voltage Regulator" Datsunparts.com Query Results

Stephen, I rebuilt an '82 5 speed before putting it into my '73. You definitely do NOT need to pull the motor. However, you should 1) remove the fan, 2) loosen the motor mounts and 3) lower the rear (or raise the front) end of the motor to a bit more extreme angle in order to permit the tranny to slide in. The purpose of removing the fan is so that it does not hit the radiator while the motor is at a cocked angle. I had no issues whatsoever. By the way, if you have not already done so, don't forget to get the speedo pinion gear that matches your diff.

Well, the boobs thread is working, so I'm good! Thanks for all your efforts.

This is the only pic I could find, and I drew in that ghetto red line to show where it connects. You may have to blow up the picture to see it. That hose is what provides the power assist for braking via the manifold vacuum (it connects to the rear of the balance tube on carbureted models-not sure about the later fuel injected ones). When you press on the pedal, the diaphragm in the booster helps apply pressure to the master cylinder. Without that assist, the brakes would feel like they do when the motor is off; i.e. you can still stop but you have to apply much more pressure, and probably more stress to the firewall and brake pedal.

That is a bummer about the shipping. The seller should be paying for it if the part was not as advertised. The 3.54 is what an automatic 240Z has.

I have a spare at my shop that someone had used on a race car. It is in good condition but will need a couple holes welded up where he had the "pins" in to keep it from flying open. It is in L.A. though, so shipping would be probably be prohibitive (assuming he is near you). I do have a client that occasionally ships cars up there. I can check to see if he has anything going up in the near future.

x2. That kink at the top would concern me.

Keep that chick off the hood!

I just used the half shafts from the 3.36 and put them onto the 3.70-No issues in may case. While researching, I did see that some required removing a "button gear" inside the diff. If this is the case, I believe it was a circlip that you have to release from inside the housing, and then slide the shaft out. It was a couple years back, but it should be doable given the parts that you have. If yours does not look like those above, I will look for the link that I had read in the past. Let me know.

So, its hard to know. Either the larger bumper saved you, or he would have missed the smaller one altogether. Glad to hear their was no serious car or human damage.

That 3.36 with overdrive will probably let you cruise at 80 mph at 2300 rpm, but It will suck around town. I put in an '82 tranny with 3.70 rear end from an 810 (early Maxima). It is a great combination.

1) Were the lights working AFTER you changed the fuses? 2) Is it possible that you hit a relay on the firewall while changing the starter?

One other thing about the rear brakes; I know the ratcheting mechanism is supposed to tighten the rears when the e brake is pulled. I'm not overly confident about this. Before going on a long run, I jack up the rear axle and manually tighten the rears via the holes in the drums until there is just a slight drag. This way I know the rears are engaging, and the feel in the pedal is noticeable.

I had considered upgrading my calipers as well, but the prospect of changing the balance concerned me. I put in the stainless steel brake lines, and upgraded compound shoes/pads from Motorsport. These made a huge difference and I am happy with them. This cost me around $200.00. I had previously changed out my MC with a 1" Wilwood, which I like. Do not get a racing compound for your brake pads unless that is where you plan on using the car. That compound must heat up before working optimally, and street conditions do not permit this (or at least they shouldn't).

I'm planning on taking her to a high performance drivers ed class in January.

I was just talking to a guy who owns a speed shop that has done a few of these 5.3 litre LS motor swaps. He says that once the emissions programming is removed from the ECU, you can have a truck with 340 rwh (all stock w/no aftermarket cams, heads or headers) and still get 25 mpg on the highway.

Latest scheme-I'm probably in over my head on this one, but I'll just have to dig my way out... my '54 body, going onto the chassis of this donor truck To be powered by this... Once I get a degree in electrical engineering, I'll be able to figure out the wiring harness.

I've been trying for a couple years now to see whether they have the retro 4 (libre replicas) in 15" with zero offset in silver that fit the Z. I've yet to hear back so I gave up.

I don't think it should cost that much just to get it drivable. You do need to change fluids and brakes, but if you spend a bunch of money you probably will not get it back. Get it running and get it listed.

If you search on the site here, you'll see a few writeups about this. I'd post the link but don't know how to with this IPad. Dean at datsunparts.com will be getting a run in from a manufacturer. They look nice, but the passenger's side will be flat, which means a limited field of vision. I used a prototype with a slightly convex mirror on it and it is very useful. By the way, I do still have a shim that I made from aluminum to adapt the driver's side from a previous round. It took a lot of work to get that shim the correct shape. I then had to replace the original mirror bolt with a longer one due to the thickness of the shim.

Spare heads are pretty common, so you might look around. No issues with the bottom end?